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gryffindorkxdraws · 3 years

Note

Want to start off by saying that I love your mind! I was hoping to get your opinion on: what is it in jackunzel that makes it feel so right?

EDIT: changed a few things ehe

ngl i found this challenging cus it made me think of how the answer would vary per person (yeah i went there idk why sdjkknds) so lemme get logical for a sec here haha

what exactly is the definition of “feel right”?

to make someone feel relaxed and comfortable, as merriam-webster states

simple as that, right? but wait there’s more

what makes something/someone go under that category?

now from there it expands because there are so many ways of answering that with everyone having different opinions and mindsets.

fair warning before we push on, this is going to get messy (like a word vomit) with how i’m just going to pour out everything i can think off, but just know i really like this question hence the, uh, mess? lmao

so back to your question, what is it in jackunzel that makes it feel so right?

in one POV, it could be because of how rapunzel and jack represent the sun and the moon respectively, making them two contrasting sides who shouldn’t collide and yet, against all odds and opposing forces that would come between them, they did.

and we can bet on the fact that they fought hard/struggled for it, depending on how fanfic writers play with it (reminds of this sun/moon au that sold me to this trope lmao).

just because others said it’s impossible or it’s against whatever, why should they listen to the “norm?” what even is considered “normal,” when the two can explore so much more of what they could be missing from life after stepping out of others’ shadows?

i just love sun/moon dynamics. i’m obsessed lmao i read the ones below somewhere and idk where but it’s been living in my head rent free and i can’t escape it tho feel free to correct me about any of these symbol topic!

like the Sun, thoughtful and full of energy to share with everyone, is connected with one’s self and known to, yeah, radiate warmth or light. it also symbolizes firmness, strength and power. oh and life too i guess?

while the Moon, subtle but full of mysteries and wonders, can also get emotional and sway others to be more nurturing. cus like it also symbolizes calmness, beauty, and nurture. plus eternity and enlightenment?

the list goes on if we head into more of what it both symbolize, but when these two celestial bodies get together, masculine and feminine energies unite. the Sun gives out life, while the Moon cultivates it.

i have no idea where i’m going but moving on

maybe it’s that taste of rebellion with going against the authorities/society/rules/of what has always been set to find out who they’re meant to be or, y’know, finding their identity without the shackles of others (like jack learning he has the potential to be a guardian and embracing it in his own time, and rapunzel realizing she’s the lost princess and works hard to be a good one),

or there’s something about the mystery that follows the other because they’ve never met anyone quite like them (like exploring a world they’ve never set foot on),

or finding all the good and bad in each other and in their differences, but still loving the other for who they are,

or what one lacks the other makes up for it and vice versa. with or without them realizing they can help each other grow to be a better version of themselves.

opposites attract who are bound to be full of surprises.

but on the contrary, they could also be two peas of a pod. aight this definitely goes against what i said above with all the opposites and stuff, but hear me out.

while they grew up and learned how to cope with life differently, they somehow still share the same sentiments when it comes to, for example, reaching their goals.

they have their own way to go about it, sure, but my point is they can reach a common ground better together compared when they’re with others.

like rapunzel with the lanterns, and jack with his memories. at first, one hesitated and wavered, while the other disagreed and pulled away. it was only after they saw a chance/realized this was it that they agreed in a heartbeat

they ultimately made the choice of diving in head first regardless of their initial thoughts in the first place. kinda like the moment they realized they can be a step closer to what they’ve been yearning for their whole life

bam, out of the way, they’re coming through lmao

not only that, but they can also be soft, gentle, understanding despite rapunzel’s spontaneuosness and jack’s mischievousness. we’ve seen them interacting with children and they’re so good at lifting their spirits up to have some fun and that there will always be a tomorrow.

and with their peers too. rapunzel lights up even the darkest of rooms, may it be like fireworks to bring joy or a campfire to warm one’s heart. jack meanwhile keeps things light when everyone else feels tense, easing others to relax and remember there’s always a way out

don’t forget the way they both sacrifice themselves for who they care for. like, they just do that, putting others first before them. that scene of saving eugene and baby tooth aaahhhhdjhdskdjkbkfjdkjf

and when everything comes crashing down and the world feels heavy on their shoulders, they both know they’re not alone with the other there for them.

maybe it’s the mutual understanding they have for each other after opening up, and finding a friend/partner/home through the connection they made together,

or they could be a push and pull that leads them to showing an unexpected side of the other, but in reality they always had it in them and all they needed was someone to show the way,

or how they complement each other, but they’re not two halves of a whole, no, rather they’re already whole themselves and they only reminded each other that they are,

or it’s simply because they don’t feel the need to put up walls or anything of the likes, because they know that no matter what they’ll be accepted for who they are.

opposites who have so much more in common than they originally thought

in another POV it could be because of how they give such partners in crime vibe. lowkey or highkey, take your pick. nothing would stop them from moving forward to a new tomorrow, or honestly whatever it is they put their minds to.

and i am here for that

like i said in one of my posts, “They were a magnet for trouble, with the Sun being a free-spirited and vivacious fellow, and with the Moon’s knack for mischief and being a rebel without cause.”

while both are adventurous, ready to explore whatever is out there, all the while just wanting to have some fun, they still balance each other out.

with jack usually ready to do what he needs/wants to do (which helps rapunzel to trust her gut and take the risk. that he’ll be there for her whenever she’s ready to step out of her comfort zone and jump away from her tower)

and with rapunzel knowing how to handle sticky situations properly (which reminds jack that not everything has to be done harshly and abruptly. that while freezing someone could be fun, it won’t solve things in the long run)

am i making sense? idek but you’re stuck with me lol but before i forget and i can’t believe i just remembered now. the way they can help fill in on what the other is missing

rapunzel wants to see the world, what goes out there, with the people, society, and history i feel. and jack can take her to wherever she wants to go. hell, he’ll even surprise her and bring her to places he’d think she’ll like.

with his experiences, he’s bound to have an endless list of plans for them to go through and it’s no surprise that she’ll love it, and (him) his gesture, nonetheless

jack wants to be noticed by others, to be seen and heard for who he is. and rapunzel is such a welcoming person that she accepts him wholeheartedly. give him the love he was deprived of for years.

reassure him that even he has a place to call home because why would he be excluded from that? he deserves it just as much as she and everyone else does

also i like to think they brainstorm ideas together

maybe it’s how they’re both game for an adventure, sudden or not, and this makes it easy for them to team up together and take on the world

or the feeling of familiarity as they click and everything flows naturally to them, where nothing is forced or uncomfortable between them

or how it’s like they can hold on to each other, knowing the other won’t let go no matter what because they’ll always have each other through the ups and downs

or it’s in their shared smiles, mischievous sparks in their eyes, moving together to the music of their synchronized heartbeats, as they step forward to the vast unknown

finding the ‘one’ who understands them inside out that they feel at home with them

i’ve said so many things and threw out so many brain rot, but what exactly is my final answer?

it’s simple: who knows? now before you toss me aside, and i hope not lmao, lemme just say even with that kind of final verdict, you can still find beauty in it.

you see, there’s so much more to explore and delve into with jackunzel because of their potential, that i don’t want to make a set answer for your question. i’d rather much help you, and anyone else wondering, to come to an answer yourself and maybe even share/discuss it with others.

i’m running out of brain juice, but i at least hope this helped satisfy your curiosity behind your question since this is all i can give… for now, maybe? who knows lmao

tho i’ll be honest and admit i based these on how i feel about jackunzel. so if ever someone else out there wants to add more points they thought of, feel free to add on this

#rotbtd #jackunzel #rise of the brave tangled dragon #the big four #jack frost and rapunzel #jack frost #rapunzel corona #holy hell what possessed me to type a damn essay lmao #my writing

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entityskillcount-archive · 3 years

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Thoughts on everyone in the realms?

"Short Answer; I made a chart. Not a well drawn chart, mind you, but a chart. Sometimes you don't wanna put effort into drawing 50 something faces"

"Long answer, uh....well lemme go down the list"

Claudette: My Starflower~!! She's so sweet and kind and amazing in trials and every time I see her I swoon a little- I love her so much~ Dwight: He's cute- And he's a good leader, despite his nervous personality, he knows how to bring a group together. Final guy potential. Ash: ....Don't...Tell him I said this? But uh....Evil Dead was one of my biggest comfort series, the thing that got me through losing both my parents....the thing that helped me transition, pick my name, and fueled my FX hobby. And I'm still attached, even realizing he's a real person and all- But...it's weird to just, be upfront with something like that, so I'm just...burying it as best as I can. David: He's a little rough around the edges but he’s good to have in a trial, plus when you can get past the walls, he’s nice to talk to. Kate: Her music by the campfire is calming and she’s such a sweetheart. If we were in a better situation I’d love to learn Guitar from her, but, it’s hard when you’re a moment away from a trial at any given time. Amalthea (@askthewidowstars OC): She judged my entire vibe but jokes on her I’m the one who snagged a cutie for life- Meg: If I had a dollar for every time she left me for dead I would have enough money to paint the entire campfire in solid gold. The only time we’ve ever properly talked was about SAW traps and 90% of it was her admitting she could beat every single trap because she was ‘built different’ Jeff: He’s a sweetheart and really nice to be around. Sometimes when we’re by the campfire in our downtimes I’ll let him draw on my arm. it kinda makes me want a tattoo, honestly. If we ever get out of here, I might get one. Steve: Bros!! We kinda make up team ‘Altruistic Himbo’, Plus the ‘Babysitter/Brother’ Vibes mesh really well. I kinda wanna re-style his hair though, mostly because it looks fluffy, and nice to play with. Quentin: Bros!! We’re gonna make matching T-Shirts about committing Arson on Freddy in particular. He’s fun to hang around in our downtime, and I hope there’s a chance he can get some actual rest, even in here. He deserves it. Adam: If Dwight wasn’t the leader I feel like he’d take over the Reigns. I feel like he’s the calm type that doesn’t handle energetic types well though. Which, y’know, makes things hard. Nea: Anytime I see her she’s either sneaking around the map and watching everyone get killed, or doing something stupid to get herself killed. I’d get grey hair if We were actually friends. Feng: Gamer bros- I got to find out we actually played a lotta the same stuff before we were taken by the Entity. We get a chance to nerd out in between trials- Laurie: Best Final Girl hands down. I kinda hope she can teach me Decisive Strike one day- I feel like its also just a little awkward since again, still a fan of Myers Nancy: She doesn’t agree that Demo’s a good boy, which makes sense, but we but heads over it. Also I’m pretty sure she wants me dead for touching the bones around the map one too many times. They’re just too tempting.... Jake: He’s pretty quiet, but he’s helpful in trials. I heard he’s been to a convention a few times, but I don’t think he’s actually into it as much as I thought...Which kinda sucks. I’d love more cosplay buddies y’know? Yui: Kinda makes me want a motorbike. We don’t talk but she seems really cool. A little too cool to me around if that makes sense. Yun-Jin: She benefits off of throwing everyone else under the bus. And 90% of the time she will throw everyone under the bus. Even if she needs actual help to escape the trial. Cheryl: Cheryylll!! She’s really cool and honestly would add her to the ‘Can kill god if she was not nerfed’ Squad. Especially since y’know, she has- I bet if we got enough of the kids together we could just beat the Entity’s ass. I know she could. Tapp: Always been a fan of Tapp before I was taken, although I feel like he’d wanna arrest me if we weren’t in the Entity’s Realm. I might be a little too excited for my own good about Kramer’s work. I don’t think he’d believe the fact its a movie either. Ace: He’s kinda like the Uncle of the group around the campfire, but, coming into trials, He’s still for saving his own skin- You can also only stand dad jokes for so long. Especially in an eternity like this. Leon: He’s cool!!! I got so excited first realizing He and Jill were here, and I wanna get a chance to talk to him about everything that went down, but Haven’t got the chance. He’s nice inside of Trials though, usually doesn’t leave anyone behind. Not a fan of getting blinded though. Jill: She knows how to lead the trials well, and I look up to her a lot. She’s always been such a badass!! Bill: If Bill gets his hands on a weapon the entire Realm would be fucked. Badass as hell and Kinda scary. Another one on the list of ‘Entity needed to Nerf’ Felix: You’d think a Childless Father and a Fatherless son would be able to bond a bit more, but, I think we each kinda get the same vibe of homesickness from one another. He’s kind though, and it’s neat to see his work whenever we’re by the campfire. Elodie: She’s better at helping out than most of the others, but she’s still in a survival of the fittest mindset. I loved hearing about her studies from before she was taken though. I feel like if we had more time we could dig deeper into this whole world and what its about. But we don’t get that- Zarina: We just don’t really click as much, honestly. I’d love to get to know her better but I think she’s more into digging into the killers and what she can find out about this place. Which y’know, could be better done with a team. Sage (@askthewidowstars OC): HUSBAND!!! My husband. I love him to the Moon and back. He’s amazing and I miss him even when we’re five feet apart- ...I need a hug now- Amanda: Best girl hands down!! We vibed a lot in between Trials talking about her traps and old designs, she was impressed by my knowledge, and we hang out in Gideon sometimes! Ghostface: He’s pretty cute- Also fun to be around, even if he’s kind of a dick when he’s actually at work, it’s better when you’re outside of a Trial. It’s also neat to see he’s not just two idiots in a halloween costume and his own person, as much as I love the Scream Series, too- Leatherface: Bubba!!! Honestly I’d handle being chainsawed. Fuckin Love Bubba- Huntress: I wanna learn how to throw hatchets but I know I never will. She’s kinda scary, but also I feel like if she could adopt some of the others in the Realms, she totally would. Oni: The only times I’ve ever really seen him is just before my skull gets bashed in. All I really have associated to him is the splitting headache. Twins: I’m gonna punt Victor into the sun. I haven’t been good around kids beforehand and this tiny gremlin motherfucker just makes it worse. Pinhead: I was so excited to see him!! He’s one of the few that talks more often than not in a trial, and he’s always had this air of elegance about him which makes it so much cooler! I’d be tempted to grab the box to solve it, but, at the same time Dwight’s already been hunted. I just...want to see how it works, really. Maybe if I ask nicely? Nah, probably not. Pyramid Head: He’s so fucking COOL!!! He’s always just been really fucking cool and I still get stars in my eyes. I wanna re-create his weapon one day. Joey: Joey’s one of the chill killers to be around, probably my favorite amongst the legion. Also Cosplay gang?? Hello? Susie: She’s cute!! I like her vibes whenever there’s not violence involved. I wonder if she’d ever get into costume making, she has the artistic eye for it. I also wonder if she’d ever dye other people’s hair...I’d kinda want green tips one day- Frank: Still wanna throw a palette at him. He’s one of the more serious of the Legion, and usually the one you’d find with a Mori. Not as Serious as Julie but only because he has the cocky god complex to go with it. Julie: She’s definitely the most serious out of the Legion. There’s no real rest whenever we’re in a trial against her. Scary as hell and less of a bastard than the other three. Hillbilly: I know he deserved a lot better than this, especially after hearing more about him. I...Haven’t gotten to see much than the end of his chainsaw though. Blight: This dude’s singlehandedly bringing back my fear of needles and I thought I lost that with HRT- Also like, dude spits up orange fuckin everywhere. Michael: My Mans!! I always get a little excited knowing we’re up against him. It’s habit- It’s kinda weird to see him easily affected by like, palettes or flashlights though. Spirit: She seems like she could be nice when there’s some downtime. I’m also one of the few that can understand her well enough, which probably makes things easier. I found out she’s basically my age when I survived a trial by myself. I’d hope to hang out more sometime. Nemesis: God he’s so fucking tall. Kinda surprised it was Nemesis out of everyone that could’ve been brought, and also, kinda terrified? Still am kinda terrified. I’m surprised he hasn’t just torn up an entire map yet. His zombie minions are also annoying. Wraith: All this motherfucker does is roll up to pull me off Gens and Exist as a problem. I don’t see much of him outside of a Trial. Trapper: Motherfucker Incarnate. If the Entity lets us throw hands I’m fighting him first. Freddy: ....Gross. I liked the Nightmare on Elm Street series a lot, but...Freddy as a person? Ew. Especially this iteration. Demogorgon: Demopuppy!! He’s a good boy and he deserves to get treats. Even if the Treats are flesh....I wonder if he likes candy though. Trickster: Pretty!! He also Gives me DIO vibes because of the Jacket and the Knife throwing...Imagine if a killer could stop time...that’d be terrifying. Deathslinger: I wanna sit down and look at his gun more but I also feel like if I ask I’d just get shot on sight. Intimidating as hell but also cool. Mary: ....Still on the very complicated ‘Ex Girlfriend that murdered me’ State. It’s hard to avoid her though. Especially since she wants to get back together since we’re stuck here. Nurse: She does not help my fear of Hospitals, honestly. While she’s easy to go up against, it’s still eugh. Plague: I really, really hate her power. The Sickness and the Vomit is just- Eughhhhh- It just hits every bad sensory issue at once. Clown: ...I get killers are Killers and aren’t supposed to be good people but also like....Disgusting. Please Remove from the Realm. He’s just- ...Ew. Doctor: NOPE. NO. NEVER. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO.

#asks #anonymous #God this was so much to write out

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luca-moreno · 3 years

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Look. Marie is probably gonna have my balls for this but listen. I'm going to say the thing everyone else is thinking but doesn't have the guts to say. Think of it as 'tough love' if that helps at all. Okay. Here we go.

Kiss him. Or shut the fuck up.

-sincerely the Berlin collective

(helpimsosorry) (thisisahotmess) (justlikeLuca) (alsolong) (sorry) -- Thurman and Braun eye Luca, currently wrapped up like a burrito on the floor of the observation lounge. Thurman nudges him gently with his boot. “You alright in there, Moreno?”

“Lemme alone,” comes the muffled response. “I’m dying.”

They look over at Harris and Davis, perched together on the couch while the stars swirl outside. They wear matching raised eyebrows but it’s Braun that asks in a lowered tone, “What’s wrong with him?”

Harris doesn’t bother to look up from the datapad she holds in her hand or the obnoxiously loud Blasto game she’s playing. Davis leans over her shoulder, offering advice that Harris steadfastly ignores.

“He’s freaking out about the thing again,” she shrugs.

“The thing?”

“The thing.”

“Oh.” Braun nods sagely then exchanges a confused glance with Thurman.

“What’s the thing?”

Harris pauses the game to look up and Davis snatches the pad out of her hands. “Wait. So you guys haven’t heard?”

“Heard what? The commander’s had us running drills for the past twelve hours. Where the fuck were you two on it, by the way?”

“Oh my god,” Davis grabs Harris’s arm then cackles before returning to the game. “They don’t know.”

“Nope.”

Thurman rubs the back of his neck and squints, suddenly uneasy. “Not the…”

“No! Not the… other thing. This is the phoenix thing.”

“Oh.” Thurman walks away, immediately bored.

Braun, however, leans his big frame closer. Blue eyes sparkle curiously. “What phoenix thing?”

The Blasto game starts up again and Harris snarls in exasperation, then half clambers over Davis to reach it. “Will you shut that thing off?”

“I’m dying,” comes another muffled moan from the floor that everyone ignores. “In case anyone cares.”

Braun reaches down to pluck the datapad from between the two squabbling girls and lifts it out of their reach. Harris snarls. “Hey!”

“Braun, give it back!”

“Someone tell me what’s going on. Why does Luca think he’s dying?”

“Hurricane planted one on him then ghosted,” Davis informs him helpfully. “He’s been lying on the floor crying about it for two days.”

“Boo fucking hoo,” Harris bitches, crossing her arms tight across her chest and pouts dramatically. “’A phoenix kissed me.’ We should all be so lucky.”

“Or not,” Thurman mutters from the doorway.

Braun slowly lowers his arm, but Harris isn’t satisfied with that and half climbs up him to reach the datapad he’s holding hostage instead. “Ah. That thing.”

“Yeah. That thing.”

There’s another moan from the floor.

Isaac knows it’s going to be bad when Davis shows up on the doorstep to his quarters and deposits Luca into his care with an eye roll and not a single word.

He leads Luca, burrito blanket and all, towards the couch.

“Luca,” Eva sits up quickly, tucking her book away. “Are you sick?”

“I’m dying,” Luca mumbles as Isaac plants a hand on one shoulder and guides him down onto the couch. He tries to catch Eva’s eye as Luca flops face first down onto the cushions.

“Do I need to call Dr Lyons?” he asks carefully.

Luca’s is reply is muffled and pathetic. “No.” A pause, then. “Two doors.”

Eva’s lips twitch as Isaac visibly relaxes and he sighs inwardly, thinking of the quiet evening he was hoping to have and the shower still calling his name after a long, dragging shift in the CIC. But he’ll always make time for Luca.

“Do you want to talk about it, son?”

There’s another heavy sigh from the blanket. “No.”

Isaac waits a beat for Luca to say more but when it’s clear he’s not going to, he clears his throat lightly. He’d put credits down that this has something to do with Phoenix Roosevelt and Luca’s very obvious, and possibly unrequited crush. Where did this fall in the handbook? He wonders briefly to himself if he’s not above getting Miller to handle it.

And he would, if it wasn’t Luca.

Eva touches his hand and motions her head towards the shower. I’ve got this, she mouths. He doesn’t take his eyes off her.

“Are you sure you don’t want to talk about it, Luc?” he tries one more time.

A pathetic moan is the only response he gets and Eva hides her silent laugh behind her hand. “Go,” she says softly. “I’ll talk to him.”

Isaac glances between the prone shape beside her and his private, glorious bathroom and decides since there’s no immediate danger, he’s within his rights to take Eva up on her offer.

Plus, Eva will get more out of him anyway.

“Alright,” he nods gratefully then offers Luca a conciliatory pat on the shoulder as he slips away.

Eva brushes a hand over Luca’s curls and mentally counts to ten, except that she only gets to three before Luca is rolling over and suddenly pulling himself upright.

The blanket pools around him and his hair sticks up in wild disarray around his face.

“Okay. I lied. I’m not dying and I do want to talk about it.”

Eva nods. “Alright.” ”Uh. So you know that thing… that I told you about… that happened?”

“The thing?”

“Yes,” Luca half glares at her, wondering if she’s teasing him. She is, just a little, but only because Luca’s angst over a simple meeting of mouths was a delightful distraction from her own worries. ”The thing.”

“Ah,” Eva says knowingly, her lips twitching. “The thing being the kiss. With a capital K… With Ben.”

Luca’s mouth works silently for a moment before he groans and slumps backwards.

“The Kiss. Yes. Well, I mean… I think it was a kiss. There was a definite-“ Luca closes his eyes and puckers his lips dramatically before moving on, “-but I don’t know. I mean… We were working out, he was trying to teach me stuff but then we fell and I thought... well, maybe I was dreaming, like maybe I had slapped myself with the staff and I didn’t realise it? Or maybe I hit him too hard and I rattled his brain and he didn’t really know what he was doing... Or, maybe it was just an accident-“

“You think he might have accidently kissed you?”

“Why not? It happens!” He eyes her shrewdly then. “Right?”

“I wouldn’t know,” she says carefully and Luca pauses to snort ungracefully before continuing.

“The point is,” he goes on, getting really warmed up now. “It must have been bad, right? The kiss? I mean, he charged away. Like… an actual charge, Eva. Biotics and all, he was that keen to get away from me. Just. Poof. Gone. I’m surprised my eyebrows didn’t get singed-“

Eva laughs. “You know it doesn’t work like that, Luca.”

“Shh, not important,” he waves that pesky fact away dismissively but then he falters and gives her a mock growl. “– and stop. I’m trying to have a moment here, and you’re ruining my dramatical meltdown.”

That causes her to muffle her laughter into a cushion she’s forced to snatch up from the couch. One of the pretty sparkly ones she had eyed off on Asteria and Isaac had bought behind her back to surprise her.

“I’m sorry,” she says formally as she schools her face into something suitably serious and lowers the cushion to her lap. “– please, Luca. Continue.”

He huffs. “Well. No. Now I’ve lost my place. Thanks a lot, I was really working up to something there.”

“The kiss?” she prompts, trying not to laugh again.

“OH SWEET KHALAHIRA, THE KISS.”

He spins, then flops dramatically down beside her. “Eva,” he whines her name like a toddler begging for a treat. It’s enough to make her sigh. “What do I do?”

“Maybe you could... Hmm. I don't know... No. It’s too crazy. You wouldn’t want to know about it.”

“What? What is it? Is it another one of your funky breathing techniques? Some asari thing? Can it read minds?!”

“Well, it’s very complicated. But it just might help you.”

“What?! Tell me. Eva!”

“.... you could try talking to him.”

Luca is aghast and horrified all at once. “NO?? Why would I do that?”

“It has to be better than…” she waves a hand and eyes him critically. “Whatever this is.”

“A crisis, Eva. This is a crisis. Of epic proportions. On a scale of one to reapers this is.. I dunno, what's worse than reapers trying to wipe out the entirety of galactic civilization?”

Eva doesn't want to think about that last part. “Well, I think it’s sort of sweet if you ask me," she says instead. "Ben’s nice. He’s not at all what I expected. And he obviously cares about you. Why else would he be trying to hit you with a stick to make you better in combat?”

Luca makes a strangled sound halfway between a snort and a cackle. “He just doesn’t want to have to carry me back to the LZ over his shoulder when a dragoon gets me. I bet he could too.”

Eva has to bite the inside of her cheek not to laugh at Luca’s dreamy expression. “I’m sure he wouldn’t even break a sweat.”

Luca seems tremendously interested in that mental image for a few seconds before he falls back into his funk. He tucks himself in against her and she can sense he’s working up to something entirely new.

“What did you do?” he asks after a minute, quiet and subdued. “You know, with the captain?”

Eva smiles at the memory in spite of herself. “Well, hmm. For starters… I guess I kissed him back.”

Luca scrambles up and gathers up a cushion to hug it to himself as he slides her a sideways glance.

“Yeah? And did you teleport out of the room immediately afterwards?”

Eva can’t help it, she dissolves into giggles and Luca whacks her gently with the pillow.

“No…”

“SEE!”

He picks up his faithful blanket and hauls it over his head until the only thing that she can see is his curls.

“This is so stupid. I’m so stupid. I’m just gonna pretend it never happened.”

“Luca. I’m sure it’s fine. It’s just a kiss. It’s a good thing. I don’t understand. I thought this was what you wanted?”

His head peaks up, eyes dark pools over the blanket’s trim. “I don’t know. I mean… yes? But also… no? Yes. Um. Definitely yes? No… Oh, no.”

“Now you’re confusing me. What is it that you actually want, Luc?”

He grows very quiet for a moment and Eva allows him to sit with his thoughts. He was getting better with his focus. The meditations he’s been doing with her in the quiet off hours are definitely helping.. at least she hopes.

“It is… I think. I just… I don’t want to mess it up, Eva,” he says, his voice small. “I really like him. He’s my friend, so it’s not just… well, you know-“

He does something with his eyebrows that has her wanting to laugh again, but she stifles that urge in case he whacks her with the cushion again, “-but he’s just… He makes me feel… I don’t know. Like I’m capable of important things even though I’m not special like him... or you…”

“Because you are, Luc. Don’t sell yourself short.”

“I know that and I’m not. I mean. Not really. I’m just… How can you want something so badly but be so scared to reach for it? It doesn’t make sense... but then what if you do… and then everything gets all messed up and then you don’t even have a friend anymore and things get all weird and awkward and plus I know he's still missing them and I can’t-“

Eva feels the ache inside her as she reaches for him and tugs him into a hug, effectively cutting him off before he spirals once again. He leans into her miserably, his soft hair tickling the side of her jaw.

“Luca,” she says it on a sigh, because this… this hits too close to home and how can she encourage him to give himself over to something that might be so beautiful… but has the potential to hurt so much too?

He snuffles lightly into her chest. “I need someone to send me a sign,” he mutters. “Something from the universe to tell me what to do.”

He’s barely finished saying the words when his omnitool beeps with an incoming message. He pulls away to read it and she lets him go.

“Huh? What the… Why is Ajax mess- ohfuck-“

“Well,” Eva laughs at his horrified expression as she reads the scrolling text over his shoulder. “I guess that’s your sign, Luc.”

Ben opens the door to his quarters and the first thing Luca does is grab his shirt and pull him close. Except, that’s not actually what happens because Ben is more solid than he looks and Luca ends up losing his balance and falling into his chest with a small grunt instead.

Ben catches him with a confused look. “Luca?”

“Um. Look,” Luca starts, hands still tangled in Ben’s shirt, close enough to breathe him in and see the way the vanguard’s eyes glow in the low light of the hallway. “So... there’s a million things I want to say and all of them are probably stupid, but… you kissed me and I don’t know what that means and I can only hope it means what I want it to mean, but if it doesn’t mean what I want it to mean then that’s okay too and I hope this doesn’t change anything because I really like being your friend but just once, just once, I want... to.. do.. this...” Luca traps Ben’s face gently between his palms... and kisses him.

#this is the worst thing i've ever written #eva novakov #isaac cerrillo #scooter roosevelt #scquad shenanigans #luca moreno #pls just go ahead and blame this on the cold and flu meds ok #this is a hot mess #just like luca

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lieblxng · 3 years

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im developing a lot of aus including the reverse au which is currently only available for rose, but leon also has it developed, i just forgot to put it in the verses page for him haha but wow im developing a reverse verse for a chara i dont have??? i might as well throw damos on the blog and be the only person in the pkmn rpc who plays him LMAO i cant help falling for obscure characters but i think he might have a better chance in getting interactions than my etrian odyssey muses but no if anyone wants to do damos,,,,you can hmu 😳😳 i cant reply it or see it if you do tho LMAOO

anyway reverse!damos here who goes by lazarus (meaning: my god has aided me) is not a nice farmer unlike his normal verse, instead being akin to a mercenary, but he kinda fills in the role of marcus - he has the ability to manipulate the hearts of pokemon, even legendaries and because of this, he’s been fiddling with legendaries and experimenting with things to try something out - and while reverse!arceus has been severely weakened from an intense fight or a meteorite too (im still figuring it out) and lost its life plates, lazarus finds it. it’s on the brink of dying, and instead of returning the plates like a nice person, lazarus only thinks of profit and benefitting himself - because it’s so vulnerable, it manipulates reverse!phae into summoning the lake guardians, where it promptly fights them and steals their gems before kicking them into the dirt. then he uses said gems to restraint and fully take control of reverse!phae before inserting the plates back into it, saying it will only get them back if it corporates. yes, lazarus literally pulls a cyrus being the first one to actually create a draft of the red chains to have arceus under its command. one of cyrus’ pc posts is “According to myths, the Pokémon created Sinnoh with its power. However, capturing the Pokémon with a Poké Ball prevents it from using its full power... But with the Red Chain, the Pokémon can be shackled, and its power can be used without restraint...” and he’s implying arceus with the first mention of pokemon, so maybe the red chains can be used on god??? i dont see why not, although the lake guardian was made more to check the creation trio than god itself, but why wouldn’t you have checks against god? “The Pokémon of the lakes and Mt. Coronet are somehow connected. Capturing the Pokémon of the lakes will free the Pokémon of Mt. Coronet. From the Pokémon of the lakes, crystals can be extracted to create a Red Chain.” i know he implies the creation trio with pkmn of mt. coronet but technically arceus lives in mt. coronet as the hall of origins can be summoned there LEMME HAVE THIS -

originally i was going to have reverse!arceus be a completely neutral god, both in personality and how it handled things - just create life, casually, and just head out and do nothing for them - “the humans can handle their planet however they wish to. if they destroy it, they destroy it.” and i was trying to redesign it and it kept coming up as punk (more below because this is a long ass post)

so i was like, aight i guess i’ll go with what my heart wants but something still didnt feel right, because punk is an expression more than just a simple fashion statement - it was created to rebel against those who tried to hold you down and mold you into who they wanted you to be. to defy the shitty standards of what’s supposedly normal. and then it all clicked when i looked at this vid

youtube

ive heard the music itself and one of my favs, but not the music video so i kinda just exploded with ideas and it really completed the punk i wanted to go with - funny thing, im a bad character designer so i scrapped the punk look and pulled a unique thing with phae’s case - legendaries and mythics are statements of unchanging, fixated ways while normal, evolvable pokemon are statements of improvement and change - growth, which is something phae is completely jealous of. gods don’t evolve; they don’t change. so i thought, why not keep its original look (i love it too much anyway and i cant think of anything better tbh for phae) to reflect that aspect but have the way it governs and behaves different? normal!phae and reverse!phae are still similar but opposite - normal being the kind, caring god and reverse being the relentless, uncaring god. both are the two most popular aspects and themes of gods and how they treat those beneath them, so i thought it worked.

reverse!phae never wanted to be a god. it’s immature and uncaring on purpose to get the attention of the creator of the original one itself; to be a sign of rebel, to show that it was its own character and no one can morph it into what they want it to be. it revels in its creations screaming in pain, as nothing else entertains it so and because it empathizes with them. it sends the world into pure chaos a majority of time so no one enjoys living. seeing its creations, both human and pokemon, excel in the trials and tribulations of this hell; seeing them perform so expertly under extreme stress, how humans and pokemon can come together and defeat anythin - and rebelling in their own right and way give reverse!phae so much hope and relief. that it’ll be able to do the same. and once reverse!phae does get its creators attention, you bet it’s gonna be very angry on why it exists. it might even try to murk its creator. it’s more of a “i didn’t ask to be born so i’m gonna make it your problem” type of person, and a god prone to violence - often fighting with its own creations, like even the lake trio and the creation trio. but it checks them all every time, and it’s so hungry for an actual fight that reverse!phae can actually work for and struggle for and feel like it actually won. and that’s when lazarus comes in. that’s where lazarus comes in.

how much it hates lazarus. how much it hates lazarus. it hates everyone, but lazarus has a special kind of hatred reserved just for him. in fact, hatred isn’t the proper word to explain the intense, raw, unfiltered feelings reverse!phae has for him. on one hand, it absolutely respects the honest work he puts in to further himself, but on the other hand, being the one on the receiving end of his malicious intentions is never ideal. it has no interest in whatever petty crimes he wants to commit, but trying to take god and become it yourself? completely admirable. a fantastic way to rebel, but having to have someone chain you down and control you? reverse!phae’s worst nightmare. i’ll get into that later since this is already long enough god help me

is reverse!phae messed up? yes, severely. that’s kinda what happens when you rot alone in the depths of dark space for eons. no human nor pokemon - no, no living being can ever handle that. both normal! and reverse!phae have the same backstory, but different reactions to it. reverse!phae wants everyone to scream and lash out, it wants everyone to rebel against their origins and become their own people, even with the immense baggage on their shoulders. it wants everyone to risk death to accomplish their dreams. it laughs in everyone's faces before spitting in them. i think reverse!phae will be one of my most violent takes on a muse, if not, my most since it is god and the shit it talks can easily be proven right. it constantly berates and breaks people down into pieces. no one understands it. it hates everyone and everything it sees. it doesn’t need love and kindness, it just needs a body to break. which is untrue, because obviously its yearning for love and kindness - something its never experienced - and it’s lashing out for attention. secretly hoping someone will just hug it and all its problems away. that everything will be okay in the grand scheme of things. that it won’t have to have the unlimited stress of being a god anymore.

usually when i put my touch on muses, canon or not, they’re primarily good people with hearts of gold. even with ones less so, they’re not as intense as this. so working with that kind of character is thrilling and i’m excited to see if i can get anyone interested with it lmao- reverse!phae’s name might be nou or chali, what would be better? sorry this was such a long post!! i’ve been working on this since last night and it’s been really fun to develop like this again - i only get this kind of productive with my hyperfixations, so they’re both a blessing and a curse - i think this is everything i have rn for the reverse au but ii’ll be going back into it

#//trimming because this is a long ass post #//talking about the reverse verse oh hee hoo #//ive made developments #//see now after the fluff we get the angst its the circle of life on this blog #'Cause we kick it like it's summertime. | Mun Art #There's no need to be so VIP. | Headcanons #Arceus (self) | I have many names~#big boy anxiety | OOC #Turning a cold shoulder. | Verses

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un-beel-ievable · 4 years

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Before October’s Gone (Mammon × reader) | songfic

Author’s note: Please do not repost!! If you like my writing, please leave a like and a comment (and follow me to see similar content in the future :D)!

Inspired by Cimorelli’s song Before October’s Gone! You can listen to it here.

One of the longer fics I’ve ever written...I hope you guys enjoy it! I worked really hard on this one :3

_____

♪ Our phone calls got shorter

And the nights they got longer

You stopped replying

And I saw you with her

You tell me you miss me

I feel special for a second

But then you turn around and show me that you didn't meant it

I listen to your voicemail from last September

And I bet that you don't remember leaving it

But it's all I got

My last piece of you ♪

“Mammon!” The chirpy voice at the other end of the line made up for the weeks that he’d missed hearing it. Curse Lucifer for implementing the stupid roster for phone calls —having to wait his turn while his brothers got to listen your cheerful voice and melodic laugh was beginning to drive him up the wall. He understood why Lucifer would have to put such a rule in place for his brothers, but surely the peacock could loosen up a little for him right? The others may be “eating up too much of their time”, but such an offensive statement could never be applied to him. After all, he was your first. “Yo! How’ve ya been? Wait, lemme guess. You’ve just been wanderin’ around in that sad, depressin’ human world with no place to go and nothin’ to do...right?”

You laugh, and his heart does a somersault in his chest. How he’s missed it. Nothing in all of the three realms could make him happier than hearing the sound of your laughter; it’s like music to his ears. Knowing that he was the one that drew such an adorable sound from your lips was the cherry on top. The first time he’d heard you giggle, he’d sprinted back to the House of Lamentation to begin devouring joke book after joke book to ensure his chances of getting to hear it again. Hearing his brothers criticize him for acting like a fool had always been something that bothered him in the past, but your arrival had put a spin on things —if amping up his antics was something that got you to crack a smile, he was all for being the butt of his brothers’ jokes. “How’d you know?”

He grins. “What did ya expect? I mean, I was your first, right? Your first demon. Which means we share a special sorta bond! I know these things!”

Another laugh. Mammon wonders if he should shoot for a third time, but you don't give him the chance to try. “Listen, Mammon...it was great hearing from you, but I have to go.” The bitter taste of disappointment fills his mouth. He’d been looking forward to this phone call with the eagerness of a child awaiting to open their Christmas presents...and you had to leave already? The two of you had barely even talked for 5 minutes! That’s so unfair! “What? Already? C’mon, we barely got to talk—”

His whine of complaint cuts off abruptly when he picks up on the sound of someone else’s voice on your end of the call. Curious, Mammon turns up the volume of the call and strains his ears. It’s a male’s voice, one that sounds awfully familiar… He frowns. “Is that Solomon?”

“Yeah! We’ve been hanging out a lot more ever since we returned to the Human World! Keeping each other company and all that. Let me just pass him my DDD, I think he wants to say hi—”

“Nah, don’t bother. Y’all have fun, I’ll talk to you again soon.” Mammon hangs up before you can get the chance to say anything else and flops back against the pillow pile on his unmade bed with a sigh. Solomon, huh? The two of you sticking together made sense —after all, you were the only two humans living in a realm of demons for an entire year. Of course you would form a bond over this shared experience. Still, the idea of you hanging out with Solomon frequently didn’t sit well with him. He was your first, if anyone should be hanging out with you, it should be him.

Envy was Levi’s thing, not his. But there was no stopping the jealousy that was blossoming in his chest. In an attempt to keep his emotions in check, Mammon powers on his DDD and pulls up the voice message that you’d left him a few months ago. You were still residing in the Devildom then, back when he didn’t have to resort to playing back an old voicemail to make him feel less lonely.

If he closes his eyes, he can almost convince himself that you’re lying in bed beside him, and not by someone else’s side an entire realm away.

♪ I heard all the rumors

I didn't want to believe it

You barely mentioned her once

I didn't think anything of it

Sitting there on my driveway

Said you could listen to me all night

Now you're the boy who never meant it

And I'm just the girl who "took it all the wrong way" ♪

You’d always been fascinated by the sports car that he kept permanently parked in the upper floor of his bedroom. The both of you had gotten into a playful argument over justifying the reason behind his “absurd decision” (your words, not his). Out of the dozens of possible reasons that they’d managed to come up with during the hour or so their discussion had lasted, your personal favourite had been “to allow a quick escape from one of Lucifer’s extensive monologues”. He hadn’t even bothered to come up with a counterargument for that. One, it wasn’t entirely false; he wouldn’t deny that getting behind the driver’s seat in order to get away from one of the peacock’s pointless lectures wasn’t a thought that had crossed his mind on more than one occasion. And secondly...the expression that you wore while you were coming up with all of these ridiculous thoughts was just too cute. Your brow would furrow in concentration, and your tongue would peek out between her lips —you looked just like the cats that starred in those “cat blepping” videos that Satan would relentlessly spam his DDD with. The way your face lit up when you’d thought of a reason satisfactory enough for your standards was even more adorable —Mammon knew that as long as you kept directing that megawatt grin at him, he’d go along with anything that you said.

At some point during their conversation, the two of you had relocated from the couch you were perched on to the backseat of his car. Mammon doesn’t even remember whose idea it was to move in the first place —he couldn’t recall if this was the result of you pleading with him to allow you to take a better look at the vehicle or if he’d suggested it to you first. He doesn’t even remember what the both of you had talked about once you’d gotten in the car; the topic of their conversation had switched course multiple times. What was etched into his mind’s eye for the rest of time, however, was how attentively you’d gazed up at him when he was talking. You seemed as mesmerised by his words as he was by yours. The notion that someone genuinely wanted to listen to everything that he had to say felt foreign to him; his brothers had brushed him off as nonsensical and annoying a long time ago. You made him feel important.

“...Mammon! HEY, STUPIDMAMMON! Did you even hear anything I just said? Sheesh…”

Mammon’s train of thought is derailed by a pillow that hits him square in the face. Normally, such an action would trigger a rowdy pillow fight that usually ended in Lucifer barging in and bringing an early end to an evening of fun. But today Mammon was so lost in recollections of the past that he barely even kicks up a fuss as he peels the cushion off his face. “Huh?” Levi raises an eyebrow at the second born from where he’s seated across the room. Mammon could be a moron at times, but rarely was he this unaware of his surroundings. “I said, did you see MC’s latest Devilgram post? They were at this Human World anime convention with Solomon, you know the one I told you about last week? The one that Ruri-chan’s voice actress was going to appear at? MC’s soooooooo lucky that they got to see her perform live. I can’t believe Lucifer wouldn’t let me go, it’s so unfair…”

Mammon usually tuned out of the conversation entirely whenever Levi starts going off on a tangent about something related to his animes, but the mention of your name had caught his attention. You were at a convention? With Solomon? Like...on a date? Mammon snatches up his DDD from where it’s lying on the armrest of his seat and loads up your Devilgram page. As usual, the sight of your bright smile is enough to cause his heart to skip a beat —you’re so breathtakingly beautiful that it’s unfair. But the sight of the male posing beside you in the picture causes his mood to turn sour quickly. Solomon. Was that the human sorcerer’s arm around your waist?

Flipping his DDD over so that he doesn’t have to look at the screen, he sets it back down on the armrest with enough force that it actually causes Levi to cut his ramble short mid sentence. Pretending that he didn’t notice the odd look that Levi was giving him, Mammon settles back in his seat and closes his eyes.

If there was something going on between you and Solomon, he wasn’t sure if he wanted to know about it.

♪ On that October night when I let you go

You didn't even try to make me stay, no

I didn't know that you could be so cold

Like the Minnesota snow

Somehow I always knew we'd end up this way

And I hope you feel happy someday

I just wanted you to open up to me

But now that's on the list of things you never did ♪

Mammon had spent the last couple of months waiting for this moment. You were back. Back in the Devildom, back in your room in the House of Lamentation, back by his side. A new semester of classes was something he’d never looked forward to in the past, but things were different this time. A new school term brought copious amounts of coursework and misery, sure, but it also brought you back to the Devildom. You’d returned from your vacation in the Human World with bright eyes and rosy cheeks, armed with souvenirs for each and every one of your favourite demons. Mammon was thrilled by the small paper bag bulging with keychains and other assorted trinkets that you’d thrusted into his hands, but the one gift that he’d appreciated the most was the warm embrace that you’d pulled him into.

The next few days pass in a blur, with Mammon still finding it difficult to believe that you’ve really returned (he has to keep pinching his arm to reassure himself that this isn’t a cruel joke that his subconscious is playing on him). He'd been there to greet you upon your arrival in the Devildom. And he’d seen you during meals and passed by you in the hallways...but he hadn’t actually gotten the opportunity to spend proper one on one time with you —you were too busy settling in and making up for lost time with everyone else. Until now.

Seated atop of a hill overlooking the rest of the Devildom, the vantage point gives the both of you a spectacular view of the expansive shopping district. You can even spot the town’s affectionately dubbed “party central” —also known as the area where most of the popular bars and clubs are located— in the distance; or at the very least, the colourful lights that illuminate every building in that part of town. It’s quite a sight to behold, but the hustle and bustle that can be seen even from a distance makes you appreciative of the fact that you and Mammon are far away from the crowds of Denizens enjoying an evening out. You shiver when a passing gust of wind rustles the leaves of the tree overlooking the bench you’re seated on.

“Cold? Let the GREAT Mammon warm ya up.” Before you can even roll your eyes at the suggestive nature of that statement, Mammon has shrugged off his jacket and wrapped it snugly around you. Not that you’re entirely surprised by his words at this point, this isn’t the first time he used that line with you. Just like every other time he’s done this, he doesn’t remove his arm afterwards, keeping it draped around your shoulders. But unlike the previous times he’s pulled this stunt, you don’t nestle into his side, or even lean your head against his shoulder. He feels a pang in his chest, but he refuses to let it show on his face. “So how was your vacation in the Human World? I bet it had to be pretty borin’ without the GREAT Mammon there to keep ya company.”

“It was alright.” A pause. “Listen, Mammon...There’s something that I need to tell you.”

The smile that Mammon’s attempting to keep plastered to his face wavers, but he nods at you in encouragement as you chew on your lower lip anxiously. When your next course of action is to raise up your left hand instead of carrying on the conversation, his brows knit together in confusion. He’s about to ask if this was some kind of odd ritual and whether or not you’d joined a cult in your absence, but then he spots it. The glint of silver on your ring finger.

His jaw drops.

Noticing the expression on his face, you hurry to clear up any misunderstandings before he —understandably— jumps to the wrong conclusion. “It’s not what you think! I’m not engaged or anything, it’s just a promise ring. Solomon and I...we got together two weeks ago. I meant to tell everyone, but everything’s been so crazy ever since I got back —I’ve barely had the time to catch my breath, let alone make such a big announcement.. But now that thing’s have quieted down a little...I wanted to tell you first. After all, you are my first demon.”

The Avatar of Greed was uncharacteristically quiet as you rambled on. When he finally speaks up again, his voice lacks the boisterous energy that usually radiates from him. “I am, aren’t I?”

A low chuckle rumbles in his chest, but there’s no humour in the sound. “You should head back to the house without me. I’ll catch up.”

“Mammon—”

“Look, don’t worry ‘bout me. I’m fine.” Mammon takes both of your hands in his and gazes up at you with earnest wide eyes, as if his overexaggerated acting skills were enough to sell his words to you. Ridiculous as it may be, his ploy seemed to work —or perhaps you just didn’t care enough about the hailstorm of emotional turmoil that flickered in his azure hued gaze. It didn’t matter. Either way, you were gone before Mammon could change his mind and convince you to not to leave him. Tears pool in the corners of his eyes and blurs his field of vision, but he doesn’t take his gaze off of you as you disappear down the path that leads to the House of Lamentation.

You don’t even bother to turn around and look at him.

♪ Maybe sometimes things just have to end

Maybe sometimes there's just no explaining it

But you could've let me know

You'd be moving on

You'd be moving on before Octobers gone ♪

#obey me shall we date #obey me shall we date game #obey me game #obey me shall we date fanfiction #obey me shall we date fanfic #fanfiction #fanfic #obey me shall we date reader insert #obey me shall we date self insert #obey me mammon x reader #obey me mammon #gender neutral reader #self insert #reader insert #obey me shall we date songfic #songfic #angst #obey me angst #obey me shall we date angst

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leavetwn · 3 years

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* AMANDA CAMPANA, NOBINARY + SHE/HER/THEY/THEM | you know RAMONA GALLO, right? they’re TWENTY-THREE, and they’ve lived in irving for, like, TWENTY-THREE YEARS? well, their spotify wrapped says they listened to CRYING ON THE BATHROOM FLOOR BY MUNA like, a million times this year, which makes sense ‘cause they’ve got that whole COLD PIZZA AS A HANGOVER CURE, TALKING SHIT ABOUT CUSTOMERS IN THE BREAKROOM, LONGING FOR WHAT COULD'VE BEEN, thing going on. i just checked and their birthday is AUGUST 17TH, so they’re a LEO, which is unsurprising, all things considered. ( claire, 22, est, she/her )

HEY , BESTIES ! happy new year (the way it’s 11:55pm here so barely) !! my name’s claire and i’m 22. i’m livin in the est timezone, and my pronouns are she/her. i’m bringing y’all a mess of a muse 😈 because well ,,, it’s what i’m best at. if you’re feelin ramona & wanna plot, just go ahead and like this & i’ll hit you up. i usually plot on discord, but if you prefer the tumblr ims, that’s no problem at all. anyway, lemme stop waistin time and get to introducing you to ramona. * tw: mentions of cheating & alcohol.

𝐈. ━━ ˟ ⊰ ✰ 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 .

full name: ramona gallo. nickname(s): anything your muse wants to call her tbh. age: twenty-three. date of birth: august 17th. zodiac sign: leo. gender/pronouns: non-binary, she/her/they/them. sexual orientation: bisexual. romantic orientation: biromantic. hometown: irving, north carolina. current residence: irving, north carolina. occupation: employee at zoinkies currently, a lifeguard during the summer. eye color: brown. hair color/style: had long hair up until her breakup then had one of those breakdowns and cut her own hair into a bob and then her own bangs. i bet it was a mess lol so she probably called her friends or went to a salon the very next day to get it fixed. also highlighted the ends red but her natural color is brown. height : 5′5″. clothing style: simple and comfortable. t-shirts, croptops, turtlenecks, all usually paired with either jean shorts or jeans in general. she prefers to feel cozy rather than cute. tattoos: yes. a small one on her wrist. wants more eventually. piercings: both ears peirced & a navel piercing that she did herself against better judgement lol.

𝐈. ━━ ˟ ⊰ ✰ 𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐡𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 .

you were born on a scorching hot day in irving , your father says so, anyway. you’re convinced he’s being dramatic. your birth went smoothly; after two previous children, your parents had become disillusioned by childbirth. just another one to add to the bunch, and one that was meant to save a dying marriage. still, they loved you nonetheless. your father, to this day. your mother, until you were ten, and then she up and left without a warning.

your father keeps food on the table by fixing cars. you spend your days in the hot sun watching him replace parts and continuously try to crank vehicles until they run. he fist pumps every time one does. ‘ how lame, ’ you think, but it’s inspiring how hard he works to take care of three kids. and he does a good job.

therefore , you spend much of your early life trying to make him proud. you’re smart as a whip, and all your teachers have good things to say about you when it comes to academics. you’re a bit of a troublemaker, though. your father doesn’t mind that too much; he was the same at your age. and he’s proud — proud to see you work so hard.

you spend your teenage years doing much of the same. though , you begin to come home a bit later than usual, and your excuse is that you’ve been at ashley’s or samantha’s, but really all three of you were out partying. you don’t think your father would care (your grades are fine & he wants you to live like a normal teenager) , but you still lie about it. why ? well, who knows, maybe you like the adrenaline rush it gives you. like most things, you do them for the thrill.

you join the swim team. you’re kind of bad , but that’s okay. just like always , you work hard, and you realize that you’re kind of a natural. your father cheers louder than anyone else in the stands. it pushes you to do better. with your good grades and athletics , your guidance counselor tells you you’re a shoo in for a scholarship from whatever university you want. you apply to several. if it’s one thing you hate, its this town. you can’t wait to make it out, and you figure, this might be your only way.

you’re eighteen, and you’re in love. it’s crazy how love can make you see things differently. suddenly , this town doesn’t seem half bad. all your friends find it cute , and you tell them everything. the things he tells you or the way he makes you feel. it’s a crazy feeling; you never want it to end.

you throw your cap in the air. finally , high school is over. college is looming. you’ve been accepted to several & received scholarships from at least a few. you lie in bed thinking about it. now, you suddenly don’t want to leave so bad. don’t want to leave him behind. how could someone leave another they love so easily? it makes you hate your mother more.

for the first time, you disappoint your father. you don’t go to college. you don’t give a damn. you want to stay where love is. you’re addicted to the feeling. this lasts for three years. now, you’re twenty-one; you’ve gotten a job at zoinkies, and that keeps you away for most of the day. you randomly decide to visit your boyfriend during a lunch break one day. you find him in bed with someone else. suddenly , you realize love isn’t as addicting as you once thought. what once made the world beautiful now made it hideous. what once made you feel so high had somehow made you feel so low. it was horrible, and you’d realized your mistakes.

you threw away your future for love. something as rotten and twisted as love. something you swore you’d never let yourself feel again. something that you put away in a locked box with no key. irving was the same place you’d always known it to be. boring, drab, familiar. at least you had your family. that was barely enough to keep you sane, though, and it was hard to feel normal.

you turned to the thing that help. alcohol, partying, any escape at all. you lacked coping skills — that much was clear, but you didn’t care. you blamed it on something else entirely. just as your teachers had said, you’re a bit of a troublemaker. you do anything to make yourself feel alive, to make yourself feel free of the hurt.

it’s two years later now. you’re still not over it in some ways, as regret turns to anger and resentment. you’re bitter. who wouldn’t be? but you feel like you’ve had time to mourn. maybe it’s because you never acknowledged it in the way you should’ve ( it’s still locked away in that box. ) you still have your bad habits. you still work at your stupid job that you hate. you’re lost, but you’ll figure it out. you always do. so, you continue to float , seemingly stuck in the town that you never let go of, and you wonder what comes next. only time will tell.

𝐈. ━━ ˟ ⊰ ✰ 𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐞𝐨𝐮𝐬 .

still swims but doesn’t have as much time for it. probably not as good, but since she spends the summer lifeguarding, she uses that time to practice & try to get back to where she was. also kinda jaded asf so even if she says she wants to get back into it, she probably won’t lmaoo.

is a horrible driver. how did she get a license ?? not even she knows. def the type to like have a leg up on the dash board, hand out the window, and only one hand on the wheel while speedin idk how she makes it out alive

can take a car apart and put it back together again thanks to her dad. also changes her own tires so let her change your tires. im just sayin

stays up way too late & would sleep until 2 pm everyday if she didn’t have to work. should probably work on being an adult and going to bed at a normal time but just half the time doesn’t give a fuck so she’s probably sleep deprived a lot. therefore also has a

character parallels: alice ayres/jane jones (closer, 2004) , clementine (eternal sunshine of the spotless mind, 2004) , fiona gallagher (shameless, 2011-present) , more to be added.

𝐈. ━━ ˟ ⊰ ✰ 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 .

ok but plots really do be making my world go ‘round. 😳 i love em, so literally hmu with anything you’re feeling, and i’ll be down. just wanna plot & write with everyone 💕 but here’s a couple of wanted connections for y’all. i’ll prolly have a most wanted tag sooner or later & i’ma be make a plot page soon.

* the unholy trinity — these two are the friends she cherishes most. i’m assuming they’ve been friends since at least early high school , maybe earlier. they went through a lot together. these two were with her through all her relationship troubles. true ride or dies. she’s do absolutely anything for them, and she trusts that they feel the same way. they’re rowdy & wild, do whatever they want, and have a damn good time doin it. also have a gc where they just talk shit and send tiktoks idk just gimme this plsss 🥺

* friends with benefits / one night stands — this would probably be the extent of ramona. clearly not over what happened to her the last time 😭, so she’d have plenty of these tbh. she probably wouldn’t think too much about it, but it could be awkward for you muse maybe, etc.

* unrequited love / crush — here’s a toast to the ones who crush on ramona. it would be an absolute tragedy lmaoo. she’s not really mean about it, but she is 100% certain she’s not looking for any type of relationship. could be really dramatic and messy and those are tha best kind. literally this

* former friends / enemies — she’s lived here her whole life, so she’s at least got one. these two just don’t get along/no longer get along for whatever reason that can be plotted out.

* coworkers — she works zoinkies throughout the year and picks up shifts as a lifeguard during the summer so your muses could know her from that. could delve into a close friend territory too lmao. they probably just sit in break rooms and talk about rude customers or bossy managers lmaooo.

* literally anything your heart desires — a lot could work. we could even just start from nowhere & have them meet for the first time if they’re newer/just to town.

#irvingintro #tw alcohol #tw cheating #it is so sick & twisted that i have another one to write i can't believe lol #but it must be done #hi luv me plot with me

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harringrovetrashrat · 4 years

Note

#41 and #11 but they are playing straight in front of the other guests (?)

I… don’t know what happened here, but this got away from me. I was originally gonna do something cute and tongue in cheek and Billy and Steve getting it on in a closet and then pretending they didn’t just suck face, and then the angst came a knocking and took over. And this all just kinda happened.

I hope you enjoy, anon! (And no worries, I still plan to write the other one ;) )

TW for homophobic language (the f slur)

#41 SPIN THE BOTTLE and #11 “YOU CALL THAT A KISS?”

Steve was on the couch, watching the party around him as he nursed his drink. It was almost spring break now, and he had started to go back to parties. Mostly because Billy still loved parties and since Steve and Billy were friends, Steve went. Wasn’t harassed by Tommy with Billy there. Well, not as much. He was still sour over the fact that Steve had dumped him and Carol, been easy pickings, and then suddenly usurped Tommy’s role as Billy’s right hand man. And he made sure Steve knew it.

But free booze and drugs were free booze and drugs, and Steve was still stressed from last fall. Stressed about school. Stressed about Billy.

He and Billy had been fooling around for a few months now. It had started around Christmas when they both found themselves at the Quarry. They’d been on better terms since the tunnels, forming a sort of friendship, and then that night, after drinking whiskey to keep warm, Billy had kissed him. Steve hadn’t known until it happened how much he had been wanting it to happen. Hadn’t realized that that was what those feelings were. Had kissed back ferociously and sloppily, until they had parted, panting and red lipped. Since then, they’d continued, unable to keep their hands off each other for too long.

It was hard though, of course. School was easier with them being friends now, but even so, Billy had never been overly affectionate with anyone, and it would have been noticeable if he’d been different with Steve. So they were careful. And the ways it could go wrong, especially for Billy, made Steve worry.

He was lost in thought when there was some shouting from the den. Steve stood, pushing through the slightly smaller crowd, to find a circle of teens with a bottle in the middle. He snorted, rolling his eyes a little. He thought this game had stopped being cool, but there was no limit to what drunks found entertaining. Steve spotted Billy, being forced into the circle by Krissy, and it made him prickle with jealousy. He sat between Tammy and Lucy, not about to idly watch Billy kiss girls. They met eyes across the circle and Billy raised a brow. Steve just shrugged, but Billy knew him too well, and he got that smug smirk he always got when Steve made it apparent how clingy he was. Billy was into it, luckily enough.

“I’ll start!” Carol called, spinning the empty beer bottle. It landed on some dude from the football team, and Tommy frowned when they kissed. The game continued, boring and kind of annoying, until Tammy landed on Nicole and all the guys cheered, chanting for them to kiss. The girls played it up, using obvious tongue and moaning obnoxiously. Steve thought he would have been into it, probably would have been before Nancy and everything, but they were so obnoxious, it made his insides squirm in a bad way. Billy just looked bored.

After that, the game carried on simply enough until Steve, who had gotten a simple peck from Stacey, spun the bottle, and it landed on Billy. The room quieted, many sets of eyes darting between the two. They met eyes across the circle, Billy’s smirk growing, and Steve turned bright red.

“Come on!” Tammy called. “We did it!”

“Yeah!” Nicole agreed. “Do it! Do it!” The boys in the room looked decidedly uncomfortable, but they were playing it by ear. If Billy didn’t care, they wouldn’t care. At least outwardly. Billy cracked his neck and leered at Steve.

“Well, well King Steve,” he said, tongue flicking across his top teeth as his eyes glinted dangerously. Steve tried to subtly adjust himself. “We gonna give the ladies what they ask for? Or are you chicken?” Steve rolled his eyes, but smirked before he leaned across the circle and pecked Billy on the lips. There was a tittering from the crowd and Tammy yelled,

“You seriously call that a kiss?” Steve locked eyes with Billy again, a fire churning low in his gut. It wasn’t that he didn’t wanna kiss Billy; of fucking course he did. He just wasn’t sure he wanted to do it right here right now. Especially when Billy was looking at him like that.

Billy gave him a quirk of the brow, one Steve had come to recognize as Do you trust me? And Steve did. So he let Billy yank him in, smile wide and devious, before shoving his tongue into Steve’s mouth. He bit back a moan, doing his best to make it look like he was only pretending to enjoy threading his fingers in Billy’s hair. The noise around them stuttered to a stop, silence sweeping in until they pulled apart, panting and red lipped. There was a beat before Steve gave a small quirk of the lips, and held out his hand.

“Not bad, Hargrove,” he said, letting the cockiness King Steve had worn as his crown out just a bit. Billy’s eyes flashed and he licked his lips obscenely.

“Next time tug on my hair a little harder,” he replied with a wink. The room erupted into noise. The girls were staring, eyes wide, smiles big, obviously pleased with the show they got. The boys were trying to act like they didn’t care, but were obviously not expecting either of them to have gone through with it. But no one wanted to look lame in front of Mr. California.

Billy settled back and rested his hand on Krissy’s knee. It helped Steve’s chub go down, but it also made his stomach twist. It’s what needed to happen. Rationally, he knew that. But fuck. Fuck he wanted to fucking shove his tongue down Billy’s throat without anyone making a fuss. Without fucking fear. Without having to make it a fucking joke.

“I mean, it’s a little gay though, dude,” Steve heard Mark say. “Like, kissing another guy?”

“Get your panties untwisted,” Billy grumbled around the cigarette he was lighting. “Shit only means shit if you want it to. You really think each hooker is into the guy she’s fucking? Nah man.” He exhaled the smoke into Mark’s face, making him cough. “They go where the money is.”

“Yeah but you didn’t get paid to do that,” Tommy said, sneering just a little. He’d never been the most open minded, and even Billy’s status couldn’t keep him from opening his fat mouth.

“Lemme give you some education, amigo,” Billy said, voice sharp, eyes even sharper. “Chicks dig confidence. They dig you showing off how comfortable you are with yourself, yeah?” He leaned forward, the cherry of his cigarette getting dangerously close to Tommy’s face. “You get paid in pussy for shit like that, Hagan.” His eyes glinted and Tommy flinched back, just the slightest. The rest of the guys seemed to mull this over, not wanting to argue with someone who was known to violently burst. Especially when drunk.

“It’s still gross,” Tommy mumbled, not meeting Billy’s eye. Billy rolled his eyes and pulled back, exhaling the smoke as he pinched the cigarette between his thumb and middle finger.

“Hagan, I have seen you eat out of the trash,” he droned, smirking more when Tommy went red and the girls around laughed at him. “And you didn’t get paid.”

“Whatever,” Tommy grumbled, anger pouring off of him. Krissy seemed to get tired of the conversation.

“Billy,” she cooed into his ear, hand rubbing up his thigh. Steve clenched his fists and tried to will that angry little green monster away. Those were his thighs too feel up, his chest to admire, and his lips to kiss. “The game’s a bust. Maybe we should just say that your spin landed on me?” Steve stood up abruptly and headed for the kitchen. The sounds of the group in the next room were quieter and he took some calming breaths. He grabbed an open bottle of tequila and poured himself a shot, tossing it back easily.

“Got what you wanted, huh?” Tommy’s voice cut through the quiet in the kitchen like a knife. Steve turned, frowning. He hadn’t even noticed Tommy had followed him.

“What?” Steve replied, because he was jealous, tired, and needed a fucking drink if he had to watch Krissy Simpson suck face with his boyfriend all night. Well, kind of boyfriend. They hadn’t really made it a thing, not out loud, but Steve could think about it however he wanted. And boy, did he want Billy to be his boyfriend. It was a vaguely sobering thought.

“I see the way you look at him,” Tommy sneered, voice low. It made Steve’s hands clammy but he rolled his eyes.

“Are you fucking kidding me man?” Steve asked. “Look at him like what? Like he’s an obnoxious tool that happens to be my friend?”

“You look at him like you looked at Wheeler.” It was like Steve had been drenched in ice water. He couldn’t help the way his breath stuttered and his eyes widened. Tommy grabbed a beer from the ice tub, eyes never leaving Steve. “So,” he repeated, words slow, calculated, and cruel, “Did you,” he popped the tab, “Get what,” he moved closer to Steve, who found he couldn’t breathe, “You wanted?”

“Fuck off, Tommy,” Steve bit out, trying to ignore the wiggling in his stomach. The nerves that threatened to burst. Tommy slammed the beer on the counter and shoved Steve up against the fridge, magnets clattering to the ground as Steve let out a whoosh of air.

“I’m not stupid,” he hissed. “You look at him all the fucking time. Bet you were just praying that the bottle would land on him. Fucking disgusting.” Steve turned red in embarrassment and anger, shoving Tommy back, despite the fact that his nerves were making him feel like throwing up.

“I said fuck off,” he repeated through gritted teeth. “You’d don’t know shit.” Tommy shoved him in retaliation and Steve cursed when the corner of the counter jabbed into his back.

“I’ve known you since we were kids,” Tommy said, an old hurt laced in his voice. “I know plenty. Like how you were the one who said we should practice kissing, you were the one who always wanted to fucking holds hands, you were the one who–”

“Shut up!” Steve yelled, shoving Tommy back again. This gathered some attention from the other room, finally, and people crept in the doorway, ready to watch a fight. “You think you know me, but you don’t know fucking anything,” he spat out. He was shaking, angry and scared, and his hands curled into fists at his sides. Tommy didn’t bother acknowledging the crowd, but his mean grin meant he knew they were there.

“Does he know?” He asked, taking a step forward. “Is that how you climbed back up the ladder? King Steve, down on his knees, just fucking begging to su–” Steve punched Tommy in the jaw, fury boiling over, heated by fear. The crowd ‘ooh’d. Tommy stumbled back, but recovered quickly enough and tackled Steve to the floor. They grappled, cheers from the group egging them on.

Tommy got the upper hand, as he usually did, and punched Steve so hard his head spun. He spit some blood on the floor next to him and bucked, trying to dislodge the other boy. Tommy just sneered and reared back to punch him again when he was being hauled off. Billy pulled him by his collar, making him choke ever so slightly. His eyes were dark and furious, teeth bared and glinting as he pushed Tommy against the counter until he hissed.

“You’re really pushing your limits tonight, Hagan,” he said, voice low and dangerous. The room buzzed with energy, tense and excited. Tommy bristled, but didn’t shove Billy, though he was clearly itching to. Billy leaned closer and tilted his head. “Well? You gonna tell me why you were beating up on Harrington?”

“‘Cause he’s a fucking–”

“Just leave it, Billy,” Steve said, finally getting up. The alcohol and fight had made his legs wobbly. Billy turned to look at him, earring glinting in the light as it swung. “It’s nothing.”

“Didn’t look like nothing.”

“Tommy’s being a fucking douche, what’s new.” Billy snorted and Tommy surged forward again, pressed back into the counter with a hiss by Billy’s arm. “Fuck this,” he said, giving Tommy the finger. “I’m fucking leaving, alright?” He was so goddamn tired of this evening.

“It’s ‘cause I’m right, isn’t it,” Tommy sneered. Steve just shook his head and pushed through the crowd, ignoring the way everyone stared at him.

“Right about what?” He heard Billy ask. And Steve froze a little, because Tommy running his mouth to Steve was one thing, but running it to Billy? It wasn’t like Billy didn’t know, obviously, but he didn’t want to have to hear this. Have to hear Billy tearing him down because kissing for a joke was one thing, but someone actually being gay? That wasn’t going to fly, even if Billy tried to play it off. Steve looked back and wished he hadn’t because Tommy looked fucking gleeful. Like Steve had given him a fucking present.

“That Steve wants to suck your dick,” he said conversationally. The room quieted and Steve heard the feet of the people next to him shuffling away. Felt the panic creeping up on him. Felt like he was definitely going to throw up. Billy took a step back from Tommy, not expecting that to come out of his mouth. Steve just shook his head and let out a shaky laugh.

“You’re delusional, Hagan. No need to project your feelings onto me.” He was glad his voice didn’t waver. Tommy snarled and jerked forward to go at Steve again, but Carol’s hand on his arm stopped him.

“Fuck you,” he seethed, arms trembling from holding himself back. “You disgusting fucking faggot.” Steve didn’t let his reaction show, just stared Tommy down, wishing he hadn’t come to this stupid fucking party. Billy was just staring, eyes wide, like he didn’t know how to proceed. How to say anything to Tommy that didn’t incriminate them both. And Steve– Steve suddenly didn’t care. They had just over 2 months of school left and it wasn’t like Steve cared about any of these people. They’d dropped him the minute he wasn’t in and had only accepted him back because Billy willed it.

“And what if I am,” he said, surprised at how even his voice was. He could hear the ripple through the crowd, could see the way Billy tensed up. “What if I am a fucking faggot?” He walked towards Tommy, who seemed surprised at Steve’s sudden turn. “At least I’m not a fucking piece of shit like you. At least I don’t suck dick and kiss ass for power in a fucking high school.” Tommy went red, baring his teeth. Steve sneered. “At least I’m not a fucking coward.” Tommy swung again, but this time Steve was ready. Knew it was coming. So he used Tommy’s weight to pull on his arm and flip him over onto the ground. He slammed into the cupboards under the counter and some cups of unfinished punch tipped over and dripped down on him. Steve turned and high tailed it without stopping to look at Billy. Wasn’t sure he could. People parted like the red sea for him, eyes wide.

When he finally got to his car, Steve’s hands were shaking. He fumbled with his keys, panic starting to set in.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” he hissed, throwing his keys to the ground. He pressed the meat of his palms to his eyes until he saw stars, trying to will away the tears threatening to leak out. What a fucking shit show. He took a few shaky breaths before crouching, turning to lean his back against his car. “I’m such a fucking idiot…” After a few calming breaths Steve grabbed his keys from the asphalt, got in his car, and drove away. He wished Billy had followed him out. He wished a lot of things.

Steve didn’t bother to take off his shoes when he got home, heading straight for his father’s study. His whiskey was off limits, but Steve didn’t give a shit anymore. Wanted to fucking blackout and forget the night ever happened. Forget the cold shoulder he’d certainly be getting come Monday morning. He didn’t bother with a glass, just drank straight out of the decanter as he went to the living room, collapsing onto the couch. The whiskey burned in the right way and Steve reveled in the feeling as he wallowed.

“Good going, Stevie,” he mumbled to himself. “Ruin the one good thing you had going for ya.” He took another gulp of whiskey, already starting to feel more pleasantly warm again. “Just, just had to prove a point… Just had to get one over Tommy.” He blinked through the tears that had started to fall. “Had to prove a point.” He curled in on himself, whimpering. “You fucking dumbass.” The decanter slipped from his fingers and thudded to the floor, the whiskey dribbling out. Steve didn’t move to pick it up or clean it. Just sat there, curled in on himself, until he fell asleep.

He woke up to something banging on the glass doors of the living room. Everything was blurry with sleep and he groaned as he sat up. It was still dark out, so it couldn’t have been long. He rubbed at his eyes and turned to look, jumping when he saw the shadowy figure.

“Harrington!” Steve tensed up at Billy’s voice. Found he wanted to get up but couldn’t move. “Harrington for fuck’s sake, lemme in!” Steve got up and stumbled to the back door, fumbling with the lock. Billy ripped it open the moment he could and he surged forward. Steve flailed and moved backwards, running into the coffee table and falling on his ass with a thud. He looked up at Billy, eyes wide with panic, and felt his lungs starting to get tight. Billy looked down at him, his face unreadable. Or Steve was just really, really fucking drunk. Probably both. Neither of them spoke, the only sound in the room Steve’s quick breathing.

“W-What do you want, Hargrove,” Steve said, unable to take the waiting. Figured he’d prompt the fight that was bound to happen, since they’d talked a lot about secrecy and how Neil couldn’t know. Billy’s jaw twitched.

“What the fuck was that?” Steve swallowed and looked away.

“I know,” Steve whispered. “He was just– He fucking– Fuck!” Steve buried his face in his hands again. “Tommy just gets under my fucking skin and he figured it out anyway and I just– I’m so tired of hanging out with people who pretend to give a shit only when it benefits them. I’m tired of pretending like I care about any of this, this bullshit. I just–” He deflated a little, hands still covering his face. “I’m sorry,” he whimpered. “I’m sorry.” Steve jerked when he felt a hand on his shoulder, pushing himself back along the coffee table. He hyperventilated, panic seizing him, and when he looked at Billy, he seemed shocked.

“I–” Billy stammered, thrown. “I’m not gonna hurt you.” Steve swallowed with difficulty and let Billy touch his shoulder again. The blonde’s brow furrowed and he crouched so he was eye level with Steve. “What did he even say to you?”

“Why?” Steve asked. “Why does it matter? We can’t– I mean– Why are you here?” Billy licked his lips and looked down nervously. He bit his lip, weighing his options as Steve watched him, wary.

“It’s– I’m–” He let out a harsh breath through his nose. “I was worried,” he mumbled. Steve blinked.

“What.” Billy blushed and grit his teeth, still looking away.

“I was worried. Because you were fucking drunk and still drove home.” He licked his lips again and looked at Steve.

“So… You’re not here to fight me?” Billy let out a strangled sound and ducked his head.

“Oh my god,” he muttered under his breath. “No, I’m not here to fight you.”

“But aren’t you mad? I mean, I fucked everything up.” Billy watched, face carefully blank. “And honestly I– I can’t do this.” Billy’s face crumpled and he stood.

“Oh.” Steve could see his hands clenching and unclenching. “I guess I’ll just leave then.” He moved for the door and Steve’s still very drunk brain worked in overdrive to figure out what the fuck was happening.

“Wait, Billy–” He stood and the room started to spin, making him trip himself up and he fell to the floor with a hard thump. He groaned and wished that he could wake up from whatever fucking nightmare the world had cursed him with. Calloused hands gripped his arms and hauled him up, Billy’s frowning face suddenly right in front of his. Steve couldn’t help himself. He kissed him. When Billy pulled back Steve winced. “Sorry, I know you don’t want me to–”

“What?” Billy furrowed his brow. “What do you mean I don’t want you to?”

“‘Cause I outed myself. So you don’t wanna see me anymore. ‘Cause your dad’s a dillhole.” Billy’s mouth opened slightly and he blinked away his confusion before ducking his head again.

“Oh my god, I’m a fucking idiot, of course you–” He sighed and looked up, shaking his head as he hauled Steve to his feet. “Come on, pretty boy,” he grunted as he heaved all of Steve’s weight up and onto the couch. Steve let him, turning his head to press a kiss to Billy’s hand when he pulled away. He made a face.

“Sorry, I just–”

“Stop apologizing.” Steve snapped his mouth shut and looked away. Then Billy was turning his head back, making him look him in the eye. Steve felt his heart speed up. Billy’s gaze was intense and searching. “What did Hagan say to you?”

“He just– He just implied some shit about me sucking your dick that’s it.” Steve licked his lips.

“You’re lying.”

“No, I’m just not telling you everything.”

“That’s lying by omission, baby,” Billy replied with a fond smirk. Steve let out a heartfelt sigh, unable to stop himself.

“I love it when you call me pet names,” he mumbled into Billy’s palm. He could feel that his face was flushed, but whether it was because of what he admitted or the alcohol, he wasn’t sure. When he looked at Billy from under his lashes, his ears were pink and there was a flush spreading down his neck.

“Yeah?” He whispered. Steve nodded and looked away again.

“Tommy– Tommy knows a lot about me,” he said, voice soft. “Fuck, he was my first kiss, not that he’d ever admit it.” Steve could feel the way Billy tensed and he smiled a little to himself. “So he knows when I’m in love. Knows what it looks like.” There was a sharp intake of breath from Billy, but Steve couldn’t look. He couldn’t. “He said that I look at you like I looked at Nancy. That’s how he knew.” Billy was quiet except for some ragged breathing, but he hadn’t pulled away. Steve turned to look and, oh. Billy was staring at him, eyes dragging slowly over his face. Face flushed and mouth slightly open as his thumb made small circles on Steve’s cheek.

“You look at me like you looked at Wheeler?” His voice was hushed, full of wonder. Steve’s breath hitched and his eyes darted to Billy’s lips. He nodded dumbly.

“I can’t do this,” he said, speaking quickly so Billy wouldn’t run, “Because if you hated me, if you didn’t want this as much as I do, I– I couldn’t– I can’t pretend like I don’t love you.” Billy kissed him then, soft and sweet and nothing like the kisses they usually shared. He pulled back enough so he could speak.

“We’re gonna figure this out, okay? But it’s not gonna be easy– If my dad–”

“I’ve got a bat with nails in it and I’m friends with the police chief,” Steve said, bratty and so full of emotion he wasn’t sure what to do with it all. “I’d like to see him try.” Billy smiled against his lips.

“And Hagan?”

“Tommy’s never scared me.” He paused. “Carol scares me though.”

“Yeah, she was out for your balls after you left,” Billy chuckled. His face dropped a little and he pulled back. “I couldn’t– I didn’t know what to say after–”

“Honestly,” Steve mumbled into Billy’s palm, which still hadn’t left his face, “I don’t give a shit. And I’m too drunk to care about it right now.” Billy’s smiling lips pressed against his again. “Also, I don’t think I can get upstairs,” he mumbled.

“Lucky for us you’re a rich bitch who has a huge couch.” Steve snorted but his eyes were closing.

“Get up here and fucking cuddle me, you dickhead.” He fell asleep to the sound of Billy’s laughter.

#billy hargrove #steve harrington #harringrove #tommy hagan #angst with a hopeful ending #homophobic language #anon #prompt fic #ask

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korra-the-red-lion · 3 years

Text

Unnatural Affairs. Chapter 19: A Witch is Needed.

(Lyn + Michael)

Lyn

I was flipping to the next page when I felt Ally shift next to me. I paused and looked down at her. Her face was relaxed, but I could the rawness around her eyes where she had been wiping at them last night. I wondered what had triggered her, but then I thought maybe that this had been slowly building up. She had been absent for most of the week. I saw her every now and then, but it was always brief. She hadn’t really been speaking to me or Michael. I asked her about one night, and she just said she and her roommate weren’t talking to one another. Finally, Michael figured out what happened and let me in on it. On top of all the crap that’s been going on with the ghosts, she was having alive people drama too.

The bruises were fading, but I could still see the finger imprints. It caused a burning feeling inside my chest of anger and shame when I saw them. I saw when Fredrik shoved her under the water, and Michael stabbed the dude with a bloody knife, and I tried whacking him off with my bat. But that’s about it. Next thing I knew, I was outside, and the gang is telling me I was possessed. Add that to the list of ‘Lyn’s traumas of her second year at MSU.’ And they say third year is the toughest year.

I put my book down in my lap, staring up at the ceiling. This whole thing was crazy, absolutely bonkers. I can’t believe that most of my semester has been taken up by all these crazy events. But it’s not like Ally’s presence called all this to the forefront. Was there always something going on, but I couldn’t see it? It was a strange feeling, lemme tell ya. I would say I felt a bit jealous that I couldn’t at least sense them like Michael could. It made me feel useless when it came to the actual ghost hunting. But if I couldn’t see them, then how was Fredrik visible to me? Huh, I never really thought about it before.

And it turns out that the ghost that Ally has been getting a lot of information from was a dead family member. I wasn’t sure how to feel about that, honestly. I didn’t see my dad’s family all that much. I saw old pictures of great grandpa George when he was young after he passed away. Him and his sister looked very similar, I remember thinking at the time. Both had the same slender faces and big ears that my dad had. Both of them even had the same freckles. But whereas my great grandpa looked very serious in his family photos, his sister had this amused smile on her face, as if she was in on a joke that no one else was. It was said that he really lost himself when she died, and he became a bitter person who blamed the justice system for never figuring what happened to her. He was the only one who thought something bad happened, while others thought she just ran away from home because she didn’t want to marry the man they set her up with. Hey, I could totally relate to that, homegirl.

Ally shifted again, knocking me out of my thoughts. She pressed right up against me, causing a smile to flutter onto my face. It just felt nice to have someone you cared about seeking you in their sleep. I lightly brushed my knuckles against her face, pushing the hair out it. A small smile appeared on her sleeping face.

Something warm bloomed in my chest as I stared down at her. Have I ever felt this way before? I tried to think about all my previous partners, but I couldn’t ever remember having a warmth like this. It was a…a weird feeling.

I turned my attention back to my book when I heard Ally groan as she woke up. She stretched her arms before snuggling back down. I could see her hazel eye peeking out from under the covers, watching me. I picked up the bottle of water from the floor and handed it to her. Ally took it gratefully. She cracked it open and took a small sip as she sat up next to me.

“How are you feeling?” I asked, watching her.

Ally took another sip, nodding as she did. She set it down after putting the lid back on it. “I feel better. Sorry about that…”

“Hey, don’t apologize to me,” I said, reaching over to tuck her hair behind her ear. “That’s something you should never apologize for.”

She looked embarrassed but nodded all the same.

“Did you want to talk about it?”

“Um…” she sighed, raking her hands through her hair. “I just…I dunno. Everything sort of hit me at once, I guess. I feel like I’m so close to figuring this all out, but there’s just something I’m missing. Then I also realized how far behind I was in all my schoolwork, so that didn’t help. Oh, and I had this horrible dream where I watched all of them die again.” She brought her knees up to her chest, looking defeated.

“Ally.” I bonked her lightly on the head. She looked over at me in surprise.

“What was that for?”

“You’re not doing this alone,” I said, cupping her cheek and rubbing my thumb against her skin. “Michael and I are helping you every step of the way. We, not you, are going to figure this out. Together. So, stop stressing about it so much, okay?”

She stared at me before sighing again. “I know, I know. It’s just- ugh, it’s just that sometimes my brain goes into overdrive, and I can’t stop it. Like, logically I understand what you’re saying, but my brain disagrees otherwise.”

“I get it,” I said. “I don’t understand it on a personal level, but I get it. Just remember that we’re here for you. I’m here for you. You’re not doing this alone,” I repeated firmly.

“Okay…thanks,” she smiled shyly.

“You’re welcome,” I kissed her on the forehead before resting mine against it. “Now, are you hungry or anything? We could go get breakfast.”

Ally said nothing as she stared into my eyes. Slowly, she nodded, rubbing our foreheads together. I made no effort to move, however. Neither did she. I felt her breath on my face as her breathing slowed down. Ally closed her eyes, her lips lightly brushing against mine. But just before she kissed me, I pulled away, stifling a giggle as I said, “Okay, let’s go then!”

Ally opened her eyes in confusion. “Did you just-? Did you seriously just tease a kiss?!” I couldn’t help but laugh out loud at the incredulous tone of her voice.

“Me? Teasing? I would never dream of it.” I couldn’t supress the broad grin that was growing on my face.

“You’re a horrible person, you know that right?” she grumbled as she crossed her arms.

“Maybe,” I teased with a smirk, “but I’m your horrible person.”

Ally fell back dramatically into the pillow. “You know what? I don’t want breakfast after all. I’m just going to lie here with Pickles. He’s the only one who cares about me.”

I laughed loudly as I bent over, kissing her on the lips. “Come on, you need to eat, you dingus.”

“I need one more to be fully charged, otherwise I can’t move,” she said seriously. I kissed her again, a bit longer this time before pulling away with a soft smile. She smiled back and nodded. “Okay, I’m good to go now. Thanks for the charge.”

“Anytime, luv.”

XXX

It was later that day that I sat with Michael in the library with newspapers, old articles, and messy notes spewed all around us. Trying to figure out what the fuck happened to Jeremiah Kinkly was driving us both to the brink of insanity. So far, despite hours of looking, we’ve found basically next to nothing.

Michael groaned as he crumbled up another note and dumped it in the bag we designated for that purpose. “I just don’t get it, it’s like this dude doesn’t even exist.”

“Maybe he doesn’t, and the universe is fucking with us,” I said dryly, not looking up from my laptop.

“That sounds like something the universe would do.”

Despite our joking, it was starting to feel hopeless. I told Ally she wasn’t allowed to help us with this today because she needed to catch up on schoolwork. She was sitting nearby and kept sneaking glances our way, but we both had put our foot down. She grumbled and complained but we stayed strong. I could feel her eyes on us now, but I ignored her. I didn’t want her helping at all. The whole thing was overwhelming her right now, and she needed a break from it for a little bit.

Michael sighed as he dragged over a book he took out. It was supposed to help with our Fredrik problem, according to him. Because we weren’t sure that he would disappear if we captured the killer, it was a precautionary measure. Except for one tiny problem: we had no idea how to do a spell. Michael had read through the book several times yet couldn’t find any solution that didn’t involve a witch. I mean, we already had half a dozen ghosts roaming around, so why not add a witch to the mix? Absolute insanity, that’s what this was.

He did mention heading down to the weird bookstore later and talking to the owner. Michael claims that she was basically a witch, so she might be able to help, or at least give us pointers. I’ve never stepped foot in that store, but I trusted his judgement. He was a good guy with a steady head on his shoulders, so he wouldn’t suggest it unless he thought there was a chance it would work.

Another few useless search results and I was starting to get annoyed. How the fuck was there nothing on this stupid man? You would think that someone who died on this cursed campus would show up somewhere. Michael was right, it was like he didn’t exist. But we had the DNA results, which meant that there should be proof somewhere that he was a real person.

We wanted to avoid asking Professor Kinkly about it. We didn’t know who this guy was, and we didn’t want to drag anyone else into this mess. Of course, that was a huge pain in the ass. I bet we wouldn’t be dragging our asses like this if we could ask him. Jesus Christ, I was about to murder someone.

I threw my head back, closing my eyes in annoyance. It felt pointless to keep looking, we’ve been at it for hours at this point. Maybe we should just cut our losses for now and move on to the next problem instead. Hell, that was what Michael was doing. I ran my hands down my face before adjusting myself back into searching position. The open Google tab looked as if it was mocking me. What a bastard.

I crossed my arms as I stared at the blank search box, racking my brains to figure if there was something I was missing. I tried every word combination I thought of. That hadn’t worked. I even tried to look him up in obituaries, but it seemed like he never got one. How could a man whose DNA just not be anywhere at all? It didn’t make sense. God, I wished I was a hacker, then I could go into a hospital or police database.

“You guys look like you need a break,” said Ally as she approached our table.

“Hey, you’re banned!” Michael pointed his finger at Ally. “This is blasphemous!”

She rolled her eyes playfully. “I just noticed how beat you looked. It might be worth it to stop for awhile, maybe even go for a walk.”

“That’s very ironic, coming from you,” I remarked. “You know?”

Ally held her hands up defensively. “It was just a suggestion. Maybe we could go to the store that Michael had mentioned?”

“What’s this ‘we’ stuff?” Michael raised his brows. “I literally just said you were banned. Weren’t you listening?”

“Hey, I need a walk too,” she laughed. “Plus, I’ve made great strides. I finished both my English and Psych work.”

“Damn, we’ve been doing this for a long time then,” I groaned, throwing my head back again.

Michael rapped his knuckles against the table. “Alright, we go to the store, then come back here. Ally’s not wrong, we’re pretty done. Maybe a change in scenery is something that we need. And,” he grinned at Ally, “since you did get a bit of work down, you can come.”

Ally gave an adorable fist pump as she grinned at me victoriously. I rolled my eyes, keeping my own smile off my face. “Just know I didn’t agree to this.”

“Good thing I didn’t ask you,” she snarked playfully.

Together, we quickly packed up our things and headed out.

XXX

Michael.

The bell didn’t tinkle when we walked in. I looked up in confusion and saw that it was taped down. That was strange.

The other strange thing was Talia wasn’t anywhere in sight. Maybe she was just in the back? I walked towards the counter, surprised to see someone else sitting there instead. It was Talia’s daughter, the one with a mane of black hair and spiked bracelets that looked like they belonged in Hot Topic. Actually, they probably were from there.

She was sitting on the stool with her elbows propped on the counter, reading a book of some sorts. She glanced up when I approached the counter, sighing as she closed the book.

“Can I help you?” she asked flatly.

“Uh…I was wondering if Talia was around, actually.” I looked around and saw Ally and Lyn staring at the petrified doll heads with curiosity and apprehension, respectively. “We just needed help with something.”

She looked around before saying bluntly, “Huh, looks like she’s not here. Have a nice day.” She went to open the book again.

“Well…it’s Katherine, right? Can you just tell her we stopped by? Oh, and I’m Michael, by the way.”

Katherine looked at me with a mix of annoyance and exasperation. “Yeah, I will. Goodbye now.” She went back to reading with a shake of her head.

I was about to leave when I noticed that she wasn’t just reading a regular novel. She was reading a spell book! That’s a very odd reading choice, but I ain’t judging. Instead, I put on my best smile and cleared my throat.

There was murder in her eyes as she looked up again. At this point, Ally had made her way while Lyn was looking at the stuffed bear head in confusion. She stood next to me as Katherine glared daggers at me. Her eyes flickered between the two of us before she heaved another great sigh.

“What do you people want? I already told you that mom wasn’t here,” she snapped.

“What are you reading?” I asked, gesturing to the book. Ally stared at it, her eyes bright with interest.

“A book.”

“But that’s not a normal book.”

“Why do you give a shit?”

“I just was wondering if you knew anything about witchcraft?”

She stared at me silently, her eyes narrowed. Oops, maybe that was too forward of me. After a few minutes of very tense silence, she dropped her shoulders slightly.

“Why?” Katherine crossed her arms, still glaring at me. “Why do you want to know?”

“Because,” Ally spoke up, “we’re trying to send a spirit back to wherever it’s suppose to be, and we need someone who understands spells and witchy stuff. We thought that asking the woman who owns this store would be our best bet.”

Doesn’t Ally respect that she’s banned from engaging in this stuff today? Clearly not, sheesh. I nodded in agreement, and added, “She’s been kinda helping us this whole time.”

Katherine pinched the bridge of her nose before sliding off the stool to stand. She leaned against the counter and appraised us both. Ally stared back, not breaking off eye contact while I maintained it the best I could.

“You’re crazy, the two of you,” she shook her head. “Mom is out of town for the day and asked me to watch over the store while she was out. Sorry, but she won’t be back until then, maybe even longer depending.”

I couldn’t hide the disappointment on my face. An extra day wasn’t that big a deal, but it still sucked that we came here for nothing. I was ready to leave when Ally got a strange look on her face. I looked at her with a frown, but she was still looking at Katherine. Lyn walked over, eyes flickering between the two women.

“What’s going on?” she whispered to me. I just shrugged my shoulders, not really sure myself.

Ally suddenly gasped, covering her mouth with her hand. She shook whatever that was off and said, “Well, why don’t you help us then?”

My jaw dropped open as Lyn frowned in confusion, having missed most of the conversation. Katherine looked just as surprised at the suggestion before she burst into laughter.

“That’s insane!” Katherine had a small smirk on her face until she saw Ally’s determined expression. “Wait, are you serious? You actually think I can help you?”

“Well, why not?” Ally said with a shrug. “I doubt your mom would have put you in charge of the store unless you could at least understand half the stuff in here. Plus, you were reading that spell book when we came in, and I’m guessing you’re not doing that for fun.”

Damn, Ally’s observation skills were on point yet again. Lyn looked silently impressed, wearing a smirk as she nodded her approval. Katherine still looked surprise, and maybe even a little unsure. She tugged at the end of her hair, staring at Ally warily.

“You are asking something of me that you can’t even prove,” she said slowly. “Who ever said magic is real?”

“Ghosts are,” said Ally bluntly, “and one of them was brought here somehow. Please, I wouldn’t be asking if I wasn’t sure.”

Katherine looked skeptical as she worked her fingers through her hair. “Well…that’s definitely a point. What is it you actually need from me?”

Ally beamed as she turned to me, indicating that I could do the explaining. Quickly, I tried my best to explain the whole Fredrik thing without going into too much detail, because at this point, we could write a novel with everything we had going on. Katherine listened, her face pinched with nervous energy. After I finished, she looked away, her expression contemplative.

“Okay…” she glanced back us briefly before diverting her attention again. “I need some time to think about it. That sounds really stupid and really dangerous. I’m not about to put myself in harm’s way just for some strangers. Now get out, I need to be alone right now.”

We left, making sure the door was closed behind us tightly. Katherine immediately locked the door behind us, flipping the sign to ‘close’ before heading back to the counter. We walked a little ways away before I whirled on my heel, staring at Ally in awe.

“How did you do that?” I asked in wonderment.

Ally shrugged as she reached for Lyn’s hand, interlacing their fingers. “I just guessed, honestly. There was something…hmm, strange? I’m not sure how to say it, but there was something strange about her… you know,” she waved her other hand around widely.

“No one knows what that means,” remarked Lyn.

She rolled her eyes in response. “I just felt something around her. I can’t really explain it. I think she’s going to help, though.”

“I hope you’re right,” I said. “I tried looking for other options, but I couldn’t figure out any other ways to send him back. It’s not great that we have to ask other people for help, but I think it should be okay. Just a quick spell and poof! He’s gone, hopefully back to where he belongs.”

Lyn pressed her fingers to her temple, messaging it lightly. “I can’t explain how happy I’ll be once this craziness is all over, you know? This whole thing just keeps unraveling more and more. It will be nice to hang out with you guys when it doesn’t involve murder and hauntings.”

Ally laughed, pressing her lips to Lyn’s knuckles. “Listen, you signed up for this. Ghosts are an everyday part of life for me.”

“I was also thinking of starting up a ‘Spook Searchers’ business after this case is all said and done,” I joked.

“You better change the fucking name, then,” said Lyn. “Because no offense to either of you, it’s terrible!”

We both gasp in mock indignation before the three of us burst into laughter. It felt good to laugh about all this. There have been some really heavy times for us, but so far, we’ve made it through it okay. I have to admit, the day I decided to share my umbrella with Ally was one of the best things I ever did. I really liked these girls, and I was happy about our friendship. I left all my friends and family back home in Victoria, so finding two people I really got along with was awesome.

XXX

We were back in the library, our energy renewed. Lyn ordered us pizza to share, though she put her foot down on Hawaiian pizza (even though it’s the most delicious). Well, I wasn’t going to argue too much, since most pizzas were delicious, and I was starving.

We ended up banishing Ally back to her old table, despite her protests. It wasn’t until the threat of no pizza was issued did she comply. Now she sat alone, grumbling under her breath as she worked on something for her Anthro class. She would be fine.

Us, on the other hand, might not be. Frustration was setting in again as we made barely any headway on the JK case. Lyn’s tapping was getting more aggressive as she searched up a bunch of things, glaring at the screen as if that would help reveal the secrets. Meanwhile, I was stuck on paper duty, and it was super boring. The only thing about a Kinkly that showed up was when Prof Kinkly got his job here at Mount Seamus. That was literally all I could find. Not very helpful at all.

A thought occurred to me, and it was a long shot. Lamar had gotten the results from somewhere. I glanced at the email again, wondering if maybe they had something we could work with. I sent the person who sent the email to Lamar with the results a message, asking if there was any photographic evidence of the DNA results. Maybe it would go nowhere, but it was better than doing nothing.

I bit my thumb, chewing on the nail as I flipped through other useless articles. I found my focus waning as I stared at the same sheet of paper for several minutes unmoving. My mind wandered to the ghosts. Would they just leave after we figured out who killed them? Probably, hey? It would be strange to not have Amelia in my thoughts anymore. I felt bad for her and the others too. It was a horrible thing to even imagine, being stuck in the place that you died in. I shuddered at the thought.

My mind then drifted to Katherine. She didn’t agree to help us, but she also didn’t say no. I mean, why though? It just seemed really weird that she didn’t outright refuse. And what did Ally mean by saying there was something strange about her? I didn’t notice anything out of the norm. Maybe she was picking up on something ghostly that I couldn’t sense? I think that would be a first.

Was it warm in here today? I felt warm, sitting here in the library chair. I looked over at Lyn, who was staring at her laptop screen with a look of pure resentment, as if she couldn’t believe the answers weren’t just popping out in front of her. The intensity of her stare used to unsettle me slightly, but I’ve grown used to it at this point. I don’t really remember much about her sister, the one who picked us up, but I wondered if she harboured the same intensity. It made me nervous to think of her parents.

I sighed, putting my arms behind my head. Maybe it was better to just call this night off now. Neither of us were getting anywhere, and I had zero focus suddenly. I wasn’t even sure Lyn was focusing. Ally was working away on her assignment, or so she claimed. Maybe she was sneakily lookin’ stuff up too. I smiled, thinking that is something she would do. I wish she would take a bit more care of herself, considering all the crap she’s been through as well.

I jumped in my seat when Lyn scrapped her chair back. She stood up and cracked her back and shoulders before looking at me. “I need to walk around a bit and grab something to drink. Do you want anything?”

“Mind just grabbing me a water?”

“Bottled water?” Lyn made a face. “I guess so.”

“What’s wrong with that?” I asked incredulously.

“Everything. Everything about bottled water is wrong,” huffed Lyn before shaking her head. “No, don’t do this, Lyn. Don’t get into it, it’s not worth it. Ally, do you want anything?”

Ally’s tired face looked up from her laptop at the sound of her name. “Maybe a hot chocolate, if you don’t mind.”

Lyn nodded. “Sure thing. One hot chocolate and one destroyer of the planet, coming up.”

“Hey!” I protested. “I bet those coffee cups are just as bad!”

She stuck her tongue at me as she grabbed her wallet and headed up the stairs. I shook my head in disbelief. Ally caught my eye and chuckled under breath, her shoulders rising in rhythm.

I leaned back in my chair and frowned at Ally. “I think we should stop for the night, honestly. We’re literally getting nowhere.”

“What’s this ‘we’ stuff?” Ally said in a tone that mocked my voice from earlier. “I thought I wasn’t allowed to help, since you banned me and all that jazz.”

“Stop be so dramatic,” I said with a laugh.

“I will never, ever, stop.” She smiled at me before slumping down in her seat. “But in all realness, I agree that you should stop if you feel stuck. It’s probably just so much garbage to sift through. Maybe a good night’s rest will be just what you need.”

“Maybe.” I ran my hands over my face. I hated the bristles that were growing out slowly on my chin right now. Movember was a great cause but man, was my face itchy. Curse my Asian heritage and its inability to grow facial hair in comfortable way. Wait…did anyone grow facial hair in a comfortable way?

Lyn came clomping back down with the drinks in hand. She tossed the bottle of water at me, then set Ally’s drink down softly in front of her. Ally thanked her with a smile while Lyn sat back down, a tea in hand. She took a small sip, giving out a sigh of contentment.

“I needed this,” she groaned.

“We should stop for now,” I suggested. I cracked open the lid and took a swig.

“Probably,” she amended. “I felt like I’ve gone in circles tryna find anything on this idiot.”

I nodded in understanding. We had been at this literally all day, except for a little break. Maybe it was just a matter of not looking in the right spot or something like that. Whatever it was, it was driving us both up the wall. There was no point in continuing if we were just knocking out heads against the table.

But just before we started to pack up, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I took it out and noticed it was a response from the people who sent the results. I opened the email and saw that they included an attachment. Suddenly my hands were shaking in anticipation and excitement as I clicked the file. What I saw nearly made me drop my phone.

“Michael?” Ally asked puzzled. “Is everything okay?”

My words were failing me as I nodded slowly. Lyn got up and looked over my shoulder and her jaw dropped in surprise. Finally, Ally had enough and came over to see what all the drama was about. She took the phone from my hand and stared at the picture. Her face paled as her eyes widened in shock.

“No way…” she whispered. She put the phone face up on the table, so the man in the photo was looking up at us with a charming smile on his face. The photo must have been taken in the ’50s or something, but it was hard to say for certain. But it wasn’t the age of the photo, it was the person in it that was shocking us all.

Jeremiah Kinkly looked exactly like Robert Kinkly, our drama professor.

#unnatural affairs #ua #ally holland #lyn hart #michael yamamoto #katherine howard #ghosts #murder mysteries #romance #paranormal #wlw romance #sapphic lead #original story #orginal work #writing

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lucienfairfax · 3 years

Text

maybe I should have a little post explaining the salient points of Dayir and Ishan’s existence, that might be confusing for the casual viewer

and by “little post” I mean “whoops, not quite as little as I’d intended. sorry. lemme toss up a readmore after Dayir’s bit” (believe it or not, this is the short version. I can always Say More)

please feel free to ask as many questions as you like if anything is unclear or you want more info, I have no idea how any of this sounds to anyone else but me lol

Dayir, Heart of Darkness

non-combatant / defensive / support character by trade

defeats primals by absorbing their aether

does the above by virtue of an Allagan Heart (yes, exactly like the Ultima Weapon). the aether stored in eir Heart can be summoned for various purposes

originally (well, “originally”) from the Azim Steppe, so accepts “Dayir of the Steppe” as a form of address, but privately regards “Dayir of the In-Between” and “Dayir of the Prim” to be far more appropriate when it comes to place of origin

is trained in multiple varieties of dance and carries emself like it

would in some worlds be called a necromancer, or in other worlds an animancer, or in yet other worlds an avatar or a psychopomp or a shaman or a conduit. the class and job divides don’t really exist to em -- ey employ disciplines and concepts from multiple sources to achieve eir goals, and a couple of skills that frankly shouldn’t even exist

is spiritually accompanied by a todash-dwelling Qunari named Talan, whose stories of a world called Thedas tend to mesh uncannily with stories of Hydaelyn

think of an NPC, any NPC. there’s an 85% chance that they currently are or have been at some point a lover of Dayir’s (no, really) (”beast tribes” aside although there’s probably an Amalj’aa or two--) (most dragons also excepted) (I said most)

Ishan, Hound of Darkness

a walk-in from the Lifestream (allegedly) who found himself bound to the body of a minor Ishgardian lordling who’d gone missing from Carteneau and was assumed dead

(the name assigned to said body was Seraphin Arnaud Laurent Augureau. Ishan never uses it and wants nothing to do with that man’s life. this all becomes a huge point of contention during the HW arc, as you can imagine)

Ishan’s eyes don’t match because of the soul switcheroo, so one of his eyes looks like the body’s (hazel) and the other eye is just Ishan’s (blue-grey)

has memories of living on the Thirteenth World, before the botched Rejoining, and on his belated way to the First he is given a remnant of this voided planet, an eldritch black orb that is now a fuckin loaded Chekhov’s gun that I have to figure out a use for (probably around 6.0 sometime I’ll figure it out)

Ishan does not join Dayir on the First until the confrontation with Hades in Amaurot, because the magic the Exarch was using to port them over scared the fuck out of him and he found a way to put up wards against it. it was a struggle but eventually he shoved his fear aside to go find his bestest dearest companion Dayir and punch the Exarch in the teeth

extremely combative. (Elidibus has a lot to say about Ishan’s penchant for destruction, but Elidibus can also shut the hell his mouth.) daggers are his preference, although he’s not always particular and is known to get real creative in a pinch

hates Garlemald more than anything (don’t even mention the whole Zenos business, he’s still embarrassed and will slice your achilles tendons just for saying anything)

(in fact we’re not gonna discuss the whole Zenos business at all right now. even I’m embarrassed)

(like. fuck. when evil just looks and sounds so good)

important canon-divergence notes

Haurchefant Greystone’s wholly unnecessary demise is prevented by the fact that while Ishan was the WoL that was gunning for the archbishop, Dayir was the WoL that sensed Ser Zephirin doing his thing and popped a powerful aethershield over eir boyfriends

Moenbryda’s sacrifice was unnecessary as Dayir’s store of aether is far greater than the average dude’s and ey had no problem conjuring a fat aetherblade blunt for Nabriales to smoke. she persists as a Scion to vex her childhood bestie forevermore

Au Ra are the result of a successful Allagan experiment. this technically includes Dayir, but the experiment that led to em was a bit different and so is eir existence on Hydaelyn. Dayir is culturally an Au Ra but biologically more Allagan (and draconic, ofc) than anything else

Dayir and Ishan are both Azem shards, but obviously skewed towards particular facets of Azem’s personality -- Ishan represents Azem’s Martian energy, their righteous anger and passion for change; Dayir represents their depthless joy and passion for life. Dayir and Ishan’s character flaws are basically results of being a bit unbalanced in their personality traits this way (like how Dayir is capricious and easily led to despair, and Ishan is aggressive and has a hard time connecting with others)

(it can be understood that they echo the spirits of Hydaelyn and Zodiark this way, as well as the Amaurotians that formed their hearts, and I bet Emet-Selch's commented on it once or twice)

they are also both possessed of godshards -- when Louisoix did his Thang, a bit of Nymeia found its way to a strange dreamy young adult in the Steppe and a bit of Rhalgr found its way to an Ishgardian who was dying on the field and was big mad about it

they do not kill Emet-Selch in a big battle. Dayir unmakes Hades at his request. being of the In-Between, though, Hades’ essential self still exists, just not on the mortal plane. he now gets to dwell in a new place of his own creation -- not the lost city of his grieving heart, but a place that is his and his alone

#.masterpost #.dayir #.ishan #ffxiv #about.dayir #about.ishan #insourced content

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honiboyyoon · 5 years

Text

Total Knock Out (M)

Namjoon drags you to one watch one of his underground boxing matches aka you celebrate a lil early in the locker room

This is part 2 to my boxer!joon one shot Round One (doesn’t have to be read before hand but i would appreciate it)

Pairing: Namjoon x Reader

Warnings: smut, mentions of fighting (he’s a boxer), daddy kink, light spanking

Word count: 1353

A/N: listen @ddaenggtan kept sending me pics of joon in leather jackets which is how boxer!namjoon came around so here is a part 2!!! This is also me using my knowledge of bettes kinks and weaknesses so enjoy this filth!!!! lemme know what you think and send requests!!!

*****

The bustling sounds of the underground boxing matches weren’t noises you heard all too often, seeing as how you hated coming to these things. However, tonight’s match was important for Namjoon and he pleaded for you to come and cheer him on. So here you are, watching as the man you love lands blow after blow to his opponent’s face and stomach. Namjoon had been on a lucky streak the past few weeks, his streak only being interrupted by the cops busting in on them not too long ago. After your argument the night of the bust, your boyfriend had begun looking for above ground jobs, but he couldn’t pass up this match tonight, not when three thousand dollars was on the line. It was almost the end of the match and Namjoon’s opponent was looking weary at best, and you can now see why your boyfriend is the undefeated champion. He’s an absolutely beast. The possibility of being caught by the cops wasn’t even a concern to you at this point, all you could focus on was Namjoon landing blow after blow, and barely receiving any. Your focus was also on the way the sweat glistened off of his golden skin, droplets running down his toned muscles. You rubbed your thighs together to relieve some of the ache that was starting to bubble in your core. You watched a particular line of sweat run itself down his chiseled chest, down his abdomen, and just as the droplet was near the bit of trimmed hair that was peaking out from the top of his shorts, Namjoon delivered a debilitating blow to the other man’s jaw. The noise of his opponent’s body hitting the floor was swallowed by the roars of the crowd. Men hollering in joy as their bets paid off, others shouting in protest when they realized they lost money. Before the referee could even jump into the ring, everyone knew it was a total knock out. Your boyfriend had won. Namjoon had won the fight and the three thousand dollars, plus whatever his cut was of the winning bets.

By the time you fight your way into Namjoon’s small locker room, you can see that he is freshly showered and is dressed in only his jeans and belt. His broad upper body is still glistening with water from the shower but you don't care as you launch yourself at your boyfriend. Namjoon chuckles as he instinctually wraps his arms around you.

“That was single-handedly the most horrid tying yet sexiest thing I have ever seen.” You’re mumbling into his chest but Namjoon hears you just fine.

“Sexy huh?” He’s smirking like a cheshire cat, he knows you want chew him out for fighting, but not tonight, not when he won the biggest fight in his underground career and won you three thousand dollars, and especially not when you admitted that the whole ordeal was sexy to you.

“You sound a little sadistic baby, saying that you thought the fight was sexy” he teases, fingers coming up to cradle your chin, “now where’s my congratulatory kiss?” “Right here, daddy” you giggle, you didn’t mean for it to slip out, really you didn’t. But seeing Namjoon in the ring tonight looking so aggressive and half naked covered in sweat had your panties absolutely soaked, and you wanted him to continue that dominating behaviour. The corner of Namjoon’s lip quirked up into a devilish smile, “oh? Is my baby girl coming out to play?” Before you have the chance to answer, he captures your lips in a searing kiss. Your fingers became entangled into each others hair, and it isn’t until you pull away for air that you notice Namjoon has guided you over to the bench and as he sits down he brings you with him, straddling his one leg. Images of his sweaty muscular thighs in his boxing shorts flash through your mind and you begin to kiss him once again. Namjoon pulls away and starts to kiss down your neck, nibbling at your ear he whispers, “did you enjoy watching daddy fight baby girl? You’re so dirty you’d probably lick the sweat right off of me in that ring, you’d suck me off too wouldn't you baby?” “Oh my God, yes daddy, yes I wanted you to fuck me right in that ring I don’t care who would’ve saw.” Your dirty confession makes Namjoon’s dick strain against his jeans, that and the fact that you an unknowingly started to lightly grind yourself against his leg. A thought popped into his head that made him gripping your hips even harder. “Did you like looking at my thighs in my boxing shorts baby? I know you love riding daddy’s thigh, your such a greedy little girl for daddy, you take whatever you can get.” Namjoon’s word shoot straight to your core and you whine has his hands guide your hips to grind down on his muscular thigh harder. A swift slap to your ass has you crying out, “daddy asked you a question baby girl.” “Yes, daddy, I was imaging riding your thigh when you were fighting I couldn’t help it, I swear” you whine, and Namjoon takes the opportunity to bite your pouting lower lip.You gasp as he flexes his thigh muscles and you being to grind down on his leg faster. Namjoon loves the way you look when you do this, he loves how much you love riding his thigh. It’s like you can’t get enough of him, and it’s true, you really will take whatever part of himself Namjoon will give you. You’re a whiney mess as he pulls down the fabric of your tank top and starts to roughly play with your nipples. Already having to watch him fight and now this, your orgasm is readily approaching and Namjoon can tell as he flexes his thigh and pushes up against your grinding core. He roughly sucks the delicate skin of your neck and breathes into your ear, “you look so pretty like this baby girl, you’re so good for daddy hm? Putting on a little show for him, huh baby? You’re so so good for daddy” Namjoon’s words are only added to the fire and between your growing moans and you manage to whimper out, “daddy, please can I cum? I’m so close, daddy please.” As if Namjoon could deny you anything. He just wordlessly grips your hips even tighter and helps your grind down on him. You’re rocking back and forth on his thigh as if your life depended on it, and honestly, right now it might. Namjoon goes back to sucking bruises on your neck as he removes one of his iron gripped hands from your hip, and lands a rough slap against your ass. You’re a moaning mess and Namjoon can’t get enough, he needs you to get off on him. He’s never see anyone sexier, and he voices this as your moans only get louder, he knows your practically on the edge. “Fuck your such a girl good for me baby, so fucking good. If you cum like a good girl like this, daddy promises to take you back home and take care of your properly.” That promise and a final flex of this thigh sends you flying over the edge, and your orgasm hits you like a freight train. You’re a loud and whiney mess on top of him as you ride his leg through your orgasm, and it has Namjoon moaning out with you, “aah, that’s it baby girl. Fuck you’re so pretty when you cum, christ you’re perfect. So fucking good for daddy.”

You still on top of him as your breath finally evens out. You burry your face softly laughing into Namjoon’s neck, “Jesus, if I knew they would end like this, I would’ve come to more of your fights.” Namjoon laughs as he kisses your head and stands you up, “c’mon baby girl, daddy still has to take you home.” You wrap your arms around his neck as the two of you share another passionate kiss.

“okay, daddy”.

#namjoon fanfic #kim namjoon fanfic #namjoon fanfiction #joon fanfic #daddy!namjoon #boxer!namjoon #namjoon smut #namjoon one shot #bts smut #namjoon x reader #My writing

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spine-buster · 5 years

Text

Alone, Together | Chapter 28 | Morgan Rielly

A/N: I couldn’t bear to re-live too much of the playoffs so...yeah. This is the last chapter to deal with them. We are now moving on to the summer! Fun and interesting shenanigans ahead!

Lmao wow. So official with ur jacket in the wag group pic. Bet u begged the other wags for a jacket and to be in the pic.

You look really cute in your jacket! I think you’d look better if you were maybe Steph or Madison’s size though! Other than that, super cute!

OMG you are honestly the most desperate person in the city of Toronto

pls pls pls how can I become a wag

can u give Auston my number 416 555 0123

So…how’s Scotiabank treating you?

For the love of God, sign up for a yoga class girl. Pilates. Start jogging. Something. Nothing about your body is flattering. You can’t tell me Morgan likes all that flab. You were always a calf but you’ve been a cow since Christmas.

You want to make it seem like you’re ‘part of the group’ of WAGs but we can all tell you’re not. They include you to be nice but in reality, they probably don’t even speak to you outside of the arena. To think you are isolating Morgan from his friends and teammates – and for what? So you can have a WAG jacket one year? So you can flaunt in front of everyone? Morgan would be so much better off with someone who doesn’t leech off of him and who doesn’t reek of desperation.

***

Bee didn’t know how she survived all the way up to game six. It was a back and forth between the Leafs and the Bruins and she didn’t know how she was going to handle this game, with the Leafs being able to eliminate the Bruins if they won. The Leafs won game three, even though at 6:15pm that same Monday, it came down that Naz had been suspended for the rest of the series – however long that was. The boys were angry, but they tried not to let it show. That Wednesday, they lost 6-4. Morgan got two assists that night but they still couldn’t capitalize. In Boston for game five, the Leafs won 2-1, with Morgan getting another assist on Kappy’s goal. Now, with game six about to start, she was jittery. She even felt hot in the jacket but couldn’t bear to take it off.

She was praying for an Easter miracle.

Once everyone settled back into their seats after the singing of the anthems by Martina, her leg couldn’t stop bobbing up and down. It was Aryne who had to lay her hand on Bee’s thigh to get her to stop. “Are you nervous or something?” she asked sarcastically.

“How have you done this for almost ten years?” Bee asked. “I don’t know if I can handle it.”

“You’re going to be okay. You get used to it,” Aryne said. “Besides, this is actually only the fourth time John’s made the playoffs.”

“What? Really?”

Aryne nodded her head. “When we went to Sochi it was much more nerve-wracking. But that’s besides the point. You need to calm down.”

“So if they win this, they face the Columbus Blue Jackets, because the Blue Jackets swept the Tampa Bay Lightning,” Bee listed off, remembering the look of the bracket in her head.

“Exactly.”

“Could we beat the Blue Jackets? Like in a series?”

“In a heartbeat.”

Bee’s chest tightened. “So…like…we could really do this.”

Aryne nodded her head. “Really really. But we can’t think about that right now. We need to focus on beating the Bruins.”

Morgan opened the scoring. It happened about ten minutes into the first period, a one timer from the blue line thanks to Willy keeping it in the Bruins zone, and Bee erupted from her seat with the crowd to scream and cheer for him, even high-fiving a man and his son who were seated in front of her. She looked up at the jumbrotron to see him fist-bumping with the bench before they replayed the goal. Her heart fluttered in her chest knowing that he had opened the scoring in such a big game, motivating the rest of the team.

That didn’t last long though. Brad Marchand scored less than two minutes later, and another goal by Krug ended the first period. DeBrusk, still playing even though there were rumours that he had a concussion, scored in the second period. Auston scored in the third period and tried to rally the team to tie it. Late in the game, Morgan and Jake DeBrusk got into a little…scuffle on the ice, and DeBrusk pushed Morgan’s helmet off. There was an exchange of words, a little pushing and shoving, and Bee couldn’t bear it.

“PUNCH HIM IN THE FACE!” she screamed at the top of her lungs, surprising even herself at the ferocity and volume of her demand. She stood up in her seat to watch the aftermath and the replays on the jumbotron. Surely an opponent pulling off the helmet of another player would result in a penalty? “WHAT FUCKING BULLSHIT!” she screamed at the top of her lungs again.

“Bee, there are children present,” Aryne grabbed her hand.

“FUCK YOU DEBRUSK!” she shouted one more time before sitting down, huffing and puffing in anger as they showed a replay yet again. “I guess game two let us all know the Bruins can do whatever the fuck they want and get away with it!” she said loudly, but not as loud as before. She looked at Aryne. “Can you believe this?!”

“Yes Bee, it’s game six of the playoffs,” she giggled slightly. “This is the most I’ve seen you get riled up about hockey ever. I think Mo needs to start getting more physical more often,” she wiggled her eyebrows.

Bee snorted. If only Aryne knew. “I just…nobody’s allowed to touch him. Nobody. I’ll deal with them myself if I have to.”

Unfortunately, the Leafs couldn’t capitalize and Brad Marchand scored again. The final was 4-2. They’d be going back to Boston.

Another game 7.

Bee could see the looks on everyone’s faces as the buzzer rang to signal the end of the game. The girls who had been through this before – Alannah, Lucy, Madison, and others – were not smiling. At all. There was a look of worry mixed with dread on their faces. As fans filed out of the arena, the girls all sat in their places, staring at each other. Nobody got up – Bee didn’t think anyone had the strength to. There was always a lot of media after the games, anyway, so there was no point in leaving when the fans did.

Aryne, forever the optimist, saw the look on Bee’s face. “They can do this, Bee. I know they can,” she said. “We need to stay positive.”

“I know they can. The question is if they will,” Bee mused. “What if they get those awful referees from game two again?”

“They won’t. The NHL will never let them officiate another game again, they were so bad. We need to stay positive. They have all the tools they need. They can beat the Bruins.”

Bee wished she could be as positive.

***

Morgan wasn’t a man of many words when he came out of the locker room. He gave Bee a kiss and said goodbye to everyone before they descended down to the parking garage. Rocco and Clarette had invited them over for an Easter dinner, and that’s where they were supposed to be headed. But Bee could see the dejected look on Morgan’s face and the bags under his eyes. She knew he would probably rather just go home. She knew he was tired, aching, that he now had a flight to catch tomorrow to go into enemy territory.

As they got into the car, she looked over at him and put her hand over his. “I can call Clarette and tell her you’re tired if you want to go home,” Bee said softly. “They’ve been watching. They’ll understand.”

“Why would you do that?”

“Morgan, come on,” she said. “If you want to just go home we can go home. Or I can take the subway up myself and you can go and rest.”

“No no no,” he said, flipping over his hand to hold hers and bring it to his lips to kiss. “We promised them we’d be there for Easter dinner. Clarette’s probably made four different courses. We’re going. I’m okay.”

“Morgan.”

“Briony, I want to take my mind off of hockey right now,” he said, his voice sombre, firm, and resolved. “I want to be around family.”

She couldn’t protest. Not when she heard the tone of his voice, not as he cradled her hand in his against his chest, not as he looked at her with his blue eyes. She couldn’t do it. “Promise me you’ll tell me you want to go the second you want to? Don’t feel obligated to stay longer.”

“I will Bumblebee. I promise,” he said, kissing her hand one last time before pulling out of the parking spot.

When they arrived, it was Rocco who opened the door to greet them. “Mr. Goal Scorer tonight!” he beamed as he hugged Morgan. “Great goal tonight!”

“Thank you,” Morgan smiled.

“And you!” Rocco turned his attention to Bee. “That jacket looks great!” She spun around so he could see the giant Maple Leafs logo on the back and he oohed and awed at it. “Can I buy one too?”

Bee giggled as she showed him the ‘Rielly’ patch on her arm. “You have to start dating Morgan to get one.”

“He’s handsome. That could happen.”

They broke out into a fit of laughter as Sarah Jessica Barker came running towards them, bringing with her Angie, Mason, and Joshua. Morgan bent down to pet her and coo at her while Angie, Mason, and Josh looked on with amused expressions on their faces. “Sorry about the game,” Angie said as Sarah Jessica Barker had enough of Morgan and moved on to Bee.

“What are we having for dinner?” Morgan asked. His way of letting her know he didn’t want to talk about it. Angie got the hint. So did everyone else.

“We’re Italian. We have lamb on Easter,” Rocco informed him.

“We’re also French-Canadian,” Clarette piped up from the kitchen. Morgan couldn’t help but laugh. “We are also French-Canadian and have butter tarts to offset the Italian lamb.”

“That’s what I like to hear, Clarette! Dessert!” Morgan called out to her as she appeared from the kitchen. “I’m sorry we had to push this back so late because of me.”

“Late? What late? It’s barely 7. Italians have dinner at 9pm,” she said, side-eyeing her husband. “But everything is ready, so everyone should go sit at the table.”

***

pls tell ur boyfriend the next game is kind of important and if he could step it up that would be nice

lemme guess…ur going to boston on mo’s dime for game 7? U have a job yet u never work. So lazy.

No matter how hard you try you will never be as pretty as Steph or Cassie. Don’t know why you think you are. Don’t bother.

You know all the other girls are talking about you behind your back, right? Word on the street is you’re the most desperate social climber ever, and when the playoffs are over, you’ll be gone too. On to the next hockey player, slut.

***

Bee didn’t have anymore nail polish on. She had peeled off her shellac from sheer anxiety. Going into the second period, the Bruins were up 2-0, and then John had scored thanks to an assist from Tyler. Going into the third, it was 2-1. The boys could do this. They could do this. They could do this.

Bee decided against getting together with any of the girls. She was too nervous and she didn’t want any of them to see just how worried, panicky, and jumpy she was. She was alone in the apartment and, honestly, right now, she preferred it that way. She could yell at the TV without anyone looking at her. She could yell stupid stuff, stuff that probably didn’t even make sense, and nobody would say anything. She could cry in peace if she wanted to. She also knew that, regardless of the outcome, the boys would be on a flight after the game, coming home in the middle of the night. She wanted to be home for Morgan. Regardless of the outcome.

When the third period started Bee was optimistic. But less than three minutes in, Sean Kuraly scored. 3-1. The boys could still do this. They could come back.

Then Charlie Coyle scored near the end. 4-1. Bee’s chest tightened. That was what the score was during that awful game seven in 2013 before the Bruins came back. Maybe the boys could do the same, with much, much less time.

Patrice Bergeron. An empty-netter. 5-1. The Bruins fans went wild. A waterfall of tears streamed down Bee’s cheeks.

The Toronto Maple Leafs had been eliminated from the playoffs.

Despite her sadness and despite her pain, she kept the TV on. The stupid panellists with their stupid opinions provided background noise for her tears, but she didn’t listen to anything they had to say. Why would she when they were trashing Fred, saying he was incapable of being a “game seven goalie”, whatever the fuck that meant, when just two weeks earlier they were calling him the best goaltender in the world? Why would she when all they did was go over every single little thing the Leafs did wrong? Why would she listen to them completely tear apart and break down a team they all relied on for their hefty paycheques? She wasn’t stupid – she knew how sports media worked. She knew the Leafs provided rating and that their ratings were through the roof because of this – they’d probably be getting some nice bonus cheques. They were all feckless – all of them. They changed their opinions on the fly, whenever it suited them, whenever it got them more ratings and more viewers who ended up adopting their shit opinions. ‘Experts my ass’ Bee thought. Especially that Nik Kypreos guy. What an idiot.

And then Morgan appeared on the screen.

She wanted to scream. Were they actually interviewing him right now? Really?! Not even two minutes after the end of the game and they had paraded him out of the locker room into some hallway to answer asinine questions about another heartbreaking game seven? ‘LET THEM GRIEVE!’ she wanted to shout. ‘LET THEM FUCKING GRIEVE!’ But no. Apparently that was impossible. They wanted every sound bite they could get just so they could talk about it for fifteen minutes afterwards. Because they Leafs were money. That’s all they were to these people – sound bites and ratings and money. They weren’t just hockey players dejected after a loss; they weren’t men who put everything they had into the game, into the entire series, into the entire season; worse yet, they weren’t human beings with complex emotions who didn’t want microphones and cameras shoved in their faces as they dealt with the insurmountable fact that they had let an entire city down. Money.

She looked at him and how dejected he looked, how heavy his breathing was underneath all his gear. She wanted to shatter every plate in their kitchen against a wall in anger. When he was finally released and went back to the locker room, she shed more tears. God knows how many reporters would be waiting for them in there, too.

She just wanted him home. God, all she wanted was for him to come home.

***

When Bee heard the door unlock at almost 2am, she jumped off the couch but stood stoic in her place. She watched as Morgan pushed open the door, lugging himself into his apartment, letting the door close behind him. The first thing he looked for was her. She was all he wanted to see.

“Baby…” she mumbled, running over to him. “Baby, baby, come here.”

She grabbed on and attached herself to him like he was going to float away. He immediately wrapped his arms around her, burying his face into her neck. He lifted her up and she wrapped her legs around him tightly. Almost absent-mindedly, he walked them over to their bedroom before collapsing on the bed. He didn’t let go. She felt tears on her neck as they lay there, wrapped into each other, and she began running her fingers through his hair and playing with the tufts of hair at the base of his neck, knowing it was soothing for him. It was all she could do; all she knew she could do. There wasn’t anything she could say that would make him feel better. There were no words for this. No words besides “I love you,” which she whispered to him over and over again, for however long she needed to.

***

“We couldn’t do it.”

That’s what Morgan kept repeating.

“We couldn’t do it.”

Bee couldn’t rewrite history. “You couldn’t do it now. But you can and you will. One day.” It was all she could offer.

“We couldn’t do it.”

***

Bee had pre-emptively taken the day off. She didn’t need to worry about work and, quite frankly, didn’t exactly want to right now. She got a text from Mark early that morning. Tell Morgan we were rooting for him all the way. We’re proud of him. He’s one of the only guys who showed up to play the game the entire series.

Bee read the text out to him. He said nothing.

***

Bee only left the bed to make him breakfast – some Greek yogurt with an organic granola mix and some fresh raspberries and sliced bananas. When she brought it to him, still in bed, she saw he was in and out of sleep. She could only imagine he was trying to survive on his last legs of energy by this point. She placed the bowl on the side table before helping him out of his clothes so he could at least be comfortable in his sleep. He moved around absent-mindedly to help her, but she knew he wasn’t there. He probably thought he was hallucinating. When she was finished, she cupped his face in the palm of her hand gently. She’d put the granola mix in the fridge to eat later.

“Y’know what?” he mumbled out suddenly, barely audible or understandable through his fatigue, his eyes cracking open only slightly to look at her.

“What?”

“I wanna take care’f you.”

Bee didn’t understand what he meant. She thought for sure he was dreaming already and in some form of sleep paralysis or lucid dreaming. “What are you talking about?”

“I wanna give you s’much you c’n quit your job n’do s’mthin’ you really love. Cause I love you.”

Bee was completely still as the words escaped his mouth. Before she could come back to, or say anything, she heard his soft snores.

***

It was a few days until Morgan returned to his normal self. Well, semi-normal.

The locker clear out was scheduled for Saturday, April 27th, and because they were leeches who didn’t know when to stop sucking the life out of something, the media was expected there. Mike Babcock would hold a press conference. The summer rumour mill began of who was staying and who was not; who was going to earn these many millions here and who was going to earn those many millions somewhere else. Morgan spoke to the media, as he always did. Off-camera they asked about what he would get up to the entire summer over in Vancouver, since naturally he’d go home. ‘Lots of golfing, probably,’ he’d answered. ‘Dad’s birthday at the beginning of June. Long walks with Maggie where she gets to swim – she loved swimming. She’s queen of the ocean, too. Lots of poolside days. Good wine on the deck. Back to Toronto for the Pride Parade. Fishing trips too, as always. But mostly just stick around home.’

Of course Morgan would go home. He deserved more than anybody to go home to his family, to take in the fresh air of the B.C. coast and rejuvenate himself. He deserved to relax; to kick his feet up and sleep with Maggie in his lap; to take the boat out to Gibsons for oysters or to chase pods of whales again. He deserved to go fishing. Go golfing. Do anything he wanted to do. Isolate himself from the outside world, from hockey. Live through summer on his rules, how he wanted to.

She just wondered how their life in Toronto factored into that.

It was a long flight, from Toronto to Vancouver, and Morgan was meant to relax. She didn’t want him to feel obligated to do anything he didn’t want to do. They had events that they needed to attend together, sure – like Zach’s wedding at the end of June – but she wondered how all that would factor into him taking time for himself. She knew they would work it out, like they always did, but it was four months of summer that needed to be accounted for and planned. There was only so much time she could take off at work – they both knew that. So she’d have to stay in Toronto. She wondered if his schedule would be like how she assumed last summer’s was, when she met him. A bit of time here, a bit of time there, a bit of time anywhere he wanted to be.

When the locker clean out was all said and done, Bee and Morgan sat together in their apartment, her legs draped over his. It was all she thought about on the way home. Since the reporter had asked the question. “What are we going to do this summer?”

“Well, we have Zach’s wedding and--”

“You deserve to go home,” Bee blurted out. She was trying desperately not to let her tears fall. Being without him for long stretches of time was going to be hard – just like it was during the season – but he needed it more than anything. “You deserve to go home and relax for a bit. You’ve had a tough year outside of hockey, too.”

She watched as his brows furrowed at her words. “What was so tough outside of hockey?” he asked.

“Me. The break-in. My mom dying. You didn’t deserve to have to deal with that and--”

He cut her off by giving her a kiss. “Do you mean outside of hockey, when I met the love of my life?”

She couldn’t handle his words. The tears escaped her slowly, and immediately she wiped them away with the backs of her hands. Morgan leaned forward again, capturing her lips in another kiss, and soon, they couldn’t tear themselves away from each other. It was only when they had to break for air that he spoke again. “I am going to go home, Briony. But only for a bit. I’ll be back and forth, but it’ll be okay.”

“You need to take this time to relax,” she stressed, putting her hand on his chest. “You can’t go back and forth all the time. This is your time off.”

“I’ll be fine. It’s nothing that I’m not used to,” he said. “Besides, you know I can’t go too long without seeing you.”

She sighed again. “I can’t go too long without seeing you either. But your priority shouldn’t be me, your priority should be yourself.”

“Hey, you’re always my priority,” he said, grabbing hold on her hand on his chest. “You’re my home now too, Bumblebee. Don’t you ever forget it.”

She internalized his words as much as she could. You’re my home now too, Briony. She never thought she’d hear those words – that someone would consider her home. But of course Morgan did, and Morgan was the one to say it about her. And even though she knew that in her close future she’d be spending more time than she liked alone, she knew that once he came back to her, they’d go back to being themselves, together. “Let’s…let’s take out our calendars.”

“Bumblebee.”

“I want to see when you’ll be gone. I know you’re out in PEI with Dion an the Boys and Girls Club, and I know--”

“Bumblebee--”

“Please Morgan. Just take out your calendar. For me.”

He didn’t fight it. He moved to take his phone out of his pocket and he opened the calendar. “I’m going to see if I can catch a flight to Vancouver mid-week, okay? It can give us a couple of more days together,” he said. Bee nodded her head, cuddling more into him so she could lay her head on his chest, just below his shoulder. “We don’t have much in May. I know you have Alannah’s bachelorette party on the 11th but it’s not like I need to come to that. I can be back in town for the long weekend the following week and stay for a while. But then I want to be back home for dad’s birthday. I want to take him golfing. We always go golfing for his birthday.”

“Of course,” Bee said. She couldn’t help but smile slightly. “Back and forth, back and forth – it’s gonna be like hockey didn’t even stop.”

“What did I tell you?” he smirked, giving her a quick kiss. “I’m gonna miss your cooking.”

“I’m gonna miss you eating all my cooking,” she said. “The apartment is going to feel so empty with you gone.”

“You should get a gerbil.”

She snorted as he wiggled his eyebrows at her. “Don’t tempt me, Morgan Rielly. You’ll come back in May and this place will be a literal zoo.”

“If that’s what you want that’s fine by me,” he mumbled, leaning in to kiss her again, and again, and again. Eventually, he pulled her on to his lap and let his hands wander underneath her shirt. “I’m gonna miss this most,” he mumbled against her lips.

“Me too,” she agreed, her hands cupping his face so she could look at him. He had shaved off his playoff beard, and there was only stubble now. She ran her thumbs along his jawline. “Gonna miss waking up to those baby blues every morning.”

He gave her another kiss. “Gonna miss waking up with my face between your thighs.”

A smile broke out on her face. “You’re a perv.”

“Only for you.”

***

Tick tock tick tock…who is the next hockey player you’re gonna fuck for relevancy?

I bet ur gonna try to get with auston next. Or fred. You’re such a slut

Now is your chance to turn into a hot girl for hot girl summer. Join a gym ffs!!!!!!!!!!

146 notes · View notes

keichanz · 5 years

Text

Move Your Body || pt. 1

Hi, friends. First off, I want to say that I really wanted to finish and post this before Sunday, but obviously that didn’t happen, so I decided to go ahead and post the first part of my new AU because...well. Just continue reading. :)

Secondly, some of you may know this, some may not, but today, the 28th, is also my birthday. Yep, I turned the big 3-0 today, and lemme tell you I am not thrilled about it lmao.

Some of you may also know that recently I created a Ko-fi and that I’ve been struggling a bit financially wise.

This fic is a great, big, fat thank you to all of you who have supported me through Ko-fi and also for those of you who didn’t, but were there for me anyway with your encouragement, kind words, and emotional support. I can’t begin to tell how how much it meant to me that you guys didn’t hesitate to donate, and I am not lying when I say it literally brought me to tears. I cried from your generosity, and I cannot thank you enough for helping me out. This month has been a bit rougher than most, and I am eternally grateful to every single one of you. I wanted to give you something in return, and I thought, why not post this AU early. It’s small, and I know a lot of you are looking forward to the next chapter of You Rescued Me (it’s in the works!), but I hope this will suffice.

Having all of you as friends, as followers and readers, is the best birthday gift I could have ever asked for. I’m so damn blessed and grateful to have all of you in my life and i hope you all know that I appreciate and love you all from the very bottom of my heart.

So thank you again for being there for me. You can all bet your asses I’ll be the first one to jump on the chance in helping in any way that I can if ever one of you need support. Because you have mine, guaranteed.

Note: I know fuck all about choreography or being a producer, so for the sake of this story, pretend everything in factual and accurate lmao.

Inuyasha was lounging in his office and puffing idly on a cigarette while poring over some of his old routines in hopes of sparking some inspiration when he heard the music.

Normally he wouldn’t care and would just ignore it, the probability that it was one of his instructors coming in for the midnight lessons his studio offered more than likely. Less likely it was one of their students wanting to get in some late night practice, but still possible. They needed express permission from himself in order to do that, and since neither Sango nor Miroku had run it by him to get that authorization, Inuyasha doubted any of his instructors’ students actually had the balls to sneak in without consent. So that ruled that out.

Inuyasha frowned and looked up from his desk, pinching the cig between two fingers and exhaling. He cocked his head, ears twitching as he tried to determine where exactly it was coming from, and when he did his eyebrows shot up in surprise. The music was not coming from the first or second floor, suggesting it was either one of his friends or a student, but instead the soft notes of a vaguely familiar hip-hop song were drifting up from directly below him.

The Taisho Studios building was made up of five floors, with the ground floor being the first. That one was Sango’s studio where she held her lessons, teaching those interested in how to dance in various styles and offering kick-boxing lessons as well. Miroku instructed his clientele on the second floor, where he offered various unique exercise regimes that was basically Zumba but with his own personal flare.

The third floor, however, was reserved for his use only, the top dog’s private studio where only a select few ever saw the inside, and those usually consisted of celebrities looking for the best of the best for their music videos. Inuyasha instructed those lessons himself and charged top dollar for his services. Everyone knew it was off limits and he kept the door locked. The fourth floor consisted of his spacious office and gym, also available to Miroku and Sango whenever they wanted since they weren’t just his instructors, but also his valued friends. It was conveniently located right below his top floor condo so whenever Inuyasha was working late, he could just drag his ass upstairs and bam, he was home.

Wondering who had the balls big enough to use his private studio without his permission, Inuyasha abandoned his work and strode to the door, cracking it open and sticking his head out into the hall. The music got louder and Inuyasha surmised whoever it was must have left the doors wide open so as far as he was concerned that was an open invitation to go see who it was and then kick them the hell out.

Glancing over his shoulder and eyeing the desk littered with paperwork and his open lap top, Inuyasha snorted, shrugged, and promptly decided he needed a break. His deadline wasn’t for another month and he wasn’t being very productive tonight anyway so Sesshomaru can just kiss his merrily dancing ass and deal with it.

Sticking his cig back between his lips, Inuyasha forwent using the elevator and instead wandered casually down the hall, going into the stairwell and then abruptly vaulting over the railing and dropping to the third floor. The entrance to his studio was right across from the elevators and staircase, so when he opened the door he found himself staring directly into it—and the person brave enough to utilize the spacious room without his knowledge.

For the second time that night Inuyasha’s eyebrows rose in surprise and without even being aware of it he padded across the hallway. His footsteps were masked by the music coming out of the Bluetooth speakers and they were facing away from them. Curious despite himself, Inuyasha leaned against the doorjamb and crossed his arms, golden eyes silent observing as a little smirk quirked his lips.

Kagome released an undignified squawk as she stumbled forward for the nth time that night, the toe of her shoe catching on the hardwood floor and throwing off her balance. Windmilling her arms, she managed to catch herself before she face-planted onto the hard floor and resisted the urge to stamp her foot like a child and scream her vexation into the empty studio.

Dammit, why couldn’t she get this? Sango had made it look so easy when she’d shown her earlier, and after a couple of tries with her instructor’s guidance, Kagome had been able to more or less command her body to execute a smooth hip roll without looking like a twerking imbecile. Now for some reason she was unable to smoothly transition into the dance move she wanted without nearly falling over and needless to say she was getting frustrated.

Grumbling under her breath and wishing she had her friend’s tall and slender physique, Kagome stomped over to the table where her phone sat and paused the song in order to once more bring up the choreography. She hit play for the hundredth time, studied closely the two men and one woman flawlessly busting out move after move without fault and she promptly scowled before tossing her phone back on the table with a rough exhale.

Closing her eyes and tilting her head back, Kagome frowned and allowed her mind to wander, vaguely noting the faint smell of cigarette smoke that had been present earlier had suddenly gotten stronger. What was she even doing, anyway? She’d never been the most coordinated of people and was oftentimes called a klutz. She wasn’t graceful and she wasn’t even athletic, so really, this was a waste of time. She knew if she carried this out she would only end up making a fool of herself so why go through the trouble?

“Because,” Kagome answered herself with a deep sigh, shoulders slumping in defeat, “I’m too damn stubborn and my stupid pride won’t let me quit.”

“You make it sound like that’s a bad thing.”

Kagome gasped and spun around, hand over her pounding heart and blue eyes wide with a combination of surprise and embarrassment. Her gaze landed on the lounging figure in the doorway, casually puffing away on a cigarette as he regarded her silently.

Well, that explains the odor of cigarette smoke, Kagome mused while aloud she said, “Jeez, you scared me. I didn’t know anyone else was here.” She paused and then frowned when his words registered. “What?”

The man said nothing and just continued to stare at her, cig tucked between his lips, expression unreadable. He was...damn, he was attractive, Kagome secretly admitted, feeling a blush creep up to color her cheeks a soft pink. Donned in loose fitting black jeans that rode low on his hips and a plain white t-shirt that contoured very nicely to a toned chest and stomach, a backwards ballcap was pulled on top of a head of short, shaggy silver hair. His eyes looked to be a stunning golden color and when he lifted a hand to pinch the cig between two fingers, Kagome noticed two things: the talons tipping each finger, instantly giving away what he was, and the black tattoo starting at his wrist that crawled up his arm to disappear into his shirt sleeve.

Kagome’s breath hitched and her heart skipped a beat. No wonder he’s so attractive, she thought dazedly, glimpsing a flash of fang as he parted his lips and tendrils of smoke drifted up toward the ceiling. He’s not human.

What was that saying? The most beautiful things in life are often the most dangerous, or something to that effect. Kagome was inclined to believe it, suddenly feeling very flushed and where was her water bottle?

“Tenacity and pride,” the man continued, studying the fag between his fingers with an air of boredom. “By themselves they don’t do much good and more often than not just get you into trouble, but put them together and success is pretty much guaranteed in the performing arts industry.

“So I guess you could say,” he said and took a drag of his cig, “they’re requirements in our world. Stipulations if you wanna get anywhere in life.”

Kagome shook her head. “Um, our world?” she repeated, utterly lost.

The look he gave her was deadpan. “Dancing, babydoll.”

Ocean eyes widened in understanding and her flush darkened as she sheepishly averted her gaze, fidgeting where she stood.

“Oh, I, um,” Kagome faltered, clearing her throat and for some reason suddenly feeling like a child in front of a grown up about to confess to being naughty. “I’m...not a dancer,” she finished lamely and winced, twisting the fabric of her shirt with her fingers in a nervous habit.

Inuyasha raised a dubious brow at that declaration. “Alright,” he allowed, nodding slowly. “So suppose you tell me what the hell you’re doing in my private studio then, playing music and dressed like that?”

Kagome blanched and jerked her head up to stare at him with wide-eyes. “P-private?” she squeaked and looked so terrified Inuyasha briefly regretted telling her that. “Oh god—I’m so sorry, I didn’t know! Er, my dance instructor Sango told me I could use her studio tonight to get some practice in, but when I got here it was locked and I...found this one and it was unlocked...”

Looking very uncomfortable with a red face and shifting nervously from foot to foot, Inuyasha felt his face soften slightly as he watched her and he released a quiet sigh around the cig in his mouth. It had been unlocked since he was in here an hour before trying out some moves for the new routine he was working on and he’d planned on locking back up before he went upstairs.

So ultimately it was his fault since he’d left the doors unlocked, and as such it wouldn’t exactly be fair to be angry at her. It also appeared she didn’t know who he was, which admittedly was a bit surprising. Everyone knew everything above the second floor was off limits unless given permission and it led him to believe she was a fairly new student of Sango’s.

“I’m sorry,” she apologized again and gave an awkward half-bow, biting down on her lip as she finally met his eyes. “I’ll, um, leave if you want me to. I really didn’t know...”

Inuyasha considered her for a moment and then shook his head. What was the point if she was already here? “Nah, don’t worry about,” he muttered and took another drag on his cig, watching as she visibly relaxed and offered him a timid smile.

Cute little thing, ain’t she? he mused idly and racked his gaze down her lithe form. She says she’s not a dancer, but she certainly had the body to be one. That damn shirt hid most of his view, but from what he could see of her legs—

“Are you an instructor?” she asked him, tilting her head. “I haven’t seen you around before.”

Inuyasha fought against the urge to grin. She really didn’t have any idea who he was.

“You can say that,” he finally said at length, finding himself not wanting to give away his identity just yet. This could prove to be interesting, and who knows; maybe it would spark some inspiration and he’d finally be able to get some results so Sesshomaru would stop jumping down his damn throat with his demands and deadlines.

“Still waiting for an explanation, babydoll,” Inuyasha reminded her and took another drag. Technically there was no smoking allowed in his building, but he owned it and could do whatever the hell he damn well pleased, so whatever.

She blinked. “For what?”

He cocked a brow at her and carelessly flicked some ashes onto the floor; maintenance would clean it up tomorrow morning anyway. “Why you’re here. You said you ain’t a dancer, which is all fine and dandy, but you got me curious.” He shrugged and let the cig dangle from his lips as he crossed his arms again.

Kagome winced and then wrinkled her nose, her face warming up at the true reason for her being here.

“It’s stupid...” she mumbled, staring down at the floor and hunching her shoulders a little.

Inuyasha frowned. “I doubt that,” he told her and had an insane, unexplainable urge to cross the room and wrap her up in his arms. She just looked so small and fragile and he wanted to...protect her? What the—from what?

Kagome looked like she didn’t believe but she took a breath and told him anyway, figuring he had a right to know since this was his private studio. Or at least that’s what he told her, however Kagome figured he was telling the truth because why else would he be here?

“It really is stupid,” she repeated with a sigh and a fleeting grimace crossed her features. “My college was holding an event the other day out in the courtyard in front of the student activities building, and since my friends and I had nothing better to do, we decided to go and see what it was all about. Turns out it was a DDR competition and they were using a giant white board as a screen and extension cords to hook the game up. Anyone was welcome to play a round and enter some friendly competition, and even though I’ve never played before in my life, I gave it a try.”

She paused and crossed her arms, her nose scrunching slightly in a little pout that he found completely too adorable. “Of course I failed miserably at it, but I laughed it off because it was just for fun anyway. But then this extremely rude and universally not liked rich bitch laughed way too hard about it and snarked that I would never win any contest with those moves.”

Inuyasha cocked a brow at her, his tone disbelieving as he drawled, “You’re here because of a game of DDR?”

She scowled at him and had the good grace to blush. “No. If you let me continue, I was going to say the purpose of the entire event was to promote an actual dance competition where you have to come up with a new dance to a song of your choosing. It has to be at least one minute long, an entry can have up to four people, and all of the moves have to be completely original.”

“Sounds fair,” he commented.

Kagome nodded. “So after humiliating me in front of dozens of people, this bitch flips her hair, pops her chest out so everybody notices her fake boobs, and loudly declares that it’ll be a piece of cake winning the competition since ‘nobody worth while’ has entered. And oh my god, I got so heated, and just to spite the cocky bitch, I stared her right in the eye as I entered despite the fact that I cannot dance worth a good goddamn.

“And so now,” Kagome shrugged and held up her hands helplessly. “Here I am, sneaking into private studios at midnight and pretending like I know what the hell I’m doing.” She offered a wavering smile, her face still red but her blue eyes were bright.

Inuyasha nodded again and whistled low. “I see,” he murmured. “Good on you though, for not letting her cow you like that. I take it this isn’t the first time she’s given you grief.”

Kagome sighed and pinched her nose. “Since I started college three years ago. We’re in the same major.”

“Which is?”

“Nursing.”

He looked surprised. “So this bitch walking about like her shit don’t stink wants a career that dedicates all of her time taking care of and thinking about someone else other than herself? Is that what you’re telling me?”

“I know,” Kagome said drolly, her expression one of dry exasperation. “Trust me, the irony is not lost on me.”

“Damn,” Inuyasha muttered in bewilderment, shaking his head.

Kagome grunted in agreement, wrinkling her nose.

He bit back a chuckle. “Alright. Now lemme ask you this, babydoll,” Inuyasha suddenly said, flicking more ashes onto the floor and when her inquisitive blue eyes met his, he continued. “You said earlier that your stubbornness and pride won’t let you back down. Is that still true?”

Kagome blinked in confusion, brow furrowing slightly. “What...?”

“Is it?”

Amber eyes bore into her own and Kagome shivered. “I...yes,” she answered, barely above a whisper.

He nodded. “One more thing.” Pinching the nearly gone cancer stick between two fingers and lowering it from his lips, Inuyasha looked directly into her eyes and exhaled smoothly.

“Do you want it?”

Kagome opened her mouth. Closed it. Looked adorably confused. “Do I...do I want what?”

Inuyasha was silent for a moment as he studied her, and then he answered roughly, “You have to want it, babydoll. Spite is a great motivator, but it’s not enough if you want real results. If you don’t want it bad enough, if this is all just a game to get back at some snotty bitch with fake tits, then you’re wasting your time and might as well leave right now. I don’t give my time to quitters.”

Kagome gasped and shook her head, her heart pounding at what he was implying. “What do you—”

“Do you want it?”

The intensity in which he’d asked that single question gave Kagome pause and suddenly she knew exactly what he was referring to, what he wanted to hear her say. And it was amazing because she did want it; she wanted it with a desperation that surprised her because when she’d changed into her workout clothes and left her apartment at 11:30 at night to practice dancing in an empty studio, she hadn’t truly thought that she would get anywhere and thought for sure she’d end up giving in and backing down.

But then suddenly this man appears out of nowhere, starts asking her questions about pride and tenacity, somehow wheedles out the real reason why she’s here and her ambition roars back to life. No, it wasn’t just spite that made her agree. True, she wanted to prove that bitch wrong, but she wanted to prove to herself even more that she could do this and do it so well she’d leave everyone wondering if she was the same clumsy Kagome that tripped over air and fell up the stairs.

“Yes,” Kagome answered honestly, squaring her shoulders and straightening her back. Nodding, she repeated herself, her voice strong and ringing with resolve.

“Yes, I want it. I want it.”

Inuyasha’s eyes flashed and he nodded once. “Good.”

Then with that he started toward her, his strides purposeful and Kagome watched him as he approached the table behind her and stabbed out his cigarette in the ash tray she’d failed to notice before now.

Then he turned to her, crossed his arms, and leaned back against the table.

“Let’s see it.”

Kagome balked. “What?”

“Show me what you got, babydoll. Dance for me.”

Kagome blushed and swallowed thickly, her mouth suddenly feeling dry as her heart kick started in her chest.

“Why?” she whispered although she suspected she already knew why.

Instead of answering, Inuyasha grabbed her phone and woke up the screen, ignoring her protest. “What song?”

Kagome made a half-hearted swipe for her mobile and huffed in aggravation when he held it away from her. “Song?”

He cut his eyes to her with an annoyed frown. “What song are you going to be dancing to?”

She blinked. “Oh. Well, I was thinking maybe Girls like You by Maroon—”

“No.”

“...Excuse me?”

“No,” Inuyasha repeated and scrolled through the songs on her music app. “It’s not a bad choice, but it’s too...soft for what you need. If you wanna win this competition you’re gonna want something with a real shock factor, something totally unexpected that’ll knock their fucking socks off and have men and women alike panting and wanting a piece of that.”

Kagome made a face and muttered, “I don’t really care if I win this thing. I just want Kamlyn to eat her words and maybe get her to stop harassing me every goddamned day.”

Inuyasha shrugged. “Then consider it a bonus because when I’m through with you it’ll be guaranteed. Now,” he said and browsed her music again with a contemplative frown. “From what you’ve told me about this Kamlyn wench, it’s safe to assume her dance is not going to be kid friendly. That means you’re gonna hafta knock her performance outta the park with something sexier.”

Kagome blanched. Sexier? Oh god. She was anything but sexy and she really didn’t think she liked where he was going with this...

“You’re taste in music sucks,” he commented idly when still he saw nothing after a few more minutes of scrolling. She must have had over five hundred songs on the damn thing and yet none of the titles he glimpsed were appropriate for what he had in mind. He uselessly scrolled for another minute, gave up, and decided he’d have better luck with YouTube. They’d have to discuss what song she’ll use at a later time, but for now he’d just use a random bop with a suitable rhythm and he searched for the first one that came to mind.

“It does not,” Kagome fired back petulantly and crossed her arms again. “If you’re gonna insult my music then you can just—”

Inuyasha tapped the screen and seconds later the rest of her words were abruptly cut off by a steady, thrumming beat pumping from the speakers around them. The music ebbed and flowed, giving off a suggestive and sultry energy that can often be found in strip clubs. The lyrics followed shortly thereafter, soft, sexy, and alluring.

Kagome’s heart stopped and for the second time in as many minutes the color drained from her face. Oh no. Nooooo no no no no he couldn’t possibly want her to dance to…to something like that?

As the crooning lyrics abruptly turned into obscene moaning sounds, Inuyasha set her phone on the table and crossed his arms before nodding his head behind her, a wordless gesture to get on with it.

Oh good lord he did. Fervently Kagome shook her head, her eyes pleading with him to choose another song while inwardly cursing every perverted songwriter that decided it would be a good idea to create something like that. It was too embarrassing, too…too suggestive, something she wouldn’t even do in the privacy of her own room, let alone in front of a very attractive man!

Inuyasha frowned at her adamant refusal and explained, “I need to see what I’m working with here, babydoll, and in order for me to do that, you need to show me. This is just to give me an idea on where to start, so just pretend I’m not here and let the music take over. Close your eyes if you need to and let everything else just fade away.”

Blushing furiously, Kagome bit her lip and hesitated, dropping her gaze to stare down at the floor and clutched the hem of her shirt, wringing the fabric in an obviously nervous gesture. She knew without a doubt that even if she did close her eyes she would still be aware of his presence. Even now she could feel the weight of his gaze, staring at her unwaveringly and it made her stomach do not so unpleasant flip-flops as her heart accelerated in her chest.

Didn’t he realize what he was asking of her? Kagome had never considered herself sexy; hell, she wouldn’t even call herself pretty. She was average. She didn’t turn heads, never attracted attention, and she could count on one hand the number of times a guy had flirted with her. (Once, and it was her ex-boyfriend.) Kagome was awkward, clumsy; she knew she was no prize and her confidence level was drastically low.

Simply put, she wasn’t Kamlyn, who, despite being completely fake, was considered one of the hottest people on campus and she wasn’t afraid to flaunt what she had. How could he possibly ask her to dance to a song like this when she had nothing to flaunt?

When the song transitioned into the first chorus and all she did was continue to stand there looking very uncomfortable while avoiding his gaze, it became glaringly obvious that her hesitation went beyond mere shyness so with a sigh Inuyasha swiped up her phone and hit pause. Her shoulders hunched as the music was abruptly cut off and she peeked up at him, biting her lip and looking like she was about to be scolded.

His expression softened, however the confusion was evident on his face as he regarded her thoughtfully. Was this truly so difficult for her?

“Okay,” he murmured. “What’s the matter?” The patient softness of his voice surprised even him and judging by the look that crossed her face, it surprised her too.

She recovered quickly, though, and once more ducked her head, shifting her weight and feeling a flush of embarrassment color her face a soft pink. She really didn’t want to confide in a virtual stranger all of her self-image issues, even if he was trying to help her. Maybe if she gave him just a brief display of her awkwardness and incoordination he would see for himself that the song definitely wasn’t the best choice.

Dearly hoping she wouldn’t regret this, Kagome swallowed thickly and said just loud enough for him to hear, “Um, s-start the song over, please.”

Inuyasha frowned at her unexpected request and he eyed her for a moment, expression contemplative, before wordlessly reaching over to wake up the screen and did as he bade him. A single tap of a clawed finger and the song was starting over, the beginning notes echoing throughout the studio.

Steeling herself, unable to stop her nervous shaking, Kagome took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and started moving.

Right off the bat Inuyasha knew with absolute certainty, or at the least very strongly suspected just why exactly she was so adamant about not using this particular song. It was heavy with sex appeal, the kind that made women grind and gyrate their hips as they sought to turn on every single man nearby, and this girl, this young woman had absolutely zero.

Her movements were stiff and awkward as she attempted to move her body to the music provided like she had no idea where to put her limbs. The look of intense concentration on her face suggested that might very well be the case and it was clear she’d never before used her hips or ass as a method of seduction. They didn’t roll so much as jerk and her knees weren’t at all relaxed but locked which accounted for all the stumbling she was doing. Of course with that damn shirt in the way it was hard to accurately guess, but altogether it was glaringly obvious how out of her element she was, her discomfort not only painted clear as day on her face, but in the stiff way she moved.

After another stumble that nearly sent her sprawling onto the floor, Inuyasha couldn’t take it anymore and he put a stop to her painful performance by pressing pause and he didn’t miss the unmistakable look of relief that crossed her features. Then she righted herself, sighed, and looked positively defeated as she stared at him, as if she already knew he was going to declare her a lost cause and change his mind about helping her.

If only she knew that watching her sorely lacking performance had the complete opposite and only solidified his decision to help her.

And besides, he always liked a challenge. It was only a bonus that he could use her routine – with her permission, of course – as new material and Sesshomaru would stop hounding him about the damn deadline in a month.

Which reminded him… “What’s your name, babydoll?” he asked as he scrolled through her songs and selected one that would be good practice for what he had in mind.

Kagome frowned at the unexpected question but answered, “Kagome.”

“How long you got until the competition, Kagome?” Setting her phone back on the table, Inuyasha took off his hat and carelessly tossed it onto the table as well before promptly reaching behind him and yanking off his shirt.

Kagome sputtered as her face flamed, eyes going very wide to suddenly be faced with a very attractive, bare chested man. Good god, but this man was a silver-haired Adonis, all sculpted muscle, tanned skin, and those ears were too damn cute. What really grabbed her attention, however, was the wicked looking tribal tattoo wrapped around his left arm that she was finally able to see in its entirety. The intricate design extended all the way up to his shoulder and upon closer inspection it appeared to be a dragon with the head on his left pectoral. It was beautifully done and Kagome was slightly jealous. She’d always wanted a tattoo...

“I—I—uh, a little over a month?” she said, completely distracted by the complete magnificently tattooed male...yumminess that he presented.

Without her permission her eyes tracked the line of silver hair that disappeared into his low-slung jeans. Her heart beat a little faster as the blush on her face intensified and oh my god, he had another tattoo in the delectable V of his right hip bone, what looked to be jagged red claw marks half-concealed by his jeans.

Kagome thought she might faint.

Inuyasha snorted in amusement. This was too perfect. “Good. Take it off.”

That jolted her right out of her avid admiration of his solid abs and she blinked, darting her gaze this with a puzzled frown. “What?”

He withheld a smirk. Checking him out, was she? Then it was only fair he got to do the same.

“Shirt. Off. Now. Unless you’d like me to do it for you?” He cocked a brow at her and had to grin when she squeaked and took a step away from him. “C’mon, we ain’t got all night.”

“But—what—” Kagome stuttered, utterly perplexed and she crossed her arms over her stomach as if that would be any defense to him divesting her of her shirt. “Why?” she finally managed.

Inuyasha rolled his eyes and explained, “Because it’ll only get in the way and I need to be able to see.”

She eyed him suspiciously and narrowed her eyes. “See what?”

He scowled then, getting impatient. “To see why you move like an eighty year old woman with Parkinson’s, now would you stop questioning me and just take the fucking thing off already? You’re wearing a bra anyway and it ain’t like I’m asking so I can ogle your tits or some shit. Christ,” he muttered and rubbed his forehead. She certainly wasn’t kidding when she said she was stubborn.

Kagome flushed. Truth was, she had assumed part of the reason he was asking was so he could stare at her chest but now she felt ridiculous for even suspecting it. She didn’t even think he was that type of man anyway, she was just...nervous. She liked her oversized shirts; they were her security blanket, a shield to protect herself from anyone looking too closely. If she took it off, despite having a sports bra on underneath, she would feel too vulnerable, exposed in a way that had nothing to do with lack of clothing.

Here he was, standing in all his beautiful half-naked glory, sculpted abs, a hard chest, and arms thick with muscle and strength. Meanwhile here she was, plain, frumpy Kagome, with her small chest, soft stomach, and general awkwardness. Standing next to him, she felt like the ugly duckling that got hit with every branch on her way down the ugly tree and he expected her to reveal all of her could-stand-to-lose-a-few-pounds body to him?

Hell no.

Once more avoiding his gaze and shifting from foot to foot, Kagome’s hands clutched the dark gray fabric of her shirt and she shook her head, biting down on her lip.

“Um—I, uh, c-can’t I continue wearing it? Please?”

Even she could hear how pathetic she sounded pleading about something so trivial but she couldn’t help it. She was already feeling out of sorts with the song he was using; keeping her shirt was her last defense. Didn’t he know that?

Scowling, Inuyasha opened his mouth to once again demand she remove it, but then she peeked up at him from under dark, sooty lashes and when his eyes connected with hers realization hit him so hard his eyes widened and his mouth dropped. Kagome winced and immediately ducked her face again, flushing darkly.

...Well, fuck. It made so much sense now. Granted, this whole endeavor just became ten times more challenging, but it was too late to back out now. Besides, he couldn’t in good conscience allow her to continue thinking about herself like that when it was so obviously untrue.

Muttering a curse under his breath that had Kagome daring another glimpse at him, Inuyasha promptly stepped in close to her and ignored her quiet gasp of surprise before knocking her arms out of the way and hooking a claw in the collar of her shirt. Too late Kagome realized what he was going to do and before she could utter any sort of protest Inuyasha swiftly drew his hand down and sliced the garment right down the middle. Stunned and blushing up a storm, Kagome could do nothing as he yanked the shirt the rest of the way off and tossed it carelessly behind him onto the table.

While Kagome stood there with her arms over her chest and berated him for ruining her shirt, Inuyasha finally got his first good look at her and damn did he like what he saw. She was fucking perfect with a flat, trim belly that tapered into shapely hips and sender thighs encased in tight spandex shorts. Her skin was smooth and creamy and his hands suddenly itched to roam over her figure but he kept them to himself; he figured ignoring her wishes and destroying her only cover was pushing it enough as it was and he needed her to trust him.

From what he could see of her chest behind her arms, her breasts were small but that didn’t matter; a push-up bra or corset could do fucking wonders and before his mind had the chance to travel in a decidedly less than pure direction, Inuyasha said four words that promptly drew Kagome’s tirade to a screeching halt.

“Kagome, you’re fucking perfect,” he told her sincerely and perhaps a tad bit impatiently but she refused to hear it, adamantly shaking her head and denying his claim. Frowning he grabbed her hands kept her from hiding herself, tightening his grip when she tried to pull away.

“No, listen to me, I’m serious. You have absolutely fucking nothing to be ashamed of, Kagome. You’re stunning with a fucking rocking body and I’ll say it every goddamn day if I have to until you believe me, but what I see before me is nothing short of beautiful.”

When still she wouldn’t look at him and kept shaking her head, Inuyasha growled and gently grasped her chin in his fingers, tilting her face up and her sharp gasp went ignored as he continued, “Confidence is a key factor in this sort of thing, babydoll. You move the way you do because you don’t have any; you think you’re not sexy and that’s sorta the whole point I’m going for here. If you wanna do this, you’re gonna have to start believing you can and the first step is being confident and comfortable in your own skin.”

Inuyasha suddenly sighed and some of the vehemence left his tone as he said a bit more gently, “Look, you have the physical requirements for this; you’re fit and I’m willing to bet you’re flexible as hell. There’s really nothing stopping you but you and if you really do want this like you told me, then you need to stop this embarrassed shit and either tell me to fuck off and go home, or look me in the eye and fucking commit. I don’t half-ass things, Kagome; I’m gonna work you into the fucking ground until I think you’re ready and if you think you can’t do this, tell me now. Like I told you before: I don’t give my time to quitters.”

Kagome flinched and he grit his teeth but didn’t take his words back. He wanted to help her, he truly did, but she needed to help him by trusting what he said and doing what was necessary. He may have been a bit too harsh, but he couldn’t help it. Most of the people he dealt with on a daily basis were pretentious celebrities that liked to throw around large amounts of cash just because they could and it was required of him to be a hardass to get through their self-absorbed bubble of fame in order to get to the nitty gritty of things. Most of the time it was received well, but occasionally he’d get the bored up and coming rock star that got too comfortable in their lifestyle and became nothing more than a spoiled brat and they ended up bowing out before any of the real work began. It was a giant pain in the ass and a huge waste of his valuable time, which was why he was so strict on who he decided to take on as a client.

He was one of the most respected, successful, and coveted producers in the whole fucking country. He was allowed to be choosy, goddammit.

Gently sweeping his thumb across her chin, Inuyasha waited to see what she would do, not afraid to admit to himself that he hoped she wouldn’t back out. He didn’t understand his strong desire to help her, not to mention his very strange urge to protect her at all costs, but he didn’t dwell on it. Kagome was different than any of the other woman he’d ever met; she was soft, innocent, untouched by the harsh realities of the world and despite having some evident self-image issues, he suspected that she was utterly breathtaking when she flourished and he wanted so badly to witness that. He wanted to be there when she shined, when she made that bitch Kam-whatever eat her words and that was when Inuyasha decided he was going to do something he’d never done before in any of his client’s routines.

Of course he needed to get her to agree to it first, but he was confident he could wear her down even if she did disagree at first. She may be stubborn, but he was as bullheaded as they come and was oftentimes told he didn’t know when to give up. It was one of his best qualities that contributed to his popularity among producers and he wasn’t afraid to let anyone know.

Now if only Kagome had half that confidence...

Inuyasha was already cooking up a few ideas while he waited for her to make her decision when finally, finally, Kagome lifted her head, those beautiful ocean eyes locked with his, and the cautious hope in them was nearly his undoing. Without even realizing it his expression softened and he gave her that last push she needed to make her decision.

“Trust me, Kagome,” he murmured and daringly brushed his thumb across her bottom lip, watching the flush spread across her cheeks and hearing her breath hitch in her throat. “Just trust me and I promise you won’t regret it. Alright?”

Kagome’s eyes widened and she studied him quietly, her eyes searching his face, his eyes for what he hadn’t a clue, but apparently after another moment she found it because the corners of her mouth lifted up into a small, timid smile, she sucked in a breath, and then she gave a barely perceptible nod.

“Okay,” she breathed and officially sealed her fate.

Inuyasha grinned. “That’s my girl,” he said and had the insane urge to kiss her forehead. “Now let’s get this show on the road; it’s late, I have a meeting at 9 am, and I want to at least go over the basics before we call it a night. Sound good?”

Hardly believing she was actually going through with this, Kagome closed her eyes and nodded again. She could trust him. She could trust...wait a minute, what even was his name?

“What’s your name?” she blurted out as he restarted their practice song and golden eyes cut her way at the question.

He gave her a crooked grin and his eyes flashed wickedly. “It’s Inuyasha, babydoll, but I’m more commonly known as Sha.” He cocked a brow at her and watched Kagome’s face go from blank as she attempted to place his name to instant recognition, eyes going wide and mouth dropping in astonishment.

“Y...you’re...” she breathed, apparently having trouble articulating her thoughts, and Inuyasha chuckled. Usually it annoyed him when someone was so starstruck they could barely speak, but strangely with Kagome he found it completely endearing.

“Yeah,” he affirmed, raising his brows. “I admit, I’m a little surprised you didn’t recognize me. The ears usually give it away.” He wiggled them for emphasis and he caught her quiet giggle.

Her smile was equal parts sheepish and apologetic. “I don’t really watch TV and I’m not really invested in the entertainment world, either.” She shrugged.

Inuyasha stared at her. God, she was so pure he felt as if just standing next to her would somehow taint or blemish her. He’d done some shady shit in his past, and he was by no means innocent now, and for the first time in his life he felt inadequate and quite suddenly wanted to take a shower, as if that would help wash off his sins and dirty deeds.

“Well,” he drawled and reached back to wake her phone’s screen. “After tonight, babydoll, consider yourself invested.”

He hit play and the first notes of their practice song drifted out of the speakers.

Instantly Kagome recognized it and she frowned. “I thought we weren’t using this song.”

The silver-haired choreography shrugged and grabbed her hand to tug her a little closer. “We’re not, but it’s got a good enough melody to use as a practice song. We’ll start with something slow first that you’re comfortable with and then work our way up to faster paced songs that are similar to what you’re gonna use for the competition. Sound good?”

Releasing a steadying breath, Kagome briefly closed her eyes and then nodded, resolute. “Let’s do this.”

He smirked. “That’s what I like to hear. And now, lesson one.”

Without warning Inuyasha spun her around so he back was facing his chest and used his foot to nudge her legs a little farther apart. He slid his hand around to splay across her lower stomach and he felt her immediately tense up. Expected, which was why this was a good place to start.

“When I was watching you dance earlier,” he began and placed his other hand on her hip. “I noticed you were thinking way too hard on how to move, where to put your feet and all that. You need to relax. Let your body think for you, let it move on its own. You kept stumbling and tripping earlier because you were so tense and you were so busy trying to command your body to move the way you wanted it to that you ended up looking like a robot.”

He leaned his face down so his mouth hovered next to her ear. “So breathe, Kagome,” he said and smiled when she released the breath he was sure she wasn’t even aware she’d been holding. “Dancing is supposed to be fun. It ain’t rocket science.”

Reminding herself that she had to trust him – he did this for a living, after all – Kagome did as she was instructed and took a few moments to just breathe, closing her eyes and trying to clear her mind. She was highly aware of his hands on her hip and stomach but surprisingly enough the not so unpleasant sensation was easy to get used to. Her lips lifted into a slight smile as she slowly relaxed, listening to the music, allowing the smooth beat to ease the tension from her muscles.

“Thatta girl,” Inuyasha murmured behind her and squeezed her hip once in approval. “Alright, now listen to the beat...move with it...don’t think about it, Kagome, listen to the song and let it command you, not the other way around.”

“I am,” Kagome huffed, her brow furrowed slightly as she attempted to sync her hips with the beat of the music.

“No, you’re not,” Inuyasha insisted and closed the slight gap between them, stepping in close to press his chest flush against her back and yanking her ass into the cradle of his hips. She gasped, but he ignored it as he said, “You hear it, but you’re not listening.”

With his hands and his own body, Inuyasha moved her the way he wanted her to, guiding her hips from side to side as his own did the same, allowing her to feel and not merely hear what he was saying.

“See,” Inuyasha rumbled in her ear and Kagome shivered, willing her heartbeat to calm and the fierce blush on her face to recede as. “Don’t just listen with your ears, listen with your body. As cheesy as that sounds,” he added and smiled when she released a breathy laugh, gratified when she finally allowed herself to be taken by the beat and let the music command her.

With her eyes closed and so in tune with the melody wrapping around her body, letting it dictate her movements, Kagome was barely aware of Inuyasha stepping back, though he kept a light grip on her hips. She didn’t even understand how, but suddenly it was so easy to move with the rhythm of the beat and soon she lost herself to the notes of one of her favorite songs, smiling now as she danced without a care. It wasn’t a chore, it wasn’t something she felt she had to do at all costs, but a deep desire she hadn’t even been aware she’d harbored.

Standing a few feet away from her, arms crossed and a satisfied grin on his face, Inuyasha watched with half-lidded eyes as she danced like no one was watching, losing herself to the music and even singing along to the lyrics. It was obvious she’d forgotten he was even there, but that was okay. That’s what he’d wanted, for her to forget everything and just have fun, if only for a few minutes.

All right, so he could admit, this wasn’t really a lesson so much as a warm up. He’d caught a few brief glimpses of it earlier when he’d told her to show him what she had, but watching her now, taking in the graceful movements of her body and the smooth way she transitioned each step, it was obvious to him that Kagome was a natural. She knew what to do, or at least her body did; she just needed some fine-tuning, is all, an upgrade to an already seamlessly working piece of machinery. They still had a long way to go of course, but perhaps it wouldn’t be as challenging as he’d originally thought.

He was suddenly really looking forward to the next month or so.

The song ended a moment later and Kagome stood there, legs akimbo, chest popped and shoulders back and her face was beautifully flushed with a bright smile spread across her face. He was gratified to see she didn’t even seem to be that much out of breath either, a testament to her strength and agility, another thing that would make this easier for both of them.

The sound of clapping drew her attention and Kagome turned her head to find Inuyasha standing a little ways a way, a satisfied grin on his face as he clapped, obviously pleased with her performance. Suddenly giddy Kagome giggled and gave an exaggerated bow, sweeping her arms around behind her and she heard his amused chuckle.

“That was great, babydoll,” he praised and ambled toward her. “You’re a fucking natural and with a little guidance from yours truly, we’ll have both men and women drooling after you and you’re gonna show up that bitch Kam-what’s-her-face so good she won’t be able to show her face on campus for fucking weeks.”

With big blue eyes glinting with cautious hope, Kagome peered up at him with a hesitant smile as butterflies abruptly took flight in her belly.

“You really think so?” she asked, for the first time daring to believe that she could do something better than Kamlyn, daring to believe that she could be better, period.

Inuyasha stopped in front of her and smirked arrogantly.

“I know so. Alright, now I’m gonna show you a few basic moves and I want you to follow my lead...”

Part 2

#move your body #part 1 #inuyasha #kagome #inukag #keizfanfiction #fanfiction #i have no idea how long this is gonna be #the document is already 41 pages and im only about half way done lmao #anyway hope you like it!! <3 #also this entire fic stems from my very selfish and self-indulgent desire to write about inuyasha dancing #so there you have it hahahahaa

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7-wonders · 5 years

Text

Shatter pt. 10

Summary: You thought traveling through time was the hard part of this ordeal? Attempting to stop a revenge-seeking warlock, an angry Supreme, and one emotional Antichrist boi easily tops that.

Word Count: 2840

A/N: Honestly don’t even know how I managed to whip up a chapter in the midst of my life going to shambles, but I did it! Lemme know what you think, feedback is always appreciated, and if you liked this I’d love if you reblogged and left a comment.

The hot sun beats down on the California desert, scorching everything in its wake. Even the wind is hot, whipping sand through the air and placing those grainy particles right into your mouth. It takes both you and Mallory a moment to regain your bearings and get used to being in the past. Mallory looks down at her body before looking at you, a wide grin on her face.

“Thank God, I thought I’d be stuck in that ugly gray uniform for the rest of my life.” Mallory’s back in the clothes that are so familiar, wearing a sheer black gown over a black slip and cinched with a gold belt. Her signature golden headband is nestled in her chocolate locks, and her eyes hold that same spark that they once did before the end of the world.

“I have to agree. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to wear purple again.” The black of the lace tunic that matches the shade of the slip under it is comforting and reminds you of a home you thought had been lost forever. Your ankle boots are already making your feet start to ache after years of not having to wear them and, from Mallory shifting her weight from one foot to the other, you’d assume that she’s feeling the same way in her identical pair. “I forgot we had the same pair of shoes,” you note with delight.

“We shared so much of our wardrobes that I didn’t know we had two pairs of these for the longest time,” Mallory remembers fondly.

“I don’t mean to be rude and interrupt, because I could honestly spend all day just reminiscing with you, but if we want to stop the apocalypse then we need to hurry.” You grab Mallory’s arm and start walking, knowing that your destination is just over the hill.

“And where exactly are we?”

“You said you would trust me, right?”

“Of course I did--I do, but-”

“Then trust me, Mal. I know Michael better than anyone, this is the point of no return for him.” The pieces start to click into place for Mallory. Being in the desert of California, what would constitute a major event for Michael that would only spur him quicker into the arms of his father, and why you’re both here instead of Mallory’s original plan of the Murder House (a conclusion that you had gathered upon learning that Mallory was meant to kill Michael when he was at his most vulnerable moment).

“Is this the day that the coven burnt Ariel and Baldwin at the stake?” You nod grimly.

“They also killed the woman who had taken him in after his family had abandoned him. The coven killed Ms. Mead, which made Michael crazy with the desire for revenge. If we can stop Ms. Mead from being killed, then there’s a good chance that Michael never meets the Satanists that introduce him to the Cooperative. We can work to form an alliance with him and change his plans, instead of constantly running and fighting.”

You know, as well as Mallory, that this plan could easily fail. You’re acting off of a hunch, and it’s a small hunch at that. Michael could still want to slaughter the coven due to their near-burning of his adoptive mother, and all of your efforts could be for naught. Knowing what you know now, however, the immense power that you possess and the depth of your love for Michael (and vice versa), you’re willing to bet your life, and the lives of seven billion people, on this hunch.

“Let’s go, then. It’s-” Mallory pats her sides, eventually pulling a phone out of a pocket, “-eleven fifty, and executions are carried out at noon.” Her doe-eyes light up as she swipes the screen of her device, taking in the magic of electronics for the first time in almost two years. “I’ve missed a lot of things about life before the apocalypse, but electronics and wifi are definitely two of the top things.”

“I’d have to say seeing the sun again.” The warm rays act as an instant endorphin boost, making you tilt your head back in an effort to receive more of its’ warmth. “Remember before our memories got wiped, when Miss Cordelia sent you back to test and see if you could save Anastasia Romanov? Why is staying in the past so much easier for you this time?”

“Because the rising Supreme that I traveled with has enough power to easily keep both of us here until we complete what we’ve set out to do,” Mallory teases with a smile.

“You don’t really believe I’m the next Supreme. I mean, we’ve always operated on the assumption that you would be the next to lead the coven. And your magic’s just so strong that I just..” You trail off, leaving the question hanging. Everybody thought that Mallory was destined to be the Supreme, and you fell in line with that belief. The idea that you’re somehow stronger than a witch who has managed to bring an animal back to life and also restore its youth is hard to grasp.

“My magic is strong, you’re right. It’s light and airy,” she references the ‘feeling’ that all magic has attached to it, a gift that only a few witches possess, “things that Cordelia is highly attuned to. Your magic, however, is something I’ve never felt before. It’s fire and blood, death and destruction. You draw your magic from elements that aren’t of this realm, or any realm that I’ve ever heard of. I don’t know, maybe it’s tied to the fact that you’re in love with the fucking Antichrist.”

“I guess--”

“Sorry, but I just--Cordelia always goes on about how it’s impossible for Michael to love anyone since he’s the Antichrist. That’s the basis of her argument as to why he’s irredeemable; because he can’t love. But, I’ve never seen anyone love more fiercely than how Michael loves you, and vice versa. If you really believe we can change the course of time, then I stand behind you. Michael would do anything for you.” You smile at the mention of your sweet lover, heart aching as you yearn to see him again.

“Michael used to tell me that he believed that, long before either of us were even born, our souls were together in whatever sort of spirit realm there is. I tend to believe him, considering I’ll never love anyone as much as I love Michael,” you say quietly as you coast over the hill, the tops of the stakes becoming visible from where you stand. “There’s this book that I read when I was younger; I didn’t care for it much, but there was always this one quote that stuck with me. After I told it to Michael, it sort of became ‘our’ quote: ‘And I’d choose you; in a hundred lifetimes, in a hundred worlds, in any version of reality, I’d find you and I’d choose you.’ Cliche, probably, but we’re made for each other.”

The sound of a bell interrupts the quiet of the desert, and Mallory grabs your arm and pulls you down among the sand. You watch as the accused are led out by the coven’s stoic guards, the council following along behind them. Cordelia, Coco, Queenie, Zoe, and Myrtle watch as the three traitors are tied to the stakes behind them, delicate black umbrellas shielding them from the sun. You remember this day, how you and Mallory stayed behind in New Orleans as you were given the ‘honor’ of teaching the younger girls while the senior coven members were away. It was actually just a way for Cordelia to make sure that you wouldn’t be able to interfere with the executions, knowing your relationship to Michael would throw a wrench in her plans.

“Ariel Augustus, Baldwin Pennypacker,” Cordelia addresses the two warlocks. “For the murder of your fellow warlock, John Henry Moore, and conspiring to commit treason against this coven, I, Cordelia Goode, on behalf of this council, sentence you to death by fire.” Two of the guards pick up cans of gasoline, emptying them onto the condemned men.

“Should we go?” Mallory whispers, stopping when you hold up a hand.

“Not just yet,” you reply.

“Our people have long stood by an agreement that no witch may kill a condemned warlock. Only your brother may light the flame. I do not intend to break with that tradition today.” You stifle a gasp as John Henry Moore walks out, very much alive and not dead.

“How the fuck…?” You trail off.

“Oh, did I not mention that Cordelia had me bring him back to life?” Mallory says with a sheepish smile on her face.

“May I?” John Henry is handed his own can of gasoline, slowly walking towards Ms. Mead.

You surge forward, deciding that it’s now or never to stop this event and hopefully stop the apocalypse. Grabbing Mallory’s arm, you transmute both of you in front of the rest of your coven.

“Stop!” You yell, John Henry pausing right as he’s about to empty the can onto Ms. Mead.

“(Y/N)? Mallory? What are you two doing here? You were both given explicit instructions to stay with the other girls back at the house,” Cordelia steps forward, the anger in her eyes raging. While you would have been scared of this look years ago, nothing can scare you now.

“You can’t go through with this,” you plead loudly, voice carrying across the expanse of the execution area.

“(Y/N), I have forgiven your prior relationship with Michael, but coming here in direct defiance of my orders is enough to have you burnt along with the others.”

“Cordelia, I’ve seen the future. If you do this, there will be no stopping the apocalypse.”

“I don’t recall clairvoyance as being one of your gifts.”

“It’s the Sight. At first, I wasn’t sure if what I was seeing was visions or really vivid dreams, but I’ve started having them when I’m awake as well. I saw it all; the slaughter of our coven at the hands of Michael, the apocalypse, what is to become of the world after it ends. If you kill Ms. Mead, you will lose any chance you have of working with Michael to devise an alternative solution.”

The Supreme stares at you for a long moment, trying to discern whether or not you’re lying. Technically, you’re not. You did develop some sort of Sight before Cordelia wiped your mind, and the dreams about Michael that plagued you for the entirety of your memory loss years were just an extension of that Sight.

“She’s telling the truth,” Mallory speaks up, sensing the head witch’s hesitation. “I was with her when she had this vision.” Cordelia, who has always trusted Mallory more than almost any other witch, looks at her skeptically for a moment before slowly nodding.

“You’re sure of what you saw, then?” You nod.

“More sure than I’ve ever been of anything.”

“Ariel and Baldwin still must face some sort of retribution for the murder of John Henry…”

“I’m not saying that they should escape punishment. You can do with them whatever you want. Ms. Mead, however, can’t be killed.” When no one goes to stop you, you undo the ropes that restrain Ms. Mead. John Henry, desperate for some sort of revenge, lifts his hand and engulfs his fellow warlocks in flames as you drag Ms. Mead away from the carnage. The stout woman, who has caught Michael sneaking around enough to have met you a couple of times, clutches your hand tightly when the ropes fall to the ground.

“My dear child, Satan will surely reward you for this!” She declares.

“I’m not doing this for you. You killed a warlock, one of my people, in cold blood. I’m only doing this because I care about Michael too much to let him ruin the world,” you say with a grim look on your face, turning to face Cordelia. “Thank you for trusting me.”

“And what do you suggest we do with her? Surely, we can’t just let her go,” Cordelia says.

“That’s for you to decide, Miss Cordelia. You’ve already shown me enough mercy, and I don’t expect you to show me any more.”

“Ms. Mead!” A voice shouts in the distance, your heart racing as you hear the familiar voice.

Michael walks towards the small group, eyes moving back and forth as he scans the scene. Suddenly, he’s not the suave, confident man you had been with less than an hour ago. This Michael is wearing a version of his Hawthorne uniform, messy blond curls short and smooth. His eyes brim with tears of emotion, and he clenches his fists at his side to keep from exploding. This is the Michael that you fell in love with, the boy that will always hold such a special place in your heart. A little messy, a little ruined, a little shattered: just like you.

“Michael,” you can’t stop yourself from calling his name, running into his arms before you can even think. He wraps himself around you protectively, kissing your forehead and brushing the hair off of your face.

“What’s going on here?”

“Ms. Mead killed John Henry, and she was going to be executed for what she did. I stopped Cordelia from going through with it, though.”

“Why? Because it’s illegal to burn humans at the stake?” Damn, hadn’t thought of that.

“I couldn’t let her die, not when I know how much she means to you.”

“Thank you,” he pulls you impossibly closer, burying his head in your shoulder. “I love you so much, (Y/N).”

“I love you too, Michael.” You get a little choked up at the sudden nostalgia you feel for this Michael. You can only hope that some of this boy will remain in whatever Michael you encounter when you go back to your time.

“Cordelia,” Michael says loudly, walking hand-in-hand towards the Supreme in a way that reminds you of the encounter with the same woman in what is now the future. Releasing you, he towers over the blonde woman in a way that has her almost cowering in fear. “If you ever fuck with me or my people again, I will make your life a living hell.”

“You have my word, Michael, but you must promise me one thing first.” Michael raises an eyebrow, gesturing for Cordelia to go on. “Don’t go through with what your father has planned for you. Work with us, learn with us, and we can figure out a way to achieve both of our respective goals in a way that won’t irreparably damage the world.”

Michael looks hesitant, so you gently grab his chin and pull his attention towards you. “Listen to her. She’s not saying to completely turn your back on your father, she’s just saying that there’s other ways to achieve what you want without causing an armageddon.”

“Why do I get the feeling you know something I don’t?” Michael mutters, obviously not used to you being the only one privy to information.

“Just trust me, okay? Learn some more about your magic, work together with my coven, and then make your decision instead of rushing into things while being blinded by emotions. Can you do that for me?” Michael stares at you before finally sighing and nodding, kissing the pads of your fingers lovingly.

“You had better be right.”

“For all of our sakes, I hope so.”

“Alright, Cordelia, I’ll work with you,” Michael says to Cordelia, who slowly smiles in relief.

“That’s wonderful to hear, Michael.” You gasp at the tugging in your chest, feeling like a hook has snagged itself in your ribs and is pulling you somewhere. Michael’s concerned, and through the ringing in your ears you can hear him ask if you’re okay, but even through your pain you smile and nod.

“I think that’s our cue to leave. Michael, I love you. Always remember that you have a family.” Your form is starting to flicker, and you can see yourself wavering like a ghost. Mallory is the same way, taking stumbling, frantic steps forward to meet you before the spell wears off.

“But they’re all-”

“Family isn’t always blood. Family can be people who you hold dear to your heart. You’re my family, Michael Langdon.”

“(Y/N),” Mallory calls, gripping your hand right as your bodies disappear from this particular moment in time.

You feel as if you’re submerged in water again, the waves carrying you wherever they please. You don’t know if the world will remain the same as it was before you attempted the spell or if it will be different. If it is different, just how much have you been able to change by saving Ms. Mead from her fiery death? It does no good to dwell on these things, so you quiet your mind and allow the water to gently carry you towards your fate.

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