#stop leonard stop youre making him worse

[sufficeth]

the thing about bruce banner is you can't say "he needs therapy." he KNOWS he needs therapy. nothing could be more obvious. he even respects therapy as a medical practice. and so HE WENT TO THERAPY!! and what happened? his therapist gamma-irradiated himself and tried to fuck bruce's girlfriend, of course.

[luveline]

jadey baby i love roan smmmm , pls pls pls write something where r steps in when eddie forgets to mention muffins for moms day at school , she still shows up & ed being worried abt roan also shows up thinking no one would be there but R ALREADY IS SO HE JOINS

thank you for your request lovely! i changed it a little but I hope you still enjoy! eddie and roan —formerly single dad!eddie forgets to tell you about your (not quite) step-daughter’s mommy event, but you pull through.

Eddie is so dead. He's so dead. You're gonna kill him, and then Roan's heartbreak is gonna kill him, and then Wayne might kill him too (though Wayne might laugh at him, actually). 

Fuck, he's a shit dad. 

Okay, he's not a shit dad, and he can fix it. 

He's literally elbow deep in an engine when he realises what day it is today. He's had the flyer on the dashboard of his car for three weeks, every day meaning to bring it in to show you and everyday forgetting. He doesn't even stop to think about why he might not have seen the flyer yesterday night or this morning, yanking his hands out of the engine and shoving the greased torque wrench into Leonard's chest. 

Wayne lifts his head from a welding job, mask in place, shouting to be heard over the noise of the shop, "Where's the fire?" 

"It's Muffins with Moms," Eddie says, "and I forgot to tell Y/N and I've never missed one before." 

"Do you have muffins?" Wayne asks. 

"Um, no, but I can get through without it, right?" he asks in a rush, digging for his keys in the fishbowl. "They feel sorry for me because I'm a single dad." 

"You're not a single dad." 

"But I was!" he yells as he sprints out of the shop. The car ride is a blur (but he's not a bitch so he doesn't speed), and he barely has time to wipe himself down with a rag and some spit before he's jogging up to the elementary school. 

It's quiet in the reception where he signs in and the hallway down to Roan's classroom, so he can hear the excitement a mile away. He feels disgustingly sorry for himself but a thousand times worse for his girl, imagining her sitting all by herself as the other kids eat cake with their moms. 

The door is open. No one notices him when he comes in, everyone's having too much fun. He scans for Roan with his heart in her throat, expecting her sat at a table in the corner by herself, an uneaten cupcake in front of her and God, he's breaking his own heart— 

He doesn't find her alone, because she's standing off to one side with you. 

You pour juice into a cup for her and then yourself before putting it down. Roan raises her plastic cup, her smile a million watts, yours not far behind as you pick up your own cup and tap them together. 

"Cheers," you say happily. 

Roan presses her lips together. If Eddie were closer, he'd be able to hear the humming noise she makes when she's ecstatic. He's felt it a hundred times, sitting chest to chest with her on the couch, outside of the movies and at the carnival. Anywhere she feels loved. 

"These are amazing," Stacey P’s mom says, a cupcake in her hands. 

"Oh," you say, "thanks so much." 

"I need the recipe,” agrees Stacy K’s. 

"Sure, sure," you say. You turn to Roan, and the two of you try not to laugh. 

You're no cupcake connoisseur, Eddie can guess exactly what convenience store they came from.

He doesn't need to be there, and he doesn't want to make a spectacle, so he leaves with his head ducked and a huge thrumming feeling in his heart before you can see him, the kind of love that can't be tamped down for anything. He rubs his fist into his hand. 

He heads back to the shop and an hour later you call him, demarcated by a, "Call for baby Munson!" 

"Hello?" he asks, pinning the phone between his shoulder and his ear. 

"Hi, handsome, it's only me. I'm just making sure you know you're not picking Roan up today, 'cos it was that coffee morning thingy at school, you know the one?" You sound like you're just raring to tell him what exact coffee morning it was. He indulges you. 

"Moms and muffins?" he asks. 

"Moms and muffins!" you shout under your breath, adding a roaring sound like there's a crowd backing you up. "I'm a mom and we ate so many muffins, it's sickening. And– I'll tell you when you get home." 

"No, tell me now," Eddie says. 

"You should have seen her face," you say, your excitement melding to a tender love. "I don't think she wanted to believe I was coming just in case I didn't. But she looked like she was going to cry the second I walked in, and she hugged me for ten minutes. I had to carry her to a chair. Eddie," —you must be smiling on the other side, he can hear it— "I love doing mom stuff. I love– I love her." 

Eddie wipes his forehead, grinning with you. "Thank you, sweetheart. For everything. I'm fucking stoked, seriously." 

“She really didn’t know what to do with me at first, almost like she loved me but she didn't know me? She hasn’t ever been that shy with me, when we first met she was my clinger, right? We were fast friends. So it was really weird for me, to have her be like that, and she’s not the only kid without a mom in her class but I think everyone just felt so–? Like, I don't know, they had a small presentation at the front with the kids and they didn’t even ask her to get up, which was good, because she really shut down on me.”

“She’s done it before,” he says. 

“Yeah?”

“Her tantrums weren’t always so loud,” he says. He’d explain it to you if it felt pressing, but he can tell you the rest tonight. The gist of it is that before Roan learned to yell, she’d worry Eddie by becoming almost despondent in overwhelming situations. “Baby, I really, actually think she was that happy she just didn't know what to do with herself.”

Your breathing sounds loud in the receiver, but it isn’t upset. “I think so too. I tried, um, our strategy? Asking her what was wrong, what we could do to feel better, but it wasn’t really working, so I stole your thing. Sorry! But it worked.”

“My thing?”

“You know, when she’s had a big meltdown and she’s not getting her way, and you just talk to her about her.”

That makes it easier to picture. Eddie will sit Roan in his lap, his daughter heavy like dead weight when she’s not feeling good, and he’ll tell her anything as long as it’s about her. Like, when you were a baby, you had this thing called colic, which means you would cry and cry for hours and there was nothing grown ups could do, and the only thing that made it better was if I blew cold air in your ear really soft, like this. 

Eddie can see it, Roan slouched in your lap with her arms around you, your hand covering the back of her head from everything as you told her some story of her life. You must have hundreds by now, things she doesn’t fully remember anymore. One time you saw me in the store and ditched your dad to say hello. One time you hid my shoes behind your back so I couldn’t go home. One time you got up on the kitchen table and made me sing Rockerfeller with you, and when your dad joined in you threw a Capri-Sun at him. 

“What did you tell her?” he asks. 

“I told her about the day we met.”

Eddie licks his lips, nodding, wondering if he should cry. If he hadn't proposed already, this would be a good shove in that direction. “Second luckiest day of my life.”

“She liked the story. She asked me if she really went on our first date. So I'll be honest, I got super cheesy and told her I wouldn't change a thing.”

“So you lied to her?” He laughs. “You wouldn’t make me a lean, mean, money machine?”

“I wouldn’t change a thing,” you reaffirm happily. 

“How’d you even know about Muffins and Moms? I never showed you the flyer, forgot all about it." 

“I saw it when I was looking for my prescription in your glove compartment.”

He’s half-expecting you to ask, Why? Was I not supposed to go? All panicked and worried you've overstepped. He knows he’s doing something right when you don’t.

“I meant to mention it but you were so tired I forgot,” you continue. “Maybe we’ll get takeout and nap when you come home?”

“Sounds nice.” Eddie’s about to sign off. “Wait, you’re home already?”

“Yeah, they let us take the kids home early too.”

“Ro’s with you? Where is she?”

“She’s already at the napping part, right here in my lap. Want me to wake her up?”

Eddie smiles. “No, don’t wake her up. Just give her a kiss for me. I’ll be home in a half hour, tops.”

[darkness-and-books]

How the TOS crew reacts to being stuck in the turbo lift with you

requested by anon: “how would the tos crew react to getting stuck in the turbolift with reader?”

Spock

He only briefly looks up when he realises that the turbo lift has stopped.

Has no reaction whatsoever and goes back to doing whatever work on his PADD because he figures somebody has to notice it’s out of order fairly quickly

He just goes about his business until he hears you hyperventilating

He already knows why you’re panicking.

Spock does his best to comfort you by telling you that there’s only one turbo lift and therefore someone will have to fix it soon.

He’ll 100% tell you all about the history of elevators and how the turbo lift is so much safer 🤓

If you’re still worried after that he’ll let you hold his hand until someone finally fixes the turbo lift.

Leonard ‘Bones’ McCoy

Internally, he also freaks out a little bit

Bones somehow keeps his composure despite being trapped very close to you

He’s entirely in his own head about it until he realises that he can hear you freaking out even more than him

His inner country boy breaks out a little and pulls you close to him

Absolutely kisses your hands and maybe even your cheek to make you giggle a bit

He’ll remind you that you guys have been through way worse than a stopped turbo lift.

Jim Kirk

“Huh” his exact words after realising you’ve stopped.

Honestly, he really really trusts his crew so he won’t be worried at all

But the moment he hears your breathing pick up he’ll start cracking jokes

“Actually this works out perfectly, I was on my way to a meeting”

Pulls you into a big bear hug and tells you how he’d much rather be here with you

if you’re still panicking he’ll say something like “do I have to order you to calm down”

Keeps telling jokes until you laugh

and when you do laugh, he’s pretty sure his heart jumps out of his chest.

Nyota Uhura

Absolute girl boss about it

Would 100% wait it out if it weren’t for the fact that she could see you panicking

But you’re panicking and she can’t bare to see you with anything but a smile on your face

She pulls out her comm and calls down to engineering (why did no one else think to do this? 🧐)

Once she’s done that all she can really do is wait

She won’t even wait or hesitate, she’ll pull you to the floor and sit with you

10/10 would recommend getting stuck in the turbo lift with Nyota, she will cuddle until someone fixes the lift

Sulu

“Oh my”

His mind seriously blanks

But he kicks into gear when he remembers you’re here too

He pulls out a deck of cards and asks if you like magic 🪄

(I dunno why I just think Sulu can do card tricks and stuff 🤷‍♀️)

Card tricks quickly devolves into an intense game of war

Its unexpected for sure, but it works

Scotty

It takes him a moment to notice

But when he hears your breathing he looks up and realises that you’ve stopped

You’re lucky to be stuck in the turbo lift with the head of engineering

He gives you a quick wink 😉 and smirks when you blush

He’d turn around, open up a panel that you didn’t even know existed, and fix it

Bam, problem solved

If you’re really shaken up by it though he’ll probably take you for a drink after or make you tea if you don’t drink

I hope you like it, anon. I’m super sorry if this isn’t what you had in mind, feel free to re-request it with more specific parameters if this isn’t what you meant.

[eoieopda]

Congrats on 2k!!🥳💋✨

As for the request- for the love of God, 𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 do a Seokjin + fake dating au where he realises he is falling for reader😭

i gotchu, boo!

the one with seokjin and without complaints

pairing: kim seokjin x gn!reader type: drabble | type: fluff | wc: 973 summary: you don’t want to arrive dateless to a wedding your ex is also attending. enter friend and local hero, kim seokjin. au: fake dating, drunken confession. cw: alcohol use & moderate tipsiness, blatant inspo. by “leonard cohen” — boygenius, not proofread tbh 🤪 rating: pg15 *regardless, my content is not for minors. minors or ageless blogs who interact with my content will be blocked.

When you pulled up outside Seokjin’s apartment building to find him waiting on the sidewalk, you were all smiles. He’d hopped in the passenger seat, did his best not to stare at you in all your satin-wrapped glory, and asked one last time if you were sure you didn’t want him to drive. You, despite your absolutely abysmal sense of direction, declined.

And then you were off, headed for the highway with only the faintest hint of anxiety vibrating through you. As you drove, you’d thanked him for his service — for the thousandth time — and he’d reminded you — for the thousandth time — that it wasn’t necessary. He’d meant it he said he’d do anything for you, up to and including spending too much money on a new suit just to make your shithead ex feel slightly worse.

After a few minutes of easy conversation, you reached the on-ramp and stopped at the red light. Noticing the song that shuffled to the top of the queue, he’d moved to change it to something that wasn’t garbage. With a flexed brow and all the emphasis in the world, you hit him with a challenge he couldn’t turn down:

“Seokjin-ah, if you love me, you will listen to this song.”

So, he’d let you enjoy your own questionable taste in music without complaint. Of course, he’d realized a long time ago that you were headed in the wrong direction, but Seokjin would’ve rather died than interrupt the full-blown performance you were giving within the confines of your seatbelt. 

He couldn’t tell what prompted the butterflies to appear en masse in his stomach: the way you’d blushed when the song ended and he clued you into your mistake, or the prospect of more time to swap embarrassing stories the other somehow hadn’t heard yet. The unintentional detour had added an hour to the drive, but Seokjin had no complaints about that, either.

Eventually, you’d reached your destination and whipped into the venue’s parking lot at a rate of speed Seokjin could only describe as criminal. Claiming the last remaining space before some other straggler could snag it, you’d turned and shot him a wink that made him go a little bit stupid.

It suddenly made sense why you’d never been hit with a moving violation. Nobody on the receiving end of that smile could have the strength of will to ticket you.

“Ready?” He’d asked once he joined you on the pavement, glancing at the entrance before his eyes flicked over to you.

You didn’t look it, but you’d swallowed hard and said, “Ready.”

Like it was the hundredth time and not the first, your hand slipped into his and squeezed tight. Distinctly not ready, you’d followed his lead as he headed towards the front doors. Seokjin caught sight of your joint reflection in the glass pane as he pulled the door open. Your ruse would’ve fooled him if he wasn’t in on it, he’d realized. It looked right, you holding onto him.

The ceremony was exactly as boring as he’d expected it would be, but your head resting lightly against his shoulder was a sufficient distraction. Completely ignoring the vows being exchanged several meters ahead of him, Seokjin had spent a minimum of ten minutes trying to figure out what the scent of your shampoo was, and why it was giving him heart palpitations. When the newlyweds paraded past him on the way back down the aisle, he’d ignored that, too, and wiped the sentimental tear off your cheek with the side of his thumb.

Thankfully, the reception was proving to be infinitely more exciting than its predecessor.

Despite scanning the area several times, Seokjin still couldn’t spot your ex in the crowd of guests. You still danced as if that clown was watching, touched Seokjin’s arm whenever you laughed at one of his jokes with your whole chest. He was dizzy, kind of, but maybe that was the champagne.

No, he ultimately concluded. The champagne was currently working it’s magic on you, sloshing lightly in your flute as you set it back down on the table.

“I have a confession to make,” You whispered at full volume, smiling sheepishly. “Promise you won’t get mad?”

You reached across the table to take his hand and knocked over the aforementioned flute in the process. With reflexes shockingly quick for someone as tipsy as he was, Seokjin managed to steady the glass before it could empty onto the table cloth. Eyebrows raised, he smirked expectantly back at you.

“They aren’t here.”

Seokjin wasn’t following, and that was definitely the champagne. You squeezed your eyes shut and proceeded to spill your secret at a shocking pace.

“Chan told me a few weeks ago that their RSVP said no.” Your blush licked up your cheekbones like a wild fire. “I may have known that when I asked you to come with me. I just didn’t…”

Your voice petered out at the end of that sentence. You cracked one eye open to look at him in anticipation of a reaction.

“I didn’t know if you’d want to come with me if I asked you outright,” You sighed. “I just — I really wanted you here. You know, with me.”

Inside Seokjin’s head, there were no thoughts, only bells and sirens and whistles and fireworks exploding, sending sparks down to put themselves out on the smooth surface of his brain. He didn’t have words, but he did have hands; so, he cupped your face between them and kissed you with all the emphasis in the world.

You kissed him back with vigor until you eventually pulled back breathless. Shock evident in your whisper — and this time, it really was one — you asked, “You’re not mad?”

Like it was the hundredth time and not the second, Seokjin kissed you with a smile.

“No complaints.”

[crazyk-imagine]

The Doctor’s Friend

Pairing: James T. Kirk x Fem!reader, Leonard “Bones” McCoy x Fem!reader (platonic)

Characters: James T. Kirk, Leonard “Bones” McCoy, Fem!reader, Daisy and Sandy (Reader's old roommates) Warnings: This has been in my drafts for a bit, it makes no sense and doesn’t at the same time, Kirk is dumb but nice, he tries honestly, Bones’ wants his bestie to work with him, we bring up Kirk’s whore past, Kirk could have been a lot worse, this is so bad it’s good Word Count: 834

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You roll your eyes, knowing why he (the he being your oldest friend [and idiot] Leonard) didn't tell you who it was that called you aboard. "Seriously?!" You spin around to face him. "You couldn't tell me who it was that wanted me to join his crew?" 

James interrupts, quite literally stepping in between the two of you. He smiles while doing so, lowering his hand as he stands in front of you. 

You shake your head, "no." 

"Why?” He sounds offended (which would have made you laugh; had you not been pissed off). “I haven't even said anything." 

You turn around, walking forward. "It's better that way." 

"Do you know who I am or something?" 

You nod. "Or something. Now, go away. And don’t talk to me, Leonard." 

James glances back over at his friend. 

The doctor rolls his eyes and gestures for the captain to follow after you. 

He jogs towards you, holding his hands so you don’t run into him and to prevent you from running away. "So, you said we kind of know each other.” 

Your expression doesn’t change. 

“Oh," he sucks air in between his teeth. "Did we-" 

"Bye." You spin around him and walk away, regretting everything that lead up to you officially talking to the idiotic captain. 

"Hey- hey. Wait!" He runs to follow you. 

"Nope." 

He holds his hands in front of him, stopping you from moving (again). “We’re going to talk about why you hate me so much so I can hopefully persuade you into joining my crew because let’s face it. If Bones is saying you’re good, then I gotta say. I kind of believe him and want you to join.” 

You sigh, “you’re the reason I couldn’t graduate with everyone else.” 

“I’m sorry.” 

“Not the mention the fact that you slept with my roommates and broke their hearts.” 

“Okay, okay. I’m going to need to stop you right there so you can explain to me everything I’ve,” he sighs, shoulders sagging low. “Messed up so bad to make you hate me.” 

“You decided to run through the court one day and bumped into me, ruining my project that was worth- that part’s not important.” 

His eyebrows jerk up at your comment. 

“The point is, you ruined my project, and I wasn’t able to do anything about it because the professor didn’t care. His words actually were, “not my problem” and I failed the class so, thank you for that.” 

“That part I get, which I am sorry for but- uh- why do you hate me about my past with your roommates?” 

“You gave them the “night of their lives” and they wanted more. I mean, that was before you went from Daisy to Sandy. They hated each other for weeks and they kept moaning and groaning about it to me.” You whine. 

He covers his mouth to keep him from laughing. 

“Don’t snicker.” 

“I’m not,” he argues. 

“You are. See this is why I never wanted to talk to you, you don’t take these things seriously.” You take a step forward. 

He stops you once again. “No, look. I am, I really am sorry, but you haven’t spoken to your roommates since graduation, right?” 

“No.” 

“And, needing another semester or a year, made you want to do even better so you could show people how smart you are.” 

You shrug, ignoring his gaze. “I guess.” 

“What I’m hearing is, me coming into your life, was a little bit of a good thing.” 

“Yeah, no. I can’t do this.” 

He takes note of the small crack of a smile that clearly wants to tug at the corner of your lips. “I think you can. I think, I’m rubbing off on you.” 

“That’s not true.” 

“See,” he points the clear smile stretching across your lips. “That right there, tells me you like me. Maybe you could even get used to me enough to come aboard, work with my crew and I?” 

You take a deep breath and stop. 

He bumps into a passer byer, quickly offering an apology. 

“I will… go against every fiber in my body and say…” 

“Yes?” 

“I agree to work with your crew.” 

“And me?” 

“Don’t push it.” 

“Okay.” 

You two walk back towards the doctor (who thanks all and any god that answered his prayers). “How about we go on an “I’m sorry I ruined your life but actually made it better” date?” 

“Don’t push it,” you say and run towards Leonard. 

“Glad to see you two didn’t kill each other.” 

“Shut up.” 

“Now can we go get that drink? I need it after watching you two, do whatever that was.” 

You narrow your eyes at him and elbow him. 

He huffs and bends forward, holding his side. 

James stands beside him and smiles. “I’m happy you told me to come with you today.” 

The doctor groans and smacks his captain’s arm. “Don’t even think about it.” 

“I’m not.” 

Leonard shakes his head and walks away. ‘Like I believe that.’

[heartfullofleeches]

Just went through all the sucrose asks to see my favourites and now I'm fucking scarred for life what the fuck is wrong with us people. ( The choke hold Orion, Host and The executioner have on me cannot be described by words btw)

(Sucrose is one of my favorite creations, but the worse when it comes to everything else. Once again, happy birthday and I hope you enjoy this little piece with everyone's least favorite host)

You prepare for the day's showing as usual. Host stops by your dressing room to wish you a good day with a smooch to your forehead before he's off to finish getting ready him. There's no indication that today's show will be any different than usual. Your attire was a bit flasher than normal, but not much else besides that.

A sparkly fabric cut in your preferred style of fit and color, matched with a necklace that harbors your birthstone. It fit your form perfectly, and one of the stagehands helping you get ready gives you a thumbs as you walk from behind the dressing booth.

Once finished with the preparation, you head over to the curtains that lead to the center stage. You can see light poking from them, but as you step outside the floor is dark. Every seat is empty as well. You look around confused.

"Host? Where are you.. and everyone else?"

"Right in front of you, starshine."

Suddenly, the lights flicker back on, followed by the faint pop of confetti cannons and a shower of balloons around you. The crowd roars in cheer; dozens of silhouettes now fitted with birthday hats and party horns between their lips. Two stage hands rush from behind the curtains and place a birthday sash around you along with a crown on your head.

Your face is mirrored on various screens around the stage. In front of you, there's a large cake almost for times your size. The top three layers splatter onto the floor as Host bursts from a compartment in its center. He wears a polka dot suit the same color as the party hat he wears; welding a smaller, but equally if not more appealing birthday cake. He strolls up to you as the candles atop it burst with small flames.

"Happy Birthday, sweetheart! I'm almost 98% sure that it is today because I honestly don't know shit about how your concept of time works, but I've been trying my best to keep track. We're all so happy to have you here. The show, and I, wouldn't be work a damn without you. And that's a fact. I know cake is normally saved for last, but we like to live to the fullest here so blow out this candles and let's get this show on the road."

You blow them out, everyone cheering as you do. Host leans in, covering his hand with his mouth as he whispers. "Word of advice. Don't eat any of the larger one. I tried to make it myself, and well, let's just say there were a few casualties in the tasting portion."

He stands up straight, pointing to the crowd. "You can thank Leonard over these for the decorations.. and making the edible one."

The shadow in question waves at you, wearing an apron around its neck. Host wraps an arm over you, squeezing you gently in a hug.

"It really has been such a treat to be with you. We hope this little celebration is enough to show you just how much you mean to us, and that you'll stick around for whatever else is to come. Things wouldn't be the same without you."

Host pats your shoulder as he let's you go. "Let's continue with the festivities, shall we? I did some research and put together some things I thought you might enjoy. I hope you like your outfit too. I heard of a little thing called a birthday suit, but wasn't able to find out much about it. Maybe you can tell me what it is.. for future reference."

[pirates-and-coffee]

"Ghost."

Short fanfic with gender neutral reader.

Warning: Legends of Tomorrow/The Flash spoiler.

I warned you.

A bit of a premise: No ships here.

About: You're the youngest Legend and were particularly bound to Leonard and Mick. After Leonard's death, you're still broken. Then, something happens.

Enjoy.

“--get the hell out of my head.”

A little smile appeared on his pink, cold lips as Leonard turned the back to a drunk, mumbling Mick. Another bite on his conscience, a bit nearer to the result he was aiming to. But for that night he could go back to Thawne. He started making his way out of the room, entering the corridor, when someone bumped on him, making him stop. Against his chest, to be more exact. A soffocated groan reached his ears. That was a kid. A kid, wearing a too big sweatshirt and jeans. No shoes.

The blue-iced eyes widened.

“Ugh- sorry, man, I can't find-” you reopened yours, tired. Leonard never knew what you couldn't find; as soon as you recognized him, tears started to wet your cheeks. “Len?”, a whisper, the hands reaching for his face. “Oh my god, am I crazy too, am I having an allucination?”

He didn't know how to reply. He didn't know what you were doing on that timeship. He grabbed your hands, looking away. Only to make things worse.

“Oh my god, I can touch you, you're fucking real.”

“What are you doing here?” He asked, trying to contain himself. He wanted to hug you so badly. He had missed you so much... but obviously to you it was only passed a little time since his death. “What are you doing up?”

It took a while.

“I saw you dying, Len.” Your voice was cracking. “I was there and I saw you dying.”

Think. Fast. Only a few more instants and you'd start crying to the point you'd feel like drowning. He sighed. “You fell asleep on the floor again.”

“...what-”

“You used to do it a lot.” His voice softened, leaning towards you to move a hair away from your eye. “You're dreaming, kid. You must miss me a lot.”

You looked confused, but buying it. “I- I do...” you cried, “You shouldn't have to do that-- I should've taken your place instead! You shouldn't have to die-- fuck all that legends stuff- fuck Rip, fuck those fucking Time Masters-- if only... if only... you shouldn't have to die, Len, you shouldn't have to die...”

“What are they doing here?!”

He was furious. He couldn't stop hissing with anger at Thawne.

“You didn't tell me they were here. You didn't tell me they were with them.”

“It was irrilevant.”

“Irrilevant?”

“Why are you so worried about that child, Snart?”

“I'm not-”

“Alright, look. We could let them live. To keep you calm. Them and your partner. But only them.”

“...yes. Only them.”

Only they mattered, after all.

[eyes-of-mischief]

weekly fic recs | 46

fandoms: aftg, atla, dc, mdzs

aftg

raze it to the ground by ilgaksu

It stops being about Neil entirely, and it starts being about this: Andrew is really, really fucking tired.

Dead of Night by NikNak22

(explicit) (graphic depictions of violence, rape/non-con)

It’s Kevin’s senior year at PSU, and things are…okay. But that changes when a single question from a nosy reporter sends his life spiraling. The descent is slow and maddening – memories and trauma from his past weave together to form the image of the man that stands there today. As Kevin begins to look around him with a new and critical eye, though, he’s no longer sure that man is who he wants to be.

So the question is - when faced with the truth, is it a case of Kevin finally getting what he deserves? Or is it about time to prove a lot of people (including himself) wrong?

Aka the fic that’s all about Kevin Day.

Clickbait by Frostandcoal

It is fitting that Josten is set to don a Dragons’ uniform. Like his new mascot, Josten is a fire-breathing, relentless, somewhat mythical creature whose very existence seems larger than life. And Minyard is the perfect manifestation of a Cyclone; an inescapable, violent maelstrom of unpredictability, where your only chance of survival is to hunker down and wait out the storm.

What happens when a dragon battles a force of nature? That’s what we’re all waiting to find out.   The media reacts to teammates-turned-rivals in the summer before Neil Josten’s first year in the pro’s.

Latchkey Child by vicariously kingly (pelted)

(underage)

The segment’s title declared EXY’S DARLINGS - WHERE WILL THEY GO FROM HERE? in a yellow banner along the television screen's bottom. It was a spotlight feature on where Kevin Day and Riko Moriyama were planning to go after their high school graduation. Of course they were expected to join the best, but a few reporters speculated on favoritism from the Raven’s coach if they signed on at Edgar Allan, and if that’d impact the Exy prodigies’ relationships with their potential teammates.

Usually his mother would box his ears for looking at anything Exy-related, but he changed the channel long before her shower finished, the black ink on a younger Day’s cheekbone haunting him worse than the date in the corner.

( Neil wakes up seven years younger, and, slowly, takes matters into his own hands. )

atla

While Mighty Oaks Do Fall by WitchofEndor

High Sage Kenji blesses Fire Prince Zuko with the resilience of the reed, who bends in the wind and never breaks. When he is done, Fire Prince Ozai narrows his eyes, seemingly displeased by this blessing. But Kenji does not speak for himself; he is only a vessel. 

-

The newly-crowned Fire Lord Ozai offers his firstborn son to service in the temple.

This turns out to be a catastrophic mistake.

rabbitbrush by curiositykilled

There’s the sound of Katara groaning and Toph thumping Sokka with a rock, but Zuko’s chest is tight and cold. He can’t laugh at Sokka’s pun. He has to swallow to speak.

“Azula’s not going to prison.”

dc

An Internal Affair by nirejseki, robininthelabyrinth (nirejseki)

Leonard Snart, the CCPD Captain of Internal Affairs, is known as Captain Cold for a very good reason: He hates corrupt cops with a merciless vengeance, and once you're on his list, you're in serious trouble.

His next target?

A CCPD lab tech named Barry Allen who's developed a suspicious habit of disappearing at random intervals.

Family You Made (Go Back, Do it Again) by JUBE514

He’s nine again– nine and new and knows so many things now so rather than try to go back–

He thinks he has the chance to make things right.

The bright blue trainers he puts on are a pair he hasn’t worn in forever, something he never thought about after he grew out of them (will grow out of?) a year from now, and sets off into the night and into the rain.

The plan he has in his brain is not really a plan, moreso just a couple of half thrown ideas and maybe five steps into building back the life he had in the most painless way he could.

Maybe, he thinks, maybe this plan can start off with the family he misses– because he’s sixty and most of them too injured or too old or too dead–

Call him selfish but he misses them. He would rather find them than get himself back into that lonely existence he called a life before he woke up at nine.

Dick makes do because that’s all he can do really.

-

Dick gets sent back in time, but don't worry, he's got this. (Probably)

mdzs

Lynchpin by ShanaStoryteller

He can’t get Jin Guangyao’s words out of his head.

If he’d only believed in Wei Wuxian, if he’d only been willing to stand up for him, could it all have been avoided?

Bend by ana_cp

(explicit)

Wei Ying does not have a crush on Lan Zhan anymore. Those feelings have been gone for a long time. He's over Lan Zhan. He is.

Deep down, he knows they'll never be compatible in a relationship. Even though Lan Zhan is gay. Even though Lan Zhan is also into BDSM. Because Lan Zhan is a Dom.

And so is he.

-

or, Wei Ying makes some very wrong assumptions about Lan Zhan's preferences, finds out just how far from the truth he is, and immediately makes a plan to fix it.

[light-end-dragon]

Chapter 9

(Sound of something flying through the air.)

Arthur: Cain! Bradley!

Faust: Bradley-did you use magic?! The spirit’s changed course!

Arthur: It’s going to reach you shortly! We can’t stop it, so please be ready…!

Bradley: …Ugh.

Bradley fixed his grip on his rifle when he heard the two speak from overhead.

(Sound of a gun cocking again.)

Without hesitation, he changed his target from Cain to the men.

Cain: Bradley!!

(Sound of a loud impact.)

Men: Urgh…!

Cain: …!

But Bradley just ruthlessly bashed all the men over the head with his gun-stock, leaving the boy they’d been talking to alone.

Silently, he summoned his broom to his hand.

(Sound of a broom flying.)

There was a moment as he took off into the sky where he looked over his shoulder at Cain.

Bradley: ……

The contempt and annoyance I’d expected to see on Bradley’s face wasn’t there.

I don’t know if I truly understood what I did see either; he was a wizard who had lived far longer, and seen more things than either Cain or I.

But if I were to try and put it into words…

He seemed to have a smile on his face. A smile, that, one would possibly have looking down at their favorite junior, seeing their first, clumsy steps. Like no matter how poorly-made their work seemed to him, he was seeing that day when they would accomplish amazing things.

Bradley: How long are ya gonna dawdle around?? Get yer ass movin’! 

Cain: …Okay!

Cain: Master Sage, stay here, will you? Don’t let go of Sacrikitty!

Faust: Sage, tear that sachet I gave you! It’s just a simple spell, but it should put up a barrier to protect you!

Akira: I-yes, okay!

(Sound of Akira tugging at the cloth of the talisman.)

While making sure Cain took off safely, I pulled out the pouch I’d been gifted and tore it.

A reddish-green powder made of many herbs flowed out and encircled me in a spiral.

A clean, calming aroma washed over me as Sacrikitty puffed up in my arms.

It seems I was not a moment too soon; in the next moment, a chill wind blew against my face, feeling like icicles against my skin.

(Sound of magic, then a beastly growl.)

Arthur: …It’s here! That’s the ‘Wandering Lament’!

The spirit emerged from the inner parts of the forest, and made directly for Bradley and Cain, ignoring everything else in its way.

(Sound of something flying by.)

Brandishing its twisted, blackened arms, it then attempted to seize them both.

Young Man: Tha….that’s my…brother…?

(Another growl of a monster.)

The sight of such a monster was utterly terrifying, but worse still was how it-he-didn’t react. Not to the sight of the men who killed him, or even the sound of his baby brother’s voice; it was utterly heartbreaking.

That was the true name of this ghost.

Leonard, the brave boy who dreamed of becoming a knight.

Arthur: We heard your message from my familiar-do you know the spirit’s name?! 

Bradley: Yeah! But…..shit, watch where you’re aimin’, ya damn monster!

Cain: The thing’s movin’ around to much for me to fuckin’ make eye contact! Arthur, Faust, can you stop it movin’ somehow?

Faust: I don’t have a full set of ingredients for the circle I planned on using but….if you just need a few seconds, I think I have something that might work.

Faust: Arthur! Do you know the “Tialgo Technique”? 

Arthur: Yes! But I’ve only read about it, I’ve not had any practical studies….

Faust: It’s enough for me! I’ll fill in the gaps.

Faust: Cain, Bradley! Arthur and I will trace out a magic circle in the air over on the other side of those ruined walls.

Faust: Bring the wandering spirit under it in exactly 168 seconds, okay? Remember, that; it has to be exactly 168 seconds!

Cain: Got it! Thank you, guys, I’ll leave that to you!

(Sound of Faust and Arthur flying off.)

With that, the two set off on their brooms. 

The other two met up with each other in the air in the midst of dodging the spirit.

Cain: Just to confirm; is your magic strong enough to kill that spirit?

Bradley: If I get it in a weak spot, yeah. Probably be a bad idea to hit it anywhere else, though.

Cain: Got it. Then you go above.

Bradley: Don’ go ‘round givin’ me orders, rookie; you get down there from below. 

Cain: Yeah, of course. Let’s go!

Bradley: I jus’ told ya not to order me ‘round!!

Akira: (Above…below? What are they talking about…?)

In the time I was trying to figure it out in my head, Cain and Bradley ceased dodging, and instead faced their opponent. 

Cain swooped down to a lower altitude before promptly jumping off.

Bradley, on the other hand, rapidly soared higher. 

(Sound of a monster growl.)

The fact that its prey shot off in different directions did not stop the wandering spirit for long, though. Rather, it almost immediately when after Cain, whom it had a stronger connection to.

(Sound of multiple sword strikes.)

Cain stood against it with his sword, enduring the assault; and as he grew more pressured into finally giving ground, Bradley rose on his broom to his full daunting height.

Bradley: 120, 119…..yo! Over here, ya monster! 

(Sound of a gunshot.)

Wandering Lament: ….!

Cain: 104, 103…..Hey hey, I’m still here. Don’t go payin’ attention to others now, will ya?

(Sound of more sword strokes and then a monster’s shriek.) 

Young Man: Ahh…!

Akira: (Th-the spirit’s getting more and more violent! But…)

(Sound of repeated sword strikes.)

Cain: 68, 67…

(Sound of magic and more gunshots.)

Bradley: 66, 65….

The two worked in tandem to distract the wandering spirit, Cain fighting it from the ground while Bradley confused it with his magic bullets.

All the while they were accurately counting down the seconds until the magic circle was complete, and controlling the spirit’s movement and speed with ungodly precision.

I couldn’t tell at all what they were thinking just from looking at them; but it was clear they both instinctively knew how to act.

Perhaps because their ways of thinking were so similar to each other.

The genius boss who brought together a band of North wizards, despite their notorious reputations, and the general of the Order of Knights, who stood at the height of the country despite his youth.

Arthur: The formation is complete!

Faust: Bring it over!! 

Bradley: Nicely done! 10, 9…

Cain: ….3, 2, 1, 0!!!

At that very instant, the wandering spirit was laid out under the magic circle Faust and Arthur painted in the night sky.

Together, they held their magic tools aloft.

Faust: –Salliqunart Mullcrede–

Arthur: –Pernoctant Nix Zo–！

(Sound of magic circle activating.)

A pale, shining light emerged, taking the form of a gigantic hand as it reached for the ground.

(Sound of magic, then something being grabbed.)

It grabbed and pressed down on the wandering spirit, much like a child catching a firefly.

Faust: It’ll only last 5 seconds-hurry!

Cain: Got it!

(Sound of quick footsteps.)

Cain cut in front of the spirit, attempting to meet its gaze.

(Sound of a monster growling, and a fierce struggle.)

However, despite the hand holding it down, it desperately flailed around like a fish out of water, its neck and body twisting at impossible angles.

Cain: Agh, fuck! I wasn’t able to meet its eyes!

Arthur: Gh…I can’t…I can’t keep it up any longer!

Faust: Cain-get out of there-

Bradley: –  –Adnopotensum–

The sound of a gunshot resounded in the night.

Bradley’s bullet soared from the highest point of the sky, burning brighter than the sun.

Faust: This is….

Arthur: Bradley’s reinforcement magic! If we have this…!

Arthur: –Pernoctant Nix Zo–!!

Faust:  –Salliqunart Mullcrede–

The light from the magic circle grew stronger, and in turn, restricted the spirit’s wild thrashings further.

And as he overlooked Cain from the night sky, Bradley smiled.

A soft, gentle thing, that held an incredible warmth.

Bradley: Go on.

Bradley: Cain.

Cain: …..Okay.

Cain’s nod in return was powerful, unhesitant.

He fell to his knees as if he were talking to a child, and met its gaze. Through the muddy waters of the spirit’s curse, a beautiful light broke through in his eyes.

A light like that of the sun, fearless of what lay ahead.

[crimsonblackrose]

.

Miguel dream time. Look at our boy defending his title also trying to survive and come back to us, fighting for his life in his subconscious.

It's been 2 weeks. I also can't believe a reporter is allowed to talk about it from within the school. KVTL 3's Maria Michael's interviews concerned mom Liz Matthews, Leonard Johnson (local resident who brings up the fight at the mall), and Moon singing with some friends in a peace circle.

We don't have to punch, hey, let's go grab some lunch and be friends.

Johnny's spent 4 hours at Frankie O's bar and grill, whose staff uniform looks like Rugby polos. Which seems to be based off teh pins the staff are wearing an Italian themed bar and grill which is kinda funny. I cannoli You with a heart, don't get saucy with me, ask me about my huge meatballs.

Johnny doesn't want to pay for a light beer because he ordered banquets and thinks light beer is not cool. So if they give him the right tab he will pay and leave.

Like I get the, you're at a bar, we're going to watch a game. But to turn it to the game to watch one minute and then make fun of the news where a kid's in a coma and then leave after the one minute is just...rude.

Johnny just is looking for a fight, punching the guys window in. Bud, this is the guys car, he loves his car, like you normally do. This is dumb, but I also know Johnny literally wants to fight someone. Though this is also terrifying. Some drunk guy punches in your window, puts you in a choke hold and drags you out of your car. I know he wants a fight because he lets the guy go.

I also love Johnny's: Kicking your ass, (is too drunk and misses) oh shit.

Johnny's barbie meme:

Sam suspended for 2 weeks is probably for the best for her own safety as much as it sucks.

Stingray is on probation and not allowed within 500 feet of kids, which since last we saw him he was in a backroom with Kreese and a bunch of kids seems...shocking. Maybe they charged him with it later????

Omg hug not hits, Counselor Blatt are you Moons mom????

So you're solution is to hug kids? They would hug each other.

Karate footloose, yeah Daniel.

Who on earth would've said "bullshit I heard you were teh real bully?" Daniel literally was bullied. Who are you random person in the audience, I need names and background and to rant to you why you're wrong.

Sam was suspended because "She was tramping around with that other girls boyfriend."

Seriously who is the the gossip tree at this school? The answers are all wrong.

Again, it was an accident.

We have police officer Lou. I love the "drug addict, drug addict, holy shit, applebee's guy." Hey, fernandez how do you even know that Robby is Johnny's son. And how dare you say 'guess the garbage doesn't fall far from the truck."

Like Daniel's getting it bad because he taught Robby, but Johnny's getting it worse because it's his son who hurt his student, so he's getting it from both angles.

Johnny sticks up for Robby, "Robby's nothing like me." aka accepting he's garbage but not that Robby is. He's a good kid. And Johnny understands it was a mistake and that it shouldn't end Robby's future.

Fernandez being mean by lying that Miguel is dead, thus sending Johnny into a panic.

I just realized, Sam was expelled for 2 weeks, but according to the news reporter, it's been two weeks, so her parents went to the PTA the night before she was to go back to school to complain then? Come on LaRusso's go in as soon as they tell you and you know Sam is safe, why'd you both wait so long?

Eli, some day should take Sam to get a tattoo over her scars.

Day one round 2, does this mean all the kids who fought got 2 week suspensions?

How very Daniel of Demetri.

Aisha leaving and going to private school is such a bummer.

Moon: I feel bad for Sam her and Aisha were friends since they were little.

Moon, I'm not sure how Aisha feels about the fight, let alone about her Miguel getting kicked off a landing because both boys were fighting to stop her and Tory, Aisha's other friend, from hurting each other. Like Aisha tried to stop the fight and was ignored.

I don't fully understand the backpack security when the weapon in the fights were karate...like literally just the students bodies. It's definitely security theater.

Our LaRussos are at one of their other locations. Not North Hollywood.

Louie...really? It's really telling that he has to preface that it's not porn, like he just excitedly tells them hey look at this and it's inappropriate.

They rehired Louie and he was the first one to their door to help when Sam got hurt, which kudos to good uncle Louie. Louie hates the cranberry bagels,bought bagels for everyone, he also worked at Fat Sal's (a restaurant) over the summer where he learned everything about inventory. Dude leveled up after they fired him.

They are missing a 1993 Dodge Grand Caravan. Which is incorrect. Wrong car.

Robby stole a car and he had the gate codes. Louie: Why steal that shitbox.

Louie would've stolen a ferrari.

I guess Daniel and Amanda talked to lawyers about Robby's situation. If he turns himself in it's better than if the cops find him first, which would've been good I think for Johnny to know.

A+++ Bail Bonds is the company that got Johnny out. And dropped him off West Valley General.

Miguel is fighting, he needs his sensei.

Rosa talks to Miggy about the Dodgers and has her rosery.

Miguel is in ICU so Johnny can't visit. Caroline Wilson, the nurse, is not letting him through. The flirting is not going to work.

Robby ditched the LaRusso auto GPS. Smart kid

I am glad that Johnny ditches the fake a doctor thing when he clearly is too roughed up and in a mess to be a doctor let alone one with a name he can't pronounce.

Though the choice to injure himself to ensure he can see there and support Miggy...

It's interesting that Daniel thinks Robby would be at Mr. Miyagi's, because that's where Daniel would go and feel safe. However that last time Daniel interacted with Robby he chewed Robby out and pretty much gave the you're evil like your dad speech. So there's no way Robby would come near anything Daniel related other than the auto shop to steal a car that wouldn't be missed. It's no longer a safe comfort spot for Robby.

It is a comfort spot though for Sam.

Nurse we made need to keep him over night for this one thing. Johnny eh that's fine, but this big giant bruise on my back? That's bothering me.

It does suck that the person Miguel needed couldn't be there to help him that much. But kudos to Johnny for finding a way in to be there and to tell Miguel to keep fighting and to not give up.

There are two nurses super concerned for Johnny's health somewhere only to realize they've lost him.

Oof Daniel going to Cobra kai, he didn't get the memo that Kreese stole the dojo.

Kreese added: Fear does not exist in this dojo.

The return of the Kreese cut outs.

I like Daniel's 'the hell?"

Also I just realized that by losing the dojo, Johnny probably lost most of his trophies too.

That's new:

so are the sais and all the other weapons on the walls

The dojo is closed going through some renovations, aka weeding out anyone who won't study under Kreese and accept him as the new sensei. And of course, putting his face everywhere he can.

No wonder Daniel doesn't believe Johnny half the time. Kreese says Johnny's not there at the moment, but he'll be back. When in reality it's not Johnny's choice.

Kreese there is no Johnny and you.

The don't you ever answer your phone? Oh god what happened to you. I bumped my head.

ABOUT TIME DANIEL. You needed to loop Johnny in on stuff related to Robby like 2 seasons ago.

Also always here for them to team up.

MIGGGGYYYYY

[hummingbird-of-light]

In Our Favor

Part 83

McCoy

They stayed with Aporal for a few more minutes before convincing him to lie back down and rest more.

“I think ye’ve got yer first patient,” Scotty whispered when they were outside Aporal’s room and the door had closed.

McCoy let out a snort, but grinned. “Maybe,” he agreed slowly. “I think I said a long time ago that I’d get to put my hands on lots of handsome engineers.”

“Oh, ye think Aporal is handsome eh?” Scotty lifted an amused brow as he stopped to look at his husband.

“What? No! I- I- I mean—” he looked in surprise at Scotty who began to laugh.

“S’alright if ye think he is, love,” Scotty grinned. “As long as ye come home to me.”

McCoy sighed and shook his head, beginning to walk up the corridor again.

“He’s quite smart, very protective and a bit grumpy,” Scotty mused. “No, ye’re right. Ye two are too similar to make a good couple.”

McCoy stopped walking again and looked back at Scotty.

“What?”

“Ye’re welcome to look mo ghràdh, but ye two would nay make a good match of it. Ye best stick to me.”

“What are you on about?” McCoy asked with a confused look.

“Ye and Aporal. Ye’d never make a couple that would last.”

McCoy’s mouth opened but it took him a moment to find any words.

“Ye’re too much the same. So just look love, it’s fine,” Scotty said, still grinning.

“I don’t—! I wasn’t—! Can we just go home now?” McCoy shook his head in defeat. Sometimes his husband was just odd. But McCoy loved him anyway.

“Aye. Let’s go,” Scotty said, grabbing McCoy’s hand.

“Cadets!” a voice called them as they crossed the lobby. They turned to see the nurse looking at them. Her annoyance was still evident.

“Yes ma’am?” McCoy called back politely. They turned together and walked to the desk.

“Mr. Tallister wants you listed as his contacts,” she grumbled out. “I need your names and numbers.”

“Of course,” McCoy said in his most polite voice. “Leonard and Montgomery Scott-McCoy.”

“The prince?” the nurse asked as she looked up from her PADD.

“Yes ma’am,” he answered shortly.

“Well, doesn’t Mr. Tallister just have friends in high places,” she muttered under her breath.

McCoy exchanged a quick look with Scotty, before they both recited their comm numbers for the nurse.

“He may need someone to help him home later,” she warned them.

“We can be here,” Scotty said quickly, with a warm smile. She returned a smile back to him.

“Well, wasn’t my charm that won her over,” McCoy said with a laugh when they were outside the clinic. “She must have liked that sweet brogue.”

Scotty flushed next to him and McCoy gave his hand a squeeze.

“What should we do, Len?” Scotty asked, ignoring McCoy’s comment.

McCoy sighed. “I wish we could find a way to prove it was Francis, but if we do anything it might make it worse.”

A chirp came from McCoy’s pocket and he pulled out his comm.

“They can’t need us back already…,” Scotty said.

“No, it’s Leah. They got that interview set up for Tuesday afternoon, 1600.”

Another chirp. McCoy huffed.

“What?” Scotty asked.

“And Leah passed my number onto the reporter directly.” McCoy rolled his eyes. “She wants to know if we can meet her in the gardens.”

“I suppose she can’t ask anything too personal in a public setting like that,” Scotty said slowly.

McCoy shook his head. “I won’t let her ask anything too personal. We will set our boundaries very firmly.” He shoved the comm away and pulled Scotty close. “Come on. Let’s get a book and go find somewhere sunny to stretch out and read.”

Part 84

Scotty

They quickly grabbed a book and blanket from their room and then headed over to the small park that was in the middle of campus.

They really needed time to relax after the last day. First the incident with Sam and then the thing with Aporal... it had been quite stressful.

Leonard offered to read so that Scotty could just lie down and snuggle his head into his husband's chest. Even though the warm sun made him feel sleepy, the Scotsman tried his best to keep his eyes open. He didn't want to fall asleep. He wanted to be awake in case they received a call.

After what had to be thirty or fourty minutes, a voice called out their names, stopping Leonard in his reading.

Scotty raised his head and the couple sat up to see Christine walking over to them. She waved and the two of them waved back.

"Hey Chris," Leonard greeted their friend and patted the free space next to him, indicating for her to sit down which she quickly did.

"Hello lass."

"There you are! We missed you at breakfast," Christine said, obviously trying to keep her face from frowning. "Where were you?"

Scotty sighed and exchanged a glance with Leonard. Christine noticed that something was bothering her friends.

"Is it because of Jim and..." She carefully glanced at Leonard before looking back at Scotty who gave her a weak smile.

"Leonard knows. Ye can talk openly," he explained, "but nae. It wasn't because of Jim and Sam."

"Well, I suppose him and Spock just slept in late then. They weren't at breakfast either," Christine mused before asking her next question. "But what kept you two from breakfast if it wasn't Jim?"

Scotty bit his lower lip. They shouldn't just tell someone about what had happened to Aporal without his approval.

He wanted to say something, but was still very glad when Leonard beat him to it.

"We got up early today."

Christine narrowed her eyes suspiciously, but didn't say anything. She knew when she wasn't supposed to ask further questions.

"I see. I was just about to go to town and meet up with Roger. Do you wanna join us?"

Scotty shook his head.

"I'm sorry, Chris, but we have to stay close to campus."

At that, Christine raised one eyebrow.

"Okay? Not suspicious at all. But judging by the look on your faces I know that you can't talk about whatever secret you share."

Leonard shrugged his shoulders apologetically.

"Sorry."

"It's fine. We gotta get used to our friends knowing about stuff we don't. With various degrees of classified information in the fleet, it's gonna be a regular thing."

Aye. Christine was right about that. Who knew which rang they all would reach eventually?

"Well then... I gotta go now. See ya around!"

Christine gave them both a quick hug before she got up and continued her way to town.

Scotty and Leonard looked after her for a while before the latter chuckled softly. Scotty looked at him.

"What?"

"She really is a gorgeous girl," Leonard said and Scotty grinned.

"Wow, really? First Aporal and now Chris? Are ye trying to make me jealous?"

Leonard's face mirrored the grin as he grabbed Scotty by his collar, pulled him closer and pressed a kiss to his lips.

"Wouldn't dream of it, leannan. There's just... someone I know who seems to like our dear friend Christine," Leonard said mysteriously and Scotty tilted his head to one side.

"Oh? Tell me more."

But Leonard only shook his head and indicated that his lips were sealed.

"Information classified," he joked and Scotty sighed theatrically.

"Well... I guess I've gotta live with that."

It was about two hours later when Scotty got a call from the clinic and the two of them made their way over.

Aporal was already waiting in front of the building. He looked as grumpy as in the morning, but forced a weak smile onto his lips when he saw the two of them.

"I told them I could go alone, but they wouldn't let me," he explained and Scotty gently grabbed his arm.

"And they are damn right, laddie. We'll get ye to yer room."

Aporal sighed heavily but finally let Scotty and Leonard walk at both his sides.

The Andorian's dorm was next to the couple's. They took the elevator up and quickly stood in front of room 312.

"This one's mine," Aporal said and typed in the code to open the door. When the door opened, Scotty's eyes instantly started to move around the room.

It was a single room. There were a bed, a desk with a chair and a tall plant standing close to the window. It looked... kinda empty.

"A room just for yourself, huh?" Leonard asked as they headed inside and helped Aporal over to the bed.

He nodded.

"Yeah. The academy respected my wish for privacy."

Scotty could only imagine how horrible Aporal's nights had to be. He probably was still haunted by the events of his past. And he didn't want anyone to know about the nights he woke up panting and screaming.

"Do ye need anything?"

"Nah, I'm good," Aporal said as he lay down and rested his head on the pillow. He looked very tired.

"Thanks for helping me, Scottish boy. Prince. You can go now and do whatever it is couples do."

"Can we trust you to stay here and not go out to get revenge?" Leonard asked and Aporal chuckled humorlessly.

"Can't promise anything, but I'll try my best."

Scotty only shook his head. He really hoped that Aporal wouldn't try anything stupid.

[krsive-writes]

I Want It Real

Title: I Want It Real

Author: krsive

Rating: T+

Warnings: angst, family found out

Rick stood frozen in the middle of the garage looking like an empty cicada husk. His eyes were red-rimmed and watery. Morty had never seen him like this, didn't recognize the hollow man wearing his grandfather's lab coat.

"You're not supposed to be here," Rick said, voice stilted like he had never practiced uttering words before.

"I s-stole dad's car. I drove all night. I—“ Morty couldn't breathe. He clasped his hand to his chest. Could 15 year olds get heart attacks?

"No wonder they've been blowing up my phone. You always have to go and make it worse, don't you?" The words seemed like Rick's familiar banter, but they had no heart in them. This was just rote imitation of himself

"I don't want it to be worse. It can't even get worse!"

"Yeah, I thought so, too. Yet here you are." Rick took out his flask, and Morty could hear the liquid inside sloshing as his hands trembled.

Anger flickered to life in Morty's heart.    Such a familiar emotion. He let it take over, finding comfort in the heat.

"Stop trying to act like you're above it all, Rick! There's no one here but us, so who are you pretending for?!”

"Who's pretending? You shouldn't have come, case fucking closed. You think this—“ Rick trailed off spluttering, gesturing to indicate Morty from head to toe, "you think this is gonna change any thing? You think I'm happy you showed up to remind me one last time what a piece of shit I am for..." He grit his teeth hard, silencing himself.

"It can change everything if you let it. That's why I came." Morty took a step forward, Rick a step back. "Run away with me."

Rick gave an unconvincing scoff, "What, so I can be a kidnapper, now, too? Really round out the pedophile trifecta?”

"That's not fair! Nobody cares what I want in all of this a-and I'm sick of it!”

"Yeah, Morty. You're spot on. I don't care what you want, so just drive yourself back to grandpa Leonard's house where you're wanted."

"Bullshit. Bullshit! I know you want the same thing as me!"

"That's the problem, idiot! You want the same thing I do because I'm a disgusting, depraved groomer who warped your stupid little Morty brain so bad that you think this is your idea, now!" Rick turned his back on Morty, pretending to shift his attention to a half-packed box of science junk on the workbench. "Just go away. I'm busy. All this shit has to be out before Space Beth comes to cut off my head for her trophy wall."

"I don't care why I want you, Rick! Wh-Why does that even matter? So what if you did the g-word to me? It doesn't make my love a lie.”

''That's exactly what it makes it." Rick's shoulders were a stiff line. He was tense as steel.

Morty took another step in. And another. He felt Rick sensing his closeness. "I do love you, though. L-Like, I really love you."

"Stop it."

"I know you better than anyone else, Rick. I know how shitty and mean you are—“

"Really winning me over, here."

"I know you're in great pain." Morty, though fear had quashed the breath from his lungs, put his arms around Rick and laid his cheek against his back. ''I know you didn't want to love anyone ever again.”

"Morty..." Rick clutched the edge of the workbench, knuckles white.

"But you love me. You love me, and I saw it, a-a-and now you can't lie to me."

"So what?" Rick became a flurry of motion like a flock of birds all taking flight together. He turned, forcing Morty to step back. He jabbed him in the chest to punctuate his words. ''You think that matters? You think because I love you that means I didn't fuck you up so bad you'll need the entire American Psychiatric Association to put Humpty Dumpty together again?"

Morty took Rick's hand between his own. Rick was frantic, eyes crazed, shoulders heaving. Morty placed a kiss on his knuckles before he could rip his hand away.

"I don't want to be put back together. I want to be with you." Morty reached up and touched Rick's cheek. making him flinch away. Still determined, Morty touched him again. "I don't want to live without your shitty jokes o-or your crazy rants or the way you kiss me."

"My jokes aren't shitty," said Rick, because it was the only part he could engage with lest he burn himself. He cast his gaze down to the ground, petulant like a stubborn toddler.

"I buried my dead self before just to stay with you.    More than once. You don't think you're worth it, but I'd do it again. The way you look at me when we're together...I don't think everyone gets a love like that in their life.”

"That's why I have to go. Don't you see? You frustrating little..." Rick growled, bathed his fists at his sides. "Don’t make me hurt you more. I'm tired of hurting you."

"What if it's worth it? We'll never have this with anyone else again. What if love is worth the pain?"

Rick cracked. He let out one thick sob. Biting down harder, clenching his jaw, he struggled to keep the rest in.

"You feel it, too, right?" Morty laid his palm on Rick's chest. "I can see you like no one else does, and I don't want to get away from you. I just want us to be together."

"Please, Morty." Rick looked like he might faint, pale and trembling. "Please, I’m so sorry for what I did."

"For this?" Morty asked, smoothing his hand up to the back of Rick's neck. His heart was hammering wildly.

"Yes," whispered Rick.

"For this?"

Morty bounced up on his toes and drew Rick down into a chaste kiss. He threw his arms around his neck and held on tight. Rick's arms hung limp at his sides.

"Yes," said Rick, breathing Morty's air back to him.

"I'm not sorry.” Morty nuzzled against Rick's stubbled cheek. ''I want more."

"Please. Morty, I'm not a good man. I can't...you have to leave now."

"No."

"You fucking idiot! You have a death wish or something? There's no happy ending for us." Finally, Rick put his hands on Morty's waist, if only to steady himself.

"You're my only happy ending."

Again Morty pulled Rick close, again their lips brushed. Now Rick's arms were around him and Morty was like the rock in the storm of his life; he could sense the need in the clumsy kiss he pressed on him. Morty tasted gin on his tongue, and it made him feel so safe. Rick was back.

"Run away with me," Morty gasped when Rick pulled away to breathe.

''I love you," said Rick, kissing Morty's neck just the way he liked it.

"I love you. Take me with you."

"Ok." Rick pulled back just enough to look Morty in the eye. He was still so afraid, but Morty saw light there for the first time since the night they were caught. "Fuck. Ok. Come with me."

"Promise you'll never leave me again."

"Baby, I didn't even have it in me to leave you this time."

"But you almost—“

Rick cut him off with a kiss. "Shut up.”

Morty's terror was falling away so rapidly. Rick's love felt like the sun on his face after a long winter. ''Make me,” he challenged.

"I've kind of got the opposite idea," said Rick. He stepped back and took out the portal gun. "I've got a dire need to make you scream my name, so get ready to get fucked within an inch of your life, baby. We're going to the most ridiculous luxury hotel in the galaxy and I'm keeping you in bed for a week."

Morty smiled a soul-felt smile, and when Rick offered he took his hand. This was all he had ever wanted wanted. Rick's love was the only truth he cared about.

[firesoulstuff]

Fic Author Self-Rec!

I was tagged by @agentmarymargaretskitz to talk about “five favorite fics that you’ve written” and I think this is such a fun idea! We all deserve to be proud of ourselves!

1. A Walk Through Hell: (Arrow/Legends of Tomorrow). An Arrow S2 canon divergence where Leonard Snart was one of the prisoners on board The Amazo. He meets and finds himself more or less responsible for Sara.

This one’s my favorite because it was my first venture into a hardcore canon divergence, and while rewatching Arrow S2 in order to write it I was surprised by how easily Leonard fit into everything.

2. A Second Chance: (Legends of Tomorrow). The sequel to A Walk Through Hell. A Legends S1 canon divergence where Leonard and Sara had already met/fallen in love on The Amazo.

Again, it was so much fun to write and gradually change how canon went down.

3. What’s Mine is Yours: (The Flash). Started writing/posting before the start of Season 6. After Frost has a one night stand with Mick Rory, Caitlin realizes she’s pregnant. She and Frost are just starting to navigate that when they discover that the baby has Frost’s genetics and in order for it to survive to term Frost must be the one on the surface. Frost - not being used to being the one with a life of her own - then has to decide what she wants and what she is willing to ask of other people. Fortunately she has Ralph to help her along the way.

I really think this one is some of my best work pacing-wise, and I find myself going back to it when I get stuck on my WIPS.

4. Watch Me (Do Just One Thing Right): (Criminal Minds) A canon divergence where Cat Adams never miscarried. At eight months pregnant she asks Spencer to come see her, so she can ask him if he’ll adopt the baby.

My first venture into the Criminal Minds fandom and absolutely reignited my love for writing!

5. Playing House: (Legends of Tomorrow). Written during S5. During a battle with a witch, all the Legends except for Sara and a newly returned Leonard are de-aged. Unfortunately the witch who cast the spell is the only one who can reverse it, and she isn’t easy to find. What’s worse, the longer the spell is in effect, the more the de-aged victims forget their adult lives.

This story was at first so challenging for me to write. I was so unsure of where it was going that I ended up giving up on it for seven months. I was convinced it was going to remain unfinished forever. But then I got a few comments on it so I decided it was worth trying to go back to, and it ended up being so therapeutic for me! We were in the height of the pandemic at this point, and I was helping my mom who was acting as a full-time caregiver for my grandma with severe Alzheimer’s. As the story went on I received a few comments saying I was writing the memory loss of the younger Legends as very “thoughtful and involved”, and when I stopped to think about it I realized I was writing the process I had witnessed over the past few years of my grandma losing her memory. It still makes me smile because I am happy with how it turned out, and it feels like my grandma got to be in the best parts of it.

[koalaray]

“Your Stupid Face” pt.4

Loathsome Leonard x yokai!reader

pt.1, pt.2, pt.3, pt.4(here!), pt.5

Leonard’s feelings for you were starting to change. He didn’t know how to deal with it either. He’d never felt this way about anyone before. What the hell was he supposed to do?

Needless to say, this began to frustrate Leonard. He had been irritated and grumpy all week. Well, more than usual. Mickey said it was probably just his man period.

In addition to his bad attitude, Leonard had started ignoring you again. This confused you a lot, especially after how much the two of you had bonded over the past few months.

You were starting to worry about your best friend. So, at the end of the week, you decided to confront him.

You looked around the suite and found Leonard slouching on the sofa. He showed no sign of acknowledgement when you sat beside him.

“So…” you started. “What’s up dude?”

No response. Not a sound. What was up with him you wondered. You poked his arm once. Twice. And before you could do it a third time, Leonard slapped your hand away.

You smiled at him, finally having his attention. But that smile quickly disappeared when you saw how Leonard looked at you.

He hadn’t looked at you like that in months. He was looking at you as if he hated you. But no. Leonard didn’t hate you. Right?

Leonard looked away from you again, leaning back into the couch even more and crossing his arms over his chest. You looked down at your hands which were placed in your lap, letting out a sigh.

You occasionally snuck a few glances and Leonard, racking your brain for something to say. He seemed mad at you for some reason and you didn’t want to say anything that would make it worse.

Finally, you drew in a deep breath. You hoped you wouldn’t make him more upset.

“Hey-“

Well shit. Leonard had barely let you get a single word out before he stood up and started to walk away from you. Now this was just getting ridiculous. Why couldn’t he just talk you so you could fix whatever the problem was?

You stood up as well, clenching and unclenching your fists.

“Ok, come on dude, what’s wrong? If I did something to make you upset, just tell me!”

“Please just shut up,” Leonard said, barely loud enough for you to hear.

This ticked you off. He couldn’t talk to you like that. Especially if you didn’t know what was wrong.

“Alright, seriously, what is the problem here?”

“It’s you! You’re the problem!” Leonard shouted, spinning around to face you with the nastiest glare you had ever seen.

“What?“ Your voice shook slightly.

“Oh don’t ‘what’ me. Or better yet, don’t say anything! God, you are just so annoying! Every time I so much as hear your stupid voice I want to punch something!”

“Leonard-“

“Don’t! Don’t fucking say my name either! I hate the way you say it! In fact, I hate the way you do everything! You are such a pest! I can never get your stupid face out of my head!”

Leonard took a step closer, and another and another, until he had you backed up against the wall.

“And you know what else?” He seethed. “I. HATE. YOU. I wish I never met you, I wish you didn’t exist, I wish- I-“

Leonard stopped when he heard you sniffle. And when he looked at you, really looked at you, he swore he felt his heart shatter.

There your were, with fat tears rolling down your rosy cheeks, light sobs falling from your trembling lips.

What hurt Leonard even more was the fear he saw in your eyes. You were scared. Terrified even. Terrified of him.

What was he doing? What had he done? No, he knew exactly what. He had ruined everything. He had hurt you. And why? Because he couldn’t just man up and accept his stupid feelings. Fuck.

Danny and Mickey had obviously heard the commotion because the two came running into the room to see what had happened. And when they saw you were crying because of Leonard? They were furious.

Danny grabbed Leonard by the shoulder, shoving him out of the way, meanwhile Mickey ran straight towards you and pulled you close to him protectively.

Leonard was frozen in place, still trying to process everything that was happening in front of him. He was pulled from his thoughts when he felt a sharp sting on the side of his face. Someone had just slapped him.

It was Danny. And he was pissed off.

“What the hell Leonard?! What the fuck did you do?!”

“I- I don’t- I didn’t mean-“

“You know what, I don’t even care. Just shut up and leave y/n alone!”

Leonard nodded and quickly ran towards the door. He risked sparing one last glance at you.

You were huddled between Danny and Mickey, the two hugging you and doing their best to console you.

With a final glare from Danny, Leonard hurried out. He ran. He didn’t know where he was going, but he need to think.

Why did he say all that? Why did he lie to you?

Why was it so hard for him to just say he loved your stupid face?

You were sitting on your bed, still trying to put together any reasons Leonard would say the things he did. Nothing made sense and that made his words hurt even more.

You looked up when you heard your door open and saw Danny. He gave you a small sympathetic smile.

“Can I come sit with you?” He asked politely.

You gave him a nod, smiling at him as he sat beside you. You leaned against him, to which he responded by wrapping an arm around you pulling you closer. The two of you sat in a comfortable silence.

Aside from Leonard, you were the closest to Danny. He was a great friend, and a very good listener as well. You would talk to him about you little crush on Leonard and he would give you advice.

Danny’s soft voice pulled you from your thoughts.

“How are you feeling?”

You shrugged.

“I dunno. Hurt? Confused mostly.”

“Yeah. I’ll admit, I’m a bit confused as well. I never thought Leonard was this stupid, but he proved me wrong.”

The two of you laughed together, making a few more jokes here and there.

“Leonard really cares about you y’know,” Danny spoke suddenly.

“Really?”

“Yeah. I think he’s just confused. Maybe a little scared? What a coward huh,” Danny chuckled.

He pulled you a bit closer so you couldn’t look at his face. He didn’t want you to see his frown.

“Seriously though. Leonard really likes you. A lot.” Danny spoke softly, rubbing your back every now and then. “Mickey spoke to him earlier. Leonard feels really bad. Maybe the two of you can talk things out tomorrow.”

“What if he yells at me again?”

“Then I’ll just beat him up for you.”

You giggled, making Danny smile just a bit.

“I’ll try and talk to him in the morning then,” you decided.

Then you hugged Danny tighter, burying your face in his chest. He wrapped his arms around you and held you as close as he could.

“Thank you Danny. You’re the best.”

“Anytime y/n. I’ll always be here for you. No matter what.”

When the two of you parted, Danny helped you get tucked in to bed. He went to leave but stopped at the door and turned to face you with a soft smile.

“Goodnight y/n.”

“Goodnight Danny.”

Danny closed the door behind him and went to his own room, collapsing onto his bed.

“Don’t be selfish Danny. You’re doing this for them,” he whispered to himself.

Danny rolled onto his back and stared up at the ceiling. He whimpered a bit, quickly covering his mouth to quiet himself.

Danny was doing this for you and Leonard. He knew you both loved each other. But it hurt. It hurt more than he wanted it to.

Why couldn’t it be him instead?

But that’s the thing about life. You can’t always have what you want.

At least Danny would still have you in his life. He’d still have you and your stupid face.

[oddeyevibes]

Chapter 8: Subjugation

Summary: One of the last truths come to light.

A/N: Think I made Y/N a little harsh on Luther but Luther made me mad during that episode and rewatching it made me mad at him again lol.

Warnings? Click here!

Then

You’ve had a few nights of heartbreak during your time in this house. But nothing hit harder than when Ben broke the news to you.

Luther and Allison’s well known secret was that they were infatuated with each other. You all saw it. They did a terrible job at hiding it.

Luther tried to mask it by pretending to be caring “older” brother but you and Vanya never got the same treatment.

Allison tried to claim it was because she viewed him as a leader or some bs like that but she never treated Diego like that. In fact, whenever Luther was upset with Diego or vice versa, Allison was always Team Luther.

In fact, you all poked fun at them behind their backs. Even though you and Ben had no room to talk. To be honest, you think that’s what ate away at him.

Granted, none of your siblings ever mocked you two. At least not your face. Maybe that’s the thought that plagued Ben. Sure, he had a much better relationship with Diego and Klaus than Luther and Allison did but still.

He didn’t even know if you thought about that. He never thought to ask you. Too afraid of what the answer would be. He never went out of his way to dim your light, for lack of a better phrase.

Reality is: you never thought about it. Well, that’s not true. You did and you approached Allison about it. She was embarrassed but she gave you the words of encouragement and you viewed her as a big sister so you took her words to heart.

It never occurred to you how Ben could’ve been feeling. Only after the night where he asked you to meet him in your special place to tell you that you shouldn’t keep chasing after a romantic relationship.

You couldn’t even be mad at him. Pragmatism was a part of his charm. He didn’t want to be mocked. He didn’t want you to be mocked. He was ashamed of that being his reasoning but you never held it against him…….too much.

You were still hurt. You still cried quietly in your room. You still thought it was unfair that Luther and Allison didn’t have enough apparent shame to stop when you had to.

But you tried seeing the bright side.

After all, you could still talk to him. Hang out with him. Play with him. Joke around with him. Pine for him. Sneak out with him. All of the fun stuff that you normally did with him and the others…..minus the pining.

——✨——

Now

When you all had returned home, you were disappointed to not find Vanya there. While your brothers argued, you ran to the phone to try and get a hold of her.

The long ringing only added to the anxiety that had a hold on you. You sat there with the phone against your ear, praying that you heard Vanya.

And you did. Just not in the way you wanted.

“You’ve reached Vanya Hargreeves, please leave a message and I’ll get back to you.”

BEEEP

“Hey, Vanya…I don’t know if you…if you’re ok but we found Leonard and…I don’t wanna assume the worst, I wanna hope that you’re ok. So please, if you get this, please call.”

Your peripheral caught Five entering the room and heading towards the bar.

“Or please come back home. It’s been too much going on and I would really like if you came home and were ok and we can just salvage what’s left of this family since the apocalypse isn’t an issue anymore……….I love you and Allison is alright, she’s gonna make it. I’m sure she’ll be happy to see you.”

You calmly hung up the phone just in time to pay attention to Five pouring himself a drink.

“Take a breather, Y/N. I’m sure she’ll turn up. Need a drink?”

“I literally cannot drink right now. I mean, how can you? We don’t know who killed Leonard and they could have Vanya or worse.”

“And do you have any leads on who would have gained something from killing Leonard?”

“…outside of us? No.”

“Do you know anywhere else Leonard could’ve taken Vanya?”

“No.”

“Are you mentally prepared with digging holes and potentially finding Vanya’s body in a shallow grave?”

“Jesus Christ, Five, what the fuck?”

Five casually walked over to you with a second glass in his hand. He passed it to you. “My point is: no leads, no actions. Drink.”

You cautiously took the drink, a bit caught off guard by Five’s current casual demeanor. “O…k.”

Five went back over to his stool, soaking in his disappointment next to his….girlfriend, Dolores. The two of you sat in silence for a moment before he spoke up.

“You think we averted the apocalypse, Y/N?”

You were surprised. You haven’t really been with him for most of his escapades concerning the apocalypse until the very end.

“I’m surprised you’re asking for my opinion.”

“Why not? You catch on pretty quickly to most stuff. So?”

“Well….not sure. If you say Harold Jenkins is the cause of the apocalypse and then he goes and dies…maybe that’s the end of that. On the other hand, what if his death was…meant to happen?”

“Meant to happen?”

“Yeah like…maybe the reason they needed Harold protected was because they needed him to die on a certain day. I mean…no other commission guys came to kill us…or you to be specific.”

“So what? Now it’s the calm before the storm?”

“No. It could be the calm before the storm. But it could also not be.”

There was a moment of silence before Five let out a defeated sigh. “Now we wait…” he muttered.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Five got up and went to answer the door. You couldn’t hear much of the conversation outside of hearing the word sister which prompted you to get up and see who was there only to be met with the sight of Five letting in a big man with a suit on.

The suit was familiar but the face was not.

“Who the hell is this, Five?”

Five motioned a finger between you and the man. “Y/N, Hazel. Hazel, Y/N.” And he walked on.

The man—Hazel—offered a polite but nervous smile, leaving you more confused.

“Hi??” You cautiously waved back.

“Last time we met my…ex-partner and I.”

“Shot up the place? Ohhhhhhh…..K.”

You walked into the living room and walked over to Five. Hazel casually followed suit.

“Five, why is he here?”

“I dunno…” Five swiveled around on the seat. ���Why are you here, Hazel? Here to kill me?” He gestured in your direction. “And, by extension, my sister?”

“Me?”

“No witnesses.” Five responded casually.

“None of that.” Hazel replied. “I can understand why you might feel that way. There’s not much I can do about the past. I do wanna just mention that it is an honor to be talking to you. That job you did in Calhoun, that shit’s legendary—”

“Why are you here, Hazel?” Five repeated with a firmer tone.

“Well—” Hazel started to talk before you felt yourself being pulled back by Diego and witnessed him launch a kick into Hazel’s side, knocking him over.

“Diego, stop!” Five shouted, only to be ignored when Diego flipped over Hazel and kicked him in the face as the assassin tried to stand.

The two begin to fight each other.

“Diego, that’s enough!” You tried, only to be ignored as well.

Five casually fiddled with his straw. “You know, before you kill him, you might wanna hear what he has to say.”

Once the two were upright, Diego pulled out a knife. “I’m gonna kill you for what you did to Patch.”

“Or don’t. See how that goes.”

You let out a heavy sigh and stood next to Five watching the brutal scrap. Filled with stabs to the thigh, punches square to the face and Diego’s desperate attempts to knock over his bigger opponent.

It would be exciting if this all didn’t feel…exhausting to watch. Especially when you still had Vanya to look for.

Hazel wrapped Diego into a bear hug only for Diego to counter with a harsh bite to his ear, Hazel letting out a painful yell in response.

Five, deciding he had enough, blinked out of sight before appearing behind Diego and smashing a glass over his head, knocking him unconscious.

“I draw the line at biting.” Five stated as Hazel collected himself. “Hazel, whatever you came here to say, I suggest you make it quick…before he comes around.”

“I left my partner, quit the Commission, and came to volunteer.”

“For what?”

“To help stop the apocalypse. I have a vested interest in a doughnut shop.”

“Oh that…” You started. “Yeah, I don’t think that’s happening anymore.”

“What?” Hazel asked in disbelief.

“What she said. You’re a day late and a dollar short.”

“Meaning?”

“Meaning the fact that you’re here right now means, without a shadow of a doubt, that the apocalypse is over.”

“Really? How do you know?”

“The mark…is dead. Found him this morning. You were the last known unknown in the equation.”

Hazel let out a chuckle. “Shit. Really?”

You nodded. “Really.”

“And if you’re out, then Hellrider ain’t riding.”

“Oh…” Hazel let out a relieved but exhausted breath. All of the hype and resolve he built up just…gone but he was happy about that. “Alright!”

He walked over to the bar and took a drink of what was left in the blender. A deep sigh escaped from his body as you went back over to the phone, minding Diego as you did, and waited for a hopeful call from Vanya as Five and Hazel talked.

The only aspect of the conversation that caught your attention was when Five looked back at Diego and then at you.

“I guess I would have grown up to be an emotionally stunted man-child like everyone else around here.”

“I heard that.” You called out. “And I am NOT emotionally stunted, I’ve just got a few issues.”

“Stemming from what Y/N?” Five joked.

“……..shut up.”

“Well, there you go. Now you can grow up.” Hazel suggested before standing up. “Good luck.” Hazel was about to walk out of the room before Five called out to him.

“One more thing before you go.”

“Shoot.”

“Which one of you was the trigger man for Detective Patch?”

“Trigger woman.”

Five sighed. “That’s too bad. That gun would’ve cleared my brother’s name.”

“Well, today’s your lucky day, amigo.” Hazel then pulled two guns out of his back pockets and placed them on the bar. “Take’em both. I’m done with this life.”

The former Commission assassin then walked off out of the house.

“I’m gonna go to my room for a nap.” You spoke, before walking off.

——✨——

You probably would’ve been heartbroken to see the state Vanya was currently in. A shaken and traumatized state as she stared blankly at her violin. The previous events played vividly in her mind.

The way she killed Leonard. It only struck her how excessive it was afterwards. Maybe he deserved, yeah, but Vanya had never done something so…violent……

‘Allison…’ she thought.

All the while her messages played and it felt like mockery from the normal life she has undoubtedly left behind. The life where she was the only one of her siblings to not have powers.

The life where she felt more comfortable slumped in the shadows while everyone else shined. The life that was no more and she never thought she’d yearn for it so much.

She had thought she made peace with it before because she had seen the mental toll it had taken on the rest of you. How you all yearned for your father’s approval in your own ways and it grew into these monsters that held on tightly to all of you like leeches.

As if to make matters worse, the next voicemail was from Allison.

“Hey, Vanya, it’s me. I just wanted to…things have gotten so messed up. All I ever wanted was to be a good sister to you. Guess I pretty much failed at that. But you need to call me, okay? I love you sis.”

The sound of Allison’s next being sliced open by Vanya’s own hands playing on a punishing loop as she remembered the stunned look on her sister’s face, realizing what had happened to her.

The image had done a good job of seeing itself into her mind as Vanya chanted ‘I’m sorry’ over and over again, in a naive attempt to wish she could just turn back time.

“Next message.”

“Hey, Vanya…I don’t know if you…if you’re ok but we found Leonard and…I don’t wanna assume the worst, I wanna hope that you’re ok. So please, if you get this, please call. Or please come back home. It’s been too much going on and I would really like if you came home and were ok and we can just salvage what’s left of this family since the apocalypse isn’t an issue anymore……….I love you and Allison is alright, she’s gonna make it. I’m sure she’ll be happy to see you.”

Vanya looked back at the answering machine. While she didn’t want to admit to herself, a part of her shut down the voice that spoke down to her and replaced it with something else…there was hope.

Hope that she had not been completely excommunicated from her family. Hope that Allison can forgive her. Hope that this could all be casted aside as a bad dream.

Hope that she can come home into warm and welcoming arms.

In a terrible twist of fate, she’ll be both right and wrong.

——✨——

You were awoken from your nap with a rumble. Some trinkets and other decor rattled while others fell to their destruction. Dust being pulled from their corners and fluttering down like snow before everything stopped.

‘What the hell was that?’

You weren’t the only one who realized the mild earthquake was happening as Klaus exited his own room at the same time.

“Glowbug, you felt that too, right?”

“Yeah?”

Klaus let out an exhausted huff. “Something tells me we can’t ignore this.”

——✨——

Neither of you were prepared for the sight of Vanya locked away in a soundproof room under the house. She was in distress and this nagging feeling of Deja Vu coming from you was not helping the situation.

“You locked up our sister because you think she has powers?” Diego was in a state of disbelief.

He’s seen Luther make some stupid decisions but this took the cake.

Klaus had never thought ANY of his siblings would do something…like this.

And you?

Well, you were pissed.

“Luther, this isn’t funny. Let her out of there.”

He gave you a woeful look. “I can’t do that, Y/N.”

“Yes you can! She’s terrified!”

“Pogo told me.”

“And you don’t think he was lying?”

“Why would he lie about something like this?”

“He lied about knowing what happened to dad, clearly nothing’s off the table when it comes to him honoring dad’s fucked up wishes, Luther!”

Diego had surveyed the entire room. “Why would they hide something like this from us?”

“He hid so much from us.” Klaus let out.

“He hid it because he was afraid…of her.”

“Oh, that’s ridiculous.”

“Is it? Dad’s lied about everything else. Why is this so far-fetched?”

“If you’re right, then maybe she’s the one who killed Peabody.”

“And cut Allison’s throat.”

You rolled your eyes as Klaus chimed in. “Whoa, no. Let’s…I just—Sorry, just…let’s go back, all right? This is Vanya we’re talking about. Our sister! The one who always cried when we stepped on ants as kids.”

“Yeah, I know. I know it’s difficult to accept—”

“It’s not difficult to accept, it’s impossible to accept.” Klaus shouted.

“No, he’s right.” Diego backed Klaus up, turning back to Luther. “Look, we can’t keep her locked up without proof.”

Luther was shocked. “Wh-what more proof do you need?”

“Why don’t we just open the door and ask her?” Klaus suggested.

“Thank you!” You walked over to the door but were quickly stopped by Luther when he gently grabbed your arm.

“She’s not going anywhere.”

“No, even if you’re right, she needs our help, and we can’t do that if she’s locked in a cage.”

“Thank you!”

“Yeah, and for all we know, she might be struggling with this new power. I mean, it must be scary—terrifying—really to discover that you can do something that you never thought you could do.”

“Look, if what Pogo told me is even half true, then she is not just a danger to us…”

“If we help her, she’s not gonna be a danger to anyone!” You tried to get through to Luther.

Your eyes looked past Luther and everyone else followed your gaze, seeing Allison walking down the dim hall.

“Allison, what are you doing down here? You should be in bed.”

Allison scribbled on the notepad, “let her go”.

Luther shook his head. “I can’t do that. She hurt you.”

You sent a glare Luther’s way. ‘Is that really what all of this is about?’

Allison flipped to a new page, scribbling again, “my fault”

“I’m sorry but she’s staying put.”

Allison tried walking past him only to be stopped.

“Just until we know what we’re dealing with.”

She tried pushing past him again but she was stopped once more.

When everyone else saw that Luther was adamant about this and not keen on moving for anyone, not even Allison. They gave up. Klaus took hold of you and guided you along.

“Klaus—”

“Come on, we can sneak down here later when he’s not looking.” He whispered.

You glanced back watching Allison grow frustrated with Luther before turning away and walking with Klaus back up.

——✨——

There was heavy tension in the house. Allison wasn’t speaking to Luther, which meant that Luther was prowling around , keeping watch in the halls. He knew that you would try to sneak in whenever he wasn’t looking.

As evident when he caught you red-handed with a tray of food. He stood from your mother’s seat, shaking his head.

“No.”

“What? Is Vanya eating a danger to us all too?”

“I’m trying to protect us.”

“No, you’re trying to protect Allison.”

“I’m trying to protect all of us.”

“No, you’re not and I would appreciate it if you didn’t insult me by implying anything different. You didn’t even bother asking either of them what happened and you couldn’t even respect Allison in her decision.”

“Y/N—”

“Let me ask you something: if anyone else got their throat slit would you have cared this much?”

“Why do you always have to turn everything into an argument? Why do you always make everyone else the bad guy?”

You placed the tray down and pointed an accusing finger at him. “You see, that’s your problem. I don’t need to make you the bad guy. You’re doing a damn good job of it on your own. Dad lied to us about this, you think Vanya knew? Did you even ask her what happened? You know she probably didn’t even mean it. You’re making it worse by keeping her in there.”

“Y/N, what if it had been you? Think about Ben.”

You crossed your arms. “Don’t bring Ben into this.”

“You think if you were in Allison’s shoes, he would’ve been ok with Vanya…being just—”

“Vanya is not a monster. What gives you the right to act like she is?”

You had said those words without really thinking of the possible connotations. One that Luther picked up on as he stood tall.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” He asked.

Maybe in a better state of mind. You would’ve clarified but at the moment, you felt he didn’t deserve that. “You tell me.”

BOOM

The house shook with a fury as a muffled boom caught both of you off guard. You turned to Luther who had a look of terrified realization.

“Oh god…”

At first you thought maybe intruders until the thought hit you. “Vanya.”

[crazyk-imagine]

A Wish is a Dream your Heart makes

Pairing: Leonard “Wolfman” Wolfe (Henry “Wolfman” Ruth) x Cinderella!reader

Characters:  Leonard “Wolfman” Wolfe (Henry “Wolfman” Ruth), Cinderella!reader, stepmother, stepsisters, Margaret (fairy godmother), Adam (carriage driver), Lucifer (the cat), Rick “Hollywood” Neven, Sam “Merlin” Wells

Warnings: Cinderella AU, this is crack, a sort of Cinderella retelling, friends to lovers, evil stepsisters and stepmother, Hollywood the royal servant, Wolfman is an adorable dumbass, reader and Leonard have been friends for years, stepmother is a greedy and cruel woman, reader and Leonard are friends

Word Count: 3,852

A/N: Iceman and Slider are hidden in the crowd (not mentioned but I imagined them in the ballroom). Maverick and Goose were not invited because of some pranks they played on the king in the past (also not mentioned)

Top Gun: Disney AU

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“But they have dresses,” you point out to the woman you are to call stepmother. 

She nods, “so it seems you are correct.” The wheels are turning in her head, scaring you. 

Maybe informing of her dress, she will be more inclined to bring you along. “I have a dress and everything. You wouldn’t have to worry about a thing.” 

“That would be true if your dress didn’t have a tear.” 

You furrow your brows, “where?” You look down, wondering how you could have missed something that could potentially damage your nonexistent reputation. 

“Why here,” she tugs down at the side of your dress skirt. “Of course.” 

You attempt to step away from her, only for her to further ruin the dress. “Stop it.” 

“How can I? You missed such a simple mistake. I only want you to right your wrong, dear.” 

“No, stop it. Sisters, please?” 

The youngest joins in, tearing at your right sleeve. 

“No. No,” you cry out. “Why are you doing this?” 

Your stepmother grasps your wrist, pulling you closer. “You must learn,” she leans down, less than seven inches between your faces. “You are not going to capture the prince’s attention. My daughters will. His fortune will be ours, not yours. We deserve it, not you.” 

The eldest sister steps forward. “Mother, it’s time.” She was never one for conflict, but also never tried to help you. It was always hard to figure out which one was worse. 

Your stepmother smiles, pulling away from you entirely. “You’re right, dear. Let’s go.” 

Your stepsisters exit your home, heading towards the carriage. 

She turns to you with a sinister smile, one she always directed towards you. “Be sure to finish the kitchen before we return home. You know where your cleaning supplies are, Cinder.” She throws her head back and laughs all the way towards the carriage. 

Your nose burns, vision becoming blurry as you stare at the door. 

You rush through the hallways and out the back door, not at all listening or paying attention to the other servants who also work for your stepmother. 

-

You find yourself sitting on the bench, next to the tree your father loved before his sickness took him from you last year; letting the tears drip down your cheeks, under your chin where they fell into the front of your dress. 

Someone’s shoes clacking against the stone walkway alert you. 

You wipe your cheeks and chin but still find yourself crying. 

They place a large coat over your shoulders, you hadn’t paid too much attention to the weather when you ran outside to realize it’s cold. “Don’t waste your tears on that woman.” 

You lift your head and find, Margaret, the head servant who also happens to be your stepmother’s maid. “I know she doesn’t but,” you sigh, lifting a piece of the torn fabric. “Look at what they did to your dress.” 

“Don’t worry about that now, dear.” 

“How could I not? You were so kind as to lend me-” 

“This dress is yours. I haven’t been able to fit into it for a long time now,” she jokes, gaining a chuckle from you. “Look at that, there’s that gorgeous smile.” She wipes your damp, tear-stained cheeks. “I’m going to help you.” 

“How? You only had one dress hidden away so stepmother wouldn’t find it. And, we don’t have nearly enough time to fix or make a new dress. I may as well start on-” 

“No, no. We are not going to use that negative mindset that wretched old woman has brought within this home. I have a secret your stepmother or sisters don’t know.” 

Your brows furrow in confusion. “Like what?” 

Margaret leans in and whispers, “magic.” 

“No really.” 

She sighs, walking closer towards the tree, “why does no one believe me?” 

You push yourself off the bench, tugging the coat closer to you not wanting any of the cold air to touch your skin. You turn the corner but don’t find her. “Where-” 

“Turn around dear.” 

You spin around and find her in an entirely different outfit than the one she was in a few moments ago. “How-” 

“Like I said, magic. Only those are special enough to have a fairy godmother and you are one of them.” 

“I am?” 

She nods, a proud smile stretching across her lips. “You are. Do you want to go to the Prince’s Christmas ball?” 

“I do,” you quickly answer her. “You know I do. I would- all I want to do is go out there and dance. Hopefully say hello to a few friendly faces.” 

She grips your chin, “I know you do.” She waves her free hand with the wand you never saw until the sparkle and yellow glow with bits of glitter blind you for a few seconds. 

You look down and find yourself in the most beautiful dress you’ve ever seen, neither one of your stepsisters’ dresses could compare (and they always made sure they had the best of the best). “Oh, Margaret it’s- it’s beautiful.” You glance back at her, “how- how did you-” 

“Like I said,” she raises the wand for you to see. “Magic.” 

The smile slowly disappears from your lips. “How am I going to get to the ball?” 

“Oh, don’t you worry about that. Everything’s already been taken care of.” She wraps her arm around the back of your shoulder’s, guiding you towards the front of the house. 

You blink owlishly, wondering if everything that’s happened within the last ten minutes is real or not. 

-

“This is your ride to and from the ball with Adam as your driver.” 

“The stray cat?” 

“The person, you know who it is. He was recently hired to help in the kitchen a few months ago, your stepmother’s request as you know we all were.” 

“Okay.” You enter the carriage with the help of Adam. 

“Oh,” Margaret slaps her hand against the door. “One more thing, you have until midnight.” 

“Midnight?” 

“At the stroke of midnight all of this that I so graciously put together will be gone. I have magic but not enough to keep your night going, it takes a lot of energy, you know. First, we did the dress. Then the carriage and getting everyone to help you while looking like royalty.” 

“Okay, midnight.”

“Good, now that you’ve been warned. Have fun. I imagine you’ll catch the eye of many potential suitors.” 

You stare at the floor, ignoring the heat in your cheeks. “I don’t think so.” 

“Oh, you will. You have yet to find out how special you really are, my dear.” She watches as you leave your driveway. “The rest is up to you Rick.” 

The plan is set in motion. 

-

The carriage pulls you away from her and off to where you’ve only dreamed of dancing a handful of times (definitely more than a handful but who’s counting?) over the last year. 

Stepmother never allowed you outside after your father died, leaving your friends with no way to contact you. 

The carriage stops, your nerves are teeter tottering over the edge, your heartbeat is faster than normal, much faster than you have ever thought it could be. 

Thankfully, the door opens revealing Adam; he holds his hand out for you. 

You accept the assistance and nod, being sure to thank him (something no one else does other than the other servants).

-

You enter by yourself since you’ll be the one dancing and not for very long with the whole “ends at midnight” situation. 

“So many stairs,” you mutter, walking what you hope is the last staircase before entering the ball room. ‘It’s been so long,’ you think. The faint sound of a Christmas song brings a slight sense of nostalgia and a sadness to your heart. 

You can remember how your mother would play the piano while your father helped you decorate the tree since she “didn’t have the right taste”, when you were four. 

Another heartwarming memory comes to mind, the year after you mother passed, you and your father sit by one another, listening to the crackle of the fire with the feeling that your mother is there, playing her favorite Christmas tune. 

A shuddered breath escapes you; you wipe away your tears before they could fall and ruin your makeup. 

The doors open and your blinded for a moment. The bright and colorful lights are everywhere to help brighten the room, making it look absolutely- “amazing.” 

“Isn’t it?” 

You nod until you realize someone’s beside you. It feels as though you’ve jumped ten feet in the air when in reality, it was only a hard flinch. You turn and curtsey before you could see their face. 

“That’s not necessary.” 

You straighten your posture and find the prince in front of you. ‘He’s here.’  “I apologize then.” 

He smiles, nodding once. “Would you care to dance?” 

You hum, pretending to think about it. “Not yet.” 

“Really? I thought people who came to these kinds of events were here to dance.” 

“Ah,” you start to walk away, finding him to be just interesting as he was when you last saw him. 

“What was that?” He asks, you can hear the smile dancing across his lips. 

“Nothing,” you shrug, “you just seem to think that I’m still like the others.” 

“I remember now that you aren’t.” He stops in front of you. 

“And how would you know that when you’ve only just met me?” You tease him, reminding him of when you two first met. 

“I’m getting a… feeling.” 

“A feeling?” 

He nods, “yes, a feeling. Why? You don’t believe me?” 

“I never said that.” 

One of the royal servants walks up to the prince, whispering in his ear before leaving. 

He turns towards you with a guilty expression. 

“It’s alright, I understand. One’s job is never done, right?” 

“Right. Save a dance for me?” 

“You have my word.” A slight bitter taste is on your tongue at the thought of him dancing with his someone who... isn’t you. ‘Is this what he felt when it was I who had to dance?’ 

He opens his mouth to say more when he is dragged away. 

You watch as he makes his way towards his father who announces that this ball is for his son to find a wife and of course your stepsisters are first and second in line to dance with him although it looks like his attention is drawn elsewhere. 

With a heavy heart, you walk down the nearest hallway, hoping that it doesn’t lead anywhere you’re not supposed to be. You remember hearing that the king was having renovations done to the castle, hopefully no hallways were added. 

-

Leonard calls for his buddy and servant, Rick, Hollywood to a selected few. 

Once his buddy takes his place, he rushes down the same way he saw you enter. 

-

You rest your hands against the railing, staring up at the stars, wondering how you can make your night last longer. 

“There you are.” 

You gasp, surprised there was someone else here. “Oh, it’s you.” 

“Were you expecting someone else?” 

“No.” 

He stands beside you, eyes lowered staring at his hands, peeking over at you every so often. “Would you,” he clears his throat, “would care to dance?” 

“Here?” 

“Yes, it gives me the opportunity to see if you are wife material or not.” 

You raise your brows and smile, “does it now?” 

He nods, pushing himself off the railing. “Care to see to that challenge?” 

“Why not?” This reminds you of a simpler time. 

He holds his hand out for you to take, you accept in a more graceful manner than the other girls did, which he appreciates (more than you could know). 

You feel as though you could spend hours dancing with him, this is what you’ve always dreamed about... if only the universe was on your side. 

The clock chiming doesn’t click in your mind until the fifth chime. 

Your eyes widen as you pull away from the man who has begun to re-win your heart. “I must go.” You bunch the skirt in your clenched fists and run down the hallway connected to the balcony. 

He can’t let you go and does the one thing a love interest can do in these kinds of situations and chases after you. “Wait! Wait!” 

You grip the top of the staircase railing. 

He spins you around, “you have to leave now? Can’t you stay for a little while longer?” 

“I’m afraid I cannot. I have to be elsewhere.” 

“But- please,” he begs. 

You remove his hand from your arm and race down the stairs. Your grip becomes tighter after you trip, stopping yourself from falling only to lose your slipper. 

You can’t stop now, can’t let him see the torn dress or how bad your hair looks. You imagined him to be the kind of person who wouldn’t care but... your stepmother has brought on these negative thoughts. 

-

“Wait! Ella! I don’t-” He jumps down from the second to last stair and finds your carriage speeding off into the distance. 

His shoulders slump at the sight of you, staring out the window behind you looking as sad as can be. 

His buddy, Rick stands beside him. “You found her and lost her?” 

He nods. “But I do have her slipper. Maybe I can go around and ask for the women in the nearest town to try it on?” 

Rick blinks once. “How am I friends with an idiot?” 

“I take offense to that.” 

“I hope so, it just means the king didn’t pay for nearly as studious tutors as he thought.” 

“We both know you dragged me out of there whenever Archibald came over.” 

“And he would make us do an essay every time.” 

“Why isn’t my idea a good one?” Leonard asks. 

“Because,” Rick slaps his hand on his friend’s shoulder. “My naive friend, we could check the bottom of her shoe or the guest list.” 

“Oh, yeah.” 

“Come on.” He grabs the slipper off the ground and checks the bottom of the shoe to find Margaret's hidden message, “you know where to go, beware of the stepsisters.” 

“And this,” Rick smirks. “This is your ticket to your happily ever after.” 

“Yeah,” Leonard nods without listening to what he said. He stops and glances over at his buddy, “wait- really?” 

“Yep, but we’ll start tomorrow or later today since it is midnight.” 

“Are you lying?” 

“What?” Rick throws his head back and laughs. “Why do you think I’m lying, man?” 

He raises a brow. 

“Alright, alright. I get it but I’m being one hundred percent completely honest with you.” 

“Fine.” 

They make it to the top of the stairs. 

“Oh,” the prince turns back to face his friend, “send all of the ladies home.” 

The smile falls from Rick’s face. “What?” 

“Yeah, send ‘em all home. I’ve found my happy ending.” 

“Oh, come on.” He walks away, aiming for the hallway no one besides the two use. “Charming!” Rick throws his hands up, using the nickname reserved for when his friend makes the most annoying and tiring requests. “Charming, come on.” 

-

There’s a knock on the door, you don’t stop sweeping as per your stepmothers request of, she being the only one to answer the door. 

“Oh my!” She exclaims, alerting your stepsisters. 

“What is it, mother?” asks the youngest. 

“Someone from the royal family has arrived. Oh, he’s chosen one of you to be his bride and- oh my- his fortune will be ours.” She turns, glaring at you. “You have some cleaning to do upstairs. In your room. Its filthy.” 

You don’t try and argue with her, not wanting to feel her wrath this evening and begun your journey up the stairs. 

-

You sit in the specially designed seat your father had built for you as a child and stare out the window only for a furball to jump into your lap. You smile, petting Lucifer’s soft black fur. “How could they say you were a harmful cat? Hm? You don’t see that bad to me.” 

He lifts his head, staring at you with his jade green eyes, letting out a quiet meow. 

Tink! 

You furrow your brows. 

Tink! 

“Where is that-” Your eyes widen at the sight of the prince- Leonard. 

Lucifer hops off your lap, preferring to nap on your bed instead. 

You open your window, smiling down at him. “What are you doing here?” 

“I had to find you!” 

You shush him. “You must be quiet; my stepmother is downstairs talking to-” 

“Rick! Yes, he’s a distraction.” 

“A distraction?” 

He nods. 

“How do you expect me to get down without alerting anyone?” 

He stops, “good question.” Leonard looks back up. 

“And do not think of asking me to jump down into your arms, Leo.” 

“Ah, so you do remember me?” 

“How could I not? We’ve technically known each other for almost all of our lives. When did you realize who I was?” 

“When we danced at the ball but more so when were arrived outside your house.” 

“Of course, you did. But why are you here?” 

“I’ve come to realize you are the one I will marry.” 

“Will?” You giggle, he hears it and smiles even wider than he did earlier. 

“Yes,” he nods. “We will live out our childhood dream and get married.” 

“I believe that was your dream.” 

“No, if you could recall-” 

“I went along with the game. Now, find something for me to use so I can come down safely.” 

“If you look to your right, there’s now a ladder in place for you to climb down.” 

“Good, I’ll be down shortly.” 

You rush around the room, packing two bags, one with sentimental items you know your stepmother will ruin once she finds out that you’ve left and the other one for Lucifer. 

-

“You didn’t need to pack your bags. I could have-” 

“I don’t trust the woman I am to call stepmother. I was lucky to have left home and make it to the ball before the night ended.” 

His brows knit together in confusion, “did she never let you outside?” 

“I wasn’t a daughter to her; I was another servant.” 

Now he feels bad. “Why didn’t you leave sooner?” 

“And go where?” 

“You could have come to me. I haven’t seen you since your father died last year. I didn’t even see you at his funeral-” the look on your face tells him all he needs to hear. “She didn’t.” 

“She did,” you confirm his awful theory. 

“Well now, you’ll be away from wretched woman.” 

You abruptly stop, hand on his forearm. “You were serious about the marriage?” 

He nods, “I am.” 

“Are you sure you’d want to marry me? We haven’t spoken to one another for quite some time and who’s to say we will be good together?” 

He’s taking a big leap here. “Because we have a special bond. We’re talking as if nothing’s happened. I know we will be good together because…” 

“Because?” 

“I…” 

“Are you feeling alright?” 

“I have loved you since we were children, and I wouldn’t want to marry anyone else that wasn’t you!” He spits out. 

“Oh,” your brows reach your forehead, eyes widen in surprise. 

“Oh?” He repeats. 

“Yes, “oh?” What else do you want me to say? You caught me off guard and I had no idea how to properly respond other than I have had feelings for you for as long as I could remember and dancing with you just- it made me realize how much I care about you…” 

“As in, you feel same way I do, or you want to just be friends?” 

“What do you think? Do you think I’d escape my room on a ladder I didn’t know was secure or not for anyone?” 

“No,” he smirks. “But I need to hear you say it.” 

“I… have very strong feelings for you.” 

“Three words.” 

“I like you.” 

“Different L word.” 

“I loathe you.” 

“Nicer L word.” 

You take a deep breath, “I love you.” 

“Good. Now,” he grabs your hand. “We have to go tell father.” 

“What? Now?” 

He opens the carriage door, letting you take your time getting in. “Yes, now. One second, excuse me.” He sticks his head out the window and whistles for Rick. “Technically were already engaged but your stepmother stopped it from happening and now that I am aware of this, I know what I must do, and we can be together without having to worry about them.” 

You scoff, “that’s why she kept saying that.” 

“What was that?” 

“Nothing. I’m just- I’m happy to be out of there.” The bag on your chest moves. “Oh! Lucifer, I’m sorry. Come on, out we go.” 

He sits in your lap, eyes wandering, taking in all the new sights. “You have a cat,” he says in awe. He remembers you two always wanted to get a cat, but it was never the right time. 

“Yes, his name is Lucifer.” 

“Make sure to keep him near the dining hall.” 

“Why?” You ask extending the word. 

“Merlin pissed me off.” 

“My, my, the prince cursing, what a scandal.” 

“You won’t be so surprised about it later.” 

You huff at his insinuation, petting your fluffy boys head, in the spot right between his ears. 

-

Your wedding was already planned out with minor changes from the both of you; you both wanted there to be something each of you picked out and/ or wanted. 

His father had no objections to Leonard marrying you, in fact, he tried to get you two to elope but knew it wasn’t appropriate. 

“How does it feel to be the very thing you should have been years ago, wife?” 

You hum, turning to him. “And, what’s that husband?” 

“A princess… married to a handsome prince.” 

A teasing smile tugs at your lips. “Let me know when one arrives.” 

“You wound me, darling.” 

“You know I’m only playing with you.” 

“I do.” He lets Lucifer settle in the space between your empty dishes. “I’m happy we found each other that night.” Even if it was a mere few months ago. 

“Yeah?” 

He stares at you and nods, a wide smile dancing across his lips. “You know I can’t lie to you.” 

You rest your head against his shoulder. “How can you be so sweet?” 

“Because Merlin is currently seeing the doctor so he can get his allergies under control.” 

You smack his shoulder. 

“Don’t be like that darling. It’s a joke, I’m joking.” He scoots closer to you, “you know how happy I am to have found my hea.” 

“Hea?” 

“Happily, ever after.” 

He notices the look you’re giving him. “… Rick said it.” 

“Okay. Whatever you say, Leo.”

An offended noise escapes his open mouth, “he did!” 

“And I believe you.” 

He grumbles, pulling Lucifer into his lap. 

You smile and peck his cheek. 

He puts on a show, making it seem like he isn’t going to smile but loses. 

How could he not smile when he’s married the one who almost got away but managed to find your way back to him.