#sorry if the sizing or something is weird i just drew this over a phone picture of my sketch lol

[mytimeinthesun]

Girlweek day 2!

So I had a bit more time today and didn't have to resort to using my grade school colored pencils, and I am much happier with the results lol

Which is good! Because Tome is my favorite girl!! She deserves the world and I love her and that's all I have to say

Wait I did base the pose off of Reigen's spin from the season 3 opening because I loooove the idea of Tome as Reigen's actual successor and THAT'S all I have to say

[emerxshiu]

rat brainrot going hard

sorry for not posting this week, i was cooking some stuff but this drawing took almost the entire week to do, worst part, it was a shitpost

i still dont know why this took me so much

so uh, almost all my drawings this week have been related to this two(and lis) so much so that i struggled because i wanted to draw other things so i would just stare at a blank sheet of paper for over half an hour, god that was torture, tho i dont mind drawing the sillies, sometimes it gets a bit boring drawing the same over and over y'know? im also going to take this as an opportunity to ramble about my forgo gijinka, because surprisingly i hadnt done that yet.

og image

ok now to actually talk about the wet rat

ive tried doing a gijinka of em since i joined the fandom (my first gijinka was fecto elfilis (well not really they were fnaf, but i mean when i got into kirby and when i started using the term gijinka))

but most of the time it just looked like elfilin but like...evil, with a different ear and a hospital gown, thats it, so i barely drew them since i didnt like that, but on february, i actually sketched an idea that i liked, and thought it looked cute but a bit off (i mean off in a good way)

(yes im posting this image again because i think its the best drawing of my forgo (im very inconsistent with my style ok))

they have their eyes closed most of time, like in game, i considered giving them legs but i ended up with the tail, since i didnt want to end up with like a fourth evil elfilin, the arms are like that so i can have em be small and weird like in the actual game, but i also made it so they can like change it, that way i can make em have hands and stuff if necessary (like to hold that frying pan for example)

not sure if a lot of you notice it but um, bro has no neck, i took away his neck privileges, i did it just to see but i ended up falling in love with that and stuck around, and also that allows me to draw them bending their head like in the drawing above because their neck isnt necking and i like that, i like being able to draw characters doing stuff that shouldnt be anatomically possible or is abnormal (i did something a bit similar with void) thair clothes are rugged because well forgotten land you know what i mean, but in general theyre actually pretty simple

i also did the drawing in digital

i tried doing very sketchy lineart, i tried a new brush in this one and thats the one im using for my last drawings (not sure if anyone noticed the brush change) it was pain painting it because i did it all with the brush in the same size, not changing it, god did my hands hurt and it was a bad idea

i accidentaly downloaded the following 3 drawings twice lol

sleepy zzzz

i think they would wear something like this to sleep, i dunno i just wanted to draw em in something cute, and sleepy, with elfilin slippers (the mug also has elfilin btw) oh and also i like changing their hair, here one of their long bangs is tied into a bow, kinda like callie from splatoon, i have some drawing im probably wont post, one more of forgo wich looks very much like the upper one but like eyes closed, and one of fecto elfilis gyaru because my sister asked me to draw them like that, bad thing is i didnt look up references on gyaru since i couldnt use my phone at the moment, i did like the hair i did for them in that one tho, they have their bangs tied up in a bun, and then left the rest loose, making it look longer than it actually is. i might redraw it, but actually looking up gyaru so i can make something more accurate, i like the style, but im not too informed on it

elfilin being silly like a kitty :p

not much more to say on this, just sillines :3

there is totally not a cropped drawing there

based on the kirby manga, where they make it so elfilis sings really bad, at first i didnt like it that much since i had imagined they'd sign great, but after i while i started to find it a bit cute so now its a headcanon, they like to sing but suck at it.

writing this just made me remember i wanted to do another drawing too for this with kirby and them singing, but i forgot to do it, im kinda tired (and its late) ill probably draw it, but for next post or another one

tried drawing fecto forgo as a plushie, silly.

i wanna learn how to sew so i can make plushies of characters (like prince fluf!) but im way too lazy, i will get around it some day! (hopefully)

elfilin too as a plush

i also wanna learn to sculpt, i tried doing a clay kirby once, but one his feet broke in half, and one day my mom put it in a box, and his eyes fell off and stuck to the box :(

i really wanna do figures for characters i like or dont have enough merch or my ocs (prince fluff, flamberge, fecto elfilis)

but as i said, im way too lazy and unmotivated, though its be nice, one day, maybe one day if i stop procrastinating

it doesnt have the same ring to it as "feto rata mojada alien" wich is how my sister and i call them (she doesnt know that much about kirby, but i sometimes show her my drawings (reluctantly sometimes, but im the older so like >:) she has too if she wants to show me her stuff too))

silly rat and wet rat, thats how i call em (because wet rat alien fetus is too long sometimes)

you can tell the brainrot was too strong (were near done(kinda))

they gain a mouth whenever i fell like it very much

artblock hit, and all the rest of pages i stared at them for 30 minutes

it felt weird looking at my fecto elfilis with the eyes so big, it looked off (in a weird way)

dunno, tried drawing them in a different pose i i dunno really

i think these are from tuesday. i did more but those were oc (mostly splatoon) or other kirby character related, and i want this to be a rat post (might post those tommorow or another day maybe)

i dunno (x2), i tried drawing elfilin like elfilis, i really liked the hands here. i still struggle a bit with anatomy but i think this was quite good for my usual character just stading looking at the front or a quarter profile. im considering making this into a fully digital drawing, what do i say by considering im actually doing that fuck it, i just think it looks kinda cool

"This new creation, driven by pure chaos, was defeated by the bright light of Kirby's hope."

Chaos Elfilis reminds me of a moth. kirby's hope is a bright light.

you can see my thought process. i just thought itd be a bit cute and kinda silly and funny.

the kirby fandom wiki, said that chaos elfilis looked akin to a moth, and it just stuck with me, so i wanted my gijinka of them to be moth inspired, and thats when i saw just how cute moths are! i mean im still a bit scared of insects but at least now i kinda like em.

i feel like i need to say sorry to that one moth i desintegrated in a matter of seconds with a book because i thought it was an spider and didnt think (im so sorry little guy)

but ah yeah elfilis, moth, it made sense to me since chaos elfilis has the soul of morpho knight, who is a butterfly, and moths are kinda like butterflies too. and i thought itd be cute

so uh yeah i sometimes like making my chaos elfilis be a bit like a moth, that includes liking light, a lot, so uh kirby is like a lamp in here because i said so

now to talk about the desing since for some reason i hadnt earlier, as i said before, they are very moth inpired so uh im might say that word way too many times (im sorry i suck at explaining stuff)

their horns are thinner to resemble moth anntenae, and they curve just because i thought it look cool, and to differentiate it a bit from fecto elfilis. their bangs tie into a bun (i forgot to draw that but i dont wanna go and change it now, way too tiredv man and i still have to post this on other places) the bun looks a bit like an eye, because well, they are basically a soul boss, and moths have things in their wings that look like eyes, btw chaos elfilis doesnt have their wings here because i got lazy and i didnt want them to like cover most of the drawing. the things coming from their bun are like the trhee things theyve got in their head, theyre shaped like that to resemble insects legs a bit, fecto elfilis also had the 3 things (i dunno how to call em sorry) as their eyelashes, but chaos elfilis has just white eyelashes, because the bun already has the 3 things and because my morpho has white eyelashes so (i still havent done my morpho gijinka yet, i just know im gonna give the butterfly some white eyelashes cuz cute and pretty grimm reaper) the rest of the hair is shaped into like a ponytail but like, adn shaped, with whats left shaped like a lil moth

the waistband they have is a nod to morpho, they used to have a bow shaped just like the butterfly morpho appears as, but i took it out because i thought it crowded the design way too much, and also because it was too on the nose. the arms have those golden things because my fecto has it and because my og chaos elfilis gijinka had them so i wanted to bring it back, the hand fades into white because the red in the hand wasnt hard to distinguish so i came up with that to make it easier to see.

the red part of the pants are actually a bit fuzzy akin to a moth and the white part has those stripes to loke like insect stuff because y'know akin to a moth. the boots are like the red part in their legs their model in-game has, so i just made em tall boots, the high heels? originally it was platform just ike my fecto but then i wanted to draw them in high heels when i was slightly redoing chaos elfilis, and welp, i loved it and now theyve got high heels. those rings around the ankle are inspired by the ones leaongar has around their arm. also can you tell anatomy is not my strong suit? and that i dont draw high heels often?

i made a slight change in my kirby, making the sleeves be a different color, since the one he had before i felt was way too white, and i wanted to have more saturation in it

i also forgot but elfilin is supposed to wear that during forgotten land, and then i decided that after the anding of the main story he changes clothes, but i forgot about that while doing this so he has his pre-ending clothes (also because i still cant really decide on their second outfit for the post-game)

god im so tired i wanna talk and show more drawings but o shit im sweating why is it so hot in here

um thank you for reading all the unnecessary long rambles about why i do certain stuff in my gijinkas, i appreciate it a lot (im still sorry about writing walls upon walls of text but i just cant help it)

Jambuhbye! :D

[ilovefandoms102]

The Worst Vacation

Pairing: Drew Starkey x Plus Size Reader

Summary: Your boyfriend surprises you on your vacation with your work friends...

Note: Inspired by my trip to AZ which was terrible so this is kind of based off real events that happened to me but dramatized for the story, and of course inserting my baby daddy Drew😛.

Click here to be apart of my taglist

=====================================

Life works in funny ways…

I never expected to find the love of my life a little over a year ago. Drew came unexpectedly into my life and we instantly had a connection. I know, I know...sounds extremely cliche, but it’s the truth.

Although our relationship was mostly long distance, we made it work. Sure it was really hard sometimes not having him around, but once I graduated from college we planned on moving in together. It might seem a bit fast since we have only been together a year, but I’m ready and I know Drew’s the one I want to spend forever with.

=====================================

I go on vacation with a girl I work with every year, Sally, since I started working with her two years ago. This year, we chose to go to Arizona. I was super excited because we had also planned on going to Las Vegas and Los Angeles.

Drew was extremely supportive and was happy that I was getting the opportunity to travel. I was hesitant with wanting to go at first because I had wanted to save up enough money to visit Drew while he was filming.

However, we both agreed his schedule was too hectic at the time and that we wouldn’t be able to properly spend time with each other. We were both disappointed, but still I was excited to go with my friend.

Or so I thought…

The trip was slowly turning into a disaster, everything that could have gone wrong did. My friend had brought along her niece, Caroline, which I didn’t mind despite not knowing her very well. It felt like the trip was mainly focused on them and I was just there to be the chauffeur.

I called Drew the first three nights of my stay crying because they were so awful to me. Drew being the sweet man he is offered to pay for a flight home, but I declined. I already had spent too much money to not finish out the trip.

“But sweetheart, if you’re not having a good time there’s no point in being there.” Drew pressed, his handsome face lighting up my phone screen.

“I know honey, but I’ve already spent a thousand dollars for this trip. I can’t just come home and leave them here.” I sighed, snuggling further into what would be my bed for another 10 dreadful days.

“I’ll give you the money back angel, I just don’t want you to be miserable when this is supposed to be a relaxing trip.” Drew insisted.

“I’m not taking your money Drew you spoil me enough.” I smiled, wishing more than anything he was lying here with me so I could kiss his cute face.

“I always want to spoil you baby, you mean the world to me.” he professed, grinning widely afterwards.

“I miss you so much,” I whispered, my heart aching to feel his strong arms around me.

“I miss you more,” he whispered back, pouting his lips slightly.

We talked until one of us fell asleep only to call back the next morning. My friends even had the nerve to comment on how much I talked to him.

“It’s a little obsessive...I mean you guys have been together for what a year?” Sally condescended, narrowing her eyes at me.

“Yeah? So what?” I questioned, the annoyance clear in my tone.

“I’m just saying it’s weird.” she scoffed, crossing her arms behind her head as we laid out in the sun by our pool.

“It’s weird for me to talk to my boyfriend?” I asked, making sure I was extra sarcastic.

“Every second of the day...yeah.” she chuckled, making my blood boil even higher.

I chose to be the bigger person however, and just kept to myself.

=====================================

The 5th day of my vacation, I hadn’t heard from Drew the whole day. It worried me, but I was also thinking about what Sally said. Maybe I was being clingy…

A knock on the door startled me from my thoughts. I thought maybe one of the girls had ordered food or something, so I opened the door and my mouth dropped open.

“Hi baby,” Drew greeted, my eyes watering from pure joy.

“Drew! What are you doing here?!” I asked excitedly, throwing myself in his arms.

“I came to see my baby,” he mumbled into my cheek, placing a gentle kiss on the red skin from being in the sun.

“Are you actually fucking kidding me?!” Sally exclaimed from behind us.

“Well nice to meet you too.” Drew mumbled sarcastically while letting go of me but not completely.

“Chill Sally, he’s just here a few days.” I huffed, rolling my eyes as I turned to face her.

“This is supposed to be OUR vacation!” She reiterated, throwing her arms out.

“It still is our vacation,” I emphasized.

“Not when you’ll be all over your boyfriend!” she shouted.

“I barely get to see him as it is Sal, you know that.” I said softly, trying to gain an empathy pass so she would just leave me alone.

“Whatever,” she sighed, clearly irritated as she stomped off.

I paid her no mind since she threw fits all the time like this. I pulled Drew to the room I was staying in, slamming the door shut. Drew threw his stuff by mine, then smirked at me and tackled me on the bed. I let out a little squeal, beaming up at the handsome man that I got to call mine.

“I’m so happy now,” I confessed, biting down on my lip to try and keep my tears in.

“Me too my love,” Drew whispered, sealing our lips for the first real kiss we had shared in a long time.

=====================================

Today was the day we were taking a drive to Las Vegas, which I was very very excited for. It was a nice change to wake up to soft kisses instead of Sally barging in here and demanding I wake up.

“Good morning beautiful,” Drew murmured in his deep morning voice, his kisses continuing their loving assault.

“This is a very nice wake up,” I giggled, snuggling further into him.

Drew hummed in agreement against the skin of my neck, his slight stubble tickling the delicate area. His large hands felt up the curve of my hips, taking my(his) shirt with them.

Drew had always claimed since we started dating that he was obsessed with the wide curves that I hated more than anything. He even said he loved how thick my thighs were, which I never thought in a million years I’d hear come from a man’s mouth.

“I love you, my girl. ” he whispered, my heart fluttering in my chest.

“I love you, my man.” I whispered back.

Our moment was rudely interrupted when Sally banged on the door saying we needed to hurry up. I couldn’t control my eyes from rolling in annoyance as Drew and I untangled from each other. We got ready quickly before making our way to the car to start the four hour trip.

=====================================

The drive was smooth sailing, Drew and I taking turns driving while Sally pouted about having to sit in the back. My hand clenched Drew’s tightly at her sly comments. Luckily, Drew wasn’t having it with her since he knew I wouldn't say anything.

“So this is the guy you’ve been obsessing over for the past year?” she asked snootily, knowing it would irritate me.

“I think it’s more like I’m obsessed with her.” Drew spoke up, squeezing my hand before smiling at me.

“Really? She never shuts up about you.” Sally retorted, raising a challenging brow at him.

“Well, I’m glad because I’m the same way with my friends, they love her.” Drew chuckled, but I could tell he was just as irritated as I was.

We stopped to get gas thankfully or otherwise I would have exploded. I stomped inside to the restrooms, slamming the stall door shut.

I got in the drivers side after I came out, Drew waiting by the door to open it for me. I smiled small at him, getting on my tipey toes to kiss him quickly before getting in.

We finally had made it, but things were not looking good. I had accidentally ended up in the old part of Vegas instead of the main strip, and Sally blew up on me.

“How can you be so fucking stupid is it really that hard to type shit in on a map?!” she screeched.

“It’s not that big of a deal, we're not far,” Caroline commented, annoyed with her aunt's attitude.

“God this is a fucking disaster I don’t even want to be here anymore!” she shouted, my hands gripped the steering wheel tightly. Drew sat in silence, not sure what to do to diffuse the tension.

“God will you just shut up! I don’t know where every fucking place is in the world! This is my first time here just as it is yours, now just shut the hell up and let me concentrate!” I finally snapped, angrily typing on my phone to figure out where we needed to be.

I found where Caesar’s Palace was located, and they just so happened to have free parking as well. I slammed the gas and took us there. Drew and I got out of the car, but Sally and Caroline didn’t budge.

A few minutes later, Caroline storms out of the car slamming the door as hard as she could. She rushed past Drew and I, heading towards the exit.

“I’m sorry y/n, I hate that she treats you like that.” Caroline spoke up once we exited the parking garage.

“I’m used to it, she talks to me like that at work too.” I confessed, Drew whipping his head towards me.

“Y-You never told me that…” he murmured, looking down at me with an almost hurt expression.

I shook my head at him, signaling now was not the time.

=====================================

Sally threw her tantrum, then met us in the Bellagio. We sort of made up, but I did it merely so the rest of the day wasn’t awkward. Drew was quiet, probably still a bit upset with me.

We toured the hotel, the decorative flowers and artistry truly breathtaking. We ended up in front of Hell’s Kitchen where we would be eating later tonight. Drew and I took some pictures together to post on our stories while Sally and Caroline walked towards Caesar’s Palace.

“I wish you’d let me say something,” Drew blurted, sitting on one of the steps with me standing between his legs.

“No Drew, it will just make things worse.” I sighed, leaning into him.

“She’s so mean to you my love, I don’t like it.” he stated, his arms coming around me.

“I’ll be ok baby,” I mumbled, playing with his hair while smiling down at him.

“How about...you and I sneak away.” Drew suggested, tapping his fingers on my hips.

“Then they’d really be pissed,” I chuckled.

“We can just say we got lost.” he shrugged.

“Why do I feel like you’re up to something Starkey?” I questioned, raising my brow at him.

“I may or may not have booked us a room for today.” he grinned slyly, suddenly pulling me tight against him.

“To cuddle?” I teased, smirking as I ran my hands up his chest to the hairs at the back of his neck.

“Well yes...but also to fuck.” Drew said bluntly, smiling as I gasped at him.

“Joseph Starkey!” I exclaimed, giggling as my cheeks turned a deep shade of red.

“Baby come on it’s been sooooo long, my balls are aching.” he whined, cupping his hand over his manhood.

“Awwww are they? My poor baby boy.” I pouted, rubbing his cheeks with my thumbs.

He nodded, his lips pouting out as well. I couldn’t help the smile widening on my face, his cute pout making my insides melt.

“Let’s go then Drewbear,” I giggled, pulling his arms to stand up.

=====================================

We quickly checked in, rushing up to the room. I didn’t have time to appreciate the beauty of the room, Drew immediately spinning me around and lifting me into his arms. Drew laid us down on the bed, my phone rang out, no doubt one of the girls calling.

“Drew, I-I should get that.” I panted, his kisses moving down my neck. I felt his hand snake down my body, reaching into my pocket to take out my phone.

“They’ll be fine without us,” Drew smirked, lifting up and silencing my phone.

“Drew I should at least text the-” I started, but stopped talking when Drew took his shirt off.

“Sorry baby, were you saying something?” he asked rhetorically, smirking at my staring eyes. I shook my head, my eyes traveling down his toned form.

Drew stared down at me, his gaze sending chills down my spine. His hands traveled from my knees, down my thighs, up until they reached the bottom of my shirt. His eyes flickered to mine, and I nodded my head. Drew’s hands went under my shirt, my breath hitching in my throat.

I lifted my hands, sitting up a little so Drew could take my shirt off. He tossed it to the ground with his, while he did that, I unhooked my bra and threw it in the same direction before laying back down. Drew’s hands ventured towards my breasts as his lips explored the skin of my collarbones, lightly nipping at the area. I couldn’t contain the moan that escaped when Drew lightly rolled my nipples between his fingers,

“Fuck,” I whispered, my nails lightly digging into his scalp as I tugged on his hair.

Drew wasted no time in getting to where he really wants. He shoved off both our pants and underwear, situating me just how he likes before he buried his face in me. His tongue worked wonders, licking and sucking on each spot that made me tick.

“Oh my, baby please don’t stop.” I begged, my back arching slightly off the bed as my legs started enclosing towards his head. Drew lifted his head momentarily to stick two of his fingers in gently, my eyes rolled to the back of my head.

“My girl has such a pretty pussy.” he commented, his breath ghosting over where his tongue had just been.

I moaned loudly at his praise, gripping the sheets between my fingers as I felt my orgasm just in reach. Drew smiled as his mouth went back to work, his fingers increasing their pace as well. I could feel the band about to snap, my legs shaking the closer I got. With just the slight curl of his fingers, the flick of his tongue, and I was done for.

“I’m-” I gasped, not finishing my sentence as my orgasm hit me like a freight train.

“Mmmmm fuck yes baby,” Drew groaned, working me through it as he watched the cum drip from his fingers and onto the bed sheets.

Drew took his fingers from me, sliding them in his mouth to suck them clean. My stomach fluttered watching him, it was the hottest thing I had ever seen him do. He then grabbed my hips and flipped us over so I was on top, my head spinning a bit from the quickness of his movements.

“My turn princess,” Drew smiled, kissing my lips hotly before lying back down.

I smirked down at him, kissing my way down his body. I got to his vline, leaving my mark down it until I got to his dick. I licked from his balls to the tip, squealing lightly when his hand was suddenly in my hair. His chest was moving at a rapid pace, his eyes burning into mine as I took him in my mouth.

“I missed your mouth so much my love, fuck it’s so good.” he moaned, throwing his head back.

I moved my head up and down, using my hands to meet my mouth with what I couldn’t fit in my mouth. His grip on my hair tightened, pushing my head slightly. I gagged once I got to the base, taking a deep breath as my eyes watered.

“I’m gonna cum,” Drew panted, thrusting his hips into my mouth as I sucked harder. I pulled all the way up, sucking on his tip and flicking my tongue as fast as I could. He moaned as he came, spurting his seed into my mouth.

“Let me see, did you swallow it all my good girl?” Drew asked, pulling my hair so my mouth was removed from him.

“Mhm,” I hummed as I showed him my tongue that was clean.

Drew smiled at me, moving his hold to either side of my face and smashing my mouth to his. I held his wrists, moaning softly into his mouth as I shuffled closer.

“Come on beautiful, I want to see you on top.” Drew whispered, helping me straddle his waist and inserting himself inside me.

“Oh my god, Drew.” I groaned, digging my nails into his shoulders.

“Fuck baby, you feel so good.” Drew grinned, helping me move on top of him.

I rolled my hips into his, the tip of his cock hitting my gspot which had me a moaning mess. Drew slid a hand down so his thumb rubbed against my clit, a high pitched whine flying from my lips as I moved faster.

“I could live in your pussy,” Drew moaned, his thumb pressing harder.

“Drew,” I pleaded, throwing my head back before coming back to stare into his beautiful blue eyes.

“Would you like that baby? To sit on my cock all day?” he growled, thrusting his hips upwards to meet mine as I came down.

“Yes, I would love it.” I whimpered.

“I can feel how close you are my love, cum with me.” he demanded, but I was already there before he finished his sentence.

“F-uck baby,” I squeaked, my body going to cloud nine as I shook on top of him.

Drew came seconds later, burying himself inside of me. I laid my head on his shoulder, ran out of energy to keep myself upwards.Drew held me to him, laying back on the bed as we calmed down.

“Ok?” he asked.

“Amazing,” I answered.

=====================================

After we met up with Sally and Caroline, explaining how ‘lost’ we were, we ate dinner at Hell’s Kitchen. It was amazing, but definitely not worth the price. We walked around a few more shops in Caesar’s Palace, actually getting lost and taking a while to find the way out.

Once we did, we came across a group of men walking by…

“Damn she thicc,” one commented.

“Ooooh she got a nice one, hello!” another yelled.

Drew turned around to say something, but I yanked his hand to keep walking.

“Do not,” I hissed.

Drew instead to make it clear I was taken, placed his hand directly on my ass.

“Drew! We’re in public!” I whisper yelled, but he made no move to remove his hand.

“I don’t give a fuck,” he shrugged.

“Hey baby! Why don’t you leave your pretty boy to be with a man for a night!” someone else called, Drew’s eyes narrowing.

I was suddenly airborne, Drew bending down and lifting me into his arms. I wrapped my legs around his waist, surprised to say the least.

“Drew! Put me down!” I yelped, holding on to his shoulders.

“Apparently, these boys need to know you’re taken.” Drew snapped, tightening his grip on me.

“Seriously babe, you’re gonna hurt your back.” I mumbled.

“Didn’t you say your feet were hurting babydoll?” he questioned.

“Yes, but Drew-” I started.

“You’re light as a feather my love, I could carry you all day.” he spoke softly, kissing my nose before coming to a stop in front of the water show between Caesar’s Palace and the Bellagio. He sat me on the railing, standing between my legs with his hands placed on my hips. I kissed his cheek, smiling at how sweet and protective this man of mine was.

“I love you,” I whispered.

“I love you baby,” he whispered back, sealing the deal with a soft kiss as the water show ended.

=====================================

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[imagines4thefandoms]

F*K idk what to name this (Leroy Jethro Gibbs x reader

Word count:4k+ um by bad

summery: Y/n come back from vaca looking different. will it change Y/n and Gibb’s relationship?

requested: no

"So how was your vacation," Ziva asked.

"Great, i saw my family and i only wanted to shoot myself once," you replied.

The elevator doors opened and y’all walked to y’all’s desk. Tony and McGee looked up from their desk and welcomed you back. You walked to your desk behind McGee and put your stuff down. You grabbed your bag of souvenirs and walked over to Tony.

"Welcome back (Y/n)," Tony said. "What did you get me.”

"Tony my nephew is more mature than you and he is five," you said throwing a tie and a baseball to him.

You walked over to Ziva and gave her a purple scarf and match hat. McGee caught the new computer game you got him.

"How this game isn't out yet," ha asked.

"My brother in law works for the company and he owed me a favor.”

"Thanks (y/n)," Tim replied.

You walked over to your desk, grabbed the coffee cup you got Gibbs and filled it at his coffee shop for him and placed it on his desk.  

"Welcome back (l/n)," Gibbs said walking into the bullpen and sitting at his desk.

He threw away his empty coffee cup and looked at the one on his desk. It suddenly got a little too hot so you took of your NCIS hat letting your hair fall from under the hat. You looked around the bullpen and noticed everyone was staring at you.

"What is something on my face," you asked.

"Your hair," Tony stated.

"Oh right. My baby sister is in cosmetology school,” you explained running your hands through your now red hair. “She needed to practice for her test and I drew the short straw. It was supposed to wash out by now but she mixed up her temporary and permanent hair dyes,”

Everyone kept staring at you even Gibbs which was weird but they stopped when Gibbs’s phone rang. Tony and Ziva were looking at Gibbs while Tim and you were grabbing y’all’s bags but when you turned around Gibbs was still looking at you. He grabbed his gun and shook his head as he hung up the phone.

“Lets go. We have a dead marine in a park,” Gibbs said leaving the bull pen.

We all followed Gibbs to the elevator. There was this tension in the air once the elevator doors closed. Gibbs usually was so comfortable around you. The two of you were the closest out of the team; but now he was avoiding you. When the elevator doors opened he couldn’t wait to get out; of course he could just want to hurry up and solve the murder of the marine. Tony and Tim raced to the car to get shotgun but when they opened the door Ziva sat in the seat.

“To slow boys,” she said buckling her seat belt.

Gibbs as always drove while you were sandwiched between DiNozzo and McGee. The drive consisted of  Tony playing with your hair, Tim messing with some gadget, Ziva was asking you questions about your vacation. Gibbs was silent the entire drive but he kept looking at you in the rear view mirror; but every time you locked eyes he quickly looked back on the road. Once you got to the crime scene everyone got out and you put your hair up in a pony tail.

The park contained a large grassy plain, a decent sized play ground for kids, and two acres of trees. The marine was one the bench in his civilian clothes. The marine was Sargent James Brian McMatthews. Aside from the fact that he was dead, he looked heathy. Sargent McMatthew didn’t have any obvious wounds explaining how he died. Ducky pointed out the same thing.

“Jethro I can’t tell you how this poor man died til I get him on my table. You know that,” Ducky said.

“Thanks Duck,” Gibbs said.

Before Gibbs even had to tell you, you decided to look around the area for clues. As you were looking you noticed Ducky call for you. Ducky gave you a hug once you got to him. Jimmy was bringing McMatthews into the back of the Medical Examiners van when he stopped and looked at you.

“Your hair (y/n),” Jimmy pointed out.

“My little sister did this,” you replied twirling your hair around your finger.

“It suits you my dear. I’m curious has Jethro seen your new hair do,” Ducky asked.

“Yes but he has been acting a bit weird this morning,” you informed Duck.  

“Well it’s nice to have you back my dear, but I must go I have an appointment with Sargent McMatthews,” Ducky said giving you another hug.

You went back to looking around the crime scene to look for evidence. While looking around the trees your saw a foot print. You measured the show print and took pictures but before you could look around more Gibbs called you.

“Did you find anything,” he asked.

“Just a foot print about 2 klicks west of where the Sargent was found,” you informed your boss.

He gave you nod and walked away. After about twenty minutes you and everyone else collected all the evidence you could and headed back to the office. This time on the car ride you got shotgun while the three musketeers sat in the back. Tony as usual was speculating on how Sargent McMatthews was killed, while Ziva slapped him because he was insensitive.

“Hopefully since we collected a bunch of clues at the crime scene we can solve this crime fast,” you said to no one in particular.

“Clues,” Gibbs asked looking at you sideways.

“Sorry evidence. I have spent a whole week watching nothing but Scooby Doo,” you said holding your head in your hands.

“Zoinks,”Tony said laughing.

Ziva slapping Tony while Tim was hiding his laugh hoping that Ziva didn’t slap him too. Gibbs looked over at you and gave you a small smile. You could just tell that you were not going to live  this Scooby Doo thing down. At the office, Ziva and I brought the evidence down to Abby while Gibbs when to see Ducky and Tony and Tim were gathering information on the victim.

“(y/n) you're back,” Abby yelled as she ran over to you. “And your hair. It’s hot.”

“I missed you too abs,” you replied hugging her.

“So besides the hair. What’s new Scooby Doo,” abby asked laughing.

“Seriously. Was it Tony or McGee.”

“I can’t reveal my source.”

“My guess is Tony,” Ziva said placing the evidence on the table in the lab.

“Just let us know when you have something Abby,” you asked as you left the lab.

“I always do,” she called.

Once the elevator doors closed Ziva asked you what Scooby Doo was. After explaining that it is a kids show about solving mysteries she let out a small laugh. You laughed along with her. Ziva and Abby have become like your sisters and no mater what happens you can’t stay mad at them.

The two of you joined DiNozzo and McGee in the bull pen. They found out that the sergeant worked at the Pentagon.

“Looks like it’s gonna be a difficult case, RUH ROH” Tony said mockingly.

Gibbs walked into the bull pen with his cup of coffee and slapped the back of Tony’s head. Gibbs told him to stop messing around. Tony then shared all the information that him and Tim found out. James B McMatthews was married with three kids and was a part of something very top secret with the Pentagon. McMatthews has no record, no affair, not even a speeding ticket.

Gibbs’ phone rang and it was ducky telling him that he had some information for him. Gibbs looked at you and motioned for you to follow him to Ducky. As y’all got into the elevator, Gibbs yell ‘Someone tell me what the hell he did for the Pentagon.’ The tension in the air formed again when the elevator doors closed. You glanced at Gibbs from the corner of your eye. You always noticed how attracted you were to your boss but when you joined his team you swore to push that thought out of your head. It helped that he had those Gibbs rules. Rule 12: Never date a co-worker. As the doors opened on the floor the morgue is on you instantly hear Ducky call Gibbs name.

“Hello again miss (y/n). How was your vacation,” Ducky asked now that the two of you were not   at an active crime scene.

“Duck, the body,” Gibbs said before you could answer.

“Right. Well this young man had no visible injuries. No cuts or bruises or even a broken bone,” Ducky said walking over to the body.

“So how did he die,” Gibbs asked monotoned.

“At first glance I couldn’t find any reason for this poor man to end up dead at a park. Upon my second look over the body I noticed this little puncture along his hairline. It seems to be from a needle. Besides that, there is nothing wrong with this man. It’s like his heart just stopped.’ Ducky said covering McMatthews back up.

Before Gibbs could ask ducky if he knew what was in the needle, I got a text from abby saying, ‘I know what was in the needle 😱🎉.’ I showed the text to Gibbs. He thanked Ducky and we headed up to Abby’s lab. When the doors opened on abby’s floor, she was standing right there and grabbed both of our hands and pulled us into the lab.

“First, Gibbs don’t you think that (y/n)’s new hair makes her look hot,” abby asked.

“Abs,” was all Gibbs replied with.

“Fine, later. Well this footprint found at the scene did not belong to our poor sergeant. It’s from a side 13 shoe.”

“The indent looks weird. The pressure of the foot print is lighter at the tip of the shoe then the rest of the print. Who ever was here was wearing shoes that were way to big for them,” you pointed.

“Correct, you get a Scooby snack,” Abby said handing you a cookie.

“You bet I do,” you said taking the cookie and taking bite of it.  

“Can you tell us the actual shoe size of the person who was standing in those bushes,” Gibbs asked.

“how dare you doubt me. No Scooby snack for you. It’s a size 9. Oh and after Ducky found that puncture wound and swabbed the area. The swab didn’t give me anything but I got to thinking of what could have been in that needle so I ran his blood again.”

“And you found a match.”

“Yes I did Gibbs. Batrachotoxin. From this cute little guy,” abby said making a picture of a cute yellow frog pop up on her computer screen.

Gibbs kissed Abby’s cheek thanking her and he stole a cookie before we walked out of the lab. After another slightly awkward elevator ride, we walked into the bull pen and Tony had just hung up his phone.

“Boss, I call about his file but they said they have to personally read us in.”

“Okay. Ziva you look up where a person could get their hands on Batrachotoxin while DiNozzo and I will go to the Pentagon while McGee and (l/n) will to talk to the wife,” Gibbs ordered as he grabbed his gun and jacket.

“I guess the gang is splitting up,” McGee joked.

Before Tony could make another Scooby Doo joke, Gibbs was already in the elevator and Tony had to hurry up because Gibbs wasn’t going to hold the doors for him. McGee and you left after y’all got McMatthew’s home address. When we got in the elevator, you looked at McGee and took a coin out of your pocket.

“Head you drive, Tails I drive,” You said before flipping the coin in the air.

You caught the coin and flipped it on the back of your hand. After looking at the coin it showed that Tim was gonna drive to the Vics house. Of course since Tim was driving it also meant he had control of the radio; which wasn’t awful but after having to only listen to Disney for a week you needed to hear your own music.

It took a while to get to the McMatthews’ house. There were three kids playing in a gated front yard with the front door open. Once Tim pulled up to the house the kids stopped playing and ran inside. One minute later a woman came out trying to find out why her kids ran in scared.

“Can I help you,” she asked walked towards us.

McGee and I held up our badges announcing that we were NCIS. She opened the gate and lead y'all inside her house. The kids stayed inside so Mrs. McMatthews closed her front door. She lead y’all to the liver room and when into the kitchen and brought back two cups of coffee. Before we started talking, one of McMatthews’ daughters came up to you.

“Are you Ariel,” she asked me.

I looked over at McGee and gave him look to let him know that I was gonna keep the kids occupied while he talked with Mrs. McMatthews.

“Yes I am,” I replied to the little girl.

She grabbed my hand a pulled me away. We walked out of the living room and up the stairs to a door with the name Sarah on the door. She pulled me into her room and went to her closet to grab something.

“You’re my favorite princess,” she said holding out a little mermaid costume.

“Why thank you, Sarah.”

“Where is Eric?”

“Oh um he is back at the castle working.”

She nodded her head like she totally understood and then asked you to play with her for a bit. After about fifteen minutes, McGee came into Sarah’s room looking for you. You turned to Sarah and told her that you had to leave. She walked with the two of you downstairs and before you walked out of the door she called out “tell flounder I said hi.”

McGee told you about his conversation with Mrs. McMatthews and how James and some guy named Andrew Ferguson had gotten into a fight two days ago about something at work. On the ride back to the office you and McGee were messing around and speculating what the vic could have been doing for the pentagon. McGee thought it had to do with some secret weapon while you suggested something more plausible (aliens).

“Aliens really, you spend too much time with Tony,” McGee laughed.

Back at the office, you and McGee decide to split up the work. While he looks into Ferguson’s military life, looked at his personal life and tried to figure out what they were arguing about. Gibbs and Tony returned from the pentagon as you were combing through Ferguson’s financial records.

“What did the wife say (l/n)?” Gibbs asked standing in front of the tv.

“She told McGee about a fight the vic got in with a guy names Andrew Ferguson,” you responded pulling up a picture of A. Ferguson.

“We pulled his military records but there is nothing on his record,” McGee added pulling up his military files.

“He doesn’t even have a parking ticket. But I was going though his financials when you got back,” you informed Gibbs.

You were combing though his financials when Tony and Gibbs pulled up the files they got from the pentagon. Apparently Sargent James was on a classified team of people teaming up with the NSA and CSA to monitor a major rebel group in the middle east that has ties to ISIS. Ziva came into the office and let Gibbs and the rest of the team know what she found on the toxin. The name Jonathan Whitlock was mentioned.

You were half paying attention when a weird charge appeared on his account. There were multiple weird changes from a offshore bank accounts. You sent the charges to the tv and walked over to where Gibbs was standing and took the remote from his hands.

“There are some weird charges in Ferguson’s bank account. They started about 18 months ago and if my math is correct it adds up to 150,000 dollars,” you reported clicking though the evidence.

Gibbs grabbed his coat and pointed to Ziva and they left, you guessed, to pick up Ferguson. While Gibbs was out, you went down to see Abby. As soon as you got off the elevator, abby pulled you into her lab and she sat you down in a chair.

“So, how was your vacation and why is your hair red,” abby asked sitting in a chair in front go you.

“It was fun. It was nice spending time with my family. And my little sister in in beauty school and she needed practice,” you explained to abby.

The two of you caught up, and abby told you about what happened while you were away. Which wasn’t much just normal stuff like Tony being stupid and teasing McGee and flirting with Ziva, and Gibbs started another boat. The two of you just sat in the lab eating “Scooby snacks” til you got a text from Gibbs telling you to meet him in interrogation.

You left abby and went to go meet Gibbs. Once you got to the observation room you saw that Gibbs was in there with Ferguson but they weren’t talking. Gibbs looked at the glass and you just knew that he was telling you to go in there with him. You exited the observation room and went next door. After walking into the interrogation room, you took a seat next to Gibbs.

“So why were you and Sargent McMatthews fighting two nights before he was murdered,” Gibbs asked.

“We weren’t fighting. It was just a heated argument. Coworkers do it all the time,” Ferguson defended.

“(Y/n) do you get in heated arguments at work,” Gibbs asked looking at you.

“No I mean unless my coworker does something incredibly stupid,” you replied ignoring Ferguson. “So what incredibly stupid thing did you do,” you asked looking at Ferguson

“I didn’t. I didn’t, ” he responded dragging if hand across his mouth.

Gibbs looked over at you then opened the file in front of him and pushed the file in front of Ferguson. He looked at the papers then looked up a Gibbs. He closed the file and pushed it back.

“I don’t know what that is,” he said tapping away at the table.

“You should. Its your banking records. It shows that there are multiple charges added to your account adding up to 150,000 dollars over the past 18 months,” you said opening the file back up and pointing out the charges.

“My guess is that those are payments from you selling military locations and secrets to enemies in the middle east,” Gibbs said leaning back in his chair.

“And your pal Sargent McMatthews found out. That’s why you two had a ‘heated argument’ two days ago. He found out that your were selling out fellow soldiers and threatened to report you,” you interrogated as your leaned closer to Ferguson.

Ferguson started sweating. Gibbs noticed it too.

“But you couldn’t have that happen so you went to your cousin Johnathan who so happen own a golden poison frog. You extracted the toxins from the frog then injected Sargent McMatthews so he wouldn’t tell your CO,” Gibbs informed.  

“Because of you fellow marines died,” Gibbs spoke angrily almost yelled.

“No one was supposed to die. The information I gave was just supposed to help them transport drugs nothing more,” Ferguson exclaimed. “They promised that no one was going to die. James was gonna tell and if anyone found out I would be labeled a traitor. I didn’t want to kill James he is my friend…was my friend. Everything just got out of hand.”

Gibbs looked over at you and then slid a legal pad across the table. Ferguson started writing his confession. You and Gibbs got up and walked out of the room. The two of you walked back to the bullpen and Gibbs sat at his desk to work on the paperwork and you did the same.

“(Y/n) its nice to have you back,” Gibbs said not even looking up from his computer.

By the time you were done with the paperwork, Tony, Ziva, and Tim has left. You looked out the skylight and noticed that it was already dark. Gibbs got up from his desk and walked over to yours.

“It’s late (y/n) go home,” he instructed putting on his coat.

“I love my family and all but there were moments where I wanted to be here working. Plus I have paperwork I still need to finish,” you responded to him.

“It can wait til tomorrow,” he replied grabbing your coat and holding it out for you.

“I really should finish.”

“Ill buy dinner.”

“Sold,” you claimed grabbing the coat from Gibbs.

A smile grew on his face and he shook his head at your antics. He waited for you to grab your things and then the two of you went to the elevator. When the elevators closed that awkward tension filled the enclosed room again.

“Gibbs are you ok. You have been acting strange all day.”

“Your hair,” he whispered.

“Right I going to make an appointment to fix it.”

“No, I like it. It suits you,” he said standing directly in front of you.

The tension increased ten folds and the desire to kiss him was strong. You cleared your throat and took a step back from Gibbs. He walked you to your car but as you were starting it something happened and the car just stopped working. You turned off the car and just slapped the steering wheel.

“Ill drive,” Gibbs said opening your door.

You got out of your car and the two of you walked over to Gibbs’ truck. The ride to Gibbs’ house was quiet a bit awkward like the elevator but it was the nice kind of awkward quiet. Once you got to Gibbs house he got on his phone and ordered takeout from (favorite restaurant) and ordered you some (favorite meal).

“Abby said your building another mysterious boat,” you inquired as you took off your coat and placed it on the couch.

“Mysterious,” he questioned.

“Come on Gibbs you constantly build giant boats in your basement and you magically get them out. Ergo Mysterious.”

He opened the fridge and handed out a beer and headed down to his basement. You followed him  down the familiar stairs. In his basement stood another damn boat. Gibbs placed his beer on his work bench and proceeded to sand down the boat.

“Ok Gibbs how many does this make 27,” you asked him jokingly.

“I think its actually 28,” he jokingly responds.

“Funny man.”

You walk over to him and just watch him sand the boat. He looks over at you and holds out the sandpaper in his hands. Switching between looking at him, the boat, and the sandpaper in his hand you shake your head.

“Oh no. I don’t want to mess up the boat.”

He grabs the beer from your hands and place it next to his. Gibbs grabs your elbow and pulls you to where he was standing. Standing behind you, he places the sandpaper in you hand and guides it along the boat.

“With the grain,” he whispers in your ear.

You were stick between a rock and a hard place or in this case wood and your boss. Being this close to him made your face turn as red as your hair. His lips stayed within centimeters of your ear as he kept whispering “with the grain”. You couldn’t help it, so you turned your head towards his and you could feel his hot breath on your face.

His lips, in this moment, just looked so kissable but you knew it couldn’t happen. Not with Rule #12. His blue eyes starred into your (e/c) eye. You unconsciously liked your lip then held your lower lip between your teeth. Seeing you biting your lip drove Gibbs crazy. In that moment he couldn’t stop himself. He closed the little space there was between the to of you and pressing his lips roughly against yours.

You could taste the beer off his lips and his scent of sawdust and bourbon filled your nose. He pressed your up against the boat to deepen the kiss while your hands found their way to his hair. This was better than your ever dreamed and you dreamed of this moment a lot. Your hands wondered from his hair down his back then to the button of his polo. He took his shirt of once he felt your cold hands on his lower stomach. After his shirt was off his lips attacked your neck sucking and biting it.

A moan escaped your lips which brought a smile to Gibbs’ face. His hands moved from the boat to the buttons on your shirt. The paste at which he was unbuttoning your shirt was agonizingly slow. But once it was done you quickly took it off. You hands went back to his hair this time you pulled him so close to you, it was like his entire weight was one you; that didn’t matter you liked feeling this close to Leroy Jethro Gibbs. His hands went down your sides to your hips and stopped on your ass. He gave it a light squeeze then grabbed your left leg and wrapped it around his hips. On instinct you did the same with your other leg, leaving the only thing from making you fall on the floor to be the force of Gibbs’s body pressing you against his unfinished boat.

Once again your hands roamed this gorgeous man’s body til it reached his belt. Your took it off and started to unbutton his pants but had to stop when his doorbell rang. He let you down and just stared at you.

“Thats the food,” he said grabbing his shirt and putting it back on.

“Im not hungry anymore,” you replied fixing your messy hair.

“You should eat anyway. Your gonna need your strength,” he said as he went up stairs leaving you gasping at the thought of what’s for dessert.

[bigbadmercer]

Cross Our Hearts 2021

Okay, so I thought I’d have a go at writing. I’ve debated it for a while and this seemed like a good opportunity. Any feedback is welcome!

Day 1 - Angst

Games: Prototype/Assassin’s Creed (Protocreed)

The past few months had been pretty crazy for Desmond. After saving the entire planet, it was decided that a change of scene for him and his fellow Assassins would be nice; and so they now had a hideout in Manhattan. It was a decently sized, abandoned apartment. As their luck would have it, they decided to show up just as a viral outbreak had ravaged the city.  The virus on it’s own was bad enough, but a few days into their stay they had learned that two organisations involved (Gentek and Blackwatch) were riddled with Templars. For Desmond, this meant many missions, a few injuries, two or three surprise encounters with the infected (during which he absolutely did NOT scream) and a lot of meetings to summarise each mission. 

Oh, and he met a super-powered virus freak.

He remembered the moment vividly. He’d managed to sneak into a Gentek facility and was making his way back out with the information he’d gotten his hands on. As Desmond was leaving, an alarm started blaring throughout the entire building, accompanied by red flashing lights. Desmond paused, wondering if he had been the one to set off the alarm. He turned over his shoulder just in time to see a group of armed Blackwatch soldiers round the corner. His stomach sank - he was good at fighting, but he was guy with a blade attached to his arm. He froze and watched as the soldiers ran towards his hiding place in the shadows, getting closer, so close he could hear their heavy breathing...

And then they ran straight past him. Puzzled, Desmond turned to follow their path with his eyes. He was met with a sight that made his heart leap into his throat. A man, just a bit shorter than Desmond, stood opposite the soldiers, who had now stopped. The man was wearing a pair of jeans, a black and red leather jacket, a hoodie (wasn’t that funny?), and a shirt with the collar up. Weird. However, this is not what drew Desmond’s attention, for when he looked at the soldier closest to this man, he saw a blade sticking out through his back. A long blade, almost as long as he was tall, coming from the man’s arm. No, it was the man's arm. He was too shocked to move. He stood and watched in horror as the man cut the soldiers to pieces like wet tissue paper, the once grey hallway newly painted red with blood.

Naturally, they got to talking, and it turned out they both hated the Templars. Well, Alex (the man had awkwardly introduced himself) hated Blackwatch and Gentek. But it didn’t take much discussion for them to realise they were more or less on the same side. Alex helped Desmond through the increased security so that he could get out of the base with his precious info. Then, Alex gave him the number to a phone he’d gotten hold of and left almost as quickly as he’d appeared not ten minutes ago.

Fast forward a couple of months (and a lot of missions) down the line and Desmond was sort of friends with Alex. He said sort of, because Alex would never admit it. But Alex was friendly with him. What Desmond initially interpreted as rudeness was actually social awkwardness. Alex wasn’t deliberately a dick - not most of the time, anyway. He just didn’t have a clue about how to talk to people. And he had a good reason, Desmond thought. Alex wasn’t human; he was the Blacklight virus. He was made to be a killing machine. He was a killing machine- a pretty damn good one, too. Alex never stopped. He was in his element surrounded by enemies. He didn’t sleep and he couldn’t stay in the same space for a long time. He’d soon grow restless. Despite all this, he’d developed his own mind and thoughts.

So when Desmond found him sat on top of a roof, looking rather still apart from his swinging legs, he knew something was wrong.

“Hey, buddy. You been parkouring without me?“ Desmond called out softly, hoping he’d be able to lighten the gloomy mood that seemed to be clinging to Alex.

Alex didn’t answer.

“Alex?“ Desmond moved to sit beside the virus-man, a concerned expression falling over his face. He was answered only with a soft grunt from the other. “Hey, what’s wrong, Alex?“

“Nothing. I’m fine.“ Alex replied in a voice not too dissimilar to a growl - his normal tone of voice.

Desmond pulled a face. “Dude, I know you enough by now to know that you sitting up here alone means you’re thinking about something. Probably not something good. Knowing you, something horrible, actu-”

“Shut up.“ Alex snapped. He shifted just enough that the light of a nearby billboard lit up his face, allowing Desmond to see his expression. He’d expected Alex to look angry, or maybe even confused. But Alex, he looked... he looked miserable. 

“Whoa, hey... I’m sorry. Seriously, Alex, what’s wrong? You look really upset.“ For a moment, Desmond debated putting an arm around Alex, but decided he liked his arm where it was - meaning, attached to his body - and thought better of it. 

Alex turned his head away to hide his face from Desmond. He stayed silent for a few minutes. Desmond sat by him, also silent, waiting patiently for Alex to answer. Then finally...

“I never got a chance.“ Alex mumbled, his voice uncharacteristically soft.

“A chance to what, Alex?“ Desmond spoke gently. The last thing he wanted to do was scare Alex off by interrogating him.

“Be human.“ Alex sighed heavily, then lifted his head slightly to get a better view of the people walking on the street below. “I have so many memories. Happy memories... But they’ll never be mine. I had a cross-hair on my back the moment I woke up in the morgue because... I’m a monster.“ The last few words were spoken so quietly they were almost a whisper. And, oh, if Alex looked miserable before, now he looked like he might cry. 

“Oh, Alex...“ And before he could stop himself, Desmond was gently pulling Alex into an awkward sideways hug. Alex tensed immediately and Desmond felt tendrils squirming uncomfortably under his arms. He was about to pull away when he felt the squirming stop, then Alex practically melted into his hold.

Alex was slightly cold to the touch, which surprised Desmond. He’d always thought Alex would be warm. For a moment, Desmond couldn’t fathom how Alex had refrained from chopping his head off, let alone how he had managed to relax. Then it hit him... This was the first time in this Alex’s life that he’d ever had any physical contact that wasn’t intended to hurt him. This was the first time he'd felt comfort from another. Even though he'd never admit it, Alex needed this.

“Alex, you are not a monster. You aren’t the mindless killer that they tried to make you into. You hear me?” Desmond spoke quietly. He didn’t get a verbal reply, but he suddenly had two cold arms wrapped around him and a head resting on his shoulder.

“Hey, we have the day off tomorrow. How about we stay in and watch a movie or something? Would you like that?“ Desmond asked tentatively. 

“Yeah, I’d like that.“ Alex mumbled into Desmond’s shoulder. 

They stayed like that for a while afterwards before Desmond eventually coaxed Alex into the hideout to lay down on the couch. Desmond covered him with a fluffy blanket, which earned him a funny look from Alex. Desmond only chuckled at this as he sat beside Alex. He talked quietly to Alex about completely random subjects. Alex relaxed at this, even gave some sarcastic comments where he could. Eventually, Desmond paused his rambling to check the time. 12:43am. Damn.

“Hey, Alex, I’m gonna hit the hay. You okay with that, or do you want me to stay?“ He heard no reply. “Alex?“ He turned to look toward the couch. The sight he was met with was very unexpected.

There was Alex, asleep. Desmond smiled softly  and moved to pull the blanket up to Alex’s shoulders. It seemed he was out cold, completely unaware of the world around him.

“Goodnight, Alex.“ Desmond whispered, before leaving to go to his bed. He fell asleep quickly. He was tired, but he was also happy that Alex had finally found peace.

...Or so it had seemed. Desmond awoke not long later to the sound of distressed yell, followed by tearing and hurried footsteps. He wasn’t the only one that heard it, because soon, he was running out of his room along with Rebecca, Lucy, and Shaun. The other three got a slight head start on him. Desmond looked to the other Assassins, who had their eyes fixed on the couch, all wearing worried expressions. Desmond moved forward to follow their gaze.

He saw an empty couch with several long, deep claw marks in it. A quick scan of the room and a wide open window confirmed his worries:

Alex was gone.

[bubbleteaa]

Fragile as a cherry blossom petal [ushijima wakatoshi x reader]

Fragile as a cherry blossom petal; pairing: ushijima wakatoshi x reader warnings: Tons of feelings, like, a lot; some angst, just a lil bit. words: 5233 uwu

Summary: When he saw you, you seemed so fragile, just like the cherry blossom petals that fell around you; little he knew, that the fragile petal was him.

*✭˚･ﾟ✧*･ﾟ*✭˚･ﾟ✧*･ﾟ*

The cool April wind hit his face as he ran. His mind was blank, his legs moved automatically. Ushijima could feel the droplets of sweat slipping down his jaw. He turned, decided to change his rhythm and began to slow down, his eyes peeled off the way to observe the cherry blossoms dancing to the rhythm of the wind, he breathed deeply, usually did not pay attention to him around when exercising. Everything was a routine, warmed up, ran, returned to Shiratorizawa and practiced with the rest of the club. But, for a moment, his routine was affected by observing the beautiful pink petals.

Then he stopped. He stopped running and kept watching. For some reason, no matter how many times he saw the same petals, his breath was always stolen. They looked so fragile. Maybe, just maybe that's what motivated him to see them. Their delicacy.

He heard a rather low, almost faint sneeze, he turned almost instantly. On one of the benches, he observed a girl sitting with a notebook in his hands, watching Wakatoshi curiously, but only with that. Ushijima's face didn't express anything.

"Bless you" he caught the way to say, his words slipped through his mouth very gently, but he sounded harshly anyway. He looked at her again. She was writing something on his cell phone.

'That's kind of rude,' he thought. She hadn't thanked him, he didn't care much, really; but, she was still rude. Just before taking his gaze off the girl's figure, she raised her cell phone towards him and smiled genuinely at him.

"Thank you, sorry to take me a while to respond. I'm mute."

Oh.

"You don't have to apologize" he replied. Internally he felt ashamed, never thought the girl in front of him did not have the ability to speak.

She wrote again, Wakatoshi was just watching her. He looked at the other objects that were near her, a backpack, a pen and a coat. He noticed the coat for several seconds, trying to see which academy he belonged to.

Not recognizing the name, he turned his sight to the young woman. She didn't stop smiling at any point. Why was she smiling so much? Did he have something on his face?

"My name is Y/N. What yours?"

"Ushijima Wakatoshi" he responded by looking her in the eye. They were shiny, they kept showing him that kindness, that softness, that fragility.

Her smile gradually disappeared and then she got up. Ushijima stared at her. Maybe it was time to go, maybe it was a little rude to just stared at her, perhaps his tone of voice and the way he watched her was intimidating.

But again she smiled at him. She wasn't near him, but she wasn't far. Her body was small, dwarf in front of him. And she looked so small, so fragile.

He watched her write something on her cell phone and looked back at her figure. Fragile. Everything in her yelled fragility at her. Weakness. Delicacy. He blinked and it was the longest blink he had ever taken. When he opened his eyes, he could read what had been written.

"I'm sorry if this seems very strange, Ushijima-kun. Can I draw you? I need to draw someone for an art project. It doesn't matter if you don't want to, I'll understand. I know you think I'm weird, " the last sentence gets stuck in his head. Had she done anything to give her that perception?

He didn't know what to answer. He had already wasted a lot of time in his distractions; but he didn't want to leave because if he did, immediately the girl in front of his eyes would think that his words are made, when they don't come close to reality.

The ace looked for a second at the cherry trees and then directed his gaze to Y/n.

"Sure."

.· ´¸.·*´¨) ¸.·*¨) (¸.·´ (¸.·’* ⛧

"Wakatoshi-kun, you were a little late today", Tendou's voice drew him from his thoughts. Blinked a couple of times as I drank water "Did you get distracted?"

"I was with a girl."

"WHAT?!" they all turned his head at the same time towards Ushijima, he continued to drink water with great peace of mind. His gaze remained static even as Tendou began to question him about this supposed female figure who had caused it to arrive an hour and a half late to practice.

Yes, he had been with Y/n. And surprisingly, he didn't want to go back to the practice because the young woman's presence was addictive. He was not a person of many words and she could not speak, but, the silence was comfortable, she was kind and quite interesting. Her smile was still drawn in his mind delicately, a beautiful smile. Such a delicate smile, so fragile.

He remembered when she showed her the final result of the drawing and Wakatoshi could not help but smile. She was talented and she knew she was. She looked so happy, so euphoric when she began to thank him for allowing her to draw him. He also noticed that the young woman liked to talk quite a bit. He ended up telling her that he was the captain of Shiratorizawa's Volleyball team and that at the same time he was the ace. He immediately noticed that the girl with e/c colored eyes did not know what she was talking about, so he explained to her.

And she ended up stopping at that point to smile at him. Ushijima swore that he felt that his world stopped when she saw her tiptoe to caress her hair. Didn't you think it was disgusting? He was a little sweaty and that definitely wasn't the behavior anyone would have with him. Ushijima was intimidating, he's intimidating.

"Do I have something in my hair?"

"No, I'm just trying to say you're doing a good job. Toshi-kun" It didn't take long to write those words to him, but Ushijima could feel his heart start beating uncontrollably by the nickname.

Toshi.

Even after the break was over, the smile, the scent, the figure, everything Y/n kept cornering him in his thoughts.

He didn't want to leave because he wanted to keep seeing her smile in contrast to the sakura flowers falling near her. She looked very beautiful, well, and Y/n is beautiful, he had noticed that the moment she smiled at him for the first time. That's why when she gave him her cell phone and asked him to give him his number, he found it strange. Shouldn't he take the first step? But he wasn't upset or uncomfortable, because he wanted to get to know her more, no matter what barriers there might be due to her condition.

How could I deny her anything?

When he was finished, Tendou continued to ask him. He kept it going to finish answering because he was already asking something else. After he finished changing, he checked his cell phone and his eyes revealed a little glow full of emotion as he read Y/n's message.

His companions watched him and couldn't believe what they saw.

Ushijima Wakatoshi was smiling while writing something on his cell phone.

"Oh" Ushijima did not react to the redhead's words. He pressed to send and then raised his sight. The third-year-olds watched him with his eyes wide open, trying to observe what he had written "Do you like someone, Wakatoshi-kun?~"

When Ushijima looked up, he immediately felt his cell phone vibrate.

"One second, Tendou"

"You definitely like her"

"She's a pretty interesting person," he replied. He kept walking until he stopped, observing Shiratorizawa's entrance.

"Aren't you afraid to get in trouble, Wakatoshi-kun?~"

He hadn't told Y/n that they had dorms, so she thought they'd walk home together. He couldn't let her go alone at that time of night.

L/N had told him that she also belonged to a club, specifically the art club; Ushijima was unaware of many things besides volleyball, so when the girl started telling him about the national performances, the boy was clueless. She took her time to explain, and he understood immediately. Her dream was to be able to be known for what she liked, and that her disability would not stop her. She told him that sometimes no words were needed to show her feelings, that she learned it in the roughest way, but that she did not imagine what her life would be like with the ability to speak. A lot of things would be easier, and a lot of things wouldn't have crossed his mind, maybe he wouldn't have had a chance to meet him.

That's why she was working on extra hours and creating new pieces of art to be able to have an outstanding place. Hours and overtime. Although, he couldn't criticize her. I'd be hypocritical.

But... always go alone at this time of night at home?

What if someone hurt him?

Or did something happen and you disappeared?

What if it rained at night?

No. He wasn't going to let any of that happen, he would never allow that something bad happened to her.

"It won't be more than 20 minutes," he observed Tendou and he showed him one of his most playful smiles.

"I’ll cover you, Wakatoshi-kun~"

.· ´¸.·*´¨) ¸.·*¨) (¸.·´ (¸.·’* ⛧

Six months later.

"Y/N" Ushijima turned to look at her and smiled delicately at her "Would you like to come to practice today?"

Her face conveyed so much joy, so much emotion, so much affection. She nodded quickly and lunged down so he could hug him. Oh, oh, oh. Wakatoshi's heart began to tremble inside his chest, it was too much for him. Having her so close, her scent covering her clothes, her smile and eyes shrinking by the size of her smile. Anything that had to do with her made him fragile.

Yes, Wakatoshi had taken the steps after Y/N. But he had managed to ask her out on different occasions and finally declare his feelings for her.

The confession by the h/c-haired girl had been written in a letter with cherry blossom petals adorning her. Wakatoshi's heart was so moved by his words and by the little drawing of him she had made.

How could he not reciprocate her feelings, if he was already more than in love with her?

"Uhm... yes, I think we should walk to Shiratorizawa, " he mentioned a while later and the e/c-eyed girl separated from him and took his hand without thinking about it. Oh. He watched her and smiled again, catching his fingers with hers and began to walk.

They had become very close. Too close. L/N brought out the sweetest and most delicate of the giant Ushijima. His serious and intimidating shell was softened by the girl's displays of affection. Next to her, he became so fragile, so sensitive.

And Y/N was so sweet, so beautiful. Feeling her hand against his, damn. She was so small. L/N looked at him and kissed his cheek. Ushijima slowed to process the situation and began to blush slowly, turning his gaze away as the young woman laughed. Her laughter was so soft, so precious. The first time he heard her laugh, he was impressed, but soon the girl had told her that it was normal to articulate sounds, but that talking was impossible for her. Deep down he was grateful for the fact that he could hear her laugh. The memory was attached to his memory and he could not help but smile before looking at her again.

"It doesn't matter that you can't talk. It's the most beautiful laugh I've ever heard" Wakatoshi's words came out instantly, sincerely, transparently. The girl's eyes opened with surprise and she began to turn into a crimson red who immediately worried the third-year young man "Are you okay, Y/N? Do you feel bad? Do you have a fever?"

He was so damn clueless sometimes.

However, he hadn't introduced Y/N to the team yet, was it right if he did it today? He hadn't warned anyone and they were in front of the gym entrance.

"Y/N," he looked at her and brought her face a little closer to his "if you feel uncomfortable or is too much for yourself, just tell me. Sometimes... Tendou is very noisy." The young woman smiled at him and nodded softly, before pressing his lips against his in a very short kiss. Ushijima didn't get used to sudden displays of affection, but he loved them. He smiled and kissed the crown of his head before entering the gym against her.

The sounds of the balls hitting the ground on the finishers and the sound of the sneakers sliding down the wooden floor filled Y/N with curiosity. She was still holding her boyfriend's hand as she inspected the place with her gaze. Here, the person that trained day and night. She smiled watching Ushijima, yes, he was special.

Then, before she knew it, Wakatoshi blocked one of the balls that may have hit his girl. And Y/N blinked several times, had not noticed, she was so focused on admiring around her and Toshi. He observed Ushijima's countenance, his frown was slightly frowned upon. He looked upset. He was upset.

"Wakatoshi-kun~" And Y/N turned to where she heard the voice, he was a tall, red-haired boy with a peculiar smile. His eyes remained closed as he called Ushijima "I thought you'd never make it~”.

Oh.

Oh.

Oh.

Everyone stopped.

Immediately, Y/N felt like all eyes were positioned on top of her. Ushijima kept watching Tendou with a frown. The boy was blinking as he looked at Y/N, he began to circle around them, looking at his uniform and also his appearance. Tendou looked at Wakatoshi and smiled.

"Oooh, Wakatoshi-kun~, you didn't tell us that today you would bring Y/N-chan" the confused young lady and looked at her boyfriend.

"I didn't plan on it."

"Uhm, Y/N-chan, it's a pleasure to finally meet you, I'm Tendou Satori" Satori reached out her hand and Y/N smiled at it. Ushijima observed how one of his hands was still intertwined with L/N's and the other was being caressed by Tendou's.

He didn't like to see that.

"Tendou" called him, he let go of Y/N's hand after several friendly squeezes "They almost hit Y/N while practicing."

"I apologize for that, Y/N-chan" the redhead leaned in apology way and then smiled at the girl "But Waka Waka was there to protect you, didn't he?” The young woman smiled and nodded. Tendou looked at her curiously "Hey, Y/N-chan, wouldn't you like to meet the rest of the team? Waka Waka looks a little... possessive"

Ushijima only cast a short look at him as he gently squeezed his partner's hand. She blinked a couple of times in confusion and then watched everyone else. He noticed an older gentleman trying not to scream as he rubbed his sien with his hands.

"I remember telling you that, if you were going to be distracted, that you were going to be for a girl..., BUT I DIDN'T MEAN TO BRING HER TO DISTRACT OTHERS!"

"I apologize" Ushijima bowed his head "This is L/N Y/N" observed all members of the club "My girlfriend".

Oh. Now this was interesting.

They tried not to corner the young woman with many questions, but Ushijima had forgotten to tell them that Y/N had a special condition and that she did not speak. At first no one understood until the girl pulled out her cell phone and started explaining that she was actually mute. That caused much more curiosity in all the team members, even the coach. Wakatoshi had managed to approach someone who did not speak being a person of few words.

How ironic love was.

After several questions, mostly how they met as Wakatoshi was very secretive and had not gone into much detail - and had not informed anyone that officially Y/N was his girlfriend - L/N sat next to the coach to watch them practice.

Ushijima was on top of his 100%.

He wanted to show you how good he was, he wanted her to be proud of being her partner. Wakatoshi was completely in love with the girl and wanted to give the young woman plenty of reasons for not leaving him. And Y/N looked at him and clapped every time he managed to score. She was delighted at how her boyfriend looked like a fish in the water while playing. She couldn't help but smile for the rest of the set, he looked so calm, so passionate, so happy.

She couldn't help it and took a picture just as he jumped to score, the sound that formed when he hit the ball was intimidating. Her smile grew more. She will draw it later.

"L/N" turned his head towards the "Ushijima has a lot of future" the coach said “He's one of the best" he looked at her "He's showing the best he's got because you're here" the girl looked at Wakatoshi and smiled "But, he gets distracted sometimes at practice" his voice got a little harsh towards the girl "And it also takes a long time to get to the club. I have been struck several times by the times he arrives late to the dorms" And Y/N looked at it surprised. Wakatoshi hadn't told him anything about this, "You may be his motivation, but at the same time you're a distraction that, unfortunately, may be taking him away from his dream."

There was no more conversation after that.

For some reason, Y/N felt a knot in his throat, she couldn't say anything, of course, of course she couldn't. She looked down at the screen of his cell phone, looking at the photo he had just taken of the boy.

His dream.

He may lose his dream.

Was she really hurting Toshi's future that much?

Then it all began to reproduce in her head. The days when Wakatoshi sought her in her academy, they sat on the bench where they met and stayed like this, smiling at each other. Or the times when he told her that he needed to go back to the club and that she would do the same. And the times when he left the club late and went to the park so he could take her home which was 15 minutes from Shiratorizawa. He was wasting valuable time for her.

Ushijima was wasting time for her.

It was her fault.

She felt the tears form in his eyes. Her jaw began to tremble. No, she couldn't cry. Wakatoshi was happy, and if Wakatoshi was happy, she should be happy. It doesn't matter that she had to step away little by little so she can encourage him to get his dream.

Practice ended an hour later and Y/N didn't know how she didn't cry when Ushijima approached her to hug her and tell her he was happy that she could watch him play.

"Very well" said the coach "But it could be better. How about two more hours?"

"I will take Y/N home and return to practice," Ushiwaka declared, the others looked at him and smiled lightly. The coach looked through the corner of the young woman's eye.

Maybe it's taking him away from his dream.

She said goodbye to everyone with a friendly smile. Ushijima hadn't stopped smiling, he was sure L/N had seen how good she was, he was sure the young lady was proud, that she was impressed. He was sure he had shown him that he was not at all fragile.

"See you later" Ushijima looked at Tendou and the others.

The young woman remembered the coach's words and looked at Ushijima, quickly wrote on her cell phone and spread it to her.

Ushijima shook his head.

"It's a little late, " he looked at her, there was some concern in his eyes. The girl's heart started to hurt "I won't let you go alone."

"I'll be fine, Toshi. It's not dark yet, I promise when I get home, I'll send you a message! :)" Wakatoshi sighed and looked at her again.

Ushijima swore for a second to see the girl's eyes begin to drown in tears, but she was quickly said to lower her gaze to pick up her things.

"Okay”.

Ushijima read the message several times. Trying to process what the girl was trying to say. He felt a pain in his chest that he had never experienced before. He began to write very slowly:

"What do you mean, why did you call me Ushijima? And Y/N we can solve this. We can do it. Yesterday, was it too much for you? Please--".

He stopped.

And Y/N had sent another message.

"I don't think it's good for me to be in your life. I'm a distraction to you."

He deleted the message he was writing.

"What do you mean?"

Ushijima's hands began to tremble as he waited on the bench. He hadn't gone to practice; He hadn't even warmed up. He’s been waiting all day for the girl, all day worried, all day thinking about the things that might have happened to him not to accompany her at night.

"I'm taking you away from your dreams, Toshi."

"I'm a distraction to you."

"Ever since we met, you've been wasting valuable time you spent with volleyball. It's all my fault. I don't want to take you away from your dream, I know how important it is to you."

"Please, Toshi. You know it's true, you know you've gotten in trouble because of me."

"I'm so sorry, Toshi."

"Goodbye."

It broke.

Like when they crashed a glass into the ground. Like when they cut the bonds that connected soulmates. As when the fragility of the cherry petals was in their hands and so delicate that, with a grotesque rub, they broke.

Ushijima Wakatoshi, the miracle boy, began crying after reading the last message sent to him by the woman he loved.

And he couldn't answer it, because it was true.

.· ´¸.·*´¨) ¸.·*¨) (¸.·´ (¸.·’* ⛧

It's been two months.

It was December.

And Y/N watched the snowflakes fall. She smiled very briefly as she sat on the bench where she had met Ushijima Wakatoshi, one of Japan's top 3 aces. She pulled out his drawing book and let out a sigh.

She had not managed to get to the post on ledge that she so desired. After she broke up with Ushijima, things for her went from bad to worse. She missed him so much and she could only think of him. All her drawings, it was him. Photos she had taken of him, pictures he had sent to her. Even pictures of the two of them together. Photos she found in magazines and photos she didn't know who had taken them, but each and every one of them, was in her drawing book.

She watched with some nostalgia around her. Usually Ushijima would come running, finishing warming up and then they would be seated while she gave him all her affection, even if he was bathed in sweat. Remembering it made her heart move a little with dissatisfaction from within. But this was for him, she had turned away from him so that he could improve, so that he could achieve his dream.

And yet, deep down, she felt that she had done something wrong.

Tears began to come out almost immediately, as if it were a method of personal attack against herself. When she cried, she could only think of him. In his smile, in his immense hands against his, in how he whispered "I love you," in the times it was just the two of them and the cherry petals.

She hunched over as he began to whine, covering her face. This was all her fault, if she hadn't sneezed, if she hadn't been a mess, if she hadn't loved him from the first moment she saw him, perhaps, just maybe, none of that was happening to her. It was all her fault, absolutely everything.

She couldn't recompose herself; it was all Wakatoshi. Wakatoshi had consumed his life in every aspect, and she loved that. She loved it so much that it hurt, it hurt so much.

But what could she expect? It wouldn't work anyway. There was an immense barrier to communication. She, for her part, could not speak. Ushijima knew no sign language and was a man of few words. It would never work, never.

But they would have made it work, because they loved each other so much, and she knew it.

Their sobs were so sad, so horrific. She tried to stop while covering her mouth with one of her hands, but only managed to get both parts of her body to start shaking uncontrollably.

She deserved all this, for taking all that time from Ushijima, for getting him into trouble, for being a distraction.

All that she deserved.

"Are you all right?"

Oh.

Oh, no.

It was that thick voice that had fallen in love with her. Oh, no. Not again, not again.

L/N Y/N was petrified as she looked up to meet Ushijima Wakatoshi in what she deduced was clothes to exercise in winter. Tears felt like crystals against his cheeks, silly whining still coming out of her lips.

He looked pretty bad. Ushijima could look the same as always, but his eyes, his eyes looked so tired, so sad.

"Y/N..."

She didn't know why at the time she tried to articulate his name, she tried with all his might, but only incoherent sounds came out. Tears began to increase. Everything was wrong, Toshi was looking at her in her worst condition, she was sure that Wakatoshi thought she looked pathetic in that state.

"Y/N" he called her again and approached the bench as fast as she could to sink in front of her, took off his gloves and began wiping her tears with her hands. How she missed his hands. Wakatoshi squeezed his lips into a straight line as he kept removing tears for tears "I don't want to hear you cry, please, " his voice sounded intimidating, but it seemed to break "I beg you, don't cry, no"

"A... A…To... hi"

Wakatoshi's eyes opened wide and observed her in amazement. She was trying with all her might to say his name, even if she knew it was impossible. Ushijima couldn't take it anymore and took his face in his hands so he could kiss her. It was short, but it felt so good.

"I love you so much Y/N, I haven't stopped doing it, not even for a second..." his voice began to break as he advanced. His figure began to tremble in the girl's arms. His whining increased "Forgive me, I let you go, I should have fought for you, I should have..."

Now, they were both crying.

The two held on as they cried on the same bench where they had met. On the same bench where they confessed their feelings, on the same bench where they gave their first kiss, on the same bench where Ushijima let her go.

That damn bench that held such fragile memories.

Y/N only embraced it more forcefully, afraid he'd let her go.

Ushijima took a deep breath to separate a little from her and start making movements with her hands looking her in the eye. L/N's lips trembled uncontrollably.

"You're the best thing that ever happened to me and I want to have you back, Y/N" He learned sign language. Y/N at that point was already a disaster in tears. Had he learned for her, since when was he learning? She didn't close his eyes as the boy kept going, without hesitation of his movements "I don't care what the reason was, I'm going to fight to get you back and I'll never, ever ever let me make you cry. I just want to hear your laughter, I just want to see your smile and if you ever cry, I want it to be because you fulfilled your dream" Y/N wiped away her tears while covering her mouth, trying to suppress her sobs "You are my dream, Y/N. Don't take away my dream, I beg you."

L/N shook her head and removed her hand from her mouth. He gave her the most beautiful smile he could give her.

"I love you so much, my love"

　　.· ´¸.·*´¨) ¸.·*¨) (¸.·´ (¸.·’* ⛧

Three years later

"Y/N-chan~" Satori's voice began to distract her in so many ways, changing from one subject to another so quickly that he didn’t let her think. She sighed with a smile; he would never change.

Y/N and Ushijima were still together. Today, she was walking with Satori on the same path that led to the place where she had met the love of her life. Tendou distracted her by telling her to look at the non-existent bird attacking a non-existent cat. The reason they were walking around was simple, Ushijima had a little week's vacation and asked her to meet there.

"Y/N-chan~" Satori stopped in front of her and smiled "You know? Wakatoshi-kun has become very happy by your side, now he smiles a lot."

She smiled in response mode before Tendou went on.

"That's why Wakatoshi-kun decided to do this~ " he quickly plugged her eyes and helped her walk "Trust me, Y/N-chan"

She felt euphoria coming out for every pore of his body, what was going on?

Suddenly, they stopped and Tendou stopped covering his eyes.

Ushijima was using a sack for some reason and was sitting on the same bench where their story began, in his hands there was a small box and, on his face, rested a beautiful smile. Upon hearing them he looked up and Y/N's eyes filled with tears without me telling him anything.

Tendou sided up as he smiled at his friend. Ara, ara~

"Y/N" his voice no longer sounded hard at all, he sounded sweet, affectionate. The e/c-eyed girl immediately observed the article in her hands, her heart began to beat with a lot of force "I met you right here, it was exactly about 4 years ago. I don't regret being distracted by these same flowers that taught me that fragility could be so beautiful" Ushijima got up and approached her. He removed a petal that covered her face and continued to smile "Because thanks to them, I met the love of my life, the person I want to spend the rest of my life with."

His heart turned when Ushijima swelled with one knee against the floor and the other flexed in front of the girl. He opened the little box.

A ring.

"Marry me, Y/N" that was not a question, it was almost like an order, and she wasn't going to deny it. She nodded without hesitation and knelt down, hugged him with all his might as he began to cry with joy. Her face was hidden in the hollow of Ushijima's neck, he smelled so manly that she felt weak.

"DID YOU RECORD IT, SEMI SEMI?!"

"OF COURSE I RECORDED IT, TENDOU, SHUT YOUR MOUTH!"

"Ushijima-san" Y/N turned his face to meet Goshiki crying "and Y/N-san... congratulations."

They both smiled full of sweetness. Along with her, Ushijima had become too fragile, but he loved to be fragile if it meant being with her.

And it was perfect to be like this, as long as he was with her.

[sixtyeightdays]

you reap what you sow

prompt from @mialuvscats : i hope this meets your expectations ! im sorry this took so long, i tried uploading it from my phone but it glitched and i could only get my hands on the computer today 

i’d like to say that i think if sabine and mari are there, damian and talia willl be relatively looser and not as uptight . mari and sabine are cold but loving and sunshiney. they keep talia and damian in check, essentially. which is why i wrote them in to be loose and free but able to be openly happy when they want to be, even if they are only happy around each other.

with sabine here i also thinkt hat talia will be slightly easier on damian, which also ties to the fact that he will not be as cold and uptight.

talia will be a good mother in this fic bc i want her to be and itll be ooc but its okay its my fic anyway

and the timeline is kinda messed up and all over the place sorry

that aside, have fun reading and i hope you enjoy!

--

talia and sabine are best friends, and before most of the class joins francois, marinette ruled the school after coming to paris with sabine. mari and damian are betrothed and the two are best friends. they can be icy one minute and sunshiney the next, although the sunshiney part is more mari than damian.

maybe the waynes come to paris, bc if theyre in gotham the others wont really know if the queen is back, and theyre kinda unsure why marinette is being timid and very unlike her ice queen demeanor she sometimes uses. mari is closest to jason in terms of batfam because firstly maybe she cleanses jason of the lazarus pit after helping damian using tikki's creation magic to counteract plagg's destruction one. since the waynes are here theres no point in mari hiding her queen status anymore and queue lila reveal

-

Talia al Ghul and Sabine Cheng were an unlikely combination, but worked perfectly well.

The two women were extremely close. Sabine was almost as deadly as Talia, but she made up for it with her devious mindset. She was the one who steered Talia away from doing anything wrong --well more wrong than usual-- and the one who was assigned to dish out punishments to usurpers.

The two could read each other like open books, and hence, when both Talia and Sabine became pregnant, Talia one month before Sabine, the two knew immediately.

They had debated whether or not to have their kids be betrothed, and eventually decided to let their children make the final call when their kids were old enough to understand.

Nine months later, Marinette and Damian were born. In the League infirmary, an hour after the two were cleaned and left there to rest while their mothers did the same, the two had already grown rather close.

Their baby cribs were next to each other, and somehow they were staring at each other through the walls of the crib, and were making small grabby hands to the other.

When Talia and Sabine were sufficiently rested and came to pick up their children, they were slightly shocked, yet gratified by their children. Sabine smiled and draped an arm around Talia’s shoulder, smiling lazily.

“I guess they’ll be as close as their mothers, non?” 

Talia smirked, and the two walked forwards, lifting their respective children in their arms and walking to their quarters.

-

The two mothers did not regret it. Their kids were enamoured with each other, practically joined at the hip.

By the time Marinette and Damian were 5, they had a very extensive vocabulary, since they had learned to speak Arabic, French and English. They were also extremely smart and skilled with weapons. 

Marinette was extremely adept at using a yoyo. It seemed weird, I know. But when the League was stormed when she was 3, she had taken out 4 men with her yoyo alone. Since then, she had been teaching herself how to use the yoyo effectively.

Damian preferred to use a katana. He looked much scarier than Marinette, even if the two were the same age. He had found a natural talent in using blades, knives, katanas and daggers included.

Marinette was the Rain to Damian’s Fire. 

She was the only one who could calm Damian down when he was mad, mad.

But make no mistake, Marinette could switch personalities in a heartbeat. She was one of the League’s most skilled interrogators at the age of 5.

After all, who would suspect a pigtailed 5 year old in pink to be scary?

Damian much preferred his stoic and icy attitude. The only people he ever let loose around was Marinette, Sabine, and Talia.

Talia and Sabine loved the children to an almost deadly extent, and the four were extremely overprotective of each other.

Marinette had taken to magic as well. She had been trained by many people in the League about sensing magic. Damian did not have the patience for magic and rituals. 

Marinette knew Damian was more of a ‘attack first ask questions later’ type of fighter, a stark contrast to Marinette’s ‘i will curse you and you will suffer in agonising pain for the rest of your life’ preferred type of fighting.

She’d never really liked getting her hands dirty, hence the magic. Killing people with magic was so much cleaner.

Sabine and Marinette had to leave for Paris when she was 9. For what, she wasn’t sure, but regardless of the distance, she and Damian constantly traded calls and letters. They would never go even a day without contact.

They were staying with one of Sabine’s old friends. His name was Tom Dupain, and he was an old wrestler and had worked with the League before. He and Sabine pretended to be married and Marinette’s name had hence became Marinette Dupain Cheng.

Damian and Talia stayed at the League, although all of them knew that Damian was to meet his birth father when he turned 10.

Marinette adapted her icy demeanor in Paris, never wanting anyone to get as close as she was with Damian. 

A few hours in, walking around Paris, she had met an elderly man in a red Hawaiian shirt, emitting the aura of magic. She had confronted him, and eventually, he opened up to her about the Miraculous. Tikki, the Ladybug kwami, and Plagg, the Black Cat kwami had taken a liking to her.

Marinette was apparently something called a True User, a reincarnation of the first Ladybug miraculous wielder. Plagg just rather liked the aura of death and chaos she apparently gave off, from the League.

She and the other Kwamis also had a rather amicable relationship, and she’d go to the ends of the Earth for the tiny gods, and vice versa.

The elderly man, named Fu, had also started to train her into becoming the new Guardian of the Miraculous.

Before, Marinette had been planning on laying low and not drawing atention to herself, but once she had beaten up two upperclassmen for bullying her classmate and somewhat accquaintance Nino, she had been fiercely regarded by both the students and faculty. 

As a result, she eventually grew close to Nino, and his friends, Kim, Alix and Chloe. She only ever let down her icy demeanour around them, showing the bright and bubbly girl persona she kept hidden. She wasn’t as close to them as she was to Damian, but they were all still quite close friends. 

It wasn’t long after that Marinette became the queen of her school, at the tender age of 10, earning her title as the Ladybug. Or, as Chloe liked to put it, the Lady, because she was lucky enough to ‘get a friend like her’.

Marinette didn’t protest. She rather liked Ladybugs, and besides, it was ironic and it reminded her a little of Damian, who sometimes liked to call her his Maribug. Because she was sometimes a pest, he deadpanned. Marinette had whacked him with a pillow. 

Everyone in the school feared the Ladybug. No one knew anything of her past. She was a mystery, an enigma that no one could solve. When new students came in after Marinette turned 14, everyone was slightly shocked to see their Lady change.

She was much more bubbly and approachable. Word had spread around that Marinette, the Lady, was trying a clean slate for the new kids. After all, not everyone should fear her.

Probably.

School eventually returned to what it was like before Marinette became the Lady, although she did still rule the school, she did it much more subtly, with more restraint and secrecy.

One of the new kids, Alya, had taken a liking to her. Marinette did not like her  very much, she was loud and clingy and drew a lot of unwanted attention. 

Marinette and her old crew, who had playfully called themselves her Consorts before the name stuck, had split up temporarily, to cover more ground and spread their branches.

Chloe was to pretend to be Marinette’s bully, Kim and Alix rivals, and Nino a shy recluse. They had had a good laugh about it beforehand, before watching Moana, because Kim wanted to compare the size of his muscles to Maui’s.

None of them had accounted for Adrien Agreste, who had tried to get the gum off Marinette’s seat like the naive, sheltered boy he was. Marinette had admittedly gotten mad at him for screwing up a perfectly good plan, before ramping up her ice persona to like, a 2/10, to get the newbies off her scent and scare Adrien away.

It hadn’t worked, because the boy was apparently as stubborn as he was naive. But besides that, Alya had been really grating on Marinette’s nerves, especially since she was convinced that Marinette had a crush on the model. It was not true, of course. 

Honestly, Marinette thought dryly, as Alya dragged her all over the place to.. somewhere, she wasn’t even sure anymore. But frankly, she didn’t particularly care. Honestly, the only boy she’d probably ever have a crush on would be Damian.

Not that she’d ever admit it.

-

When Marinette and Damian turned 10, she and Sabine had taken a plane to Gotham to meet up with Damian.

Damian had not been having a good time. He was very much unwanted here, that was clear. 

Grayson seemed to be the only one trying to interact with him. His father, had been trying his best to stay out of Damian’s way, which he reciprocated. Todd was flat out ignoring him and Drake just seemed to be busy all the time.

After all, who would want to interact with a grumpy 10 year old assassin?

He missed Marinette.

It was the day Todd finally tried to open up to Damian, that Marinette had arrived. No one had told him that she was finally meeting him again for the first time in a year. Sabine had left Marinette to figure out where Damian was on her own. She was more than capable of it.

With a quick scrying spell, she found him, and Kaalki opened a portal headed in the direction of Wayne Manor.

Meanwhile, Damian just appreciated the fact that Todd was finally extending an olive branch. He was lonely.

It hurt seeing his father care for everyone in the manor apart from him.

He had been walking along the gardens in the manor. Todd had joined him.

“Listen, I know it’s hard to feel accepted here. Sometimes, I do.” Jason gazed wistfully at the sky above him.

Damian was unsure of where the ex-Robin was getting at, so he just kept quiet. It wasn’t as if Damian didn’t know who Jason Todd was. Before he had come to the manor with Talia, he had read the Waynes’ files. In addition, Damian had known of Jason while he was affiliated with the League. They had never talked, or interacted, but he had known of the elder boy. 

“I just, uh, wanted you to know that if you ever need anything, you can come to me.” He finished lamely, running a hand in his hair.

Damian opened his mouth, then closed it, hesitating. “Thank you, Ja--Todd. I will.” He settled on saying dryly.

Jason visibly relaxed and cracked a miniscule smile. There was a sudden ‘swoosh’ sound, and both Jason and Damian turned around, bodies automatically going on the defensive.

Stumbling out of Alfred’s rose bushes, trodding on a few accidentally, was Marinette.

“Angel!” Damian exclaimed, moving forwards to help her forwards.

She brushed her shoulders off, looking around before freezing, staring at something behind him.

“Jay?”

“Pixie?” He asked, sounding incredulous.

Marinette rushed forward and wrapped him in a tight embrace. Jason laughed and hugged her back, chuckling.

Damian quashed down the bubbling feeling of rage in the pit of his stomach and settled for casting a frosty glance in their direction. Not that they noticed, since they were too busy embracing each other, Damian thought scornfully.

The two pulled apart after too long in Damian’s opinion, laughing.

“Angel? How do you know Todd?” Damian asked coldly, ever so protective.

If Jason noticed the sudden reversion to his surname instead of his first, he didn’t say anything.

“Oh, he came to Paris with Lia once and I cleansed him of the Lazarus pit madness, like I did with you.” She replied.

“What are you doing here?” Jason asked. Damian had forgotten about that.

“Visiting, of course!” She winked. “Now, let’s give your old man a good scare.” She pecked Damian on the cheek before vanishing. (Thanks, Trixx.)

Jason and Damian looked to each other. “Did you know she could do that?” Jason questioned. Damian shook his head before pausing.

“Wait.. how did she get into the manor?” 

The only response was the faint echo of a laugh.

-

It was time for dinner anyway, and only Damian, Jason, and Alfred knew of Marinette’s presence. Marinette had voluntary evelaed herself to the elderly butler after noticing his aura. 

It was Miraculous tainted. If Marinette could guess, he had been either one of Duusu’s, Sass’s, or Nooroo’s.

When the butler had retired to the kitchen alone, Marinette had unraveled Trixx’s magic veiling her and waved at the butler.

To hi credit, he didn’t so much as bat an eye before his eyes widened as he took her in. Marinette cut to the chase.

“Who was your kwami?” Alfred had surveyed her for a second before seemingly trusting her.  

“Duusu.” He answered.

Marinette smiled. “I’m Tikki’s.” From her perch in Marinette’s left pigtail, the red Kwami pried open the folds of her hair, waving once at Alfred before sinking back into the recesses of the bluenette’s locks.

Alfred blinked. Once. Twice. “I’m presuming you’re staying for dinner?”

Marinette beamed. “I’m gonna scare the big bat.” Alfred nodded, accepting this. Marinette clapped her hands and she disappeared again. Alfred shook his head, smiling faintly.

Conveniently, it was one of the times where everyone was there. Dick, Jason, Tim, and Damian. Rare these days, what with Dick in Bludhaven, Tim at WE, and Jason off being Jason.

Bruce was currently on his way back from WE, although it would take around half an hour. He had told everyone to start eating first. Perfect. 

After Marinette’s encounter with Alfred, she had reappeared in Damian’s room, where she and Damian caught up. Just like old times.

She had disappeared again once she left the room, and Damian wasn’t entirely sure where she went.

Alfred set the the table as per normal, which Damian and Jason noticed right away. They looked to Alfred, who merely winked before stepping back into the kitchen and laying out the food.

There was a screech of a chair as Marinette, disguised as Bruce (Trixx in her right pigtail and Tikki in the left) sat down. Dick looked startled. 

“I thought you wouldn’t be back till later!” Dick exclaimed.

Mari-Bruce shrugged. “Faster than I’d expected.” She answered, securing the veil of Trixx’s magic around her vocal chords, making her voice sound exactly like Bruce’s.

Jason inched away slightly from Bruce, though she pretended not to notice.

Alfred nodded at her as he reentered the room.

Everyone dug in, occasionally talking. It had been about 25 minutes before the sound of the door opening could be heard. Damian and Jason’s head shot up, thinking it was Marinette.

Mari-Bruce smirked. Showtime.

Bruce entered the room, not noticing Mari at first. Until the batboys gaped at him. He looked confused. What--?

Mari-Bruce was a pretty great actress. “Who are you?” She thundered, internally laughing.

“Who are you? I’m Bruce Wayne.” He answered, looking befuddled and frustrated.

“Impostor.” Mari-Bruce accused. 

Bruce spluttered. “No! I’m the real Bruce!” 

Mari-Bruce scoffed. “That’s what an impostor would say.”

Damian and Jason seemed to figure it out, although they probably weren’t sure which Bruce was the real one yet.

Tim rubbed his eyes. “Am I seeing double, or?” 

Bruce said, “Ask me something the real Bruce would know.”

Dick looked torn, but did as requested. “Who murdered your parents?”

“Joe Chill.” They both said at the same time. Mari-Bruce and Bruce winced, selling the act.

“When’s my birthday?” Tim asked. 

“July 17th.” Both Bruces answered.

Tim looked surprised. “You actually know my birthday?”

“No shit, Tim.” Mari-Bruce said, rolling their eyes. She rather wanted to proceed to the next part of her plan. 

“Would I say that to you, Tim?” Bruce asked slightly desperately. 

“Maybe?” 

Bruce facepalmed. In the confusion, Mari took the chance to slink into the shadows where she rewrapped Trixx’s invisible magic around her.

Only Damian noticed. He smirked. “Where did he go?” He asked, placing a hand on the hilt of his katana for emphasis. He didn’t see Marinette smile at him.

Everyone looked panicked. “Search the manor.” Bruce ordered.

Jason still looked slightly skeptical but did as he said. Damian drew his katanas and tilted it in the direction he was going.

Amongst everyone, Bruce was the most attacked. While Jason and Damian paired off, Tim and Dick did as well, ("Don’t go alone!” Was Bruce’s admonished cry), Bruce had gone alone. 

If she were being honest, Marinette had always had a grudge against the billionaire. He hadn’t saved his son, he had tried to kill his son, even though he had a no killing rule --which Marinette thought was plain stupid--, and he had left Damian to suffer at the hands of Ra’s Al Ghul.

Talia could only do so much to save her son.

Yes, Marinette was aware that Bruce hadn’t know Damian existed, but now he was still treating Damian as if he didn’t exist. Marinette knew how much Damian craved affection, even if he never admitted it.

Yes, maybe Bruce was getting better, but maybe she could.. spur the process.

So Marinette retaliated in one of the many ways she knew how.

Messing with them.

So when the Waynes regrouped in the dining room, Jason, Damian, Dick and Tim came back unharmed, and Jason had been filled in by Damian of his suspicions. But Bruce? 

He came back covered in honey and feathers, drenched with water and covered in pink slime. 

“Why is he going after me?” Bruce had questioned in that annoying voice of his, after looking over his spotless sons.

Jason shrugged. “Maybe he doesn’t like you. God knows he’s not the only one.” 

Bruce looked slightly hurt but Jason didn’t seem to care in the slightest.

“Maybe this person is infatuated with you and is vying for your attention.” Damian deadpanned dryly. Marinette had smacked him on the back of his head, still invisible.

But the damage had been done.

Bruce snapped his fingers and ‘aha!’-ed at Damian. “That must be it!” Bruce crowed.

“Are you that narcissistic, you arrogant plebeian?” Marinette’s normally cheery voice was dry and dripping with distaste as she unwrapped her magic.

Bruce, Dick and Tim immediately went on the defensive, shifting into a battle stance. Marinette only scoffed.

“If I wanted to harm you, I would have already done so.” Marinette waved a hand in their direction dismissively.

Dick looked confused. “You’re like, ten.” He pointed out.

Damian glared. “I am ten as well, Grayson.” 

Tim butted in. “Are we not going to acknowledge the fact that this tiny ten year old broke into the manor unnoticed?” 

That brought everyone to their senses.

They were suddenly surprised by Marinette running at Jason, full speed. They expected him to duck or whip out a weapon, but all he did was stand still as she flipped in midair to land on his shoulders.

To their utter shock, Jason grinned, even as she fisted her hands in his hair for a better grip.

Damian only smiled fondly at his Angel. She was as short as he remembered, Damian noted. 

He missed her. More than anything.

Marinette beamed, and slid off Jason’s shoulders.

“Why did you attack me?” Bruce asked.  “Isn’t it obvious, fool?” Marinette revamped her icy demeanor and glared at the civilian Batman. “I despise you.”

Bruce looked very affronted. But Mariinette ignored him, even as he continued talking and made her way over to Damian.

“Damibear!” Marinette sang, as if she hadn’t seen him less than an hour ago.

The Waynes looked as if they expected Damian to attack her just for calling him that. They were not expecting him to grin and say, “Angel.”

Mari jumped on his back, and Damian merely repositioned himself accordingly, used to this from all her previous piggybacks.

“Okay so Jason and Damian helped her get into the manor.” Tim deduced, only to notice Jason and Damian shaking their heads.

“All by herself.” Damian and Jason chorused. Marinette made bunny ears on top of Damian’s head.

She kissed Damian’s forehead lovingly, replying to his ‘i am older than you’ with a ‘yeah by like a week’, and looked to his family. 

She winked.

Then disappeared.

There was silence, and then, “Wait, we didn’t even get her name!” From Dick.

Damian and Jason were interrogated that night, and they refused to tell them anything related to Marinette.

Marinette smiled from where she had hidden in the shadows, and made her way back to Damian’s room. She curled up in Damian’s bed, drifting into sleep. She was almost asleep when Damian returned.

And when Damian pressed his lips to her forehead and whispered, “Goodnight, Angel”, a smile made her way onto her lips.

By the time Damian had slipped into bed with her, her head leaning comfortably on his chest, she had fallen asleep.

-

When the two turned 15, Talia and Sabine sat them down and told them about the betrothal. Damian had been visiting with Talia.

It had been almost two months since Lila had turned her classmates against her, not that she cared, of course. She still had her Consorts after all.

“Marinette, Damian, we’d like to tell you something. An offer? Of sorts. I’m relatively sure you will accept, however.” 

Talia smiled as Marinette dragged a grumpy Damian over to them by the head, beaming brightly.

“Oh come on, Mian! Don’t be such a grumpy banana.” Marinette reprimanded the older boy who was rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

The boy only smiled lazily, and ran another hand through his best friend’s hair, the girl making a small noise of protest. “Thats what you get for calling me a noodle, Angel.” (if you didn’t know miàn means noodle in chinese)

Sabine cleared her throat but looked at the two with amusement clear in her eyes.

They straightened. “Sorry, maman,” Mari muttered.

“Now, before you two were born, Sabine and I had an agreement. We are perfectly fine with this and the implications of it, so it is up to you to whether to accept or not.��� Talia got straight to the point.

The two children looked to each other curiously before turning back to their parents. Damian nodded in acknowledgment and Sabine picked up where Talia left off.

“How do you feel about each other?” Sabine asked, watching the two closely for their reactions.

“If that’s your way of asking us if we’re okay to be siblings, since you and Lia are dating, Maman--” Marinette started but was quickly interrupted by a barely noticeably flushed Talia.

“No, not that, and we aren’t dating, Nette.” Talia aimed a playful glare at the girl, who grinned and blew a raspberry at her.

“How would you and Damian like to be betrothed?” Sabine asked, smiling at her friend and daughter fondly.

Marinette spluttered and Damian coughed. 

Talia and Sabine burst out into laughter.

After the adults got their laughter under control and after a few glares from their kids, Damian spoke up.

“Marinette is my best friend. If I had to be betrothed to anyone, I’m glad it’s her.” Damian looked away and Marinette coughed awkwardly into her elbow.

“You misunderstand us. You don’t have to be betrothed. The choice is yours.”

Damian felt slightly attacked. He really did like Marinette, and the betrothal was an easy excuse to ask her out (even if he was a 15 year old). He didn’t know if Marinette felt the same way, and he didn’t want to impose that on her, so he kept quiet.

Marinette, who was looking deep in thought, answered.

“Can I talk to Damian for a while, privately?”

Damian, despite his better judgement, winced. This was probably the first time in a really long time that Marinette called him by his full name. It was normally Dami, Damibear to annoy him, or some other weird nickname like Mr Grumpy Banana this morning.

Regardless, the bluenette hadn’t called him “Damian” for a very long time. Two years, maybe.

She walked out of the room, Damian trailing slightly behind, before stopping a few feet outside the room.

Marinette slid down onto the floor, her back pressed against it and head in her hands. Damian frowned. He didn’t want his best friend looking so.. dejected. He ignored the slight pang of hurt that the thought of being with him could get this kind of reaction out of her.

He sat down next to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulder like he always did when any of them felt upset. He was happy to feel her lean into his side like she always did. 

She turned her head and buried it in Damian’s side, breathing in his comforting scent of paints and nature. He tightened his hold on her ever so slightly and she almost burst into tears.

It wasn’t that she was opposed to being in an engagement with Damian, it was just that she didn’t particularly want to be with anyone or love anyone, especially after her father died and Damian’s father abandoned him.

Her mother and aunt didn’t show it, but they were sad about their fathers. She had heard Talia interacting with her ‘beloved’ before, and it almost always ended up in tears or frustration. (Not that Mari blamed her, Bruce was kind of an asshole.)

She felt Damian’s chin press into her scalp and a hint of a smile grazed her lips. But this was Damian. Damian who was her best friend. Damian who supported her no matter what. Damian who comforted her and was there for her whenever she needed it.

Damian would never hurt her. And she was determined never to hurt him, ever, if she could help it.

She looked up and smiled at Damian. The smile he loved so much, the smile she always had on whenever she saw him, the smile that would unconsciously fly to her lips whenever she heard his voice.

Maybe it was then that Marinette should’ve known that she loved her best friend, but then again, she was only fifteen. She didn’t know what love was. But she would. Very soon.

“We accept.” Damian told Sabine and Talia when they reentered the room.

“We thought you would.” Talia replied.

-

When Marinette turned 16, her last year at Francois Dupont, six months since she’d made Lila’s time a living hell with her Ladybug (both in suit and in school), and fashion clients connections, the Waynes had visited.

Turns out, Damian and Jason got caught trying to sneak onto the Wayne private jet but instead of stopping them, they insisted they came along too, having pieced together that Damian and Jason were going to visit the mysterious tiny girl they couldn’t find the name of.

So they had no choice.

And os that leads to now, with the Waynes standing in the courtyard, elicting a growing crowd as they waited for Marinette, looking the part of scary rich people that can end your life without a problem.

Damian suddenly started running, and he hugged a girl. No one could see who the girl was because her head was buried in Damian’s chest and his body was shielding hers.

Not many people in the courtyard was surprised when they pulled away and standing there was Marinette Dupain-Cheng. After all, she was one of the most successful students in class that didn’t get fame from famous relatives. No, al her fame was hers alone.

In fact, the only people surprised were Marinette’s class, not-so-fondly referred to as the Akuma Class.  Her Consorts were the only one who knew of her betrothed, Damian. Other than that, Marinette had never been willing to share. 

When Marinette saw the other Waynes however, after hugging Jason, she rolled her eyes. Bruce, Dick and Tim stalked forwards, looking every inch the scary billionaires they were.

It was broken by Dick hugging the girl and gushing over how cool she was. Tim smiled at her and she had smiled back. Marinette flipped Bruce the bird.

“Why are you... so sunny? You definitely weren’t like that when you threatened us in Gotham. You were such an ice queen.” Tim mentioned, failing to keep the amusement out of his tone.

“What do you mean? Marinette’s always been like that, even if she is a bitch now. There’s no way she can be cold.” Alya remarked snidely.

Alix and Chloe stalked forward, raising thier fists threatningly. But Marinette only laughed coldly.

“You wanna see cold, Cesaire?” Marinette snarled, dropping all acts of being nice. 

The Lady was back. Publicly.

The silence was interrupted by Rose, who asked, "But Lila, don't you know the Waynes?"

Said Lila had been trying to slink away unnoticed, but when her name was mentioned, all attention diverted back to her, effectively keeping her in place. Her pale face and scared eyes were enough to tell that she had indeed been lying. 

Yells and screams broke out across the courtyard as the Akuma Class berated Lila for lying to them all this while. Until, Marinette interrupted, face set in a ice cold, stony position 

"Okay, blame her for lying." She started. "But why did you believe her?" 

The Akuma Class drew a blank and didn't respond. Partially because they didn't know what to say, and partially because Marinette's mere presence was overwhelmingly intimidating. Marinette sighed and pressed on. 

"Everything the Liar has said can be found faulty by a simple internet search." It was true, and the class knew it. When no one replied, Marinette shook her head sardonically. "You reap what you sow." 

She turned to her betrothed. In an instant, her icy mood was gone, replaced with the sunshiney-ness the Akuma Class had grown used to. 

"C'mon, Dami!" She gave him a quick peck on the lips, hoisting herself up on Damian's back. Damian grasped her legs tightly, as she continued to be piggybacked by him. 

"Onward!" She cried out dramatically, pointing to the school exit. 

Damian only rolled his eyes fondly at his beloved, steering themselves out, her Consorts and his family behind them. 

None of them looked back. 

If they did, they would've seen the expressions of disbelief and regret etched onto every one of her old classmates' faces. 

Not that they would care.

-

5k words yay

also uh yeah again, sorry this took so long, i kept hitting a mental block while writing this and it didnt manage to upload from my phone for no good reason :( 

but anyway its up now, i hope u find this acceptable! :)

[noladyme]

xo - Red (A Clark Kent/Superman oneshot)

Just a really funny; warm; kind; built like an Olympic athlete, with perfect lips friend? Tag-list: @wolf-lover-bookdragon @wonderlandfandomkingdom​

TW: Fluff. So much fluff. Explosions.

Fifth date. Things were supposed to happen, right? I mean, at least a kiss; other than a peck on the cheek. But he was a friggin’ gentleman; which I couldn’t help but be a little annoyed about; as it made it very difficult to get to the fun part of our relationship. Not that we didn’t have fun, mind you. Clark had an uncanny way of turning my frown upside down.

Ever since I’d run in to him – literally – at that coffeeshop a few months ago. I had left home early, so I wouldn’t be late for my first day at my new job, at the elementary school. I’d been so nervous about it; I hadn’t been able to fall asleep until 3 am; and was now battling exhaustion, nerves, and the fact that my new red shoes were really uncomfortable – all at the same time. I’d ordered a large black coffee; extra strong; and was on my way out the door – the sun in my eyes – when I tripped on the steps; my drink splashing out of the cup.

Suddenly; two strong hands were grabbing my shoulders; and pulling me up to stand. “Are you ok?”, a warm voice said. I looked up, and found two friendly blue eyes looking me over. “Yes, thank you”, I smiled; before noticing the large brown stain on the man’s white shirt. “Oh, crap. I am so sorry!”. He looked down himself; and smiled. “It’s fine. White isn’t my color anyway”. I laughed. “Still, I’m so sorry. Didn’t I burn you?”. The coffee had been scolding; I knew. He smirked. “I’m thick skinned”, he insisted.

He was still holding on to me; and I felt a warmth spreading in my stomach; making me short of breath. “Miss?”. His eyes suddenly looked worried. “Are you sure you’re ok?”. I smiled. “Yes, absolutely. It’s just been… a morning”. He chuckled. “Can I buy you a new cup of coffee?” I simultaneously nodded and shook my head. “Yes… no… I mean, I should buy you one; as an apology”.

He removed his hands from my shoulders; leaving me to stand on my own. “No need for an apology”, he smiled. “But I’ll take the coffee”.

We’d spent 10 minutes sipping at our hot drinks – for which he’d insisted to pay – and talking about what we did for work, and what our favorite movies were; having noticed an advertisement for some superhero movie on a passing bus. Apparently Clark wasn’t a fan of superheroes; but found it hilarious that I loved The Wizard of Oz – being from Kansas himself. Then; Clark had asked for my number, and I’d given it to him. He shook my hand, and we’d said goodbye.

The next afternoon; he’d called me, and we’d gone to see a movie – one about aliens instead of superheroes. He’d still been frowning all the way through it. “It was just really… unrealistic”, he said afterwards over a beer at a local bar near my apartment. He walked me home, declining my offer to come up for coffee; and had given me a short hug, before saying goodbye.

The next time has been a trip to an apple picking farm. “You can take the boy out of Kansas…”, I’d chuckled, as he’d carried a bushel of Granny Smith’s back to his car. “I just really like pie”, he’d smiled. He’d driven me home; and on the way there, told me about his moms pies; and how it was his favorite thing in the world – next to sweet potato fries. When he dropped me off; he leaned in, and kissed my cheek. “Goodnight”, he’d whispered; and I’d bit my lip – and hoped for more. More didn’t happen.

Then there was the quick cup of coffee on both our lunchbreaks; where I’d told him about how I’d sprained my ankle on roller-skates – 3 times in the same amount of years. He’d snorted a laugh. “Well you are kind of clumsy”, he’d said, and removed a strand of hair from my face; putting it behind my ear – before running off for a sudden work emergency.

And lastly; the roller-skating rink. Because I insisted. And he said he couldn’t say no to me. That night, he’d held my hand as we went about the floor; and grabbed my waist several times, as I was about to fall. “Careful, slick”, he’d said. “Oh, is that my nickname now?”, I’d chuckled. “No. I think I’ll call you Red. From those godawful shoes you were wearing when I met you”. It was another kiss on the cheek; and a hug that lingered, and made my knees weak. And then just… goodnight.

So yes. I was just about desperate to kiss the man. He was gorgeous; which at times had made me feel insufficient and a bit self-conscious – but then there was the way he looked at me. His eyes would light up as I talked; as if I was the most fascinating person he’d ever met. Even when our conversation was about cereal, or how one of the kids at my school had put bead up his nose. It was like his eyes drew me in; and then – as my breath would hitch, and I’d part my lips – he’d pull back as if nothing had happened.

I couldn’t help but ask myself; does he just want to be my friend? My really funny; warm; kind; built like an Olympic athlete, with perfect lips friend? I’d decided that I needed clarity on where we were going with our relationship – even if that thought did make me feel like I was living in a sad rom-com, where everyone was always talking about their feelings.

Tonight, it was dinner. Nothing fancy, just a steakhouse I’d suggested. If Clark turned out to just be in it for the apple picking and coffee; then at least I could drown my sorrows in a medium rare steak, with enough bearnaise-sauce to drown a small elephant.

—

Putting on my favorite jeans, black pumps, and a snug top; I waited for the call to let me know Clark was by the door on the street. He’d never been inside my apartment; and didn’t seem very interested in it either. This isn’t real, I told myself to guard my feelings against the inevitable rejection I’d have to face that evening. We’ll eat, laugh; and he’ll walk me home – and then tell me that he’s got a wife and three kids in Smallville, waiting for him to come home for game-night.

A text message made my phone light up. Hey Red. I’m late. So sorry. Be there as soon as possible. – C

Great. That gave me even more time to just hang out… and be anxious.

No worries, Kansas. See you. xo – R Send… Crap, why did I write xo? What am I; a teenager?

I sat down on my couch. Deciding I needed to pass the time doing something other than stare at the wall; I turned on the television. Landing on the news; I dropped the remote.

In Stockholm, Sweden, the building of a new sky-scraper in an old neighborhood; had made a nearby building begin to crack in the foundation. The old residential was quickly giving in; and families were being evacuated from their homes. There were firetrucks spraying water at the structure, to avoid flames from any electrical fires.

Though it was a terrible situation for those families; I was confused as to why one building falling apart half way around the world, was a breaking news story here. That was until I saw a figure at the bottom of the screen; seemingly supporting the weight of the building on his shoulders. Oh, right! That guy! The Superdude…, I chuckled to myself; and went to see if Clark had texted me back yet.

Nothing. It was probably the xo-thing. He didn’t know how to reply to that.

The news story ended when cameras filmed Superman handing a shaking and wet puppy to a little girl; who kissed his cheek in thanks. I always found it kind of neat, that the flying caped man managed to know where every camera was; so that anyone watching would find it difficult to make out his features. From what I could see; he was sort of cute. If Clark doesn’t work out; I could always throw myself of a building; and have that guy catch me. It must be lonely in that fortress of solitude; maybe he’d like some company.

A text. Outside in 5. Can’t wait to see you. xo – C

xo. He’d written xo. Right. Big girl pants on, and go talk to him.

—

Outside the door of my building stood Clark; a smile the size of the sun plastered across his face. My heart jumped. He opened his arms; and took me in for a hug.

“Hi, Red”, he breathed. “I’m so sorry I’m late. It was a work emergency”. “It’s fine”, I said and looked up at him; and opened my mouth to say something more – until I noticed something strange.

“Clark?”, I said. He was still holding on to me. “Yeah?”. “This is going to sound weird, but… why do you smell like wet dog?”.

He pulled back. “Yeah… I was doing a story at an animal shelter”, he said. I narrowed my eyes at him. “Let’s go!”, he said, and took my hand.

It was a beautiful night; so we decided to skip the cab, and walk the few miles to the restaurant. We walked down the street, hand in hand. It wasn’t the first time we’d held hands; but then it was because he was trying to keep me from falling. This was different. It wasn’t strange; but warm… familiar. I swallowed hard. “I want to talk to you about something, Kansas”, I said. He looked down. “You don’t want to do that at the restaurant?”, he said with a strained voice. “No, I think I need to do it now”, I answered. He nodded. “Ok. Do you want to sit down?”, he asked; and gestured at a bench on a playground we were passing.

Once seated; I let go of Clarks hand. “What’s up, Red?”, he asked earnestly. “You seem… tense”. He laughed nervously. I smiled. “I like you, Clark. A lot”, I said. “I like you too. A lot”, he smiled. I matched his nervous laughter. “It’s just… lately, I’ve been thinking. About us… and what we are”. He looked down. “Yeah, I figured we’d get to this at some point”. I nodded. “We have fun”, I said. “Like friends. But I don’t know if we both feel like this is more than that. Friendship, I mean”. He sighed. “Right. No, I get it”, he said. “You’re new in the city, and shouldn’t be settling down with anyone serious”.

I looked at him confusedly. “I’m not sure I follow”, I smiled. He took my hand. “You’re an amazing woman, Red”, he said “And I’ve enjoyed spending time with you. But maybe you’re right, and this is a good time to call it quits. If that’s what you want”. My heart fell into my stomach. “Is that what you want?”, I asked timidly. “I want you to be happy”, he said, smiling sadly. “With or without me in your life. I’d just hoped I’d have a few more dates before you came to your senses about me”.

I frowned. “Clark… you need to be clear with me here”, I said. “Are you breaking it off with me?”. He looked at me with a frown on his face. “I thought you were breaking up with me…”, he said. “You suggested that restaurant; and I thought you wanted to be in public when you did it”. I laughed. “No. I just… really like steak”, I smiled.

He exhaled with relief. “Good. Because I was lying. I really don’t want you to be happy without me…”, he said. “I mean… crap… I want you to be happy; I’d just really like to be a part of it. If you’ll have me”. I bit my lip and nodded. “I’d like that”, I said. “I thought you saw me as a friend because… you haven’t…”. I couldn’t finish the sentence. He took my hand, and tried to meet my gaze. “What? Tell me”, he said. I took a deep breath. “You haven’t kissed me”, I said; meeting his eyes for a second; before looking down in embarrassment.

He put his hand under my chin, and raised it to finally meet my eyes for real. “Red, I’ve wanted to kiss you since the moment you spilled scorching hot coffee on my least favorite shirt”, he smiled. “I was just waiting for the right time, and…”. He exhaled and took my other hand; playing with my fingers.

“My life is… complicated. The work I do; sometimes it’s dangerous”, he said. I raised an eyebrow at him. “You write fluff pieces for The Daily Planet”, I chuckled. “That too…”, he muttered and looked down.

I smiled; wanting to ease the tension. “You know, I was watching a news story while I was waiting for you”, I said. He looked up at me with questioning eyes. “Yeah?”. I chuckled. “It was about that Superman guy. He was helping some people; in Sweden I think”, I said. “I was telling myself; that if you didn’t want to see me anymore; I could always just… throw myself of a building, and he’d rescue me. Then I could hook up with him”. He laughed nervously. “What? Like a rebound?”. “More like a… third choice. If you didn’t work out”. He narrowed his eyes at me. “Only third?”, he said. I scoffed. “Have you seen Aquaman? I mean, come on!”, I grinned.

His lips tightened, and he stifled a laughter. “So… if Superman is third… and… Aquaman…”, he raised an eyebrow at me, “… is second. What does that make me?”. I sighed. “The guy I’ve been waiting months to kiss”.

He looked deep into my eyes; and my breath hitched. He put his hand on my cheek; and he leaned in close to me, stroking my temple with his thumb I brushed my nose against his; and closed my eyes, letting my lips part.

Suddenly; he pulled back. “Clark?”, I asked. His eyes were scanning the area; before they met mine again – alarmed. “Red, go home.” “What’s wrong?”, I said. “Did I say something?”.

He stood up and began backing away; his eyes again searching his surroundings. “Listen, go straight home. Don’t stop for anything. I’ll… I’ll call you when I can”. He ran around a corner, and was gone. I heard a strange woosh, and a stray cat ran from the alley he’d gone in to.

I felt suddenly cold. This was the weirdest date I’d ever had; and it hadn’t even really started. Then there was the fact that the guy I was falling head over heels for, finally said he care about me too – and then just… left. That’s it, I laughed to myself. I’m finding a really high building to jump off.

I began walking home. Slowly. I didn’t want Clark to have the pleasure of getting me to do what he wanted me to. Jerk. Not a jerk. Crap; I really like him. More than like. This is real.

I heard a crash, and then a screech; like metal being torn apart. I felt a warm gust of wind, forceful enough to make me stumble. I looked up. Was that seriously a bus flying through the air?

Another crash; this one even closer. I fell to the ground; and was scrambling to get up, when I saw a minivan sliding on its roof towards me. I got on my feet, and bean running out of the way; when something red and blue slammed into the minivan; making it alter its course. Was that?…

I ran towards my block. Red, go home. I’m going; but where are you Clark? Are you ok?

I kept running; fishing my phone out of my pocket, and dialing Clarks number. It kept ringing, but went to voicemail. Hey. This is Clark Kent. Leave me a message and I’ll get back to you… beep. Come on, Clark. I need to know you’re ok!

I redialed. Suddenly I heard a phone ringing near me. I looked into a bush; and saw… Clarks jacket? His phone was ringing in his pocket. 2 missed calls from Red – heart emoji. Damn it, Kansas. If I wasn’t so pissed at you; I might think this was really sweet. Where are you?

Screeching… a car landed on the ground 10 feet from me; the force of it throwing me to the ground again. I got up slowly; rattled from the shock.

I began running again; getting closer to my block.

Suddenly; a tank truck was blocking my path; crashing into a bus-shed. My heart was in my throat, and my chest hurt from having run so fast. I tried turning around, but a bus had crashed into an RV, blocking my path in both directions. I was trapped.

I looked up. The sky was covered in smoke from the many burning vehicles around me. The sound of a large crash made me look towards the truck. Something made the vehicle fall onto its side, and slide towards me with such speed that the shock of it made me fall.

I looked back – there was nowhere to run. In three seconds, I would be smashed between the truck and the bus.

Three… Oh God…

Two… Clark, where are you?

One.

A gush of wind; and I flew in to the air. No… I didn’t fly; I was lifted. My feet were dangling in the air; and one of my shoes fell of, landing on the ground hundreds of feet below me. Someone was holding on to me; his strong arms around my waist; and my chest pressed to his – which was adorned with a red S on a yellow background. What?

I let out a terrified whimper. “It’s ok. I’ve got you”, a warm voice said. I looked up into my saviors face. “Clark?”, I gasped. “Hi”, he said with a crooked smile. I opened my mouth to say something. “Don’t speak…”, he said. “The air is kind of thin up here”.

I looked down; and realizing how far up in the air we were, I panicked. I wrapped my arms around his neck and let out a weak squeal. “It’s ok, Red”, he chuckled. “I won’t let you fall”.

He set me down on the top of a building a few miles from the explosions. Once on stable ground, he held on to me for a second; making sure my legs would carry me. I stepped backwards, holding my hand up in front of me. “Y-you…”, I stuttered. He looked at me apologetically. “I know. I should have told you. It’s just… complicated”. He tried to smile.

I stumbled; and fell to my bottom. He took a tentative step forward. “I know. I get it. You’re scared”, he said. I shook my head. “No… it’s… you!”, I said.

He reached his hand out to me. “Please, let me help you up”. I gave him my hand; and he gently raised me to my feet. “Are you ok?”, he smiled. I simultaneously shook my head and nodded. “Yes?”. It was almost a question. He sniggered.

Suddenly I began laughing – the ridiculousness of the situation too comical. “I was supposed to fall off a building; not land on it”, I chuckled. He began laughing with me. “Yeah, I must have gotten those two mixed up”, he said. “It’s like I’ve said; I can’t say no to you”.

I sighed, and gently laid a hand on the S on his chest. “So… what now?”, I asked. He smiled. “I really want to continue what we started on that bench”. I chuckled and bit my lip. “Ok”.

He slid his arms around me – his tall and broad frame almost enveloping me – and I melted into his arms. His face came close to mine; and the last thing I saw before I closed my eyes; where his striking blue ones, boring deep into me.

He tensed up; and when I opened my eyes again, he was frowning, and turning his head, as if listening.

“I’m so sorry, Red; but I have to finish this”, he said. Another gush of wind; and he was gone. “Seriously?!”, I yelled after him.

—

I made my way down the skyscraper Clark had left me on; where I was met by the sirens of police cars, and people pointing at the sky. I was out of danger – I knew – but no less rattled. I was wearing a pump on one foot, and limping barefoot on the other; until I simply gave up; and took off the shoe – throwing it in a trashcan.

I walked all the way home; confused and dizzy. On my block, people were standing in the streets, murmuring to each other; and looking at the fires in the distance. It was as if there was line drawn through the city. On one side; havoc, and crashed cars – on the other, where I was… nothing. It was as if nothing had been touched.

One of my neighbors tried to stop me in the doorway; noticing the shell-shocked look on my face, and my bare feet. “Were you in that? Are you ok”, he asked. I shook my head. “I’m fine. It’s nothing”, I smiled.

I stumbled into my apartment; threw my jacket on the floor, and grabbed a beer from the fridge – plopping down on the couch.

Well… that was something…

Without anything else to do, I took a large swig of my beer; and turned on the television.

“… explosions in downtown Metropolis this evening; as terrorists connected to the incarcerated Lex Luthor, placed explosives on multiple vehicles, throughout the city…”

Footage of explosions, and scenes of police cars and firetrucks racing down the streets.

“… no casualties, due to the quick intervention of the group calling themselves The Justice League…”

A man who looked like Robocop, pointed at the camera, and the screen blurred. There was a flash of red; and just after it, footage of a group of men captured by a shiny lasso, held by a woman dressed like a Greek goddess. A burning building was drowned in water; and a smirking longhaired man – still hot… – was yelling booyah’s at it.

“… headed by the Batman; and Metropolis’ own Superman…”

I saw the Gotham Knight shaking hands with…

It was Clark. It was always him.

There was a knock at my door. When I opened it Clark stood outside. Not red and blue Superman – just my Clark; dressed in jeans; a plaid flannel; and wearing his glasses.

“Hi”, he said. “Hi”, I answered. “I brought you something”. He pulled out my black pump; the one I had dropped from the air. I chuckled. “Great, now I just need the other one”. He pulled out the other one as well. “It might smell a little. It was laying in a trashcan”. I took the shoes from his hands, and half smiled at him. “I have something of yours as well”, I said, and gave him back his phone, from my jacket on the floor. “Thanks”, he said. “The suit doesn’t really have pockets”.

He clenched his jaw. “Can I come in?”, he asked. I stepped aside, and he walked into my combined kitchen/living room. “You have a nice place”, he smiled. “Thanks”, I said quietly; as I closed the door behind him. His large frame seemed to fill the entire space. “Do you want a beer?”, I asked. He looked at me warmly. “Yeah, sure”. I handed him a cold one. “You can sit down”, I said. “Unless… you pulled a muscle flying me through the sky”.

He chuckled at me, and sat down on my couch. “No, I’m fine”, he smiled. I raised a brow; and sat down on the couch with him – leaving some space between us. “Right; you can lift buildings and stuff like that”, I muttered.

He exhaled, and took a swig of his beer. “Yeah… about that”, he began. “I was going to tell you”. “Why?”, I muttered. “It seems like something pretty big. I get why you’d want to keep it private. Have a… secret identity”.

He frowned. “I wanted to tell you, because I care about you. And I want you to be a part of my life… all of it”. I met his eyes. “Really”. I bit my lip. “You… care”, I said. He reached for my hand; and I let him take it. Our fingers linked into each other. “You’re funny; smart; passionate”, he said. “And you’re beautiful”.

I scrunched up my face in embarrassment. “Ok, now I’m uncomfortable”. “Why?, he said, and stroked my cheek; moving closer to me on the couch. I sighed. “Because you’re… you. The Superdude. You can see every flaw…”. “There isn’t a flaw on your body”, he smiled. I scoffed at him. “I’m serious! Every little thing… the wrinkle between your eyebrows when you’re concentrating… how your one hand is a little bit smaller than the other… that beauty-mark on your back…”. “How did you know about that?”, I interrupted. He smiled embarrassedly. “That loose fitting top you wore on our last date. The dark blue one”, he muttered. “I love all of it”. I half-smiled. “There’s actually two of them… the beauty-marks”, I said. “I didn’t want you to think I was creepy for looking”, he smirked.

“You love it?”, I mumbled. He swallowed. “Yeah, Red”, he said. “I mean… I’ve fallen hard for you”. I giggled nervously. “So, this is real…”, I muttered. “I want it to be”, he smiled. “Do you?”. I nodded, and looked at him through my lashes. “Yeah, I do”, I said.

He let out a relieved sigh, and chuckled “Good… Are you sure?”, he smirked. “I could introduce you to Arthur”. I frowned. “Arthur?”, I sneered. “In that case, never mind!”.

We laughed together; before Clarks face became apprehensive. “And…”, he couldn’t form the words. “Your other side?”, I said. He shook his head. “It’s not my other side. It’s me. It’s who I am”.

I squeezed his hand gently, and placed it on my knee. “I fell for you, without knowing everything you were”, I said. “What I know now… just makes you… better”. His eyes lit up. “Really?”, he half-whispered. “Yeah”, I smirked. “Besides; I kind of like how the suit makes your butt look”.

He raised his brows at me and laughed – putting his free hand to my cheek, and stroking my temple. “Oh!”, he said. “Well… yours isn’t half bad either”. I frowned. “Did you x-ray my pants?”, I asked; narrowing my eyes at him. He tightened his lips. “Not yet… do you want me to? I mean… I’m up for it”, he smiled, and moved his other hand up my thigh.

I chuckled; and put my hand on his cheek; pulling him closer. “Let’s do the kissing part first – we can get to what’s in my pants later”, I smirked. “Unless, of course, you have another superhero emergency you need to tend to".

He closed his eyes and listened; then opened them again. “Nah, we’re good”, he smiled; and his lips met mine.

He tasted like apple pie and sunshine.

—

[sevlgi]

patient

requested: yes

group: mamamoo

pairing: hwasa x fem!reader

genre: fluff

contents: tattoo artist!hwasa, flustered!reader [15/33]

warnings: none

synopsis: It’s hard for you to be patient about your next tattoo session when your artist is so damn gorgeous.

a/n: um??? I love tattoo aus???? also don’t come at me for the name, I’m not creative

word count: 1.9k

“Elegant Chaos.”

You test the name out on your tongue, staring up at the slightly grimy neon sign of the shop. The entire front is one-way glass, so all you can see is your own reflection and the ones of the people bustling around you.

Before you can make up a decision to open the door to the store or not, someone else does; a pretty brunette woman steps out and smiles at you, crazy beautiful with full lips and crescent-eyes. “Hi. Can I help you?”

“Uh, yeah.” You show her the printed-out address your friend sent you and step a bit closer. “Is this a tattoo shop? I searched the address up but nothing resulted, I was referred by a friend.”

She barely takes a glance at the address before flashing another bright grin. “Oh, yep! This is our tattoo shop, we opened a couple months ago. It’s weird that we’re still not showing up, but oh, well. Want to come in?”

You barely register her quick words but step into the shop after her, the smell of rubbing alcohol, paper, and perfume vaguely stinging your nose. “I’m Solar, the receptionist,” she introduces, walking behind what you presume to be her desk. Out front, some teenagers talk quietly, a tall, dark-haired boy with a sleeve sipping at a banana milk.

“Cool. Uh, I’m Y/N. I don’t have an appointment, is that okay?”

Solar nods, tapping at her phone. “Sure. Jungkook over there is just waiting for Byul to finish her other client, and Wheein is prepping to pierce the kids. Hwasa’s our best artist, anyway, does that sound good?”

Her question startles you from staring at the intricate sketches taped all over the walls, the same 3 signatures stamped everywhere. “What?”

She laughs, though it’s not rude. “We have one artist left, Hwasa, but since you’re referred, you probably don’t have someone in mind, right? You can go to see her now, she’s free.”

“Great. Do I just...?” At Solar’s nod, you walk past her and into the back. The studio’s quite small, to be honest; there are 4 stations, two of them occupied. One of them, who you guess is Byul, is tattooing an elderly man, her sleeves rolled up to reveal the art on her bicep. 

The second, probably Wheein, is wiping down her tools, and she’s the first to notice you. “Hi!” she grins, turning the music blasting from the radio down with her ungloved hand. “Can I help you?”

“Yeah. Solar mentioned that I should come find Hwasa,” you explain, eyes widening at the complicated art being tattooed on the elderly man. “Are you...?”

“No, I’m Wheein.” Ah, so you were right. “This is Byul, she’s a bit preoccupied,” Wheein smiles, dimples poking into her cheeks. “I’ll get Hye- sorry, Hwasa for you.”

She hurries out to the back, and you can hear talking through the open door, before she comes back, the woman you presume to be Hwasa behind her.

Instantly, you’re starstruck; she’s stunning in a way that’s completely unique, long dark hair and tanned skin contrasting beautifully. The only makeup she wears is a bold red lipstick, her tank top showing the delicate tattoos she has. “Hey, I’m Hwasa,” she greets, sticking her hand out. Her nails are long, too.

“Y/N.” You accept the handshake, trying not to stare. “Uh, Solar said you were free for a consultation?”

“Yeah.” She sits at one of the free stations, clearing the things scattered on the table. “So, what’re you looking for? Do you already have a design chosen or am I freehanding?”

You fumble in your bag for a piece of paper, sliding it over to Hwasa. “Um, this is just something my friend drew up for me. I want it pretty small, on my forearm.”

The dark-haired woman shrugs, unfolding the paper. “I could do that. Is this your first tattoo?”

Nodding, you watch as Hwasa taps her long, red-painted nails on the desk. “Okay. Is this part of a sleeve or by itself?”

“Uh, how long would each one take?” To be honest, you have no idea why you said that; you didn’t consider a sleeve at all, though you considered multiple tattoos or a large one. There’s just something about the other woman that makes it impossible for you to think.

She considers the question before answering, “Depends on the size and how many small ones you want to work in for the sleeve, but I’d recommend a separate session for each small square, so maybe 8 or 10. I’ll be done with this in less than 30 minutes, though, if it’s just the one.”

To be honest, the only thing causing you to consider a sleeve is getting to see Hwasa again, and you curse your own attraction to her when you blurt, “Maybe a sleeve? I have to think about the other ones I want to work in, though.”

“Okay. I can just do the one today, and we can schedule another day for you to come in and design the whole thing,” she offers, picking the sketch up. “I’ll go make this into a stencil, then.”

“Sure.”

When she takes the sketch and walks to the back room, you slump down in the chair and pivot to look at the others. You quickly realize how long you were talking with Hwasa; Byul is already working on the coconut-haired boy, and Wheein is already done with the teenagers.

She seems to be the outgoing type, and waves at you while sanitizing her needles and packing her kit up again. “So, how did it go? Are you going to start today?”

“I am, yep. You’re already done with the kids?”

Wheein nods, placing the studs back into their cases. “Yep. They just wanted more lobe piercings, it’s really easy. I’m a tattoo artist, too, but I think the kids like me more. Except for Jungkook over here, they think Byul’s intimidating.”

“I’m not!” the other woman protests, hands still steady as she works on the boy. Her voice is deeper than you’d expect. “You literally call me a hamster.”

Flapping a hand, Wheein flashes you her dimples again. “So, what do you think of Hwasa?”

“Huh?” you blink, brain basically short-circuiting. “Uh, she’s a good artist? I saw some of her sketches, yours too; you’re all really talented.”

“No, no, that’s not what I mean. Wait, you’re not straight, are you?” she narrows her eyes at you, scanning you from head to toe. “Maybe my sense is broken, I didn’t peg you for a...”

“I’m not. Straight. I’m a lesbian.” Your cheeks burn to say it aloud, though nobody really reacts, not even Jungkook. “Are you?”

Wheein shrugs, “I mean, I’m attracted to women. All 4 of us are- Hyejin, Byul, Yongsun. Solar, to you. And we make sure everyone who comes in is accepting, we won’t serve bigots.”

For whatever reason, you’re almost relieved to hear that Hwasa’s also attracted to women in some sense, even though it doesn’t necessarily mean that she’s attracted to you. “Oh. That’s cool.”

“Yeah. So, is it just one tattoo or a sleeve?” Her knowing smile puts you off a bit; how did she figure it out? “A lot of girls who come in here change their original idea because of Hyejin-ah. You’re obviously attracted to her, to, so it’s no surprise.”

“Is it really that obvious?” you groan, surprising yourself with how open you’re being about it. “Do you think she knows?”

“Probably,” Wheein giggles, nodding when Solar pokes her head in the studio to tell her something. “Anyway. I’ve got to go, good luck!”

She waves as she leaves, the only noise left in the studio being the quiet music and Jungkook’s quiet talking. He seems just as awkward as you are, lifting his free hand in a half wave.

You’re saved by Hwasa returning with a stencil. “Here. Does that look good?”

She’s modified the original design just the tiniest bit, making the lines a little bit darker and the shading simpler, and it looks... “Perfect.” You grin, a weight on your chest lifted by your conversation with Wheein. “Should we start?”

“Sure.” She brings you over to one of the actual tattoo stations, the seat already smelling sanitized. You can barely listen as she explains what the process will be like- cleaning, the actual tattooing, pain; you finally come to when she asks, “Are you ready?”

“I... yeah. I am.”

It’s quiet until the buzzing of the tattoo gun brings you to life, the tiniest bit of fear sour on your tongue. Hwasa looks concentrated as she peels the stencil off, not exactly reassuring, either. “So. Is there a meaning behind this?”

“Uh, not really. Are there meanings behind yours?” You gasp when the needle first touches your skin, the cold wipe taking off excess ink.

“I have some matching tattoos with Wheein,” Hwasa explains, smiling at the mention of the other girl. “Uh, one is Maria, my Christian name. Wheein has more, but all of us have some kind of meaning behind ours. It’s not bad to have no meaning, though.”

You wince as she continues with the linework, slowly getting used to the pain. “Are you and Wheein...”

She looks up, raising an eyebrow. “Together? No, we’re best friends. I haven’t been with someone in a few years.”

“What’s stopping you?”

Hwasa laughs, wiping your arm once again. “Nothing, I guess. I’m just patient enough to wait for the right person.”

“Patient. Right.”

Conversation flows smoothly, mostly light topics. You learn each other’s ages, and you’re told to call Hwasa ‘Hyejin’ instead. You learn when she got her first tattoo, and when she learned to tattoo others. The more you talk, the more drawn in you are, fascinated by her every word.

The half an hour is over far too fast. “Done,” she announces, smiling as she turns off her gun. “Take a look.”

It looks gorgeous, as expected, though Hwasa plays off your barrage of compliments. “Uh, should I pay now?”

She shrugs, placing saran wrap over your arm. “We’ll go talk with Solar about that, she’s better with pricing than I am. But it probably won’t be much.”

“What? Why?” you frown, examining the tattoo. Usually, discounts only happen when something goes wrong, or you have a coupon. You’re pretty sure neither of those things apply.

Hwasa pauses, turning to send you a small smirk. “Well, the cute ones usually pay less.”

Your heart practically stops, though you force yourself to walk to the front with her. “Besides, you’re probably coming back again soon, right?”

“Oh! Uh, yeah. I think so. When will that be? The next session, I mean.”

She frowns, tapping at the tablet Solar hands her. “You can come in as soon as you’re free to design it, if you want, but you have to wait a bit for the next session, especially if you’re doing the things close together. If you want, I can give you my number.”

At your stricken expression, Hwasa’s lips curve into a knowing smile. “So you can send me ideas, for the sleeve.”

“Ah, of course.” Your cheeks burn as you take out your cash, counting out a surprisingly small amount. “That sounds good. I guess I’ll just have to be patient, then.”

“I guess so. Call me, Y/N,” she smiles, handing your phone back with a new contact in.

Being patient is going to be so damn hard. 

[janesramblings]

Jealous

this one was requested by @stormofsansas and I had so much fun writing it, thanks for the request!

“Did you hear about Ace’s supposed girlfriend?” Bess asks me as I close the front door of my house and burrow into my coat. It’s only November, but Maine gets cold surprisingly fast. 

“Have I what?” I ask as I unlock my car and slide into the driver’s seat. Bess slept over last night, helping me figure out something vaguely Marvin-related. 

“Heard about Ace’s girlfriend?” I shake my head. “Yeah she showed up on your day off. Ace seemed really smitten.”

“Who says ‘smitten’ anymore?” I ask as I turn the key in the ignition. The car revs and then stops. I turn the key again with the same result. 

“Who drives ancient convertibles anymore?” Bess counters as I sigh and pitch forward against my steering wheel. “Sorry, that was mean,” Bess says. “I get like this when I eat raw pancakes.”

“Was that supposed to be an apology?” I ask as I sit up. Bess finds it hilarious that I work at The Claw and can’t cook. 

“Sort of. Hang on let’s see if we can call Ace and get a ride.”

“Sure. Maybe we can learn about his girlfriend.”

“Supposed girlfriend,” Bess corrects as she brings her phone to her ear. 

While Bess tries to get Ace to drive us to work, I try to figure out who would date Ace. Not that I think there’s anything wrong with Ace. I mean he’s kind, has great quips, and is incredibly handsome. There’s no denying that. And his talent for understanding a person is envious. But I just can’t imagine Ace dating someone. 

I mean, there was Laura Tandy. But she was too selfish. She used Ace to get what she wanted, and was willing to leave for Paris instead of staying with him. And then there were those girls who flocked around Ace in high school. I didn’t really pay much attention to Ace back then. He was a grade ahead of me and not particularly popular - he played one sport in his freshman year before he decided it wasn’t for him and the only club he was part of was the coding club because he didn’t like the president and wanted to disrupt it as much as he could - but he was the only one who could answer as many questions as me in my forensics class. I guess high school me was always in awe of him. And even though we’re friends now and I’ve considered him my equal for months, it’s always disconcerting when you find out people you admire are just human. 

Bess’s voice brings me back to myself. “What did you say?” I ask her.

Bess rolls her eyes at me. “I said that Ace is on his way over. And that girl is with him.”

“The girlfriend?”

“Supposed girlfriend,” Bess repeats emphatically. I shake my head at her.

Twenty minutes later I’m in the back of Ace’s car squished next to Bess, staring at the back of Callie Something-or-other’s preppy blonde head. When Ace pulled into my driveway she bounced out of the car in her three inch stilettos, kissed my cheeks like we were in Paris, and waved her stacks of bracelets as she called me “doll”, “honey”, and “darling”. I’m pretty sure my sinuses will never be the same after having to breathe the fumes from her tacky perfume. The whole time we stood in my driveway she clung to Ace like a life preserver, chocking the poor boy half to death. 

I don’t hate her. I don’t.

“So Nancy darling,” Callie purrs, “I hear you fancy yourself a detective.”

Bess and I share a look. I glace at Ace in the rearview mirror, trying to read his thoughts, but he’s closed off, his eyes dull. “Yeah, I guess that’s one way to say it.”

Callie wrinkles her nose at me like I’m a cute child that finally understood the purpose of wearing shoes on their feet and not their hands. “Have you solved any interesting mysteries around here honey? Anything fun in this small town I should know about?” My temper flashes at her overly-sweet tone. I can feel Bess nudge my elbow as a warning, but I ignore her. 

“Well, I did solve the mystery of the girl who fell off the bluffs after the Sea Queen ceremony nineteen years ago.”

“Oh great, she said it,” Bess mutters. 

Callie gives me a breathless “ohh” but her eyes are as dead as Ace’s. “What happened to her?”

“Oh she was slut shamed by the entire town and was pregnant with a baby who actually happened to be me and she jumped from the bluffs after I was born because she didn’t want to live and she came back to haunt my dad and also me so we could solve her mystery, which was also tied to the death of my dad’s wife. Turns out she was killed by my maternal uncle. I caught him to but not before he killed Bess’s cousin.”

Callie stares at me for a moment before squinting her hazel eyes. “You really should send me that video game. It sounds fun!” With that she swings back to face the front and I resist the urge to throw my messenger bag at the back of her head. I try to gauge Ace’s feelings again, but I can’t read him at all. And it’s a little annoying. Okay. More like very annoying. 

I glare at her until Ace pulls up in front of the Claw. I wait for her to get out of the car with Ace, talking a mile a minute (”ooo Ace is this where you work? It’s so cool that Horseshoe Bay has an authentic restaurant. You guys farm salmon or something right?”) before I bury my head in my hands with a groan. Bess starts laughing.

“What?” I snap.

“Your life would make a good video game.”

I reach over Bess, open her door, and unbuckle her seatbelt. “Get out,” I say only half jokingly. Bess’s smile drops and she puts an arm around me, pulling me into her. 

“It’s okay to be jealous. You like Ace and up until today, I thought he like you too.” I sit back up.

“I’m not jealous!” I say indignantly. Bess raises her eyebrows silently. “I’m not!” I repeat, sitting up. I’m not jealous of Callie.

At all.

“Alright. If you say so. You know your feelings best. But do come in sometime this century. You might have saved our lives, but George still expects you to work.”

“I know, I know I’m coming.” Bess leaves, giving me a minute to shout into my hands before climbing out of the car, crossing the parking lot, and pushing thorough the front door of the Claw. George runs to me when she sees me.

“Have you met this walking Barbie doll?” she whispers.

“Unfortunately,” I respond. George rolls her eyes.

“Serve her would you? She’s giving me a migraine. You’d think Ace would date someone with sense. Kinda like you.”

“Kinda?” I ask, amused despite my annoyance.

“Well, you don’t always have sense.”

“And here I was thinking you wanted my help.”

“Just serve her, Drew.”

“Do you want me to change?”

“Just go before she asks me for help,” George says dangerously. I do as I’m told. I pull off my coat and grab a menu before walking towards Callie, who’s at a table examining her nails. She grins when she looks up at me.

“Hi! You’re my waitress?”

“Seems so,” I say. 

Callie grins. “Well, since you like mysteries as much as I do, why don’t you surprise me? Talk to Ace, I’m sure he knows what I’d like.”

Okay, okay we get it. You know Ace. I force a smile and take back the menu. “Sounds great.” I turn on my heel and march towards the kitchen. “Your guest wants a surprise Ace. I’m gonna change. I’ll serve it when it’s ready.”

Ace looks up from the bowl he’s washing, startled. At least that’s one emotion I can read. “Okay.” I nod at him and stalk off. “And hey, Nance?”

“Yeah?” I say shortly, stepping back towards the sink. 

“Never mind.”

“Great.” I march off again, and change into my uniform with shaking hands. I have no idea why this girl gets under my skin but she does. Ace stops me on my way back to the tables. He looks like he’s about to say something, but he just shoves a plate of salad and fries at me. “Thanks,” I say, my tone softening as I meet his eyes. I can never stay mad at him. He smiles back at me, and my heart does that weird butterfly on steroids thing it’s been doing lately.

I walk towards Callie’s table and put the plate in front of her. “Oh look, Ace got it right! Did you know that the first time Ace and I went out in sophomore year of high school he guessed my dinner choice and he was right then. Just like he is now.”

“That’s great,” I say as a surge of... something rushes through me. “I gotta go.”

I turn as the tears start to fall. “Nance are you-” I ignore Bess’s question as I race for the lockers. Of course I’d ignore my feelings for Ace until the moment I have no chance with him. Because I’m incapable of any relationship with anyone. Not with Nick. Not with Owen. Not with any of my parents. Why would my relationship with Ace be any different? I crash into someone as I pass the kitchen, but I keep going without apologizing until someone’s hand is on my waist, stopping me. 

“Nancy are you okay?” I look up to see Ace looking down at me. 

“No Ace I’m not. So please leave me alone.” I pull out of his grasp. 

“Nancy, Nancy wait. You can’t push me away.”

I spin around, my jealousy replaced with anger. “And you can’t flirt with someone and bump into someone whenever you walk with them and call them brilliant and say you’ve never had a friend like them and then show up in their driveway with your girlfriend Ace! It’s rude to lead people on. So don’t tell me what I can and can’t do.”

Ace stares at me for a moment. “What girlfriend?”

“What?”

“I don’t have a girlfriend Nancy.”

“But Callie said you went out-”

“In sophomore year. Yeah. She’s my mom’s best friend’s kid. We went out once before deciding it wouldn’t work.”

What? “But then why did she flirt with you?”

Ace rolls his eyes. “Because I told her something about you and now she’s sizing you up.”

Oh. “What did you tell her?”

“She asked about my friends. And I said that there’s no one more important to me than you.”

I snort.

“No. Nancy. I mean it.” Ace steps towards me. I look up into his clear blue eyes. They’re not closed off anymore. They’re earnest. And truthful. “I’ve never met a girl who makes me more alive than you Nancy. And year I flirt with you. And bump into you when we walk. And I call you brilliant because it’s true. Because I... like you.” He reaches for one of my hands, and I let him take it. “I have liked you since you told me about failing senior year when I was out smoking. And I like you more every time I see you.”

I stand on my toes. I lose my balance and Ace’s free hand shoots out to grab my waist as I rest my hand on his shoulder. “I like you too Ace.”

He grins at me, his head dipping down towards mine. I stretch up until the space between our lips is gone, and oh god kissing Ace is the best thing in the world. I could stay here in this moment with his hand on my waist and our fingers intertwined forever. But we do break away, however, when someone starts applauding. We turn to see Callie, Bess, George, and Nick (where’d he come from) standing in the door cheering us on. I glance at Ace. 

“Well they’d know eventually,” he says.

“True,” I agree as we both drop into theatrical bows. 

[sevenstarsinning]

Summary: Raditz loses his mate when Planet Vegeta is destroyed and finds himself working alongside Prince Vegeta. When he comes to Earth to recruit his brother, he’s dealt another devastating blow when Goku refuses to join and leaves him near death. He’s found by a human and attempts to adapt to life on Earth.

Ch. 1 - Ch. 2 - Ch. 3 - Ch. 4

Chapter 5

Morning dew coated the outside of the pod and birds chirped on the tree branch nearby. It was way too cheery for early morning. Being awake at that time usually meant you either couldn't sleep at all or woke up long before you should have.

That morning you woke up too early but it was entirely Raditz's fault and you were more than okay with that.

Sometime during the night he wrapped his tail around your waist and pulled you up to sleep on his chest. That was where you woke up and that's where you remained, listening to him purr while his body heat kept you warm. The rise and fall of his chest was like a gentle rocking putting you completely at ease. That was no easy feat and there he was making you feel safe and content without even trying.

You lifted your head up to see he was awake. It felt like a kaleidoscope of butterflies fluttered in your stomach when you realized something was different.

"You're awake... and you're still purring."

His eyes locked onto yours and the butterfly feeling spread to your chest and throat leaving you seconds from saying something you probably shouldn't say.

"I'm comfo-"

"You're beautiful," you blurted. Your eyes widened and you let out a nervous laugh.

His brow raised in surprise, mouth slightly ajar. For a moment, you expected him to push you over to your side of the pod.

Instead, he smiled and struggled to keep his eyes on yours. He was nervous and you had no idea why.

"I've been called many things but uh... that's a new one," he finally said, breaking the anxiety inducing silence between you.

"Was that a bad thing to say?" You asked, unable to hide the worry in your voice and on your face.

"No, not bad at all. Just new."

When you saw the smile that spread across his face, you realized making a complete fool of yourself in front of him didn't bother you at all. In fact, you were willing to let it happen more just to see that smile. It was like a potent dose of serotonin and you needed more.

"I think I have a solution to our housing problem," you revealed, changing the subject to avoid doing something incredibly stupid.

His tail tightened around your waist and you knew he wasn't letting you up anytime soon.

Later that day, you and Raditz embarked on your first journey away from the house together. He usually stayed back when there were errands to run or groceries to buy. He wasn't a small guy by any stretch of the imagination and walking side by side with him downtown drew the gaze of many people passing by. It wasn't just his size that made people take notice, it was also his gorgeous mane of black hair that nearly touched the ground and his bulging muscles stretching the material of his t-shirt and jeans. It was Raditz in general, all the way down to the way he carried himself and the air of confidence he seemed to be naturally gifted with.

"This is definitely the place," you said, opening the door to a white dome shaped building.

Raditz shuffled in behind you, almost filling the doorway completely. A purple haired girl with the Capsule insignia on her shirt approached.

"Welcome to the Capsule store, my name is Lynn. Is there anything I can help you find?"

Her eyes drifted over to the huge saiyan next to you. He tilted his head, curious about her. Then it struck you, Raditz had little to no experience around other humans.

"Yeah, my house was half demolished when a... plane crashed into it." You knew exactly how ridiculous it sounded but saying a space pod carrying a hot alien crash landed on your house was out of the question.

"Was it a... an alien ship?" Lynn asked, glancing up at Raditz.

"How do you know that, human?" He said, stepping closer to the much smaller human.

"My boyfriend- " Before she could finish her sentence, an alarm blared and red lights flashed overhead. The ceiling opened up but before you could see what was happening, the tail tucked under Raditz's shirt flung out and coiled around your waist, pulling you safely behind him.

"You're supposed to be dead!" A voice called out amidst the chaos.

You peeked around Raditz to see an entire row of artillery from the ceiling aimed at him. A teal haired woman standing on the other side glared, not the least bit intimidated.

"Hey, can you get the insane security to stand down, he's not going to hurt anyone," you yelled back, waving your hand.

"Is that... is that a human behind you?" The woman asked, trying to get a better view.

"Help me out, big guy, your tail won't let me go," you said. Your heart felt like it might beat out of your chest. Everything happened so fast you barely had time to react.

"And put you in harm's way? No, you stay back there, this is Kakarot's friend," Raditz growled.

"Wait... you mean Goku?" Lynn said from behind a shield that went up around her automatically.

"Raditz, calm down. They haven't attacked, we can talk to them," you whispered. It was hard to hide the panic in your voice over the predicament you found yourself in.

"Human, where is Kakarot?" Raditz asked, turning his attention to Lynn.

"Enough!" The other woman shouted. "If you promise to keep him on a leash, I'll disarm security."

"Raditz, please?" You begged, lightly scratching the back of his head to soothe him.

He let out a little growl and loosened his tail. "Fine."

The red lights retracted along with the row of weapons and disappeared into the ceiling.

"All I have to do is hit one button and those will come back out, so don't try anything," the woman said, approaching him without a trace of fear.

"I'm Bulma, I'm assuming you're the one taming the saiyan?" She stepped around him to look at you.

"Trying to," you laughed nervously. Raditz still had his tail around you, protecting you even without an immediate threat.

"Come on, let's go out back and talk. Lynn, close up and go home. Make sure Goku knows about this," Bulma said, giving out orders as she guided you and Raditz towards the back of the dome.

The back door led to a shaded patio with a row of tables and thick, beautiful foliage lining the sides to offer privacy to anyone sitting out there.

"Raditz can sit there," Bulma said, pointing at the first table, "we're going to the back table."

"No, I'm staying with her," he snapped, his tail coiling tight around your waist again.

"It's okay, big guy. I'm safe, this is like the smartest and richest woman in the world," you said, nodding towards Bulma. He eyed her wearily but relented and loosened his hold.

You gave him a reassuring smile before following her to the last table.

"Sorry about the security system in there, it's not even loaded with ammo, it's just a deterrent. What did you come in for?" Bulma asked, taking a seat at the last round white table.

"A house. His pod wrecked mine when he landed. We've actually been sort of living in his pod and it's not very roomy," you explained.

Bulma was unfazed by all of it and that piqued your curiosity.

"You've been sleeping in the pod with him? Has anything happened?" She leaned in and kept her voice low.

"Not really. It was a little rough at first but he's adjusting," you said in a hushed voice.

"That's good. He's definitely a lot less hostile than I remember." She glanced past you at Raditz. You could tell her mind was racing, sorting through the chaos that just came back into her life.

The two of you talked for a while, you filled her in on Raditz and she told you about Goku and the little bit she knew about saiyans. You were looking forward to meeting him at some point and even though it was a long shot given the history, maybe Raditz and Goku could at least talk. That could be a step towards him finding happiness on Earth.

"I'll make you deal. If you keep an eye on him and tell me if anything weird happens, I'll give you a capsule house." She said it like she was giving you a piece of cake as opposed to a whole house.

"Bulma, no. That's way too much, let me pay," you countered.

She reached in her pocket and pulled out a handful of capsules. "How many bedrooms were you thinking?"

"Just one, that's all I can really do at the moment."

She settled on a pink capsule and placed it on the table in front of you. "That's a three bedroom. It's one of the models we used for photos so it's fully furnished and you're not paying for it."

"Bulma, you don't even know me. I-"

"Your saiyan back there came to Earth to recruit Goku. The only reason he's here is because of my friend which means your house is gone because of this. It's the least we can do for you," she said, pushing the capsule closer.

"And remember, call me immediately if anything feels off with him, okay? This is a direct line to me," she said, passing a business card to you with the Capsule logo shimmering on the top left corner and a phone number scrawled across the bottom.

"At least let me pay you something for this, please?" You pleaded with her.

"Absolutely not. Just come to my next party, I’ll introduce you to Goku," she said, refusing to take no for an answer as she headed back inside the building.

On your way back to the car, Raditz remained silent. There was no good way to approach the subject of his brother. That had to be weighing on him.

"What's that place?" He finally spoke, pointing towards the small building on the other side of the road.

"It's a bar. One of my favorites actually," you replied, coming to a stop at a four way intersection.

"What's a bar?"

"A place where people usually drink strong tasting liquids that make them feel funny."

"Strong liquids?" He raised an eyebrow and sat forward just enough to see past his hair which had taken up residence between the two of you.

"We call it alcohol. It's how I ended up in that field the night I found you."

"Libations. That's what we called them."

Instead of continuing straight through the intersection, you made a quick left followed by a right and pulled into the parking lot.

You entered the old, dimly lit bar with Raditz in tow. The evening crowd was starting to trickle in.

Raditz found a table while you ordered drinks. You leaned back against the bar while you waited, watching him mess with the phone you gave him. It looked so small in his hands and he looked adorable navigating what he called primitive technology.

After very carefully walking back to your table, you sat a tray full of drinks in the middle and pulled out a chair.

A big, strong arm wrapped around your waist and the next thing you knew, you were sitting in Raditz's lap. You were already so used to cuddling with him in the pod that you didn't think anything of it.

As the day turned to night, you introduced Raditz to all of your favorite drinks and even some you didn't like just to see his reaction. Aside from trips back to the bar to order more drinks, he kept you in his lap with an arm around your waist.

He required a ton of alcohol to even get a buzz and you were content sipping and never getting totally drunk. One of you had to stay a little sober to avoid bad decisions.

"What is this one?" Raditz asked, holding up a pint glass of blue liquid.

"That is your last drink of the night, big guy." You grabbed it and took a quick sip before handing it back.

"It's called... last drink of the night?" He stared at the glass, confused by the weird name.

"It's called an Adios Motherfucker."

"Say that again but... slower," he said with a big goofy smile. Drunk Raditz wasn't too different from the sober version. The thing you noticed the most was the sadness in his eyes. You watched it slowly fade until it was gone completely. His smiles lit up his entire face and he laughed louder.

"Can I have another one of these?" He asked, holding up his empty glass.

"Dude, I've already had to drag you to my house once, we're not doing that again," you chided.

"Human... sweetheart- just one?" He stuck out his bottom lip and pouted.

"Human sweetheart. That's a new one," you laughed, shaking your head at how ridiculously cute he was.

You relented and bought him one more drink. The expensive bar tab made you feel sick but it was worth every penny to see him finally shed the darkness that enveloped him. Even if it was only for a night.

As soon as the chilly night air hit your face, you regretted not bringing a jacket.

"Saiyan, give me your warmth," you said, ducking underneath his massive arm.

"We not driving?" He asked, lifting you into his arms like a child.

"I've had one too many drinks." You buried your face against his neck and settled in for the walk home. Luckily it wasn't far and you liked getting carried by Raditz, especially with his hands on your ass to hold you up.

"You smell good," he said in a sleepy voice as you neared your half destroyed house.

"You can still smell my perfume? I figured that would've faded by now."

"No... not that," he muttered, burying his face against your neck to sniff you. If it was anyone else, you probably would've freaked out.

"Your scent, the normal one."

You pulled back and smiled. “Wait, do you have some kind of heightened sense of smell that I don’t know about?”

“Yeah, it’s a saiyan thing. We can pick up on scents and changes in scents we’re familiar with. Particularly with females we’re close to or want to be close to.”

He crossed the lawn to the backyard and lowered you to the ground. “How does this capsule thing work?”

You pulled it from your pocket, clicked the small button and tossed it approximately where you wanted your new house to be.

“Holy shit, Bulma,” you said in awe of the beautiful house she gave you. It was far too much and you were already trying to figure out ways to pay her back. You and Raditz explored the house briefly before calling it a night, exhausted from the day.

You tossed and turned even though the new bed was the most comfortable thing you had ever laid on. The temperature in the room was perfect and it was dark enough, but something still wasn't right.

You knew what it was but you didn't want to acknowledge it. Lines had already been crossed on multiple levels with your unexpected roommate. You shared the pod out of necessity, nothing more.

Minutes ticked by and you only seemed to get less sleepy. You finally got annoyed enough to get out of bed and go to the living room, but you didn't make it there. You ran straight into a wall of saiyan at the end of the hallway.

"Holy shit! What the hell are you doing out here?" You stepped back and saw him carrying a glass of water.

"I can't sleep so I got a glass of water. That a crime, you tiny pain in the ass?" He asked with a little smirk.

"No, it's not a crime, you giant pain in the ass," you said in a mocking tone.

"Can I sleep with you?"

You knew he meant actual sleep, but your brain processed it in a different way entirely and it left your panties wet.

"Sure," you said, against your better judgement.

He followed you back to your room and walked around to the other side of the bed while you got back under the covers on your side. He laid down and turned on his side to face you.

"Bedroom not comfy enough?" You asked, scooting closer to him. He draped his arm over you and started to fade right away.

"Not that... just didn't have you," he said before drifting off to sleep.

You were wide awake until he started purring, head rested against your shoulder. It didn't matter how much you tried to fight off the feelings you were having for him, they weren't going away. The last thought you had before you finally fell asleep was the realization that you needed Raditz by your side to fall asleep.

A loud crash outside made the entire house shake. Raditz was up in the blink of an eye checking the window to see what it was. His tail fluffed up and moved wildly behind him.

You scrambled out of bed to look for yourself but there was nothing, just the backyard.

"What's wrong, big guy? Are you seeing something I'm not?"

"I need you to stay behind me and if anything happens to me, run," he said, effectively scaring the hell out of you.

"What? You can't just say that with no explanation! What's going on?" Your anxiety skyrocketed as he moved past you to head towards the living room.

"Raditz- "

"Behind me," he snapped.

Before you could protest, the front door was kicked completely off the hinges and left in a mangled heap on the floor. A tall, muscular guy with short, spiky black hair walked in. One eye was covered with some kind of device you had never seen.

"This is what you've been doing, huh? There's something incredibly wrong about a domesticated Saiyan," the man said with a cocky grin.

A shorter man stepped in behind him, black hair shooting towards the sky like small spires. He also had the same device covering one of his eyes and he somehow looked even more intimidating than the bigger one.

"Prince Vegeta, Turles," Raditz said, giving them each a nod.

[sheerbeautyreigns]

DESIRE

Part 17

Paul stirred awake the next morning. It was around 8am. Joe was still sound asleep, lying on his back, hair splayed around the pillow from his tossing and turning during the night. He never was the most sound sleeper. He looked at him tenderly, with tired eyes. Today was going to be busy. He had to check out and be in Tampa at the Performance Centre for 1pm. He ran the palms of his hands over his eyes, willing himself to wake up as he sat up.

“What time is it?” Came a voice from behind. “Just gone 8,” Paul said looking down at Joe. The young man pulled the sheets up to his neck, snuggling into them. “I don’t want to leave,” he moaned. “Me either baby,” Paul leaned down and stroked his cheek. “I have a long day ahead of me.” He got out of the bed naked, “Gotta be at the Performance Centre for 1. Got a few meetings for NXT.” Joe watched as he went into the bathroom.

Paul emerged 20 minutes later, wrapping a towel around his waist. Joe was already sorting his belongings into his case. He had already showered last night and would go to the arena to pick up his car as his place was only a few hours drive. Sometimes flying got so much that when he was in Florida, he always liked to drive. Joe had agreed that he would check out a while before Paul as not to raise any sort of suspicion.

“I had a really nice time this weekend.” He told Paul as he propped up his case next to him. “I’m glad you think of some of my twisted ideas as nice.” The older man chuckled. “I’m glad though. You’ve been so good too.” He smiled kissing him. “I’ll book us a nice room in Atlanta for next Friday,” he told him “OK,” Joe leaned in and hugged him, standing silently for a moment. “Keep in touch.”

Joe arrived home a few hours later. He was glad to be back in his own space. The drive gave him plenty of time to think over the events of the weekend. He couldn’t deny that he was starting to fall hard for Paul, regardless of how uncomfortable he had made him feel in a few of their scenarios. He wouldn’t stop trying with Joe, wanting to take him on this journey of his. It was a journey for Joe too, seeing just what he would do to please his man.

He spent that evening packing his wrestling gear and preparing for Raw in Jacksonville. He was happy to be teaming with Colby for the first time in a while. They always worked so well together. As always when on the road, they decided to room together.

Joe had booked a room at the DoubleTree Hilton. “Man, I feel so busted up tonight after that Powerbomb.” Colby complained as they entered the room. “I told you to get it checked out. You’re so stubborn at times you know that?” Joe commented closing the door behind them, setting his case on the side. Colby kicked off his boots and lowered his weary body to the sofa. “There’s got a good sized tub. Why don’t you have a soak. Might help?” Joe suggested. He was like a mother to his friend sometimes. Before Colby knew it, Joe was already running the bath.

“Thanks man,” he acknowledged as Joe emerged from the bathroom. “Go and sort yourself out before you get too comfy!”

“You know, you’re so bossy sometimes, jeez,” Colby whined getting off the sofa. “You need someone to look after you,” Joe replied with a smile as he switched on the TV, passing a glance as Colby stripped off to his black boxers and went into the bathroom. At that moment, his phone rang. Paul’s face flashed on the screen. He hadn’t heard from him since Saturday.

“Heyyy how’s it going?” Joe smiled getting off the sofa. Paul was in Connecticut on business. “Good, busy but good. You looked great tonight.”

“I’m so achy after going through those 2 tables-” Joe started only to be interrupted by Colby peering out of the bathroom. “Hey man, can I use your Epsom Salts?” Joe nodded throwing his case open and fishing the package out.

“You’ve got company?” Paul stated hearing the voice in the background. “Yeah, It’s just Colby,” he handed the package over. He instantly regretted saying that. He began to pace around the room, further away from the bathroom so Colby couldn’t hear.

“Are you staying with him tonight?” Paul enquired, his tone shifting. Joe hesitated before answering “Yeah.” Paul stayed silent “You still there?”

“Yeah,” Paul eventually replied “Are you OK?” He had a feeling Paul was pissed off. “Perfect. Actually, I’ve got a little task for you.” Joe felt knots in his stomach at that statement. “OK…”

“I want you to fuck Colby tonight.” Joe couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

“What do you mean?” he stopped in his tracks, a confused look on his face “Well, I have a feeling you’ll do it anyway so I want you to do it now because I’m telling you to.” His tone was stern now. It only made Joe feel worse. “Paul, I wasn’t planning on-” Paul cut him off.

“Don’t give me that.” Joe was annoyed now “We’re just friends, there’s nothing going on,” Paul was not budging “Regardless, I want you to do as I say.”

“And, what if I don’t?” Joe fired back, trying to keep his cool. “Are you really thinking of going against my orders?”

Joe hesitated “No,” Paul interjected “No Sir,” he said lowly, hoping Colby couldn’t hear. “Good, I want you to fuck him hard, like I would fuck you. Do you understand?”

“Why are you doing this? You’re putting me in an awkward position.”

“You both have a past so it shouldn’t be hard.” Paul was clearly not getting over it. “Don’t disappoint me,” Paul said before hanging up. Joe started pacing the room again. He was annoyed as hell with Paul. He was clearly pissed off that he was rooming with Colby and it was obvious that he didn’t trust him. It caused him to remember the little punishment blowjob a couple of days earlier. Would he do the same this coming weekend?

“You OK man?” Colby called from the bathroom pulling Joe from his mood.

“Uh, yeah fine.” He said jamming his hands into the pockets of his jogging bottoms. He padded towards the bathroom and peered his head around the door. Colby was laying back in the bath, covered in suds. He looked relaxed. “You don’t sound it man. Spit it out.”

“Aah just stress, don’t worry about it. I’ll be fine.” He lied. “How’s your back?”

“I’m getting too old for this shit.” He said sitting forward in the bath causing the water to splash onto Joe pants. He moved back patting the wetness. “Sorry,” Colby looked at the mark, catching the bulge. He licked his lips.

“You checking me out?” Joe smirked. “Well It’s not like you’re hiding anything.” Colby replied. He knew he shouldn’t flirt since Joe was already involved but it never stopped him before. There was always a spark between them. “Well It’s not like you’re making things easy, splashing about in that tub.”

“I’m just a tease.” Colby grinned standing up covered in suds, water dripping from him as he stepped out of the tub. Joe handed him a white towel from the rail. “You really are.” There was a moment of silence until their eyes met. Colby drew closer to Joe and pressed his lips to his. Joe participated in the kiss until Colby pulled away. Joe was startled.

“Sorry man, sorry.” Colby apologised edging into the living area, followed by Joe. “Don’t be sorry. I wanted that.” He let out. “I can’t . You’re with Paul now, as much as I hate him.” Joe swallowed watching as his friend paced around the room, wrapping the towel around his waist. “Stop pacing.” Joe hated it when he got worked up, he always got agitated over things pretty quickly. Joe had enough, he stepped in and grabbed him by the fore arm. “Stop,” he said sternly. Colby stopped and stared at him. “It’s not going to stop me from wanting you-” Joe confessed loosening his grip. He was now stood right in front of him, both hands on his biceps.

“But, Paul-” Joe put his finger to his lips, silencing him. He followed by kissing him passionately. Soon, Joe was undressed. They edged towards the bed, entangled in a slow kiss now, hands roaming each others bodies as they climbed on top of it.

“Are you sure?” he checked in between kisses. “Stop talking,” Joe told him. “Just enjoy it. Turn around. On your knees.”

Colby did as told, getting on all fours, his ass waiting in front of Joe. Colby saw a grin creep across his face as he looked over his shoulder. There was something different about Joe tonight. He shut his eyes as the Samoan lubricated his opening with his saliva, entering his index and middle finger. Colby grinded back into him, groaning as he did. When Joe was satisfied, he positioned himself upright, the tip of his already hard cock settling against Colby’s opening.

The younger man exhaled as Joe gently forced himself in. He didn’t seem as tight as Joe and had been known to sleep around more. Joe steadied himself, holding onto Colby’s pelvis. Colby loved when Joe fucked him, his cock always felt so good inside, so thick and full. He was fucking him harder and faster tonight that even Colby was struggling to keep track. “Jesus Christ!” He let out “I’m cumming,” Joe warned breathlessly from above. His seed exploded into Colby’s waiting hole. He thrust hard a few more times before pulling out. He grabbed Colby’s forearm, flipping him over. He was a wreck, “Jesus Christ man,” He breathed taking in Joe mass as he hovered above him, strands of hair framing his handsome face. He half smiled, lowering down on the bed next to him. “Did I wear you out?” Joe asked, feeling smug.

“What’s gotten into you this evening?” Colby looked at him “You’re never like that.” Joe turned onto his side to face him, flicking his hair away from his face.

“Guess I’m feeling a bit backed up. Did I hurt you?” He asked, a little concerned.

“No…you’re just not usually like this.” Colby commented. “It’s nothing to do with Paul, is it?” A weird feeling hit the pit of Joe stomach as he heard his name. He felt horrible.

“Of course not,” He said placing his hand on Colby’s chest. “Why do you ask?” He wanted to know. Colby took hold of the hand on his chest, eyeing it. “I know what he can be like…well…going back. I don’t know what he’s like now but, are you sure you’re OK with him?”

“It’s fine. I mean, he has his moments but there’s something there. I can’t explain it but it seems he cares for me.” In a sick way he told himself. But he was willing to put up with it. “He knows that we’ve fooled around though.”

Colby’s eyes widened. “How?”

“He confronted me about it over the weekend,” Joe told him, looking into his eyes. “Not gonna lie, he was pissed about it. He’s had his suspicions.” Colby sat up and put his hands to his forehead. He sighed heavily. “What are you gonna do?”

“I don’t know.” Joe shrugged.

“Why did we just fuck if he probably doesn’t trust the fact that we’re rooming together?” Colby asked spreading his palms, watching as Joe sat up. “He doesn’t know and he doesn’t have to.”

“You’re playing a dangerous game man,” Colby got out of the bed as Joe watched.

“What are you doing?” He asked, watching the younger man get dressed hastily. “I’m going out, I need to clear my head,” Just like that, he was gone.

[stones-x-bones]

It’s Only Love (Night 3) || Mina, Morgan and Bex

TIMING: Current (last night, continuation of this)  PARTIES: @drowningisinevitable, @mor-beck-more-problems, @inbextween SUMMARY: Home is where the heart is.  CONTENT:  Head injury, Medical blood (wound cleaning, stitches), Domestic abuse mentions

They hobbled along, back through the trees, staying close to the river. The sun traveled across the sky until it was dipping behind the trees. They took infrequent breaks, racing against time and the sun. They weren’t winning, but they weren’t losing either. Bex squinted ahead, exhausted and ready to collapse, when she saw something new. "Mina," she huffed, shaking her, "Mina it-- it's the trail! The trail! We made it!"

I’m not,” Mina wanted to say. I’m not. “I’m not.” But she leaned forward and nodded her head, and she had to trust that Bex wasn’t lying. She wasn’t lying. She wouldn’t lie to Mina. “I”m yours, too. I am.” She was. If nothing else, she was Bex’s. If that was all she could be, then that’s what she would be. That was why it hurt so much when she left. That was why Mina was struggling so much with herself lately. “I don’t always get hurt. I don’t, really. It’s just-- It’s just a casualty of the job. It is the job.” But there wasn’t really much to say as they stumbled through the forest. Mina was desperate for them to get out of there before the sun set. There was no way she’d be able to defend both of them if night came while they were still in the forest. Mina knew what lurked in the shadows. She was in no condition to take it on. But there was the trail, and Mina could have cried in relief if she wasn’t so exhausted, if she didn’t feel like she was going to fall over from pain. “Maybe the fates are real,” she muttered. “We need-- we have to find a phone, or a person, or something. Anything.” 

Bex refrained from telling Mina she hated her job. And from telling her that she wished she wouldn’t do it. But it was what Mina wanted, and so she would support her. There wasn’t much of any other choice. And that was fine. Bex was okay with worrying herself over Mina every day as long as she came home safe. Everything else could be figured out later. The trail opened up and sloped down and there, a way station. Dingy and broken down, which meant they were near the Gallows. She looked at herself, at Mina, then to a spot nearby. “Here, wait here,” she said, hobbling her over and bracing against the tree, “you’re...a little too not dressed to be going into public. I’ll--” she glanced over her shoulder at the station, “I’ll go see if they have a phone I can use. I’ll be right back, okay?” And she wanted to say that this would be the last time she’d leave her, but it wasn’t. It was the last time they’d be alone together for a while, though, wasn’t it? She turned back quickly, unable to help herself, and kissed Mina, a promise that she’d be back. “Okay...I’ll…” She pointed towards the building, before zipping up the old jacket she’d put on and straightening out her torn skirt as much as possible. 

She hobbled down the hill, taking each step slowly, until she made it to the way station. It looked like there was a ranger office inside, too. Surely they’d let her use a phone for free, right? She opened the door slowly and peered in. “Hello?” No answer. But there, on the desk-- a phone. She raced over to it and picked it up, praying to hear the dial tone. “Yes.” Finally, things were working out. She jabbed Morgan’s number as fast as possible and breathed against the phone. “Please pick up, please pick up, please pick up.” Foot tapping anxiously. She wanted to get back to Mina as soon as possible. She wanted to get out of here before someone came back.

Morgan didn’t like unfamiliar numbers flashing on her screen any more than she did unexpected knocks on the door or strange cars by the driveway. But as with these other things, she knew that they could seldom, if ever, be avoided without consequence. She picked up, bracing for impact. “Hello…?”

Leaning against the tree, Mina managed to hum and say, “Yep, yes, no clothes, kind of scaly, really not interested in going in public. I’m-- I’ll just stay here. Right here.” She slumped against the tree, sinking a little further down until she was resting on the roots. She put her hand against her side. It came back sticky, wet. That wasn’t good. It had been quite some time since they’d been in the water. Stay awake. Stay awake. She glanced in the direction that Bex had disappeared to, still feeling the kiss linger on her cheek. She hoped someone came soon. They both really needed someone to come soon.

“Oh thank god,” Bex gave an audible sigh of relief, even through an old landline phone. “Morgan! It’s-- it’s Bex! It’s-- you can probably tell that by my voice. I-- sorry I’m calling you on a weird number. I-- we-- need your help. Mina--” she was babbling, with joy, with relief, she hardly noticed she was crying, her voice pitching through the tears, “Frank attacked her in-- in the forest. He-- that's not important, actually. Not right now. We need-- she’s really hurt. Can you come pick us up? I dont-- we can’t make it back to town. We’ve been walking for hours and she needs water and medical attention and I can’t help her anymore, I tried, I did my best, but I-- she needs--” She drew in a breath, holding it. She needed to relax. “Please, we need you.”

“Bex.” It was the last voice Morgan had expected. She was too stunned to cut in and tell the girl to slow down, take a breath, take a beat, think a little, it would be okay. But she caught Mina’s name and the part where they were in bad enough shape that they couldn’t get back on their own. “Bex, honey, I need you to tell me where you are. I will come, I will make it as alright as I can, but I need to know where you are. Can you take a breath and tell me?”

“Right, fuck, right-- we--” Bex started, stopped. She didn’t actually know. Somewhere in the Gallows. “H-hold on.” She fumbled the phone, trying to set it down gently but it clattered to the desk as she stumbled over to the map on the wall. “Five Point Ranger Station. Just behind Candelton. Five Point Ranger Station, just beyond Candleton,” she repeated it to herself as she made her way back over to the phone, picking it up as she slid to the ground, her legs suddenly nothing but jello. “Five-- Five Point Ranger S-station,” she managed to squeak out, “Just beyond Candleton cemetery. There-- there’s a b-back road, behind it. Leads right to it. To us. Pease-- please hurry.” She didn’t wait for the confirmation before she set the phone back on the receiver. She needed to go back and get Mina. Groaning, she lifted herself back up and glanced around. There was a walking pole by the entrance and she grabbed it, hurrying back up to Mina. 

“Mina?” She collapsed just in front of her. “Mina, I’m back. Morgan is-- Morgan’s on her way. But we have to get down there, to the r-road.” She held out the pole. “I found this, it might help. The hill is gonna--” her eyes wandered to it, then to Mina’s leg, “--or I can carry you. I might have-- maybe have enough magic left to-to carry you.”

Stopping was always a bad idea. Mina stood by this as something that was a fact. Leaned against a tree, wounds aching, hurting, burning all over again with no water to soothe them, she didn’t think that stopping had been a good idea at all. She should have gone with Bex, lack of proper attire and inhuman appearance be damned. She also didn’t want to move, and that wasn’t good. That wasn’t good at all. She looked up as Bex came back to her, spots in her vision, but she blinked them away. “I can walk. I just need a little help getting up. Don’t use any more of your magic. Please.” She fought to stand, hands pressed behind her against the tree bark, but she managed. She felt like hell. They needed to get to help.

Morgan’s world narrowed to the size of a list and the route her phone was coaching her through. She’d grabbed everything she could think of and reach within two minutes, thrown it all in the Subaru and started driving. Water and towels. First aid tub. Water for drinking. Jackets from each girl’s room. Whatever had been on the fridge shelf when she swiped her arm over it and dumped its contents into a plastic Hannaford bag. Battery pack. She’d weathered enough disasters to cover the basics. She must have. She must have because if anything could give her miserable little mortal life meaning, it would be doing enough that the two girls she loved did not die. 

Morgan pulled up to the building and got out, not even bothering to close the door or to check her appearance in the mirrors. She marched into the road in the tank top and shorts she’d been wearing when she’d picked up the phone, her dark fingers, flaking skin, and decomp-purple coloring on full display. It didn’t exist to her. “Bex!” She called.

Bex would’ve argued that she had plenty of magic, it was energy she was running low on. But they didn’t really have time to argue, not anymore. The sun had disappeared behind the trees and the shadows were growing longer around them, reaching for them like hands that wanted to pull them back into the dark world, where life and death were too close together. Bex helped Mina stand and wrapped her arm around her again, using her other hand to steady herself with the pole instead. They trudged down the hill, slowly, making sure not to slip or stumble or fall-- that would’ve been rather disastrous. But they made it, and there was still no sign of life at the ranger station, so Bex pried the door open again and deposited Mina inside on a chair. “I’m--” she glanced back around, “I’m gonna go look for Morgan. I’ll be--” right back. As always. She didn’t finish her sentence before she scurried back outside. 

The last bits of sunlight had all but disappeared when Bex saw the headlights coming up through the trees. Morgan was flinging herself out of the car and Bex did her best to throw the door open again and scramble into the road. “Morgan!” she called out, tripping on herself, on weak legs that felt broken and raw, a weak voice that quivered through a fever and a concussion. “Over here!” She ran to her as best she could, grabbing her hand and pulling her towards the Ranger station. “Mina’s i-inside. I can’t-- I’m not strong enough. She’s not strong enough to walk anymore.” 

Every step felt worse than the last, but Mina continued to push on, using Bex for help as she went. It felt like it was taking too long; she was scared they’d be stuck out in the dark before Morgan got there. But Bex managed to help her into the building, and Mina sat heavily in the chair. She waited. She tried very hard not to pass out. She waited. When the door opened again, Mina looked up with bleary eyes as two figures walked in. She almost passed out from relief. It was okay. They were going to be okay. Mina didn’t pass out though, just hung her head and raised a hand. “Hi.” She didn’t really have the strength for a less lackluster greeting.

I’ve been through enough, I will do enough, I know what I’m doing, I know this, I know this. Morgan’s brain circled around the same few thoughts as she came into the building and laid eyes on Mina. She gave Bex’s hand a squeeze as she released herself and came for the other girl. Mina, stupid, reckless, self-destructive Mina with and infected mess on her side, wounds in each leg, and a burn on her face that had barely healed at all. Morgan made a mental note of the damage, prioritizing, puzzling together what she wanted to do now and what would have to wait til they were home in the pool. 

“‘Hi’ is not gonna cover it,” she deadpanned. “But hi to you too, honey.” She bent and lifted Mina into her arms with ease and started heading back to the car. “Bex, no time to be a martyr, be honest: are you good to walk or are you hopping on like a spider monkey? I don’t care, I’m not bothered, I just need to know.”

Bex had almost gotten used to Mina looking on the verge of death, but when she looked at her in the dim light of the building, really looked at her, she found herself freezing up with pain. With sorrow. What she wouldn’t give to have been a healer, to have had magic that could’ve actually helped, or saved her, or gotten rid of the multitude of injuries that were now causing her pain. She wiped furiously at her face. “I’m-- I can walk,” she stated. Morgan needed to focus solely on Mina, they could see to Bex when they were back at the house and Mina was safe and in water and taken care of. “I can walk,” she reassured, standing and heading to the door, yanking it open and holding it. “We should go, quickly,” she stated, eyes both glued to Mina and wanting to look away. Just a little longer, she told herself, she just needed to be brave a little longer.

“Hey,” Mina said, followed by, “Ow.” As Morgan lifted her up like she weighed nothing. Really, to a zombie, she did weigh nothing. Her weight, her injuries, all of it was nothing. She gripped onto Morgan’s shoulder tightly, though, trying not to make any noise against the pain of it all. Stay awake. Stay awake. Stay awake. She had to stay awake. She couldn’t go to sleep. She might not wake up. She didn’t know. She couldn’t possibly know. “I don’t think some things are going to heal right,” she said quietly as they made it to the car. “Cold iron. It… hurts. A lot more than I want to say.” She looked at Bex, saw the worry in her eyes, the fear. It was fine. They were fine. They were safe. 

“You would be surprised what Deirdre has healed from,” Morgan said, shifting her in her arms to open the back seat and lay her down. “And you’ve never had fae healthcare before. So let’s put all of that into the ‘maybe’ category and see what happens.” She pressed a kiss to her head, then knelt over her supplies and got to work: burn salve, disinfectant, cotton pads, and soaking towels. She lifted her gaze to Mina and saw the glaze forming over her eyes and the exhaustion she was so desperately fighting. “Hey, Mina? Some of this is gonna sting, but it’ll hold you together til we get to the pool. While I’m working, why don’t you tell me what Bex’s status is, health-wise. Then tell me what you think she needs. Think you can focus enough to do that?”

Bex didn’t make it all the way to the car, but that was fine. There was an old lawn chair sitting out by the curb, close enough, that she sunk into. She wanted to go over, she wanted to help, but her body was exhausted and it fought against her, even as she tried to stand up again. She’d let Morgan take care of Mina without getting in the way. Bex would only get in the way, now, if she tried to help, with her own trembling hands and grievous headache. She laid her head back and closed her eyes, just for a moment. Just for a moment. She could hear Morgan’s soothing voice floating over from the car, and Mina’s trembling, pained one. She wanted to hug Morgan. She could wait until she was done tending to Mina. Something looked off about her, about Morgan, but in the dim light and through hazy eyes, Bex couldn’t put her finger on it. Finally, she lifted herself from the bench, deciding she’d gathered enough energy, and started the long, maybe twenty foot trek, over towards the car. It felt like it was a smile away. “Is she going to be okay?” Bex called halfway over. “Is she-- did we make it in time?”

“It’s just disinfectant. It’s not going to hurt that bad,” Mina said. Really, compared to some of the things that she’d done to heal herself over the years, disinfectant was nothing. Mina closed her eyes and sat as still as possible. “She’s got a concussion. She was also stabbed, though its older than mine. The sutures have come undone, though, and infection has set in. She was running a fever most of the day yesterday. She used up too much magic. She hasn’t eaten in three days, and the amount of water consumed hasn’t been nearly enough, especially given the fever.” Mina gave the list of ailments as methodical as possible, focusing on remembering what she could while Morgan worked. “She needs stitches, antibiotics, water, food, rest. To not go back to her parents. Somewhere safe. To go home.” Mina opened her eyes again, looking at Morgan. “I— I want to come home. Please.”

Morgan made a note of Mina’s list and her treatment plan. She had some stuff on hand, but no home made patch job was going to replace good ol’ antibiotics. But maybe she could improve a little, enough to survive whatever came next for her. She finished what she could for Mina by the time the girl finished and moved her hand to hold the still-water-soaked towel in place over her body. “It’s your home as long as you want it to be,” she murmured. “That means you never have to ask, Mina. I’m--it’s yours. It just is. It’s there. Whether you want it or use it or not.” She gave Mina a soft look, blinking back tears, and narrowed her focus again. She searched the grocery bag and pulled out a thing of leftover fried rice and put it into Mina’s other hand. “If Bex hasn’t eaten in a while, you haven’t either. I don’t care if you spill, just try to get something in you. You’re not gonna heal any faster if you’re malnourished.”

She plopped the bag in the slightly emptied tub and marched to the front passenger seat. Time for Bex. She set her things down, pushed the girl into the seat. “I’m not a fae expert, sweetheart, but I’m really good at breaking traffic laws when I want to, and there’s a fae clinic not far that we can get her to if things don’t look better in the morning, and I’ve patched her up as best I know how. But, the sooner we get home, the better, and since I’m not leaving until we’ve got you a little more stable, the best thing you can do is not fight me on it.” She gave her a look to show how set she was on this and started rifling around. “Take this water bottle, and this Tylenol, and show me where your infected injury is.”

“Fae clinic?” Bex asked, blinking. She didn’t even realize Morgan had pulled her into the front seat and sat her down until a water bottle and some meds were handed to her. She obliged without a word. If it got Mina home safe faster, she’d do whatever it took. She glanced over the seat and into the back, eyes traveling over Mina as if expecting to see her somehow still bleeding out in the back. But Morgan’s patch job was better than anything Bex had done, thanks to the copious amount of medical supplies she had. Bex nearly smiled at her. “Much better than gauze and old blankets,” she said to Mina, before turning to focus on Morgan again, who was rifling around in the bag. Bex set the water bottle down and unzipped the jacket, tugging it off with great effort. Without a shirt on, the multitude of bruises her parents left on her were evident under the scrutinizing car overhead light, but she turned herself enough to give Morgan access to the stab wound Frank had left on her, torn stitches black and bloody. “It’s just that one,” she said quietly. The burns from her magic exertion couldn’t be seen to, so they didn’t matter. She’d deal with them later. 

“I thought I should ask. I felt like I should ask. I was stupid to leave, I wish I hadn’t, I’m sorry I did.” And Mina might have kept babbling, might have gone on and on and on, but there was food in her hand, and she stared at it for a little longer than she should have trying to figure out what to do with it before she realized that Morgan wanted her to eat. Mina didn’t want to eat. The thought made her nauseated. But she opened up the container any way and picked at what was inside. She looked back up to the front seat, making eye contact with Bex. She gave her a tired smile, but her tongue felt heavy and so did her eyes and she still couldn’t sleep, not yet. So she watched the front seat and made sure everything looked like she expected it to, and she tried not to spill any of the rice, despite Morgan saying it was okay. She almost felt like she could genuinely relax for the first time in… awhile. It was overwhelming. 

Morgan let out a deep sigh. Even ignoring Bex’s bruises, painfully difficult but not impossible after all the practice she had with Deirdre, Bex’s wound was definitely...a lot. “Okay. Disinfectant first, then I’m gonna take those out and try to do one better so you’re not leaking out of yourself.” She started working swiftly, trying to keep her world small and not think of other, terrible injuries she’d seen and how much more fragile, more human Bex was. “And yeah, fae clinic. They’re not a fan of me, but they take care of their own, which is all I really care about. So, Mina’s got lots of really great options. But--” She took another breath as she soaked another pad and did another pass at Bex’s wound. “That’s not important right now. Right now, I need you to take this--” She reached down for an ice pack and gave it a good crack to activate. “On your head wherever it hurts. And maybe this could be a good time to practice clearing your mind and giving your brain a rest while I finish up. You’ve done a lot of really good thinking, and you’ve got everyone this far, but your brain really needs you to take it easy so it can heal. So you can keep helping Mina later on. Okay?”

Bex was more curious about this fae clinic than she supposed she should’ve been. She winced as Morgan started prodding at her wound, pulling the old stitches out. She wasn’t as strong as Mina, despite being used to the pain, and she let out a short whimper, before she bit the inside of her cheek to quiet herself. She nodded and took the ice pack, pressing it against the large bruise on the side of her face. “N-now? You’re going to do more stitches now?” She didn’t have too much room to complain. She looked back at Mina once more, who was barely holding onto consciousness, and resigned. “I’m-- I don’t think I could, if I tried,” she admitted quietly. She was too worried, too afraid, too full of fear and anxiety. Even if Morgan was here and she knew they were safe-- they were safe because Morgan would never let anything bad happen to either of them, she would never let them die, not in her care-- she couldn’t shake the feeling of panic that had gripped her heart the moment she’d seen that text and ran off into the forest. Frank was still out there. Her mother was waiting for her back home. She’d said things to Mina she couldn’t keep. “He’s still out there,” she said, quieter, “Frank. He…” She wanted to go home, too. Just for a night. Just to make sure Mina made it through the night. “He’s going to try again.”

Morgan had everything ready but Bex was tense and trembling and whimpering and her world simply would not stay small while that was happening. She leaned over into Bex’s view and touched her hand gently to her face. “Hey. Look at me. You are safe, Bex. Right now you are so safe. And even though there is going to be some pain and discomfort while I work, I am not going to hurt you. No one is, not right now. You did so good, getting me here and taking care of Mina and yourself. You did amazing. But now the thing you need to do is stop and put down Frank and your parents anything else you’re carrying in your head right now. Close your eyes, breathe how I taught you, and put it down. And--it’s okay, if you need to cry out some.” She brushed her finger over the little dent in Bex’s cheek where she was biting. “Breathe and put it all down, sweetheart. As much as you can. That is the best and smartest and bravest thing you can try to do right now. And I’ll try to make it so it doesn’t hurt for long, okay?” She gave her as much of a smile as she could and went to work.

Bex blinked and Morgan was in her view, she was the only thing in her view. The more she talked, the more the world behind her head fell away. The cabin, the trees, the quiet, somber sky that was once again fading to dark. She released her bite on her cheek and drew in a deep, shuddering breath. Just like Morgan had taught her. In for three. Hold. Out for five. Her body began to relax, even as it trembled uncontrollably. Weak muscles and tired bones and a fever fighting to take control. She swallowed and nodded and tried to push away the thoughts of her parents and Frank and what they’d just been through. Did Morgan even know? Did anyone? How long had they been gone? Days. Three days. This was the third night. “I was so scared,” she finally admitted, her voice small. Morgan was safe. She hoped Mina didn’t hear. “I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t know she was--” a nix. That she’d needed water. “I found water as fast as I could. But I was afraid-- I was afraid I didn’t make it in time.” Heavy, ugly tears streaked down her face and stuck to the ice pack. She didn’t make a noise of it, though. “I can’t lose her,” she added on, somehow even quieter. Her eyes went up to Morgan’s. “I can’t lose you.”

“It’s okay you were scared, anyone would be scared,” Morgan whispered, her eyes fixed on Bex’s injury. “That must have been so much. But you are so strong, so incredible, you didn’t let it stop you from helping. That’s what matters. The thing isn’t to stop being afraid, it’s to stop letting your fear control you. And you did it, my love. Okay? You did everything right.” Her eyes slid up to Bex’s just for a moment. I can’t lose you. It didn’t make any sense to Morgan and she was too preoccupied to hide her confusion. She hadn’t gone anywhere or done anything. She knew when she let the rest of her feelings find her, she was going to be desperately relieved that she had made amends enough to be allowed this close and help this much. How could she be lost if she’d just been here, begging Bex to come back?

She finished and put a good sized bandage over the thing, then she reached for one of Bex’s old jackets and a pyrex of fruit salad and leaned back into her view. “All done,” she beamed. “Sit up and put this on instead of whatever you were wearing and try to eat a little.” She brushed the girl’s matted hair back and wiped the tears from her cheeks. “You’re safe now,” she repeated, whispering even quieter than before, now that she was close. “I’m going to put everything in the trunk, except for this--” She hefted the grocery bag and set it by Bex’s feet. “And I’m gonna drive us home, and we’re gonna be one heck of a surprise for Deirdre, and we’re gonna be okay. Alright?”

Had Mina been afraid? Bex wasn’t sure. She remembered Mina pleading her to leave her in the clearing, held down by that trap, because Frank was going to come back. He was going to kill them both. She remembered the look on Mina’s face when she’d finally woken up on the couch and watched Bex move around the cabin, trying her damndest to keep them alive. Had they both just been afraid for each other? Her gaze drew back to Morgan as she was handed more things. You did everything right. She didn’t feel like she’d done anything right. She hadn’t known Mina needed water to heal, she hadn’t known any of it. She’d gotten there and just done whatever needed to be done. She’d almost given up so many times, but the thought of letting Mina die had pulled on her weary, exhausted muscles and made her move more, further, just keep going. She let out a long breath and pulled on the warm hoodie Morgan had brought her. It felt soft and cozy and familiar. It even smelled like Morgan’s house. She wrapped her arms around herself and let some of her tears dry up on the neck of the jacket. 

Morgan set something  by her feet, and she was trying to smile and be light, and Bex looked up at her. “Can I hug you?” was all she asked. She wanted to hug Morgan. She wanted to not just be told she was safe, but also feel safe. And without question, she knew it would feel that way in Morgan’s embrace. 

“O-of course,” Morgan replied, suddenly struggling to keep her voice even. “Anytime.” And without any further hesitation she drew Bex into her arms and held her close. The word grew and Morgan ached with how much she missed the girl and how desperately she wanted things to be better. Her insides were melting, the only way she could clear her vision was to let some of her building tears fall, and stars above, she still had to drive. She swallowed, shoving down the lump that had formed in her throat. “I mean it. I love you, sweetheart.”

Bex grabbed onto Morgan and held so tightly she was worried, at first, that she might hurt her. But then she remembered Morgan was a zombie, that she couldn’t feel as well, and she held on tighter, burying her face into Morgan’s shoulder as she let herself cry a little more. Finally, something steady and solid and grounding. There was no more cramped cabin or rain or worry, no more threat of being found and killed, no more anxiety about whether she’d fall asleep and wake up next to a dead body. Finally, she could rest. “I love you, too,” she said into her shirt, through thick tears, and a strained voice. And she meant it, just as much as she had meant it when she’d said it to Mina, however long ago. And she was sorry, so sorry, it had taken her this long to realize it. That she’d had to destroy everything before realizing maybe love mattered more. She drew in another breath and tried to blink away some of the tears. “I have to go back to them,” she said quietly, so quietly. It sounded painful, as if she were saying it through a mouthful of blood. “I can’t come home yet.”

For a while, Morgan didn’t say anything. She had thought and hoped that she still mattered to Bex as much as before, but it was different, hearing her say it while held safe like the little girl she’d never gotten to be. After all this time, right when things were only going to get worse for her. “I know,” Morgan said into the girl’s hair. It hid some of the defeat in her voice, but not much. “I know. All of it. You can call a car from the house, or I can try to get you to the ferry before it closes. But we have to get Mina to the pool first. That’s not me wanting to keep you safe. She needs freshwater as soon as possible. We can figure you out after that.” She blinked her eyes clear and pulled on the hope in her soul to summon a smile before pulling back to wipe Bex’s face.

“I…” Bex started. It was a bad idea, she knew it was a bad idea, but her parents had no idea where she was, and what was one more night, anyway? She’d been making bad decisions all weekend. “I want to stay with Mina tonight.” Mina was all that mattered to her right now. Getting Mina home and to her pool, where the water she had bonded with, the house they called home, would heal her right. She could sleep in the water and Bex could know that she was safe and taken care of. She still wanted to stay with her, next to her, if she could. She would sleep on the hard ground next to the pool if Morgan would let her, but she knew she wouldn’t. “Just one night.” She just wanted one night away from that house, that place, one night that wasn’t a fight for her life or Mina’s. Just a safe space, to fall asleep and dream and not have to wake up to unending pain. 

Morgan’s brow furrowed. She hadn’t expected that, and she wasn’t sure if she was supposed to be thrilled or worried. She couldn’t deny that a night’s rest would help Bex stand a better chance against her mother, and few things in the world made her happier than the thought of Bex tucked safely under her roof and learning to smile again. That was it, wasn’t it? She had to take a night of this, and somehow let it go in the morning, knowing exactly what would happen. And now Morgan did remember what had become of her body, all her rot and necrosis pressed against Bex. She drew away slowly and shouldered into the jacket she’d originally brought for Mina, before Bex took notice. “If that’s what you really want, then that’s what we’ll do,” she said softly. She picked up everything from the ground and loaded the trunk and came around to the front seat, igniting the car to life. But she took another moment to breathe for herself. It was about to be one heck of a drive.

Bex wasn’t sure that was something she could ask for, but she’d asked anyway. She wasn’t sure she could actually walk through that house and sleep in her bed, in her room, and get up the next day and leave. She sat back in the seat, before turning once again to look back at Mina as Morgan made her way around the car. Was she asleep finally? She couldn’t tell. She hoped so. She needed to sleep. Bex looked across the seats to Morgan as she slid into the car and started it up. She felt oddly out of place, yet perfectly in the right spot. Morgan and Mina were her home, and no matter where she was, wherever they were, would feel as such. Even in a car, in the middle of a forest, full of blood and nightmares, and an iron knife that shared their pain. “I don’t think they know,” she said, settling back into the seat, looking down at the food container she’d forgotten Morgan had handed her. She pried it open and pulled out a piece of cantaloupe.. “What happened. Where...I am.” She didn’t think her mother knew what Frank had done, and she wondered who might be punished worse, once all the dust settled. “We were gone three days,” she went on quietly, her eyes drooping. She was growing tired as well, “this would’ve been the third night.”

There was conversation coming from the front of the car that Mina could only somewhat make out as her body decided that the best course of action, at least for the time being, was to not move at all. To shut down. So Mina let the voices fade into background noise. They’d made it. They were safe, or as safe as they could be. She didn’t feel like she had to run, not at the moment. She didn’t think she could, really. All she could think about was not passing out. She didn’t want to pass out. She couldn’t pass out. Mina tried to listen, tried to hear the conversation, but their voices were low, and she was steadily losing consciousness. She could pass out, if she needed to. She didn’t want to, but she could. She wasn’t going to, but she could. That was Mina’s line of thought as she set down the food, only a few bites taken from it, and slowly curled in on herself, moving to protect her side. She was safe. Two of her favorite people were with her, and maybe it wasn’t going to last, but she was safe. She blinked, not really seeing much in the semi-darkness of the car, and watched the front seat, making out the shapes and shadows of Bex and Morgan. As long as they were there, as long as they were okay, it was alright. She could close her eyes for a moment. She’d open them again when they made it home. 

Morgan drove as fast as she could, barreling through downtown and up to the East End. She punched a button on her keys and the lights in the driveway came on, harsh and bright after all their fumbling in the nothing-light of dusk. She took a second to gather herself again, knowing she had to let go of her jacket to take care of Mina,that as strange and wrong-looking she seemed to herself, it sealed the guarantee that she could carry the girls anywhere tonight, that Odell was watching them and any good feeling that came out of this wasn’t anything to keep, that sometimes you didn’t need a curse to keep on suffering. “I’ve got this. Wait here, okay?” She mumbled, sliding out the car and dumping Mina’s old jacket in her seat. With any luck, Bex was asleep and wouldn’t know anything until she was safe inside. 

Something was wrong with Morgan, but Bex didn’t want to ask. Some part of her knew, didn’t it? The rest of the drive was silent and Bex turned to check on Mina in the back several times, doing her best not to tug on the new stitches in her side as she did. She wished she were back there with her, holding her, but it was best for both of them she was up front. Finally, they pulled up to the house and Bex stayed still for a long time, not even unbuckling, as she stared at the front door. The bright porch light illuminated it and the front of the house, and she didn’t even swivel her head when Morgan spoke up again and slid out of the car to grab Mina. It was only once they were off inside that Bex unbuckled herself and got out of the car, limping over to the lawn, to the porch, and stared up at the front door. At the spot where she’d last been before she’d betrayed both of them and walked down the lawn into her mother’s arms. Her gaze followed the path she’d taken and stuck on the spot in the street where the car had been. She wondered if she knew yet, now that Bex was in town. She wondered how wide her mother’s net really was.

Mina was aware of being carried. That was the first thing that came back to her. “I’m awake,” she muttered, eyes still closed as she leaned her head against Morgan’s shoulder. “I’m awake.” She was awake enough. “I can’t walk right now, which… I want to say that I can, but I can’t.” Her tongue felt even looser than it had in the haze of half-sleep and achiness that was settling over her body. She wanted to walk. She wanted to prove that she could walk, that she didn’t need assistance. But she couldn’t walk, and she needed help, desperately, and it was almost a relief to know that Morgan wasn’t going to let her go. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I’m sorry I left you. I’m sorry I haven’t been around. I’m sorry you keep having to come get me like this. I’m sorry I didn’t protect her. I’m sorry she still got hurt. I-- I’m just sorry.” 

“Shh,” Morgan soothed, walking faster toward the pool. “That doesn’t matter right now. If you want to be sorry, you have to live long enough to do something about it. So, live first; sorry later.” Then she was wading through the reeds and water flowers they had lined the steps with and cursing the way water made the world turn slow. No running. No plunging. Only a slow descent to the bottom of the pool, Mina still cradled in her arms. 

It had been a while since she had spent time down here, even longer since she’d done it in the dark. Around her, stems floated by like wraiths, the water that pressed on them stretched before her eyes  as if it were infinite. Morgan wanted to ask if Mina was okay, if anything felt better yet, if she wanted to be alone or if she wanted Morgan to stay. But at this hour, from this deep, they were in a dark neither the stars nor the warm lights of the house could not penetrate. So, when her worry for Bex started to grate on her insides, she gave Mina a squeeze and kissed her head and climbed up to the surface. 

“Bex—?” She called. 

Bex needed to go inside, she knew she did, but instead, she sank to a sit on the porch. She wanted to go inside and make sure Mina was okay, make sure Morgan was, make sure she was, but instead all she could do was stare out across the lawn into the darkness of night and watch the lights of the houses around the neighborhood flick on and off. She could just wait here. She didn’t want to go inside without Morgan, she wasn’t sure she could. Mina was home now, but was she? Could she be? Would her mother come for her in the morning again? A voice called out to her. “Here,” she said quietly, then, louder, “I-I’m over here.” They’d lived through all of that, and for what? For Bex to simply go back to her parents’ and fade into oblivion once again? Her eyes turned to a figure moving towards her, her vision dull and blurry from exhaustion. No, she decided. No. She would not fade. 

It had been weeks since Mina felt like she was home. It had been weeks since she was home, since she’d felt comfort and peace and the relief that came with knowing she was going to be somewhere and find rest. Actual, proper rest, not just sleep that had been gleaned for a few measly hours face down in a pond in the middle of the woods. Actual rest. She stayed at the bottom of the pool for a few minutes when Morgan left, gills filtering in air as she curled in on herself. She was still in pain, but it wasn’t as bad. It was faded, dull around the edges, and she wasn’t worried about that. It was like the dulled pain that came from medicine. It was a kindness. Finally, she kicked up to the surface and swam over to the edge, resting against it as she listened for Morgan or Bex to come back or go inside.

Morgan walked, drenched, over to where Bex sat, ready to pick her up next when she remembered she was corpse cold and soaking wet and the last thing Bex needed was to roll the dice with pneumonia. Swearing under her breath, she went back to the car and dried herself off with Mina’s jacket, and swore again when she realized that left her with nothing to cover up with. She gathered everything in the backseat into her arms and hauled it as far as the front stoop before sinking next to Bex. 

“I felt her, before I climbed out,” she said. “I think she’s gonna be okay.” That’s what she hoped at least. “So, talk to me about you.”

Bex watched Morgan stop at the car before making her way over to the porch. She looked down at the things deposited on the ground in front of them, then over to Morgan. In the bright light of the porch, it was clear, now, that her skin was paler, her eyes were sunken. She looked how she supposed Mina felt. Half dead. Maybe more. “That’s my fault, isn’t it?” she asked, reaching out and placing her hand on Morgan’s wet arm. “Because my mom…” What was there to tell of herself? All the days blended into one. “I’ll be fine. I wasn’t the one attacked.” She knew she mattered, too, to Morgan, to Mina, but she didn’t care about herself right now. She wanted to go inside, but her feet stuck to the ground. “I’m just tired. Is she-- is she asleep?”

For the first time, Morgan shied away from Bex’s touch. There wasn’t any talking around it; she was lucky Bex had been too stressed not to realize Morgan was at least three different not-alive colors before now. “It’s not as bad as it looks,” she mumbled. “And since you aren’t responsible for your mother’s actions, I’m pretty sure all this--” she gestured, flippant and bitter, “Is strictly a me and Odell thing. You didn’t do anything.” It took her longer than it might have a month ago, but Morgan found the strong part of herself she wanted somewhere at the bottom of her soul and pulled a kind smile and looked back at the girl. “Not sure if she’s asleep, but she is definitely resting, which is what you need to do too. I know I’m all--”Gross, extra-zombie. “But do you think you can sling your arms around me so I can carry you instead of making two trips. You need your rest too, even more than Mina.”

Bex pulled her hand away. “Sorry…” She didn’t know what it was like, to feel the way Morgan did, decaying, slowly, as she was being starved, but she hadn’t expected her to pull away. She folded her hand back into her lap. “That’s kinda why...it’s my fault, isn’t it?” she glanced over at Morgan. “I didn’t do anything.” She should’ve done something. She wished she had the courage to stand up to her mother. She scared her more than Frank and a knife, or a thunderstorm in the middle of a forest. Morgan was being Morgan, though, even in the face of her situation, and maybe, if she could be brave, so could Bex. “Can I sit with her?” she asked, scooting a little closer as she wrapped her arms around Morgan’s shoulders for support. “Just for a little bit.” 

Morgan hefted her small mountain of supplies in one arm and scooped Bex against her hip with the other. She just managed to balance everything long enough to fish out her keys and get them inside. “Not until you’ve showered and changed into something clean,” she said. “And I’m sorry about--” She looked down at her hands as she set the girl down. “I just don’t like being this way. I’m trying to feel better about how it looks, but it’s hard when I know it means I’m more dangerous and easier for hunters to spot. I don’t mind being close to you.” She pulled her into another hug. “You are always wonderful to be close to. And maybe you haven’t found your moment for digging up whatever their weakness is yet, but you haven’t done anything that needs to be punished.”

Bex leaned against Morgan and realized how much her body was sagging, glad to have support. She wanted to reach out and help Morgan carry the supplies, but her arms didn’t move when she asked them to, staying limply by her side. It was purple and bruised where she’d landed on her wrist. She’d forgotten about it. “I can’t go up there,” she said, looking down the hall towards the stairs that led up to her bedroom and her bathroom and all the things she wished she had held onto and wished she could have again. “I won't come back down.” At least she was telling the truth now. No fae magic needed. She’d been telling a lot of truths this weekend. “Will you go sit with her? Until I get back?” She didn’t want Mina to be alone. She’d been alone when Frank had attacked her and she’d been alone for all the days they’d been apart. She didn’t want her to be alone anymore.

“Okay. Downstairs shower that way, I’ll leave you some clothes by the door,” Morgan said. “You  better be dry and squeaky clean when I see you again. There’s an extra smoothie in the fridge, so maybe come out with that too to tide you over until I can get delivery. I’ll be out by the pool.” She gave Bex a little squeeze and shooed her away and went to work putting everything she’d packed back where they belonged, because if she watched Bex go or lingered on casual ease she’d spoken (like everything was okay, like they had all the time in the world, like their life had never been shattered) she would feel the truth and it would cut her and she would not be able to get to the pool. So, food back in the fridge. Make a restock list for the first aid tub. Wet stuff in the wet laundry basket she’d gotten after Mina started staying. Clothes outside the tiny downstairs bathroom. Chinese food on speed dial. 

She turned on all the lights downstairs, and the ones on the back porch, and came back out to the yard where Mina rested against the pool steps. This, she reminded herself, this much might actually be real. “Hey,” she called softly, sitting down nearby, legs in the water. “I hope you’re not too sleepy, because I kind of already ordered you sushi. How are you feeling?”

Looking up as Morgan sat near the water, Mina managed to smile. “Hi.” She rested her chin on her hands, eyes closing slight. “I feel… like I’ve been stabbed and shot and caught in a bear trap.” She opened her eyes and looked up. “So, really, not as bad as it could be. Bad, but I don’t think it’s going to kill me.” The thought of food made her stomach turn, but she tried to shove that down. She needed to eat. She knew she needed to eat. “I appreciate that,” she murmured. “I’m not-- I don’t want to go to sleep right now. I don’t think I should. Just in case.” Just in case things went wrong. Just in case her wounds stopped healing for some reason. Just in case. “How’s Bex?”

“Bex is taking a much needed shower and will come to see you when she looks a little less like something fished out of a muddy lake. And you--” Morgan brushed back Mina’s wet hair. “Don’t need to ‘just in case’ anything. You’re safe, and you know exactly how dangerous sleep deprivation is, and I literally never sleep and Deirdre’s only out for five, maybe six hours a night? Let us ‘just in case’ for now. You, relax and let yourself heal. Tomorrow we can see about a house call from a fae doctor. I’m sure she’ll be understanding for a nix. It’s okay, Mina. Mission over. You got you and Bex safe.”

As nice as the shower felt, Bex made it as fast as she could. She scrubbed her entire body twice over, and washed her hair out until the drain ran clean, no more mud, no more blood, no more tears. But now that she’d stopped moving, her body felt heavy. She could feel everything that adrenaline and fear had stopped her from feeling in the past few days. Everything hurt. Still, she turned off the shower and hopped out. She dried and dressed quickly and tried to not look too long at herself in the mirror, at the bruise on her face, the bruises on her stomach, the bruise on her wrist. Bruises healed, they went away. It was why they only ever left bruises, the occasional broken bone. She shook the thought away and grabbed the smoothie from the fridge and made her way over to the back porch, only limping a little. The clothes Morgan had given her didn’t hide the tendrils of burns she’d caused herself carrying Mina through the forest, but she did her own best to ignore them. 

She was quiet as she came out, watching the other two in the light of the porch for a moment. “Sorry, didn’t mean to interrupt,” she murmured. Bex came over and sat next to Morgan, refraining from putting her own feet in, even if she wanted to. She knew the water was cool, and she was already fighting off a fever again. “How-- how are you feeling? Is this better?”

“I haven’t slept well in so long,” Mina said quietly, leaning into Morgan’s touch. Her hand was cold. It felt nice. “The iron burns on my side are just infected. Not bad, but I don’t know if it will heal well, even in the water, and I’ve never been stabbed with a cold iron anything, just slashed at with it, and so I don’t know if-- I just don’t know much about it. It hurts. It’s not as bad but it hurts.” She sighed, eyes closing, and she nodded her head. “Mission over.” Mission only marginally failed. She and Bex were both alive. That was what mattered. Frank was still alive, too, though. Mina’s eyes popped open. She was going to kill him. It was best not to mention that, though, as Bex came out of the house and sat down. “Better. This is better.” Almost anything was better than stumbling through the woods. Mina smiled at Bex. “How are you feeling?”

“Cold iron is pretty bad,” Morgan admitted. “And since you went without help for so long, it’ll probably scar, But I’ve seen worse.” She would have gone on, but Bex arrived, and Mina brightened and it was so good to have the family she wanted almost complete, she re-worked the grittier words she’d been preparing and reached out for Bex so she had one hand on each girl. 

“Wow, I know I’m dead, but I’m pretty sure I can smell the difference from here,” she teased. “You look good, sweetheart. Now, because I know the two of you are going to be worrying about this, let me tell you, no bullshit: this is not the most terrifying set of Warden injuries to walk through this house. And our Mina is way too resilient to go down to an idiot like Frank. It might take awhile, and putting strain and trying to push through injuries will absolutely make it worse, but if Deirdre can survive worse--and I do mean worse, she wasn’t able to walk unassisted for weeks--and still be the most attractive person in White Crest, then I don’t see why Mina shouldn’t get back to being her stubborn self eventually, too.” She turned to Bex and gave her a more thorough look. She was probably due for more Tylenol soon. “I got you your favorite from the Chinese place, but you have dinner for breakfast tomorrow if it feels like too much for your stomach.”

Afraid was the first word that came to Bex’s mind, but she was so tired of feeling afraid. “Like garbage,” she said instead, tracing her finger around the rim of the smoothie cup. “But better.” She scrunched her nose at Morgan. “You try being trapped in a cabin for three days,” she grumbled, but she wasn’t upset and it wasn’t angry. It was just quiet. She looked back down at Mina in the water, still full of scales, and resisted the urge to wade in and kiss her. Now that they were back, she wasn’t sure if they’d get a chance to do that again. Not anytime soon, she supposed. She was even still hesitant to let herself believe it would ever happen again. She preoccupied herself with drinking the smoothie as she listened to Morgan talk. Our Mina. And Mina really was hers, wasn’t she? Even if she had to go home tomorrow. Frank’s name made her inside clench with anger again, but her tired body released it almost immediately. There was nothing to be done about it now, or even anytime soon, so she had to let go of it. For now. She just smiled at Mina, knowing Morgan’s words were true. She would get better. Now that she was home, she would get better. “This is fine for now,” she said, shaking the smoothie cup. “I-- should probably leave early tomorrow.” In case her mother’s prying eyes found her here again and the consequences turned out even worse. She didn’t look at Mina as she said it.

“If I was worried about scars, I think I’d have had a lot of complications in life starting about seventeen years ago,” Mina said, keeping her voice light. She looked at Bex with concern but said, “I’m glad you’re feeling better. I really am.” She didn’t like the idea of things taking awhile to heal, of this lasting that long. Broken bones were bad enough. She didn’t want to spend weeks trying to heal from this. She wanted to be well enough to kill Frank as soon as possible, before she lost the nerve. It was all she’d been able to think about since she looked into his eyes, and, now, it was still there, still important as she rested in the comfort of her own home. “Am I really that stubborn?” she muttered. She didn’t think she was that stubborn. She was raised to be resilient, to keep going no matter what, but she didn’t know if that was stubbornness. She looked at Bex sadly, then to Morgan, as if the older woman could somehow convince her to stay. Mina understood Bex’s reasoning, though, as much as she hated it. “How… How early?”

Bex just smiled at Mina. She didn't really have the heart to tell her right now that she really only felt better because Mina was okay. She was home, in her pool, and a doctor was coming tomorrow and barring any huge misfortunes-- which were so unlikely now that they were with Morgan, she would never let anyone hurt Mina in her own home-- Mina was going to live through the night. It was the first time Bex was sure of that in days-- Mina would live to wake up tomorrow. "You are," she agreed, glancing at Morgan, "so stubborn." She went quiet again. She didn't know the answer, not really, just that she didn't want to risk anything, not when Mina was in critical condition and Morgan was falling apart, literally. "Probably…early enough to catch the first ferry." Six am. She looked at Mina just as sadly. "It won't-- this isn't forever," she said, even if she was unsure herself. "I'm going to fight back."

“The most stubborn,” Morgan agreed. She tried not to tense in the quiet, to not fight herself against what she understood was best for the moment even if it was also the worst for everyone. “That doesn’t change anything I said earlier,” she murmured. “I’ll set an alarm and make sure you have something to eat…” What Bex said next made her heart clench. She looked over at her, wide eyes cautious. Don’t say that if you don’t mean it. Don’t give us more hope if it isn’t real. But Bex seemed...determined, if a bit uncertain, and everything in Morgan burned to believe her. Before she could come up with anything substantial to say, two sets of headlights came up the drive, and soon there was the unmistakable sound of Deirdre giving the delivery person a hard time. Morgan sagged with more kinds of relief than she dared count and pulled her feet out of the water. “I’m proud of you,” she said to Bex. “I hope you do. Now if you’ll excuse me, the food is here and we all deserve five easy minutes with the girls we really want to be with.” She winked at the pair and darted off to the driveway.

Mina’s eyes followed Morgan as she walked away, out the backyard and to the front. She eventually settled back, moving her head to rest on her arms as she looked back up at Bex. This wasn’t forever. Nothing was forever, she’d always known. Good things went away, but bad things did, too. This wasn’t forever. And there were things that Mina could do while Bex was gone. She was still restless, but she was going to stop running so much. She had to stop running so much. And Bex would be back. Eventually. This wasn’t forever. “I believe you,” she said. She pulled one of her hands out of the water. Scales, webbing, claws, scars; there was a bit of it torn between her pinky and ring finger. This was who she was. She held it out to Bex. “I believe you. Just-- You have to be good to yourself, too. If I do, you do, too. You know that, right?” 

Bex didn’t hesitate to take Mina’s hand, wrapping her own around it. With webbing between Mian’s fingers, she couldn’t quite intertwine theirs, but she curled her own around Mina’s and scooted closer. “I don’t know how long it will take,” she admitted quietly, “I can’t-- I have to be careful about this. Whatever secret they’re hiding, it-- it destroys people.” She’d watched it happen too many times. She leaned her head down enough to brush her lips against Mina’s knuckles, examining the torn webbing between two of her fingers. “I’ll try,” she answered. And she would. She didn’t need to be bad to herself when her parents did enough of that for her. She used to, but she didn’t anymore. Hadn’t in a long time. She tugged on Mina’s hand gently. “Can I kiss you again?” she asked quietly.

“Then be careful,” Mina said. “Be careful but-- but I’d really like it if you came back to me. Please.” That was all she wanted. She wanted Bex to be safe. She wanted.. She desperately wanted her to come back. She didn’t want to lose her again. And, if she couldn’t keep her forever (because Mina still had trouble believing in something as impossible as forever), then she wanted to keep her for as long as she could. “I don’t care how long it takes. I really don’t. Just-- Whenever you can. If you still want to.” She squeezed Bex’s hand before making the webbing go away and lacing their fingers. She wanted to be close. She wanted to be closer. She sat up and leaned in, moving herself up towards Bex. She was close. She wanted to be closer. “Yes,” she murmured. “Yes. You can kiss me again.”

“I will be,” Bex said, nodding, “I will be. I pr--” No, she couldn’t. She wanted to, but she couldn’t. There was going to be a time where she’d have to be careless or brave or not careful. The close she got to the truth, the less careful she was going to have to be, she knew that much. “I will.” She wanted nothing more than to be able to come home to Mina, to this house, this pool, her bed. She watched as Mina intertwined their fingers, and it looked so much less painful now than when she’d tried to change herself back at the cabin. Bex squeezed her hand. Mina was close, but she wanted to be closer. It was a bad idea, but she didn’t care-- Bex slid into the pool on the first step so she could be closer and pulled Mina into her and kissed her. Finally really kissed her, like she’d been wanting to the past few days. Like she’d been wanting to the past few weeks. One hand went up into her wet hair and even if her stiff body ached, she just didn’t care. She wanted to kiss her because tomorrow it would all go away again. “I love you,” she said against her lips, “I’ll come back to you. I promise.”

“Just— Just try to be. That’s all I ask,” Mina said. She knew how hard it could be to be careful in this town, this world. Not that Mina had ever really tried. Still, it was almost impossible. That wasn’t a promise Mina wanted Bex to make. She just wanted her to try. She almost protested as Bex got into the water with her, but any protestations died on her lips as she was kissed, as they were as close as they could be, at least like this. She sighed into it, relaxed, at peace. This. She wanted this. She wished she could keep this. “I love you, too,” she murmured. She traced her fingers against Bex’s cheek. “So much. So very much.” Mina kissed her again. “Which is why I release you from that promise.” She tucked a strand of hair behind Bex’s ear. It was a nice promise but a dangerous one. If it couldn’t be upheld, it would be a killer. “I don’t need you to promise me anything. I believe you.”

Bex wanted to make the promise not for Mina-- not quite-- but for herself. It wasn’t really a promise to Mina. It was a promise to herself that she had something to fight for, something, someone she was beholden to. Someone she wanted to come back to. She understood the consequences of a promise like that, after the things she’d seen in Mina’s dream, after the way her body had violently fought her when she’d missed their hot springs date because Frank had taken her. But Mina released her and she knew why. She licked her lips, tasting Mina on them. She liked that better than the smoothie. “Okay,” she said. She leaned in to kiss her again, slow and deliberate, arms wrapping around her bare back. She was going to come back to her. She was. The scary part was not knowing when-- and in what condition. 

“Okay,” Mina echoed before she melted into the kiss again, into the feeling of it, into the moment. She was bone tired and sick and hurt, and she wanted nothing more than to stay in that moment forever. Covered in scratches and scales and only half-clothed; if she was in any better state, she’d be self-conscious about it. Instead, it was hard to cling to modesty at this point. Beside, now there was really nothing that Bex hadn’t already seen. There was no reason to feel shame. Still. “We… should really stop. Before Morgan or Deirdre or both comes back,” she said, though she was still kissing Bex back, the words muffled against her lips. She thought about pulling away, even broke the kiss briefly, but she stayed close, barely a breath between them. She rested her forehead against Bex’s and savored the moment.

“I don’t want to stop,” Bex said against Mina. She didn’t want to stop. She wanted to stay right here, kissing her, holding her, knowing that in this moment she was hers and they didn’t have to worry about bleeding out or hurting one another or catching a fever. Sure, they both ached and they were both beyond tired, but she wanted to stay here, and kiss her, just a little longer. Just a little more. Even if Morgan came back. How many times had they walked in on her and Deirdre kissing? They were due a moment of their own. Mina’s forehead rest against her own and she looked into her brown eyes and remembered seeing them look up at her from under the surface of the lake. They were beautiful then and they were beautiful now. “You’re so beautiful,” she said, unable to keep words inside that often would have stuck in her throat. She kissed the corner of her mouth, her jaw, her neck. “I love all of you,” she mumbled into her skin, “all of you.”

“I don’t particularly want to, either,” Mina said, even though they should definitely stop. Really, they should stop. They needed to stop. They weren’t stopping. Honestly, Mina was going to be mortified when one of the older women walked back out and saw them, but, in that moment, she really didn’t care. She couldn’t. She could barely even think. “You-- I-- Ich liebe dich,” she murmured. “Ich liebe dich mehr jeden tag.” I love you. I love you more every day. And it was true. It was all true. Mina could only say the truth. She only wanted to say the truth. She had nothing more to hide. She didn’t think there was anything else about her to hide. “So much. You’re so much to me. Everything.”

Bex knew what that meant, actually. She remembered from what little Mina had taught her. She smiled against her skin before lifting her head to kiss her lips again, soft and slow and lingering, even as she knew Morgan was coming back out soon. “I know,” she muttered into the kiss, “I know.” And she did, she did. She knew she loved her and she knew Mina knew she loved her back. They’d finally said it, and Bex couldn’t stay. She wondered if it would be more or less painful to leave now. Maybe, with the promise of returning, it all wouldn’t hurt so much. Maybe, with hope for something good again, it wouldn’t be so tiring. But for now, she would kiss Mina until someone made her stop. 

Beyond the young witch and the fae she loved, another couple much like them embraced. Morgan hadn’t stopped talking since she’d run into her love’s arms. Even as she kissed her, frenzied and excited and so, so, very relieved, she was tumbling through the story. The girls were stranded, they were here, well Bex was only a little here and she didn’t want to think about that, but they were here right now and Deirdre should’ve seen them in that run down little station and how brave they were and how well they took care of each other and it shouldn’t be funny at all because Morgan hadn’t been sure Mina would be okay until they were talking by the pool, but she’d never seen any people so afraid and fearless at once since she had stood in the forest a year ago and told Deirdre she loved her. And it was stupid, so stupid to think that anything would go well for them from this absurd moment of recognition, but what if it did? 

“This, all of us being here, it’s only seventy-five percent real at best, and it all turns into smashed pumpkins tomorrow, but the way we love each other is real. Just as much as I love you. So we can act like we can have the rest of this, right?” She asked, mumbling the words into her love’s neck as she kissed up to her face. It was the kind of question that wasn’t a question at all, because Deirdre loved her enough to say of course, of course my love, and Morgan knew it.

And so under the cover of indigo clouds and fading stars, they returned to the girls and teased them as if they had never stopped and picnicked with their styrofoam plates in the grass and shared their secret constellations as though this was a summer dream. And later, when the need for rest couldn’t be denied, Morgan and Deirdre lay sprawled with Bex in the great room, windows cracked, just in case Mina called out in the night. Morgan didn’t call it keeping watch or taking shifts, even if she did periodically get up to look a little closer at the water as she adjusted the air or retrieved another pillow, another book. It was a bubble of a dream, held up by tired smiles and long looks. Morgan settled back into her spot around Deirdre as the sky started to pale and closed her eyes. It was a dream, yes. That didn’t mean she wanted to watch when it broke.

[justjessame]

Starting Over Chapter One

Sitting on a park bench, earbuds firmly lodged in my ears with music turned just this side of uncomfortably loud, my book opened to the same page it’s been on for the past week - the week that I’ve been back from - well I’d rather not think about where I was before. Where at least half the population of this giant ball of gas and bullshit disappeared to for years with no warning and then POOF here we were, back again, unchanged while every fucking thing we left behind was changed. Five years gone, five years lost to us, while the people we left behind had continued to move and grow.

Maybe that’s why I couldn’t focus on my music, or my book, or the scenic park laid bare before me. Why flashes of darkness and light would hit me without warning and crippling fear would strike me with no urging. My parents had died of natural causes while I was snapped into the void. No one was waiting to greet me or was excited when I returned. Friends and family scattered, the earth kept turning, but everything was upside down and inside out, or so it seemed to me.

I was the same as I’d been when the snap happened. Twenty-five years old, still searching for something, but no closer to the answers than I’d been before - and with less guidance now that two of my compass leads were gone. I had a house, thank God for the retroactive inheritance bills that were activated for people like me, whose family died and their property was put into question. I had some cushion, but I knew it wouldn’t last. I had to find something, some means to keep my head afloat and hopefully not make my mind numb to the point that I’d wish for another snap.

I shouldn’t be wasting time in parks with earbuds and books, I should have my feet on the ground looking for a job. What was I even qualified to do? I went to college and got a degree in liberal arts. Yeah, that’s marketable. I loved to read, notwithstanding my current attention span. I earned extra cash during college editing my fellow classmates’ papers, but I didn’t actually have a background in editing. I was considering how best to pad my resume that I hadn’t used for a full five years when he ran past.

A touch faster than the other joggers, a slightly different gait, his left side seemed heavier? I was studying him without actually thinking about it, his dark hair and the chiseled jawline would have been enough to draw anyone’s attention, but there was something I couldn’t quite put my finger on that marked him as different -

My head tilted as I watched him run, his hands were encased in gloves. Maybe that’s what drew my attention, it wasn’t cold after all. He didn’t look like he was running because he was a health nut, not like the other joggers dotting the jogging track, more like he was running for the routine of it. And I had no idea how I came to that conclusion.

I shook myself, watching a stranger run was creepy, verging on stalkerish. It didn’t matter that he was attractive or that he seemed to radiate some type of magnetic attraction that drew my gaze, that was probably just boloney that my mind was cooking up to make it alright for me to stare at him. Banging around in the nothingness for five years was NO excuse for this type of behavior, I told myself while my eyes were still following his course. Round and round he went, hardly breaking a sweat, and not breathing heavily either.

He glanced up and his eyes met mine and I could feel the blood drain from my face. Not because he scared me, but because I was caught being a creeper. And his eyes were like steel, gray and I shouldn’t have been able to tell that from the distance between us. But I could.

Evenings were always loose ends for me. Five years, dead parents, and I know people are going to say “but you have to have SOME friends around.” Of course I do, and most of them are now in their thirties and they don’t know how to handle that I’m not. Or how to handle that I was GONE for five years, while their lives went on, and I have what would have been godchildren and honorary nieces and nephews, but I wasn’t here. And if you don’t think that shit is awkward, well, you clearly haven’t experienced it.

They got to be at my parents’ funerals. They lived through my parents’ grief at the loss of ME. They said their goodbyes to ME. And now here I am. Yeah, it’s much easier to let go. Even if letting go means that I have to start over.

The choices are, make my own dinner - which I am more than capable of doing, or go out on the off chance I could meet and make new friends. Usually I pick option one. Safer, quieter, easier. But after the day I’d had in the park, I thought perhaps I’d give option two a go.

Going for a walk, thinking that I’d choose along the way, I started out with my phone, earbuds, and book. Habits. Old habits die hard.

I know what most people are thinking. A woman alone, nighttime, after everything that had happened and continues to happen, wasn’t I just asking for trouble? Not really. I’m not one of those people that automatically assumes that bad things happen to people because of size, shape, gender, and on and on. I don’t think I got snapped into the void or whatever because I happened to be a petite woman. I don’t think I’ll end up snatched off the street because of it either.

Also, my parents spent a fair bit of extra cash to make sure I was taught self defense, so I felt at least confident in my chances against regular freaks. It was the extra-enhanced freaks I might have issues with.

I bypassed sushi places and burger spots. Ignoring the sub sandwich shops that almost seemed to glow in the dim light of the early night, I was thinking that Italian was what I was craving, and if it hadn’t closed, my favorite spot wasn’t far. So focused on my purpose, now that I had one, I wasn’t paying attention to my surroundings and crashed into a steel wall.

“Ow,” I bounced back, rubbing my right shoulder and thinking that maybe I’d been too quick in my bitching about the padding in bras. Looking up I realized it wasn’t a steel wall OR door, but shockingly the jogger from earlier. “Oh, I’m sorry.”

I couldn’t decide if he was surprised by or uncertain about me. His lips were working to form something, and finally managed a sort of smile. “Nothing to be sorry about.” His eyes were in a squint and I wondered how weird he’d think I was if I rubbed my right breast, because DAMN if it didn’t hurt like fuck. “I should get out of your way.”

I blinked again, words, use your words. “Right, I was on my way to dinner.” You’re not fucking stupid. Just socially inept. “I’m sorry I ran into you?” Did I run into him? I mean, I’ve heard about muscles of steel, but REALLY?

“Oh,” he stepped back and cleared the path. “I hope you aren’t late.”

“Late?” He was more attractive up close and I swear it made it a thousand times harder to make words form. His eyes were almost silver and if I’d thought his jaw was chiseled as he jogged, well, holy hell up close? He could cut bread with it. He was waiting and I ran the conversation through my brain again. “For dinner, right. Dinner for one, so I’m only late if I don’t arrive at all.” Shit, now I sound lonely and sad. My eyes snapped shut. “And now I’ll go and disappear into my spiral of shame.”

“Shame?” He sounded so confused that I had to open my eyes, and sure enough his brow was fully furrowed and he looked as confused as a puppy. “Why would you -”

“You’d never understand,” I huffed out a chuckle and shook my head. “I’m sorry for talking your head off, I should go.”

“Wait,” his gloved hand touched my arm, the briefest touch to get my attention. “I’m Bucky -” he took a deep breath like he was really unsure of himself, which was bizarre. “Bucky Barnes.”

Something twitched in my stomach, something I hadn’t felt since long before the snap. And that name, wasn’t it a touch familiar? Butterflies and nerves fought for dominance, and as I bit my lip, I took my own deep breath thinking maybe this was it. The first step since coming back. “It’s nice to meet you, Bucky, I’m Brooke Ashley.”

[sheep-sorbet]

These are... a lot I’m so sorry I just have a lot of feelings

-I think Zexion and Xemnas acting like siblings is absolutely hilarious. Xem is serious superior man until the rest of the org leaves and then he tries to gently bludgeon Zex because the bastard threw a book at his head earlier

-Zexion was the only one not afraid of Larxene who had her grudging respect-He can shoot a gun. He was raised by Braig.

-He can use a sword. He was raised by Dilan.-Ever since he was little, he was fascinated by weird creatures and would bring them home. Even drew the line at the giant snake (he hated the spiders equally though). He still does this at 20-something only now the warriors of light are in on it and they’ll occasionally bring him even weirder things

-no he doesn’t experiment on them he just thinks they’re Neat

-Zexion occasionally comes out in Ienzo’s personality, usually when he’s mad at one of the apprentices. He’s very petty.

-Even as Ienzo, he can be really unsettling sometimes. He can just kinda... snap to being happy and pleasant at a moments notice and his smile never wavers... he moves like a predator even if he does his best to mask it. And yet he’s still really easy to let your guard down around

-he was raised in an emotionless cult and it shows. He’s just... off. And absolutely despises showing ANY weakness (I mean, he was the smallest, physically weakest, youngest member in the org practically his whole life). He will walk on a broken leg without giving anything away and it’s driving the apprentices insane

-He is the apprentice’s secretary at this point. Everyone always go to him when they need something because the others are... themselves

-he doesn’t put up with any of the apprentices bs. If one of them is being rude, he will absolutely grab them by the ear and drag them off, size difference be damned

And finally, consider: Ienzo accidentally adopting a bunch of gremlins (Vanitas, Repliku & 3ku). By that I mean they follow him around everywhere and hiss at people and Ienzo’s just like “yeah they’re not socialized yet but I’m working on it :)” and 3ku bites his arm

DO NOT APOLOGIZE THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT I ASKED FOR :D 💙

-i never considered the idea that they'd act like siblings; i personally always thought ienzo (or ig zexion, at the time) would have.... secretly harbored a grudge, now that i think about it. he remained as close as possible to xemnas, both because he wanted to keep an eye on his actions, but perhaps also because a part of him truly believed in what xemnas was doing, reaching for. after all, he was the only one freaked out when the org13 members started killing each other - it must have been jarring because at that point, that was the closest thing he had to a family. he wasn't close to everyone, and certainly not as a nobody- but he WAS manipulated by xemnas, and i feel like once things started going bad, the rose-colored glasses came off, so to speak, and he probably realized just how badly he'd been deceived. of course, that was only the beginning, too ;_;)

-yeah, there's no way he was afraid of larxene. annoyed by her attitude and upset with her eventual betrayal/plan to overthrow the organization, but never scared of her. in fact, i'd argue ienzo wasn't scared of anybody in the organization until vexen was assassinated.

-either he CAN use normal weapons like guns and swords and just chose to use a fucking book instead, OR he can't use any traditional weapons and got a book as consolation. i can't tell what's funnier honestly

- WEIRD 👏 KID 👏 IENZO 👏 yessss. i love the idea that he'd sneak off for however long and by the time anyone noticed he'd gone missing they'd find him on his way back with some sort of fucking creature. and now that i think about it, that would explain why he didn't seem to be afraid of the heartless at all in BBS- at that point he'd likely not seen one yet, and must simply have thought it was another fun creature to put in a box and watch SHSJHAHAJS

-hm, i personally think it's less like zexion "comes out" in his personality, and more that they're the same person, and that any habits he formed as zexion were/are hard to shake. if you play/watch in japanese, you see he's actually rather polite, even as a nobody; and is VERY good at hiding snark behind faux politeness.

-HDMSNMSFNNSNDG "sorry even i'd love to help you, unfortunately i'm in a call with sora right now because SOMEBODY WOULDN'T ANSWER HIS PHONE"

-i personally see it less as him being unsettling, and more like it's just very blatant that he spent his entire adolescence being gaslit to believing he couldn't feel anything and is now learning how to deal with emotions for...... the first time in his life, cuz he wasn't exactly expressive as a kid, either. his emotions, when he's able to stop dissociating for 5 seconds, are probably all over the place. i agree with you tho that he can put up a mask like it's nothing- but others would probably find that more concerning than scary.

-idrk what you mean by "moves like a predator"- he's analytical for sure, and hyper-aware of his surroundings most times, and that may be unsettling for other at times. deep down the other apprentices + ansem know it's a trauma response, and probably blame themselves for it. especially now that he knows that literally ALL of the people closest to him lied, tricked him and used him, for basically his entire life..... trusting, being comfortable, is hard for him. but he tries his best, and deptite his inherent pettiness, almost disallowes himself to be upset by it or hold it against them. he struggles a lot with guilt and he knows the rest of them do, too. he doesn't understand that it's okay to be in pain, and feels just as responsible as he feels they were- so it provably feels, to him, that if he were to deny them forgiveness or even allow himself doubt, then he'd be a hypocrite for wanting that same forgiveness. i can personally see lea making some sort of fuss about the way ienzo was treated as a kid and ienzo to actually be the one to tell him to shut it. but..... more on that later ¬w¬

-it took me a moment to remember who tf 3ku is and jfc there as so many rikus so fucking many. so many. but also he'd be an awful babysitter and they'd all love him for it GNDMDNF

[theresa-nam-nam-me]

| yandere jungkook | playing with a stalker

Yandere jungkook

Inspired by @bangtans-apollo Cards. (Day 2)Advent 2018

Master list

Warning: stalking, yandere behavior

It was around 2 am when your phone buzzed, you had just gotten back from a night shift and took a shower, you sat on your bed picking up your phone cozy in your pajamas ready to see your notification

Unknown: how was work? you look tired

It was that same unknown person, you had been getting texts from the same number every day and thought it to be a troll so you ignored it but now this was starting to frustrate you so you replied.

You: I'm sorry, i think you have the wrong number.

Unknown:....

Unknown: this isn't y/n l/n?

Unknown: i mean, i know it is, i can see you right now

He knows your name, and he can see you? No, you shook your head, it had to be some old guy or something from high school pulling a trick on you.

Unknown: what's wrong? You look confused. It's not too hard to see you, given that you have the enormous window inform of your room.

You could feel the hairs of your arm stand up, you hand 3 really big windows that stared into your second-story room. One big window in the middle and two smaller ones next to it. You slowly got out of bed not switching the light on and walked over to your window that was almost the size of the wall. You shined your phone light at the corner of the window seeing a man wearing a black hoodie and mouth mask sitting down on your roof while staring down at his phone, he looked up making eye contact with you. You screamed falling backward. He stood up placing both hands on the window, you watched as his eyes were big and he grabbed his phone and pointed down at it. You grabbed your phone from off the floor looking at the new text message

Unknown: please don't be scared!

Unknown:im not going to hurt you i promise..

Unknown: do you want to play a game? Let's play a game on the window. Grab two of those dry erase markers on your desk and give me one

You gulped before standing up to get them then going over to the window, you opened the smaller window but only slightly allowing him you grab a marker. You sat in front of the window watching as he drew a tic-tac-toe board and a circle you nervously drew an x across the board.

A while after you found yourself playing round 30 and your nerves have calmed down a little which concerned you a little. He erased the whole board and motioned for you to come closer. You did as he asked and moved a little closer, he began to doodle. When he was done you moved back and made a face that showed great surprise, he had drawn you. Your reaction seemed to please him as he started drawing more. You didn't seem to realize how tired you were until you laid down watching him doodling flowers and your eyes grew heavy before giving in only for a blink but ended up passing out.

You woke up to the sound of your alarm, you quickly sat up looking around seeing everything back in place as nothing happened. You picked up your phone seeing your messages open

Jk: sorry if this freaks you out but i didn't want to leave you to sleep on the cold floor. You left your window unlocked too but down worry i locked it on my way out so no one would break-in.

You smiled slightly at the text, you hope he- or jk comes to see you again, you know it sounds weird but he seems so sweet with his doe eyes

You: thank you jk, come back soon

Jk: i will, promise. :)