#then an ending that undermines everything that came before it

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for putting a hit out on an ex friend’s dnd character?

A few years ago I [M 18] was the link between two different online friend circles along with my longtime friend A [M 22]. Essentially, both A and I ran two different dnd campaigns that acted as a melting pot between our two friend groups. It was really fun, super casual stuff. Enter C [M 19], who was originally one of my friends and played in both groups. Over time it became clear that C was, to put it lightly, not a great person. At the time, I was a really new DM and struggled a lot with my self confidence. C was a super disruptive player in my group, going off the rails and generally trying to undermine both me and other players. I tried to sort it out between sessions, but it didn’t end up working out. It came to a head where I ended up shutting down my campaign, claiming school got to be too much, but in reality I just couldn’t deal with C’s behaviour. It was a really big blow to my self confidence at the time.

At this point a lot of people had been cutting out C for various other things like this - generally being disrespectful and callous, not taking responsibility for harm he caused, etc. Pretty soon the only times I was interacting with C directly was during A’s campaign.

A, who wasn’t 100% aware of the situation, came and talked to me after a session one day about why I’d shut down my campaign, and I told him everything about how I was feeling. He was really understanding, and said that he got the feeling that I probably didn’t want C around anymore, and neither did he. I agreed, so A offered to ‘sort out some stuff with C’s character’ and shuffle him out of the group. I made a joke about wanting C’s character to die, in a pretty flippant way, and the conversation diverted.

This is where things get kind of weird.

So, at the time, I was expecting A to just talk with C and kick him out of the group in between sessions, but that didn’t end up happening. C was at the next session just as planned, and continued to show up for several weeks. During this time A, and I really don’t know how else to describe this, pulled some Machiavellian scheme on C’s character as the DM to ruin his life. A wove in this story where C’s character got this evil mask shard of a dead god, and played on C’s want to sabotage other players & go his own way in a very ‘lone rogue’ way to isolate him from the group and get him involved in all these evil deeds (killing minor npcs, etc). None of our characters knew about this in character, but A dropped all these hints and the context lined up to make it seem like C’s character was slowly going insane. C, unable to communicate in or out of character, backed up this idea by refusing to talk about the god IC or OOC. Eventually this god fragment lead to the death of C’s character when an overpowered assassin struck him down, in a fight that felt very ‘well this could’ve been a party boss but because you didn’t tell anyone, you died’. Immediately following this the party found out about C’s character’s evil deeds, meaning he wouldn’t be mourned by the party. The whole death felt so… hollow. It really felt like C had ended up in this situation because of their own hubris. But they hadn’t.

A had masterminded the whole thing. He’d given me live updates about his plan to essentially manufacture a situation where C’s character died a miserable death that felt totally deserved in the eyes of the other party members. And then we all just blocked C anyway???

I’ve never seen someone manipulate somebody like that in my life before and I’ve never seen anything like it again. I’ve never told anyone else in the group that the death was masterminded by A because of my petty grudge about my failed campaign. I don’t speak to either A or C now but I still feel bad about not doing something. Should I have just told A to kick C way before this?? I had no clue it would spiral into actual months of chess mastering his demise!!

What are these acronyms?

[perpetuallydaydreaming]

you have to kiss under the mistletoe, it’s the rules.

who knew a small bundle of leaves could change everything?

warnings/tags: no warnings,, james x female reader,, mutual pining,, oblivious!james,, down bad james,, he doesn’t know what a mistletoe is exactly but he’s trying

“you know that’s not a mistletoe right?” you said pointing at the bundle of greenery in james’ hands. “if that’s what you think you’re holding.”

craning your neck to look up at your fellow gryffindor trying and failing to tie what appears to be a branch to the ceiling

“what?” looking down at his hands and then sending you a frown, “of course it’s a mistletoe?”

“it’s not,” popping your hip and quirking your eyebrow. “that’s just a bunch of leaves.” looking down to the table beside his very wobbly ladder. the various collection of leaves and random flowers tied in red ribbons. picking one “mistletoe” from the bunch and twisting it on your fingers, fighting a smile to appear on your face. ignoring the growing fondness in your chest for james’ misstep.

“it is?” now he looks to the thing as if it had offended him in some way. “but sirius said it’s a mistletoe.” he whined still hovering high in the ceiling.

showing him the “mistletoe” in your hands, scoffing up a laugh, “this is literally an evergreen branch,” grabbing another from the bunch, “this one is just cherries and plastic leaves.”

he slowly came down with a whispered charm, pockets full of random greenery and berries. “are any of these mistletoes?”

“not even a single one.” you try to hold back a laugh, knowing he doesn’t do well when he’s undermined. looking at him mope and push around the decorations huffing, a slight pout on his lips. “why are you even putting these up in the common room?”

he flushed red, freezing in his woe, “i just,” he looked away, looking anywhere but you. eye darting from edge of the room to the other. “i thought the room could be more festive for the party.”

“you’re not using this as a ploy to kiss someone, are you?” you teased, desperately hoping for it to be false but masking it to sound nonchalant, “because that is just sleazy,” crossing your arms and looking at him pointedly.

you see him deflate and turn ever redder. the implication of his reaction making you frown for real this time.

“you were!” pointing at him, aghast.

he shook his head, “no!” looking at you now, “like you said it’s sleazy, so how could you even think i’d do that?”

you squint you eyes, suspicious, “you sound too guilty for someone claiming innocence.”

he scoffs, cheeks still tinted pink hastily grabbing the various leaves and ribbons, “i beg your pardon!” he gasped, “i’m not that desperate to rely on a plan to get someone to kiss me.”

“padfoot, we need cancel the plan.” james exclaimed the second he entered the dorm.

sirius sitting up from remus’ bed, leaves glued to the ends of fingers.

“what? why?”

james heaves a sigh, dropping the ribbons and leaves on the ground without a care, “she said doing this would be sleazy.”

“you told her the plan?” sirius screeched, pulling the stuck ferns on his fingers.

“no, she said it after seeing the leaves.” the curly haired marauder huffed offended that sirius thinks he’ll snitch, “these aren’t mistletoes, by the way.”

sirius looked down to the greens on his lap, “what?”

remus rolls his eyes, sitting up next to sirius, “i told you these aren’t mistletoes.”

sirius looks like his entire world is crumbling down, and james sort of knows how that feels, “then what are these?”

“leaves,” james replied, walking carefully to his bed.

“even these?!” pointing frantically to the red berries on the floor.

“i think those are just cranberries,” petter piped, throwing one in his mouth, “yup, definitely cranberries.”

sirius crosses his arms, indignant. “and you didn’t tell me after i tied about 50 of ‘em?”

peter shrugs, “thought you would have realized by the second one,”

before sirius could blow off at peter, remus turns to james and frowns, “you alright there mate?”

james slumping on his bed, glasses now lay perched top of his head. looking an image of utter defeat.

“what am i supposed to do now? i was going to use the mistletoe to confess,” he grumbled, looking down on his lap.

oblivious to sirius sitting up straighter on his bed, looking like he’s seen a ghost in the door left opened by james. remus following his boyfriend’s lead and seeing you standing in the middle of the entryway, your hands full of christmas decorations and some of the “mistletoes” james left in the common room.

james, bless his heart, still unaware of the heavy silence in the room—continued to moan about his ruined plan. “i was gonna give her the best damned kiss under the mistletoe and then when i’m looking into her eyes, i’ll say i like her and ask her to be my girlfriend. she’ll say she likes me back, of course, because it is just that good and then we’ll kiss again, and then everyone will just fade into the background and then we’ll have a son—“

by now peter has also noticed your presence, gestured for you to be quiet. the three of the marauders looking at each other and grinning

remus spoke first, “just tell her you like her then, it doesn’t have to be an elaborate plan.”

“and give her the most basic confession ever?” he scoffs, “i don’t think so.”

sirius held back a smirk itching to show on his face, “why bother jamie boy? it’s just a confession.”

“just a confession? it’s the start of our relationship! it’s going the story to tell to our kids and grandkids!” face turning red from frustration. “it’s gonna be the basis on how we start our relationship and you’re telling me it’s just a confession?!”

peter, his head on his hand, looking at james amused. “who are we talking about again?”

“y/n! we’re talking about y/n and how i like her and how i probably botched my chance to confess before the year ends, again, and having another year of unrequited pining again—“

“james?”

he freeze, feeling the blood in his veins stop, hearing your soft voice, the prettiest voice he had ever heard — he claimed before. and now even with a blurry vision, can see his friends looking at him all smug and goofy. and then he turns ever slowly, catching your figure standing in his dorm, looking as pretty as ever.

“y/n,” he muttered, “how much did you hear?”

you bit your lip to stop your smile from growing and failing, “not much.”

he was about to smile in relief, and probably deny and deny and never go back to hogwarts but then you spoke again,

“if we are going to have a son, what names do you think is nice?”

he plants his face on his pillow, face flashing red as he groans, “this is so embarrassing,”

you stepped closer, feeling your heart beat faster and fingers hot from embarrassment, but you pushed through. thinking this time is as good as any.

“do you like me?” you whispered once you were close enough to his bed, “james?”

he raises his head a little to see your gaze, his glasses sliding from his hair to his nose perfectly.

“no!”

you raise your eyebrows in shock, “no?”

he sits up properly now, shaking his head frantically, “i mean yes, i like you but,”

“but?” tilting your had slightly in question, and james hate how cute you look in this moment while he’s probably a raging mess.

“you weren’t supposed to find out this way,” he murmured, an embarrassed pout on his pink lips. “it was supposed to be spectacular.”

you sat down on his bed, hand dangerously close to his, “i like this version too.”

“really?”

“yes,” you whispered, the smile on your face now out for him to marvel at.

soon his smile mirrored yours. looking nothing but a bunch of fools sheepishly grinning at each other.

both of you almost forgot the audience in the room if not for the whistle remus gave that captured both of your attention. he was holding his wand, while the other two wolfishly grinned at the two of you, gesturing to look up.

you follow their instructions and saw green grapes with a fern, floating above your heads. you bit your lip to stop your laugh. you make a mental note to bring an actual mistletoe once you come back from the holidays.

you hear james clear his throat, looking to see his flushed cheeks and an almost hopeful glint in his eyes. adjusting in his seat and a small dimpled smile on his pretty face.

“should we?” he whispers, “it is a christmas tradition you know, no matter how sleazy.”

“i mean if we have to,” you sigh tired and irritated but the flushing smile on your face betrays you.

you wanted to point out it wasn’t a mistletoe so you really didn’t have to kiss, just to tease him a little longer. but his soft lips slowly melting unto yours, you decided to make an exception.

james grabs the back of your neck in hopes to deepen the kiss even more, as hoots and cheers starts bellowing in the room.

[jacevelaryonswife]

Golden and Silver, my new colors | Final

He doesn't know where the impulse of his next actions came from, but he felt he needed it. Maybe was the moment, maybe was the time, or maybe he wanted do that. He needed to break down the last and definitive barrier to be entirely yours.

∴pairing: Aemond Targaryen x Wife!reader

∴warnings and a note: fluffy and comfort, english is not my first language. See the note in the end.💙

Golden and Silver Masterlist

"How are you?" He asked quietly.

“I'm scared,” your confession was even lower. "Very aware of what is going to happen, or what can happen." You took a break before continuing. "This should be the most important moment of my life, from which I hear that it’s the destiny of all women, but I feel minimally prepared for it. What if I'm not a good mother? What if I can't love the baby? What if I die? What if I fail? Because everything will refer to my failure with duty," your voice trembled, "and I don't want that, I don't want to fail and I don't want to be unhappy either."

Over the months was it difficult not to deal with the subject in question. Your body was more different than ever, your back and feet hurt and your belly weighed like the seven hells. Although the development of the affective bond with Aemond has undermined part of the insecurity of pregnancy, the other part remained solid and constantly active. It was a real torture, mainly because you didn’t want to reveal to anyone what you were feeling, nor your mother, or the Queen (whose relationship with both of them had gotten back on track, but not as before) or your friends. But with him it was different, you learned that, you felt it. He needed to know and you wanted to say.

"Because I know what people will tell me to do, but that's not what I want to hear. I don't want to hear that childbirth is a woman's battlefield or that I must resign myself by fulfilling the only duty that was imposed on me. I don't want to hear this because I grew up knowing this, I grew up knowing that there was nothing else to expect, that this is all a woman can have, that my mission is to give birth to a son and it corrodes me all the time," you kept looking at the ceiling as you let the words escape. "And I transfer it to him, or her, to what's in my belly. I transfer such dissatisfaction to him, as if he were to blame, but I know he is not. I transferred my anger about you when we were fighting, and I transfer my frustration and fear about the future at this very moment. It's wrong, I know, but I'm terrified and angry and it seems impossible to individualize these feelings and forget them. Sometimes I didn't want to be pregnant."

“Sometimes I also wish you weren't pregnant,” he confessed. "Because I know what I should do, but I don't know how. I don't know what it's like to be a father, I don't know how to do it, and I don't like to fail, I don't want to fail with you, but I have no idea how to do this and I'm too proud to seek instructions, besides, who would I turn to? My father? No, he was Rhaenyra's father, not mine, never mine. What should I do?"

“I'm sorry about that, for everything you've been through,” you said as you held his hand on the bed, looking at him for the first time since the subject started.

"I'm also sorry for you, for everything you feel, for all righteousness, silence and lack of freedom," he didn't look at you when he confessed: "I'm scared too."

"I know." You purposely smoothed the injured part of his face, very close to the scar, leaving him tense and gaining a surprised and fearful look. “I know. Thank you for listening to me."

“Don't thank me for that,” he stared at you.

According to the Maesters, there were only a few weeks left for the baby in your belly to come into the world, maybe days, maybe weeks, and as it couldn’t be different, your lord father, the King and Hand were already talking excitedly to each other about the son that was to come. Fuck them all, you thought, and during the dinner with the family earlier you were very happy to oppose:

“A girl would make me happier,” you said calmly while drinking the sweet wine. It wasn’t a lie, although your greatest desire at that moment was to contradict them.

“It’s always expected that the first fruit of a young couple will be a healthy son, my lady,” Otto Hightower said in his stoic and falsely sympathetic feature.

"I know, but I mean my desire," you countered, not being intimidated by the negative look of most of the people who were at the table.

“My darling, don't say those things,” your mother tried to alleviate the situation with a nervous smile. "What will your husband find?"

Fortunately, Aemond and you were better than ever.

"It's my wife's wish, the fact doesn't bother me," was what he said before the matter was finalized.

Secretly, Queen Alicent and your lady mother whispered that at least you were in sync. And yes, you were very well.

That night, just like the others, you were lying side by side. It was difficult to find a position in which he could hug you, especially when he wanted so much to feel your body close, your sweet smell and the softness of your skin. He was living in your orbit in recent months, and he has never looked so good before. It was a little scary for Aemond to allow himself to love, to be loved, to be seen, to be touched and to be understood. He was used to the harshness of a job to be done, but emotional recognition made him restless and fragile.

"I hate having a weak point, a disadvantage or sensitivity that can be used against me. That's why it was difficult to lower the guard for you, I thought that if I bordered your image as inferior, as someone normal and not special it would be easier to keep me away, it was stupid, but effective, because it is almost agonizing to give in to the temptation to be loved. I know I've said this before, but I'm sorry for everything that happened before. I want to be a good father and a good husband to you."

“I know. I know,” you held his hand over yours and pulled her for a kiss on her palm. "Be by my side when the time comes."

"I didn't intend to be far away," he put his other hand on your belly and turned to face you. His beautiful wife. So beautiful, serene and scared. He hated not being able to heal your fear, but he wouldn't leave you again. "I promise."

“...Let me see you,” your voice was uncertain and anxious. What were you- "if it's not a problem."

Oh no.

The air was momentarily missed by Aemond and made you apprehensive, although still determined. You didn't want to see that, no, you didn't want to, how could you?

"You don't want to see that."

"I want to."

"No, you don’t."

"I want to, but only if you want to show it."

“You don't,” he said even more incisively.

“I want to, but only if you want to show it,” you said even softer.

"It's ugly," he breathed, "deformed," a frown formed quickly when he looked away.

"I don't care."

"You'll call when you see it, and I don't need it. I don't need you to feel disgusted or sorry for me."

You sighed and remained silent as you moved to be more seated than lying down, it was annoying that any movement was so tiring, even as simple as possible. But that was not enough to undermine your determination and when you held his chin, forcing him in the kindest way to look at you.

"I know you won't believe it, but I don't care, you're a very handsome man, Aemond, very charming and dashing, nothing in your appearance displeases me," you said, "in fact, I care that you can't see this, it bothers me actually, but I understand. What I ask is that you don’t transfer your insecurity to me, don’t think in advance that I will be afraid or disgusted by you."

“Everyone does. Even without having seen it and especially because they have seen it, everyone feels the same," was all he said.

Did you think he was handsome and dashing? It was a lie, wasn't it? It had to be. Almost no lady spent her time sighing for him, and yet... "do you really see beauty in me?"

"Of course I see it, and not just because you're my husband. Don't be suspicious of me."

"I just... I don't want to see the look on your face when you see myself completely," his voice was low and weak, contrasting with the previous determination in his tone.

You sighed again. "I'm sorry, we won't talk about it anymore."

“Thank you.”

“No need to thank you,” you held his hand again. "I love you, Aemond... you know that."

He sat on the bed and cradled your face with his other hand. “I know. I love you too."

It was the first time you said to each other, but not the last.

═════════════════════

When the call of the Grand Maester Orwyle reached the ears of the one-eyed Prince, a silvery shadow moved faster than ever through the corridors of the Palace. He was nervous like the seven hells and a burning tormented his skin from the inside out. It was an attitude that contradicted the advice of his grandfather and some sighted men of the King's court, but incredibly served to make his mother and father agree with the option he took to be by his side at the moment.

"Are you sure, my prince?" Orwyle inquired again when they both approached the room where it was about to happen. “You don't ne-“

"I do."

And then, he opened the door to meet you in the center of the bed with the hand-keepers around taking care of you. A greeting was briefly made to him as you stretched out your hand seeking support from your husband.

"How are you?" He asked.

“The worst hasn't started yet, but I'm nervous,” was quite evident in your voice.

“Everything will be fine, I'm here by your side."

"I know, but I'm scared."

“You don't have to be afraid, my lady, everything will be fine and a healthy baby will be born,” one of the servants said to reassure.

But it didn't work much, since an unmizable pain dominated your body in the next few moments. It was terribly painful and you cursed Aemond internally for condemning you to such a fate. You wouldn't do that again! Not "that", but this here! Fuck anyone who says the opposite. When the pain intensified, all you wanted was to scream for the seven hells and all the existing profanity but you were afraid of attracting a bad fate into your life.

"Strength, my lady, it's almost there, I need you to push more!"

Screw the superstitions.

“FUCKIN' HELLS!” You crushed his hand in a brutal squeeze, making him squeeze his jaw.

The feeling of being torn was agonizing, terrifying and unbearable, almost too much to deal with, until a sudden relief along with fatigue took over your body and a loud cry echoed through the room. Finally.

"It's a girl, my prince," Orwyle said, taking her to her father.

You took a deep breath and felt a sudden desire to have her in your arms. They could reject her for being a girl, but you would never do that. She was exactly what you wanted. “I want to hold her,” you said, hating having done the horrible job of giving birth so that Aemond would be the first to see your baby's face. The baby of you two, actually, but you still wanted to have her.

Your call was heard clearly, but the feeling of holding his daughter for the first time was indiscriminate to the one-eyed prince, keeping him motionless for long seconds. The small and scandalous thing fit perfectly into the clumsy lap shape that Aemond molded in his two arms, admiring her fixedly. What would he do now? How should I act? Will he be a decent father? He doesn't want to fail with you.

“Aemond,” you called him. You just wanted to see her.

Your little girl, your daughter. Heavens, that was terrifying and so pleasant at the same time, especially when you took her on your arms. You would raise her differently from the other girls, yes, you would do that, she would not wear a veil of righteousness and walls that force her to be unhappy. She can fly wherever she wants, after all her little girl has dragon blood.

"Have you ever thought of a name?"

Time seemed to stop when you had her in your arms, your little Naerys. "Yes, we already have a name."

You and your daughter were bathed and fed by the maids, then you were transported to your chambers to rest and be pampered by a proud and enchanted Aemond. He just wanted to have the little thing in his arms again, even if clumsy and afraid to hurt her. Your diet began to be accompanied by the Maesters since certain foods could affect the baby, you obviously consented and spent most of the day lying down while the Queen, the King and their parents pampered your little granddaughter. Honestly, you just wanted to sleep and have her by your side and Aemond's, and that's what you did throughout the day, but with a small part of your mind lit on an important point.

"Does it bother you that I gave you a daughter instead of a son?" It was disturbing to keep such a question to yourself and it was necessary to release it quickly.

Maybe Aemond didn't wait for the question or just didn't know what to answer, since his face closed a little and a stillness remained until he found words he deemed appropriate. "A child is a blessing, regardless of which genital he has."

It wasn't enough. "That's not what I asked."

"Why would it bother me?" He knew exactly why, but at that moment all he would like to get into was a fight, which was contradictory since a clear answer could solve your doubts.

"Because it disappoints all men and most women not having a sob in their first pregnancy, and I know you know that. So I'll ask once again, does that bother you, Aemond?" You didn't look at him as you asked, restricting yourself to paying attention to the soft sheet that covered your body.

"No, it doesn't bother. What about you?"

“Not at all. I wanted, in fact, a little girl. I hope we can create her well, teach her the things I have not been taught, instruct her in the right way, choose beautiful dresses together...”

"I had plans if I was a boy. I would instruct him to study, to train with me and I would not neglect him. A girl doesn't limit me to two of these things and doesn't make me less happy," he said.

“Queen Visenya was an excellent warrior, I wouldn't mind Naerys choosing this path if she wanted and had the opportunity,” you countered.

“A point outside the curve within our story,” he stressed as he flipped through another page of the book.

"It's still possible. If my memory does not fail me, Princess Alyssa, your grandmother, was also comfortable with the chain mail and swords, even much better than Prince Vaegon."

"Where do you want to go?"

"I want our daughter to be what she wants without the pressure of tradition undermining her life."

“It's not easy to fight against tradition,” he looked at you.

"Especially when one of the parties does not want to give in," your gaze also found his, more serious than before, "It is easy for you to be like this, you have always had the option to do everything you wanted just like Aegon, without the worry of having your name disgraced or put to a buzz. It's your privilege, one I've never had. You can go wherever you want and whenever you want, we don't, we don't have this option of choice besides being a bargaining chip and a belly to bear a child."

"Is that how you feel about me? An exchange currency?"

"I love you, Aemond, I love what we have, but I hate the lack of freedom I've had my whole life, I've always hated it. I don't want her to feel that."

"What if she wants to get married and have children? Won't it be her choice, but of tradition?" He questioned him.

"Then it will be her choice, not an imposition, she will have the power to decide that. I don't expect you to understand this, but it's my wish, I hope it's not ignored."

Who was he to escape the tradition? His life was based on it, his family (a part of it) was based on it. Why should he follow another path? You were right, it wasn’t easy to understand that being in his position, but the prince was not blind to what was expected of women in relation to duty. Still, what if your little Naerys didn't want to get married or have children? What if she wanted a life away from duty? He wouldn't force her, would he?

You definitely wouldn't go. No, not at all. That night, when she stopped crying, you took her in your lap and fed her with your milk hidden from the others. "You will be able to be everything you want, without restrictions, and I hope you are and enjoy your life. Fly as much as you want and be happy, use the opportunity that many of us don't have. I love your father, I truly love him and I just want to be by his side, but I wish I had seen more things and could come and go. Don't tell anyone that I was the one who gave these advices, please," you kissed her little head.

The next few days were strange to both of you, not because of the conversation you had earlier about Naerys, but because of the way she completely changed your routine. Aemond and you thought about her all day, every day, and they always wanted to have her around. Yes, the crying was annoying, mainly because you didn’t know what afflicted your baby so much, but everyone with more experience and knowledge about motherhood ensured that it was normal, "newborn children are like that, they’re still getting used to our world," said Lady Fell.

While the prince still remained staring at her for long minutes, standing in front of the crib with his single focused eye and with several layers of his sketched feelings. Fear and adoration were visible at times, but then a change in your husband's posture made you swear that that was the reason your daughter was crying, because he was so tense and intense.

“What are you thinking?" You asked low, in your usual position in bed.

“In her. She's perfect," Aemond replied without looking at you. "Just like you."

You looked at him fond of him. "Just like us." And then he looked at you in an enigmatic way, but with a vulnerability shown a few times. Something as simple as a compliment shouldn’t cause so many reactions on him, it was annoying to have a weakness in something that happened so many years ago but still torments him deeply. He hates feeling insecure about his appearance, although nothing has been said directly to him about it in all these years.

But the looks don’t lie, they never lied, aversion and fear were things he was forced to live with and even helped him build his defense walls. But these same walls prevented him from seeing the phenomenal, intelligent, shrewd and incredibly beautiful woman with whom he had become just a body and soul before the Septon. You would never accept him, Aemond believed that, even though he was the brother who studied history and philosophy and tamed the largest dragon in the world, you would never see beyond the damaged shell he had. How wrong he was. How wrong he was with you.

Moving away from Naerys' cradle, the prince walked to his privacy to put on his bedding and join you. He was ethereal with his loose and white top that left the beginning of his chest exposed. He crawled like a cat to your side and was almost nested to you.

"Do you really think I'm handsome?" He asked low, almost ashamed of his vulnerability.

"Of course I think. You’re so handsome Aemond, my handsome husband, my beautiful man, all mine," you caressed him on the face and hair, leaning to kiss him on the forehead. "I love you." He nested even more to you, hugging your body carefully, leaning his head on your neck to breathe your smell and feel your comfort. "You have many admirable qualities, in addition to your sincerity, loyalty and intelligence, your appearance is one of my favorite things. I love your sharp nose and perfect drawn lips, your beautiful blue eye and silver hair, everything about you is beautiful. Your body too. Especially the present between his legs." Yes, he was amazing down there.

He laughed against your neck and hugged you even more. He really needed that. "Thank you, my love, I truly appreciate it." He kissed your jaw and smelled your hair. "How are you?"

“Tired, but fine. I can't stop thinking about her."

“Me too. It's strange."

"A lot, but a good stranger."

“Indeed,” he said. “I’ve been thinking what you said, and I want her to be happy the way she chooses. I want share the world for you two, all the things you deserve to see. I love you and I love what we have.”

Your heart warmed up and you kiss his forehead with affection. “Thank you for that my love, I love you so deeply, I love we have too.”

He doesn't know where the impulse of his next actions came from, but he felt he needed it. Maybe was the moment, maybe was the time, or maybe he wanted do that. He needed to break down the last and definitive barrier to be entirely yours.

"I want to show you... my eye, the sapphire and the scar, but only if you want to see it."

Oh, how you waited for that…

“Yes. I want to see you.”

═════════════════════

End.

═════════════════════

Yes, I’d like to say a few words. When I started writing this story I thought it would be a one shot, since it has been many many since I concluded a fanfic with many chapters (so far). But I saw the potential of this idea and decided to embark, even with my terrifying laziness, procrastination and quick ease of getting sick of things. Much is due to the positive feedback I received from you in every kind comment and reblog, so thank you very very much to everyone who came here with me, much of this story is due to you and I am very grateful for that! To everyone who arrived here, see you soon and again, thank you very much for giving this idea a chance. 🤍💛🤍💛🤍💛🤍

═════════════════════

Taglist: @immyowndefender @arcielee @malfoytargaryen @drinking-tea-and-be-obsessed @fan-goddess @dark-night-sky-99 @siriusdumblittlepuppy @let-love-bleeds-red @sassysaxsolo @cicaspair418 @yentroucnagol @mefools @risefallrise @auratiqs @glitterandgoldfinds @bellaisasleep @plzletmedaydream @padfooteyes @bellameshipper @zillahvathek @schniiipsel @little-duck @dc-marvel-girl96 @nina2697 @kaemond-zafiro @the-hufflebird-girl @panagiasikelia @whatsonthemirror @namgification @minttea07 @crazymusicgirl104 @sahvlren @aemonds-fire @partypoison00 @glame @rominaarcadiaa @theekinslayer @hb8301 @jennifer0305 @batmans-love

[justabigassnerd]

Unexpected

Pairing - Jack Reacher x child!reader

Word count - 2,322

Warnings - gun violence, death, blood mentions, child endangerment, angst, lil' pinch of fluff

Summary - on a mission wherein he saves a child, Jack Reacher finds himself forming an unlikely softness towards the young child

A/N - oooh this is new isn't it?? this was a request sent in by @fangirl23obession so I hope I did the idea justice. writing for Jack ended up being a lot harder than I anticipated so I hope this is an okay read for y'all. as per y'all please send in requests, feedback and enjoy!!!

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

While travelling the states, Jack had caught wind of some suspicious activity within an Army regiment and so naturally went to investigate further. He didn’t care that he wasn’t technically part of the military anymore. When he got involved in something he was going to see his investigation through until the end.

The Army, knowing who he was and still respecting his rank despite him not being part of the Army anymore, let him weigh in on the ongoing investigation into how a soldier had gone completely AWOL with no evidence of foul play yet before he disappeared, he had been disappearing for hours at a time late at night and returning only in the early hours of the morning. At first, his comrades and superiors thought he was sneaking out to go to nearby bars and spend the night with people outside of the Army but when his superiors went to nearby bars to question the staff, they all denied seeing him at all.

As the investigation progressed, Jack found more and more evidence pointing towards a group of former military personnel who were trying to gain power to supposedly take back from their former places of work. Jack didn’t understand why such a group existed and quite frankly he didn’t care. He was there to do a job and that’s what he was going to do before moving on. He’s dealt with much worse in his lifetime. He wasn’t about to let one measly group of rogue soldiers do any damage.

What Jack could never have predicted was them scooping up a child off the streets and taking them hostage as a way to try and convince people to listen to their demands. With that newfound information, Jack was preparing to go off in search of the group to end them once and for all. The Army, of course, insisted he take some soldiers with him to assist in the whole ordeal and while Jack would rather go about everything himself, he knew he had very little say in the matter so allowed them to come with the one rule that they listen to everything he says. He is in charge of this operation and he’s not going to let anyone undermine him on this mission.

When Jack tracked down the base of the group, he took the soldiers assigned to his mission with him and headed to the old warehouse as he muttered to himself about the cliché of it all. When they arrived at the warehouse, of course, there was a group of ex-soldiers waiting for them, so Jack and his team immediately came under fire and were forced into cover. Jack commanded his team with ease, his military background having never left him and orders slipped from his mouth before his brain could even catch up. He managed to advance forward and make his way into the warehouse, taking down any men who refused to back down.

When he finally fought his way through the splinter cell of rogue soldiers, he reached what he could only assume was the main operations room where the leader had chosen to hide out, a young girl tight in his grip as he held his gun towards Jack.

“You better back up there, Reacher. You don’t want anything to happen to this kid now, do you?” The leader growls, moving his gun to be placed against your temple as more tears work their way down your cheeks as you squirm to try and get out of the man’s iron grip.

“The kid isn’t part of this. Let her go.” Jack says, his gun trained expertly on the man standing before him. He longed to pull the trigger, to end all this mess right here and now but he held his itchy trigger finger back. He knew he couldn’t fire his weapon now, not in front of a young child.

“If I let the kid go, you’ll just kill me. I’m not that stupid.” The leader snaps angrily, the barrel of the gun digging further into your temple with each word that leaves his mouth and Jack quickly begins to figure out a solution.

“Here’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to put my gun down and you’re going to let the kid go. I won’t try anything. In fact, I’ll let you go.” Jack bargains, beginning to lower his weapon, crouching down and placing his gun on the floor before holding his hands up in surrender.

“I heard your men out there, they’ll kill me.” The man then says, his anger never diminishing.

“They’re only out the front of the warehouse, I never thought to send anyone around the back, so you have a free escape if you go now. Just let the kid go.” Jack says, slowly straightening up and loosely gesturing to the door behind the leader. He remained silent for a moment, eyes flicking between the door and Jack, watching warily to see if he’d dive for his weapon. Keeping his gun trained on your temple, the leader begins to back away towards the door, moving the gun away from your temple momentarily to open the door before returning it to where it was against the side of your head, ignoring the slight whimper that left your lips as the gun digs into your temple again. The man glances between Jack and his doorway to freedom before harshly shoving you to the floor and exiting the warehouse, slamming the door behind him. Jack picked up his gun and made his way over to you, helping you get to your feet, and you immediately clung to his leg, taking him aback slightly. As you clung to his leg, Jack heard a singular gunshot ring out from outside. He knew it was a good idea to bring along a sniper.

“Are you hurt, kid?” Jack then asks, reminding himself of the task at hand as he carefully detaches you from his leg and crouches down to be at your height. You didn’t respond vocally to Jack’s question, just shaking your head as more tears rolled down your cheeks. Despite you shaking your head, Jack checked you over anyway, just to be sure. Once he was satisfied that you were indeed unharmed, he looked at you once more.

“What’s your name?” Jack asks, the gentlest tone to his voice that sounded foreign even to him.

“y/n.” Came your mumbled response, throat thick with tears as you wiped at your eyes harshly.

“Hi, y/n. I’m Jack.” Jack introduces himself to you, doing his best to maintain a gentle tone to not frighten you.

“Do you know where your parents live, y/n?” He then asks, receiving another head shake from you and fighting back a sigh as he glances up as if the ceiling held all the answers. He shouldn’t have expected a young child to know their parent’s address, but it would’ve made his life a lot easier.

“I don’t have any.” You mumble, making Jack look at you curiously.

“You don’t have parents?” He asks cautiously, hoping he somehow heard you wrong but when you nod in response, he lets out a soft sigh. You couldn’t be much older than five and he felt awful that you had no parents.

“I’m going to take you someplace safe, and we’ll talk with some people I know and look at finding you a nice place to live.” Jack says finally, straightening up and immediately you cling to his hand with your small one.

“Okay, kid. I’m going to need you to close your eyes while we leave the warehouse. I won’t let you trip or fall. Promise me you’ll keep your eyes closed.” Jack instructs, looking down at you as you nod, closing your eyes and clasping your free hand over your eyes for good measure. He didn’t want you to see the blood and dead bodies he knew were on the other side of the door. True to your promise, you kept your eyes closed the whole way through the warehouse, your nose wrinkling at the overwhelming stench of iron but you kept your eyes covered the whole time until Jack told you it was okay for you to open your eyes. When you uncover your eyes and blink them open, you discover that you’re standing in front of a car and Jack opens the door for you to climb in. A soldier offers you a hand to help you climb into the car, but you shy away, your grip tightening on Jack’s hand.

“Come on, in you get.” Jack says, letting you hold his hand to climb up into the car, curling up in one of the seats as soon as you’re in the car, eyeing the other soldiers standing by the car carefully. Sensing your discomfort, Jack climbed in the other backseat to offer a familiar presence and he hadn’t anticipated you clinging to his hand once more. If it had been any other situation, Jack was sure he would’ve taken his hand right out of your grip but there was something about the way you only trusted him that made his usually icy heart melt just a little.

The journey back to the military base was short and silent and when you all got out of the car, you were immediately clinging to Jack once more as he led you into one of the offices where Jack’s arrival was expected. The moment Jack entered the room and stood in the middle of the office, you hid behind his legs, aware of all the eyes that were on you as the Colonel stood from his desk.

“Ladies, would you two take young…” The Colonel begins, gesturing loosely in your direction as he realised, he didn’t know your name.

“y/n.” Jack fills in the blank for him.

“y/n. Thank you, Reacher. Take y/n here and get her washed and a change of clothes while we discuss the operation if you, please.” The Colonel finishes, and as the two approach you, you shy away further behind Jack’s legs.

“Hey kid, you go ahead and go with them, okay? They’re just going to get you cleaned up. I’ll be here when you’re done.” Jack says down to you as your head pokes out from behind his legs, looking up at him before tentatively stepping out from behind his legs and letting the two women usher you away so Jack and the Colonel can talk. Jack goes into detail regarding the mission and how it was successful before the subject moves on to returning you to your family.

“She told me she doesn’t have any parents. I don’t know what happened to them, but it seems she’s been alone for a while.” Jack explains as the Colonel nods along to Jack’s words, brow furrowing in thought.

“Okay, I’ll call up Child Protective Services and I’m sure they’ll find a safe and stable home for her.” The Colonel states, reaching for his office phone just as Jack speaks up.

“Actually, Sir. I’d like to take care of her.” The words left his mouth with no hesitation which took the Colonel by surprise. Jack Reacher was never a man who had shown much care for those around him, but you had come along and showed a side of him no one had seen before.

“Are you sure, Reacher? With your lifestyle, she wouldn’t have a very stable life.” The Colonel says, hand hovering over the phone as he watches Jack carefully.

“I’m very sure.” Jack nods, and the Colonel mirrors his action, his hand withdrawing from the phone. Just as the Colonel backs away from the phone you come rushing back into the office, sporting new clothes and damp hair, greeting Jack happily as he crouches down to be at your level.

“I got a choice for you. The Colonel here can call some people who will help find you a nice home, or you could come with me. It’s up to you.” Jack offers up the two choices and you fall silent, eyebrows bunched up as you think.

“I wanna stay with you.” You finally state, grinning at Jack who nods, straightening up and allowing you to grab hold of his hand as he turns to look over at the Colonel.

“Thank you for your assistance, Reacher. Maybe I’ll see you again.” The Colonel says, dismissing the two of you and you leave the base, skipping happily alongside Jack. Jack takes you to grab a quick meal while telling you that you’re both going to get on a bus after and head someplace new which you were excited about. When you got to the bus station, Jack paid for the two tickets, and you boarded the bus. You immediately claimed the window seat and Jack took the aisle seat. But Jack didn’t mind one bit, being on the aisle seat meant he could protect you much easier.

When the bus first departed, you were happily whispering to Jack about how excited you were about everything but soon they were replaced with stifled yawns.

“How about you take a nap, kid? I’ll wake you up when we get there.” Jack says softly, taking his jacket off and draping it over you like a blanket as you curl into the jacket, eyes soon closing. With you soon asleep, Jack figures he should get in some sleep of his own and rests his head against the chair and lets his eyes close.

When he feels a small weight rest against his arm his eyes slowly peel open again, glancing down to see you slumped against his arm. With the corners of his mouth twitching up into the smallest of smiles, he carefully winds his arm around you, tucking you into his side as you curl further into him a sleepy smile covering your own face.

Maybe being a parent wasn’t out of his comfort zone after all.

[slvttyplum]

⋆˚✿˖° realistic headcanons

i know i joke a lot about who, when, and where when it comes to these men but i’m doing it for YOU and me too…

now it’s time for the real.

nanami

- his work is his work. you don’t come before or after it.

- he won’t leave early to surprise you, he won’t take a day off to be with you, he’s at work and he’s going to finish it.

- but at the same time hes not working overtime unless he HAS to.

- and that’s a given mama/papa.

- i guess what i’m trying to say is, when he’s at work you aren’t his first priority.

- sometimes he’s TOO serious, to the point where you feel as though you can’t say certain things around him.

- it hurts but you brush it off as stress, because he will sometimes joke back.

- sometimes the sex is lacking because of his schedule.

- sometimes he’s too tired to do it and sometimes he just doesn’t want to

- it can lead to weeks of no intimacy

- as always youre understanding, but you’re only human.

- if you’re okay with no consistent sex and you not being his first priority when it comes to his work, you’re good.

- (me and him would’ve had a talk tho lmao.)

satoru

- hes not fully there.

- you’ll be talking to him and he hears every third word. he doesn’t do it on purpose of course.

- whatever you say he has to dig apart because of his insecurities, even when you’re joking.

- some jokes you had to put in the vault because of how he reacted.

- for a lot of things he doesn’t know when to just stop, he thinks almost everyone is joking with him.

- when that’s simply not the case.

- i truly believe that in some moments in his mind, he automatically switches to sixteen year old satoru

- he’s very arrogant and thinks throwing tantrums will make him get him way

- you fall for it but only because you have no other choice

- has to prove EVERYTHING to you. even when you’re like satoru it’s fine

- he insists on tell you what’s right, what’s wrong, what’s left what’s right, and it hurts.

- he does things to undermine you; like you’re not as smart or strong as he is

- he won’t say it but he will throw hints at it.

- confronting him about this wouldn’t be a good idea because he’ll only throw it in your face later.

- dating him wouldn’t be bad if you like childish relationships.

suguru

- if he wants to do something or wants something he’s going to get it/do it whether you like it or not.

- you’re not a first priority for him and quite frankly… he doesn’t care.

- he believes that since you came into his life everything he says goes.

- when you try to argue back that a relationship takes compromise… he disregards it.

- he’s aware of any bad behavior he invokes and will go on to try to justify it and not fix it.

- very manipulative when it comes to you correcting his mistakes. will try to debate you about it and you’ll eventually leave it alone.

- claims everything he does is for you, but you don’t really see it. you think he says it to get you to leave him alone.

- when he has episodes he doesn’t want you around him, if he sees a glimpse of you it makes him upset.

- if you’re fine with following everything he says and not questioning him then you’ll be good.

choso

- emotionally unaware

- he’s not emotionally unstable but he does things that make you question him vice versa.

- the both of you are at the end of the same stick trying to get to the middle.

- he’s always worried about what you might think instead of himself and it gets in the way of a lot of things

- such a planning, his scheduling, work, etc.

- he’s more concerned about what you’re doing and not the nature of the relationship.

- he’s careless when it comes to himself and you don’t like it.

- a lot of texts and calls of when you’re coming home, did you eat, it becomes overbearing.

- then he distances himself for a while, causing a lot of confusion for yourself.

- he’s not as good as a communicator as he think he is

- thinks he told you about something but in actuality he never did. you’re both crossing on the same street but never seeing each other (metaphor)

- if you’re down with him being clueless, forgetful, and overbearing, he’s your guy.

toji

- he can’t and won’t ever see himself getting close/attached to you.

- it’s the cold truth and you realized that months after meeting him.

- at first he put on his semi nice guy facade but once he earned your trust he turned it off.

- he’s going to have you attached and will manipulate you every which way to get you there

- believes whatever he does is right and needs no correction. if he sees something he doesn’t like he’s going to do it another way.

- will lie just to get you off his back, he did it so many times you stopped asking him to do stuff because you’ll be going in circles.

- goes days without seeing/talking to you, and would go more if you didn’t create contact again.

- at the end of the day you’re just a person providing him with shelter/food, so he’ll do anything to keep that.

- but he gets bored

- if you don’t satisfy him and what HE wants he’ll just hop to the next person hoping they check off his boxes

- he’ll drag you along until you finally agree to do what he wants.

- if you’re fine with catering to a man who gets a job every eight months then i guess he’s good for you.

[i-cant-sing]

part two of yandere surgeon dabi gets jealous?

Yandere Surgeon Dabi gets jealous part 2

Part 1 can be found here.

So after Dabi finds out that you've got a brain tumor (and feeling immensely guilty for making you overwork because he wanted to "punish" you for making him "jealous", and then u ended up getting hurt), he's panicking as he calls his father, Enji Todoroki, the best oncologist in the country and also the owner of the hospital he worked at, telling him that he needs a favour.

Of course, Enji agrees to help and has Dabi send over your reports ASAP. Meanwhile Dabi is waiting in your room, holding your hand to keep himself from having a meltdown, occasionally yelling at a nurse for her incompetence whenever she came to check on you.

When you did wake up, you were surprised to see your boss by your side, eyebags under his red eyes (was he crying? Maybe.), hair dishevelled and hand still holding yours.

"Uh- Dr Dabi?" You called out, wary of him because of the disdain in his eyes (it wasn't disdain, he was mad.... at himself and at you for having this awful disease- he's just so scared, so he's masking it up by looking at you with disgust and rage).

He hesitantly dropped your hand, rubbing his eyes to relieve the itch (he didn't want you to see the tear escaping because of the news he was about to tell you) as he told you what happened.

"You... have a tumor in your brain." He said, watching your face go from surprise to disheartened to just... acceptance.

"Okay."

"Okay?"

You nodded. "Yeah. It is what it is."

It is so NOT what it is.

Dabi furrowed his brows. "I'll get this tumor out of you. You'll be fine. You don't need to worry about anything. You'll be under my care, I've already contacted Dr Enji Todoroki-"

"Your dad?! Whoa! He's like- the BEST oncologist!" He did not appreciate you being impressed by Enji. "I don't think I can even afford him-"

"I'm handling all your finances. I'll take care of everything."

"Oh no, you don't need to-"

"This isn't up for discussion. Like I said, I'm taking care of it all." He snapped, before leaving the room, mumbling about getting you something to eat.

Following days that you were awake, Dabi showed you a side of his that he only ever reserved for his pediatric patients.

He was caring.

Okay he was caring towards you. To everyone else, he was insufferable. While he would help you sit up and sip some water, he'd go out and yell at the nurse for bringing you water that was a degree too cold. He fluffed up your pillows but would snarl at the nurses for not bringing you extra pillows. He'd spoon feed you meals but he almost beat up the cafeteria cook for making the absolute bland, zero nutrition food.

Dabi was stressing and de-stressing simultaneously. While he was calm and patient towards you, he was just panicking on the inside about your tumor, so he'd go hard on the hospital staff to blow off some steam. But you get the better end of the deal, you get princess treatment (that is totally not based on him trying to rid himself of guilt)

Anyways, just a few days later, Enji has come to your room to introduce himself as the lead doctor for your case, and that he was gonna do his best to remove the tumor.

"You will need surgery. Dabi, can you prepare OR 2 for 4pm today-"

"S-surgery?" You asked.

Enji and Dabi looked at each other, then back at you as they nodded.

"Yes. Um, do you have any concerns?"

You remained quite, fumbling with your thumbs. You don't wanna sound stupid in front of such an amazing surgeon.

"Y/n?" Dabi walked closer to you. "What is it?" He demanded softly.

"I-I don't want to sound ungrateful or undermine you, but I've been studying my case as well and well- what are the risks?" You asked nervously, afraid of offending either of them.

Enji smiled. "No, it's my mistake for not explaining earlier. I just thought Dabi had already informed you." He looked at his son but Dabi didn't meet his eyes. "Well, to answer you question- there are chances of amnesia and paralysis. But I can assure you-"

"What are the chances? Percentage?"You asked, throat closing up.

"70%." Oh no. "But 30% is more than enough-"

"Not for me." You mumbled. "There is- there is an option for chemo and radiotherapy, right? They have far lower risks for the complications you mentioned, right?"

Enji nodded. "Yes, but I would highly recommend you go for surgery-"

"No. Chemo and radio."

"Y/n-" Dabi called out to you. "-the tumor can be removed now. With chemo and radio, it's not confirmed if we'll be able to get rid of the tumor then. I'm scheduling you for surgery-"

"No! I said- no surgery. And that's my final decision." You huffed out, and Dabi glared at you. Enji excused himself, clearly you two needed to talk this out.

"You're a doctor- a surgeon! I don't understand why you're not opting for surgery-"

"The risk is too high!"

Dabi scoffed. "There's a 30% chance none of that will happen! We've been doing surgeries when there were less than 10% chances of survival!"

"I- I just can't take the risk, Dr Dabi. Its just too high for me." You said, eyes starting to tear up.

Dabi sighed before sitting on the chair next to your bed. "Look, I understand that you're scared but I guarantee you, none of those complications will happen. I'll be operating with Dr Enji. Don't you have faith in me?"

"I do. I know that you and Dr Enji are both- extremely skilled doctors but I just- I can't risk those complications."

Dabi furrowed his brows, losing his patience. "So what? You'd rather lose your life than have to live with amnesia? Partial paralysis? Are you stupid? You'd much rather die than be alive with complications?"

"Yes." You replied, tears falling down your face. "Yes. Is that what you wanted to hear?"

"Y/n-"

"My mother had Alzheimers." You whispered. "I had seen what it did to her, how the disease slowly enveloped her until she was nothing but a shell. She is- she couldn't even recognise herself in the mirror one day. And it's just- it's so fucking unfair. For all the sacrifices she made, for all the good times she worked so hard for, all of it went down the drain in an instant. She has no memories of any achievement, she doesn't remember marrying my father, having kids, anything. She doesn't even remember what her favourite color was, what her favourite band was- nothing. And it's all- it affected everyone of us. My father- he died. He loved her so much but my mother would panic everytime she saw him and didn't recognise him, screaming bloody murder that there was a stranger in her bed. And then one day, she- she just killed him. Just picked up a knife and stabbed the stranger standing in the kitchen. She killed her husband because she couldn't recognise him. A few months later, she died as well."

Dabi's heart sunk. You'd never opened up to him like this before, and why would you? It's Dabi who imagines you two are way closer than just on a professional level, something more than colleagues.

He swallowed as he chose his next words carefully. "I'm sorry to hear that, Y/n. However, I still insist that you get the surgery. What happened with your mother, will not happen to you. I will make sure-"

"You don't understand." You closes your eyes, brows furrowing in frustration. "I cannot afford to take that risk-"

"And why the hell not?!" He finally snapped. He's been way too patient with you but you keep pushing him.

You looked at him, shock evident on your face before you composed yourself.

"I have people dependent on me. My little brother, he'd been the most affected by my parents deaths. If I were to go through the same things as them, he'd- he'd lose it. Id rather die than to have him witness yet another family member succumb to this, and worse- wonder if he'll get this disease too." You grabbed his hand, and Dabi's eyes softened ever so slightly (though his brows were still knit together in frustration). "I don't expect you to understand or sympathise with me, but I do have memories that are far too precious. I cant lose them. And I can't have amnesia, or paralysis or anything physically limiting because I'd rather not be a burden on my brother... or anyone."

Dabi shook his head, his hand squeezing yours in affirmation. "You wouldn't be a burden, not to me. I'd take care of you, I'd take care of everything. Your brother wouldn't need to know about anything. I'd just- I'd take care of it, okay?"

You smiled sadly, before pulling your hand away. "That's very kind of you, Dr Dabi but... my decision is final. No surgery."

Dabi left your room, opting to release his anger on some new interns than blow up on you. Why are you making everything so fucking complicated?

By evening, he's calmed down and he swings by your room to check in on you, heart turning to mush as he caught you asleep. You're a lot less mad to get at when you're asleep because you don't say hurtful things like the one where you insist on endangering yourself.

And for who? Your brother? This right here- the fact that you always put everyone's need above yours is the only flaw that you have. That and you're stubbornness.

"My decision is final. No surgery."

Dabi hopes it's just the brain tumor impairing your decision making, because there's no way he's just gonna allow you to throw your life away for no reason.

The next morning, you were greeted by... Doctor Keigo Tamaki.

A psychiatrist.

Also, Dabi's best friend. (Dr Keigo claims this, Dabi doesn't.)

Apparently, Dabi sent Keigo to talk some sense into you and convince you for surgery because Keigo claims he's been told that you've been showing... "suicidal behaviour". So, Dabi wanted you to get some "much needed" therapy.

You chuckled, because clearly this is a joke. I mean, you know how Dabi is. He may have a cold hard, stick-up-his-ass exterior, but deep down you know he cares about everyone, especially his patients. And you're his patient too, so it makes sense.

Dabi continued to take care of you, monitoring your meds and still doing daily reports on the tumor to see its progression, all while trying to provide you some emotional support. But it seemed like rather he was the one in need of emotional support from you, as you continued to affirm him that you will get better one day, that you do feel better every day.

And as much as he wouldn't like to admit that you were right, the chemotherapy was indeed working. You were doing better than before.

Maybe this was one of the times Dabi didn't mind being wrong.

He smiled softly as he watched you sitting on the bed, talking animatedly with Keigo and the nurse, Dabi pretending to read your reports over for the 10th time, like he wasn't just listening to you crack the most unfunny joke.

As if Dabi wasn't smiling from ear to ear.

"Y/n? Oh- what's that?" The worry in Keigo's voice had Dabi whipping his head towards you, eyes widening at the streak of blood dripping down from your nose. Dabi yelling at the nurse to pass you the tissues before he snatched the box from her and pulled out a few tissues, bringing them to your nose and tilting your head back.

You looked at him in confusion, Dabi's face barely masking the panic as blood started pouring out of your left eye, and then the right one.

"D-dabi?" You whispered, before your eyes rolled back as seizures took over your entire body, violently jerking as Dabi began screaming orders at the nurses, snatching the anti epileptic injection and injecting you immeadiately while Keigo made sure your seizures didn't end up harming you.

The drug worked and you were sedated, Dabi's mind going at a million miles per hour as he tried to process what just happened when Keigo's voice brought him back.

"Dabi. Look." He followed Keigo's gaze towards your lower abdomen, heart stopping as he saw a giant blood spot around your crotch area. Pulling away the sheets, he saw the bloody mess and the two men shared a look before beginning to reel you towards the radiology to get a brain scan, and send blood samples to lab.

When you woke up a few hours later, Dabi was sitting in your dimly lit room, eyes red and furious and just so... tired.

With bleary eyes, you asked him. "What happened?"

Dabi just glared at you, and he looked like he was just barely containing his rage, thinking of his choice of words carefully.

"You-" Dabi pursed his lips, before breathing deeply to calm himself. "-You need the surgery."

You sighed. "We've been over this already-" but Dabi slammed the reports on the overbed table, standing up and pacing around the room as he waited for you to read them over.

As you pulled out the brain scans, you immediately recognised the problem-

"The tumor hasn't shrunk." Dabi said, still pacing.

"Well, it has shrunk a bit-"

"It isn't shrinking fast enough!" Dabi snapped. "The chemo isn't working fast enough and the side effects of those drugs are making you sicker!"

You shrugged. "Well, those effects were expected-"

"No, I didn't expect you to fucking seize and bleed through almost every hole in your body!" Dabi yelled, eyes shooting daggers at you. You remained quiet as he continued to pace around your room, running a hand through his hair frustratedly as he continued to list how every single worst side effect could possibly start to appear in your body if you do not get surgery.

"I'm booking the OR tomorrow. You'll get the surgery at 9 am-"

"No. I- I am not consenting to this surgery-"

"Did you not just hear what I said? You could die-"

"Possibly die. Possibly bleed to death. Possibly. Possibly. I'm fine with taking my chances. And it's no news to either of us that chemo is causing my health to deteriorate a bit because it usually gets worse before it gets better!" You explained.

"Y/n-"

"No. Surgery. I'm not consenting."

Dabi stormed out of your room, slamming the door on his way out, spooking the nurses enough for them to get out of his way.

Dabi continued to walk, a murderous expression on his face as he reached the OR duty board to look at the surgeries he was scheduled for tomorrow.

Why do you have to be so fucking difficult?

Don't you understand that just because you want to take risk the possibilities doesn't mean he want to as well?

That he can't risk the possibility of your dying?

"And I won't." He picked up the eraser and cleared out the whole board before beginning to reschedule all surgeries, writing your name on the very top, along with his father's.

You're getting that surgery, one way or another.

He called his father to tell him that he's scheduled to operate on you tomorrow, before calling Keigo.

-

The next time you woke up, your room was still dimly lit. Your body felt weaker than before, arms heavy as you realised its hard to move any of your limbs.

Was this yet another effect of chemotherapy? Or just the brain tumor doing its horrors.

Your mind flashed back to your conversation with Dr Dabi. A part of you wondered if you should just give in and get the surgery. Maybe- maybe your brother will understand-

No. You can't. You can't take the chance.

Just then, Dabi walked in, looking slightly surprised that you're conscious.

"You're awake." You opened your mouth to reply but found it hard to do so, your entire mouth felt like cotton.

As if sensing, Dabi walked closer, placing a hand on your shoulder. "Its okay, its just the anesthesia wearing off. You don't need to talk, just rest."

Anesthesia?

The confusion in your eyes must've been prominent as Dabi made an "Ah!" sound.

"Anesthesia... fron your surgery. This morning." But I didnt consent. "I know you didn't consent, but it's alright. Dr Keigo said that after his thorough evaluation, he deemed you unable to take care of yourself and make good decisions. Health related decisions. So, we decided to sign you up for surgery."

Surgery? What surger-

Even in your drug induced state, your mind was able to answer your own question. And knowing that Dabi was well aware that you never consented to it, that he just violated your autonomy-

Dabi sighed softly as he wiped the tears that slipped down your cheeks. "Y/n- Y/n, come on, now. Stop crying. The surgery went well, nothing happened to you. Dad- Dr Enji was able to remove the tumor with ease, and I was right there with you the whole time. I wouldn't have allowed any mistakes, not even from my own father." He lowered himself until his face was just a few inches away from yours. "I was right, wasn't I? About the surgery being a success, about no complications occuring. So, come on now. Stop crying. This was for your own good. And I will continue to make better decisions for you, until you can start making them for yourself again, okay?" Very daringly, Dabi raised his hand to your face to tuck away some strands of your hair behind your ear.

If you weren't so shocked, you may have recognised the silent "I love you" in all these actions.

[inkblot-inc]

The Bigger Picture

Summary: See what happens when you undermine your boss AKA the one who's paying your bills...

Pairing: ???Wanda Maximoff x Hyena!Mutant!Reader

[S.S AU Masterlist]

Warning(s): This is an 18+ AU so MINORS DNI. Also Dark Themes in general. There's smut in the first half of this one: strap-on usage (r giving) oral sex (Wanda recieving). There's some pretty crass language as per usual on my end, I can’t think of much else but let me know.

Note(s): I present another the start of another AU, ladies and gentlefriends! Where did it come from? The deep reaches of my MIND not all that deep really, I just can't stop my brain from scratching like an addict- but it's pretty decent for fall/spoopy season I think. I hope y'all enjoy :3

Word Count: Just a bit shy of 2.1k

*squints* I give NO ONE permission to repost or translate my work. Make your own shit!

You remember seeing the world through younger eyes. The scene around you is blurry and out of focus with only the barest hint of awareness of tears running down your face. The only thing you can make out is a man’s back, his imposing stature, his cropped hair, and how his figure seems to get smaller and smaller as he walks away from you. His apathy is the clearest; his steps never falter, not does her look back at you. You feel like an outside viewer as you watch a hand, your hand, continue to reach for him. You fight in another person’s grip as you're being dragged away.

“Baba please! Help me, I don’t wanna go!”

The lack of response through the high winds only made your yelling feel louder before your vision was then blocked by a hood over your face. Even if you couldn’t identify with the anguish anymore it still hissed at your nerves, grasping and pulling at you like a desperate whore for your attention…

The continued thump, thump, thumping sound throughout the room brought you back into the moment as you continued pounding the woman beneath you into the velvety couch cushions beneath. The woman’s wavy red hair splayed out and her nails digging into your shoulders as she let her moans fall from her mouth in an unending stream.

She gave a shout as she hit her orgasm and you watched her green eyes glaze over as she gave you a hazy smile, you returned a smaller one of your own. One of her hands slid up your chest to caress your throat, fingers running over the scarring coating the entirety of it.

Her eyes scanned yours in open concern. “Is everything okay? Where did you go just now?”

You merely squinted, “old-times...’s still loud.” Your voice came out gravely and with a creek.

With your thumb caressing her waist, you leaned back to sit upright before using a hand to move her half-unbuttoned blouse further down her arms. With more of the redhead's skin exposed and your head still swimming, you went back in to leave kisses ranging from her neck, down to her collarbone, and even further to the valley of her breasts. You felt the woman's hand take the back of your neck to have you take one of the mounds in your mouth.

The hand you had resting on the woman's waist moved to squeeze her thigh while you eased your strap out of her with a few more slow strokes. You released her flushed nipple with a small plop, your saliva slightly glistening in the light of the office space before you slid off of the couch to the floor.

Getting to a kneel, you keep your gaze on the eyes of the woman in front of you while reaching down by her ankles and fully removing her already ruined panties.

A glint sparks in your eyes as you stare at her still dripping pussy. You lick a stripe up her entrance before lightly sucking on her clit, causing the woman above you to jolt with a gasp.

The woman watches you go back to eating her out with a small crackling chuckle. "You love this, don't you?"

You only look up to meet her eyes, your mouth still working on her. You blink slowly before doubling your efforts on her pussy.

Her head falls back as she continues to buck into your mouth. "Yesyesyes, hah, just like that baby," She isn't especially loud, but the pleading laced in her voice is what drives you to your own brink.

You sink into the moans that come from her lips, soon turning into breathless whimpers as she brings your head impossibly closer to her heat. As ribbons of red made their way into your ears, you let her fog invade your mind and take over.

Everything else melted away into oblivion. You were older now as you watched the tattered dirt path become peaceful grasses, the people became well-rooted trees in full bloom. Armored cars and loaded rifles dissipated into mere accents of a pleasant scene. And at the center of it all, was the same woman as now. her velvet greens staring back at you with a warmth that could make the Niganda sun seem cold.

The redhead's grip tightened in your hair as her movements became more erratic against your face. You brought a hand up to play with her clit and work to bring her over the edge again.

Things were much simpler this way. No confusing flashes of people you don’t remember, no random jolts of phantom pain. You were sure to live in the moment, and your most recent memories didn’t hurt you to think about and when the details became fuzzy you almost missed them.

Your head rested on her inner thigh after you helped her ride out her high. Her finger rubbed just beneath your eye as your eyes locked, reveling in each other. "There you are, right here with me."

And it was all because of her. Wanda.

Wanda held your chin in her hand before she swiped her thumb over your bottom lip and tasted herself. Even with a fresh afterglow setting in, the fire in her eyes never abated. Wanda's power was always there.

That same energy that let her linger in your mind and relieve you of that lost momentum and gave you stability to latch for. You’d do anything to keep that. You’d do anything to keep Wanda.

As you helped her get her panties and skirt back on and make sure the back of her skirt was the front again, your mind was calm at a gentle hum, distant screams of the past going ignored as you helped fix up the couch of her associate’s office.

----------

Wanda’s mood had noticeably soured since you’d had your fill of each other. Her face had become a mask of neutrality with traces of agitation she just couldn’t seem to remove as she flipped through the papers settled on the desk. It was less decorated than her own; she’d hardly spared a glance at the few picture frames placed on top of the hardwood either. She didn’t want to see more than she’d had to for the day.

Standing up from the leather couch settled on the side of the room, you wandered around the rather plain space aimlessly, looking at the fully stacked bookshelves, more than half the titles going over your head with disinterest. Settling by where Wanda was seated, you faced the door as you heard incoming noise before the doorknob could even jostle.

Murky blue eyes startled as he caught sight of the two of you in his office. The older man wheeled himself further into his office before having the door shut behind him. Your eyes stayed on him, unwavering. “Wanda, to what do I owe this unexpected visit? I was called out of a very important-”

“What the hell do you think you’re doing? Better yet, who do you think you are, Xavier?” Wanda wasn’t interested in wasting time with false pleasantries.

“What exactly are you referring to, Wanda? I’ve done nothing but do as you’ve asked.” Wanda carefully kept her face blank as she observed the bald man.

“Keeping a wire on not only my vehicles, but my associates’ as well. Getting your grunts to try and tap my phone calls. They’ve gotten especially sloppy within the past few weeks, by the way. You should talk with Scott about that. All this to gain the favor of one Mr. William Stryker,” She placed the photos one of her skulkers took from their meeting a few nights ago on the table.

“Is that exact enough for you, Charles?”

You watch the man’s shoulders tense, a crease forming in his brow. You can clearly smell his nerves building while Wanda is still deathly calm. Her hands stay steepled in front of her face by her mouth, her eyes squint every now and then as she continues to observe the man.

“I've only given false information I assure you-”

“I know it is, because I basically spoon fed it to you and your men. You know nothing I don't want you to EVEN with you haphazardly bugging my house. Now, what I want to know is how you didn’t think I’d catch on. Do you think I’m stupid, Charles?” There is a noticeable edge in her voice now and the hairs on the back of your neck began to bristle, reacting to her aggravation.

Charles spoke up quickly “It was a part of the plan to have eyes in higher places, for the sake of all mutants, Wanda!”

The accent of her voice grew thick as her tone dropped lower. “Do not try to insult my intelligence, old man. You’ve done things here and there to try and undermine my headship when you think I won’t notice, but you will not pull this. Stryker is a sad little leech who wants to eliminate us all and has no qualms about being vocal about it. You want to try and make nice, fondle the balls of a man who wouldn’t bat an eye to exterminate mutants? You simply won’t be classified among us.”

As Wanda spoke those last few words, you watched as a familiar red aura surrounded Charles, her eyes glowing bright as Charles howled in pain as a pale blue aura rose out of his body where he sat. You almost thought Wanda was going to kill him then and there before his screams settled down.

Charles was breathing heavily, his form hunched over in his chair before his eyes widened with realization. “My powers…”

“You wanted to appease the mortal man, now you can live and die counted as one of them. Your bootlicking wife will be too once my people find her.”

“Hee-he-hick,” A feral giggle erupted from your mouth as you watched him carry on belligerently.

“You leave Moira out of this! we’ve done nothing but look out for you, Wanda! Your father would-”

“What did I say about insulting my intelligence? You and my father were at odds throughout his entire headship. You know nothing of what he would do nor what he would want.”

She slid more photos onto the table, the other man in them tickled something in your throat as recognition passed through you.

Wanda tapped on the man's face with her pointer finger, "This man. Tell me where he is."

Charles peered over to look at the photo, his nerves a bit all over the place. "Pierce? I've no idea Wanda, he's been gone for days now. You have to believe me,"

Wanda tutted her tongue as she brought her hands back in front of her. "I don't have to do anything, but I do believe you. Unfortunately for you that makes you completely useless to me, Charles." She pursed her lips in a faux pout.

You could almost see the man shaking in his chair as he went on indignantly. You wound up tuning him out as he kept going on about loyalty and nonsense.

‘Do I kill him now?’

Wanda reached back for your neck, running her thumb over the scarring over your throat. “We’re just about done here, but Charles can see himself out, I believe.”

Charles couldn’t even properly understand what was going on right away because, one: He was in the middle of explaining how the original members of the syndicate needed to stick together, and two: He can’t read minds anymore. I mean, what’s he going to do now?

“You can go see if the college across town has any openings, but you’ve been relieved of your position with Maximoff Unlimited as well as the Scarlet Syndicate which will be vacant as of today, effective immediately. Now you can roll yourself out of this office, or I can have Y/n here escort you out. They don't seem too keen on being delicate with you.”

You tilted your head as a choppy rumble passed your lips. The prospect of handling the man yourself was very appealing right now. Charles likely recognized this as he made his way to the door himself. Red mist opens the door for him.

“Smart choice. So you do have some sense left. Oh, and Charles?”

The man stopped in the doorway, but didn't turn to look at Wanda.

“The next time you try to throw me or my company under the bus, remember who put you in that wheelchair.”

[mariacallous]

If Benjamin Netanyahu had accepted defeat in June 2021, finally yielding the stage to a coalition of his opponents, he could have retired at the age of 71 with a decent claim to having been one of Israel’s more successful prime ministers.

He had already surpassed the time in office of Israel’s founder, David Ben-Gurion, becoming the country’s longest-serving prime minister in 2019. His second stretch in office, from 2009 to 2021, coincided with perhaps the best 12 years Israel had known since its founding in 1948. The country enjoyed relative security, with no major wars or prolonged Intifadas. The period was one of uninterrupted economic growth and prosperity. Thanks to its early adoption of widespread vaccination, Israel was one of the first countries in the world to emerge from the coronavirus pandemic. And toward the end of that span came three agreements establishing diplomatic relations with Arab countries; more were likely on the way.

Twelve years of Netanyahu’s leadership had seemingly made Israel more secure and prosperous, with deep trade and defense ties across the world. But this wasn’t enough to win him another term. A majority of Israelis had tired of him, and he had been tainted by charges of bribery and fraud in his dealings with billionaires and press barons. In the space of 24 months, Israel held four elections ending in stalemate, with neither Netanyahu nor his rivals winning a majority. Finally, an unlikely alliance of right-wing, centrist, left-wing, and Islamist parties managed to band together and replace him with his former aide Naftali Bennett in June 2021.

At that point, Netanyahu could have sealed his legacy. A plea bargain on offer from the attorney general would have ended his corruption trial with a conviction on reduced charges and no jail time. He would have had to leave politics, probably for good. Over the course of four decades in public life, including 15 years as prime minister and 22 as the Likud party’s leader, he had already left an indelible mark on Israel, dominating the second half of its history. But he couldn’t bear the thought of giving up power.

Within 18 months, he was back as prime minister for the third time. The unwieldy coalition that replaced him had imploded, and this time around, Netanyahu’s camp of far-right and religious parties ran a disciplined campaign, exploiting the weaknesses of their divided rivals to emerge with a small parliamentary majority, despite still being virtually tied in the vote count.

Nine months later, Netanyahu, the man who promised, above everything else, to deliver security for Israel’s citizens, presided over the darkest day in his country’s existence. A total breakdown of the Israeli military and intelligence structure allowed Hamas to breach Israel’s border and embark on a rampage of murder, kidnapping, and rape, killing more than 1,100 Israelis and taking more than 250 hostage. The calamities of that day, the failures of leadership leading up to it, and the traumas it caused will haunt Israel for generations. Even leaving completely aside the war he has prosecuted since that day and its yet-unknown end, October 7 means that Netanyahu will always be remembered as Israel’s worst-ever leader.

How does one measure a prime minister?

There is no broadly accepted ranking of the 13 men and one woman who have led Israel, but most lists would feature David Ben-Gurion at the top. Not only was he the George Washington of the Jewish state, proclaiming its independence just three years after a third of the Jewish people had been exterminated in the Holocaust, but his administration established many of the institutions and policies that define Israel to this day. Other favorites include Levi Eshkol, for his shrewd and prudent leadership in the tense weeks before the Six Day War, and Menachem Begin, for achieving the country’s first peace agreement with an Arab nation, Egypt.

All three of these men had mixed records and detractors, of course. Ben-Gurion had autocratic tendencies and was consumed by party infighting during his later years in office. After the Six Day War, Eshkol failed to deliver a coherent plan for what Israel should do with the new territories it occupied and the Palestinians who have remained under its rule ever since. In Begin’s second term, Israel entered a disastrous war in Lebanon, and his government nearly tanked the economy. But in most Israelis’ minds, these leaders’ positive legacies outweigh the negatives.

Who are the “worst prime ministers”? Until now, most Israelis regarded Golda Meir as the top candidate for that dismal title. The intelligence failure leading to the Yom Kippur War was on her watch. Before the war, she rejected Egyptian overtures toward peace (though some Israeli historians have recently argued that these were less than sincere). And when war was clearly imminent, her administration refrained from launching preemptive attacks that could have saved the lives of hundreds of soldiers.

Other “worst” candidates have included Ehud Olmert, for launching the second Lebanon war and becoming Israel’s first former prime minister to go to prison for corruption; Yitzhak Shamir, for kiboshing an agreement with Jordan’s King Hussein that many believe could have been a significant step toward resolving the Israel-Palestinian conflict; and Ehud Barak, for spectacularly failing to fulfill his extravagant promises to bring peace with both the Palestinians and Syria.

But Benjamin Netanyahu now surpasses these contenders by orders of magnitude. He has brought far-right extremists into the mainstream of government and made himself, and the country, beholden to them. His corruption is flamboyant. And he has made terrible security decisions that brought existential danger to the country he pledged to lead and protect. Above all, his selfishness is without parallel: He has put his own interests ahead of Israel’s at every turn.

Netanyahu has the distinction of being the only Israeli prime minister to make a once reviled movement on the right fringe of the country’s politics into a government stakeholder.

Rabbi Meir Kahane, the founder of a Jewish-supremacist group called Kach, won a lone seat in the Knesset in 1984. He openly called for replacing Israeli democracy with a constitution based on the laws of the Torah and for denying Israel’s Arab citizens equal rights. During Kahane’s single legislative term, the entire Israeli political establishment shunned him. When he got up to speak in the Knesset, all of its members would leave the plenum.

In 1985, Likud joined other parties in changing election law so that those who denied Israel’s democratic identity, denied its Jewish identity, or incited racism could be barred from running for office. Under this provision, Kach was never allowed to compete in another election. Kahane was assassinated in New York in 1990. Four years later, a member of his movement killed 29 Muslims at prayer in Hebron, and the Israeli government proscribed Kach as a terror organization and forced it to disband.

But the Kahanists didn’t go away. With each Israeli election, they tried to rename their movement and adjust its platform to conform with electoral law. They remained ostracized. Then, in 2019, Netanyahu saw a roadblock on his path to reelection that they could help him get around.

Several Israeli parties had pledged not to serve in a government led by an indicted prime minister—quite possibly, enough of them to shut Netanyahu out of power. To prevent that from happening, Netanyahu needed to eke out every possible right-wing and religious vote for his potential coalition. The polls were predicting that the latest Kahanist iteration, the Jewish Power party, which is led by the thuggish but media-savvy Itamar Ben-Gvir, would receive only about 10,000 votes, well below the threshold needed to make the party a player on its own; but Netanyahu believed that if he could persuade the Kahanists and other small right-wing parties to merge their candidates’ lists into a joint slate, together they could win a seat or two for his potential coalition—just what he needed for a majority.

Netanyahu began pressuring the leaders of the small right-wing parties to merge their lists. At first the larger of these were outraged. Netanyahu was meddling in their affairs and, worse, trying to coerce them to accept the Kahanist outcasts. Gradually, he wore down their resistance—employing rabbis to persuade politicians, orchestrating media campaigns in the nationalist press, and promising central roles in future administrations. Media figures close to Netanyahu accused Bezalel Smotrich, a fundamentalist settler and the new leader of the religious Zionist party, of “endangering” the nation by making it easier for the hated left to win the election. Soon enough, Smotrich’s old-school national-religious party merged not only with Ben-Gvir’s Jewish Power but with an even more obscure, proudly homophobic party led by Avi Maoz.

Netanyahu did worry a bit about the optics. Throughout five stalemated election campaigns from 2019 to 2022, Likud coordinated closely with Jewish Power, but Netanyahu refused to be seen in public with Ben-Gvir. During the 2022 campaign, at a religious festival, he even waited backstage for Ben-Gvir to leave the premises before going up to make his speech.

Two weeks later, there was no longer any need to keep up the act. Netanyahu’s strategy succeeded: His coalition, merged into four lists, edged out its squabbling opponents with 64 of the Knesset’s 120 seats.

Netanyahu finally had the “right-wing in full” government he had often promised. But before he could return to the prime minister’s office, his allies demanded a division of the spoils. The ministries with the most influence on Israelis’ daily lives—health, housing, social services, and the interior—went to the ultra-Orthodox parties. Smotrich became finance minister; Maoz was appointed deputy minister in charge of a new “Agency for Jewish Identity,” with power to intervene in educational programs. And Ben-Gvir, the subject of numerous police investigations for violence and incitement over a period of three decades, was put in charge of a newly titled “Ministry of National Security,” with authority over Israel’s police and prison services.

As Netanyahu signed away power to the Kahanists, he told the international news media that he wasn’t forming a far-right government. The Kahanists were joining his government. He would be in control. But Netanyahu hadn’t just given Israel’s most extreme racists unprecedented power and legitimacy. He’d also insinuated them into his own formerly mainstream party: By March 2024, Likud’s candidates for local elections in a handful of towns had merged their slates with those of Jewish Power.

Likud long prided itself on combining staunch Jewish nationalism, even militarism, with a commitment to liberal democracy. But a more radical stream within the party eschewed those liberal values and championed chauvinistic and autocratic positions. For much of the past century, the liberal wing was dominant and provided most of the party’s leadership. Netanyahu himself espoused the values of the liberal wing—until he fell out with all the main liberal figures. By 2019, none was left to oppose the alliance with Ben-Gvir’s Kahanists.

Now more than a third of Likud’s representatives were religious, and those who weren’t preferred to call themselves “traditional” rather than secular. They didn’t object to cooperating with the Kahanists; indeed, many had already worked with them in the past. In fact, many Likud Knesset members by that point were indistinguishable from the Jewish Power ones. Israel’s worst prime minister didn’t just form an alliance of convenience with the country’s most irresponsible extremists; he made them integral to his party and the running of the state.

That Netanyahu is personally corrupt is not altogether novel in the history of the Israeli prime ministership. What makes him worse than others is his open contempt for the rule of law.

By 2018, Netanyahu was the subject of four simultaneous corruption investigations that had been in motion for more than a year. In one, known as Case 4000, Netanyahu stood accused of promising regulatory favors to the owner of Israel’s largest telecom corporation in return for favorable coverage on a popular news site. Three of the prime minister’s closest advisers had agreed to testify against him.

Investigations of prime ministers are not rare in Israel. Netanyahu was the subject of one during his first term. The three prime ministers who served in the decade between his first and second terms—Ehud Barak, Ariel Sharon, and Ehud Olmert—had all been investigated as well. Only in Olmert’s case did police deem the evidence sufficient to mount a prosecution. At the time, in 2008, Netanyahu was the leader of the opposition.

“We’re talking about a prime minister who is up to his neck in investigations and has no public or moral mandate to make fateful decisions for Israel,” Netanyahu said of Olmert. “There is a concern, I have to say real, not without basis, that he will make decisions based on his personal interest of political survival and not on the national interest.”

Ten years later, Netanyahu would be the one snared in multiple investigations. Then he no longer spoke of corruption in high office but of a “witch hunt,” orchestrated by rogue police commanders and left-wing state prosecutors, and egged on by a hostile news media, all with the aim of toppling a right-wing leader.

Netanyahu was determined to politicize the legal procedure and pit his supporters against Israel’s law-enforcement agencies and judiciary. Never mind that the two previous prime ministers who had resigned because of corruption charges were from the center left. Nor did it matter that he had appointed the police commissioner and attorney general himself; both were deeply religious men with impeccable nationalist backgrounds, but he tarred them as perfidious tools of leftist conspiracy.

Rather than contemplate resignation, on May 24, 2020, Netanyahu became the first sitting Israeli prime minister to go on trial. He has denied all wrongdoing (the trial is still under way). In a courthouse corridor before one session, he gave a 15-minute televised speech accusing the legal establishment of “trying to topple me and the right-wing government. For over a decade, the left wing have failed to do this at the ballot box, and in recent years have come up with a new idea. Elements in the police and prosecutor’s office have joined left-wing journalists to concoct delusional charges.”

The law didn’t require Netanyahu to resign while fighting the charges against him in court. But doing so had seemed logical to his predecessors under similar circumstances—and to Israel’s lawmakers, who had never envisaged that a prime minister would so brazenly challenge the justice system, which he had a duty to uphold. For Netanyahu, however, remaining in power was an end in itself, one more important than preserving Israel’s most crucial institutions, to say nothing of Israelis’ trust in them.

Netanyahu placed extremists in positions of power, undermined confidence in the rule of law, and sacrificed principle to power. Little wonder, then, that last summer, tensions over the role of Israel’s judiciary became unmanageable. The crisis underlined all of these reasons that Netanyahu should go down as Israel’s worst prime minister.

For 34 of the past 47 years, Israel’s prime ministers have come from the Likud party. And yet many on the right still grumble that “Likud doesn’t know how to rule” and “you vote right and get left.” Likudniks complain about the lingering power of “the elites,” a left-wing minority that loses at the ballot box but still controls the civil service, the upper echelons of the security establishment, the universities, and the media. A growing anti-judicial wing within Likud demands constitutional change and a clamping-down on the supreme court’s “judicial activism.”

Netanyahu had once minimized these complaints, but his stance on the judiciary changed after he was indicted in 2019. Indeed, at the start of his current term, Likud’s partners demanded commitments to constitutional change, which they received. The ultra-Orthodox parties were anxious to pass a law exempting religious seminary students from military service. Such exemptions had already fallen afoul of the supreme court’s equality standards, so the religious parties wanted the law to include a “court bypass.” Netanyahu acceded to this. To pass the legislation in the Knesset, he appointed Simcha Rothman, a staunch critic of the court, as the chair of the Knesset’s Constitution Committee.

He also appointed Yariv Levin, another fierce critic of the court, as justice minister. Just six days after the new government was sworn in, Levin rolled out a “judicial reform” plan, prepared by a conservative think tank, that called for drastically limiting the court’s powers to review legislation and gave politicians control over the appointment of new justices.

Within days, an extremely efficient counter-campaign pointed out the dangers the plan posed, not just to Israel’s fragile and limited democracy, but to its economy and security. Hundreds of thousands of Israelis protested in the streets. Likud began to drop in the polls, and Netanyahu privately urged the leaders of the coalition parties to delay the vote. They refused to back down, and Levin threatened to resign over any delay.

Netanyahu’s motives, unlike those of his partners, were not ideological. His objective was political survival. He needed to keep his hard-won majority intact and the judges off-balance. But the protests were unrelenting. Netanyahu’s independent-minded defense minister, Yoav Gallant, pointed to the controversy’s dire implications for the Israel Defense Forces as hundreds of volunteer reserve officers threatened to suspend their service rather than “serve a dictatorship.”

Netanyahu wasn’t sure he wanted to go through with the judicial coup, but the idea of one of Likud’s senior ministers breaking ranks in public was unthinkable. On March 25 of last year, Gallant made a public statement that the constitutional legislation was a “clear and major threat to the security of Israel” and he would not be voting for it. The next evening, Netanyahu announced that he was firing Gallant.

In Jerusalem, protesters besieged Netanyahu’s home. In Tel Aviv, they blocked main highways. The next morning, the trade unions announced a general strike, and by that evening, Netanyahu backed down, announcing that he was suspending the legislation and would hold talks with the opposition on finding compromises. Gallant kept his post. The talks collapsed, protests started up again, and Netanyahu once again refused to listen to the warnings coming from the security establishment—not only of anger within the IDF, but that Israel’s enemies were planning to take advantage of the country’s disunity to launch an attack.

The debate over judicial reform pitted two visions of Israel against each other. On one side was a liberal and secular Israel that relied on the supreme court to defend its democratic values; on the other, a religious and conservative Israel that feared that unelected judges would impose incompatible ideas on their Jewish values.

Netanyahu’s government made no attempt to reconcile these two visions. The prime minister had spent too many years, and all those toxic electoral campaigns, exploiting and deepening the rift between them. Even when he belatedly and halfheartedly tried to rein in the radical and fundamentalist demons he had ridden back into office, he found that he could no longer control them.

Whether Netanyahu really meant to eviscerate Israel’s supreme court as part of a plot to weaken the judiciary and intimidate the judges in his own case, or whether he had no choice in the matter and was simply a hostage of his own coalition, is immaterial. What matters is that he appointed Levin as justice minister and permitted the crisis to happen. Ultimately, and despite his professed belief in liberal democracy, Netanyahu allowed Levin and his coalition partners to convince him that they were doing the right thing—because whatever kept him in office was right for Israel. Democracy would remain strong because he would remain in charge.

Trying to diminish the powers of the supreme court isn’t what makes Netanyahu Israel’s worst prime minister. The judicial reform failed anyway. Only one of its elements got through the Knesset before the war with Hamas began, and the court struck it down as unconstitutional six months later. The justices’ ruling to preserve their powers, despite the Knesset’s voting to limit them, could have caused a constitutional crisis if it had happened in peacetime. But by then Israel was facing a much bigger crisis.

Given Israel’s history, the ultimate yardstick of its leaders’ success is the security they deliver for their fellow citizens. In 2017, as I was finishing my unauthorized biography of Netanyahu, I commissioned a data analyst to calculate the average annual casualty rate (Israeli civilians and soldiers) of each prime minister since 1948. The results confirmed what I had already assumed. In the 11 years that Netanyahu had by then been prime minister, the average annual number of Israelis killed in war and terror attacks was lower, by a considerable margin, than under any previous prime minister.

My book on Netanyahu was not admiring. But I felt that it was only fair to include that data point in his favor in the epilogue and the very last footnote. Likud went on to use it in its 2019 campaigns without attributing the source.

The numbers were hard to argue with. Netanyahu was a hard-line prime minister who had done everything in his power to derail the Oslo peace process and prevent any move toward compromise with the Palestinians. Throughout much of his career, he encouraged military action by the West, first against Iraq after 9/11, and then against Iran. But in his years as prime minister, he balked at initiating or being dragged into wars of his own. His risk aversion and preference for covert operations or air strikes rather than ground operations had, in his first two stretches in power, from 1996 to 1999 and 2009 to 2021, kept Israelis relatively safe.

Netanyahu supporters on the right could also argue, on basis of the numbers, that those who brought bloodshed upon Israel, in the form of Palestinian suicide bombings and rocket attacks, were actually Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres, the architects of the Oslo Accords; Ehud Barak, with his rash attempts to bring peace; and Ariel Sharon, who withdrew Israeli soldiers and settlers unilaterally from Gaza in 2005, creating the conditions for Hamas’s electoral victory there the following year. That argument no longer holds.

If future biographers of Israeli prime ministers undertake a similar analysis, Netanyahu will no longer be able to claim the lowest casualty rate. His 16th year in office, 2023, was the third-bloodiest in Israel’s history, surpassed only by 1948 and 1973, Israel’s first year of independence and the year of the Yom Kippur War, respectively.

The first nine months of 2023 had already seen a rise in deadly violence in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, as well as terrorist attacks within Israel’s borders. Then came the Hamas attack on October 7, in which at least 1,145 Israelis were massacred and 253 kidnapped and taken to Gaza. More than 30 hostages are now confirmed dead.

No matter how the war in Gaza ends, what happens in its aftermath, or when Netanyahu’s term finally ends, the prime minister will forever be associated above all with that day and the disastrous war that followed. He will go down as the worst prime minister because he has been catastrophic for Israeli security.

To understand how Netanyahu so drastically failed Israel’s security requires going back at least to 2015, the year his long-term strategic bungling of the Iranian threat came into view. His mishandling didn’t happen in isolation; it is also related to the deprioritization of other threats, including the catastrophe that materialized on October 7.

Netanyahu flew to Washington, D.C., in 2015 to implore U.S. lawmakers to obstruct President Barack Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran. Many view this gambit as extraordinarily damaging to Israel’s most crucial alliance—the relationship with the United States is the very bulwark of its security. Perhaps so; but the stunt didn’t make subsequent U.S. administrations less supportive of Israel. Even Obama would still go on to sign the largest 10-year package of military aid to Israel the year after Netanyahu’s speech. Rather, the damage Netanyahu caused by presuming too much of the United States wasn’t to the relationship, but to Israel itself.

Netanyahu’s strategy regarding Iran was based on his assumption that America would one day launch an attack on Iran’s nuclear program. We know this from his 2022 book, Bibi: My Story, in which he admits to arguing repeatedly with Obama “for an American strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities.” Senior Israeli officials have confirmed that he expected Donald Trump to launch such a strike as well. In fact, Netanyahu was so sure that Trump, unlike Obama, would give the order that he had no strategy in place for dealing with Iran’s nuclear program when Trump decided, at Netanyahu’s own urging, to withdraw from the Iran deal in May 2018.

Israel’s military and intelligence chiefs had been far from enamored with the Iran deal, but they’d seized the opportunity it presented to divert some of the intelligence resources that had been focused on Iran’s nuclear program to other threats, particularly Tehran’s network of proxies across the region. They were caught by surprise when the Trump administration ditched the Iran deal (Netanyahu knew it was coming but didn’t inform them). This unilateral withdrawal effectively removed the limitations on Iran’s nuclear development and required an abrupt reversal of Israeli priorities.

Senior Israeli officials I spoke with had to tread a wary path here. Those who were still in active service couldn’t challenge the prime minister’s strategy directly. But in private some were scathing about the lack of a coherent strategy on Iran. “It takes years to build intelligence capabilities. You can’t just change target priorities overnight,” one told me.

The result was a dissipation of Israeli efforts to stop Iran—which is committed to the destruction of Israel. Iran sped further than ever down the path of uranium enrichment, and its proxies, including the Houthis in Yemen and Hezbollah on Israel’s northern border, grew ever more powerful.

In the months leading up to October 7, Israel’s intelligence community repeatedly warned Netanyahu that Iran and its proxies were plotting a major attack within Israel, though few envisaged something on the scale of October 7. By the fall of 2023, motives were legion: fear that an imminent Israeli diplomatic breakthrough with Saudi Arabia could change the geopolitics of the region; threats that Ben-Gvir would allow Jews greater access to the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem and worsen conditions for Palestinian prisoners; rumors that the deepening tensions within Israeli society would render any response to an attack slow and disjointed.

Netanyahu chose to ignore the warnings. The senior officers and intelligence chiefs who issued them were, to his mind, conspiring with the law-enforcement agencies and legal establishment that had put him on trial and were trying to obstruct his government’s legislation. None of them had his experience and knowledge of the real threats facing Israel. Hadn’t he been right in the past when he’d refused to listen to leftist officials and so-called experts?

Hamas’s surprise attack on October 7 was the result of a colossal failure at all levels of Israel’s security and intelligence community. They had all seen the warning signals but continued to believe that the main threat came from Hezbollah, the larger and far better-equipped and trained enemy to the north. Israel’s security establishment believed that Hamas was isolated in Gaza, and that it and the other Palestinian organizations had been effectively deterred from attacking Israel.

Netanyahu was the originator of this assumption, and its biggest proponent. He believed that keeping Hamas in power in Gaza, as it had been for nearly two years when he returned to office in 2009, was in Israel’s interest. Periodic rocket attacks on Israeli communities in the south were a price worth paying to keep the Palestinian movement split between the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority in the West Bank enclaves and Hamas in Gaza. Such division would push the troublesome two-state solution off the global agenda and allow Israel to focus on regional alliances with like-minded Arab autocracies that also feared Iran. The Palestinian issue would sink into irrelevance.

Netanyahu’s disastrous strategy regarding Gaza and Hamas is part of what makes him Israel’s worst prime minister, but it’s not the only factor. Previous Israeli prime ministers, too, blundered into bloody wars on the basis of misguided strategies and faulty advice from their military and intelligence advisers.

Netanyahu stands out from them for his refusal to accept responsibility, and for his political machinations and smear campaigns since October 7. He blames IDF generals and nourishes the conspiracy theory that they, in alliance with the protest movement, somehow allowed October 7 to happen.

Netanyahu believes that he is the ultimate victim of that tragic day. Convinced by his own campaign slogans, he argues that he is the only one who can deliver Israel from this valley of shadows to the sunlit uplands of “total victory.” He refuses to consider any advice about ending the war and continues to prioritize preserving his coalition, because he appears incapable of distinguishing between his own fate, now tainted by tragic failure, and that of Israel.

Many around the world assume that Israel’s war with Hamas has proceeded according to some plan of Netanyahu’s. This is a mistake. Netanyahu has the last word as prime minister and head of the emergency war cabinet, but he has used his power mainly to prevaricate, procrastinate, and obstruct. He delayed the initial ground offensive into Gaza, hesitated for weeks over the first truce and hostage-release agreement in November, and is now doing the same over another such deal with Hamas. For the past six months, he has prevented any meaningful cabinet discussion of Israel’s strategic goals. He has rejected the proposals of his own security establishment and the Biden administration. He presented vague principles for “the day after Hamas” to the cabinet only in late February, and they have yet to be debated.

However one views the war in Gaza—as a justified war of defense in which Hamas is responsible for the civilian casualties it has cynically hidden behind, or as an intentional genocide of the Palestinian people, or as anything in between—none of it is Netanyahu’s plan. That’s because Netanyahu has no plan for Gaza, only one for remaining in power. His obstructionism, his showdowns with generals, his confrontations with the Biden administration—all are focused on that end, which means preserving his far-right coalition and playing to his hard-core nationalist base.

Meanwhile, he’s doing what he has always done: wearing down and discrediting his political opponents in the hope of proving to an exhausted and traumatized public that he’s the only alternative. So far, he’s failing. Polls show that an overwhelming majority of Israelis want him gone. But Netanyahu is fending off calls to hold an early election until he believes he is within striking distance of winning.

Netanyahu’s ambition has consumed both him and Israel. To regain and remain in office, he has sacrificed his own authority and parceled out power to the most extreme politicians. Since his reelection in 2022, Netanyahu is no longer the center of power but a vacuum, a black hole that has engulfed all of Israel’s political energy. His weakness has given the far right and religious fundamentalists extraordinary control over Israel’s affairs, while other segments of the population are left to pursue the never-ending quest to end his reign.

One man’s pursuit of power has diverted Israel from confronting its most urgent priorities: the threat from Iran, the conflict with the Palestinians, the desire to nurture a Westernized society and economy in the most contested corner of the Middle East, the internal contradictions between democracy and religion, the clash between tribal phobias and high-tech hopes. Netanyahu’s obsession with his own destiny as Israel’s protector has caused his country grievous damage.

Most Israelis already realize that Netanyahu is the worst of the 14 prime ministers their country has had in its 76 years of independence. But in the future, Jews might even remember him as the leader who inflicted the most harm on his people since the squabbling Hasmonean kings brought civil war and Roman occupation to Judea nearly 21 centuries ago. As long as he remains in power, he could yet surpass them.

[pricklepearbloom]

OMG I loved your latest fic!

You wrote a line about Elain trying to undermine Ruby when she first came into the IC, would it be possible to get a little fic exploring that more and the fallout???

a/n: omg I’m so happy that you guys loved my last post so much! Here’s a quick little blurb about the tension with Ruby and Elain.

Original post: All I Want

What Do You Want (All I Want prequel)

Pairing: Azriel x OC (Ruby) 

Warnings: some angst, some fluff, Elain slander (duh we stay Elain haters)(but also tbh some ooc Elain)

Word count: was supposed to be a paragraph or two and is now 4.1k words lmao

“I don’t know about this. What do I bring? What do I wear!” Ruby was practically shredding through her wardrobe to find an acceptable outfit for the very last-minute invite to dinner with Azriel’s friends and the freaking high lord and lady of the night court. Ruby and Azriel had met about two months ago. They were taking things slow, getting to know one another, as per Ruby’s request, although Azriel didn’t mind it. He was more than happy taking things one step at a time, relishing in the time that he was spending getting to know his mate. His mate. He had waited centuries for her and now that he found her, he would wait as long as she wanted before accepting the bond. 

Azriel’s lips quirked up in amusement at his mate’s antics from his seat on her bed. “What’s wrong with what you’re wearing now?” Ruby whipped around in mock shock. “I absolutely cannot believe that you are even suggesting I wear this,” she gestured up and down her body showing the jeans and t-shirt she had been sporting this morning “to meet your friends and the high lord and lady. The high lord and lady!” she practically shouted, throwing her hands up in disbelief. Azriel shook his head with a soft chuckle to himself knowing that she was teasing for the most part. 

“I promise whatever you wear, they will love it. And you.” He added raising from his spot resting his hands on the sides of her arms, he nudged her chin up with one crooked finger to look into his eyes. He could see a glimmer of insecurity and internally he laughed in disbelief, what could someone like her have to be insecure about, she was perfect in his eyes. “Come here.” He said gently as he brought her into his arms, she fit like a puzzle piece in his grasp, he tucked her head underneath his chin and he pressed a firm kiss to the top of her hair. “All you have to do is be yourself, my love. They will love you no matter what, because you are an incredible, wonderful, beautiful female.” He nods thoughtfully “Plus they know that I’ll break their knees if they don’t.” Her eyes shot up to his letting out a surprised laugh lightly hitting his arm. “Shut up, no you won’t.” She burrowed deeper into his comforting hold. 

Ruby let herself stay in his arms for another 30 seconds, she counted, before releasing her arms and letting her lips lightly brush along his jawline in a soft kiss. His entire body shuddered at the feeling, “If you keep going, I will cancel dinner and keep you locked away in here.” He ground out his body stiffening, some parts more than others. His dark eyes looked down on her as if to say, ‘your move.’ Her eyes widened considering his words carefully. 

They were in the early stages of their courtship, it felt like her body was a live wire constantly. She could feel his energy as he moved about the world, always aware of him. When he touched her, she could practically feel her brain tearing itself in half; she was anxious to see what he was going to do yet had never felt a comfort quite like being held by him. Everything was new and exciting, but it also felt like they had been together for hundreds of years. 

Ruby had found out quickly that when Azriel said something, he meant it. He wasn’t a male of many words, but he made them count when he did choose to speak. Ruby, on the other hand, was basically a never-ending stream of consciousness. You never had to guess what was on her mind or what she was feeling, she would tell you. Azriel loved that about her. As a male who only knew secrets and hurt, it was extremely refreshing to be with someone who offered themselves so openly. 

“As tempting as that is, I would really like to meet your friends.” Azriel groaned half-teasing half-serious. “They’re important to you,” she pressed nonplussed by his reaction. “I think I should meet the family that I’ll be tied to for all eternity don’t you think?” She nudged her chin at his chest, and he let a smile tug at the corners of his lips. Eternity with his family and his mate sounded like bliss, so wonderful he almost didn’t trust it. “Alright,” he acquiesced begrudgingly, leaning down closer, so his lips were lightly brushing the outer shell of her ear. “I suppose if you insist on going then I can just ravage you later.” He murmured softly letting a shadow trace around her clothed nipples which immediately responded firming to form sharp points. Ruby’s core tightened; they had been taking things slow. So. slow. 

She was the one who wanted to wait until they accepted the bond to go all the way but as she found out, there were plenty of ways that he could “ravage” her without even removing a single layer of clothing. ‘Those shadows were something else’ she thought before shaking her head at the thought. Her face felt hot under his darkened gaze and she had to practically force herself to take a step back from the gravity of Azriel that pulled her in time and time again. 

Ruby swallowed thickly, “I suppose I’ll have to wear something cute, so you have something to tear off later.” Azriel let out a dark chuckle, flexing his hands as if trying to reacquaint himself to the feeling of not having her in his arms. “No darling,” his voice had taken on an edge to it “I don’t intend to tear anything off. I’m a man not a boy, I plan to take my time with you. Unravel you bit by bit.” His voice was laced with dark promise. He could smell her arousal blossoming into the air, and he took a step toward her, half a second away from throwing her on the bed and having his way with her. 

Ruby’s eyes didn’t leave his as she gulped almost comically, nodding slowly. She skirted around him, leaving a wide berth between them. If she got any closer, she would be sucked in and they would never get out on time. She grabbed the first dress her hand touched and practically jogged to the bathroom to change. She normally didn’t have any qualms about changing in front of him, he had seen her in far less in far more compromising positions, but she had a feeling if she were to start taking off her clothes right now with him in the room, they wouldn’t see the light of day for a week or so. She pulled on the black knit sweater dress that she had grabbed and freshened up her makeup. Her body was buzzing from Azriel’s attentions and the anxiety that was becoming more pronounced the closer the dinner drew nearer. She had to redo her lipstick four times because her hand was slightly shaking, she didn’t even attempt to do her eyeliner. She could hardly get it right on an easy day but today was full of nerves, so she figured she’d save herself the agony. 

Azriel flew them to the Townhouse, once he set Ruby down on the terrace, he took her hand and guided it to the inside crook of his elbow. She ducked her head as her face got hot, following his lead through the French doors, her ears perking up at the sound of laughter and shushing. 

“I think that’s them!” a distinctly feminine voice sounded before a stunning blonde female appeared in the doorway wearing a gorgeous red silk gown that left little to the imagination. She looked incredible. Her face had a bright smile on it as she practically strutted up to the couple. “You must be Ruby.” Ruby nodded with a soft smile “Ruby, this is Morrigan.” Azriel says, gesturing to the female in front of them. “Oh please, it’s Mor. We have been so excited to meet you.” Mor grasped her in a tight hug “We’re going to be the best of friends, I can tell.” Ruby’s chest warmed at the welcoming, if all of his friends were like this then she clearly was worried about nothing. “Any friend of Azriel’s is a friend of mine, he speaks so highly of you all.” A scoff sounds from behind Mor and her gaze lands on a tall Illyrian with long hair, half tied up into a bun. 

“Azriel? Speaks? Sounds doubtful to me.” He teases striding forward rustling Azriel’s hair. Ruby’s lips quirk up at the obvious sign of familial teasing. Azriel playfully shoved his hand away and fixed his hair “Ruby, this would be Cassian-““General, teen heartthrob and the star of all of Azriel’s nightmares'' Cassian cut Azriel off shooting him a wink. “Ain’t that the truth” Azriel muttered underneath his breath to Ruby who let out a laugh. Cassian’s grin widened at the sight of Azriel smiling fondly down at her, they truly looked like a vision. “Come, let’s introduce you to everyone else, they’re already sitting down for dinner.” Mor said, grabbing Ruby’s hand dragging her away from Azriel. 

Ruby glanced back at him over her shoulder, eyes wide and he couldn’t help but let out a laugh at her expression, excited and terrified. Two hands clasped down on his shoulders from behind shaking him a bit back and forth. “You found her.” Cassian said gently, Azriel dragged his eyes from the view of Ruby walking away with Mor, absolutely entranced. “Yeah, I did.” He patted Cassian’s hands once before following after her like a puppy. 

Ruby was led into a grand dining room with five people sitting around a table. “Everyone, this is Ruby, Azriel’s mate.” Mor announced Ruby gave an awkward wave “Hi, it’s so nice to finally meet you guys.” A female with light brown hair approached first, giving her a hug. “Welcome! I’m Feyre and this is my mate Rhys.” She gestured to a male with violet eyes standing behind her sporting a well-tailored suit. “High Lady, High Lord it’s an honor to be here, thank you for inviting me into your home.” Ruby said, bowing her hair in respect. “Oh cauldron no,” Feyre started waving her hand and Cassian let out a loud laugh before Azriel hit him in the stomach.

“Please just call me Feyre.” “And I’m just Rhys.” Rhys stuck out his hand to shake, before Ruby could reach out to take it a low snarl sounded from behind Ruby. Rhys’ eyes flicked up and he rose a brow before coolly tucking his hand into his trouser pocket. “Apologies, I should have realized.” He nodded to Azriel and Ruby. Ruby felt a bit mortified, but it quickly faded away when she felt Azriel’s hand on the right of her waist, bringing her back into his front placing a quick kiss on her temple. She unconsciously leaned back into his hold watching as everyone moved around at Feyre’s suggestion to sit, she felt a prickling sensation on her neck and her eyes found a petite female with mousy brown hair staring bullets at her. 

She blinked and when she opened them the female was conversing with the female next to her and passing what looked like a vegetable mix of some sort. She must have imagined it, shaking her head of what she thought she saw. She took the seat that Azriel had pulled out and offered her. He sat next to her placing his hand on her thigh as if to remind himself that she really is there sitting next to him. She placed her hand on top of his rubbing her thumb over the dips of his scarred and calloused knuckles. One shadow snaked around her ankle in response, a comfort that Ruby had gotten used to.

“Oh Ruby, this is Nesta, Elain, and Amren. Nesta and Elain are my sisters and Amren is Rhys’ second.” Feyre said while sitting down in the chair that Rhys had pulled out for her. Ruby sent them a smile, “Hi, it’s nice to meet you guys.” Nesta nodded at her, narrowing her eyes as if she was trying to figure her out. Ruby felt a bit unnerved but didn’t let that sway her, Azriel had warned her on the way that Nesta was a bit cold. Elain’s gaze wasn’t even on Ruby, it was on Azriel, his attention however was squarely on Ruby almost… pointedly. Her eyebrows scrunched as her eyes bopped back and forth between the two. Clearly there was something going on here that she wasn’t made aware of, her eyes narrowed ever so slightly at Azriel, catching the glimmer of unease in his. She didn’t want to make a scene so she softened her expression and plastered an appeasing smile on her face.

The dinner continued quite pleasantly but Ruby couldn’t get rid of this nagging feeling that she was missing something that had to do with Elain. At first, it was subtle. Since Elain was sitting directly across from Ruby she tried to make conversation while Azriel was busy talking to Cassian who sat on the other side of him. “So, Azriel tells me that you’re a painter right?” Elain’s lips pursed in a tense condescending smile “That would be Feyre.” Ruby’s cheeks heat at the slight error, Elain waves it off “Don’t worry, you’re so new it will take you ages to get to know the family and fit in you know?” 

The comment rubs Ruby the wrong way, it felt a bit patronizing but she brushed it off thinking that maybe she was just reading into things. “Thanks, I’m not used to being around such a big family, it can be a bit intimidating.” Elain tilted her head and nodded slightly. “No family?” she asked, taking a sip of her wine. Ruby shook her head patting her lips with the napkin from her lap, “None that I talk to anymore.” Elain raises an eyebrow ever so slightly at the information. “Well Azriel certainly does love a charity case.” She mutters under her breath causing Ruby’s eyebrows to shoot to her forehead in surprise. The sinking feeling in her gut becomes more pronounced as she shoots her gaze to Azriel thinking that he’ll back her up. But he’s still so engrossed in a conversation with Cassian she was certain he didn’t hear a word. When she turned back to Elain she was already in another conversation with Nesta. She wanted to stand up for herself and for her relationship but she didn’t want to cause a scene, so she subtly rolled her shoulders trying to physically not let it bother her. But Elain’s comments didn’t sit right with her. 

Throughout the rest of the dinner, Ruby barely spoke. She responded when asked a question but didn’t try to start any more conversations with anyone but Azriel. She spoke softly to him but he could tell that something was off, a shadow caressed her cheek in concern but she patted his leg silently conveying that they would talk later. She struggled in her mind with what she would say to him later. Should she tell him the comments Elain made or just move past it? She didn’t want to cause a rift, she and Azriel had talked a bit about his past so she knew how much his friends, now family, meant to him. 

As she sat there watching them all interact she couldn’t help but ruminate on Elain’s words. She was very new and she didn’t know them all that well. Most of them, apart from Elain, seemed lovely and very welcoming. But the feeling of being outside of the jokes, outside of the familiarity was hard to ignore. Her insecurities were rearing their ugly heads telling her that she didn’t deserve to be there. 

Why would she?

She wasn’t anyone special. 

She didn’t deserve Azriel.

Did he just like her because he felt like he could save her or fix her?

No that was ridiculous, they were mates for crying out loud although they hadn’t accepted the bond yet.

Her thoughts buzzed around her head like a swarm of insects preparing to sting and cause maximum pain and discomfort. She glanced at Azriel and saw him letting out a small laugh shaking his head at some dumb joke Cassian told. Something about the Day Court being dramatic? She wasn’t mentally present enough to comprehend his story. She kept a smile on her face and nodded along when she thought she should but her mind was somewhere else completely. Everytime her eyes landed on Elain, she thought she caught the smallest smile on her face like she could actually see the insecurities swirling around in her head. She felt irritation, anger, sadness, discomfort, and embarrassment all swirling inside her. 

As the dinner ended and everyone began to stand up to leave for the night, Ruby grabbed a hold of Azriel’s hand allowing him to lead her back toward the balcony from which they entered. “Oh! I forgot my bag at the dining table, let me go grab it,I'll be right back.” she squeezed Azriel’s hand once swiftly maneuvering through everyone back into the dining room where she found herself alone with Elain who was holding her purse. Elain had a sugar sweet smile on her face that made Ruby’s teeth hurt just to look at it. “Thank you for grabbing my bag, I was just coming back for that.” Ruby reached out to grab it and Elain pulled it away at the last moment holding her gaze. 

Ruby’s eyes narrowed at the action and took a deep breath trying to find the patience. “Could I have my bag please?” Elain slowly handed Ruby her bag but didn’t let go, instead pulling Ruby closer so she could see the glimmer of malice she held in her eyes. “He’ll get sick of you, you know. He doesn’t trust the decisions the cauldron makes, he told me himself. He and I were going to run away together until you came along and he felt like he was obligated to make it work. He’ll see you for what you really are and come back to his senses. Come back to me.” Elain released her grip on the purse and her smile snapped back onto her face like it was rehearsed before turning on her heel leaving Ruby shaken, limply holding her bag at her side. Was what she said true? Or was she just fucking with her? That must be it. There was no way Azriel would have said those things or wanted that horrid woman. She would ask him and he would say no and that would be that. 

After her mini pep talk, she bolstered herself up enough to walk back out to the group. Her eyes met Azriel’s unable to keep the distress out of them from the interaction he was immediately alarmed. When she reached him, she held onto his arm seeking comfort and support. She might have leaned on him a bit too much because his body was wound tight and tense sensing her distress. “Thank you for having me, it was really lovely to finally meet you all.” She said to the group but mostly to Feyre and Rhysand. They all bid each other good night with promises to meet again soon. She felt a whoosh as Azriel swept her up into his arms and took off into the sky back toward home. 

She didn’t speak on the flight home, Ruby kept her face hidden in his neck trying to take deep breaths and remind herself that Azriel was her mate and he would never betray her. Once they landed Ruby went inside and walked calmly into the bedroom, Azriel following behind like a sad lost puppy. “Did-” Azriel’s voice cracks and he clears his throat to try again, his eyes tracking Ruby as she makes her way to the dresser to pull out some pajamas. “Did I do something wrong? I’m sorry if it was a bit overwhelming, everyone has been dying to meet you.” With her back turned to Azriel she took a deep breath. She knew it was bothering her a lot so she needed to address it but it didn’t make it any easier. 

“Elain told me that you don’t trust the cauldron’s decisions and that you are only with me because you felt obligated to try. Is that true?” She set down the pajama set that she had picked out on the top of the dresser spinning around to see the taken aback look on his face. “Is it true Azriel?” she pressed again to get an answer. “No! Well, I mean-” He started stuttering causing Ruby’s eyes to widen and her mouth to gape in shock. Azriel feels his heart is going to beat out of his chest with how hard and fast it’s beating in panic. That stupid comment coming back to haunt him. “Ruby, can we-” he clears his throat again “can we sit down for a second and talk about this. It sounds bad I know but please let me explain.” Ruby sees the desperation in his eyes and nods slowly taking a seat on the bed. 

He paces in front of her, his shadows darkening and buzzing around frantically like the physical embodiment of his inner panic. “Listen I did say something like that but that was before I met you.” He paused and knelt in front of her daring to put his hands on her knees, she accepted the comfort and placed her own on his asking the question that had been nagging at her since she met Elain. “Why would Elain say something like that? Obviously there’s something that you’re not telling me.” Azriel nods, hanging his head. “I’m sorry. I didn’t tell you because she doesn’t mean anything to me anymore.” 

Ruby nods slowly taking in the information. “I’m not upset that you have a history with someone Azriel, I just think that that was something you should have shared with me before meeting her. I mean I feel like I was totally unprepared and she said some really nasty things and I wish I would have known before going.” Azriel looked up sharply, his eyes darkening. “What did she say to you?” he gritted through clenched teeth. Ruby looked down fidgeting with her hands in her lap, feeling nervous all of a sudden. She didn’t want to get anyone in trouble or cause any sort of rift between Azriel and his family. And for better or worse, Elain was a part of that family. 

“She said that you would get sick of me and eventually go back to her. She said I was a charity case and more or less implied that I wasn’t good enough for you and I wouldn’t fit in with your family.” Ruby said softly, her insecurities present in her voice. Azriel was shaking his head before she had finished speaking. His scarred hands held hers tightly, trying to get her to look in his eyes. “My love, I’m so sorry she said those things to you. You don’t deserve them. Elain and I-'' Azriel took a deep breath “I thought that I loved her. I had this warped view that because there were three sisters and three brothers that we were meant to be together. But that was before I met you. You reset everything. I wasn’t in love with her, I loved the idea of her. I love you. You are everything to me Ruby and there is no way that you are not good enough for me, if anything it’s the other way around.” 

Ruby’s face was wet with tears and she choked on an incredulous laugh at the idea that he wasn’t good enough for her. “I love you too. Are there any more jilted lovers I should know about?” she half-joked sniffing away the last of her tears. Azriel brushed them away “No darling, that’s all. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.” Ruby nods “Just be honest with me going forward, that’s all I ask.” Azriel nods frantically at the chance to fix things with her. “Yes, yes of course.” He quickly raised to sit next to her on the bed and kissed her with everything he had. His lips molded with her soft plump ones, his hands circling the back of her head holding her like a precious gem. Because that’s what she was to him, precious.

[corruptedcaps]

Something Wicked: part two

Read part one here

As the days past Jenna, trapped in her former victims goth body, found herself on the receiving end of the cruelty she had once dished out. In this unfamiliar, dark world, she was now the outcast, and Jennifer, the dark combination of Lily and her former body, reveled in her newfound power. Jennifer had a sharp edge to her taunts and didn't hesitate to torment Jenna in return.

Jennifer was a natural at her tormenting of Jenna. Not only did she have Jenna’s bullying style and demeanour down but she seemed to have the intimate knowledge of all the gossip that kept Jenna in power for so many years. It didn’t take Jenna long to realize why.

The night of their body swap, Jenna found herself walking automatically to Lily’s house, a place she had never been to before. Knowledge of Lily’s life seemed to drip into Jenna’s mind steadily, as the minutes ticked by. She started remembering birthdays, family events, school classes, first crushes and everything in between of Lily’s life as if she had experienced them first hand. It became clear that their minds hadn’t actually swapped. They had been copied.

Inside each of them were now two minds. Both Jenna and Lily. From the moment they had been copied, their minds had started a tug of war for dominance. Lily, who had been the doormat all her life, almost immediately allowed Jenna’s more dominant personality to absorb her, becoming the new bitchy entity called Jennifer. All the most ruthless parts of Jenna mixed with Lily’s deep seated desire to be respected and to be noticed.

Meanwhile in Lily’s body, Jenna’s was slowly being negged into submission by Lily’s depressive outlook. Within a day Jenna was actively choosing and wearing the black dour hoodies and baggy pants that filled Lily’s closet. She was starting to loose the grip on her own personality and felt helpless to stop it. She hadn’t even taken a shower since they swapped, allowing a dark cloud to hang over her.

Jenna wandered the hallways, students who she had once ignored as nothing more than drones in her bee hive, now openly teased her. Jennifer's snide comments cut deep, and Jenna felt the sting of every harsh word. She was no longer part of the cheerleading squad, no longer part of the popular clique, and it was an isolating and bewildering experience.

Jennifer used her intimate knowledge of both Jenna and Lily’s insecurities to undermine Jenna at every turn. Jenna had never felt more vulnerable and humiliated. She slipped into the role of victim as if it were a well worn outfit and by the end of her first week she had completely taken on the role of Lily.

Jennifer meanwhile was in her element. She had never felt so powerful. Lily’s mind made her smarter, the goth’s brains allowed her to be more scheming and manipulative. Jennifer was also insatiably horny too. Years of pent up sexual frustration from Lily had unleashed a sexual monster on the school. Jennifer had gone through five football players in as many days, each more satisfying than then last. She revelled in her desirability.

As the weekend came, Jenna finally felt some respite from her torture. She would stay in her room all weekend listening to heavy metal and ignore the world. Part of her bristled at how pathetic it all sounded but it was a part of her that was now the minority.

Waking up Saturday morning she finally decided to shower and feel some semblance of clean. Stripping off the clothes that she lived in for the past week she stepped into the shower and allowed the hot water to wipe away the bad week.

Getting back to her room, her hair and body wrapped in a towel she caught herself in the mirror and it gave her pause. She had never really seen Lily’s bare body before and what happened next shocked her. Dropping the towels to the ground she gasped at the sight before her. Lily’s body was… hot.

Her stomach was firm and tight, her ass round and smooth, and her hair was thick and full of volume. What surprised Jenna the most though was Lily’s breasts. Grabbing them with both her hands Jenna felt a pleasurable tingle course through her body. These tits were maybe the most perfect pair she had ever seen. Gravity defying double D’s that looked better than any set that could be bought and Lily hid them away under layers of clothing.

As Jenna looked at herself in the mirror, a strange feeling started to bubble up inside her. A mixture of feelings she hadn’t felt in nearly a week. A sly smile played on her lips as her old confidence, arrogance, and vanity started to resurface. She ran her fingers through the dark, thick hair and noticed how it perfectly framed her face. How her hourglass body caught the light.

"You know," she mused, speaking to her own reflection, "With a body like this, I bet I could have some of the boys wrapped around my little finger."

Jenna played with her nipples as she pictured how good it would be to have the respect she had lost returned to her but now in this body. A little makeup here, some tight fitting clothes there and she would be nightmare for Jennifer. The very thought of getting that bitch under her heel was making her pussy wet.

The thought of using her newfound sex appeal to her advantage intrigued her. She twirled her dark hair and practiced a few flirtatious expressions, as she slipped her other hand into her eager pussy. She let a soft moan escape her lips as she imagined how easy it would be to manipulate people to her advantage. Fun too.

“Oh fuck yessss! Once again, I’ll hold the reins of power, and this time, I won't squander it. My new body, this perfect canvas, will be my instrument of control. With my beauty and charisma, I'll captivate anyone I desire, molding them into my loyal subjects.“ She moaned as reached the apex of her orgasm and came joyously. At the same time she felt Lily’s doormat attitude that had consumed her for the past week recede as her own more bitchy personality return.

And yet elements of Lily’s mind lingered still. Jenna had waited so long to fight back that aspects of Lily were embedded in her psyche permanently. The full extent was unknown to her but as she looked upon her new body with fiendish glee what she did know was that she wasn’t going to be some blonde perky princess anymore.

“If I have to be goth then I’ll be baddest bitch goth there ever was! I’ll be a wicked witch just like Jennifer thinks I am. What a stuck up cheerloser she is. Mmmm yesss anger, hate, much better emotions to work with.” She smirked to herself as she wiped her face dry and started to reapplying the dark makeup to her face.

She threw open the closet and found it all lacking. All the clothes were the right colour, black naturally, but they would do nothing to show off her figure. A memory sparked in her mind of a store at the mall that would be perfect for her needs. As she looked at her ratty nails she realized that she could do with a few other improvements too.

Pulling on what clothes she could muster, she gave herself a brief smirk in the mirror before leaving. Something wicked this way comes…

To be continued…

[txttletale]

what is tnc?

the northern caves is a piece of digital epistolary web fiction by nostalgebraist. it takes the form of a bunch of posts and a long-form first-person account of an event, both posted to a fan forum for a fictional series of fantasy novels. the last novel in the series is famous for being incomprehensible, baffling, and totally tonally jarring comapred to the earlier ones--the characters in the novel try to start a reading group for it in hopes of understanding it and don't have a very fun time.

like an unauthorized fan treatise, i think it has a pretty disappointing ending that does not come close to paying off what's been set up. unlike an unauthorized fan treatise, which as a mystery thriller really rides or dies on a satisfying ending, i think tnc is definitely very worth reading despite the ending because everything leading up to it really holds up. the titular book is excerpted multiple times and is made genuinely really unnerving by the fact that the story has the restraint to keep it as an unsettling and baffling mess rather than straight-up, like, making A Spooky Guy come out of it.

it's lovecraftian in the best way, which is to say, far removed from anything lovecraft himself ever wrote but deeply concerned with alternative ways of viewing the world, ways of understanding reality that are totally orthogonal to everyone else's. plus, it does a much better job of engaging with fan culture and digging out some interesting ideas and questions about how fannish lenses of analysis work and what their pitfalls and limitations are than AUFT does. i definitely recommending reading it--as i said, the ending's a bit underwhelming but not in a way that undermines the stuff that came before, which is excellent.

[cissyenthusiast010155]

The Morally Grey Ch 5: Make Me Feel ~Peggy Carter xFem Scientist!Reader

Peggy and Reader go out on a proper date, to dinner. And then you drive her home… What on earth could happen…?

Mommy… Master List

Requests & Prompt-List

Warnings: NSFW, teasing, kissing, mommy kink, drinking, etc.

Enjoy (:

This was the first time you’d been on an actual date date in a long time… You’d gotten all dressed up and everything— dress, heels, makeup, and all.

You took a deep breath and entered the restaurant. You spotted Peggy after we second. She had beaten you there, and your jaw dropped once you saw her. She looked stunning…

You walked up to the reserved table for the two of you, and you sat down across from the brunette.

“I… you look… stunning…” you stammered, your face getting hotter by the second.

Peggy blushed and smiled at your words.

“Thank you, love… You look so beautiful.” The woman sighed in delight.

Now it was your turn to blush even harder.

“So, how did you grow up?” You asked, trying to pivot and make some light conversation.

“England.” Peggy hummed, “One brother, and we had our bouts of fun. Always being told to reign it in…” she chuckled lightly.

You chuckled lightly along with her.

“I know the line… ‘That is no way for a young lady to be behaving!’” You mocked the adults in your childhood, giggling at your own raised voice.

“Goodness, Yesss!” Peggy hissed with laughter, “That tone is spot on!!”

You both laughed each other out, until the waiter came to take your drink orders. After which, you continued your conversation.

“What about your childhood…?” The brunette asked.

“Hmmmm… I was the weird, outcast just growing up, interested in science and pants…” you hummed with a light chuckle.

Peggy hummed and nodded along with a smile.

“Ever been in love?” You threw it out there.

“Yes…” the woman sighed, “Twice. Both died.”

“Oh my…” you gasped lightly, “I’m so sorry.”

“It’s alright, Love. They’re both in past chapters of my life” Peggy reassured you.

You two continued to talk about last relationships. She informed you of her situationship with Sousa, whom you had met. You talked about some of your past partners, especially the ones with funny stories. And you both talked about discovering your sexualities, when, where, who, how, etc. Then your conversation turned to work.

“Ok, so how did you end up at the SSR…?” You asked curiously.

“Ahhh Well… I was a code breaker at one point, loved the work, but hated being undermined constantly. Then my brother got me a job offer at the SOE; a job that led me into working in the SSR during the war with Dr. Erskine. And I just stuck around after, thinking it would be the same… it wasn’t…” she chuckled lightly at her ignorance and arrogance back then,

“But I stayed. And I make it better day by day. And in the end, I love my work.” She resolved with a sigh.

“That’s nice.” You sighed, empathizing with her love of her work, but frustration in colleagues.

“What about you? How did you end up an extremely well funded scientist/inventor…?” Peggy posed you the same question, as your wines arrived.

You paused to order your meals, before you continued.

“Well, I was always interested in the sciences since I was a young girl. My parents came from old money but my mother died at childbirth and my dad when I was early-young woman, so I got all their assets early on. Determined, I started my career as a scientist and researcher. People always have something to say, but I learned to ignore them, and that’s how I’ve gotten where I am today…” you told your story.

“So you have mommy issues…?” Peggy hummed, while you were taking a sip of your red wine.

You nearly chocked at her words, your whole face going best red. The brunette took a sip of her wine.

“I’m just joking, Darling…” She reassured you, when she realized that she had completely paralyzed you.

Her words thawed you back into reality.

“Oh um sorry… Y-yes, I have what one might call mommy issues…” you stammered.

Peggy’s eyes widened at you actually answering her theoretical question. Her mouth dropped slightly in shock. But she quickly came back to her regular self.

“Well, I’ll be sure to remember that…” the woman teased, winking while she spoke.

Your breath caught in your throat. You thought you couldn’t get any more red in the face. You were wrong.

Overall, the dinner went really well. You talked about it all it seemed, about past relationships, your jobs, your childhoods, and much more. You found your heart get all warm every time you made the woman laugh. And that she blushed every time you complimented her. You two bounced off of each other extremely well all night long.

You two are your meals and drank your wine, truly enjoying each others company. You prolonged your night having dessert and then another glass of red wine… Neither of you wanted the night to end.

But alas, the restaurant had to close… You both sighed in contentment as well as longing. You collects your things and walked out with the brunette. She was about to hail a cab, but you insisted that you give her ride home, as it would be safer.

“I insist, Peggy please.” You told the brunette, squeezing her arm lightly to show her you were being serious.

“Oh alright, but you really are too kind, Darling…” Peggy finally relented with a smile and a blush.

“It’s just down the block” you mused aloud, indicating to where the car was parked.

“Lead the way then” the brunette hummed, linking her arm to yours.

You nodded and led Peggy down the street and to your car. You two got in the back and your driver started the drive to Peggy’s apartment. The drive was pleasant and mostly silent for most of the drive. That was until your eyes met the brunette’s once more, and before you knew it, your lips were on hers, and her lips were on yours. The kiss was a bit more heated and passionate than last time, most likely on account of the alcohol.

But before you could take it anywhere else, the car had reached Peggy’s apartment. And that left the two of you in a bit of an awkward silence. Eventually, you broke it.

“Thank you… For tonight, it was lovely…” you spoke softly with a smile.

“I had a marvelous time…” Peggy agreed, smiling back, but something on her lips was unsaid.

You looked at her in light puzzlement.

What was she—?

“Come home with me”

Your whole throat, mouth, and lips ran dry in that moment. Your eyes went wide and you were almost speechless. Peggy now understood you better, and knew that this was you processing her words, so she let you have your time. After a minute or so, you finally managed to string a coherent through together.

“We’re both intoxicated…” you whispered nervously.

Peggy pursed her lips and nodded.

“I understand. Perhaps another time…?” She gently asked.

“Yes, I’d very much like that…” you said with hope filling your eyes now.

The same hope came across Peggy as you spoke.

“Alright. I look forward to it, Darling.” She breathlessly confessed, before kissing you one last time and then leaving the car.

~~~

Peggy Carter Masterlist

[bubski-mcboo]

Why "No Nightingales?" It's a safe word!

@destructokitty34 this is for you - thank you for the inspiration.

So I was reading an article which I'll link here when it becomes relevant. This post is semi-related to the "Crowley put something in Aziraphale's mouth" theory, which I didn't subscribe to until a new, related theory hit me like a sodding truck.

Strap in my ineffable nutters, this is going to be a pretty long and wild ride.

It's their song, duh.

Well, yes.

It is heavily implied, though not outright stated, that the song A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square by Vera Lynn is Aziraphale and Crowley's "song" - i.e. a song that couples sometimes choose to represent their relationship.

At the end of season one, it was playing at the Ritz, and attention was drawn to it by God. It was not acknowledged by anyone in character unless you count the pianist actually playing it.

The end of season two is the only time we hear it referenced again.

We are led to believe that this was Crowley's way of ending it with Aziraphale, albeit with one last final attempt to get him to change his mind.

HOWEVER

Crowley has known Aziraphale for a long time. He knows Azzie's idiosyncracies, he knows when he's "going too fast" for Azzie, and has learned over the years how to gently and carefully nudge Azzie out of his comfort zone, such as introducing him to food for the first time, "the arrangement," and the holy water, to name a few off the top of my head.

Do we really believe that Crowley would make such a colossal mistake?

I concede it's possible that Crowley wasn't thinking clearly at that moment.

But here is what I think...

"No Nightingales" Is A Safe Word!

So, hear me out. Some of you may have already clunked the pieces of the puzzle together and already agree with me, and some of you might think I need to sit the f down. Both are valid, but let me say my piece anyway.

Here's how I came up with this theory.

The Clues

The theme of a couple having a song is smacked squarely in our faces with the Gabriel-Beelzebub reveal.

Sometimes a couple's song marks a particularly strong and important memory.

Sometimes a couple's song is one they happen to love, and it maybe reminds them of each other, but they never say it out loud, because they don't need to. They just know, because they never say what they're thinking, that this is "their song"

But also, sometimes a song... "Contains information in a tuneful way."

Okay, I know Crowley didn't sing it. It's the "contains information" part that I'm latching on to. I didn't think much of that line, other than it being a "mhm, yeah that's true" kind of moment.

Until now, obviously.

Aziraphale's Reaction

Look, look, look!

Aziraphale senses something is wrong, in a different way from before. He is on full Alert.

Look at Aziraphale's reaction. Sure, you could interpret that as,

"Oh shit, he's serious,"

but nah, see...

Here is the dialogue along with what I think the subtext is, based on Azzie's reaction: Crowley: "Exactly. No Nightingales." Crowley: "You/we are in danger." Aziraphale glares at Crowley. (taken from the audio description) Aziraphale senses something is wrong, in a different way from before. He is on full Alert. Crowley: "You idiot. We could have been... Us." Crowley: "Everything I do and say now isn't really me. It's going to hurt us both. I'm sorry. Aziraphale turns away and starts to cry. (AD) Aziraphale: "Pointing out and blaming our imminent and permanent separation solely on me is the worst thing you could do. Crowley kisses Aziraphale. Aziraphale: "I stand corrected."

Note that the emotional stakes of this kiss had it been as a means to transfer something, are not undermined due to this theory, which is crucial for a theory to stand in my opinion.

Aziraphale looks at Crowley with disappointment (also taken from the audio description) Aziraphale: "I HATE that you have corrupted our first kiss like this. I'm about to say something significant, perhaps, 'I can't believe you did that, or maybe even 'I love you,' but you've just told me we're in danger, so I have to be tactful. How do I say something loving and scathing at the same time? Oh, I know..." Aziraphale: "I forgive you." Crowley: "Don't bother." (no subtext here. He meant what he said).

It fits well with other meta

See here for @actual-changeling's post about how the kiss may have been with tongue, which in turn supports the "Crowley put something in Aziraphale's mouth," theory.

I am still sort of on the fence about this one, but it does seem far more likely in my mind now that I have this "safe word theory" living rent-free in my head.

To Conclude

My theory is that "No Nightingales" was a safe word, and this might support the "Crowley put something in Aziraphale's mouth" theory.

I will update this post later as this was sort of a messy, raw brain dump. I know I have more to say about this, especially relating to the beats leading up to this nightingale moment and what came after. There's also other meta swimming in my head which might be compatible, but I may have to think about separating those posts out.

But right now, it's 4.46am as of writing this and I need to go to bed.

[chxrrybcmbs]

Gimme Shelter: Part Five

70s gangster bucky barnes x fem!reader au. Mature themes, drug use, alcohol, gun, blood, and violence. Synopsis: James "Bucky" Barnes, better known by his fearsome moniker, The Winter Soldier. It's Los Angeles in 1977 and only one man owns the city. Until someone decides to challenge the king for his throne. Masterlist

Note: I do not give permission for my work to be copied or translated anywhere else but this blog.

If Bucky could see you now, barefoot and shimmying down a drainage pipe on the side of your building. Maybe he’d finally understand your devotion to him, or maybe he’d have you locked up permanently. The dress you were in was too silky to keep traction so you relied on your bare arms and feet to keep you from falling 20 stories. How long would be it be before Logan came to check on you, then discovered the window flung open. Bucky would kill him if anything happened to you and you felt bad for putting him in this position, but you also were not about to be left out again. Especially after he said he was going to keeping you in his sight at all time. Looking back up at the open window you said a silent apology to Logan and continued your journey down. Your foot slipped suddenly and you clung to the pipe for dear life, slowly adjusting yourself to get steady again. Looking down below you, the street was getting closer. 

“Only a little further.” You whispered to yourself, in an effort to keep yourself from panicking. Bit by bit you kept climbing down the pipe until you were close enough to the ground to jump without seriously injuring yourself. You landed in the bushes, despite some minor scratches from the branches you were unscathed. Now, to find a way to the abandoned disco. You had to book it on foot or hail a cab and you needed to choose fast because there was no way Logan hadn’t noticed your escape. 

“TAXI!” You yelled, running out into the street waving your arms like a mad woman. Sure enough, one stopped and you jumped in. 

“To the abandoned disco, please.” 

“You sure, babe?” The driver asked. 

“Yes.” You stated, looking out the window to see Logan come bursting through the doors of your building. 

“And step on it!” 

The driver cocked his head and pressed the gas. You watched as Logan’s figure began to disappear and you made a mental note to apologize to him when this was all over. 

About thirty minutes later you asked the driver to let you out on the side of the road, you didn’t wanna arrive too close and arouse suspicion. You saw Bucky’s Rolls Royce and your heart leaped. Quietly, and keeping your head low you peeked into one of the windows. A few of the lights were on, and in the middle of the dilapidated dance floor you recognized the back of Bucky’s head. Sam, Steve, Clint were all there too and Natasha! She was standing next to what you assumed had to be Stark, he was flanked by two men on either side. Without Logan here, Bucky was outnumbered. 

“Idiot.” You muttered under your breath, he should’ve taken Logan with him instead of putting him on guard duty. You could hear muffled voices but what was being said was unclear, so you decided to move somewhere closer. You moved to the left side of the building and found a hole in the concrete. 

“Look, Barnes. I really want to be cordial with you, but I have to say your attempt to kidnap and torture my best man really put a damper on everything.” Stark said. 

“You made a move on my girl, you crossed the line first, pal.” Bucky argued back. 

“Buying someone a drink is hardly crossing a line, I told you I didn’t want us to be enemies.” 

“Admit it, Stark. You were trying to undermine me by going after, Y/N.” Bucky was seething, you could hear it in his voice. 

“Barnes, buddy, I did nothing and you spiraled. Maybe its time you retired.” You hated to admit but Stark was right, he made one small move and Bucky lost it. Ending up with Natasha getting kidnapped and now this whole mess. 

“You came onto my turf and started sniffing around my clients, and you think I just retaliated for nothin’? I’m protectin’ what’s mine, Stark.” The bite in Bucky’s voice was cutting. As you crouched by the hole, trying your best not to be seen, footsteps slowly approached you. Before you could even squeak, a large hand was over your mouth. 

“Hey Boss!”

Bucky turned his attention to the man sauntering into the room, with you held hostage. 

“Found this little bird outside eavesdropping.” 

Stark turned to look at Bucky who was clenching his fists, looking at you intently. You looked at him then down at the floor, ashamed of becoming the damsel in distress. 

“I thought you left your precious thing at home?” Stark lifted an eyebrow. Bucky remained silent, his focus now was your safety. No matter what that took. You struggled against the hold of the man. 

“Put her next to the red head, Banner.” The man dragged you over to sit you in a chair next to Natasha, your hands were bound and your mouth gagged. Just like her. All you could do now was watch and hope Bucky could talk his way out, and that you didn’t just royally screw this up.

“Tch, tch, tch.” Stark shook his head. “I really wanted to make this work, Barnes. But, finding your little spy out there, sure puts another damper on my forgiving attitude.” 

“Just let her go, let the girls go and let’s settle this.” Bucky stated. 

“Settle? Theres nothing to settle, you planned to kidnap Rhodey and now I find your girlfriend spying. I can’t allow that, Barnes.” 

“The what do you want? You want me to let you move into my territory? What?” 

“For someone they call the Winter Soldier, I sure don’t see what’s so scary about you. All talk, no bite.” Stark sauntered toward Bucky, Steve and the others stiffened. 

The doors to the disco burst open, Logan barreled through the doorway turning everyone’s attention to him.

“Man, you really can’t be trusted.” Stark grumbled in Bucky’s ear. 

  Bucky’s eyed widened, his mouth dropping open. Then the blood started pouring, you screamed but the cloth in your mouth muffled it’s strength. Bucky dropped to his knees as bullets started flying from both sides. You and Natasha rocked in your binds, Natasha pleading for help. You couldn’t tear your eyes away from Bucky, he was still on his knees, slightly bent forward, one hand supporting him up and the other clutching the wound in his abdomen. The blood was pooling around him. Logan was at your side, freeing both you and Natasha. You scrambled for Bucky, ignoring the bullets still flying through the air. 

“Y/N!” Logan shouted but you were already at his side. 

“Bucky? Bucky? Can you hear me? Oh God.” You rambled, the blood was gushing out of him, the color had completely drained from his face. His eyes hazy as he turned to look at you, with his bloodied hand he reached to caress your face. 

“I told you—to—s-stay.” He stammered. 

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.” The tears were mixing with the blood on your face. “I—just. I never meant-“ 

Bucky groaned in pain and the strength he had keeping him up faltered. He let himself drop to the floor, rolling on his back, you immediately placed pressure on the wound with your hands. 

“Y/N we gotta go!” Logan commanded. You ignored him, looking at the man you love. 

“It’s ok, babe. Go.” Bucky’s voice was hoarse and it felt like a knife in your heart. You shook your head, 

“I’m not leaving you, not like this.” You cried. Bucky’s hand trembled as he lifted it to rest atop your own. 

“I’ll be ok, I love you.” He forced a smile, you leaned down and kissed his lips, they felt cold. 

“I love you too.” You whispered, you couldn’t make yourself get up. Logan pulled you off Bucky with such strength it took your breath away. Once again you were being carried away from him, watching Steve and Sam lift his limp body. The pool of blood he left behind, the blood staining your dress and your hands and your face. You closed your eyes and let Logan take you away, hoping that when you opened them again it would just be a nightmare. 

WEEKS LATER

The funeral was small and no one except those closest to Bucky came. But news of the “Winter Soldiers” death traveled and memorials popped up here and there, from those whom Bucky had been good to. You had moved in with Natasha, not able to bear the penthouse and the ghosts that lingered in it. Bucky had left a considerable amount of money for you, in the event of his death. He made sure you never needed to work again and you chuckled when you saw the cash in a large duffle bag that Steve brought over. The mourning might never end for you but you found something to distract yourself from the endlessness of it. 

“You sure about this?” Natasha asked. 

“He took Bucky from me. An eye for an eye.” You replied, looking down at the file on Stark’s girl Natasha had dug up. A pretty blonde thing she was, what a shame she’d have to suffer for Stark’s actions. 

“Say the word, Lady Winter.”

[venus-haze]

Dating Starlight Headcanons (F!Reader)

Note: Female reader, but no descriptors are used. This is based on an anonymous request. I’m so glad I got to write for Starlight again! Do not interact if you're under 18 or post thinspo/ED content.

Warnings: Mentions of sexually explicit content. Do not interact if you're under 18.

• Asking you out was one of the most nerve-wracking things Annie ever did, considering how she was raised and her position as part of The Seven, but that didn’t compare to how great she felt when you said yes

• Annie’s so supportive of you, and she especially appreciates if you’re supportive of her, no strings attached. She’s spent most of her life doing things that other people wanted her to do, so knowing you’re in her corner no matter what means a lot to her

• If you want to go public with your relationship, she’s initially hesitant, not because she’s ashamed, but because of the danger it’d put you in and how awful Vought can be. She’s willing to fight for you, though, and especially push back on any bullshit that the marketing team may try to push

• Y’all will end up having to stand on Vought’s float at New York Pride, it’s a little cringy but kinda sweet too

• Also you’re Annie’s date to any Vought event! Investor gala, fundraising dinner, movie premiere, you’re there. She feels a lot more comfortable when she knows you’re around, plus it’s an excuse to see you in gorgeous dresses. She’s definitely gotten distracted by you in the middle of a conversation before

• You and Annie do pretty much everything together, road trips and concerts and movie nights! She especially loves road trips because y’all get to spend so much time together and just talk and eat junk food and stop to see weird attractions on the way to your destination

• Y’all constantly make each other playlists and send all kinds of posts and videos throughout the day that made you think of each other

• She’s also big on video calling you when she knows it’s going to be a long day and she won’t get to see you for a while

• You know how tough Annie’s job can be, and sometimes she comes over to your place frustrated and exhausted, and being the incredible girlfriend you are, you make sure she’s comfortable on your bed and go down on her, teasing a bit just to bring that pent up frustration to the surface before making her fall apart on your tongue

• She made the power in your building go out when she came once. You haven’t let her live it down

• Annie definitely returns the favor, and she’s willing to top if you’re not comfortable with topping or in the mood to do it. She’d never admit it, but she likes the control it gives her when she feels like she’s constantly being undermined by both Vought and The Boys (and also using a Starlight-themed strap-on that’s definitely not Vought-approved gives her a bit of an ego boost)

• Loves giving and receiving praise! She loves you so much and never wants you to feel anything but absolutely safe with her. After everything she’s been through, hearing you praise her definitely makes her feel safe with and appreciated by you too

• Sometimes it can be tough going on dates in public because every now and then people recognize her, even if she’s not in her Starlight costume. She tries to balance being gracious to fans while also being respectful of your time and privacy but like, you get it, she’s part of the most visible superhero team in the world

• You inevitably get wrapped up in The Boys’ various plans despite Annie trying to keep you separate because of how dangerous it is. You’re cool with everyone and help how you can, but whenever Butcher’s mean to Annie you tell him off and she gets kinda flustered at you standing up for her. It’s really cute🤭

[panda-writing]

Fives Lives: Bad Batch Pilot Episode AU

Dividers by: @ saradika @ freesia-writes / @ lornaka

Note: So it got kinda long...

~~⚄~~⚄~~⚄~~⚄~~⚄~~ ~~⚄~~⚄~~⚄~~⚄~~⚄~~

Content Warnings: death mention, mention of medical procedures/experiments, loss, imprisonment, lack of sleep/exhaustion, mention or reprogramming aka messing with mind. (I think that's all of them)

~~⚄~~⚄~~⚄~~⚄~~⚄~~ ~~⚄~~⚄~~⚄~~⚄~~⚄~~

The sound of the blaster went off.

He felt the searing pain of being shot as he looked at the hole in his chestplate

Falling to the ground...

Getting shot.

Dying.

That was the easy part. Why was that the easy part?

Maybe because everything after that made it harder..

He at least thought he had. If what he had felt wasn't dying.. He wasn't sure what was.

"Call for help! We need a medic!"

He remembered what, at the time he was certain was death as he grew weaker and weaker as his ori'vod help him in his arms.

"Stay with me Fives. Fives!"

He heard Rex beg for his life as he was fighting the urge to pass out. He remembered as Rex clung to his body.

He looked into the face of Commander Fox. "Don't do it trooper! Don't do it!"

He panicked. He couldn't let Palatine kill him before the truth got out.

His Vod shot him down. Quickly.

Now.. He had the feeling that Fox was under orders. The chip.

She drugged him. He wouldn't have ever done that if she hadn't drugged him. To this moment he was filled with regrets.

He woke up. The recent events, fresh on his mind.

Wait... How long had it been?

Wearing the blacks. His wound healed almost..

A brief sense of security until his mind came into focus. He lay on a medical table.

Kamino.

Ever since he woke up... It was constant experiments, it felt like... Done by Nala Se, mainly. Or spending the day in a cell.

He enjoyed the cell more.

How long had he been here? Every day was the same. It was moments like these he had to wonder if being killed on Umbara would've been better. At least then, it was because he did his duty.

The nightmares started.

Not too long after the first day he remembered. The experiments. The poking and prodding.. It now just freaked him out.

There was no comfort in any of this.

He was the last of his batch, surely they expected better of him.

He had been. He did the right thing. But now.. All he was seen as was the clone that went rogue then insane and tried to murder their political leader... Despite what the truth really was.

He had suspicions Nala Se enjoyed the suffering this caused him. Her anger and disdain as he tried to uncover the truth before his 'death' the drugging.. He almost undermined her. And the Kaminoans, they wouldn't like that much. Was this his payback?

The nightmares still went strong. Constantly reliving the death of Echo, his twin... The massacre on Umbara.. How he had been hunted down like a terrorist. And how no one believed a word he said.

He had a break once. It lasted for a little while... Until Nala Se found out about it. It was a research assistant to her. A sister. Omega.

She would come in often. And they just talked about anything. He'd tell her about the war if she asked. She'd tell him about her day.

But eventually he was moved somewhere else in the cloning facility. And then the visits stopped.

He knew when the war ended. And it was more than just the feeling he got

He noticed the shock troopers passing through. And then he noticed clones occasionally moving past his cell, now Shock troopers on duty.

He knew.

He had been right about the fears plaguing his mind. Now that he wasn't completely kept from everything and everyone.. He assumed this meant the worst.

They didn't consider what he knew a threat anymore. He had lost.

He noticed the difference in the troopers around him. They were all under control of those chips and there was nothing he could do to save them...

They weren't completely robotic it seemed. As they had things to say about him. The shock troopers knew who he was. Some of them might've been in the group that was sent to kill or arrest him. There was no real way of telling.

For Rex.. He hoped he had either been able to stop what was happening, get out of that situation... Or have died before his free will was taken like everyone else.

The clones around him made their opinions known. The words hurting more than before.

"Defect."

"Bad Batcher."

Back in his domino days. They had also called him and his batchmates bad batchers at times.

But this was different. Maybe because the implications were steeper now. Now he was looked at as a traitor instead of the soldier he once was. Every day he spent fighting for the republic... Washed away just like that. Forgotten.

The troopers guarding his cell were talking some shit. Not like the rogue clone was ever gonna escape, right?

Or maybe they just didn't care he was right there, thinking even less of him.

"I heard they're gonna be messing in his head to try and fix the crazy."

"They'll ship him out to some top secret research facility."

"If it works they'll put him back on the line of duty."

"If not Tarkin'll order him decommissioned or killed, I bet."

"If he wants to live he'd better shape up-"

Suddenly their comms beeped.

"Clone force 99 has escaped, we're supposed to meet up with CT-9904 to cut off their escape!"

They grabbed their weapons before running out of the room.

He had to wonder about this Clone Force 99. If they were going after them.. Maybe they had went against the Chancellor too.

If this was the case he hoped they actually escaped instead of being stuck in a situation much like his own.

On a side upfront.. He looked ahead at his ARC gear. It had been saved. Before he didn't understand why.. But now he had.

It usually served as a little... Miniscule sort of comfort. It was his past and the only thing he had ever truly owned. It was the armor he painted alongside his twin.

A reminder of how he made it to ARC Trooper. The dream they all shared, butost hadn't gotten to see... So he promised himself he'd live it for them. He had to get out of here one day...

When they tried to move him, he was gonna fight like haran. For his squad.. And for all of his brothers.

He had tried to escape, fight his way out many times. The cell fought him back, making him weaker than when he first attempted it.

He was leaning against the bottom wall of his cell. His head was tilted back, he was trying to rest some from all of the exhaustion. His knees against his chest, and his arms crossed around them.

Suddenly he heard voices near the door of the room. The Shock troopers had forgotten to shut it.

"Normally we wouldn't even consider sticking our neck out for a reg like this... But I hear he's a special case."

"They also said he went against order 66, but that seems unlikely because according to records.. he's been here a while."

"I heard shock troopers talking about reprogramming him. When we were in the cell."

"If we don't get him out..."

"We'd better hurry if we're gonna get him out and back to the ship before the shocks find us."

They walked in. He could tell they were clones, but they definitely didn't look like any he knew.

One had goggles and the other was even more different. His arm was a scomp link and he had ports in his head along with a pale ish skin tone.

He took notice of them. They weren't wearing their armor, but instead they were in their blacks.

These must've been the escaped clones the shock troopers were talking about.. He had also been in his, that was standard as a Kaminoan Prisoner.

He took notice as the pale one walked in slowly, to a stop.. his eyes were fixated on something. Fives turned his head, and noticed him looking at his armor intently.

The one in googles was looking at something on a datapad. Then suddenly he looked between the other one and himself, a look of realization..? was crossing his face.

Was the pale one.. from the 501st? Did he recognize him? He seemed in disbelief upon looking at his armor. Stopping in his tracks.

The clone wearing goggles noticed the distraction and tapped the pale one on the shoulder.

"I understand this might be a complicated situation for you. But you must remain focused if all of us are to leave alive."

"I.. Yeah I got it. Just this belonged to... Nevermind. We better hurry."

"You'll have to scomp in. Once we break him out, they'll know if we don't divert their attention. He appears to be on high priority."

They rushed to a terminal, center room.

One typed away ferviously as the one beside him, plugged in and twisted against the gears with the scomp in his arm.

"Got it Tech."

Tech pressed a button.

"We don't have a lot of time. If you want to get out without your brain being reconstructed, you'll need to grab your things and push on."

Fives hopped to his feet, though the exhaustion all over his body was still evident. He moved over to his old gear.

"Hey, uh thanks for saving me. Haven't been out for a while." He was placing the armor plates over his blacks.

"It's what we do.. And really no one deserves to be stuck like that." The pale one said before turning around.

He was in shock, staggering backwards despite his mechanical limbs.

Fives sent a glance upwards after securing his kama.

He looked at the trooper ahead of him. Something felt familiar... Then he looked at his eyes.

He held his breath..

He didn't move, looking ahead.

Echo

He didn't blink, scared he was hallucinating it all.

Scared he would just disappear...

Tech noticed the silence, he knew why. He could understand it from a psychological standpoint.. But they had more pressing concerns.

"We are running out of time. Hunter can't wait on us forever when everyone on Kamino will be looking for us."

Fives shook his head, to snap out of it. It took Echo a little longer to regain focus at first, but he did. They were soldiers.. It's what was required of them.

"Right." Fives finished securing his armor and placed his helmet on his head.

He never thought he'd wear it again. He never thought he'd see Echo again either... The day was full of surprises. Despite the overall horrible... This was good. Though he did feel guilty for thinking it.

"Got a blaster Echo?"

"Back with our gear in the hangar bay."

Fives tossed one of his DC-17s to his vod'ika. Echo caught it.

Tech pressed a button on the datapad.

"Now we move. The cell's alarm is triggered."

They rushed out, hoping to make it back before Crosshair realized they were missing.

Upon reaching the hangar, Echo handed Fives back his blaster before moving to the trunks of gear to find his own.

"Fives?" Omega said surprised as she saw him. She hasn't seen him in months. She wasn't even sure he was still here.

"Yeah kid, it's me. It's good to see you."

She hugged him from the side as batch 99 started and finished grabbing their gear. He returned the hug briefly. Echo and Hunter looked over at them curiously.

"Haven't seen Crosshair over here yet." Hunter finished gearing up.

"Omega, keep with Echo and The Reg..."

Fives moved next to Echo and the crate he had just finished grabbing from.

"Tech, get the ship fired up, we might need a quick escape."

Tech nodded and moved for the ship, readying it.

"And Wrecker, with me. We're finding Crosshair."

"You've got it Sarge."

Omega picked up Wrecker's Lula. As she stood on her feet, she noticed the bay doors.

"I think he had the same idea." Omega said pointing to the bay doors, as they slowly opened.

Fives set his blasters to stun as he ducked behind the crate with Echo. The others also ducked.

A squad of shock troopers came rushing in, their carbines were pointed in their direction.

Crosshair carried a sniper rifle as he walked in.

Hunter stood up, walking to the center as he looked at Crosshair.

Wrecker, Echo and Fives peered over their crates.

"Is that...Crosshair?"

Crosshair stared ahead at Fives, but quickly returned his attention to Hunter.

"Best surrender. Sargeant."

"Turn in the reg. Make it...easy on yourself."

"Are you out of your mind?!" Hunter exclaimed

"We should've killed that Jedi. You disobeyed orders."

"I did what I thought was right!" He defended

"How's that working out for you? Now you're throwing in with a reg, a traitorous one at that and... A kid?"

"Now Surrender."

Hunter looked back at the men. Wrecker put his helmet on his head and readied his weapon. Echo was aiming, and the ARC Trooper nodded his head as he took aim.

He returned his look to Crosshair. "Is that an order?"

Crosshair smirked. "Heh. I guess it is."

"Well.. I guess I'm disobeying that one too."

The tension was high as soldiers stared upon each other, daring the other to make the first move.

The silence. Loud.

Crosshair's expression narrowed, his finger inched closely on the trigger of his hand held pistol and sniper rifle.

Then he fired a shot.

Hunter ducked in time and it had hit the side of the ship.

It was quick to become a firefight.

In the end, the batch escaped mainly unscathed, except for Wrecker who had been shot by Crosshair.

Echo was currently tending to him. And this was giving Fives the entire world time to think.

But thinking.. Was all he had since he was in that cell. He was tired of thinking.

Omega had shot the blasters out of Crosshair's hands. It was a very impressive feat for an untrained clone.

Hunter walked over to Fives. Even Tech would easily read that which appeared all over his face.

"Uh thanks... For covering us back there." He started an awkward conversation.

"It's what we do.." He said a hazy focus.

"What's on your mind uh...-"

"Fives."

Hunter chuckled briefly.

"What is it?"

"ARC-5555?" He looked up at his 5 tattoo after he spoke.

"Uh yeah?"

"That's a little on the nose, isn't it?"

"Says the guy who has batchmates named Tech, Crosshair and Wrecker." Fives

Okay, he had him there.

"So... Uh.. Heard you tried to kill the Chancellor.."

"That's just the version clones were told about me. Because the truth... Would've stopped this from ever happening."

Fives held his palm against the side wall as he sighed.

"You mean order 66?"

"It was much worse... But that was a big part of it."

He looked back at Echo, fending off Wrecker who complained about the medical attention.

"It's why they pushed the crazy clone narrative so hard. Because if I appeared insane... No one would believe me."

"And it worked."

"They expect all of us to be unthinking droids... To follow every order without a single question? But.. That's not who I am. They weren't expecting it, I suppose."

"They weren't prepared for me to investigate when things were clearly not right... It was unsettling to them. They had to take the nuclear option to protect the skeletons in their closets."

"You defied their 'programming?' too?" Hunter asked

"Good soldiers follow orders.. But the best ones know when not to." Fives said

"That type of thinking usually gets you labelled as a defect."

"Eh, I'm used to it. My squad and I, we've been hearing that one since were cadets." Fives said

"Maybe they were right. But I figure the way things are going, that's how you know you're in the right."

"Conforming to the standards of the rest.. They are basically unthinking droids. I wouldn't want that either."

"You know you might be stuck with us for a while, considering the move we just made." Hunter said

"You're all brothers. It's more than I had back when I was imprisoned on Kamino."

"And you don't care that we're not.. Well, regs?" Hunter asked

"Why should I care about that?"

"Don't examine me! I'm not a computer!" They heard Wrecker yell out.

They looked over at him, diverting their attention.

"This will just take a second."

Hunter uncrossed his arms, he glanced at Fives before they began to walk over.

"Get that thing away from me!"

Echo looked past, seeing Fives again. Well... Now was as good of a time to address this as any.

Fives looked over at him. There was a sigh in relief.

Omega silently observed them. Having already known they were batch mates.

Wrecker, Tech and Hunter were busy talking about Cross hair, until they realized Echo wasn't part of the conversation. He walked over to Fives.

"Did you miss me?" Echo asked, breaking the long silence as he reached his twin's location.

Fives didn't say anything as he quickly pulled him into a tight hug.

Echo took a breath, returning the hug with his one good arm.

"It's really you... I can't believe it."

They caught the attention of the others, the only ones not appearing to be confused were Tech and Omega.

"I'm so sorry.. I never should have-"

"It's not your fault. I never blamed you." Echo said

"I left you.."

"No. You followed orders."

"Look where following orders has gotten clones." He sighed, blame on himself...

"What happened?" They asked at the same time after a silence.

They let go finally.

"Fives.. Rex told me you were killed. In fact you're listed as legally dead."

"How are you-"

"I don't know. There's.. things I just don't remember." He was honest, his mind was hazy at times

"You recognized me back on Kamino. Before anyone else ever called me Echo."

"Like I would ever not recognize you Ech'ika?"

"What.. Happened.. After.. You know." Fives said

"I take it they used to know each other." Hunter said off hand

"I would certainly hope so, being batchmates and all." Tech replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world

"What?" Hunter asked

His eyes were glued to the datapad.

"CT-27-5555 and CT-1409 were the last remaining members of Domino Squad, both making it to ARC Trooper status shortly after helping The Republic take a win during the Battle of Kamino. Report by Taun We.."

"Domino Squad consisted of members Hevy, Cutup, Droid-Bait, Echo and Fives. Three of the Five were killed on their first mission at the Rishi Moon outpost. Echo and Fives were the last remaining, and were requested for the 501st legion by Captain Rex."

"Echo was seemingly killed by an explosion at the citadel rescue, leaving Fives as the last remaining Domino before the parasite turned him crazy, resulting in his death by blaster, Commander Fox."

"I have recently been informed that Echo survived the blast, and was taken captive by the Techno Union. Later joining with Clone Force 99. Report taken by General Shaak Ti."

"So you mean they're from the same squad?" Wrecker asked

"That is what I just said."

"Can they read each other's minds?" Omega asked

"What do you mean?" Hunter asked

"They keep giving each other looks without talking and look like they're having a conversation." Omega said

"Maybe they have telepathy!" Wrecker said

"I highly doubt that as a possibility." Tech said

The Domino Twins walked over together after finishing their conversation. Echo came by to check on Wrecker. And Fives briefly spoke with Tech as Hunter spoke up to Omega.

"Impressive shot back there." Hunter looked to Omega

"Where'd you learn to do that?"

"I don't know.  I never fired a blaster before."

"I guess I just got lucky."

The attention of the others was diverted to the conversation when Echo spoke up.

"She's not the only one." He moved Wrecker up.

"I'm fine. It'll take more than a blaster shot to take me down." Wrecker said

"You were down." Echo reminds him.

"Yeah, well.. Not for long!" He laughed out loud, playfully punching Echo in the arm.

He groaned in pain shortly after.

"So uh.. Where are we gonna go now? Not exactly a lot of places for clone deserters and a clone traitor." Fives asked Hunter

"I thought we could go off on our own. Lay low."

"But with Crosshair gunning for us, I'm not so sure." Hunter was thinking

"What about your friends?  Can any of them help us?" Omega asks

"That would be a short list.." Tech said

"Well.. I can think of one. Plot a course for J-19." Hunter said

Tech nodded his head and set the Navi computer.

"J-19?" The twins spoke up at the same time.

"We know a guy."

The ship was silent.

Wrecker and Omega were huddled up together, asleep.

Tech was flying the ship through hyperspace.

Fives and Echo were sitting next to one another. Fives rubbed his eyes, he still tried hiding how tired he really was.

"Fives. Get some sleep. Even those two are asleep by now." He motioned towards Omega and Wrecker.

"I'm not tired."

Echo scoffed. How dumb did this fool think he was?

"Did you by chance forget who you tried that with just now?" Echo was a little snarky

"Or did you perhaps think I somehow don't know you anymore?"

"I'm the one person who has always known you and will always know you."

Fives looked down at the floor. And Echo put his hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, what's going on?"

He didn't want to bring it up.

"I really don't want to talk about this right now."

"We haven't seen each other since the Citadel before today. And the first problem you're having.. You don't even want to talk about it?"

"I have my reasons." He responded

"They all- look.."

"You're right. We did just get each other back. And that's exactly why I don't want to ruin that with this."

"Talk to me."

It was easy to slip back into old habits with Echo around. Of course.. Things were somehow harder now than it had been.. But there were a few things in this moment that did feel the same.

"Well uh...I don't sleep...really. Not anymore."

"Things have gotten worse the longer I was there."

"I just can't take it... It's all the nightmares. They just.."

"Everytime I sleep.. I'm reliving it."

"I only sleep when I absolutely have to. Maybe 2 times a week."

"Things are different now.. They've been difficult for a while." Echo said

"We never really seem to catch a break,  do we?"

"No.. We really don't." Fives responded

"Except this time." Echo said

"After every horrible thing that's happened this last... Well since the Empire. It brought back our best way to fight through these things. Being together."

"As long as we live.. We're still batchmates. And you're still my twin. Though I might not exactly look the part anymore."

The joke resulted in a chuckle from the pair as they made eye contact.

"Try and sleep. I'll be right here the whole time." He promised.

"We're going to get through this eventually."

"You know after everything... It did nothing. The warning. No one believed me and no one was saved." Fives sighed.

"It might have."

"Do you think it's ever gonna be okay?" Fives asked

"I know.. We're clones. We were made for being soldiers.."

"But this brings back the fear.. What are they going to do to our brothers now that the war is over?"

"I don't know Ori'vod.. But we are going to save who we can."

Fives rested his head on Echo's shoulder.

"If they could see us now.. I hope they'd be proud." Echo said

"They would." Fives answered