#threats are the only way to flirt with Deadlock

[mountain-ghouls]

And that’s how HotLock started dating

[sushigal007]

I *was* going to do this one yesterday, but I was having such fun playing Joan Mole, I marathoned her entire round in one sitting and didn't finish until midnight, whoops. And even though we're in that timeless period between Christmas and New Year, I still think it's important to go to sleep at a reasonable hour if I ever want time to have meaning.

tl;dr, on with the show!

We start on a snowy colony on Christmas Day. Merry Christmas music! And a grumpy note on the TARDIS, which Nardole knocks on. The Doctor opens up sporting lovely antlers. He's not thrilled about them. Seems the Doctor has been mistaken for, well, a doctor.

Nardole leads him to the flying saucer. River greets him. The Doctor is thrilled, but she has no idea who he is. However, he seems to think all her threats are flirting, until she mentions that her husband is dying.

Credits!

The husband is pretty much a head in a giant rock 'em sock 'em robot. The Doctor is jealous, even more so when River tells the guy how much she loves him and that she has sent for the finest surgeon in the galaxy. Oops. The Doctor lets Nardole know he's not actually a surgeon.

The Doctor steps out with River and tells her he's the Doctor. She's like, yeah, that's why I called for you. There's a diamond in her husband's brain. She wants it back. The husband, not so much. Apparently he likes to eat people, so River doesn't care so much about killing him, although the Doctor isn't so thrilled about that. River tells him he reminds her of her second wife.

Then Hydroflax steps in and takes his head off. Turns out the robot bit is in fact all robot. Seems he's been listening in. She fights the body with her sonic trowel, and the Doctor threatens to drop the head down a garbage chute.

The robot refuses to fight anywhere near Hydroflax in case it harms the head, so the Doctor shoves it in a bag and they teleport out. The bag yells and I giggle. So does the Doctor.

River still doesn't know who the Doctor is. He seems about to explain when Ramone, who teleported them out, shows up. Turns out he's River's husband too. They're looking for the Damsel. They found the 'capsule' but nobody matches the twelve faces he has. It is, of course, the Doctor's previous faces and his new one hasn't made the list yet.

The robot questions Nardole. By removing his head and plugging him in. Then it flies off.

River is going to steal the TARDIS. The Doctor protests. River lets slip that she's been stealing it for a while and parking it right back where she left it, lol. She sends Ramone away, I missed why, and the Doctor pretends to be amazed! That it's bigger! On the inside! He's having such a good time with it, I can't help smiling.

The head's turned off and is sending out a distress signal. River tries to take off, but it won't work because Hydroflax is both inside and outside at once.

Oh, seems Ramone went off to find Nardole. Nardole lures him into an alleyway where the robot body is pointing a gun at his own head.

River reckons the easiest way to deal with the head-body dilemma is to kill the head, which is when Hydroflax wakes up and tells them if they do, his body will destroy the world. Then Ramone knocks on the door. Surprise, he's the Head head now! The body tries to kill River. Ramone objects. Hydoflax encourages. The Doctor decides it might be time they took off. And they arrive at a party on a spaceship. Not the Titanic, thank goodness.

One of the staff recognises River. She asks him to deadlock seal the doors to the hold. The bag grumbles. The Doctor says he has an irritable bowel. Judging from the comments Hydroflax is making, it's very irritable.

Turns out River has sent them to a ship of genocidal maniacs, so the Doctor should fit right in, lol. She's going to sell the diamond. She tells the Doctor it only took a week to seduce Hydroflax and that men always believe it when you tell them they're the hero of their own story. They have a conversation about her diary and she's kinda sad because it's nearly full, and she knows the man who gave it to her would've made sure it would be exactly as long as it would be needed. But he's nobody special, honest.

Ramone begs the staff to let him out of the hold. One of them says he'll just poke his head around the door, so I don't expect it'll stay on his shoulders for long.

The buyer for the diamond shows up and unzips his head and hands her a gooey bank ball. Ew. The other customers all have unzipable heads and oh dear, they're doing this for their beloved king. King Hydroflax. Oops.

Staff guy begs to keep his head in exchange for telling the robot who River Song's husband is.

The Doctor hands Zippy the bag containing Hydroflax’s head, but yanks it back and starts auctioning the head until it wakes up and yells. Everyone bows. Then the body bursts in. Hydroflax wants his body back. The body... does not want *him* back. And zaps him.

Staff guy takes River's diary and hands it to the robot. He reckons the Doctor would make a great new head. River says she has no idea where he is and that he doesn't love her anyway. And the Doctor has to stand there and listen to her run herself down. For a while. And then she realises. And he hello sweetie's at her. And it's adorable.

Turns out she timed this meeting right for when the ship gets hit by a meteor shower. A little bit Titanic after all then. But there's time for some flirting. River runs off to fly the ship and the Doctor deals with the robot by plugging in the bank ball that was inside Zippy's head. Bank security is very good and the robot body kinda conks out

River recognises the planet up ahead. It's Darillium. River says the Doctor is always cancelling dinner there. He would quite like to cancel this one too. He teleports her on to the TARDIS. She immediately materialises around him. They have a bit of a domestic before they realise they can both just step inside.

It's a bumpy landing and River is knocked out. The Doctor picks up the diamond she dropped and time travels a little bit forward until the crash site isn't so flamey. And they're right in front of the singing towers. Some chap comes along looking for survivors and the Doctor suggests building a restaurant there. Using the diamond for money. He zips forward to when the restaurant exists and makes a reservation for Christmas Day. In four years.

River wakes up. She steps outside just in time for her reservation. And it turns out Ramone and Nardole have been working there in the newly-fixed robot body ever since the crash, taking it turns to swap heads.

The Doctor appears and gives her a gift! It is, of course, the sonic screwdriver from Silence In The Library/Forest Of The Dead where she'll die. The Doctor is definitely not crying as they step out onto the balcony and listen to the towers sing.

River says there are stories about them and she looks them up sometimes. The Doctor says she shouldn't, presumable because he's come across some of the filthy ones, but she's talking about how many of them say their last day together is on Darillium and she figured out that's why they never got there before. But if this is the last night, she wants him to find a way around it. He tells her times end and there's no happy ever after. She tells him happy ever after doesn't mean forever, it just means time.

And then he tells her a night on Darillium is 24 years. And they both lived happily. And I happy cried.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Not the most Chritsmassy story, mostly just a few mentions of the date to remind us, but I don't care because I'm so happy they got all that time together! We know River's going to go off and die after this one, but she's going to go knowing her husband loves her. The important one, at least.

Her other husbands are pretty underwhelming though. Ramone was promising up until he got decapitated, and Hydroflax never really lived up to his reputation, but what the hell, it's Christmas, can't have too much murdering at Christmas. And Nardole is always fun, I was quite happy when he came back. I do wonder what happened to Ramone though. Maybe he kept the body.

[thebestestboyo]

How Remus Started Working For Patton: Part Four

Tw: Remus being Remus/Swearing/mention of snakes but only for a moment

Masterpost

"Wow, I expected an old warehouse, or perhaps even a shady bar. This is... hilarious." The remark didn't come from Remus, no, this time it came from Virgil.

The group had stopped outside of a quaint-looking bakery, the shimmery blue and yellow sign reading 'Down With The Pastryarchy.' Virg was right though, it didn't seem to fit the vibe of 'gangster.' At least not to Remus. It was cute though! As in how a poison dart frog was cute before you realized it could kill you!

"First of all, warehouse?? Who would set up there? That's just irresponsible! How would you even heat such a large area?? Secondly, have you been inside one? Its just so loud!" Dee stepped inside, letting the others follow.

"For your information, I have been inside a bar. Probably for different reasons than you, ya overgrown garden snake."

"Excuse me! I'm not always up to no good!"

"The news would say differently."

"Society has never portrayed those who work outside its crippling boundaries as good. As you probably don't know Mr. Gloom Sky."

Pat butted into the tussle, wagging a finger at both of the men. "Now now, there's no need to be throwing names around. Its not very sweet of you two."

Those in question turned to look at him, this bubble of sunshine, and at least had some decency to look ashamed. Virgil could at least understand why Demetrius had warned that Patton was a force to be reckoned with.

Remus in the meantime, was laughing. Wait. Why was he laughing???

"That was a good pun. You know, considering the setting?"

Smiling up at him, Pat squeezed his cheek playfully. "I didn't think you'd catch that!"

"Well, I had to cake a chance! It clearly paid off," God Patton was cute. Remus was about to rattle off several more puns before Virgil elbowed his side, cutting him off.

"Less flirting, more getting to the point."

Blushing furiously, Remus swatted at Virgil, both for elbowing him and eluding to potential romantic feelings between him and Patton. Seriously, not everything he said to Pat was flirting!

Ok he was kinda flirting.

Just a little though! He wasn't about to rush anything! Especially when he hadn't asked Patton how he felt on the anatomies of several creatures, and the different ways in which you could steal someone's eye! How would he know if Patton was good for him until then?

For the umpteenth time that morning, Remus's thoughts were cut off, this particular time by Dee. Butts on a fish, he needed to chose a different time for his internal monologues.

"Come then if you're so desperate to find out. The entrance is this way."

Opening a door labeled 'employees only,' he seemed to...descend? Wait what?

A sudden grip on his arm was the only warning before Pat pulled him and Virgil in after, giggling. "You guys will love it! We worked so hard on it!"

"I find that hard to believe..."

This time it was Remus who elbowed Virgil, afraid of him upsetting Patton. "I'm sure it will be great Pat Pie!"

Virg groaned at yet another pun, but let the two of them be dragged down the stairs. It was surprising how they managed to fit this spiral staircase so seamlessly into the bakery, no surprise why someone hadn't found out their base yet. It was hiding in plain sight as far as anyone could tell.

Dee, further up ahead, called back to them, his voice echoing from the tall ceiling needed to fit in the staircase. "Pat, remember the trick step. They don't know about it."

"Oh! Right. Guys, hop over this next one ok?"

"Why would we need to-" Virgil made his mistake of not heeding Dee's warning, being thrown back by the step sliding out from beneath him. "Motherfu-"

"-By the sounds of idiocy I assume he didn't listen." Dee turned back to them, clearly hiding a smile as Remus supported Virgil, only to have the step beneath HIM slide into the wall as well. Before Virgil could snap back at him, all the steps were pushed back into the wall, resulting in all three of them falling the short distance to the ground.

"Oh I like this." Chuckling, Remus helped Patton to his feet with a flourish, before pulling up Virgil as well.

"This is some tomb raider bullshit, I'm calling it out right now."

His smirk all too clear on his face, Dee gestured to a lever right next to where the stairs had been. "No, tomb raider bullshit as you so eloquently call it, would be this lever sending you into a pit of snakes."

Eyes wide, Remus could hardly contain his delight at the prospect. "Does it send us into a pit of snakes??"

"Unfortunately, no. Just into a pit. Snakes wouldn't live well down there, there's no source of food or heat for them to thermoregulate their body temperatures."

Patton turned to face him, voice full of concern as he reached for Remus's hand again. "Plus, what if we fell on them! The poor snakes might get hurt!"

"You are right...but think about how cool it would be!"

"But snakes!"

"Ok, what about...a tank full of jellyfish? They'd have water and the water would stop the jellyfish from getting hurt!" Remus was surprised that Patton so easily took his hand, but it made him feel all fuzzy inside, the good kind. It was very unlike when you got a mouth full of raccoon fur.

Don't...don't ask.

As the two debated the moral complications of jellyfish compared to snakes and eventually to electric eels, Virgil deadlocked his gaze on Demetrius. If glaring could kill, he would have been dead where he stood. Unluckily for Virgil, he just smirked back at him in turn, continuing to lead the group to wherever they seemed to be going. At this point, he couldn't tell.

God what he would do to wipe that stupid look off of his face. It was unfair. He couldn't be hot AND evil! That was just cruel!

And he still had his stupid jacket off, showing his stupid muscular arms, and his stupid face with it's stupid grin was just making the situation worse, and it was all STUPID.

"Take a picture punk. It'll last longer."

"I'm just waiting for you to finally show us this place you've been droning of for the past thirty minutes. It feels like I've been forced to follow you for hours already."

"Don't worry Dark and Stormy, we're already here."

With that, he opened a door into one of the biggest rooms they'd ever seen. Wasn't this underground?? How did it have such a high ceiling?

And it was filled with people who Virgil would normally avoid. They all had that look about them, like if you looked at them wrong, they'd fuck you up. These were the king of people Remus tended to piss off when he was drunk and made everyone in the nearby vicinity regret him doing so.

"We're back you punks!" Dee called out to the group, smiling? Of course he was smiling. He was a gangster.

"Hey welcome back boss! And hello Patton!"

"Who are these two?"

"Where ya been? Normally you're not out so early!"

"These guys new members?"

Honestly it was kinda a lot for Virgil. Remus on the other hand was thrilled about this. They all had something chaotic about them! One of them had a sword??? Who the fuck fights with a sword!? Another was carrying what looked like a jar of live bees? Remus didn't know!!!

"These are visitors. Don't rough them up too much. Patty likes them."

"Dee!" Pat's cheeks tinted pink, clearly embarrassed at being called out. He didn't let go of Remus's hand though like he thought he would, instead tucking himself into Ree's side. Holy fuck. He was using Remus to hide in?? That was a first for him.

"Sorry, this is Patton's...friend, and the friend of Patton's friend." Cheekily, he and Pat exchanged a glance that Ree was too slow to interpret. But it made Pat's face turn even more red, so Remus assumed it was an inside joke or something.

Virgil in the meantime seemed thrown off by how domestic the inside of the base seemed, and being honest, he couldn't blame him. They both assumed it was much less...pleasant? Was that the word? No, there had to be more more suitable for this odd situation....

Calm! It was calm. God Patton was making him feel dizzy from all the sudden affection or something, usually he was better at this!

Remus looked down at the smaller man now cuddling into his side, sighing softly and unclasping their hands to set the overcoat he had brought with him around his shoulders. "You cold or something Pat?" He was ignoring Dee's comment from before, as it clearly was rubbing Patton the wrong way.

"Oh! Um, yes, a little! Thank you." Both of them played into the white lie, brushing it off to make him feel more comfortable. But perhaps Patton wasn't hiding in Remus just from the embarrassment...

Virgil cleared his throat from behind them, reminding the two that Dee had been waiting for them still.

Pat still kept the coat around his shoulders nevertheless, as they all packed into Dee's office.

"So. Remus."

"And me." Virgil interjected, sitting on the arm of couch that faced Dee's desk.

"And Virgil. You're probably confused as to why I made Remus a member of the gang."

"Uh yeah dimwit, you really had to drag us this far just to tell us this?"

Pat frowned at him, going over to sit on the desk near Dee. "That's not particularly nice of you to say."

"Sorry Patton. But I'm serious. This could have gone a lot faster." Virg couldn't believe himself. He was apologizing to the co-leader of a gang?? Just because he gave off disappointed dad vibes did not mean that he was completely trustworthy.

"I thought it best to reveal my hand, so to speak. You do know that telling the authorities about us would be unwise, due to the vast amount of resources we have. It would be a pain to have to move locations and change identities after we've set up shop here."

"So...this is a threat."

"Not necessarily. It's an invitation. For Remus specifically. He doesn't have to participate in our business, I just thought he'd appreciate being able to freely talk with Patton, and being part of our association helps with that."

Remus was...a tad shocked at this news. He was put into a gang...to be able to flirt cause havoc with Patton?

As if he could read his thoughts, Dee waved a hand dismissively. "While normally this doesn't happen, I decided to make it an exception. Originally, you, Virgil, weren't a part of the plan, but as you are Remus's roommate, I wanted to cover my bases."

"Don't tell me you're gonna pierce my ear as well."

"I doubt I could even try without losing a finger. The only reason I did it to Remus was because I was in a hurry."

Pat swung his legs gently as they talked, looking over at Ree for his reaction. It was, intrigued to say the least, Remus seemed to be pretty open to most things. Was that a strength or a downfall of his? Patton couldn't tell. But he did enjoy the coat around his shoulders, smiling to himself as he tucked into it.

Maybe this one would work?

And maybe he'd make a new friend as well! Virgil seemed nice, if not a bit guarded. He supposed that was to be expected, it's not every day that you get told your friend (best friend?) is now a member of a gang that controls half the city.

The words between his brother and Virgil grew muddled, as Patton daydreamed what this meant. It was a little shocking for him to find Remus calling his attention, snapping his fingers from the spot he had taken next to Virgil.

It was enough to get Patton back into reality, and to hear that Dee was asking him a question. "Pat were you listening? I asked what you thought about Virgil being allowed in as well."

"Oh! Sorry Dee Dee, just caught up in some thoughts! Sure Virgil can come in, maybe he can try some of your baked goods!"

Pat had seen the way his brother kept looking at Virg, so he thought he'd...well, help him out a little. Even if it resulted currently in an embarrassed Dee in the meantime. Sorry!

"Wait were you the one to come up with the idea of having your super bad gang cover being a pastry shop??" Virgil grinned mischievously at this new information, and Patton could tell that it lessened the stigma about Dee, at least a little bit.

"Not completely! I just thought it might be a good cover, and Pat had already come up with the name! What was I supposed to do???"

"That's rich! The snake in the grass bakes?"

"Wha- no!!!"

Glancing back over to Remus, Pat was delighted to find him cackling at the chaos Pat had created.

Perhaps this would become their new normal? If it did, Pat definitely wouldn't mind.

-Just an author's note-

Sorry it took so long to finally get to this point! I wasn't expecting the buildup to last four chapters 😅There will certainly be more backstory and action as I write this, so I apologise for how slow it is

Thanks for sticking around through it though! I really appreciate it

[archieimagines]

Tied Up | Doctor Strange One Shot

requested by: anon warnings: violence, swearing, some description of injuries but nothing major this is a soulmate!au with the whole colour shebang thing. monochrome vision to colour after meeting your soulmate kinda shit. enjoy <3

You threw up your hands, creating a barrier between yourself and the crumbling structure of what used to be a clocktower. The force of the falling rubble made you grit your teeth, but wasn’t anything too uncomfortable for you to handle. With a defiant shove, you pushed the barrier upward, following behind before flying to the man behind it all. He, like all things, was in shades of white and black. His costume was pretty plain, compared to some of the ‘interesting’ designs you’d come across. Not like you could talk, your suit was made of a bullet, fire and weather proof polymer, with a cape to aid in aerodynamics. Your best friend by day and tech/super hero stylist by night had designed it and may have illegally stolen the material from her lab at Stark Industries. Your mask covered the majority of your face, only your mouth was exposed. 

You had specified to her that the costume be black and white, as she (unlike you) had found her soulmate. Jenny was absolutely delightful and now the two of them could see the full range of colours that filled the lives of those lucky enough to find their other half. Meaning they were what stood between your costume looking ridiculous or badass. 

“You’ll never defeat the likes of CORRUPTION CLAW!” He declared from his perch on the nearby building, his nefarious tech surrounding him, most of it actually stolen from the man of Iron, but you couldn’t tell Corruption Claw that. “There’s no point in trying to stop me, I’ve already won!” He cackled.

With a roll of your eyes, you sent a strong blast of energy towards him. He ducked to safety, but his tech was obliterated to the point that it was laughable. 

You landed on the platform, lifting the man by his costume’s collar like a sack of potatoes, he tried to fight back, going as far as to spit in your face. You remained unfazed, while your best friend was screaming profanities at Corruption Claw down the comm line. Most of their words being about how the spitting was highly unhygienic. He tilted his head back, to do it again. But you slammed your forehead into his face, his nose making a satisfying crunch before he started wailing.

“AH FUCKING HELL! I think you broke my nose!”

“I’m sure the medical staff at the prison you’ll be sent to will be able to sort that out for you.” You reply, starting to drag him of the platform to deliver him to the proper authorities. But his sudden laughter that reminded you of the creepy children in every horror movie made you freeze. “What?”

“You didn’t think I had a contingency plan did you?”

“Wha—” But his contingency rammed it’s into your chest, sending you flying through the air. The head of the missile pushing you further and further away from Corruption Claw. Who by now was most likely making a dastardly escape. After the initial shock of being hit by a literal missile wore off, you composed yourself and attempted to change it’s direction. Using all your strength, the missile started to get higher into the atmosphere. But what you didn’t take into consideration was the possibility that it had a countdown to detonation.

The force of the detonation and shrapnel that speared itself into your body sent you hurling from the sky unconscious. Your body spun as it hurled towards the ground, but as your imminent impact with the ground raced towards your body, you regained just enough control to direct yourself through the roof of some manor and through the first two floors before stopping at what was most likely the ground floor. You were aware of the crater that your impact had made on the flooring, in the future you would cringe when thinking how much it would cost to fix it. 

Groaning, you managed to pull yourself up, but couldn’t manage to fly out of there. Your mask had been partially wrecked in the explosion, half of it now only remained, deciding that it was of no use now you pulled it off your face. Your ribcage felt as if someone had tried to use it as a xylophone. So you had to settle for uneasy staggering with a large side of pained grunts. You had managed to move about a foot away from your crater before you heard flaps from the upper levels. In your dazed confusion, it hadn’t occurred to you that someone might be home. You weren’t quite sure how you were going to explain to the owner why they now had a multi level skylight and designer superhero shaped hole in their floor. But then the realisation that it might have been Corruption Claw hit you and you spun around, mustering the most heroic face you could.

Only to be met with a floating cape. Confusion took hold of you once more, your defensive stance slackening in awe of the cape. You couldn’t explain it, but it seemed almost sentient. You tilted your head to the side, the collar of the cape copied the action simultaneously. It was incredibly unprofessional but you couldn’t help but giggle at it. Rather than seeing it as a threat it sort of reminded you of a puppy. You extended your arm to touch the fabric, but before your gloved fingers could make contact, you were thrown into the wall by a grey glow. And then a strangely clothed man, who was now cloaked by the sentient accessory floats down. Strange glowing symbols surrounded him, his stance was on the offensive, ready to attack her. He was rather attractive if she had to admit it to herself, she quite liked his goatee, but in that moment her attention wasn’t exactly focused on his facial grooming.

“Who are you and what business do you have here?” He demanded to know, his tone unflinchingly threatening. You raised an eyebrow, not that impressed with his whole aesthetic he had going on.

“Okay, Mr Glowy Lights. I just got thrown out of the sky by a literal missile so I’m not really interested in your whole thing you got going.” He too didn’t look impressed by your response, the symbols intensifying, his hands began twirling, the symbols beginning to morph with the movement of his hands. Groaning out of annoyance you prepared to fight back, not able to keep a pained gasp quiet in front of the wizard man guy. 

Then suddenly he was on top of you, the pair of you cursed at the sudden collision. It was then that you realised your movement was restricted by some unknown force. It had you in a deadlock against the owner of the manor, uncomfortably close you would specify. As you tried to break free you noticed that the man’s cloak was what had them wrapped together, but from the look on his face, he hadn’t planned on it to do this. It was almost funny, and you couldn’t help but have a ghost of a smile on your face.

“What’s so funny?”

“Oh, just that you don’t have control of your accessories…”

“The Cloak of Levitation is not an accessory.”

“Sure, buddy. If you know so much about it, why don’t you make it unwrap us?” His silence not only proved your statement, but was oh, so satisfying. The frown on the stranger’s face was almost adorably grumpy. 

“I knew it! Okay, why don’t you try to move your arm so I can—” You began to advise, but were interrupted by his forehead smacking into your own rather harshly. Swearing loudly, you couldn’t help but close your eyes due to the sudden pain. But were taken off guard by the guy’s strangled gasp. Opening them slightly, your own gasp escaped your lips.

There were so many, more than you thought was possible. You had always been told by your parents that colours had an almost infinite amount, but you had always thought they had just sat it to make you more determined to find your soulmate…The wizard. Looking up into his eyes, they were beautiful, you didn’t know what the colour was called, but it was possibly your favourite. His hair was dark, with the sides partially greying. You quickly studied all his features, wanting to know everything about him as an unbridled joy filled your being.

“Who are you?” You asked after realising you still didn’t know his name.

“Doctor Strange.”

“Your really going to give me your alter ego?”

“No—I’m—My last name is Strange and I’m a doctor.”

“Okay…” You chuckled, he too chuckled, it was something you would make sure to hear every day from that moment. You then realised that the cape hadn’t been holding you together anymore, but he and you hadn’t noticed while being lost in each other’s presence. “Looks like your ‘Cloak of Levitation’ is a really good wingman.”

“Why did you use air quotes?”

“Hmm?”

“You used air quotes when calling it the Cloak of Levitation.”

“Seems like a weird name for a cape. It looks more like a Bob to me.”

“You did not just name the Cloak of Levitation Bob!” You shrugged your shoulders, his face was twisted in a look of annoyance in bewilderment. Taking a step back, the world suddenly went sideways and the burrito you’d had for breakfast started to head back up your oesophagus. Before you hit the ground, his arms caught you, leaving you in a pose that felt like it was straight out of a 90’s rom-com. “I think you might have a concussion. I don’t think you should leave just yet.”

“Are you trying to keep me here, Doctor?” You flirted and batted your eyes at your soulmate, still quietly marvelling at all the colours that you now got to experience thanks to him.

“Stephen. And... partially. I still have to honour the Hippocratic oath, it’s just a coincidence that you happen to be my soulmate.” He explained nonchalantly yet had a smirk growing on his face. Your face gradually came closer to his, your eyes almost exclusively focused on his lips. Just as they were about to connect a familiar voice caused you and Stephen to part.

“Um, hello? Are you there? You’ve been radio silent for a while. And if your suit is ruined in any way I’M GOING TO REACH DOWN THE COMM AND CHOKE YOU OUT BECAUSE THAT MATERIAL IS WORTH ABOUT A ZILLION DOLLARS AND I DID NOT COMMIT A FELONY FOR YOU TO GET IT BLOWN UP!” You almost pulled the comm out of your ear, they were so loud at the other end. Their threat sent a chill up your spine, as you knew they would follow through if the suit had been ruined. But thankfully, the shrapnel, explosion and falling through two levels of flooring had only lead to some slight tearing.

“Uh, yeah I’m fine by the way and so’s the suit.”

“I SWEAR I’M GONNA MURDE—Cool, why the silence then?” You couldn’t help but glance at Stephan after the question, he smiled at you but he looked painfully awkward. Had probably overheard the entire thing. 

“Let’s just say I got a little tied up.” You replied, eyes connecting with Stephen’s, and couldn’t help but smile. You couldn’t wait to get to know more about him. And by the look on his face, he wanted the same thing too.

written by: el

[condefected-blog]

// Okay, time for a full unabridged backstory of my Knock Out. Yup. This is gonna get long as all hell, because I want you all to know what kind of stuff he’s endured in his short amount of time living (he’s such a young bby like wow).

Knock Out was born to Skyleer and Starwind, his sire and carrier respectively, approximately 22-24 thousand years ago. Skyleer, as the name suggests, was a seeker and was the reason Knock Out’s original frame was a flight frame; Starwind was a grounder, the reason Knock Out went through the effort of changing his frame to an automobile frame. Both parental units were neutral, but had different allegiances.

Not long after he was born, Skyleer ran away with Knock Out to join the Decepticons. To stop Starwind from trying to take him back and either put him in an orphanage or take him to the Autobots, Skyleer had her location revealed and had her assassinated to eliminate the threat (he did regret this, but he was loyal to the Decepticons). Knock Out grew up with stories of Megatron and his “accomplishments” alongside Skyleer’s own accomplishments, and it was during this time Skyleer spent much time getting Knock Out’s personality to be how he saw fit.

Knock Out went from cute and innocent to troublesome and even a bit aggressive during his sparkling years; while parts of his true personality would occasionally shine through (such as the lighthearted flirting and the sassiness), he was pretty ruthless. His sire wanted him to be a seeker just like himself, but with the stories of “Cinderace” (a different name to hide that his carrier was of Autobot allegiance) and her automobile alternate form, red in color, Knock Out followed in his carrier’s shadow, becoming how he looks now. There was protest, but out of the two, Knock Out eventually won the argument.

Another argument between Knock Out and his sire was his choice in occupation; while Skyleer wanted him to be a soldier, Knock Out was more comfortable in being a doctor or medic, with a few other things to accompany that. While he ended up going the medic route and studied under another Decepticon medic, he learned to fight from his sire.

Though Skyleer and Knock Out clashed a lot over his choices, Knock Out had always wanted to gain his sire’s approval in any way. It was why he stuck with the slight sadistic nature, why he was so aggressive and almost mean in his words, why he even went so far as to volunteer for torture; it was the only time he ever seemed to get approval from Skyleer. It was the only thing that really mattered, and when he did finally get the approval, it was always just an accepting nod. No smile, no words; just a nod of approval.

A key turning point in Knock Out’s life was his sire’s death. Barely considered an adult, he had lost his other parental unit to a Wrecker, who took Skyleer out from the sky. And so, in a fit of fury, Knock Out relentlessly hunted down the specific Wrecker and killed him as a sorts of revenge; the damage he caused to that Autobot Wrecker was extreme. He clawed apart the other’s faceplates with his sharp digits, even managing to saw off a leg and the doorwings of the Wrecker. Other wounds would have scattered the body, but those were the worst of it. While it didn’t make him feel better, it gave him a sense of what it was like to actually kill a bot, an experience that he didn’t know whether or not to like. He would have met Breakdown at some point before or after this event (this is unsure for the moment).

He lost any other parental figures during the war, including the mentor who taught him what he knew about being a medic. In fact, Knock Out was lucky to make it out alive himself; while battered and hurt, he did make it to safety and even managed to travel to Earth aboard the Nemesis.

From here, Knock Out spent his time on the Earth exploring and learning about the culture with Breakdown. It then follows canon; him returning to the Nemesis to tend to Megatron, him ending up staying on the Nemesis, etc.

The time it finally becomes canon divergent in my main verse is when his little stunt as SIC for Starscream came to an end (like I have mentioned before; very early into the series). The only other mech that would’ve known that he had defected secretly was Breakdown, and that was because Breakdown was the only one he could trust with his spark. When Breakdown was killed, Knock Out dedicated his time to not only plan revenge for him but to give the Autobots as much of an advantage as he could. Whether he gets caught just before the events of Deadlock or not varies; however, it is more than likely he would’ve been caught by this point, and getting lucky that the Autobots saved him.