#yeah i might just straight up cry it's fine i can be normal about this

[loveinhawkins]

Steve knows that it’s Eddie from the way the RV door sticks awkwardly before it opens, which makes him smile. The guy can break in and hotwire the thing, as smooth as you like, but then apparently turns into a klutz as soon as the pressure’s gone.

Eddie doesn’t notice that he’s inside at first, seems more focused on tying a few makeshift spears together with string so they don’t fall about the place. It’s only when he looks up, does a double take and says, amused, “Sorry, didn’t realise I was interrupting something,” that Steve remembers he isn’t exactly cutting a fine figure right now.

To put it bluntly, he’s currently hunched over, sat at the little table, eating canned frosting with a teaspoon.

“What are you even…?” Eddie sits down opposite him, peers closer and sees the label on the can. “Harrington,” he says, like someone reading out orders of execution, “that’s fucking gross.”

“Hey, I found it sealed in the cupboard, it’s not expired. And it’s chocolate, man,” Steve defends.

A pause. “Can I have some?”

Steve laughs. “Sure.”

He finds another teaspoon, moves the frosting so it rests in between them. Smiles when Eddie knocks their spoons together, like they’re sharing wine instead.

They sit in comfortable silence. Steve has the sudden thought that if it wasn’t for the impending everything, he could pretend like it’s a lazy Saturday, where they’re free to do harmless, juvenile things, like just watching movies all day. Like sharing frosting out of the can.

“God, you’re so unbothered by all this, aren’t you?” Eddie says around his spoon, which makes Steve suspect that perhaps their thoughts aren’t exactly aligned at the moment. “Steve Harrington. Mister Cool.”

He says it softly, a little like Robin had—and Jesus, Steve thinks, did everyone in school have such an idea of him?

“Unbothered, meaning?”

Eddie shrugs. “Alternate dimension. Real life monsters. Uh, I dunno, the potential end of the world? Take your pick, man.”

Steve thinks for a little while, scrapes the bottom of the can repeatedly even though they’ve already eaten it all.

He doesn’t know how to say that over the years, fear has become normal, a reassuring background noise. It’s when he doesn’t feel it that he’s really, truly scared shitless.

“If it makes you feel any better,” Steve says, “I think we all just got so used to it, that—”

“Yeah, that doesn’t make me feel better,” Eddie interrupts with a huff of a laugh. “If I think about it for too long, I might actually cry for you all, Steve.”

“Nah, don’t do that,” Steve says lightly—though he thinks that a part of Eddie really means it. “It’s more like… like I’m a duck, y’know? Calm on the surface, but…” He drums on the table in demonstration. “Freaking out underneath.”

Eddie’s looking at him with a little smile Steve thinks he hasn’t quite seen before—almost like he’s charmed.

He wonders just how many smiles Eddie Munson has. Wants to have enough time to find out.

“And you’re like an upside down duck,” Steve says, matter-of-fact.

Eddie snorts—another smile, wide and bright. “Excuse me?”

“Like, you might think you’re freaking out on the surface, but underneath, when it comes down to it, you’ll be…” Steve moves his hand in a straight line, imitating a duck calmly gliding along.

Eddie shakes his head. “Think you’ve got too much faith in me.”

And sure, it’s said like it’s a joke, but Steve holds his gaze when he replies seriously, “No, I don’t think so.”

You think I’d trust Dustin with just anyone? I saw you pull him back from the edge of the lake. That’s all I need to know.

Eddie glances away almost like he can see Steve’s thoughts dancing in front of him, as if the honesty is too much to witness.

“Plus you’re, like, my guide for what’s a normal reaction to all of this shit. You’re good for us, man. Keeps us grounded.”

Eddie laughs again. “Christ, I’m the guide for what’s normal. God help us all.” He drops his spoon into the empty can with a clatter. “It’s getting late. We’d better, uh. Round up the troops.”

He stands up, shuffles out from the table.

And Steve finds himself standing, too, with the sudden fear that he’s watching a window close before him.

He reaches for Eddie’s wrist—just two fingers, barely a touch—and Eddie turns to him immediately.

“Hey, Eddie, you’re—you’re good with them, y’know? The kids.” Steve laughs quietly. “God, they’d be… scared far sooner without you. When you were messing around with Dustin, and… Jesus, it’s the most I’ve seen Max laugh in a… in a while.”

Eddie’s smile turns gentle. “Nah, man. Any fool could do that.”

“No,” Steve says.

No, don’t you get it? Only you could. We’re all… we’re better with you, happier with you. I wouldn’t want to do this with anyone else. Please fucking understand how important you are.

You matter.

Eddie’s eyes flicker across Steve’s face. Like he’s understood without Steve having to say a word.

“Careful there, Harrington,” he murmurs.

Steve’s suddenly aware that he still has one finger on Eddie’s wrist. “What?”

Eddie stares at him. Shrugs with one shoulder, but it’s slow. Thoughtful.

“Just thought I’d get ahead of you, in case…”

“In case?”

“I don’t know,” Eddie says, abruptly sounds a little breathless. “Could be the end of the world, right? And you’re…” He glances over at the frosting can, smirks slightly. “You’re kinda under the influence. Don’t want you saying anything you wouldn’t mean in any, uh, normal circumstances.”

Fuck normal. This is my normal.

“And what if I meant it?” Steve says.

Eddie swallows. Calm on the surface.

“If you’re sure,” Eddie says slowly, eyes never leaving Steve’s face. “Then… go ahead.”

Steve steps closer.

Kisses him.

Eddie’s mouth tastes sweet from the frosting. Steve can feel it when he laughs, can feel him shaking from where he’s leaning up against the edge of the table.

He pulls back. “You okay?”

Eddie’s smile is tremulous, like he’s one second away from crying.

“Freaking out,” he says, but he pulls Steve in for another kiss, so Steve knows he’s not referring to…

“Yeah,” Steve admits. “Yeah, me too.”

Eddie laughs breathily, and the sound is enough to finally drown out the background buzz of terror. He’s so close Steve can count every eyelash.

“You’d never know, Steve.”

“Think this—” A last kiss, pressed to the corner of Eddie’s mouth. “Think this is the most scared I’ve ever been.”

“Me too,” Eddie echoes.

And just before he pulls Steve along, just before he opens the RV door and calls for everyone, he leans in close, whispers against Steve’s lips:

“Worth it.”

[fanficimagery]

Miscommunication

You practically throw yourself at your best friend, only to be rejected.

Or were you?

Words: 4.1K Author’s Note: I, uh, I have nothing. I wrote this while having covid. It was the only thing my brain let me complete.

Walking down the side of the empty road, you hug your jacket a little tighter to your body and pray no wild animal leaps from the surrounding woods to attack you in such a vulnerable state. Normally you'd get a ride from your best friend, but you'd just made an absolute fool of yourself and the last thing you want is to see him right now. Or for the rest of the week for that matter.

Tripping and stumbling over gravel and twigs, you curse your lowered inhibitions and wonder how you're going to move on from this. As you're walking, you see lights appear on the road from behind you. They get bright and brighter, and your heart beats faster and faster.

Grimacing, you quickly wipe away your tears. "Please don't be-" An all too familiar blue Camaro slows to a stop next to you and you heave a sigh of relief before grimacing for a whole different reason. "Hargrove, out for a late-night drive?"

Leaning over his seats, Billy glances through the passenger window. "YN YLN? What the hell are you doing out here?"

"Oh, you know, just thought I'd go out for a stroll."

"In the middle of fuckin' nowhere?" He scoffs. He then reaches for the handle and opens the door. "Get in."

"It's fine. I can walk."

"Get in the goddamn car, YN."

You briefly weigh your options before deciding that you don't actually want to walk home in the dark. So, bending at the waist, you peer in through the opened door. "No funny business?"

"Believe it or not, princess, I know that no means no. And to not take advantage of a girl when she's clearly been crying." You wince and then quickly drop into his passenger seat, shutting the door right after. Billy throws his car into drive and takes off, raising the volume to the radio to keep the atmosphere of the car from becoming too uncomfortable. After a couple of minutes, he asks, "Want to talk about it?"

"Not really," you mumble.

"Can't be that bad."

You scoff and keep your gaze straight ahead. "It's.. more embarrassing than anything."

"Well now you gotta tell me."

You sniffle some more and gulp down the forming lump in your throat. "Why? We're not exactly friends." You wince as you hear the words leave your mouth and see Billy's hands clench around the steering wheel. "Sorry, that sounded more bitchy out loud than it did in my head."

"Had this been any other day, you'd be right." He shrugs and then, "So come on. For one night only you can spill all the nitty gritty secrets and I'll never bring it up again."

"Yeah. Right."

He slowly smirks. "Fine. I won't use it as blackmail. I'll probably tease you with it, but not when others can hear."

You turn your head to look at him, slowly smiling and then chuckling. You hide your face behind your hands, groaning. "I know I'm gonna fuckin' regret this, but I need to say it out loud and talk about just how stupid I was."

"Come on, princess, lay it on me."

You groan again. "I, uh, I might have threw myself at my best friend."

Billy's quiet for a moment too long and you peek at him through your fingers. "That.. doesn't sound so bad."

"He rejected me."

He scoffs then. "I still don't see how you're the stupid one here. If it were me, I'd have been all over that."

You wrinkle your nose at his brief leer. "Yeah, well, Eddie's not like that. He said I was drunk and that I'd regret it."

"Eddie?" Billy frowns. You can see him wracking his brain for a face to pin to the name. You can practically see the lightbulb go off over his head when his eyes widen and his head whips in your direction. "Eddie Munson?!"

"You don't have to say his name like that." You pout and Billy cackles.

"Holy shit. Holy shit, princess! You threw yourself at Eddie fuckin' Munson and that freak rejected you?!"

"Don't call him that," you whine. "He's my best friend and-"

Billy laughs some more. "Is he getting into his own stash or something? Why the hell would he-"

"Because I'm not his type! I made an ass out of myself and now I've ruined everything with my best friend, and I can't even look at him anymore and.." You trail off, crying. "I just- I just wanna go home and crawl into bed and not resurface for the foreseeable future. So, if you can stop laughing at me, that'd be awesome."

Billy continues to chuckle as he drives. "Look, I'm sure it's not as bad as you're making it out to be." You scoff and wipe the tears from your face. "You said that he said you were drunk, and he thought you'd regret it?" You frown, hesitantly nodding. "Well then there you go. I'm not a fan of the guy, but he obviously did the right thing not taking advantage of you in this state."

"But I'm not that drunk!"

"Aren't you?" He muses, smirking as he glances at you yet again. "If you were sober or even a bit buzzed, would you be spilling all this girly shit to me? Me who's attempted to take you out multiple times only to be shot down?" You pout at him and sink further into the seat. "That's what I thought. Now pull it together and tell me where you live."

As you glance out the window to take in your surroundings, you say, "Keep driving until you hit Lawrence Street. I'm like the third house down on the right." Billy hums his acknowledgment and then all too soon he's turning down your street. But as you squint your eyes in the darkness, your eyes widen and you throw yourself down onto the floorboard. "Don't stop! Keep driving!"

"What the hell are you doing? Get off the floor."

"No, no, no. That's Eddie's van in front of my house. I don't want to see him."

"What the hell do you want me to do then?"

You watch as Billy glances out his window, smirking at something. "Just.. drop me off around the corner or something. I'll jump fences if I have to until I get to my backyard." Billy goes quiet and you watch as he turns, and then makes another turn. Slowly, you climb back into your seat. "Uh, where are you going?"

"My place."

"Hargrove," you groan.

"I'm still being a decent person," he muses. "Dad took his wife on a little getaway, so it's just me and Maxine. You're good."

"You promise?"

Billy glances at you then, his expression softening just a fraction as he takes in just how small you look in his passenger seat. "Sure, Princess. I promise."

The drive to Billy's house is a few minutes longer and then he's pulling into his driveway. You get out of his car on shaky legs, hugging your jacket tight around you once again. Following him inside, you wince as he shouts for his stepsister, only to get no response in return.

"Guess she's gonna be out for the night."

"Mhmm." Billy surprises you with a change of clothes- a crop top of his that fits you almost like a normal shirt and a pair of sleep pants. He tries to offer sharing his bed, but you wrinkle your nose at him. "Nope. The floor is fine. I'm not sleeping in jizz central."

He laughs, but shrugs. He wasn't going to manhandle you into his bed if you didn't want to be there. Instead, he grabs up all the spare blankets and pillows he can find and lets you make a nest on his floor. He disappears for a brief moment before coming back with tylenol and a glass of water. You eagerly drink it all down, setting the glass on his bedside table and then crawling underneath one of the blankets.

As soon as the lights are out, your eyes start to take longer and longer to reopen.

"Hey Billy?" You sleepily mumble.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks. This was actually pretty decent of you."

He huffs. "Go to sleep, YN."

"M'kay."

The following afternoon you're sitting at Hargrove's breakfast table, elbows on the tabletop and head resting in your hands. Your stomach's rolling, your head is pounding, and the embarrassment still lingers.

You remember everything from watching Eddie be his rambunctious self at Steve's impromptu party, to having a couple drinks for liquid courage and being talked up by Robin, to finally just grabbing your best friend by the back of his neck and kissing him. For a moment he seemed to be into it, but then he pushed away and your heart plummeted.

Tears of embarrassment had stung your eyes as Eddie explained that you were drunk and didn't know what you wanted. But you did- you knew exactly who and what you wanted, but he merely flashed you a sad smile and refused to believe you. So when he told you to stay put while he went to grab his jacket so he could drive you home, you disappeared out Steve's backyard gate even as Robin tried to call you back.

The front door to the house opens and your head shoots up, eyes wide with panic. The door shuts and then the person who'd just entered comes into view.

Max freezes, staring at you before she looks you up and down. Her shock quickly turns into disgust. "Please tell me you didn't."

"I-I didn't!" You quickly stand, clutching at the waistband of the sleep pants to keep them in place. "I slept on the floor."

She scoffs. "Yeah. Right." Her eyes roll and your chest aches with hurt. "I know Billy, and you weren't exactly sober last night, YN."

"I was sober enough to know exactly what I was doing, Max."

"Were you?" Her eyebrow arches at you. "Is that why you threw yourself at Munson and then Billy? I guess the second time was the charm, huh."

Her words sting and immediately you feel your eyes prickle with tears of frustration. Her expression softens as she realizes what she's just said, but you shake your head at her when she opens her mouth again. "Fuck this."

Turning around, you march back to Billy's room and strip out of his sleep pants in order to pull your jeans back on. As you're debating whether or not you want to slip back into your own shirt, you see Max lean into the doorway to peer into the room.

Keeping Billy's crop top, you pull on your leather jacket. The bathroom door opens, Max scrambles to the other side of the door, and then..

"What's going on?"

You glance up at Billy standing there in a pair of basketball shorts and towel draped around his neck as water droplets dribble down his bare chest. Max rolls her eyes at him and you hardly bat an eye at him as you scoop up your shirt and shoes. "I, uh, I'm gonna go. Thanks for the ride and place to crash. You're not a total neanderthal like I thought you were, Hargrove."

He scoffs. "Why are you crying?"

"I-"

"I just remembered what an idiot I made of myself last night," you say, cutting off Max when she suddenly turns guilty looking. You meet her gaze and subtly shake your head before looking at Billy once more. "Thanks again. I'll, uh, I'll see you around."

You squeeze between the step-siblings, ignoring both their calls of your name as you flee their home. Outside, the tears come faster. With your shoes dangling from one hand and your shirt clutched in the other, you hurry in the direction of your home so you can hide away.

The weekend comes and goes, and you're grateful that your parents were off on a business trip so you could mope in peace. The doors remained locked, the curtains remained pulled tight, and you ignored every knock on the door or phone call that had your friends pleading on the answering machine to pick up.

But Monday comes around far too quickly for your liking and you find yourself dragging your feet into work at Family Video. Steve perks up from behind the front counter, but you merely let your gaze drag over him before heading straight to the staff room to clock in.

When you take your place behind the front counter, you immediately get to work sorting the returned tapes and sit on the floor where the small TV and VCR are hidden so you can mark down who didn't rewind their tapes.

"Well you're alive and well. That's nice to know."

"Mhm. Haven't kicked the bucket quite yet, Harrington, now get back to work."

"Fine. But we're talking about whatever the hell happened Friday night on break."

"Hmm. I would rather not."

"YN.."

"Steve." You sigh and look up over your shoulder at him. "Can you not do this? We're at work and I'd rather forget the most embarrassing night of my life. Thanks."

"Embarrassing because you threw yourself at Munson or embarrassing because you slept with Hargrove?"

Your eyes widen and then anger blazes across your features. "Fuck you." You get up from your place on the floor and march back towards the staff room.

"Shit. Shit, YN, I'm sorry. I didn't mean that." Steve chases after you. "Max feels really bad about that misunderstanding, by the way."

"If she felt bad about it then why did she tell all of you? Clearly nothing happened," you spit at him in anger, "but you've all made up your mind already, haven't you?"

Steve watches you grab your timecard from the wall, followed by a pen. "W-What are you doing?"

You scribble two words on the timecard before tossing the pen aside, strip out of your Family Video vest, and then walk over to Steve while slapping the card against his chest. "I quit."

Steve gapes as you walk out the staff door, marching through the store as you exit out the front entrance.

When you get home, you kick off your shoes on your way upstairs and crawl into bed. The moment you're under the covers and your head hits the pillows, the tears come. You cry over the fact that two of your friends, maybe more, think you slept with Billy Hargrove and cry because you're now out of a job.

You cry and cry, not knowing when you fell asleep.

You don't know how long you've been asleep when you feel your mattress dip and you peel open your eyes with a quiet groan. When your gaze focuses, you see Robin sheepishly sitting on the edge of your bed.

"Hey." She faintly smiles at you. "Steve called a code red." At the mention of his name, your bottom lip wobbles and your eyes fill with tears yet again. "Aw crap. Please don't cry. I don't do good with crying people."

It takes you a few moments to get yourself under a semblance of control. "Does everyone else *sniffle* think I'm a slut too?" You cry.

"No one thinks you're a slut, YN."

"Steve and Max do," you say over a hiccup. "They think I slept with Billy, but Robin.. I wouldn't. You know I've been in love with Eddie since I was sixteen."

There's a sharp inhale of breath behind you, Robin's eyes widen before they dart in that direction and your heart lodges itself in your throat.

"You've been in love with me since we were sixteen?"

"I'm, uh, I'm gonna go," Robin blurts. She offers you a tight smile before quickly standing. "Have fun. Figure your shit out and be safe!"

As Robin flees your bedroom, you turn on your side and curl in on yourself. You can hear the jingle of the chain hanging from Eddie's belt loops and you turn your head so your face is hidden in the plushness of your pillow.

"Hey. Come on now. It's just me, sweetheart." Your mattress jostles and your breath hitches. "Will you please look at me?"

"I don't wanna."

"YN."

A whine gets stuck at the back of your throat and you slowly turn your head so you can see Eddie. He smiles big from where he's crouched on the side of your bed. "There you are."

"I wasn't drunk," you mumble.

"What?"

"I wasn't drunk," you say again. "Friday night," you then clarify. "I knew what I was doing when I kissed you and I'm really sorry I made you uncomfortable."

Eddie's smile falters. "What makes you think I was uncomfortable?"

"You rejected me, Eds! I'm pretty sure that-"

"Baby," he suddenly coos and your heart fuckin' aches at the term of endearment. He crosses his arms atop your bed, setting his chin atop them as he angles his head to get a better look at you. "I was nowhere near uncomfortable. I thought you were wasted and that you'd regret the kiss come morning," he clarifies for you. "I couldn't bear the thought of finally getting the girl of my dreams only to lose her when she realized what a mistake she'd made while under the influence."

His words hang in the air for a moment and it takes your brain a minute longer to process it all. Then when the silence is borderline awkward, you say, "I could never regret anything involving you. You're my best friend and I-"

"Have been in love with me since you were sixteen?" He lightly teases. Your heart beats faster and faster, and he smirks. "Will it make you feel any better if I admit I've been in love with you just as long?"

"W-What?"

"S'true. Ask Wayne," he says. "He's called me a dumbass for years for not telling you." You giggle and Eddie practically beams. "So what do you say to a redo? Because I haven't stopped thinking about Friday night and I-"

You lurch forward, holding your weight on one elbow as you press your lips against Eddie's. He chuckles against your mouth before getting with the program, cupping the side of your head with one hand and molding his lips against yours.

For a first kiss it's very chaste, but absolutely perfect. Though you've been in love with Eddie for years, there's absolutely no rush whatsoever and you want to savor every milestone with him.

Eddie pecks your lips once and then twice as he slowly pulls back, resting his forehead against yours while swiping his thumb along your cheekbone. "I've been wanting to do that for years."

"Mhm. Same." You lean in and kiss his lips one last time. "And I'm all for exploring each other and all that to catch up on lost time, but all this stupid crying has exhausted me. So either get in bed or go beat up Steve for me for making me have to look for another job."

Eddie chuckles as he stands, slipping out of his leather jacket and jean vest, then slipping off his sneakers. "Nah. Don't worry about it, sweetheart. Steve covered for you at work and got you a new time card. You still have a job at Family Video."

"Oh. Okay then."

As he climbs into bed, under your covers, you wait until he's mostly settled before moving his arm so you could cuddle up to him. With your head resting in the crook of his arm where his arm meets his shoulder, you lay your arm across his abdomen and hike your knee over his thigh. Eddie chuckles. "Comfortable?"

"Getting there." You move around a bit more and then once you're finally settled, you exhale a little too loudly. Eddie squeezes you tighter against him, one arm around your back while your other hand rests on your knee. "Is this real?" You ask. "Like you're not just doing this because you're afraid to hurt my feelings?"

"I am one hundred and ten percent here for this, sweetheart," Eddie says. "Now that I know I can have this and more? Pft. You're never getting rid of me." You laugh softly and feel his lips against your forehead. "Now get some rest. We can pick up the fun stuff later."

You fall asleep with a smile on your lips and Eddie brushing his fingers along the skin of your arm.

As it turns out, dating Eddie is a lot like just being friends with Eddie. The only difference now is that he's less careful with his touches and has no problem staking his claim out in public. You were never a fan of pda, but with Eddie? You like it. You like it a lot.

Especially if it grosses out Steve who you'd yet to fully forgive for his sleeping with Billy comment. Max you could forgive because she was used to seeing Billy sleeping with a new girl every weekend and she realized her mistake when she saw all the bedding on the floor where you had actually slept. But Steve? Steve heard the story and still had the audacity to throw it out there that you'd slept with his arch nemesis and that really hurt.

But it's already been a week so you figure you'll let up and put Harrington out of his misery within the next couple of days.

Walking out of the festival Hawkins had put on for the weekend, Eddie's arm is draped around your shoulders while you're laughing and trying to eat the rest of your cotton candy without him leaning down to bite it off the cone in your hands.

"Well isn't this a precious sight."

You've yet to run into anyone brave enough to speak out about you and Eddie, so the words catch you off guard with the tone they're used with. But when you see who had spoken, you relax with a soft exhale. "Hey Hargrove." You nod at him and his date for the evening- his date who's frowning as she glances between you and Billy. You roll your eyes, feeling a little catty. "Are you actually showing this one off to the public before adding another notch to the bedpost?"

The girl gasps, but Billy merely smirks at you. "Nice to know you're still a bitch even when you're getting laid on the regular." Eddie tenses at your side, but you merely laugh at the mean words. Your laughter makes Billy chuckle and you smile genuinely when you see the shift in his demeanor. He glances at Eddie, smirk dimming. "You ever make her cry again, Munson, and I'll knock your teeth in. Got it?"

Eddie isn't given a chance to respond as Billy takes his date's hand and practically drags her towards the festival. As you and Eddie turn to watch them walk off, he looks down at you and shakes his head. "Jesus Christ, sweetheart. One night with Hargrove and he's turned into a guard dog."

You grin sheepishly. "Look at this way. If I ever run into trouble, you got a real hardass in your corner to help you kick some ass."

"I thought that's what Steve was for?"

You snort. "Have you seen Steve's fight record? Steve's not the fighting type, babe."

"Eh. True." Eddie's arm ends up around your shoulders yet again and the two of you head off towards his van. "Where to now, sweetheart? My place or yours?"

"I don't care. As long as there's a shower and some comfortable clothes for me, I could go to either place. I'm in the mood for some cuddles."

"Mmm. I like the way you think." Eddie opens the passenger door for you, waiting until you've hopped in to press in closer and pull you down into a kiss. He hums against your mouth, tongue licking up the sugar from your lips. "I think we'll go back to mine. Your parents are home and they always ruin our fun."

Giggling, you agree and then pull the door closed as Eddie jogs around the front of his van.

As you watch him go, your heart swells with even more affection for the boy who'd stolen your heart long ago. And as he smiles at you through the windshield window, eyes crinkled at the corners, you have a feeling that this will be one person who will never intentionally make you cry.

And if he does, well you can always take Hargrove up on his offer to punch his teeth in.

But until that day, you're gonna spend your days catching up on lost time with the guy of your dreams.

[usedpidemo]

And scene ((G)I-dle Minnie)

“Oh my God.”

No other words could adequately describe what happened to you. It was everything but a blur, things that could easily form into lifelong traumas. Almost everything you went through over the past few days might as well be taken straight out of a movie.

So where do you start?

An encounter with the local mafia that results in your fingers almost getting cut off, rescuing a Thai princess whose father was in cahoots with said criminal organization—the reason why she’s being held hostage as leverage—then escaping with her in a car and being pursued across the country by a helicopter and countless vehicles sent by the syndicate. 

You should really be dead by now. Four times over. 

Countless bruises, and wounds from bullets, blades, and everything that is designed to kill a man—any of these alone would be enough to permanently break any person, and you’re no athlete or assassin; you’re just a regular guy on what you thought was a promising vacation. It’s a miracle that you’re still breathing, more so standing, running on your feet towards the car you’ve taken refuge in, now on its roof and in flames.

Forget about the millions you’ve also stolen from the mafia; you’re thankful to be alive.

Unfortunately, your miraculous plot armor doesn’t seem to have passed on to the princess. At a glance, she appears to have only minor cuts and bruises like yours, but she’s laying on the tarmac, completely unconscious and unresponsive.

“Princess! Princess!” You shout, turn her face up and slap her cheek, checking for any signs of life. Blood trickles down her dirty face from her forehead, her lips, and her nose. You lean against her chest and press a thumb on her wrist, desperately seeking for a pulse. 

Not a single response, not a single sign. She’s as good as dead. 

Though you barely knew the woman, in the quiet moments when you weren’t dreading your surroundings, you grew feelings for her. Her beauty was befitting of her royal title, and despite her nobility, she never really thought much of it other than a personal burden. She only wanted to live a normal life, and you sympathized with her plight, even though you were merely a tourist passing through, unfamiliar with her customs and culture.

She didn’t deserve to die because of other people’s stupidity and recklessness, including yours.

You couldn’t bear to leave her alone. The survivor’s guilt hurts you more than anything that could have physically killed you. Sure, her family might not hold you responsible for their daughter’s death, but considering you ran off with her and traveled the entire country to find a safe haven, you might as well be an accomplice in their eyes. If not them, the media will.

You wanted to be by her side for as long as you could, praying for a miracle, but your instincts tell you to keep moving, to keep fighting.

You haven’t eaten anything for two days, and there’s nothing nearby that remotely resembles human civilization for miles. The sun has begun setting down, and soon enough, you’ll be prey to ferocious animals and the ruthless cold night. Despite this, you still have no intention to leave her. You’re just hoping the rescue promised by the national defense reaches you before it’s too late.

Just then, before you get up, you feel a tug on your arm. You turn and find the princess’ hand clinging to yours. She’s extremely weak, barely able to open her eyes, but she’s alive. Her little smile is more than enough of a reassurance that everything is going to be fine.

As much as you want to scream with joy, you’re far too overwhelmed with emotion, and all you can do is cry. Leaning close to her, you plant a gentle kiss on her chin and put her in a tight embrace.

“You’re—you’re—”

“Yeah,” she says, very faintly. She tries to widen her smile, but can’t. She doesn’t have to; she’s already done more than enough. “I’ll be okay.”

Right then and there, you give her a kiss you’ve been holding on for so long, all the pent-up feelings poured into your lips. A smooch so powerful, it can restore her life. A true love’s kiss, you could say. With the little strength she has, the princess gives in, reciprocating your love in kind, parting her lips. Both of you feel each other’s warmth with the setting sun shining down on you.

It couldn’t have been a more hopeful ending.

—————

“And cut!” A man’s rough voice echoes from the distance. That man isn’t really there, but he’s actually there, deliberating the action, fabricating everything up.

See, there was never any rescue, there was no criminal organization, and there was no damsel in distress. You were never really in danger all along.

You’re not really on vacation. You’ve been tirelessly working, in fact, in the confines of a film studio disguised as your ‘vacation.’  The princess you’ve been falling for is merely a co-worker, a colleague. It’s nothing but superficial chemistry to add some authenticity to an otherwise absurd but generic action movie plot. 

You draw your lips away from the kiss, unknowingly keeping up the act with a light smile and blush on the ‘princess.’ She mirrors your sentiment, flashes a light grin back. Whether or not there’s some realism between you is up to the viewer, but at the very least the camera makes you two look believable. You can’t edit or animate chemistry like that.

“Great job everyone! That’s a wrap!” says the director, pulling up from his seat to laud you and gesturing to the other staff to stand in front of the cameras. Today’s the last day of filming for your next film, an action-comedy romance thriller with you as the lead. It���s a lot to take in at first, knowing that this is your first principal part in a high budget film after a string of acclaimed indies and even generating some awards buzz along the way, but you knew you had to take the jump and get your name out there beyond a niche of Letterboxd and Twitter film geeks.

As for your co-star, Kim Minnie, she couldn’t have had a more different career trajectory than yours. She was a child actress who’s path to box office stardom couldn’t be any straighter, but her momentum stagnated with a series of commercial and critically panned mid-budget romcoms. She needed a brand reinvention more than ever, and this was her first move in getting her star back on the rise. 

As promising of a script as it looked, and even with a respectable director and crew handling, nothing is guaranteed for both of you. There’s so many ways the final product can end up: a critical and commercial success, an absolute disaster, a middling picture that will be completely forgotten after opening weekend, a cult classic that will only blossom years—decades even—after the initial release; the list goes on and on. 

At least the bag is guaranteed. The studio threw you millions to star in their blockbuster, even when you have no prior hit or prestigious award to your name. Either a sign of the studio seeing star potential or a big red flag, casting an unknown, and knowing who was supposed to be in their initial casting before you stepped in, it’s safer to assume the latter. Either way, you’re getting paid, and you always have the indie circuit to fall back on, should the worst come to pass.

After a set of group photographs for the behind-the-scenes reel, it’s time for you to move past this project and onto the next one. You don’t really think much of the experience, apart from the overall kindness of the staff and professionalism of your co-stars, some of which you’ll likely work with again, and others you’ll never see again after today. Of course, there’s the press tour, but you’ll cross that bridge when you get there.

—————

It isn’t until the next hour that you’re finally able to drop the act and become yourself again. Alone in your designated waiting room, having cleaned up your rather uncomfortable makeup and in your casual wear, you hear a knock on the door right as you’re preparing to leave. Putting on your shirt, you walk up and open it to a staff member with a box in her hand.

“Miss Kim sent me to give this to you,” says the assistant, holding out the wrapped gift in front of you, which you gladly accept.

“Thanks!” you say, enthused, smiling back at the crew member. “Tell her I sent my regards.”

“Of course, she’d be delighted to hear that. See you!” She replies before quickly turning away as you close the door.

You immediately unwrap and peel off the box that Minnie gave you, presumably a farewell gift, knowing that this was your last day together. You heard rumors of her kindness toward the staff and fellow co-stars in the past, and this confirms her great reputation as a giver and substantiates practically every story and excerpt. 

So you open the box and find a new expensive watch inside, completely untouched with a tiny note attached to it.

> To my knight in shining armor

> Love, Kim Minnie

You don’t realize it, but as you finish reading the brief letter, you’re smiling widely, giddy like a child growing feelings toward their school crush. Perhaps there is a little more authenticity in the role than you initially brought, and a little more relatability with your character, falling in love with a princess like her. 

Reality then hits hard. You’ll likely never see her again, as much as you want to do more films with her. She has a different preference in projects compared to yours, and your career trajectories couldn’t be any more different. Of course, that can easily change over time, and one day she chooses to become an indie darling like you, the same way you built up your name in the first place, but that’s as likely as a sequel to this picture getting greenlit. 

Nevertheless, you were now motivated to see her one last time before leaving it all behind for good. 

So you make your way to Minnie’s personal dressing room to knock. The door doesn’t open, neither does any sound echo from the inside. She probably left already, you assume, but the lights are still on in there after noticing the floor. You try again, yet the response remains the same: there isn’t any. There’s still staff roaming the halls doing cleanup, so you can’t make your presence obvious by shouting her name.

After about five minutes, you contemplate leaving, but decide to wait a little more. Eventually, you notice that her door appears to be unlocked. She’s still there; there’s hope. Out of morbid curiosity, you decide to take a peek. Quiet as a mouse, you gently turn the knob without generating a sound, only to find something blinding.

When you peek your eyes inside, you find Minnie shuffling back and forth—naked. It takes every muscle and nerve in your body not to slam that door shut and make your presence known. Cheeks flushed with embarrassment, you close the door. Thankfully, the staff nearby seem to have completed their jobs or conveniently decided to clean elsewhere; you choose to believe in the latter.

Your better judgment tells you to walk away now, that you can still get some closure later on. There’s still the press tour for you to meet her again, and you can always choose projects that also happen to include her. No need for you to get involved in an unnecessary scandal just because.

Despite that, you knew you wanted to see her again, just not like this. But after seeing a tiny glimpse, you had no intention to leave so soon. You wanted more.

So you quietly re-enter her room, your eyes peeking out to watch her dress, and it’s the sexiest thing your eyes ever laid upon. She’s no longer completely nude, having put on some panties since then, but you capture countless mental pictures of her sizable, shapely breasts before she puts on a lace bra. Her previously long blonde locks having turned raven, the former being a cover for her actual hair, flows down to her shoulders with a brush of her hand. Either way, she rocks both colors flawlessly. She radiates star power and charisma naturally on top of her charming, seductive face and well-toned body, and you wonder how her career would have turned out had she played more femme fatale characters. 

Her body was perfectly designed for them. In fact, everything about her was made for them.

Even when she’s doing nothing, pacing back and forth half-nude without a care in the world, she makes it look like the hottest thing ever. None of your previous co-stars made you feel this way, enamored and smitten with every little move like they’re deliberate and purposeful. If her goal was to seduce you, she certainly perfected it.

You’re so into her, indulging in the sight of Kim Minnie dressing up for you like your own private little show, that you’re left unaware of your body’s deeper intentions, pushing you a little further past that door, bargaining for more, until—

Thud!

With a sudden, echoed yelp, you throw yourself from the safety of heaven and into the fire. 

You crash into her dressing room, your cry echoing across the studio. No harness or body double can break your fall or save you now.

“Hey!” Minnie’s barely finished putting on her shirt when she rushes over to you, worried. “You okay?”

“Y-yeah. I’m good,” you say, grunting as you pick yourself off the ground, brushing off the dust off your clothes.

“Are you sure?” She softly brushes your hair, tilting your chin up so that your eyes meet, hers accompanied with a concerned frown. “What happened?”

“I—I came over to, um—say thanks for the gift watch.” you reply, nervous, uncertain of your chosen words. It’s a miracle enough that you’ve found a reasonable excuse as to why you’re even there to begin with.

“Ah yeah! Manager-nim sent me your regards, but it’s much nicer to hear it coming from your own voice. It’s been great filming with you.”

“Of course,” you say, grinning. “Same goes with you, too.”

Minnie draws her hands away from your face. “Yeah, I hope we can find a way to share the screen together again.” 

“Me too.” you reply, nodding in agreement, unable to avert your gaze from hers.

As soon as you stop talking, awkward silence fills the room almost instantaneously. Minnie’s nervous smile remains constant, anticipating a follow up like there’s another half to make it whole. She’s right in that you do have a few more things to admit, but as the saying goes: some things are better left unsaid.

Considering how you fawned over her minutes ago, this seems like the best option moving forward. Keep it all business. You know how this industry works, how these moments go, how one small move leads to another, and the ending is usually not a good one, even if the consequences aren’t immediate. In a line that takes promising careers and shreds them to nothing, you know better than to fall into the system. She likely knows, too.

“I’ll—” you turn around, pausing to glance back at her. This isn’t you, nervous and tense like it’s your first day on the job. “—be on my way now.”

She gives you a modest wave goodbye as you take a few steps forward, the door to your freedom inches away.

Then you stop. 

You don’t end up getting your freedom. You don’t really want it. In fact, you toss it aside, a mere afterthought. Against your better judgment, you’re going off script, and there’s no external voice commanding you to stop, and you have no intention to. Impulse brought you to this point, and you were about to reap the full benefits. It’s a high, not a low.

“Minnie.” You turn around towards her with eyes full of lust, and her name dripping from your lips like your personal serotonin. She raises a curious eyebrow, puzzled. 

“Hm? Something up? Why are you looking at me like that?”

She doesn’t look fazed when you start walking back toward her. It’s like she knows you have some unfinished business.

A soft peck on the lip. It isn’t practice for a future kiss scene; the kiss only happened at the very end, and in some twisted way, the script wrote itself.

“I think you’re really pretty.” Quickly retreating, you make it so obvious how head over heels you are for her—flushed cheeks, childish grin, and stilted body language. All that’s missing is some cheesy modern pop music or some overused slow 80s classic in the background. 

“I—I—”

“Yeah.” Your eyes are pleading, begging. “I kinda fell for you—no, I completely fell for you.”

She covers her lips with her hands, utterly in disbelief. Her cheeks are burning just as bright as yours. “Oh my.”

“Um, well you’re beautiful, and really kind, and—” You had many things to say to Minnie, most of which previously echoed by others, and there’s no substance behind them, apart from maybe the first point, and they’re not what you really want to confess. 

“Yeah, this isn’t gonna work.” She sees through the facade, but your awkwardness is genuine. Mostly. “It was cute though, I’ll give you that.”

“W-what do you mean?” Your eyes widen at the sudden twist.

“Sorry to burst your bubble, but I know that’s not what you wanted to say.” Her shy expressions are replaced by a confident, piercing smirk, her arms crossed close to her chest. “You think I’m hot, don’t you?”

“Yeah, no—actually yeah, I think you’re really hot,” you say, waving the white flag almost immediately. It was so obvious from the jump. One of the few times your ‘acting’ failed you. 

“And?” Minnie raises an eyebrow, confidently expecting an answer. Her presence is so striking, it swallows up whatever remaining confidence you had left. There’s really nowhere to hide or run.

“Well, I hope you wouldn’t be upset, but—” Gulp your throat. “I quietly peeked through the door as you dressed.”

“Knew it.” Minnie shakes her head, quietly giggling at points. “I knew something was up when the door was slightly opened.”

“Yeah, but—I’m really sorry! I really wanted to say thanks first! I didn’t mean to peek through the door on purpose.”

“Yeah, because you accidentally peeked through my door? Sure, I believe you.” she replies, mockingly. 

“Okay, but I couldn’t help it. You weren’t answering.” you say, tone deflated. 

“You couldn’t have waited a bit longer?” she lifts an eyebrow, gives you a wary glare. “Fucking pervert. You’re no better than the rest of them.”

“Five minutes is a long time.” you quietly mumble, pulling out the last of your pathetic excuses, but she’s clearly caught you red-handed.

“Yeah, fuck you. Only sorry cause you’re caught.” Her eyes sharpen and she shakes her head. “Fine. You should be happy I’m in quite a good mood today, so leave. I’ll pretend this never happened, but I don’t want to see your face ever again.”

You’re visibly distraught. You have no intention to walk, not when there’s a lot at stake, and who knows what she’s going to do afterward. Hell, even as early as tomorrow, your career may no longer exist.

“Minnie,” You say, gently, eyes having gone from wanting to pleading. She turns to you with a fierce glare, as if the mention of her name desecrates her entire being. A stare so piercing you impulsively look the other way. “I’ll make it up to you.”

“Hm.” She scans your face. Soft, helpless, vulnerable. “And how will you do that?”

You take a deep breath, swallow hard. “Anything. Please don’t get me in trouble. No one else has to get involved.”

She pouts, runs the offer meticulously through her head, having all the leverage in this proposal. The negotiations delay to make sure all her terms are agreed upon. Footstep clatters echo from outside the room, but not a soul is aware or even tries to interfere with your little affair. 

“Okay, you say anything?” she asks, facing you, expression still cold.

You nod, still trembling.

“I only want one thing, then.” Minnie approaches you, each step of her heel a death bell being rung. Her eyes gaze at you, demanding your attention belong to her and her alone—and there were plenty of different parts about her that grabbed them. “You said you think I’m hot, right? Good news, I felt the same way about you—that was, until you pulled that little stunt, pervert.”

She says the last word like it’s a curse on your clean record, a reminder that will cling to you till you’re buried six feet under. 

Keeping her eyes locked on yours, she walks around you until a sofa is conveniently right behind her. She then walks backwards, her hand motioning you to follow her, to which you reluctantly oblige. Inches away from the couch, she stops you right in your tracks, rubs her palms down your shirt, sizing you up.

“You’re a good kisser, I’ll give you that,” she says, her modulated, assertive tone reduced to a faint whisper. “But I wanna know if you’re good at love scenes too.”

Despite your stature, you’ve never shot a sex scene. At best, it’s you and your on-screen partner making out before the camera pans out of view, leaving the rest for the viewer’s imagination. Now you have to do the real thing completely uncut.

There’s a huge price to fame, after all.

Minnie lifts her white crop over her head, granting you a much closer view of her cleavage. She tosses it aside before facing you again. Arousing of a sight it looks, you’re anxious. “Take your shirt off.”

You follow, your sweater joining hers on the opposite end of the room to be forgotten. She scans you again, your bare, well-built chest completely exposed to her, now completely clean of fake scratches and wounds. 

“Fuck, this is nice,” she comments, palming your chest. This isn’t the first time she’s seen you shirtless, but it’s in a completely different setting and context. “I wish we could have done this sooner. Oh well. Better now than never, I guess.”

Minnie plants a soft peck on your bicep, then on another, until she’s marked all your core points with her strawberry flavored lipstick. She nudges you a tiny bit closer to her, enough that you can feel your groin tense up against the hint of her heat. 

“Yeah, that’s it. You feel so hard for me. You want to fuck me so bad, don’t you?” Minnie wraps her arms over your neck, explores your back and squeezes flesh to claim. Her seductive teasing reaffirms your true intentions, even though you’re never going to openly admit them. At some point, you wonder as to what her definition of punishment means, but you brush the thought aside, especially when your blood rushes down from your head to your groin. 

She sneakily grabs you by your balls, tightening behind obstructive layers of fabric. Your erection can’t wait to spring free, lest you go home with conspicuously soiled pants. Grabbing a hold of your tent, her infectious lips continue to quietly shatter your eardrums. “I can already imagine this dick fucking my pussy so hard and so fast. Mmm, I bet you can actually make me cum.”

Had it been any other scenario besides this one, you’d have fired back a quip or two. Instead, you remain silent, rendered powerless under her commanding spell, reduced to a weak groaning shell of yourself.

“Too bad that will have to wait,” she suddenly blurts, pushing you away before retreating to the couch. Crossing her legs, she adds, “Let’s do a little trial run. Pleasure me without using your cock, then we might get somewhere. Sounds good?”

You sigh. Whether out of frustration of being blue balled or because of her terms is up for anyone’s interpretation. She lifts her eyebrows, looking at you intensely, smirking, reveling at your visible disappointment. 

“The producers are just down the hall, so unless you want to take it to court,” she comments, teasingly, instigating, sparking a fire in your gut. Footsteps echo, again proving her point. You don’t doubt her for a second, but it stings whenever you hear that stark reminder of your little mistake. You just wanted to get on with the act and move past it immediately.

Her eyes maintain an intense grip on you—smoldering—as you approach her and take her by the waist, watching as you take hold of her jeans and slide them down, pushing her gray panties along as extra baggage. Gracefully, she opts to give you a little mercy by kicking off her flats. Even when she seemingly does nothing, her eyes judge, take note of your serious, rather businesslike demeanor of undressing her. 

Her splayed pussy’s right in your view, but your petty contempt for her makes it less inviting.

“What are you waiting for?” dares Minnie, pointing down at her entrance, eyebrows raised and tauntingly smirking. 

You couldn’t be any more eager to wipe that confident smile off her face. 

Keeping the rule in mind, you hover atop her seat on the couch and drop an arm, burying your hand between her pink lips. Minnie winces as your fingers make first contact with her clit, drawing her heat. She appears visibly shaken, caught unawares by your touch, even when she expected it.

“O-oh, f-fuck—” she whines, shutting an eye, cheeks puffing as she tries to resist, to no avail. Her nails rake into your back, inviting you ever closer, slowly relinquishing control, a perfect time for you to claim as yours. 

The wet and warm sensation scalds, burns on your fingertips. You anticipated her to be wet, but not this soaked. Her pussy drags your digits further down like quicksand—nigh inescapable. Each little slap and touch creates a clap, a few raindrops that signal forthcoming rain. 

Propped only by your other arm resting on her shoulder, you indulge in her wetness, searching for her favorite spot, the gold mine. Her body trembles, slowly but certainly adjusting to your fingers, moans becoming thinner and airy, eyes gradually losing focus on you, absorbed in the pleasure rapidly building within her. Her hips slowly buck and fold, grind against your digits in an attempt to swallow them whole. 

“F-feels so good, f-fuck—” she whines, entangling her arm with yours, almost disrupting the euphoric moment when she drags you onto the couch with her. It’s a blessing in disguise, as you’re able to kick off your shoes and increase the tempo inside her. 

In that moment, she had forgotten her anger, only to be replaced by a renewed feeling of bliss.

Moaning against her temple, lips barely grazing her forehead, you whisper, “You’re so fucking wet, and I haven’t even put this dick in you yet.”

“Fuck off.” Minnie suddenly snaps, tone frantic, her body set alight by need and craving for more. Even with the little fight she displays, she’s clearly on the losing end, delaying the inevitable. It’s all the more clearer when her voice fades, strains with every passing word, and her plea betrays her. “P-please, keep going.”

You slip a second finger, watch as her legs clamp down as her body squirms tighter and tighter beneath her touch. By the way her legs tremble and writhe violently, you swear they’re melting into the couch. She grasps at straws to keep you controlled, to keep your tempo stable, to leave some breathing room, to no avail. Your digits continue to fuck her at an intense pace, to the point where the wet, squelching claps of her cunt echo along with her lewd moans.

“Yes. Need that.” She squirms beneath you, her hands no longer craving you, but on a different goal; she brings them around her back, unhooks her bra for you to toss them aside on her behalf. Afterward, she grabs you by the wrist and leads you directly to her breast, a generous reward for your efforts. 

When you hold her, it’s like rescuing a damsel in distress, saving her from her most wanton of desires by fueling yours. Every little touch, slap, and pinch of her naked body loosens her psyche and drives her wild.. From the most strained cry to the loudest scream, Minnie makes it clear just how amazing you feel to her, and her voice makes the sultriest sounds your ears are blessed to hear.

You can’t help but put such thought into words. 

“God, you have such a sexy voice when you moan,” you whisper, and it’s what appears to break her. 

Minnie lets out an ear-shattering shrill, her body convulsing as the pressure of your fingers finally pushes past a point beyond repair. Her legs lock tighter on your hand, as if they couldn’t be any more imprisoned, but they eventually loosen up and pave the way for her unannounced orgasm. 

She gushes. Like a broken faucet, she doesn’t stop leaking, passionately crying through her vivid climax. It’s a mixture of slick and water that leaves your fingers incapable of leaving her, so you entertain the notion, dragging your digits in and out of her still gushing folds, seeming to make a mark on her cunt. Brushing in and out for a bit, until you settle around the exterior of her clit, you continue to fondle and caress her in your twisted form of aftercare. Even so, her orgasm continues to wash over her and your fingers, spilling onto the mattress you fuck her on.

“Oh God, I can’t stop cumming, oh God—” she whines, gasping for air, mouth agape, her hand grabbing her other breast; her orgasm is gradually dying from a shower to a drizzle.

“Mmm.” You brush your sticky fingers on her belly, playfully nodding in agreement. “Sounds about right.”

Minnie takes a moment to gather herself before she pushes your hand aside—quicker than you hoped. By the way she orgasmed and screamed, you’d think she’d already be down for the count. “I wasn’t ready, you pervert.”

“I was only following the rules,” you respond, lifting your shoulders in a shrug, barely holding on to your confident demeanor, only showing the faintest sign of a smirk.

“Sure, whatever.” Minnie shoots you a stern leer, but it doesn’t faze you in the slightest—not when you know that she’s no better than anyone else. “Now fuck me with that cock and cum fast so we can get this over with.”

You get the pleasantries out quickly, as she wanted. Hopping off the couch, you undo your belt and pants, get your already hard cock free from its denim constraints. She eyes your shaft intently, looking unsatisfied, but you know it’s a facade, a poor acting effort compared to her usual abilities. 

“Sure you want me to cum fast?” you tease, jokingly pointing out her fixated gaze on your cock. “Seems like you want me to give it to you nice and slow.”

“N-no. I was just surprised at how big it is,” she retorts, appearing even more scornful than moments before. She looks up at you, visibly annoyed, before looking down at your raging cock once more, another sign of betrayal. 

“Please. Drop the act, Minnie.” Tilt her up from the chin, gently pushing her back down on the cushion. Surprisingly, there’s no pushback, no reluctance; she allows you to get atop her on the couch. Her eyes look into yours, then scan your chest with want, with need. “Let me fuck you the way you really want. I want it too.”

A flirty smirk forms on her contorted lips. She pulls you to her level by your shoulders, softly nibbling on your earlobe. With a hypnotic whisper, she says, “Fuck me.”

You return the favor, smiling lightly at the open invitation given to you—knowing that her body knows her wants more than she does. Without wasting any more time on needless pleasantries, you slip yourself in, introducing your cock to her welcoming heat. No matter how much you prepared for this, it takes every fiber of your resolve to not crumble immediately in that moment, uttering a sharp hiss as you close the gap between your length and her womb. 

Your unison forms a harmonious groan and curse that fills the room louder than anything before. The powerful wave of pleasure surging through you overrides your senses, leaves you unable to move, keeps your eyes shut, unable to look at the handiwork beneath you. You grip a hand around her breast, elicit another moan from Minnie’s sultry lips, seek a sign you’re doing it right. 

“So fucking tight,” you rasp, slowly fighting her tight, wet cunt from sucking you all in. Her creamy legs narrow the gap, leaving you even more breathless. Still, you manage, by some miracle, to pull yourself out before you plunge right in again.

Words can’t tell how good Minnie feels with you inside her; sexy, erotic mewls that tickle your eardrums are the only proper expression.

Your hands intertwine and find themselves in the only comfortable place they can be in, with each other. Finding nothing but paradise in her heat, you rest your head on the groove of her neck, still overwhelmed to look at her ecstasy-filled face. As you mark down her skin, leave marks that no amount of makeup can hide, you settle into a steady rhythm fucking her. With each thrust her walls clench around your cock, turn it to a canvas of her pleasure with her juices.

The world quiets down for just the two of you, except for the crescendo of moans that leave both your lips and the wet flaps of skin against skin, and that’s all you want to hear right now. There’s no pressure from the outside, no call from a producer or staff telling you to get ready, just the hot action happening between you. 

Minnie’s thighs continue to clench around your hips, put more pressure around you to burn. In retaliation, you put her deeper into the couch, melt her flesh into the leather as you comfortably fuck her at your pace—not too fast, but not too slow. She returns your lovemaking in kind, rolls her hips, and meets you halfway with each thrust. One hand rests on her taut breast, the other on her hips, but hers are connected with yours; either way, you have the actress exactly right where you want her to be. 

“You fuck me so well,” she whines, tone low, lifting her neck up, kicking her thighs, urging more out of you. “Harder. Harder.”

Lifting your figure up, your cock sinks further into her suffocating walls, plunging as deep as you can into her drenched pussy. The deeper you go, the higher your moans reach. Her hot body leaves you so weak, so breathless, that it forces Minnie’s legs to spur your hips on, to keep fucking her just like this.

“Minnie.” Her name is a plea to make the sensation stop or at least slow down, as incredible as she feels around you. Ultimately, it does nothing, and you press on, as if only her body can satiate you.

It’s then that her eyes flutter open, lips still melted and open, still moaning as you pound her. Her chest heaves with each deep breath, while her palms find their way around your chest. She tries to pull you down again, but to no avail. Ultimately, her body goes rigid, trembles violently beneath you as her second orgasm overcomes her and leaves her completely open to the throes of pleasure. 

“I came again,” she whispers, her light figure quaking from her fresh climax. Even with jittery muscles, her hand traces up to your shoulder, till it reaches up your cheek, forcing you to meet her. “Please, cum in me already.”

Her legs loosen around your hips, as if telling you otherwise, but the feeling is so good—so wet, so warm, and so tight—that it would be a disservice to everything you’ve done so far not to unload in her. She has her eyes observing you, softly caressing your shoulders in a desperate plea, as if you have any other intention other than to do what she wants you to. It’s fucked—how her glazed eyes keep you still, all while your body continues to work overtime. She melts, she contorts, she anticipates you coming undone for her.

Even with her frame rocking and clenching beneath you, her breasts bouncing with each sharp stroke, it’s her eyes, her expectant gaze, keeping you at bay. Her lips shift around, her orgasm beyond her at this point, softly whispering one final plea. “I want—all of you—inside me. Don’t ever—think of—pulling out. I’m all yours—baby!”

You suppress a breathy gasp, grit your teeth, your muscles and nerves all over the place. A little more before you ultimately surrender. A handful of strokes is all it takes before you go numb, burying your cock deep into her cunt. Hot, hot thoughts fill your head, mostly asphyxiating sensations choking your entire body as you pour shot after shot of thick cum inside her greedy cunt. 

“So—warm,” mumbles Minnie, ignoring the longest syllabled fuck from your side as your body gradually descends, all your strength completely sapped in one fell swoop.

You eventually find solace on her bare figure, your cock still throbbing inside Minnie’s pussy, but your motions slow to a halt, until the only sign of life coming from you is the wave of deep breaths you gather on her collarbones. She joins you in rest, letting her nails take refuge on your back, tracing and marking your skin as you did to hers. 

The two of you remain entangled, relishing each other’s sweat, cum-filled bodies on the couch, bathed in the afterglow of sex. Both of you would happily sleep another day on set if it meant you were in each other’s arms. Of course, that’s not the reality; you don’t know when you’ll see each other again after this.

Surprisingly, Minnie is the first to break the tense silence. Brushing your hair, she mumbles, “You okay?”

A question that you should be asking her, not the other way around. 

You lift your head from her body and nod, create little ripples on her flesh. “Yeah. I should be asking you that.”

She flashes a gentle grin, the trademark smile you’ve missed, and will miss. “I’m good. More than that, actually.”

A few more minutes pass, with your eyes lovingly staring into each other, unwilling to let the moment die. “You could have just asked, you know.”

“Hm?” You lift an eyebrow.

“You could have asked, and we would still end up like this. Fucking pervert.”

“Ugh—you’ll never stop referring to me as that, are you?” you groan, dropping your face on her neck while she throws her head back and chuckles.

“Nope. Pervert.”

—————

(A/N: This one's dedicated to @svndaysaweek, I saw his answer to a particular ask and thought it was very appealing of an idea to write. Again, apologies for the sudden month long drought, was feeling extremely unmotivated and still am XD Thank you for reading!)

[glassbxttless]

L&D Baby

Nurse!Steve Harrington x f!Reader

Summary: Steve and his wife are having their first baby— and it happens to be at the hospital he works at.

Word Count: 2.3k+

Warnings: 18+ (editing to add: no sexual themes, but I am literally an adult and do not want minors interacting with my content whatsoever), marriage, pregnancy, childbirth, mentions of a stillbirth, dad!steve, labor and delivery nurse!steve, blood/blood loss, swearing— as always let me know if there’s any tags i missed!

Notes: This is posted over on my ST blog ( @hellfirestxnes ). Once all of my content is moved over here— that blog will be inactive as my main objective is to have one space for myself!

Steve is tired. His bones are aching and his eyes are sore, but it’s just another Friday really. He has about half of his shift left and he’s off again, thankfully, until Monday. Leaning on the counter at the nurses station, listening to the other nurses gossip and share stories about their kids. And he’s thinking about you at home, sitting pretty and waiting for him to come home— belly swollen with his child. Any other day, he might tuck himself away and use the phone to call and check in, but today… he couldn’t face it. The first delivery he was on that morning, he watched a new mother wish with every fiber of her being that what the doctor was telling her wasn’t true. He cleaned up that baby, took their weight and height, made out the card for the parents that would never get to hear a cry. He bundled up gray, cold skin and hoped that the couple would be able to find peace. Somewhere deep down, he wishes he wouldn’t have heard them ask how did this happen? Everything was just fine this morning. But, now here he sits. Thinking about that delivery, thinking about his wife at home. His very pregnant wife. Your pregnancy has gone by so quickly, been such a breeze. He’s been to as many appointments as he could, especially the ones you were so worried about. But there’s always a reassuring answer of your baby being strong and healthy. A perfect little Harrington. And now, Steve’s never found himself more terrified. If everything can be fine and perfect one second and terribly tragic the next, he doesn’t know where to find his peace. He hangs his head against his hands for a few moments— taking a deep breath. He’s gotta get himself straight, take a few moments. But there’s hellos being exchanged a few feet away and after what seems like a millisecond, a hand is settling on his lower back. He snaps around, prepared to give the whole I’m married spiel he’s done a thousand times, he’s met with the beautiful eyes of his adoring wife. And that softens his features, he’s visibly relaxing.

You smile at him, as he tugs you into his grip. The hug lasts longer than usual and Steve loves hugging you. You rub his back and kiss his shoulder, “you forgot your lunch.” You whisper to him quietly, the bag in your left hand adorning a beautiful band that Steve had so carefully picked out himself. At your words, Steve’s grip just tightens a bit and he kisses your head, sighing out. “Do you wanna eat together?”

“Yeah, angel. Just about to take my break. come on.” he says quietly, leading you down to the cafeteria. He pulls out your chair and you can tell something is distracting him as he sits. He’s busying himself by passing out the food, but he’s quiet and normally— he isn’t. He asks about your day, tells you about his, has told you he loves you a dozen times by now. And he knows you’ve noticed, by the way his eyes flick up to yours and back down again. “I’m okay.” he says after catching the look on your face.

“You’re not.” you reply, matter-of-factly. “What’s going on, Steve? Can talk to me.” you reach over for his hand, thumb brushing over his own gold wedding band. “You’re not acting like yourself.”

Steve sighs heavily, flipping his hand over to take yours gently. “The first birth I was on this morning was a stillbirth and I dunno… just had me thinking a lot.” He explains, his eyes dropping down to your belly across the table. You nod slightly, the hand that wasn’t entwined in his moves to your belly. You’re almost due and neither you nor Steve have ever had to worry about this. Never had it been a thought in your head.

“Just want you guys safe, is all.” Steve says softly and gives your hand a squeeze before he’s pulling it away to eat his lunch with you. And when it’s time for him to get back to work, you stand. There’s a dull ache that starts in your back and wraps around to your tummy, it lasts about 30 seconds as you clean up from lunch. You ignore it as he hugs you tightly, pressing a kiss against your forehead. “I’ll see you at home, okay? Take it easy, rest.” He reminds you, rubbing up and down your arms.

“Yeah, okay.” You acknowledge him with a nod, before you feel another aching pain. But this time it’s accompanied by a slow trickle of fluid down your thighs. And when Steve notices where your eyes are falling, all of the hair on the back of his neck stands up.

“Oh.” Is all he can manage. He’s done this a thousand and ten times over the past few years. He’s consoled laboring mothers, he’s held their hands and cleaned them up, he’s been their support system. It’s his job. But here he is, with his own wife, frozen in his tracks. Your water broke and he can tell with the uncomfortable face you’re making the contractions have started as well. “Okay, angel… let’s… let’s get you checked in.” he says softly and suddenly, you’re more than thankful for the pre-registry packet Steve made you fill out last week. He holds your hand the entire time they check you in and get you into a room. He can hear his pager going off and he’d check it, every now and again, hoping one of the other nurses could pick up his patients, since he still technically was on his shift. But when he can’t put it off any longer, he kisses your head. “Listen, I’ll be right back okay? I’m not leaving you alone for this. I’ll be really quick.” he says softly.

You just nod, munching on the ice chips he had brought you not too long ago. You still feel like you have time. The contractions aren’t that close together yet. But Steve would throw a fit if they even tried to send you home and you know it. Steve smiles nervously when he wheels a cart into another expectant parent’s room. He introduces himself and shakes her husband’s hand when he extends it to him introducing themselves as, “Caleb and Connie Bear.” He's trying to keep the small talk up and keep himself calm— and not to think of his wife four rooms down. “Is this your first?” he asks softly, administering her medication.

“Oh no.” Connie laughs softly and shakes her head, “It’s baby number seven.” She pats her belly gently. Steve nods, a little lost in his own head. A mix of thoughts of the young couple a floor up with no baby to show, his wife laboring without him, and these friendly people working on their seventh baby. “It’s not as bad as you think.” she laughs, catching Steve’s face.

Steve laughs nervously and shakes his head, “oh no. it’s not that.” He smiles softly, “my wife and I wanted around six.” He shrugs, giving her a glass of water.

“You’ve got kids?” She smiles at him and gives his forearm a gentle squeeze as he adjusts her monitors. “You’re so young.”

“Uh… not yet.” He laughs softly and pulls her blanket back up over her. “My wife’s in labor now, actually. Not very far along yet and It’s our first, might have a while to go.” He rambled off nervously.

She smiles at him, a warm and comforting smile, and so does her husband. They remember those days. And Steve does find comfort in that smile. “These things take time.” She says softly, nodding at Steve. “but she’ll know what to do and I know you’ve seen a lot of babies being born but the minute you see yours, everything’s gonna change.” And Steve knows she’s right.

“Thank you.” he says softly. “I’ll be back in to check on you in a little while.” he dims her lights a bit, sighing softly as he steps out of the room and walks over to his station to chart his notes quickly. When he looks up and sees his mother-in-law, that’s when his panic starts to set in. He’s hurrying around the counter, biting the inside of his cheek. “What are you doing here?”

“Y/N called asking me to come, Steve.” She laughs, a sound that reminds him of you. “She knows you’re busy.” She gives his arm a pat and smiles at him. “She’s getting close, from what they’ve told her.”

“And she didn’t say anything to me?” Steve frowns, leading her over to your room. His face is knotted up in confusion when he looks over you. Your feet are planted on the floor, leaning over your bed. He sighs softly, knowing he should have been in here. He walks over, standing behind you to rub circles into your lower back.

“This is how we got into this situation.” You joke, face pressed against your sheets.

The response makes Steve chuckle, rolling his eyes, “oh hush. your mother is here.” He mumbles softly, rubbing your hips gently. “Where did they say you’re at, angel?” he asks softly.

“Eight.” You mumble back, letting yourself melt into Steve’s hands. They slide around to your belly, lifting gently and trying to keep the pressure off of your back in between contractions. “What do you think it’s gonna be?” You ask him, turning your head to catch a glimpse of him. You can see the worry etched into his features. But once he sees the way your hair is sticking to your forehead and how flushed and clammy your skin is— he softens.

“A girl.” He says softly. “Gonna be just as pretty as you.” He whispers softly, helping you switch positions and lie back on the bed quietly. Steve’s head perks up as he sees one of his co-workers take a quick peek in. “What’s up?” he mouths over to her. He watches her point down to her belt, signaling to the pager Steve has forgotten.

He sighs and kisses your head once more, rubbing soothing circles onto your arm. “I’ll be right back again, okay sweetheart? Your mama’s here. gonna take care of you while I’m gone.” He says softly and squeezes your hand before he’s ducking out and heading down to the Bear’s room, pushing the cot along quietly.

Connie smiles tiredly, having opted for an epidural at the last stage of her labor. Steve’s ready at her thighs, ready to pop the baby up onto her chest. His own head is occupied with the thought of missing the birth of his own child while he welcomes another into the world. His shift would be over soon and then he’ll be sitting at your bedside, holding your hand and keeping you healthy and happy. Supporting you throughout the entire transition of your labor. Caleb rubs soothing circles on Connie’s arm as she pushes, and Steve takes note of the love in the room. How much the two of them lean on one another.

And Steve’s breath hitches in his throat when he’s reaching over her thighs, with their newborn boy laying on her stomach. He’s helping rub the baby dry, eyes flicking up to the delivering doctor when no one hears any cries for just a few more moments. And Steve whispers, panicked, but full of hope, “oh come on, kid.” No one hears him, but Connie— and her eyes are on him as Steve tries his fucking best to coax a cry out of the baby. Even after suctioning his nose and mouth. He remembers the heartbroken looks on that young couple this morning and he couldn’t take it again.

And finally there’s a sigh of relief when the little one lets out their first big wail. Steve smiles watching as Connie holds their baby to her chest, tears welling up in her eyes. She gives Steve’s hand a squeeze, her face silently thanking him. And then as he’s walking away to fill out a stats card for their baby, Steve hears his name followed by someone shouting time to push. And he’s running. He’ll check back in later, but he’s not missing his baby’s birth. You’ve got the rails of the bed in your hands, gripping tightly as you push— and he’s finding your side and brushing back your hair. “I'm here, angel.” He’s whispering through your tears. “I’m here. Look at you. You’re doing so good, mama.”

And it’s a whole new feeling when Steve hears a cry before he even sees the baby. He can see the blood on your thighs as they lift the baby up to place against your chest. The tears in your eyes are falling as you look up at Steve. And he just presses a kiss against your forehead, sniffling back his own years. “You did it, angel.” he mumbles softly.

“Congratulations.” You hear through your OB’s big smile. “It’s a boy.” And then Steve laughs, his smile pressed against your hair.

“It's a boy.” you repeat, fingers brushing against the back of your baby's fresh soft skin. The quiet grunts coming from him fill the room as he roots around trying to latch onto your breast quietly. “Joseph.” You whisper and turn to look up at Steve, remembering the perfect name the two of you had spent the last eight months curating. “Joseph Steven Harrington.” You announce to your mother quietly. And Steve feels himself tear up a bit.

Nothing has ever felt like this before in his life. And once you’re squared away, he makes sure to thank his coworkers quietly. Appreciating every second of them covering his ass tonight. They all congratulate him for the beautiful baby, passing out hugs and offering advice. And Steve soaks it in, every single word of it. Soaks it in like his life depends on it.

tags ;; @peachyproserpina @eeopxlt

[wildglitch]

Spider-man x Batfam Prompt's

Ok so lately I have seen a lot of "Spidy goes to gotham and gets adopted fics" probably cause of Dark Matter by mysterycyclone cause like, duh, that fic is a goddamn masterpiece. But I feel like a lot of them are sort of the same thing with diffrent fonts ans it feels a bit saturated. Not all of them...but most of them.

Am I saying that there needs to be less of these fics? Hell no! Keep writing them please. I just feel like there could be more variety is all.

I suggest maybe try one of these ideas out

1: Peter going straight to the Batfam or other heros (dosent always have to be Batfam) and they try to work together on how to get him home, while slowly realizing "omg, your life is terrible! We want to help you, we do, but maybe we shouldnt and try to give you a better life here. Then its just a moral delema on what to do as they get to know the spider child.

2: maybe another Spider-man is the one that goes to Hotham like Andrew or Toby. Insted of being sent home at the end of NWH, they where accidentally sent to the DCU. Or maybe one of the Spider verse characters or a cartoon version of the character. Dosent always need to be Toms Spider-man.

3: on that same note. Please give more love to What If...Zombies Peter. You guys have no Idea the amount of angst and "haha, my world ended and im fine" potental there is. And you can have the other surviving member also be there as they look for eachother (characters that "survived* (no one survived that episode) are Peter, King T'challa, Scott Lang+cape, and Ig Bruce Baner/Hulk, and Bucky Barnes since we never saw them get turned or eaten) just think about Spidey and the Batfam investigating a lab or sometbing and all of a sudden they find floating head Scott in a crate. Everyone if scared shitless while Peter is crying tires of joy as he moves to hug the floating head. Think about that and tell me Im not on to something here.

4: Have the fic start our like halfway through. Maybe skip him getting to Gotham and have him be there for a few months already or something. This will help with adding more crack fics.

5: Maybe have the fic be that Peter is there for a while, he knows everyone, they know him, they might or might not know the identitys but they trust eachother. And Peter has been looking for a way home and he finally finds it! But... he accidentally brings some of the Batfam with him. So now its the Batfams turn to learn to live in the MCU with help of Spidy and they finally understand so much about him, how he lived, and vigilanties he knows (team red!) As they learn the history and pubilc opinion or Spider-man and the world.

6: Just a react to fic. Yk, those fics where they're stuffed in a room and forced to watch something? Yeah. Have the Dark Matter cast stuffed in a room and watch some MCU clips. It dosent even have to be some magic forth wall bull shit if you dont like that. In chapter 44, Peter and co. are said to be going back to the cave, and Peter still have is suit. Canonically, Karen records everything. Maybe Peter ends up so tired he dosent even want to try to explain everything. So he just hooks up Karen to the computer and and has her show them everything from the suits recordings to security cameras and news reports, to the memes and videos spiderman fans have made.

7: have the Justice League get involed cause "Hes to bright to be one of yours Bruce!" And have him be a honorary member of the league of have them put him on Young Justice. Peter gets adopted by Batfam? Yes. Peter becomeing Bffs with the Young Justice kids and actually forming normal relationships with kids his age? Also yes.

Do I have more? Probably but Im too lazy for it rn

If you for some reason use one of my ideas, pls tag me and maybe credit me for the original idea (but I mostly want to be able to find the fic if you do make it ( o_o) )

Who knows, I might just write some of these myself if I ever get the motivation lol

[gffa]

I’ve been playing GENSHIN IMPACT for over a year now and reading a bit of fic here and there, mostly of the Tartali and Zhongli&Venti variety, but then Sumeru hit and oh hey Alhaitham is an amazing unit in a quickbloom team and then Kaveh hurricaned his way into my heart and oh no suddenly I was in love and absolutely tearing my way through every bit of Haikaveh I could get my hands on because christ there’s no way Hoyoverse isn’t writing them that way on purpose. I mean, I’m already a sucker for Old Married Couple type bickering, but then you give me the undercurrent of how much they genuinely mean to each other? How much Alhaitham is genuinely caring about how self-destructive Kaveh is? How Kaveh just absolutely will not shut up about Alhaitham, even the other characters are like “You talk about him so much that it’s like he’s been here with us all night.”? Yeah, of course I fell in love. So, here, cry about a gacha game having beautifully designed characters with just the right types of personality and funny banter that know how to knock me the fuck out with both delight and genuine feelings about idiots in love. Or just old elemental grandpas who annoy the shit out of each other because they’re both several millennia old and nobody else understands their weird friendship. I’m having a great time and I’m going to make that everyone else’s problem. GENSHIN IMPACT - CHILDE IS 10000% CASUALLY UNHINGED OF COURSE HE WANTS TO NOT JUST FIGHT A GOD, HE WANTS TO FUCK A GOD: ✦ Set in Stone by seredemia, childe/zhongli & childe’s family, 115.4k wip      What do you do when you write about a certain six thousand year old consultant so much in your letters that it somehow convinces your entire family you’re not only dating each other, but that you’re also engaged? In Childe’s case, the answer is plain and simple: he goes along with it, of course. Absolutely nothing can go wrong if he makes a contract with the God of Contracts, vowing that the two of them will pretend to be lovers for the duration of his family’s stay in Liyue. Afterwards, they’ll return as normal and speak no more of this mess. No feelings or complications involved whatsoever. ✦ the wind through the mountain tops by glassdrachma, childe/zhongli & venti, 25.5k      Boredom brings Barbatos of Mondstadt to bother a certain ex-Archon of the Earth. ✦ my faceless self, alone by recursion, childe/zhongli & guizhong, 7.2k      There is one lone glaze lily left, shining brilliant blue in the depths of Dihua Marsh. Zhongli kneels over it as Xiao looks on. “The contract is fulfilled,” he whispers. He takes his mask off with trembling fingers and sets it aside. The blood that stains it seeps into the ground, turning it rust-red. “That which thou seeketh is now bestowed unto thee, for my promise is solid as stone.” (Zhongli, in the before and after.) ✦ more espresso, less depresso by birdsofpassage, childe/zhongli & ningguang & xingqiu & chongyun, coffeeshop au, 5.3k      There’s a quaint little coffee shop that catches Childe’s eye as soon as soon as he arrives into town. The man that works inside is more exhilarating than any drink Childe has ever tasted. ✦ passing afternoon by bearbearer, childe/zhongli, NSFW, 1.3k      Zhongli just came, really. He just broke into his office with a white loose robe hanging from his shoulders, skin exposed like a gift, and two glasses of fine wine in his hands. There was a smile on his lovely red lips, while they moved around cloying words. “Are you amenable for a rest?” And everything was warm as he approached, because how could Zhongli not— He wouldn’t have a rest at all. ✦ the consultant’s kidnapping by glassdrachma, childe/zhongli & hu tao & cloud retainer & xiao & ganyu & keqing & cast, 19.2k      The Traveller isn’t able to stop Cloud Retainer from seeking revenge on Liyue Harbor. Zhongli is, however. Sort of. ✦ if i choose not to see it, it does not exist by inareese, childe/zhongli, 5.1k      Zhongli might as well have just straight up told Childe. He absolutely refuses to think too hard about it. or Tartaglia’s accidental guide to why Zhongli is most definitely a hundred percent not Rex Lapis. There is nothing suspicious to see here. ✦ A New Mission by Kuranoa, childe/zhongli, NSFW, 2.8k      “Sensei, have you ever bedded anyone?” Childe asks, chin resting on his hand while he observes the flawlessly elegant way Zhongli drinks from his teacup. “I have not.” The Archon answers just as frankly, not even batting a lash. “Would you like to?” ✦ Trial And Success by woahiohioh, childe/zhongli, NSFW, read the tags, 6.7k      Or: Childe asks Zhongli if he can tie him up and they both discover they’re into some things they didn’t know about beforehand. ✦ C.P.R. by silverid, childe/zhongli, NSFW, read the tags, 3.3k      It’s something straight out of Childe’s fantasies. “Don’t worry, xiansheng.” he chokes out. “I’ll show you.” Zhongli’s eyes go half-lidded. “Well then. Direct me.” GENSHIN IMPACT - LET ROCK GRANDPA’S FRIENDS BULLY HIM IT’LL BE SO FUNNY: ✦ rex lapis is totally undeniably dead! by arataka, zhongli & hu tao, 1.7k      when zhongli comes into her office and tells her, “rex lapis is dead” paired with the most serious face she’s ever seen him wear, hu tao laughs at him. GENSHIN IMPACT - YOU EVER LOVE SOMEONE SO MUCH YOU WANT TO PUNCH THEM IN THE FACE? YEAH THAT’S HAIKAVEH: ✦ handle with care by smallghosts, alhaitham/kaveh, 2.4k      Kaveh may be a thorn in Alhaitham’s side, but he’s his favorite one. ✦ Slip of the Tongue by LONEMOON, alhaitham/kaveh & cyno, NSFW, 9.6k      Kaveh is inflicted by a curse that makes him only able to tell the truth. For someone who’s fairly honest and wears his heart on his sleeve, this shouldn’t be a big deal, right? Unfortunately, he has some feelings he’d like to keep hidden… ✦ theory and practice by alcyonenight, alhaitham/kaveh, 3.9k      Kaveh falls ill. Alhaitham works through some things. ✦ too many nights by effervescentskies, alhaitham/kaveh, 4.8k      Kaveh keeps coming back home drunk in the middle of the night. Alhaitham is not pleased. ✦ itni khafa nahin by solarclimes, alhaitham/kaveh, 2.4k      Rtawahist scholars have a curious theory about parallel worlds, where the stars of a person’s constellation are weaved in slightly different ways, creating an infinite number of universes where they make different choices, lead different lives. He had told Al-Haitham about it once, who had declared it outlandish and based on pure conjecture, but Kaveh had found the idea interesting. Perhaps, then, there exists a world, where Kaveh’s life isn’t so at odds with him. Where Kaveh can reach out in this moment and pull Al-Haitham into his arms. ✦ inertia by smallghosts, alhaitham/kaveh, 3.6k      A drunken confession is all it takes to set the inertia of their non-relationship into motion. ✦ Opposites Attract by LavastormSW, alhaitham/kaveh, NSFW, 3k      Alhaitham returns home after a long day commentating on and wrapping up the Akademiya Extravaganza, only to find Kaveh waiting for him… ✦ truck, barter, and trade by Seungshi03, alhaitham/kaveh & wanderer & nahida, 13.3k      Or: Al-Haitham is, without a doubt, the most annoying person Kaveh knows. Maybe the world’s second-most annoying person can help Kaveh figure him out. ✦ I’ll keep your brittle heart warm by clouds_hide, alhaitham/kaveh & nilou & traveler, 3.2k      Or: The Inter-Darshan Championship brings out the problems they don’t talk about. They really need to talk. ✦ i’ve been loving you for quite some time, time, time by creativedisaster, alhaitham/haikaveh, NSFW, 4.7k      After spending the week talking about his plans to move out, Kaveh’s not entirely sure he can face dealing with Alhaitham now he’s staying. But the bad thing about living together - he has to go home sometime. - OR - Alhaitham has some truth for Kaveh that he might not be ready for. ✦ knocking is a wonderous invention by dearwormwood, alhaitham/kaveh & cyno/tighnari, 2.8k      Four times Tighnari and Cyno think they walk in on Alhaitham and Kaveh in compromising positions, and one time they actually do. ✦ sunbird by caniculeo, alhaitham/kaveh & cyno & tighnari & nilou & kaveh’s mother & cast, 19.1k      This is how Kaveh grows up—well-loved and loving, with a pencil in his hand and starlight in his eyes. This is how he grows up, until his father leaves for the desert one day, and never comes back. ✦ you put the ‘fun’ into dysfunction by emigmatic, alhaitham/kaveh, NSFW, 3.7k      His dream was not a dream. It was real. “Oh.” “Is that all you have to say? Oh?” Kaveh presses, but he relents after studying his junior for a moment. His eyebrows draw together and a slight frown takes up residence on his face. “You…why do you look so surprised that I want to talk about how we just had sex?” ✦ diesel is desire (you were playing with fire) by clouds_hide, alhaitham/kaveh & cyno, NSFW, 6.7k      Kaveh on his back, his blonde hair splayed across the white sheets, his entire chest flushed from arousal, is the most beautiful sight in the world. Even if Alhaitham lives through a thousand samsaras, he will never forget this. ✦ modus vivendi by katraa, alhaitham/kaveh, NSFW, 3.5k      Kaveh has a sprained wrist, his roommate is insufferable, and said roommate knows how to take someone’s mind off the pain. Or, they finally stop dancing around the subject and bang. ✦ That’s The Way I Loved You by rewmariewrites, alhaitham/kaveh & cyno & tighnari & cast, NSFW, 16.9k      Tighnari rolls his eyes and turns back to Kaveh. “You didn’t answer my question,” Tighnari says, like he thinks Kaveh is an idiot. Kaveh rolls his eyes right back. “No, we’re not dating.” ✦ argumentative, antithetical dream girl by clouds_hide, alhaitham/kaveh & cyno & tighnari, NSFW, 6.8k      Or: Kaveh attempts to have no-strings-attached sex with his roommate. There are so many strings attached, he might as well be a marionette. GENSHIN IMPACT - THAT ONE SCENE OF VENTI BEING AN ANNOYING BASTARD AT XIAO WAS ENOUGH TO CONVERT ME TO SHIPPING THEM: ✦ carried by the wind by underfallingflowerpetals, venti/xiao, 1.7k      Or: Xiao isn’t used to being taken care of, but Venti is nothing if not persistent.

[graciegoeskrazy]

hi <3 can you do dad!matty and daughter!reader and shes dealing with her first heartbreak?

you’re all i need

Matty Healy + Teen!Daughter!reader (ft The 1975)

warnings: cheating, men, some language

a/n: HI! i’m back again. thank you to the LOVELY anon who requested this. I hope you enjoy! Also - ty to everyone who has sent a request! I promise you I will get to ALL of them as soon as i can. anywhoooo i like how this one turned out and i hope u like :)

The boys never heard the bus pulling up to the house. It wasn't until the front door slammed that they realized you were home. They were all in the kitchen talking when you arrived. Usually - especially if they're all home - you would run straight to all of them and talk and rant about your day. But this time it was noticeable that you were acting quite different.

“Hi, darling!” Your father yelled from the kitchen.

You gave a solemn, “Hey.” before running upstairs as quickly as possible, trying to not let them see your tear-stained face.

“You okay?” Adam asked.

You continued your trek upstairs, never once looking at them.

“Yeah just tired.”

That fact that you didn't run straight to them was a huge giveaway, but the slight crack in your voice set off an alarm in all of them.

They all exchanged looks. Some of worry, and some of confusion. Matty sighed before putting his drink down on the table.

“I’ll be right back he said.” And he made his way up to you.

…

Your biggest pet peeve in the entire world is when your dad didn't knock on your door. He learned his lesson several times and always made a point to knock ever since you yelled at him for it, but this time he just opened it without a knock or anything, afraid you might have been hiding something.

The door swung open and revealed you sitting on the other side of your bed, phone in hand, with tears threatening to spill out again.

You whipped away the tears as normally as you could, trying to not track any attention. “Hi.” He said, almost comically. You replied with a small “Hi.”

“How was school?” he said, starting to make his way into your room.

“Fine.” You quipped.

“Fine?”

You just nodded and let out a slight hm, trying to move this convo along as fast as possible.

He shook his head.

“Well, we both know that’s bull shit.”

You sighed and stood up to face him, ushering out the door. “Dad, I just don’t want to talk about it.” Tears fully falling out again. He put his hands on your shoulders urging you to sit on the bed.

“If you’re this hurt about it darling, I think we should.” You gave up and fell onto the bed, your face hiding in your pillows.” He slowly sat down next to you, asking “Is it about school?” while doing so.

“No.” You said the sound being muffled by your pillows.

“Friends?” He asked stroking your back, coaxing you to come out.

“No!” you yelled into the pillows.

“Issac?”

You didn’t respond, which let your dad too his answer.

“Ahhhh…jackpot.” He said.

You just sighed.

“Bad date?”

“No.”

“Lovers quarrel?”

“Not exactly.”

Matty didn't want to say what he was about to say but he had to make sure…

“Did you guys…do something you weren’t supposed to?”

“Dad!” You yelled while sitting up.

He put his hands up in defense. “I just have to make sure.”

You slumped against the headboard. “Come on, darling. You tell me everything! That shouldn't stop because of guy stuff. I am a guy! I can help you out.”

You just continued to cry. By now you were full on sobbing. It took your dad back. Whatever was happening, he now knew it was serious. You fell into him and sobbed into his shirt. “Woah, honey. What happened.”

“He cheated on me.” You managed to say during sobs.

“What?” Your father was completely shocked.

You sat up again before speaking. “A girl came up to me during lunch. She told me that she and Issac had been dating for a month. He told her that he broke up with me a while ago, but found out the truth from a friend and she felt bad so she wanted to tell me.” You let out a small sniffle.

“Oh, honey. Have you talked to him?” He asked.

“Yeah. At first, he was all defensive. He said that he could have any other girl he wanted but he chose to stay with me and that I should be thankful. He started yelling and when he finally admitted it I asked why and he said ‘Because at least she lets me fuck her.’ and stormed off.”

The door immediately opened revealing Ross storming inside, George tying to hold him back, and Adam, Carly, and Jamie all behind them still trying to process everything they’ve been hearing. “What?!” Ross said, almost breaking down the door.

“Really?!” Matty said.

“We were worried.” Ross shrugged.

“This ain’t your business mate, fuck off.”

This time, George chimed in. “She’s our niece and goddaughter. If she comes home sobbing her eyes out, we're gonna convey some worry.”

This was getting too much for you. You yelled very loudly, trying to get them to all stop. “Enough! Everyone out! Please I just want to be alone.”

Matty sighed and kissed the top of your head before heading out. “As you wish.” He said. He ushered the others to leave while silently yelling at Ross.

…

Matty was sitting on the couch watching some trash reality TV show when he decided it was time for him to head up to bed. It was pretty late, everyone had gone home well before, and he was ready to pass out. He hasn't spoken to you since when you came home, other than sending a small text asking if you wanted any food to which you did not reply. As he walked upstairs and past your room, he heard quiet sniffles coming behind your door. He opened the door slightly, and peaked his head through. “Baby?” he asked. He saw you curled up in bed with tears streaming down your face, with a vinyl playing silently in the corner of your room. “Oh, my love.” He said. Immediately sitting on the bed and scooping you up into his arms.

You were a fucking wreck. You couldn't get Issac out of your mind. You couldn't help but think that you were dumb enough to waste almost a year of your life on someone who ended up probably never caring about you. Your head was swerling with thought, and Matty caught you right in the nick of time.

You cried into his arms. “It hurts, Daddy.” You said.

He brushed your hair back and laid you back down on the bed, tucking you in and lying next to you. “Oh, my sweet girl.”

“Why was I so stupid?”

This is what Matty feared, that you would blame some prick's biggest mistake on yourself. “You are not stupid.” He said.

“Yes, I am. I’m a stupid girl who was convinced someone loved her.” You said, crying into his chest.

“Hey! For the last time, you are not stupid. You are the wisest, kindest, most beautiful, and charming soul I have ever laid my eyes upon. And some bloke named Issac is stupid and blind and couldn’t see the absolute gift he had in front of him.”

Your cries turned into quite sniffles. “This will pass. Eventually. I promise you.”

“How do you know? You’ve been cheated on before?”

He laughed a little. “No. I’m the one who did the cheating.”

You looked up at him. “What? Dad!”

“I know. I was an idiot who was not worthy of someone's love - someone who you will never know about -”

You rolled your eyes.

“So that’s how I know for sure that Issac is an idiot who didn't see the absolute gift he had in front of him because I was that same idiot.”

You stayed quiet, not entirely sure of what to say. Matty caught sight of something on your nightstand.

“Did you eat that whole gallon of ice cream?”

“I just got cheated on. Give me a fucking break.”

“I’m not judging.” He said, smiling.

“I thought that’s what you're supposed to do during a break up. Eat ice cream and listen to Taylor Swift non-stop.”

“That’s one way of doing it.”

“I can’t stop listening to ‘Death by a Thousand Cuts’”

“I don’t think that’s very healthy.”

You smiled. “What can I say, I’m obsessed with your ex-girlfriend.”

“Okay, that’s enough.” he said, getting out of bed.

He sat on the edge of the bed and tucked you in again. “You okay? For right now at least?”

“Yeah. You made it better.”

He smiled. You continued.

“And Taylor did too.”

“I’m leaving.” He said, turning away. You laughed hysterically.

“You fumbled the bag mate!”

“Goodnight!” he slammed the door, smiling.

…

When the next day rolled around you panicked when you realized you slept through your alarm. You checked your phone and saw a text from your dad that he had sent while you were asleep. “No school today. I turned your alarm off last night while you were sleeping. If you wake up be ready to leave by 11. I have to go into the studio today and I want you to come with me.”

You were quiet the entire car ride. Usually, you forced your dad to give you aux rights but this time you sat in sullum silence as you watched rural Londen pass you by. Your dad definitely noticed but he didn’t want to push you into a conversation. He knew you were very fragile at the moment and whenever you were uncomfortable you retreated to your little shell so to speak like you were doing now. He didn't want to ruin that, so he left you alone.

When you arrived at the studio you took a deep breath before getting out of the car. Your dad wrapped an arm around your shoulder and pressed a kiss to your head as you both walked in together. You were greeted with Ross who was sitting in one of the lounge chairs right by the door. All of them have been briefed by Matty. He sent a text saying, ‘Baby is coming w/ today. She’s still heartbroken. Try to make her less heartbroken. She’ll prob cry every 2 minutes so be prepared.’ Ross had his usual chipper attitude that he only ever showed when he was around you. “Hey! There’s our favorite girl!” he opened his arms wide awaiting a hug from you. You smiled a little bit and accepted it. “How’ve ya been?” he asked pulling away. “Very shitty.” You replied while wiping away a few tears that had escaped during the hug. “Yeah, getting your heart broken will do that to you.” You shrugged and smiled. George came up to you next, offering his drumsticks. “Feeling like hitting something?” You shrugged then replied, “Yeah actually.” he smiled. “Go for it.”

Once you were behind the other side of the glass getting a beat going, George spoke up. “So, when are we killing him?”

Adam laughed before adding, “We’re not killing a kid.”

“Why not? He broke our girl's heart.”

Ross chimed in too. “We have his address and phone number and an array of kitchen knives, I say we give it a go. Right, Matty?”

Your father was just watching you play, as always mesmerized by your talents at such a young age. “As much as it’s entertaining, y/n wouldn’t want it.”

Ross clicked his tongue. “Yeah, you’re right.”

Matty turned to the boys.

“We’ll just give him dirty looks every time we pick y/n up from school.”

[chipthekeeper]

Hey. Hi. Because I’m very normal and not sick in the head, here are all the thoughts I had while watching the bonus featurette about the Aldhani arc (I know some of you are patiently waiting to see for yourselves so it’s under the cut)

- ugh Scotland you are sooooo……

- OH MY GOD WEVE GOT CLOSEUP SHOTS OF THINGS AROUNS THE CAMP IM GONNA BE TAKING ENDLESS NOTES

- Going to need so many gifs of my babies. So so so many gifs. I will pay

- Did not expect Susanna white to have that accent for some reason but I’m very into it

- Already lost my mind about this bit we got a clip of so many times but I will continue to do so

- “You have Vel who’s an incredibly rich young woman who’s grown a conscience” FASCINATING TONY TELL ME MORE

- “Skeen who’s a revolutionary by opportunity” some might say a mercurial man but yeah

- Oh a shot of Gorn but he doesn’t get a description, fine

- Oh i just made SUCH an embarrassing noise because VARADA IS TALKING SHES ON MY SCREEN SAYING WORDS AS HERSELF M

- oh. Oh sweet. Baby. Jesus. Oh. Oh my

- I can’t even describe what just happened above; you will have to see it

- Okay now I’m for real sobbing

- 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺😭😭😭😭😭😭

- They

- I keep making such loud and embarrassing sounds AND THE WINDOW IS OPEN

- Okay now to take a breath and actually tell you what that was all about. You didn’t really think I wouldn’t say it?

- Varada AND Faye talking about rehearsing their jump from the dam!!!!!

- And some footage of that where they’re just. Chilling and smiling and yeah I need oxygen

- Varada saying she’s “sufficiently terrified” to do the jump but has to do it with a straight face because cinta can’t look scared and holy shit this is truly everything to me

- There’s an AMAZING shot of them in costume on like a green screen stage and they like hug and then dance very ridiculously I’m definitely not crying no you’re crying

- ugh Jesus I just. That was a lot and I’m. Fine.

- Okay moving on

- Oooh Spotify artist of the year nick britell on my screen talking about sounds of the eye

- I SWEAR TO FUCK LUCASFILM IF YOU DONT GIVE ME THIS ART BOOK OR AT LEAST DOWNLOADABLE HI RES IMAGES

- Why the fuck are we suddenly talking about saw gerrera (not that I don’t love him but ?????? This is not the time)

- *strangled whining sounds about scenery shots with Skeen’s chopping line over top*

- Omg wife hi

- “We ended up being as close as these characters are by the end, you know, because they depend on each other and they have to believe in what each other can do” IM FINE 😭

- Jesus Christ I need ten more hours of that at MINIMUM

- In summary, I need this injected into my veins and nothing short of that will be enough

[celandeline]

Summer of Like // Farleigh Start x OC (27)

I watch Venetia pour herself another glass of wine with a shaking hand. 

It’s lunch, and it isn’t at the same time. We are scattered around the table in complete silence - only James and Elspeth eat. I didn’t understand what people meant when they said ‘the cold-hearted English’ before, but I do now, watching as they all pretend that nothing has happened, even when their son’s body is still in the backyard. I look down at the untouched slice of shepherd's pie on my plate. I need to get out of this house. I need to throw up. 

The quiet click of shoes on the wood signals Duncan’s arrival. 

Elspeth pats her napkin around her lips. “What is it, Duncan?”

Duncan’s voice is pained. “It's the police, Your Ladyship. They are...er...having trouble.”

“What kind of trouble?” Elspeth asks. 

A brief moment of silence lingers before Duncan speaks again. “They keep getting lost in the maze.”

Another moment of silence permeates the room, until Farleigh laughs, sharp and sad. It echoes around the dining room, even after James shoots an icy glare in his direction. James’s attention turns to Duncan. “And?”

“May I send one of the gardeners to assist them?” Duncan looks straight ahead, never meeting James’s eyes. 

James turns his attention back to his plate. “Fine.”

Duncan disappears, shoes clicking back down the hall. For a moment the table is silent, only the sounds of James and Elspeth’s forks scraping against their plates echoing around the room. Venetia drains her glass of wine. Next to me, Farleigh sits stock still in his seat. I know that if I look at either of them I’ll start crying, so I don’t.

At the end of the table, Elspeth forces a smile. “Oliver, darling. Why don't you tell us about last night?” 

Across the table, Oliver looks up from his plate. “Last night?”

Elspeth stills smiles. “Mmmm. Did you have a lovely time?”

“Yeah.” Oliver says. “It was wonderful. Thank you.”

Wonderful? Felix died. I watch in amazement and horror as half the table pretends that nothing happened - that there isn’t a dead body in the backyard. 

“Oh good!” Elspeth presses on. “I think it was a hit, don't you darling?”

“Oh yes.” James agrees. “A triumph.”

A triumph. Bile rises in the back of my throat, and I feel like I might vomit right here at the table, spilling my guts across the patterned tablecloth. 

“Yes, the house looked good.” Elspeth says. 

“Beautiful.” James chimes in. 

Oliver perks up again. “And that cake was-”

“Oh did you like it?” Elspeth cuts him off, tittering. “I never had any in the end. That’s always the way, isn’t it? You end up running around so much you miss the actual party.”

The click of shoes on the wood signals Duncan’s arrival again. 

James doesn’t even look at him, his voice tight. “What now?”

Duncan leans down, close to James ear - but the room is so quiet I can hear him anyway. “May I be permitted to close the curtains, sir? The coroner is outside and may need to pass the window-”

James interrupts him. “Yes. Thank you. Close them.”

Duncan stands up, and walks to the window as Oliver continues. “I don't normally like chocolate cake.”

Elspeth nods. “Yes it can be cloying, can't it?”

“But last night it was so light!” Oliver says. 

“Yes Lynn has always been an expert with cakes.” Elspeth says. “Yes, cold hands apparently. You have to have cold hands.”

Oliver nods. “I’ve heard that. So the butter doesn't melt.”

The room begins to darken, the red curtains casting a wash of deep burgundy over the room. I watch as the fabric catches in the track, and Duncan tugs at it, trying to work it loose. 

Elspeth is in a world of her own, “Although I would think that applies more to pastry than it does to cake-” 

James cuts her off. “Duncan, just get them closed, for Christ's sake!” 

Duncan pulls at the curtain almost frantically. “Yes, I am trying sir, I can’t-”

One of the footmen rushes over, and the curtains finally close. The dining room is bathed in blood, and the sound of the gurney rolling by filters through the room. James plugs his ears, shaking his head. Elspeth almost chokes, bringing her napkin up to her mouth. I don’t notice the wine spilling out of Venetia’s glass until it seeps over to my plate, staining the tablecloth the same color as the curtains. 

As soon as the squeaking of the gurney wheels fades into the distance, Farleigh rises from his seat, voice shaking. “Oh my god... May I be excused, please?”

James' voice is harsh. “No. We haven’t finished lunch?”

Farleigh is almost in tears, pacing. “The lunch is cold! You want me to just eat it like nothing is happening?”

Elspeth looks at Farleigh, with the first glimmer of sadness I’ve seen from her since the body was found. “What else is there to do, darling?”

Farleigh sobs. “Anything! Anything-”

A loud bang shocks through the room as James slams his fist on the table. Farleigh freezes - I flinch on instinct. 

“Farleigh!” James roars. “Will you be quiet?! Sit down, and eat the bloody pie! Just eat it! Eat it and shut up! Eat the bloody pie!”

Farleigh drops back into his seat, almost shaking - from tears or fear, I don’t know. 

James takes a breath, and then continues. “You're not the only person here with feelings. None of us wants your bloody American feelings!”

A silence stretches over the table. I watch Farleigh try to eat, and fail, crying too hard to choke anything down. I don’t even try - between stumbling upon Felix’s dead body, and the sharp pit of resentment that’s settled in my gut from James’ yelling, I’m not eating anything for a while. I need to leave. I need to go home-

Oliver’s quiet voice breaks the silence. “I think it’s delicious.”

Farleigh explodes. “What the fuck are you still doing here?”

Oliver turns his icy blue eyes on Farleigh, and a shiver runs up my spine. Just being in the periphery of his stare is enough to make me uncomfortable. It’s unsettling, how normal he’s acting. Like his best friend didn’t just die. 

“Wait, does no one else find it weird?” Farleigh continues. “No one else finds that weird?”

Oliver’s tone is unnaturally level. “I wouldn’t throw stones if I was you, Farleigh.”

“Excuse me?” Farleigh almost laughs. 

On my other side, Venetia mutters, sounding tired. “Please stop.”

James’ eyes turn to Farleigh. “What is he saying?”

“I have no idea.” Farleigh says, still focused on Oliver. 

“What I'm saying is that I'd feel guilty too…” Oliver shrugs. 

“Guilty?” Farleigh asks. 

There’s a glint in Oliver’s eye as he finishes his sentence. “If I was the one racking up lines the night someone died.”

This time, the silence that descends is one of shock. A cold streak runs down my spine, and I turn to look at Farleigh. His gaze is stony, focused on Oliver. 

“Fuck you.” He spits. 

Oliver only blinks, glancing at James. “That’s not a denial.”

James is pale with fury - even more than when he shouted earlier. “Is that true?” He nods to Duncan. “Search Farleigh’s room.”

All the fire in Farleigh dissipates at once, and he begins to cry again. “No…”

But it's too late - Duncan nods sharply, and backs out of the room. Emotions rush through me all at once - panic, anger, despair. Farleigh crumples back into his chair, utterly defeated. I need to leave-

“Get out.” James is unflinching, staring at Farleigh. 

“No, wait-” Farleigh sniffles. 

Elspeth finally tunes into the conversation. “What’s happening?”

Farleigh turns to her. “Aunt Elspeth… Elspeth..?”

James is almost yelling again. “Don’t you dare look at her!” He rages. “Get out! I won't mention this to the police. That's all you get. Nothing more. Ever again. I-”

Whatever he’s about to say is interrupted by the scrape of my chair against the hardwood floor. I rise quickly, before I even really know that I’m going to do it. All the eyes in the room shift to me, but I say nothing, simply grabbing Farleigh by the arm and hauling him out of his seat. My heart is pounding like I’ve just run a marathon. 

I walk out of the room, pulling Farleigh with me. 

&lt; previous post | next post >

[huffle-dork]

Glitch into the Hufflverse Chapter 10: Darker Seas

Read Swapboys | Read Crystal’s AUs | Read Septnautical | Darker Seas AU

Read SITCV | Read SATCV | GITHV Masterpost

The boys have been sleeping for a few hours when Anti suddenly crashes into the lab with a bit of pained cry and quickly scrambles over to try to wake up Schneep and JJ.

Schneep cries out and immediately lashes out. Luckily, JJ awakens first, and has enough wit to reach out and push Schneep's arm out of the way before he can punch Anti. "What?! Who?!" Schneep shouts. Then his soul sensing kicks in and he remembers who everyone is. "A-Anti? What is it?"

Are you okay?! JJ asks.

Blood is clouding the water around the jagged cut in one of Anti’s tails. He shoves his bag towards them that has a few peepers in it and says in a panic. “E-eat these and then we- you all need to go! I… I dunno how much time we have-“

JJ sits up straight. You're bleeding! I can help, if you want. Like I did earlier with Schneep.

Schneep feels out the peepers. Normally he's not the biggest fan of fish, but he's really hungry. "What happened? Did they—did they—" He sniffs. Is that... blood? "Did they find you? Did they hurt you?!"

Anti scrambles back a bit in fear with wide eyes, his tails shaking. “Y-Yeah I was h-hunting in the reefs and they just- s-showed up out of nowhere! The weird armored guy cut my tail I-I’m fine but stars… I-I might have led them straight here! I…I can’t let them find the others… I…!” He heaves in panic.

"Weird armor guy—Jackie?!" Schneep gasps. “Or Bro?!”

If we get out of here quickly, we can lure them away from the base, JJ says. We need to stop by and ask Zara about stuff but then we GO.

Schneep nods and immediately begins tearing into the peepers. Wow—that tastes good? Must be something based on this form. "We go now!" he says after a couple bites. "Eat on the way!"

JJ nods hurriedly.

“R-Right yeah let’s go-!” Anti says, speeding over to the hatch to the hallway to try to find Zara. The other two quickly follow after him.

Anti zips through the hallway and then finds Zara sitting in a cramped small lab space and bangs on the window. Zara startles and then looks up and hurries to open the hatch to her space. “Anti?! What’s wrong you- you’re bleeding!” She gasps.

"He says that the hybrids found him!" Schneep says. "And--at least one of them was our friend!"

Anti, really, I can help with that blood, JJ says.

Anti acknowledges JJ and nods, waving his hand. “uh yeah yeah sure!”

JJ nods, swimming over and gently placing a hand on Anti's tail just above his wound. A blue film covers the wound, cool and healing. 

Anti stares at JJ’s magic with wide eyes before looking up at him and stammering out. “..t-thanks…”

JJ smiles back. Not a problem.

Schneep continues on. "W-we have to get out of here quickly before they follow to the base."

Zara gasps and scrambles through the hatch, pulling out the thing she was working on. “Okay uh- yeah you guys need to try to get out! W-we don’t have the defenses… but m-maybe this can help?” She hands the device to Schneep. It’s… like a small taser- “If you can get close to their ears- this might be enough to cancel the signal? I-If only for a moment… but that might be what you need.”

Schneep turns the device over in his hands. "Like a stun gun, I see. Or a taser, I suppose. Okay. I will be able to make much use of this. Thank you, Zara."

“O-Of course…” Zara says with a nervous smile. “I… I wish I could help more but I’d… I’d just slow you down so- go quickly.”

Anti then hesitates before going to hug Zara tightly. Zara is surprised but hugs him back. “In case I don’t… I don’t-“ he whispers in a bit of broken voice. Zara shakes her head. “you’ll come back… I know it. Now g-get out of here!”

Anti lets go and nods, hurrying back down the hall to open up the door to outside and rocketing out into the dark ocean around them.

Schneep hesitates before he follows JJ and Anti out of the base. He looks back at Zara. "We'll keep him safe," he says quietly. "I promise." Then he turns and chases after the other two.

Zara smiles and nods. “Thank you… good luck.”

Once outside, Anti hurries as fast as his tails will take him. He constantly looks back behind him to check for a sight of the others. He starts to pale as he remembers. “S-Shit! Most of those guys don’t glow! M-Marvin is with him though so… l-look out for any sign of something blue!”

"Ah, Anti, i-if you are worried about them sneaking up on us, I can keep a look out," Schneep says. "My eyes are blind, but... I have the ability to know when people are nearby."

How close do they have to be for that? JJ asks.

Schneep frowns. "I... am not sure, actually."

Well, keep your senses sharp, anyway, JJ says. I'll look out for the blue glow. I think the ends of Alt's spike things also glow a bit.

“Right… o-okay good. That’s good… keep your… senses peeled or whatever.” Anti says to Schneep. “Y-Yeah… the ampeel guy…” He mumbles, shuddering. “…he… he looked like me. You guys said y-you’re like my brothers if they were from a different world… i-is he…?”

JJ nods. Yes. He prefers being called Alt, but his name is Anti. He spells out the names, the fish robot picking up on it and saying the names as they should be said.

“I… I see. Alt…” he tries out the name. 

"He and the boneshark, Bro—Chase—are the only real brothers between us," Schneep says. "The rest of us are from somewhere else. They are... quite close."

“Heh… weird to think of all of us… not being brothers…” Anti says quietly. “Though we uh… haven’t been for… for a bit. I… I miss Chase. They don’t let him leave HQ with the others much… precious collateral and all… he was the first hybrid they ever made…” He laughs bitterly.

JJ's expression darkens. Collateral, he repeats bitterly. I don't have experience with Alterra, but I know a different company that would do something like that.

"I am truly so sorry, Anti," Schneep says. "I... know what it is like... to miss Chase—though, my Chase is different than yours, of course. There was a period of time in my home when... he was pulled away from the rest of us. Made into something different." He shakes his head. "B-but... we... we freed him after time. Or, the rest of my friends did, I was also out of commission at that point." He laughs drily.

“…thanks…” Anti says shortly. He then laughs a bit. “… it’s been a bit since I was around someone who felt like they… get this. I know Google feels it cuz of…” He swallows and his head, “…I don’t think Zara and Danan really understand though… this ache. I miss them so much it hurts.”

He starts to swim up, not looking back as much as the cavern gets a bit lighter. “…sometimes on bad nights… I’d think of just going to find them…joining them just so it wouldn’t hurt as much….” He laughs bitterly again. “…they’d kill me for that though. A-Actual them… who they were.”

JJ shakes his head. You’re right, they wouldn’t want that for you. Not to mention what would all these humans do? You’re clearly a great help to them.

Schneep nods. “It’s okay to miss them. But don’t throw your life away for that. They would want you to live free—” He suddenly stops. “Do you hear that?”

Below them- something flickers in the darkness- sparks of blue and the sound of a distant roar.

JJ looks down into the darkness with wide eyes. That must be them! Anti—which ones were they? How many?!

Anti freezes, looking back with wide eyes too. “Shit! U-uh- I think all 3 of your friends and m-Marvin-! I-I dunno for how long that’ll be though… m-Marvin could have warped the others here-! O-or maybe he’s waiting until-“ He swallows shakily and looks around then darts towards another tunnel. “C-C’mon! Let’s make it to open water at least!”

“All of them?!” Schneep repeats. “Well—at least we won’t have to go into the headquarters to find them.” He swims hurriedly after Anti but JJ hesitates for a moment, wanting to be sure that the hybrids are following them and not going towards the base.

“Y-Yeah you two wouldn’t be able to survive down there…” Anti stops when he sees JJ stop and is about to ask what he’s doing when his eyes widen. His blood trail ended at the base! He scrambles back out past JJ and takes in a huge breath before letting a fireball sail through the open water and hit a stalagmite with a big crash. “HEY FUCKERS!!” He yells afterwards, “CANT CATCH MEEEE!!” His voice echoes through the cavern and then they hear a familiar roar of anger… it sounds like Bro. though it sounds more animalistic and feral than anything Schneep and JJ have heard before.

“Okay now we swim!” Anti says hurriedly and starts swimming back through the tunnel.

“Swimming!” Schneep says, hurrying into the tunnel, tendrils tracing the sides. JJ darts after him, some instinctual part of his brain telling him that the sound meant danger.

“W-was that really—them?” Schneep says, shaken. “That sound—”

There’s another sound just as he says that, a different one. A horrible screech that sounds almost human but mostly animalistic and aggressive. JJ stops for a moment, disoriented, and one of Schneep’s tendrils reaches back and grabs him, pulling him along.

“Don’t stop! I-I know you’ll wanna but I-it’ll be easier to fight out in the open!” Anti pants.

Early morning light shines through the exit and they just about make it to the surface- then AE-10 glitches right in front of them. He regards them coldly, blocking off their path as his tail crackles with electricity. Also leaving them vulnerable for CE-9 and BS-8 to attack them from behind.

“You will not escape this time SD-4.” AE’s static laced voice drones through his radio. “Make this easier on yourself and give in.” His eyes flicker to JJ and Schneep- but there’s no recognition in his alien looking eyes. “You two as well. Alterra has you slated for assimilation.”

JJ swims back, a look of horror on his face. Alt? What have they done to you? That horrible mask!

AE-10's eyes flicker a bit at hearing that name... and he tilts his head in confusion.

“I do not think we can reason with him in this state,” Schneep says. His eyes narrow, sclera turning black. “The only thing we can do is—” And without warning he leaps forward, suddenly right in front of Alt as he attempts to tackle him to the ground or out of the tunnel.

AE doesn't expect Schneep to suddenly appear before him and his eyes widen before he's tackled to the ground. His radio makes a static screech that sounds like AE yelling in surprise but more corrupted. He narrows his eyes at Schneep and then tries to hide his tail against him to shock him.

Schneep shrieks as the electricity courses through him, instinctively letting go and backing up. But with Alt out of the way there's enough room for Anti and JJ to get out. 

Anti meanwhile grabs JJ and tries to swim past them out of the tunnel- hearing aggressive roars closing in.

JJ glances back over his shoulder and throws magic back down the tunnel, blocking it off with a crystalline wall. It won't stop them forever but it might get them time to deal with Alt before the others show up.

There’s a loud roar- and then a crash as BS-8 crashes headfirst into the crystalline wall, a small crack forming in it- but not enough to break it. He blinks in mild confusion and pats the surface to see what the hell it is.

JJ glances over his shoulder, worried, as Bro cracks the wall.

"Verdammt!" Schneep curses, shaking himself off. "Guess who can do that too," he says through gritted teeth, and lunges forward again, pointing Zara's device at Alt.

AE-10 rolls over to push himself back up in the water. His eyes widen as he sees the device but he quickly glitches away. “What is that thing?!” he growls.

"Get closer and you'll see," Schneep says, lunging forward again.

AE-10 jerks back and then catches Schneep’s hand before he can get any closer- but AE stopped his hand just before it reached his neck/ear. The crackling of the tool seems to cause a reaction as AE’s grip loosens slightly and his eyes shift for a second back to normal.

“S-Schneep?” Alt breathes, sounding scared.

Then, his gauges shock him and AE stiffens holding on tighter to Schneep before tossing him away. “D-Do not try that again!” AE-10 snarls.

Behind BS-8, CE-9 runs right into him, pushing him into the wall some more. He backs up, just as confused as him. Then makes a low shrieking sound in his throat as he charges at the wall again. It shatters immediately, and JJ whirls around, surprised and a bit afraid. That should have lasted at least a little longer! 

Once the barrier is broken Anti scrambles back and tries to grab JJ- but BS-8 roars and heads straight for JJ- trying to tackle him into the sand.

Schneep doesn't even have time to respond to Alt before being tossed to the side, spinning through the water for a while before he regains his balance. He shakes his head, a bit disoriented—but he knows what he heard there. "Hold on, Alt," he whispers. Then he turns to the side. "JJ!"

But JJ is too busy dodging Bro's attack to respond. He manages to avoid being caught but can't slowly down enough to sign. He makes a whistling sound to let Schneep knows he's listening.

"We have to work together!" Schneep says, lunging for Alt again, tendrils flaring out.

BS-8 crashes into the sand and spits it out before giggling sinisterly and turning on JJ. “Yer slippery aren’t ya?” He laughs darkly before lashing back out at JJ with teeth and claws. 

Meanwhile, CE-9 recovers from hitting the wall and charges at Anti, screeching.

Anti dodges quickly, surging up higher in the water. He growls at CE-9 and blasts a fireball at him. CE-9 dodges, ducking to the ground. "No more fire! No more burning!"  he shrieks. The words grow into a screeching roar as he charges at Anti again with mandibles out.

Anti cries out in slight fear and soars past CE-9’s charge overhead and laughs out, “I won’t if y-you just leave me alone!” CE-9 just snarls and screeches again, a completely feral look in his purple and white eye. He spins around and lashes out with his mandibles.

AE-10 grows claws and tries to slash at Schneep. Surprisingly, Schneep dodges easily—and when Alt's hands reach out, one of his tendrils wrap around them. "Stay still! Please! JJ!" He tries using the device again.

JJ dodges Bro again, head whipping over to Schneep and Alt. He rushes over—if Schneep's able to use the device again, maybe there will be an opening to take those ear things off!

BS-8 growls and rushes up to try to grab JJ and pull him back. “Hey! Yer fighting me small fry!” He snaps. JJ yelps as Bro grabs his tail. He looks down, eyes wide. And he mouths the word 'sorry' as he blasts dust-like sparkling magic right into his face. BS-8 is momentarily blinded but he just charges blindly and tries to bite onto JJ’s tail.

AE-10 panics slightly at being caught by Schneep’s tendril, especially when he tries to use the device again. He moves his head out of the way then tries to shock Schneep off, even if his eyes flicker with fear again.

Schneep cries out, muscles spasming, but he holds tight. "A-Alt! You have to listen to us! You don't want to do this! Y-you are not the type of person to hurt people anymore! Try to remember!"

AE-10’s hand trembles and he tries to pull himself out of Schneep’s hold. His eyes are wide as he shakes his head. “N-No- I… I’m-” He shudders and then glares at Schneep as his head twitches to the side. “I’m not a person. I’m a weapon. And I will serve Alterra.” He lashes out a clawed hand to try to cut himself out of Schneep’s grip. 

Schneep screams as Alt's new claws dig into his tendrils—he wasn't expecting that to hurt! He pulls his tendrils back quickly, orange blood drifting through the water. JJ's head snaps towards him and he struggles out of Bro's grip, shooting through the water and aiming a magic blast at Alt.

Anti ducks and weaves out of the way of the mandibles and he giggles. “Jackie fights better with those things better than you!” He taunts. 

CE-9 shrieks and roars, rage pushing him into a feral state. He continues to swim after Anti, trying to grab him. The only thought in his head is that Alterra wants SD-4, he needs to get SD-4.

Anti shudders, this feral state reminding him too much of fights with his brother. But… this isn’t his brother. And if he could see Jackie again right now… he growls and suddenly turns to grab CE-9 and pushes them both down into the ground, making a cloud of sand with the impact. He growls and digs his claws into CE’s shoulders and yells, “Fucking stop it! You’re not a tool for Alterra- they don’t give a fuck about you! They’re using you!! Wake the fuck up!!”

AE pushes back and is about ready to shock Schneep again- only to get blasted back by JJ’s magic, rolling over himself in the water- disoriented.

BS-8 yells and scrambles to try to grab JJ again. “yer no fun! Give me a better fucking fight, coward!”

Schneep breathes heavily, recovering from the pain while JJ dodges Bro again. "JJ! Hold Alt!" he shouts. "Your magic!"

JJ nods. He flings out a hand, blue magic whipping through the water, ribbons wrapping around Alt's torso and pinning his arms.

AE-10 makes a confused static noise through his speakers as he’s grabbed. He looks down at the magic and something sparks in his eyes. He then glitches out of the magic easily and a sinister laughs echoes out as he builds up magic in his hands. “I almost forgot… I can do that too-” He tries to send a bolt of lightning out at JJ.

BS-8 snarls ferally and changes course to try to grab Schneep.

JJ tries conjuring a shield but isn't fast enough and the lightning hits him, sending him back, flipping through the water. Meanwhile, Schneep dodges Bro's attack. "You are not really good at this, are you?" he says. "Not if the blind one can—" And he suddenly lunges back at Bro, aiming to use the device on him.

BS-8 snarls, baring his sharp teeth, “What do you know?! You won’t even fucking fight-!” He then yells out as Schneep plants the device right next to Bro’s ear. There’s a spark as the waves from the gauges are destroyed by the ones from the device- then a pop as the gauge starts to smoke and seems looser in BS’s ear.

Bro’s eyes snap back to his normal bright blue eyes as he gasps in pain, his back arching. Then he goes limp and falls back down to the sand in a heap.

Schneep hears the pop and reaches for the gauge. Once he feels where it is he starts to pull it free. The gauge is loose but still sort of stuck even if Schneep makes it a bit more loose. Bro makes a groaning sound and blearily tries to open his eyes, but they’re so unfocused. “S…Schneep…?” He whispers. Ugh… lifting his head makes him feel dizzy.

Schneep nods. "Yes. Are you okay?"

“ ‘m all… fuzzy…” Bro slurs, blinking dazedly. “What’s happenin’…?”

CE-9 shrieks and struggles against Anti in the sand. He feels his claws dig into his skin and glares at him. But the glare weakens a little. Why does this—why does this feel so familiar? This face—shouting at him—about how he's... wrong? His eyes flicker, turning normal blue. "...Anti?" he whispers. "What's... happening...?"

Anti blinks in surprise, jaw dropping. “I-it can be that easy?” He whispers. 

But- CE-9’s gauges try to spark up to shock him back under.

Jackie screams, head flailing. His eyes flicker again back to that purple and white. "N-no! No! I can't—" Images and memories are flashing in his mind—but no! He's—he's a weapon, meant to serve Alterra—he's not supposed to care about anything else! "I d-don't want—I h-have to be better! I'm not a wea—I—Alterra, prey, prey—"

JJ recovers, glancing back over at Anti and Jackie. His eyes widen and he starts zooming over there. Anti! The ears! he says, his little robot shouting the words.

Anti’s head snaps to JJ and he looks down at Jackie as he fights. He sees the gauges and looks at his claws before trying to see if he can pry one of them off. “K-keep fighting!” He tries to encourage.

AE-10 sees his companions falling and the radio on his neck crackles loudly with static and angry growls. He goes to tackle JJ to try ground, claws flashing and eyes wild.

Jackie's eye rolls back in his head as he thrashes. Anti has a hard time holding him still for a moment, but after some effort, he pries a gauge free. Jackie cries out as his eye turns blue again and he suddenly goes still.

Anti pants as soon as the gauge is popped out and then falls back, watching Jackie wearily. They’ve never been able to remove these before… what’s gonna happen? Is it.. over?

JJ barely manages to dodge Alt's wild attack, claws just barely scraping by but not drawing blood. Now that Alt is close JJ tries something new. He reaches out to him and the temperature of the water around them suddenly drops, ice forming around Alt. He'll be able to glitch free of bonds, so he needs to hold him in place some other way. Maybe he can freeze his arms or something?!

AE-10 screeches in rage as the ice forms around him, making it hard for him to stay up and swim. He struggles to surge upwards as he starts to sink through the water, struggling and fighting as hard as he can.

Jackie's eyelid flutters. "Wh... what happened...? Anti...?" He looks, confused, at the face before him. "What happened to you eye-patch... and neck?"

Anti blinks at Jackie in confusion, “…the fuck are you talking about?”

Jackie blinks, then frowns. "S-sorry, I... thought you were someone else."

JJ grabs onto Alt, pulling him downwards. Then he lets go and looks back at the others, signing, Schneep! The device!

Schneep looks back at him and nods. "Hold on tight, Bro," he says, and then leaps away, reappearing next to Alt, and he immediately tries to use the device again.

AE-10 makes lots of screeches that dissolve into static on his radio as he tries to fight his way out. “No! L-Let me go! I can’t fail! I can’t fail!!” As Schneep appears and tries to use the device, AE closes his eyes then shouts out, “WH-5! H-Help!”

A ball of blue and pink water hits Schneep in the shoulder and sends him off course, forming a bit of a vortex that dies down quickly.

WH-5 appears next to AE-10 and looks at all the chaos before looking down at AE. “…what a waste of resources. You all are not fit to serve Alterra.”

AE-10 thrashes desperately in the ice, trying to claw himself free. “I can still be useful! I can still do this! Just-help me!”

Anti freezes as he hears that familiar drone. His stomach drops and he shouts out. “d-don’t let him open a warp gate!” He then rushes to try to tackle WH away from AE.

Anti manages to push WH into a nearby rock but WH-5 regards him coldly and scratches at his face, hard. Anti yells out in pain and lets go, pushing himself away to hold the orange leak on his face. “M-Marvin please-! It’s me! Wake up- a-aren’t you sick of this?!”

“Don’t try to play mind games with me, SD-004.” WH-5 hisses. “I serve Alterra with all I am. And you will join us or you will die.”

JJ watches WH appear in surprise. The fight with Anti and him happens so fast that he's not able to jump in for a while. Something about seeing a Marvin act like this, be controlled like this—it breaks his heart and fills him with rage at the same time. His expression darkens and he lunges at WH at from behind, not even bothering with magic.

Schneep recovers from the warp projectile and senses JJ do this. "Jamie!" he shouts, also lunging at WH.

WH-5 is starting up a warp gate as Anti shrinks back in fear- bracing himself for whoever Marvin brings to fight.

But to both of their surprise- both JJ and Schneep manages to land blows. JJ grabbing Marvin and pulling him down and Schneep tackling him fully to the sand. WH-5’s radio screeches with static as he tries to get away. “Unidentified hybrids s-s-stand down! Do not interfere with Alterran affairs!”

“WH!” AE-10 yells and bursts through the ice, trying to rush over to help.

Jackie gets up, shaking, regaining his senses. He sees Alt break free and—without really thinking—he charges at him, sending both of them flying to the sides as he screeches.

WH's fighting sends Schneep flying, letting go of the device. but JJ grits his teeth and keeps holding him down. His hand darts out and grabs the device from where it's floating in the air and presses it against WH. "Snap out of it, Marvin!" he says in his hoarse voice.

Something seems to snap in WH-5 demeanor- his fight goes as he stares wide eyed at JJ. “J-Jamie?” he says. Right before the device is placed near his gauges and he screams, spasming wildly. The gauge closest to the device snaps- and then pops apart with a bit of smoke. Marvin’s head falls to the sand, wide eyed- staring out unfocused but his eyes are cleared of pink.

Anti sees this and then hurries to crash down next to Marvin’s side. “M-Marvin!!” He yells desperately, trying to shake him. JJ slumps in relief and backs away so Anti can get close to his brother.

Bro is also pushing himself up, trying to shake of the fog. Ugh.. he feels really sick though. He blinks and then gasps as he sees Alt.

Schneep shakes his head and rushes over to Bro. “W-we have to help him!” He says. “L-let’s go!”

Bro shakes himself out and clumsily follows after Schneep. “R-Right!” 

AE-10’s radio bursts into static shrieking as he’s tackled and he desperately tries to claw his way out of Jackie’s grasp. “No! No!!”

Jackie holds tight onto Alt even as he claws at him. The mandibles close in as he grits his teeth. Don’t let go. Don’t let go!

JJ grabs the device again and hurries over to Alt and Jackie.

AE-10 cries like a wounded animal, terrified tears pricked in his eyes as he tries to get loose. “Let go! Let me go!”

Bro crashes down next to Jackie and Alt and helps to hold him down. “Alt! Come lil bro! You gotta wake up!”

“No! I-I’m AE-10! I-I serve Alterra- I need to-! Let me go!!” AE wails, his radio glitching and raked with static.

Bro can’t help but cry seeing his brother like this. “Anti- please!”

Jackie shakes Alt slightly. “Snap out of it! Don’t let those fuckers win!”

“You are not just a number! Schneep shouts. “Try to remember!”

“This is what those fuckers at SCLERA wanna make you, Alt!” Bro sobs. “Don’t let these fuckers keep changing you! You’re stronger than this!”

Something flickers in AE’s eyes and he fights a little less- mostly shaking. “I-I-I-” his radio starts to skip, glitching more and more.

JJ brings the device over. He glances at Bro and hesitates, not wanting to do this in front of him.

“JJ, do you have it?!” Schneep says. “Hurry!”

Bro looks up at JJ but just nods. “W-Whatever you have to do!”

This will look painful, JJ says, glancing apologetically at Bro, and then lunges forward, using the device.

The device hits its mark and the radio bursts into glitched screaming as the brain waves of the gauges are shattered. The gauge lets off dangerous bright sparks then completely breaks off. The screaming stops and AE-10’s eyes fade from their ampeel hue back to his normal green-blue with white scleras. His body falls completely limp, head lolling back on his neck as his wide eyes stare out into the distance, unfocused.

Jackie quickly lets go of him, but Schneep darts in, checking Alt's vitals, feeling the collar and mask in the process. His expression darkens. "This fucking thing..." he growls.

JJ puts the device down. That was a stronger reaction, he signs slowly. Is he okay?

"I-I think so," Schneep says.

Jackie rubs his own ears, pulling the other gauge free. "Wh... wh-what the fuck?" he whispers, eyes wide in horror.

Are you all okay? JJ asks.

"Well they are clearly not," Schneep mutters. 

The newly freed boys still can feel lingering feelings of aggression and… they feel kinda feverish and shaky. That was a lot of strain on their bodies and minds…

Jackie leans back, staring up at the distant surface, breathing through the shaky feeling.

Bro chokes on a sob and goes to hold Alt in his arms, holding him close as he breaks down. “W-What was that?! What h-happened? I-It’s all j-jumbled but we were… w-we- that lady at Alterra-!” He suddenly shifts to anger, his eyes going back to  boneshark-blue as he bares his teeth and holds Alt tighter. “I’ll kill her- I-I’m gonna fucking kill her!”

"E-everyone calm down, yes? We are not able to go after anyone right now." Schneep stares then- "Bro, please, be careful!" He says, worried at the sounds of the growls. "A-Alt probably still needs help. That mask—it felt..." He shudders.

Jackie growls too, shaking his head. He's not sure if he wants to kill that Alterra woman or run far, far away from here.

"Jackie, you too," Schneep says, turning towards him. "Just—just breathe."

Bro is breathing heavily through growls and trying not to dig claws into Alt but the anger won’t leave him. It’s eating away at him and he can’t-

JJ turns over to look at Anti and Marvin. Anti is holding Marvin like he’s made of glass. Watching him with wide eyes. Marvin twitches a bit but still stares out at nothing. It could be the mask…Jj swims over and sees if he can take the mask off Marvin's face.

Marvin’s mask seems to be stuck into his jaw through his skin- but pulling at it makes Marvin make a muffled yell of pain and then blink his eyes back into focus. He looks around in confusion, still very out of it. “W-Where am I..?” his radio says shakily.

“Marv?!” Anti say hopefully. Marvin sits up in surprise and looks at Anti with wide eyes. “Anti…?” he whispers- like he’s just seen a ghost. Anti cries out in happiness and tackles Marvin to the sandy floor, curling all his tails around him. “you’re back! You’re back!!” Anti wails. Marvin blinks in confusion but slowly brings up his arms to loop around Anti’s. Then he’s melting, curling one of his tails across Anti’s back as he starts to cry.

JJ backs up, letting the two brothers have this moment. He smiles sadly, reminded of his own Marvin. He... he wonders when he'll next see him. He shakes off the anxious thoughts and tells himself he's just happy that one Marvin has been reunited with someone who cares about him.

Anti laughs and starts to let go of Marvin but the littler brother just clings to Anti and won’t let go. Anti puffs out a small laugh and holds him with one arm and he swims over to the others.

Bro finds himself able to breathe, his eyes fading back to how they’re supposed to be and he blinks out slowly. He looks down at Alt and feels his heart break again. He touches the mask where it meets his jaw and- god it’s hard to keep back the anger. Plus he just- doesn’t feel good… he feels hot and shaky and confused. “…w-we gotta get this off him…” he breathes.

“…d-Danan might know how to get these off…” Anti says, “w-we don’t have much in the lab but they have some stuff… and you all can rest and stuff for a bit… and we can figure out how to get you home.”

"If the mask is stuck, w-we definitely need to get it off," Schneep says, going a bit pale. "They—they need to eat, after all. Or—S-surely there must be some way to get them food, even if it is stuck. W-we have something like that where I am from, surely there's something like that here."

“God yeah… Alt hasn’t eaten in… h-how fucking long has it been?” Bro breathes. “This is s-so fucking cruel…”

Calm down, Schneep, JJ says. Everyone stay calm. We're done for now. We can rest—we just need to get somewhere safe.

"Y-yeah, let's," Jackie says, getting up. "I-I—Make sure to get rid of the gauges. Leave them to fucking get lost in the sand."

Bro blinks up at Jackie and nods, going to pull the gauges off his ears and then take the last one off of Alt. Taking off his other one- ugh… why did he get another way of dizziness?

How is Alt? JJ asks.

The hero dazedly looks back at JJ then Alt. He’s breathing but still out of it and Bro sighs, “Still… s-staring weird… but m-Marvin woke up from pulling on the mask right?” Bro tries to pull at it even if it hurts to do so.

Alt gasps painfully and blinks back up to full consciousness, staring out at everyone blankly. Then, “C-Chase…?” he breathes, his radio crackling a bit.

“A-Alt thank god…!” Bro tries to smile.

Schneep sighs in relief. "Good to hear from you, Alt."

How do you feel? JJ asks. Then he looks at Bro and Jackie. How do you two feel, too?

"W-weird and... shaky," Jackie says. He clears his throat. "B-but I can swim, if we need to go soon."

Alt blinks slowly and looks around at everyone. “F-Freaked…?” he says. Bro laughs a bit, “me too bro…” he blinks up at JJ and shakes his head, “uh.. dizzy… I think but s-same.” He smacks his lips and then sticks out his tongue, “Also my mouth feels weird?? Ugh… did I eat something weird while under??”

Anti makes a face and looks away- not really ready to reveal what Bro was like during that time.

"Wait, actually, yeah, me too." Jackie copies Bro's expression, also sticking out his tongue. "That's so weird."

JJ and Schneep choose not to say anything, either.

“I… w-what is on my face-?” Alt says in confusion then shakily reaches out and tries to pull the mask off. When it doesn’t come off and he feels it tugging on his skin his eyes widen and his radio picks up on his hyperventilating. “W-What the-?! Ow- I-I-!”

Bro startles then looks to Anti. “uh- you said you had your Dr friend right? I think now's the time to see her!”

Anti nods quickly, “R-Right! Follow me.” He holds Marvin close to him, who only slightly peeks out his head to look as he speeds back towards the tunnel.

"Let's go!" Schneep says, hurrying after Anti. JJ quickly follows after him. Jackie, still a bit stunned, takes a moment to shake himself off before following after. JJ slows down a bit, holding out a hand for Jackie to take. He does so, wordlessly.

Bro hurries after the others, holding Alt close as he whispers, “Breathe Alt… we’re gonna get you out of this thing soon… just hang in there…”

Alt whimpers and curls up in Bro’s arms, holding shaky hands over the mask.

[br0-k3n-sch00lb01]

btw guys new stuff for the Sage AU fic!!! Im actually. Axtually writing lately!! Exciting yYayyayayayayayysysys

theres more than this but i was lazy

enjoy. Enjoy your food.

Basil stepped inside the basement. He heard faint voices from the room he had grown to avoid lately. He hadn’t been doing his proper ‘job,’ if that’s even what it could be called. His friends were awake, most likely, and for some reason he felt like he should just let them out. But he knew the consequences he would suffer if he did so. He placed his hand on the door to the chamber. He knew his hand would have been trembling if this were any other context, but he had learned to steady himself. It was unimportant to have such reactions to fear. In his eyes, even if they were natural, he saw them merely as another problem he had to deal with. There was a crashing sound inside and he twisted open the heavy handle .

He could not open the door. 

He should be panicking. They would die. His friends would die. He had to let them out.

“If you even try to help them, you know well what I can do to you.”

He had started shaking but stiffened involuntarily when Sage spoke. This was his reaction now, then? He had some things to say but for the sake of his own life he decided not to say them. Why had he been trying so hard to not get killed lately? His life, at this point, had no value. Nobody in this town had cared for him except for his friends at times. And now they were locked in this room in his cold basement. He pushed harder down on the handle to the chamber. Whatever was jamming the door gave way and he pushed the heavy slab of iron inwards. 

He would be shocked if he were a normal person, but he wasn’t exactly ‘normal’ after everything he had done. The first person he saw was Sunny. He stared at him as if he were staring at a statue and not a real person, with vague interest, but in all reality he felt nothing looking at his best friend. Aubrey stepped in between Sunny and Basil, brandishing an empty novocaine needle.

“STAY AWAY FROM HIM, YOU PSYCHO!!!”

Basil raised an eyebrow slightly. He didn’t say anything in response. Honestly, even if he had wanted to talk, he was afraid he wouldn't have a voice anymore. He hadn’t spoken in ages. Not even a slight noise of acknowledgement had been made. He stared at Aubrey with that ponderous look on his face. He wasn’t even thinking about anything at this point. His head was empty. Aubrey glared at him and waved the needle slightly. She might have been expecting Basil to flinch but he didn’t even blink. He placed his finger on the tip of the needle and pushed it away from him, staring at it with empty eyes. Aubrey shoved it back towards him and blood welled up on his finger. He brought his hand away and stuck his finger in his mouth, sucking the blood off. He wiped his hand on his sweater.

“I’m not sure why you’re so intent on keeping me away. I could have left you to die.”

“YOU TRIED TO KILL US!!”

Basil frowned.

“But you’re alive, aren’t you?”

Aubrey snarled at him. Actually SNARLED. 

“But you wanted us dead. I’LL GET YOU ARRESTED WHEN I GET OUT OF HERE!!”

Basil aimed a swift kick at Aubrey’s stomach, planting his foot firmly on her abdomen. Aubrey stumbled backwards in surprise and then groaned. Sunny’s eyes widened slightly. He actually hadn’t reacted the whole time. Basil and Sunny exchanged a glance and Basil stepped forward.

“Are you okay?”

Sunny looked Basil straight in the eyes.

“...Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine.”

Basil hugged him. He had missed feeling real human touch.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. It was all a mistake.”

“It’s okay.”

Basil felt a sharp pain in his side. He did not make a sound, or gasp, or even cry. He turned his head. Aubrey had jabbed half of the long needle into his torso. Not a fatal wound, but he could feel warm blood trickling down from it and it hurt. He narrowed his eyes.

“Did you just stab me?”

“You deserve it.”

“Okay.”

He yanked the needle out of his flesh and tossed it on a metal rack. 

“If you intend on killing me, you won’t accomplish that with a needle.”

“I’m aware.”

Kel had been watching the whole thing with mild interest. Hero was sitting next to him, staring blankly at nothing. 

“I’ll be leaving now.”

“Piss off.”

“I intend to.”

Basil turned on his heels and walked deliberately out of the chamber. He heard footsteps on the concrete behind him but he didn’t look to see who it was. He walked upstairs into the misery that was his main floor. It was dark but you could see blood everywhere. It was not pretty. It was sickening. Basil heard a choked gasp behind him. 

“Get used to it, sunshine.”

Sunny came up beside him.

“You need to clean this up.”

“No.”

“W-What do you mean, ‘No’? This isn’t healthy, you could get seriously sick!!”

“Do you think I really care?”

Sunny stared at him for a moment.

“You used to care.”

Basil’s expression did not change. He stood there with a blank look.

“Okay. Well, now I don’t.”

“What’s gotten into you? It’s like you’re not even you!!”

Basil scoffed.

“Nothing’s ‘gotten into me,’ Sunny. This is just who I am now, don’t you see?”

“No, I don’t see! This isn’t you! It’s not! This isn’t the sweet, affectionate Basil that I know and used to love!!”

Basil felt a sharp pang in his heart and he sucked in a breath.

“...’Used to’...?”

[selineram3421]

I kinda want snacks.

Isekai'd

Part 4: A Weird Duo

Part 3

~

Vash (Tristamp) X Reader

Warning! ⚠

⚠ food, teasing Vash a bit, the word normal(ew), cussing, reader lets their emotions slip ⚠

Splitting one of your homemade ration bars, you give the other half to your new traveling companion.

"Much obliged.", he said accepting the food.

After the whole thing with his nose, you introduced yourself. Or as much as you could, still having to play the amnesia card.

"So you don't remember how you wound up in the desert?", he asks, taking a bite of his half.

"Nope.", you say popping the P.

Both of you were walking, letting Kevin carry the bags.

"Man, that's tough.", he says with a bit of a frown.

"You gonna introduce yourself now stranger?", you ask and take a bite of your ration bar.

I kinda hate having to act like I know nothing when I know everything. You think while eating. But this might be the safest option.

"Oh, I-I'm..", he looks away.

Sighing, you take out the wanted poster and show him.

"Wanted, right?", you say with a straight face.

Vash looks like he's seen a ghost, soul practically leaving his body when seeing the piece of paper with his face on it.

"Don't worry, I don't double as a bounty hunter.", you say, and hand him the paper with a pen. "I kinda wanted you to sign it."

"Huh!? Me?", he points at himself, surprise written all over his face.

"Yeah, you Star boy.", you grin.

Don't have enough money to go to signings but this is way better. You think finishing up your food. And free.

"Never autographed anything before.", he mumbled and wrote his name just above the drawing of himself.

After he's done, he hands the paper back and you raise it up to get the whole view.

"Nice.", you say before putting it away.

"You know, you're kind of odd.", Vash slips out and then slaps a hand over his mouth. "Oh-"

"Thank you.", you agree. "Better than being boring or worse.", you cringe at the thought. "Normal."

The Humanoid Typhoon lets out a laugh, letting his hand drop to his side again.

"I mean, you're pretty odd too.", you say.

"What? How-", he starts but you don't let him finish.

"You were literally watching me sleep a few hours ago.", you look at him from the corner of your eye and see him hiding his face again with his hand.

"I said sorry!", he whines.

"Mhm.", you hum and look forward again.

What a weird duo we make.

.

Hours passed and the night came by again.

After making a fire, Vash helped teach you how to set up the tent. There was a bit of trial and error but you managed to put up a decent tent.

"Fuck yeah.", you silently cheer to yourself.

Going over to your backpack, you rummage around until you find some more of the ration bars.

"Hey Star boy, catch!", you say and toss one over your shoulder.

"Whoa!"

Looking back, you see that he's fumbling to get a hold on it. But then he does get it.

"Haha!", he says in victory.

That is until Kevin tries to steal it.

"Back off! Its mine!", the blonde says and holds the food away, getting pecked on the head. "Ow!"

"That's enough Kevin, I've got your food.", you say and bring the bag of feed.

After eating, you all just sit around the fire.

You are looking up at the stars as Vash talks about how expensive bullets are.

I can't believe I can see all of the stars here. You want to try counting them but know that's impossible. Back on Earth I only counted twelve, and that was on the clearest nights.

"Think about it! A bullet is like a box of two dozen donuts! Who the heck-", he says but pauses. "You're crying."

"What?", you snap out of it and look at him confused.

Wiping both of your hands on your cheeks, you feel your left get slightly damp.

"I was..", you mumble.

"You ok?", he asks, having a worried puppy dog look on his face.

"I'm fine, I-", you say and sigh. "I remembered something."

Looking back up to the stars, you think about telling him. Everything.

Both of you sit in silence for a little while.

I can't.

"Wherever I was from didn't have a lot of stars.", you finally say. "I can't count this many."

"Really?", he asks and looks up at the sky as well.

The feeling of loneliness envelopes you. Being in an entirely different dimension, on a different planet.

I can't really say anything though. Vash has felt the loneliest.

"I'm gonna sleep. Night.", you say, standing up and going over to the tent.

"Oh, uh..n-night!", he stutters out.

You don't bother taking off your boots, just lying on the cot and going to sleep.

✴

You woke up to the boy this time.

He was looking down at your lying form and smiled when you opened your eyes.

"You're back!"

There's the feeling of grass under you and you can see the leafs from the tree.

Again? You thought before sitting up.

Looking around, you find that you're still in the same place.

What was it called again? Geez, I've got to be better at remembering names of things. You think for a bit and give up. Fuck it. Its a dome green house.

"Hi Star boy.", you say.

"Star boy?", the little blonde repeats.

"Yeah, cuz your smile is so bright.", you say and boop him on the nose.

He laughs and that makes you smile.

✴

Vash is still sitting by the campfire, looking up at the sky and thinking about what you said.

"A place where you can count the stars..", he says out loud.

"That must be far away."

Stars are hard to see with all the pollution.

~Seline, the person.

Next: Part 5

Taglist@

@summerdazed @+?

ML Vash | ChL Isekai'd

[eldritchsurveys]

1234.

How is your boyfriend/girlfriend doing?: .

Do you have anything to pay off?: >> Only informally (V fronted the cost of a limited-run hoodie for me and I've been paying them back little by little).

What are you wearing right now?: >> Grey lounge pants, lighter grey undershirt, Duff's hoodie (in August! unbelievable). What are you listening to?: .

Where did you first hear this song?: .

Are you the one that normally makes the first move?: >> I suppose that would depend.

Would you sacrifice yourself for a friend?: >> I can't imagine being in this sort of situation in the first place. I certainly don't consider myself very sacrificial by nature.

What's really annoying you right now?: .

What did you do today?: >> Woke up, took a walk even though I was still pretty tired (I think it helped, tbh), made oatmeal, did my various daily tasks on the internet, played Grim Dawn for like 5 straight hours (well, I did break for lunch).

Are you always in a hurry?: >> I am rarely in a hurry. I hate feeling rushed.

Do you drink/smoke?: >> I drink occasionally.

What's one horrible thing you do?: .

What do people label you as?: .

Do people see you as a preppy person?: >> If so, then they really do not know what the word means.

Whats your shoe size?: >> 8 or something.

Do you currently work?: >> I do not.

What do you miss the most?: .

Who do you know you can depend on?: .

Do you take any prescribed medication?: >> I take birth control.

Have you ever watched a needle go into your own skin?: >> I usually do, yeah.

Have you ever seen someone get a piercing/tattoo?: >> I have. Are you currently full or hungry?: >> Closer to full than hungry.

Has a taste of something ever made you smile?: >> Certainly.

When you're done eating finger foods, do you usually lick your fingers?: >> I do.

Who was the last person to hit you in the stomach?: >> I don't remember. It's been a long time since that happened, thankfully. Incidentally, that's one of the first sense memories I recall having -- being punched in the stomach by some kid at school. It's just such a strong, fucked-up sensation.

Would you ever snap you cell phone in half, if you could get a better one?: >> I think that only works with flip phones, which certainly dates this survey, lol. But either way I would not do that. Do you think twenty-two is old?: >> I do not.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?: .

Are you planning on going to college?: >> I will likely never do this.

Do you know someone that is/was abused by their parents?: >> Well, yeah.

Does your cell phone have a touch screen?: >> It does.

Do you like strawberry and banana smoothies?: >> I don't like banana, so no. Plain strawberry would be good. Would you cuss the person you hate the most out to their face?: .

Abortion: murder or it's fine?: >> It's fine to me. More than fine, even.

Do you know someone that is mute, deaf or blind?: >> I do not.

Have you ever spent more than two weeks in a wheel chair?: >> I have not.

When you cry, do you hyperventilate?: >> Sometimes, if it's a really intense cry.

Is tapioca pudding nasty to you?: >> It isn't, but it's not my favourite (that would be rice pudding).

Is pudding nasty period?: >> Not to me.

Is there a lot of drama in your life?: >> There is zero drama in my life.

Do you drink straight from the bottle, instead of getting a cup?: >> I do. I avoid giving myself dishes to wash at all costs.

Have you ever been in a taxi?: >> Quite a few times, yeah.

Do you listen to modern music or classic music?: >> Yes.

How many times have you had the hiccups today?: >> Zero. I rarely have the hiccups.

Does weed smell good? Or no?: >> Some weed smells fucking amazing to me -- anything with a citrus terpene, especially. I'm not crazy about skunky weeds like diesels. Fun fact, I think liking a strain's smell is a great indicator for whether you might like the strain's effects. It seems to match up perfectly for me. Where do you see your closest friend in ten years?: .

Pronunciation of your name, please?: >> /'moɾ:dɻɛd/. Wikipedia says /ˈmɔːrdrɛd/ but that just don't look like how I say it :V Then again, everyone mishears me when I say my name so maybe I need to relearn my phonics.

Are/were you loud in class?: >> I was not.

Do you cut out coupons but end up never using them?: >> I don't.

Name all the ways you can say 'goodbye': >> Goodbye, au revoir, slán, adios, panahedan (:p)...

[krikeymate]

You remember how you told us that you laugh when you're in pain? It's a natural reaction to pain or trauma (laughing in shock). Lots of people do it.

Sooo... people say that Tara laughs/smiles after stabbing Ethan and that it proves that she enjoys the killing, too. To me, it doesn't look like enjoyment or amusement AT ALL. It's relief. It's shock. It's trauma. It's completely different from Sam's tiny smiles.

Sam's smiles convey dominance. They're unnerving. Almost maniacal. Tara just looks like she's smiling because the alternative would be sobbing hysterically. Tara might be fine with Sam killing people but I don't think she'd ever willingly kill anybody, and she definitely wouldn't find enjoyment in it. That's why I don't think Ghostface-Tara will happen, whereas I can definitely see Ghostface-Sam happening.

I feel like Tara really just wants to live a normal life. Sam wants that too, but she does have that darkness inside of her, and sometimes she really has to fight against it. Like, I believe (or I hope) that most people don't think about killing people - not even when they're super mad or disappointed or something. But for Sam, I feel like her brain would immediately go to 'I could just kill them' - and she means it! - if someone's messing with her or - especially - the people she loves, and she has to remind herself that that's not a normal response. You know what I mean?

In canon, I believe Tara doesn't really have an ounce of evil in her. At least not more than any other person on earth. She does have a very good survival instinct, though (mostly, maybe not in that Chad scene where tiny Tara wanted to fight 2 Ghostfaces without hesitation or in the party scene, where she was ready to willingly go upstairs with that douche). She's acting on pure instinct and adrenaline in most of her scenes in both movies. She's just trying to survive. Sam's also just trying to survive (and protect) BUT she does seem to find some sort of enjoyment once she gains the upper hand. There definitely is some evil slumbering within her.

So yeah, I feel like more people seem to expect Tara to become Ghostface eventually, and it doesn't make sense to me at all. Like, there's basically nothing in canon that would lead to that. She completely accepts Sam, yes. All of her. She fully embraces every part of her sister, without a single trace of judgment (as seen in Bailey's death scene). But to me, that's just a little sister thing. Sam's the coolest person on earth to Tara, and she can't do wrong in Tara's eyes. It's sort of infantile because most kids outgrow that phase sooner rather than later - but Tara obviously hasn't, which might be a childhood trauma thing.

So yeah, I don't even know where I'm going with this, but I'd love to hear your thoughts on it - if you feel like replying! I'm definitely open to changing my mind :)

Oh 100% Tara's laughing is because the alternative is crying. She's traumatised and it's this moment of relief that she's still alive and she's beaten him and she's won.

I think a lot of people have jumped on Tara should/will become Ghostface because they want a returning survivor to 'go bad', as that's something we haven't seen in the franchise, and although Sam is the obvious answer to that, given the story set out for her, she really can't. She's mentally ill and on antipsychotics, so to make her Ghostface would be a terrible and damaging choice. Plus, her story is about overcoming the darkness. For Tara however, you don't have that, but you can very easily have the opposite happen, a story of succumbing instead. I myself love the concept, although I hold no expectations or allusions that we will get that at all in canon. I also think people are focussing too much on the 1 -> 5, 2 -> 6, 3 -> 7 idea, and think oh Ghostface is going to be a half-sibling, well Sam and Tara are half-siblings. I don't think they're gonna do that.

I don't necessarily think we could get a Tara who is a straight-up killer in the way Sam could become, but she's definitely the type of character who could easily turn into a mastermind figure, if she wanted to. Now, does she want to, no. I do think however that it would be interesting for 7 to play on that, to put both sisters on the edge of becoming what they hate by having them hunting down a Ghostface instead of waiting to be hunted, but ultimately without them actually falling over it. In that movie anyway lol.

I don't think Tara's reaction to stabbing Ethan is what really condemns her however, it's the nod to Sam at the end. She's saying finish it. That act shows there is some darkness inside her, that she's not entirely innocent. If she hadn't done that, Sam would have backed away, and Bailey would have been taken away by the police/paramedics. Maybe he would have died anyway of his wounds, maybe he would have survived, the end result for that doesn't actually matter. Sam put him down, because Tara let her, because Tara wanted her to.

As for what you said about how often people think about killing - I think you might be surprised! It's a very common intrusive thought, the thought of murder or suicide. We have to remember that Sam is mentally ill, and so yes she would have those thoughts of 'I could just kill them', but those would be unwanted intrusive thoughts. The more severe your mental illness, the more severe and frequent those types of thoughts. They can be terrifying to deal with and really mess with the way you interact with others and the world.

If Tara was to go down a darker path, it wouldn't work just from where we leave her in 6. Where we leave her, she's realised she has to get therapy and work through her problems if she wants to keep Sam in her life, and she promises to do so. There is however a lot that can go wrong for her that could push her further into going down that path, as opposed to say, Chad, who I could not see ever doing such a thing, from what we've seen of his character.

[hellfirestxnes]

L&D Baby

Nurse!Steve Harrington x f!Reader

Word Count: 2.3k+

Warnings: 18+, marriage, pregnancy, childbirth, mentions of a stillbirth, dad!steve, labor and delivery nurse!steve, blood/blood loss, swearing— as always let me know if there’s any tags i missed!

Notes: This fic isn’t edited but, I have a lot of thoughts of Steve as a L&D nurse in his early/mid 20’s while his wife is spitting out his gaggle of 6 children. Also, as a warning i am NOT a L&D nurse and this probably is not an accurate depiction of an L&D nurse. This is just one of many additions to the au living in my head.

Steve is tired. His bones are aching and his eyes are sore, but it’s just another Friday really. He has about half of his shift left and he’s off again, thankfully, until Monday. Leaning on the counter at the nurses station, listening to the other nurses gossip and share stories about their kids. And he’s thinking about you at home, sitting pretty and waiting for him to come home— belly swollen with his child. Any other day, he might tuck himself away and use the phone to call and check in, but today… he couldn’t face it. The first delivery he was on that morning, he watched a new mother wish with every fiber of her being that what the doctor was telling her wasn’t true. He cleaned up that baby, took their weight and height, made out the card for the parents that would never get to hear a cry. He bundled up gray, cold skin and hoped that the couple would be able to find peace. Somewhere deep down, he wishes he wouldn’t have heard them ask how did this happen? Everything was just fine this morning.

But, now here he sits. Thinking about that delivery, thinking about his wife at home. His very pregnant wife. Your pregnancy has gone by so quickly, been such a breeze. He’s been to as many appointments as he could, especially the ones you were so worried about. But there’s always a reassuring answer of your baby being strong and healthy. A perfect little Harrington. And now, Steve’s never found himself more terrified. If everything can be fine and perfect one second and terribly tragic the next, he doesn’t know where to find his peace. He hangs his head against his hands for a few moments— taking a deep breath. He’s gotta get himself straight, take a few moments. But there’s hellos being exchanged a few feet away and after what seems like a millisecond, a hand is settling on his lower back. He snaps around, prepared to give the whole I’m married spiel he’s done a thousand times, he’s met with the beautiful eyes of his adoring wife. And that softens his features, he’s visibly relaxing.

You smile at him, as he tugs you into his grip. The hug lasts longer than usual and Steve loves hugging you. You rub his back and kiss his shoulder, “you forgot your lunch.” You whisper to him quietly, the bag in your left hand adorning a beautiful band that Steve had so carefully picked out himself. At your words, Steve’s grip just tightens a bit and he kisses your head, sighing out. “Do you wanna eat together?”

“Yeah, angel. Just about to take my break. come on.” he says quietly, leading you down to the cafeteria. He pulls out your chair and you can tell something is distracting him as he sits. He’s busying himself by passing out the food, but he’s quiet and normally— he isn’t. He asks about your day, tells you about his, has told you he loves you a dozen times by now. And he knows you’ve noticed, by the way his eyes flick up to yours and back down again. “I’m okay.” he says after catching the look on your face.

“You’re not.” you reply, matter-of-factly. “What’s going on, Steve? Can talk to me.” you reach over for his hand, thumb brushing over his own gold wedding band. “You’re not acting like yourself.”

Steve sighs heavily, flipping his hand over to take yours gently. “The first birth I was on this morning was a stillbirth and I dunno… just had me thinking a lot.” He explains, his eyes dropping down to your belly across the table. You nod slightly, the hand that wasn’t entwined in his moves to your belly. You’re almost due and neither you nor Steve have ever had to worry about this. Never had it been a thought in your head.

“Just want you guys safe, is all.” Steve says softly and gives your hand a squeeze before he’s pulling it away to eat his lunch with you. And when it’s time for him to get back to work, you stand. There’s a dull ache that starts in your back and wraps around to your tummy, it lasts about 30 seconds as you clean up from lunch. You ignore it as he hugs you tightly, pressing a kiss against your forehead. “I’ll see you at home, okay? Take it easy, rest.” He reminds you, rubbing up and down your arms.

“Yeah, okay.” You acknowledge him with a nod, before you feel another aching pain. But this time it’s accompanied by a slow trickle of fluid down your thighs. And when Steve notices where your eyes are falling, all of the hair on the back of his neck stands up.

“Oh.” Is all he can manage. He’s done this a thousand and ten times over the past few years. He’s consoled laboring mothers, he’s held their hands and cleaned them up, he’s been their support system. It’s his job. But here he is, with his own wife, frozen in his tracks. Your water broke and he can tell with the uncomfortable face you’re making the contractions have started as well. “Okay, angel… let’s… let’s get you checked in.” he says softly and suddenly, you’re more than thankful for the pre-registry packet Steve made you fill out last week. He holds your hand the entire time they check you in and get you into a room. He can hear his pager going off and he’d check it, every now and again, hoping one of the other nurses could pick up his patients, since he still technically was on his shift. But when he can’t put it off any longer, he kisses your head. “Listen, I’ll be right back okay? I’m not leaving you alone for this. I’ll be really quick.” he says softly.

You just nod, munching on the ice chips he had brought you not too long ago. You still feel like you have time. The contractions aren’t that close together yet. But Steve would throw a fit if they even tried to send you home and you know it. Steve smiles nervously when he wheels a cart into another expectant parent’s room. He introduces himself and shakes her husband’s hand when he extends it to him introducing themselves as, “Caleb and Connie Bear.” He's trying to keep the small talk up and keep himself calm— and not to think of his wife four rooms down. “Is this your first?” he asks softly, administering her medication.

“Oh no.” Connie laughs softly and shakes her head, “It’s baby number seven.” She pats her belly gently. Steve nods, a little lost in his own head. A mix of thoughts of the young couple a floor up with no baby to show, his wife laboring without him, and these friendly people working on their seventh baby. “It’s not as bad as you think.” she laughs, catching Steve’s face.

Steve laughs nervously and shakes his head, “oh no. it’s not that.” He smiles softly, “my wife and I wanted around six.” He shrugs, giving her a glass of water.

“You’ve got kids?” She smiles at him and gives his forearm a gentle squeeze as he adjusts her monitors. “You’re so young.”

“Uh… not yet.” He laughs softly and pulls her blanket back up over her. “My wife’s in labor now, actually. Not very far along yet and It’s our first, might have a while to go.” He rambled off nervously.

She smiles at him, a warm and comforting smile, and so does her husband. They remember those days. And Steve does find comfort in that smile. “These things take time.” She says softly, nodding at Steve. “but she’ll know what to do and I know you’ve seen a lot of babies being born but the minute you see yours, everything’s gonna change.” And Steve knows she’s right.

“Thank you.” he says softly. “I’ll be back in to check on you in a little while.” he dims her lights a bit, sighing softly as he steps out of the room and walks over to his station to chart his notes quickly. When he looks up and sees his mother-in-law, that’s when his panic starts to set in. He’s hurrying around the counter, biting the inside of his cheek. “What are you doing here?”

“Y/N called asking me to come, Steve.” She laughs, a sound that reminds him of you. “She knows you’re busy.” She gives his arm a pat and smiles at him. “She’s getting close, from what they’ve told her.”

“And she didn’t say anything to me?” Steve frowns, leading her over to your room. His face is knotted up in confusion when he looks over you. Your feet are planted on the floor, leaning over your bed. He sighs softly, knowing he should have been in here. He walks over, standing behind you to rub circles into your lower back.

“This is how we got into this situation.” You joke, face pressed against your sheets.

The response makes Steve chuckle, rolling his eyes, “oh hush. your mother is here.” He mumbles softly, rubbing your hips gently. “Where did they say you’re at, angel?” he asks softly.

“Eight.” You mumble back, letting yourself melt into Steve’s hands. They slide around to your belly, lifting gently and trying to keep the pressure off of your back in between contractions. “What do you think it’s gonna be?” You ask him, turning your head to catch a glimpse of him. You can see the worry etched into his features. But once he sees the way your hair is sticking to your forehead and how flushed and clammy your skin is— he softens.

“A girl.” He says softly. “Gonna be just as pretty as you.” He whispers softly, helping you switch positions and lie back on the bed quietly. Steve’s head perks up as he sees one of his co-workers take a quick peek in. “What’s up?” he mouths over to her. He watches her point down to her belt, signaling to the pager Steve has forgotten.

He sighs and kisses your head once more, rubbing soothing circles onto your arm. “I’ll be right back again, okay sweetheart? Your mama’s here. gonna take care of you while I’m gone.” He says softly and squeezes your hand before he’s ducking out and heading down to the Bear’s room, pushing the cot along quietly.

Connie smiles tiredly, having opted for an epidural at the last stage of her labor. Steve’s ready at her thighs, ready to pop the baby up onto her chest. His own head is occupied with the thought of missing the birth of his own child while he welcomes another into the world. His shift would be over soon and then he’ll be sitting at your bedside, holding your hand and keeping you healthy and happy. Supporting you throughout the entire transition of your labor. Caleb rubs soothing circles on Connie’s arm as she pushes, and Steve takes note of the love in the room. How much the two of them lean on one another.

And Steve’s breath hitches in his throat when he’s reaching over her thighs, with their newborn boy laying on her stomach. He’s helping rub the baby dry, eyes flicking up to the delivering doctor when no one hears any cries for just a few more moments. And Steve whispers, panicked, but full of hope, “oh come on, kid.” No one hears him, but Connie— and her eyes are on him as Steve tries his fucking best to coax a cry out of the baby. Even after suctioning his nose and mouth. He remembers the heartbroken looks on that young couple this morning and he couldn’t take it again.

And finally there’s a sigh of relief when the little one lets out their first big wail. Steve smiles watching as Connie holds their baby to her chest, tears welling up in her eyes. She gives Steve’s hand a squeeze, her face silently thanking him. And then as he’s walking away to fill out a stats card for their baby, Steve hears his name followed by someone shouting time to push. And he’s running. He’ll check back in later, but he’s not missing his baby’s birth. You’ve got the rails of the bed in your hands, gripping tightly as you push— and he’s finding your side and brushing back your hair. “I'm here, angel.” He’s whispering through your tears. “I’m here. Look at you. You’re doing so good, mama.”

And it’s a whole new feeling when Steve hears a cry before he even sees the baby. He can see the blood on your thighs as they lift the baby up to place against your chest. The tears in your eyes are falling as you look up at Steve. And he just presses a kiss against your forehead, sniffling back his own years. “You did it, angel.” he mumbles softly.

“Congratulations.” You hear through your OB’s big smile. “It’s a boy.” And then Steve laughs, his smile pressed against your hair.

“It's a boy.” you repeat, fingers brushing against the back of your baby's fresh soft skin. The quiet grunts coming from him fill the room as he roots around trying to latch onto your breast quietly. “Joseph.” You whisper and turn to look up at Steve, remembering the perfect name the two of you had spent the last eight months curating. “Joseph Steven Harrington.” You announce to your mother quietly. And Steve feels himself tear up a bit.

Nothing has ever felt like this before in his life. And once you’re squared away, he makes sure to thank his coworkers quietly. Appreciating every second of them covering his ass tonight. They all congratulate him for the beautiful baby, passing out hugs and offering advice. And Steve soaks it in, every single word of it. Soaks it in like his life depends on it.

*****

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tags

@peachyproserpina

(if anyone else would like to be tagged in any future steve harrington work, please fill out the form attached to my masterlist x)

[my-head-is-an-animal]

The Sitter

Mycroft Holmes x Bethany Wheeler (OFC)

Story Masterlist

Chapter 17 - The East Wind Blows

Mycroft had an early night. Bethany was babysitting Rosie, but he couldn’t resist calling her, just to hear her voice.

‘Mycroft, how can I help you?’ She didn’t sound particularly pleased.

‘I just wondered if you were still available for dinner?’ Mycroft asked, already setting up his projector, he wished she was there, but he couldn’t force her. ‘Tomorrow is Sunday and I thought it might be nice for us to catch up.’

Bethany sighed. ‘Why have you really called?’

Mycroft frowned, she was far too good at knowing when he was keeping secrets. He was about to answer but she cut across him.

‘Don’t tell me it was to ask me to dinner, I know when you’re covering something up. Tell me the real reason and I’ll say yes to dinner tomorrow.’ It seemed a fair trade.

‘I wanted to talk to you… to listen to you talk.’ Mycroft didn’t know how else to say it. Bethany was quiet for a moment, he could hear the sounds of Rosie close by. ‘Are you feeling any better?’

She sniffed a little, was she crying? ‘Yes, Mycroft.’ She said, her voice cracking a little. ‘I’m fine. Everything’s been a little difficult, but I’m fine. Most important thing is Rosie and she’s a little ball of heaven.’ Bethany chuckled, making him smile. ‘My parents have asked me to go to Kenya for Christmas. Mum’s going back there soon to help out at the hospitals and dad’s been working on a new type of well that should pump clean water up from the earth. They said there’s a great lab in Nairobi that I would like, they’re dealing with a new type of aerosol spray that can withstand heat, not just fire, but actively work against rising temperatures. I think I might go.’

Mycroft smiled, it sounded just up her street. ‘I think you should. No reason not to.’

‘No, exactly, I should, and I didn’t get to spend last Christmas with them, so, yeah.’

‘What about Rosie?’ He felt that was the right question, but his judgment was wavering.

‘John says he’s thinking about inviting Harry down, says she staying off the booze for a while and he thinks it would be good for her to finally meet her niece.’ Bethany’s voice was no longer quaking, but he was curious as to why it was in the first place.

‘Are you crying?’ He asked, hoping the answer was no.

She started laughing a little. ‘Yes.’ She said and it broke him a little.

‘Why?’ Mycroft was about to run down the stairs and grab his coat.

‘Because you finally answered a question.’

‘I don’t understand.’

‘All these times I’ve asked you a question, things I knew you wouldn’t answer, things that meant admitting to something personal, you never gave me an answer. All the texts left unanswered.’ She was moving away from Rosie, standing up. ‘And now, for some reason, I ask why you call and you tell me it’s because you just want to hear my voice.’

Mycroft still didn’t understand why that would lead to her crying, but if that was the answer then he believed it.

‘Mycroft?’

‘Are you enjoying your placement?’ He didn’t know how to respond, so another question seemed appropriate.

Bethany just laughed. ‘Yes, I am.’ She said, smiling widely. ‘Are you enjoying your film?’

‘It hasn’t started yet.’ He said, assuming she could hear the projector getting up and running. ‘It’s one of my favourites.’ He swallowed nervously. ‘We could watch another one tomorrow? After dinner, we could…’

‘I’d love to.’ Bethany knew the end of the sentence and agreed. ‘Dinner sounds lovely. I’m off all day tomorrow, going to see Sherlock in the morning, I have an eight a.m. meeting with Dr Mathieson, but it shouldn’t take long, I’ll be heading over straight afterwards. It’s my turn to check on him, make sure he’s not up to anything he shouldn’t be.’

‘That’s very good of you.’

‘We’re all taking it in turns.’ Bethany returned closer to where Rosie was, Mycroft could hear the little giggle she was letting out. ‘He seems fine, getting back to normal at least, but you never really know with Sherlock.’

‘Indeed.’

There was a strange pause and Mycroft was unsure what to do.

‘Lady Smallwood gave me her private number.’ He said, unsure of what else to say.

‘Okay?’ Bethany chuckled.

‘When I asked her why she said that maybe I’d like to get a drink with her.’

‘Well, she’s certainly direct.’

‘I don’t understand.’

‘Well, if I asked if you’d want to get a drink with me, what would you say?’

‘Yes.’ Mycroft answered instantly, making her smile.

‘And what would you expect to happen?’

He frowned. ‘For us to get a drink.’ He said, uncertain of what she was asking.

‘Right… so, you know when we first went to dinner that time, and you asked if I’d like to see your projector…’

‘Yes?’

‘You really did just mean for me to admire your projector, didn’t you?’ Why was this coming as a shock to her?

‘Yes, of course. You seemed interested in it.’

‘And I absolutely was, I still am, I think it’s beautiful.’ She assured him. ‘But we kissed that night.’ Just the mention of it had Mycroft getting warm and glancing over at his two-seater. ‘Are you telling me that wasn’t planned?’

‘Of course, I didn’t plan it.’ Mycroft could feel his frustration rising.

Bethany chuckled. ‘Lady Smallwood gave you her private number so you could get a drink with her and then, more than likely, go back to either yours or hers and have sex. That’s what getting a drink means, Mycroft.’

Mycroft sighed. He suspected as much, but Lady Smallwood’s display was confusing at the best of times.

‘So, are you going to call her?’

‘No, why would I?’ Mycroft said, horrified.

‘Well, I don’t know, probably because you’re not having sex with anyone else.’ Bethany was still chuckling. Mycroft was beginning to grow uncomfortable, the more times she mentioned it, the more he thought about having sex with her and he felt a little undignified talking over the phone about it. ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to be so crude about it.’

‘It’s fine.’ Mycroft cleared his throat. ‘So, dinner tomorrow.’

‘Yes,’ she was still smiling. ‘Dinner, same time?’

‘I could pick you up from Sherlock’s flat, as I remember I owe you another film.’

‘You’re actually inviting me over again? Mycroft Holmes, what an enigma you are.’ She chuckled.

‘Look who’s talking.’

That made her laugh a little harder. ‘Okay, I’d best get going, Rosie will be getting hungry and she’ll start making a fuss soon. Enjoy your evening and I will see you tomorrow.’

‘See you tomorrow.’

Mycroft hung up and felt his evening take a turn for the better. He settled with one of his favourite films, noting that since Bethany had asked him, he began making a mental note of the films he enjoyed most. He couldn’t help but mouth along to the dialogue having watched it that many times. He loosened his red tie, poured a glass of scotch and lit up a cigarette. He thought a lot about Bethany sitting with him, mouthing the other lines, he wondered if there were any films she liked enough to do that with.

Just as one of the scenes was coming to an end, the film began to flicker. It shouldn’t have done that, but the flickering continued and he saw himself as a child on the beach with his parents and Sherlock. Somehow the footage hypnotised him so much that he smiled, remembering the day well and how happily Sherlock played, dressed up as a pirate and having the time of his life.

Soon a new image appeared “I’m back”. It could only mean one thing and it terrified Mycroft to no end. She’d escaped. But it was impossible. He tired the door handle, his heart in his mouth as he heard a girl whispering his name. Footsteps above his head running around. The door behind him creaked open and he slowly stepped out.

The door slammed shut behind him, making him jump. The lights began flickering and Mycroft spotted his umbrella, he picked it up and unsheathed the sword that he kept inside to protect himself. He didn’t believe in anything supernatural, but he did believe in bad people.

There seemed to be a little girl running around his house and he wasn’t in the slightest bit impressed with any of it.

‘Why don’t you come out and show yourself?’ He called out. ‘I don’t have time for this.’

‘We have time brother, dear.’ The voice whispered back. ‘All the time in the world.’

He suddenly saw someone running up the stairs and chased after them to a corridor that led towards the main entrance of the house.

‘Mycroft.’ The voice sang.

‘Who are you?’ He demanded, keeping his sword raised.

‘You know who.’

‘Impossible.’

‘Nothing’s impossible. You of all people know that.’

Mycroft caught the sight of the painting lining his corridor, they were all crying blood. What madness was this? It couldn’t be what he suspected, it just couldn’t.

‘Coming to get you.’ The voice carried on. ‘There’s an east wind coming, Mycroft. Coming to get you.’ Mycroft felt his heart pounding in his ears, his blood running cold.

‘You can’t have got out! You can’t! Mycroft panted, the fear started to take hold of him.

Mycroft thought he was seeing things, a clown appeared behind him and took one of the swords. Mycroft took a handkerchief from his pocket and removed the blade from the umbrella handle, revealing a gun inside. He aimed at the clown and fired, but nothing came out. The gun was empty and Mycroft was defenceless.

‘No use Mycroft,’ the voice rang. ‘There’s no defence and nowhere to hide.’

The clown launched himself at Mycroft who sprinted away and down the stairs to find a way out. A shadow was cast moving along the floor and Mycroft could feel the sweat on his brow, this was it. Eurus had come back to haunt him.

Suddenly Sherlock appeared on the balcony.

‘Sherlock.’ Mycroft breathed. ‘Help me.’

Sherlock whistled and all the lights came on.

‘Experiment complete.’ Sherlock said and a small man appeared with pigtails, the one that had scared the living hell out of him. ‘Conclusion, I have a sister.’

‘This was you.’ Mycroft growled. ‘All of this was you.’

‘Conclusion two, my sister, Eurus apparently, has been incarcerated from an early age in a secure institution controlled by my brother. Hey bro.’

Mycroft was panting, struggling to understand why the hell Sherlock would do this to him. ‘Why would you do this? This… pantomime. Why?’

‘Conclusion three, you’re terrified of her.’ Sherlock dismissed all of his questions.

‘You have no idea what you’re dealing with. None at all.’ Mycroft growled again.

‘New information.’ John Watson walked through a door that had previously been locked. ‘She’s out.’

‘That’s not possible.’

‘It’s more than possible, she was John’s therapist.’

‘Shot me during a session.’

‘Only with a tranquilizer gun.’ Sherlock sighed.

‘Still had ten minutes to go.’

‘Well, we’ll see about a refund.’ Sherlock descended the stairs. ‘Right you two, Wiggins has got your money by the gate, don’t spend it all in one crack den. Oh, I hope we didn’t spoil your enjoyment of the movie.’ The clown and the man dressed as a little girl skipped away to the front of the house and it was just Mycroft left with Sherlock and John.

‘You’re just leaving?’ Mycroft said, in disbelief.

‘Well, we’re not staying here, Eurus is coming and erm, someone’s disabled all your security. Sleep well!’ Sherlock opened the door to leave.

John was about to leave after him. ‘Dr Watson, why would he do that to me? That was insane.’

‘Oh yes, well someone convinced him that you wouldn’t tell the truth unless you were actually wetting yourself.’

‘Someone.’ Mycroft knew he meant himself and it only annoyed him even more.

‘Probably me.’

‘So, that’s it is it? You’re just going.’

‘Well don’t worry, there’s a place for people like you, the desperate, the terrified, the ones with nowhere else to run.’

‘What place?’

‘221B Baker Street.’ John said it as if it was obvious. ‘See you in the morning. If there’s a queue, join it.’

‘For God’s sake, this isn’t one of your idiot cases!’ Mycroft said, through gritted teeth. They didn’t seem to understand quite the danger Eurus posed.

‘You might want to close that window,’ John said pointing to the one Sherlock had entered through. ‘There is an East Wind coming.’

Mycroft looked up to where the window was in fact open and once John left, he raced up the stairs to close it. He quickly went around to his security room and reactivated his systems, checking frantically to make sure no one else got in. Everything looked fine, but Mycroft was still scared. He didn’t sleep at all that night, every little creek or small sound made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.

Finally, the morning came, but it didn’t make him feel any safer. If Eurus had gotten out, then there was no telling what she might have been capable of. Mycroft gave in and made his way to Baker Street first thing in the morning.

He stood behind and empty chair and both John and Sherlock proceeded to ignore him. Mrs Hudson eventually came up and giggled to herself.

‘You have to sit in the chair, they won’t talk to you unless you sit in the chair, it’s the rules.’ Mrs Hudson explained, but it was childish.

‘I’m not a client.’

‘Then get out.’ Sherlock said, calmly.

Mycroft sighed and soon conceded, if it got this whole thing over and done with quicker.

‘She’s not going to stay there, is she?’ Mycroft gestured to Mrs Hudson. Sherlock nodded for her to leave.

‘Would you like a cup of tea?’ She asked.

‘Thank you.’

‘Kettle’s over there.’

Mycroft was in no mood to be tested. She eventually left.

‘So, what happens now? Are you going to make your deductions?’ Mycroft folded his arms.

‘You’re going to tell the truth, Mycroft. Pure and simple.’

‘Who was it that said “the truth is rarely pure and never simple”?’

‘I don’t know and I don’t care. There were three of us, I know that now.’ Sherlock angled himself to face Mycroft a little more. ‘You, me and… Eurus.’ Even the name now made Mycroft’s spin tingle. ‘A sister I can’t remember. Interesting name, Eurus, it’s Greek, isn’t it?’

‘Mm, yeah,’ John looked down at his notes. ‘Literally the God of the East Wind.’

‘Yes.’ Mycroft was waiting for John to leave, it wasn’t a matter to make public.

‘The East Wind is coming Sherlock. You used that to scare me.’ Sherlock was angry, he could see that, but it wasn’t what he thought.

‘No.’

‘You turned my sister into a ghost story.’

‘Of course I didn’t. I monitored you.’

‘You what?’ John asked, surprised.

‘Memories can resurface,’ Mycroft tried to explain. ‘Wounds can reopen. The roads we walk have demons beneath them, and yours have been waiting a very long time. I never bullied you. I used, at discrete intervals, potential trigger words to update myself as to your mental condition. I was looking after you.’

‘Why can’t I remember her?’ Sherlock said, gritting his teeth.

‘This is a private matter.’ Mycroft eyed John carefully.

‘John stays.’ Sherlock dismissed his attempt straight away.

‘This is family.’

‘That’s why he stays!’ Sherlock yelled. Mycroft tried to understand it, he really did but in the end Sherlock wouldn’t help him unless he complied with his wishes.

John cleared his throat, breaking the tension. ‘So, there were three Holmes kids? What was the age gap?’

‘Seven years between myself and Sherlock,’ Mycroft just got on answered. ‘One year between Sherlock and Eurus.’

‘Middle child,’ John nodded. ‘Explains a lot. So, did she have it too?’

‘Have what?’

‘The deduction thing.’ John clarified, suddenly not quite knowing what to call it.

‘The deduction thing?’ Mycroft really hated the way he said it.

‘Yes.’

‘More than you can know.’

‘Enlighten me.’

Mycroft breathed deeply. ‘You realise I’m the smart one.’

‘As you never cease to announce.’ Sherlock said with a hint of boredom.

‘But Eurus, she was incandescent, even then.’ Mycroft ignored his quip. ‘Our abilities were professionally assessed more than once. I was remarkable, but Eurus was described as an era-defining genius beyond Newton.’

Suddenly footsteps could be heard coming up the stairs. All three of them turned to see Bethany with her earphones in, reading through a textbook.

‘Alright, Sherlock-‘ she stopped, seeing all three of them watching her. She was stunning as always, black jeans that hugged her legs and made her look taller, a white t-shirt with a v-neck that descended enough to make Mycroft swallow thickly. Her black leather jacket made her youthful expression sparkle and he wanted so desperately to kiss her. ‘Sorry,’ she said, taking her earphones out and shoving the in her shoulder bag. ‘Are you in the middle of something? I can come back.’

‘I think you should stay.’ Sherlock piped up, alarming Mycroft, he didn’t want more people brought into the fold. ‘It seems Mycroft is more willing to loosen his tongue when you’re around.’

‘Sherlock-‘ Mycroft went to give him a warning, but Sherlock was already up and pulling out the chair that sat at the table behind him, gesturing for Bethany to sit.

‘Take a seat, Beth, you’ll want to hear this and hopefully now you’re here Mycroft will want to tell us what we need to know.’ Sherlock said, but she didn’t move.

Bethany cleared her throat. ‘Okay, I don’t know what’s going on. Mycroft, do you want me to leave?’

Mycroft held Sherlock’s gaze, but he was right. Bethany was due some truth from him and if Eurus was out then maybe she was right and keeping secrets from her was not the way to protect her.

‘No, you can stay.’ Mycroft conceded.

‘Are you sure? I don’t have to.’

He turned and grazed his eyes over her beautiful face, he felt more inclined to give her what she wanted as oppose to what Sherlock and John wanted. He stood, picking up the chair and placing it closer to John in front of the kitchen, gesturing for her to sit. Mycroft was well aware of John and Sherlock exchanging glances, but this just wasn’t about them.

‘Where were we?’ Mycroft frowned.

‘Why don’t I remember her?’ Sherlock sat back down, his anger coming back.

‘You do remember her,’ Mycroft nodded. ‘In a way. Every choice you’ve ever made, every path you’ve ever taken, the man you are today is your memory of Eurus.’ Mycroft caught Bethany glancing at John’s notes, trying to quickly catch up with the conversation. Mycroft felt his mind making the memories especially real for him, he could feel the pebbles beneath his feet. ‘She was different from the beginning, she knew things she should never have known, as if she were aware of truths beyond the normal scope.’ Mycroft looked down at his hand, feeling the weight of the pebble and closing his hand around it. He felt her eyes on him.

‘Mycroft, what’s wrong?’ He heard Bethany’s voice, the only thing that could break the vivid nature of the memories he had.

‘Sorry.’ He said. ‘The memories are disturbing.’

‘What do you mean? Examples.’ Sherlock demanded.

‘They found her with a knife once,’ Mycroft explained. ‘She seemed to be cutting herself. Mother and Father were terrified, they thought it was suicide attempt. But when I asked Eurus what she was doing, she said “I wanted to see how my muscles worked”.’

‘Jesus.’ John said under his breath.

‘So, I asked her if she felt pain,’ Mycroft went on. ‘She said “which one’s pain?”’

‘Then what happened?’ Sherlock wanted him to go on.

‘Musgrave.’ He said, seeing the house clearly in his mind’s eye. ‘The ancestral home where there was always honey for tea and Sherlock played among the funny gravestones.’

‘Funny how?’ John asked.

‘They weren’t real, the dates were all wrong, an architectural joke which fascinated Sherlock.’

‘…help succour me down, the East Wind blows… sixteen by six…’

‘And under we go.’ Mycroft finished the song and frowned, observing Sherlock’s eyes flicker. ‘You’re starting to remember.’

‘Fragments.’ Sherlock nodded.

‘Redbeard?’ John nudged the question.

‘He was my dog.’ Sherlock explained. Mycroft decided not to correct him, instead he wanted to spare Sherlock the trauma all over again.

‘Eurus took Redbeard and locked him up,’ he went on. ‘Somewhere no one could find him. And she refused to say where he was. She’d only repeat that song, her little ritual. We begged and begged to tell us where he was. She said the song is the answer, but the song made no sense.’

‘What happened to Redbeard?’ Sherlock suddenly asked.

‘We never found him… but she started calling him drowned Redbeard so we made our assumptions.’ Mycroft felt Bethany shifting in the corner of his eye, clearly feeling for him, but he didn’t have the courage to look at her. ‘Sherlock was traumatised. Natural, I suppose. He was, in the early days, an emotional child, but after that he was different, as though he’d changed. Never spoke of it again. In time he seemed to forget Eurus had even existed.’

‘How could he forget?’ John was the one to ask where Sherlock couldn’t. ‘She was living in the same house.’

‘No.’ Mycroft shook his head. ‘They took her away.’

‘Why? You don’t lock up a child because a dog goes missing.’

‘Quite so. It was what happened immediately afterwards.’ Mycroft could once again see the images Eurus drew of Sherlock, his grave, violent deaths, crossing him out of pictures. It was incredibly vivid. He could feel the heat of the fire burning the family home, smell the ash and it was only the smell of ginger penetrating his senses that brought him back. ‘After that, our sister had to be taken away.’

‘Where?’ Sherlock demanded.

‘Oh, some suitable place, or so everyone thought. Not suitable enough however, she died there.’

‘How?’ John asked and Mycroft risked a look in his direction to see Bethany giving him a sceptical look, she always knew when he was lying.

‘She started another fire; one she did not survive.’

‘You’re lying.’ She said, rather bravely.

‘Yes.’ Mycroft conceded. ‘It is also a kindness.’ That seemed to strike a chord with Bethany. ‘This is the story I told our parents, one to spare them any further pain and to account for the absence of an identifiable body.’

‘And no doubt to prevent their further interference.’ Sherlock said, rather cynically.

‘That too, of course. The depth of Eurus’s psychosis and the extent of her abilities couldn’t hope to be contained in any ordinary institution. Uncle Rudy took care of things.’

‘Where is she, Mycroft?’ Sherlock was getting more and more frustrated. ‘Where is our sister?’

‘There’s a place called Sherrinford, an island. It’s a secret and very secure location, whose sole purpose is to contain what we call “The Uncontainables”. The demons beneath the road, this is where we trap them.’ He could visualise the institution in his mind, clear as day. ‘Sherrinford is more than a prison, or an asylum. It is a fortress, built to keep the rest of the world safe from what is inside it.’ He looked to Bethany for a moment, finding his courage again. ‘Heaven may be a fantasy for the credulous and the afraid, but I can give you a map reference to hell. That’s where our sister has been since early childhood. She hasn’t left, not for a single day. Whoever you both met, it can’t have been her.’

Glass shattered in the back room of the flat, startling all four of them. They turned to where the sound came from.

‘I that am lost. Oh who will find me?’ Mycroft was surprised to see Bethany’s expression of recognition before fear flooded her. The singing came from a drone that was flying towards them. 'Deep down below the old beech tree, help succour me now, the east winds blow.’ Mycroft gently pulled Bethany to one side, close to him, recognising what was sitting on top of the drone. ‘Sixteen by six, brother and under we go.’

‘Keep back,’ Mycroft ordered. ‘Keep as still as you can.’

‘What is it?’ John asked, all of them just watching the drone float between them.

‘It’s a drone.’ Sherlock pointed out.

‘Yeah, I can see that, what’s it carrying?’

‘What’s that silver thing on top Mycroft?’

‘It’s a DX-707,’ he swallowed nervously. ‘I’ve authorised the purchase of quite a number of these. Colloquially it is known as the “patience grenade”.’ The drone landed on the floor and made a clicking sound.

‘Patience?’ Bethany asked.

‘The motion sensor has been activated.’ He said as the red light began flashing on top, this was it, they were stuck in that room. ‘If any of us move, the grenade will detonate.’

‘How powerful?’ Sherlock asked.

‘It’ll certainly destroy this flat and kill anyone in it. Assuming the walls are of reasonable strength, your neighbours should be safe, but as it’s landed on the floor, I am moved to wonder if the café below is open.’

‘Closed on Sundays.’ Bethany said, trying desperately not to move.

‘What about Mrs Hudson?’ John asked and they all listened for the sound of the vacuum cleaner.

‘Going by her usual routine, I estimate she has another two minutes left.’

‘She keeps her vacuum cleaner at the back of her flat.’

‘So?’ Mycroft frowned.

‘So, safer there, when she’s putting it away.’ Mycroft subtly gave him a questioning look. ‘Look, we have to move eventually. We should do it when she’s safest.’

‘When the vacuum stops,’ Sherlock continued. ‘We give her eight seconds to get to the back of the flat, she’s fast when she’s cleaning. Then we move.’ Mycroft didn’t care so much for anyone else, he cared that he’d asked Bethany to stay and now her life was in danger. This was his fault. ‘What’s the trigger response time? Once we’re mobile, how long before detonation?’

‘We have a maximum of three seconds to vacate the blast radius.’ Mycroft answered.

‘John and I will take the windows, you and Bethany take the stairs. Help get Mrs Hudson out too.’

‘Me?’

‘You’re closer.’

‘You’re faster.’

‘I’ll get Mrs Hudson.’ Bethany spoke up and settled the argument, they didn’t have time to waste. They listened closely for the vacuum cleaner.

‘She moving away, she’s further back.’ John said.

‘I estimate we have a minute left. Is a phone call possible?’

‘A phone call?’ Mycroft frowned.

‘John has a daughter, he may wish to say goodbye.’

‘I’m sorry Dr Watson, any movement will set off the grenade. I hope you understand.’ Mycroft briefly thought that he should have said something to Bethany, something in regards to the way he felt, but somehow the words escaped him.

‘Oscar Wilde.’ John suddenly spoke.

‘What?’

‘He said “the truth is rarely pure and never simple”. It’s from The Importance of Being Earnest, we did it in school.’

‘So did we. As I recall.’

‘I didn’t.’ Bethany spoke up.

‘If we survive this, I’m sure Mycroft will show you his Lady Bracknell. You were great.’ Sherlock looked at him and he felt a sense of brotherly love once again.

‘You really think so?’

‘Yeah, I really do.’

‘Well, that’s good to know. I’ve always wondered.’

The sound of the vacuum coming to a stop refocused them to the present situation and everyone was ready to move.

‘Good luck boys.’ Bethany said.

‘Three.’ Sherlock began the countdown. ‘Two… One. Go!’

All four of them darted from the room, Mycroft watching Bethany’s significantly faster legs carry her down the stairs just in time for the ceiling to collapse into Mrs Hudson’s flat. Mycroft watched her dive in to find the landlady while he called an ambulance.

He managed to make it out of the house and find Sherlock and John on the floor, fighting for breath, but when Mycroft looked behind him, he couldn’t see Bethany or Mrs Hudson.

‘Here.’ Mycroft handed his phone to John and as soon as the blast cleared, he sprinted back in to find Bethany. She was digging her way through piles of rubble, finding Mrs Hudson cowering in a corner and coughing through the smoke.

‘Mycroft!’ Bethany yelled, pulling the wooden beam out of the way, so that he could get to Mrs Hudson and help her out of the corner.

‘Come on, that’s it.’ Mycroft encouraged and soon the frail landlady was safe.

Bethany kept pace behind him and they made it out onto the street where the ambulance was eventually turning up.

John took over with Mrs Hudson while Bethany sat down on the side of the street, leaning back on her hands, exhausted. Mycroft cautiously approached her.

‘Bethany.’ He said, trying to work out what to say, but she held her hand up to stop him. She didn’t look upset with him, just tired and struggling for breath.

‘What do we do now, Sherlock?’ She asked.

Sherlock was still catching his breath. ‘Sherrinford.’ He said and pulled her to her feet.

‘That’s out of the question.’ Mycroft intervened. ‘I cannot take any of you to Sherrinford. Especially not-‘ he stopped himself speaking and stepped away, thinking hard. Sherlock didn’t let him get far.

‘And that right there is exactly why the four of us are going to Sherrinford.’ He hissed. ‘Make it happen.’

Mycroft knew what he was referring to, he was weakened when Bethany was around less likely to lie or cheat or making any decision a brave woman like her would disapprove of. Sherlock wanted her there so that he was accountable to someone.

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