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animeyanderelover · 3 years

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This will be the last basic Hc’s for Black Butler. But if you want to see basic Hc’s for a character from Black Butler I didn’t write about yet you can of course send a request in. Please enjoy!

Tw: Yandere themes, unhealthy mindset, unhealthy relationship, possessiveness, obsessiveness, delusions, paranoia, stalking, clinginess, manipulation, sabotage, gaslighting, isolation, blackmailing, bribing, mentions of kidnapping, mentions of killing

Yandere Black Butler Hc’s

Lau

🚢When I think of Lau I think of the manipulative type. His goofy side can trick everyone and the s/o is no exception. His way with words is also really interesting and he can wrap the darling pretty easily around his finger. Also a stalker, but not he is stalking you, it’s Ran Mao. She watches his s/o wherever they go.

🚢Also the obsessive type, he makes sure that Ran Mao finds out every single detail about his darling and reports it to him. He’s also very touchy, it’s even worse than with Ran Mao! His hands will always be on some part of the s/o’s body.

🚢He is most of the time very calm and composed and even when he is jealous he would never show it, still having his closed eyed smile on his face. But he would somehow interrupt whatever conversation the darling had with the other person and would somehow lure the s/o away from them. If someone really tested his limits than he’ll give Ran Mao a sign to pay this person later on a small visit.

🚢As mentioned above if someone pushes their luck with him he makes sure to send Ran Mao after them. This guy has clearly some propensities for violence and if someone really angered him enough he might even order Ran Mao to bring them to him alive so he can torture them a little bit too. But most of the time he lets Ran Mao do all of the dirty work.

🚢Lau will take his time with kidnapping the darling, trying at first to win their heart with his harmless act and if he success with that he won’t kidnap them. But if they start to avoid him, have interest in someone else or might be in danger then he tells Ran Mao to get them. After that there’s no chance for them to escape him anymore. He takes them wherever he goes to and now the s/o will always sit on his lap whilst Ran Mao stands beside them. If Lau isn’t out he locks them somewhere up and makes sure that Ran Mao watches them.

🚢You will never realize his sinister feelings for you until it’s too late and no one else will expect how insane this guy can really be. He’s awfully calm with you and no matter how much you scream and yell at him, the smile will never leave his face. Not the worst one I guess, if you have a wish just tell him and he’ll ensure that your wish will be granted as fast as possible.

Ran Mao

🌺Ran Mao is the stalker and obsessive type of Yandere. This girl makes sure to watch her darling from early morning ‘til late at night. She’s obsessed with her s/o’s every habit and movement and since she watches them at all times it won’t be hard to figure very much out about them. Might even steal the one or other thing from them just to have something that reminds her of them.

🌺Also a lovestruck type. The s/o is in her eyes a true beauty and whenever they mention that they want something, even if it’s meant as a joke, Ran Mao will immediately disappear and will only come back when she has what her darling asked for. Also the clingy type, this girl will always hold onto them as if her life depends on it.

🌺Ran Mao doesn’t show much facial expressions when somehow takes her darling’s attention away from her, but believe me on the inside she’s boiling and already planning how to eliminate that obstacle.

🌺Ran Mao is ready to kill everyone who comes too close to her darling for her taste or somehow possess a threat to them or their relationship with her. She’s a trained assassin and it’s a living nightmare for those she hunts down.

🌺She would only kidnap her darling under some extreme circumstances, the most likely scenario is when she confessed to them, but they rejected her for some reasons. That’s when Ran Mao takes them with her.

🌺Even though she kills for you she isn’t a bad Yandere to have. Her clinginess is sometimes just a bit suffocating, but overall a really caring and harmless one, at least to you. I can’t say the same about the people who dares to hurt you.

Angela Blanc

👼Angela is a delusional and obsessive Yandere. In her eyes the s/o is the only pure person in London and in the whole world and that it’s her job to protect this pure soul. That makes her naturally obsessive with them, feeling the huge need to find out everything about her darling, about what exactly makes them so pure.

👼Also very manipulative with the darling, talking them into avoiding people and spending more time with her, trying to keep them away from “unclean” humans. She’ll also guilt trip them, acting like a submissive woman who just wants the best for the s/o. She is also a worshipper, the purity of her darling is everything for her.

👼Her jealousy is a bit different than from others. I think from both of her angel sides she’s more maniac about the whole purify thing what makes her more than paranoid when other people spend time with her darling, tainting them with their filthy presence. She can’t and won’t accept that!

👼As mentioned above she’s terribly paranoid with her darling and sees everyone as a threat for her s/o’s purity and makes sure to wipe every dirty human who dares to even look at the s/o out.

👼Her paranoia and desire to keep her darling clean will lead her to kidnapping her darling very soon. She just wants to keep them safe from all this awful dirty humans. Her darling will surely understand that, right?

👼She would never lay a hand on her darling because she would never hurt such a clean human. But she’s still a terrifying Yandere to have. You’ll never see a human in your life again and her speeches about how she’ll keep you safe and how she’ll purify this dirty city are in my opinion enough to give you some ugly nightmares at night. Who the hell said that having a guardian angel is a good thing?!

Pluto

🐺This guy is a demon hound and has some typical traits of his animal side in his Yandere traits. For example the possessive and clingy part. That’s not even a question, is it? This guy is incredibly territorial with his s/o and sooo clingy as well. It’s even worse than with Sebastian! This guy is literally glued to his darling’s hip.

🐺Also the lovestruck Yandere. Never in all of this posts I posted so far was the phrase being a lovesick puppy more fitting than in this. Pluto is the s/o’s obedient dog, ready to do everything they ask him to.

🐺His jealousy is terrible. His possessiveness and clingyness and the fact that he’s basically an animal makes this really bad. He doesn’t even has to see his darling with other people, as soon as he smells another person’s scent on them that isn’t his, he’s already “jealous”. When his darling is talking to other people this guy’s grip on their hip will tighten and he’ll growl dangerously at the other person. If that doesn’t work then be prepared for seeing something you wish you hadn’t.

🐺I already mentioned it above. This guy kills basically everyone that isn’t him if they don’t leave the s/o alone. As I said, if he senses another smell on you he’ll remember that smell later on to hunt that person down and rip them apart. He even kills someone when you’re with him and expects you to praise him after that! He’s confused when he smells the fear on the darling. He only protected them, didn’t he? I think from all the Black Butler characters he’s the most obvious about it since he often comes home covered in blood and with something pretty shocking in his mouth, bringing a “small gift” for his darling.

🐺His form of kidnapping is a bit different. Most of the time he’s okay with clinging onto his darling’s grip, but if Pluto senses another smell on them that isn’t his or if he thinks they are in danger he’ll transform into his demon hound form and run to a cave in the forest. He keeps you there and only lets you out after you’re covered in his scent again or until he made sure to erase whatever had endangered the s/o’s safety.

🐺He’s one of the worse ones simply because in his eyes he does nothing wrong and because he’s so horribly obvious with it all. No chance that you can escape him, he has your scent burned into his memory and if you don’t want to be chased by a demon hound who burns everything in his way down don’t even try it! This guy would find you even if you would travel to the ends of the world.

Prince Soma

🍛Oh god! This guy is together with Finny one of the most delusional ones, mixed together with the clingy and lovestruck type. The thought that you might not even see him the way he does doesn’t even cross his mind. Arguments are useless because it’ll go into his one ear and will go out the other ear. Privat space? What’s that? He doesn’t leave the s/o alone and is so weak for them. Soma spoiles his darling to the rotten.

🍛Also a worshipper. For him the s/o is his god/goddess that he has to worship. He’s also very touchstarved and wants always some kind of physical contact with the s/o.

🍛It’s almost too easy to make this guy jealous. He’s a really spoiled brat and as soon as he notices that the s/o looks at someone else he’ll throw a tantrum, yelling at the other person who took his darling’s attention away from him. Honestly, it’s so childish and embarrassing. And this happens at least five times a day!

🍛Soma doesn’t kill people. He relies more on Agni and his high position. For goddess sake he’s a prince! Most of the time Agni is enough to scare anyone away from his darling. But if he sees how someone tries to take them away from him or harms them in any way then this person will get first of all beaten up by Agni and then Soma will ruin their lifes with his power.

🍛He never sees it as kidnapping. He thinks of it more as finally being able to keep his darling safe and spoil and love them like the prince/princess they are.

🍛Would never hurt you, but his delusions are the problem here. There’s absolutely no chance that you’ll ever be able to convince him that you don’t love him, he’ll just brush it off as you wanting more attention from him which he happily gives you. Try to see it from the positive side, at least this guy will grant you whatever wish you could possibly have.

Agni

🤜Agni is in my opinion the aware type of Yandere. Even though it took a while for him to develop such strong feelings the moment he had them was the moment he knew that they weren’t normal. I can see him as the overprotective one as well. He had not the most prettiest past and that makes him naturally more protective over the s/o.

🤜Also the lovestruck one. For this guy his darling is like the sun, the moon, the stars. Prince Soma might have given him a new life, but the s/o gave him a reason, a meaning to this life.

🤜Agni feels bad for feeling this way and has already much patience, he needs it to not go crazy with Soma. So he can hold on for a good amount of time. It takes a lot to make him jealous, but I think even then he wouldn’t do anything about it. He chooses to suffer silently.

🤜As mentioned he feels bad for feeling this way and is shown as a very calm individual so he’ll try to not kill, it brings back memories of his past. But he has a breaking point and if that point is crossed it will get ugly. If his darling gets seriously hurt he’ll start seeing red.

🤜He would only kidnap you if something really bad happened for example you getting seriously hurt. That would be the breaking point for this guy. He’ll take his darling to make sure that something like this will never happen again. Agni is the type to apologize for all of this, feeling terrible for not being there to protect them and feeling bad for kidnapping them. Then why did you do it?!

🤜Overall one of the better ones. He knows that his behavior is wrong, always listens to your complaints and considering them and making sure to take care of all your needs. He’s even ready to take you out, but promise him to stay close to him!

Ash Landers

▫️Even though he and Angela are somehow the same person I decided to write a separate Hc for him since both of them are also somewhat different. But just like Angela he’s a delusional one, seeing in his darling the perfection he always wanted. Also possessive, he just found the most pure soul he has ever seen in his life, do you seriously expect him to let them go just like that?

▫️He’s the manipulative type, he already uses his manipulation on the queen to bring her to do what he wants and he’s ready to use manipulation on his darling as well to ensure that nothing can taint their clean soul. A pure worshipper, seeing the s/o as perfection itself.

▫️Similar to Angela he sees every other person as a threat that could dirty the s/o’s purity. That is his jealousy. But surprisingly I can also see him as someone who will feel sour when his darling tells him about how much they admire someone else. He wants to impress his darling and when they like someone else he’ll boil with jealousy.

▫️Just like Angela he’s ready to destroy every person who might taint your clean soul, but as mentioned above he also kills when you tell him that you like someone else, killing this person brutally because they dared to make a spot in your heart which he believes is only reserved for him. For him that’s an almost even worse crime than trying to dirty you!

▫️This one will kidnap his darling very fast because similar to Angela his desire to keep the s/o pure will get him paranoid, not that bad like Angela, but still. He’s also as mentioned the possessive type and hates when the darling is talking about someone else that isn’t him. Like this he can make sure that he’s the only one the s/o can think about.

▫️From both of the angel sides he’s the less worse one because he is a little bit less maniac about this whole purifying thing. But overall he’s still one of the worse ones from all. From both of his angel sides Ash is the one who’s more eager to fight which means he’s even more willing to kill and is more brutal than Angela. And just like Angela his speeches about how he’ll make sure to clean this world and how he’s going to protect you will give you some nasty nightmares.

Keinz Drocell

🪆Let’s give it a try with this guy. The first thing that comes to my mind is the manipulative type. Keinz is very insidious as shown when he lured Elizabeth into coming to him. The same counts for the s/o. He’ll lure them into coming willingly to him. Also possessive, he’s a puppet and normally doesn’t have emotions so if you give someone like him someone that lets him feel something you can be sure that he’s never going to let this person go.

🪆Also the obsessive and stalker kind. Something about his darling made him feel something and he decides to watch them secretly to find out what exactly makes his insides tingle whenever he thinks of them. He becomes quickly obsessed with everything they do every little thing that might have looked normal in the eyes of others is to him a masterpiece what gives him the traits of a worshipper as well. He sees the s/o as a masterpiece, one in a kind.

🪆I like to believe that his darling managed to spark some emotions in him and that’s the bad part. If someone who doesn’t normally have emotions feels something it’s going to feel intense for them. Same goes for Keinz. He normally doesn’t have emotions, but the darling changed that. For them he has emotions and whenever he sees them talking to someone else it feels like his whole body is on fire, he’s burning with jealousy.

🪆He killed already a lot of people for his master and has no problem with killing people for the s/o as well. As mentioned above if he feels something he feels it intense and even though he doesn’t understand this feeling he has whenever someone spends time with the darling he does know that he doesn’t like that feeling and the easiest way to make sure that he doesn’t need to endure this again in the future is to get rid of the source of this feelings.

🪆This guy will kidnap the s/o after watching them for a while. By then his feelings for the darling have grown too strong for him to endure any longer and he feels the desperate need to keep them with him. He isn’t really sure why he feels this burning desire, but he knows for sure that if he doesn’t do what his brain is screaming at him to do he might just go insane. As if he isn’t already.

🪆This guy is creepy. He often just sits there and stares at you for hours straight without even blinking and it’s very eerie when he turns his head 360 degrees around and doesn’t even realize that it gives you the chills. He likes to show you his little “collection” of puppets and often brings you along when he makes them. He also likes to give you a little show with them. The song he uses to control the puppets will hunt you in your deepest dreams. The only good thing is that he doesn’t want to turn you into a puppet as well!

Charles Grey

🤺Charles strikes me as the obsessive and manipulative Yandere. It is really not easy for this guy to become interested in someone so if someone actually manages to make him a Yandere for them than you can bet that this guy will feel excited and thrilled about it. Most of the time he feels a little bit bored, but not with the s/o. He wants to satisfy his curiosity about them. He’s also very manipulative with the darling and can be very mean with his words, but if he gets them to do what he wants to then he’s fine with it.

🤺I can also imagine him as the delusional and clingy one. He thinks of himself very highly and is overall a very arrogant and self confident guy what leads me to the belief that this guy thinks that he’s the only one, the perfect one for you! No one can love, treat, care and protect you better than he can! He’s very clingy what comes from his obsessive trait. When he’s near his darling he has the best chances to observe their actions and movements, getting to know them better like this. He also enjoys being near them.

🤺This guy gets paranoid whenever he sees the s/o looking at someone else. He’s the one they should look at! He’s the one who’s perfect for them! Even though he flips out on the inside he manages to look calm on the outside. I mentioned that he can be very cruel with his words, remember? He won’t use them on his darling, but on the other person, talking down on them with an almost disgusted look on his face, making the other person feel worthless.

🤺This guy definitely enjoys fighting a lot and he’s very paranoid when it comes to his darling. Both of this isn’t a very good mix so be glad that he needs to hold himself back most of the times because he’s one of the Queen’s butlers. He only kills someone when they spend too much time with the s/o or when he knows that they like his darling or his darling likes them. Then he’ll come over for a short “play”.

🤺This guy wants to kidnap you badly, but decides to try it at first in a smarter way. Charles has to hold a reputation after all. He asks your parents for your hand in marriage and it’s nearly impossible for your parents to say no to this. I mean, he’s rich and comes from a high position so who wouldn’t agree to this?! If that doesn’t work he’ll most likely blackmail the s/o, using his power to force them into an engagement.

🤺Soo arrogant and filled with himself, it’s frustrating with him! Of course he can be a gentleman if he wants to be and of course he spoils you, but this ego of this man is too much. He always expects you to tell him how good looking, great and talented he is and you aren’t allowed to even talk in a admiring way about another person that isn’t him!

Edward Midford

🎩In the Anime I didn’t see much of him, but I’ll give it a try. I think he’s an aware Yandere, knowing that his feelings aren’t supposed to be that strong. Also the lovestruck type, even though he doesn’t want to show it openly because it’s somehow embarrassing for him. He can’t let others know how much the s/o has him wrapped around their fingers.

🎩Also the overprotective and possessive one. He’s already very overprotective and possessive over his sister, but with his s/o it’s way worse. They’re just so precious to him and he can’t bear the thought of losing them.

🎩Possessive Yanderes are bound to get jealous very fast, but he tries to hold in for as long as he can. He doesn’t want others to see how unhealthy his feelings actually are and will watch his darling’s interaction with other people whilst gritting his teeth. But when his limits are crossed he’ll grab the s/o’s hand drag them quickly somewhere else where he can spend some time alone with them.

🎩Killing is a no to him even though he sometimes desperately wants to do it. But he can’t risk to ruin his and his family’s reputation or even worse ruining his good image his darling has from him. This guy comes from a rich family with a lot of influence and he’ll use that to put a lot on pressure on people who harmed his darling or tries to take them away from him.

🎩Similar to Charles he would try to set up an engagement between his darling and him. His family would support and try to convince the darling’s parents as well, knowing how fond Edward is of you. And there’s a more than likely chance that your parents will say yes because who wouldn’t say no to such a handsome and charming man? If that doesn’t work he’ll use manipulation, bribing other people into cornering the s/o or their parents into some tricky situations and then he suddenly steps in and helps them. He doesn’t like using such dirty ways to get to the darling, but it’s all for the s/o’s sake. He only wants to ensure that he can protect them.

🎩One of the better Yanderes from this list. He respects your wishes and is such a gentleman for you. He also spoils you here and there with small gifts and shows his tender side to you and only you.

#yandere black butler #yandere kuroshitsuji #yandere lau #yandere ran mao #yandere angela #yandere angela blanc #yandere pluto #yandere keinz #yandere keinz drocell #yandere soma #yandere prince soma #yandere agni #yandere ash #yandere ash landers #yandere charles #yandere charles grey #yandere edward #yandere edward midford

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aquafolia · 3 years

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Sokai Day Fic 2: Guardian, Angel

Okay! One more for today :)

This fic was inspired by phoenix-downer’s fic Lifeline. I’m also a huge Percabeth fan so I decided to remix another one of their famous moments, too.

As I said, I only just found KH: I beat KH1 a few weeks ago and I’m about to beat KH2 for the first time! This one is for @phoenix-downer, whose amazing fics and insightful translations/analyses are a huge part of why I adore Sokai as much as I do. Their love and enthusiasm for the ship really is infectious! As I’m playing I appreciate the Sokai moments so much more because of phoenix-’s posts. Cheers :)

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Guardian, Angel

‘Looks like you’ve hit a dead end, Sora!’ Vanitas called out menacingly, his manic laughter echoing through the narrow canyon. Hemmed in on three sides by steep stone walls– and with Vanitas blocking the only exit route– Sora realized he had nowhere to run. He turned to face his pursuer, his back to the canyon wall.

‘For someone with a giant key for a weapon,’ the black-haired boy sneered, ‘you sure are hard to find. But it looks like it’s the end of the road for you at last, Sora. You will kneel before me in defeat,’ Vanitas continued, raising his palms skyward. ‘You will beg me for mercy, and I’ll watch the hope drain from your eyes when– are you listening to me?!’

Vanitas’s words weren’t having their intended effect: For someone being threatened by one of his greatest enemies, Sora’s demeanor was annoyingly calm and composed, relaxed even: He stood upright, not in his usual battle stance– he didn’t even have his Keyblade summoned. Instead, Sora was extremely preoccupied with patting down his many pockets, rooting around in each one.

‘Which one did I put it in?’ Sora muttered to himself.

‘What are you doing, you dolt?’ Vanitas asked icily.

‘No, no, go ahead,’ Sora said, his eyes looking up in concentration as he continued to rifle through his seemingly endless number of pants pockets. ‘Watching the hope drain from my eyes and all that.’

Vanitas’s eyes narrowed in irritation. He found his light-filled double vexing on a good day– but this was strange, even for Sora. ‘Um… Right.’ Vanitas said. Clearing his throat, he regained his villanly composure. ‘I’ve been your shadow for too long, Sora. I’ll snuff out your pathetic little light, brother, right here, right now– in the showdown that was always meant to be! And then nothing will stand between this world and the glorious reign of dark–’

‘Found it!’

‘–ness.’

Sora had retrieved Kairi’s good luck charm, and was holding it in his hand. He gazed down at it fondly, seeming to find it much more compelling than his arch enemy.

‘Hah! Is this some kind of a joke?’ Vanitas laughed. ‘Does the Keyblade’s Chosen Hero like to accessorize? You think a toy like that is going to help you now? Draw your Keyblade, fool, and let’s finish this!’

As Vanitas taunted him, Sora closed his eyes and brought the charm to his lips. After planting a soft kiss, he shot Vanitas a smug grin. Without breaking eye contact, Sora casually tossed the charm aside. The small star spun as it sailed through the air, shining with a faint golden light as it careened toward the cliff wall beside Sora. At the moment it should have hit the stone and shattered, it passed right through the rock face in a cloud of sparks.

‘Why did– what did you just do?’ Vanitas asked. After what he hoped was another intimidating laugh, he shot back, ‘Was that supposed to scare me?’

Sora lifted his arms up, cupping his hands behind his head, looking quite pleased with himself. ‘Oh, no reason. It’s nothing, really.’

Vanitas was growing impatient. ‘I don’t care what trick you’re trying to pull, Sora! You’re trapped here! There’s nowhere for you to run,’ he gloated. ‘It’s too bad “your friends are your power”,’ he said in a mockery of Sora’s mantra, ‘because you’re going to die here– alone.’

Even at Vanitas’s death threat, Sora remained totally unfazed. He just kept staring at Vanitas, that stupid grin still on his face. What was this kid’s deal? Deciding he’d had enough, Vanitas summoned his Keyblade and charged. Still Sora stayed exactly as he was, not even bothering to draw his own weapon. But Vanitas had stopped caring about his enemy’s strange behavior– running at full speed, with a gleeful laugh, he shouted, ‘Goodbye, So–’

The ground shook violently as a giant crack in the canyon floor opened up between Sora and Vanitas, the sound of the rending so loud, it seemed like the world was breaking. From the fissure, a column of golden light burst forth that sent Vanitas flying backward. Then, what looked like a spinning wheel of whirling colors came rocketing out of the light– some sort of object revolving at such an incredible speed, it looked like a solid glowing disk of golds, blues, pinks, and oranges. As it hurtled toward Vanitas, it left a tail of golden light like a comet crossing the night sky, and shed a flurry of white feathers.

Vanitas, slowly attempting to stand up, was too dazed from his crash-landing to see it coming: just as he regained his footing, the projectile struck him square in the chest, slicing into him over and over again as the strange disk turned, a sickening sound echoing through the narrow canyon with each rapid-fire blow. The final slash sent Vanitas flying once more, and he face-planted into the stone wall of the ravine. His Keyblade clattered to the ground and disappeared in a puff of black smoke, a clear sign that he had been soundly defeated.

The column of light dissipated to reveal Kairi floating down to the ground, white feathers falling gently around her like snowflakes. Her Keyblade reappeared in her hand, returning from its trip to Vanitas’s face. After studying her enemy’s crumpled form with a satisfied smirk, she turned to Sora. She was holding his good luck charm in her hand.

‘You dropped this,’ she said with a sweet smile.

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#sokai day 2021 #I originally was going to have Sora appear in rage form to help Kairi some how and then I thought WAIT let's FLIP it #also how is Vanitas so fun to write he's just such a jerk??#Vanitas: I have an army #Sora: we have a Kairi #I also have this HC that Sora's early 2000s cargo shorts have like a thousand million pockets #I could see him collecting shells and other trinkets on his travels and that's why his pants are so large #sokai #kairi #sora #sokaiday #to make it autumn themed you can imagine Sora and Vanitas are in a corn maze instead which really cracks me up

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mytwilightimagines13 · 3 years

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Amnesia (Book Two)(Part Fifteen)(Alec Volturi)

The final witness

Then Alice danced into the clearing from the southwest, Jasper was only inches behind her, his sharp eyes fierce. Close after them ran three strangers; the first was a tall, muscular female with wild dark hair - obviously Kachiri. She had the same elongated limbs and features as the other Amazons, even more pronounced in her case. The next was a small olive-toned female vampire with a long braid of black hair bobbing against her back. Her deep burgundy eyes flitted nervously around the confrontation before her. And the last was a young man... not quite as fast nor quite as fluid in his run. His skin was an impossible rich, dark brown. His wary eyes flashed across the gathering, and they were the color of warm teak. His hair was black and braided, too, like the woman's, though not as long. He was beautiful. As he neared the vampires in the meadow, a new sound sent shock waves through the watching crowd - the sound of another heartbeat, accelerated with exertion. Alice leaped lightly over the edges of the dissipating mist that lapped at Bella’s shield and came to a sinuous stop at Edward's side. Bella reached out to touch her arm, and so did Edward, Esme, Carlisle. There wasn't time for any other welcome. Jasper and the others followed her through the shield. All the guard watched, speculation in their eyes, as the latecomers crossed the invisible border without difficulty. The brawny ones, Felix and the others like him, focused their suddenly hopeful eyes on Bella. They had not been sure of what her shield repelled, but it was clear now that it would not stop a physical attack. As soon as Aro gave the order, the blitz would ensue her. Edward, despite his absorption in the coup he was directing, stiffened furiously in response to their thoughts. He controlled himself and spoke to Aro again. "Alice has been searching for her own witnesses these last weeks," he said to the ancient. "And she does not come back empty-handed. Alice, why don't you introduce the witnesses you've brought?" Caius snarled. "The time for witnesses is past! Cast your vote, Aro!" Aro raised one finger to silence his brother, his eyes glued to Alice's face. Alice stepped forward lightly and introduced the strangers. "This is Huilen and her nephew, Nahuel." Caius's eyes tightened as Alice named the relationship between the newcomers. The Volturi witnesses hissed amongst themselves, including Jane and Alec, but Maeryn did not join them once again. She felt intrigued by the newcomers. So there were more male vampires impregnating female humans. The vampire world was changing, and everyone could feel it. "Speak, Huilen," Aro commanded. "Give us the witness you were brought to bear." The slight woman looked to Alice nervously. Alice nodded in encouragement, and Kachiri put her long hand on the little vampire's shoulder. "I am Huilen," the woman announced in clear but strangely accented English. As she continued, it was apparent she had prepared herself to tell this story, that she had practiced. It flowed like a well-known nursery rhyme. "A century and a half ago, I lived with my people, the Mapuche. My sister was Pire. Our parents named her after the snow on the mountains because of her fair skin. And she was very beautiful - too beautiful. She came to me one day in secret and told me of the angel that found her in the woods, that visited her by night. I warned her." Huilen shook her head mournfully. "As if the bruises on her skin were not warning enough. I knew it was the Libishomen of our legends, but she would not listen. She was bewitched. "She told me when she was sure her dark angel's child was growing inside her. I didn't try to discourage her from her plan to run away - I knew even our father and mother would agree that the child must be destroyed, Pire with it. I went with her into the deepest parts of the forest. She searched for her demon angel but found nothing. I cared for her, hunted for her when her strength failed. She ate the animals raw, drinking their blood. I needed no more confirmation of what she carried in her womb. I hoped to

save her life before I killed the monster. But she loved the child inside her. She called him Nahuel, after the jungle cat, when he grew strong and broke her bones - and loved him still. I could not save her. The child ripped his way free of her, and she died quickly, begging all the while that I would care for her Nahuel. Her dying wish - and I agreed. He bit me, though, when I tried to lift him from her body. I crawled away into the jungle to die. I didn't get far - the pain was too much. But he found me; the newborn child struggled through the underbrush to my side and waited for me. When the pain ended, he was curled against my side, sleeping. I cared for him until he was able to hunt for himself. We hunted the villages around our forest, staying to ourselves. We have never come so far from our home, but Nahuel wished to see the child here." Huilen bowed her head when she was finished and moved back so she was partially hidden behind Kachiri. Aro's lips were pursed. He stared at the dark-skinned youth. "Nahuel, you are one hundred and fifty years old?" he questioned. "Give or take a decade," he answered in a clear, beautifully warm voice. His accent was barely noticeable. "We don't keep track." "And you reached maturity at what age?" "About seven years after my birth, more or less, I was full grown." "You have not changed since then?" Nahuel shrugged. "Not that I've noticed." "And your diet?" Aro pressed, seeming interested in spite of himself. "Mostly blood, but some human food, too. I can survive on either." "You were able to create an immortal?" As Aro gestured to Huilen, his voice was abruptly intense. Bella refocused on her shield, but Maeryn no longer paid attention. This was something new to her kind, something interesting. And she wanted to know every last bit of it. "Yes, but none of the rest can." A shocked murmur ran through all three groups. Aro's eyebrows shot up. "The rest?" "My sisters." Nahuel shrugged again. Aro stared wildly for a moment before composing his face. "Perhaps you would tell us the rest of your story, for there seems to be more." Nahuel frowned. "My father came looking for me a few years after my mother's death." His handsome face distorted slightly. "He was pleased to find me." Nahuel's tone suggested the feeling was not mutual. "He had two daughters, but no sons. He expected me to join him, as my sisters had. He was surprised I was not alone. My sisters are not venomous, but whether that's due to gender or a random chance... who knows? I already had my family with Huilen, and I was not interested" - he twisted the word - "in making a change. I see him from time to time. I have a new sister; she reached maturity about ten years back." "Your father's name?" Caius asked through gritted teeth. "Joham," Nahuel answered. "He considers himself a scientist. He thinks he's creating a new super-race." He made no attempt to disguise the disgust in his tone. Maeryn shared this feeling. It indeed was disgusting. Caius looked at Bella. "Your daughter, is she venomous?" he demanded harshly. "No," Bella responded. Nahuel's head snapped up at Aro's question, and his teak eyes turned to bore into Bella’s face. Caius looked to Aro for confirmation, but Aro was absorbed in his own thoughts. He pursed his lips and stared at Carlisle, and then Edward, and at last his eyes rested on Bella. Caius growled. "We take care of the aberration here, and then follow it south," he urged Aro. Aro stared into Bella’s eyes for a long, tense moment. Maeryn had no idea what he was searching for in Bella’s eyes, or what he found, but after he had measured her for that moment, something in his face changed, a faint shift in the set of his mouth and eyes, and Maeryn knew that Aro had made his decision. "Brother," he said softly to Caius. "There appears to be no danger. This is an unusual development, but I see no threat. These half-vampire children are much like us, it appears." "Is that your vote?" Caius demanded. "It is." Caius scowled. "And this Joham? This immortal so fond of experimentation?" "Perhaps we

should speak with him," Aro agreed. "Stop Joham if you will," Nahuel said flatly. "But leave my sisters be. They are innocent." Aro nodded, his expression solemn. And then he turned back to his guard with a warm smile. "Dear ones," he called. "We do not fight today." The guard nodded in unison and straightened out of their ready positions. The mist dissipated swiftly, but Bella held her shield in place. She analyzed their expressions as Aro turned back to them. His face was as benign as ever, but unlike before, there could be a strange blankness sensed behind the facade. As if his scheming was over. Caius was clearly incensed, but his rage was turned inward now; he was resigned. Marcus looked... bored; there really was no other word for it. The guard was impassive and disciplined again; there were no individuals among them, just the whole. They were in formation, ready to depart. Once Alec’s mist had returned to himself, Maeryn took off the glove of her right hand, showing her porcelain skin to the sun. Alec did the same to the glove on his left hand and grabbed Maeryn’s hand tightly. It felt good to feel each other’s skin touch one another. Now they could feel their connection much better than before. The Volturi witnesses were still wary; one after another, they departed, scattering into the woods. As their numbers dwindled, the remaining sped up. Soon they were all gone. Aro held his hands out to the foes, almost apologetic. Behind him, the larger part of the guard, along with Caius, Marcus, and the silent, mysterious wives, were already drifting quickly away, their formation precise once again. Only the three that seemed to be his personal guardians lingered with him. "I'm so glad this could be resolved without violence," he said sweetly. "My friend, Carlisle - how pleased I am to call you friend again! I hope there are no hard feelings. I know you understand the strict burden that our duty places on our shoulders." "Leave in peace, Aro," Carlisle said stiffly. "Please remember that we still have our anonymity to protect here, and keep your guard from hunting in this region." "Of course, Carlisle," Aro assured him. "I am sorry to earn your disapproval, my dear friend. Perhaps, in time, you will forgive me." "Perhaps, in time, if you prove a friend to us again." Aro bowed his head, the picture of remorse, and drifted backward for a moment before he turned around. The foes watched in silence as the last four Volturi disappeared into the trees.

Once back in the castle, Jane, Alec and Maeryn made their way towards Jane’s room. Jane was boiling with anger and she threw some expensive vases against the wall on their way to her room. Maeryn and Alec skillfully avoided the porcelain shatters and followed their sister to her room. Once inside, Jane grabbed her pillow and ripped it in half. Alec let go of Maeryn’s hand and pulled his sister in a tight embrace. Jane used her gift on him, but Alec kept on holding her, not once making a sound of agony. Soon enough Jane calmed down, and as soon as Alec released her, she fell onto her bed that was now covered in feathers. She picked one up and studied its form with her magnified sight, seeing every little detail. “Don’t fret sister, there will be a day we can defeat them.” Alec said. “At a moment when they least expect it.” Jane said, slowly grinning again. "We got all eternity to plan it ." Maeryn said to Alec and Jane. Both the twins grinned. Maeryn grinned along, though she could not shake off the feeling that something bad was about to happen.

#alec volturi #volturi #volturi imagine #athenodora volturi #twilight imagine #twilight

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lany-d-flow · 3 years

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Thoughts: Barret as a Father Figure

I wanted to give my perspective on this topic, as it's one of many stigma-heavy thoughts about the actions of FF7 characters. I'll try to provide examples based on anecdotal experience and the circumstances surrounding Barret and Marlene's lives.

So, is Barret overall a bad father?

So, short answer: No, I don't think so.

Long answer:

Okay, anyway, anyone who has seen or played Final Fantasy 7 is probably aware of two characters: Barret Wallace and Marlene Wallace.

We first see their dynamic early in both Final Fantasy 7 and Final Fantasy 7 Remake. We also see a bit of this written in further works of the Compilation of Final Fantasy 7 such as "On the Way To a Smile: Episode Barret and Episode Tifa".

On the surface, we see Barret's unconditional love for his daughter. So many quotes from the game reflect this:

"She's tougher than me"

"That's right, little angel, I am!"

"She's cute as a button, with the heart of an angel..."

...And many more quotes I could cite. As one more example, during the ending of Final Fantasy 7 Remake, we see a moment of Marlene taking care of reunion flowers while under Elmyra's care. After looking at them, Marlene and Barret call out to each other, foreshadowing a reunion in one of the next installments of Final Fantasy 7 Remake.

All right, so we see that these two love and think the world of each other. However, some view Barret as a poor father figure to Marlene for trusting her into someone else's care multiple times throughout the story, including but not limited to:

Having Tifa care for Marlene while AVALANCHE goes after mako reactors in Midgar; having Elmyra care for Marlene while Barret joins the crew to go after Sephiroth; and after defeating Sephiroth and Meteor, trusting Cloud and Tifa to act as parental figures to Marlene while Barret heads back to Corel to atone for his past and find a new purpose besides being a man with a weapon as his right arm.

All right, so based on these moments, one could argue that Barret is not being a good father due to how often he leaves Marlene in the care of someone else, and instead of truly settling down as her caretaker, pursues purpose(s) he thinks are more important.

However, I do not fully agree with this view, nor do I fully agree with other views that Barret's incapable of being a good father. Do I think he could be a better Father to Marlene? Perhaps, yes. Many of the roles that our heroes in Final Fantasy 7 have are not done perfectly. There are examples I could discuss now, but I'll save that for later. For now, I argue the reason Barret leaves Marlene in the hands of others is that...

Life’s answers for the greater good aren’t always as simple as they seem. To do what’s best for someone you look after--in this case, Barret’s daughter--there may come a time when someone else can fill in as a guardian if the person does not have enough emotional availability to care for an individual.

Allow me to demonstrate explain, first by starting with how long Barret has been her father figure in the first place: around 4 years. Barret adopted her to take his Dyne’s place as Marlene’s father figure. Dyne, his best friend, was lost when Shinra took their usual cover-up approach when a mako reactor incident occurred in Barret and Dyne’s hometown, Corel. Instead of owning up to their mistake, Shinra decided to destroy everything remaining in Corel, including its inhabitants. Barret tried to save Dyne, but his right arm that was holding Dyne was shot by a Shinra trooper, causing him to lose control of his forearm and leading to Dyne facing an unfortunate fall into the Corel prison. Among the inhabitants in Corel, Marlene was an infant when Barret took her in as an adopted daughter. Infact, here’s her character bio in a Final Fantasy Ultimania:

Barret’s four-year-old adopted daughter. She views Barret as her real father, having no memories of her birth father, Dyne (Barret’s old friend). Marlene is remarkably composed for a young child and even occasionally runs 7th heaven by herself. - Final Fantasy Ultimania Archive Volume 2 (Pg. 063).

So based on the context the story gives us, we can conclude Barret spent 4 years looking after Marlene while residing in Midgar. He was probably in the middle of taking on odd jobs during this time, of course, and could not see her 24/7. However, such action is necessary if he is to make a living for himself, and more importantly Marlene. Ultimately that part is up to interpretation. What’s not open to interpretation is when Tifa became a part of AVALANCHE, she was the one looking after Marlene during Barret’s missions with his crewmates (Wedge, Biggs, Jessie). While we know Barret was not always around to watch Marlene, we can conclude that he knew who to entrust his daughter’s safety towards, as someone like Tifa has many motherly qualities, and above many things, wants people to live, especially people she cherishes (And of course she eventually becomes Marlene’s mother figure along with Cloud acting as the father figure when Barret heads to Corel). Eventually, when the team decides to go after Aerith at Shinra HQ, Barret entrusts Marlene to someone else once again. This time. it’s Aerith’s step-mother Elmyra, who will continue to watch over Marlene until the end of our heroes’ journey. Perhaps we’ll get a moment of reunion near the end of Final Fantasy 7 Remake when the team returns to the people they are fighting for, but for the next month Marlene is without her father.

All right, we know the endgame of Final Fantasy 7. The team survives the Lifestream-Holy-Meteor clash and they are alive, but now they must find a purpose in their new lives. While Barret stays with Cloud, Tifa, and Marlene at edge for some number of months, helping to build a new Seventh Heaven bar and home for Cloud and Tifa, he eventually decides to embark to Corel and leave Marlene under the care of Cloud and Tifa.

Wow, what a way to not look after your child that you dote on so much, right? For being her adopted father, Barret sure does leave Marlene in the hands of someone else pretty often. For some people, this can lead to the conclusion that Barret is not a good father figure to Marlene and needs to learn how to settle down and act as a real parent for her. While it can be said that Barret’s not an amazing father, I believe what he’s doing does have a realistic approach. He has no job, he doesn’t feel fully available to watch his daughter, and in the midst of this there are two people who are more than willing--and happy--to look after the person he cares about so much. If Marlene can receive a better quality-of-life from someone close for the time being, isn’t it best to give her that better life for now?

Well, I want to get a bit anecdotal about this. I come from a family of 7 children so I got 6 siblings: 2 older half-sisters, 1 younger full-blooded sister, 1 younger half-brother, and 2 younger half-sisters (5 sisters, 1 brother). Well over a decade ago when there was 4 of us, my biological father and mother divorced, and the aftermath was extremely detrimental to everyone. My mother was in a heavy state of depression and lost a lot of money; there was very little food to come by; us children were pretty much doing as we pleased with little consequence at the time; and my birth father was hardly there to support anyone but my younger sister and me.

So what action did my mother take for my older sisters? She sent them to another state for a year where our grandparents resided, as they were in a financially and mentally stable situation that could benefit my sisters for the time-being.

I could be here all day talking about the outcomes in minute detail, but to make sure that doesn’t happen, I’ll give the general aftermath: Eventually my mother recovered, found someone who became a doting step-father for all of us, and has unconditionally supported all of us in what we do with our lives.

The point here is that life throws us in complicated situations, and parents sometimes hit said situations that involve their child(ren). Many parents will absolutely dote over their children. Barret absolutely dotes over Marlene and is extremely concerned for her safety. But like Barret, there arise decisions in one’s life that involve changing guardianship for children. Some people have to work overseas and cannot take their children with them, so for a little while they can entrust that duty to someone else they are close to. If I’m going to draw parallels from other games, then the Persona series is a good example. I’ll be more specific: Persona 4. The protagonist is sent to Inaba where his uncle, Ryotaro Dojima, resides with his daughter. This happens because the protagonist’s parents’ jobs require that they be sent overseas. But his parents do not have to worry about their son’s livelihood because he’s sent to be supervised under someone that they trust, and someone they’re related to.

Conclusion

Nobody is perfect, and life is complicated. Sometimes there are roles in our life that we want to accomplish, but when it involves someone you care about, especially your own child, you want to make sure they have the best life possible. Maybe Barret would love to spend his time with Marlene as much as possible, but before he can really do that, he needs to get his own life together first. When that happens, then he can return to the person he loves more than anyone else in Gaia. Let’s always remember: Children are brought into this world, and it’s a cruel world, just like the real world. We want them to be as prepared as possible for the challenges life throws at them, so while they’re still young, look for the greatest good they can get, like Barret does.

#ff7 #ffvii #ffviir #final fantasy 7 #final fantasy 7 remake #final fantasy #barret wallace #marlene Wallace #barret #life gives us interesting situations #anecdotal experience #ff7 remake #Ff7r

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thliahls · 3 years

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it is very obvious i don’t know how family trees work but ! richard and dominique are her parents, although thalia doesn’t know anything about her mother including her name or what she looks like. thalia spent most of her upbringing under the care of tony and gong lau who ran, what could most readily be compared to a foster home for children of spies. many kids came and went, short-term stays of a month to a year most common, but thalia, along with archie and arella, came when they were around seven or eight and were the only three that stayed there pretty much full-time even after they turned eighteen ( until her dad found out about her boyfriend and blamed them for her expulsion, believing they had been complacent with her ). maggie’s their biological child who’s in their thirties now but would often frequent the house so the kids became just as close with them too. prose about her d*d under the cut, stream kyoto (copycat killer version) for clear skin ! @gallaghertasks

there's a gravitational pull that leaves thalia hall orbiting around her father. similar to how it is impossible for the sun and the earth to cut ties with each other, it is equally as impossible to not regard everything through the eyes of richard hall. over the years he has become equal part man and myth, fragmented the way memories do over time. she is unsure as to whether that is his real name, the same way she is unsure about everything else that composes his being. while it is likely that he has a family, and as an extension, that she has one too, he has cut the cord between himself and them. no one arrives in this world untethered, but if anyone could, it would be him. he has always been alone. it makes her very existence a mystery.

the first time she learned about her father was through him. it is one of her first memories, before she lived with her guardians, when it was just him and her. the accuracy tilts between reality and fiction, further skewed by her father's insistence that it never happened at all. she does think it seems absurd, something pulled from a high art film that plays on a loop in contemporary art museums. perhaps she is making it all up. in this memory she is on her father's lap, in the bathroom, steadied on the closed seat of the toilet bowl. she is staring them down in the mirrored cabinet above the sink, and her father is trimming the ends of her hair with nail clippers, with meticulous precision. silence in their house always carries tension, she knows this now - she can label it, tension. when she was younger, it just had just felt like an invisible, nameless weight. when she breaches the silence it is with an existential question with a juvenile motive: "what will happen when you die?” look dad, only six years old and already thinking about these things. she wants so desperately to know what he values, is it her intelligence or servility? is it the way she hangs on to his hand when he sprints through traffic, how she doesn’t tug him back to the safety of the sidewalk, or is it the threat she poses when every once in a blue moon she successfully reads him? "you'll die long before i do sweetheart." that hadn't been what she meant. it hadn't been a threat or a thinly-veiled prophesy. it had been a six year old girl trying to act smarter than she was. that's all. the corner of the clippers nicks the fleshy part of her neck, and she's too much in shock to notice that she's bleeding. the next day she recites the question in the mirror, in different tongues and tones - she makes it sound like a threat to convince herself the way she'd said it yesterday wasn't one. they all blur together in the end.

the second time she gained insight to who her father was, was in the company of her guardians and siblings. "my dad's a deadbeat too." she'd die for this kid as easily as she'd kill him. the snivelling blonde haired boy who wipes his snot with the raggedy hem of his worn out t-shirt. she instinctively pins him down, his arms right angles as she secures his wrists into the dirt. his squirms are nothing more than flinches. "my dad's not a deadbeat." the blood drain's from his already pale face before he lets out a shrill pre-pubescent scream, and she presses a palm against his open mouth. her guardians hardly ever interfere, letting them go at it because it builds character. often at dinner, they'll discuss their day, sparing no details. that night, both her and archie are silent, prodding at mash potatoes, leaving their parents curious about their battle wounds: his shiner and her scratch that runs down the length of her neck, already scabbing. then, begrudgingly, because this silence feels like that invisible weight called tension, she says: "he called my dad a deadbeat. he's not." thalia's makeshift mom, guardian, closest person she's ever come to loving says easily in reply, "he's the farthest thing from it. men like him are invincible. they have nothing to lose." at first, the cruelty of it stings, whiplashed, a palm firm against the burner. but gong gives her an identity outside of her father: nothing. she is nothing, and for one, spectacular moment, it is liberating.

"he's a woman hater, he hates woman." is what her first and only boyfriend comes to understand about her father. her boyfriend, unaware of the spy world and thus the hate that breeds from it, thinks of billionaire magnates who don't respect women and men put dated, sexist jokes about wanting a girl to make them a sandwich in their bios. while she is well versed in feminist theory and the structures that are perpetuated to keep sexism in place, when he prattles on about how centrism is bad actually and that post-feminism isn't much better, with his overwhelming cynical attitude that she loves, she interrupts to say that wasn't what she had meant. what was the type of hate she's talking about? it's hard to explain: opaque and as dense as cement, it's virile, fertile too - it feeds on anything and everything, reproducing. it's got it's claws in love, it would gut her and kill him. "that's not what i meant." she doesn't have an answer prepared. "what did you mean?" he looks at her, willing to learn. she could tell him the earth is flat and he'd believe it, that's love. "he hates me but he'd never kill me. but he'd kill you to hurt me." there's a flash of panic in his eyes, before she smiles, a soft dimpled smile that makes him forget what fear is. they laugh it away, all this talk of hate, and it melts under warm breath. it is rendered less dense, it becomes extricable from everything else like they can pull it away as easily as a pesky piece of lint. like hate's a nuisance that's easy to rid, nothing more than a hassle. of course, when her father inevitably does find out, she never sees him again.

she talks to her mother in her dreams. thalia doesn't know what she looks like. sometimes she's working at a diner, in a putrid baby blue get up with a voice as sweet as treacle. sometimes she's a spy, wearing sunglasses too big for her face and a red lip that's smearing at the edges. she's never with her father in these dreams, but he's always there. she knows this because her mother is unable to maintain eye contact with her own daughter without looking over her shoulder. glass panes are a warning signal, she knows him inside and out. she knows him as a blurred reflection, a photograph, a body. she knows him this intimately so it's always her and never thalia. thalia has never met her mother, but she is a guardian angel all the same. the dreams end the same way, always. her mother repeats it like a mantra: "he is not the myth, i am." and thalia responds, "he is a man." they go back and forth like this, over and over until their words overlap, until it turns to a ritual, a chant that summons nothing but their disappearance. her mother falls back into the underbelly of her conscience, awaiting the next time thalia's dreams pull her to the surface again, and thalia wakes up. when she dreams of her mother she is often foggy for the rest of the day, and sometimes she believes that this grants her a temporary barrier from her father, that in the midst of lethargy and a lack of clarity, her thoughts are her own. she relishes in the privacy - and bares her teeth, a delighted wolf, in the face of this gift.

dreams never linger, she doesn't heed her mother's words. either of them. she doesn't becoming nothing and she mythologizes her own father to anyone who will listen. he is a piece of theory, jeremy bentham, panopticism. he is rules; how she uses her phone and what classes she takes. he's in her recollections of her summer break, he is six p.m on the dot. she's going to love him so much it kills him, the way he hates her so much it keeps her alive.

#gallagher:task #Nooo don't have daddy issues your so sexy Aha xx

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mackwritess · 3 years

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Westwood Road (Part 2)

A/N: I’m back with a second part! This was another commission, I didn’t think people liked the first part enough to want more of these two, but I guess I was wrong! My commissions are still open, with three slots available currently, so if you like what I do feel free to hit me with your own requests!

Summary: It’s been years since the incident on Westwood Road, and the two of them have long since gone their separate ways. But when an opprotunity to be reunited presents itself, will the risks be worth the reward?

Word count: 5.8k

Part 1

He doesn’t know how long he sits in the dark.

For all he knows, the dark is all he’s ever known. He sits there, waiting. Waiting for what exactly, he doesn’t know for sure. He just feels like this is the calm before the storm. Though he feels, upon thinking about it a bit longer, that this is more like the eye of the storm.

After all, he was just killed by someone he loved.

No, that doesn’t quite sound right either. He does still love her. He knows he probably shouldn’t, given the way she had just ripped him apart like a rabid animal, but he can’t bring herself to harbor any negative feelings about her. His only regret is not asking how she’d ended up in such a tragic situation. If the tears that streamed down her face as she finished him off were anything to go by, it must have been devastating.

He continues to just sit there in the all encompassing darkness. He wonders if he’ll ever be reunited with her again. He wonders if he’ll ever get to see her smile again, or hear her voice.

While he’s lost in thought, memories drifting in and out of his mind, he doesn’t notice the way things are beginning to grow brighter around him. He doesn’t notice until the light is near blinding, and he finds himself losing consciousness again.

It’s been years since she did what she did.

She’d convinced herself that she would move on and, in a way, she has. She continues to feed, preying on men and women alike as she sustains herself on their souls. In all this time, none of them had the same effect on her. She was able to do the same process that she had done with him with very little trouble. She was so certain this meant she had moved on.

Deep down she knew she hadn’t.

Even after all this time, the way he had looked at her before she took his life sits at the back of her mind, coming forward at the worst possible moment without fail.

Sometimes it comes to her just before she falls asleep, rendering her unable to do so for several hours, if she gets to at all. Other times, it comes when she’s about to feed, when she’s already planning where she’ll go to catch her next one. Suddenly, her prey becomes the predator, looking back at her with his forgiving eyes rather than the terrified ones they’d replaced. She’s taken back to the moment before she committed what she considers to be her greatest sin. Though he wasn’t fully composed, the fear of death as paralyzing as ever, his eyes told a different story. It was one of forgiveness, of acceptance.

It was one of love.

Sometimes she wonders if she’ll ever see him again. Perhaps he’d be traveling the world as a spirit, unable to move on from his mortal dwelling. Though she figures he’s likely become an angel by now. Helping others where he can, protecting them from things that may come to harm them. Protecting them from beings like her.

She knows he couldn’t have become something like her. It’s not in his nature.

While he had been able to accept his end, remembering all their moments together with fondness rather than regret, she hadn’t been able to do the same. Instead of remembering any good that had happened between her and the man that had ended her life, she found herself thinking about all the red flags that she had looked past. The way she had ultimately pushed away her friends and family who tried to warn her floated through her mind. She wished she’d listened to them.

Now she was doomed, her soul tainted with spite and vengefulness. She was to wander the earth, inflicting the same pain tht had been done unto her, only able to survive by causing heartbreak that could rival her own.

She wonders if the man who killed her had wanted to do the same. Reveling in the damage he had done to her, for fun rather than for survival. She thinks he was her first encounter with a demon. No person could be that evil without corruption. Though she fears she’s become like him.

She wonders if the cycle will ever break. If she’ll ever be free of her curse.

When he wakes up again, he’s disoriented.

The room is covered in a blinding white. The white curtains that hang in front of the window move slightly, a light breeze flowing into the room. There’s not a single sound coming from inside or outside of the room. He takes in his minimal surroundings, noting the chair sitting at the edge of the bed. The walls are as bare as the rest of the room, save for a rather intricate painting of clouds that rests near the door. It’s redundant, he thinks. It’s as if whoever was responsible for designing this pace felt it was too plain, but decided any sort of color would disturb the flow of the room.

He continues scanning the room, searching for something, anything, that could tell him where he is, when there’s a knock at the door. He freezes. Should he be hiding right now? Would making any sounds alert whoever, or whatever was on the other side of the door?

As if able to sense his apprehensiveness, the door opens slightly. It continues slowly, and he doesn’t dare move an inch. When it does open, he’s met with a young woman. She wears a simple white dress, and carries a clipboard with a few sheets of paper attached to the front of it.

“There’s no need to be alarmed,” she says. “You’re safe now.”

“Where am I?” He asks immediately. He can’t quite explain it, but her presence soothes him instantly. He finds any worries he has have melted away, and now he only has questions that need answers.

“Heaven, of course. You do know that you’re dead, right?” He nods. “Well, you’re certainly handling this better than most people your age do.”

“I didn’t think heaven would be so… clinical.”

“We’ve tried modernizing the way we welcome new angels.”

“It’s a little…”

“Plain?”

“Yeah.”

“There’s no real reason for that. Just how it is.” He nods again. “Were those all your questions?”

“What’s the clipboard for?”

“Oh! That’s actually what I’m here to go over with you. You see, once you die, the place you end up after assigns a job to you.”

“So we don’t just get to enjoy the afterlife?”

“You do, just as long as you’re on top of assignments. It’s just so we can keep things running smoothly. Gives the people here a purpose.”

“So it’s like having a job.”

“Exactly! Only the payment is living in paradise.”

He considers this for a moment. Everything he’d been told about what Heaven is like has been a little misleading, it would seem. Though, he guesses that angels who visited humans in all the stories he’d heard were just doing their job. He tries not to think too hard about what that implies.

“So how do I choose my job?”

“Oh, you don’t choose. Your assignment is chosen when it’s decided where you’ll go after you die. Easier to get both of those examinations done in one go. Much faster that way.”

“But what if someone gets a job they aren’t happy with?”

“They learn to be happy with it eventually. Each job is rewarding in its own way.”

“I guess so.”

“You’ll understand more the longer you stay.” The woman clears her throat. “Now then! Let’s talk about your job. Your file says that you tend to go out of your way to help people. You were fairly popular in high school. A shame that you died so young. You really didn’t get to live much of your life.”

“I’d rather not think about that too much.”

“Your manner of death, though, that’s what really interests us.”

“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?”

“Oh, this is a great thing. It’s the reason you’re getting the job you’re getting. We’ve been trying to deal with this type of demon for a while now. So many souls, unable to be saved.”

“Why?”

“Well, we don’t really base where you’ll go on your whole life. We base it on your emotions during your final moments. Really says a lot about you as a person. Much more than you realize.”

“So the people who died the way I did? What were they feeling?”

“Rage. Vengeance. Bloodlust. They wanted the person who had betrayed them to pay for what they’d done. They wanted them to suffer as they had.”

“But isn’t that normal? Isn’t it reasonable to be angry that someone you loved would hurt you?”

“Maybe. But forgiveness should follow. That’s what we’ve all been taught. And that’s why you’re the only one who’s been saved.”

“The only one?”

“Understanding. Acceptance. Forgiveness. Those were the last things you felt before your death. We’d never seen that before. More interesting, though, you felt love. You were still under the spell of that demon.”

“A spell?” His voice raises slightly at the mention of her. “She never used any spell on me. I love her.”

The woman eyes him for a moment, mild concern written on her features.

“You poor boy. One day you’ll be free.”

“From what?”

“Nothing. Now, your job is similar to a guardian angel, albeit a bit more dangerous. You’ll be helping more people free themselves from these demons. Or, at the very least, you can warn them by telling them what will happen if their emotions lean too negatively when the time finally comes.”

“Okay. I think I can do that. But why is it so dangerous?”

“In doing your job you're essentially taking away a demon’s source of food. Much like a wild animal, this will make them more dangerous. We usually leave a job like this to our more experienced angels, but seeing as you know first hand how these demons work, you should be just fine.”

He’s silent for a moment. He didn’t think there were very many demons who operated the way she did. Certainly not enough to cause such a problem that it would be considered dangerous. His heart hurts at the thought of so many people suffering the way she had. He wonders if there’s a way for him to help the demons themselves as well as their prey.

“Will I ever find her again?” He opts to ask.

“I doubt that. None of us know her name?”

“What? But-”

“Demon’s names hold power. If someone knows the true name of a demon, then they’re basically owned by that person. They usually go by cover names.”

“And you don’t know hers?”

“No, I do. But you can’t know that information. You could end up going rogue, and we can’t have an asset as valuable as you doing something like that.”

“Rogue?”

“You know them as fallen angels. You’d essentially become a powerful demon. I’m sure you can understand why we wouldn’t want such a thing.”

“Could a demon become an angel?”

“That’s not possible. Their place was already decided. There is no way for them to rise in status, no matter how much they believe they have redeemed themselves.”

“But that’s-”

“I know. It seems harsh, judging someone based on a single moment. But that’s the way things are here.”

He’s speechless. He wamts to do this job, that much is for sure. He wants to save people from having everything taken from them the way he had. He’s got all the motive he needs to do the tasks given, not really afraid of the potential danger of this new proffession.

He just wishes there was a way from him to save her.

This is probably the worst attempt at feeding she’s had to suffer through in a long time.

It seemed easy enough when she first stumbled across him. A strange man who’d never even been in a relationship. He would be quick work, she’d thought. He’d fall for her in a week, three at the most. That’s what she’d assumed.

It’s been about four weeks now, and she can’t lure the guy away from his house for long enough to finish the job.

It wouldn’t be as bad, all things considered, if the guys weren't also a total freak. He’s definitely not someone she feels any sympathy for. He’d started pressuring her into sleeping with him a week into the relationship, which would’ve been the first red flag to anyone who knew how to spot them. She’d managed to convince him that she wanted to wait, and he agreed, deciding that her reluctance made her more “worthy” of him when the time came.

She thinks he’s full of shit.

She’s tried everything to lure him away, from telling him that she wanted to take him out to dinner to telling him that she had some sort of surprise for him that needed to happen outside the city. Just her luck she’d find prey that was essentially a hermit. She’d only come across him when he was out buying computer parts. Today, though, she was at her limit.

It was when he’d berated her for her choice in clothing, a simple tank top and jeans combination, that she’d decided that she’d let his pathetic existence go on for much longer than what was necessary.

It takes finally giving in to his request of hooking up with her to pull him away from the basement he was living in. She imagines his soul won’t be particularly tasty, but at this point, she’s more worried about having someone like him taking up valuable space on earth than anything else.

She brings him to the outskirts of the city, his greasy hands finding their way all over her body on the way. She can’t wait to be done with him. He’s so focused on trying to make her focus on him that he doesn’t notice the way her eyes flash red with every press to her skin.

She’s so focused on trying not to kill the man right then and there that she doesn’t notice she’s being watched.

She managed to convince him that allowing him to tie her up would be a good idea, and he agreed, noticing that the building they’re in is run down, but too concerned with what he thinks is about to happen to interrupt her.

“C’mon, Miranda, when do we get started? I’ve gotta be back home for this tournament.”

She flinches at the use of her name, or at least what he thinks is her name. Somehow it doesn’t make her feel any less dirty.

“Oh, you poor soul, you don’t realize the danger you’re in. Not that it matters.”

“What danger? Does this building have asbestos or something? Why would you bring us here, are you really that stupid?”

Her eye twitches at the comment, but she makes the decision to ignore it. He’s the fool here, after all.

“It’s not that you should be worried about, though you’re probably right about the chemicals. This building has been around for centuries. Great place to harvest a soul.” The man lets out a nervous chuckle.

“What are you, like, one of those fake vampire people?”

“A vampire? You don’t even know enough to know what it is they do? The most explored mythical creature in existence?”

“I don’t need the likes of you telling me what I do and don’t know. Let me go, you’ve ruined the mood. Maybe I’ll let you try again in a week.”

“You still don’t get it, do you?”

“Get what? Let me out of here!”

“Ah, you’re another one that doesn’t get it. Frankly, I’ve wasted enough time on you, so I’ll just spell it out for you. I’m a demon and I’m here to consume your soul.” His eyes widen, but he says nothing. She continues. “Ideally I would’ve been done with you a week ago. But you’re such a pathetic waste of a person that I couldn’t even get you out for long enough.”

“So this is what you do? Trick men so you can eat us?”

“Yup. You made the hard part easy, too. You were wrapped around my finger the second I rejected you. Strange behavior, if you ask me.”

“You bitch, you won’t get away with this!”

“You’re not even that original. A misogynist named Kyle? Give me a break”

Her eyes begin to change from their warm brown to a harsh crimson. She opens her mouth, rows of inhumanly sharp teeth appearing seemingly out of nowhere. When she does, she can feel her body begin regaining energy, his soul draining from his body and entering hers. She watches as the life drains from his eyes, growing duller the more of his soul he loses. When the light is gone, she reverts back to her human form, and breathes a sigh of relief.

“Wow, that was exhausting. Never going after one of these types ever again.”

“That’s a good idea. I didn’t like the way he treated you.”

She freezes. It’s happening again. She hasn’t imagined his voice in such a long time. It hasn’t crossed her mind in months. Why now? Why after all this time?

“I know you’re not real,” She says. “I’m just hearing things again. Go away.”

“Again? So you’ve heard me before?”

“You know I have.”

“How could I know that? I haven’t seen you since the day I lost you.”

“Since you lost me... You don’t talk like that. Where’s the ‘you did this to me’ speech?”

“Turn around. I’m real.”

She’s unconvinced. She knows this is her mind playing a dirty trick on her. A simple rewording of what it usually tells her won’t get her hopes up. Still, she decides to play along. She turns, slowly, like a model on a runway showing off their every angle. She figures that she’s already on the edge of her sanity as it is, and she closes her eyes too, making it a bit of a game. Her turning comes to a stop.

“Alrighty, go ahead and tell me when I can open my eyes. Really make me look even more unhinged than I feel. Let’s have fun with this.”

He can’t believe that after all this time, she’s right in front of him.

She’s just as beautiful as he remembered. He’d just watched her consume a soul, a soul which he’d been sent to save, but he can’t find himself feeling anything other than pure joy at the sight of her. He thanks his lucky stars that he was assigned to this case, he was starting to lose hope that he would ever see her again.

He’s thinking about what she said. She’d been hearing his voice before he found her. Killing him really had taken a toll on her, it would seem. At this realization, he thinks back to what he had been told so long ago.

“Her kind don’t form connections to the people they kill,” the woman says. “They’re heartless creatures. It’s best that you accept that now rather than finding out later.”

“Is it just something that doesn’t happen often? Or is it difficult for them to do it?”

“No. It’s impossible. You really need to let that girl go. She’s out there right now forming the same type of relationship with other people as she did with you. You were nothing but something for her to use.”

“Right. A food source.”

“Exactly. You’ll feel better once you move on. For now, just focus on your work.”

He did exactly that. He’d managed to save many people in the time since he'd begun his job. Luckily, he’s been able to avoid every demon he’s managed to swindle out of a meal. Until now, that is.

This is the first mission he’s ever failed. Surely, he would be questioned about what happened, and he knew he would have to make something up. But seeing the way this particular person acted, especially after he found out it was her he was talking about in such a disrespectful way, he decided he had no qualms about letting him die, taking advantage of his luck so that he could get the answers to his questions. He needed to know if he really should be moving on, or if he should be looking for a cure.

“You can open your eyes. It really is me,” He says. She scoffs.

“You better leave me alone for good after this.” She wastes no time in letting her eyes fly open. When she does, she looks unimpressed. “Oh, you haven’t done this little trick in a while. I suppose you expected me to run forward only for you to turn to dust, right?”

“You can touch me. I’m real. I came to see you.”

“Prove it then. Walk forward. All the way over here to me. I’m just dying to see what you’ll do when you get here.”

He obeys immediately, making his way over and resisting the urge to run over to keep from alarming her. He stands right in front of her now, and she continues to give him the same unimpressed gaze. She still doesn’t believe what she’s seeing.

It’s when he makes the bold move to wrap his arms around her that she goes quiet.

This isn’t real. It can’t be real. This is just an intense delusion of hers.

He’s warm, that’s the first thing she takes note of. He’s got a tight hold on her, almost as if he’s afraid that he’ll leave him again. Against her better judgement, she leans into his embrace, taking in his scent.

“You’re real,” she says. “You’re really here.”

“I’m real,” he confirms. “I’ve been looking for you.”

“But why?” She asks. “I’m the reason you ended up this way. You’re supposed to hate me.”

“I could never hate you. Not when I understand why you do what you do. I won’t punish you for doing something out of your control.”

She finds herself relaxing in his hold. She hasn’t been able to relax in such a long time. It’s not what she was made to do. It’s entirely out of her nature to do such a thing. She’s never been able to stick to her own rules when it comes to him, though. Still, she pushes him away.

“You shouldn’t be here. Not with me. You could get in trouble.”

“You’re worried about me?”

“Of course I am, don’t be ridiculous.”

He seems to consider her words for a moment.

“I need you to listen to me, okay?” She thinks a moment before nodding. “There’s a way for me to cure you, I know there is, but I need to know that this is what you want.”

“What? That’s not possible.”

“No, there’s a way. I just need time. I’m not gonna let them keep us apart like this. I just need you to trust me.”

She already trusts him, though. She doesn’t need any convincing. She only worries about what will happen to him if he’s caught.

“You can’t help me. It’s against your rules. You could get in serious trouble.”

“I don’t care. As long as your burden is lifted, I’ll be happy.” She says nothing. “I’m going to get you out of this. But we’ll need to be apart again for some time. Stay safe until that day.”

She doesn’t bother arguing with him. He’s always been this way, setting his mind to something and not stopping until he gets what he wants. It’s a trait of his that she always admired. She’s afraid that this time, it may be his downfall. He’s challenging forces he’s only just begun to understand.

But she’s tired of them too. She doesn’t care what happens to her, but if this is something that can cause a change, she’ll do it.

“Okay,” she says. “I want this. I trust you.”

He grabs her by the waist and pulls her close to him again, planting a gentle kiss on her forehead, before backing away again.

“I’ll see you soon. I promise.” With the flash of a bright light, he disappears, leaving her alone with nothing but her thoughts, and the shell of the soul she had eaten.

For the first time since she lost him, she breaks down.

When he returns home, the first thing he does is report what happened to him.

Not all of it, of course, he can’t mention that he’d finally found her. That would only anger them. They would likely restrict his activities, making his mission more difficult than it likely already will be. The people in charge tell him that because of his great work in other cases, one failed case was nothing to worry about, so he could just go about his day until he received his next assignment.

While he waited, he went to visit the person who would help him to do what he needed to do. He knocks lightly on the door, and upon hearing the quiet “come in” on the other side of the door, he lets himself in

“Oh, it’s you again. Don’t tell me you’re here to find more ways around the curse.” The woman says.

After being here for several years now, he’s met tons of people. Though, he’s never bonded with someone the way he has with Kora, an elderly woman whose death came to her in her sleep. In her life she had been a witch doctor, dabbling in spells that could transform things into different objects, cause misfortune for others, and yes, lift curses.

“I don’t need to do that.”

“Sure,” Kora says. “I just made tea, come have some.”

He sits down at her kitchen table, and she turns to pour him a cup, placing it in front of him before pouring one for herself and taking a seat.

“I really don’t need to find a way around the curse, Kora. I found her today. She wants to do this.”

Kora looks up at him, expecting him to tell her he was just joking. But when she sees the way his eyes sparkle, unbridled hope written in them, she knows he’s serious. She lets out a sigh.

“Well, I did say I’d help you. I’m a woman of my word.” He smiles. “But you’re risking a lot here. If it doesn’t work, you could risk everything. Not just for you, but for both of you.”

“That’s fine. Whatever it is, we can handle it.”

“So, it’s not the procedure that takes much effort. It’s the aftermath. The main step is finding the man who killed her, in order for her vengeance to be achieved. Lucky for you, he’s still alive.”

“Sounds easy enough. It didn’t take much for her to tear me up,” he says with a chuckle.

“However, once she does this, she’ll be reborn. This would separate the two of you, leaving you behind to deal with the consequences, on top of defeating the purpose of you doing this.”

“I can’t accept us getting separated from each other. Not again.”

“There is a way for the two of you to be reborn together. But it is difficult. You’ll have to have bonded to her. Seeing as she’s a demon, the only way for you to do that is for you to get her name.”

“She didn’t even tell me that when we were alive.”

“That’s what I’m worried about. In the end, will she have trusted you enough to give you this information? Will she love you enough to make herself so vulnerable?” He says nothing. “Even so, there’s no guarantee that in your next life the two of you will meet. That will also depend on how strong your bond is. You could end up in entirely different countries, even.”

He thinks about this. Now that he knows what will be required, he’s hit with the weight of what exactly it is he’s risking here. If he’s unsuccessful, he'll have to face the wrath of the angels he’d betrayed. If he succeeds, he doesn’t even know if he’ll get the result he’s really after.

But then he thinks of her. No matter the outcome, she’ll be freed from her curse. She’ll get to live the life she didn’t get to before. More than his desire to be with her, he wants her to have the life she deserves.

“I’ll do it. I don’t care about the risks. I’m going to do it.” Kora sighs.

“Alright, then. I’ll tell you where the man is, but the rest is up to you.” He rises from his seat and makes his way over to her, wrapping her in a tight hug.

“I’ll be okay, Kora. Everything will be fine.”

He makes his way out of her home after talking a bit more with her. He knows that regardless of what happens, he won’t see her again after this.

She watches him leave, and for his sake, she hopes that if she is to hear about him again, it won’t be a story of a young man who risked everything for the wrong person.

When they arrive at their destination, she feels a chill run up her spine.

It’s late. They wanted to be certain that no one would be around when they did what they came to do. Things would be less messy that way.

“He’s in a church?” He asks, confused. She rolls her eyes.

“I expect nothing less from him. He always did hide behind a facade. This is the best one yet.”

The two of them head in, and hide amongst a few churchgoers that linger inside. She assumes that there was a late night church service being held here. They must’ve come at the end, and she’s thankful. The thought of having to actually listen to him pretend to be a good man makes her sick to her stomach.

They linger until the church is empty, and she sees him head to the back, leading to the basement that she knows all too well. She grabs his hand and leads him in that direction, bringing him to the door that leads deeper into the church.

“Are you sure you’re ready to face him again?’

“I’m sure. It’s about time I see him again. This is long overdue.” Her eyes flash red for a moment, and he decides to stop asking questions.

She pushes the door open, and makes her way down the stairs with him following close behind her. She sees the man at the back of the room, rifling through boxes, and wastes no time in letting him know she’s here.

“Well, well, well.” The man freezes. “Been a while since we were down here, huh? Sure brings back memories, doesn’t it?”

“You’re not real. You’re not real. You’re not real,” the man mutters to himself.

“Oh, so you do feel guilty about what you did to me? Could’ve fooled me. Your little holy man cosplay is quite interesting.”

“Why are you here?”

“Look me in the eye, coward.” Afraid of provoking her, he turns to face her, slowly. “Much better.”

“How are you here? What are you?”

“This question gets more annoying the more i hear it, you know. Figure it out yourself, holy man.”

“What do you want from me? Please go away.”

“Oh no. Not yet. See him?” she points to where he stands, standing a little distance behind her. “I want you to tell him what you did to me.”

“What?”

“You heard me. Tell him why you thought my life needed to end.”

“I had to. You know what would have happened.” the man turns to him. “She knew what she was doing.”

“You didn’t have to do anything.”

“They would have disowned me!”

“So a little premarital sex is an issue, but murder is cool? Got it. Anything to keep your dirty little secret, right?”

The room is silent. Now that the truth is out there, now that he knows what happened to her, he understands why no one knows her name.

“I guess I should’ve expected this, right?” She continues, “After getting involved with the preacher’s son? And you got to go on, right? Continued living? Taking up after your dad? And what did I get? Cursed. Dooming people to the same fate you forced me into. But today, that changes.”

“You dare to claim that what I did wasn’t justified? You wanted to ruin me!”

“I wanted to be with you. In public. I didn’t wanna be a secret.”

“You convinced me to commit a sin. You haven’t earned the right to love, I could’ve been great. Instead, I’m stuck in this town, in the middle of nowhere, trying to make up for something that you did.”

“You did this to yourself.” she says. Her eyes quickly change to that harsh red he had seen before, and he knows what’s about to happen before the man does. “I don’t need to prove my worth. To you, or to anyone. You were nothing in life, and now, you’ll be nothing in death.”

Before he can even get a word in, she’s latched onto him, ripping him apart in the very same room where her existence was cut short.

A few moments of silence go by before she begins to glow slightly.

“It’s happening. I did it, I broke the curse.”

“You did. You’re free now.”

“But what about you? Why aren’t you glowing too?”

“We haven’t bonded enough. It’s okay though, I wouldn’t have wanted you forced into doing something. You’ve been through enough.”

“No! No, tell me. I’ll do it.” He knows she won’t, but she won’t remember him when she’s reborn anyway.

“I needed your name.”

She looks at him. She’s so close, so close to being free from that person. She can’t be bound to her again. She can’t say her name.

Taking note of her silence, He grabs the sides of the face, and pulls her in for a kiss, putting everything he has into it, as he knows it’ll be the last time. He whispers an “I love you” before looking her in the eyes to be sure she knows.

It’s at this moment, as her glow is becoming blinding, that she realizes this is a decision she can make herself. Finally, she’s the one who gets to make a choice. Instead of misery, this time, she chooses happiness. She just hopes it isn’t too late.

“My real name is..”

Somewhere, in another part of the world, a baby girl is born to a family that had been trying to conceive a child for years. They know this is the most precious gift they’ll ever receive.

Minutes later, in that same hospital, a baby boy is born.

#short fiction #short story #commission #commisions open #writers on tumblr #writing #writing commissions #support black creators #support black authors #support black writers #demons #demon #angels #angel #my work #my writing #horror #short horror story

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just-dreaming-about · 4 years

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So here we go again. Now I have a Fred Weasley fanfic that I hope you like. Enjoy!

HILARIOUS SITUATION

Annia Heart, sixth-year Ravenclaw, was quite a popular girl among the Hogwarts eagles not for her high marks as one would expect from a Ravenclaw, nor for her dueling skills, nor was she the most charming of her course or the one who will attract attention in general. She was simply quite popular because she always helped others with a smile on her face. Many of her house thought that she should have been chosen Hufflepuff. If the freshmen needed help with their homework, Annia Heart was their girl, if the girls in her class needed help with their hair or dressing for an important event, Annia Heart was their girl, if those in the debate team or those in the Flitwick choir needed help to regain their voices, Annia Heart was their girl. She was incapable of not succoring those around her and thanks to that she had earned a place in the hearts of all Ravenclaws.

On that particular day, she had been helping a third-grade girl with her rehearsal for the potions class, and as soon as they were done, the girl headed for the infirmary wing. It wasn't uncommon to find Annia there, helping Madam Pomfrey with the sicks or with the paperwork from the infirmary, in fact her passion was the healing arts. In potions class she always received the best marks when making healing remedies and in DADA she was the first to learn healing spells. That is why Madam Pomfrey held her in high esteem and always let her walk around the infirmary. Professor Flitwick approved and encouraged her to continue it, it was more than clear that Annia was going to be a healer in the future.

When she got there, the infirmary was found empty. This partly made her happy, no one had been hurt today or was having a bad time with a bad cold. It was a good day for Hogwarts. Madam Pomfrey left her with some notes on bone-growing tonic for her personal study and left the infirmary to speak to Professor Dumbledore about the products that were running out in the infirmary and that needed urgent replacement.

Silence wasn't something that Annia particularly liked, especially when she was alone, she studied talking to her classmates or read in the common room to feel accompanied by her mates. So the silence of the infirmary was weighing her down and she was saved when a loud bang opened the doors wide with several boys entering at once. She recognized them all clearly, they were practically the stars of the school, but that didn't stop her from being surprised by the situation itself. Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Lee Jordan were trying to separate two tall men with gray hair and long white beards. The latter two insulting each other and did their best to punch the other.

-Madam Pomfrey, help! -yelled Lee Jordan over the scream from both men.

Annia found herself not knowing what to do exactly, so she did the first thing she can thinks. She got out of bed where she had sat down to study and walked towards them with a firm step.

-Madam Pomfrey is out, just me. Can I help you?

-You are Annia, right? -Harry Potter asked now- Do you help Madam Pomfrey?

-Annia Heart helps everyone, Potter -Lee Jordan replied as if the boy had lost his mind- Listen, Annia. These are Fred and George, can you fix them?

Annia had to look twice at the bearded men in front of her.

-Fred and George? Weasley?

-No, Fred and George Malfoy. Who else? -Ron mutteres, impatient for the situation.

-If you're going to talk to me in that tone, I'm not going to help you -replied Annia angrily, crossing her arms.

At this Fred and George turned as white as their hair and beards, hit their younger brother and approached the Ravenclaw with pleading eyes.

-Please, Annia. You have to fix this -pleaded the one on the left.

-You are our only hope -said the one on the right.

Under the twins' watchful eyes, plus their three companions, Annia blushed. She may have been popular with the Ravenclaws, but she wasn't used to receiving so much attention outside of her home. She put a lock of her brunnete hair behind her ear and cleared her throat to compose herself. To the joy of the men, the green-eyed girl accepted and both patients were placed in the beds that the girl told them. The twins, each sitting on their respective beds, watched the girl come and go from one shelf to another, looking for a book to help her with the problem they were having. Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Lee Jordan left the infirmary by order of the Ravenclaw since she knew perfectly well that Madam Pomfrey wouldn't like to see so many people in her infirmary, especially if there were patients to treat. With three books under her arm, the girl sat in a chair between the twins' beds and thus remained silent as the redheads, now whiteheads, began to argue again. First in a low voice so not to bother the girl so much but as their discussion grew they became more angry increasing the tone of the discussion. Annia held on until she couldn't take it anymore and then she snapped her book shut, got up and started scolding the two boys

-Alright, this whole discussion is over! I don't care who the idea of putting your names in the cauldron was or who started looking for a potion to get older. I don't care who ate your mother's cookies! -to this last accusation both twins blushed- In case you haven't noticed, I am trying to help you return to normal, I am not a certified healer, I have no experience but I am still trying. The least you could do is appreciate it and wait for me to find something in these books before Madam Pomfrey comes so you can leave earlier or wait for her to come back even if you miss dinner.

Finished his speech she took a deep breath and sat down again with the open book where she had stayed. The silence that enveloped the three of them was somewhat uncomfortable for Annia, she wasn't used to Fred and George Weasley being silent, she shared potions, DADA and transfiguration with them and they were always talking, laughing or at least whispering among themselves. But she knew that only one of the twins listened to her when she asked for silence or scolded them for disturbing the youngest eagles in her house, proof of this is that only one Weasley had chosen to lie quietly on his bed and started whistling a little song to himself while the other remained silent sitting in his bed. Looking at her.

-So... -Fred began, wondering if he was allowed to speak now.

-What do you want Weasley? -she hurried without looking up from the book, to which she turned the page to continue looking for the cure they needed. Madam Pomfrey had to put her notes in order since all the pages had annotations with a letter so characteristic that it was difficult to read.

-Do you come often here?

George Weasley on the other side started laughing so hard that Annia herself smiled at Fred's increasingly red face.

-You seem a little older to try flirting with young ladies, don't you think, Mr. Weasley? -she scoffed, raising an eyebrow as she turned another page of the book.

George's laughter grew louder, Annia didn't check but suspected that he was getting to the point of crying since Fred was telling his brother to stop. Far from being defeated, the young eagle felt the gaze of the lion once again resting on herself. His voice didn't sound nervous, just teasing and funny.

-Are you making fun of me, Miss Heart?

-If you don't mind, Mr. Weasley, I'm looking for a cure for your... -She looked up to see his wrinkled face, beard, and full hair again, giggling- condition.

-I propose a deal, Miss Heart. If you find the cure, you owe me a date.

Fred's confidence wasn't threatened by the continuous laughters of his twin and the skeptical look of the girl who refocused on the book without losing her smile. Perhaps it was precisely the girl's smile that made Fred's confidence rise.

-And what would I win in this deal, Mr. Weasley?

-Now you are making fun of me, Miss Heart -the white-haired man put a hand to his chest and made a gesture of pain- How can they say that you are the guardian angel of Ravenclaw and then act like this with your companions?

Annia rolled her eyes again without losing her smile.

-No one calls me that, Weasley.

-But they think about it. Annia Heart, the girl you need by your side if you have any problems. How does the girl who solves everything had end up punished in the infirmary?

-I'm not punished, Weasley. Madam Pomfrey it's tutoring me for my healer exams when I finish my seventh year.

-So you're taking more exams after the finals exams? -the surprise in Fred's words were more than evident- You sure have a Ravenclaw's brain.

-You're impossible, Weasley.

-Thanks you.

-I'm not sure it was a compliment, bro -comment George teasing him.

The silent were present again but wasn't uncomfortable this time. Annia heard the twins arguing in a quiet voice this time as she turned a page of the book.

-So you want to be a healer, Miss Heart -Fred Weasley speak again, a new smile in the face.

-Yes, Weasley -she replied absentmindedly reading the pages of the book.

-That's why you're the big sister for Ravenclaw?

Annia left the book and look up to catch Fred's staring at her.

-You really don't know how lucky you're, Weasley -she saw how these words caught the boy by surprise- When you came to Hogwarts there were your big brothers waiting for you. We can't all say that. I'm like a big sister for Ravenclaw because I care for those who doesn't have one here to make all funny in our firsts days. I don't know how it's at Gryffindor's tower but at Ravenclaw's we heard the kids crying for their parents at the beginning of the course. They felt abandoned and have to wake up in a stranger place and sleep with strangers and have to deal with the fact that this is what awaits them for seven years.

-That's how you felt in your first year? -Fred whisper almost as if he didn't want his brother to hear them but he could hear them.

When Fred's gaze was too much for her she got up from where she was sitting, put the books in her place, and headed for the doors of the infirmary. That was when Fred's confidence dropped dramatically.

-Annia! Where are you going?

-Madam Pomfrey will be here soon, she sure knows how to help you more efficiently than I do -was all she said before closing the great doors.

She needed air and ran to where her legs wanted to take her without thinking where she was going. She ended up in a lonely hallway where she sat down and put her hands to her chest trying to control her heartbeat and the tears that threatened to fall. She felt like that fragile first-year girl again, taking refuge in the blankets of her bedroom, with both hands on her mouth trying not to make noise while crying so as not to wake her companions. That same night she decided that she would never feel like this again and from her second day at Hogwarts she began her transformation to the Annia Heart that she was now.

-Annia? You're alright?

A familiar voice peeked out of one of the doors in the middle of the hall. Looking closer, it was the library door and the one who ran to her was a girl with gray stormy and worried eyes, blonde hair that reached her shoulders and decided step, the Ravenclaw shield shining on her cloak. Eleanor Robins had been her best friend since her first year at Hogwarts and there was nothing in the world that one didn't do for the other. The brunette looked at her friend with pleading eyes and the blonde didn't hesitate to hug her tightly and whisper to calm her down. She helped her resume a normal breathing rhythm and waited patiently for her friend to be ready to speak.

-Just give me a name and a house and I'm going to put a black eye on whoever has messed with you -said the blonde without releasing her from her embrace.

-No one has messed with me, Ellie -whispered Annia, still hiding in her friend's arms- We were just talking. He asked me a question and I ...

-I don't mind hitting a boy if necessary -Eleanor cut her off with the look in her eyes from someone who has decided how to kill her enemy.

-Listen to me, Ellie -the brunette finally came out of her friend's arms and looked her in the eyes- We were just chatting and things became to turn intenses and I freak out. Just that. He really didn't anything to me.

-Well, it must have been an intense conversation to have you like this. I haven't seen you in this state since our second year.

Silence fell between the two at the memory. Eleanor had become Annia's best friend after her first year after the brunette found her crying at a photo of her little brother who was moving around showing his first steps as his parents held him and smiled fondly at her. Annia had helped her then. Later in the first week of her second year at Hogwarts, Eleanor found Annia in a state just like she was in the present and it was time for the blonde to help her best friend. In the present, the blonde's hand circled the brunette's back, patiently waiting for her to speak. As this didn't come, the blonde decided to get up and lend a hand to the brunette to help her up.

-I don't know about you, but it is book club Saturday in the Ravenclaw's tower and it is my turn to read. I'm sure you don't want to miss it.

The book club had been started by Annia and Eleanor in their third year, first to distract the little ones during the first days of the course and to help muggle-borns become familiar with the magical world by reading Babbitty Rabbitty or The Tales of Beadle the Bard and then to give students confidence to read in public in class. Over time, it had become the Ravenclaw Tower's favorite activity, even Professor Flitwick had been encouraged to read to the boys on more than one occasion or tell them stories about the First Magical War. Annia definitely didn't want to miss book club Saturday.

-And if you behave well, I'll let you sit next to me while I read.

At this the brunette could only laugh. Since the book club started, Annia and Eleanor had been sitting apart when it was time for one of them to read because the presence of the other was distracting and they laughed alone while reading.

The rest of the afternoon was calm, with a blanket over the legs of the friends and Eleanor's voice lulling everyone who heard her read. Even Professor Flitwick showed up to hear.

When it was dinner time, the friends walked with the members of their house to the Great Hall with their arms intertwined and still laughing at Professor Flitwick's anecdote of his early years teaching at Hogwarts and his encounters with the teacher. McGonagall. Then someone called Annia and both friends turned. At the end of the corridor a recovered red-haired Weasley ran towards them with a nervous smile on his face. The brunette looked at her friend and she understood continuing her way to the Great Hall alone while Annia waited until Fred was at her side to continue her way to the Great Hall with him.

-I see you've regained your normal appearance, Weasley -she said too formally.

-Yes Yes. Madam Pomfrey arrived shortly after you left.

-That's good.

An awkard aura was surrounding them while they walk in silence. Then Fred put his right hand around his neck in a nervous gesture.

-I'm sorry about what happened in the infirmary, I didn't want to bother you.

-It's already forgotten -she hastened to confirm with a calm smile.

-That's good.

Silence fell between them again as they reached the open doors of the Great Hall. Almost all of Hogwarts had already taken their place to dine but they remained watching nervously. Then Fred summoned up his courage and said:

-You owe me an date, Miss Heart.

Surprise reflected on Annia's face and her cheeks took on a new shade of red for the redhead's enjoyment. He pulled herself together as she could, crossing his arms to gain confidence.

-And how is that Mr. Weasley? Your agreement was that I would go out with you if I found the cure. Which did not happen.

-Mistake, Miss Heart -Fred said cheerfully taking Annia by the arm to spin her around and dodge some Hufflepuff students entering the Great Hall- The page of the book you were reading was the potion we needed. Madam Pomfrey was relieved to see that you had done half the work for her and hastened to prepare the cure for us. Looks like someone is a good healer.

Annia's cheeks didn't lose their color, perhaps turning even redder at those words.

-You're impossible, Weasley.

-Thanks.

The redhead's smile grew more and more confident as the brunette in front of him became a bundle of nerves and embarrassment.

-The next exit to Hogsmeade. You and me, Heart, don't forget it. I will pick you up on the stairs of the Ravenclaw tower.

Annia found herself speechless and could do no more than nod. Fred laughed delightedly and leaned down enough to kiss her cheek without being embarrassed by whoever was watching.

-I'm looking forward to hearing more about those exams you're obsessed with.

With a wink, he left the girl melting into place to sit with her twin. Annia smiled nervously as she took a seat at her own table with her friend looking at her meaningfully. Annia and Fred's eyes met several times during that dinner.

#harry potter #harry potter fanfiction #harry potter oc #fred weasley imagine #fred weasley fanfiction #fred weasley x oc #fred weasley x reader #fred weasley #imagine #harry potter imagine #fred weasley x y/n #fred weasley x you #fanfiction #fanfic

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outofcontextsimsmachinima · 4 years

Note

Please god do you have recommendations on the best series to watch

Some of my personal recomendations that I can list from the top of my head, I will be writing a lot of text below so hold onto your horses.

My Life- NatalieFirexx

Still running to this day and in its 12th season. So amazing to see the growth over the years. The first seasons are so funny in a sense of knowing a little Christian emo kid made them, but later seasons have developed into such an interesting story with beautiful visuals, incredible cinematography and relationships that you end up caring about so deeply. Every season has a new storyline to follow and it's always so wild remembering all that's happened in its 10 year run and thinking up what else is to come. Though season 12 is said to be it's final season and I look forward to seeing what Natalie has in store for us after the finale.

The story of My Life follows the Andrews family and their friends in everyday shenanigans, you know, the usual: teen pregnancy, kidnapping, vampires, murder, identity theft, angels, ghosts, hacked kids and love.

(There's also a My Life Abridged voice acting series of season 1 currently in the works, now at episode 5)

Smooth Criminal - SaltPepperSims1408

I always have fun rewatching this. Its only 2 seasons long and once again, a sims series that evolved over it's run. Following Abby as her life goes from normal (if you can call your illegal scientist parents experimenting on criminals in your basement normal) to having visions of her parent's test subject's past and joining his gang where hes the leader and battles a disease that gives him 10x the strength and intelligence of a regular human being. Catch is, this genetic disease is rare and makes you go insane. Most people with it end up insane by 30.

A series with a lot of guns, a badass female main protag, death, once again, teen pregnancy (which will be a common sims series theme), fun dream/vision sequences and in my opinion has a great sense of humour.

SaltPepperSims1408 also has a highly recommended voice over series (though incomplete) titled Apokalypsis, a group of young adults/teens trying to survive in an apocalypse.

CINDER - GrayLeeStudios

Based on the book CINDER by Marissa Meyer. Cinder is a beautifully made voice over series, great visuals, wonderfully told it's story, though it is incomplete at 5 episodes, each running 10-18 minutes. Loosely based on the original Cinderella story but in a futuristic Beijing, adding robots, a colonization on the moon and a deadly plague that has affected the Emperor.

The protagonist is the mechanic, Lihn Cinder. Despite how well known her work as a mechanic is, she is looked down on for being a cyborg and is presented for plague research where she and Prince Kai become closer.

Y O U T H - 1998sims

YOUTH is a retelling of Youth, also a sims series by the same creator that reached its second season before discontinuing. Already a series that dealt with real life issues and involved a lot of representation in its characters. YOUTH is a different experience with all new characters, even more representation and everyone still feeling real in a way where their identities don't define them but are in NO WAY erased at all, like they're real people. When comparing the two series you can see the similar storyline but now its so much fresher and with new characters, their decisions in these situations change. Follows the story of multiple characters in their teen years and learning to deal with being a teen or in some cases having to make adult decisions despite that. Currently up to episode 5 but there is still so much more to come.

1998sims is also the creator behind Avoiding Fate, Its Complicated (currently not available online) and the most iconic series that I HIGHLY suggest you watch; My Sims 2 Emo Teen Pregnancy Kidnapping Story

SOUP - SimFilm

This sims 3 voice over series is brand new, as of this month, with one episode released but I'm already in love with it. It has this deadpan sense of humour I can get behind and I'm really looking forward to seeing where it goes. It appears the episodes will be short and sweet but I really don't mind at all.

Our protagonist, Harris Gold, alphabetizes his life's misfortunes like a can of alphabet soup.

I quote "looks pretty decent on the outside, but when you open the can, you'll simply want to kill yourself"

The filming is wonderful, I love the voice actors and how well they play their roles, the story so far is fun and silly but deals with really strong issues other teenagers might have experienced growing up. Kind of like laughing the pain away and I adore it.

Raison D'etre - Cornymio

I haven't watched a lot of sims 4 machinima if im to be honest (since life to death stories are so rampant on YouTube at the moment and I'd rather just avoid them) but this series was very well made. Only 2 episodes but the voice acting is amazing, the sims custom animations are wonderful and at times the sims can be almost perfectly lip synced to the voices. Has an indie film vibe that I adore, very calming and I adore the camera work. This is a revamp of the creators old Sims 3 series by the same title.

Reine Reynolds enrols herself into a new school, here we meet a variety of students who are all relatable in one way or another with different relationships amongst themselves. A nice watch and won't take long to get through.

Marry Me! - Tickled007

This is actually a companion piece to Marry You by Maot Productions. Marry You has more episodes and progressed it's story much further but personal preference I like Marry Me!'s characters and humour better. Not a fault to the creators though, since I believe they wrote both stories together and I do still recommend you go watch Marry You as well, just my personal taste. I also watched this very recently which is probably why it's on my mind rn.

Marry Me! Is a 2 episode long (so far) voice over series that's quite high energy, it's about a loud "bitch" fashion designer called Serafie and a "pushover" called Carmion. Two opposites that somehow cross paths and after a money hiccup, Seraphie demands that Carmion marry her. I love how silly it is, very kdrama inspired. If you can get past the overused swooping sfx in episode one (which drove me insane but will go away in episode 2) I think it's super enjoyable.

Tickled007 is also the creator of Passcode Unknown, Too Popular and And... Obvious.

I feel it unfair not to mention Maot Productions other creations either since they were also a big part of the Marry Me! Marry You project. They created Sense Me Not!, Corrupted Souls, Cruel Temptation and Retribution

Other simmers and their series that I highly recommend but realise this ask is going to get extremely long

EkolarasMagnum

Their series tend to have this grungy highschool feel to them but I get behind it. They're known for their more interesting sims style, some people love it, some people hate it but it shouldn't get in the way of the interesting stories. I used to adore their work so much as a teenager!

- Advocated

- Strangers

- Volatile

PumpkinsAtTheDisco

Made a variety of sims series based on books (before these same books were made into films) such as the Hunger Games. This creator is incredibly talented from filming, writing to composing their own music. You can really see their improvement over the years too. I love their work.

- The Hunger Games

- Miss Peregrines Home For Peculiar Children

- Dimension 17

- Post Icarus

- Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

StarsToShinex

Their concepts are fun and they have good voice actors. Their filming and editing is nice but their work does have an anime feel if that's more your taste.

- Spotlight

- My guardian

- My guardian- the next chapter

- Seeking Faith

- The last day

MajesticFilms

Their aesthetics are lovely, they make a lot of visually pleasing machinima. I admire their editing.

- Paper Boats

- Arsonist's Lullaby

- Sounds of Silence

- Machinima playlist

ViNtAgELovv11

Still works on videos now and I adore their work, been around for 10 years and only continuing to improve. I believe their most known series wou lkd have to be wasteland but please check out their newer works too!

- Scum City

- Wasteland

- Wonderland

- Runaway

- ROADS

There are so much more and i might make a pt.2 or something along those lines one day since this ask is getting long. But I also have a list of simmers and series on my navigation page if you want to search through some more works.

#ask #asks #mikuofficial #recommendations

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pjoandaftg · 4 years

Text

chapter 6

Annabeth woke up the next morning feeling like somebody had hit her in the head with a sledgehammer. Her head was pounding. She groaned and rolled over to check the time and sitting there on her bedside table was a bottle of aspirin and a glass of water. Left there by what must’ve been a guardian angel. And she suspected that that angel’s name was Percy Jackson.

She popped some pills and downed the glass of water before tearing herself out of bed and heading towards the kitchen/living room. There, standing at the stove, was Percy. He must’ve heard her come in because he turned and gave her a small smile.

“So?” he asked. “How’s the life of the party this morning.” Annabeth groaned and fell back onto the couch.

“How bad was I?” she asked miserably.

“Honestly, you’re a fun drunk. It’s like this wild side of you is let loose when you have a gallon of alcohol in you.” Annabeth groaned again.

Percy handed Annabeth a cup of coffee, which she took gratefully before sitting down on the opposite end of the couch. They sat in silence.

This is nice Annabeth thought. Comfortable. And deep down, some part of her should’ve been panicking or a voice at the back of her head telling to ‘get out’ or ‘stop, you can’t let anyone close.’ But that almost permanent feeling wasn’t there, and she couldn’t help but think that she could get used to this.

She looked over at Percy, who was quietly drinking his coffee while looking out the window. Annabeth had known from the moment she saw him that he was handsome, but she hadn’t noticed how beautiful he was. His eyes sparkled like the sun’s reflection on a clear sea. He had sun-freckles along his nose, which was odd considering he grew up in New York City. His hair was a bit too long and he needed a haircut, but she couldn’t help wondering if it felt as soft as it looked. She hadn’t realised Percy was looking back at her, a soft smile playing at his lips.

“Thank you,” Annabeth said. “For taking care of me last night.”

Percy nudged her with his foot. “What are friends for.”

Annabeth let out a small chuckle and looked back at Percy. He looked conflicted, like he wanted to say something. Just when he opened his mouth a loud knocking came from the door. Bot Annabeth and Percy’s heads flew around to look at the door. Percy looked at Annabeth raising an eyebrow as if asking are you expecting anyone? Annabeth shrugged back in answer.

When Percy opened the door, Piper came storming in. She didn’t even glance at Percy before rushing past him. “I slept with him.” She announced.

Annabeth mouth dropped open. She wanted to say something, but she was speechless. She saw Percy in a similar situation out of the corner of her eye. When she finally found her voice, she asked “Who?”

“Jason,” Piper said in a small voice.

“You slept with Jason!” Annabeth exclaimed. “What happened to the ‘I’m going to take it slow’?”

Piper sighed defeated. “I don’t know, it just kind of happened and we were both drunk and when you and Percy left, I just danced with him and one thing led to another and-”

“Dot, dot, dot?” Annabeth asked.

“Exactly.”

“Okay, so let me get this straight. You slept with Jason last night,” Piper nodded. “and you stayed the night?” Piper nodded. “and you really like him?” Piper nodded. “Then what the fuck are you doing here with me and Percy and not with him?”

Piper sighed again, “He had an exam he couldn’t miss, or at least that’s what he told me. Oh my god, what if he didn’t have an exam, what if he just didn’t like me and thought it was a mistake and never wants to see me again. What if-”

Piper was cut off from a close mental breakdown by Percy who said, “This is Jason Grace we’re talking about right?”

Piper looked shocked to see Percy, probably haven forgotten he existed but nodded all the same.

“Then he wasn’t lying, he really does have an exam.”

Piper didn’t look convinced. “How do you know?”

“He’s in the same class as my friend Frank, plus I’ve known Jason for like 3 years. Rival high schools. The exam is like half of their half-term grade, I’m surprised he went out last night, that’s not like Jason. The only time he really goes out is with friends or this one time when he was trying to impress this gir-” Percy stopped talking. “He wasn’t lying.”

Piper now had the biggest smile on her face. She wiped her tears and stood up. “All right, I’m done crying in your living room now.”

Annabeth caught her hand as she began to move away. “You sure your okay?” Piper gave her hand a small squeeze. “I am now, thanks for listening to me rant but I’m done now, and I desperately need a shower. I’ll see you later?”

Annabeth nodded and Piper left. When the door closed Percy looked at Annabeth. “That was-”

“Chaotic?” Annabeth offered.

“Yes, chaotic. That was chaotic.”

“That’s Piper,” Annabeth said fondly. She got up, “I need a shower, you going to be here when I come out?” Annabeth doesn’t know why she asked really, she just did.

Percy smiled, “Where else would I be?” he said cheekily.

Annabeth gave him a playful slap on the shoulder and went towards the bathroom to shower.

----------

The weeks between Halloween and Christmas flew by. Grover came home not long after the party. Percy and Grover both went home for Thanksgiving, while Annabeth spent hers with Piper in her apartment. All in all, it wasn’t that bad of a day.

It also felt that something had changer between Percy and her. They were closer than ever; she’d even go as far as calling him one of her best friends. The two of them would stay up late and watch movies or sometimes just talk about nothing in particular.

One time they had ended up talking about what would happen if there was a zombie apocalypse. The next morning Grover had found the two of them passed out together on the couch.

Annabeth had gotten the call, a week before her finals began. She had been expecting the call and shouldn’t have been upset or surprised with its contents. Her dad was bringing her stepmom and stepbrothers to Hawaii for Christmas this year, so they won’t be home. ‘I hope to see you at New Year,’ her dad said. Not even an invitation. Typical.

That day Percy found her standing in the kitchen, a single tear rolling down her cheek.

“Hey,” he had said softly. “Are you okay?”

And he had asked it so softly that she had just broke down then and there. He had come over and wrapped his arms around her. Gently smoothing her hair and telling her that ‘everything will be alright,’ and that ‘you don’t have to talk about it but I’m here if you want to.’

It had taken Annabeth maybe five minutes to compose herself. She wiped her eyes, thanked Percy and left him in the kitchen, not telling him anything, no matter how much she wanted to because she didn’t want him to look at her with pity. Didn’t want him to think about how much of a burden she must be if her own family didn’t want her.

The call she didn’t expect though came two days before Christmas. Grover had already gone home for the holidays with Juniper, so it was just Percy and her left. Percy was leaving for home tomorrow after his last exam and Annabeth was spending Christmas with Piper in her dad’s log cabin up in Montana. They were also leaving tomorrow and coming back on the 29th so Piper can spend the New Year with Jason, who she was now dating.

She was sitting at the kitchen counter, studying her notes when the call came in. She looked at the number ID. She let herself have a moment of confusion before picking up the phone.

“Mom?” she asked.

Percy who was sitting on the couch, doing his own studying looked over to her in a silent question if he should leave. Annabeth shook her head, so he went back to his books.

“Annabeth, I was wondering if you had any plans for the New Year?”

This shocked Annabeth. She hadn’t heard from her mother in almost two years and here she was asking if she had any New Years plans as if it was the most normal thing in the world.

“Hello, Annabeth. Are you there?” her mother asked impatiently.

“Oh um, no I don’t.”

“Great, I’m hosting a ball for many of my clients and acquaintances and I think that this would be a very good opportunity for you to get your name out there. I’ll email you on the address and I assume you will want to bring someone, so I’ll send you the tickets. I’ll also pay for your plane tickets and hotel. I’ve got to go now but I’ll see you at New Year.” And without waiting for a reply, her mother hung up.

She doesn’t know how long she stood there, looking at her phone. It must’ve been longer than she thought because Percy was suddenly opposite her asking if everything was alright.

“Hypothetically,” she said. “What would you do if your mother, who you haven’t heard from in almost two years, just offered to fly you and a friend to a ball, that could be a really good opportunity to better your future career, and pay for everything.” She looked at Percy’s face.

“Well,” he said slowly. “Hypothetically, it sounds like this mother is trying to make an effort,” Annabeth must’ve made a face at that because Percy then added, “I think that this person should go, if not to make up with their mother then to help their career because you never know when an opportunity like this may arise again.”

Annabeth thought about this for a moment. “Your right,” she said. “I don’t have to actually make up with my mother, I just have to be civil with her for a couple of days and I can make incredible connections if I go.”

“Thank you,” she said to Percy. He just waved her off and went back to his work.

Annabeth tried to focus on her studies but couldn’t help thinking about all the things that could go bad. She tried to think of who to bring. Piper was with Jason, Thalia was in Europe, Selena was spending her first New Year with Charles, Malcom might be there, she thought, she prayed. But that’s a risk she didn’t want to take.

“Hey,” she asked. “Do you have any plans for New Years?”

Percy looked at her curiously. “Not yet, why?”

“Because I don’t think I can face my mother alone.”

Realizing what she was asking Annabeth quickly scurried over to his side and said. “Look I know you probably can think of millions if better things to do during New Years than spend it at a ball with obnoxious, rich people but you’d really be doing me a solid. And everything is paid for, the plane, the hotel, I’m sure I can even get my mom to buy you a new tux, just please say yes.”

Percy thought about it for a minute. He sighed and smiled at her. “When do we leave?”

Annabeth was so happy she could kiss him. In fact, that is exactly what she did. She placed a quick peck to his cheek. “Thank you, thank you, thank you! Oh my god, you are an angel Percy Jackson.” She said wrapping her arms around him.

Percy just laughed and hugged her back.

#percabeth #percy jackson #Annabeth chase #piper mclean #roommates au #percabeth fic #my writing

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sciencelings-writes · 4 years

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Last Man Standing

Summary: I wanted to write another endgame/ infinity war fix it where instead of Peter dusting, It’s Tony. shit goes a little crazy from there. 8.7k words, get ready fam. AO3 LINK

Peter sat in the guardian’s ship, frozen in place. He was in shock. Because the worst thing that could happen, happened again.

He was gone, Mr. Stark was gone. Tony was gone. Disintegrating into dust after a single glance into Peter’s eyes. No goodbye. Not like Ben. Uncle Ben had moments more than Tony did. Bleeding out. Peter didn’t know which was worse, A father figure dying in front of him, slowly, being able to hear his heartbeat slow and stop or his new father figure disappearing without even a chance to say a word. Just look into his eyes, looking worried but not having any time to think about it.

Peter had time to think about it. Too much time. He had worked with the blue cyborg woman to repair the ship for a few days. At least then he could distract himself. But she was working on getting them to earth, and he could only think. Or sleep. But sleeping was so much worse.

He had been zoning out for god knows how long. Hours? Days? It felt like an eternity and he didn’t feel like he was in his body at a certain point. He was only shaking out of it because of Nebula’s, the blue woman’s monotone voice.

“You need to eat.” She ordered simply. He took the space food out of her hand and muttered a thanks. Peter’s normally talkative demeanor was snuffed out after they lost. Nebula wasn’t much of a talker to begin with and they worked together out of necessity. Peter would always be thankful that she didn’t leave him alone on the planet even though she totally could have.

Once she got autopilot fixed and had no need to stay in the cockpit, she seemed to always be near him. Not close but within her silent gaze. He would try to fill his time by tinkering with extra parts and pacing around.

They had their real conversation a full week into flying in space. While they were frantically trying to upgrade the air recycling system so they wouldn’t die days away from earth. They had already run out of food and Peter was growing weaker but air was a little more important.

“Was he your father?” Nebula said dryly as Peter took out the power source from his Iron spider suit. It was a tiny arc reactor hidden in the spider on his chest, made out of nanites.

“Uh, kinda… not really. He’s my mentor but he is… was kinda like a dad to me. You know, teaching me how to be a hero and scolding me when I was being dumb…” His voice was a little hoarse from not being used and from not getting enough water in attempt to conserve it.

“You are lucky. My father was the one we were fighting.”

“Ouch, that’s rough. I thought my luck with father figures was bad…” This managed to lift the sides of Nebula’s mouth for the hint of a smile. It was gone faster than it came, she didn’t seem used to small talk.

“I’m sorry about what happened to him.” She grumbled as they worked.

“It happened to your friends too and half of the universe if I remember. I don’t even know if we are the lucky half.”

“We aren’t.” Nebula muttered. Peter knew she was right. It was much harder to live than it was to die.

Eventually, the work was done and they could rest. The would probably have a few more days of air but they both knew they wouldn’t get to earth fast enough. If they had to die, they would die together and Peter would really rather not die but if he had to die, at least he wasn’t alone.

He tried to hang out with Nebula more, explain earth things, show her how to play games like thumb wars, where she almost broke his hand. She would indulge him, knowing they were not far from suffocating to death. Or starving to death… or dehydrating to death. Whichever one happened first.

Peter got weaker and weaker without the food to sustain him. Nebula had given him her last ration. They were out of fuel, out of water, hours away from being out of air, out of food and out of hope.

They were still so many days away from earth when it got to the point where Peter couldn’t even stand. Nebula sat with him. She even picked him up and placed him on the co-pilots chair so that he could look at the stars instead of the dirty metal.

He was so so tired. It was probable that if he closed his eyes, he would never open them again. If he was hydrated enough to have tears come to his eyes, they would be. They were so close to death and so far away from home. And he was so tired…

His eyes closed, for what he thought would be the last time and he wondered what he would see. Would he see Ben? Tony? Would his mom and dad be up there? Maybe Nebula would see her sister again. Maybe there would be nothing at all. The thought made him strangely at peace. The pain would be over, the sorrow wouldn’t weigh him down, it would all be over.

That’s when a bright light apeared on the other side of his eyelids. He peeked them open, squinting his eyes as it had been so long since he had seen something so bright. Was this it? Was he dead?

The light faded slightly and revealed a blonde woman smiling. Was she an angel? Peter was delirious but it was a nice thought. Maybe she would take him to wherever Ben and Tony were.

She didn’t. She flew under their ship and carried it home. Peter fought to stay awake, he tried to call out to Nebula to tell her about the angel but his voice wasn’t very loud. He smiled knowing that they were saved.

They landed near Avengers Compound, there were people waiting for them. The glowing angel woman had to help Peter out of the ship but he made it. He had never been more excited to breathe in his life.

Captain America ran up to them. Before he could say anything Peter whimpered out a few words.

“I’m sorry… I lost him.”

“We lost,” Cap said sorrowfully. As if Peter couldn’t already tell. Pepper and Rhodey came running after Steve, they weren’t as fast as a super-soldier but they had much more reason to run towards the ship. Tony could’ve been on it. The thought made a ping of pain ripple through Peter’s chest.

“Did Tony-” Pepper started. She didn’t finish. She saw the look in Peter’s eyes and she knew. She put a hand over her mouth to muffle a sob and Rhodey tried to look composed but Peter could see him trembling.

“I’m so sorry…” Peter wheezed before starting a brief coughing fit that made him blackout for a moment. It was kind of spooky. The glowing angel woman still held him up and advised that they take him to the med bay.

That was the last thing he heard before everything went dark, thankfully, not for the last time.

***

He woke up after a terrible dream. By the time his eyes were open, he had already forgotten it but he still felt his heart race and sweat, the moisture of fear, in several uncomfortable places. He noticed the sweat and looked at the optimistic side. He was hydrated. He had enough water in his body that he could sweat.

Then he noticed everything else. He had needles and tubes everywhere they could medically stick him. His throat hurt, probably from having a feeding tube shoved down it. He had an IV and as many monitors that would fit on his malnourished body. The only other person in the room was Pepper. She was on her tablet and he noticed that there were slight shadows under her eyes. He knew he looked a whole lot worse though.

“Ms. Potts?” He said weakly. She looked up quickly and plastered on a fake smile.

“Hey, Pete. Did you sleep well?”

“Uh, Yeah.” he lied, “Did Aunt May…” his voice shook as he left the question hanging, suspecting the answer.

“I’m sorry Peter, she didn’t make it…” he looked down and avoided her gaze. Preparing himself did nothing and it was like the knife that was left by Tony’s death and it was now being twisted. In other words, it fucking sucked.

“This is a pretty sucky fifty percent huh…” Peter muttered after a wet sob.

“Yeah… you could say that.” Pepper smiled sadly as she wiped a few tears from her own eyes.

“Who else did we lose?” Peter asked, desperate for a distraction.

“The kind of Wakanda, his sister came with us to the compound, she wants to be part of the solution. Uh, Sam Wilson, you know, falcon, Nick Fury, Ant-Man…” she went on, naming everyone from celebrities to anyone she thought he would know. Including his friends.

The next few days were the worst of his life. He had to deal with everyone he was close to being dusted and being unable to get out of bed. The later was much less painful but it still bothered him. It made him feel useless in addition to absolutely destroyed and depressed.

Eventually, enough was enough. He took out everything except for the IV as he was still dehydrated and could roll it around pretty easily. He carefully got himself into his wheelchair and rolled himself to where his enhanced senses heard the somber avengers gathering.

Peter was surprised but not that surprised to see a raccoon in clothes in the room with the remaining heroes. He’s seen aliens, it wasn’t that weird to see a talking raccoon with a familiar accent.

“Kid, what are you doing out and about?” Rhode said, looking mildly concerned.

“I got sick of just sitting on my ass.” He grumbled. “Now, does anyone have any idea what we’re going to do or did I just exchange sitting on my ass with access to a comfortable bed for sitting on my ass in a room full of depression?”

“If we find Thanos and get the infinity stones back, we can theoretically bring everyone back.” Doctor Banner said calmly. He ignored Peter’s grumpy mood, everyone dealt with major tragedies differently.

“We couldn’t keep the stones from him, now he has the most powerful weapon in the galaxy and we have half the ranks with some of our best indistinguishable from the sand on a beach. And you want to go back and try again. Like he can’t just snap his fingers and have you join the rest of the universe. Yeah, that’s pretty stupid.” Peter spat as he settled near the holograms listing the people who were dusted.

“Well, do you have any other ideas?” Cap sighed.

“Yeah, anything but that.” Peter groaned. “You’ll all get killed and then the universe will have no hope. Maybe we can contain the stones or something.”

“We wouldn’t be able to do any tests, if it doesn’t work we’re all dead.” Doctor Banner shrugged.

“Tony Stark’s nanotech sheild deflected a direct blast from the purple infinity stone. That’s at least a start.”

“The purple one… that’s the power stone kid! So this dead guy deflected a hit from the power stone with his tech? I’d like to get a hold of that…” The raccoon exclaimed.

“You know, it’s really too bad that this all couldn’t have been avoided…” Peter looked directly at Captain America. He didn’t know why he was consumed with such irrational anger because he would never act this way normally. His line had been crossed weeks ago when Mr. Stark died in front of him. He was just at a point where he didn’t give a fuck.

“What are you even talking about kid?” Steve raised an annoyingly calm eyebrow.

“If only everyone was all together to fight him at once rather than separated and weaker. We almost got the gauntlet off with only like seven people, imagine if it was all of you guys too…” Peter hissed. “You know Tony warned you about this. He knew something was coming and nobody listened.”

“Ultron was made because of his paranoia.”

“So was the Vision. He was our superman and the only being I would trust with the infinite power that he was given. It really sucks because if you all just stuck together and you know, didn’t become war criminals because you had your heads so far up Mr. perfects ass, Tony would still be alive, along with all of my friends and the only family I had left.” Peter gradually started to yell. He had just held too much in for too long and apparently now was the time to let it out.

Most infuriating of all, Steve just stood there. He didn’t try to argue with Peter, he didn’t make any kind of retort. He just stood there with a blank expression.

“If you had any sort of trust in him, he would still be alive!” Peter ripped his IV out of his arm, it was just in the way and it had become one of the things that were just holding him back. He shakily stood up in his adrenaline-filled fury.

“Whoa kid-” Rhodey put a comforting hand on Peter’s shoulder but it did nothing to hold him back.

“No matter how strong and mighty you think you are, you’re nothing compared to the guy that killed him. Don’t let your fucking ego get in the way of the fate of the universe! A fucking wizard with fucking magic couldn’t take this guy down! You’re just full of steroids and misplaced self-confidence.” Peter limped his way to Steve with so much rage in his eyes that the man several inches taller backed away a little. “ So yeah, I’ve got nothing for you. No plan, no ideas, no trust, LIAR!” he had an accusing finger stabbing at Steve’s chest.

This, of course, was the exact time he started to feel light-headed. He stumbled back a little and barely caught his footing. After not standing for so long, thirty full seconds made his useless body want to give up.

He could sense angel lady and Rhodey being ready to catch him when he inevitably fell. He looked at Cap one last time, who also seemed like he was worried that Peter was going to fall.

“I… I don’t feel so good-” His voice shook, less than a second later, his vision turned black and he collapsed to the floor.

The next time he woke up, it was days later. He physically felt as good as new but that changed when he was told what happened while he was sedated. The Avengers came back with Thanos’ blood on their hands but no infinity stones. Thanos had the last laugh when he used the stones to destroy the stones. He destroyed the only thing that could get everyone back and it finally sunk in what happened. They were all gone. And unless they had some reality-defying solution, it would be for good.

***

FIVE YEARS LATER

***

Peter had moved on. Or at least he thought he did. For the first year after the snap, he put all his effort into finding a solution. He didn’t find one. He had to move on. Without MJ or Ned or even Flash, he didn’t have a reason to stay in the same grade. He finished high school early. He sped through college and when he turned eighteen, he revealed his identity to the world and became an official avenger.

He also became best friends with the new black panther and queen of Wakanda. They were both incredibly smart and the same age and were enhanced with the theming of an animal. She was the only person he could feel normal with. Well, It started out as best friends, it evolved a little beyond that.

They became an unstoppable duo, superheroing and not superheroing. They made a pretty good team in smash. Shuri always played Samus and Peter always played Kirby. Peter visited Wakanda when he couldn’t stand living in the city, they worked endless hours in her labs and alternated music choices to blast at ungodly volumes. It was some of the best times of his life.

He moved past Thanos and he finally felt kind of stable. That was until Scott Lang came back from the quantum realm with ideas that have already been thought of. Peter and Shuri had already tried time travel to get their loved ones back but for some reason, this was different. Scott came to them. Most people wouldn’t come to them, they were often underestimated for their intelligence and sometimes ego was a larger factor than actual intellect.

Ant-Man came to Peter and Shuri because right now, they were his best bet to get everyone back. At the moment, they were probably the smartest people on the planet. Sure it wasn’t as taboo as when they were teenagers but they were still too young to be respected as tech geniuses.

But Peter wasn’t ready to change everything again. He had finally found peace after years of trauma and loss. Of course he wanted everyone back but he didn’t know if trying again would just make everything worse. The world had moved on and accepted what happened. It had been over for years, reopening old wounds, potentially for nothing, did not sound fun.

That’s why he said no at first. Even the idea of Thanos still scared the shit out of him. Thanos was dead. At least this version of Thanos was. If they went back in time to get the stones… Thanos would still be alive. Peter thought he had seen the last of that dried eggplant asshole.

He worked on the time travel simulations after Shuri had gone to bed. Scott was staying in a guest room in the palace and Peter was all alone, with barely any hope, trying to solve time travel. Then he did it. At two AM when he was about to give up, he did it. The simulation worked. With the information Scott had about the quantum realm, they could use it to time travel and actually control where they went.

He could get them back… May, Tony, Ned, MJ… all of them. He could bring them back…

He spent the rest of the night crying with joy until he fell asleep on his desk. For once his sleep was peaceful. He dreamed of seeing them again.

***

“I figured it out.” He brought up, out of nowhere the first time they were all gathered for a hologram meeting with the avengers all around the world and the few in space. “Time travel. I figured it out. We can get the stones from the past and use them now to bring everyone back.”

There was silence for a moment as everyone thought about what he said.

“You… figured out time travel?” Natasha said and if Peter wasn’t mistaken, she sounded impressed.

“At least the method. It will take a few days to make the actual time machine. But it is possible and my simulations have been successful. We only have enough Pym particles for nine of us round trip excluding two tests. We’ll have to split up into teams to collect the stones so that we can get to them all. We can discuss everything at the compound after the machine is built so… avengers assemble I guess.” Peter said calmly, but he couldn’t keep a smile from his face.

“Well, you heard Spider-Man, Avengers Assemble.”

***

Peter decided not to go on the time-traveling adventure. They would need tech geniuses on both sides, just so nothing would go wrong. Shuri would go with Professor Hulk, Captain America, and Ant-Man to New York 2012, Carol would go with Rhodey to get the power stone from some planet in the past, punk Hawkeye and Black widow were going for the soul stone, and hobo Thor with Rocket, going to Asgard for the reality stone. The hulk had managed to get Thor out of his hole in New Asgard.

Hawkeye had tested the time machine by going into the past and saving some enhanced kids’ life. Someone named Piedro. He was apparently the magic girl’s brother. Well, she better be thankful when they bring her back from the dust.

“Everyone ready?” Peter said as he flipped all the switches and pressed all the buttons that he needed to get the large time machine set up. The avengers came into the room wearing their black and red quantum nano suits sans helmets.

The vibranium gauntlet that was to hold the infinity stones was waiting to be used beside him. It was hard to accept that for him, it was only going to be a minute before all of the stones were together. They were so close to bringing everyone back that it was almost impossible for Peter to wrap his head around it.

The Avengers took their places on the platform with Shuri bringing up the rear. Before she started on the steps, she leaned down to where he was sitting and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. She smirked at how red his face turned. Natasha snorted at his reaction. Rocket scoffed something that Peter couldn’t quite hear.

“Stay safe your highness. And uh, I guess everyone else.” Peter smiled shyly. “Okay, sending you all off in 3… 2...1!” He twisted a nob and everything started to glow. In a flash, everyone was gone.

“And they should be back in… 3… 2… 1!” He talked to himself as a flash of light flooded the room and everyone was back. Well, almost everyone. Everyone’s helmets disappeared and Natasha had tears in her eyes. Clint wasn’t in the group that came back. There was a moment of silence between all of the Avengers and Shuri jogged towards Peter and almost suffocated him in a hug.

“Woah woah, what happened? You okay?” He said worriedly.

“It’s fine, there were just a few bumps in the road.” She sighed. She looked a little bruised and had a few bloody wounds, nothing too bad though.

“It was a sacrifice…” Natasha said weakly. “It was the only way to get the stone…”

The room went quiet once again. They weren’t prepared for a casualty.

***

They would mourn Clint later, they had all the stones and could finally get everyone back. Peter’s veins were filled with adrenaline. He had never been so excited in his life. He wanted everyone back so fucking bad, but so much had changed. Would they even recognize him now? He was in his early twenties, he had grown so much. Physically and as a person. God, he was probably taller than Tony now…

“I’ll do it.” Carol interrupted his train of thought. Oh yeah, they were trying to decide who would do the snap. “I can absorb the energy that tries to damage me. I’m the safest option.” She said definitively. Thor and Professor Hult seemed to try to argue but Carol talked them down. It wouldn’t hurt her as it would hurt them. She was practically made of infinity stone energy, if anything, it could make her stronger.

Peter had used an enclosed robot arm to place the stones in the dark vibranium gauntlet and it was ready to be used. Carol picked it up and put it on impatiently. They had already waited five years for this moment, none of them wanted to wait any longer.

Arcs of multi-colored light grew on Carol’s arm, she didn’t even wince. She closed her eyes and snapped. There was no more lead up, she just did it.

Peter was the only one that felt an immediate change. He felt what he could only describe as a sigh of relief. It was like all the background noise he tended to tune out was doubled. He just felt the presence of people. It worked. Oh god, it worked. After all this time, they did it. Holy fuck.

It wasn’t a dramatic moment, it was just something that they couldn’t wait to be done. There was no music to confirm that everyone was back, they just had to trust that it worked. It only took a moment for the changes to prove that they happened.

Peter’s phone rang. He whipped it out at the speed of light and sobbed a little when he saw who it was. He didn’t hesitate to answer.

“Peter? Is that you? Can you please tell me what’s going on?” May’s voice sounded a little bit shaky. It took Peter a moment to find his voice.

“Yeah, yeah, it’s me… It’s a little bit of a long story.” He quickly wiped a tear from his eye and shuffled out of the room of avengers. He didn’t what them staring at him. They probably also had a few calls to make. Including one to Clint’s family.

“Why does your voice sound so weird? Are you sick?” May asked.

“My voice is not what you should be focusing on. A whole lot has happened. You might want to sit down…” He said as he did the same. He knew May would be distraught for missing out on his life but it’s not like she had a choice.

“Peter!” Carol’s voice came frantically from the other room. “Kid! Get in the quinjet!”

“Sorry May, I’ve got to go. I’ll explain everything later!” Peter knew that if Carol was panicking, something must have really gone wrong. He ended the call and jumped up to sprint outside to the quinjet. He could vaguely sense the rest of the avengers following him, with a little bit of emphasis on Rocket’s scampering on all fours like the animal he looked like.

Carol scrambled to the pilot’s seat and everyone, even those who could fly independently, filed into the dark jet.

“Okay, can someone tell me what the hell is going on now?” Peter groaned as he stood behind Nebula who was in the co-pilots chair.

“Sorry kid, I guess I got ahead of myself.” Carol sighed. “I just wanted to bring everyone back, I didn’t think that the black order would come back too.”

“Including Thanos or not including Thanos?” Peter’s voice shook and may have risen a few octaves.

“We don’t know, but their ships are gathering above New York City.”

“We still have the infinity stone right? You can just dust them can’t you?”

“The gauntlet is practically unusable. Even made of vibranium it couldn’t stand the strength of the infinity stones.”

“You absorbed the first snap, right? Maybe you could just hold the stones or something.” He said frantically as they took off and headed to the city at full speed. It would only take them a few minutes to get there.

“I almost couldn’t contain the power from the first one with the gauntlet. If I used them without it, I’d explode.”

“Then explode near their ships,” Peter suggested.

“I’ll think about it.” She snorted in response. “I can deal with the ships and hopefully the black order is easily knocked off of the playing board. We need people dealing with civilians.”

“I’ll go. My weapons didn’t do much to these guys last time…” Rhodey said.

“Me too.” Natasha nodded. “Unless you want me to sneak on their ship and take hold of their weapons. I can do that too.”

“Can I come?” Antman asked as his mask flipped on his head. “I can help with small stuff!”

“Sure, go for it,” Carol said, accidentally becoming the leader instead of the other captain. Neither of them really seemed to care.

Peter stayed quiet as they discussed plans, he thought this was all over… He thought Thanos was gone but apparently, he might not be and that scared the shit out of him. Only minutes ago he was pretty damn happy that they brought everyone back but now it could all be undone again and Peter really wasn’t ready.

Okay maybe he was panicking a little but not one was noticing so it didn’t matter. Maybe he was just overthinking it, they had everyone back, it wouldn’t be like last time.

“Spidey, were you listening?” Shuri seemed to realize that Peter was having a little bit of trouble but didn’t point it out.

“Uh, kinda. You should repeat it just to make sure…”

“We’re splitting up the stones since we can’t exactly use them. Carol is taking the power stone since she’s the only one that can hold it, I’m taking the mind stone because I might be able to figure it out, Cap gets time, yadda yadda yadda. You get the Soul Stone. The guardian of the soul stone said that it was different from the other stones so we need someone special to protect it. Someone fast and with a danger sense. Anyway, we’re about there. Just make sure the stones are split up so that we can defeat Thanos without them. Got it? Cool.” Shuri rambled at a speed that only Peter could follow along with.

“Cool.” Peter put on his web-shooters and activated the nanites inside them. The nanotech left their containment and covered his body in his suit. He had adjusted the design of the iron spider suit and even got vibranium added to the mix. There were several lines and points in the suit that had a slight indigo glow from the metal but Peter kept the bright red sections. For the aesthetic. It was the perfect amalgamation of starktech and Shuri’s Wakandan technology with Peter’s own designs sprinkled throughout.

Carol gave him the little orange stone. It seemed too small to be one of the most powerful items in the galaxy. Even through his suit, it was warm. He could feel it’s energy. He put it in a pocket in his web-shooter. Normally the place had extra web fluid but he forgot to refill it. It managed to be the perfect size, thank god.

Then he remembered that people were sacrificed for this little glowing rock. Hawkeye… Nebulas sister… This tiny stone definitely was different than the others. The other ones could be stollen, this one had to be paid, and the price was a little steep by Peter’s standards.

He really hoped that the soul stone wasn’t affected by inflation and that it was always a soul for a soul. Maybe a thousand years ago it was a different cool rock for the magic glowing stone. Like a geode from a national park gift shop for the soul stone. He realized that he may have zoned out a little.

The quinjet hovered above the city and the avengers got ready to jump out. Flyers automatically paired up with non-fliers. Nebula stayed in the cockpit to man the jet while Carol paired herself up with Natasha. Rhodey had Rocket snarling on his shoulder with a gun as big as he was.

One by one, the pairs of avengers leaped out of the quinjet. Except for Captain America, who didn’t need anyone to jump with, he didn’t even have a parachute. From what Peter knew about Steve, that was completely normal.

Peter put his arm safely around Shuri’s waist and jumped out. Shuri whooped like she was on a rollercoaster as if they weren’t going into battle with a resurrected intergalactic warlord. It’s not like he hasn’t taken her web-slinging before, in much safer circumstances.

The city was smoldering and civilians were running as far away as they could. Tripping on debris on the way. Peter spotted people stuck in a crumbling building and as if they had a neurological connection, he and Shuri went to work.

There was a reason they were paired up so often. They were an extremely fluid team that was constantly on the same page. They never had to tell each other what to do, they just knew what they were doing. Okay, they weren’t perfect but they had worked together for years and they knew each other pretty well. Shuri usually depended on Peter to catch her when she fell and he usually did.

This was why when Peter threw Shuri into the window of the building, she didn’t swear at him. With both of his hands free and Shuri in the building with the trapped people, he was able to make a large net with his webs. Shuri helped the family jump into the webbing for Peter to escort to the ground, to run as far away from the carnage as fast as they could.

They carried on like this, staying away from the main fight and helping everyone that needed to be helped until a flash of light caught Peter’s attention. He and Shuri were on a building only a few buildings away from where the flash came from.

It was him. It was Thanos. Below him was Steve, bloody and bruised and broken. He looked dead but Peter hoped otherwise. The glowing green gem hovered in between the mad titan’s massive fingers. One stone down… five to go. Peter shuttered at the thought. The time stone was one of the worst ones for him to get first. Well, any of them would be terrible for him to have but Time was a really bad start.

The purple Hitler alien grinned smugly and sent the black order out to find the rest of the stones. He did so, very dramatically.

“We need to split up,” Peter said urgently.

“That’s what I was going to suggest. We’ve already been risking it with two infinity stone so close together. I wouldn’t be surprised if that asshole can smell them like a dog.” She hissed. She took a precious moment that they could’ve spent running by giving him an urgent kiss. “For luck?” she suggested as she jumped off of the roof. Peter rolled his eyes but started web-slinging the opposite way. He could already tell that he would need that good luck.

For the next half hour, everything was so chaotic that Peter wasn’t sure he could perceive it all. He was pretty sure that he pulled someone from under the debris of a collapsed building, he saved a kid from space Voldemorts telepathic attacks that were missing whatever avenger he was currently after.

One by one, Thanos collected the stones, whether through his minions or himself. He took down each avenger, one at a time. If they had a stone or not. They lost Space, Reality, Mind, and Power. Peter became the last Avenger with an infinity stone. He became the last avenger standing.

When he saw the yellow flash of light, he knew Shuri was caught and he stopped whatever he was doing. He cried out a few choice expletives, Hoping that the bastard had only taken the stone and not her life.

Peter was the last one left. If Captain Marvel couldn’t kick this guys ass, there was no way that he could. Everyone was down except for him. That was a lot of pressure. Not many things could distract him from what was happening in front of him but something managed.

There was a burning pain through his wrist, where he hid the soul stone. It didn’t distract him long, he could ignore it for a minute. But he had to do something. He was the only one that could do something.

So he stepped out into the light and let his nanite mask retract. He wanted his face to show. He wanted to breathe the burning air and he wanted to show Thanos that he wasn’t afraid. This was odd because he had been scared to death of Thanos for half a decade, to a point where he had panic attacks over it, but now, all he felt was rage. A hot burning rage that ignited his veins.

He snuck around the broken city in complete silence. His plan could only work if he had the element of surprise. He couldn’t go against all of the black order and Thanos at once. After an eternity of obsessively controlling his breathing and every movement he made, he was in position. He was right behind Thanos.

He took a breath. A moment to collect his thoughts before shit went down and he was going to get hurt. In… and out... In … and out. He lept into action.

In a flash, he flipped over the titan and grabbed blindly at the gems already in the gauntlet. Good news, he managed to get one. Bad news, it was the power stone and Thanos grabbed him by the throat before he was able to get away. His arm burned with the violet energy as Thanos inspected him with a chuckle that only a bad guy could utter.

“They gave a child the soul stone?”

“I know I look young but come on, I don’t look that young.” He wheezed and wasted what little breath he had. His arm still burned but it was fading, it was as if the soul stone and the power stone were canceling each other out.

“It is impressive how long you were able to evade us, but my will is inevitable, the fight is done now. Give me the stones or I will rip them from your corpse.” The titan said calmly as if he was actually giving Peter the choice and not threatening to murder him.

“I don’t think I will.” Peter rasped. “Jesus Christ, if you let me breathe I might be able to actually talk to you… is this normally how negotiations work with you?” Peter noticed his fist holding the power stone and in the same hand as the soul stone was starting to heat up. Not burning destructively like it was before, but with power that was starting to course through him.

Thanos tightened his grip and raised Peter to the sky, cutting off his air and displaying him thousands of feet in the air. That’s when he started to hear a distantly familiar noise. Like a sparkler on the fourth of July multiplied by a million. He could see golden sparks out of the corners of his eyes. Thanos’s expression tightened but he didn’t react to the portals that Peter knew were starting to appear on top of buildings around him.

“Kid?” A painfully familiar voice yelled from somewhere behind him. He was starting to blackout, his lungs begged painfully for air but he couldn’t even gasp. “Let go of him!”

Peter smiled in between dry gasping like a fish out of water. He saw his fist glowing the orange of the soul stone with a fiery intensity. He closed his eyes and reached out to the soul stone. He finally understood. The little glowing rock was alive. The Soul was the most alive thing in the universe. And it was just as angry as Peter was.

Peter’s vision went white. Not because Thanos had successfully choked him to death, but because of the blast. The energy from the soul stone in contact with the power stone caused a concentrated white-hot explosion that didn’t even affect Peter. He wasn’t blown back, he just landed on the roof of the building as Thanos and the black order all around him were blown away with ease.

He frantically turned around, desperately hoping to catch a glimpse of Tony but his spider-sense went off before he could see his long lost mentor. He jumped off the skyscraper before a blast of energy could catch him off guard.

The soul stone led him to the fallen avengers which were all thankfully, not dead. Peter reached out his hand and the cloudy orange energy lazily floated into their bodies like fog. Wounds faded and gasps of breath echoed from around them. Once Peter knew they were okay, he left.

He swung up to a vacant rooftop and took his first full look at the reinforcements. There were at least four armies, the Wakandan army led by T’Challa, The Asgardian Army led by Valkarie, a mess of aliens behind the resurrected guardians of the galaxy and a few hundred wizards in matching robes, led by Doctor Strange. That wasn’t even including all of the undusted avengers and other heroes that stood at the front lines.

Then, Peter saw a glint of red fly out of the corner of his eye and smiled as he turned his head towards it. Moments later, Tony landed in a fresh bleeding-edge suit, his helmet melted back faster than Peter thought that it could.

“Hey, Mr. Stark. It’s been a little while.” Peter was staying cool for now but he was so close to crying. Tony looked exactly like he did before, maybe a little smaller but that was probably on Peter’s side. He did grow a few inches over the years.

“Peter? Is that really you? You look so… mature.” The man joked and raised his eyebrow.

“I better be, It’s been five years after all... You have been gone for a hot second.” Peter grinned, just glad to see Tony alive and in front of him. He could hear Tony’s heartbeat and it was the most beautiful sound.

“Five years? That’s why you’re so tall.” Peter laughed at Tony’s reaction and couldn’t restrict himself any longer, he hugged his old man.

“I missed you… you don’t even know…” It took a moment but Tony hugged back, just as tightly.

“Thank god someone did, That strange guy seemed rather annoyed that I was with them on Titan.”

“Wait, shit,” Peter pulled back from the hug, “We’re in the middle of a fight. Hugs later okay, the big bad guy still has four singularities that are super powerful by themselves.”

“Yeah, that sucks. Want a piggyback ride to the middle of it?” Tony offered as his helmet folded back on.

“Sure.” Peter shrugged. Moments later, he stood on Iron Mans back like he was a magic carpet. Moments later he dove off to confront Thanos again. This time, he was aware of the power that he held.

The only thing life really needed was a soul, and Peter had the essence of the soul in his hand. No time, no reality, no mind would change the fact that he was in control of life. That’s why it was the only stone that needed a sacrifice, that’s why it required the ultimate sacrifice. Because it was more powerful than the power gem. It was alive and it was angry. It had a will and a connection to every living thing. Including Thanos.

Thanos, in all his strength and intelligence, was not immune to the soul stones rage. No time, no space, no reality, no mind could save him.

It was almost disappointing how easy it was. So anticlimactic. The raging energy ate through the titan like he was paper in a flame. The armor didn’t matter, the stones didn’t matter. In moments, he was gone. After Thanos was defeated, the black order was taken down easily.

It was over. It was finally over. Everything was back to normal.

***

Okay, maybe not back to normal but families were reunited, friends were back from the dead and every other problem seemed pretty minuscule. That’s why, after everyone had a nap, the Avengers had a massive party at the compound.

Everyone’s families were invited, May was there, Carol joyfully hung out with her cat goose, Maria, Monica, and Nick Fury, Sam Wilsons mom was there, she even took the time to make cookies, the Wakandan royal family was there and literally hundreds more people. Everyone was glad to be alive and there was an incredible amount of catching up that needed to be done.

Both T’Challa, May, and Tony were pretty stunned to see Shuri and Peter together but after a moment of thought, it really made sense.

Rocket was crying as he hugged a tree teenager and denied the crying bit. He also seemed happy that the rest of his friends were alive, except Nebula’s sister but most of his friends were undusted.

Thor was still kind of glum but a few conversations with Professor Hulk and Valkarie got him laughing heartily. His family may be gone but he still had his friends.

Peter reunited with Ned and MJ, which was weird at first because he was older than them, and MJ didn’t know that he was Spider-Man, she suspected but she didn’t really know. It didn’t take long for them to realize that Peter was still Peter even though he was a little taller now. He was still the same nerd who had to refrain from giving away Star Wars spoilers from movies and TV shows they didn’t know existed.

It wasn’t all good though, while Ned and MJ took advantage of being around every superhero they had ever idolized, May lowkey started flirting with Carol, and Tony was being hogged by Pepper and Happy, Peter stook in a corner, still trying to accept that everything was fixed.

Even though everyone was back now, he still felt odd. He guessed that everything didn’t just suddenly resolve after everyone was brought back to life. The snap didn’t erase what had already happened. Peter had still spent five years separated from all of his friends and family. He had spent so much time mourning only to get everyone back years later. Those feelings didn’t just disappear.

It felt like a dream that they were all back. His mind sending him a reminder of what they looked and sounded like but he knew they were real. He could hear their heartbeats and laughs across the room. They were alive and Peter was so happy, they missed so much.

Peter had changed while they were gone, he was still Peter, he was just more traumatized and more withdrawn. He had grown but he was still the same. He still liked to hang upside down to nap and he was still bad at cooking but not baking. He was just taller and more in tune with his powers and diagnosed with a panic disorder.

In the long run, those changes wouldn’t matter, at least not to people who truly cared. It would just take them a few weeks to get back into the flow of normal life with the people they thought they lost.

It was like half of the universe was Captain America-ed for five years where literally everything changed. Earth became part of the universe, known to other planets as a complete powerhouse instead of an easy steal for some galactic empire. There were more humans in space than ever before and the snap affected everything. Ecosystems, culture, interplanetary and international relations, governmental control, and practically every aspect of normal human life was changed forever.

Peter was shaken out of his thoughts with Shuri handing him a plate full of deserts. He immediately bit into a cookie.

“Something on your mind?” She asked as she stole the cookie from his hand. He didn’t even react.

“Yeah, I know everything’s all fixed and everyone is back, but I don’t know, it feels weird.” He shrugged and grabbed another treat from the plate, knowing that the cookie was lost.

“I know, a lot happened in five years. We already mourned them and cried for them, and poof, they’re back. It’s not bad it’s just, weird.” She nodded.

“I just don’t feel like the same person that they all knew. Like for them, it’s been five seconds and for us, it’s been five years.”

“Does it matter? You are you. No matter your age or what you’ve been through. People change and grow and they just have to get used to who you are now.”

“Yeah, you’re right. I can’t turn back time to be sixteen again, I definitely don’t even want to. I like the me that I am now, but it’s not the same as my friends and family know. Whatever, this is a party, not therapy.”

“That is true, it is time to avoid our problems like there’s no tomorrow!”

And they did.

***

It was three in the morning and Peter was still awake. Not because he wasn’t tired, he definitely was, but because he was afraid of what would come when he closed his eyes. Instead of sleeping, he was in Tony’s lab. He had spent so much time there during the five years of missing his mentor.

Working always helped, it kept him focused. It was calming and it came naturally for him. He played music in the background that was everything from comedy bands to musicals to modern rock and classic rock. It was so much easier to avoid his problems than deal with them.

“Hey Friday, turn down the music, I need to talk to you.” He said while he was pacing and not working on anything at all.

“Of course. What do you want to talk about?” The AI replied cheerfully. She seemed a lot happier since Tony returned.

“I think it’s time to change your primary user back to Tony. He’s alive again so the ‘EDITH’ protocol should be reset. That also means to give back the trust and all that. I can’t rely on my inheritance anyway…” He rambled.

“I’m sorry Peter but I cannot do that. Boss locked the ‘Old Man’ protocol for his retirement. He wants to keep ‘EDITH’ in place.”

“I mean he’s not dead so why would he keep it?”

“It’s getting a little late kid,” Tony spoke from behind Peter. He turned to the man and shrugged.

“Not a kid. I’m old enough to drink but it doesn’t even do anything so that sucks.”

“Believe me, that’s a good thing. You don’t even get hangovers?”

“No, I can’t even get high dude. Weed is useless.” He sighed. Tony laughed.

“You should seriously go to bed though it’s been a pretty long day.”

“I couldn’t even if I wanted to.” Peter pouted.

“Poor baby.” Tony practically dragged Peter out of the workshop, it had been a pretty long day.

“I’m a little too tall to be a baby.” Peter yawned.

“You’re always going to be my baby,” Tony said surprisingly fondly.

“I’m taller than you.”

“Not emotionally,” Tony noted. Peter snorted in response as they wandered to his bedroom. In the five years of living there, it had barely changed. There were still three Star Wars posters on the wall and the desk was still a mess. The only thing that really changed was the comforter on the queen-sized bed. It had a little flying Iron Man pattern on it and little arc reactors. It used to be a solid scarlet.

“I love you, you know that right? I didn’t get to tell you before and I never want the opportunity to slip away ever again. You’ve been like a dad to me and I could never ask for anyone better. Shit, don’t tell Ben that…” Peter embraced Tony before he left for the night. Tony’s hand instinctually combed comfortingly through his kid’s hair.

“I love you too kid. It’s been rough for you lately but it’s okay now. You saved the universe, not many people can say that.”

“I know right, what are the perks of that? Do I get free food a McDonald’s or something? I mean Jesus got several holidays for saving mankind in some indefinable way, will my birthday become like a day off of school or something?” Peter joked as he stepped back.

“Now that’s an idea… who do you contact for making a holiday…”

“Okay no, don’t do that. Don’t you dare.” Peter said in a serious tone.

“Fine, good night Spider-Jesus.” Tony started to head back to his own room with Pepper.

“I’m not the one that came back from the dead, whatever. Good night Iron Jesus.” He sighed and flopped into bed. He was out like a light in moments. Even if he had a nightmare, he would always wake up to something better than any dream he could conjure. And that was enough.

#webclaws #irondad #endgame fix it #infinity war fix it #MCU fic #queen shuri #black panther shuri

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come2life · 4 years

Text

The Budding game

Consumption of Cannabis in India has been on an all-time high. Mumbai and Delhi claim a spot in the list of “most marijuana consumption” cities in the world. Children from the age of 15 are introduced to cannabis, which makes it certain that it's not really a taboo anymore. There are many theories and opinions on Mary Jane and honestly, everything has its pro’s and con’s. But it's a fact cannabis is better than smoking and drinking - mentally and physically.

What is Cannabis?

Cannabis is a plant which is divided into three types : Indica (sedating/peace), Sativa (energetic) and Ruderalids (mix of the two). It is usually consumed for its peaceful and calming effects, but not many know that it actually aids in mental/medical conditions, pain, poor appetite etc. The two main components of cannabis are THC and CBD.

THC (Tetrahydrocannabidiol) - The psychoactive component which enhances the “high” which people usually tie cannabis with.

CBD (Cannabidiol) - The non-psychoactive component which doesn’t give a “high”. It helps in reducing pain and inflammation, anxiety, seizures, migraines etc.

The drug is not well regulated among athletes due to it being a banned substance by the anti-doping bodies. While many athletes across the world consume and advocate for legalizing it in sports, cannabis still is considered “more dangerous” than alcohol and tobacco. According to the anti-doping bodies, cannabis acts as a “performance enhancement drug” which puts the health at risk and goes against the spirit of sports. Many experts believe that cannabis increases performance just like the way a healthy diet does.

Awareness needs to be spread on how cannabis can positively affect an athlete, its performance and longevity in the sport. Let’s not forget that this has played an important role in shaping up our cultural and historic values as a country. The usage of the plant was first mentioned in the Vedas. According to The Vedas, cannabis was one of five sacred plants and a guardian angel lived in its leaves. The Vedas call cannabis a source of happiness, joy-giver, liberator that was compassionately given to humans to help us attain delight and lose fear and release anxiety.

Adolescence plays an important role for the injuries upon athletes. The younger generation are more susceptible to succumb to injuries. We have so many sports (cricket, football, kabaddi, badminton, athletics etc) that injuries are bound to play an important role to shape the mental and physical shape of an athlete. Let me tell you, injuries can hurt an athlete in ways which you can’t imagine. Its not just the physical pain, it's the ‘defeated’ feeling one experiences. All those years of hard-work is washed away by ONE injury.

In November 2019 I was diagnosed with a slip disc - it was the worst phase I have ever been in (even though I had an ankle crack in 2017 due to football). My daily functioning and mobility was hampered. It was a task to wake up in the morning and walk to the washroom. The feeling of being “broken” crept in which ultimately hindered my mental well-being too! I lost my job, couldn’t leave the bed, did absolutely nothing. During this time, I was taking medicines like M&M’s, the more you take the better you feel but, I was aware that this is “toxic” for my system. The pain was so much that painkillers was the only way I could get in a 4-5 hour sleep cycle. Shortly, I started consuming marijuana to ease the pain and aid in the psychological battle I was facing internally. Now when I look back at it, it wasn’t such a bad choice after-all.

Benefits of Cannabis in sports

1. Eases pain and soreness - Through various studies, it's proven that cannabis helps in easing muscle pain and soreness. This area has shown a lot of positive results. It can work against any sort of muscle pain - from chronic to acute pain to muscle spasms. Also, this is a much safer option as compared to substance abuse.

2. Works against Inflammation - One of the most prominent fields to advocate the positive usage of cannabis. The non-psychoactive component which doesn’t give a “high”, CBD, works as a direct stimulus on sore muscle joints, muscle inflammation etc. It doesn’t work around the injured area by a hot/cold rub but instead, CBD fights inflammation right at its core.

3. Treats Muscle spasms - The medical application of cannabis is treating muscle spasms. This happens when your body goes through extreme wear and tear. Your muscles face dehydration, lack of electrolytes and fatigue due to the exertion which leads to spasms. Using CBD on the affected areas results in muscle to ease and loosen up.

4. Sleep/Recovery - It's not a surprise that THC induces sleep. Resting of the body is the most important factor for an athlete to reach his/her physical peak. Having your muscles ready to function the next day is not an easy task - it takes a good diet and healthy sleeping pattern.

5. Fights Anxiety - It's difficult to remain calm and composed when you are going through an anxiety attack. Why am I saying this? Because 80% of athletes go through this and it is something we really need to address. Controlled levels of THC helps in restoring your mental calmness and composure amidst an anxiety attack which also helps you in getting into the “zone”

6. Improves focus - It's usual for people to think that “stoners are lazy” but on the contrary, that’s false. Cannabis helps in improving your focus. It is believed that smoking cannabis makes you “zone out” but honestly, its about finding the right strain. A Sativa strain heightens your focus and energy to get your pending tasks out of the way.

It's tough to wrap my head around why it isn’t legalized in India after it being deep-rooted to our culture and religion. Regulation on its usage and availability could open a new source of income towards the economy and help athletes in India to pursue their ambitions

If this has helped you in any way possible, please share this with your friends. Subscribe for more wellness content coming soon.

#cannabis #marijuana #THC #CBD #Sports #athletes #wellbeing

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subasekabang · 5 years

Text

Echoes

Rating: T Word Count: 7,738 Pairings/Characters: Beat & Eri & Joshua & Neku & Rhyme & Shiki, side Joshua/Neku and Eri/Shiki Warnings: None Summary: This is how it goes:

Five children are born in Shibuya. Not all at the same time, not all the same age, but five children are born, and a shimmering figure, cloaked in glowing white, visits each child as they enter this world.

A reincarnation AU: Neku, Shiki, Beat, Rhyme, and Eri are all born again, having died after spending over 50 years all living together with the sixth member of their family, Joshua. They all start without their memories, but one by one, the past comes knocking on their door.

Luckily, they all have a guardian angel to keep these troublesome kids safe.

Partner: Zyo, Maro Author’s Note: This was really fun! Glad to participate in my 5th year here! Amazingly, didn’t become another multi-chap WIP this time!

Cross-posted to Ao3 Here

There is a boy, born in a Shibuyan hospital room, to two loving parents and a supportive family.

A boy with bright blue eyes and flecks of gold scattered within.

A boy who will have messy orange hair, except for one stark white streak on his left side.

A boy with two birthmarks, two circles with cracks that spiderweb out. One on his forehead and the other over his heart.

A different boy watches from the windowsill, unseen. A smile graces his lips at the sight of the baby, and Music fills the room as he laughs to himself. Parting words hang in the air, almost-heard, as he disappears.

“Silly Neku, did you really think Shibuya would let go of you that easily?”

This is how it goes:

Beat, the oldest. The first to die, the first to live.

Shiki is next. Born under the sun, died with her three remaining friends by her side.

Eri, second to last, broken heart hanging on no more. Born anew, middle child of the group.

Neku. The last to die. Slipping gentle into that good night, with the whisper of words against his ear, I’ll see you again soon, my dear.

Rhyme, who followed Beat soon after in death. They’re born with stars in their eyes, and a big brother waiting for them. Born ready to greet the people they once knew.

They waited. They all did, of course they did. Departed Souls hanging in the air, to be reunited with each other. Holding hands as they take the plunge, back into the river, back into the world they belong to.

Together.

Save one. Standing to guard them, guide them, a promise on his lips: You’ll be safe. You’ll be happy. You’ll know each other, and someday, you will know me once more too.

“Come on, Neku darling,” his mother calls, smiling down at him as she holds his hand.

Sandwiched between his parents, they walk on to something cool. Or so he’s told. He doesn’t know what they plan to show him. Something about a dog? Or a statue?

Either way, his parents said it’d be cool, so it must be!

A few steps later, and they’re standing in front of Hachiko! The dog statue! Yes, that’s what it was! How could he ever forget Hachiko, the meeting place, reunions, waiting–

“Se̢e̛ ͝yǫu̧ ̀ther҉e?“̛

The burst of TV static leaves Neku clutching his head, falling to his knees. He struggles against the booming pain, the electricity against his teeth.

Hands grip him, worried voices punch through the Noise, as his parents kneel beside him and help steady him. And he’s thankful they’re there, thankful for his parents, but they’re not who he wants, who he needs–

There’s holes, deep in his heart. Dark, empty chambers, desolate wind whipping through them. Echoes of missing pieces, broken, stolen away. Chunks taken from him, people taken from him. His Soul calling out and receiving no response. Anguish no seven year old should know.

And he doesn’t know, does he? Staring out at the statue with tears pooling in his eyes…

What do these feelings mean? Why am I missing something?

A flash. A memory not his own, buried deep, burned onto his eyes, there and forgotten at the same time. An illusion.

He’s there–He’s there, tall and gangly and older, smiling. Surrounded by friends. People he should know but doesn’t. One of them glows.

The second of clarity is met with another burst of agony. Neku pulls pulls at his hair, bites his lip to hide the sounds he wants to make.

Fingers settle on his head, stroke through his hair, and the vision fades, the pain dulls.

Whispered words meet his ears. A glimpse of purple eyes, of white hair. “Rest, my dear.”

Joshua?

A flash of light fills the air.

Neku looks at the dog statue, standing hand in hand with his parents, confused. There’s fuzz in his head, puzzle pieces gone missing. His parents look confused too.

“Hey! Rhyme! Where are you runnin’ to!?” A voice calls out from behind him, and Neku pivots, scrubbing at his eyes–why was he crying?–to look for the source of the noise.

Only to come face to face with another kid, maybe a couple years younger than him.

They stick their hand out and say, “Hi! I’m Rhyme! Our hair matches, cuz we’ve both got a white stripe! Wanna be friends with me and my big bro, Beat?”

“Sure!” He smiles, and takes their hand to shake it, before looking at the other person who stops nearby. He looks closer to his own age. “I’m Neku!”

“Sorry ‘bout Rhyme, yo,” Beat says. “They just love t’ run off. Ya don’t gotta be friends if ya don’t want.”

“Hmph.” Neku crosses his arms, eyeing Beat. He looks nervous, not annoyed so Neku rolls his eyes. “Too bad. We’re friends now! All three of us!”

“More like five of us,” says one of the two girls who show up, holding hands as they trail behind. “I’m Eri, and this is Shiki!”

Shiki nods and waves. “Rhyme did the same thing to us a couple weeks ago. I think they’re trying to collect big siblings. As if Beat isn’t the biggest doting brother there is.”

Everyone else starts to laugh as Beat huffs, so Neku deems it safe to join in and laugh too.

“I just thought you all looked like good friends! And we all match with our hair and cool goldy eyes! That’s all!” they say, still laughing.

It’s at this point that Neku remembers he’s still here with his parents, when he feels his dad settle a hand on his shoulder. Neku looks up at him, a question in his eyes.

His dad just laughs, and nods. “Why don’t we head to the park? You all can play there while us adults keep watch.”

Some of the empty space starts to fill.

“So tell me, Joshua,” Rhyme says, looking at him from their seat at a WildKat booth as he walks in. “Why don’t the others know yet?”

“First off,” he says, settling down across from them, “I don’t think five year olds should be drinking coffee, so that’s mine now.” He takes the cup and drinks, much to their annoyance. “Secondly, do your parents know you’re here?”

They shrug. “They trust Mr. Hanekoma to keep me from getting into trouble.”

That gets him to laugh. “A foolish notion, he just gave you a large.”

“I am a very persuasive child. And you are dodging the question.”

He takes another sip of their coffee while they stare and cross their arms. If they weren’t waiting for answers, they’d go make Mr. H give them more.

“It’d be cruel,” he says finally, “to force their memories to return. It’ll happen naturally, eventually… If it’s meant to happen at all. Yours didn’t come back peacefully, did they?”

Staring out into space–static in their brain. Static–. A car. A shark. A squirrel.

Static.

Needles dragging them to the grave.

Beat but not.

Others?

Static.

A scream escapes their throat, tears its way free, as they fall to the ground, memories pounding in their skull like footsteps on the pavement of the Scramble.

Beat is by their side–but no, he’s dead–but he’s there. Holding them tight, running fingers through their hair.

Tears streak down their cheeks, as seventy-five years of boiling memories pour across their Soul, scalding, burning them to the core.

Static.

They don’t speak for three weeks. Surrounded by animals the others can’t see. Noise flocking to their pain, except not feeding, not taking the negativity. Recognizing them as one of their own.

The first words that break the silence are “Can we go to Hachiko?”

The too-fresh wounds on their Soul, their heart, and the expression they must make, must speak for them, without ever needing words to pass their lips, because Josh just nods.

“If I tried to force memories before they were ready, it’d be worse. If done poorly, there’s a chance they could die. They’ll remember when they’re ready, but I refuse to do that to them.” He sighs, and hoists himself up onto the back of the booth, feet resting on the seat.

“You could still join us! I know you can fiddle with your form, Mr. Composer,” they say, deflecting the conversation away, burying the pain.

“I’m still here,” he says, tired eyes meeting their own. Old eyes, purple far deeper than their memory can recall. The Noise fear of being near the Composer has long worn off, but his presence still prickles at the back of their mind, when they take a step back. “I never left. And I will keep watch over all of you, but it’s not my time to return yet.”

Rhyme nods, listening to his explanation. “Fine. I’ll let that be, for now. But no isolation, Mister! Come hang out with me! See the others when they get their memories back!”

That gets Josh to laugh, a spark returning to his eyes, and he nods. “Alright, alright, I get it. No hiding away from everyone or Rhyme’ll come to the penthouse and drag me out of it by my hair.”

“You bet I will!” They grin, and reach over, swiping the coffee back and taking a huge gulp of it.

“I’m so glad I am not your actual parent right now, or I’d have to do more to stop you. Which is a task in futility, I am well aware.” With a wave of his hand, the coffee cools, and the burning in their mouth fades away.

The burning of their Soul fades too. A cool aloe salve settling over their wound. A soft tune to guide the discordant Music back to the familiar melody.

Sure, the ache of it had dulled before, no longer throbbing, demanding to be felt. But the pain was still there. The presence of the others made it fade, as it stubbornly refused to completely go away.

Rhyme slumps back in their seat, setting the coffee down and letting out a sigh of relief. “Thanks.”

Joshua smiles, so soft and fond. Nostalgic like the fresh bread they’d all make together. Flour ending up on shirts and in hair, dough stuck to hands and foreheads. Sunshine filtering through the windows and the smell filling the apartment.

“Of course,” he replies. “Pain is not allowed to touch you while I’m around.”

By the time the conversation ends, Rhyme has a new necklace. A white feather, dangling from a silver string.

Parents talk, of course.

It’s odd, they all agree, how fast their children became friends, but ah well, kids will do what they do. It’s not the weirdest thing that’s happened.

Rhyme’s three-week silence was weirder, but that happened before this.

(They were a case of their own.

Staring off into space is normal. Speaking and giving advice like an adult is not, no matter how many books they’ve read by five. Books far beyond their reading level.)

The fact that all five kids have a matching white lock of white hair mixed in with their natural color is strange. As is the fact that they all have flecks of gold in their eyes.

But the icing on this cake of weird is the luck.

Children get sick, that’s what they do. Children get into danger, and scrape their knees or break their bones. Or they get lost. Children do dumb and stupid things and learn the consequences. Even parents with the eyes of a hawk can’t protect them all the time.

But.

When their children go missing, and they all panic, it’s for nothing. The kids come trooping back to Neku’s house, with grins on their faces and stories to tell. Safe.

When they fall off bikes or out of trees, there’s never a broken bone, though the skin might be bruised. Miraculous safe landings occur more often than they should.

And sure, they got sick, germs spread when they all insisted on piling on top of whoever fell ill this time, but it didn’t stick. Flus shaken off in a day or two.

It’s like they all have a guardian angel.

Shiki is twelve when it happens. A weekend morning at the park, Beat and Rhyme not yet there.

Twelve year old girls, so full of fire and rage. Protectiveness and spite. Some of the most creative people in the world.

The bark of her words is not the only damage she can deal. The sting of claws, teeth meant to bite, feet and fists can bruise the skin. A rough-and-tumble girl, no fear in her heart when her friends of five years stand by her side.

So when people make fun of Beat for the way he speaks, or Neku when he bounces in place and talks about art and music for an hour, or Eri for being vain for liking fashion, they get an elbow to the face.

“And what’s up with that creep you all keep around! The know-it-all baby who acts like they’re better than everyone! Maybe you freaks wouldn’t have so much trouble being normal if you stopped bleaching part of your hair!”

“Shut! Up! What do you get from being mean? You’re just mad because you think you’re better than us! We’ll you’re not, and I think you know that already!” She throws her hands to the side, glaring up at the older boys as the wind starts to swirl the fallen leaves around them. Picking them up, circling the group, and even if they’re all too old (or too young) to believe in magic, they know when to run.

It’s sharp. The wire buzzing under her skin, the rope she walks, careful not to fall into the unknown. Tension just beneath the surface, a shark’s fin cutting the water.

The wire snaps at the contrast. So different from the past. Surrounded by friends and family that have made her brave.

She f a l l s …

F̲͙̠̎̅͋̒̓̈́͌

Ȁ̭̳̝̗̺̠͓ͮͨ̓̉ͬ

L̺̠͙͇ͤ͛ͦ̃ͧ̂̈

L̤͚̫̽͛ͯ̈̌̔ͅ

S͎̝̻̺͎̰̃͛͑́͒̾ͅ

Plunged deep into the arctic abyss, reaching, grasping up at the glimmer of light above the surface. Back stinging from contact, struggling to pull up. Frozen heat burning as the ice clings to her skin, sinks to her bones, strands of hair already turned to frost as they sway in front of her face. Darkness closing in as the water claims her soul.

The bubbles leaving her mouth float up, though, and she uses that to orient herself, pushing, dragging her body and world-weary soul up and up and up into the sunlight.

There’s hands. Hands pulling her back up, helping her sit, and she blinks away the vision in her eyes. She’s not plunging into the oceanic depths of Shibuya’s Soul, she’s flat on the concrete, body scraped up and in pain, but it’s no more than an echo of the ache in her Soul.

“Shiki, oh my god, Shiki? Are you okay? Did they hit you, cuz if they did I’ll mess em up. Can you hear me? Do I need to call an ambulance? Your parents?” Eri is fretting at her side, holding her steady, as Neku talks on his phone. No doubt already explaining to her parents what happened.

They’re both so young. So tiny and fragile. Age rests in her bones, as she looks at her friends with weary eyes.

Except–That’s not right. She’s just as old-young as the rest of them.

“I’m–I’ll be fine,” she says. And her voice feels wrong. So high pitched and scratchy. Different from before. “I just wanna go home and sleep.”

Neku hangs up and walks closer, putting an arm around her, as Eri takes the other side. With their help, she stands, and the world only spins a little bit.

“Your parents are on the way, too. We’re going to meet up with them,” he says. “Are you sure you’re okay? That was a bad fall.”

Shiki shakes her head, and then freezes, a wave of nausea hitting as she does that. So she focuses on Neku, taking in his unruly spiky hair, no hair gel needed right now. His depressive emo phase hasn’t hit this time, and she hopes it never will. It won’t, if she has anything to say about it. Blue eyes so light and full of concern, but not of pain. Not of age weighing him down.

“I’m okay,” she says. “I’m gonna bruise, but I don’t think I’m concussed. Just… Tripped over my own feet and took a bad fall.”

And that’s that. They both take her at her word, and carry on until they meet up with her parents. She manages to convince them not to take her to the hospital, just to take her home.

Even more impressively, she manages to get Eri and Neku to leave her alone, gets them to go back to the park, to play without her as she crawls into bed and rests.

(She’s older than her parents, even if this body isn’t. She knows things they never will.

Shiki knows how it feels to die. Twice. The energy buzzing under your skin as you fight to regain life.

Dying the second time and knowing this is it. Because Death is sitting at your bedside, holding your hand as the sweet darkness closes in. As your Music unravels into the city that holds your Soul.

Knows the soft ache as your Music cries out for lost loved ones and receives no response. Knows it must’ve been worse for Eri and Neku.

Shiki also knows why their parents think they all have a guardian angel.

Oh, he must’ve hated it when they first called him that.)

In the darkness of her bedroom, in the heart of Shibuya, she is safe.

Safe enough to close her eyes. To rest, until she uses her voice and the silence breaks.

“Joshua, I know you’re here.”

“This is Shibuya, I’m everywhere,” Joshua says, voice old and soft, an ache buried beneath the familiar smirk.

Shiki laughs, and sits up. He looks the same as all those years ago, when she first met him. Small and 15 years old, bigger than she is now but so much less than the last time she saw him. Josh aged with them all, on the surface, maybe to keep them from being weirded out, or maybe to feel like he belonged, she doesn’t know. Neku probably would.

“I suppose I should be thanking my guardian angel, though, because I don’t have a concussion?” She raises an eyebrow at him.

That gets him to scowl. “Of all the things to call me! An Angel I am not! But…” He looks at her again, and softens, smiling. “Yeah. I did my best to keep you little miscreants out of trouble.”

“Thank you,” she murmurs.

Reaching out, Shiki tugs him closer, pulls him down and under the blankets too, so she can flop across his lap. In this life, with all her friends and family, she’s not touch-starved by any means, but the comfort of having him here is nice, as he runs his hand through her hair, and… It’s been years for him, watching from the sidelines.

“Tsk tsk, what would your parents say, Miss Shiki?” Josh grins. “If they catch me in here, a 15 year old boy snuggled up in your bed.”

“Doesn’t matter,” she says, “cuz you won’t be letting them catch you.”

“Yeah, that’s fair.” She can hear the smile in his voice, even without looking. “Get some rest, Shiki. You’re still in pain, and the memories aren’t fully slotted in yet. But I’m here, I’ll help with this.”

She nods, weariness sinking into her as he speaks, and that must be some bullshit magic, but whatever. He’s allowed to do that, it’s been ages since she had an issue with casual use if it helped.

Shiki never could quite hear the Music the way some of the others could, and her UG sight was always blurry, but… She could feel the threads. A seamstress has to know the way things are sewn together, and those bonds? She could sense those.

Even without her memories, those bonds ached, reaching for memories and people that weren’t there. Or those that might’ve been there, but obscured. No understanding of what she felt when she tried to pluck them, or follow them. No knowledge of the hair-pulling pain she felt.

Not until now, curled up against Joshua’s chest, listening to the drumbeat of Shibuya. Senses unexplored blooming back, and she knows these ropes.

Shiki had lost her life, lost her home, and it’s still not all back, but she knows where all the pieces are. She knows they’ll all return.

It just might take some time.

When Shiki wakes, the roaring migraine has settled into a minor headache, and Joshua is gone. The only sign he was ever there is a necklace, one white feather dangling from its cord.

But there’s someone else in his place, sitting in a chair by her bed.

“Rhyme?”

Shiki’s voice cracks, dry throat begging for water, but Rhyme perks up and grins, looking away from their journal to hand a cup to her.

“Shiki!” they clap their hands together. “I’m glad you’re okay! I was worried, you know? I heard about what happened, with you suddenly passing out! So today we all came over–the others are outside–and we’ve all been taking turns keeping watch!”

Shiki drinks, and sets the cup down, raising an eyebrow. “Everyone else is over? You all… Didn’t need to be that concerned. I’m fine!”

“Yeah, I know!” They shut their journal, and lean forward. “It’s only been a day, so I gotta say, you’re handling this waaay better than I did, like five years ago. I wasn’t ready to leave my room for like, three weeks.”

Rhyme’s energetic, rapid-fire talk never ceases to amaze her, but it’s a struggle to keep up right now, dazed as she is. “Handling… what?”

Rhyme frowns, looking Shiki up and down. “What I thought this was. I’m gonna be sad if I’m wrong, actually. Tell me, does the name Joshua mean anything to you?”

And oh– The shock in her eyes must give her away, because Rhyme lets out a sigh of relief. “Cool, awesome, I’m not alone anymore. Not that… Not that I was ever totally alone. I mean, Mr. Hanekoma and Josh are both cool, but I was the only one of us with memories, and it was soooo frustrating!”

“When did you…”

“Five years ago, just before we met,” Rhyme says. “I hunted everyone down, it wasn’t just the similar hair. Though that made it easier.”

Shiki nods, glancing around at her room. She spots one of her sewing projects, and picks it up, working while they talk, so she has something to do with her hands.

“It must not’ve been fun, getting all those memories while so alone,” she says, looking at the small squirrel she’s sewing. Pink, Noise-y. A choice she made without knowing, before. It was going to be a gift for Rhyme.

“Yeah,” they sigh, deflating. “Like I said, three weeks. I didn’t talk, didn’t leave my room, didn’t do anything. The first words I spoke were can we go to Hachiko? They were all so happy I was doing better that they took me. And then I found you.”

She smiles. “You did. I’m glad you did, Rhyme. You found all of us.”

“I did, and… That helped, it really did,” they say. “It hurt though. It felt like someone had poured boiling water on my Soul, and the only thing that helped me deal with the pain was keeping you all close.”

The words make Shiki wince, though that might be the slip of the needle poking at her skin. “I wish I could’ve been there for you more.”

“It’s okay! I’m better now. Joshua eased the pain.”

Josh.

Shiki sits up straighter, and nods. “He–he visited me. He did that for me too, I think. Because I’m not in much pain.”

“He visited you?” they ask, reaching out a hand to help steady her.

“Yeah,” she says, smiling. “Let me tug him around, and I got to fall asleep on top of him. It was nice. Like those times we all just turned into one big pile of people together.”

Rhyme gasps, faking shock. “And you didn’t invite me?”

“Take that up with Josh! He’s the one who knew you remembered. And also the one who wasn’t dying of a migraine.” Shiki laughs, and offers a hand to Rhyme. “But you’re welcome to join me now.”

Rhyme takes it, and she pulls them up onto the bed. They smile, and curl up against Shiki’s side, while she slings an arm around them.

“You know, the others are gonna come back soon for the shift switch, to check in on you, and they’re gonna get super jealous.”

“Who says they’re not invited to join us?”

“Your bed’s weight limit.”

Shiki snorts. “As if the laws of physics apply to us.”

They both laugh, and the bonds holding them together strengthen. Threads of Music finding one less response to search for, one less empty echo of the past.

When the door next opens, and the others find Shiki awake, there’s a mad dash. Shouts fill the air as they catapult themselves onto the mattress.

Shiki is right, and the bed doesn’t break. She thinks a small thank you to Joshua for that.

In the end, Rhyme has settled on top of her, with Beat to her right, Eri to her left against the wall, and Neku sprawled out across their legs.

They all have their various projects with them. Shiki and her sewing, Eri and Neku with their sketchpads (one for designs and one for art, still following their passions even now), Rhyme with a notebook for writing, and Beat with a video game. Brought along in case she wanted quiet company.

They know each other so well.

Even without memories of times just like this, they follow their heart and fall into the same patterns as before.

And if it feels like there’s a wing wrapped around her, or fingers carding through her hair, well.

Josh knows these patterns too, and falls into them like they all do.

For Beat, it happens when he’s 15, just a few days after his birthday.

It happens not out of imagination, or anger, but fear.

Terror gripping his heart in a steel vice as he watches. A car swerving around a turn far too fast, as Rhyme crosses the street.

Feet pound the pavement as he sprints forward, futile even in all his efforts to try and beat a speeding car.

A scene plays out before his eyes. Jumping in front of Rhyme, trying to save them. Getting killed right along with them, nothing but paste on pavement.

A flash of white, and different scene happens instead.

Rhyme yells, and jumps back, slamming into Beat. Neither of them fall, neither get crushed by tires and metal. Instead, they make it back to the sidewalk, and terror shakes in his limbs.

“Rhyme! Be careful!” he says, voice on the edge of tipping into a forest-fire panic. ”I dunno what I would’a done if I lost ya like that again!”

Rhyme, always calm, even in the face of death, flinches. Eyebrows scrunch together, as they look up at him.

“Beat… What do you mean, again? When did I get hit by a car?” they ask, calm. Even, despite the near-miss.

“I– You– When our parents were mad– We– We died?”

He stumbles, falling to the concrete sidewalk as pain roars in his head. There’s something missing. An incomplete deck of cards, a lost puzzle piece.

Except the ace has been found. The puzzle is complete, as the picture slots together.

He vomits. It feels like he’s been hit by that car again. Or maybe by one of Minamimoto’s attacks, and fuck is that dude still around too? Kariya’s definitely ruffled his hair a couple times.

It’s information overload, as over seventy years of life rush back into his brain, pushing at his skull. A torrent of rain flooding the pavement. But Rhyme, always by his side, is there, a steady anchor in the storm.

They hold him up, and help him walk as he stumbles forward. His little sibling, they’d watched him die again. Sat at his deathbed as life faded from him. No doubt confused by the unknown memories tormenting their brother. Scared out of their mind from this turn of events.

“Beat? Beat breathe!” he hears them say, and that helps him focus, but it’s like someone’s shoved his own skateboard through his head.

“Oh, fuck this,” they mutter, and if he could operate his mouth, he’d scold them for their language. But what they shout next makes it hard to focus on anything at all besides the shock.

“Joshua!” they call out, loud and clear. “Get the hell over here and help!”

A flurry of feathers, and then there’s a hand on his back. Soft and steady, as the pain leaks away, flowing out of his body.

“Better?” asks a voice that’s oh so familiar, on the edge of his consciousness. Lilting its way back into his life–his new life. Second–no, third chance at this world.

He blinks, and they’re in a room. His room, except not.

A room he hasn’t seen once these past 15 years, but it’s one he knows in his heart. One he now knows in his brain, too, as he collapses onto the well-worn bed.

“I’ll get you home in a bit, when this subsides. Rhyme, you can tell your parents that you’re spending the night at Shiki’s, yeah?” They must nod, because that’s the end of that discussion. He closes his eyes, trusting these two members of his family to watch out for him.

The next thing Beat knows, he’s warm. A heavy weight on top of him, and more at either side. He must’ve fallen asleep because when he opens his eyes, the sun has shifted, morning light filtering in through the window.

There’s also three extra people crowded on this bed.

Shiki is using his shoulder as a pillow, one arm sprawled across his chest, and Rhyme is passed out on top of him.

The third has wings curled around them all, and is leaning against his other side.

Josh smiles, opening his eyes as he senses Beat wake up. No doubt he was tuned to Shibuya, Composing his–their–city until just now. He looks the same as the day they first met, young and 15 again.

This time Beat knows it’s a lie. But he also knows he doesn’t look his age either, anymore.

“As you can see, they were both very concerned for your wellbeing,” Joshua says. “I mean, I was too, but I knew you’d be fine.”

Beat snorts, but doesn’t move. “Thanks, for whatever ya did. My head’s a lot clearer now, thanks’ta you no doubt.”

“Of course.” There’s a light, fond tone there, and Beat knows he wouldn’t recognize it if it hadn’t been for the fifty years he spent living in the same space as him.

It’s nice to hear that tone again.

“So… Rhyme and Shiki…” His head still hurts, distant pain compared to the cracked-head-against-the-pavement feel he had earlier.

“They’ve both remembered already. That’s why they’re the ones here. The others haven’t yet, but they will.”

He nods, and uncurls his arms from around Rhyme (it’s where they always end up, when he falls asleep with them, in both lives now). “It was when… When they collapsed, ain’t it? Rhyme, back when they was five, an’ Shiki like three years ago, yea?”

“Mhm, spot on. Bravo.” He grins. “That’s how Rhyme knew what was going on, and why they called me. I’m glad they did, really. I’ve been trying to keep the pain you all go through to a minimum.”

Beat leans into the touch as Josh pets his hair, and if this were anyone outside his circle of friends, maybe he’d blush. “Guardian Angel, huh?”

Josh snorts, rolling his eyes. “I swear, all of you are going to be teasing me about that. But yeah, I guess.” He softens again. “None of you deserve to endure more hurt than you’ve felt already. I think you’ve had quite enough of that.”

“Yo, thanks man, really. Ya saved us from that car ‘gain, didn’t you?”

For a second, the only noise is the sound of breathing from three of them, two fast asleep. The echo of his own wings hangs heavy on Beat’s back in the silence. None of them escaped the UG, not really, not in that life. And in this one, with their memories and Josh around, it looks like they might get pulled back in again.

Beat finds he doesn’t care, as long as they’re all together.

In the end, Joshua nods, and takes out a necklace. Simple, one single feather. As he strings it around his neck, he says, “The Game would take you, but you don’t need it. You all already shine, there’s no need for you to face it again. I want you all to be happy. With one last life for you all, if that’s what it takes.”

Eri worries about her friends. There’s a pit of unease that sits in her stomach as she watches them, listens in.

At first, she wasn’t concerned. Sure Rhyme has always been a bit off, but that’s just Rhyme!

But then it spread.

Shiki (wonderful, beautiful Shiki), passed out. And came back different. She’d thought Shiki had just been freaked out by the event, Eri sure was, but no… Something else happened then, and Eri didn’t know what, but Rhyme did.

Still, she lets it rest (even when Beat falls into the same oddness). For a little while, at least.

Curiosity is a dangerous thing.

This is how it goes: Eri is 16, and Shiki is chilling with her in her room. Eri sprawled out on her stomach, across her bed and Shiki’s lap. She’s working on some designs, doodling across her homework instead of doing the dreaded math. Shiki, meanwhile, has given up entirely on said homework, and is stitching together a soft lavender dress, with white feathers embroidered along the edges.

But questions weigh on Eri’s mind.

“Hey Shiki, you’d tell me if something was wrong, right?”

She can feel Shiki tense under her, even as she says, “Of course, why do you ask?”

“Because, I know something’s up. You and Rhyme and Beat all have a secret.” She sighs, and pulls herself in, to sit up and look at Shiki properly.

Shiki’s eyes meet hers, and Eri can see the war waged inside. Conflict in the crash of waves against the cliff, beating away at her resolve. But Eri knows, feels it in her bones that she can’t push too hard, or the whole thing will come falling down.

Dealing that sort of damage isn’t in Eri’s plans. It’s what she hopes to avoid. But these same burning questions are eating away at herself, too. And maybe if she knew, they’d be stronger as two.

“I’m sorry, Eri, but I can’t tell you,” Shiki says, breaking the silence hanging in the air.

“Why not?” It comes out much more petulant than she expected.

A fond smile crosses Shiki’s face. “You’ll find out in time, alright? Just, trust me when I say it’s nothing bad. It’s actually very good. Most of it, at least.”

“Well, alright. But me and Neku are both worried. We’ve talked, you know?” she says. “You’re all important to us, you’re important to me, Shiki.”

This is how it happens.

Eri blushes at her statement, and Shiki grins, leaning in.

Fireworks don’t go off in the background, sparks don’t fly. This isn’t a movie. True love’s first kiss doesn’t change the whole world.

But for Eri, it does change hers.

There’s no air in her lungs. Her brain is a rubber band, stretched thin, trying to hold all the information that’s been shoved in. At risk of snapping, falling apart and into the abyss, into the weightless world around her. Gravity pulls from all sides, tugging at the strings binding Eri to the mortal coil.

Shiki is solid, though. The focal point in this overload. Shiki is real, and solid, and here. As atomic collision rearranges her brain, she clings to Shiki, pulls her closer, an anchor to keep her from joining the clouds in the sky.

A flare of heat burns against her chest as the feather necklace Shiki has been wearing for four years glows. As the white light pulses through the room, through them both, a wave of exhaustion hits Eri, and lulls her into the land of dreams.

Emerging from sleep is another matter altogether. A soft haze has settled over her, cotton around her brain. She’s warm, she’s safe. Shiki is still here, she can tell.

Memories make jumbled, distorted dreams, as they try to all play out at once, but the cloud keeps her from processing this yet, letting her past life slot into place in her timeline.

There’s voices, just above the surface, muffled but understandable.

“Did you really have to knock her out like that?” Shiki says, disgruntled, and oh, her voice is still so nice to hear, even in this life.

The other voice, one that is soft, like remembering the stories you made with friends out of cloudspun pictures, speaks. “If I hadn’t, she would have been in much more pain. I doubt your makeout session would’ve lasted much longer, anyway,” he says with a laugh, bright wisps of air curling around his words in Eri’s mind.

“Wasn’t like tha’,” Eri mumbles, exerting the herculean effort of lifting her eyelids, clearing her vision of the fog dulling the world.

Eri finds herself wrapped in Shiki’s arms, using her as a pillow. They must’ve tilted over together when she passed out.

She also finds Joshua sitting, perched on the edge of the bed, with a grin on his face. “Good morning, sleeping beauty. I see true love’s kiss has cured you of the dreaded amnesia. The power of love prevails once agai–oof.”

He’s cut off when a laughing Eri kicks him off the bed. “If that’s all that’s needed, then go kiss Neku, nerd. Or else I will for ya! He’s the last, right?”

A pillow Joshua’s hands never touched hits her face, but that’s fair retribution, so she swats it away, before sitting up. Josh’s face is red, but he’s laughing too. “Hey, that’s my boy to woo! You’ve already got Shiki!”

Shiki takes the time to sit up, and pulls Eri close. She appreciates it, really, because without the fog, her head hurts. Nowhere near as bad as before she was forced to nap, but it’s still annoying. “It’s not like Joshy-boy here is gonna even attempt to woo our Neku. He’s waiting for the memories to return and do the work for him.”

Eri sighs, pulling the blanket over herself and Shiki. “That is a question I have, why wait? You could’ve found a way to hop right on into this group, I’m sure of it.”

The smile on Josh’s face slides down a few notches, more subdued, grey settling into the clouds. “I can’t… I’m Composer still, you know. My very presence is risky to those still without memories. Being forced to remember could do permanent damage, and that’s not something I’d wish on any of you.”

“Mm, this isn’t that bad right now, though? I feel fine, ‘sides a bit of a headache,” Eri replies, eyeing him. No doubt Shiki’s already done this, but Eri needs to hear his reasons too. She knows him, knows his tendency to run away rather than face the difficult things. Sure he got better about it, but it still took him half a year to see Neku, and another half before meeting any of the others.

“Shiki’s got one of my feathers right now, like how I gave you all one before. I’m sure you felt it, because it’s meant to protect. There’s not enough essence in it to trigger memories, but it is part of how I noticed so fast when you went out too.” He hops back onto the bed, sitting on Eri’s other side, sandwiching her in. “It kept the backlash to a minimum.”

As he says that, he takes another necklace out from thin air (Eri figures he’s had this prepped for ages back in the Room of Reckoning, or maybe the apartment, assuming he kept it–and who is she kidding, he totally kept it). With a swift motion, he hangs the feather around her neck, and the warmth settles on her skin.

“There,” Joshua says, so gentle, and yet there’s the threat of lightning that any cloud brings, thunder hiding just below the surface of soft, pretty things, “to keep you safe. If that isn’t enough to save you from whatever danger, then I’ll be there, and it’ll have to face me.”

There are very few things that scare Eri in this world. Maybe she should be more afraid, but having a city-god guardian tends to make one feel invincible.

But standing on the other end of Joshua’s protective wrath?

She’s glad she’ll never have to fill that spot. For her, his wings are a shield, not a symbol of impending doom.

On a beautiful day, the anniversary of Neku’s first death, a day like any other, 18 year old Neku wakes up with a headache.

(No, not that kind of headache. It’s not quite time for that.

But it will be. Soon.)

He dons his new pair of headphones. A pair he found sitting outside his apartment when his parents were on vacation, with a note addressed to him, just two weeks ago. CAT exclusives. Mint condition. They must be almost a century old, but Neku swears they work better than anything he could get these days.

Besides, there’s something familiar in the weight, resting on his head, or against his neck. A long-lost piece of life slotting back into place.

Or maybe he’s just a sleep deprived teen. He needs some mystery to spruce up this life. People’s reactions to his eyes and hair has gotten boring, especially since he doesn’t know the true answer himself.

Maybe he wants to know why Eri’s joined in on the secrets club, leaving him as the odd one out. No white feather hanging from his neck.

Maybe it’s getting to him. The apologies wearing thin.

So if he decides to take a walk down to the Udagawa backstreets alone, music blasting, really, who can blame him?

Well, the robber with a gun against Neku’s head in front of the old CAT mural would probably blame him. But he doesn’t count.

Terror climbs up his spine like a swarm of spiders, molten lead weighing down his limbs before the bullet’s even hit. It’s cold against his forehead, as he stares into the eyes of this man, knowing without a doubt that he could end up dead.

The robber removes his headphones, and Neku holds still. One wrong move and he’ll be g o n e.

The worst part of this isn’t the terror, or the loss. No.

It’s the familiarity.

He’s always been scared of guns. Fear clogging up his lungs at the sight of one. Hiding from fireworks that sound like gunshots ringing out.

Words are being said, orders, but Neku has turned to ice, unable to close his eyes to hide away from this reality, unable to move, unable to think as the gun stares back at him.

He has two thoughts. The first is: This is it, this is how it ends.

The second: What’s one more bullet meant to do, when I’ve already taken two?

A shot rings out.

A deafening crack echoes through the air, and Neku falls back onto the concrete street.

The robber crumples to the ground in front of him, as the smell of ozone sears his nose.

But not the smell of blood. There’s no pain blinding him, no hole in his head.

Neku’s not dead.

His vision splits, and so does his head, a tectonic rift jumping two halves of one whole out of alignment. Lightning strikes, spider-webbing through his vision, the after-images burned into his eyes.

There’s someone else standing nearby, a cloud of white hair and sharp, violet eyes, staring on in concern, one arm outstretched. And Neku knows, deep in his Soul, that he should not be seeing this person while still alive, but the mirage is a welcome sight.

He knows this person. Familiar like the words to an old song, one you used to know by heart, returning to you as you once again hear the tune.

“J–Joshua…?” he manages to get the name past the charred lump in his throat, as the world blurs, webs of darkness creeping over his eyes.

The last thing Neku knows is two gentle hands lifting him, and soft arms to rest in.

Neku Sakuraba opens his eyes, and finds a feather hanging from his neck, and five smiling friends crowded around his bed.

This is how the story goes:

Five people, five sixths of a family, die.

But they’re born anew.

Born into a kind and caring world. Looked after by the sixth. Led through life until the time for their memories to return came.

Once all the missing pieces were found, put back into the right place, and the picture became clear, the sixth joined the group of five.

Laughter rings out from the apartment, pillow fights and movie nights and crashing together on the couch as the sun comes up.

The family decides then:

Let this cycle repeat.

Let none of us be left alone.

Let’s move forward, but not forget the echoes of the past which have led us here.

Let us be together.

Because we can face anything so long as we have each other.

#TWEWY #TWEWY Bang 2019 #The World Ends With You #composeregg #Subarashiki Kono Sekai #submission #fanfic

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dmydfilmreviews · 5 years

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MARVEL MOMENTS

So what they really did, as well as making a good load of films, was actually make a vast tapestry of genius interwoven moments like flicking through a big comic book! Ten years! Twenty something movies! A load of rubbish images at the end of the list because the last three films weren’t officially out on Blu Ray! Avengers assssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss

Tony Builds the First Suit

Really it was a stroke of brilliance to start the whole shebang with Iron Man the self-made superhero. The backbone of the whole universe is that of Tony making himself and that all kicks off here, in a sequence that’s hugely thematically satisfying given what comes later. There’s also the fact that back in the day all this construction stuff was just fucking cool, a Nolan-lite bedrock for a blend of realism and fantasy that comic-book cinema had never quite nailed before. Seeing Tony improve his tech step-by-step is a quiet pleasure of these movies, the suits getting more and more outlandish but staying absolutely believable, just like the films, and that all kicks off here with one guy and a non-magical hammer.

Pepper Pulls Out Tony’s Heart

I noted these all down before Endgame, honestly. Sob. It was always his story really. The best example of the foundational relationship of the MCU: They finish each other’s sentences!

‘Truth is… I am Iron Man.’

They knew what they’d got from the very first. This ballsy coda sets the tone for the whole MCU, one of backed-up swagger, a willingness to fuck with the source material in the name of story and the general feeling that Robert Downey Jr. was God. All in like two hours. That they flipped the egotistically iconic line into an era-defining declaration of responsibility, growth and heroism a decade later is nothing short of remarkable.

Hulk and Betty in the Rain

It’s uh… it’s a nice comic-book visual of a classic comic book romance, I guess? Look, Hulk came a long way later, but his forgotten love for Betty was the closest they ever came to the source material outside of the Hulk generally smashing and being awesome. It was sweet!

The Bit Where Hulk Suplexes a Giant Zombie Wolf on the Rainbow Bridge of Asgard

wait was this in the Incredible Hulk

I’ve Successfully Privatised World Peace!’ ‘Fuck you, Mr Stark.’

They got Garry Shandling in these movies!

The Suitcase Suit

Now that is a cool-ass adaptation.

Black Widow Kicks Asses

Yeah, after a whole movie of being reductive eye-candy she was still reductive eye-candy here. But the scene as a whole’s basically a perfect realisation of her moves in the comics, and showed Marvel were capable of doing someone who wasn’t Iron Man. Then they did EVERYYYYOONNNNNNEEE bonus points for Happy taking out that one guy and yelling ‘I got him!’

Tony and Rhodey in the Japanese Gardens

Look, they just look cool, OK? No one said this was going to be deep.

Tony and Pepper as the Stark Expo Explodes

They haven’t managed a lot of great romance, but this one hella works: Tony’s overblown mess of a movie expo exploding behind the true love of his life is a visual so great that Shane Black nicked it wholesale for the climax of Iron Man Three: Christmas in Croydon.

The Frost Giant Throwdown

Wait, what’s happening? I thought these were the movies where Jeff Bridges rode a Segway? Are we in SPAAAAACCCCCEEEE?

Thor Can’t Pull It Off

Out of the big three Thor’s arc of mythology to humanity might be the deepest and most satisfying of all. That starts here with his tearful inability to be worthy of his father, his world and, crucially, himself, leading directly into the first great Thor/Loki exchange, then a whole host of movies that eventually put him through the emotional wringer to self-acceptance. Hopefully?

Thor and Loki Battle on the Rainbow Bridge

Yeah, it looks kind of goofy, but this is pure sixties Kirby, shorn of the irony the series would develop later. Beautiful.

Erskine Points To Cap’s Heart

That’s it. That’s the character.

The Star Spangled Man!

Who’ll hang a noose on the goose-stepping goons from Berliiiin?

That Whole War Montage That Ends With Bucky Falling From The Train

Just smash after smash after smash of wartime Cap goodness that we’d never see again, ending with the ‘death’ that’d define the rest of his story. Steve lost as much as Thanos in his quest for peace but, y’know, he wasn’t a total fucking intergalactic dick about it.

‘I gotta put her in the water!’

Man alive he waited for that date... whether you think the ending of Endgame ruins the moment somewhat (it doesn’t. sort of), this was still the biggest heart-tugger in the MCU at that point, and defined the characters of Cap and Peggy for years to come. Watch Agent Carter! Just bloody watch it!

'Lemme Put You On Hold’

The stand out moment of The Avengers is basically all of it, but let’s start with the moment Black Widow finally becomes a character, a sequence of broad-strokes skill from Scarlett Johansson and Joss Whedon that begged for a movie she finally got way too long later. Bonus points for possibly the greatest Coulson reaction shot in a history of great reaction shots.

The Helicarrier Ascends

OK, shit – this is series is big now.

The Whole of Stuttgart

Whedon’s love of classical posh entertainment is seen in Angel’s superior ballet episode and his fondness for Sondheim, and he even gets a bit of the ol’ jewellery rattling in here in a perfectly pitched Loki-loving sequence that culminates in some fantastic bits for Cap before Iron Man AC/DC’s all over the place. This is where the comic book stuff really kicks off.

‘YOU COME HOME!’

This Hemsworth’s fella’s really got something...

Forest Bro Down

Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God. The first real Avengers mash-up is just wonderful. This is where the wish-fulfilment really begins, in a quiet clearing, where three superheroes nearly beat the shit out of each other in classic comic-book style. The Avengers assembled.

The Whole Fuckin’ Helicarrier Sequence

An absolute masterpiece of blockbuster juggling that had never been done before, this could be the third act of any other film. Over what plays out weirdly like a piece of theatre we get terrifying Hulks, mewling quims and awesome heroics, all expertly laced with wonderful character mash-ups and action we’d never seen before. Then Coulson dies. This is what Joss Whedon does.

‘There was an idea…’

Fuck shit yeah there was, and it made for a hell of an Infinity War trailer six years later.

ALL OF NEW YORK

Yep, all of it, but if we’re being picky it’s Hulk v Loki for the comedy side, the tracking shot for the action. As a sequence it’s never been bettered in the MCU, even in the open-mouthed joy-gush of Infinity War and Endgame. FIGHT ME

Go Fish

Iron Man Three is a wonderful movie that works best as the sum of its parts, but there’s one bit that’s up there with the pantheon: the sky-diving rescue above the bay is such a joyous subversion of the usual third-act super-fisticuffs that it’s like something out of a 70’s Superman movie, only with a hilarious capper at the end where Iron Man explodes under a truck. Beep beep!

Running the Lemurian Star

The Russo Brother’s action calling-card for their incredible MCU run, this sets up their vision of Cap’s super-subtle-super-serum-super-moves. From the off it’s a game changer in the way action’s shot across the MCU, clean-cut raid-alikes becoming the order of the day. AND THEN HE FIGHTS BATROC ZE LEAPER

Elevator Throwdown

Yeah, yeah, we all know the actual bit in the elevator that’s spoofed to tremendous effect come Endgame, but remember this sequence ends with Cap TAKING DOWN A FUCKING QUINJET SINGLE-HANDED. The look on his face at the end says it all.

The Winter Soldier Street Fight

HE FLICKS A KNIFE MID PUNCH

Come and Get Your Love

We’d seen a lot of cool shit from the MCU by this point, but this was something else again. It’s funny! It’s funny as fuck! What the fuck is this movie? And again, they know their own best bits: the return to this in Endgame is top drawer. What a moron.

The Kyln Sequence

This whole breakout is the Guardians at their very best; squabbling in space, reluctant teamwork, loads of cool shit and leg theft. The bit where it all goes anti-grav is a treat.

WE ARE GROOT

That’s it. That’s the movie.

…Stark…

It’s a shame they didn’t delve deeper into Scarlet Witch’s hatred for the man who murdered her parents, but her barely contained rage is the keystone for Age of Ultron: deeper, nastier, more questioning of it’s heroes and their heroism. This one they brought on all by themselves.

Sun’s Gettin’ Real Low

Yeah, maybe it’s for the best the slightly bumbled Hulktasha relationship was forgotten about, but this moment was pivotal in the character development of both. Beautifully shot, and leads to a primo Ragnarok gag.

Lift That Hammer

You genuinely could have made a whole movie of these characters hanging out at an open bar. The Stan cameo’s great, the War Machine story bit gets an Endgame alien planet boost much later, but it’s the drunken worthiness competition that’s the real highlight, a seemingly fun throwaway that actually almost single-handedly sets up the whole character of Vision and the most fist-pumping moment of Endgame, a movie nearly entirely composed of fist-pumping moments.

Hulk vs Hulkbuster

Pure comic-book wish fulfilment again, and how. From Hulk spitting out a tooth to Tony desperately pleading ‘go to sleep go to sleep go to sleep’, this mad clash of science pals knocks every Transformers movie straight through a freshly-bought-building. Veronica!

Well Done.

Alright, Vision’s no one’s favourite Avenger, but he’s one who’s the satisfying product of several movie plots, one beloved supporting AI and the combined brains, magic and cool red capes of his team. Whedon performs his own mad-skillz level script trick to make us accept this fucking weirdo, first by giving him Jarvis’ voice, then having him stare out at a world and see his reflection in it, then having him lift an unliftable character-establishment hammer. None of this could be done by any other film series.

The Geometry of Belief

Ultron’s climactic church-a-maggedon is short but perfect, a swirling mass of splash-page insanity that culminates in a glorious trinity of Vision, Iron Man and Thor blasting the shit out of their mad son like a magic triangle. The Avengers at their peak.

Vision and Ultron Have a Chat

Whedon pops out these gems of detached humanism from time to time, and his sundown final exchange between The Avenger’s success and failure is a doozy. The most poetic little scene in the whole MCU, voiced by two creatures who look like nightmarish dildos. ‘A thing isn’t beautiful because it lasts’ is an all-timer.

Big Bathtub

Ant Man’s bedrock might be its family values, but it’s the shrinking that makes it stand out. The first time Scott drops into tiny-town is a Pixar-esque fun-burst akin to Stephen Strange’s nutso jump into infinity later, with deadly bath taps, thunderclap vacuum cleaners and mid-day apartment raves (?) all bringing a new level of threat and adventure to a series already teeming with variety. They should carry these ones on foreverrrrr

Cassie’s Room

There’s something about this scene that sums up Scott’s whole character and hopefully sets up his daughter for future ant shenanigans: he is (was) unique as a hero with a family, and no matter how many Pym Particles he stuffs into his suit he’s always looked like a giant to his daughter. Plus, y’know, Thomas the Tank Engine.

Some Guy Crashes a Car at Night

The catalyst for the great middle schism. Civil War is a masterclass of twisting, gut-churning reveals, and this is the quiet moment that starts it all.

QUEENS

The perfect Marvel character, introduced into the perfect realisation of the Marvel Universe, perfectly.

Running Into Each Other At The Airport

LITTLE MAN IS BIG NOW I’M CLINT WE HAVEN’T MET YET I DON’T CARE WHERE YOU FROM KID QUEENS BROOKLYN I’M YOUR CONSCIENCE WE HAVEN’T SPOKEN IN A WHILE YOU GUYS KNOW THAT OLD MOVIE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK HOW OLD IS THIS KID ETC ETC OH MY GOD MY BRAIN HAS EXPLODED

Cap vs Iron Man

‘I don’t care. He killed my mom.’

The Big Brain Burst

They keep doing bits to expand themselves, and this is one of the best, with the most potential for the future. Fleeting, but dazzling.

New York Mirror Fest

If the next Strange movies delve into this deranged nonsense then they could end up the greatest of all of them. This is the tip of the iceberg, and it’s still unlike anything else being done in mainstream cinema.

Mr Blue Sky

In a movie that frequently reaches big and misses, at least it hits the spot at the beginning. This glorious celebration of family, space-craziness and genre subversion is everything Guardians does best. The Gamora / Groot bit is adorable.

Peter’s Civil War Adventure

The perfect tone-setter for the story’s most-average joe, this ground-level view of the universe’s biggest clash acts as a whippet quick intro to Peter Parker’s world in the big bad MCU. It’s always a thrill to see him where he belongs.

The Homage to Getting Buried Under a Tonne of Crap

Homecoming’s riffs on classic Spidey-lore are generally pretty subtle, but when it comes time to show what Peter’s really made of Watts rips directly from the best, first with the iconic Parker/Spidey face split and then with him holding up a whole fucking building like he’s nerd Hulk or something. The added ‘come on Spider-Mans’ are the adorable icing on the homage-o-cake.

Anytime That Immigrant Song Plays

Another!

Thor vs Hulk

Yeah, it’s not perfect and it’s a little CGIey. But it’s Thor fighting the Hulk in a fucking galactic gladiator arena place run by Jeff Goldblum and it smashes and it’s full of fun callbacks to previous movies. Yes! That’s what it feels like!

Thor and Loki Do Get Help

The perfect encapsulation of Waititi’s irreverent-but-with-tonnes-of-heart freshgasm on the story of Thor, this bit of hilarious dumb shit acts as amusing action beat and neat character resolution all in one. They’re friends again! They’re brothers! Thor throws him around like a rolled up carpet!

What Are You The God of Again?

Oh right, so he’s the best Avenger now.

Killmonger in the Afterlife

The bloody heart of the most emotional Marvel movie, when Erik Killmonger enters the Wakandan afterlife he finds himself in his own tiny Compton apartment, exiled with his father forever with the plains of eternity just out of reach beyond the window. Heartbreaking, and brilliant.

Thanos Arrives

The opening of Infinity War is another example of their absolute mastery of tone; after the megaton funblast of Ragnarok we’re thrown into the end of that movie being ripped apart, before Thanos appears, dragging a battered Thor into frame, beats seven shades of green shit out the Hulk and murders two beloved supporting characters, all without breaking a sweat. If you weren’t excited before you were now.

New York Tussle

The opening New York section of Infinity War is all very clever, acting as the only grounding Earthy moment in what’s a pretty out-there narrative in terms of existential stakes. You get Tony and Wong helping people off the sidewalk and Strange winking after halting the space-death-machine, but from there on out it’s full-bore comic-book smackdown fun, clashing characters who’ve never met and providing top-drawer banter about wizards and children’s parties. This is the page, up there on screen.

BRING ME THANOS!

The Thanos Fight

Jesus fucking Christ. Up there with the end of Avengers and the Civil War airport battle, this is a perfect realisation of superhero action, with a bigger dose of high-level insanity courtesy of the Infinity Stones and Doctor Strange. Sublimely realised, incredibly satisfying, with real weight and thought put into the spectacle, it’s also fantastic in the narrative of the film, the culmination of its themes of desperation and inevitability. The first time you saw them try to rip off the gauntlet was unbearable.

The Snap

Well, yeah. You’ll never get back the first time you saw this. And imagine seeing it as a fucking kid.#

Just a Girl

Sure the big level-up CGI fest at the end is good, but it’s the comedy smackdown on the Kree ship that’s the most satisfying part of Captain Marvel, the shit-eating joy on Carol’s face as she discovers she’s way more powerful than the assholes who’ve been holding her back. It’s corny sure, but it’s hella fun.

Thor Goes For The Head

Endgame is a shocking, disorientating blur to begin with, all the characters you loved acting in strange, desperate ways in a super-hero version of post-traumatic stress disorder. Tony’s meltdown is bad enough, but it’s when Thor just straight up fucking murders Thanos that you know this is going to get dark and serious. It doesn’t, it remembers it’s a Marvel movie, but the shot of him walking out into the blurred alien sun, cape aflutter, is a fitting goodbye to a more innocent time of heroics.

Ant Man and Cassie

A moment that could be worthy of a whole movie itself, a desperate Scott Lang meeting his five-years-older daughter gives a joke character a serious moment in the same way Infinity War did for Guardians. It’s very odd, very sweet and very Marvel.

Love You 3000

Morgan H. Stark is almost a little too on the nose as a wrap-up for Tony, but hell, she’s still sweet as all hell and a perfect capper to his story of fatherhood and responsibility. It’s a mark of the work they’ve put in that we’ll almost immediately accept the tired trope of kid-taking-over-mantle when she inevitably puts on the armour in a few years.

Steve and Peggy / Tony and Howard

This is the bit in Endgame where I finally started tearing up: a lot of it is too-neat fan-service, but fuck it, they’ve put in so much effort that it works. This is the scene where you realise both of these long arcs are coming to an end, the resolution of Steve quietly making his decision to go back to Peggy and Tony getting the closer of discussing parenthood with his unknowing father. It’s corny sure, but so are comic books, and setting the whole bit at the height of seventies Marvel Comics mania is a loving nod to the imaginations that made all these crazy possibilities possible.

Widow and Hawkeye

There’s a theme here. All of these moments are kind of cheesy and rely heavily on callbacks to previous bits… but at the moment it doesn’t matter because ENDGAME WOW. Maybe we’ll look back at it as a corny misstep, but for the moment, Clint and Tasha having one last, ludicrously overblown tussle for who gets to live is a sweet capper that never goes as deep as the others because they’re supporting characters. It still stings, and it’s a neat mirror to Gamora and Thanos in Infinity War. The red’s gone from her ledger! It’s on the rocks! Urrrgh

Nebula Kills Herself

Again, they’re so good that they can spend a big chunk of time in what’s ostensibly the last big movie for their most beloved characters on making a lesser character beloved. Endgame spotlights Nebula even more than Infinity War did Gamora, using her self-hatred and fear of her father for compelling, wibbly-wobbly plot and character beats. The resolution of her story and her newfound place with her team should make for a whole different Guardians before we even get to Fortnite-Thor joining up.

Cap Wields The Hammer

‘I KNEW IT!’

Thanos’ Army

One last escalation of scale. When Thanos’ army finally arrives it’s like something out of those apocalyptic Turner paintings, where the hordes of a ship-wrecked hell confront eternity under skies ripped from heaven. Only this time they’re facing one guy called Steve, and they’re fucked. Incredible.

Avengers… Assemble

It almost lives up to what you always had in your head. The Marvel Universe, somehow done right.

Tony Hugs Peter Back

Awwww!

New Avengers Run the Gauntlet

A surprising amount of Endgame’s grand finale is given over to the future hopes; while Strange gets stuck in with holding back a Biblical flood it’s up to Black Panther to grab the Infinity Gauntlet from Clint in a delightful callback to Civil War, before embarking on an intense relay race across the entire battlefield that begins with Scarlet Witch crushing the shit out of Thanos’ testicles and ends with Captain Marvel engaging the Mad Titan in a bone-crushing show of super-strength. And along the way if finds time to have Peter Parker dragged through the air by Thor’s hammer which was thrown by Captain America before landing on a Pegasus flown by Valkryie across an exploding sky of alien whales. Maybe the most satisfying run of action since the first Avengers.

I am Iron Man

It was always going to be him really. Bonus points for Downey Jr. originally telling Thanos to ‘Fuck off’. Did anyone else keep thinking he was going to wake up and quip and everything would be OK? That’s how you make movies.

The Funeral

It looks a little weird actually, like they weren’t all on set. But they were! The Marvel Universe again, holy smokes.

The Kiss

Now that’s how you end ten years and twenty one movies. They’re movies! It was romantic! It was exciting! It was fun!

For TEN FUCKING YEARS.

Swing a Ding Ding Sir

After five movies of fresh shit they've finally starting dumping some classic Spider-Man on us; the Euro stuff's fun and all, but it's Far From Home delirious climax that sees Spidey and MJ thwipping through the canyons of New York before bumping into ugly ol' J. Jonah JJ Jay Jay likes it's a freakin' comic book or something. Delightful, and also serves as a wonderful image of hope and joy post-Endgame.

What a fuckin’ ride. Here’s to the next... seventy six? Seventy seven?

wait did I leave any out

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