#she helps ONCE and has this hissy fit?

[softzindagi]

been a day

[lipglossanon]

Red Flags and Long Nights

Real Dad!Leon S. Kennedy x daughter fem!reader (one shot)

hello hello 👋 this is the fic written for the milestone celebration poll winner (real dad taking accidental viagra); big big thanks to all of you who have gotten me here!! 💜 💜 I’m so thankful everyday that you guys choose to read/like/share/interact with my fics and just me in general! 🥰 so without further ado, I hope you enjoy this one shot!!!

WARNINGS: 18+ MDNI, INCEST, dead dove content, dad/daughter incest, groping, slight cnc, dirty talk, breast play, oral (m receiving), kissing, teasing, unprotected sex, creampie

not proofread 😅 some of it was written while sleepy so hopefully it makes sense haha

title from Red Flags and Long Nights from She Wants Revenge

<<prequel: Oh By Gosh, By Golly>>

One day, your mom calls you up out of the blue wanting to talk about planning a family vacation this year. Somewhere with sandy beaches and clear blue water. Something over an extended weekend once everyone can take off work. She’s already talked it over with your dad and he’s agreeable as long as it doesn’t cost an arm and a leg. 

As she talks, you pull open your calendar and look over your work schedule. Once you find a date that works, she promises to text you the details of the Air B&B she plans to book. You bid her goodbye and hang up the phone, quietly excited about a beach trip even if it is with your parents. 

You keep busy as you slowly count down the days; long graduated from college but still struggling to find work in your major, you’ve had to settle for any job opportunity that will pay the bills. Luckily enough, you were hired to work at the local post office. It’s not a glamorous job by any means, but you do get federal holidays off and your boss is pretty lenient with you. It’s a cinch to put in your PTO for the extended weekend you plan to spend with your parents. 

The morning you drive down to the beach house is pleasant; it’s early enough you miss out on a bunch of traffic which helps you save enough time to splurge a little and grab some coffee. Following the GPS, you get to the beach house in the afternoon with plenty of sunshine left to enjoy. Your parent’s car is already parked outside so you don’t have to worry about figuring out how to unlock the joint.

You grab your small suitcase and make your way into the lovely three story home. As you walk up the gravel sidewalk, you take in how secluded the area truly is and how lucky your mom was in getting such a nice place. You’re pretty sure it cost out the ass, but hey who’re you to deny such generosity?

The door swings open before you touch the handle and your mom pulls you into a hug. 

“Oh honey, I’m so happy you could make it!”

Breathing in the perfume embedded into your brain from childhood, you give her a quick squeeze back before pulling away. 

“Me too,” you smile, “this place is amazing!”

She laughs and moves further into the house, looking back as you follow along behind after closing the door. 

“A friend of a friend owns this place so it was pretty easy to get. Even your father can’t throw one of his little hissy fits about the cost,” she rolls her eyes and you breathe out a laugh. 

“Where is he?” You look around but only see the open kitchen leading off into the dining room. 

“Down at the beach,” she points to the sliding glass doors on the other side of the living room, “I told him I wanted to stay up here for when you arrived.”

You nod and smile at her again, “Thanks, I appreciate it. I’m gonna go put my stuff up and change then we can head down ourselves.”

She nods, “There’s a handful of bedrooms on the second and third floor. Your dad and I are staying in the master down here so you have your choice of rooms.”

“Nice, be back in a sec,” grabbing your luggage, you climb the stairs to scout out where you want to sleep. 

You pick a cute room on the third floor; it has a little balcony with a couple of chairs that gives you a fantastic view for miles around. You toss your clothes into the dresser and quickly change into your swimsuit. Grabbing a towel and some sunscreen, you slide on your sandals and make your way back downstairs. Your mom, wearing a big floppy hat, is already standing outside the sliding doors. 

You chatter with each other, just catching up on your day to day, while you both make your way down the little path that leads out onto the beach. As soon as your sandals hit the sand, you see a huge beach umbrella. 

“Glad to know he won’t burn,” your mom laughs, toeing off her own sandals to walk barefoot over to your dad. 

Following her lead, you take off your sandals and carry them over to the blanket underneath the shade of the umbrella. 

“‘Bout time,” a groggy baritone meets your ears. 

“Shush, Leon, it didn’t kill you to nap on the beach now did it?”

Your dad just mumbles a reply to your mom before raising up. He squints over at you, eyes heavy lidded from sleep as you set your stuff down. 

“The drive okay?”

You laugh and finally look over at him, “It was fine.”

His blue eyes sharpen as they read your expression before darting down to give you a once over. Your nipples tighten against your will and his gaze seems to linger there for a split second before flicking back up to your face. Plastering on a fake smile, you sit down and grab your sunscreen. 

“Want some help with that?” Your dad nods to the little bottle in your hands. 

“S-sure.”

You kinda hope the ground splits open to swallow you whole, but instead you just move over to where your dad is sitting up on the blanket, hand outstretched to grab the sunscreen. 

“Well while you two do that, I’m going to go take a dip,” your mom beams at you, completely leaving you alone to wallow in this newfound awkwardness. 

Keeping your back to your dad, you feel his broad calloused palms drag the slick lotion all over your back and shoulders, deftly massaging it in. For the last few years, there’s been a line of tension between you and Leon. An accidental kiss under the mistletoe where you both used too much tongue to be appropriate (any tongue isn’t appropriate but you’re blaming the alcohol everyone had been drinking).  

Since then, you’ve both watched the other. Glances too heated to be innocent, brushing against each other unnecessarily… and now with his sun warmed hands rubbing across your back, your brain empties as your body buzzes with arousal.

It’s why it takes a second for you to realize that your dad has moved on to rubbing in the sunblock across your ribs and over your clavicle. His hands come up and cup your breasts, stiff nipples showing through the fabric. 

“Gotta make sure to get everywhere,” his breath gusts past your ear as his hands slip under your top and massages the fat of your breasts. 

“Ohh,” you whimper quietly, cunt pulsing warmly in time with your heartbeat.  

He squeezes and rubs across your soft skin, fingers plucking at your stiff peaks until you moan brokenly. 

“Dad,” your breathy exaltation has him pinching and twisting your nipples before groping your breasts roughly in his hands. 

“‘M almost done,” he licks the shell of your ear and your thighs twitch, “you’ve got such nice tits, princess. Don’t want’em to burn.”

You press your hand over your mouth to muffle the whine you let slip. With one last harsh pinch to your nipples, he lets go, scooting back away from you. 

“Should be good to go,” he grins at your dazed look, “don’t keep your mom waiting.”

Shaking your head, you blink rapidly and slowly climb to your feet. As you pass by Leon, his hand reaches up and smacks your ass hard. 

“Be a good girl, okay?”

“Y-yeah, dad.”

You pad out to the ocean, waving to your mom as she looks for seashells in the shallow water. Wading out far enough for water to hit your chest, you finally let yourself sigh out loud. 

“What in the fuck?!”

You rub wet hands over your face as you gaze out onto the horizon. Flirting is one thing, but getting felt up by your dad is definitely crossing the line. You shiver, clit still throbbing as you reach down to press your palm against your cunt. Even as messed up as it may make you, you wish he would’ve slipped his hand down and fingered your pussy. 

The sun glaring off the water makes you squint even as you enjoy the scenery, trying your best to squish all the other thoughts and feelings you’ve had in the past half hour down into a little box you can open later. It works for a time, until the squinting becomes too much and the glare is driving sharp little needles into your brain. 

Leaving the water, you make your way over to your mom as she scoops up more shells with a net. 

“I’m gonna head in, got a bit of a headache,” you wince as the sun bounces off her watch into your eyes. 

“Let me walk with you,” she frowns, “you’re looking a little washed out.”

You nod and follow her back up to the beach blanket, eyes skirting over where your dad’s lounging reading a book. 

“We’re headed up to the house, do you need anything?”

Your mom grabs her bag and your stuff as your dad sets his book down onto his lap. He looks at you then back to his wife. 

“No, once I finish this, I’ll be heading up, too.”

She hums and takes you by the arm, helping guide you back to the house since the pain beats a tempo behind your eyes and makes your vision a little blurry. Once in the house, she helps you upstairs to your room. In doing so, she makes sure to stop in at the bathroom on the bottom floor to point out the migraine medicine in the cabinet.

Entering your room, she sits you down on your bed. She tucks you in and makes sure to close the blinds before walking back into the hallway. Turning, she gives you a concerned look.

“I’m going to head into town. It’s about an hour's drive from here so I won’t be back til later. If you need anything, call, okay?”

You hum in reply already drifting to sleep in hopes you’ll feel better once you crash for a few hours. The nap helps and by the time you come to, your headache is completely gone. Waking up is a chore however; it takes you a minute to realize where you are, eyelids sticking together, gummy with sleep. 

Raising up on your elbows, you reach over to the side table and grab your phone. Eyebrows pinching together, you blink sluggishly until you can read the time. It’s only late afternoon even if it feels like you’ve slept through the night. Climbing out of bed, you change before leaving your room with a plan on grabbing some water from the kitchen. 

It’s noticeably quiet as you finally step out on the bottom floor. Your mom must still be gone since you don’t see her shoes by the front door. 

“Fuck.”

You hear the muttered curse from the half open bathroom door that you’re walking past heading to the kitchen. 

“Everything okay?” 

You slowly press the door all the way open and your dad fumbles with a towel before placing it over his lap as he sits heavily down on the edge of the tub. 

“I thought you were out with your mother,” he bites out, tone sharp.

“No,” you frown, leaning against the doorjamb, “I had a headache and took a nap. Are you alright?”

He blows out a breath and scrubs a hand over his face. 

“I’m fine. What time did she say she’d be back?”

You shrug, “Couple of hours I think. I don’t really remember.”

“Goddamn it.”

“Should I call—“

“No,” Leon nearly shouts, “no, don’t. It’s not a big deal.”

“Dad, I can help I just need to know what’s wrong,” you step closer into the bathroom. 

He laughs without any humor, “Sure.”

You go to ask him why when your eyes catch on the bottle sitting by the sink. It’s similar to the migraine medicine you saw in the medicine cabinet earlier, the one your mom pointed out if the nap didn’t get rid of your headache. Who knew your dad needed help getting it up?

“Did you..?”

You trail off, feeling awkward and nervous and disgustingly turned on to think your dad’s dick is hard underneath that flimsy towel. 

“Yes,” he sounds tired, “I thought it was the other medicine.”

“Ohh,” you bite your lip, brain completely in the gutter as your eyes drift down to his lap, “I mean, I can still help.”

It seems insane but your dad’s not stopping you as you shuffle closer to stand between his legs. His blue eyes stay steady on yours as you kneel in the floor, knees digging into the soft rug in front of the tub. Leon tugs his briefs down and his cock slaps against his stomach, precum drooling from the head. He’s so hard, the foreskin has drawn back from the tip showcasing how red and swollen his cock has gotten from the medication. 

“Oh my god,” you breathe out, eyes greedily taking him in.

“Fuck, don’t look at it like that,” he groans, hands gripping the tub so tight his knuckles blanch.

“You’re just really big,” you press the dough of your thighs together, trying to put a little pressure on your throbbing clit, “you’ve got the fattest cock I’ve ever seen, dad.”

You watch as precum blurts from the tip to drip all down his length while he moans low in his throat. 

“Christ, you’ve got a filthy mouth,” his pupils are blown as he gazes down at you, “since you like how big my dick is, sweetheart, why don’t you show me, hmm?”

Your tongue licks up all the precum leaking down his dick before softly suckling on the head.

“Oh fuck, that’s it,” he grunts, “suck that cock.”

Moaning, you bob your head down, tongue tracing the thick vein you can feel on the side as you sink down inch by inch. Your dad pulls out to trace your lips with his drippy tip, smearing precum across your mouth like sticky gloss. You moan and press a kiss to his dick, tongue lapping at the crown until he’s rocking back into your mouth. Humming low in your throat makes his cock kick in your mouth, precum coating your tongue.

“Damn, so good,” he groans, hand smoothing across your jaw, cradling it as he pulls his cock out, “never get head from your mom anymore. Feels so good.”

More slick wets your panties as you mewl, throat clicking as you swallow around his thick length. You hungrily suck his cock, tongue circling his head before dipping into the slit to taste more of his precum.

“Like sucking me off, sweetheart?” he tosses the fringe away from his eyes while he rocks his hips, pushing himself deeper into your throat with smooth strokes until you gag heavily. 

“Love that, choke on it a bit more and I’ll be spilling down your slutty throat.”

Thick strands of saliva bridge between your mouth and his dick like shimmery spiderwebs as he slips out. You moan when he ruts his cock across your tongue. Leon groans and reaches down to tap his cock against your lips before feeding it back to you. Whining, you suck him deeper into your mouth, licking across the head before messily bobbing your head further down his thick length.  

“I'm about t’cum, swallow it all up, princess,�� he thrusts a few more times before pulling out until the tip is sitting fat and heavy on your tongue. 

Leon grunts and moans as hot thick spurts of cum fill your mouth. Swallowing quickly, you try to keep his cum from spilling out around your lips, but it ends up leaving a sticky mess to drip down your chin in thick strands. 

You watch as he groans, stomach flexing while you suckle on the head of his dick, making sure to not miss any of his hot jizz as his balls empty into your mouth. After giving the tip of his dick a kiss, you pull back and wipe the spend from your face with the bottom of your shirt. 

Your cunt feels soaked, panties sticking to your pussy lips as you shakily stand onto your feet.

“Where do you think you’re going?” 

Your dad stands up beside you, cock still hard and leaking, making you whimper. Pulling his briefs back up, he leaves his shorts and shirt lying on the floor. He grabs you by the forearm and leads you out of the bathroom and all the way upstairs into your room.

“No surprises if your mom comes home early,” he informs you, pushing you further into your room followed by closing and locking your door. 

Heat radiates from your cunt, more slick dripping into the already soaked gusset of your panties. Leon shoves you back onto your bed before climbing on top of you, kissing you heatedly as he sinks down onto your body. You wrap your legs around his waist while you run your hands through his messy hair. You're so turned on you can’t think straight anymore. 

“Thatta girl,” he coos, pulling back to drop kisses across your neck, “can’t wait to feel your wet little pussy, baby.”

You whimper and pull him back up into another kiss. This time he licks into your mouth messily, spit dripping from the corners of your lips to slide down your jaw. You feel him grind his cock against you before pulling away. 

He sits back on his haunches and slips his briefs off, maneuvering until he can toss them into the floor. Next, he leans forward and grips the bands of your panties and shorts. You help him, shimmying to move your clothes down off of your legs. As he moves those into the floor, you slip your shirt off and let it too fall onto the pile of clothing. 

“God, love your tits,” he groans, shoving his face into your breasts, mouth licking and biting every inch of skin they come across. 

His mouth suctions around a nipple, tongue teasing the stiff bud as he tweaks the opposite one with his fingers. 

“Dad,” you moan, nails digging into his scalp.

“What?” He coos, “your dad can’t show his appreciation?”

A whine rasps from your throat and Leon laughs meanly before biting the swollen bud he was sucking. With a grunt, he moves across your sternum, leaving hot open mouthed kisses across your chest until he can suckle and tease the other nipple, fingers plucking and pinching at the now wet one. 

Your hips writhe, leaking cunt dragging against his stomach as his cock grinds against the cleft of your ass. 

“Gonna let daddy stuff your tight wet cunt?” He chuckles as your eyes flutter as he lathes your nipples with broad swipes of his tongue. 

“Yes,” you whisper, “wanna feel you split me open. You’re so big.”

Whining on the last word, you rock down, feeling his tip catch against your pussy lips and driving you crazy. 

He growls and sits back on his heels, taking his cock in hand to smack it against your clit. 

“So slutty,” his pupils swallow the blue of his eyes, “want daddy to stretch this little hole out? Show you how a real dick feels?”

Nodding along with his words, you suck your bottom lip into your mouth, teeth sinking into the plush skin.  

“Goddamn,” he mutters, spitting in his hand to slick his cock before pressing the head against your soaked heat. 

Using his thumb, he presses his cock down so the tip slides into your hole. Keeping it there, he rocks against your hips, sinking inch by inch into your pulsing cunt as his thumb keeps his cock steady. Pulling halfway out, he flexes his hips and thrusts forward faster than before. 

“Even your mom doesn’t let me go raw anymore,” he chuckles, bottoming out so fast you choke on air, “so this is a real treat, sweetheart.”

“Ohh god, dad,” you moan, voice high as he starts sliding his cock in and out of your pussy, rough thrusts that make your breasts bounce. 

You whine when he grinds against you, his pelvis rubbing over your swollen clit just right. His balls smack against your ass on every thrust, the loud plap plap plap of skin driving your arousal even higher. 

“Dad, fuck, s’too much,” you gasp out another whine, head feeling dizzy as your blood rushes, arousal making your pulse feel heavy in your throat. 

He groans and drops his weight down on you, bare skin sticking together from the sweat building between your bodies. Leon kisses across your neck, mouth grazing your skin with barely there nips that makes your pussy flutter around his cock. 

The thatch of hair at the base of Leon’s cock grazes your sensitive clit, sending little electric shocks of pleasure that brings tears to your eyes. You feel so good, you can’t stop the slutty noises from leaving your mouth. Rutting into your body, your dad’s fat cock grinds against the spongy spot along the front of your cunt. Slick gushes from your pussy as he hammers your g-spot so perfectly you can’t help but squeeze him tighter and tighter. 

“Princess,” he murmurs in your ear, “is this little pussy gonna cum? You’re so soft and wet— I can feel you tightening up around me. God so much tighter than your mom, can’t believe I’ve been missing out.”

His words push you over the edge. You babble out little chants of dad, dad, dad until a guttural moan spills from your throat, thighs jumping as your pussy clamps down on Leon’s dick like a vice.

Your low moaning twists into a scream as his hand sneaks down to rub and tease your clit. Instead of your orgasm tapering off, it ramps up, gaining speed until it hurtles you into cumming again. 

“Aww, she’s gripping me so tight,” Leon mocks sweetly in your ear, “yeah, that’s it, sweetheart.”

“Dad,” you whimper, tears clumping your eyelashes, “dad, please.”

A moan rumbles from his chest and he humps your cunt faster, cock never pulling completely out as he ruts inside your slick pussy walls. Half a dozen thrusts more and he’s growling down at you, pressing his cock balls deep into your cunt, thick cum spurting from the tip of his dick to stuff you full.  

“Oh so tight, baby,” he sighs, hips pressed against yours as he spills inside your snug little cunt, “your little pussy fits me like a glove.”

Shuddering, your walls milk another small load of cum from his heavy balls and he pants noisily against your clavicle. He presses up onto his forearms, hips swiveling to pull his cock halfway out before sinking it back inside, a mix of your creamy arousal and his spend making a ring around the base.

“Good, huh,” his laugh tinges on mocking, “don’t worry, ‘m not done with my daughter’s cute pussy, gonna keep you here for as long as it takes.”

After that, it’s all a pleasurable blur. You're unsure how many orgasms your dad has given you at this point, but you know he’s only had three and his cock is still so thick and hard. 

“Think this one will be it, princess,” he grunts, hoisting your limp thighs up, the bend of your knees slotting perfectly over the bend of his arms. 

You can only pant in reply, mouth as dry as cotton. He notches the head of his drooling dick at your entrance, dragging the tip up to smear the cum from his last creampie all over your used cunt. 

“One last load for your greedy little pussy,” he grins down at you, “then we can take a shower.”

He sinks his cock into your sore pussy at the same time he leans forward, pressing your sweaty bodies together. Your eyes roll back as the tip of his cock kisses your cervix, thighs shaking against his arms. 

“So deep,” he groans, “best cunt I’ve ever fucked and to think it belongs to my sweet daughter.”

Your pussy spasms and clenches down on his thick length as you cry out. Brain melting pleasure seeps down your spine as he pulls out to grind across your g-spot before fucking back into your cunt roughly. 

“S’good, dad,” you mewl, mouth drooling as he hammers his cock into your sensitive hole, “so good.”

“I know,” he croons, “I feel good, too. Not g’nna be able to give up this sweet little pussy. She grips me too good, baby, I’m gonna want her all the time.”

Another orgasm slams into your body, pussy pulsing and sucking his cock into your hole as your head thrashes against the bed. Leon’s hands grip your wrists to push them down against the bed so you don’t scratch him. 

“Fuck, milking your dad’s cock like you’re made for it,” he groans, humping into your pussy with deep strokes until you’re crying from overstimulation. 

“Shh, shh, just take it a little more, ‘m about to cum,” he licks into your mouth, biting on your bottom lip before pulling back, “that’s it, take it, take your dad’s dick deep into that hot, greedy little pussy.”  

Hiccuping a sob, your cunt steadily milks his cock as he buries himself all the way, as deep into your pussy as possible. He grunts against your skin as he grinds his dick against your cervix, spilling rope after rope of cum to paint your walls white. The sticky heat makes your clit throb even as your body aches, wanting to succumb to exhaustion. 

The distant question of how your mom isn’t back yet buzzes at the corner of your consciousness. You must slur it out loud cause Leon laughs as he pulls his softening cock from your puffy leaking cunt. 

“She texted you to say she got stuck in a traffic jam and the road’s blocked for a few hours,” he sighs as he slaps his cock down onto your messy pussy, a wet splat that makes you wince. 

“Dad, ‘m sore,” you pout.

“So sorry, baby,” he coos, a grin overtaking his face, “want me to kiss it and make it better?”

Chest fluttering at the thought, you go to agree when your phone buzzes with an incoming call. Leon grabs it to silence it but turns to look at you. 

“It’s your mom,” he chuckles, handing it over to you, “better see what she wants.”

Sliding it open, her voice rings out clear in the quiet of your room. 

“Hey honey, your dad didn’t answer but I wanted to say I’m about five minutes from the house if you wanted to preheat the oven for this frozen pizza I picked up,” she laughs to herself, “well, it was frozen.”

Your dad sits down on the edge of the bed, listening in to the conversation. 

“Okay, sure, we’ll see ya when you get here,” Leon nods at you, “bye, mom.”

After she says goodbye, you put the phone back on the side table. 

“Well we should get cleaned up,” Leon helps you stand on weak legs, “I’ll help you to the tub and I’ll head downstairs.”

“Thanks, dad,” you smile up at him and he drops a kiss on your cheek. 

“Of course,” he leads you out into the hallway, helping you inside the little bathroom next to your room. 

He sits you down onto the toilet, turning on the shower to allow it time to heat up. 

“Thanks,” he murmurs, pressing a soft kiss on your temple, “I know it’s all kinds of fucked up, but I still love you.”

Heart beating double time, you give him a crooked smile, “I love you too, dad.”

He presses his lips together, looking like he wants to say more, but he blows out a harsh breath and walks back out into the hall. 

“I’ll handle the oven and your mom, you just come downstairs when you’re ready.”

“I will,” you say as he swings the door shut. 

Sitting there with your thoughts, you let yourself feel. Satisfaction filters through followed by a smidgen of guilt and shame. You hate that your mom is an innocent party in all of this, but you don’t regret letting your dad fuck your brains out. And since this is a complete one off, it’s just a little family secret that you’ll both be taking to the grave. 

Once steam wafts from the shower, you stand up and step into the warm water. You whimper as the heat works on your sore muscles. By this time tomorrow, this will all seem like some really deranged fantasy you dreamt up. Finishing up in the shower, you dry off and make your way back to your room. Getting dressed, you descend downstairs, the smell of pizza growing stronger. 

“Oh there you are! Feeling better?” 

Your mom comes around the counter to feel your forehead. 

“Yeah, I just slept it off.”

She ushers you to sit down at the table and brings the pizza over, your dad following behind with the drinks. Your mom sits to your right and your dad sits across from you both. He catches your eye and winks, making you look down at your plate out of shyness. 

“Eat up, I’m sure you’re wore out from the hard day,” his mirthful tone draws your gaze back up. 

“Yeah,” you clear your throat and take a drink, “it’s been a hard day alright.”

[musings-of-a-college-dork]

A Bumpy Ride…

Eddie Munson x fem!Reader

Word count: roughly 4.8K

After a Halloween Party has gone awry, Eddie needs some private time with his girlfriend...but where to go…

Warnings: NSFW (minors do not interact), mentions of a prior fight, terms of endearment (good girl, angel, baby, sweetheart, pretty girl, etc), unprotected sex (wrap it y’all), aftercare included (so important y’all), squirting, subspace though not explicitly stated, oral (f receiving), fluffy sex for the most part! 

Author’s note: Sooooo there was a post I saw a while ago from @dearramiel saying that they needed feral Eddie the first time his girlfriend lets him hit it raw so…and turns out I had already written that for a longer fic…so here it is! And it’s in the van no less! Enjoy!

It had been a long night. What was supposed to be a fun Halloween party at Gareth’s house had turned into a brawl when Jason and the rest of the jocks dared to show their stupid smug faces. While the Corroded Coffin members had managed to push the jocks out of the house, Y/N had taken the time to check in with everyone else and got the party back into full swing right as Eddie’s head popped around the corner. She had just finished carrying a friend of hers to a nearby chair after they had too much, handing them off to Robin who was doing her best to have a good night. 

“Do you need to lean on someone now?” Eddie asked as he wrapped an arm around her waist.

“I should be asking you that,” Y/N said as she turned back to him, “Jason got you in the side pretty hard huh?” 

“You’re giving him too much credit”, Eddie lifted his shirt and Y/N observed the budding bruise that was growing on the surface area on his lower abdomen. “Holy shit,” he got a closer look and poked it. “OWW FUCK” he moaned.

“Here,” Y/N said as she leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to the skin, “That better?”  Eddie said no words. No think. He just looked at her. And made some indiscernible sound that went like “Garethasgusroom.” 

“What?” Y/N giggled as she stood back up, allowing her hands to rest on his chest. 

“I think I need some first aid,” he sighed, resting his hands on her neck, while stroking the base of her head. 

“Well then…” She smiled, “Why don’t we get out of here? Everyone is so caught up, I doubt they’ll notice.”

“People will absolutely notice that you’re gone,” he whispered. He grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her down the stairs “but they’ll manage” he went back to running, flinging open the front door.  

“Real subtle, Munson,” She teased as she shut the door behind them, careful as to not further damage Gareth’s house. 

“You’re not fast enough”, he scooped her up and began sprinting to his vehicle, which was supposed to be sexy, but ended up giving Y/N a little whiplash. 

“Eddie, if you need me that bad we shouldn’t have stayed long enough for Jason to have his hissy fit,” she teased as they arrived at the car, Y/N glad to be on the ground again as she held the side of the van for support while she found her feet. 

“You are so powerful,” he blurted. “Like seriously. I was kinda scared. But… I kinda liked it. I like how protective you are. You remind me of me,” he opened the back door and offered her a hand inside. “But you don’t have to be so strong all the time.” 

Y/N melted at that sentiment and he watched as her eyes went wide. It was a state he noticed she got into every once in a while, usually when she was feeling overwhelmed, needing him to take the reins and hold on tight.  

“I don’t?” she asked, her tone going high, taking a step closer. 

“Nope,” Eddie popped that ‘p’.  He could watch as she looked for words before taking his hand instead, the final nail in the coffin that allowed him to take over. With that he picked her up and helped her into the back of the van, climbing in after. He made sure to shut the doors behind him and when he looked back at her she was gazing up at him like he had hung the moon and stars. A while ago, he had opted to make the back of the van comfy - pillows and blankets around. The guys had asked and he said it was since they were traveling more for the band, he wanted them to be comfy…but they all knew that was far from the truth.

Eddie was reminded of the real reason as he watched Y/N’s fingers dig into the blanket she was laying on top of, a soft sigh coming from her as Eddie leaned in. Her hands instantly went to his shirt and she went to pull him in for a kiss only for him to tut and reach one hand over, his other lifting her head to rest a pillow underneath it. 

“You comfy, sweetheart?” He asked, his hand coming down to rub circles over where he could feel her hip bone. She let out an affirmative hum and it was like the stress began to melt off of her, making him smile. “You wanna let me take care of you tonight, Y/N?” She nodded and whispered out a soft “yes,” making him smile as he leaned in to kiss her. 

“Are you sure this is what you want right now?” He asked genuinely as he paused, thinking over the events of the night, “we can also just go home or stay here and cuddle-“

“No,” she shook her head and turned his face to look at her, “I really want this. Need to…need to not think for a while. Just want to be with you.” Eddie melted as he saw the trust and sincerity in her eyes. This wasn’t the first time she’d had a day in which she really needed to forget it all in a way only he could provide. 

“You’re so sweet when you get like this,” Eddie said softly, his voice genuine, as he kissed her and pulled away only to speak, “You’re so strong baby, so damn strong. When you let me see you like this, uh,” he let out a groan as he ground into her, allowing her to feel how hard he was through his jeans, “You get me like this all the time but when you let go and just let me make you feel good, take care of you,” he ran out of words and just kissed her until he felt her give a little tug to his shirt, causing him to pull back, “You ok, Y/N?” He brought his one hand up to caress her face as he looked down at her with concern, “Was that too much?”  

“No,” she shook her head quickly, her eyes blown wide as she still held onto him, “I…I trust you so much,” She confessed, “That’s…that’s why I think…I feel safe to not be so strong…with you…if that’s ok?” Eddie positioned himself over her so that their noses were grazing. 

“Y/N, you make me strong. If I get to be the person you lean on, I’d consider it the highest honor because I love you and nothing else can-”, he stopped. “ I. I. Love. You” Y/N felt her heart skip a beat as he said it, the words he had confessed to her he didn’t think he had the power to say to anyone ever. She had accepted it then, and it really was fine, she didn’t mind it since he showed her every day…but to hear him say it. She instantly tangled her hands in his hair and pulled him down to her, needing to feel every inch of him. 

“Again,” She asked as she pulled away to kiss down his neck. 

“I love you” he breathed. She held him so tight as if this was all that mattered in the world and honestly, it was. He was. 

“Again,” she begged, this time adding on a soft, “Please.” Her tone was so shaky he could have sworn she was close to tears as she sucked marks into his neck, needing him to be hers in every way. 

“I love you”, he ran his hands down her back gripping her so tight as he buried his head into her neck.

“I love you too,” She told him, “So much. Fuck, I just…I love you.” She had held those words in for so long. Since she had told him she loved him and he had expressed he wasn’t able to say those words yet, she hadn’t said them since, trying hard to follow his lead and show him instead of telling him. She wanted so badly for him to be happy, safe, and comfortable with her. He deserved it. And she wanted to give him everything he wanted, everything she had to give. And to say them again, and to hear them, that was everything. 

He pulled his head from her neck and looked down at her again, the sheer adoration in his eyes every time he looked at her something she hoped he’d never lose. 

“You’re beautiful,” he whispered, a message for only her.

“So are you,” she replied, earning a smile from him. She felt his hands slide up her skirt and grip the elastic band of her underwear. He pulled it back so it popped onto her skin with enough force to make her let out a little gasp as he chuckled at her, her returning it with a soft giggle of her own as he buried his face into her neck once more and pressed a kiss there.  

“What color is it tonight?” he smiled into her neck. “Tell me before I see it”.

“Black,” she confessed, “Wanted it to match your jacket.” 

“God you’re such a fucking good girl”, he groaned as he slid his hands into the waistband, ever so slightly tracing over her but never getting near where she needed him most, “Tell me what you want, pretty girl.” She let out a soft whine making him chuckle as he traced his fingers over her slit, “You want me here? Is that it?”  

“Yes,” She said, her voice breathless as she gripped his hair even tighter, “Want you-need you,” she corrected as she held him so tightly. “Please, Eddie.”

“Fuck,” he swore as he felt how wet she was despite everything that had happened tonight, “I need you too, baby.” He ran his fingers over her slit a couple times collecting the wetness there before bringing them out, admiring them in the light. He looked down at her, the girl completely blissed out underneath him as he held the fingers up to her. “Suck,” he commanded gently and she did, taking his fingers into her mouth and sucking on them without any hesitation. 

“Jesus, Y/N,” he swore as she whined, grinding up against him for any sort of friction. He pulled his fingers out of her mouth, drawing a whimper from her as he did which he quickly stifled with a kiss to her lips. “Can I use my mouth on you baby? Would you like that?”

“Eddie, need you inside-”

“Baby,” he lectured as he moved down, and slowly ran his hands up and down her thighs reveling in the goosebumps in his wake, “You know you need to get ready for that-”

“But-”

“Ssh,” he said as he watched her eyes go glassy at how badly she just needed to forget it all and let him be in complete control, “I’ve got you.” She nodded with a soft whine as he finally pulled down her underwear, letting out a groan at the way she was revealed to him. “Been thinking about this all night,” he confessed as he blew on her, making her whole body shiver, her thighs spreading further apart for him. “Watching you dance with your friends. And then hearing you tell Jason the fuck off. God, wanted to take you right then and there. Didn’t fucking matter half the basketball team was there. Any of those fuckers would like the show.” He slipped a finger into her, watching as she let out a gasp, hands gripping onto anything she could, fingers he knew would soon be tugging at his hair like they always were when she got like this. “Thought about this, putting my fingers in you, having you a little mess for me. And only for me.” She let out a moan as he put another one in, and began to move them inside of her. 

“Shit, you always sound so pretty. My pretty girl,” he purred as he leaned down and began to press kisses to her neck.

“Eddie please-”

“What do you want, angel?” He asked softly as he began to suck hickeys into her neck, one in the exact spot he knew she liked behind her ear. 

“Please fuck me,” she begged, voice so shakey and he knew she was gone, putty in his hands in a way that promised the sweet relief she always needed. 

“Anything for you,” he said as he nodded. He brought his lips down to her clit and kissed there first, gently just to get her used to it, using his free hand to hold her hips in place causing her to sigh out in contentment as he felt her give more of herself over to him. 

“There you go,” he cooed in adoration, “let it all out, baby. I’ve got you.” Y/N’s voice got even higher in pitch as he began to really focus his efforts, his fingers moving inside of her coupled with his mouth moving against her. He knew what she liked at this point, taking his time to not only learn every intricacy of her body but also of her mind when she got like this. Before long, he could tell that she was on the edge, her fingers pulling harder in his hair as she squirmed despite his best efforts to keep her still. 

“Wow, already? You really that pent up for me sweetheart?” He asked only to receive a high-pitched hum. He chuckled and the sound coupled with the vibrations and the way he pressed a third finger into her had her teetering off the edge. The last thing it took to get her there was simple. 

“Let go for me,” he commanded, and she did, with a soft cry, her eyes squeezing shut as she held him impossibly close, needing him. He made sure not to waste a drop, licking her clean and when he came up, he was shocked to find how quickly she sat up to kiss him. He pulled away ever so slightly and she chased his lips until he quickly put a finger to them.

“Is this what you want, baby? You want me inside of you?” He asked gently. She nodded and clutched his shirt. 

“Please Eddie, please. Need you inside so bad,” She confessed, getting so whimpery for him when she got this pent up. 

“Your wish is my command, darling,” he said as he kissed her while her hands wasted no time undoing his jeans and pulling him out. 

“Oh fuck,” he swore as she stroked him gently. He was already hard as a rock when she took him out, pre leaking from his tip as he shuddered on top of her. “Please, just like that.” She laid back down and Eddie was on top of her once more as she stroked him and began to line him up.

“Y/N, wait.” She did, instantly, her eyes going wide as she looked up at him to make sure he was alright. His eyes were wide but his tone soft as he smiled at her, reminding her gently, “I need to put on a-”

“I’m on birth control,” Y/N said quietly. Eddie’s eyes went even wider as he processed exactly what she was saying to him, his reaction of shock and surprise making her continue on, “And…I know you’re clean…and I am too…so…if you want…”

“Are you sure?” Eddie asked, his hands coming to hold her cheeks and scan her eyes for any sign of hesitation at all, “You’re sure?” 

“Yes,” She nodded, “Need you. Need all of you.” 

“Fuck,” he swore again as he braced himself, his hands pressed so hard into the floor of the van, “If you’re sure-”

“I am if you are,” She double-checked with him. He nodded, a soft smile on his lips before he came down and kissed her so softly, slowly beginning to inch himself into her. 

It was a very different feeling, one that was new for both as he slid into her, taking pauses as their moans and pants mixed together. 

“Holy shit,” he swore having to pause half way through from the way she was squeezing down on him, “you’re so fucking tight,” he chuckled, causing her to gasp which in turn had her clenching around him making it worse. He cringed in pleasure, hissing as he brought his hand down to draw soft slow circles on her clit, “Gonna need you to relax for me, sweetheart or I won’t last long.” Y/N kissing on his neck to distract herself from the burning stretch wasn’t helping him to keep from blowing right then and there. He tried to allow his mind to wander elsewhere as he had in the past when he had been too close too fast with other people but this time, all he could think about was her. 

After a couple of more moments, he felt her buck her hips, a clear indication that she wanted more of him, all of him. 

“Please,” she begged as she wrapped her arms around his neck and looked up at him, red lips swollen from the way he had been kissing her. “All of it.” He nodded and complied, pressing the rest of the way into her with a hiss, hands worming their way under his shirt to dig her nails into his back.

“Holy-”

“Fuck-

“Oh my god,” he groaned as he pressed his lips to hers, anything to tell her how good he felt at this moment. He kissed her so passionately, her whimpering underneath him fueling him as he pulled out ever so slightly as a test, both moaning into each other’s mouths. 

“Still want another minute?” He asked as he pulled away, trying his best to maintain his last thread of sanity to check in with her, resisting the urge to fuck her into next week. “I can-”

“Please move,” she begged, her one hand tangled in his hair as the other ran scratches down his back, “Need it so badly, please Eddie, please!” And just like that, his last shred of sanity snapped. He pulled all the way out and then filled her again in one fatal swoop drawing a shriek from her before he pressed his hand over her mouth. 

“Remember, baby,” he said as he stilled inside her for only a moment, “If you’re a good girl for me like you’re being right now, I always give you exactly what you want. I’m going to right now, but if you don’t want everyone here at this party to know, keep being good and try to stay quiet for me, ‘kay?” She nodded and he removed his hand, smiling before he pressed a kiss to her forehead as the hand that was over her mouth trailed down to her neck and without really squeezing, just found home though drawing a whine from her at the feeling of the cool metal rings against the warmth of her throat. The whine was a quiet one as she tried her best to comply with his commands. He knew in times like this that was the only thing she aspired to do. 

“There’s my girl.” He didn’t even give Y/N a moment to breathe before he was back to his brutal pace. Her legs came to wrap around his waist, her nails leaving the most delicious burning string on his back as she clawed at him. She could feel him, every ridge and veins as he continued to fuck her into the next week. And she, oh god, he thought as he took for her all she was worth, she felt like velvet. He couldn’t get past the sound of him fucking in her, the wetness of it all. She was always a perfect fit for him but right now she was squeezing him like a vice - so damn tight he knew he wouldn’t last long. He watched her face contort as she tried her best to keep her moans quiet.

“So good,” he praised her, drawing even more of a moan, “My good fucking girl,” he punctuated each word with an especially rough thrust, feeling her clench so tight around him, the moans falling from her mouth his own version of heaven.

“Shit baby,” he swore, bringing the hand around her neck down to her clit despite her little protests, “I’ve got you. You’re ok.” Her eyes were glossy, makeup running as he continued to ruin her and the way she looked up at him had him pressing his lips to hers like he was poisoned and she was the cure. He felt the tears slip down her cheeks as she clenched down impossibly tight around him. 

“Go on, Y/N,” he whispered in her ear, “Let go.” And she did, her mouth falling open in a silent scream as he felt wetness gush from her, coating where they were connected. 

“Fuck,” he swore, unable to hold off his own end as she continued to grip him like a vice. “Shit Y/N I’m gonna-”

“It’s ok,” she managed, her breathing so heavy as she rode out her high, “Please-Eddie-”

“But I’m still-”

“Let go.”

“Fuck, fuck, fuck” he swore again as he couldn’t hold back any longer burying his head into her neck as he came inside of her, the girl gasping and holding him as he did. He continued to thrust shallowly, allowing them both to ride out their highs, before he heard her hiss in pain from the overstimulation and slowed, still inside of her. 

“Shit, Y/N,” he swore as he came up for air, taking in gulps, as much as he could, “I’m…I’m so sor-”

“S’its okay,” she reassured him, the hand in his hair playing with his curls as she pulled his face back into her neck, “Wanted you to. Felt right.” She pulled him away when he went quiet to see the guilt written on his face. She let out a soft sigh, smiling up at him, completely blissed out as she pressed a kiss to his lips. “It’s ok Eddie. Really.” 

“Okay,” he nodded, smiling and letting out a little sheepish chuckle, “I guess I should-”

“Please don’t pull out yet,” she asked softly, causing him to halt any motion to do so, “Just…stay like this with me for another moment…please?” He melted, rolling them both to the side so that she could nestle right into his chest. 

“Of course,” He nodded, pressing a kiss to her forehead, “Always.” The pair lay in comfortable silence, just holding each other and being as close as they possibly could, intertwined in every way. God did it feel right. That was all Eddie could think as he held her so close to him, her head tucked into his chest as he kissed the top of her head.

“I love you, Y/N,” he repeated, meaning it from the deepest part of his soul. 

“I love you too, Eddie,” came her soft reply. He beamed from ear to ear, holding her even tighter as she giggled, finally coming down all the way. 

“We should probably get cleaned up and head back, huh?” Y/N asked as she pulled away just enough so she could look up at him. 

“You just took me raw for the first time, squirted, let me finish inside of you, and now you want to go back to Gareth’s Halloween party?” Eddie asked, laughing in sheer disbelief. 

“Well when you put it like that,” Y/N teased as she too fell into a fit of giggles, becoming aware of how sore she was and the fact that he was still inside of her trying her best to keep him from slipping out, “But yeah we should at least say our goodbyes.” 

“Good thing I equipped the van for this very situation then,” he said as he pulled out of her with a little hiss, drawing a gasp from her. Eddie sat up as Y/N rolled onto her back and his eyes were instantly glued to her center, watching as their combined release dripped out of her.

“Holy shit,” He swore, his fingers moving to put some of it back in as it oozed out of her.

“Eddie!” She scolded with a gasp causing him to bring both of his hands up in defense.

“Sorry, sorry!” He said as his eyes reminded glued, his hand not covered in slick searching blindly for where he put the damn towels and wet wipes. “I- I just…”

“Eddie Munson I swear to God if you get hard again-” The pair both dissolved into giggles as he finally tore his eyes away, searching in earnest. 

“What Y/N L/N?” He teased as he finally found them and returned to her to clean her up with the utmost gentleness. “You gonna scold me? You might wanna watch out on that front since that could result in me getting hard too. Did you miss what I said about loving that you’re so damn sexy when you’re mad?”

“You said I was so damn sexy when I’m strong,” Y/N teased as he finished cleaning her up allowing her to sit up as he cleaned himself as well before tucking himself back into his boxers, “It’s when I’m angry now?”

“Why not both?” He asked, sticking his tongue out at her as he went to redo the zipper of his pants before laughing. “Damn, guess I should have taken these off all the way, huh?” Y/N looked down to find them covered in her release and went neon red, burying her head in her hands as he laughed. 

“Oh my god, Eddie I’m so sorry-”

“Hey, hey,” he said with a laugh as he moved around, looking for something else now, “I’ve known the risks since the first time we ever did anything, remember?” She went even redder the memory of the first time he fingered her. “I am…as always…fully prepared,” he pulled out a new pair of pants with an “ah ha” from somewhere in the van, “See! I’ll be good as new and as long as we fix up your hair and makeup, they’ll never know!”

“And what about your hair?” She asked as she reached for the little makeup case he kept in his glove box just for her. 

“My hair is always glorious,” he said with a beaming smile as she attempted to change pants, rather unsuccessfully, eyeing her ass as she was yet to pull down her skirt. “It just happens to look especially good after sex.”

“And mine doesn’t?” Y/N pouted as she turned to look back at him, having him debate round two with serious consideration before she turned away with a giggle. 

“Oh trust me, it does,” He replied as he pulled her by her hips to sit in his lap as she worked on her makeup, “But,” he began to press kisses down her neck causing her to squirm, “if you go out with messy hair, everyone will know and I thought our tactic was subtly. My hair is always a mess. It’s part of my charm.” Y/N giggled some more as he wrapped his arms around her waist and tucked his face into her neck with one final kiss before watching her apply her lipstick in her little hand mirror. 

“How do I look?” She asked after another minute, looking at him in the mirror.

“Absolutely beautiful,” he said, the sincerity in his voice melting her down to her core. He pressed a quick kiss to her cheek as she set the makeup case down in the back and pulled down her skirt at last as they got ready to depart.

“Well that’s good considering that you literally had me crying,” she chuckled as she made sure to wipe away the very last of the mascara on her cheek. 

“The only time I’ll ever make you cry,” Eddie said with conviction and a smile as he went to open the doors. “Ready, sweetheart?”

“Ready,” she replied. He smiled and opened them, looking to make sure no one was watching before offering her a hand out of the car. She giggled as he helped her out, quietly closing the doors behind them and sitting her on the edge of the van as he looked at her still carrying her shoes in his hands. 

“Here,” he said as he took them from her, “Allow me.” He kneeled down on one knee, shoe in hand, and began to slip them onto her feet, pressing soft kisses to both ankles as he did. She giggled and he smiled up at her. 

“You’re too good to me,” She said as he stood up, pressing a soft kiss to his lips.

“You deserve nothing less,” he replied, giving her one more quick peck so as to not mess up her lipstick before taking both hands and pulling her to her feet. “Now come on,” he beamed as they began to walk back, “if we wait there a second longer, I promise you round two will be in order.” 

[cardigan-ns]

My first call

Pairing: Ben Hargreeves x Little Sister!Reader

Request: can u do ben hargreeves x little sister reader? maybe some angst? (season 4)

Summary: You two were the only ones who survived the sparrow academy, he was your sole caregiver and he was trying desperately to make ends meet in this messed up universe, he ended up getting arrested and sent to prison for 4 years.

A/N: it’s also a little bit of Luther x Little sister!Reader too

Ben hated his father for stranding him in this timeline, not only was his entire family dead, but he had no money and the only sibling of his that was alive was his 11 year old sister. He loved her to pieces but he was struggling really bad with how to keep her happy and stable. She was his rock, anything he did, he did for her. She was his fighting chance at actually coping in life. But she knew just as much as him that some days were worse than others, they’d both sob to eachother sometimes after remembering the rest of the sparrow academy and how they’re now gone, ceased from existence.

He cursed the umbrella academy, how do they get to be reset and alive and he has to mourn his brothers and sisters while they all get to play happy family. They keep inviting him to things, and he keeps declining, he didn’t see the point, they’re strangers to him, they broke into his home one day and refused to leave him alone since. He wasn’t their Ben so why are they constantly holding on to him. All they’re doing is confusing his sister and he’d hope they’d cool off eventually but they never did.

2 years have passed and Ben is now feeling stable for once since landing here, Y/N was doing great in school, her grades were excellent, even better than what Ben was gaining at that age. His scams were earning him a lot of cash, yes he was bankrupting thousands of people at a time but who gives a shit, he’s able to buy his sister everything she needs and wants and she is very grateful for it. Although she doesn’t exactly know how he’s doing it, she expected he was getting the money from their father.

“Hey Ben?” You called from the table, you sat doing your homework. Ben was cooking you guys some dinner and glanced over his shoulder to acknowledge your calling. “How come we never see those umbrella people?” You questioned, you always wondered who those strangers truly were, from what you saw of them, they seemed like genuine people, a little off their rocker but meaning well. Ben just sighed at the mention of those utter morons and set the spatula down. “I’ve told you to stop asking about them. All they are is the reason we’re alive, big deal.” He blew off some steam in his response to you, all you were looking for was some small talk to help pass the time between algebra equations and dinner, but here Ben was throwing a hissy fit again. Like always.

You had the same stubbornness as him, so with a set down of your pen you glared at him, he glared at you. “I saw that one of them sent a card in the mail. You still haven’t opened it.” Ben rolled his eyes and remembered the card that Luther had sent the two of you, he had a feeling it’d be a bunch of nonsense and that’s why he ignored never tearing the envelope open. “Leave it.” He concluded the argument and plated your dinner.

Tonight was an odd night, Ben was more on edge than usual, he kept opening his laptop and closing it, wouldn’t eat all his dinner, kept changing the channels on the TV. He even payed the gas bill on time, he usually leaves it for as long as possible so he can con the gas man, gives him a discount because they think he can’t afford it and he pulls the “little sister” card, hoping that’d buy him some brownie points. You sat on your bed, reading an old edition of your favourite comic, Ben knocked on your door, holding a box of donuts. “Hey, I wanted to apologise for earlier.” He sat at the edge of your bed, you didn’t even care about the argument, you’ve had worse, but what you did care about were the treats he was handing you. “And you’re forgiven.” You immediately took the box from him and took a bite out of the sugary delicacy.

Ben laughed slightly at your immediate dismissal and he took a donut too, after he was eating it he looked over at you who had somehow got sugar everywhere. “How the hell…” he laughed again. You just shrugged your shoulders, closing the box and setting it on your bedside table. Ben stood up, yanking you off the bed and he brushed you out of the room, you knew exactly what he was asking you to do. Get clean bed sheets. You loved him but sometimes he was such a neat freak. You went and got some and walked back to find your bed stripped from the blue covers, Ben chucked the dirty laundry in the basket and he turned on the radio in your room. “You were supposed to change these last night, it’s like you were waiting to cover it in sugar.” You looked at him with narrowed eyes like he’d just caught you out on your extravagant plan. You set the folded piles of sheets on your chair and you jumped on your bed.

Ben just sighed as you completely ignored him clearly trying to change the bed. “Stop being difficult. It’ll take five minutes!” he had to looked up at you as you jumped in the air and back on your mattress repeatedly. “Ben come on, remember anytime dad made us go around and routinely change everyone sheets.” That was their chore, Ben always had you to tag along with him, he was your personal assistant, funny how life works, it’s the same old. But he does recall how on every bed, to ‘make sure it’s safe’ you’d jump on it and after a few moments of bickering so would he, he always had a mushy side to him, relatively a mushy side that was reserved for you.

“Screw you!” He muttered as he hopped on the bed too, and as the music on the radio played, you and Ben had a moment of peace, one that you haven’t felt in a very long time, you didn’t need to be suscepted to such violent trauma at a young age, Ben could barely handle it as a fully grown adult, he was always cautious at how he treated you, usually resulting in you feeling sheltered, he felt like if you had too much of a good time you’d crash out, remembering all the bad. But he was just happy and grateful to still have a moment like this with you.

Having spent the past 2 years watching over you, Ben grew to realise it’s always been his role to parent you, not his father, it brought him grief along with new found appreciation for the gift he was given, he still remembers when Reginald brought you home. There was a malfunction with your marigold, causing yours to appear at a later date, a lot later than the rest of the 43.

The sparrows were 19 when he brought you home in a stroller, Ben was hesitant at first, wondering if since you were new, Reginald would make you number 1, but seeing as you weren’t stealing his thunder, he kind of liked keeping you around. You always got sick as a child though, Grace tried her best to heal you but it was some nurture that always helped. Which is why Ben read some of his comics to you, taught you how to draw, taught you what good music was, gave you some fashion sense when you grew out of Hello Kitty and Barbie. Even though you swore you were a ‘grown up’ you kept that hello kitty nightlight by your bedside, even now. When you got scattered in this new timeline you couldn’t sleep for 2 months, until Ben purchased an exact replica, then you could finally get through to the morning.

That’s why it hurt even more when the cops raided the apartment after your calming moment. They dragged him out of your room, placing him under arrest for fraud and bankrupting thousands. One of the cops broke your night light, and broke your home…

“Y/N, I’ll sort this out okay? You’ll be my first call.” He tried to shake the burly men who held him in cuffs, they dragged him out of the room as his eyes poured with tears, guilt and horror. He was trying to keep you safe, trying to save some of your childhood, and now he’s gone and fucked it all up. You’ll never forgive him, he thought. The cops were dragging him out the door as you quickly shuffled to chase him, you were shocked and petrified. “Let me talk to my fucking sister.” Ben yelled and the cops figured he better, seeing as she was only a kid. “I don’t know where they’re going to take you, but I’m gonna come home, okay. I’ll find you.” He spoke softly as to mend your heart as it got ripped to shreds. And then he was out of sight, after that touching moment, your eyes welled into tears and you were shaking. He was all you had left.

One lesser aggressive cop, knelt down by you as they dragged your brother away from you. “Hi, sweetheart, I know this is a lot to process, but I’m going to stay here with you while some social workers arrive. They’re going to help you, the best they can.” Right now you wish you had your power, to just stop time, run down the hall and give Ben one last hug, you figured that’s the last you’d ever see him, no goodbye, no closure, your bed wasn’t even made.

“I’m not going to some home. Different parents. No. I’m not talking to a social worker. I’m staying here, waiting for them to bring Ben home. He didn’t do what you’re accusing him of!” You argued with the man in uniform, your lip quivering as you tried to stay strong, stand your ground, but you were just a kid wanting her safety back. The officer just gave you a saddened look, as if all you wanted couldn’t be. “Well do you have anyone you can call?” His question would’ve been easy if your other siblings survived the fucking apocalypse the umbrellas brought. Then as if a lightbulb went off you ran to the kitchen counter and grabbed the envelope from the top of the microwave, ripping it open.

‘Dear Ben and Y/N,

Just wanted to remind you that it’s our birthdays soon, I was wondering if maybe you wanted to get dinner sometime? Everyone else is busy…

It’s okay if not,

Luther

[his number]’

You smiled, thanking Luther silently, he was always so formal, you’ve never been happy to see a bunch of randomised numbers, even though that was practically your childhood. “Officer, this is my brother, kind of.” You handed him the letter, he stood up and read through it, nodding, then walking to the next room to make a phone call. You ran to Ben’s room and just laid on his bed, pretending he was just getting the popcorn ready for your Saturday movie nights. A few stray tears fell down your face as you realised he was going to be sleeping in a cell and not his bed.

After a while of crying, your body gave out and you fell asleep, clutching the mini pillow you made for Ben at your youth club.

That’s until, after a while, a gentle hand shook you awake. You rolled over, forgetting all that happened while the sleep wore off. You saw two men before you, the officer and Luther. Luther sat at the edge of the bed, by you, he looked as though he’d been crying too. You haven’t seen him for two years so it was revelling to see one another again. You remembered him being a really nice man, he married your sister, so technically he was family. He and Sloane took you out to mini golf one day, Sloane always cheated, gravitating the ball into the hole. Luther broke about 4 golf clubs and you stopped time and cheated too. You hargreeves were never good at playing fair.

“Hey kiddo.” He muttered as all the memories of Ben’s arrest rushed back to you. You just clung to Luther in a hug and cried in his shoulder, the less stronger man just held you, gazing up at the officer. “I’ll take it from here, sir.” The cop nodded and left the apartment. You sniffled and wiped your eyes even though the waterworks kept on coming. “He’s not a bad guy, Luther.” You kept repeating similar phrases, pleading your brother’s innocence, as if convincing yourself he was getting out that night. “I know, I know.” Luther rubbed your back and he comforted you, it was difficult to see you like this again, the last time he saw you, you were just as devastated when you first got to this timeline.

After a while of him helping you calm back down, you sat beside him on the bed, he was going to stay with you, clean the apartment for you, after the cops made a mess of it, especially your room. It was really late though, you were tired and you just wanted nothing more than for Ben and you to chill while you nerded out about your favourite books. He loved poetry and you loved fantasy. Luther seemed like he likes those things too, if given the right recommendations, but he wasn’t like Ben. “Would you like anything in particular for breakfast tomorrow?” He smiled over to you as you still held the small pillow, looking at it. “I like cereal…” you shrugged, not really having an appetite and not wanting to think about how lonely the morning would be without him there to watch TV with. “Cereals good.” Luther nodded. He figured that once you were asleep he was going to make a run to the all night grocery, to get you a lot of things, he mostly emptied his wallet when he felt guilty.

It was still awkward having him here, and confusing, he was your brother in law, but he was also bens actual brother, but not your Ben, a different Ben, who had the same father but not the father you have. It gave you a headache the more you pondered on where Luther placed in your life. You got off the bed and walked silently to your room, noticing now just how badly it was banjaxed. Luther follows slowly behind and just stood at the door frame. “Just to let you know, I did tell the officer off for doing that.” He let you in on that fact, you just nodded and lifted pieces of your broken light, you sat on the floor, you weren’t going to sleep the whole night, the only way you slept earlier was because it still felt like Ben was here.

Luther lifted the pile of bedsheets that were still on your chair, untouched. The old sheets were still on top of the hamper, Ben still having not cleaned it. Luther got the mattress sheet and tried to put it on, but you immediately stopped him. “No!” You glared, not meaning to be so hasty, and Luther just tilted his head, confused. “But where are you going to sleep? You can just have a bare mattress.” He was trying to help but you took it as him dismissing your problems and trying to take over Ben’s role. “I said no! Just get out!” You yelled at him and Luther immediately dropped the sheets and slumped his shoulders, nodding and leaving you alone in your room. Gently closing the door behind him.

Ben never called, the entire night you sat up, not sleeping a wink, except between 3:45am and 4:23am then you woke, rushing to check the phones past logs, not a single one from Ben. Your room was still a mess, your lamp was still broken on the floor, Luther did try to come back into your room and clean it, not wanting you to get hurt by the shards. But yet again, you screamed at him to leave. And he took that as a hint and didn’t come back in… respectfully listening to your wishes, not getting mad at you for it.

You cried and cried and cried even more. Luther left the house for a little bit, which you later found out was because he went to the store, he slipped a note under your door,

‘Buying you some cereal, won’t be long

:)’

You smiled at his careful consideration to your needs. He was nice for that. Then morning came, you yawned and pulled yourself from the bed, growing more and more agitated the longer it took Ben to call. Maybe he forgot about you, and that hurt more than anything. Because you knew Ben wouldn’t just forget, he loved you. He would want to make sure you were safe.

Luther then drudged into the kitchen, scratching his head, he got out two bowls, and opened up the box of cereal, as you sat at the kitchen table staring at the phone, waiting for it to call. You propped your head up with your elbows, staring and staring and staring. “Good morning.” Luther called over to you and you just nodded, not giving back an answer. He poured the milk into the bowls of cereal and walked towards you, handing you a spoon along with it. “I had a feeling you liked cinnamon toast crunch.” He smiled to you. When he first got kidnapped by the sparrows, way back when, you were eating that while he had his toast and cashew butter.

“Thanks.” You took the bowl from him and took a bite, still looking at the phone.

3 days passed, no call. A week, a month, a year, 2 years, 4 years. 4 fucking years it took for a call.

You were 17 now, on your last year of high school, living in a nice home with Luther, you two had one another, you finally accepted him as your guardian and you two grew very close, turns out you two had more in common than you thought, he was still no Ben, but he was Luther, and you were okay with that. Acceptance, what a chilling thing.

Your niece and sister-in-law were visiting. Claire, she’s the age you were when Ben went away, it was always an odd reminder of how long it’s been. Allison sat in the kitchen with Luther as they talked about what their plans were for Christmas this year, Luther was making them some coffee as the phone rang. You payed no mind to it as you and Claire watched your favourite show across the room, you both decided it would be fun to draw your favourite characters at the coffee table while you watched, it was nice to just unwind and be free with expressing via art, you liked getting to know the umbrellas too, they were all super welcoming and loving, even though they had their differences.

Your favourite was probably Allison though, it was good to have another girl around, she helped you a lot with things that neither Ben nor Luther could help with, she let you stay at hers some nights as your school was closer by than Luther’s place. Lila also had you babysitting her kids sometimes while she went to ‘Book Club’ and Diego worked, they were a great addition to your life too, you even became close with Lila’s relatives and it was mending your soul having people there.

Luther was on the phone for a while, you just assumed it was Viktor, but Luther kept glancing over at you every so often, which was making you worried, your mind wandered to various possibilities. “Uh yeah, but when will that be?” Luther asked down the phone, he then got a notepad and a pen and wrote some things down. This call was distracting you from the peaceful time you were having with Claire and now you walked over to the kitchen, which was connected by an archway. Luther glanced over at you again and continued the call. “Okay, yeah I’ll come get him now.” Him. You yanked the notepad from Luther which had the address to the pickup lot at the state prison. Your mind was racing, he was finally getting out, finally coming home. But you weren’t as hopeful to see him as you used to be. It’s not that you’ve moved on, it’s just that you resented him for not calling when he said he would.

“Wanna come with me?” Luther asked as he knew you’d put the pieces together, the prison wasn’t that long of a drive maybe an hour and 30 minutes. It took you a while to even make your mind up about that, but Allison held your hand from where you stood. “I’m sure he had a good reason for doing what he did.” She squeezed your hand and you just didn’t move, still confused. If he did have a good reason for leaving you in the dark it better be extremely fucking good of an excuse. Or else you wouldn’t let him off easy. Allison stood up and hugged you before she and Claire had to go back home and pick up Klaus from their house.

You held her tightly, knowing that if Ben comes back, maybe he would isolate her from her new found family again. “Bye, Allison.” You mumbled into her shoulder and she laughed slightly rubbing your back and pulling away to look at you, her cheek caressing your face, “He’s missed you, I know he has.” You just smiled, not truly believing that, she just held her free hand out for Claire and you just sighed knowing they had to go home, and you and Luther had to go get Ben, it was actually happening. “You can call me about it later if you’d like.” She assured you and that made you feel a whole lot better about it. You just gave her a thumbs up and she made her exit.

In the car with Luther was anything less than fun. He tried to play some music, tried to play ‘i spy’, as if you were four, and even tried to sing. All of which made you even more tense. You love this bafoon but right now was not the time, which he shortly caught on to. “I know you’re anxious, remember what the doctor said, use your senses.” You’d been in therapy for a while, having too much to spew to them, you and Luther figured it was for the best if you went weekly. You listened to Luther’s advice and focused on everything around you.

Then he began to pull up to the gate, and parked the car. He turned to face you, “Okay, no matter what happens, we will get through this together, as a family, and I know that once he’s back on his feet, you’ll probably stay with him again.” He smiled, but you didn’t even think about that, not much, not deeply, not anymore. You missed Ben being there, but you were free now, stable, even though you bought another hello kitty night light with the money you earned from your part time job. “But I’m always available if you want to stay.” He smiled lovingly, and put his hand up to high five you. “We got this, Kiddo.” He smiled and opened the car door, as did you, as you guys did that they opened the prison doors and released Ben, who was in the very outfit he was arrested in, as if time stopped and you were 13 again, you didn’t realise just how difficult this would be, but here you were, going through it.

Ben halted once he saw Luther, “Fuck me.” He muttered to himself, then you emerged and his demeanour softened significantly. You’ve gotten so much older, he’d missed out on so many years with you. You stood there, hands in your pockets, a little guarded. Then Luther, nudged you, “Go say hello. He’s not a stranger.” Luther smiled at you, encouraging you to do this, he knew that deep down you’ve been praying for this moment since he left. Ben walked to the end of the fenced prison and was by the car, he didn’t know how to approach you, whether you’d kick him, hug him or punch him.

“Look at you,” Ben frowned, regretting ever committing fraud, regretting not providing for you normally. “You look like shit.” You responded back to him, noticing just how run down prison made him. You had a right to be angry but Ben just didn’t expect you to be so cold. He just nodded and Luther stood behind you trying to figure out how to ease the hostility, but to no conclusion as you spoke again.

“Get in the car, we’ve got places to be.” You completely dismissed Ben, and he seemed like someone just ripped his heart out and played basketball with it. “Jesus.” He lowered his head and shoved his bag in the car, taking the ego wound and sitting in the back seat, while you and Luther took the front. The engine started and off you guys went to the birthday party of your other niece.

When the car pulled up outside the play area Luther thought it’d be best to walk in already and leave the two of you to hash it out in the car, until you were ready to come in. You mentally cursed Luther because of that, you didn’t want to talk to Ben, you weren’t prepared.

“Why didn’t you call me?” You sat in the front seat playing with the hem of your hoodie, and Ben sat directly behind you, it’s as if it were confessions. He just gazed out the window and remembered how he promised you, he swore to you that he would, yet never followed through with it. “I didn’t want to give you false hope.” He spoke bluntly, sending a harsh chill down your spine, your brother would’ve gave you the benefit of the doubt, would’ve called to say he wouldn’t be home for a while, wouldn’t have just left you wondering without closure.

“You didn’t go to my trial, didn’t visit. I thought I did the right thing.” He was so sure in himself and you just scoffed, exiting the car and attempting to storm away to the building, but Ben quickly hopped out after you. “Stop! Okay? We aren’t done here.” Your face was completely and utterly gobsmacked. “Oh, aren’t we? You left me no other choice, how the hell was I meant to know? Nobody alerted me there was a trial, I was practically fighting to survive, I didn’t give Luther a chance and now you’re wondering why I gave up on you? Because you did it to me first!” You yelled a little too loud for this area, children and parents walking to and from the play place.

Ben just shook his head, aggravatingly, “You just couldn’t wait to talk to Luther. Always, Ben why haven’t we talked to him? Ben open the letter, Ben we need these people. Now look what they’ve done to you. You’re just as spiteful as them!” Ben was always defensive, casting blame to anyone but himself, self righteous in a way, which you never realised until now. “Jesus Christ, do you actually hear yourself? And what did I tell you? They’re good people. The only spiteful one is you!” You pointed to him in a fit of rage. “I was a child, with no guardian, no home, of course I was going to reach out to the only people I fucking knew.” You screamed your hands waving in the air to get your point across, Ben needed this reality check, he was away in disaster land.

Ben realised the gravity of his arrest now, how lonely and cursed she must’ve felt, but yet again he wasn’t going to let her make him the complete bad guy here. “I was doing what I needed, to keep us alive.” He breathed out knowing you wouldn’t see that, you were still very angry, and torn, on one hand you were overwhelmed at him being here and talking with you again, and on the other, you’re deeply missing your brother, wishing he didn’t do what he did. You just wanted your old bond back.

“I don’t know what to do.” You shrugged, helpless to this experience. “But I do know that the people in there, they’re just trying to make us part of their family. So let them.” You were commanding in your tone, just hoping Ben would consider it, when you finished talking he was against it completely. “Have you forgot what they’ve done? Our family, OUR ACTUAL FAMILY, are dead! Because of those fucking degenerate assholes.” He crossed his arms now sitting on the bench by the front door, looking at the ground. “I don’t want to replace them with carbon copies.” His voice somber, making you remember The Sparrow Academy and all the things you experienced with your short-lived-family.

You sat by Ben, interlocking your arm with his, showing him that you were on his side, after all, that’s what the both of you were fighting about. Ben glanced at you before resting his head by yours. “I’m sorry I didn’t call…” he spoke quietly and you just sighed. “I know you are.” You just accepted that you can’t go back and change what he’d done, he was ashamed and took the cowards way out, knowing he’d have years before he’d face you again. He just didn’t expect you to grow up with the same short temper and stubbornness as him.

You loved Ben and you hoped that whenever you got to Luther’s place that night, that you could jump on the bed to the radio blasting again, just like old times.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Nikki McCann Ramírez at Rolling Stone:

Donald Trump lasted about two minutes into Vice President Kamala Harris’ nomination acceptance speech before launching into a full-blown public unraveling.  Moments after Harris took the stage Thursday at the Democratic National Convention, it became clear that the former president — and her 2024 opponent — was glued to the television in a hate-watch for the ages. 

“Here she comes into the Arena,” was the first of around furious 50 posts in a Truth Social meltdown that began when Harris entered the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, and continued long after she left the stage.  Notable reactions to Harris’ statements included:  “IS SHE TALKING ABOUT ME?”  “A lot of talk about childhood, we’ve got to get to the Border, Inflation, and Crime!” “Walz was an ASSISTANT Coach, not a COACH.”  “Too many ‘Thank yous,’ too rapidly said, what’s going on with her?”  “She caused the Attack of October 7th.” The former president was especially apoplectic about Harris’ description of he and his allies’ expansive plans to restrict reproductive rights. Harris said Trump “would limit access to birth control, ban medication abortion, and enact a nationwide abortion ban, with or without Congress.” She added that Trump “plans to create a national anti-abortion coordinator and force states to report on women’s miscarriages and abortions.” “Simply put, they are out of their minds,” Harris concluded. “One must ask: why exactly, is it that they don’t trust women?” Harris was describing components of Project 2025, the conservative personnel and policy program created to help the next GOP president (read: Trump) quickly impose a far-right agenda. 

Trump has actively tried to run away from the project in recent months, because its plans poll terribly. He was not pleased with being tied once again to its proposals. “I do not limit access to birth control … THAT IS A LIE, these are all false stories that she’s making up, that I’ve never even heard of. It’s just words coming out of her mouth,” Trump posted. “I TRUST WOMEN, ALSO, AND I WILL KEEP WOMEN SAFE! SHE WON’T, BECAUSE THE INVASION OF OUR COUNTRY AT HER OPEN BORDER IS DESTROYING THE LIVES OF WOMEN, AND THE FAMILIES AND JOBS OF AFRICAN AMERICANS AND HISPANICS.” Trump only stopped posting in order to call into Fox News, where he raged at anchors Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum. When MacCallum pointed out that Harris was gaining in several polls and key demographics, Trump countered that “she’s not having success. I’m having success.” 

[...] The hosts eventually cut him off, ostensibly because it was time for a special edition of Fox’s cringiest show: Gutfeld! Trump, however, was nowhere near done, and within minutes was calling into Newsmax’s live DNC coverage. There, the former president complained that Harris hadn’t addressed “woman trafficking” in her speech, and suggested he and the hosts take a trip to Caracas, Venezuela.  He was still accidentally jamming the buttons on his phone during the call. “He is uhh, he’s a very special man,” host Greg Kelly said when the former president finally hung up. 

During Kamala Harris’s DNC speech last night, Donald Trump had an unhinged hissy fit on multiple outlets: TRUTH Social, Faux “News”, and Newsmax.

Let that be a reminder that this unhinged jerk cannot be allowed another term in office.

See Also:

Daily Kos: After days of near silence on the DNC, Trump ‘reviews’ Harris’ speech

The Guardian: Harris’s convention speech sparks live rant from outraged Trump

[rustpath69]

this single piece of dialogue spurred my autism so here are Org. 13 poker league headcanons.

(note this is after the castle oblivion group leaves for C.O., so im interpreting this as meaning half of the ppl in C.O. are half if the poker league)

members of the league:

luxord: runs the league

xigbar: there for shits and giggles, and to rile up some of the more prone to anger members

xaldin: tries really hard to win. has that kind of anger that builds up to the point where it feels like hes suddenly pissed so far off out of nowhere but its just been slowly rising the whole time

vexen: here to prove his intelligence. he sucks at poker. he usually rage-quits and leaves mid-game. the rest of the league prepares for this by making a different bracket ready for his inevitable hissy fit, without his knowledge

lexaeus: wins semi-occasionally, but mostly here for fun. hes incredibly calm as a result of his superior control of his anger, and doesnt get too invested. best pokerface of the league

larxene: wins very rarely, but always has the most biting trash talk and acts like shes the best at poker ever. gets sooo mad but it comes in waves and she never stews on things for long. definitely the loudest though. she also actively cheats almost every game

xion: VERY occasionally in the league. she stumbled upon the leagues secret game room during a game on accident, and xigbar thought it would be funny if she joined. she has zero idea how to play, but even so, once in a blue moon she wins by sheer luck, and despite everyones temperments, no one can help but be so taken aback and estatic at this statistical wonder every time. also i lied, SHE has the best pokerface (sorry lexaeus)

maybe ill add to this but this is all the autism i have for this rn

[bunnyshideawayy]

cassian. great man, wonderful friend, absolutely terrible mate.

we have seen Nesta’s sisters, who arguably have less of a reason, defend her more than Cassian has ever thought about. HELLO?

my issue with cassian acosf and onward is that we are truly expected to believe they he deeply understands Nesta when he’s been shown time and again to never stick up for her and never fully trust her. he does nothing to help her over come and face her traumas / depression, she’s left to do that on her own, but best believe he’s down to fuck and make her hike! (no sarah sex and physical exercise are not cures)

after reading the entire series once and now twice seeing Rhys threatening anyone who dares breath wrong in Feyre’s direction under the guise of just “protecting his mate” i find it extremely hard to believe cassian allowed or even sides with anyone who speaks ill of/to Nesta or threatens her- all of which Rhysand and most of the IC (besides her sisters and Az) do, most of the time while directly in front of cassian in conversations he’s involved in. the most he does is…pout a little? throws a hissy fit? the two times i can remember him even remotely stick up for Nesta he immednantly backtracks as soon as Rhysand pushes back, both times the final decision being put in Feyre’s hands, this continues even into CC3 (and let’s thank the mother Feyre loves her sisters which is something ik yall nesta haters can’t stand.)

let’s move onto something i know yall don’t want to talk about, his verbal abuse. “oh but nesta also said-“ we know what she said, that is not the point. if this man knew all along nesta was his mate and truly wanted to help her heal from her traumas and depression why did he take every chance he could to provoke her? Nesta called Rhysand an asshole, and he IS especially to Nesta, and instead of keeping silent as he does when Rhys/the IC harshly critique her, he immediately gets angry and in her face to defend him. funny he can’t do that with her, his MATE? or let’s talk about this scene

oh okay! that’s totally something you say unprompted to your mate who is severely depressed and traumatized because she won’t eat! she’s totally not shaking because she’s triggered! then to add the lecture “we’ve been here before, too” oh okay! so you admit you know what she feels like (very doubtful although i’m not going to compare their traumas, both are valid he just does not understand her like he thinks he does) it’s patronizing and a little frustrating. she doesn’t want to be there in the first place, purposely throwing a sensitive subject in her face will not magically motivate her or cure her- she is simply doing what she has no choice in. she has been stripped of all autonomy, humanity, and “normality”- she feels alone and valuable in a way she as never felt before and she has NO HELP. none!

i’ll end with the hike. yay more physical activity as punishment- but if i said that was abuse yall will bring up the pregnancy so ill do it for you! Yes, Nesta was wrong to tell Feyre THE WAY SHE DID, she had every right to tell Feyre about her own body and pregnancy, it just shouldn’t have happened the way it did. everyone knew it was wrong to keep it from Feyre, even Cassian, so instead of forcing her to hike a mountain as punishment to ware her down mentally and physically he couldve stood up for both Feyre and Nesta to Rhysand the moment he threatens to KILL NESTA. a simple “hey buddy you knew it was wrong to keep that from Feyre you can’t kill my mate for telling her even if it was out of anger” would suffice. not once during their entire hike or during her breakdown does he reassure her, not even when she is tearing herself apart because she doesn’t feel worthy. don’t even get me started on what happens in CC3.

over all i think Nessian is great and they have some great moments, the end of ACOWAR lives rent free in my mind but i am incredibly disappointed with Cassian. i do feel like Nesta deserves better from everyone (besides Feyre and Elain who, again, are the only ones who i truly believe love her unconditionally.)

anti nesta’s this is not a safe space for you.

[ptn-imagines]

Hello hello!!

Notorious cat anon asking once again for Langley and f!chief but what if chief brought a cat or two she found on the streets home

Like the cat distribution striking the two lol

The idea of a sphinx cat that hates Langley and loves everyone else was too funny. Otherwise known as: Langley competes with a fucking cat for her girlfriend's attention.

F!Chief bringing a street cat home to Langley

The first thought Langley has is that this creature is the ugliest thing she has ever seen in her life. It’s an exaggeration, of course, but the cat definitely isn’t the cute and fluffy type people think of when they think of felines. In fact, it doesn’t have any fur at all, which is what contributed to the initial reaction in the first place.

After realizing that Chief is in fact holding a cat, and not some hairless Mania abomination, though, Langley smiles. It’s just a sphinx cat, albeit a particularly thin and ragged one. And though she won’t admit it aloud, being cuddled up with the Chief like that certainly lends it a great deal of cuteness factor.

Langley can’t help but tease Chief about picking up strays – a little nod to her Sinners, though of course, this time the Bureau’s new resident is a stray. She pretends to hum and posture about keeping more animals in the MBCC, but Langley already knows she’ll be letting the cat stay. She appreciates the intelligence and independence of felines, though it certainly doesn’t hurt that Chief is looking at her with the wet eyes of a stray kitten herself.

However, it becomes almost immediately apparent that the cat hates Langley. He’s cuddled up and purring without a care in the world in Chief’s arms, but the moment the director approaches, his claws are out and he’s hissing and spitting with vindictive fury.

Judging by the look on Chief’s face, Langley figures she’s expecting her to take back her approval now  that the cat has lashed out at her. Instead, Langley just chuckles and says that as long as nobody gets hurt, the feline can be as grouchy as he likes.

She finds out later that she’s the only one the cat hates. He’s more than content to curl up on the laps of literally anyone else in the Bureau and be stroked. In fact, naming duties ended up falling into the hands of some of the younger Sinners – they decided on “Fluffy.” For a hairless cat. Langley is amused.

Fluffy lives a pampered life in the Bureau, and he’s soon allowed to come into hypnotherapy sessions to soothe nervous Sinners. If he’s not cuddling up with one of the inmates or rubbing against their legs, though, he is almost always with Chief.

This includes, somehow, every time Langley needs to go see her. He kicks up a fuss whenever she appears and if they lock him outside the room, he won’t stop howling and scratching at the door. It amused Langley at first – at least until she realized she was competing with a damn cat.

Still, Langley is neither cruel nor heartless, despite the reputation she’s carefully curated for herself as the Silver Spider, and she won’t deprive the Bureau of what has become an integral member of it. So, instead, she changes tactics.

Despite her incredibly busy schedule, she takes time out of it to go and sit in whatever room Fluffy is in. At first, it goes exactly as one would predict – he goes into his usual feline hissy fits, yowling up a storm, though Langley notes he never takes a swipe at her unless she gets too close.

As time goes on, the yowling dies into low growls and then into suspicious glaring. When she walks into a room one day and Fluffy looks at her only for a moment before going back to sleep, Langley can’t help but smile. Meanwhile, everyone else in the Bureau suffers from increasing confusion as to why the Director of the 9th Agency is spending more and more time doing… nothing?

The crux of the whole plan comes one day when Langley walks into her office and finds Fluffy curled up on her chair. Mission: befriend Chief’s cat, success.

It’s a relief to not be competing with a cat for Chief’s attention anymore, and as for Chief? Well, she’s just glad Fluffy no longer screams bloody murder whenever Langley walks into the room.

[corroded-hellfire]

Big Brown Eyes - Eddie Munson x Reader, Part 4

Summary: It’s time for your first date with Eddie and your nerves almost get the better of you. Everett also becomes a big hit at the kid’s high school graduation. You can read part three here!

Note: I feel like I need a permanent spot in all of my fics to thank @munson-blurbs for all her help 💚

Warnings: language, anxiety, near anxiety attack, I think that’s it?

Words: 9.5k

[Big Brown Eyes masterlist]

“This one? No, wait. This one?”

Nancy rolls her eyes at you as she sits cross-legged on your bed. She watches as you dig through your drawers and closet, tossing different articles of clothing around the room. A pair of shorts have landed in her lap, two bathing suits are flung over your mirror, and a pile of t-shirts sits by your feet. 

“Do you really want my opinions?” Nancy asks. “Or are you just talking to yourself and I’m fortunate enough to be here to hear it?”

“Help me,” you beg, turning from your closet to face her. 

“Okay, okay.” Nancy pushes herself off the bed and walks over to you. She guides you by the shoulders and gives you a gentle shove until you’ve taken her previous spot in the bed. The blue and green bathing suits are pulled from your mirror and Nancy tosses the green one to rest on your dresser and the blue one on your lap. “This one. First of all, the color looks perfect on you. Second of all, Eddie won’t be able to stop staring at the cutouts where your skin will peek out.”

“Now what do I wear over it for lunch?” you ask. 

There’s a squeal from down the hall and Everett’s ferocious giggling brings a smile to your face. When you left them in the living room ten minutes ago, Steve and Everett were surrounded by Legos and toy dinosaurs. You’re afraid to see the state of the room now. Steve may be an amazing dad, but he’s a horrible maid. 

“Simple denim shorts,” Nancy says, bringing you back to the matter at hand. There are a few pairs scattered around the room, so you take a look around and decide on a pair that landed just short of the bed. You scoop them up and put them in the pile with the bathing suit in front of you. “Now, tank top or tee?”

“Um… T-shirt,” you decide.

“Here. This Grateful Dead one.” Nancy tosses it to you, and you catch it with a smile. You weren’t a big Grateful Dead fan, but last Mother’s Day Everett saw the t-shirt with the colorful bears on it at the store and told Steve that’s what he wanted to get you. 

Nancy leaves the room so you can change into your outfit for the date, and you quickly apply some waterproof mascara once you’re dressed. The living room is noisy as you walk in. Nancy’s on the floor with Everett and Steve and you’re sure all Everett had to do was flash those wide doe eyes at her and she agreed to play as the T-rex. 

“The bears!” Everett says when he sees your shirt.

“They look good, right?” you ask him, looking down at your outfit. 

“Yeah! Pretty!”

“Thanks, baby.” You kneel down to give your son a kiss, but he tries to thrust a Stegosaurus doll into your hand. “Aw, Ev, I can’t. Remember? I told you I’m going out and you’re going with Daddy and Nancy tonight?”

He huffs, dropping the toy to the floor, and you know he’s more upset that you won’t play than the fact that you’re going out. 

“Want us to head out?” Nancy asks and you shake your head.

“No, just lock up when you leave. I think I’d get a hissy fit if I insist the dinosaurs be moved elsewhere.”

“Have fun,” Steve says, accepting a Pterodactyl from your son.

“Yeah. Have fun,” Everett echoes.

He reluctantly takes his attention from his playtime to give you a hug and kiss goodbye. Nancy squeezes your arm and gives you an encouraging wink before you stand. As you head for the door, you can’t help but wonder how Everett would react if he was a little bit older. He’d never known you and Steve together as a couple, so the concept of Daddy having Nancy and a different home has always been normal to him. But in a few years, he’ll come to realize that his home life isn’t typical. Would Everett be mad you’re going out on a date? Would he throw a fit? Cry? 

You realize you’re borrowing unnecessary trouble and force your thoughts to stop where they are and head out the door. Jogging down the steps and walking over to your car, your mind decides it needs to stress out about something. Not only is this the first date you’re going on since you had Everett, but it’s the first date you’re going on that’s not with Steve. Who you already knew before you dated. This is a brand new experience and you don’t do well with those. 

Turning up the radio as you pull out onto the road, you’re hoping the music will let you relax a little. The hope was futile though, as you feel your heart rate increase and your breathing speed up. Part of your brain is yelling at you to turn around, go home, where it’s nice and safe, and hide away from the world. But that’s not what you really want. 

“Shut up.” Talking to your anxieties out loud might not be very helpful, but what’s the harm in trying? You want to see Eddie. You want to spend time with him. You’re not going to let your traitorous brain deter you from that. 

Thumbs beating an erratic rhythm on the steering wheel as you pull up to Lover’s Lake, you can physically feel the adrenaline pumping through your veins. With a deep breath, you put your car into park. A movement out of the corner of your eye catches your attention, and you turn your head to see Eddie climbing out of his van. He’s wearing black swim trunks and a black Black Sabbath t-shirt. He hasn’t seen you yet, so you take the moment to just look at him. He’s so effortlessly beautiful. You study from his slightly frizzy hair down to the old canvas sneakers he’s wearing on his feet. When you’ve finished admiring him, you’re startled to realize that your body feels perfectly calm. There was no more rapid heart, shallow breathing, or dizzying feeling of anxiety. It brings a smile to your face, and you take it as a good sign that just looking at Eddie has a calming effect on you.

At the sound of your car door opening, Eddie turns and a grin lights up his face when he sees you. He comes over to meet you halfway, instantly pulling you into a hug.

“Hey there, beautiful,” he says as he squeezes you against his chest. “How are you?”

“Much better now,” you tell him truthfully. You pull back and the way he looks into your eyes makes your legs turn to jelly. “How are you doing today?”

“Also much better now.” He hasn’t taken his arms from around your body, and you don’t mind one bit. Deciding to take advantage of it, you lean into him and are rewarded by his smile becoming even brighter. 

“So, what’d you bring?” you ask. “If I recall, you said it was going to be something even better than fast food.”

“I am a man of my word,” Eddie says. He slips your hand into his and brings you over with him to the back of his van. The doors are already open and there’s a blanket neatly folded next to a large picnic basket. “I’ve got bread with all the sandwich fixings you could want. Potato salad, white wine - or lemonade, because I wasn’t sure if you drink or not. And, not to brag, but I actually made our dessert from a recipe I found.”

He hands you the blanket and he slides the basket over his arm so he can close the doors.

“I’m impressed,” you tell him as the two of you walk closer to the water’s edge. “What did you make?”

“Cherry cobbler bars.” 

You shoot him a smile as you spread the blanket down over the grass. Eddie sets the basket down on one corner and you take a seat opposite each other. The yellow blanket is softer than it looks, the cotton comforting against your bare legs.

“How’d you know cherry is my favorite?” you ask. 

“I must just know you,” he says with a wink. 

A flush comes to your cheeks as Eddie starts to unpack the food from the basket. He gives you a choice of drink and you decide to have one of each. Eddie mixes the wine and lemonade together, saying he’ll see how it tastes, but the face he makes when the concoction touches his lips has you giggling so hard your stomach hurts. He pours the cup out on the grass and refills it with just lemonade. 

Making sandwiches with Eddie shouldn’t be as fun as it is, but he makes you laugh constantly as you both sift through the meats and toppings scattered around the two of you. He scoops some potato salad on your plate, then his, and you both tuck into your food as you keep up a stream of steady conversation. Eddie tells you about his old job back near Evansville, how much of an asshole his boss was, and how the garage here in Hawkins was Heaven compared to that place. You tell him how you always had your nose in a book in high school and how that naturally led you to start your job at the library, since the staff there had known you since you were about six. 

“What’s your all-time favorite book then?” Eddie asks. “Or is that too hard for you to pick?”

“Oh no, it’s definitely Pride and Prejudice. Is that too cliche of an answer? Aw well, it’s the truth. What about you?”

“Another cliche answer coming at you,” Eddie says between bites of his turkey sandwich. “The Hobbit.”

“Oh, I’ve been wanting to read that to Everett at bedtime,” you tell him. “He’s in his Dr. Seuss era though, so I think we’re still working our way up to Tolkien.”

Dirtied plates back in the basket, you and Eddie stay on the blanket talking well after the thirty minutes that are needed before you go into the water. The day is warm with a nice cool breeze, only a few wispy clouds in the bright blue sky, and the surface of the lake shines and glitters like it’s been sprinkled with thousands of small diamonds. 

“Would you like to go for a swim?” Eddie asks, tilting his head at you, his dark eyes drawing you in. 

“That sounds nice,” you say.

Eddie stands and strips his shirt off, leaving you speechless. It’s not the first time you’ve seen him without his shirt, thanks to the surprise visit by his place yesterday, but seeing him in all his ridiculously gorgeous glory would take you a lifetime to get used to. He glances down at you, doing a double take when he sees you staring. A smirk dances on his lips and there’s a dusting of pink over his cheekbones.

“Staring might not be polite but it sure is flattering.”

“O-Oh, sorry,” you stutter, an embarrassed smile coming to your face. 

“Please, don’t be.” Eddie offers his hand down to you, which you happily accept. He helps you stand, but you're suddenly self-conscious about stripping down to your swimsuit. Eddie stretches his arms over his head as he looks out at the lake and you’re not sure if he’s giving you a moment of privacy on purpose or not, but you take advantage of it and slip out of your t-shirt and shorts. 

When he turns back to you, he’s a gentleman, not obviously ogling you like you’d just done to him. But he does smile, pulling you closer to him and resting his hands on your hips.

“You look good in blue,” he says. His thumbs rub over bare skin where they come across a cutout in the bathing suit, and it sends a rush of goosebumps over your skin.

“Thank you,” you say softly. Your hands have nowhere to rest but on his bare skin, so your fingertips brush over his collarbones. The black widow spider tattoo attracts your attention and you run your forefinger over it. 

“You like spiders, too.” The words are almost mumbled under your breath, but Eddie catches them.

“Hmm?” he asks.

You blink a few times, eyes coming up to meet his.

“That was the first thing I heard you say,” you explain. “Everett told you he wasn’t afraid of spiders, and you told him that you like them too.”

“Oh yeah,” Eddie says as he remembers. “He said that Spider-Man is his favorite.”

“He is.” You look back down to his tattoo and rub your finger over it again. “That why you got this tattoo? Because you like spiders?”

“Partly.” There’s a mischievous glint in Eddie’s eye that makes you raise an eyebrow at him. He shrugs sheepishly. “One of my buddies from high school, Jeff, thought it was weird that I liked spiders. Because he’s afraid of them. So, I got this like a few months before I knew his family was having a Fourth of July barbeque at his house. Then I whipped my shirt off and he looked like he was going to shit himself.” 

“Such a good friend,” you say with a giggle. “Teasing the poor guy like that.” 

“Mm, he got over it,” Eddie says with a shrug. He starts walking backwards towards the lake, leading you along by your hands. “Come on, let’s get in.”

Eddie’s feet hit the water first and his face scrunches up, making you laugh.

“Cold?” you ask.

“Only a little,” he says, but he keeps walking backwards. Soon the water hits your toes and you let out a small squeal at the cold bite. It really wasn’t too bad, more of a shock after sitting in the nice warm sun for so long. 

Eddie lets go of your hands once the water reaches his small waist, and he has to wade further. He doesn’t take his eyes off of you though, and the moment that you’re at the same level as him in the water, he swims over and wraps an arm around you. 

“Hi,” you say as you relax your body against his. He feels warm and safe, and it makes you never want to let go of him. 

Eddie pulls you out until it’s a little deeper and your toes have to stretch more and more just to be able to walk along the riverbed. When it’s starting to become too hard for you, you pout, and Eddie is instantly there, holding you up to his level with his arms around your middle. He starts to keep moving deeper though, bringing you out where he knows you can’t touch the bottom. You’re about to huff at him for it when you catch sight of the smirk he’s trying to suppress. He likes that you can’t touch here. That you have to hold onto him for support. Deciding to give into him, you wrap your arms around his neck and bring up your legs to wind around his hips. 

“This what you were looking for?” you ask.

“Pretty much,” he admits. 

“You’re lucky you’re cute,” you tell him as you rest your forehead against his. 

“How many guys do you say that to?”

“Two. You and a three-year-old.”

“So, I’m in good company,” he says. 

Eddie slides his thumbs over the cutouts in your bathing suit, hands holding you firmly by the hips. It’s nice to just wade out in the water together like this, enjoying the nice weather and being held by one another. 

“I’m glad we’re finally on a real date.” Eddie breaks the peaceful silence after a few minutes.

“Me too,” you tell him. “To tell you the truth though, I was nervous on the way here.”

His brow pinches together in a frown as he looks up at you. “Why? Nervous to see me?”

“No, no,” you say with a shake of your head. “Me wanting to see you is basically the only thing that was able to break through my anxieties and get me here.” You shrug and start to play with the wet hairs at the base of Eddie’s neck. “I’m not very good with ‘new’ in my life. It stresses me out. Even the good new, like this. But honestly? Once I pulled up and saw you, that all went away. I didn’t feel stressed or anxious. Just excited to see you.”

The smile that lights up Eddie’s face has your stomach doing somersaults. He takes one hand from your hip and cups your jaw with it.

“I was really excited to see you, too,” he says. “More excited than I’ve been for anything in a long time.” 

“Yeah?” you ask as you rest your forehead against his.

“Mhmm,” he hums. 

Eddie’s thumb strokes over your cheekbone a few times before he leans in and softly presses his lips against yours. It feels as if your heart has stopped in your chest as you move your lips against his. Eddie’s arm tightens around your waist, and you pull yourself closer to his body with the arms you have wrapped around his neck. The feeling of Eddie’s tongue swiping across your top lip has you instantly parting them for him, letting him lead this kiss deeper. You and Eddie only break the kiss because you can’t stop smiling, but you quickly lean back in for another taste of his lips. 

“I feel like a teenager again,” you muse. “Just making out wherever and whenever I get the chance.”

Eddie smirks, but it’s endearing, never mean. “Well, if you want the full experience, we can always makeout in the back of my van.”

You gasp. “Eddie!” you scold him, swatting at his bare chest. 

“Is that a yes?”

“What happened to ‘there were never any girls in high school,’ Mr. Munson?” you tease. “Doesn’t sound like it was your full teenage experience.”

“Well, maybe I have some making up to do,” he says with a waggle of his eyebrows. It makes you giggle and lean in to press another kiss to his lips. The jolt it sends through your body is so strong that you wouldn’t be surprised if Eddie could feel it coursing through your body under his fingertips.

“Mm, okay,” you hum against his lips. “Let’s go make out in the van. But then we have the cherry cobbler bars.”

“Deal.” 

Don't need nothin' but a good time

How can I resist,

Ain't lookin' for nothin' but a good time

And it don't get better than this

Everett dances in his car seat, banging his little head to the Poison song playing on the radio like he was born to be in a mosh pit. It makes you chuckle when you watch him over your shoulder in the passenger seat. Steve keeps glancing at him in the rear-view mirror, bringing a smile to his face as well. The little boy looks even more like his dad’s mini me in their matching green polo shirts. You hadn’t planned on dressing him identically to Steve, but it was the only way to convince him to wear a nicer shirt than an old Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle tee.

Telling him he was going to see his aunts and uncles graduate got about the reaction you expected it would. He’d asked if that meant he could play with them. When you explained that he was going to sit with you, his dad, and some of his other aunts and uncles to watch them walk across a stage, he seemed to care less than he already did. You already knew he wouldn’t sit still through the long ceremony, out in the heat of the June Hawkins day, sitting on uncomfortable bleachers. But you were hoping there were enough people in the crowd that he knew that would be able to keep him occupied. Hopefully they’d humor him as he bounced from familiar face to familiar face. 

Nancy had stayed the previous night at her family’s house so she could help set up for the graduation party taking place there this evening. But as soon as Everett gets out of the car, she’s the first face he sees. She’s getting out of her dad’s car with Holly right behind her and Everett starts bouncing on his toes in excitement.

“Nanzy!”

She looks at the call of her name and smiles when she sees the miniature Steve excitedly waving at her. You scoop him up in your arms and meet Nancy halfway in the parking lot, handing Everett over as he makes grabby hands for your best friend.

“You missed me? You saw me yesterday,” she tells him.

Everett just shrugs and lays his head on her shoulder. “Yeah.”

“Are you and Daddy matching today?”

Her notice of this gives him an extra boost of energy and he nods his head enthusiastically. 

“Yes! I look like Daddy!”

Steve gives Nancy a kiss hello and you walk with them and the other Wheelers to the football field, where the ceremony will be taking place. Robin, Vickie, the Sinclair’s and Mrs. Henderson are already there, so your gang joins up with them. Everyone fawns over Everett, much to his delight. He soaks in all the compliments about how cute he is and shows off his dimples just to prove everyone’s point further. Joyce and Hopper join you soon, Jonathan trailing behind them, and Everett makes his move on them as well. He happily sits in Hopper’s lap and asks to see the shiny badge he knows the police chief always has on him. 

“This seat taken?” 

You look up, having to squint because of the sun, and see a familiar face smiling down at you. It’s pure instinct to stand up and wrap your arms around Eddie’s neck. He chuckles as he hugs you back, pressing a kiss to your cheek.

“Hello to you, too,” he says. 

“I didn’t know you were coming,” you say. And it wasn’t from lack of communication. You and Eddie had talked on the phone every night since your date last weekend. He even came by for lunch at the library on Wednesday. 

“Thought I’d surprise you.”

“Mission accomplished.”

Max’s mom comes up behind Eddie, along with an older gentleman that Eddie introduces as his Uncle Wayne. 

“I’ve heard a lot about you,” Wayne says, making a pink tinge appear on Eddie’s face. You’re about to respond when there’s a bump against your thigh. Everett’s holding onto your leg, peeking out shyly at the man he’s never met. “And you must be Everett.”

The boy hides his head fully behind you and you give his hair an affectionate pat. 

“C’mere you.” You pick Everett up and hold him on your hip. “This is Eddie’s Uncle Wayne. Can you say hi?”

The toddler perks up, just realizing that Eddie’s standing there. You’re a little surprised he remembers him after that brief encounter a few weeks ago. But his eyes light up and he gives Eddie a big grin.

“Eddie!” His voice is full of joy, and it warms your heart.

“Hey, little dude! I missed you.”

“Missed you,” Everett replies, causing you to get slightly misty eyed.

The speakers crackle to life, the feedback making Everett cover his ears. The Vice Principal approaches the podium, and you take your seat on the bleachers. Steve is on your left, Eddie on your right, with Everett perched in your lap. He’s already antsy and wiggling around so you can only imagine how restless he’s going to get over the next two hours. 

Eddie’s lips against your ear surprise you and you let out a little squeal, making Everett look back at you and Eddie chuckle.

“I missed you, too, you know.”

“That’s good,” you tell him. “Because I missed you. Are you here for any graduate in particular?”

“Um, I think the only one of the gang I haven’t met is El. But I’ve heard about her from everyone. Plus,” Eddie pauses and leans in closer to whisper directly to you, “Wayne is pretty in love with Max’s mom. He doesn’t believe me when I say the feeling is mutual, but it definitely is.”

You giggle and sneak a peek over Eddie’s shoulder where Ms. Mayfield and Uncle Wayne are talking, heads close together. 

“That’s adorable,” you say. 

Everett hops off your lap and moves onto Steve’s, little face already painted with boredom as some school official drones on. Steve looks at you and raises his eyebrows. It takes you a moment to realize what he’s trying to communicate.

“Oh!” You lean back so the men on either side of you can see one another. “Eddie, this is Steve. Steve, this is Eddie.” They’ve heard enough about each other that they need no more introduction than that.

“Nice to meet you,” Eddie says, extending his hand to your ex.

“Likewise,” Steve says as he shakes his hand. 

Everett catches sight of Eddie’s rings again and leans across your lap to grab his hand before he can take it away. Eddie chuckles and lets him inspect them, watching him with an adoring expression on his face. Your son doesn’t seem to notice that his bony little elbows are digging into your thighs. 

The speaker at the podium switches out for another and the list of student’s names starts rolling. 

“Gotta pay attention now,” you lean down to whisper to Everett. “They’re going to call names and we’re going to clap.”

He reluctantly lets go of Eddie’s hand and straightens himself in Steve’s lap. His brown eyes stare out at the field, waiting for a name he knows. 

“William Byers.”

Everett doesn’t realize he knows that name until everyone around him starts to cheer. But he quickly gets into the spirit and claps his hands together so fast he stings his own palms. Now that his interest has been piqued, Everett is anxious for the next person he knows to walk across the stage. He squirms in Steve’s lap, small attention span kicking in.

“Hey,” Steve says in his ear. “Do you see Aunt Max out there?”

His little eyes squint as he scans over the sea of students donned in green caps and gowns. After a quick assessment, he pouts and shakes his head.

“No?” Steve asks. “Look for her red hair. I think she’s the only redhead out there.”

Everett takes another look and gasps when he spots his favorite aunt, pointing at her and bouncing up and down on his dad’s legs.

“Aunt Max! I see her!”

“Good job, buddy,” Steve says. 

“Dustin Henderson.”

That name Everett recognizes right away and beams as he watches his Uncle Dusty Buns, unruly curls tucked in his cap, walk across the stage and take his diploma. 

“Yay!” Everett yells out as the rest of you clap and cheer.

“He’s about the cutest thing ever,” Eddie says to you. 

“Dustin?” you reply with a playful smirk. “Adorable, right?”

Eddie rolls his eyes, a fond smile gracing his features, and knocks his shoulder against yours. His hand twitches where it sits in his lap and your eyes notice as he goes to reach for you, but quickly pulls his hand back. It’s understandable. The two of you hadn’t talked about any affection shown in front of Everett because you hadn’t thought they were going to be in the same place at the same time for a while. 

“El Hopper.”

As you clap for your friend, your son wriggles his way out of Steve’s lap. Hopper lets out a loud whistle as his daughter makes her way to get her diploma, and Everett giggles at the sound. He turns towards you and you’re ready to help him into your lap when he walks right past you and stops in front of Eddie. He smiles up at the man in front of him, big brown eyes meeting bigger brown eyes. Eddie doesn’t hesitate and helps Everett onto his lap when he struggles to climb. 

“Hey, buddy,” Eddie says. 

“Hi,” Everett answers. 

Out of the corner of your eye you see Steve watching Everett. Or is he watching Eddie? You lean in to whisper in Steve’s ear.

“Everything okay?”

Steve nods and leans in to reply.

“How many times have they met?” he asks.

“Just once before.”

“And Everett isn’t still shy around him?” Steve asks. 

“He never has been. Walked right up to him at Dustin’s like he’s known him all his life.”

“That’s weird,” Steve says.

Your face pinches up in a frown as you turn your head to look at Eddie with your son again. Everett is as happy as could be, talking animatedly about something - you’re not even sure what he’s going on about, so you know Eddie has no clue - but Eddie is listening intently, smiling at the babbling boy.

“Why weird?” you ask, turning back to Steve. 

“He’s always shy around new people. Why not Eddie?”

“You’re making this sound like a bad thing,” you say. 

“Just weird,” Steve says with a shrug before returning his attention to the ceremony. 

A sigh escapes you as you look back over the field as well. Steve’s always had a jealous streak in him. It didn’t rear its head often, but you could tell that’s what’s happening here. Not jealousy over you dating Eddie, but of Everett showing Eddie so much attention so quickly. Sure, Steve’s never been the only adult man in his son’s life; he has more uncle and grandfather-like figures than you could count. But Eddie is someone Steve’s age and he isn’t “Uncle Eddie.” He’s just Eddie. A guy who is dating his mom, even if the toddler doesn’t understand the concept of dating. But you’ve been on one date with the guy. You’re not putting all your eggs in one basket when it comes to being with Eddie, no matter how much you like him, so why is Steve acting like Eddie’s about to become Everett’s new dad?

“Maxine Mayfield.”

Eddie’s cheering alerts Everett to his aunt’s name being called. He claps his little hands together and lets out a string of “woo woo woo’s.” 

“Want me to take him?” you ask Eddie as Everett keeps wriggling around his lap.

“No, I’m okay,” Eddie says with an easy smile. “Unless you want him?”

“No, you’re fine with him as long as you’re okay with his squirmy little butt.”

Everett wrinkles his nose up at this term and you boop the tip of his nose with your finger. Your son shakes his head, as if to dispel your touch from his face. 

“Lucas Sinclair.”

Erica’s loud cheer from the row behind you catches Everett’s attention and he looks at her over Eddie’s shoulder. She gives him a wink that makes him giggle and start to clap his hands along with everyone else. 

You’re surprised at how well behaved the little boy is being. He’s generally a well-tempered child, but a graduation could be boring for adults, let alone small kids. You were afraid you’d miss some of your friends’ names being called because you’d have to take Everett out into the parking lot or bathroom. 

“Mommy?” 

Maybe you thought too soon.

“Yes, baby?”

“M’hungry,” Everett says. 

This you were prepared for. Everett’s favorite snack was always packed in your purse. You’d only made the mistake of not having food for the hangry toddler once, and it’s not something you’d ever want to repeat. 

Everett’s eyes get wide when he spots the small red box of raisins. He makes grabby hands for them, but you hold them back once you’ve opened it, raising an eyebrow at him.

“Please?” he asks.

“There we go.”

“Thank you,” he sing-songs. 

Little fingers go digging inside and he sighs in contentment once he’s popped one in his mouth. He fishes out another one and you’re about to remind him only one at a time, but he lifts the raisin up, offering it to Eddie. 

“Aren’t you the sweetest?” Eddie asks. “But those are yours, you enjoy them. Thank you for sharing, though.”

Everett just nods his head as he finishes chewing what’s in his mouth.

“Michael Wheeler.” 

Mike takes his diploma and fist pumps in the air as he comes across the stage. You hear Holly giggle somewhere around you, and you don’t even have to be looking at Nancy on the other side of Steve to know she’s rolling her eyes at her little brother. 

Finally, the ceremony comes to an end and Everett watches in delight as all the green caps go flying into the air. You scoop up Everett from Eddie’s lap when you all start for the exit. He struggles in your arms, wanting to be put down, but there’s too many people to let him wander freely - even if he was holding your hand. 

Once the group of graduates that he knows meets you in the parking lot though, he’s like an entirely new kid. He wants to be held by all of them. He wants to give each of them a hug and try on Will’s cap. It’s far too big for him, obviously, but it makes for a funny picture as Karen Wheeler snaps the camera as the cap falls over his eyes. 

Everyone takes photos with each other; their families, friends, and each graduate wants a picture with Everett as well. He’s delighted by the attention and giggles as he’s passed from uncle to aunt to uncle to aunt. Max presses her lips against his cheek for their picture and Everett squeals in pure delight. 

“Can I keep him? Please?” Max asks once the photos are done. She’s still holding him and he’s happily fiddling with the tassel from her cap.

“Sure,” you tell her. “But you’ll give him back.”

“Never,” Max declares.

“Try and get him to go to bed on time and see how well that goes. Then we’ll talk.”

“Nah, I don’t believe that,” Eddie says from next to you. He’s giving Everett a playful smirk, who giggles in return. “Everett, you’re always a good boy, aren’t you?”

“Yep!”

“You can help Max out then,” you say, nudging Eddie with your elbow. “But don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

“We’d have fun!” Eddie says. “Play some guitar.”

“Guitar?” Everett’s interest is piqued and he’s staring at Eddie with wide eyes. 

“I told you,” you say to Eddie. “Guitar is his favorite.”

“Yeah!” Everett cheers.

“I’ll play it sometime for you, little dude.” Eddie’s grin at the boy falters and he turns towards you. “Uh, I mean, if that’s okay with your mom?”

Part of you doesn’t want Everett to get too attached in case it doesn’t become something more serious between you and Eddie. But another part is saying that he’s already so engrained in your friend group, that even if it doesn’t work out for some reason, he’ll still be around and in Everett’s orbit. 

“That sounds nice,” you say, giving Eddie a reassuring smile. 

His dark eyes light up and his body relaxes in relief. You didn’t realize how anxious he was for your answer to that question. He knows how much Everett means to you, and he clearly has an affinity for the little boy as well, so it makes sense that you being okay with him and Everett interacting takes some weight off of Eddie’s shoulders. 

“Hey, stop hogging my God son.”

Dustin walks over and puts on a pout as he looks at Everett in Max’s arms. 

“I’m his favorite aunt,” Max says. 

“I’m his favorite uncle,” Dustin shoots back. 

“Don’t put my poor boy in the middle of your squabbling,” Steve says, walking up and slinging an arm around Dustin’s shoulders. 

Everett watches all of his favorite people around him with wide brown eyes, looking from person to person. He seems content in Max’s arms, but you’re pretty sure he’d be happy in any of the people next to you’s arms. 

Nancy comes up behind Steve and puts her hands on his hips. She peeks her head around his torso and smiles.

“Everyone ready to go?”

“We’re heading to your place now?” Max asks.

“Mhmm,” Nancy hums. 

“You’re riding with me, Red,” Eddie says.

“Why?”

“Because I drove your mom and Wayne here. Forest Hills carpool.”

Max sighs and squeezes Everett in her arms, making him protest when she hugs him too tight.

“I’ll see you soon, kid,” she tells him. She sets the toddler down and he’s immediately unhappy. 

“Want Aunt Max!” 

“You’ll see me in a few minutes, Ev,” she tells him. “We’re going to a party together.”

His face lights up like a firework.

“Party?”

“Yeah, buddy,” Dustin adds. “We’re all going.”

Everett claps his hands together and does a happy little wiggle. 

“Come on, you,” you say as you pick him up. “Let’s get going.”

Instinctively, Eddie leans in to kiss you goodbye, but stops, again unsure of what you’re comfortable with in front of your son. Not quite ready to answer any questions Everett might have before you can sit down with him and talk about Eddie being in his life more, you turn to give Eddie your cheek to kiss. He happily does so, a smile on his face. Everett wants one as well, and sticks his cheek out towards Eddie, who obliges him with a chuckle.

You catch Steve watching the interaction - Nancy as well, but she seems to think it’s cute, while her boyfriend has a look on his face like he’s trying to do calculus in his head. He’s your ride to the party so you’re sure some sort of conversation will happen on the ride over. 

Max heads off with Eddie, Dustin to find his mom, and Nancy to catch a ride with her parents. She may have been intending to drive with you and Steve, but she clearly senses there’s going to be a talk happening as well. 

You make sure Everett is buckled in tight and hand him one of his toy dinosaurs to keep him occupied. It was unlikely there was going to be a full out argument, but you still didn’t want Everett to be listening in. Once you’re buckled into the passenger seat and Steve has pulled out onto the main road, he opens his mouth.

“So, uh, we should probably talk,” he says.

“Okay. I don’t really know what to say, though.”

“Well, I mean.” He sighs and runs one hand through his hair while keeping the other on the wheel. “Is he, like…your boyfriend?”

“I don’t know,” you tell him honestly. “We’ve technically only been on one date, but we talk every day and he drops by my work for lunch sometimes.” 

“And you’ve, um…” Steve waves one hand in the air, making a vague gesture, and your face blooms scarlet.

“That’s none of your business.” It comes out sharp, maybe the harshest you’ve ever spoken to Steve.

“Jesus, no, not that! I was going to say kissed. Cause I saw him lean in and then not know what to do.”

“Oh,” you say, face cooling down a bit. “Yeah. But he and I haven’t talked about how we’re going to be in front of Everett yet. I wasn’t really planning on him being around Everett yet, but I didn’t know he was coming today.”

“They seem to like one another.” Steve doesn’t sound particularly happy about admitting that.

“What, you’d rather they didn’t?”

“What? Shit - uh, sugar. No. That’s not what I meant.” He lets out another sigh and you can see the frustration drawn on his face. “It’s just kind of weird for me.”

“He’s not trying to be his dad, Steve,” you tell him. 

“No, I know. I just-I guess I just never really thought about this before. Like, how you felt when Nance and I got back together.”

“No,” you say with a frown. “Didn’t really bother me. Only in the very beginning when she came home for the summer and was around him so much. I felt like this surge of protection and wanted to be like, that’s my baby. But it passed pretty quickly. She’s never tried to be his mom; she’s just someone else in his life who loves him. I like seeing her and Everett together.”

“She’s also your best friend,” Steve says with a shrug, as if he’s explaining this to himself. “Jesus, I don’t know why I feel like this. I know it doesn’t make sense.”

“Feelings sometimes don’t make sense,” you say. “Hopefully this passes quickly just like mine did.”

“I guess,” Steve mumbles.

“You could always try getting to know Eddie,” you offer. “Or you could wait until he and I are more serious.”

“So, you think it’s going to be a serious thing?” Steve asks.

You can’t help the grin that tugs your cheeks up. 

“I think so. I don’t want to jinx it, though. But I really like him.”

“Good. I’m happy for you.” He reaches over and gives your leg a pat. “You deserve it.”

Thank God that the Wheeler’s have a huge backyard. There’s enough room for the tables and chairs set out for the guests, the food tables all set up, and for Everett to run around without knocking anything over. Yet. 

The three-year-old tornado tears through the yard, stopping at every familiar face to say hi or to see if they’ll play with him. Holly is kind enough to get out her old Hungry Hungry Hippos game and play it with him for a while. 

The small round table you’re seated at holds a few toy dinosaurs that you’re sure he’ll come back to eventually. Steve, Nancy, Robin, Vickie, and Eddie are the others at the table with you. Eddie’s arm rests against the back of your chair and you take advantage and lean into his body. 

“Would you look at them?” Eddie says with a shake of his head. “They’re like clueless teenagers.”

Everyone at the table keeps stealing glances at Wayne Munson and Susan Mayfield sitting next to one another a few tables over, smiles on both of their faces as they’re immersed in their conversation.

“Having Max as a cousin should be fun,” Robin says to Eddie with a teasing look. 

“She and I kept giving one another looks on the ride over here, trying not to laugh at their attempts at flirting.” 

“Not everyone is good at flirting,” Vickie says, and Robin’s jaw drops open. Vickie laughs at her girlfriend’s affronted face and ducks out of the way as Robin tries to playfully smack her arm. 

Steve’s unusually quiet and your awareness of that keeps you slightly on edge. There’s nothing you can do about it, but you blame your maternal instincts for just wanting to make everything okay. Or maybe that was your anxiety. Either way, you try to let it roll off your back. 

“Burgers are done!” Jonathan calls from over near the grill. Everett barrels over to you as you and your friends stand to go get your food. 

“Whoa, easy there,” you say. He raises his arms up and you let out an “oof” as you pick him up. You walk behind Nancy towards the grill, but Everett leans in to whisper in your ear.

“Gotta go potty.”

“Okay, babes,” you tell him and press a kiss into his hair. “We’ll be right back, just going to go inside to use the bathroom.”

“I’ll grab Ev’s burger,” Steve says. “He still doesn’t like-.”

“Pickles, right,” you finish for him. 

“Want me to grab yours?” Eddie asks, and the offer damn near melts your heart. 

“Yes, please,” you tell him. “Ketchup and lettuce, please!”

“Got it.”

“Thank you!” you call to him as you disappear inside the house to find a toilet for the toddler.

Vickie and Robin are filling their plates when Karen taps Nancy on the shoulder and asks her to come help her bring something out from the kitchen. It leaves Steve and Eddie alone, waiting in line for food.

“So, uh,” Steve starts. “You two have another date planned?”

“Oh, no, not set in stone. But I was going to ask her before the party ends,” Eddie tells him.

“And you’re like…serious about her?” In his gut, Steve knows this is wrong. He knows he’s overstepping; he knows it’s not his place. But it doesn’t stop him. 

“Well, yeah,” Eddie says. “I mean, as serious as someone could be after really only having one date and knowing each other for a few weeks.”

“Good,” Steve says as he grabs two hamburger buns: one for him and one for his son. “It’s just I see how Everett really likes you. I don’t want him to get hurt, you know, if he becomes too attached and it doesn’t work out.”

Eddie hadn’t thought about it that way. Yes, he had every intention of being with you for as long as you allowed him to be, but things happen. Life happens, as Eddie knows far too well. Just the very thought of hurting you made his stomach sick, but he didn’t think about how Everett might feel if something were to go wrong. Eddie knows he and Everett have been getting along great, but it never occurred to him that Everett might already be becoming attached. So attached that it would hurt if Eddie just disappeared from his life. Hurting either of you was the last thing he ever wanted to do. 

The sound of Robin’s raucous laughter jars Eddie out of his thoughts and back to the task at hand. He grabs two buns and two hamburgers, building them for the both of you. He adds ketchup and lettuce, just as you requested.

When you come back to the table with Everett, Eddie’s arm is no longer hanging off the back of your chair. You think that maybe he’s waiting for you to sit down first, but when you do, he still doesn’t put it back up there. He hunches forward over the table and takes a bite out of his burger. Everett climbs onto Steve’s lap and munches on his food right alongside his dad. 

“You okay?” you lean in to whisper in Eddie’s ear. 

“Mhmm,” Eddie assures you through bites. It doesn’t convince you, though. 

He remains quieter for the rest of the party than he had been before. He’s more subdued, looks less comfortable being here. Yeah, today was the first time he met Robin and Vickie, but they were chatting away like old friends only an hour ago. 

As the sun begins to set, Wayne and Susan say they think it’s time for them to head out. They say their goodbyes to everyone, as do Max and Eddie, but you pull Eddie off to the side before he can leave.

“Hey,” you say, pulling his hand into one of yours. “Um, I was wondering if you wanted to go on another date? You know, whenever you’re available?”

“Oh, well, sure,” he says, but he won’t meet your eyes. “What did you have in mind?”

“Wait,” you say, gently grasping his chin and making him look at you. “What’s wrong?”

He almost says it’s nothing. It almost comes out, but he doesn’t want to lie to you. You deserve so much more than that. 

“It’s just, I’ve never dated a mom before,” Eddie says with a shrug. “I, uh, I mean that I’m not sure about…” Eddie’s brain has lost the ability to make words function properly. I don’t want to move too fast for you or Everett. I’m scared he’ll become attached to me and it would hurt him if things don’t work out. But those thoughts won’t form on his tongue. “I like you a lot. A lot. It’s just…”

Your heart drops in your chest. Of course this is happening. It was too good to be true, this thing you had going with Eddie. He’d not seen you really be a mom before today. Yeah, briefly when you first met, but today he had an up close and personal look at the mom part of your life. Obviously, he didn’t like it, right? That’s why he’s saying all this? He’s realizing the full weight of what dating a woman with a child is like and it probably intimidates him. You don’t blame him though, that’s a lot of responsibility and baggage to chain yourself to at 23. 

“It’s fine, Eddie.” You let his hand drop from yours and you stick both of yours in your back pockets. If you look him in the eye, you know you’ll cry, so you focus on the front of your sandal digging into the grass below you. “I get it. It's a lot.” 

“Yeah, i-it is,” Eddie says. He takes a deep breath and licks his lips. Slowing things down with you is hard because you’ve already become such a presence in his everyday life. But he knows it’s the right thing to do for everyone involved. Best just to come out with it, he figures. “That’s why I think we should sl-.”

“Right,” you interrupt him. Hearing him say the words out loud would absolutely crush you, so you don’t give him the chance. Knowing Eddie doesn’t want to be with you is hard enough but hearing that voice you’ve come to love so much to actually say it would erase all the sweet things he’s ever said to you in your mind, only to be replaced by the searing painful goodbye. “Eddie!” Max calls impatiently, waiting by the Wheeler’s gate. Eddie glances at her over his shoulder but turns back to you and opens his mouth to speak.

“You should go,” you say, still not letting him talk. “They’re all waiting for you.” Your voice is wobbly, and you reach up to wipe away a traitorous tear that’s escaped. Eddie’s eyes track the tear down your cheek, and he frowns, both in confusion and concern. He leans in to reach for you, but you step back and out of his grasp.

Head ducked, you turn away from him and make your way back over to Steve at the table. Eddie watches you walk away, wondering what just happened. 

“I want to go,” you tell Steve quietly. Everett is fast asleep in his arms, but he manages to rise from his seat without disturbing him. 

“What?” Steve asks.

“I want to go home,” you repeat. “Now.”

“Um, okay,” Steve says, frowning at you. “Let me go say bye to Nance.”

“Fine. I’ll take him to the car.” You open your arms and Steve carefully transfers your son to you. “Tell everyone I said bye, okay?” You don’t wait for an answer before you head into the house with Everett, making your way through the house and out the front door. Going out of the gate would’ve been quicker, but Eddie was over that way. Trying not to jostle the sleeping boy too much, you manage to open the backseat and buckle him in. Steve approaches the car as you slide into the passenger seat. He eyes you warily as he gets in and starts the car. Arms tucked across your chest, you stare out the window. 

“Everything okay?” Steve asks. Obviously, he knows it isn’t. He knows you better than almost anyone in the world though, so he knew you wouldn’t just come out and say anything without a little prodding. 

“I don’t want to talk about it,” you say as Steve pulls the car out onto the road. 

He gives you a few minutes. Clearly, you’re trying to work through something, and he decides to give you a little time to digest it before he tries again. 

“Eddie, what the hell was that?” Dustin asks after he watched you hurry out of the house with Everett in your arms. “Is she okay?”

“I don’t know,” Eddie says, ignoring Max’s huffiness from the gate. “I’m not sure what just happened.”

“What’d you say to her?” Dustin asks.

“She didn’t even give me a chance to finish talking.” Eddie rubs his hands over his face. “I might’ve fucked up, man.”

Dustin sighs and motions for Max to hold on for a minute.

“Tell me what happened.”

Eddie doesn’t feel like he should reveal what Steve said. Next to his parents, the person who loved Everett most in the world was Dustin. Of course Dustin would agree with what Steve said; that going too fast and having Everett become attached could end up being terrible. It makes total sense, after all. Eddie doesn’t want to seem like he disagrees and thinks he’s trying to move in on Steve’s place as his dad or anything.

“I was just trying to tell her that maybe we should take it slow because of Everett, you know? I don’t want him to be confused or think I don’t care about him if this doesn’t work out.”

“Is that what you said?” Dustin asks. 

“Not really,” Eddie admits. “I wasn’t sure what exactly to say and then she cut me off and seemed to get upset. I was telling her how I like her a lot.”

Dustin closes his eyes and rubs at his temples.

“What the shit is happening?” he asks no one in particular. 

“You can talk to me, you know,” Steve says once you’re about halfway home.

“What’s to say?” you ask, eyes never leaving the road in front of you. “I got dumped.”

“What?” Steve asks, too loudly with a sleeping child in the back. He winces and glances in the rearview mirror to make sure he didn’t disturb him. Ev’s still out like a light, though. “What are you talking about?”

“Eddie started saying how he likes me a lot but how dating a mom is hard, so…” You trail off and shrug your shoulders, refusing to cry before you get into your apartment. 

Steve’s brow furrows as he turns the car into your apartment complex. Shit, this may be my fault, he thinks to himself.

“It’s whatever,” you continue when Steve stays silent. “Should’ve known, right? Who’s going to want to date a young mom?”

“Hey,” Steve says, your words breaking him from his previous train of thought. “Don’t say that.”

“Why not? A young dad is cute to girls. They fawn all over him when they see him simply taking care of his own child. But a young mom? Guys don’t want to be tied down like that. Be with a girl who has so many responsibilities and they can’t just swing by whenever they want to hook up.” 

Steve doesn’t have an answer for that. He parks the car in front of your building and turns off the engine.

“Do you want me to take him tonight?”

“No,” you answer. “I’ve got him.”

As gently as you can, you get out of the car and maneuver Everett out of his seat without waking him up. His head lolls on your shoulder and you shut the back door with your hip.

Steve steps out of the car but you only call out a quick goodbye over your shoulder before you’re headed up the stairs to your apartment. It’s hard to unlock the door, but you manage, and get you both inside. You kick your shoes off and head to Everett’s room. You’re about to set him on his bed when you realize you don’t want to let go of him. The rocking chair in the corner of the room catches your eye and you make yourself comfortable in that, adjusting Everett where he lays against your chest.

His hair is soft where you press soft kisses to it. It smells like his bubble gum shampoo, and you close your eyes and focus on it. You wrap your arms around the small boy and hug him to your chest tightly, without squeezing him too much. Tears start to leak down your face and drops plop into his inherited Harrington hair. Releasing a shaky sigh, you rest your cheek against the top of his head. Rocking yourself back and forth in the chair, you’re not sure if you’re trying to keep Everett soothed in his sleep, or you in your current state. 

You’d really had hope with Eddie. He seemed as close to perfect as possible, which you guess should’ve been your first clue. But maybe this is for the best, you try and tell yourself. Maybe you’ll be a better mom on your own. Alone. The tears start to fall heavier, and you squeeze your eyes closed, focused on feeling the warmth of your child in your arms. His soft breathing is the only sound in the apartment, other than the occasional sniffle from you. He makes a soft cooing sound and snuggles his face into your neck. It makes you smile, and you press another kiss to his head. Everett was all you really needed after all. If life is just you and him, you think to yourself, that wouldn’t be so bad. 

[loving-family-poll]

Ultimate Incest Tournament - Round 1

Norma and Norman Bates sculpture by artist "Rainman," titled Murderer

Propaganda under the cut:

Dante/Vergil:

The entire game is about how the power of twincest and a little gratuitous dadson/unclenephew can overcome the cycle of generational trauma

They are half-human half-demon twins who got split up when they were 8. Dante is the more normal one although he is mega depressed and doesn't like being around full human people. Vergil is kind of the evil twin although he is not that evil

They meet again when they are 19 and fight a few times and generally seem like they don't like each other (at one point Dante says "how about a kiss from your little brother" before pulling out a gun) but later on they team up and act like the brothers they once were

Vergil jumps into the demon world (and it's implied that it's a kind of suicide attempt, I think) and stops Dante from reaching for him. Dante is very emo about this and basically considers Vergil dead. He then names his devil hunting business Devil May Cry after how he cried because of Vergil

10 years later Dante comes across a brainwashed Vergil and kills him, not recognizing that it was Vergil until he is dead and gone. Dante is very emo about this

Like 10 years after this Dante comes across Vergil's accidental kid and acts like a distant enigmatic uncle toward him. Like 5 years after that, Vergil is back and splits himself in half, and when one half tells Dante that the evil demon they need to stop is Vergil's other half, Dante gets super pissed at him because he thinks he's lying and doesn't like people using Vergil's name in vain, I guess.

Eventually, both halves of Vergil recombine and he and Dante fight again but Vergil's son tells them to stop doing that and they're just like "okay".

Then a portal is opening to the demon world so someone has to go there and stop it but they'll be trapped there. Both Vergil and Dante go. Vergil tells Dante he doesn't need his help and that he can leave but Dante is like "no 🥰". We see them fighting in hell (in a friendly way) and fighting other demons together, just generally having a good time. Currently, they are still trapped there.

TLDR: Dante is very depressed when it comes to Vergil because he's lost him like 3 times and just wants Vergil to be alive and with him. At the end of the last game, Dante is super genuinely happy with Vergil in the demon world. We see less of Vergil's side of things, but he loves and hates Dante because he feels inferior to him (for mommy issue reasons). Vergil only smiles around Dante and honestly likes fighting him for fun. There's a lot more I could say but this is already so long so... They are complicated but they love each other <3

Norma/Norman:

The weirdest, most charming mother/son duo ever. Bates Motel took an interesting story and turned it into something greater, exploring Norma and Norman's relationship with sincere sympathy. Their love for each other is beautiful, but destructive; their intimacy was born out of necessity and shared pain; the world won't leave them alone. It's awful to witness. It's beautiful and heartbreaking.

i mean COME ON. Norma is constantly upset that Norman expresses interest in other women. She hid her husband from Norman because she knew Norman would throw a hissy fit over them being together (which he did)

He tried to commit murder-suicide so they could die together and when he survived he taxidermied her corpse so they could be together forever

Norman “It’s like there’s a cord between us” x Norma “Honey that’s - that’s from Jane Eyre” are everything to me. I’m barely scratching the surface in doing justice to their insanity. They mean everything to each other and I love their fucked-up codependency so dearly.

After he killed her he couldn't live without her so literally absorbed her personality and started wearing her clothes and speaking for her and carrying her corpse around and when a woman he was attracted to showed up at the hotel he killed her as his mother bc of his mother's jealousy??

[starsurface]

Mk1 Kuai Liang :-)

I thought so, so I wrote allllll of this just in case!! :D

<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

Regressor Kuai Liang Hcs

🔥 Regresses to about 3-6

🔥 He's usually really calm and collective, mostly to balance out Bi-Han

🔥 But small? Oh boy

🔥 He adores running around, play wrestling anyone who'll let him

🔥 (^ You might need to remind him that he's really strong sometimes because he has accidently hurt others because of this before)

🔥 He fights dirty too, bites when he's loosing >:(

🔥 Basically, play wrestling is only for people who know he fights dirty and might fight really rough and are able to overpower him

🔥 But he likes a lot of things!!

🔥 Loves coloring, giving his pretty pictures for you to put on the fridge

🔥 Main CGs are Tomas and Harumi (SHES MY MOTHER, NO HATING ON HER PLEASE!!!!)

🔥 Also Bi-Han but Kuai Liang likes testing Bi-Han and most times he accidently slips too and Kuai Liang feels bad (he'll still go to Bi-Han some times though)

🔥 I could totally see him enjoying Kung Lao as a babysitter

🔥 ^ He keeps up with his energy, going from peaceful coloring, to having to dive over the table to dodge Kuai Liang's tackle

🔥 Will try to crawl on top of things to get things, like a cup or something

🔥 But also so that you can't catch him >:3

🔥 You need to tell him that he's too small and it's too dangerous to be up there and to please get down

🔥 He doesn't like getting in trouble, so he will get down very quickly

🔥 Oh boy, his hissy fits though

🔥 Not even hissy fits, full blown tantrums

🔥 He has the powers and anger of Scorpion, although very rarely do his powers activate when he's yelling and screaming

🔥 These moments can be very scary honestly, but you need to cross your arms and stare at him while he's sitting on the ground yelling

🔥 Very quickly he'll look up at you and realize he was naughty over something like going to bed, and now he feels not only upset, but embarrassed

🔥 Will sit on the naughty step and apologize very fast when his time is up, he doesn't want you to be mad anymore, please don't be mad

🔥 He's usually very good, it's only tantrums that get him flared up and it's never actually your fault

🔥 It starts with the fact he has to go to bed, but then it's about the entire fact that he'll always be the second son and gets upset that he'll never be able to make his own decision and all the bad things that have happened these weeks will pile up all at once

🔥 ^ To fix the entire fact that he lets things build, encouraging journaling and more communication

🔥 He might ask you to help spell some words if he's journaling while small, but it does really help him in the long run

🔥 It also helps him talk about his problems a little more because now they're on paper and he knows what's really making him upset

🔥 He also really likes journaling because he he can make his personal journal all pretty and his own little design

🔥 Please get hkm stickers to help decorate it, it would mean the world to him 🥺

🔥 Again, normally he's very good unless he's having a tantrum, and his most preferred punishment is the naughty step

🔥 But you HAVE to speak with him afterwards about the situation because he does honestly feel terrible about it, especially if he burnt the floor or something

🔥 Doesn't like the naughty step if he broke a rule or something, he'd rather try to fix it

🔥 Just because he's usually good, doesn't mean he isn't chaotic

🔥 Likes to try and show off his powers while little

🔥 You gotta stop him almost immediately because he has burnt stuff in the past (no one yet though, thankfully)

🔥 Likes helping you out with things like dinner or cleaning

🔥 He can't actually do much, but he enjoys the praise you give him when he's good

🔥 Might get a big jealous if your giving another regressor attention

🔥 Wha- Your HIS CG!!! Why isn't he getting your undivided attention?? >:(

🔥 He won't say anything out loud, especially since he knows others need someone at times too, but he'll poutingly attach himself to your hip and hide in your neck

🔥 Really likes cuddles and is really happy when it's winter because he gets all the cuddles!!!

🔥 But when it's summer? It kinda sucks because he already runs warm and no one wants to hug something warm . . . 🥺

🔥 If you do, however, he'll be super thankful and draw you a pretty picture and try to make your favorite snack (or something that only needs the microwave)

🔥 Favorite little nicknames would be Firestarter, Shooting Star, Sweetie, Little One, Squirt, and Baby

🔥 He's a pretty responsible regresser most times

🔥 The littler he is, the more dependant he is

🔥 But the bigger he is, he reminds you when it's dinner time or can work the remote

🔥 Man is a wiggle worm, he's always doing something with his hands or is doing an activity

🔥 Oh my gosh arts and crafts are his favorite!!!!

🔥 Coloring, making bracelets, painting, anything he can do that he can make something

🔥 Mostly likes making things so he can give them to friends as little thank you’s or just because he wants to give them gifts

🔥 Hanzo doesn't exactly understand age regression, but he still likes hanging out with Kuai Liang and Tomas when they're small

🔥 (^ Encourages every and all bad/naughty decision they wanna make, thinks it's so funny)

🔥 . . . Until Harumi gets mad at HIM instead for ‘corrupting’ her babies, unfair 😒

🔥 But honestly, Kuai Liang is usually a very sweet little that just wants to relax and be a kid again

<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

Stop- He deserves to feel like a kid again after all he's been through. I love him. 🥺

[familyofpaladins]

You ever just get stuck by the silliest au idea and then suddenly its consumed your mind?

Anyway TMNT Princess Bride au

Most characters taken from the 2003 series, but personality of turtles might be closer to Rise series

(I wrote this in the notes of my phone so forgive typos and weird thought process lol)

Casey is buttercup. April is westly (Originally, and what inspired this whole thing. Was that karai was buttercup and Chapman was westley lol)

The turtle bros work for stockman (bishop?) Because he says he has he will help them find their father's killer. A man who has 3 scars along his chin.

Casey just a simple farmer (oh my god. The farm house) with April there to help feed chickens and milk cows and such and such (Would she only say as you wish?? Would she be that submissive? Idk. Maybe she would as long as he promised not to call her babe lol) (LMAO HER PHRASE IS DONT CALL ME BABE INSTEAD OF AS YOU WISH LOLOLOL)

Eventually she goes off to maybe get soem schooling or soemthing. But her ship gets [sunk/destroyed] by the Dread Pirate Krang. April doesn't return and after years Casey believes she died.

Then the local royalty happens to pass by and the princess (karai)(who is told needs to find a husband so she can finally become queen) decides to make Casey her groom.

Casey still in a depressive gloom doesnt do much to reject her.

One day when Casey is out on a run (one of his few joys) he gets kidnapped by 4 demihuman turtles . :D

But then. A stranger begins to follow them. A (wo)man in black

I've mostly been going from 03 inspiration of character. But the turtles might be a little more Rise based.

Leo is inigo foil. The master swordsman. And the banter. "You seem a decent fellow, I hate to kill you" "you seem a decent fellow. I hate to die" I am not left handed. He Asks april "ever seen a man with 3 scars along his chin?" "Do you ask everyone that question?

Raph is Fezzik . Big. The muscle. (Kind) Mikey doesnt have a direct foil. May have his own individual fight with april or possibly works with raph. The muscle and taunting words and stuff idk

Stockman is arrogant and thinks hes the smartest around. Accepts April's challenge.

Don is there to keep a hold on Casey. (He plays the game a long in his mind that it doenst actually take any posion). Once stockman is dead, Don just asks for th truth about what happen to the rest of his brothers, April tells him they are just knocked out and will be fine. He says he doenst really care about keeping casey as they were just doing it to work with stockman and well he's dead so no point. Bye crazy smart lady and sad prince to be. And he leaves to meet up with his brothers.

Cue april trying to lead casey away and him being like. Oh you're the pirate that killed the love of my life! Blah blah blah so you can shove it babe!

*falling down hill* doooon't caaaaaall me baaaaaaabe! Oh my sweet april ehat have I done!? *throws self down cliff*

They go through the forest (lmao splinter as rous) (not actually but the image is funny)

And Karai and her advisor Oroku Saki meet them and casey begs her to let april go instead of killing her.

April notes that the advisor has 3 scars a long his chin. That's right. Shredder is what's his face and killed splinter. (Sorry splints. You had to die in this au)

April is taken to Bishop who experiments on his death machine. Just doing his job and having fun with his toys.

BUT

shredder shows up when he learns about the demihumans and asks too many questions about the demi humans shes ever encountered. (Theres a small but decent population in the kingdom) but especially that turtles she encountered last. April doesn't care (she does but more concerned about casey) and asks instead about casey and telling him shes never going to stop.

Karai may or may not visit April… idk. But honestly she doesnt really care about marrying casey but she needs to in order to get the crown.

Anyway its shredder who throws a hissy fit and cranks up the machine "killing" april

Meanwhile the turtles have regrouped but leo is super depressed because he failed and now theh have no lead on their father's killer. Brothers eventually pull him out of it.

They hear aprils cry?? They want "the woman in black" to help them??

Idk they go look for her

("Father guide my sword" is SUCH a thing Leo would do and the humor of it hitting the tree then opening the door is peak tmnt.)

Oh no shes dead

Enter miracle max. I mean the ancient one."she is only MOSTLY dead"

Tang shen: "I'm not a witch! I'm your daughter!" (Maybe. This might change)

They all have to push raph on the cart to break into the castle. Hun is the door keeper lol

Leo goes after shredder. Raph is hauling April around. Ikd what mikey and don are doing exactly. Maybe they split off to look for karai and/or casey

Leo: RAPH!! RAAAAPH. HE'S GETTING AWAY! RAPH

Raph: sighs and puts april down carefully and goes knocks down the door for leo. Comes back to everyone gone. "Now whered everybody go??"

April somehow gets to Casey's room. Casey is thrilled.

Karai shows up… idk. Ask why she really is doing this. Is it what she really wants? Or is it just what shredder has convinced her she needs to do (marry become queen go to war and take over other kingdoms)

Karai seems to consider it (maybe) but still cant have her groom just be carted off. April says okay let's fight then. I've taken on demihimans and been dead and came back, you really want to fight?

Karai considers and concedes. They tie her up so it doesnt look like she just wlt them go.

Karai let's them all leave and ends up marrying one of the chamber men[squire/stable boy/man servant] (is that a real term???) Chapman.

Leo don and mikey all catch up and somehow raph went and found them all horses to ride out on. Happily ever after

Cody is the grandson. Hamato yoshi/splinter is the grandfather

[codenamehazard]

.:Waiting Room:.

Chapter 35: Waiting Room

Hey guys! Life's still hectic as hell and my brain has been refusing to brain as of late, but I managed to get this written before my brain decided to through a hissy fit.

Sorry it's a bit short, but I hope you guys still like it!

Without delay, let's jump in!

----------

I step into the reception area of Mercy Hospital, walking up to the receptionist lady manning the desk and taking a deep breath while I’m at it. I greet her and make some small talk with her before explaining my situation. Told her how I had came in with the Misfits when Pangolin was brought in and that I was told to ask about getting a physical and an “energy reading,” whatever the hell that was, from a “Dr. Sims.”

She asks for verification on this and I show her the letter and token, she look at me and nods before putting me into whatever system they have running in this wacko circus hospital before getting up and walking me to the waiting room the rest of the Misfits are basing in, at least until Pangolin is back on his feet again.

Once at the door, I thank the woman before opening the door and heading inside.

In the waiting room, I’m surprised to see that only a lone Misfit was in the waiting room. Dove, pacing back and forth like a caged animal. I’m already feeling uneasy about this whole thing with “Dr. Sims” and all of that, but seeing Dove like this? It makes my hackles raise. Didn’t help the fact I was expecting to see two birds in here, not just the one.

The sound of me closing the door gets the dodo’s attention.

“Oh, hey.” He awkwardly greets. I grunt in response before patrolling the room.

“Where’s your partner in crime?” I ask gruffly. “I know Mako’s out and about, though to where I don’t know. But last time I checked, Kestrel was here while you were visiting your brother.” Dove shifts nervously before finding his voice. “She’s in Pangolin’s room, it’s her turn to take watch over him. While we may be in safety, the worst threats often come in isolation.” I try to hold back a snort. Ain’t that the truth.

“As for Mako, she’s gone off to consult the Sisters Three. You know, measure twice, cut once. Make sure that she’s got all of her I’s dotted and T’s crossed for your lesson, so you aren’t blindsided again.” I can’t help but let out a loud and aggravated groan of annoyance before sit down in a chair and run my hands over my face. Of course she’s going to talk to those bitches, I should have known! I guess it makes sense, seeing as they probably know a hell of a lot more than me or anyone else, but still. After the hell those Three put me through? It makes bile sting the back of my tongue, I want as little involvement to do with them as possible.

A scoff escapes my throat. “Great, just fucking great. As if the woodland bitches weren’t finished with me.” I mutter to myself as sparks flicker off of my fingertips. “Thought I was gonna get a break from them for a good while but nooooooo. Gotta deal with them in a lesson plan too.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Dove giving me a dirty look as I continue to grumble. It’s honestly kinda funny to see. Someone trying to mean-mug me when I know that all I would need to do is flex my powers a bit and he’d be running scared, after all, he has been on the receiving end of my power before.

An awkward pause lingers in the air as the dodo continues glares at me. Not surprised seeing as I was talking shit about his mother, but I can’t help but feel the way I do and if I think someone is a jackass, I don’t hold back.

I break the pause with a sigh. “You know… Pango’s lucky… And not just in the fact that we got him here in time.” Dove’s glare softens and he tilts his head before I continue on.

“He’s lucky to have you all. You, Kestrel, Mako… Got a team that actually gives a shit about him.” “Well… Yeah.” Dove murmurs softly as he starts to pick at his nails a bit. “He’s not just our leader, he’s our big brother.” He looks down at his nails as he fidgets some more. “He may be my brother by blood, but he’s a brother to us all. We’re kin, and kin always watch each-other’s backs, even when we aren’t on the best of terms.”

Hearing Dove talk about family, how everyone in the Misfits watches each-other’s back, it causes my heart to ache. Jealousy and a bitter sadness rings out in my head like a church-bell. A painful reminder of the truth.

That I am alone.

My bio-family sucked ass. Mom and dad only wanted me to be the perfect son. A prop they can brag about to all of their fake-ass friends. Only people that were worth caring about were my cousin and my younger brother… Everyone else could rot.

Then there was my chosen family. Trish and Zeke… The people that honestly, truly mattered to me… And they’re dead. One of them I couldn’t save and the other… Dead by my hand…

Before my mind could go too far into wallowing in my pathetic self-pity, I notice Dove sit down in the chair next to me. I can see it in his eyes, he wants to say something. What he wants to say, I don’t know, but it seems like Mako probably told him about what happens when people try to pry and get me to talk before I was damn good and ready to. A breath of relief to me, to be honest.

The silence doesn’t last when the bird speaks. “Hey… Thanks.”

I blink before turning my head to face him. “Thanks for… Knocking sense into me when I was losing my mind. If you didn’t do that, I probably would have slowed everything down…” I look at him surprised before I nod him, grunting in acknowledgement. “It’s nothing, Dove. You were worried about your brother, I get it.”

The door to the waiting room opens, stopping me from continuing on. I turn to look at who walked in and I see a man with sun-kissed skin and blond, combed hair in the door, all dressed in the tell-tale long white coat that doctors wear and holding a clipboard. He looks over to me with a warm smile and I raise an eyebrow at him before he speaks.

“I take it you’re Mr. MacGrath?”

[imitation-steamroller]

General TTTE Headcanons

No engine in particular this time, just stuff I’ve been thinking of lately.

- The reason we don’t see BoCo anymore is because he was sent to help out a heritage railway on the mainland. He was meant to come back ages ago, but general shenanigans on said railway have kept him there. You’d almost think that they wanted to keep him there...

- Thomas will never admit it, but the DOWT engines wig him out a bit. There’s something about so many engines dressing up as him that doesn’t quite sit right. And don’t get him started on the dummy units in the States.

- Nia actually has some experience with railway shows, but she has a low opinion of most show engines because of it. Once, the Great Railway Show was being held in Kenya, and Nia was chosen to take part in the shunting competition. Unfortunately, most of the engines there that year were rather rude and unsportsmanlike.

- There’s an old saying about mountain engines: “You can take the engine off the mountain, but you can’t take the mountain out of the engine.” And no engine exhibits that more than Ashima. She loves the fresh air, the dizzying heights, the weight of the coaches against her, and the view from the peak. Honestly, she would live on a mountain summit if she could.

- Nia sometimes puts her work before her own needs. If she’s working with an engine who’s giving her a hard time (i.e. Dennis or the Ironworks twins) or she has some sort of mechanical issue, she’ll often put more focus on getting the job done on time than her own health.

- Bill and Ben stayed blue all the way up until Timothy arrived. When they realized the new engine had ‘their’ color, they threw the biggest hissy fit they could until they were painted yellow again. Some say you could hear the noise all the way from Edward’s station.

- Theo was actually built by Ruth when she was visiting the UK. But something came up and she had to go back to the States, so she left him in the old yard with Lexi and Merlin until she could come back. She meant to come back, but by the time she had the chance, he was working at the Steelworks.

- Long before Great Waterton was abandoned, a fireless engine worked near the mines. There was no sign of them when the town was being rebuilt, but Thomas swears up and down that he heard something during his adventure in Morgan’s Mine.

- Percy and Nia 100% teach each other swears. Why, imagine the Fat Controller’s surprise when he overheard Nia calling a particularly rude stationmaster a... well, I'm not quite sure it’s fit for print.

- Billy has proven that engines can survive underwater. He had an accident similar to Percy’s at the harbor, only Billy slipped much further into the sea. Luckily, they were able to fish him out.

- Engines can will themselves to grow facial hair. Not suddenly like Dennis from SpongeBob, of course. But they can decide if they want it. Flying Scotsman actually had a rather distinguished looking beard in the mid 70′s.

- Whiff used to have contact lenses, but everybody - himself included - was squeamish about putting them in. In the end, it was decided that glasses were easier for everybody.

- Bridgette Hatt grew up to be Toby’s driver, but he didn’t recognize her at first. It wasn’t until she jokingly asked if he was electric that he finally realized who she was.

[s1yeye]

make intro post yes say hi talk about who i am what i do

my name kuru or siyeye, siyeye ainu to mean be sick or be ill, kuru is ainu, reconnecting with culture and language, please be nice do not mock names or language just because not white not friendly sound funny to you.

kuru part in system, other system not talk here, but kuru is inside of, complex did / polyfragmented many alters many parts. do not let other parts on this blog, only for kuru, may only say hi if is an emergency or big worry need to adress things because kuru me i cant do it.

kuru it/its pronouns. kuru an it, thing, being, nonhuman creature weirdo crazy. no she he they no no do not use any of that. just kuru, just it, just me. kuru body transfeminine, kuru body boygirl nonbinary lesbian, but kuru not girl or boy, kuru only kuru siyeye it me thing being.

kuru have many disorders, many disabilities, kuru level 2 autistic medium support needs (mild ID), kuru have POTS and asthma and TBI and other body ailments that make life work hard not good hard to make a living hard to do things for good livings. kuru will talk about it, affect life happen very much. kuru also, more important, schizoaffective disorder symptom holder hold symptom for alters other parts not feel as bad as kuru do. kuru have schizoaffective since young age, 13 or 14, early onset, cause many many problems in life hard to deal with many many many harsh hard wow so many suffer medicate suffer evil. this will be main many post include symptoms vents rambles talk about life experiences medicate psychatric ward and others and others that happen because of this. kuru talk funny because of schizoaffective disorder. kuru talk and write weird due to positive negative symptoms mixing mixing cause words jumble mix up hard to speak thoughts racing by fleeting away from me. all words come out all at once becoming mixing jumbled and hard to understand word write or speak. kuru can not help this or fix this. other alter sometimes can write better, can help kuru siyeye do this, but abilities go downhill, catatonia apraxia alogia flat effect etc etc make worse and worse spiral go downhill eventually all gone some day maybe fear. kuru also speak weird part of trauma CPTSD DID abuse severe severe severe many happen occurence all at once. ruin kuru life, make extra extra difficult.

i kuru is an also poc indigenous east asian mixed many races mixed. if could not tell from name. do not want white people telling what to do on race related issues. has seen this happen, feel it felt it before. go away shut up.

kuru me i also a minor, bodily 16. if uncomfortable talking to speak to minors, let kuru know and will not follow.

kuru dni include endogenic (support ok, no syscourse on blog), transabled / transrace / etc (only transgender, transsexual, transspeices good), proship / comship, intersexists and transmisogynists. kuru block liberally, will use many block button, do not throw cry hissy fit if find out blocked by siyeye.

kuru may talk about triggering, bad bad hurt harmful things. can trigger tag if something heavy or obvious bad, but otherwise will not know to do unless you tell me to. if one of kuru follower, ok to ask to trigger warn tag things if they are being triggering to you. kuru ask that mutuals trigger tag heavy religion, around kuru, ESPECIALLY satanism / christianity, can triggering bad scary hurt kuru siyeye make bad visions remember horrible scary thing. thank you for if you are doing this.

edit : panphobes, acearo exclusionists, transmeds, do not follow like reblog interact!!!!! kuru is collective body mogai many genders and arospec, some parts acespec pan or others, support all harmless queer identity!!!!! go away if exclusionist bad bad person rude harmful mean leave

[stitching-in-time]

Voyager rewatch s4 ep3: Day of Honor

Ughhh I have such a love/hate relationship with this one. It has some amazing scenes, and they actually make Tom and B'Elanna's relationship a focus, but there's some bizarrely out of character writing that doesn't make sense at all, and it's incrediby frustrating. (Buckle up, this will be a looong rant...)

B'Elanna being ambivalent about Klingon holidays is understandable, and not wanting to engage with it when she's already having a bad day is also understandable and valid. Why anyone else thinks it's so important for her to honor some tradition that's never been important to her before, when it's not even their culture or their life, idk though. They at least let Neelix be nice about it, but the way they wrote Tom here was like, egregious character bashing, tbh.

There's a ton of plot holes here too- if B'Elanna's mother taught her Klingon traditions, why would she not know what the Day of Honor ritual entails?? If she designed the holodeck program with Tom, how could she still not know what the ritual entails?? Worf knew about Klingon traditions and he wasn't even raised by Klingon parents- you can obviously look this stuff up in a database, there's no way B'Elanna couldn't have known what was going to be going in. And then they have her being all timid when she goes to do the ritual- I get that it's a situation she's uncomfortable in, but B'Elanna's not someone I would describe as timid, and usually when she's upset or annoyed by something, she tends to default to withering sarcasm rather than nervousness. I just don't buy that scene going that way.

I don't buy Tom being such a bitch about it either- why would he even care if she observes a Klingon holiday or not, on her own time? It's not even any of his business, and she doesn't owe him any kind of explanation whatsoever. If he helped her design the program, he'd know perfectly well why she wouldn't want to get hit with pain sticks and fight holographic warriors when she's already feeling like crap. There's absolutely no reason Tom would be more invested in B'Elanna doing Klingon stuff than in making B'Elanna happy- when you're trying to get with someone, you comfort them when they're upset, you don't yell at them for what they're supposedly not doing right and storm out in a hissy fit. This scene was literally the meanest Tom has ever been on the entire show, way beyond even season one jerky dudebro Tom, and it was over something that he had no stake in at all. Why?? Why would they write that?? Especially when this whole episode is supposedly about how B'Elanna has such a short temper, and pushes people away out of fear of getting hurt- but they didn't show that, they showed him doing that, not her. The only reason Tom would make such a big deal out of nothing is if he were trying to push her away, but at this point, Tom isn't that stupid or self-destructive anymore, and the episode isn't even supposed to be about him. It makes absolutely no sense, and it's truly bad writing. Show, don't tell! And especially don't tell us one thing and show us the exact opposite. They just wrote a wholesale replay of their argument in 'Displaced' for this scene, except meaner, and it doesn't make any more sense here than it did there. It doesn't address the actual underlying issue either, which we could have done how many episodes ago in 'Displaced'. Ugh it's so frustrating! We could have had nice scenes of actual heart to heart discussions, and instead we get this nonsense.

And then in the next scene, we get Tom once again being a compassionate Mom Friend to Seven, who he barely even knows, who was a Borg- literally the most hated thing in the Star Trek universe- and he's all like 'I don't care about your past, who you are now is what matters, let me know how I can help' and I'm just sitting there getting whiplash from the wildly inconsistent characterization here. This is the Tom we know!! That's what he should have said to B'Elanna!!!! Why on god's green earth would you write him being so mean to B'Elanna, who he's in love with, when he's literally sweet as pie to eveyone, even to practical strangers??? I want to tear my hair out!!!

(Also, how the hell does Tom outrank B'Elanna?? Especially in Engineering?! As the Chief Engineer, she's in command in Engineering. Regardless of rank, she can give orders even to people who outrank her as the commanding officer there, and Tom is only a Lieutenant Junior Grade, that second pip on his collar is a half pip. The former Maquis don't have pips, but unless she was specifically given the rank of junior grade lieutenant, which seems a little odd for a Chief Engineer, she would outrank him as a full lieutenant, even if he's a bridge officer.)

Another one of my gripes with this episode is the notion that B'Elanna hasn't done anything honorable by Klingon warrior standards- when in reality, she's done a fuck ton of badass stuff that even Klingon warriors would be like 'dang girl!' if they heard about. I mean, she's risked her life to singlehandedly disarm a bomb that was gonna blow up a planet, she's stopped the warp core from exploding, like, a bunch of times, she's been through dozens of battles on Voyager, keeping a cool head and keeping the ship running under fire, she's been on dangerous away missions, she's done it all! AND she actually WAS a literal actual warrior in the Maquis! The Maquis's whole mission was to fight the Cardassians and protect the former Federation colonies from them. B'Elanna has probably blown up a bunch of Cardassian ships in her time- that means she's literally killed enemies in battle! Don't tell me Klingons don't count space battles- in the modern age of warp capability, most battles Klingon warriors fight would be on their ships, in space, not hand to hand combat anymore. B'Elanna actually is the Klingon definition of an honorable warrior- why would she think otherwise?? I mean, yeah, she has issues with Klingon stuff due to her crappy childhood, but most people start to look back with a critical eye once they get to be adults- even if she still didn't feel like she fit the definition of what a Klingon warrior should be, she should know intellectually that she absolutely does have all those qualities and realize that she has done a lot of those things. Like, that's what the emotional arc of this episode should have been- her figuring out that she always had the heart of a warrior all along. This bitch is drowning in honor!!! what the everloving fuck you mean she doesn't figure that out??? Give my babygirl some happiness!!! She's never done anything wrong in her life ever, and she deserves the world, ok?!

But of course she doesn't get it- she gets more misery, because something goes wrong while they're testing out the modifications to use Borg transwarp technology, and they end up having to eject the warp core. And then, of course, Janeway assigns her and Tom to go take a shuttle to get it back, because every time they write a gratuitous fight between them, they get assigned to a mission together so they're forced to work together and admit they need each other, but without directly addressing whatever the underlying issue is, so that they can continue to randomly argue about it in the next lazy ass script. Sigh.

The tragedy is that this episode could have been so exceptional- when their shuttle gets attacked and they have to emergency beam out into space in EV suits, it's honestly one of the coolest sequences in the whole series. They'd never done any space walks on Star Trek before, at least not in the TV shows- I think the First Contact movie came out around this time, so we'd seen the one in the movie already, but that was very different, in that they were actually walking on the hull of the Enterprise. This episode, where they were just floating in the middle of nothing, with their shuttle exploded and Voyager far away, was pretty scary to watch as a kid back then. Even then I knew regulars didn't get killed off without it being a big deal, but watching two of my faves marooned in space, outside communications range, with oxygen running lower and lower, and the clock running out for Voyager to find them, was unbearably tense. No other episode captures the horrible, lonely enormity of space quite like this one. The contrast between the scenes on Voyager, where everything is bright and filled with people and commotion, versus the dark, quiet, eerie open space scenes, where B'Elanna and Tom are the only things alive and moving anywhere near them, is truly unsettling. And it looks awesome, the visuals really hold up all this time later. They did a great job simulating them floating with no gravity, and the lighting is beautiful- except for the lights in their helmets that illuminate their faces, or the little blinking lights on the suits, it's lit from one side, casting deep, dramatic shadows as they float around. (Though I'm not sure where it's supposed to be coming from- presumably the nearest star, which it still too far away for us to see. But I'd always rather the lighting enable us to see the scene than make strict practical sense.) Even the score during these scenes is rather eerie and beautiful, which is another thing we don't get a lot of on Trek, and it really boosts an already stunning sequence. Their gradual winding down from their initial optimism, and joking to keep their spirits up, to realizing they only have a half hour of air, and gradually succumbing to oxygen deprivation, while realizing they're most likely going to die, is pretty devastating. B'Elanna kind of breaking down over the prospect of dying like that makes sense considering she wasn't in a good frame of mind that day to begin with, and finally, they let Tom be comforting and kind to her again.

Back on Voyager, the aliens they tried to help are threatening them now that they've taken Voyager's warp core for themselves, and Seven offers to give herself up to them to help Voyager. Janeway refuses, but it's a gesture that isn't lost on her. Seven figuring out a way to help the aliens to get them to give back the warp core and leave was a breakthrough for her in terms of thinking like a human instead of a Borg, and Janeway's pride in Seven for making that leap is so touching. I'm actually surprised they had Seven being so gung-ho about helping Voyager so early on, I remembered her being meaner and angrier for longer, but she's actually quite confused and trying her best to fit in here. Jeri is so baby looking in these early episodes, and Seven has an almost childlike naievete in her interactions with everyone in this ep, it's bordering on being kind of sweet. It's so at odds with her space Barbie outfit that it's like, cognitive dissonence between who she actually is and how she's being presented.

And then we go back to B'Elanna and Tom out in space, dying of oxygen deprivation, and what should have been the scene of all time. They literally think they're gonna die, so B'Elanna says she's decided to stop pushing people away, and she tells Tom she loves him. An actual love confession!! With the actual words!! We all lost our damn minds over it! We were so thrilled!! But then- they dropped the goddamn ball so fucking hard, because they didn't let him say it back.

Why?!?!?!

And worse still, they had him deflect it with a joke, and a mean one at that- who the hell says 'you picked a great time to tell me' when you're about to die and the person you're in love with says they love you?!?! What the hell was that?!?! (I think if Robbie had played it more heartbroken, in light of their impending doom, it could have helped mitigate how bad it was, but still, the writing should be good enough that it's not dependent on the actors performances to salvage it.)

The whole point of putting them in a life and death situation is to get them to admit they love each other- why would you go to all that trouble just to have one of them not say it???? Like, there's absolutely no reason for him not to, he's out there saying he's glad the last thing he'll see is her, which is the kind of thing you say when you love someone but are afraid to admit it- once she said it, that was his go ahead to say it too! There's no reason for him not to anymore! We're supposed to believe he's gonna let go of what he thinks is his only chance to tell her before they die??? I call bullshit!! If you're going to make them endgame, you have to let them talk to each other and be vulnerable with each other!!! Both. of. them!!!

Why they bothered to try to make an episode about B'Elanna, but then turned around and had Tom do all the things B'Elanna is suppposed to be guilty of (i.e. deflecting real emotions and pushing people away), which totally flies in the face of his character growth over the last three years, and then expected us to believe what we're told over what we've been shown of them for years, I have no idea. It's beyond lazy writing- it's genuinely upside-down, nonsensical writing.

They just. completely fumbled this moment. At least they had him hug her at the end, but still. The choices made here were baffling. Star Trek is historically bad at romance, so at the time we were just grateful they went for it at all, but looking back, it just makes me angrier every time I see it. It easily could have, and should have, been so much better, and it just... wasn't. And for absolutely no reason at all.

And then after this missed opportunity of a scene, we see Voyager's reflection in B'Elanna's helmet, and they're beamed up just before their air runs out. It's the last shot, so we're left with that being the last thing they say to each other, and it's like. excuse me but, what the hell was that??? I love that they actually went for addressing a romance that had been building up head on, and acknowledging it so it could become more than just flirting andand pining, but that this is the way they did it, is disappointing, to put it mildly.

Tl;dr: A frustratingly uneven episode that had many good elements, including a visually stunning open space sequence, but was marred by inconsistent characterization. The writing didn't do right by B'Elanna or Tom, and it's absolute torture to watch if you ship them, or even just like either of them.