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duskamethyst · 3 years

Text

mistakes.

a/n: totally for self indulgence... don’t know how is this gonna do though since i’m not sure if a lot of people has caught up with the manga but i’m pretty sure the fandom has seen him at least once and instantly thirst for him. so, idk what colour his eyes are (i can see blue but fanwiki says green so i stuck with that and in between). this comes with a package of me pointing out how big and buff he is and idc if you’ll get annoyed over it.

word count: 6.1k

genre: AU, nsfw, smut, angst if you squint

warnings: DARK – NONCON, coercion, corruption kink, daddy kink, size kink, choking, mind break, breeding, face fucking, slight dacryphilia, spitting, age gap, degradation, virgin reader, dilf toji manhandling reader

pairing: toji x f!reader

languages available: vietnamese.

summary: you want to surprise your bestie, megumi upon his arrival home from college but things take a terrible turn.

one.

heavy rain starts pouring as soon as you’ve reached the front doorstep of the fushiguro’s household. it was a dumb idea to not bring an umbrella with you despite the sky already starting to get dark when you left home earlier, but you were willing to push your luck and started sprinting once you felt prickles of droplets landing on your skin. with a stroke of luck, you managed to escape the heavy downpour from soaking your clothes.

drawing a deep and relieved sigh, you take a moment to regain control over your breathing before knocking the big front door. aware of the aftermath of the run, you fix your hair with your hands as you wait for megumi to come and greet you.

college made you and the male to part ways until phones were the only thing that kept you both up to date with each other’s lives. ironically enough, that’s the thing you forgot to bring when you left home in a rush and excitement to surprise your dear friend since he’s coming home today. you can vividly remember the last text you read; he was at the train station and you had to estimate the time of his arrival and the time he would be at home instead of asking him.

however, you’re caught slightly off guard when a different man opens the door for you instead. nonetheless, your lips curl to a sweet smile and there’s a brief of awkward silence before he speaks. you know him, but he doesn’t seem to remember you at all.

“you’re..?” with a tilt of his head, he looks down at you with a curious brow.

“it’s me, mr. fushiguro!” you offer your name, scrutinizing the expression on his face as his forehead crinkles while he jogs through his memories. then he glances at you and away in thought and back at you again with wide eyes when he finally recalls.

“oh, it’s you!” he ruffles your hair, a bit too enthusiastic in spite of his usual character that you were always familiar with. “i haven’t seen you in a while.”

you let out a little laugh, “yeah. i think i was fourteen the last time i saw you, mr. fushiguro. but it’s nice to see you again.”

“ah, yes. i had to go out of town and overseas for business a lot.” toji explains, rubbing the back of his neck, slightly bashful that he didn’t recognize the girl– no, woman before him even when you both have met plenty of times back when you often came to play with his son since you both were still little.

but can anyone blame him? time works wonders and now the little girl he used to know has grown to be much more mature and gorgeous and so... demure.

“yeah, megumi told me. speaking of him, is he home?” you finally inquire, bringing up the reason why you’re here in the first place.

two.

“why don’t you come in first? it’s cold outside.” he says before immediately turning around without answering your question. you close the door behind you and follow him closely, also somewhat intimidated when you realize how tall and huge he is– the tight fitting shirt stretches over his wide back and accentuating his physique even more. his arms are toned and popping with veins, not the way you used to remember at least, but you’ve never cared to notice. you’re not certain of his age either, but you’re pretty sure you’d be surprised if you find out.

“do you want coffee or tea?” toji suddenly breaks the silence as you nervously stand in the middle of the room to take a glimpse around the kitchen like it’s your first time being there, completely heedless over his gaze lingering up and down your curves, observing the figure of a girl who just freshly went through her womanhood and your lascivious beauty before he quickly turns around to grab two mugs from the cabinet.

“anything is fine.” you politely reply, fear of sounding somewhat demanding if you choose your preference despite being offered with choices.

“come on, you’re giving a man a hard time.” he jokes. “and sit down.”

he’s trying to extend his invitation though intentionally sounding assertive, but when he sees that you are quick to comply and scramble to your seat, he finds it to be... stimulating. at least he knows that you’re docile and he wonders if he could put it to the test. well, doesn’t matter. he will.

“coffee is good.” you smile, interrupting his train of thoughts and he pours the coffee from the pot before walking over to hand you your mug.

“unfortunately,” he sits down on the chair next to you. “megumi isn’t home right now.” toji puts his lips between the warm mug and softly blows before sipping his coffee. “he wanted to take a short trip to the store but i think he’s going to be stuck there for a while.” he looks out the window to only see pitch black staring back at him along with roaring thunder from the skies.

“oh.” you mutter, taking a careful sip of the hot brew. a little disappointed that you couldn’t see megumi yet, but his dad is right– it’s nearly a disaster outside but you find no point hanging around any longer either.

“is it too bitter? you don’t like it?” his voice laces with concern when he notices your face involuntarily scrunches up at the bitter taste.

you quickly shake your head, “no, no. it’s fine!” you reassure, afraid that he’ll take offense from the coffee he personally made. “besides, if megumi isn’t here, i–”

three.

“oh, it’s fine if you wait here for him.” he cuts you off. “unfortunately, we don’t have an extra umbrella.” the corners of his lips tug into a comforting smile and you are quick to relax into it.

you’ve always found toji to be quite frightening when you were young. he seemed like someone who never smiled, always had a sombre and intense vibe to him that no child would be too fond of. there was no exchange of words between you two, except for your constant brief hello and a smile that you did out of courtesy whenever you bump into him inside his house, even though he never replied anything back. not even a crack on the lips to return the smile.

but today is different. probably because he finds it easier for him to talk to an adult than a child and you’re relieved that you’re able to humor him in some way.

“so, are you and megumi a thing?” he abruptly asks and glances at you as he sips his coffee.

“no, we’re not!” you titter, waving a hand in dismissal as you bring up the mug to hide your face from embarrassment.

“oh?” a glint of amusement and surprise shines in his green eyes. “are you sure?”

you blink at the question as heat warms your cheeks from the thought of dating your best friend. “yes, megumi and i are just friends. really.”

“why? because you have a boyfriend?” toji pries, uncaring if he sounds intrusive to you and you only assume that he’s trying to strike up a conversation in some old fashioned way.

you just shake your head and laugh, “it’s not that, either.”

“hmm,” he props his elbow on the table leisurely, head resting on his fist as he looks at you intently, as if in search of something. “you’re pretty hard to figure out.”

“what do you mean? i don’t think so.” you smile, bringing up the mug to cover your face again so you can shy away from his intense gaze yet he thinks that it’s endearing and he finds himself grinning unwillingly.

toji notices how you always try to look away when you get so shy over some simple questions. you’re just oozing with purity and innocence of a maiden and something dark and twisted inside him is craving to violate every part of it.

“for a start, i can’t figure out why you don’t have one.” he says, tapping his fingertips on the table as his mind is running with sinful thoughts.

“hmm, maybe because i haven’t found anyone interesting yet.” you finally lock your eyes with his as you answer, not wanting to come off as rude if you keep on talking without looking directly at the man.

“isn’t my son good for you?” he couldn’t care less to be honest; he only plans to test the waters and is even more aroused to learn that you’ve never been touched by a man before and he feels like a wolf that’s just ready to pounce on a lost, little lamb.

“oh, no, no!” why do you have to get so bashful? he’ll fuck you on this table if you don’t stop. “we just don’t see each other that way.”

he’s so lost in his thoughts and carnal desires that whatever you’re babbling seems to go in one ear and out the other.

“then, what do you think of me?” he asks nonchalantly with a smirk plastered across his face.

you blink at him once, twice. “uhh, what?” is he suddenly getting self-conscious?

“you heard me. what do you think of me?” yet he doesn’t seem like it either.

“umm,” you ponder for a moment as you think of every adjective you can find in your head that wouldn’t come out offensive if you’re going to be honest with him. why would he even ask you such a thing anyways? and why would it matter to him? there’s nothing nice about him that you could exactly pinpoint from the past except for ‘scary’, ‘serious’ and some other things revolving around those.

“i thought that you were kinda... scary?” you blurt unsurely, mentally slapping yourself for even daring to say such a thing to him. unless it’s a vibe that he was going for, then you’d be relieved.

it isn’t exactly what toji wants to hear but he laughs heartily, “really?” a shiver runs down your spine when he looks at you again, his eyes glimmering with daunt. “but are you still scared of me?”

“uh, no.” you laugh. “you’re actually really nice, mr. fushiguro.”

“oh, that makes me feel better.” another grin etches on his scarred lips as he draws his gaze to your hands that are tensing and fiddling with your sleeves and your leg is bouncing; a perfect depiction of a trembling lamb cornered in his den– and he’s fucking starving.

has he got you on edge? are you nervous? good. “but i think you should.”

a lump catches in your throat and your heart drops, “i- what?”

the chair emits a screeching sound and it stumbles backwards as toji abruptly stands up from his seat. sheer panic causes you to rise on your feet too, and your eyes dart to the chair, and the male, back and forth as your mind tries to get a grasp on the situation.

“mr. fushiguro..?” you whisper meekly, taking a step away and around the table as you notice him taking a careful yet threatening inch closer.

“no, no. i’m not gonna hurt you.” toji (barely) reassures you as he continues creeping on his feet. but the sinister smile on his lips takes out every last bit of faith you had in him and the loud voice in your head keeps telling you to run for the door and never look back– fuck the rain.

as if he can read through your thoughts, he warns. “but i will, if you run.”

the smile on toji’s face turns smug when he sees you freeze in place upon his threat. being trapped under the unpleasant situation triggers your fight or flight responses and rapid heartbeat drums in your ears as you stand in trance and trepidation.

“that’s a good girl.” he coos, taking another step forward before you decide to throw a mug at him and dash towards the door as fast as you can. you assume that toji has pushed the table to the floor when you hear a loud thud, followed by his hasty footsteps as he catches up quickly behind you.

the door that is finally within arm’s reach suddenly changes into a mirage when a strong pair of arms grabs you by the waist and your body floats as it lifts onto his shoulder. the huge contrast between the size of your body and his should let you know; no matter how much you try to resist, he will never budge. yet, your arms and legs still flail around in an attempt to punch and kick him and you’re screaming for him to let you down and just hope that anyone is able to hear your cries in spite of the thunderstorm.

well, so much for luck.

“ah, ah. you don’t wanna do that.” there’s a mocking and amusing tone in his voice as he advises you. “you should save that energy later. juuust in a bit.”

“mr. fushiguro– stop–!” you sob, watching your only escape slowly disappears out of sight when he turns to a corner and into a dark room. your body bounces onto a mattress before toji’s huge, ripped figure swiftly looms above yours and ties your hands together with a belt and onto the headboard. at this point, the illuminating lights through the windows are the only thing that aids your vision and you have to rely more on your senses.

“shh,” he shushes you with a finger against your trembling lips. “the neighbors will hear. and if they do, i want it to be because you’re getting fucked so good. so be a good little girl for daddy, okay?”

regardless of being terrified, you find yourself cringing over the nickname he refers to himself. hopefully, he won’t ask you to call him that either. “mr. fushiguro– i– please don’t do this. i- i won’t tell anyone.”

toji tsks, taking his sweet time to admire your smaller body underneath his– the exposed, soft skin on your neck waiting to be bruised, chest heaving as your breath comes deep and short, and legs pressing together to secure your modesty; though will prove to be futile later.

“i know you won’t.” his thumb grazes against your lips, mesmerized by its plushness as he imagines it wrapped prettily around his throbbing cock. “are you a virgin?”

you only nod your head, eyes wavering as you look at his darker ones before catching it shine with interest.

“never had anything inside here?” he asks again, pressing your cunt against the fabric of your pants with his fingers. the dark room makes it hard to see, but your cheeks are turning red from humiliation and you look away before shaking your head no.

“are you sure?” toji’s thumb presses down on your clit and causes your body to shudder apprehensively.

“o-only my finger.” you audibly whisper through the white noise outside.

oh, how exhilarating. guess the innocent looking ones can be lewd too. don’t you know that a cock would make you feel better? a big cock like his is definitely what you need. just a finger wouldn’t be enough to satisfy you! poor little thing.

“then i got to teach you a few things, right? it’ll come handy later. boys love girls with experiences.” he promptly strips you off from your pants before carelessly throws it to the ground and kneels between your legs to keep you wide and open for him.

“you like to be touched here?” his finger reaches down to ghost over your clothed clit, observing you with lust filled eyes while you turn away from his gaze and remain unresponsive. “daddy is a very impatient person so i suggest you answer me.”

toji pinches your clit, and your body squirms with an elicited yelp. you can only guess (and hope) that he wasn’t referring to him touching you there but you answer anyway, “y-yes.”

he hums in satisfaction, moving down until his head stops between your thighs and in front of your sex. toji grabs your thigh and spreads them apart before flattening his warm tongue against your clothed bud, causing a shiver to run down your spine and it quickly draws your attention to him.

your face heats up in embarrassment when you see toji’s head dipped in front of your pussy, but he’s only calm and teasing as his jade eyes stare up to lock with yours to look for a reaction.

“you’ve never felt a tongue over here either, hm?” he sneers, rubbing circles on your clit with his thumb and you mentally curse yourself for feeling slightly aroused over his ministrations.

“just let me go, please.” you try to close your legs, but to no avail when his rough hands push them away.

“you know, if you keep asking for ridiculous things,” toji tuts and grasps your supple thighs hard, nails digging painfully on your skin. “i might have to get rough on you. but you’re a smart girl and you wouldn’t like that, right?”

“n-no.” you choke and fidget.

“good. because i only want you to feel good.” he offers a gentle smile and kisses the dented mark on your thigh. “so, let’s start over. you haven’t answered me.”

you nibble your lip hesitantly and look anywhere but him, “no.”

“see? all the more reason for me to show you what you’ve been missing out.” he chuckles, tugging your underwear to the side impatiently.

“fuck. such a pretty pussy.” he growls at the sight of your bare cunt. there isn’t a lot of slick yet, but it’s fine, he’ll make you get there. that’s the point of this whole ordeal, right?

your body quivers naturally once you feel the foreign sensation; wet, warm muscle prodding your puffy folds up to your clit and circling on it with the tip of his tongue teasingly as he observes you from below.

your eyes are screwed shut and your lips are caught between your teeth as you try to restrict your whines from the undeniable pleasure rushing in your veins and he doesn’t stop– your pathetic attempt to deny him and your sentiments only drives him to push you over the edge even more.

with a harsh suck on your clit, he manages to get you to squeal and you can feel him smirking underneath you. toji flattens his tongue and laps off your juices again before he takes you by surprise when he suddenly slides a finger inside your tight, wet cunt.

“shh. it’ll feel good, baby girl.” he comforts when he hears you whimper at the pain inflicted and true enough, it soon begins to feel good. you’ve fingered yourself plenty of times before, but it feels different when he does it for you– his finger is thick and long that it reaches deeper than you’ve ever been able to.

toji notices you start to become quiet so he slides in another digit, eliciting yet another sob from you. the warm and moist cunny makes his cock twitch and he finds himself getting eager. your back arches from the bed when toji curls his fingers to stroke the bumpy tissues of your g-spot with every drag.

“feels good, yeah?” he grins arrogantly as your legs tremble under his hold. your breathing has turned erratic and your toes are curling as your mouth gapes in pitiful, broken cries that are just music to his ears.

“answer me, sweetheart.” he presses down a thumb on your neglected clit, reminding you that he is not keen on being ignored and disputed.

“y-yes.” you finally choke through pants and shame. though the answer comes out in hesitance, your body is more honest– pussy sopping and eliciting obscene squelches and it’s enough to satisfy him for now.

your head thrashes side to side as you feel yourself about to tip over but you still refuse to beg toji for a release.

“hah– fuck!” you whimper loudly when toji oh-so-generously sucks your clit again, fingers pumping faster inside your cunt, making your body feel even more tense with overbearing stimulation before finally pushing you over the edge and you break into a silent scream.

toji laps off your slick before he pulls out his finger into his mouth and licks them clean.

“that’s a good girl. why don’t you taste yourself?” he climbs on top of you while you gasp for air from the intense orgasm and he easily pulls you into a fervour, sloppy kiss. you can feel the wet slick on his chin and you can taste yourself at the same time as he intertwines his tongue with yours.

four.

out of spite and vexation, you found courage to bite his tongue hard and toji instantly pushes himself from you, his dark eyes express astonishment and agitation.

“fucking bitch.” he curses as his eyes narrow at you displeasingly before he takes off his pants and briefs to release his cock from its confinements. his cock is throbbing and thick, and you can almost see a trickle of precum on its head. you crumple at the sight as regret and anxiety washes over you.

“don’t worry, it’ll fit.” he says cockily upon the worrisome look on your face. “but since you like it rough, i’m sure you want to choke on it first.”

“no– i’m sorry!” you shake your head but toji only lets out a scornful laugh as he disregards your pleas and props himself on the knees and over your neck.

toji slaps the tip of his cock on your lips, gesturing you to open your mouth but you purse them into a flat, thin line and refuse to obey.

“open up. it’s a part of your lesson after all.” he snaps before squeezing your cheeks together. “it’ll get worse if you don’t listen to me.”

“d-don’t wa-ant to– flea-shh.” you whimper and toji emits a long, deep sigh as he releases his grip.

“i don’t like repeating myself.” his voice is laced with malice and chills crawls up your spine as his eyes look down at you demeaningly before you slowly open your mouth trepidatiously and wait for his next order.

“no teeth. i think you’d know that much.” he patronizes before sliding his cock inside your mouth and he hisses as the warmth engulfs his throbbing cock. “that’s it. now, suck.”

and you have no choice but to obey submissively. you slightly lift your head and struggle to take his length as much as you can before running your tongue around to feel each prominent vein.

“i said suck, whore.” he commands through gritted teeth. you hollow your cheeks, compressing his fat cock tight between them as you bop your head up and down.

“fuuuck, just like that.” toji groans as his hand reaches the top of your head and caresses you softly. you start to pick up the pace, slobbering his dick with so much saliva that it begins to seep from the corners of your mouth and it’s so wet and obscene– just the way he likes it.

“it almost makes me think that this isn’t your first time.” his head falls back and hips begin to jerk until the tip hits the back of your throat, forcing you to take more than you could. you choke as tears start to well up in your eyes and the bedhead shakes when you try to tug your wrists.

“what’s wrong? can’t take my fat cock?” he scoffs arrogantly. “you gotta work on your gag reflex, sweetheart.”

the muffles from your throat vibrate against his dick and toji groans in pleasure that he subconsciously rocks his hips, slapping your chin with his balls. your vision has become blurry and breathing becomes harder as you let him abuse your throat and your jaws ache before he abruptly pulls out and you can finally gasp for precious air.

“look at you,” his cock twitches with excitement when he sees the tears rolling down your cheeks from your doe eyes and he wipes them away with his thumb, making you flinch slightly, “are you sorry for making daddy mad?”

toji always tries to articulate each word with appease. it’s never soothing per se when you can sense the threat entwining in his voice and it’s fucking you psychologically.

and it deems to be successful when you’re already trembling in fear underneath him.

you’re uncertain whether he prefers you to speak or not, but your throat is sore so you meekly nod your head in response. it’s better than nothing, to be honest.

“good. open your mouth.”

your mouth is already parted for air but you assume that he wants to put his cock in again. submissively, yet dreadfully, you open your mouth wider and await for him to shove his cock back in but you’re surprised when toji spits in your mouth instead.

it’s warm and disgusting; you’re just left gaping and repelled, and you want to spit it out but toji squeezes your cheeks together.

“swallow.” he orders. you quickly brace yourself and close your eyes before cringing as you gulp down the mix of saliva in your mouth and toji releases his grip once he’s certain that you’ve ingested.

“i could’ve made you swallow my cum but i’d feel bad,” he chuckles sardonically. “what do you have to say?”

“t-thank you.” you whisper vaguely and he accustoms his face to a simper.

“good girl.” toji smashes his lips onto yours, yet his eyes are locked with yours ominously for a brief second– a telltale that he expects you not to pull up another stunt before they close as he deepens the kiss.

obviously, nothing would benefit you whether you comply or defy, not until you’ve catered for his insatiable lechery. but you’ve learned your lesson and although you’re compelled, you finally relent as every ounce of resistance begins to drift from you.

toji breaks the kiss and shifts lower, peppering greedy kisses on your neck before he catches the soft, chaste skin between his teeth to suck and form purplish bruising marks. he lifts up your shirt over your head and hastily unclasps your bra, causing you to shudder once the cold air hits your exposed breasts.

large, calloused hands press your mounds before his mouth latches on one perky tit, while the other is tweaked with his fingers. experienced tongue draws circles and sucks punishingly, alternating with the other nipple. the headboard rattles as you keen over the stimulation and your eyes open in dismay when you feel something hard prodding your clit.

he moves lower and spits on your cunt before propping on his knees to take off his tight shirt– through subdued glow, you can make out the outline of his toned abs and broad chest as his large build towers menacingly in front of you; even when he’s not standing on his feet.

“listen. daddy is going to release the binds, but do you promise to be good?” he asks, smearing the saliva with his cockhead and against your slit.

“yes. i- i promise.” you murmur appallingly; as if you have a choice in the matter.

toji leans over to unrestrain you then he observes you, expecting you to put up a fight but instead, you just remain still underneath him.

he grins in satisfaction, getting off to the fact that you’ve fallen into submission before he shifts back into his prior position and bends your knees up to line his cock with your hole. a feeling of triumph stirs inside him when he’s reminded that he’s the ‘chosen’ one to defile your innocence.

“stop! it hurts–!” you wail and your hands clench the sheets when you feel toji’s thick cock stretching your virgin cunt slowly, but he ignores you, groaning at the warmth that engulfs him and the tight walls that clenches him as he selfishly pushes through.

it burns. so bad. your chest heaves rapidly and you screw your eyes shut as your face twists to express pain and uncomfort. “please, please–! i can’t–”

“yes, you can.” his tone is indifferent as he holds you down since your body keeps on wincing until he finally fills you to the brim and he can see a bulge poking on your tummy.

“fuck. haven’t been inside a virgin cunt for a while.” he mutters under his breath. “now, i know it hurts but i promise you’ll enjoy it. it’s just too bad that you get to have a big cock as your first.” he snickers nonchalantly and leans down closer to your face, making you jolt when you feel it inching deeper.

“if it makes you feel better– you’re fucking tight. just the way daddy likes it.” toji whispers in your ear but you can only freeze in fear and agony.

toji hovers above you, his hands firmly grip the headboard in front of him and he begins to move his hips; thrusting in and out of your pussy.

your fists clench the sheets harder as a loud cry rips from your throat, “no! it hurts! please!”

but toji doesn’t seem to mind, his cyan orbs stare down at you coldly yet in focus as he relishes over the plush walls clamping down on his cock.

“stop! stop– i- i don’t want–!” you continuously wail as you writhe in anguish before he suddenly stops pounding and he wraps his hand around your neck instead, instantly drawing your attention to him as he applies pressure in his hold.

“if you don’t stop whining like a bitch in heat, i will fucking breed you like one.” he warns through gritted teeth, clearly agitated over your act of defiance.

“you want this. you’re going to love this.” his words are sick endeavours to coerce you into another round of complete submission.

but what else can you do? toji’s hand is so large that his middle finger and thumb almost reach each other as it clasps around your frail neck and you know he can easily crush your windpipes if he wants to.

“say it. you. want. this.” he seethes.

“i. want. this.” you barely croak each word and they’re slowly influencing your cloudy mind. as soon as he releases you, you soothe the pain around your throat with your hand as you gasp for air.

“fuck. don’t think i didn’t feel you clenching around my cock just now.” he sneers and situates himself again before ruthlessly and steadily continuing where he left off.

you only close your eyes and bite your lips hard to stop whimpering as you mentally comfort yourself and dissolve every inch of your sanity; i’m going to enjoy it, it’s going to feel good soon, i want this, i want this.

soon enough, toji notices that your muscles have relaxed– suggesting that you’ve finally caved in as pleasure overtakes you so he fucks you deeper and faster before he falls on his elbows and you can feel his bangs tickling your face.

“that’s it, baby. you make daddy feel so fucking good.” he praises between grunts. you can feel the veins on his cock dragging against your walls and he’s right, it feels so good and your lips open in breathless pants.

you find your arms to loosely wrap around his neck and your legs around his waist as if clinging onto him for dear life as toji ruts into your cunny like a feral beast.

“you like it, yeah? this is what you want, isn’t it?”

through hazy mind, you can only manage to whimper an audible ‘yes’ as you feel an odd, yet almost familiar knot twisting in your lower stomach begging to snap and your nails dig into the skin of his broad back upon the intense sensation shooting through your body.

a low, deep guttural sound leaves his throat when he feels your nails sinking and scratching his back– it prompts him to quicken his pace and you can feel the tip of his cock kissing your cervix over and over, causing your back to arch simultaneously.

“i’m– i’m gonna–!” you keen as your body trembles in anticipation and your sopping cunt is clenching on his throbbing cock like a vice.

“fuck yeah. cum on daddy’s cock.” toji urges and nips on the sensitive skin of your neck to tip you over the edge and your pupils blow wide as you break into a scream. despite being your second orgasm for the night, an overwhelming euphoria washes over you for the first time of your life; is this what it feels like? you don’t know, you’ve never had one (at least not from a cock) and your pussy is just fluttering, pulsing and creaming around his cock.

“hah– fuck. good girl.”

toji remains to snap his hips, fucking you through your high as you’re left in daze from your orgasm. toji can feel his balls tensing and his thrusts are turning sporadic as he inches closer to his climax. your whines and nonsense babbles are drowned by the feeling of pleasure that’s enveloping him and he doesn’t even have the resolution to listen to you gibbering when your cunny is just milking him, sucking him in like it doesn’t want to let go and he just wants to give what your greedy pussy asks for; to fill it up with his thick load until it’s full and leaking out of you.

and daddy knows best, after all.

“shit– i won’t be able to hold it any longer. say you want daddy’s cum.” he grunts.

you’ve partly snapped out of your daze when you hear his voice again, and though you can’t see his face that’s already buried next to your head, you’re petrified and it’s making you feel dizzy and suffocated.

“i– n-no. please not–” you sob through your raw throat.

but toji doesn’t listen and you don’t know if you’re relieved or not because if he does, you know that it’ll tick him off and it’s going to do you more harm than good– but you’re scared and it hurts, that you unwillingly start to snivel again.

“shut up. you’re gonna take it like a good cumslut.” he shoves two long fingers in your mouth, causing you to choke on them.

“daddy’s gonna cum in this pretty pussy and you’re gonna fucking take it.”

toji’s grunts ring in your ears and you’re able to feel his cock twitching inside you before he finally releases hot ropes of cum– filling up and defiling your womb.

“y-you came inside..” you mumble once he takes out his fingers as you’re left entirely devastated and stupefied.

“fucking did.” he pants, lifting his body up from you and pulls out his cock to shove back the dribbling cum that’s leaking from your abused cunny with his finger. you would wince but your mind is already numb and your body is sore that you can do nothing but burn holes through the ceiling above.

“don’t look so sad.” the room resonates with his chuckles and he gets off the bed to put back on his pants. toji walks over to the nightstand where a pack of cigarettes await him and he puts one between his lips and you can hear the flicking sounds of a lighter as he tries to burn the tip.

“i can promise you that other guys wouldn’t be rough as me but one thing’s for sure,” he inhales the tobacco and exhales in a gratifying manner, “that will stay as the best fuck of your life.”

fat tears stream down your cheeks and you curl on your side, protecting your now-ruined-body as you quietly sob and your mind takes you back from how the ordeal even started and causes you to end up where you are right now– and it only makes you cry harder.

toji only lets out an exasperated sigh. he grabs his shirt from the floor and throws it on his shoulder before reaching the door.

“megumi won’t be coming home ‘til tomorrow. he said something about the train and the weather, so you can leave when you’re done. you know your way out.”

you hear the door close shut behind him and you’re left in the dark with nothing but the smell of his tobacco and the sounds of the drizzling rain accompanying you as you drown in your thoughts and griefs.

how many mistakes have you made today? four? five? or more?

you’ve lost count and you question yourself over again until you’re no longer able to care.

what’s done is done.

enjoyed this work? wanna buy me coffee? :)

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kazuwhora · 3 years

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hello hello, i see your requests are open now and can i request izana, wakasa, chifuyu and kazutora with an akutagawa!s/o? hope you have a great day/noon/night! ✨🤗

hi anon! sure! I will try my best with izana and wakasa since there's not tons to work with personality wise so forgive me if theirs are a little shorter heh. im gonna include a little blurb from the bsd fandom wiki for anyone not familiar with his character! I like these kinds of headcanon requests so if anyone wants to see more please feel free to request!

"Akutagawa has a black and white "survival of the fittest" view of the world, claiming that weak people should die and give way to the stronger ones. He is not afraid of pain and defeat His ruthless, vicious nature makes him one of the Port Mafia's most dangerous members, feared by both ally and foe. As violent as he is, Akutagawa maintains a generally composed and detached approach. Towards subordinates and superiors alike, he acts aloof, distancing himself from social interactions however possible. Nonetheless, his composure is fragile. Akutagawa is quick to lash out, ridiculing him for risking the bounty by acting recklessly. This quick temper often gets in his way, fuelling his actions to the core of his very being."

SUMMARY: izana, wakasa, chifuyu, && kazutora with an akutagawa!so

CW: hints of toxicity and violence, mentions of sex but not really all that nsfw-ish so otherwise not much else!

IZANA

- this is an interesting one because from what we know about izana, he is very similar in personality to akutagawa in terms of ruthlessness that stems from childhood trauma and isolation.

- in the case of a s/o with this personality, I think it would be a troubling relationship. lots of bitter fights fuelled by nothing but an inability to express vulnerability, while leaving both of you torn up inside and begging for someone to nurture the trauma and allow space for emotions.

- that being said, with toxicity and trauma also comes intense passion and desire. this relationship brings a lot of fire both in the bedroom and outside of the bedroom, with simple arguments often spawning into intense desperate (and lengthy might I add) sex. like, intense. it's almost like sex is the only safe outlet of these pent up emotions, providing a sort of comfort and also distraction for both parties.

- however as I said in general, this is definitely a toxic relationship. one where neither can help the other when it comes to growth and improvement on a personal level. it's unhealthy and enabling, but for a short lived fling it is hot as fuck im not even gonna lie. lots of hate sex too.

WAKASA

- so wakasa is another interesting one alongside izana given the lack of information and content we have about his character so please excuse the slight kc fanon version I have in my head of wakasa lol

- wakasa has a "don't fuck with me because I do not fucking care" type of vibe to him. I definitely think he's the type to completely disengage from the type of behaviours an akutagawa-type s/o might display. this leads to sort of a sense of competitiveness in trying to get some kind of reaction from him, and it has the potential (much like izana) to become toxic in nature

- any attempts to get under his skin are failed attempts, and the way he looks at you with that half bored expression is something that only triggers more of a somewhat emotional response from you.

- with that being said, my fanon version of wakasa is someone who while cold and aloof, is also quite a rational person. he's been typed by the fandom as INTJ which is quite a quick thinker, and I think he probably (despite not showing it very well) has a soft spot for you. but your passion and intensity (as well as your easily triggered dynamic) keeps him from completely being able to express this care in any way other than not engaging with your antics

- as much as there are some similarities with the type of toxicity in this relationship with both wakasa and izana, the intense passion isn't quite the same as it is with izana. instead, feelings of passion are more to the point and driven by pure instinct and desire rather than toxic passion. wakasa seeming like a very literal person, is actually quite mysterious deep down and has a lot (I mean a lot) of hidden desires and kinks that begin to emerge with time. it's rarely a conversation, and more often just something that happens that surprises you. you just have to go with the flow here, and let him take the reigns for once. it might actually be a good opportunity to allow for vulnerability to take the spotlight for once, which is something wakasa is surprisingly in tune with and quite to the point about.

CHIFUYU

- this is something much healthier than the last two. chifuyu, being an enfp is someone that's able to handle this level of intensity in a person while still being able to understand what's really going on.

- call him the trauma counsellor king. he values each and every response to a trigger that you might have. he notices patterns, he makes mental notes of things, and he does this all without making it seem like he's analyzing.

- to be honest he actually loves the spunk you bring on a day to day level. even though most of the time it's driven by bitterness or hate (not always towards him just in general) he is still able to see beyond that and appreciate you for what you are.

- with that being said, chifuyu will not stand for any toxic behaviour towards him. no sir he will not. threats and pushes for fights wont be tolerated, and he will either disengage or try to expose your vulnerabilities in an attempt at forced submission. this can be hard to get used to, especially with having a personality characterized by the inability to accept being vulnerable. but with time chifuyu is one to create a safe space for you to allow yourself to feel emotions beyond anger and resentment, and he encourages this.

- because of this very feelings based approach, intimacy with chifuyu is just that: intimate. he's extremely loving and doting, hoping that his sweetness can rub off on you a little bit. however he's also very accepting of your need for power over him (especially during sex) and will absolutely submit to your needs in order to please you.

- he really likes to put you in a place of pleasure though, so however that may come to you chifuyu is the one to deliver it.

KAZUTORA

- oh boy. this one is a doozy. listen. if we're talking about timeskip kazutora (as is the case with all characters i write about but I feel it especially important to remind ppl of here given his history), we're talking about someone who is quite literally walking on eggshells in terms of his trauma and emotional vulnerability.

- he's pretty good at being emotionally aware of his needs and struggles as well as the needs and struggles of those around him, but that doesn't mean that he's entirely healed or capable of managing toxicity or his triggers. he still slips up from time to time especially when things get hard, and sometimes finds himself falling into his old patterns. after all, he's only human. but this is where things could get messy in a relationship.

- for the most part, like I said, he's pretty good. so let's focus on that part first since I want to give him credit where it's due. he is very desperate for love and dedicated to providing something to his partner. in this case, he will seek to tap into his emotional vulnerability to provide some sort of comfort for you. he wants to see you happy, and calm, because he sees so much of his old self in you that it gets to him sometimes. but at the same time, he struggles with your relentlessness and can become emotionally drained when things get tough. he'll beat himself up for not being good enough to help you, and this is when he'll isolate and fall into old patterns.

- however, akutagawa's personality type isn't all bad. with a s/o like akutagawa, comes an immense amount of protection and loyalty for their loved ones no matter how tough things might be. in this case it might be hard to communicate this, but there will be times when it's needed in order for kazutora to restrain from old habits and ways of dealing with hardships. but he wants to share his healing with you, he wants you to be happy, and more than anything he understands the struggle of wanting to be happy and healthy but being afraid of losing the one thing that makes you you: your attitude and relentlessness. nobody understands this better than kazutora, which is why things between you can get frustrating and very personal for him.

- much like chifuyu, sex is driven towards pleasing you and only you. chifuyu leans more into switch territory however, while kazutora is 100% submissive. in this case it works out well, however he has a lot of boundaries and limitations when it comes to the way in which you function. he doesn't like degradation. instead, he thrives from praise and any sign of love and care. this might be tough for you to execute 100% of the time, but when it comes down to it the way his eyes twinkle for you is enough to make the ice around your heart melt just a little more each time.

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ecoamerica · 2 months

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familyagrestefanblog · 4 years

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Jackady: The importance of the father-son hug scene

One of my favorite Adrien-Gabriel moments to this day is still the ending scene of "Jackady" but I have seen more confusion for it than clarity in the Fandom so here is my analysis on it for why I love it so much. Because as the seasons go by this moment sustaines so much more significance that I simply HAVE to talk about it!

While it isn't the only Adrien-Gabriel scene that does it, I adore this scene because it shows perfectly that in the beginning their little, broken family could have made it out of this tragedy stronger and maybe even better but the reality that Adrien and Gabriel are also Chat Noir and Hawkmoth not only hinders those chances, it actively drives them further apart into destruction

Maybe one day I'll give all my thoughts to the entire scene and just go on a rambling post about it (because I love EVERYTHING about this scene) but for now, let's just focus on the main aspects that really sell it to me.

I give Gabriel alot of shit on my blog for obvious reasons. I refuse to generally give him the same positive and conciderate treatment as Adrien, Marinette and the other kid characters because unlike them HE is an adult, a father and the villain of the show. The adult and villain part I'm not taking too personal because those are "just" the traditional aspects of his character type. But what is incredibly unique about him is the fact that even if he is this evil villain type he still gets to be the realistic type of abusive and (truly) bad father with sympathetic moments like this:

This moment of shock and fear is not something you would normally see in a family cartoon from an evil parental figure the child longs to bond with without setting the parent up for redemption. But as we now know by s3, Gabriel is only getting increasingly worse and more abusive and Adrien is starting to let go of his father to move on without him and defying his will. It's quite clear now that their future will not be anywhere near good, "Chat Blanc" showed us what's to come.

And this is exactly why I love this scene. Because, yes, this family will go up in flames and never truly reconcile ever again (Gabriel went WAY too far for that in the way he abuses/will abuse Adrien) but the show doesn't shy away from showing us the transitional phase in between which really not alot of media dares to. Normally when they stay enemies or their situation doesn't end in an at least somewhat forgiving way this transition is simply mostly skipped to not having to let the bad parent have realistic and sympathetic moments in their downfall into madness/villainy (especially with their victim).

Miraculous does and it's beautifully tragic because you can just... SEE the situation unfold and understand where the eventual fate of the family comes from.

The pure misunderstanding between these two in this scene, the way they just talk RIGHT PAST each other because the other one can not understand the problem cuz they don't know the secret identity of the other one is... brutal!

This moment here could have worked for them. It could have been a genuine step forward in their relationship and saved their family but it got completely CRUSHED by their secret identities as Chat Noir and Hawkmoth.

Let me show you what I mean:

THIS is a moment I AM giving Gabriel genuine credit for, because you can turn it any way you want it won't change the fact that, for his situation, THIS was the right question to ask his son. But at the same time it's just such a... horrible thing to say here oh my GOD.

And that's the ugly, UGLY beauty here.

If Gabriel weren't Hawkmoth (if someone else were Hawkmoth so the situation would still have happened) he would not have reacted to the fucking ring. He would have thought nothing of it and had remained focused on Adrien, because that was his original intention (problematically executed but that's beside the point now).

After Gabriel got himself in life threatening danger because he didn't listen to Adriens concerns, he went to him to hug him as apology. THIS is Gabriels way of apologizing and trying to make up for his faults. He's obviously not good at verbalizing his feelings properly and at normal interpersonal dynamics in general. So what he does is trying to make his feelings known in a... "material/physical" way. This does not only show through Gabriel just buying the best things for Adrien without ever being there for him, it also shows in the way he physically interacts with his loved ones when he genuinely wants to show his love. Because for how seriously antisocial and unreachable as he normally is, he also gets... quite touchy.

The shoulder touch thing Adrien does as well to show his affection for someone, him hugging Adrien both times he got a wake up call and literally everything thats happening between him and Natalie at this point lol.

Him hugging Adrien here is just as much of a big deal as Adriens expressions make it seem to be

But the father-son moment couldn't last because the villain-hero alter egos interfered. Gabriel being Hawkmoth rightfully stopped the moment here, because reacting to even the slightest chance of your own child being the hero you try to destroy is undoubtedly the right way to handle this (even if the way he did it wasn’t ideal, that's not something I would expect from any character in that situation), but nevertheless it still utterly crushed the moment.

Cuz just because it is the right thing for HAWKMOTH to ask his son Adrien who he fears COULD be Chat Noir, doesn't it mean that it is anywhere close to okay for Adrien/Chat Noir to hear this very question in that moment from his father who he thinks as a normal civilian in this.

And Adriens expression once again makes this perfectly clear

(You know the offense just reached an other dimension when the kid, who is already well aware and used to their fathers emotionally painful ways, makes a face like THAT)

Cause here is the thing. We all know by now that Adrien has some serious self esteem issues and that while he tries to over play it (especially as Chat) he just doesn't hold himself in high regards or even likes himself very much. Hence why he goes all out on the acting as Chat Noir and doesn't defend himself much.

But just because he doesn't like himself that much doesn't it mean he still doesn't want that very validation and appreciation from his father. Just like all of us and everyone on earth, Adrien wants to be loved for himself, even if he doesn't/can't do it himself. Thats normal and is something that can deeply damage you when you don't get it from your own parent/s.

So tell me, do you see why Adrien was so CRUSHED when in probably the first time since his mother's disappearance Gabriel gave him the genuine and all present love he wanted for so long, just for Gabriel to cut their moment short and FOCUSE ON THE RING?

The one thing on Adrien that makes him become "someone else" so he can escape from having to be himself for a bit.

And for Adrien it now seems like that in his own fathers eyes this ONE thing Gabriel shouldn't even know could be anything special about if he weren't Hawkmoth, is the ONLY thing worth noticing about his own son so it catches his eyes.

It tells Adrien right to the face that nothing Adrien was and did to make his father happy up to this point measured up with Gabriels expectations. All of Adriens efforts, his patience and his hopes of earning his fathers love and happiness if he only does well enough, literally in vain. It wasn't enough. It's wasn't enough for Gabriel to notice in comparison to the ring apperently.

From Adriens view you can interpret it two ways:

1. Since earlier Gabriel also took a closer look at Chat Noirs ring Adrien now thinks correctly that his father is seeing his new ring as a sign that he could be Chat Noir. This would mean that in Adriens eyes Gabriel would have cut their moment, an action of validation and love Adrien has longed, worked and patiently waited for so LONG, short and basically forgot all about Adrien himself because there is a SLIGHT possibility that Adriens ring means he COULD be Chat Noir. His own father literally choosing his secret identity over his civilian one as Adrien, the son Gabriel had for 14 years, is beyond crushing. And while it seems strange for Adrien to take offense in this because, well, he IS Chat Noir so what the big deal? The big deal here is, again, that as Chat Adrien is literally trying NOT to be himself. He uses the opportunity of being an anonymous hero to escape from having to be Adrien Agreste in every way he can. Gabriel throwing aside the son who is literally standing in front of him and who did his darn best to be there for him in his own time of grieving his mother to basically only focus on Chat Noir (a person Gabriel in the end of the day shouldn't and doesn't know) possibly being his son, is such a fucked up scenario to throw onto Adriens already low self esteem what the actual fuck.

Or 2. That Adrien simply takes his father choosing to focus on his "simple" new ring out of all things as a clear "I see nothing else worth noticing in you, so to keep this conversation up I have to grasp at straws so I guess I'll be taking about your new ring".

No matter how one chooses to interpret the moment, it's equally as much of a "fuck you" either way. I know Gabriel could have said worse here, but honestly, the list isn't that long.

So when after this Adrien reacts like this:

It should really not come by any surprise. Although, no, it is kind of surprising. Surprising that Adrien didn't react alot worse than this. What Gabriel just threw at him is like the verbal equivalent of a loved one reaching out for you with a hand so they can caress your cheek but the moment you lean in they follow it up with a punch to the face.

It shows just how well Adrien has his emotions under control and is able to stay level headed under such great offense that THIS is the level of irrationality and anger he expresses after basically being out right disregarded by his own father (which should be of no surprise either, as Chat Noir Adrien has to put up with a whole lot of disrespect as well and there he for literally 95% of the time has to shrug it off as well).

But no matter how bad Gabriels line here was, it has nothing and I mean NOTHING on the awful way Gabriel then decides to react to Adriens appropriate but still very mild response.

Because THIS is the moment that sets up Gabriels betrayal and downfall as both a person and especially as a father. Up to this point Gabriel was a horrible person as well, no question. The entirety of s1 he already worked as Hawkmoth, manipulating people, putting them in great danger and planning the demise of two teenagers with sadistic glee. But still one has to acknowledge the difference in these two situations.

In one Gabriel is hiding in a secret lair, manipulating people he thinks beneath him to do the dirty work for him and fight two anonymous heros he just wants to get rid of to reach his goal. Gabriel is taking so much pleasure out of terrorizing Paris and it's people because he legitimately doesn't give a single fuck about them or holds any kind of personal connection to them either. He never goes outside and is very antisocial so these people and their city mean nothing to him because they ARE nothing to him. His (self chosen) isolation and lifestyle pretty much disconnected Gabriel from real life and a normal way of expressing and receiving human emotions. So when there are no emotional stakes for him personally, he sees no reason to not satisfy his villainous desires as Hawkmoth.

So as odd as it may seem to say, him terrorizing Paris prior to this is not the point of crossing the line for his character. For that it's simply to impersonal.

No, the point of crossing the line happens here with Adrien. With Gabriels character things will always come back to Adrien at its core. Adrien (not Emilie, Natalie or anyone else) is the person Gabriel temporarily truly gave up being Hawkmoth for and Adrien is the one person Gabriel has his most human moments with. Not even in his bonding moments with Natalie does he show the same deep and true (misguided) love and affection as he gets to with Adrien in those rare moments (its close no doubt but something about Gabenath is not as deep and true as this father-son pair and I can't imagine it ever will).

This marks the point of no return for Gabriel because it's the first time he chose to deliberately abandon Adrien in the crossfire and decides to be the villain towards him instead of staying there to talk things out with him. It's the first time Adrien truly had Hawkmoth as his father. And Hawkmoth is Chat Noirs ememy so Gabriel fell into that role without Adrien knowing why.

And there is a solid reason for that.

One of the best things of this show is that no matter how horrible things get between these two, things are always much more complicated than a simple "evil father doesn't love his good son" situation. Gabriel calls Adrien "the image of perfection" in this very episode, that's sure as hell not hate or dislike in any way. That's love, that's adoration. This man ADORES his son. And this is were the deep rooted problem lies.

Gabriel loves and adores his SON. The ideal and perfectly perfect son Adrien could become when Gabriel is done forming him into it by suffocating any "imperfections" with an iron fist. It's just that these "imperfections" are always the characteristics that make Adrien ADRIEN. Gabriel may truly love his son but I'm not even sure if Gabriel even so much as LIKES Adrien himself.

And this is perfectly showcased by Gabriel turning away from Adrien in this very scene here.

Because even though Gabriel literally disrespected, shut down and belittled his son for the entire episode he still came to see and hug his Adrien afterwards because he loves him. But HIS Adrien, the perfectly perfect Adrien Gabriel wants him to be, wasn't the Adrien he met up with in his sons room. Instead he got an Adrien with a ring on his hand that could be Chat Noirs, making him possibly one of the two enemies he's trying to destroy.

Adding salt to the "wound" Adrien even backtalks him in a way that undoubtedly reminded him of Chat as well since Gabriel pointed out Chats temper in this very episode.

So Gabriel was very directly confronted with the possibility that Adrien could INDEED be Chat Noir and that naturally comes with the implications that Adrien deliberately disobeyed Gabriels orders accepting that ring, sabotaging Gabriel reaching his goal and in general doing everything his father DOESN'T want him to do BY CHOICE.

And here Gabriel made the decision that marks the point of no return, setting up the devastatingly horrible way this man is treating and will treat his son in the future.

Because this is the moment Gabriel SHOULD have chosen Adrien over his mission. The sheer possibility, no scratch that, even the SLIGHTEST TRACE of a possibility of Adrien being Chat Noir should have immediately made Gabriel take action to save and protect him. Because it's not like Chat hasn't been constantly in dangerous, life threatening or even situations that ended up in DEATH. If Gabriel would truly love ADRIEN his quest would have ended right here, stopping the upcoming horror this family will face before it could have really begun (hence why this was shown to us in an episode of s1, the season where Hawkmoths identity was still unknown. If Gabriel had stopped here not even WE would have known, leaving Gabriels name untainted of Hawkmoths crimes as the Agreste family finally moves on and Hawkmoth dissappeares as suddenly as he appeared.)

because Adrien and his health and life should not be a price Gabriel is willing to risk paying for his goal.

But Gabriel didn't do that.

Because instead of Adrien Gabriel chose the potential perfectly perfect son he wants and turned his back on the one standing right in front of him. Cuz remember what Gabriels goal IS. He wants to change the past, so non of this ever happened in the first place.

Meaning Gabriel turning his back on our present Adrien doesn't mean that Gabriel outright hates Adrien now by the next second cuz he dared to disobey his orders like that. But it means that Gabriel is choosing to separate these two Adriens in his mind, making endangering, hurting and working against THIS Adrien more of a collateral damage than actually hurting his own son. THAT son, the one Gabriel convinces himself he is fighting for, is waiting for him in the past alongside Emilie.

This separation was probably always there since Gabriel started trying to change the past hence why he justifies Adriens unhappiness and the way he abandones him as necessary sacrifices.

But the real separation started HERE, this marks the first time Gabriel just left Adrien behind in a position of complete and deliberate endangerment, knowing that the possibility of Adrien being Chat is still there but choosing to say: "if he indeed is, then that's an obstacle I will have to overcome."

This separation has been developing slowly but steadily through s2 and 3 right to "Chat Blanc" which tells us the future. Me elaborating on this "separation development" though became longer than I want to put in this post, therefore I will go into more depth about it another time.

So let me continue with this:

Adrien is like... Genuinely not even angry. More deeply sad.

He was appropriately and truly hurt when Gabriel only started talking about the ring but once Gabriel turns around and walks away? He looks after his father but more in a way as if he is waiting to see if Gabriel would actually take so much offense in him backtalking him to legitimately LEAVE like this. And Gabriel does.

Adriens intentions wasnt to make his father leave, When he talked back at him it was more of a hurt call out for Gabriel to say more, SOMETHING ELSE, but not to LEAVE!

Adrien then does something very common for people in a fight who wait for the leaving person to turn around again but have to realize that they hope in vain and the other person actually is done with this moment.

His face and body relaxes, he turns completely to the door and seems to... take it in.

Especially in the way Adrien does it here its like he is processing and accepting that what he thought of his father was wrong. Adrien thought Gabriel cared enough for him that he would want to stay even if he backtalks him for example. Adrien expected a conversation here but now had to realize that his father isn't gonna put up with him at all or their differences in an upfront way if Adrien isn't "behaving right". Gabriel will just cut the moment short and deflect whatever conversation with him he doesn't like.

All in all what Adrien took away from this moment with his father is even if Gabriel may care for him (enough to come and hug him as an apology) this care and affection is tightly bound to the way Adrien himself then reacts. If he reacts in a way Gabriel doesn't like he will very quickly deem Adrien undeserving of his affection and take it (and his entire presence) away again.

The way Adrien looks then at his ring also makes me think that he definitely blames himself for how this moment ended. That he "shouldn't have overreacted" and taken such personal offense by his fathers attempt to reconnect with him even if Gabriel hit one hell of a sore point.

This is of course BS. Even if Adrien wasn't Chat Noir the way Gabriel just straight up deflected the conversation to the ring right after the hug, where one normally starts to explain oneself and truly TALK, would have been seriously hurtful even under non-miraculous circumstances.

But it shows how Adrien by instinct immediately starts to invalidate his own feelings to look for the faults in himself. A self-hurtful coping mechanism that unfortunately only gets deepened as the dynamic between these two continues on.

And lastly it also marks the first time that the ring is truly associated with something bad. Normally (especially so early in the show) the ring stands in association with Adriens freedom and spending more time with people outside, him getting to let loose a little and how he can spend time with the girl he loves. The ring began to loose these positive associations more and more from s2 onward but the first time was here.

It's the object which ruined the moment that could have ended this tragedy before it truly began in both of their eyes and in the viewers. Sure Gabriel being Hawkmoth is the true cause of it and nothing will ever change that but it's Adriens ring, not Gabriels brooch, that sets their separation further in motion. Further as Gabriel initially intended to.

It's the factor Gabriel overlooks Adrien himself for, which is truly brought home by the end scene of "Gorizilla" which serves as a mirror to this one here.

Whereas in "Jackady" Gabriel lost sight of the son right in front of him because of the ring and what its implies, in "Gorizilla" Gabriel thinks he finally received the evidence that Adrien isn't his enemy. So for the first time Gabriel completely disregards the ring, Chat Noir out of his mind, sees ADRIEN for himself and genuinely smiles at him. He can and does make a TRUE attempt at reconnecting!

Which is of course exactly what Adrien wanted for so long, what he hoped Gabriel would do if hes just patient enough with his father. He accepts Gabriels genuine attempt gladly, reassuring his father that he and his efforts are noticed, appreciated and wanted even after everything that happened so they can hopefully go on to a better future.

This is what would have saved this family back in "Jackady" if only Gabriel had chosen the right priority. But as I said before, this moment here happens in s2 after Gabriel crossed the line in Jackady, so this positiv moment can not save them anymore. Both Gabriel and Adrien are already too far in and influenced by their alter egos and the miraculous. So the brief reconnection couldn't last and everything continues to only further fall apart ever since.

And it all began with this beautiful, heartbreaking and tragic moment in "Jackady" these two will never ever be able to truly come back from again.

#miraculous #miraculous ladybug #adrien agreste #Gabriel Agreste #Chat Noir #Cat Noir #Le Papillion #Jackady #Gorizilla #ml scene analysis #one of my favorite scenes #I love everything about this #ml analysis #Family Agreste tragedy #ml sugar #hawkmoth #the beginning of the end for these two

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raendown · 3 years

Link

Fandom: Marvel Pairing: SamBucky Word count: 2070 Rated: T+ Summary: Steve had only just been thinking about how much he missed his best friend when his phone started ringing. Great minds think alike! Except apparently Bucky had meant to call someone else entirely and Steve was not at all prepared for the discovery of this baffling - but adorable - secret.

Follow the link or read it under the cut!

From Where You Are

He may have staunchly denied it every time Tony or Natasha or anyone else teased him for it but Steve knew damn well that he had a - very slight! - penchant for dramatics. Dramatics like slamming an entire plane down in to the icy ocean rather than just turning the damn thing around and flying in circles until Peggy or Howard came up with the latest madcap rescue plan. Yeah. He was a self aware guy. Which meant he knew exactly how much teasing he would get if he so much as dared to open his mouth and complain about life on the run.

Because as well as Steve knew himself, his friends knew him better. He might be lucky to get a whole three words in to his sentence before any of the people he currently had available to listen would guess exactly what he was really complaining about. He missed Bucky. So sue him! He’d already spent seventy years thinking his best friend was dead and then another two knowing he was out there but not exactly all there. Now finally he knew exactly where Bucky was. He knew that Bucky knew exactly who he was. They could be best friends again.

Through video calls only.

Steve clenched his jaw against the urge to close both eyes and whine at the unfairness of it all. Leaving Bucky in Wakanda had been the right choice for everyone but that didn’t mean he had to like it. Could the world maybe stop being so unfair for just five damn minutes? Give a guy a chance to reunite properly with the one thing that had centered the first couple decades of his life? Maybe get a hug or two in while Bucky was only one-armed and half defenseless against a few rounds of proper manly affection? It didn’t sound like too much to ask. Yet here he was sitting up just past midnight trying to calculate time zones to figure out if maybe he could get a quick call in now that Sam and Natasha were falling asleep. If he snuck out on to the balcony he might be able to avoid waking them and therefore avoid the inevitable teasing over his ‘very obvious pining’.

So lost in his own head was he that Steve nearly threw his phone against the wall when it began signing in his hand. It took a slow blink or two for his thoughts to clear enough that he understood no, he had not called Bucky out of rote habit, Bucky was calling him. Score one for that mental best friend bond he’d heard the other two joking about the other day. Steve was smiling as he accepted the call and held it up at an angle he hoped would get his face properly.

“Hey, Buc- oh my god, are you okay?”

Small on the screen and folding in to himself like he was trying to be just as small in person, Bucky’s eyes were wild where they stared somewhat just over top of whatever device he’d used to call from. He took several ragged breaths in and let them all out a little too heavily before he could speak.

“No.”

“I’m here, pal, what’s up?”

“Can you- where’s Sam?”

Steve felt his eyebrows lift up together. “Uh, Sam? Is in the next room. Why?”

A good question, he felt, since in the eight or so months since they had all last been together in Wakanda, Bucky had never once so much as breathed Sam’s name during these scattered video calls. Steve had seen them have maybe two conversations in the palace and both of those had been stilted as hell. Two men dancing around the fact that they’d both tried to kill each other on several occasions. Now here was Bucky jerking his eyes over to look directly at the camera and Steve had never seen him look so haunted before. Which, really, was saying something.

“I want to talk to Sam,” he said, voice quiet, aching with something Steve hadn’t heard before. They had talked about Bucky having nightmares. He’d just never seen one, not even the aftermath. Bucky had been a keep-it-close-to-the-chest guy long before what happened with HYDRA.

“Uh, okay. Sure. He might be asleep but I’ll just- yeah.”

Feeling more than a little confused, he did just that. Stood and marched to the door with a single minded purpose that could only come with being given a mission. Bucky wanted to talk to Sam and he might not understand why but he was going to make that happen even if he had to wake the man up.

Thankfully, he did not have to wake the man up, although if he’d waited even a single full minute longer that might have been the case. Sam hadn’t even taken the time to undress or properly get in to what passed as his bed for tonight. He was still sitting half slumped against the wall on a little nest of blankets, carefully positioned in exactly the opposite corner from Natasha because one simply did not sleep next to a Russian super spy knowing that the slightest disturbance would send her in to full mission mode in less than five seconds. Besides, Sam had laughed when he pointed that out, I’m a serial sleep cuddler and I don’t think that’s a great idea here. Who knows how many knives she’s got under her pillow?

“Sam?” Fond amusement rippled through the layers of worry as Steve watched his friend’s head loll towards him, indolent and exhausted. “Hey, uh, Bucky’s on a call. He wants...to talk to you?” That got a reaction. His eyes cracked open to take in the phone Steve was holding out and his chin lifted faintly in greeting.

“Hey man,” he ground out, voice coarse with near-sleep. “‘Nother nightmare?”

“Can you tell me a story?” Bucky asked.

Steve very nearly dropped the phone. He almost dropped it again when Sam, without any external reaction whatsoever, immediately launched in with, “So you know that guy Dwayne I was telling you about? From homeroom? God, lemme tell you about how stupid this guy is. We’re at prom, right? And there’s this honey he’s had his eyes on for like three months only she went to prom with Harry Murdock- yeah, you know, the quarterback. Fuckin’ quarterbacks, man.”

It was kind of like watching something his own weird dreams might come up with. A sequence of events that made very little sense once you’d woken up and tried to piece it all back together. Sam’s eyes gradually slid closed again but his mouth just kept going like this was all totally normal, like he often spent his nights sitting up and telling Bucky random stories about the other kids he’d gone to highschool with. And on the opposite end of the call Bucky’s face grew less haunted with every word until the panic had drained out of him entirely and his own eyes were sliding down. He must have been using a tablet or laptop because the camera stayed perfectly centered on him even when his head at last fell gently down against his chest.

“-and I mean, yeah, I get what he was going for with the ribbons but fuck, it really just made the whole thing worse. Best night of my entire highschool career gone right down the drain because Harry Murdock was too ashamed to tell his parents he wanted to take me to prom and Lisa Furlow was too good of a friend to tell anyone she was just a beard. Obviously the teachers were mad about the horse being there but- ah. He fall asleep?” It took a second for Steve to realize his friend was asking him a question.

“Yeah. He did.”

“S’good. Good. ‘M gonna too. Night, Steve.” And then he was out too. Sam’s head lolled again, face going slack, and Steve was left standing there with a phone in his hand and several new knots in his chest, all of them shaped like confusion.

Well. That. Had happened. Lifting his hand, Steve watched the live image of his best friend sleeping peacefully, a direct contrast to the shaken man who had reached out for help. Reached out to someone who wasn’t Steve. He’d be lying if he tried to say some part of that didn’t sting but he was a big enough person to recognize that helping Bucky was so much more important than stroking his own ego even if he did still feel like the ground was shaky between them after everything that had happened. Watching the man now, he certainly couldn’t deny that whatever the hell just happened seemed to have helped. Bucky hadn’t looked so at peace since he’d volunteered to go back in to cryo while the Wakandans figured out a way to help him.

Movement from the opposite corner of the room drew Steve’s eye and when he glanced over he found Natasha sitting primly with both eyebrows raised in question. Not having much of an explanation, he could only give her a helpless one-shoulder shrug. They held each others’ gazes in matching confusion for several beats until Steve turned to look back at where Sam lay, asleep and content, slumped against the wall. He was definitely going to wake up to an aching back.

And a whole lot of questions.

Unfortunately for Steve’s overwhelming curiosity, he was still self-aware enough to know he didn’t have the heart to wake Sam, not knowing that it was ultimately his own fault the other man was so tired. If he hadn’t shown up on Sam’s doorstep that day they wouldn’t both be here, on the run from their own country, unable to call home to the people they cared about, worn to the bone from running and fighting and hiding themselves away in whatever dingy hole they found to crash in for a night or two. No, Steve would not be the one to disturb any rest his friend managed to find.

“You gonna hang up some time this century?” Natasha’s voice murmured through the shadows.

“Oh, yeah, I probably should.”

She watched him do so with what was probably an all too obvious reluctance. Then she grinned. “We’re giving him the third degree tomorrow, right?”

“Absolutely.”

“So many questions. I need to know absolutely everything that led to Sam Wilson telling the Winter Soldier bedtime stories. Everything.”

“That was weird, right?” Steve ran a hand through his hair, absently noting a tremble in the fingers. “We should probably get some sleep too. I mean, you try. Don’t think I’ll be able to get any.”

Natasha unfolded herself from the floor with the corners of her mouth curling up in a little smirk he couldn’t bring himself to look away from. “No, I think I’ll be fine. Let’s go get some coffee. We’ll coordinate our plan of attack for when this guy gets back to the land of the living.” She jerked one thumb at Sam’s form and Steve finally had to peel his eyes away just to hold in the laughter that wanted to spill out.

“Alright. Yeah. Coffee. And a plan of attack. Sounds good to me.”

“What was it they called you? The star spangled man with a plan?”

Steve groaned and covered his eyes with the hand not still holding his phone. “Please tell me there’s no surviving footage of me prancing around on stage in tights.”

“Why would I need footage when I get front row seats every time you suit up?” Natasha sauntered away from him, probably - definitely - aware exactly what shade of red she’d just left on his face. Front row seats indeed. He certainly didn’t mind his own front row seat whenever he had the chance and the times Natasha had to join them out here on the run from their own government gave him plenty of chances.

One last look at his phone made him smile before Steve slipped it in to his pocket and gently clapped both hands together, rubbing his palms back and forth. Coffee did sound good. Coffee with Natasha while they figured out exactly how much hell to give Sam over how he was apparently reading bedtime stories for a man he hadn’t said two words about in all the time since they’d left Wakanda. This was going to be fun.

#rae writes #sambucky #winterfalcon #sam #bucky #steve #natasha #fanfiction #mcu #i already have a companion piece almost done...#i did warn y'all to expect more sambucky #the world is not soft and so my writing will be

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writing-of-a-british-bitch · 3 years

Text

Blame Me - Chapter 2

Fandom: The Walking Dead

Specified gender: Female

Word Count: 5.8K

Pairing: Daryl Dixon x reader,

TW: canon typical violence, canon divergence, gore, somewhat major character death (OC), Child death, murder, implied/suggested threat of rape,

Genre: Horror ig?

Series: Blame Me

Requests: CLOSED

Masterlist

A/N: This one is a tad dark, so, uh, get ready. I forgot to clarify last chapter that this series is going to be about 10 chapters, possibly more. Enjoy!

It happened overnight. Well, that was what it felt like. (Y/N) had only been in South Carolina a week, a few days before she was set to return to Georgia. Weird stories started arising on the news, stories of increasing cannibalism, and a weird illness going around. At the time, she and her mum had thought nothing of it. She wished she had paid more attention to it.

The sun was peaking through the windows, and the birds were chirping. It was any other day when it started. She would have never expected anything. (Y/N) rushed down the stairs, smiling as music filtered from the kitchen, blaring her moms' favourite song "Easy Street". Despite her daughters' constant teasing of immaturity, she still loved it. And admittedly, it had grown on her as well. (Y/N) danced into the kitchen, pressing a kiss to her mom's cheek as she passed, and sitting down at the kitchen island.

"Morning, honey," Her mom, Lily, smiled, placing some food on the table for the pair of them. They both sat down, and ate quietly, listening to the birds outside, and the lighthearted music. "So, I was thinking, since you're heading back to Georgia in a few days, maybe you could finally talk to Daryl about coming back up and giving me crossbow lessons," She teased, raising an eyebrow. (Y/N) rolled her eyes playfully and went to respond when a loud scream sounded from outside. They shared a panicked look with each other, eyes widening. before they dashed outside, not even bothering to put shoes on, looking for the cause of the noise.

A gasp escaped her mom when they caught sight of the noise' cause. There was blood everywhere. And some dirty, almost decayed, man with his teeth sunk into Alisha's, her mom's neighbour, arm, pulling flesh and muscles away. Blood all around his mouth, blood all over Alisha, blood on the ground. Blood fucking everywhere. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. Was this what those news reports were blabbing about?

"What the fuck!" She exclaimed, and the guys head moved to look at you, quickly losing interest in Alisha, who fell to the ground, clutching her arm in shock. The blood wouldn't stop flowing. Lily pulled on her arm as the man started stumbling forward towards them, making an awful snarling noise. More neighbours were flocking from their houses, gasping, and running over to help Alisha. One of them, Daniel, she thought his name was, sprinted to this man and tried to pull him back and restrain him, but to her disgust, the guy's arm pulled straight from the elbow, when Daniel tried to pull him away. Daniel froze in disgust, and apparently, that was enough time for the man to take a chunk from his neck.

"(Y/N), c'mon, we need to get out of here!" Lily whispered to her, tugging her again. This time, her daughter allowed her to pull her into the house, her heart pounding in fear, and her eyes still wide. When they were back in the house, she seemed to snap out of it, but her mother knew it would come back to haunt her later. She rushed into motion, grabbing one of the large backpacks from under the stairs, and going to the kitchen, grabbing as much canned food and water she could find. Lily watched her for a second, before following her lead, snatching up food and dashing upstairs to grab them a few spare pair of clothes, as well as one of her picture albums. She knew it wasn't a smart plan and took up space, but if she was leaving this house, she'd be damned if she left this behind. (Y/N) made quick work of raiding the bathrooms of medicine and supplies, as well as grabbing the gun her mother kept for self-defence.

She didn't know what had just happened outside, but the increasing volume of groaning and screams that filled the street told her it was bad. If this was the cannibalism that the news was talking about, she wasn't risking being caught without a weapon. With this thought, she dumped some of the knives in the bag as well and by that point, her bag was full.

A loud bang on the door made (Y/N) jump, and she darted out of the kitchen to lock the door. She glanced out the peephole and saw that same guy banging on the door. Mouth red, and flesh caught between his teeth. His eyes were milky white. There was no way this guy was still alive. Fuck, they had to get out of there. She shoved her feet in her boots, quickly making work of tying the laces. Lily came racing down the stairs and followed her daughter in putting her shoes on, before the pair did a quick look around the house, ensuring they hadn't missed anything. There were two things on (Y/N)'s mind right now. Keeping her mom safe, and getting back to Georgia. Back to Daryl. Georgia was only a three-hour drive - they could get there before midday. Nothing could go wrong, right?

Damn fucking wrong. They got an hour into the drive before getting caught in a complete standstill of traffic. People were rushing out of South Carolina. The air was chaotic with fear, the beeping of the cars, and aggressive shouting from everyone in the traffic. (Y/N) was getting antsy, and she couldn't stop bouncing her foot anxiously. Her mother kept looking at her from the corner of her eye, but (Y/N) hardly noticed. Daryl and Merle had gone on a hunting trip. Did they come back? Are they at home, waiting for her? She doubted it, but what if they were? What if they were in trouble? What if they were already dead? Her panicked line of thought was put to an abrupt stop as her mom reached over and squeezed her knee.

"Those boys of yours are survivors. They keep each other safe. They'll be fine. We'll find them," Lily reassured, eyes skimming over the people who had climbed out of their cars. It was starting to get dark, they'd been there so damn long. If there were more people like the man this morning, being outside at night couldn't be safe. They wouldn't be safe. (Y/N) let out a sigh, putting her hand over her mothers, and giving her a tiny smile.

"I know, I'm sorry. I just worry about them," She replied, biting her cheek. "They may be survivors, but they're damn idiots too."

"Well, I can't lie to you and say that you're wrong," The pair chuckled lightly, ducking their heads. She always made her feel better, even if they were talking about her idiot husband and his dumbass brother. But the calm moment was once again broken as the sound of gunshots broke through the air. Their heads shot up and saw a woman fighting off another one of those decaying motherfuckers.

Shit.

As soon as the woman went down a second later, (Y/N) shot from the car. There was no saving that poor woman now, not with the decaying thing's fingers wormed into her stomach, ripping out intestines. Her stomach churned, and she heard her mom open the car door and throw up onto the road. They couldn't stay here either. It was time to go.

"Mom, grab a bag and get off the road," She hissed out instructions once her mom was done emptying her stomach, as chaos broke out around them. Her mom nodded almost instantly and followed her instructions without defiance, and (Y/N) followed suit, but while her mom ran to the tree line, she was stopped dead in her tracks. She was vaguely aware of Lily calling her name, but she couldn't take her eyes off the sight in front of her. The woman who had been dead on the floor a minute ago was up and walking. Her stomach was spilling out, blood still flowing from the wound, but she was walking. Movement slug-like and staggering, but moving nonetheless. Her eyes. Milky white. How the hell?

Some stranger grabbed her elbow, pulling her back. While she had been stuck like a stick in the mud, the dead woman had gotten close. Close enough that (Y/N) could hear the noise her teeth made as they clashed together. The stranger, pushed her behind him, before using a knife to stab this woman in the head. He was talking to someone on the other side of her. When had they gotten there?

"What the hell! You killed that woman!" The person said, but it was muffled like she was underwater. She could feel someone touching her back, but the touch felt familiar. Her mom.

"She was already dead, Danica! We've got to get these two out of here!" Her 'saviour' snapped back, pulling the bag off (Y/N)'s back and shoving it on her own. Slowly, their words grew more clear, but so did the crying, screaming and snarling. Her head looked over to her mom, who had a panicked look in her eyes, but showed more relief when she finally looked over.

"Are you okay, honey?" Lily asked, fear making her voice tremble. Her daughter paused but nodded. She gave her a reassuring smile before Danica narrowed her eyes at them, and giving them a slight shove further into the trees.

"Let's go, unless you guys want to become zombie dinner," She snarled, and her companion (brother, boyfriend? who knows) glared at her. She stormed ahead, her buddy following after her. (Y/N) looked over at her mom and raised her eyebrows.

"Well, isn't she just a peach?" She whispered a mischievous look in her eye and Lily choked out a hushed laugh before the women followed after the couple. They didn't know if they could trust them, but hell, what other choice did they have?

It had been months. The walk from South Carolina to Atlanta was only meant to take 3 days, but as always shit happens. They were a few miles out from Atlanta, but they'd learnt from another member of their group that Atlanta belonged to the dead now. (Y/N) and her mom was still with Danica and Ben (as she'd found out his name was). They were non-identical twins, and while Danica was sometimes a pain in the ass, they all took care of each other. (Y/N) couldn't deny that she'd never been more glad she married a hunter, who'd taught her more than a few things. She kept them fed, so they didn't need to use as many cans of food, and she'd even managed to teach her mom a thing or two. A few days after the highway traffic, they met up with some more people too, and they'd joined their merry band. A married couple, Andrew and Oliver, and their daughter Anna, and an ex-military soldier, Kai. Kai and (Y/N) had become the unofficial leaders of the group, which seemed to get under Danica's skin, and they'd made a little camp in an old service station they'd found while on their way to Georgia. It had been pretty much untouched, and they'd found a shit ton of food, medicine, and even some ammo behind the cash register. Andrew and Danica were the people who went scavaging went they were running low, while Ben and Lily helped take care of Anna, along with Oliver of course.

(Y/N) hadn't wanted to stay for so long. If she were on her own, she probably would have left the group by now, and would already have been in Georgia months ago. Maybe she would have found the rest of her family by now. Her stupid, bigotted brother in law, who was amazing at running his mouth, and her man. Her stupid husband would always put her and his brother before himself. She just wanted to see him again. Just one last time, if that was all she could get. But she couldn't take off. Not without her mom. And she wouldn't leave a little girl. (Y/N) honestly didn't think she could either.

"What're ya thinkin' about, Dixon?" Kai asked as they come to sit beside her on the roof. It was her turn on watch, and she couldn't help but notice that the number of snarlers that had come through the trees was getting higher and higher every day. She and Kai had become good friends, though it was what you'd expect after spending months with them, planning almost everything together. They were kind, and actually listened to what the group had to say, but also knew when they should step in. It was refreshing to see Danica getting put in her place every once in a while. a

"Nothing much. How's Anna doing? Has that fever gone down?" (Y/N) asked, glancing over at them, and they let out a heavy sigh, shaking their head. Anna had caught a cold or something a week or so again, and it was only getting worse and worse. She was a sweet kid, and Andrew and Oliver were worried sick. Everyone was working ten times harder to take their jobs, so they could be by their daughters' side. But she wasn't getting better, and the medicine was starting to run out.

"Her fever is higher than before. She was throwin' up blood this morning. I hate to say it, but I think she ain't gonna make it. We've scavenged every house and buildin' near here and there ain't no medicine left. We're runnin' low, and a few more days and it'll all be gone. It's gonna ruin Andrew and Oliver," They answered, running a hand over their face. (Y/N) looked over to them, and she couldn't help but notice the bags under their eyes. They were exhausted. But, she supposed she probably didn't look much better. Her mom kept fretting over how skinny she was. But the apocalypse didn't exactly result in the healthiest figure.

"Well, if, or when, it happens, the only thing we can do is be there for them. Make sure they don't fall in on each other," There was a heavy pause, and Kai took the rifle from her hands, signifying it was their turn on guard, but she didn't move. "We can't stay here much longer, Kai. The snarlers in Atlanta are running out of food, and they're starting to venture further out to find it. We've had more snarlers today than we had all of last week. It's not gonna be safe here for much longer."

"Believe me I know. But until Anna gets better, or until she-she goes... we can't go nowhere," Kai's voice shook slightly, but their shoulders soon tensed when a tree bristled, and out came three snarlers. "Shit."

Thank god they were a good shot, otherwise the group would have lost way too many bullets by now. The snarlers went down quickly, and Kai relaxed again and they let out a sigh but shot (Y/N) a bright smile, that didn't quite reach their eyes.

"So, ya know what I did before snarlers took over, but I don't know shit about ya. C'mon, it's nostalgia hour," Kai joked, nudging her, to which she rolled her eyes playfully and nudged back.

"I didn't do much. Just another 9 to 5 job. Nothing interesting. My life was good though, despite it all," (Y/N) answered, chuckling slightly. Kai raised their eyebrows, then nodded towards her ring, which she'd started spinning around absentmindedly.

"What was he like?"

"Without sounding cliche, he was the best thing that ever happened to me. Daryl was one of those guys that people were scared of, and who could look scary, especially with my brother-in-law, Merle, by his side. But he was sweet. He liked to pretend he was made of stone but, he did pretty much anything I wanted. Hell, he didn't even want a wedding. He just wanted to go and get it registered, get some rings and be done with it. But he remembered me telling him that I dreamt of getting married as a kid, and suggested having a small one. And it was small; Merle, my mom, some of my friends and one of Merle's biker buddies. But it was perfect," Kai smiled at her, seeing the adoration in her eyes. They didn't think they'd seen her this happy for the whole time they'd been together.

"Merle used to make these dumb videos of us when he found this video recorder. He'd film us all the damn time because he knew it pissed Daryl off. When we were on a hunt, in the kitchen when we were cooking, even if we were just walking around the house. I, um, I was going to visit mom, and he and Merle were going on a two-week hunt. Gave him the recorder so he 'wouldn't forget me. Then, the world went to shit. Mom and I came from South Carolina back down here to find him," Her face fell further as she got into the story and Kai put a hand on her arm and squeezed.

"I hope ya find him. He seems like a great guy," Their eyes flicked over as the squeaking of the roof's latch told them someone was coming up. There was Lily, face sombre and eyes sad.

"(Y/N), Andrew and Oliver want to talk to you. Ben is coming up to sit with Kai," She said, and (Y/N) knew it wasn't going to be good. She didn't say anything, just got up and went through the hatch, climbing down into the service station.

Andrew had tears going down his cheeks, holding Anna to his chest as she coughed and sneezed, looking deathly pale. Oliver looked like he was barely holding it together as he pulled her to one side. Danica was sat next to Andrew, trying to comfort the pair.

"She's coughing up more and more blood. We're running out of options and time and me and Andrew we want-"His voice hitched, and his eyes filled with tears. She rest a hand on his shoulder, telling him to take his time and he took a deep breath. "We know she's not going to get better. We-we want to take care of her so she doesn't turn. So she doesn't have to suffer."

(Y/N) eyes softened, and she tilted her head to look at Anna and Andrew. Anna was dying. Everyone knew it. She was such an energetic kid, but for the past few weeks, she'd been drained and quiet. Normally, she'd be pestering Ben or Kai and asking to play games, filling the air with questions and laughter. It had been quiet. Too quiet.

"I'm so sorry, Oliver. Is there anything I can do?" (Y/N) whispered. Oliver was quiet before yanking her forward and into a hug. He clung to her like she was the last thing on Earth. He needed this.

"I know it's a lot to ask, but we know neither of us could do it. I- We'd like to know if you could. I know we have no right to ask. But she adores you. And you're the one we trust with our little girl. Please, we're begging you. Don't make her suffer," He was sobbing by that point, tears seeping through her clothes and onto her shoulder. She felt for them, she really did. She wished she could have saved Anna. But if this was what they wanted, they knew what was best.

"Of course. Of course, I will. You shouldn't have to go through that, either of you," She stated simply, squeezing him tightly, and not pulling back until he let go. Oliver scurried to wipe his eyes, not noticing the hard look Danica was giving him. She'd deal with her later.

"Could we, uh, possibly wait until tomorrow morning? Or even late tonight if tomorrow is too much to ask? We just want to say goodbye to her. Spend as much time with her as we can," He wasn't asking anymore. He was begging. He was desperate. She only nodded. The look in his eyes only read gratitude as he left to sit with his family. Danica stood up as Oliver came over, glare fixed on (Y/N). She grabbed her arm, but not in the kind way that Kai had previously. it was bruising and painful as she tugged her to the back of the store.

"What the hell are you thinking? Anna could survive!" Danica snarled, getting a little too close for comfort. (Y/N) took a step back, and glared at her, with pissed off eyes.

"Look, Danica, I know it's hard, but this isn't my decision. It's what Andrew and Oliver want," She shot back, glancing over as Ben came down the ladder from the roof, wandering over.

"What's going on?" He questioned, softly, coming to stand by his sister.

"She's going to kill Anna!" She barked, looking up to Ben with a dark look. (Y/N) stepped forward again, and stood in front of Danica, grabbing the front of her shirt. She was at the end of her fucking tether with this damn woman

"You listen to me, and you listen well. That little girl over there is dying. She's been in pain and dying for two weeks now. Her fathers are struggling and they can see there are two options here. Either we keep giving her medicine and using up our supplies, and continuing to let her suffer. Or, we put her out of her misery. Quick and painless, and she doesn't have to live like this anymore. Now her dads have chosen the latter option, and who the hell are you, or I to argue with that? So you keep your fucking mouth shut and trust her own fathers to make this decision. It's not in your hands," Ben's eyebrows shot up, looking between her and his sister, not sure who he should side with, so he stayed quiet, watching as the two women stared each other down before Danica shoved her off and stormed over to the cash register. Ben hesitantly trailed after her, shooting (Y/N) an apologetic look.

Lily was running her fingers through (Y/N)'s hair, humming quietly. It was something she did when her daughter was a kid to soothe her. Her head was resting in her lap and Kai was sat next to them, fast asleep. (Y/N) wasn't asleep but with how still she was being, she might as well have been.

"Ma?"

"Yes, love?" Her fingers were working her hair into a tiny braid and with the small amount of moonlight that shone through, she watched as her daughter's eyes opened.

"Am I doing the right thing? With Anna? Do you think the groups going to hate me for it?" There was a pause, where Lily could tell (Y/N) was about to continue "Do you think Daryl would hate me for it?"

"Oh, honey. Andrew and Oliver would never have asked you to do this if they didn't think this was right," she whispered and looked over to the family, curled around their daughter as her rattled breaths shook the air. "The rest of the group understands. Well, maybe not Danica, but we both know she isn't exactly your best friend regardless of what you do."

"And Daryl?" (Y/N) questioned, and Lily glanced at her. She was finding it harder and harder to be vulnerable, and she could see her daughter was losing herself. Losing who she was. Losing the joy. One of the only things that was keeping her going was Daryl, and she didn't know what would happen if that hope were to be destroyed. She was finding it hard to vulnerable and only Lily and Kai got to see that side of her, even if it was rare.

"Daryl could never be ashamed of you. You know him better than anyone, but I know him pretty damn well. He knows you wouldn't do anything like this unless you had to. He loves you," She stroked her cheek, and she saw a bright but reluctant smile rise on her cheeks. But it seems they could never have a calm moment. A snarl filled the air, but no one could respond before Oliver's scream followed through. (Y/N), Ben and Kai were immediately up and Andrew's scream of pain and fear soon accompanied. Fuck

"Did you guys see all that smoke earlier? Looked like it was coming from the old prison a few miles down the road," Ben inquired meekly, watching the fire flicker and dance. He was perched on a log beside Kai, while Lily, (Y/N) and Andrew sat on the floor. No one said anything. No one really said much anymore, unless it was necessary. Everyone was hurting too much. Ben was the only one who tried to keep the group alive, in more ways than just survival.

"Does it matter?" Andrew asked flatly, not even bothering to hide his annoyed look. Lily nudged him with a noise of discontent. Kai huffed, turning their head to look at Ben.

"If it was the prison, and someone was seekin' refuge there, I pity the poor bastards," Was their comment before turning back to the fire. Ben's shoulders slumped looking deflated.

"Where should we go next?" (Y/N) asked, trying to ease poor Ben's rejection. All heads looked to her, surprised she said anything. Out of them all, she was, unexpectedly the one who has spoken the least. It was her fault they were gone. Oliver and Andrew had trusted her to take care of Anna, and she'd made the stupid decision of waiting until the morning when she should have known Anna wouldn't have lasted until the morning. She knew Andrew held it against her. She tried to do the good thing and she got Oliver and Danica killed. Fuck, she didn't know how much longer she could do this. Kai cleared their throat.

"Well, I was thinkin' we should start headin' up. I mean, there clearly ain't nothin' left in Georgia. Nothin' worth our time, anyways. Now, I know y'all said South Carolina had gone to shit, but what about further up, like Washington or something. They got a shit ton of medical facilities and research centres up there. I'm willin' to bet it's our best shot. We got nothin' to lose," Kai explained quietly, head perking up slightly as the branches nearby rustled.

"What's the point?" Andrew grumbled, aggressively stabbing his knife into the ground next to him.

"We could find someplace safe, even if we don't find a research centre. A refuge, or a sanctuary. People are bound to have started them. We can't be the only people left in the whole of America," Ben's optimism was starting to get on everyone's nerves but this time, (Y/N) couldn't help but appreciate it. Maybe Daryl had the same idea. Maybe him, or maybe his group (would he even be in a group?) were already up there.

"But, Washington? That's a nine-hour drive, pre-apocalypse when we could easily get gas. Is there any promise we'd even get there?" Lily piped up, knowing she had to be the rational one, even if her daughter was already dreaming about it. Andrew opened his mouth to leave a snarky comment when there was a click, and (Y/N) stiffened at the feeling of hard metal behind her head. The whole group went stiff, panicked eyes watching behind her intently.

"There ain't no promise at all missy," A gruff voice spoke from behind her. She closed her eyes for a second, trying to calm her breathing down. It was okay. She was okay.

"Hey, look, we don't want any trouble," She declared, trying not to let the confidence in her voice tremble. A sinister chuckle sounded as more rustling was heard, before more men, at least 12 or 13 surrounded the group.

"Neither do we. Just hand over all your supplies, and we'll be on our merry way."

"But, we'll die!" Ben exclaimed, looking terrified. She narrowed her eyes at him, telling him to shut up, before locking eyes with Kai, who quietly shushed him.

"Ho, ho, boys! I think I found the leaders first try! Well, I say leaders, but there's only ever one really in charge, no matter how much they both claim to be," The man with a gun to her head climbed around and knelt in front of her, so (Y/N) was staring right down the barrel of the gun. He was old, and he looked disgusting, blood and grime mixed into his overgrown teeth. No one really looked good any more, what with the lack of clean water, but he had a dark look in his eye, and a wicked smile on his lips, yellow teeth shining at her. "So, who is it?"

Kai gave her a look, clearly telling her not to do anything rash. But she'd be damned if she didn't try to save her friends.

"Me, I'm in charge. And I say you can't have our supplies," She said, holding the man's amused gaze. He dropped his head, laughing bitterly, before raising his gun and shooting Kai, right between the eyes. "No!"

She lunged forward but two of the men held her back as the rest of her group made varying noises of grief, shock or fear.

"No! No! Let go of me, you motherfuckers!" She growled, not hiding her panic or the anger that was bubbling up inside of her. Lily had started crying as soon as the gun went off, and she couldn't bear to see her mom like that. " Okay! You win! Take it all! Please, just take it!"

"Hmm, well if you'd listened to me the first time around, maybe your little friend over there would have survived. But because of your stubbornness, your friend is dead. And now, the deal no longer stands. Boys, you know what do to do," He grinned, as his men stalked forwards, becoming more visible with the early light of dawn. They started raiding their belongings, taking their guns, food, water. Anything they could take.

"Boss!" One of the guys' goons pulled out the photo album her mom had brought, holding it up and the man in front of her snatched it but still keeping his gun trained on (Y/N).

"Well, is this baby you? Weren't you just a cutie! And oh, what's this?" He was flicking through the pages, stopping near the end and twisting it about, so she could see. It was (Y/N) and Daryl on their wedding day, grinning at the camera. Her eyes hardened, her heart aching at the thought of Daryl being used against her. "Hell, you're a married woman! What a damn shame. The things I would have done to you."

Andrew was glaring at the men, under those thick ginger eyebrows, but Lily and Ben were trembling. They were frightened, but (Y/N) was trying to promise using only her eyes that she'd keep them safe. She didn't know what she'd do if she couldn't.

"Well, I'll be virtuous, and let you keep this since you don't have the real things anymore. Count that as a favour," He grinned, and she went to ask what he meant before the men holding her tightened their grip.

One of the other men took a knife to the side of Ben's head and he fell forward, lifeless eyes staring back at her. Next, they took Andrew, and hell if he didn't go out fighting. Tears were streaming down (Y/N)'s cheeks as she cried out in fury and anguish, begging them to stop. Andrew kept swearing and spitting, and he even managed to get a good punch in before they shot him, point-blank. He'd had nothing to lose. He got to be with his family now. Finally, they grabbed Lily's hair, and (Y/N) had never fought so hard in her life, swearing at them and sending death threats their way. Lily kept talking and talking, never taking her eyes away from her daughters even as they brought a knife to her throat.

"Please honey, this isn't your fault. Find Daryl. Find him. I love you, I love you, I love you, I lov-"

A quick slice was all it took, and she let out a cry that left her throat burning and definitely alerted every snarler for miles around. She could hardly get a breath in, she was sobbing so hard, hiccups taking her throat. The men just laughed, shoving the bag of spare clothes and photos at (Y/N) as they let her go, the bag void of anything other than that besides a half-full water bottle, a knife and a can of beans.

"See, we've left you stuff to survive, so really you should be thankin' us. Appreciate the gifts you've given us darlin'. You've been a real treat. C'mon boys, let's move."

She didn't know how long she was frozen in place. How long she sat there, begging her mind to wake up. To take her back to the gas station. If she just kept pinching then maybe she'd wake up to Lily's fingers in her hair. Her tender motherly touches that no one else could possess. Maybe she'd wake up to her and Daryl stood at the aisle, her mother grinning up at her.

But that's it. It was a nightmare. This was real. She was alone. She didn't get to wake up from this. She got reminded of that as a snarling rose from next to her as Lily's milky white eyes. She knew that when she had to put a knife into her own mother's brain because that damn group wanted her to suffer. (Y/N) felt anger coursing up her spine, filling her every atom. Every part of her was burning up, and she didn't know how to control it. So she glared at the dying fire and picked up the backpack. She used her fingers to close her mother's eyes, before fishing the knife out and bringing it to her side. She walked and walked, and she didn't look back.

'Terminus. Sanctuary For All. Those Who Arrive, Survive' read the sign as (Y/N) crept closer. Her bag was heavy with food she'd gotten lucky with when scavenging. It didn't sound right. It sounded too good. Maybe Andrew had been right. What was the point?

Daryl. Daryl was the point. Maybe she could follow those tracks. Maybe she'd find Terminus. Restock, spend a few days there to get better, then head to Washington. Wasn't like she had much of a choice otherwise. Besides, maybe she wasn't wrong and Terminus was true to its word. Or maybe she was right. What did she have to lose?

TAGS: OPEN

Tags (for this series): @graniairish @fuseburner @gloomystorm @bxxbxy

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merryfortune · 3 years

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Day 6

Social Interactionism 2021

Day 6: “I’d like to formally propose that you hug me.”

Event: @hugsaku

Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh! Vrains

Ship: Aoi/Go/Yusaku

Word Count: 1.4k

Tags: Post Canon, Canon Compliant, Fluff with a Little Bit of Angst

AN: Big thank you to Serry for hosting Hugsaku, thank you so much, I’ve really enjoyed participating <333

“Bye, bye, Shima, see you tomorrow.” Aoi said.

Naoki scratched the back of his head and laughed, “Yeah, see you two Duel Club slackers tomorrow.”

Yusaku exhaled funnily hearing the slight hypocrisy in that statement but he waved goodbye to Naoki as well, who was no doubt thinking to himself how unfortunate it was that he didn’t live in that general direction like they did. Then, they could be a real trio going to and from school. Although, what he didn’t know was that Aoi didn’t live in that direction either, but she did have plans with the hot dog van. Plans involving hopefully reviving Aqua but that was getting ahead of things.

As a pair, Yusaku and Aoi shuffled along. It was getting a bit late, the skyline was dyeing orange with the evening as they walked in silence to the park. It was a comfortable silence, however, as they were both introverts and both knew that if any developments had happened during the day, then they would have much to talk about later, so it was best to save their breath.

Or, at least, that was the unspoken agreement before they happened along upon an unexpected encounter.

They were close to the park now, having walked for about fifteen, maybe twenty, minutes and there were a fair few people fanned out along the paths and such. The old man under a tree, reading a book; the mother pushing along a stroller with groceries tucked under the carriage; and the office lady with a reusable cup of coffee in one hand and her smartphone in the other. A whole host of people and with mild interest, Aoi and Yusaku observed just one: the runner in a dark navy hoodie who was up against the iron fence, catching his breath.

He pushed off against the fence with his two fists tucked in and his shoulders square. He was ready for another round of long-distance running, it seemed, as his pace was staunch and somewhat slow. He passed by Aoi and Yusaku by a shoulder and out of curiosity, both of them flicked their gazes up to him and they met his eyes. Heavy set, a steel blue. He blinked.

“Onizuka Go.” Aoi gasped with recognition.

He let go of the tension in his muscles that kept him tight and compact, ready to run and run for miles. He looked at them both, tentatively confused but had the courtesy to bring his hood down even though he liked to keep his eyes on the prize like a racehorse in blinders.

“Do I know…?” he murmured before his eyes glistened. He recognised them back. Well, at least one of them. “You… Your Zaizen’s sister.” He turned his head to Yusaku and studied him closer. There was something familiar about him but he couldn’t place it and Yusaku, instinctively, shied away from the attention, all but scurrying to hide his identity – or, in this case, identities given it was Go. “And… do I know you?” he asked. “Like, from way, way back?”

“Sort of…” Yusaku mumbled.

Aoi glanced at him and Yusaku nodded awkwardly. “It’s good to meet you properly, Onizuka, it’s been a while.”

“Y-Yeah,” he said, “and we never got that match, huh, Blue Angel?”

“Yes, that is a shame.” Aoi said.

Go rubbed the back of his neck, “I know I just had a breather, but I’m thinking we should sit down, maybe?”

“I’d like that.” Yusaku piped up.

They looked around and found an unoccupied garden bench in the park, in the shade of some trees. They sat, with not much space amongst them, with Yusaku in the middle, of all places. He felt just a little bit claustrophobic between them but did his best to withstand that middling pressure.

Looking up at Go, even just in stolen glances, it was heartening to see that he had put some of his lost weight back on. He wasn’t quite as showstopping muscular as he once was but he had padded out to what looked good and healthy on him.

He sat with his hands in his lap, twiddling his thumbs, and he looked at Yusaku, “So, you a fan?” he asked.

“Kind of.” Yusaku replied. “My name is Fujiki Yusaku, but you might know me better as Playmaker.”

Go’s eyes widened. He didn’t believe it – or maybe he didn’t want to believe it.

“And just as I’m Blue Angel, as you know, I’m Blue Girl and Blue Maiden as well, but maybe you already knew.” Aoi added, she did her best to not sound wracked with surprise as she hadn’t been expecting Yusaku’s easy admission of his other self.

“N-No, I believe it.” Go said but it seemed more to Yusaku than to Aoi.

“I figure, since we have this chance to talk, you deserved to know.” Yusaku said.

“Thanks.” Go said because he wasn’t sure what else to say.

He hadn’t been expecting that Playmaker would be some gawky, awkward kid but it made sense to him that such a stoic person might be stoic because he was socially graceless more so than hardened and intense like a criminal.

“No, I should be thanking you.” Yusaku said, feeling a little bit stronger and certain with what he wanted to use this opportunity for. “Or,” he added, “I should be apologising to you. But maybe both. I think both works so I’ll start with thank you. Thank you for trying your best to defend the Link VRAINS from the Knights of Hanoi. I was distraught when you were defeated by Revolver, admittedly, because I didn’t want to see you get hurt.”

“Playmaker…” Go breathed.

Yusaku prickled. “I was scared. I tried pushing you – you and Aoi – away because I didn’t want to see you get hurt but that’s the thing about bonds, connections… even if you try your hardest to sever them all, push people away first, it just magnetises you to them all the more.”

Go laughed. He tried not to sound bitter, but he did just a touch. He supposed that that was exactly what happened. He was pushed away by losing to Playmaker, by feeling unacknowledged by him, but that just made him go full throttle which in turn caused him to combust. But his laughter turned into a quiet smile.

“I realise this doesn’t change the past but its how I felt – and continue to feel.” Yusaku said. He glanced at Aoi. “I don’t want you to feel left out, I’m sorry and thankful for you as well.” He told her.

“It’s okay.” Aoi replied.

“So, what now?” Go asked. “I still have a lot of my work-out routine to get through, sure you two have to hurry on along. But we should catch some up some more.”

“Y-Yeah,” Yusaku stuttered out, words clogging in his throat only to turn into an awkward deluge, “but before you go, I formally propose that you should hug me.”

Go laughed again. Playmaker was cute. His stoicism truly did not come from cruelty but from a place of hurt and awkwardness. Knowing that, his memories of their duel and other encounters made more sense to him in this new frame of context. His laughter was full-bellied and strong; Yusaku’s mouth twitched and then, without seemingly no warning, Go obliged.

His arm flung up and then hooked around Yusaku with an energetic voracity. Go pulled Yusaku in close, to the crook of him and Aoi watched with a giggle. Yusaku stiffened as he had never been hugged quite so exuberantly before and Go grinned.

“To better futures and all that, eh?” Go reckoned.

Yusaku smiled as he put his hand on Go’s thick forearm, “Y-Yeah, something like that.” He said. “I’d really like to duel you again.”

“I’d like that as well – oh and, Blue Angel, you get in here too, don’t want you feeling left out, we never got our Charisma match after all.” Go bellowed in good nature.

“T-True, we never did.” Aoi agreed but she inclined to Go’s invitation.

She leaned in on Yusaku, almost skittish, and hugged him from his other side. She put her hands on his shoulder and nuzzled in. Yusaku breathed with difficulty in the lock of Go’s arm but it was as strangely nice as it was overbearing. He smiled with hopeful thoughts.

#hugsaku #hugsaku2021 #yugioh vrains #vrains #yugioh #fujiki yusaku #aoi zaizen #onizuka go #writing tag #social interactionism #social interactionism 2021 #this is intended to be shippy but im not bothered enough to tag it as such since there's no ship name

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actress4him · 4 years

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Whumptober 2020 - Day 9

I've gotten multiple requests (and one threat) for a part 2 of the previous chapter, and since I did enjoy writing that AU and already had somewhat of an idea of how it would continue in my head, I'm gonna try to write one. I'm currently writing Day 23, which means I have several prompt days left I can try to stick it in. If that doesn't work, I'll either do a bonus chapter at the end, or repost that fic separately with the second part added.

This one's definitely another dark one. I may have gotten slightly carried away with the whump. So make sure you check the warnings before you read! There's a lot of them! I also may have gotten slightly carried away with the syntax of these aliens...haha. We've got a little bit of Shiro in here, but mainly it's Red who gets her turn in the spotlight with Keith.

Read on AO3

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Day 9 - “Take Me Instead”/Ritual Sacrifice

Fandom: Voltron: Legendary Defender

Warnings: human sacrifice, alien religion, a little bit of fantastic racism, non- consensual drug use, lots of non-consensual touching (not sexual), death mention, forced stripping (not sexual), nudity (not sexual), very vague references to child abuse if you squint, drowning, fire, burns, wrist cutting (not self-harm), blood, wishing for death (not actual suicide ideation)

Of all possible ways to be woken up, the sound of Shiro struggling to breathe was certainly not one of Keith’s favorites. He was on his feet the moment his groggy brain realized what he was hearing, but was immediately put into the same headlock that he could see his roommate for the night in. It wasn’t often that someone could get the jump on either one of them. Keith was going to blame the fact that the cowards had struck while they were asleep.

The cowards, in this case, were the Luktorians, a race that had seemed perfectly nice up until this moment. A bit odd, perhaps, and difficult to understand - Lance kept insisting they sounded like drunk Yoda - but peaceful. They had rather human-looking faces, offset by the various shades of blue skin they sported and the fact that they had impossibly long and skinny necks and four arms. It was those four arms that held him in place now, one around his neck, one across his chest and shoulders, and two latched onto his wrists.

“Shh. You Paladin calm yourself must. Harm no mean we you.”

“If you don’t mean us harm, then why are you attacking us in our sleep?” Keith growled.

The alien holding Shiro spoke up. “Need only have we of him. Sleep may you.”

“I don’t think so.” Keith attempted to lunge forward, but made it nowhere. “What do you need him for? You’re not taking anybody anywhere without some answers!”

A slight smile came over the pale blue alien’s face. “Come have you at a time perfect. The night tonight of the sacrifice great is.”

Keith’s brain stuck on one word out of that gibberish. “Wait, sacrifice? What do you mean, what sacrifice?”

The Luktorian behind him bent his long neck forward to look him in the face. “A sacrifice it is for enemies our protection from. Away keeps the Galra the goddess great and harm us others who would.”

“Okay, we can understand that,” Shiro finally broke in, though he seemed to still be struggling with the arm that was around his throat. “But, uh...that’s what Voltron is here to do. Right? We’re making an alliance with your people so that we can keep the Galra away. S-so...maybe you don’t need a sacrifice this time.”

A stormy look came over both the alien’s faces. “Claim do you the goddess great with equal to be?”

“N-no, no, that’s not what I was saying.” Keith was glad that Shiro knew at all what they were accusing, because he was lost, himself. “I’m just...thinking that perhaps your goddess is the one who brought us here. Perhaps she’s already protecting you, using Voltron.”

They seemed to consider this for a moment, and Keith held his breath. “Perhaps,” one answered at last. “Must make we if so the goddess great a sacrifice to thank.”

Keith let out a groan. There didn’t seem to be any way they were getting out of this one easily. But they still hadn’t actually heard what this sacrifice actually entailed, so maybe there was hope yet, though based on the late night choke hold he wasn’t counting on it.

Shiro seemed to be on the same train of thought. “So, um...what exactly do you need us...me...to do? How can I help?”

His captor smiled again, and Keith decided he did not like that look at all. “Quietly must come you prepared the altar for to be. Short running time is.”

Shiro paled visibly even in the dim lighting. “Right. So...I’m the sacrifice.”

Keith lunged again. “No! You’re not sacrificing him, I won’t let you!”

The Luktorian tipped his head to the side and regarded him as if he was a child. “Warrior strong the Paladin Black is and ties to the Galra has close. A candidate perfect is he.”

As Keith continued to struggle, Shiro did his best to lock eyes with him. “Keith, it’s okay. We’ll...we’ll figure this out, it’ll be okay.”

“No, it’s not okay, Shiro!” He had one more thing to try. It was a long shot, and Shiro would hate him for it, but he had to try. “Listen. You want somebody with close ties to the Galra? Then take me.”

“Keith, no!”

He ignored the interruption and made direct eye contact with Shiro’s captor. “Shiro...the Black Paladin...has been hurt by the Galra just as much as your people have, maybe more. His ties to the Galra are like yours. But me…” He sucked in as deep a breath as he could. “I’m part Galra. I’m a warrior, too, and you can’t get any closer to the Galra than me without sacrificing a pure-blooded one. Take me.”

Silence fell as everyone stared at him. Keith stubbornly refused to meet Shiro’s gaze, not wanting to see the pain that would be there.

“The truth think you do tells he?”

“Mm, think I does he.”

A definitive nod. “The sacrifice be then shall the Paladin Red.”

Now it was Shiro’s turn to struggle and lunge. “No! No, I’ll do it, I’ll go with you! I’ll be your sacrifice, okay? Just leave him here, leave him alone!”

Keith gave him a tight half-smile. “It’s okay. It’ll be fine.”

The pale blue alien released his one arm from Shiro’s shoulders so that he could reach into his pocket and pull out a small vial. Popping it open with his thumb, he poured the powdery substance over his captive’s head. “Sleep.”

Immediately Shiro’s eyes dropped shut and his chin slammed into his chest. The Luktorian deposited him gently back onto his bed and threw the blanket back over his legs. “Wake not the others and he will morning until.”

Keith clenched his teeth. Guess that rules out the possibility of screaming and alerting everyone out in the hall.

The royal blue alien holding him moved his top two hands down to grip his upper arms, finally leaving his neck free. “Come. Prepare the altar you for must we. Fight or your mind change not do or back come will we the Paladin Black for.”

Right. Cooperate or lose Shiro. There wasn’t even a debate to be had. He would always, always protect Shiro anytime he had the chance. He was his brother, in everything but blood or law, and he had already been through far too much for someone so young. Don’t you think you dying will be hard for him? He quickly pushed that thought aside. Yes, it would, but not as much as suffering at the hands of more aliens would. Besides, the team needed its leader a lot more than it needed its hotheaded half-breed.

Keith didn’t pay very much attention to their trip through the many intersecting hallways, lost in his head. He only became aware of his surroundings again when they entered a long, narrow room that was lit by torches along the walls and smelled very strongly of something perfumy and definitely not from Earth. Several other Luktorians, all dressed in the same simple white shifts, stood with their hands clasped in front of them, waiting.

His escorts wasted no time in handing him over, holding a brief, whispered conversation with a periwinkle-skinned female before exiting. Periwinkle clapped her hands, and the two that now held his arms, Grey Blue and Sky Blue, pulled him further into the room. He wanted to resist. He wanted to fight and kick and bite and spit so, so badly. All the instincts that he had been cultivating since childhood were shouting in his ear that he should not be letting someone drag him around like this, that he was bound to get hurt soon, but he squashed them back down with one single word. Shiro.

That almost wasn’t enough once they got to the apparent designated spot and Grey and Sky swiftly began stripping him. The shirt was one thing, but when they went for his belt and pants he panicked. “Hey! No, wait, stop, what are you doing?”

Periwinkle appeared in front of him with one eyebrow arched. “Told was I that a sacrifice quiet, good would be you. A problem there is?”

Keith’s shoulders heaved with shaky breaths. For Shiro. For Shiro. For Shiro. “N-no. No...problem.”

“Good.”

The stripping began again immediately. Clenching his fists and squeezing his eyes shut, he sent his mind somewhere far, far away, somewhere that was bright and happy and no one was touching him without his consent. By the time he had finally gotten his mind occupied, he was stark naked and being prodded forward to the next checkpoint.

Paladin. Hurt?

No, Red. I’m...I’m okay.

More Luktorians were waiting for them around an oval-shaped pool of lavender water. As Keith was positioned at the very edge they began chanting something in low voices. He was too busy worrying about what was about to happen to him to try to decipher what they were saying, and with good reason, too. Almost as soon as the chanting began, a set of hands landed on his back and shoved.

Keith could swim, that wasn’t a problem. The pool wasn’t even deep enough to worry about needing to swim, anyway. But the liquid - probably not water, he now realized - was heavy, and pulled him down to the bottom with no chance of fighting his way up. More importantly, it was scalding. He just barely kept himself from opening his mouth and screaming as his skin burned.

An instant later, multiple hands grabbed his arms and yanked him back up into the cool air. He was in the midst of panting for breath and shaking from pain when he was assaulted again, this time with rough sponges that scoured every inch of his body. It was becoming harder and harder to detach himself from reality, and more tempting every moment to punch every single one of these aliens in the face and race back to the safety of his team.

But he couldn’t. He had to stay for Shiro.

Paladin! Come?

No, Red. Stay. You can’t come.

His toes gripped the edge of another pool, this one deep purple, and he at least knew what was coming. More chanting, another shove. This time it was like breaking through an icy lake, making all his muscles seize up instantly. When he was pulled out, he was shivering uncontrollably.

The chanting continued as some kind of oil was poured from an intricately painted vase over his head, turning his already wet body slick and shiny. Lastly, Periwinkle produced a garland of pungent blue and purple flowers - the source of the perfumy smell - and set it carefully atop his hair.

“Ready the sacrifice is. Us let proceed.”

Just before the procession left the room, Grey and Sky wrapped a strip of silky fabric around his hips and knotted it on one side. Well, I’ll die with some of my dignity intact. At least there’s that.

The ceremony was apparently taking place in a cathedral-like space. Strange music was playing as they entered, with the Luktorians deep, humming voices singing along. Hundreds of them were gathered, their waving, bobbing heads almost looking like an ocean.

Directly in front of Keith and his parade was a steep set of stairs leading up to a platform. A Luktorian in heavy purple robes with the deepest blue skin he had seen so far stood at the top, looking down on them. They halted at the foot of the stairs. Deep Blue, probably a priest, was saying something, probably initiating the ceremony, but Keith’s heart was pounding too loudly in his ears for him to hear.

Forward again. Up the stairs - eleven total. Counting them kept his mind off of what was coming, even if it was only for a few seconds. Then they were at the top, and the priest was placing a hand on Keith’s head. Even after everything he had been through over the past hour, the touch still made him flinch.

More indecipherable words as his eyes zoned in on the stone structure looming in the background, oval shaped, like the pools. The altar. Already he could see orange coals glowing in the open space underneath it, and his breathing kicked into high gear.

Of all the ways to die. The fact that it was idiotic and humiliating was bad enough, but now he knew he would die by fire. Just like his dad. Just like his nightmares since he was six.

For Shiro. For Shiro.

Grey and Sky dragged him forward. He was more resistant now, only because his body was momentarily winning over his mind, but no one seemed to care anymore. They lifted him off his feet, holding him up high and parallel to the ground for only a moment before lowering him down onto the metal grate.

This time Keith did scream. The metal had been heating over the coals for who knew how long, and it seared into the bare skin of his back. While he was busy blinking back the tears that sprang to his eyes, straps were expertly tightened over his ankles, thighs, chest, biceps, and throat. His arms had been positioned out away from his body, resting in two troughs that angled down toward the lower part of the altar.

Paladin hurt. I come.

Red...Red no. You can’t. I have to do this...I have to.

A knife flashed in the light over his head and he jumped, jarring the burns on his back. Biting down on his lip, he let out a quiet whine.

I come! Paladin needs.

I...I do need you. But…if you want to help me, then get the others to try to wake their Paladins. You can’t save me until we make sure the others are safe. He didn’t expect it to actually work. Whatever substance the Luktorians had used was probably stronger than a mental bond. But at least maybe it would keep Red occupied, pull her away from having to listen to his panicked thoughts.

The priest was standing over his right side now, the knife he had glimpsed held aloft in his hand. “The sacrifice first now - the blood spilling of.”

Before Keith could think to react, it came swooping down and sliced deep into his wrist. He cried out through gritted teeth. As the priest circled to the other side, he twisted his head as best he could to look down at the damage and saw blood flowing rapidly over his hand and down the trough. A second later, his left wrist was cut open as well.

Already he was growing lightheaded and nauseous. As the priest faced the audience and droned on about who knows what, Keith let his eyes slip shut.

I’m sorry, Shiro. I know you’re gonna be so angry and hurt when you wake up tomorrow. Just remember...I did it because I love you. You’re my brother.

“The sacrifice second now - the flesh burning of.”

His breath hitched and he pressed his lips together, trying not to make any more pathetic noises, but his rapid breathing gave away his terror. He could hear the clunk of wood echoing below him as more fuel was thrown in, and the crunch of coals being stirred. Mere seconds later, a flame flared, and he sobbed despite his efforts as it licked his already raw back.

The Luktorians were chanting again, the whole assembly, and they sounded like a hive of bees in his ears. More flames jumped up, higher and higher. He was full-on weeping now, and he didn’t even care. It was so much worse than his nightmares had ever been. He could only hope now that it would consume him quickly, or that the blood loss would take him first.

Please...please just let me die…

Paladin! We come!

His eyes flew open just in time to see five beautiful, colorful Lions burst through the roof of the cathedral, mouths wide open in a chorus of ferocious roars.

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vintagedaydreams · 4 years

Text

The Story That Never Ends (Part ONE-The Hobbit)

Alright, people! I have an absolutely freakin’ awesome person that is going to be collaborating with me on this Never-Ending Story. Give it up for @ramblingwritings who is awesome enough to be with me on this out of control wagon! This is just the first part of The Hobbit section– I am working on the other half and will have that updated soon! Once that happens, the next fandom install can be written and uploaded. 😊

This is going to be the story that jumps from Fandom to Fandom as the Reader dies in each. SO, it will be long and probably never really finished. Who knows. There are so many Fandoms to do this with!!

Enjoy!

(If you have a Fandom you’d like to see in it, feel free to drop a line! We have a list going already. But beware, you may be roped into writing some of it if neither of us are familiar with that Fandom! LOL)

Warnings: language, some violence/disturbing imagery (battle, wounds, etc), fantasy (is that an actual warning at this point?)

So without further ado…

@kettnerjanea

You were born as you, a human, lived in present time and had knowledge of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien.

You liked all the races, Elf, Man and Dwarf – and sometimes Wizard – but you had really fallen in love with all of the Company of Dwarves during The Hobbit storyline. One in particular!

You had been on your way home from a friend’s house where you had all binge-watched the movies, when a drunk driver hit you. You laid there, broken and bleeding and in so much blinding pain you were sobbing, before you felt darkness finally take you.

You jerked awake, a cry of pain on your lips, but saw that you were in a bed and a room that looked familiar but unfamiliar at the same time.

A dream. You just had a bad dream.

Then you heard voices coming from somewhere else in the house and you swung your legs out from under the covers to get up and saw…hairy feet?!

And then, two sets of memories came hurling at you.

Your life as you remembered: your job, your family, your friends, your slight Tolkien obsession, the walk home, the pain…

And then another set: your life as a Took, running wild with other fauntlings, climbing trees and having adventures, being thicker than thieves with one cousin of yours in particular – Bilbo, your second set of memories helpfully supplied, while the other side of your brain was floundering at the implications.

What was going on?!

And then you were bombarded by a male Hobbit – a Hobbit! – one set of your memories recognized as your Took father and you were bid to hurry up, your coming of age birthday party was that day and there was so much to do!

As you got ready on auto-pilot, you sifted through your memories and yep, you had the last 33 years all there as your life as Juniper Took.

Boy was that going to take some getting used to. No one seemed to be acting any different towards you, but you were definitely out of sorts which thankfully your family chalked up to your excitement of being of Age and able to go and do whatever with no one to ask permission of.

Uh, yeah, that was great too – considering that you’d felt that way long before you became a Hobbit. Thank goodness you “woke up” when you were of Age and not too long before!

And thank goodness you were a Took! That alone could explain away a lot of your oddities you were sure were going to pop up with double memories and the ridiculous amount of confusion you were feeling.

When Bilbo showed up at your party, himself a few years older than you, you were sad to say that you inner fangirled and actually had your favorite Hobbit worried and wondering what on Middle Earth was wrong with you.

You promised to visit him the next day and spent the rest of the party just listening to the instincts and memories of your Took self to not draw too much more attention to yourself. (Thank goodness the Juniper before you got two sets of memories already picked out all the presents for the Hobbits there. You wouldn’t know where to begin as confused as you were now.)

You wanted to listen to your Took side and fully embrace being Juniper Took, but how could you when you could still remember all of your life as a human? And you felt as if you’d been plucked from your life as a human to being thrust into being a Hobbit and how could you just…forget all of who you were and become a Took fully?

You’d lived through your life as human, but you only had memories of living through your life as Juniper Took. Didn’t that mean you were Y/N first and Juniper second?

You’d given yourself a mega headache by the time the party was over and even though you didn’t sleep at all, you were knocking on Bilbo’s door bright and early, worked up into a horrible state – even though your Tookish side was warning you that it was far too early for any Hobbits to be up after the late hour of the party last night.

Bilbo had blearily opened the door, though both sides of you were pleased to see that his tiredness vanished in the wake of your -probably awful- appearance.

He’d invited you in, got breakfast started and then…then you’d broken down.

“Bilbo, I think I am…crazy.”

The proper Baggins’ blinked at you from the kitchen counter where he was slicing up tomatoes. “Juniper,” he snarked, and you flinched at the unfamiliar name, though he missed it when he looked back down at his counter, “all Tooks are crazy. You’ve known that since you were born – and the whole Shire is aware of it as well.”

Apparently, he was expecting some snarky remark – at least that part of your personality remained the same – but when none came, he looked back up at you.

“Juniper?” he asked and this time, he didn’t miss the flinch you gave. Suddenly, he was standing right beside your chair at the table.

“What is it? Why do you think you’re crazy? What happened?”

You looked up into warm, worried amber eyes and felt tears gather in your own.

“Does this have anything to do with how…odd you were acting yesterday?”

You nodded miserably, finding your gaze landing on the dress you were wearing. Catching sight of your large, furry – furry! – feet you felt a few tears fall down your face.

Who were you now? Not fully Juniper, but certainly not Y/N anymore. You really couldn’t fit in anywhere! Not with two sets of memories, one feeling more real than the other Tolkien one.

“Bilbo…I…” You heaved a sigh. “Perhaps it’s best if we just forget about it.” You didn’t need your close cousin, or one of your favorite characters, to shun you now. The rest of the Shire was only loosely mentioned in the books and movies – Bilbo was the only real tie to the life you knew before at this point!

“Jun—listen here, Favorite Cousin,” Bilbo said firmly, cutting off the use of your Hobbit name when you winced and changing it to the title you’d both bestowed on each other as young fauntlings years ago, “I can see that something is wrong. I’ve been worried since last night, though I thought maybe it was just you finally getting your freedom. But that obviously isn’t it. So tell me: what is it? What is going on?”

Taking a deep breath, you looked up and found both sides of your mind not able to help trusting the warm, gentle Hobbit beside you.

So you told him everything. It took all day and many meals, but you unloaded all of your past life, your present fears and how lost you felt at the moment.

Bilbo had responded by quizzing you on past memories you had of the both of you and you passed with flying colors. Though he looked just as heartbroken as you when you admitted, with a sob, that while you had the memories, you didn’t remember doing them. It was like watching a movie of someone else’s life, just with a lot more detail.

And then, you had to explain what exactly a movie was, which actually made Bilbo believe what you thought as a crazy story.

But then, no Hobbit, Took or otherwise, was able to come up with such things as the life and the technology you described from your…past life.

The thought of your past life made you start crying all over again.

You’d lost your friends, your family, your life, both figuratively and literally.

Bilbo seemed properly appalled for you and had done his best to comfort you.

And he really was good at that.

It wasn’t until you began to tell him that you…well, you knew what was going to happen, that he seemed to be a little less believing.

At first.

“Wait. What do you mean I am going to leave the Shire and travel with a company of Dwarves? Dwarves! And I’m going to go willingly and do what to a dragon?!”

You gave a slight giggle, swinging your now somewhat beloved furred feet as you both sat in the much more comfortable chairs in front of Bilbo’s fireplace.

“Exactly what I said, Bilbo,” you smiled, taking another sip of the delicious tea your cousin always had on hand. (That was one thing you were quite content to embrace about being a Hobbit – the seven meals a day thing was glorious.) “You meet Gandalf the Grey, or…re-meet him I guess?, then the Dwarves and agree to go on their Quest with them. It is an amazing adventure for you. I think…well, I don’t think you’d be complete without it to be honest.”

Bilbo just stared at you, mouth agape before he suddenly hummed and leaned back further into his chair.

“Alright. Say that…say that I believe you, Juniper.” Your flinch was much less pronounced now, though Bilbo still paused.

“There was another name you went by in your…other life, wasn’t there?” the observant Hobbit asked gently, and you found yourself sniffling a bit.

“Yes. But…I’m not that person anymore, apparently.”

“I think you are,” Bilbo said quietly after a moment. “You’re just as much her as you are Juniper. Maybe even more so. You said yourself that you had memories of us throughout the years, memories of your life here, but no memory of actually doing it. But…you remember doing all those things you told me of in your life as a Man, right?”

You nodded slowly. “Yeah. It feels…wrong to just embrace Jun-Juniper so readily when I don’t really feel that I am her. Regardless of how I look or where I am.”

There was silence before Bilbo suddenly jumped out of his chair, startling you.

“So! What do I call you?”

You looked at him in confusion, but before you could open your mouth he continued, “Your name in your other world. What was it?”

“Y/N,” you said after a hesitant moment. “It was Y/N Y/L/N.”

“Well, I don’t think we could get away with calling you by your last name here, not with you being a Took all this time in everyone else’s memories, but I could definitely call you Y/N. No one would blink at a new name, we’ve certainly called each other all sorts of names throughout the years. This would just be another of our oddities.”

The Hobbit before you suddenly swept into a deep, polite bow. “A pleasure you meet you, Y/N. Bilbo Baggins, at your service.”

No matter what your Took side said, though it didn’t put up really any protest at all, you flung yourself out of the chair and into Bilbo’s arms.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you,” you practically sobbed, the sound of your own name the only grounding thing you had here.

Bilbo had sent a letter to your family and had invited you to stay with him for awhile. No one questioned it – everyone in the entire Shire knew of the Took and the Baggins who had made a right nuisance of themselves since they met when you were born.

And wasn’t that an odd thing to think of? Bilbo was older than you but you knew about a lot of his life that not only had happened but that was going to happen.

An evil thought crossed your mind. Perhaps… a little event changing would not be too amiss on the adventure you were going to wiggle your way into with the Company? By your calculations, you still had quite a bit of time left – Bilbo was only a few years older than yourself – a respectable forty to your newly christened thirty-three.

If the Company wasn’t supposed to come until Bilbo was fifty…well, that gave you ten years to try and make your gentle Hobbit a bit more burglar and less ‘grocer’. And if Thorin could find it in himself not to be a dick straight away, well, it’d make your job all the easier. Why couldn’t Bilbo stay in Erober? Why couldn’t the Thorin line survive the Battle of the Five Armies?

Besides, you’d been thrown into this Juniper Took’s body for a reason. And even though you didn’t remember Bilbo being close to really anyone other than the Gamgees in the book and movie, you and him obviously were still close, even before you got another set of memories.

So, if you were thrown here and were already this close to the main character, might as well change a few things up, right?

Right.

-----

It only took you two months to not only grow as close to Bilbo as you had been before you’d added more memories, but also to convince him that an adventure right now, when you weren’t on a time frame, was a really good idea.

You’d needed someone to confide in so much, you’d brought Bilbo into your confidence about everything. Minus your more radical plot changing ideas. It’d be better if he came to the conclusion to stay in Erober on his own.

But he now knew every detail of not only the Company, but the Lord of the Rings storyline too. And he was not thrilled about his coming nephew in the line of fire and danger if he could help it.

He’d agreed that once Erebor was retaken in a decade and some change, he’d help destroy the Ring he was going to pick up along the way.

You’d been adamant that some things had to happen, some bad things. Otherwise, if the Company wasn’t attacked by goblins, how was he supposed to find the Ring Gollum had?

(You’d also wrangled a promise out of Bilbo that he was take you with him, contract be damned, when the time came.)

But for the moment, you were off to see the Elves in Rivendell, as it was the closest.

You had a plan. One that you obviously told Bilbo about as well.

If you two could travel a bit, befriend at least some of the elves, men, what have you, that you’d meet up with on the way to the mountain, maybe the journey would be easier is some spots. Not just for Bilbo, (and yourself), but for the poor Dwarves who had been driven out of their home for decades now.

Bilbo had been almost beside himself hearing about the plight of the Dwarves and their lost home. You’d practically had to hold him back from leaving for the Blue Mountains to find this soon-to-be-king Thorin and start early.

You managed to talk him into not doing that, since it’d screw everything up. No, best to just familiarize yourselves with at least part of the journey’s roads and meet some hopefully helpful characters beforehand.

Though befriending Elves wouldn’t endear either of you to the Dwarves, especially Thorin, but…well, they were Elves and Bilbo was over the moon. Once you’d mentioned Elves, well, it was all you could do to make sure you both actually gathered supplies for the journey, rather than just run out the door.

If you knew that Bilbo’s excitement for the Elves would be this bad, (and you should’ve), you would’ve mentioned Elves two months ago.

Honestly – who was supposed to be the elder of you two? You or him?

You finally got everything situated and had only just left the Shire when who should you both come across but Gandalf the Grey.

His timing really was uncanny at times.

“Bilbo Baggins and Y/N Took. I should have known.”

You and your cousin, (that still took a little getting used to), just gaped at the older, wizened man.

“What….oh! You must be Gandalf then?” Bilbo asked first, (since he didn’t remember him at all from meeting him so long ago), while your brain was still trying to catch up to the fact that the wizard had called you Y/N, not Juniper.

Bilbo cottoned on to that too, because his brow furrowed and he leaned over the pony he was somewhat successfully riding to mutter to you, “That is a little creepy. Like you said. Does he know everything?”

“I am honored that I have been spoken about,” Gandalf cut in, eyes twinkling. “And no. Alas, I do not know everything, but in this case, I think, I may know just enough.”

You were aware you were an odd sight, a female Hobbit, Took or no, astride a pony in breeches and a blouse and vest, and gaping quite unattractively at the wizard.

But…he’d called you by your real name!

Well, it definitely made things easier if he already knew everything. There were still things you had probably forgotten to tell Bilbo – it was hard to remember every little thing between four books, six movies and all the years of your previous life. Not to mention the thousands of fanfictions.

Yes, there was probably something you had forgotten to pass on – Gandalf knowing everything already would be so much easier.

“Off to see the Elves?” Gandalf asked from his own horse and you and Bilbo both grimaced.

“Yes,” you muttered after a moment, “that is creepy.”

The wizard laughed.

“And yet, you know more than I about events about to unfold.”

“Yes, but I have a good excuse,” you said somewhat petulantly. “And I don’t have any idea what’s going to happen in the next ten years. Only when the Company arrives. Before that I’m just as lost as everyone else.”

“Then this will be good for the both of you,” Gandalf decided with another eye twinkle. He really was starting to remind you of Dumbledoore. Huh. Dying and ending up in the Harry Potter world would have been fun too.

“Perhaps you would allow a lonely old man to accompany you on your travels. It has been some time since I’ve seen my old friends in Imladris.”

You and Bilbo exchanged another glance and then you both shrugged in tandem. The past few months, you had been speaking with Bilbo not only about your life as human you and the story of what was to come, but also more in depth about the memories you had as Juniper.

You had never felt closer to anyone than you did you Bilbo. And, he’d told you one night, he felt closer to you now than he did when you were just Juniper with only Juniper’s memories.

Cousins, nothing. You and Bilbo acted like twins, despite the age difference.

“Sure, Gandalf,” you said with a grin, “we’d love the company. Might as well get to know you well know, yes?”

You three started off again and then Gandalf cast you a sidelong look.

“I assume you’ll be joining the Company then in a few years’ time?”

You gave as innocent a grin as you could with Took blood, “What on earth would make you think that?”

Gandalf chuckled yet again.

“Two burglars for the price of one. I think Oakenshield will find that acceptable.”

Gandalf’s eyes widened a bit when Bilbo didn’t react at all – no questions, no concerns, just a placid smile.

“He knows all about the Company and the…Adventure then?”

You gave a grin, not even bothering with trying to be Innocent. “Yup! Gandalf, I can’t keep secrets from my brother!”

“Cousin,” Gandalf corrected, though it was more a question and you felt something warm unfurl in your chest when Bilbo spoke up, “Brother.”

The three of you traveled slow and sedate, giving Bilbo, (and yourself), much needed practice on the ponies. It wouldn’t do for the Company to see you as burdens right off the bat. Better to lull them into a false sense of security first.

Gandalf was ridiculously helpful once he realized that you and Bilbo both planned to help the Company as much as possible.

You didn’t tell Gandalf all, but just enough for him to understand that the Dwarves were going to have a hard journey. But that you and Bilbo were determined to spend the next ten years trying to smooth the way as much as possible and learn as much as you could to actually be helpful. Right from the start.

Arriving in Rivendell was amazing for both you and Bilbo. While you had seen it in the movies, it was so much more magical and breathtaking in person.

Bilbo wasn’t fairing any better, being in absolute awe himself.

Lord Elrond came and greeted you by your human name as well and you gaped, once again, unattractively at the Elf lord.

Gandalf knowing made sense but how did – then you remembered Elrond’s gift of foresight.

“You saw me coming!” you pretty much accused the Elf lord, much to Bilbo consternation and Gandalf’s amusement.

“I did, Lady Y/N,” Elrond affirmed, his own amusement shining through. “Myself, as well as Lady Galadriel, saw what would happen to you in your own world and how you would come to be here in ours. I must say, you have shown remarkable adjustment to the situation. And much quicker than we had imagined.”

You flushed, but sent a very thankful, meaningful look to Bilbo.

“If it wasn’t for my brother, I wouldn’t be half as adjusted,” you murmured and gave a soft laugh as you saw Bilbo flush as well. What a pair you two were.

“Come,” Elrond said after a moment, “you are most welcome here, for as long as you wish. I have seen great things in store for the both of you.”

Bilbo looked at the Elf lord in surprise. “For the both of us?”

You snorted before Elrond could answer.

“Bilbo. I may be from another world, well…half of my mind may be from another world, but you are the main character! If anyone should be asking if we both have great things in store for us, it should be me. Not you. Besides, I already told you at least part of the great things you have in store for you.”

“Yes, Master Baggins,” Elrond said with a gentle smile, still with amusement dancing in his eyes, “great things are in store for the both of you. But before we get into any of that, you must be tired. I imagine that traveling this far, and on ponies, is different for you both. Come, let us show you to your rooms and get you settled.”

It hadn’t taken long before you and Bilbo were both settled, fed and asleep in your rooms. It had been a long journey, even though Gandalf had not been in any hurry and you had had frequent stops and rests.

The next morning at breakfast, Bilbo had laughed at how much he had appreciated a soft bed after only a week on the road. He admitted, as you agreed wholeheartedly, that it was a good thing you were both traveling now and getting used to this before the Company arrived.

Ten years sounded like a lot to the human half of your mind, but the Tookish half didn’t seen daunted. Ten years wasn’t much to a Hobbit and you had to use the next years well.

The journey to the Elves had given both you and Bilbo a yearning for more adventure and an excitement for the Company’s journey.

When Elrond suggested you stay for awhile in Rivendell to get familiar with it and its people, you and Bilbo both readily agreed.

After all, that was the point of all this traveling – to try and make the journey as easy as possible for your soon to be Dwarven companions.

“You and Bilbo are quite brave to undertake all of this extra journeying,” Elrond had said one day as he found you standing on the balcony of your room. Honorifics had been dropped the second day you were all there – mostly for your benefit. It wasn’t your fault that honorifics weren’t a thing in your world, or high in priority for the Took side of you either!

“I’m not sure brave is the best word,” you laughed, turning to the Elf lord beside you. “But I wasn’t sure I could stay in the Shire any longer. A few months was bad enough with my…confused state. And I’d been at Bilbo’s almost the entire time – we needed to get away. I couldn’t go…home.”

Because your home was worlds away.

A large hand settled gently on your shoulder.

“Galadriel and I have been watching you since before the day you awoke here in this world. You have shown remarkable bravery, Y/N. Your world is a lot different than ours and while the Took side of you is helpful in settling you here, we are aware of how torn you feel. How…unreal this body and the memories of Juniper Took are to you.”

The Elf lord paused for a few moments, though his hand did not leave you.

“I had elves ready to come to the Shire and take you here so we could help you adjust, but Galadriel had sent a message to tell me that she had foreseen your Took side’s cousin – Bilbo – helping you and becoming an invaluable companion. We were both pleased, though not shocked as we have come to know you before and after you awoke as Juniper, that you chose to use the next few years to help smooth the way for your Company. Erober is almost ready for its rightful ruler to return. It does our old hearts good to see how you and Bilbo are preparing yourself for the journey. You shall be invaluable to them.”

You blinked back tears, feeling a small piece of yourself settle. Elrond and Galadriel, they knew. Yes, Bilbo knew about your time, but only because you had told him. The two Seers knew of your time, of who you were because they had seen it. They knew you.

And it was a wonderful feeling.

You felt yourself get pulled gently into Elrond’s embrace and let loose a soft sob.

“I miss technology,” you muttered into his chest and the answering chuckle, the knowledge that Elrond knew what you were talking about without you having to explain it, made you sob just a little bit harder.

Elrond had escorted you to dinner, (seriously, best thing about being a Hobbit was the enormous capacity for food!), and then you and Bilbo had gone to the library to begin some research.

Just wandering around the whole of Middle Earth was not probable, especially with Orcs, Goblins and bugs out there, so you both needed to learn as much as you could bookwise. At least for now.

You also didn’t want Bilbo to be presumed dead, so no super long adventure yet. Hopefully, with you and Bilbo taking short adventures that turned into longer and longer adventures, Hobbiton would be used to Bilbo being gone and he wouldn’t have to chase down his silverware. (You were dying to meet Galadriel, Haldir and Thranduil, but you could be patient. …Probably.)

All of the Elves had been ridiculously nice and welcoming.

You and Bilbo had found kindred spirits in Elrond’s twin children; a bond that the majority of Rivendell looked on with good natured suspicion. You and Bilbo were terrors in your own right, but coupled with Elladan and Elrohir’s pranking…well. Rivendell was a bit livelier while you were there.

Being Elrond’s children, the twins knew of your…origins and had question after question for you. But they were also observant and kind enough to see when it pained you to speak of what you’d lost and they’d find excellent ways to distract you. (You felt kind of bad that Lindir was so traumatized so many years before the Company came, but as he seemed to have a soft spot for you Hobbits, you didn’t feel bad enough to stop.)

Both you and Elrond had felt it better that Estel not see you. At least, not at this time. He wasn’t even two decades yet, had a few more years to go, and really, you didn’t trust yourself around how adorable he was.

Being as small as you were, (and that was another thing that had taken some time to get used to!), it wasn’t hard for you to avoid the human young man. Though you couldn’t help but sneak a peak as often as you could without getting caught. You were right – he really was just too cute! Arwen was going to be one lucky lady.

You and Bilbo had been in Rivendell for almost two months when you decided that you’d need to head back to the Shire. Reminding Bilbo of the trouble he would have getting his stuff back from those who thought him dead after his trip with the Company, Bilbo quit arguing and was more than willing to head back. (He had to admit that your idea of slowly getting the Shire used to him being gone for months at a time would be beneficial in the long run.)

Gandalf accompanied you all the way to Bree and then you and Bilbo were on your own back to Hobbiton. You had already sent word to your parents that you were unofficially having adventures and now living with your honorary brother. Your parents, proud and adventurous Tooks that they were, were overjoyed that you’d come into your own adventures – and drug along a Baggins too! You secretly thought they were just thrilled he was ‘embracing’ his Took side.

“I think,” Bilbo’s voice cut you from your musings, “that we have had a very successful first two months of Adventuring.”

You gave a laugh, both of you so much more at ease on your ponies than you were when you first started. Elladan and Elrohir had been more than willing to teach you the Ways of the Pony.

“Yes, Bilbo. We did good. Very good. Those notes you took about the people and the copies of the maps in Elrond’s study – those will give us a good place to start for a game plan. Then, maybe in a month or two, we’ll head out again!”

“In a month or two?” Bilbo said, somewhat disbelieving. “I would have assumed you’d want to head out as soon as we found a good direction!”

You gave the Hobbit you seriously loved like a brother a small smile. “I’d love to, but…well, let’s ease into this just a bit. Not just for our sake but for the Shire’s. Give them a little time to get used to the fact that a proper Baggins has been corrupted by his Took relative. And a month at least will give us a solid foundation of where to go and a good rest. Neither one of us are quite used to this, Bilbo.”

The Hobbit riding beside you puffed on his pipe a few more times before nodding decisively. “Another brilliant idea, Y/N. Besides it will give me some time to see what I missed taking care of before we left last time so I can do better this next time around.”

You grinned, feeling the excitement that never truly left you, bubbling up again. Oh, to have such a willing travel partner!

You and Bilbo stayed in the Shire for exactly two months. In the beginning, you listened to your Tookish instincts and made yourself and Bilbo present all over Hobbiton. At the market, at the Green Dragon, everywhere you two could. It showed that Bilbo was still a respectable Hobbit, at least somewhat, and that you were still the wacky Took they all knew. (Even though you were more different than any of them could ever possibly know.)

After Hobbiton had gotten over your sudden disappearance and reappearance – and for such a scandalous thing as an adventure of all things! – you and Bilbo stayed in Bag End more often than not, pouring over his drawings and notes to see what the best route would be. You didn’t know every route exactly that the Company was going to take, but you did know major landmarks.

So you and Bilbo crafted a couple of routes that Company could possibly take and hit those landmarks, as well as a couple of routes the Company could take to avoid a few of those landmarks, (like the Trolls).

“I’m not 100 percent sure,” you murmured thoughtfully one day, puffing away at a pipe that Bilbo had gifted you with your first month here, “but I think that the whole journey only should take a few months. Frodo and Sam take about six months to get to Mordor to destroy the ring, and that’s with a few months stay over in Lorien and Rivendell.” You shot a grin at Bilbo. “Seems like a love of Elves is genetic.”

Bilbo snorted in amusement before turning back to the maps spread out on his dining room table.

“So, only a few months then to get to Erober for us as well?” You both looked at the maps before Bilbo suddenly looked up at you with a wide grin and sparkling eyes.

“We could potentially take the trip multiple times, on multiple routes before the Dwarves even get here!”

You blinked at the once respectable Hobbit – you had created an adventurous monster!

But…

“That is not a bad idea,” you mused thoughtfully, puffing away. Granted, it would be far too dangerous of a trek for two Hobbits by themselves, but if Gandalf, or even an Elf or two went with you…

“I wonder if Elrond would let his sons come with us. Or another Elf or two,” you continued to muse. At Bilbo’s furrowed brow, you started to point out places on the map.

“The Misty Mountains are far too dangerous for us to go on our own. And the Trolls,” you pointed to a spot marked by Rivendell, “doubly not good. Our soon to be companions are going to be a huge help, Bilbo. Alone, you and me? We’d not last more than a week. Especially not through Mirkwood.”

You gave a shudder. Giant spiders you could well do without.

Bilbo hummed in agreement and the two of you lapsed into silence.

A knock sounded on the bright green door and Bilbo huffed before he went to answer it.

“It’s not even tea time,” he grumbled as he passed you and you giggled at his surliness towards anyone the last few weeks that interrupted your planning.

You heard the door open, but nothing else. No greeting, so well wishes, no grumbling.

Feeling uneasy, you slowly crept to the doorway to the dining room so you could peak around the corner.

“Haldir!” you exclaimed, old fangirl tendencies rushing to the surface. Forgetting all propriety, (did Tooks even know what that was?), you flew passed Bilbo and collided with the Marchwarden’s legs.

Bilbo stared at you in shock, but thankfully, the Elf who’s legs you were embracing, just chuckled.

“I have never doubted my Lady’s word, however I must admit I was a bit…hesitant to believe. I’m glad to see my faith in my Lady was not unfounded. You are Y/N and you already know all about me and the Lady’s Woods, yes?”

You didn’t even let the blush that tried to work its way onto your cheeks see the light of day. So you were brash and literally just glomp attacked an Elf. Haldir. Marchwarden.

Who cared?!

“Yup!” you chirped, drawing a chuckle from Bilbo as well. “I do know you, Haldir.” You took a few steps back, getting a better look at Haldir and the small party of Elves standing a few feet behind him.

“Won’t you please come in?” Bilbo offered, taking a step back out of the doorway and grasping your sleeve to pull you with.

You went with him easily, still grinning. Sue you. You freakin’ loved Lorien’s elves. Especially this particular one.

“Thank you, Master Baggins,” Haldir said smoothly, entering past you both. The few other Elves followed and you and Bilbo shared a look that would have been followed by an excited high pitched squeal if you were alone without Elven visitors.

In no time, food was prepared, Elven guests were attended to and Haldir was finally explaining what he was doing in the Shire and at Bag End, when he had never met either of you before.

“We have an audience with the Elvenking Thranduil,” Haldir began, “but do need to see Lord Elrond before we arrive in Greenwood. As we had to cross the Misty Mountains anyway to reach Imladris, my Lady Galadriel suggested we stop by and see if you both would like to accompany us. She has informed myself and my small party here as to your plan for the next few years. It is admirable. My guards and I saw no reason to not lengthen our journey by a mere few weeks to come and escort you all the way to Greenwood, should you wish it.”

Thankfully, you were not the only Hobbit gaping this time. Bilbo’s jaw was also hanging down practically to his waistcoat buttons.

The Elves said not a word while they waited for your response, but you could feel the amusement radiating from all of them.

Clearing your throat, you squeaked out, “Yes! We would be honored to accompany you.”

Bilbo finally shut his own mouth, nodding along with your statement. Honored indeed – this was perfect! Just what the two of you were needing!

Haldir bowed his head in acknowledgement.

“Excellent. We would like to get started as soon as possible; as soon as you can set your house to rights.”

“Well,” Bilbo said, throwing a grin at you, “we’ll be ready by tomorrow morning then. We’ve been preparing this house to be vacant ever since we got back a couple of months ago.”

Haldir’s eyes twinkled as he looked from you to Bilbo and back again.

“We are glad to hear it,” he murmured with a small smile.

You and Bilbo just had a few more odds and ends to tie up, both with the neighbors and around the house before you got to packing for your journey.

Surprisingly, or perhaps not so surprisingly, the Elves had slipped in to the Shire mostly unnoticed and so you were able to let the neighbors know simply that you off again on another adventure.

This time, few brows were raised, though there were some head shakes.

For the hundredth time, you were thankful you were shoved into a Took’s family line! How boring it would be to live all your long life in such a nice, but boring place as the Shire!

The next morning, right before daybreak, the Elves, Bilbo and yourself headed off towards Rivendell once again.

The Elves had mentioned that they were on foot as they were used to it with the close, tall trees of Lorien, though they mentioned that they could get some ponies and horses at Bree, should you both prefer it.

You and Bilbo had both elected to stay on foot – as long as the Elves wouldn’t mind the slightly slower pace.

At the elegantly raised brows, you had mentioned how often the Company would have to walk. Might as well get used to it on at least part of your journey at some point!

That started off some questions from the Elves and you and Bilbo both willingly answered them all. Elves were a calm race that you both trusted implicitly to not go and try to bungle things up. It wouldn’t hurt to have them know some of the finer details, and indeed, they actually contributed quite a bit of useful information.

Along the way, they all pitched in to help you and Bilbo learn of both edible and medicinal plants. Being Hobbits, (one of you perhaps more of a true Hobbit than the other), you and Bilbo took to learning more about plants like ducks to water. Bilbo, begin a Baggins, did have more knowledge than you did as a Took, but even he learned new things along the way to Rivendell.

Your stay in Rivendell was much shorter than last time. Only two nights while Haldir met with Elrond and you and Bilbo enjoyed the Elvish comforts.

Elladan and Elrohir found you the last night you were there, having just come back from Orc hunting. You were once again on the balcony of your room, looking out over the beautiful city.

“Y/N!” they greeted in tandem, making you smile fondly. These two did remind you of the Elvish version of Fili and Kili – you were getting more and more excited to meet the Company, even though not even a year had passed yet!

“Greetings, my Twin Terrors,” you grinned as they stopped in front of you, greeting you happily.

Elladan gave you the puppy eyes as his hands rested on your shoulders and with a good natured eye-roll, you nodded.

With a wide grin, the Elf reached down and picked you up. It was a habit they had formed the last time you were here – carrying you around and manhandling you onto chairs or tables.

Unlike Bilbo, you really didn’t mind being carried or helped onto ponies, beds, tables, etc. You found yourself still thinking you were your human height more often than not, especially now that everyone you spent time with called you Y/N instead of Juniper. So extra help to get front point A to point B, especially in a ‘tall folk’ city – that was perfectly fine with you!

Placing you on his shoulders, Elladan headed out of your room and down the hall, he and Elrohir pestering you with questions about what you were doing here.

As soon as you told them, they both ground to a halt.

“You’re going to Greenwood? Across the Misty Mountains?” Elladan gasped and you flicked him in the forehead.

“Elladan,” you started, sickly sweet, “I know you’re not about to protest that I can’t do it.”

“Well…no,” the twin hedged and you flicked him again.

“And I know that you’re not implying that Haldir and his wardens can’t protect Bilbo and I—”

“Of course not!” Elladan said vehemently and you grinned, wrapping your arms around his head.

“Good!” you chirped. “I am glad to hear it.”

“However,” Elrohir cut in, “you should still be prepared.”

You looked down at him from your perch on Elladan’s shoulders.

“What? Prepared? How?”

Elrohir and Elladan shared a grin before they announced, “A weapon!”

Surprisingly, it didn’t take much for both Elrond and Haldir to agree that you and Bilbo both should have some weapons.

You grinned at Bilbo’s face but causally just said, “Sting.”

Bilbo gave up his protests after that. Haldir and his wardens had already sworn to teach you as you travelled to Greenwood and it would give you all something to do while you walked that far.

Before the night was out, you and Bilbo each had weapons – Bilbo an Elven sword, (that you already claimed once he found Sting years down the road), and you with two Elven daggers.

You were actually quite excited to learn how to use them. You were not going to be useless when the Company came around! (And if there was a certain bald dwarf you had been thinking of the more you and Bilbo talked about the Company, and that same bald dwarf you wanted to show you could hold your own to, well, that was for you and you alone to know. Besides, it would be years before you saw any of the Company. By then, you’d probably forget what they all looked like with no visual reminders anywhere.)

You all left Rivendell the next morning, Bilbo up in front of the line with a few of the Elves telling him stories of Lorien, and you and Haldir more in the middle, enjoying each other’s company and silence. You were only a few hours away before Haldir finally turned to you.

“Y/N,” he said suddenly and you looked up at him with a grin.

“Yes, Haldir?”

“I noticed that in Imladris, last night, Lord Elrond’s sons seemed to…that is…,” the Elf trailed off and you frowned in thought before suddenly laughing.

“You mean they liked to carry me around? Yes, they found it incredibly amusing last time we were there a few months ago. Their favorite past time according to them.”

The Elf’s brows rose. “And that doesn’t offend you?”

You giggled – something you never did as a human. Must be a Hobbit thing.

“No,” you assured, “it doesn’t offend me at all. I am used to being much taller, you see, and especially in places made for taller folk, it’s actually quite nice to not have to walk all the way.”

You threw a glance at the back of Bilbo’s head with a grin. “Though, I think I may be one of the only Hobbits that feels that way.”

“And why, do you think, the Sons of Elrond found such delight in carrying you?” Haldir asked a moment later and you gave a shrug.

“At first, I honestly thought they were doing it be annoying,” you confessed, delighting in Haldir’s chuckle, “but…I don’t know. They just seemed to do it all the time the last few weeks were there and I guess I got used to it too.”

There was silence again for awhile before you felt a hand on your shoulder. Quizzically, you turned to look up at Haldir who was smiling down at you.

“May I?” he asked and you laughed with a nod.

You’d gotten some looks when Haldir first lifted you up, though instead of putting you on his shoulders, he carried you bridal style in his arms. Which was fine with you. It was much easier to talk and you could admit that you were still not used to traveling as much as you were.

Teasingly, you called to Bilbo to see if he wanted a ride as well, and when one of the Elves moved as if to pick him up, you all laughed at his indignant squawk.

Well, you and him did differ in a few obvious ways.

Haldir and a few of the other Elves carried you on and off and your trip to Mirkwood. You did try and walk frequently, but after all, you still had about nine years to get used to traveling. If the Elves didn’t mind carrying you, well, you wouldn’t mind being carried!

Bilbo was holding up very well. While the Elves set a decent pace, it wasn’t anything as rushed as what the Company would be doing later on, so it was easier for both you and Bilbo to get used to it.

It wasn’t until the morning after you all camped at the edge of Greenwood, while you were all packing up to enter the gloomy forest, that you approached Bilbo about being carried himself.

“Absolutely not,” he denied, curls flying with his shaking head. “I am not going to be carried like some—”

“Careful,” you sing-songed to him. “Don’t offend me now, brother.”

Bilbo fondly rolled his eyes. “I have absolutely no issue with you being carried. In fact, I think that pretty much every male you come into contact with has some desire to protect you or something and feels better about being able to carry you around. But, I am not going to join in!”

“Bilbo,” you said quietly, seriously, “we’re at the edge of Greenwood. Now called Mirkwood. You remember the awfulness I told you about that is in Mirkwood? This is not a place you’re going to want to walk. And even if it was, this is not a place we’re going to want to stay in any longer than we have to! The forest is not good, Bilbo. Not good. Please? Would you just allow yourself to be carried until we reach the Elvenking’s palace?”

You pulled out the puppy dog eyes you discovered you excelled at a month into knowing Bilbo. You only used them in very dire situations – you didn’t want him to become immune.

Bilbo glared at you for a moment before heaving a sigh.

“Alright,” he grumbled, crossing his arms. “Alright. You haven’t led us astray yet, or kept anything from me. If you…if you think it’s really necessary, then I will let someone carry me.”

“Excellent choice, Bilbo,” Haldir said as he walked up to you both. All the Elves were ready to go and waiting. “We are ready if you two are.”

You finished tying up your pack before you were scooped up into Haldir’s arms.

Bilbo was still grumbling as another Elf scooped him up into his arms.

You tried to smother your giggle as Bilbo continued to mutter under his breath. You had meant it – it was good for Bilbo to not walk through Mirkwood. But…boy, were you still going to enjoy this!

It didn’t take long for Woodland Realm Elves to catch up with your procession.

Lady Galadriel had already sent along a message to inform King Thranduil that you and Bilbo would most likely be accompanying her Marchwarden, so you were not a surprise to the scouts.

However, they surprised you. One minute, you were in Haldir’s arms, looking around at the tall trees, dark they were, and the next, you were staring into the very close face of a very familiar looking Elf.

“Legolas!” you greeted with a large grin. The blonde Prince blinked, exchanging a glance with Haldir before turning his eyes back to yours.

“You know of me, Little One?”

You blinked too, for a moment. Oh. Seems Lady Galadriel hadn’t told them of you. Well, it was going to be different having to explain all of this again. And…how much to tell the Woodland Elves? After all, there was no love lost between them and the Company… And while Thranduil was one of your favorite Elves, he was actually the root cause of quite a few problems. Not to mention that the Company pretty much hated him…

Shoot.

“Uh, yes,” you said after a delayed moment. A very delayed moment that was a little worrying, if the tightening of Haldir’s arms around you was any indication.

Okay, you could admit it. The whole ‘let’s visit Mirkwood’ idea was actually not one of your better ones. Since Thorin and Co. never told Thranduil exactly what they were doing and where they were going, it stood to reason that you shouldn’t just blurt out their plans like you did to the Lorien Elves. Since Lorien wasn’t even on the way to Erober, they didn’t matter but Thranduil? Oh, he mattered.

Double shoot.

“Legolas, my friend,” Haldir’s voice brought you out of your increasingly panicked musings, “it has been a long road. Perhaps we may continue this in a more comfortable venue?”

Legolas spared you one more glance before nodding and saying something in Elvish and you all moved out.

‘Nice job, Juniper,’ you hissed mentally to yourself. ‘How the hell you gonna get out of this one?’

Maybe Haldir and his Wardens would play along – you and Bilbo could claim you were just here for an adventure! Of course, you know, you’d have to explain exactly why you’re tagging along with a Marchwarden doing his duty, and how you got invited along in the first place, since you’d never met them before… Hey! Now there’s an idea!

You can tell Thranduil about who you are, but just tell him that you took Bilbo along with you to explore the area you’d read about and seen in movies! No mention of the Company, no mention of Erober.

Perfect! Sorta. Granted, Thranduil would figure out you kept things from in in about nine years, but it’d be better than betraying Thorin’s confidence before he’d actually even given it to you. Hopefully Thranduil would be okay with you leaving out some information… You’d hate to have him turn against you in nine years. He really was one of your favorites.

Now, the only problem: how to get Haldir, the wardens and Bilbo to all follow your lead without actually telling them to follow your lead.

Legolas wasn’t stupid. Suddenly shouting to ‘not say anything except for the fact that we’re traveling for funsies’ probably would garner some attention.

Triple shoot.

Your mind had been in a whirl since you met Legolas, trying to figure out all the ways this could go wrong, (and there were quite a few), and then come up with a plan to bypass those ways. In this, you were less successful.

Thankfully, Thranduil was kind enough to have you all escorted to room to rest for what remained of the day before having an audience with the Lorien envoys and meeting his other guests.

You were able to corner Bilbo, as well as Haldir and the other Elves, and told them you’d like to run point on this. Haldir and his wardens agreed easily that your business here was your own – if the Elvenking wanted to know, he could ask you and Bilbo himself.

That part taken care of, you took Bilbo aside, (you were put in adjoining rooms), to quietly hiss to him that he was NOT to mention the Company. You and your origins, sure. And he could say that you and him were just traveling to the places that you’d read about, seen in movies, etc. That would, hopefully, be enough to satisfy Thranduil.

Bilbo was hesitant at first, (lying, even by omission!, to an Elvenking was not really good practice), but when you reminded him that Thorin did not want his quest known, and reminded him of the….slight bad blood between the Dwarf and Elf, Bilbo was suddenly very passionate about keeping all details of the Company to himself.

You had to grin to yourself at that. Okay, so maybe you had been talking up Thorin a bit to Bilbo. Nothing too personal, just enough that Bilbo was growing attached to him, his family and his plight. And hopefully wouldn’t be so put out by his demeanor.

This ‘manipulating the plot’ thing was actually going pretty well – and you still had nine years left!

You were brought dinner in your rooms, were able to wash up, and then you both turned in. You had been informed by Haldir, on his way to his own room, that King Thranduil was going to summon you both to meet with him the next morning. Neither Bilbo nor yourself wanted to screw something up because of sleep deprivation.

Early bed time it was.

#To be continued #The Hobbit #Its Gonna Keep Going #You ready?#I'm not #fandoms galore #Reader Insert #Pairings?#NO CLUE on that

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maybe-its-5sos · 5 years

Text

Mom doesn’t wish to see you[Part 13] (Bruce Wayne imagine)

[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4][Part 5][Part 6] [Part 7][Part 8] [Part 9] [Part 10] [Part 11] [Part 12] Requested: Yes Request: Countless asks Summary: Not only do you find out that you’ve been cheated on, but so do the boys and the aftermath. Word count: 683 Warning(s): cheating, divorce Tag: @queen-twerks-a-lot @girl-obsessed-with-things @angstytodd @onmiontko @awkward-teenaged-girl @geeky-girl-394 @random-fandom-lady @iamthenightiambatman @cutiedaij @hanktheswaggyhonkeydonkey @inkedaztec @ spunky-89 @potterpineapple1975 @fearthedietcoke@stevette60 @kelseypaige7899 @kazuha159 @chibimajo @laneygthememequeen @seasidecrowbar

As bloodthirsty the boys were for revenge, the woman had seemed to vanish. All the tracking led to dead ends. Meanwhile, you were still slowly recovering from your misadventure. Bruce and the boys had convinced you to take leave from work, if not completely quit, as well as have someone always accompanying you, since the woman was still at large.

You hadn't left the manor since the incident since your face was still various shades of purple. The days went by fast, with Alfred and the boys often keeping you company. The nights, on the other hand, were rough, often causing you to wake up in a cold sweat. Bruce was worried and so was everyone else. You had yet to bring up what you heard Jay and Dami say, not knowing if you imagined it. But seeing how viciously they were trying to find the woman, you were scared that they would truly get her blood on their hands. Unsure of how to approach this, you decided the best thing to do was to talk to Bruce.

One night he was in the Batcave, you had awoken from yet another night terror. Wondering your way into the rocky technology-filled space, you see Bruce scanning what looks like camera feeds from Gotham on the computer. "What are you up to," you yawn getting closer, Bruce's head darting up to gaze at you. "We're still on the lookout for her," He sighs, seemingly disappointed that they haven't managed to catch her yet. "I've been meaning to talk to you about it." You say, leaning on the desk in front of him, still in your silk pajamas. Bruce hums waiting for you to continue. "I heard Dami and Jay talk about it the night it happened…" You look at your feet, before gazing up at him. "I think they're intending to kill her, and as much as I would like to see her gone, I don't think that would be right."

Bruce nodded in agreement, not sure how to handle the situation. "I think we should have a sit-down and talk about what the plan is once we find her," Bruce suggests, you placing a hand on his shoulder and lightly squeezing, to show that you agree. "I'm going to head back to bed, don't stay here too long," you say walking up the stairs.

You wake up in the morning to the smell of delicious pancakes emanating from the kitchen. Bruce's heavy frame was tightly wrapped around you, almost as a shield. His body heat making you feel hot and sticky. You lightly shake his hand, trying to awaken him, which after a few tries finally works. His eyes slowly open, his hair looking like a birds nest. "Good morning, baby!" He lazily smiles, turning himself onto his back. You smile sheepishly "we better get to the dining room before the boys eat all the pancakes," you chuckle, sitting on the edge of the bed getting ready to get up.

Bruce following behind you walk to the dining room, a group of tired but somewhat cheerful faces looking back at you. Sitting down both you and Bruce grab a plate full of pancakes, with fruit and whipped cream. Everyone chatters away as they stuff their faces with everything delicious Alfred had prepared.

"Reminds me of the good ol' days," Dick smiles, causing everyone, even Damian, to smile at the thought. "Were an almost functional family again," Tim chimes, earning giggles of agreement out of everyone. Damian seems almost back to his former self.

This whole ordeal has been difficult for him, but your heart melts and you feel proud that he's finally starting to bounce back.

"Clear your schedules for tonight, we need to have a family meeting," You smile, walking to take some of the empty plates to the kitchen, to ease Alfred's work-load. "You're not pregnant are you," Jason inquires. "Oh hell no," you say in joking disapproval. Causing another roar of laughter to follow, a slight heaviness still settling in your heart, being reminded of what you have to talk about.

Masterlist Ask

With love, -K

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littlestsnicket · 4 years

Note

⭐

thanks!! (this got out of hand, but I had fun thinking about these things :D)

I’m going to talk about “Promise not to lie, but that doesn’t necessarily mean I’ll tell the truth”

First, this title is ridiculously long, and I clearly remember having one of those, fuck, ao3 will not let me post this without a title moments, but I kind of like it; it works.

Second, I’ve done this a lot less in this fandom (where as like... i think all of my doctor who fic is like this) but the easiest fic for me to write are the ones where I read a fic and think, well that’s not quite right. And I had read a bunch of Violet is a Snicket fic and none of it was quite right. Which is definitely not a slight on the people who wrote it (a lot of it is really good! it just didn’t jive right with my personal understanding of the characters and themes of the series, and well... a lot of it seemed more influenced by netflix than the books), so I went and wrote my own.

Cut because I went through a nearly 2000 word long fic practically paragraph by paragraph.

“What a coincidence, I was about to make myself some tea,” said Violet. Even though this was an entirely plausible statement, Violet was certain it sounded like a bald faced lie, and she was certain by the way Lemony’s eyebrows drew together, that he thought so too, but he took a second mug from the cabinet above the stove, placed it next to his own on the counter, and dropped in a second tea bag. Violet thought she caught him scanning the room for exits, but it might not mean anything—Lemony did that constantly. She sat down at the worn kitchen table.

I like the idea of characters letting each other get away with lies. And I also think it’s important to asoue--there’s a reading of a lot of things that happen with disguises (like when Klaus and Sunny disguise themselves as doctors, and Madame Lulu, and maybe even Olaf disguising himself as Stephano) where I think there is some vfd *thing* where you are trained not to call people out on lies unless you are certain you have more to gain from doing so than you might gain from playing along and seeing what else happens. That’s not terribly related to this fic, but it’s something I was thinking about when I wrote Lemony letting on to Violet that he didn’t really believe she wanted tea, but going along with it anyway (and then Violet doesn’t even drink the tea (but that’s maybe not super clear from the way I wrote it), so Lemony knows at the end... and of course they are both very observant and spend a lot of time watching people both as a matter of personality and circumstance.)

“Thank you for finding us, Mr Snicket, and reuniting our family.”

One of the things I’ve put a lot of thought into is how characters use names/nicknames/titles. It’s something I became very concerned about when I was writing Twin Peaks fic, and I carried it along to this fandom too. And I really liked the idea of Violet using Lemony in her head but still calling him Mr Snicket out loud until they resolve their relationship.

“I couldn’t say no to Beatrice,” he responded without looking at her.

And then Lemony half denying that he’s done anything special or admirable. I tend not to think of Lemony as particularly self hating, although I don’t know if it comes across that way (especially in “platonic equivalent of hate sex” but that’s from Olaf’s pov and he sees Lemony in a certain way that is not necessarily accurate). This has more to do with Lemony not wanting to make moral judgements about himself, or really allow other people to commit to making moral judgements about himself. Which could certainly be read as self hating, but I think has more to do with pragmatism and a result of his world view which is very accommodating of moral grayness (except when it very much is NOT at all--like no one is ever all good in Lemony’s head, but there are certain people that Lemony allows himself to think of as 100% bad even though he intellectually knows otherwise).

but she was nearly twenty six now and the guardian of a child; she understood now that nothing, but especially trying to do right by a child, was ever as straightforward to an adult as it was to a young person.

The idea that Violet should be a properly grown up adult for this conversation was very much a reaction to reading other fic. It’s also the only thing that makes sense with my head canons about the timeline of when things happen/books are published. And this is also a sort of reference to atwq where Lemony has the line about children inevitably becoming adults that I am not going to look up.

“I know you were engaged to my mother,” Violet said.

I’m not sold on this. Violet is Bertrand’s child, and this sounds like more of a Beatrice/Klaus thing to say--it’s so very direct. But (a) given how relatively short I keep my fic, I needed to cut to the chase and (b) this was pretty early in my involvement in fandom. While most of the things I think about Lemony are things I’ve been thinking about since I was, idk, twelve or thirteen (Lemony has ALWAYS been my favorite), I had to flesh out Beatrice, Bertrand, Violet, Klaus, and Sunny a lot to be able to write them.

Then the next bit of dialogue--it was important to me to establish that Violet and Klaus (and Sunny too) had been researching Lemony. And there is a lot of information out there about Lemony. (And maybe the Baudelaire parents have been deliberately keeping their children away from information about Lemony, because the Quagmires are familiar with him in tvv--and the particular way they bring it up makes it seem like general knowledge not something that they discovered researching Olaf.) For one thing, I think the Baudelaire’s (especially Klaus) would research Lemony, but it was also important to me to sort of... balance out the amount of knowledge Lemony has about them.

And then of course, there is the thesis of the fic:

“Violet, I have always believed that genetics are a negligible part of paternity. And somewhat selfishly, if I were to think of myself as a father figure—even in a limited capacity, I would have to admit I was a monstrous failure.”

The idea that Lemony hasn’t already worked through his feelings about having a kid (in the strange capacity that he does) is just ridiculous to me. Like... families of choice is one of the KEY THEMES of the book series he wrote. It’s almost a non-issue. And I think when we see Lemony being completely un-self aware, that’s a deliberate rather than passive act on his part. All that performative grief we see in his narration isn’t something that just happens, it’s something he’s actively doing because he cannot deal with the complexity of his actual feelings. Where as this is something he’s worked through and consciously let himself off the hook for, and can concisely and accurately explain to Violet. Because he’s an adult. And even as a child in atwq, he’s pretty self aware about the things he’s not deliberately lying to himself about.

He placed one mug on the placemat in front of Violet, although the wood of the table top was so scratched and damaged one would never be able to pick out one more ring of water.

This might be my favorite thing I’ve written in this fandom, and it just... the thing about not using coasters being a sign of evil. I will never get over that. it’s so perfect. Because, when it comes down to it, evil is synonymous with carelessness. And giving up on the idea that small acts of care are worthwhile. And how that is so core to who Lemony is as a person and what being a Volunteer actually means.

blue gray like the sea during a storm—the same blue gray eyes she saw when she looked at Beatrice, the same blue gray eyes that looked back at her from the mirror.

(a) I wanted to connect the Snickets to the sea--it seemed important, and (b) I have a random and unfounded head canon that the Snicket siblings don’t look at all alike besides having the exact same color eyes--so that is the “Snicket” trait that Violet has as well.

I already talked about the name thing, so I’m going to skip a head a tiny bit. When I wrote this, it was really important that the fic actually be about something other than Violet being genetically a Snicket--it was the only way to show that it’s really a non issue. So Violet and Lemony talk about the Baudelaire parents and casually refer to them as such without any caveats because that’s the truth.

“Sometimes, it feels like I didn’t know my parents at all. They had so many secrets, so many things they never told us.”

“I am all too familiar with that feeling. I knew your parents quite well; I would like to help if I can.”

And this is Lemony breaking one of the many negative cycles of vfd involvement. And, despite their genetic relation, Lemony is going to interact with Violet primarily as a friend of her parents, and a someone who fundamentally understands what she is going through in loosing ones parents especially in situation of not really knowing what they were thinking.

I’m going to skip ahead to the sugar bowl bit because the discussion about moral ambiguity and what the Baudelaire parents would have wanted pretty much is what it is. Lemony is able to give Violet closure that I think she really needed. It’s nice. It’s what I want for her. I think it’s something Lemony knows Jacques didn’t have and needed as the eldest sibling.

Yeah... there is nothing in the sugar bowl. I am sorry. Those are the facts. It’s also something Lemony is not comfortable telling Violet. He wants to prepare her for disappointment, but she doesn’t have the context to really get it yet. Even though Lemony hints at it earlier (”they would be proud to have raised children who were brave and resourceful enough to barter the location of the sugar bowl for their sister’s safety”). That the Baudelaire’s instinctively understood the real value of the sugar bowl. Also, I was already planning what ended up becoming “To share a kitchen” at this point. The original draft was primarily focused on Sunny figuring out what was in the sugar bowl, and that being something that Lemony wasn’t comfortable telling anyone because it’s something that one has to figure out for ones self. But that ended up being kind of tangential to that story in the end.

Violet was silent and perfectly still, puzzling over all of this not terribly helpful information, as Lemony finished his tea.

Call back to Lemony saying “he was so still and quiet when he was thinking through a puzzle”. Because Violet is Bertrand’s daughter.

“Thank you, at least, for not telling me it is too dangerous for me to know.”

“My track record is far from perfect, but I do make a sincere attempt to keep my word.”

This is a direct refute of Widdershins saying that it’s too dangerous for young people to know what is in the sugar bowl. That was very deliberate. Lemony and Widdershins have some shit to work out. I don’t know that they ever get the chance. (I tend to think Widdershins doesn’t know what is in the sugar bowl. And that is a beginning of the rift between them; they seem close in atwq and Lemony seems so casually disdainful of him by the time he is writing tgg.)

And then the last paragraph is just... Lemony is not and never is going to play the role of a father figure for Violet, but they are a FAMILY in the way that matters--they’re comforted by each other’s presence and the small noises they make when going about their normal habits.

And that is that!

#ask meme #tangentially #mayo talks about writing #this seems like the work of an insane person #but i own it

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paradise-of-guilty-pleasures · 4 years

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Shattered Reflections {3}

[Helsa RP- Fanfic]

Fandom: Frozen

Genre: Post-Frozen/ Canon Divergence

- Hurt/Comfort, Drama, Romance

Pairing(s): Hans/Elsa, Kristoff/Anna

Prince Hans is a mirror at heart, but wishes to shatter his reflections and correct his past mistakes. He returns to Arendelle, willingly surrendering himself to Queen Elsa’s judgement. Uncovering truths, unforeseen circumstances and a bit of je ne sais quoi, bring the Ice Queen and the Mirror Prince together in a way neither of them would have imagined.

A/N:

(( This is a collaborative RP Fic written by lovely fellow Helsa shipper FOW and myself. We RP for fun and just wanted wanted to share this story with fellow shippers, especially all my lovely shipper buddies over in the Helsa Discord Server. Long live the Province of Helsa! Thank you, Beta Reader Friends, your help is much appreciated. Hope you enjoy~ ))

Previous Chapter: Chapter 2. Burn After Reading

[WARNING]:

Readers Discretion is Advised. There is mild mention of bodily harm from corporal punishment this chapter, it’s nothing too graphic, but I thought I’d warn anyway, better to be safe. If the subject makes you uncomfortable please refrain from reading.

–

Chapter 3. Bear Your Burdens

Hans rested on his stomach on his bed, arms crossed under his chin and eyes closed. At the sound of approach, however, he pushed himself up slowly, with a bit of a stretch, and waited to be addressed. In the corner under his bed were his dirty clothes, the ones he wanted to wash for himself. "Her Majesty graces me with her presence? I wonder what I've done to deserve such an honor." He remarked idly, though he didn't seem to focus too immediately. He seemed tired. Perhaps a little flushed.

Elsa thought she’d been prepared to face Hans again, but actually standing there in the dungeon, she realized she was not. The journals were one thing, but something about being in his presence again made her feel uneasy.

Yet it was not just Hans that had made her anxious, it was the dungeon itself as well. Elsa had not visited the dungeons since the coronation incident, and being back gave her a feeling of déjà vu, that made her chest compress and took her breath away. But maybe it was something more than the déjà vu that was making her restless.

It took her a moment to speak, after regaining enough air.

“ The Captain told me you weren’t acting like yourself today, ” maybe those weren’t the right words. “And that you wish to wash your own clothes? Which is a bit odd in and of itself.”

Hans seemed to think about it. “Not like myself? Curious, that I should have a ‘myself’ to act like.” He observed, seeming to find that by itself intriguing.

“I would like that, yes. The two questions may be related, but they are unfortunately tied to a secret I hold very dear. I would rather keep them to myself.” He paused to think a moment. “Does the good Captain have any elder siblings?”

The Captain seemed perplexed, and looked to Elsa briefly, perplexed, before answering. “No, I do not.”

“Ah, well. You aren’t likely to understand, then. Nor would the Queen or her Highness, they are too close and too friendly. No, there are some lessons one, only learns with brothers, I think. But I suppose prisoners are not entitled to secrets. A shame.” He looked between the two, but his gaze wavered somewhat. He seemed unfocused, and almost as if he had forgotten what he was saying, as he didn’t continue to explain himself.

Elsa did not like secrets. Secrets were what had kept her away from her dear Anna for so many years.

Yes, she was curious of his secret, Yet she did not plan prying it out of him, if he had his reservations she was going to let him be, for his aloofness had worried her. The way he spoke of his brothers was so grim and it seemed to affect him deeply.

“You’re right I don’t understand,” she paused. “ I wish I could understand… but if you wish not to share your secret I will not force it from you.”

Hans seemed deeply thoughtful a moment.

“Her Majesty is far too kind. And too gentle a soul for these things.” He mused. His words seemed less carefully chosen, and his manner even less so.

“Too bad, I feel in a talkative mood. My secret is, you could stab me and my last intelligible words would be 'I am fine’. I’d sooner die than admit to being in pain in most cases. However, I rather don’t like not being able to focus my eyes -or my tongue.” He ignored his usual protocol and leaned over his bed again to lie on his stomach and seemingly ignored them. It was the most unlike himself that he had been.

“No, don’t ask, you know how I’ll answer. If you’re so curious, call for a doctor and let him find out. Or let me die in peace with my dignity, whatever, I’m quite neutral on the subject. But it’s all much too grim for a lady.” He wouldn’t tolerate any if this 'are you well’ guff. He clearly -so far as he could tell- was not.

“I think he might actually be dying.” The Captain admitted. He never thought someone could be so blazè about the subject, but Hans was most certainly not himself at that moment.

“Yes, the Navy’s opinion on treasoners is much different from the Isles’ royal family. At least one has a spine.” Hans mused, eyes closed on his folded-over pillow. He looked more like a large and lazy cat than a man in the dungeons.

Dying? He was dying? Elsa was frozen, she didn’t know how else to react. Frost formed at her fingertips. Her breath lost yet again. It perturbed her, how he could seem so nonchalant about his own demise.

Yes, she had resentment towards this man, for what he had done to her sister (more than what he had done to her), yet she did not wish him dead. She had wished never to lay eyes on him again, certainly, but by death, that was never how she wanted her wish to be fulfilled.

His return to Arendelle had made more sense to her now; he wanted to make amends before perishing. Having a dying man wait for his imminent death in the dungeon did not sit right with her.

So he had also been brutally punished by his navy. In her queenly studies she had read up on Naval Law and just remembering some of their harsh punishments she’d come across in her readings, made wince just thinking about them.

He was right her soul was too gentle, for she felt sorrow even for this Accursed Prince.

She felt helpless, trapped inside her mind like she was once trapped inside her room, with the walls slowly closing in around her.

Still frozen, lost in the maze of her thoughts, she hadn’t noticed the layer of ice she unconsciously created across the dungeon floor, and was now quickly creeping up the walls.

“Your Majesty, breathe.” The Captain spoke gently, but knew better than to touch her in such a state. “If he’s talking about what I suspect, a skilled doctor could yet help, but we’d want to get them quickly. Damn fool didn’t think to tell us to change bandages.” The Captain seemed somehow both annoyed and pitying.

“Didn’t want to be a bother. I never do. Much easier to die than admit weakness. But…” Hans seemed to lose track of what he was saying. He perhaps noticed the cold and rolled a bit to lean his back against the wall where the frost crept.

The Captain’s voice snapped her out of her trance. Breathe, she had to remember how to breathe. Her respiration was uneven as air started to fill her lungs again.

If there was a chance of saving him she was going to take it, even if protested against it. She had reached her limit listening to his self-depreciation, it started to exasperate her.

In her vexation she responded to his words a second thought.

“ Weakness?” She huffed. “Just letting oneself die is the ultimate form of weakness.” She believed that, for in her weakest moment she had wished for death herself.

The frost continued to engulf the dungeon wall.

“I believe it takes real strength to admit pain and continue living.”

Hans seemed to hardly be listening.

“Yes, I have heard that.” He sounded unimpressed. But he seemed calmer.

“Your Majesty, I propose we call a doctor. Now.” The Captain proposed, shifting warily. “The clothes- Hiding blood, I suspect.” He didn’t like what this sounded like. Hans seemed unlike himself. He shifted a bit. “I think it’s his back. A bit more ice might help stay conscious. Or at least to dampen the fever.”

Elsa nodded in agreement. “Yes, please go call a doctor.”

She stepped closer to Hans. She looked down at her hand and realized she still held the note wrote earlier and brought with her, she had a strange idea. The note was no damp rag, but thought it could work as a makeshift one, if she chilled it and placed on his forehead.

“I’ll provide the ice, in the meantime.”

The Captain hesitated a moment, but he nodded, deciding Hans wouldn’t be a big problem as he fled from the scene to find a doctor.

Hans seemed to blink a bit, but he closed his eyes again. He was unreasonably warm.

“Too kind by far.” He muttered, without much context. He didn’t pull away, if anything, he relaxed somewhat.

“I didn’t do this intentionally. 'Thought that had healed.” He muttered.

Elsa was grateful that Hans had not been stubborn enough to protest her help. She had not touched him directly, but the heat emanating from his body even at the distance was worrisome.

She didn’t respond to him, instead she took a deep breath and tried to control the flurry she created over his back. She was intently focused on creating a light frost over his shirt. Elsa had been extra cautious when her ice powers touched someone, she did not want to risk what happened to Anna happen to anyone else.

Hans seemed more comfortable with the slight chill, really.

There was an odd smell closer to him. Bad, but unrecognizable without an expert there. It was on his old shirts, as well, but to a lesser extent, along with spots of blood in strange hatching patterns.

It didn’t take long for a doctor to arrive with the guard, and a medical bag.

“Good afternoon, your Majesty.” He bustled right in to get to work, sniffed the air, and wrinkled his nose. “Whatever it is, it’s infected. Would you be opposed to him being moved to a more sterile environment?” He didn’t even have to look at Hans to know it.

“You might not want to be here when the dressings come off. It could be a very upsetting sight. And smell. But your ice does help.” He assured. “I see we have the Prince for a patient. Didn’t know he was in Arendelle.” The Doctor may have been slightly uneasy about that fact, but it didn’t change that Hans was his patient, and he would do what he could.

The Doctor’s bombardment of words barely gave her time to process them all.

“ Not at all, feel free to transfer him, there are ample rooms you can use.” There were many empty servant and guest rooms in the Arendelle Castle that were not in use, and hadn’t been vacant for years. Elsa hesitated only for a brief moment, but looking back down at feverish fool in front of her, she found her resolve. “ If my ice can serve useful in any way, I’m willing to oblige.”

The Doctor seemed uncertain, but gave a bit of a sigh and nodded. “The clearest room you have, and a cot, I’ll need a lot of light, a lot of clean water, clear spirits. Got that? And somebody to help transfer him, he’s clearly not in any walking condition.” He spoke to the Captain of the guard, who nodded and went out to look.

“I’ve walked in worse.” Hans muttered from his cot.

“Then congratulations on not dying, but if you get up I’m asking the Queen to ice you to that bed.” The Doctor didn’t even pause to snap at him. Hans couldn’t help but smile a bit.

Hans muttered something about 'the best doctors’ but he seemed only semi-conscious at best.

While the guard was off, the doctor knelt down and checked under Hans’ collar to look at his back, prying him away from the wall. Hans didn’t even seem to notice the intrusion on his personal space or the touch. The doctor drew air between his teeth in an expression of sympathy pain. “Well the good news is, it doesn’t look like the infection will kill him today. He might’ve even lasted into tomorrow before being critical. The other good news is, he would be very difficult to kill if he’s lived this long. That or the Isles have better doctors.”

It was not a Queen’s duty to assist a doctor, Elsa was not bound by anything really, yet there she was regardless.

The Captain had sent a few of his men to help transfer Hans over from the dungeon to the new room. It was no easy feat, but it was done.

The Captain had found everything the Doctor required as quickly as possible and now they were almost done preparing for the Doctor to start working.

The time arrived shortly after, the Doctor carefully peeled off Hans shirt to uncover the secret he hid behind it. The Doctor had been right, it was a very unpleasant sight. Elsa had tried to mentally prepare herself, but it was far worse than she could have imagined. Her immediate response was to avert her gaze, it was too much for her to take in.

In the brief moment she had seen his back, she was overwhelmed with emotions. She shivered and could almost feel the ache upon her own back, that was probably nothing but an insignificant fraction of what he was actually feeling.

How long had he been living with these scars, if he said he thought they had healed already? He had arrived to Arendelle standing so tall, doing so well to hide his burden, that she never would have deduced it. Tears began to well up in her eyes.

The stench was nothing compared to the sight of his lacerations.

She felt herself freezing up again, but she couldn’t allow herself that luxury, she had to snap out of it. She took a deep breath, reminding herself she had volunteered herself to be useful during the operation, not pity him. No amount of pity can help a dying man.

The wounds had, for the most part, healed. The problem was, 'most’ was not 'completely’. Some had kept their scabs and were yet still too fresh, and the rope-like scar tissue was nearly indistinguishable from an infection below the skin. The Doctor had to do what he could to discover all the lingering wounds, get rid of the pus, clean the wounds, and re-bandage. Antibiotics were given, of course, something to stop the damage. In spite of how bad it looked, and how bad the infections smelled, the process wasn’t nearly as long or difficult as it appeared on the surface. That didn’t change the doctor’s perplexity as he finished up the surgery.

“I’ll change the bandages twice daily and keep an eye on him. He should be up and chatting again in a day or two, once the fever breaks. The infection itself isn’t as bad as the rest of it looks, but the surprising thing is that he got that many lacerations to begin with. Generally one isn’t supposed to survive that many.” It was true what Hans said, then. He would sooner die than show weakness, if he never mentioned that.

“Thank you, Doctor,” Elsa said with a nod. The Doctor then walked himself out.

The room had been emptied out other then Hans and herself. She had lingered behind and gazed at him and at in his fresh bandages and winced again knowing what was concealed behind them. Elsa approached the bedside, she hovered her hand over him, the heat emanating from him had lessened from before, but was still intense.

Hans would have hated this, if he were conscious. To be seen injured, by so many. Unable to snap at them or reassure them he was fine. Now his secret was out, that he could hide discomfort and pain, so now he would have to be watched for anyone to be certain.

Yet, he had told her, in his own way. The odd scratching on his note, reminiscent of the hash marks across his back; the admission of his secret in spite of her reassurance that he didn’t need to tell, the way he argued with words, but didn’t actually try to push anyone away. He tried not to be an inconvenience, but he accepted it when he was treated with care.

In spite of what pain they had caused him, he only ever spoke well of the Navy. So far as he was concerned, it seemed, he deserved them.

He sighed a little at the comfort of her natural chill around him. Ordinarily Hans enjoyed the warmth, but in this particular case, the chill helped him feel more at peace, and eased the pain.

It had been a long day for Elsa. What was supposed to be a simple verdict, had spiraled into a small frenzy. She was grateful the worst had passed, at least she hoped. She would not easily forget what transpired in that room.

She was ready to call it a day, when she heard the pitter-patter of someone running in the halls, it could only be one person, Anna.

“Elsa! Finally, it’s been so quiet around here. The guards told me you were busy all day, what’s on your mind?” She could tell Elsa was stressed, but since when was that new? Anna was always there to offer sisterly support- as long as Elsa would actually take it. Some days that seemed like a struggle.

Normally Elsa would indulge her younger sister with her chit-chat, but she really wasn’t in the mood to talk. Instead she did something that she didn’t generally do, and would definitely raise more questions from her, but she didn’t care she needed it more than anything right now. Without saying a word Elsa wrapped her sister in a tight hug.

Anna knew that had to be bad. Like 'oh god who’s dying’ bad. She wrapped her sister up in her arms as much as she could and squeezed her tight.

“Okay, whatever it is, is pretty bad. Just tell me you’re not dying and we can have some cocoa or something and… I dunno, sit quietly together?” Anna liked to chat to decompress, Elsa didn’t. Elsa needed the decompressing. So if they needed to just bundle up in blankets in silence for a while, they could do that. In the meanwhile, lots of warm hugs -and a little bit of worrying from Anna.

“I promise, I’m not dying Anna,” Elsa said softly nuzzled in her sisters embrace. She let out a sigh. “I would love some chocolate.”

“Alright. Girl time? Maybe we need to bundle up in bed with hot chocolate and talk. Or not talk. Whatever you need. You start bundling and I’ll get the cocoa?” It wasn’t about the warmth -obviously- but the blankets made for a nice calming weight. And they both loved chocolate.

“Yes, Thank you.” Elsa gave her little sister one last squeeze before letting her go.

The two sisters had bundled up like promised, drinking hot chocolate in silence.

After a while, the silence was too much even for Elsa to bear.

“Anna…” she began but didn’t know how to continue.

Anna perked up. She thrived on conversation, but she knew whatever was wrong had to be bothering Elsa like, a lot.

“Whatever it is, I’m here for you.” She assured, reaching over to rest a hand on Elsa’s arm. She hoped that whatever it was, that everything would be okay.

She hadn’t missed the emphasis from earlier, but she had a bad feeling about what Elsa meant when she said 'I’m not dying.’ That meant someone was, right? Who? Not Kristoff, at least, she was spending a lot of time with him and he probably would have told her about that… right?

Elsa let out a soft involuntary groan. “I know.” she answered reaching her other arm over to touch her sisters hand.

Elsa let out a deep sigh. “Today was just… a very hard day.” She tried to give her sister a smile, but it was visibly forced.

Anna copied the look. She smiled, but she could see the strain and worry on Elsa.

“Do you want to tell me about it or not? You look like you’re dying inside. Pick whichever is easier. Or have a little breakdown. It’s okay.” Anna offered her arms. What were sisters for, if not completely necessary familial cuddles?

Elsa was at the verge of tears, she took a deep breath to try to calm herself down. “… I saw something very bad happen to someone…” her voice was quavery. “And it’s really been affecting me.” her breath staggered. “I wish I could tell you more, but it’s really hard.” she finished her voice cracked.

Anna set down her cocoa and shifted behind Elsa to hold her tight. “Hey, it’s okay, it’s okay. In Arendelle something bad happened? You don’t have to tell me right now if you can’t, just feel how you need to feel for a bit, okay? It’s okay.” She stroked Elsa’s hair and hoped for the best. Anything to make things a little more okay. Anna didn’t know it, but she was the kind of person who did her damnedest to heal hearts and make things better.

Anna’s embrace was so warm. Elsa readjusted in her arms. Elsa couldn’t hold it in anymore and began to softly weep, letting all the sadness she had built up throughout the day. She felt safe in her younger sister’s hold.

Anna almost flinched, she never saw Elsa cry. But she held Elsa tight and hummed the lullaby their mother used, just to try and calm Elsa’s spirits.

“It’s okay, it’s okay.” She cooed between verses, and just let Elsa cry it out while she could. Whatever this was, it was clearly awful.

Everything her little sister did, helped to comfort her. The weeping had aided in easing her heavy heart. As her tears became subdued Elsa thanked her sister. She leaned her head against her and closed her eyes.

“It’s okay.” Anna assured again, continuing to pet Elsa’s hair.

“Wow, whatever it was really affected you, huh? Are you feeling a little better?” She asked softly, just hoping to talk through some of her fears, if Elsa was up to it. Or she could rest. Whatever Elsa was ready for.

“Yes…Thank you Anna, for everything, ” she said faintly. “… it’s just, seeing someone hurt like that was too much to bear.” “What was it? You seem so freaked out and… and heartbroken. Are you going to be okay? Are they?”

“I don’t know if I- …it’s hard for me to say,” Elsa sniffled. She shifted, rubbing her eyes with her hand and turning to look at her sister. “But, I’m going to be okay,” Elsa said with a soft smile, more genuine than the last, and a nod. She paused. Her heart pounded. Her gaze drifting from her sister. Her tone was hushed. “ I don’t know if they’ll be alright, but I really hope they will be.”

“Okay, well, in this kingdom good things happen, and we’re going to make sure to do everything a person can do. That’s all we can do, right?” Anna suggested sweetly. Kristoff had a saying of 'nothing is permanent’, and his philosophy was very much that things would happen, and sometimes they weren’t controllable. It helped Anna understand that she couldn’t fix everything, but that that wasn’t always a bad thing.

“It’ll be okay, one way or another.” She assured. She hoped she was right. Kristoff was better at these things.

“ Your right, ” Elsa said reverting her gaze back to her sister. She found one of her sister’s hands with her own and clasped it.

“Alright.” Anna felt a little better, hearing that maybe she had said the right thing. “Why don’t you sleep? I’ll stay right here. Just like when we were kids.” Anything to help her feel better, after all this mess that scared Elsa so.

Anna just wished she knew what had shaken Elsa so badly. She wasn’t sure she had seen this in person, but she knew it had to be like what she had felt when their parents had passed. Even outside of her room the castle had chilled after that.

#Helsa #IceBurns #Hans x Elsa #Frozen #Frozen FanFiction #Shattered Reflections

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starlightinhumanform · 5 years

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The Art of Love: Chapter 5

Fandom: She Ra (2018)

Ship: Glimadora

Summary: Glimmer continues to learn about Adora— and the way she feels about Adora.

Warnings (for this chapter): Mild Language (please tell me if anything needs to be added)

Genre: High School AU, Angst with a Happy Ending, Rivals/Enemies to Lovers, Eventual Fluff

A/N: This part is pure indulgent fluff (Brought to you by Hozier) but I had so much fun writing it and I hope you guys like it too! Please tell me what you think! All likes and reblogs go straight to my cold, dead soul. Love you all 🖤✨

Ao3 The Art of Love Masterpost Fic Masterpost Fic Request Info

3 protons later, when Adora’s face had returned to it’s usual colour and was no longer wet with tears, Glimmer was still no less mystified about what was going on or what her situation with Adora was; were they friends, were they acquaintances- what even are acquaintances??- had she actually hugged Adora? Why would she do that? Well she knew why, but she sure as hell wasn’t going to admit it. One of her brain cells had resumed its habit of calling her a loser. Once again, she felt that it was making a fair point.

Adora seemed oblivious as she continued to work away on the clay Glimmer had assigned her to, her back bent and stray pieces of hair creating a divide once more between her and the rest of the world, between her and Glimmer.

The silence had become awkward again, at least on Glimmer’s side. The oxygen in the room felt stuffy and hard to breathe like the air in a closed car in the summer that heats up and makes the whole car into a moving oven; it felt as if it were being thickened by the tension Glimmer felt. She could readily assume though that she was the only one feeling this awkwardness and, if it were real, she was probably the one creating it.

If only she could think of something to say, something to do, something to break up the space between them, something to place how causal she was supposed to act now, something-

“Hey, what are you painting?” Adora asked. Bright, friendly, opening up the room for conversation, casual but nothing too personal or anything that would just make matters more awkward. Damn how did she get so good at this whole ‘talking’ thing? Is there a class I should take?

Glimmer topped the rambling in her mind for a moment to answer, “I’m trying to make them look like a chunk of Bismuth.”

Glimmer held up one the finished pieces that was nearly dry at this point and hoped Adora wouldn’t make a big deal of it the way she had about all of her other art. Of course, things could never go the way Glimmer wanted them to and Adora’s jaw was dropping before she had the time to finish the thought.

“Glimmer!!”

“...yes?”

“That’s so cool- oh my god- how do you even? Holy shit!!”

Glimmer could feel her face going red; it was like she hated any type criticism but didn’t know how to handle compliments. She knew it was illogical but it didn’t stop her from doing it which is why her brain chose this moment to remind her what a loser she was. Yeah, yeah I know. Now shut up and help me talk to the pretty girl.

Did she just call Adora pretty? On the one hand that could be a very, very bad sign pointing to something that Glimmer was attempting to refuse as even a possibility but on the other hand, it was just the truthful reality. Glimmer had always known that Adora was pretty, far prettier than she ever considered herself- that’s for sure.

Glimmer shook herself out of self contemplation/pity party to see Adora leaning towards her and asking if she could see one closer. Nodding, Glimmer placing the one in her hand into Adora’s cupped and waiting palm. She gave a habitual warning of watching out for wet paint but wasn’t focusing on her own words. Instead, she was thinking about how this was the first time they had touched since the hug. That shouldn’t have mattered as much as it did.

Adora held the little round of clay between two fingers as if it were a fragile, ancient artifact. She looked at it with the same child-like awe that she had directed at the chopsticks earlier. Glimmer was slightly insulted by the fact that her work seemed to hold the same amount of amazing qualities as some mass produced wooden sticks. Mostly though, she was just watching the look of wonder that filled Adora’s face, the girl’s mouth slightly agape and her eyes absolutely locked on the small ball that she wouldn’t stop turning from side to side to see the light reflect off of it. Glimmer scolded herself for it, but couldn’t stop soaking in the admiration in Adora’s expression. Why should she care so much about what Adora’s opinion of her skills? She shouldn’t and that was the final word on that. Yeah but she’s popular and if she respects me, then maybe other people will too. Ha! So she could justify it!

...And of course she hated how happy that made her.

Adora cleared her throat, apparently realizing how childish she looked; Glimmer tried not to look or feel so disappointed as she actually was, “How did you do that?”

“Hmm?” Glimmer raised her eyebrows hoping to express how little she understood what Adora was talking about.

“I mean the way it shines; it really looks like metal. It’s just,” she huffed like she was giving up on something, “amazing. I know I keep saying that, but it really is true!”

“Oh, uh, it’s just the paint,” Glimmer held up the bottle and waved it in the air, “Metallic paint: really handy when you want to paint something that looks like, um, metal.”

Adora smiled at that, making Glimmer glad that at least her stupidity wasn’t going to waste.

She handed back the ball of clay with slight reverence that made Glimmer squirm for reasons she couldn’t quite place.

Glimmer placed it back down among its completed siblings and Adora scooted back to her place of work. Well I guess this conversation is over.

It was several more minutes before Glimmer got up the courage to say something else. The silence seemed to roar in her ears at times like that, when she felt like she should say something but just didn’t know how. That was part of the reason she asked the question she did, “Hey do you mind if I turn on some music?”

Adora whipped head around to face Glimmer (and maybe to fling her messy bun- which was getting messier by the minute- out of her face), “Yeah, sure!”

Glimmer connected her phone back into her speaker- to where it had been before all of this had started with Adora’s text. Her hands were shaky again as she scrolled through her music to the H’s. What did she expect to get out of this? Adora’s approval, her friendship that she didn’t even know was real or if it would last? A part of her mind whispered You just want to hear her sing again.

And thus Hozier began ringing out in her room again. This time in a man’s voice, followed by music, and layered to create harmonies. It was heart wrenching because of the authenticity; that’s why Glimmer liked it. And somehow, despite the genuine emotion that filled the music, it didn’t seem as real as Adora had managed to be when she was alone in Glimmer’s room, singing merely because she felt the need or want to.

“My lover’s got humor

She’s the giggle at a funeral

Knows everybody’s disapproval-”

Adora flung herself backwards with dramatic happiness, “Oh my god, I LOVE Hozier!”

“Yeah, I know,” Glimmer blurted our without thinking.

She winced at the confused glance she got in response, “I saw, er, heard you singing earlier.”

“Oh.”

The room was silent except for the music still pouring out of Glimmer’s speaker, neither knowing what to do.

“You’re really good,” Glimmer decided to speak from the heart; it was true after all. She recalled the hypnotizing quality of Adora’s voice, the jealousy she had felt. Part of that jealousy had simple roots: her mother was an amazing singer whose voice rang throughout the apartment equally sweet and heartbroken in a way that could bring the most calloused hearts to tears. It was no exaggeration to say that Glimmer, on the other hand, sounded like a pig with a sore throat. Ok maybe that was a little bit of an exaggeration, but the difference in talent of undeniable; Glimmer had always felt that she had probably disappointed her mom. And there was Adora going above and beyond Glimmer’s level in yet another area. It made perfect sense for her to be jealous. But there was that little voice in her head that reminded her of that pull she had felt, that want for the words to be describing her, jealous of whoever they were describing. Chalk it up to Adora’s great signing.

Adora gave a somewhat wary smile, “Thanks.”

Glimmer squinted, “You don’t believe me, do you? I mean it, you’re great.”

Wow, that took a lot to force out; Glimmer was one of the last to compliment someone on something they were better at than her. It wasn’t that she conceited or anything; after all, she was the first to compare herself as lesser to others- internally, that is. She just feared that admitting other’s advantage over her would lead to other’s finding out just how bad she was. Just another thing Glimmer knew to be illogical, but wouldn’t stop. Hmm, maybe I should talk to a counselor.

Adora’s smile was still shy but far more genuine, “Really?”

Glimmer threw a spare bit of clay lying next to her leg out the other girl, “Yes, dork. Now come on, the songs almost over and we haven’t gotten anything done.”

Adora turned back to her work with a grin on her lips. It was cute, not overplayed and blindingly enthusiastic like Adora’s smiles often struck Glimmer. And, huh, Glimmer had made this one.

They worked quietly for a few minutes- for a whole song, in fact. The silence was far more comfortable now that the air between them wasn’t a wasteland of uncertainty, instead filled with not only sound, but common interest.

It was at the break between two songs that Adora decided to speak once more, “Do you sing?”

“Oh,” Hahaha. Glimmer sure did love how god liked to toy with her emotions and make her squirm. If she ever met whatever stupid being controlled her world, she might punch it, “Uh, no, I don’t really sing.”

“Oh, ok,” Adora seemed somewhat disappointed. Way to go, Glimmer, make everything awkward again.

Glimmer spent the next few minutes on her favorite hobby: worrying. She wondered if maybe she should have said something different, should have lied and said that she could. But what if Adora asked her about it sometime and she was forced to break it to her that she couldn’t sing to save her life? That of course brought up the idea that this relationship, this friendship, this whatever it was, was never going to last. Glimmer considered saying something now to fix the tension she had created but then balanced that with the fact she would probably just make things worse. Talking to people is way too much work and it hardly ever results in anything good.

That’s when Adora started singing again.

Quiet and sweet at first, like she was trying to gain the confidence to get louder or was trying to measure Glimmer’s reaction. It was like liquid sugar weaving through the air and although outside Glimmer showed no response- she hardly batted an eye- inside, her heart was fluttering. God, why isn’t this girl on America’s Got Talent or something like that?

Then the chorus started and Adora’s voice grew into a river, flowing through the room with the joy and strength of someone immersed in love. It was powerful and beautiful and made Glimmer feel like she was sitting next to some ancient deity. She had heard jokes on the internet about Hozier being some sort of immortal or Celtic god but she didn’t understand it until Adora was singing his words. Of course, as a matter of principle, Glimmer refused to acknowledge it in any way.

That is until Adora placed her clay down in front of her, her voice halting as she stood and stayed there unmoving for a few seconds. Glimmer glanced upward to see Adora jerking her head in her direction like Come on, get up!

Glimmer set her brush on her palette and shifted to stand slowly and with hesitation, frozen somewhere between incredulity and fear, “What are you doing?”

Adora took her hand, pulling her the rest of the way up, “We’ve been sitting too long, come on- dance with me!”

Glimmer choked, “Sorry, what?”

Adora had started singing again but paused long enough to answer Glimmer, “Dance with me!”

She grabbed Glimmer’s hands and began twisting herself gently back and forth to the beat of the music, Glimmer’s arms being moved along with Adora’s body. Glimmer prayed Adora couldn’t feel how sweaty how her palms were in the grasp.

She managed a giggle, all incredulous feelings replaced by pure uncertain fear, and tried to speak above Adora’s voice, “I can’t dance!”

Adora laughed and began moving her head goofily from side to side along with her body, “Well that’s good ‘cause neither can I!”

Glimmer let Adora lead her away from the art materials into the clear(er) part of the room and didn’t understand why until Adora began shuffling her feet from side to side, taking Glimmer along with her in a swaying, twisting sort of half-dance.

The chorus had started up again and Adora had her head thrown back, letting the words ring out of her mouth. The overhead light was reflecting off the posters on Glimmer’s walls, tinging Adora’s face with violets and hot pinks. She looked, she looked like, well, she looked like an idiot.

Glimmer laughed and it was real, carrying through her room as loud as Adora’s voice.

Adora looked up, grinning widely. She made eye contact with Glimmer, keeping her head up as she switched to dramatically mouthing the words. She still sang them but now looked comically like she was some rock star from the 80’s:

“I fall in love just a little, ol’ little bit

Everyday with someone new.”

Adora wouldn’t break the gaze she held with Glimmer, the blue of her eyes sparkling. It made Glimmer’s stomach flip strangely; she didn’t know what was happening, she didn’t know where they were going as they swayed through her room- content to be lead by Adora’s voice. Or maybe it was Adora’s smile she was following. She didn’t know; she didn’t care.

Her head was light and she couldn’t exactly feel her legs. She wondered vaguely if this what it was like to be high and if this floating-without-legs feeling was the reason they called it ’high.’ She momentarily stumbled across the idea that maybe she was high but abandoned it quickly to memorize the way Adora’s nose crinkled occasionally as she sang. It wasn’t like this was ever going to happen again so she might as well enjoy it, remember how it felt. Of course Bow and her messed around like this but... Bow just didn’t have eyes that sparkled like sunlight on the ocean, didn’t have a voice that rolled over you like molten gold, didn’t stop suddenly and ask you to dance and make you laugh with stupid footwork, didn’t make you feel like you could fly right out of your body.

Adora let go of one of Glimmer’s hands to twirl her around in an imperfect circle which mostly imperfect due to the fact that Glimmer had tripped half way through. She competed the turn unsteadily, giggling as she fell lightly on Adora who caught the hand she had dropped with just enough strength to keep Glimmer from toppling them both to the ground. Glimmer still dipped forward, stopping quite close to Adora’s face; close enough to notice the specks of light grey and darker blues that floated in her eyes. Glimmer was starting to get very interested in those eyes. God damnit.

When the song ended, Adora lead her back to where they had been sitting before by keeping one keeping one of Glimmer’s hands wrapped loosely in her soft fingers; Glimmer was grateful for the guidance as her feet and legs were still miles away from her head.

“See, told you that would be fun,” Adora smiled at Glimmer after they had sat down.

“You didn’t say that; you said ‘Come on get up’ and then you dragged me with you.”

Adora leaned towards her with a sing-songy tone on her voice, “Yeah, but it was fun, wasn’t it?”

Glimmer gave a grudging smile back, “Yeah, sure. Whatever if it’ll make you shut up.”

Adora grinned before turning back to her work. They worked for the rest of the album more or less in silence, only occasionally checking the other’s progress or asking how their work looked. Adora’s answers were always somewhere along the lines of “amazing” or “great” and it made Glimmer feel slightly guilty for her far more critical answers. Then again, Glimmer was not known as someone to soften the truth; maybe that’s she wasn’t popular- let alone, highly so. During that time period Adora refrained from singing anymore, only humming here and there but never actually letting her voice ring out the way it had. In some ways Glimmer was glad; she couldn’t afford that type of distraction.

The final song ended and Glimmer abandoned her paints for a second to scroll through her phone, “Ok what do you want to listen to next? I’ve got Twenty One Pilots, David Bowie, Black Pink, Mozart, basically anything; what sounds good?

“Oh, uh, whatever you want.” Adora hummed without interest.

Glimmer was hurt as she had hoped her wide selection would impress Adora or at least reveal another shared interest. That was until she dared a glance at Adora whose hunched shoulders had shifted from “I’m concentrated and working hard” to “Oh my god, when did my head get so heavy?” and whose hands were moving much slower now, rolling repetitively without doing much.

“Hey are you ok?” It was only around ten; she couldn’t be tired, could she?

“Oh yeah I’m just sleepy,” Her eyes weren’t quite half-closed yet but they had certainly lost almost all of their customary shine. She tried for a smile but it seemed to take quite some effort, “I guess I’m just not a night person. Also I’ve been up since five.”

Glimmer scowled; they still had a lot work to do and she hadn’t even considered sleep as she was the type of teenage goblin who just didn’t sleep. (Well maybe she did but it didn’t qualify as much more than passing for a couple hours with the light on before waking up and continuing life as she had been before she was rudely interrupted by exhaustion).

“It’s ok, though,” she yawned, “I can keep working.”

Glimmer doubted that but the time creeping forward was starting to make her anxious and she was hoping to be finished before passing out. On the other hand, forcing Adora to keep working in this hardly-awake state was unlikely to speed up the process. And it might make her hate you.

She chewed the bottom of her lip, trying to weigh the options Get this stupid project over with/Make Adora hate you. Hmmm, “How many do have left to make?”

It took Adora a few times to count the number, further pushing Glimmer’s decision, “24.”

Her voice was bright but Glimmer could see right through the fact that it was an attempt to seem more awake. Ha. Not only did Glimmer use this tactic herself everyday, she had spent the majority of her interactions with Adora trying to discern when Adora was being genuine and when she was wearing a mask so she knew the girl was faking, “Go ahead and sleep- you’ve made enough extras that I can work on painting them for a while before needing more.”

Adora’s lips twitched into a frown, “Are you sure?”

“I’ll wake up when I need you,” Maybe that’ll appease her inner workaholic. Glimmer thought about what Adora had said about wanting to prove her what: worth? use? validity? to her adoptive parents. It made her wonder how hard Adora pushed herself, “Go to sleep.”

“You promise you'll wake me up?”

“Yes, now sleep; you look you’re about to fall over,” Shit I sound like my mom. She hoped her voice held that same gentle but stern tone that seemed to work on nearly everybody that her mom used as well. If I’m gonna sound like my mom, it better work as well as it does for her.

Apparently she hadn’t gotten it down yet as Adora still looked unconvinced. Glimmer gave her a soft push and Adora gave in, flopping to the floor.

“M’kay, talk to ya in a few hours.”

“Uh, you don’t need to sleep there,” Glimmer hadn’t expected Adora to actually fall over with the push and she certainly hadn’t expected her to curl up and close her eyes right there on the carpet, “My bed’s right there if you wanna use it.”

Adora gave a small shrug, “Here’s ok.”

“Do you at least want a pillow?? A blanket, something-“

“Glimmer,” She waited for Glimmer to look over, “This is fine and I’m about to pass out so just let me sleep.”

“Ok...” Glimmer still felt like she should do something else but, sure enough, Adora was asleep within a few minutes.

The girl slept as perfectly as she lived- or at least looked like she lived- breathing in soft puffs, her hair falling over her cheeks in wisps. Her face was relaxed and free of the tension of life pressing down on her; without it, years seemed to be swept away.

Glimmer snorted to herself- years swept away; as if the two of us aren’t 16. But there was a quality of truth to it; without the tension of an over-strung smile or creases caused by concentration, she looked- well maybe “younger” wasn’t the right word, maybe “fitting” was better, finally looking like a 16 year old. Glimmer had never noticed how old she looked, how all her maturity and perfection came from the lines in her expression. But here Adora was just a girl; just a tired, overworking girl whose breathing matched Glimmer’s heartbeat.

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