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sunset-peril · 2 years

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Ashes Remain - Chapter Six - Something About Athena

“You realize the procedure, right?”

"Yes, Boss. 'The defendant has the right to know any special circumstances regarding their defense, including but not limited to: relationship to the Prosecution or Judge, any personal involvement in the case or similar cases that may produce bias…'"

"'Or legal designations passed onto the defense that display functioning not present in the normal population.' You're insane, Athena. The defendant has the right to know, and the court is requiring your declaration. I know you'd rather not talk about it, but insanity is serious."

"Does Apollo have to be there? I… know an attorney went insane last year during a trial he was assigned to. It's selfish but-"

"You think he'll instantly believe you're the same."

"Yes, I'm afraid." Her voice became silent, with trembling lips she muttered "I… can't start over… not again."

~~~~

Athena and Mr. Wright had been in a slew of private meetings since her arrival. When Apollo arrived at 7am the morning of the trial, they were already in another meeting. It was none of his business, he tried to ignore it.

"Ah, Apollo! Would you mind dropping Trucy off at school? I need to take Athena to the courthouse to finish a few papers. This was the only time the notary could meet."

He saw Athena cringe. His bracelet didn't need to tighten in order for him to figure these were no standard papers. "Yeah, sure, Mr. Wright. You want me to come as soon as she's there, or?"

"Why don't you come thirty minutes before it starts? That should give us enough time, and let you have a last quiet moment to look the evidence over."

"Okay! Apollo Justice is out! Trucy! You ready?!"

"All ready, Polly! See you after school today, Daddy! Good luck with your first trial, Athena!"

"Thank you, Trucy! You do your best in school today."

"Of course! C'mon, Polly! I need to catch you up!"

Phoenix waited until their footsteps were long out the door. "I… really don't know what you're about to go through. So, whenever you're ready. I'll let you lead."

~~~~

April 18, 2027

8:30am

District Courtroom Number One - Private Judicial Chambers

~~~~

Two officers stood on both sides of Prosecutor Blackquill, and two stood behind Athena. After Nine Tails Vale's incident, the guards standing on Athena's flanks were instructed not to grab her from the back unless absolutely necessary.

The judge sat front and center, straight across from her, with Phoenix on the right and Blackquill on the left. A Detective Gumshoe sat near her boss and the chief prosecutor by her uncle. Outside of the heavy oak doors, two armed guards stood just in case. A convict and a psycho were dangerous on their own, and unpredictable together.

"Protector Blackquill was intended to join us by closed circuit broadcast." Mr. Miles Edgeworth cleared his throat and tapped his packet against the cold wood. "However, while reviewing this case, a complication appeared requiring his presence. Are you aware of this complication, Doctor Athena Cykes?"

"Yes, sir. I must revoke custody from my guardian before any more matters can be settled."

"Someone still has custody of her? She's an adult."

"Quiet, Wright. Doctor Cykes, you disappeared off the face of the earth a little over six years ago. Whoever you lived with during this time is missing from the records and cannot be confirmed. Due to this, we've gone down your custody list. Mother is dead, yes?"

"Yes, Prosecutor Edgeworth."

"Father?"

"No idea, sir. Mom never spoke of him."

"Are you aware your aunt refused your custody?"

"...yes. I was informed she'd been offered, but might refuse."

"Normally, this would defer your case to the orphanage that was supposed to transfer your custody the day you disappeared. A process like that would suspend your court entrance for several weeks."

Fingers scratched through her hair, fiddling with her ribbon. "Ah… I see."

"However, we found one final relative. There's already a special case granted, so we were willing to append custody to this relative for the sole purpose of revoking it. Formalities and such."

"Hence why I stand before you, the murderer himself."

"...Simon."

"The convict, Simon Blackquill, was found to be related to the interested party, Athena Cykes. Since this case will not require the interested party to live with the convict, we were able to keep the papers out of the foster system's queue. Both parties are required to be physically present; which is why Prosecutor Blackquill is not on broadcast."

"Doctor Cykes, these are from the precinct." Detective Gumshoe passed a few forms in her direction. "The first is that you acknowledge you have been administered a psych exam and are here of your own free will without threat on your safety. The second is a choice: the results of your psych exam are stapled to the back. You and Prosecutor Blackquill will discuss the results. If you feel you are suitable for adult society, you will declare yourself an adult and Prosecutor Blackquill will sign to acknowledge your rights. If you feel claiming adulthood would endanger yourself in any fashion, or would cause negative legal repercussions, you reserve the right to rescind your adult rights. Because Blackquill is on death row, should you rescind, you will be transferred back to your orphanage of origin and they will transfer you to a special facility. You must then be adopted by a legal adult the same way a minor would. The third form is only if you acknowledge your rights. It essentially has the same purpose as declaring an emancipated minor. It's for the loose ends so we can send something to the orphanage. It states that you now take full responsibility for your actions moving forward." He directed her to go ahead and fill out the form declaring her free will.

"Thank you, Detective." She signed the page and handed it to him.

"Alright, then. Mr. Wright, Mr. Edgeworth, Your Honor, let's give them and their cops a minute to discuss."

"You know what you must do, Athena?"

"Yes… it's just, frightening to hear all at once."

"Indeed. I believe they intended to intimidate you into declaring yourself a permanent minor."

"Hush, Blackquill. No conspiracies from you."

"Is it conspiracy if I've seen it occur?"

"The provision… it frightens me, Simon."

"Provision? What provision, Athena?"

"You'll find out soon enough." She flipped through the pages of her results, even Simon was kept from seeing what lay on the pages.

Her damage was advancing. A precaution was being put in place to rectify any worries that her state may worsen substantially between exams.

Her life was in the hands of her own AI.

"Officer, I've made my decision."

"You've prepared your declaration for the court?"

"Yes."

"I will bring them back in."

Everyone was brought back in, but stares drilled into Athena from every which way. They likely knew which she'd chosen.

They'd wanted to keep her mouth shut for years, now they were losing grip. Perhaps they should have truly killed her off when they had the chance.

The chief prosecutor had the deadliest stare. "Doctor Cykes, you were in discussion for… a rather short amount of time."

"It was a clear-cut decision with the results. There was not a ton of discussion to be had." One look straight into Simon's eyes told the complete opposite.

The Judge finally cleared his throat. "Your decision then, Doctor Cykes."

The faster this is over, the faster she could stop being called 'Doctor Cykes.'

"I… Doctor Athena Cykes, hereby accept my rights as a legal adult." She checked the correct boxes, then signed the paper, passing it to Simon.

"I, Mister Simon Blackquill, hereby rescind my custody of Doctor Athena Cykes." He checked his boxes, then signed his name before handing it to the judge.

"Very well, I hereby declare Doctor Athena Cykes as an adult in our society." The Judge signed and stamped the paper before handing it back to Gumshoe.

"We've told you before, but we must make the statement public now: your precaution to protect the public," The chief prosecutor looked down at his notes, fiddling with his glasses. "That AI around your neck… it publicizes your emotions?"

"Widget? Yes, sir."

I talk too, you know!

"Widget… stop, please."

“As the AI has so helpfully demonstrated, it keeps a real-time analysis of Doctor Cykes’ inner emotions. It also, which we cannot demonstrate without being unethical, announces, how shall I put it… psychological shutdowns…”

“No…” Simon growled. “How dare you…”

“If the AI displays a shutdown after a violent analysis, or a shutdown while she is behaving erratically, Doctor Cykes, you acknowledge armed forces are allowed to hold this as a significant danger to public safety… and open fire on you.”

Simon’s officers instantly restrained him.

“Objection!” Widget flickered due to the sudden desk slam, registering in Athena’s mind as a gunshot meant for her. “You’re endorsing the police shooting a young woman for a panic attack?! Of all the things Edgeworth, I never thought you , the child witness of DL-6, would stoop so low!”

“I was opposed, Wright! I am fully aware of the potential for misinterpretation!” Edgeworth sighed and leaned back, failing to notice the seething Blackquill next to him. “Athena’s mother was a high-profile government employee. This case is much higher than our precinct’s jurisdiction. The entire case has been handled by the federal government’s justice department since it happened. They will manage Doctor Cykes for as long as she lives. The order comes from them.”

“The blood of UR-1 is on your hands!” Simon broke from his officers and lunged for Edgeworth, only to cry out and drop to the ground.

“Now, now, Blackquill, mutilating prosecutors is no way to get justice, is it?”

“Curse you…”

“D-Detective… Fulbright?”

“That’s right, little missy! I was called to come down while you chatted privately. They were worried he’d get out of hand, and they were right! Good thing I brought his taser, huh?”

“Y-you… tased him?”

“Simple, but effective!”

“Simon! Are you alright?”

“Ugnh… curse you, Foolbright…”

“Didn’t know you had such a provision, Ms. Cykes! Otherwise I would have fitted a taser when you and that red attorney came by yesterday, ha ha!”

“You’d tase me ?”

“Better than gunning you down, isn’t it? You’re quite the unassuming soul, I’d never have guessed you were a psycho! How’d you end up getting that badge? Didn’t know they’d give those to just anyone who fini-”

“Silence!” Simon pulled himself back onto the table. “Don’t you dare imply that she is not deserving of her badge. This whole debacle is an almost decade-old misunderstanding, one that does not seem like it will clear up anytime soon. You’d do best to keep that sword sheathed, Foolbright.”

“Prosecution, Defense, Detective.” The Judge tapped a finger on the table. “The trial starts in less than an hour. Maybe we could save this for then?”

“Yes, Your Honor.” Athena pulled her bangs in front of her face.

Simon bit his tongue. “Certainly, Your Honor…”

“Prosecutor Edgeworth, are you alright?”

Phoenix had nearly forgotten about Edgeworth in all the excitement.

He merely adjusted his cravat. “Certainly, Your Honor.”

“Am I done here? You just needed me to sign that paper.”

“Of course. Officers, please escort Prosecutor Blackquill to a holding chamber until it's time for the trial.”

“Goodbye, Cykes-Dono. I shall see you in due time.”

“Bye…”

“Has the co-council’s disability been disclosed to the defendant, Wright?”

“Yes, he still accepts Athena at the stand. Said it reminded him of his daughter.”

“How quaint. I look forward to seeing just what you’ve gotten yourself into this time.”

“What do you mean ‘what I’ve gotten myself into this time?!’ Athena is an amazing young lawyer, and I wouldn’t change a thing.”

“You mean to tell us you felt no fear upon learning about her state? You must’ve hit your head harder when you fell off that burning bridge than I thought.”

He felt Athena’s fearful eyes.

Of course his blood ran cold when he found out he’d hired someone who was legally insane! It’s why he called her at 3am!

But… he couldn’t just say he didn’t trust her in the middle of her lowest point. The cops had just dragged her through the mud and humiliated her. He became a lawyer to protect those with no one, and he wasn’t going to leave her for dead.

“I knew anything could come up with hiring an international whom I’d only known for a few hours. But I still wouldn’t have hired anyone else. Athena is a fit for our agency, I just know it.”

“What about your other employee? You said your intention was to create a legal team? Does he know about her disability?”

“...”

“You’re intolerable, Wright. He’s in his twenties and has already been attacked by a psychopath once in the past year. He’s in danger and you aren’t even letting him know. Have they at least met? ”

“Yes, I met Apollo yesterday at the crime scene. He seems nice.”

“She just arrived yesterday. I hadn’t had a chance to talk with him yet. The murder delayed those plans. He hasn’t approached me with any concerns about her, so I hadn’t rushed to it yet.”

“His lack of concern is a reason for concern. Thinking a psychopath is normal will get him killed.”

“I won’t kill Apollo!” Widget was red, aggressive, and she pounded the table. “I don’t want to kill Apollo. He’s a nice guy, a gentle soul.” She pulled her hair over her ear, twirled her moon earring, bit her lip. “I was really nervous about being in this country again, in this city. I was almost immediately arrested as well. I’d heard he struggled with trusting people, but was surprised when he took me rather well. I’d never want to hurt him.”

That… Phoenix didn’t expect that.

“Your desires are broken, Doctor Cykes. Don’t let your psychology degree get ahead of that. However, I can see the logistics being thrown off due to the murder. I will let you get by as long as you expose the truth, as you are so fond of doing, to your employee sooner rather than later. One’s privacy is only a priority until the lives of others are in danger. That is why investigations exist.”

“Of course, Edgeworth. We’d always planned to tell him.”

“I’ll be in the gallery for this trial, so I’ll take the papers down to the precinct with Gumshoe and get some copies made for my office. I shall see you soon, Wright.”

“Are you okay, Athena?”

“Huh? Yeah… I’m just glad it's over…”

“I had no idea they were going to do that to you… otherwise I would have objected earlier.”

“They’re afraid. I could hear it. The media also doesn’t have an accurate depiction of a more well-functioning psycho… just the Jack the Ripper kind. I can’t blame them. Especially because they are right, the rules of my case are run by a federal investigation agency, not the district court. It’s all out of their hands, they’re all pawns. Once I’ve been in court for a while, they’ll get to know me. They won’t fear me so much. Although, I must apologize to you, Boss.”

“To me? Why?”

“Because lawyers have a very long lived career. Apollo will likely be with you for decades. I on the other hand… my days are rather numbered…”

“Athena… I- you’re dying?”

“Slowly. I… have a traumatic brain injury. It led to some death, which is why I was declared insane. It’s been advancing suddenly, much faster over the past year.” She fished a little paper out of her pocket, opening it up and sighing. “If I make it to my fortieth birthday, it will be a miracle. By thirty, I may be too far gone. They aren’t sure. I only have five years guaranteed. By the time I’m Apollo’s age, I’ll probably be forced into retirement.” Her lip trembled, Widget turned the deepest blue, but no tears fell from her eyes.

“I- wow… uh…”

“Heh… it’s alright. Plus,” She flashed him a peace sign. “It’s not over yet! This is no time to be crying! Now come, rápido, rápido! Apollo should be here any minute!" She was already out the door.

He couldn’t follow yet, everything was still so much. He definitely didn’t expect any of what had happened already when he hired Athena. And now she was dying… wow…

His fortieth birthday was only in a few years. He was likely already older than she’d ever be. His story started with Mia, who died at twenty-seven. That same story currently ended with Athena, who was slated to die in her thirties. He’d seen many premature deaths in his time as a homicide-specialized attorney, but the passings of these two women pained him most; because they were his story.

However, they were both right: the only time a lawyer could cry was when it was all over.

Athena was still alive, eighteen and full of energy, and the trial of Damien Tenma still lay before them. Apollo was on his way, and she’d meet him at the front door like nothing had ever happened.

A great many shadows were cast over her life, but she still bounced around like a ray of sunshine. She was a living embodiment of the motto Mia left behind, one Phoenix needed to model today.

The Wright Anything Agency’s newest trial was starting, and Athena was front and center for it all.

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cardioking · 7 months

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Donovan Patrick Lewis

Nicknames: Don, Donny, DP, Jackass

Birthday: May 15th

Occupation: Cardiothoracic Surgery; Head of Cardio

Significant Other: Elaine Sawyer

Children: Three Niblings he has raised for the last few years

TW: DEATH, CAR ACCIDENT, DRUG OVERDOSE, ABUSE

Donovan Lewis was born the oldest of two children to rich parents. While they weren’t the best at being doting parents, their children never went without anything. Anything they wanted was theirs for the taking. When Donovan graduated high school and announced his intentions to study to be a surgeon, his parents paid for all of his schooling, leaving him free of student debt.

While he was making a name for himself in the medical field, his sister was becoming a housewife to a man who was not a good person. He eventually left after having an affair with another woman, leaving Donovan’s sister to raise three children under the age of 4 on her own with no real life skills. Thanks to their father owning his own business, she was hired on as a secretary and made her way up the chain.

Donovan did his residency at Johns Hopkins where he met Elaine Swayer. He was a few years above her in schooling and when she was assigned to him as an intern, they found themselves particularly close and eventually entertaining each other outside of the OR as well.

This fling went on and off for a while until one day Elaine let him know that she had met someone and was getting married. Considering they had no strings attached and no real feelings, the only thing that disappointed him was that he wouldn’t have the amazing times in the bedroom with her anymore.

He made do, however, until a few years down the line his parents passed away in a horrible car accident. They left close to a billion dollars behind - thanks to his father owning several car dealerships - that was to be split between the siblings. The only catch for Donovan, however, being that he had to be married for a full year to get his share. His parents put this stipulation in as they were afraid he was too devoted to his work, and they didn’t want him to end up alone all his life.

The first person who came to his mind was Elaine. If anybody was going to be on board with a fake marriage, it would be her. So he called her up and after she ‘tied up loose ends’ the two were in a courthouse signing the papers for a marriage certificate.

When the year was up, Donovan kept his end of the bargain, giving Elaine a decent chunk (several million dollars) of his inheritance, and the two quietly and amicably divorced. During this time, Donovan was back in his hometown, where he received the news that his sister had died of a drug overdose. Losing their parents had affected her worse than he realized. It didn’t help that he was busy with his own life and hadn’t checked in much on her.

He didn’t know until this moment that he was named as being the legal guardian of the kids if something should happen to his sister. After a long court battle during which it was established his ex-brother-in-law was abusive and had abandoned the children years ago, he was able to legally take them as his own.

Wanting to get away from his hometown and give the kids a new change of scenery, he accepted a job offer from Seattle Grace Mercy West. It had been an easy decision to move, and while they’d pushed back at first, his nieces and nephews eventually agreed. Now, he’s been here for the past couple of years and now that he’s working under Elaine, he finds their friendship is just as strong as ever. And it doesn’t hurt that they both enjoy torturing other doctors.

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cpmbumba2020 · 1 year

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November 11 | Memorial of St. Martin De Torres, Bishop

Saint Martin of Tours was born in in Savaria, Pannonia in either the year 316 or 336 AD. That region is what is today the nation of Hungary. His father was a tribune, which is a high-ranking officer in the Imperial Horse Guard. Martin and his family went with his father when he was assigned to a post at Ticinum, in Northern Italy. It is here that Martin would grow up.

Just before Martin was born, Christianity was legalized in the Roman Empire and the bloody persecution of Christians soon came to an end. It was not the official religion of the State, but it could be practiced and proclaimed openly. The Gospel message soon flourished in ancient Rome, transforming the empire. Martin's parents were pagans, but at the age of 10, Martin chose to respond to the call of the Gospel and become a Christian.

At the age of fifteen, Martin was required to follow his father into the cavalry corps of the Roman military. By the time he was 18, Martin is believed to have served in Gaul, and also eventually Milan and Treves. Scholars think he served as part of the emperor's guard.

As a young soldier, Martin encountered a beggar in Amiens. The beggar was unclothed and it was very cold. Martin removed his cloak and with his sword, he cut it in half. He gave this half to the beggar and dressed himself in the remnant. That night, Martin had a vision in which Christ appeared to him. The vision spoke to him, "Martin, a mere catechumen has clothed me." A catechumen is one who is being instructed in the Christian faith. In the early centuries of Christianity, that was a long process of instruction - and Martin was deeply dedicated to it.

About the age of 20, Martin made clear to his superiors that he would no longer fight, following his formed Christian conscience. He refused his pay prior to a battle and announced he would not join in the combat. He became the first recognized conscientious objector in recorded history. His proclamation occurred before a battle near the modern German city of Worms. His superiors accused him of cowardice and ordered that he be imprisoned. Martin offered to demonstrate his sincerity by going into battle unarmed. This was seen as an acceptable alternative to jailing him, but before the battle could occur, the opposing army agreed to a truce and no conflict took place. Martin was subsequently released from military service.

Now out of the military service, Martin could fully dedicate himself to service of Jesus Christ and the Church. He traveled to Tours where he began studying under Hilary of Poitiers, who is now recognized as a doctor of the Church. Martin's studies lasted until Hilary was forced into temporary exile, likely because of his refusal to participate in a political dispute.

Martin then traveled to Italy. According to one account, Martin was confronted by a highwayman and led him to faith in Jesus Christ. Another account tells of Martin confronting the Devil. While on this journey, Martin had a vision which compelled him to return to his mother in Pannonia. He did so and led his own mother to faith in Jesus Christ. Martin attempted to persuade his father to embrace faith in Jesus Christ, but as far as we know, his father refused.

After bringing his mother to the Church, Martin then turned to confronting a growing heresy which was afflicting the faithful and sowing confusion. He became involved in countering the Arian heresy, which denied the divinity of Jesus Christ. The reaction against him was so violent from the Arian leaders that he was compelled to flee. Martin took up residence on an island in the Adriatic where he lived as a hermit for a time.

Martin's teacher Hilary returned to Tours from temporary exile in 361 so Martin traveled there to work and study. Hilary gave Martin a small grant of land where he and his disciples lived.

Martin established a monastery which would be inhabited by the Benedictines. Established in 361, the Liguge Abbey was destroyed during the French Revolution, then reestablished in 1853. The abbey remains to this day. From the site of his abbey, Martin worked to bring people to faith in Jesus Christ and Baptism into His Church in the surrounding areas. He was an extraordinary evangelist.

In 371, the city of Tours needed a new bishop and the people decided to call Martin to the office. Martin did not want the job so the people decided to trick him into the office. The people insisted he was needed to administer to someone sick, so he came out as quickly as he could. He did not even bother to improve his appearance. When he learned it was a trick to make him a bishop, Martin actually tried to hide. He was quickly discovered and the people called him forward to be ordained to the office of Bishop. Even though he did not really want the office, he was ordained - and he became a holy and hardworking Bishop.

As a Bishop Martin established a system of parishes to manage his diocese. He made a point to visit each parish at least once per year. In addition to his appointed rounds, Martin combated paganism, particularly the Druid religion which was still prevalent at the time. He passionately and faithfully proclaimed the Gospel of Jesus Christ and won many to the Christian faith.

Yet, he longed for more prayer and wanted to pursue a monastic life. In the year 372 Martin established an abbey at Marmoutier so he could retreat there and live as a monk with the many disciples he had attracted.

In the following years, a heresy broke out in the church. An aesthetic sect called the Priscillianists after their leader, Priscillian, had developed in Spain and Gaul. The First Council of Saragossa condemned the heresy, but the Priscillians did not change they practices. This prompted one bishop, Ithacius of Ossonoba to petition the Roman Emperor Magnus Maximus to put him to death. Martin was opposed to the sentence of death, and was joined by Bishop Ambrose of Milan in his opposition. Martin traveled to Trier where the Emperor held court. Martin was able to persuade the Emperor to refrain from putting Priscillian and his followers to death. However, after Martin left, Ithacius persuaded the Emperor to change his mind again and Priscillian and his followers were executed in 385.

Martin was so upset by Ithacius, he refused to communicate with his fellow bishop until the Emperor pressured him to resume communicating with his colleague.

Martin died in Candes-Saint-Martin, Gaul in 397.

The Hagiographer Sulpicius Severus, knew Martin personally and wrote about his life. Many miracles and the casting out of demons were attributed to Martin during his lifetime. According to one account, Martin, while trying to win Druids to follow Jesus Christ and renounce their pagan beliefs, was dared to stand in the path of a sacred tree that was being felled. Martin agreed and was missed by the falling pine, although standing right in its path. This was widely seen as miraculous and a symbol that the message he proclaimed about Jesus Christ was true. Many were converted to the Christian faith.

Veneration of St. Martin became popular in the Middle Ages, and was popular with the Frankish kings.

Saint Martin is the patron of the poor, soldiers, conscientious objectors, tailors, and winemakers. Many locations across Europe have also been placed under his patronage. His feast is on November 11. He commonly appears on horseback and is shown cutting his cloak in half with a sword.

Source: https://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=81

Photo and caption by: Simon Tanjutco

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fighterkimburgess · 3 years

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Second Chances Chapter 16 - The Grand Jury

Summary: Kim gives her first testimony and admits her marriage on the record, and she and Adam have their twelve week scan. Series masterlist here.

Words: 4.7k

Warnings: Bob Ruzek's A+ Parenting, Bob Ruzek in general tbh, pregnancy, doctor's appointments, medical talk, vomiting.

Wanna join my taglist?

Kim pulled up her pants, attempting to button them and giving up. She flopped back on the bed, sucking in to close them to no avail. She had to leave to make it to the courthouse in the next thirty minutes, but seemingly overnight the baby had decided to make themselves known. Everything she’d read said she’d have until twelve weeks before she started showing, but she was eleven and facing a wardrobe emergency.

She searched the wardrobe, finding a skater skirt with an elastic waistband she could make work. Once she put a semi respectable tee and a blazer on, she looked ready for court, even with the purple cast still on her arm. Two more weeks and it was gone, and she couldn’t wait.

Adam had already left for the precinct, a text on her phone and a travel mug with tea and her ginger candies beside it a reminder he was thinking of them. She picked up her badge and hung it around her neck before putting the candies in her purse and the tea in her left hand, hurrying to the parking lot to make up the time she’d lost trying to get the jeans on.

The Cook County Courthouse was impressive and intimidating, Kim taking the steps up two at a time to be there on time. As she arrived in Peter Stone nodded at her, Kim smiling in return.

“You ok, Officer Burgess?” He asked, taking in her outfit.

“I will be. Do I look ok? There was a wardrobe malfunction this morning, I had to pull something together.” She smiled, and Stone just nodded.

“You’re fine. We went through your testimony, there’s a short cross examination, but you’ll be fine. I’ll have to ask you about your relationship with Adam, is that ok? It won’t go outside these walls, I know you’re trying to keep it quiet.”

“Thanks, Peter. I’ll be fine. I wait outside until I’m called in? I’ve never been involved in a Grand Jury hearing before.” She smoothed her blazer, fingers hitting off her supply of candies in the pocket.

“Exactly. It’s slightly less formal than a regular trial, you’ll just be asked some basic questions. There’s nothing to worry about, Kim. You’ll be fine. You’re the first witness this morning, which helps.”

They arrived downstairs in the Grand Jury hallway, Kim sitting on the hard wooden bench while she waited for her name to be called. Finally it was, and she went inside, going straight to the witness seat Peter pointed her to.

“Just for the record, can you give your full legal name?” He nodded encouragingly, and Kim spoke.

“Kimberly Megan Ruzek.” Bob’s head shot up at her words, but she kept just looking at Peter.

“And Officer, what name do you go by in work and what is your full title, so our jury can understand when you’re mentioned in the documents?”

“In work I’m Officer Kim Burgess, assigned to the Intelligence Unit in the 21st Precinct of the Chicago Police Department.” She sat back, her left hand by her side, her casted arm wrapped around her stomach.

“What is your relationship to Mr. Ruzek?” Kim got a shot of delight, hearing Bob be stripped of his job title. The devil worked fast, but IAB worked even faster.

“He’s my husband’s father.”

“That’s not…I’d have been there!” She heard Bob exclaim, and his lawyer shushing him. She kept her eyes on Peter until the noise stopped, breathing carefully to avoid setting off her nausea, her stomach roiling with nerves and morning sickness.

Stone talked her through her relationship with Adam, and what Bob knew about it. She could feel the older man’s eyes staring at her as she spoke, confirming that they had never told him about the marriage, and had married alone because of precinct gossip. He talked her through what she’d done in the two cases Bob had been involved in, how she’d come to find all the information about what he’d searched. He’d prepared her well, and she was able to talk through every piece of evidence she’d found.

“Officer Burgess, one last question. You searched deeper than you needed to to find out what Mr. Ruzek was looking for. Why did you?”

Kim took a breath, resting the heavy cast on her stomach for a second before responding. “He’s my father in law. My husband’s dad. I didn’t want to believe that he could have done anything like this. I was convinced if I dug a little bit deeper I would find a reason for this.”

“And did you?”

“No. There was absolutely no reason for Bob Ruzek to be looking up those files, or trying to access the CPD gang database.”

“Thank you, Officer Burgess.”

Bob’s lawyer stood, and Kim stayed with the easy expression on her face, her hair over her shoulders.

“Officer Ruzek, what did you do when you discovered this information about your father in law?” He asked, broad shouldered in an expensive suit.

“It’s Officer Burgess, and I passed it up the chain of command as I was instructed to. It formed part of our evidence board.”

“So everyone in your precinct could have seen it?” He grinned at that, but Kim shook her head.

“No, not at all. Our unit is only accessible either by a hand scanner and pin, or by being buzzed upstairs by our desk sergeant with the approval of the unit sergeant. Nobody is able to get up without approval.”

“Could someone follow you without your knowledge?”

“No. It’s a gate up a flight of stairs, and when you go upstairs it’s straight into the bullpen. There’s no way anyone could follow without being seen.”

“The only people who have access to that unit are the unit members and your desk sergeant?”

“As far as I’m aware.”

He nodded, looking like that cat who got the cream. “And are you aware that your Sergeant Voight and a Detective Olinsky have had previous negative experiences with Mr. Ruzek?”

Kim looked confused for a moment, shaking her head before speaking. “I know they worked together in the past, and I know something happened. But I don’t know specifics about anything.”

“Do you believe that either of those men would frame Mr. Ruzek for something he didn’t do?”

“Your Honour, objection! Officer Burgess has answered each of the Counsellor’s questions without complaint. This is fishing.”

“Sustained.” The judge ruled, and Bob’s lawyer moved away from Kim.

“No further questions.”

She stood, feeling her stomach roll over and knowing the familiar feeling of having moments to get to a bathroom. Kim nodded at Stone before exiting the courtroom with quick, sure steps. As soon as she was outside she broke into a run, barely making it into a bathroom cubicle before the water she’d sipped that morning came up.

“Seriously, kiddo. You need to stop making me sick, ok?” She said to her stomach as she got up from her position, wiping her mouth with toilet paper and rinsing it out with some water. She’d finished earlier than expected, and decided to quickly pick up some maternity clothes so she could at least be comfortable in work.

She bought enough clothes to have during the week changes, determined to not want to buy a whole new wardrobe yet. But in the restroom at the mall she put the pregnancy pants on, immediately delighted by how comfortable they were on her. Once she was satisfied she made it to the precinct, waving hello before settling in for an afternoon of running number plates. It was boring work, but she got into a routine, scouring the pod footage for exactly what they needed. It wasn’t glamorous, it wasn’t the amazing police work people thought Intelligence did, but it was necessary.

They were working late on a home invasion and kidnapping case, and Adam put a takeout tub of chicken noodle soup and a turkey club in front of Kim.

“You need to eat, here. I thought it might help your stomach?” She smiled in appreciation, taking the spoon he’d given her and stirring the soup. There were big pieces of chicken in it, along with pieces of orzo that floated to the top as she stirred.

“Thanks. What do I owe you?” Kim asked, pulling out her wallet but Adam put his hand on her shoulder.

“Don’t worry about it, gave me an excuse to get out of here for a little while.”

She finally found the car they’d been searching for, watching it on the pod footage and spotting it outside a house in Pilsen. It didn’t take long for everyone to get ready to leave, Platt coming upstairs to keep Kim company while she was there alone.

“How’d the testimony go?” Trudy asked, sitting in the chair opposite Kims, passing over a mug of tea to the younger woman.

“Well, my father in law now knows he’s my father in law, which says everything. He was convinced I was lying, and his lawyer tried to make me out to be a liar. I’m just glad it’s done.”

“Is he going to trial?”

Kim took a sip of tea before responding, her free hand floating down to rest on her stomach as had become customary for her since she found out about the rice grain baby. “Probably. Stone offered him a deal, three to five years in exchange for a guilty plea on the corruption charges. He turned it down. If he’s indicted he’s going to trial. Bob thinks that if he’s found innocent then CPD has to give him his pension back. For a guy who was a cop for so many years, he really hasn’t learned anything, has he?”

The belly laugh that came out of Trudy Platt’s mouth startled Kim, spilling some of her tea over her jeans. Once Platt settled down, Kim smiled at it.

“He’s an idiot of the highest calibre. I’m just glad you and your baby daddy don’t have to deal with him anymore. When’s your next appointment?”

“Ten days away, and we get a scan then too. Voight’s been great, Adam’s days off tend to link up with my appointment days, and he’s going to keep that going. We can’t tell anyone until Bob’s case is finalised anyway, Stone wants as little possibility for things to go downhill as he can manage.” Her radio flickered to life, the warning that they were about to go in coming through it. Kim took a breath and let it out slowly.

“Sucks knowing they’re going into danger and you can’t do anything about it, doesn’t it?” Platt commented, making Kim smile.

“It really does. I know this is the right move, I know I could still be in the field now. But if something happened to me? If I lost the baby? I’d never forgive myself.” She felt the desk sarge’s hand on her shoulder, squeezing once.

“I know I’m probably not the best person to say it, but you’re going to make a phenomenal mother, Ruzek. That kid is blessed to have the two of you.”

Kim would forever blame it on her hormones, but tears lept into her eyes at Trudy’s words. She’d never been close to her family - Nicole lived in Chicago and she hadn’t even had coffee with her since before her wedding - but her unit? The people she saw every day? They were her family, and to hear that from Trudy meant the world.

The raid was successful, everyone back at the precinct safe a few hours later. Voight sent them all home shortly after, insisting sleep was more important and the paperwork could wait. Kim thought it was squarely aimed at her after the fourth yawn she’d barely been able to control. It turned out that having to give up caffeine almost entirely and growing a new human from scratch were both exhausting things.

She crawled into bed beside Adam, neither of them making much conversation, the exhaustion clear on both their faces. But as he’d done every night since they found out about the baby, he leaned down and pressed a kiss just below Kim’s bellybutton, whispering “Goodnight, rice grain baby” softly. He repeated the kiss to Kim’s forehead, wrapping an arm around her and holding her close as they both slept.

As Kim got dressed the next morning Adam was enthralled by the stretchy waistband on her jeans.

“But it’s so stretchy? And it’s not denim? Why?” He asked, staring at the small pooch that was the only visible sign of their baby.

“Because in a few weeks I’m going to have an actual bump. The waistband means that it’ll stretch along with the bump, so I can wear these for most of the pregnancy.” She watched the dawning realisation on his face, smiling at the awestruck look.

“I can’t believe we’re having a baby. I can’t believe you’re pregnant. It’s an actual baby there. You know how amazing you are, right?” Kim turned after pulling her shirt on, looking at her husband.

“I mean, I know I’m great. What’s brought this on?”

He shrugged, his face growing dull for a moment. “Everything with my dad. I wouldn’t blame you for never wanting a kid with me, not wanting a child who’s half you to be any part of him, you know? But you’re letting me be a father. It’s magical, Darlin’. I’m so lucky.” She leaned down and kissed him, sitting beside him on the bed.

“This baby’s half of both of us, and they’re gonna know how loved they are. We need to start talking about names soon too, you know?” Kim paused for a moment, taking a breath before speaking. “When I was on the stand yesterday I had to admit Bob’s my father in law. He knows we’re married, but he didn’t believe me when I said it.”

Adam ran his hand through his hair, shaking his head.

“I told him last week. Remember when I had the jail interview I had to go to for a CI?” Kim nodded. “He was being held in the same wing as Bob, so I visited. He asked me was I gonna let my, and I quote, “bitch of an ex destroy my name and his life?”. So I told him that if you were ruining anyone’s life it was yours, because you’re a Ruzek now too. He doesn’t know about the baby, and honestly if he tries telling anyone in CPD nobody will believe him because they know the kind of man he is. I can take him saying shit about me. Not about my wife.”

Kim grasped his hand with her good one firmly, feeling Adam squeeze her back.

“You are one of the best men I’ve ever known. Who he is? It doesn’t matter. I promise.”

They got into the jeep to go to work, Kim sucking her candies that had become her normal breakfast. She’d been given a prescription for anti nausea meds, and took them if it got really bad, but they made her drowsy and she couldn’t have them at work. She was making do with ginger candy, peppermint tea and graham crackers to settle her stomach, but her trips to the restroom were generally ignored by everyone. It was embarrassing as all hell, but nobody mentioned it, just made sure she had what she needed.

She’d sat at her desk, the latest form she had to fill out for the previous day’s searches in front of her when her cell rang, startling everyone in the quiet space. Peter Stone flashed on the screen, and she took it into the break room, closing the door firmly behind her for some semblance of privacy.

“Stone?” She answered with a question, desperately needing the news.

“Kim, he’s been indicted on five counts of corruption, two counts of membership of an illegal organisation, three counts of bribery, and seven of abusing his position as a law enforcement officer. It’s a clean sweep of indictments.” Kim lost her balance, stumbling onto the couch in shock.

“Everything? Everyone indicted him on all of them? What does this mean?”

“When we go to trial we’re going to look for up to twenty years. I’m going to offer him a deal of six years in prison for the bribery and abusing his position charges. The corruption one is the one that will really bump up the years, so it’s in his best interest to avoid a trial.” The prosecutor spoke quickly, but Kim shook her head.

“You and I both know that he’s going to go to trial. He won’t take a deal, he thinks he’s better than that.”

“He can think all he wants. I’ve been talking to the State’s Attorney, they want him down for good. You’re going to be called as a witness, and it looks like Adam will be as well. You’ll need to keep discussion of the case to a minimum, ok?”

“I know. We’ve done this dance before. Let me know what you need from me.” Kim paused for a moment. “Do you know how long until trial? I’m pregnant, and having his heavily pregnant daughter in law testifying isn’t going to be a good look for either side.” She could hear his gasp of surprise, Stone’s voice lightening.

“Congratulations. I’ve got Antonio working on this, it’s his only priority. It’s going before the court tomorrow, we’re hoping for trial in ten weeks. You won’t be too far along then?” Kim did the maths, nodding before remembering he couldn’t see her.

“Perfect. Thanks, Peter. When I can drink again I owe you one.”

They said their goodbyes, Kim pulling up her text thread with Adam.

Indicted on all charges, going to tell Voight now. You’ll probably be called as a defence witness.

It took less than ten seconds for the bubble showing Adam was replying to appear.

Fuck him. Love you.

Kim stood, straightening her clothes before opening the door and knocking on Voight’s office. He called her in, pointing at the chair as she closed the door.

“Bob’s been indicted on all counts.” She watched as he glanced up as if waiting for her to say she was joking. “He’s going to trial, the State’s Attorney wants him down. Five of corruption, two of membership of an illegal organisation, three of bribery and seven of abusing his position. Stone’s offering a deal for the bribery and position charges, but he’s not expecting him to take it.”

Kim ran her fingers through her hair, watching Voight take in her words.

“How do you feel about it?”

“I have no idea. I got called to the stand as a Ruzek yesterday, which was weird. Different and good, but weird. Bob tried screaming at me and his lawyer called me a liar, all stuff I expected. They think the trial’s going to be soon, they want it wrapped up quickly and they want to be able to place him somewhere secure.” Her stomach moved again, and she took a sip of tea.

“Morning sickness?” Her Sarge asked, and she nodded.

“Yeah, the rice grain doesn’t like me eating, well, anything. It gets better as the day goes on, but until two it’s tea and graham crackers for me.”

“Camille suffered with it too. There was a Korean woman who lived in the apartment next to us, she gave Camille some rice porridge that really helped. Google it, it might help.” Kim stood slowly at his words, nodding.

“Thanks, at this point I’ll try anything. I’ve got some meds but they just make me drowsy, so I can’t really take them at work. I’m gonna go finish that paperwork.”

She went out to her desk, nodding at Hailey’s raised eyebrows. Her partner was the only person outside Voight, Trudy, and Adam who knew she’d testified at the grand jury, everyone else thinking it was a regular court case. But Hailey had experiences of dealing with a grand jury, and being able to talk about it had helped. She spent the rest of her morning going through the paperwork and handing it over for Hailey’s signature. Kim did her normal waving away lunch with a smile, she’d try eat around four when she was able to keep it down.

The smell of Korean barbecue filled the bullpen, and her mouth watered. It wasn’t worth trying to eat some of the spiced meat, as much as she’d have killed for a bao. A bowl was put beside her, and she looked up to Voight nodding. As she opened the container it looked like mushy rice, but she could smell chicken and there were peanuts and scallions on the top. It tasted amazing, and for the first time in three weeks Kim could have lunch with everyone else, a smile on her face as she ate. The jook was perfect, and the baby agreed with it which made it even easier for her.

It became her lunch for the next week, Adam going to the Korean place a few blocks away to pick it up for her. By the third day they’d have it waiting, Adam admitting that he’d told them she was pregnant and it was all she could keep down. Watching everyone leave for scenes and raids would never get easier, her heart was in her mouth every time she watched them go. But she sat and she did everything she could on her end, trusting them to come back safely.

It was finally her twelve week appointment, but she was working that morning before leaving for Med. Kim kissed Adam goodbye, rolling out of his arms to get dressed. Her bump was becoming more pronounced now, the bloating she’d felt before changing to a small roundness. She stood in the bathroom and took a photo of the bump, deciding to document how the baby would grow. The tiredness, the morning (and all day) sickness, even that the only bras she could wear were sports ones because she was too tender and sore were worth it. They were having a baby. A little human that was half her and half Adam. And while all she wanted was them to be healthy, she couldn’t wait to see her husband as a father, to prove that he would always be better than Bob.

She was early to the bullpen to make up for leaving early, running through paperwork and a case audit Voight had her on. But her reminder buzzed at one, and she picked up her jacket to leave.

“Everything ok?” Hailey asked, and Kim nodded.

“Ultrasound appointment. I’m officially twelve weeks, so I get to see what the baby looks like.” Kim manoeuvred her casted arm into her coat, the December chill making it a must.

“Good luck! Bring in the ultrasound tomorrow? I want to see the baby.” Kim nodded as she left, waving goodbye to everyone. The drive to Med was quick, and when she got off the elevator on the fourth floor Adam was waiting for her there. He took her left hand, making sure her sling wasn’t mussed before they checked in.

The wait wasn’t too long, the couple brought into the ultrasound room. Kim sat up on the bed to wait for the technician, Adam holding her coat. By the time the tech came in they were bored, Adam telling a long drawn out story of the last raid he’d been on, Kim giggling at it in hysterics.

“Mrs and Mr Ruzek? I’m Tara, let’s take a look at how the baby’s doing. You’re twelve weeks, is that right?”

“Twelve weeks and four days, yes. This is the big ‘your baby looks like a baby now’ one, isn’t it?”

Tara laughed, nodding, while Adam put his hand on Kim’s stomach.

“Don’t worry, RGB, your daddy loves you even when your mommy is mocking you.” Kim watched Tara’s eyebrow raise.

“When we had the first ultrasound done, they told us the baby was the size of a grain of rice. We haven’t picked out a name yet, so they’re rice grain baby for the moment, or RGB.” Kim quipped, Tara laughing.

“That’s the first time I’ve heard that one. Is this your first pregnancy?”

“Yeah, we’re pretty nervous.” Adam settled in the chair beside her, his hand in the crook of her elbow, his thumb rubbing a circle into her bicep to help her relax.

The gel was cold, a shiver going up Kim’s spine before she could stop it. But it didn’t take long for Tara to show their baby on the screen. The last time it was a speck, barely able to be seen. This time, though, they didn’t need Tara to point out their baby’s head or legs, looking as it moved.

“See that?” Tara pointed to a small part of the screen. “They’re waving to you.” Kim could feel the tears flow down her face, and Adam held onto her like a drowning man. They’d heard the heartbeat, they knew it was happening, but this made it so real. Their baby looked like a baby now.

“And here’s the heartbeat.”

Tara flicked a switch, and the room was filled with the rhythmic whoosh of their baby’s heart. Kim looked over at Adam, mouthing “I love you” to him as he recorded the sound. She felt him press a kiss to her temple, leaning against him before Tara switched it off.

“Everything looks perfect, and I’ll get some photos printed off for you. We can do them with your information or without, which would you prefer?”

“Can we get some of both?” Kim asked, Tara nodding at the request. “Of course.”

She got changed, Adam putting her sling back on as the nurse practitioner came in and did the necessary checks before letting them meet Kim’s doctor. Everything was as it should be, she’d lost some weight because of the morning sickness but they weren’t concerned. Once she’d been given the clean bill of health they left, Adam bringing Kim to lunch.

It was a little deli, Kim getting matzo ball soup and a sandwich to keep her stomach steady. When they got their seat she looked across at Adam, a smile on her face.

“You know I need to announce now, right?” She asked, and he smiled along with it.

“What’re you thinking?”

“I want to text Sylvie to let her know, she’s been a good friend since Erin left, even if she is dating Antonio—“

“Wait, when the fuck did that happen?” Adam interjected, putting his meatball sub down.

“From what she told me Gabby invited her out with her and Matt and Antonio, and they hit it off. I’m not getting involved. She’s happy and that’s the important part I guess. But back on topic, I’m gonna text her to let her know, then text Erin. After that I thought maybe put up the ultrasound on Instagram?”

“Whatever you want. It’s your decision on announcing.” She could see the toll this was taking on Adam, reaching over to grip his hand.

“I hate that you can’t be a part of the announcement. But our baby knows how loved they are. You know that, right? Because I love you so much.”

“I love you too. Wanna take the photos?”

She took the photo of the scan without her name or identifying information, opening up her text thread with Sylvie.

I know you’ve missed me at Molly’s, but there’s been a really good reason for that.

She took a photo of the proper scan for Erin, just texting the photo with a baby emoji. Erin was undercover this month, so she wasn’t expecting a reply for a while. Instead of just waiting for Sylvie’s response, she opened up the Instagram app and hit the new post button.

It’s official, I’m getting a promotion to Mama from July. Very excited to meet this little one.

Once she wrote the post she showed it to Adam, who smiled and held her hand as she hit the post button. It didn’t take long for the congratulations to come rolling in from her friends, but all Kim wanted was to tell everyone who her baby’s father was.

Chapter 17>>

Taglist: @aruzlover @amandarrollins @morganupstead @adamruz @fullwattpadmusictree @redpoodlern @everythingaddictxx @write4life13 @lizlouisebrown @jeanjacketjesus @tuxieboy101-blog @thelittlepterophyllum @planecrazylex @sophiatellerrhodes @eternal-olicity @ossypooh @dissociation-writes @kimburgess-ruzek @thestarrynightslover @reidskitty13 @etamne @torreshalstead @itsnotpersonalbut @leymr @multicouple-lover

#Burzek #Burzek Fic #Adam ruzek x Kim burgess #Kim burgess x Adam ruzek #Adam x Kim #Kim x Adam #Chicago pd fic #cpd fic #chicago pd au #cpd au #Kim burgess #Adam ruzek #cíara writes

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kangaroo-sniper-imagine · 3 years

Text

Mercs who didn’t pay attention to their family trees

-I’m only doing a few mercs, cuz otherwise this would be huge-

Scout and Spy

When Miss Pauling introduced their newest recruit, The Thief, everyone was at least interested with the new blood. They were useful on the field; fast, silent, deadly, quickly able to steal the info case and dashing back to safety in record time. They were closed off at first, like many are in a new environment, but quickly opened up as soon as they were settled in.

The only person who didn’t quite connect with them was Spy (shocker). There was something about the new recruit that stuck him odd, something familiar about them that he couldn’t just put his finger on. The Frenchman’s son felt similarly.

“It’s like I already know ‘em; which is weird ‘cuz I’m dead certain we’ve never met before.”

It wasn’t until several weeks later, as the ten of you all were joined in the rec room, just enjoying each other’s company after a successful match. Jacque sat in the corner with Mick {not to derail but I totally think that they’re secret best friends who roast each other on the field}, both sipping at their drinks and idly talking as Jeremey sat with them, having a loud conversation with Jane from across the room.

Then they heard it. A deep, throaty chortle that was extremely unattractive, coming from across the room, coming from you

Both Jacque and Jeremy froze, the sound too familiar for it to be comfortable, eyes snapping to you, where you were wildly laughing with Travish. The Scotsman was sloshed and laughed along with your, his thundering laughter almost drowning out your own. Almost.

The sniper took a slow sip of his beer as he as well looked upon the commotion. He hummed in thought, and turned to the frozen spy. “Izzit jus’ me,” he drawled, gesturing with is beer can to you, “or do their laugh sound a lot like yours?”

Scout slowly turned to his father, rage in his eyes, but all Spy could do was watch you laugh that awful laugh. His brain slowly connected the evidence, memories of 20+ years ago invaded his mind, a dalliance with a woman who looks shockingly like you, the nose that you share with him and Jeremy, your strange obsession with your appearance, and most damning of all; the shitty laugh that you’ve seem to inherit from Jacque.

With a deep breath, the Frenchman stood up, determined to get out of the room and hide in his abode so he could scream in peace, but the sudden influx of the realization, rather, caused him to faint.

He awoke, what he assumed, several hours later, in a familiar camper bed. In his peripheral, Jacque could see Mick smoking a cigarette and reading a newspaper with one hand, a mug of coffee in the other. Without even looking up to confirm that the Frenchman was awake, the sniper spoke.

“Your kids are right pissed at you, mate.”

Jacque cursed.

Heavy and Soldier

Pauling was ecstatic to introduce more help, probably under the impression that this person to pick up the slack the other leaves so that her evenings won’t be filled with killing and covering up murders and thefts. Some young thing with a thick, almost indiscernible accent who spoke rarely and quietly. You were called the Electrician, for your… odd choice of weaponry.

Your gun was one of your own design, one you were very proud of, that rather than bullets shot out electrical charges, either stunning your opponent to help assist another teammate in a kill or give off a charge so intense it kills. You spent most of your free time in your assigned work shop improving your gun’s design and creating new weapons.

More than once, the team would hear a loud scream and the sound of a loud thud, only to come and find your door blown wide open and you stuck in the adjacent wall, hair shocked to stiffness and a new white streak added to your hair. Needless to say, you kept the team on their toes with your eccentricities. For some reason, your antics made Mikhail exceptionally worried. It was a weird knee jerk reaction he had, something that hadn’t flared up since he was younger, watching over his sisters.

About a month after your arrival, Jane caught you in his raccoon infantry pen, cooing over the animals that flocked to you. It was the first time he saw you smile since you’ve gotten there, and the first time he’s seen you out of your combat gear, now you wore a too large tee shirt and denim shorts, toes in the Arizona sand, scratching the chins of the furry animals. Deciding to try his luck, Jane approached you with a bellowing welcome, startling you, but you greeted him back regardless.

Jane noticed how much you liked watching the raccoons play with each other, but noticed you looked sad too.

“What’s the long face for, private?”

Your face pinched. When you spoke your words were slow, not used to English. “They have… family. I do not.” With a heavy sigh, you tried to elaborate. Jane didn’t mind waiting for you to collect your thoughts or your thick accent. Years of hanging out with Travish and Ludwig extremely sloshed had taught Jane patience in regards to others when they’re trying to speak an unfamiliar language.

“Mother was from… Russia? But father was from Norway, and mother went to there with him. When mother and father… died,” Jane’s heart twinged at the way your face fell, “I do not know how to find mother’s family in Russia, and father had no family in Norway. So I stay in Norway.” A beat of silence passed as you scratched the head of a curious baby raccoon that strayed closed to you. “I stay alone.”

Jane busted out crying, pulling you into a bear hug and vowing to be your surrogate family for as long as you want. He made it his mission to figure out who your family is. The first thing he did was write down the name of your parents, fully planning on hunting down your relatives after some good old fashioned American bonding.

Just as he was about to reunite with you after grabbing a baseball form his room, the American ran into Mikhail, who seemed pissed off

“You touch Sasha?” He accused, one large finger jabbing into the soldier’s chest. Jane couldn’t find it in himself to get mad at the accusation, he was a man on a mission to cheer up a sad kid and no angry Red was gonna stop him.

“No time,Sputnik! There’s a sad private who needs a moral boost and a good old game of catch!”

Rage quickly turned to confusion, then mild understanding. “Electrician is sad?”

Soldier gave a speedrun version of your sad backstory, even going as far to show the names of your parents to the Heavy. The Russian surveyed the sheet and he sighed. “That is not how name of mother is spelled.” He informed.

Jane scoffed. “And how would you know?”

Mikhail threw the American an unimpressed look. “Because family name is mother’s name before marriage.”

There was a second of realization.

“... is it a common last name?”

“... nyet.”

“... you might want to call your mother to confirm something.”

“... Heavy just might.”

—-

The next morning, Mikhail knocked on Jane’s door so early in the morning, the vet wasn’t even awake yet already doing his morning exercises.

The American looked up blearily to the Russian, one hand scratching his buzz cut head.

Mikhail looked grim. “Heavy call mother. Mother says that Electrician’s mother is cousin to her.”

Soldier mulled over the information. “So… your mama’s cousin is Private Zappy’s mama, so that makes us-

“Makes ME second cousin.” Mikhail insisted.

With an air of smugness, Jane flashed his left hand, displaying a wedding band. “Then I’m their second cousin in-law.”

Mikhail grumbled in annoyance and rolled his eyes, complaining in Russian. “Right. Sister Zhanna’s big mistake.”

With a sense of new found energy, Soldier stuck his chin up high and began marching towards your room, seemingly not aware that he was in only a pair of his tighty whiteys.

Mikhail sighed again but followed Jane regardless to tell you the news of your newfound family.

Medic (italics is German cuz lets be honest, who wants to translate all that)

After months of complaining to Pauling, asking for more on field medical help, upper management finally relented and hired a new mercenary, some bright young thing going by The Nurse.

You were studious, and compared to Ludwig you were very tamed. You saw this opportunity as a job to perform and not a way to finally experiment legally on people without getting arrested the way Ludwig does. You took your work seriously, dutifully dressing every wound, handing out pain medication, assisting Ludwig in his surgeries. You certainly helped lessen his work load during battle, helping with minor injuries so that the doctor could focus on his Ubercharge and on more serious injuries.

You two were professional to each other; despite showing you weren’t exactly sadistic you never chastised Ludwig for his somewhat cruel experiments, and you were always respectful to him and everyone else around you, which is something that impressed him (considering how noting the rest of the team is).

One day while experimenting on Heavy, you solemnly standing next to the doctor with your face covered like the good little health professional you were, the Medic fuzzed in German, adding, “I need a bone saw.”

Without him translating, you turned to your side and snatched the instrument off the tray, passing it to the doctor.

After a moment of thought, Ludwig spoke again. “You speak German?”

“Ja, I am from Germany after all.”

The russain’s rib finally took the blade and now was slicing easily. “What a coincidence. Which part?”

“Munich, but I left while I was very young when my family moved.” After another brief pause, you add, “I actually wanted to become a nurse because of Munich.

Ludwig didn’t mention that he, as well, came from the same city, rather, he decided to prod you and learn more. It was so rare to meet someone he could have a conversation in his mother tongue with.

“What in Munich made you want to become a nurse?” Reaching into Heavy’s chest with a scalpel, Ludwig began to sever the arteries attached to the heart.

“The University. My family lived nearby, and seeing the students come and go made me want to join them… actually a relative went there. My family was very proud of him and I wanted to go with him, but, ah, I was only a child.” Without being asked, you held out a silver pan that Ludwig deposited the heart.

The doctor started the timer, watching the mutilated chest cavity, waiting for the oregano to regrow due to his most recent experimental ‘medicine’. “Hmm, which relative?”

“Oh, my father’s brother’s wife’s…. something.” You replied idly, fetching a notebook and pencil to record the time. “Nephew or cousin’s nephew or something. It is a distant relation. Lost his license though.”

“Really? How?”

“He removed someone’s skeleton if you can believe it.”

Ludwig’s fist clenched so hard that the stopwatch broke. Dammit, now he has to start the experiment all over again.

#tf2 spy x reader #tf2 scout x reader #tf2 soldier x reader #tf2 heavy x reader #tf2 medic x reader #tf2 x reader #team fortress 2 #team fortress 2 x reader #tf2 #tf2 medic #tf2 scout #tf2 soldier #tf2 heavy #tf2 spy

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journalxxx · 3 years

Text

By Hook or by Crook (2)

May 1st, 2270

“Hello, Izuku.” “Hi, dad.” Izuku hadn’t exactly been dreading this conversation, but he hadn’t been looking forward to it either. He’d hoped his mom would do all the talking, having to break the news to his friends had been hard enough. For him. Most of them seemed to have gotten quite the kick out of it. “How are you? Your mother told me you’ve been having a rough couple of weeks.” “Mh.” “Still upset over that visit?” “Mh.” “Speak, son. Sulking doesn’t translate well over the phone.” His father chided gently.

Izuku sighed. “The doctor said I’m never going to get a quirk. I’m sorry.” “Whatever for? It’s not like you have any choice in the matter. Quirks are innate, surely you know that.” “Yes, I do.” Izuku said, staring at the paused frame of All Might’s debut video on the computer screen. The reflection of his own miserable face was superimposed with the triumphant silhouette of the hero. “But I’m sorry anyway. You have such a cool quirk… and mom’s useful too. I could become a great hero with one of them, but I’m never going to get any.” “Again, that’s none of your fault. And I wouldn’t be so sure of that anyway.” “Uh?” Izuku gulped, gripping the phone tightly. “Y-you don’t think I’d make a good hero?” “No, that’s not what I mean.” His father chuckled. “I mean that I wouldn’t lose hope just yet. You’re very young, there’s still plenty of time for your quirk to manifest.” “But the doctor said that all quirks appear before one is four years old. And I’m four. And I have the extra toe joint-” “Tsk! Some doctor they assigned you. As if one could unerringly guess the nature and development of something as unpredictable as a quirk with a single test. An x-ray, of all things. Ancient technology.” “The doctor said there was a study...” “I have an extra toe joint too, you know.” Izuku’s father laughed hearing his son’s surprised gasp. “Studies like the one your doctor mentioned draw conclusions based on the analysis of hundreds, thousands of cases. Those conclusions may hold true for the majority of them, but there are always outliers. Having that oh-so-precious joint and a quirk is indeed rare, but not unheard of.” “B-But…” Izuku’s eyes burned with the feeling of impending tears. He hadn’t expected his father’s reaction to be like this. No one had even remotely doubted the validity of the doctor’s opinion. No one. It almost hurt to hope. “I’m also too old…” “My own quirk didn’t show until I was… fifteen? Maybe sixteen. Way older than you are, anyway. Another important point to consider, don’t you think?” Izuku sniffled. Then cried, quietly. His father remained silent as the boy let the tears flow freely, wiping them on his arm now and then. There was a tangled ball of emotions deep in his chest, that he couldn’t quite unravel. After a couple of minutes though, the sobs abated and he felt better. Better than he had been feeling before his mom handed him the phone. “...Do you really think the doctor was wrong?” “You shouldn’t believe everything doctors tell you. My personal physician keeps calling me ‘the peak of biological and anthropological evolution’, but that’s because he’s been fishing for a raise for years. Clearly you’d expect a Darwinian champion to be able to walk under the sun without protection for more than five minutes without turning into a peeling tomato.” “Uh? Does that really happen to you?” “Didn’t your mother ever tell you that I’m albino? My skin is very sensitive to sunlight, and it burns easily. I have atrocious eyesight too.” “I didn’t know that.” Izuku winced in sympathy. “I’m sorry. That sounds terrible.” “Not nearly as much as you think. I have plenty of skills and tools at my disposal to compensate. It isn’t an inconvenience at all these days, although it did cause me some grief when I was a child.” His father’s tone got softer. “Sometimes it does feel like our bodies are our own worst enemies, doesn’t it?” Izuku hummed in assent, very much agreeing with the sentiment. “I’m happy it doesn’t hurt you any more.” “And I’m glad you didn’t inherit this nuisance from me.” A sudden thought made its unwelcome way in Izuku’s head. “If… If I didn’t inherit your skin and eyes… maybe I won’t inherit your quirk either…” “Izuku.” His father’s tone was kind but firm. There were times when his presence, even just through his voice, felt way more real and solid than that of many people Izuku habitually shared a room with. “Your ability will emerge one day, I’m positive of that. Just give it time and don’t agonize over it.” Izuku nodded, even though he realized that wouldn’t translate well over the phone either. “...Okay.” “Now, what else have you been up to in this past month, other than brooding over a criminally incompetent diagnosis?” Not much, honestly, but Izuku told him anyway. As he kept chatting, his heart grew lighter than it had been in weeks. Mom did always say that his father was a good listener.

July 1st, 2272 “They were talking about it on TV yesterday. It’s an old incident from some years ago, before All Might met Nighteye!” “I see...” “Not many people know about it, because there’s no villain involved, and villains make all the stories more interesting! But it’s a great story nonetheless!” Izuku rattled on enthusiastically, taking advantage of his father’s unresponsive compliance. “Uh-huh...” “So this boy was having some big troubles, I think, and he jumped into a river because he didn’t know what to do about them. But luckily All Might was around! Do you know what he did?” “He offered to cover all the expenses for the years of therapy the boy would need afterwards?” “Uh… They didn’t say that on TV. I don’t know. I think he just rescued him from the river.” “That doesn’t seem to address the underlying problem.” His father commented icily. “Daaad, you’re ruining the story.” Izuku chided him. “Anyway, the funny part is that this boy had a quirk that could turn water into vinegar, and he activated it in a panic while he was drowning.” “Mh. A peculiar quirk...” “So All Might got all drenched in vinegar when he dove in to save him. He made this very silly face in front of the cameras, it was great! And when the boy apologized for causing trouble, guess what All Might told him?” “I’m sorry I’m the living embodiment of this unfair, hypocritical society that has driven you to the brink of despair?” “No. He said,” Izuku continued, breezing past his father’s petty remarks with practiced ease, “It is I who should thank you. My skin’s looking ten years younger now.” “Oh my God…” The man groaned, and a loud thunk-crash noise accompanied his words. “Oh, come on!” Izuku giggled, covering his mouth with his free hand. “It’s so funny!” “Just because they’re called ‘dad jokes’ doesn’t mean I’m legally obligated to laugh at them.” “But it is funny! All Might’s the funniest! Did you know that he just wrote a joke book? It’s called All Might’s Gags and Jokes: A Compendium. It already has amazing reviews! They say it’s warm and relatable and cy.. cyclical…” “He wrote a joke book. A veritable Renaissance man, this one...” His father muttered. Izuku heard something clink in the background. Probably the pieces of whatever his father dropped. “Mom says she’ll buy it for my birthday!” Izuku added, swinging his whole body on his chair in sheer excitement. “That is such a poor use of your remittance. I’ll need to have a couple of words with her…” “It’s for my education!” Izuku enunciated with solemnity, straightening his posture. “There’s a whole chapter of American puns and word plays! It will help me learn English!” “If you want to learn English on your own so soon, please choose a decent source. Start with basic grammar and alphabet books, watch some subtitled shows and movies to get the hang of the correct pronunciation-” “I’m learning a lot from All Might already! The catchphrase he used when he was in college in California was I am here! When he’s surprised, he says Oh my goodness! When he doesn’t believe something, he says Nonsense!” Izuku parroted, taking great care of imitating All Might’s confident, surprised and disbelieving expressions respectively. They would be lost on his father, but he needed to practice them anyway. “If that’s a good American accent, I’m the next Symbol of Peace.” “Dad.” Izuku said, suddenly very serious. He had a very important question to ask, and it had been a long time coming. “Why do you always make fun of him? It’s like… It’s almost like you don’t like him at all.” The words sounded so wrong he almost wasn’t brave enough to say them. Izuku would have been mortified if anyone had moved such an accusation on him. “I suppose he has a sort of… charisma about him.” His father admitted ruefully. “I can’t say it strikes any chords with me though.” “Are you just jealous of him?” Izuku asked shrewdly. “Kacchan also talks a lot of trash about All Might, but it’s obvious he’s just jealous. It’s all right if you are, though, I mean, he’s so-” “I’m this close to hanging up, Izuku.” “But- but how can you not like All Might?! Everyone likes All Might! Boys and girls, children and grown-ups! From age 0 to 100!” “...I guess I just don’t fit the target demographic then.” Izuku huffed. “You’re so boring, dad.” “Says the one who’s been talking my ear off about the same topic for the last forty minutes.” The boy frowned, nibbling at his lip. “...Sorry. Am I annoying you?” “I’ll admit I may have hit my monthly tolerance limit of All Might trivia. Don’t worry about it though.” Izuku did in fact stop worrying, his father’s amusement clearly detectable in his voice. “I think I’ll be able to bear with your unabashed enthusiasm until you hit your mandatory disillusioned teenage phase. Then we’ll see if that obnoxiously cheery act of his will still resonate with you.”

June 2nd, 2274 “His normal body temperature is about two degrees higher than the average. Around 38-39 °C.” “And what can you deduce from that?” Izuku’s father goaded. The boy stared at the scribbles in his notebook in deep thought. “Uhm… that it’s difficult to tell if he has a fever or not?” His father laughed, but not unkindly. “I wouldn’t think so. You just said yourself that that is his normal temperature. Therefore, I wouldn’t call Endeavor’s doctor unless his thermometer read more than 39.5 °C, probably.” “Right.” Izuku nodded. That was obvious, wasn’t it? Why hadn’t he understood that on his own? His father didn’t seem to mind his blunder though. “Try again.” “I think…” Izuku’s eyes were just about to bore a hole into his rough sketch of the hero’s costume. He gave up after the silence started to make him uncomfortable though. “...I don’t know. What can I deduce from that?” “Hm… You did bring up an interesting point. Do you know how fever works, Izuku?” “Yeah. Your body temperature rises when you’re sick. If it rises too much, you can get in serious trouble, you could even die. It never really gets that bad though.” “But why does it rise? What does your body accomplish by doing that?” “Uh…” Izuku frowned. He was sure he’d read or heard something about that, but the details escaped him at the moment. “To help you fight off the sickness, right? You feel worse at first, but it actually helps you get better.” “Exactly. Most bacteria and viruses that infect men thrive and multiply optimally at around 37 °C, which is the average person’s normal body temperature. But the growth of these microorganisms is hindered when the environment gets too hot. That is the principle that makes fever useful for humans. As your body gets hotter, it debilitates the invasors, so that your immune system can remove them more easily.” “..Oh.” It was a pity that his father called him only once a month, Izuku could have easily listened to him for hours every day. He always had so many interesting things to say about so many different subjects, and he always exposed them so neatly. “So. Can you deduce anything new now?” “Uh, uhm… He… I guess he...” Izuku snapped out of his reverie. Right, this was a conversation, not a lesson. He went over the new information in his head as quickly as he could. Higher temperature than normal... Fever... Microorganisms... Immune syst- Oh! “He heals quicker than- no, wait! He doesn’t get sick at all! Because he’s always too hot for the microorganisms! They can’t grow in his body!” “Excellent reasoning!” His father’s warm praise made Izuku’s chest swell with pride. “Obviously he isn’t completely immune to any and all infections, there are lots of exceptions to the mechanism I just explained to you. But yes, I do believe it’s safe to assume that our esteemed Flame Hero suffers from the occasional seasonal maladies far less often than the general population, if at all.” “That’s so cool…” Izuku immediately added the new data to his notes, almost breaking the tip of the pencil in his enthusiasm. “Is that what you wanted me to deduce? Or did you explain that just because I brought up the fever thing?” “I was actually thinking of something else. But, on second thought, it may be too technical a topic for an eight-year-old.” “...Can you tell me about it anyway?” “Of course.” Izuku would never not be grateful for the patience his father had, never denying him any clarification on anything. He was just about the only adult who never got tired of his questions. Even his mom sometimes hid her fatigue behind a mildly insincere I don’t know. “High heat isn’t exactly conductive to the activity of human cells either. That’s one of the reasons why you feel exhausted and achy when you have a fever, your body struggles to keep doing what it’s supposed to do above its normal temperature range. But Endeavor not only is at peak condition at 39 °C, he can also withstand open flames with a much higher temperature. This suggests that his cells must be fundamentally different from the average person’s on a biochemical level, that his quirk must provide some particularly efficient cellular mechanism to prevent heat damage. One example might be some dedicated enzymes to protect proteins from denaturation, but now I’m entering mere speculation.” A pause. “Did you follow me?” “...Kind of.” Izuku said, kind of lying but not entirely. He had followed most of that. He scrawled and circled a couple of terms he hadn’t grasped - Biochemical - Enzymes - Denaturation - on the page. He didn’t want to waste his father’s time by asking him to explain the meaning of words he could easily look up later on his own. “The gist of it is that Endeavor’s Hellflame has at least two facets. Not only ‘creating fire’, but also ‘not incinerating himself’. The first trait would be a fatal liability without the second.” “Got it!” Izuku cheered. Now that he had understood completely. “You sure know a lot about quirks, dad! Like, a lot! About anything, really!” “For the sake of intellectual honesty, it must be said that it isn’t difficult to impress a primary schooler.” His father laughed. “I’m just older than you.” “How much older?” Izuku asked, realizing for the first time that no one had ever told him his father’s age. “Oh, by a lot. Centuries.” Izuku cackled. “You can’t be that old. You still go to work. Our neighbors are 80 and they’re already retired.” “I do try to keep a youthful outlook on life. But yes, quirks fascinate me quite a bit. And they make for the perfect topic to distract you from your incessant yapping about All Might.” “Speaking of All Might-” “No, I-” His father sighed theatrically. “I just walked into this one, didn’t I?” “Yep.” Izuku grinned. “What about his quirk? Do you know anything about it? He never gives straight answers when people ask him about it…” “That may be the single sign of intelligence he’s ever displayed. The more your enemies know about your quirk, the easier it is for them to find your weaknesses. I’m surprised the other pro heroes aren’t as reserved.” “I wonder why All Might does that, though. His quirk is… pretty obvious.” Izuku pondered. “It just makes him strong. Very strong. Like, the strongest ever. But that’s it.” “Allegedly, yes. But as you noticed yourself, if raw power was all there was to it, there would be no reason to skirt around the issue in interviews, no?” “So there must be something else… What do you think it might be?” “I think it would be no less than cruel to deprive you of the thrill of carrying out your own research.” Izuku let out a dissatisfied moan, and his father chuckled. “You are already so very proficient at it. Your mother told me you’ve already filled a whole notebook with hero and quirk analyses.” “Oh, ehr… It’s just stuff I read here and there…” “Mh, I’ve heard enough of your ‘stuff’ to know that there’s more than random factoids in that head of yours. In fact…” Izuku felt his cheeks warm for the compliment. “I think you’ve gotten old and judicious enough to be trusted with my emergency number.” “Uh? What emergency number?” “It’s a phone number I’ll always answer to, on any day and at any hour, in case you may find yourself in a bad situation. Hopefully you’ll never need it, but better safe than sorry. Now…” His father’s voice raised slightly, drowning out Izuku’s impending interruption. “Can I rely on the fact that you are aware that desperately wanting to tell me that All Might saved a kitten from a meteor does not qualify as an emergency?” Izuku pouted. “I know what an emergency is, dad.” “Good. Ask your mother to give you the number then. Don’t save it on your phone or write it anywhere. Memorize it, and be responsible with it.”

December 3rd, 2275 Sorry for the long silence. I had an accident on the job and I won’t be able to speak clearly for a while. We can talk with the included devices. Use your ring finger to activate them. Usual days, usual hours. Hisashi That short note held the first words Izuku had received from his father in the last five months. The first month he hadn’t phoned, Izuku had felt slightly disappointed, but understanding. His father was a busy man, surely something very important must have been requiring his full-time attention. It was fine, Izuku was confident he could manage to sweet-talk him into a double-length call the following month to make up for that. The second month, he had started to worry. His mother hadn’t heard from his father either. It was unprecedented not to hear from him for such a long time. Since Izuku could remember, his father had never skipped one of their monthly calls. They often talked on the first day of every month, and he kept trying to contact them exactly once each following day if his calls were missed. He never failed to reach them past the third day. He always called from a hidden number, so trying to get hold of him was not an option. The third month, Izuku’s mother had decided to use the emergency number. She hadn’t been able to get through to her husband, but the polite colleague of his who had picked up had reassured her that he was indisposed but overall fine, and would get in touch with them as soon as possible… which could still take a while. Curiously, the coworker had also instructed them to collect a sample of their fingerprints and send them to a specific address. Izuku had been mystified by the request, but his mother had readily agreed, commenting that it was “not the strangest thing Hisashi’s ever asked for”. The silent wait that followed had been a little uneasy, but not harrowing. Izuku and his mother reread the message a couple of times before opening the box they’d just been delivered. Inside were only the two mentioned devices with their respective chargers, snuggled among waterproof packaging and stuffing. They looked very much like ordinary mobile phones, except they had no buttons or ports on any side. Some quick experimentation proved that they could be turned on simply by pressing the indicated finger on the touchscreen. The display showed a very minimalistic chat interface, with a fixed red dot on the top left corner. No amount of tapping on the screen could bring up the virtual keyboard though, which was puzzling. There was no way to access the rest of the phone’s functions, if it even had any. It was the third day of the month, so technically still within the familiar communication window. Izuku kept poking and prodding at the buttonless phone for the whole afternoon until eventually, shortly after dinner, the red dot at the top of the chat became green. A minute later, a message popped up. Hello, Izuku. Izuku almost dropped his cup of hot chocolate in excitement, which was quickly replaced by frustration because he still couldn’t type anything in any way. How was he supposed to- Speak. I can hear you. “...Oh! Nice!” Izuku exclaimed. “Hi, dad! How are you? What happened?” I’ve been better. I got decked by a hysterical ape. Izuku frowned. “That’s not funny. Mom and I were very worried.” That wasn’t really a joke. What? What even- “...How? Did you break into a zoo or something…?” Sorry, you’re right. Let me rephrase. I had a violent disagreement with a brute. “Oh…” Izuku was about to ask for further explanations but he waited. The three bouncing dots at the bottom of the screen signalled that his father was still writing. We will have to communicate like this for a while. I hope it isn’t too much of an inconvenience for you. Judging by how long it took him to type even the shortest messages, Izuku thought it was going to be much more of an inconvenience for his father. He felt sorry for him. “No, not all. Is it… is it really bad? Shouldn’t you come home so we can help you get better? It sounds like you won’t be able to work anyway…” I’ll receive better medical treatment here, and I can still get some work done while I recuperate. Don’t worry, I’m sure I’ll recover fully sooner or later. Izuku picked at the lint of his blanket, choosing his words carefully. “You could… come home anyway. Even if you could work. When you’re feeling a little better. So we could spend some time together.” The three bouncing dots reappeared, but Izuku kept talking. He already knew what his father’s answer was going to be, but he wanted to take advantage of the delay to get a few more words in. “Some of my friends have parents that work far from home too. They’re away a lot, but… they do come back to visit sometimes. Usually for the holidays. At least… At least once.” At least his friends had actually met their fathers once in their whole lives, Izuku completed only in his head. You know how things stand. My job doesn’t afford me this kind of free time. “...What do you even do that won’t let you ever do anything?” Izuku muttered, out of sheer petulance. That was another familiar point of contention, to which his father replied with the same, word-for-word justification he always used. Every detail concerning my activities is classified by the government. We’ve been over this. Don’t be childish. And that was usually the end of it. Any further questioning after the ‘classified’ thing invariably turned Izuku’s father into a slippery wall of smooth deflections. But, considering the current situation, Izuku felt like he could get away with a little more nagging, if he played his cards right. “I know you can’t say anything. But how about…” He physically leaned forwards, trying not to let his tension seep through his voice. “How about I try to deduce something? About your job. Just… for fun.” No new message showed up, not even the typing dots. Izuku decided that it was as much of an approval as he was going to get, so he started to voice his thoughts as they formed. “...Your job is classified by the government. So it’s important, very important, so important that other people can’t know about it.” When he was very young, Izuku had obviously interpreted it as irrefutable proof that his father must be some sort of secret agent. He had exposed his conclusion to Kacchan and his gang once. They had… not-so-respectfully disagreed. Izuku had never brought up the matter with them afterwards. “Your note said that you got hurt on the job. So someone you know from work punched you so hard that, even after five months, you still can’t talk well.” Izuku paused. That was… a scary idea. It dawned on him, for the first time since the beginning of this whole ordeal, that his father may have really dodged a bullet there. What kind of a brute could possibly want to injure someone that much…? Surely a criminal… A villain, maybe…? “Your job is dangerous, and it leaves you almost no free time. It also pays well.” That last item was admittedly a shot in the dark, Izuku didn’t really know much about money handling. But he had noticed that his mother never denied him a gift or a treat on the grounds of its cost (his vast collection of All Might memorabilia was a testament to that), like so many of his friends’ relatives were wont to do. She didn’t need a job herself, and Izuku remembered overhearing a conversation she had with Kacchan’s mom where she had said that they were ‘well provided for’. “You know a lot about a lot of stuff, especially about quirks and heroes. You know a lot of things about quirks and heroes that I couldn’t find anywhere on the internet.” Izuku paused, racking his brain for anything else that stuck out. Before he could come up with more points to make, his father finally wrote back. You sure put some thought into this. I’m impressed. The lack of reprimands was an encouragement in its own right. Now came the hard part. These were all facts that he already knew, now he had to put them together… and no matter how much he tried to come up with different possibilities, there was only one explanation that rang true in Izuku’s mind. “Dad… are you some sort of… undercover hero?” Izuku waited with baited breath for the dancing dots to turn into a complete message. Definitely not. ...Aw, shoot. Although I guess I do happen to deal with heroes quite often in my line of work. Izuku gasped. That was the first real piece of information his father had ever shared with him about his job! And wow, he worked with heroes! And whatever support he lent them had to be pretty vital if he was always so busy and tight-lipped. “So you’re like… a policeman? An informant that tracks down villains for the heroes to catch? Or an engineer bound by trade secret? Or-” Enough, Izuku. I’m supposed to be resting. I don’t think being given the third degree by my own son counts as such. Izuku deflated. So close to the truth, and yet so far… Maybe he could manage to get some other clue out of his father later. But… there was one more thing he simply had to ask. “...Have you ever met All Might?” I’m just going to ignore you after this. Well, it had been worth a try. Izuku finally relented, reasonably satisfied with the result of his investigation. “Okay, okay. Sorry. No more questions. And no All Might stuff. Not that I have much to tell you about him. He hasn’t really been around lately.” Hasn’t he, now? Uh, odd. It wasn’t like his father to miss an opportunity to dodge All Might gossip. Izuku supposed there’d be no harm in taking advantage of this atypical spark of curiosity. “Yeah. It’s been like this for a few months. Rumors say he’s abroad, working on some large scale mission. Something very secret, that’s why there are no articles on him in newspapers from other countries either.” I wasn’t aware of this. That’s very interesting. Although I couldn’t imagine anyone less suited to hushed-up operations. Izuku couldn’t help but snort. In light of the recent revelation, he wondered if his father was so unapologetically critical of All Might because he had worked with him and they hadn’t gotten along… which seemed kind of impossible. How could All Might be the unpleasant type of coworker? Or maybe his father really was just jealous because he couldn’t work with All Might often enough. A sudden thought occurred to the boy. “...Sorry, I guess you don’t want to hear about hero stuff now that you’re, uh… on forced vacation.” Actually, I’d love to. I’ve been a little out of the loop lately, I need to catch up with the news anyway. Fire away all the information you have. Izuku smiled. “Even about All Might?” Especially about All Might.

#my hero academia #boku no hero academia #izuku midoriya #deku #all for one

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swan-of-sunrise · 3 years

Text

Specs and the Flyboy (Chapter Two)

Summary: Jack is less-than-pleased that Daniel’s decided to hire a codebreaker for the West Coast SSR and needless to say, he and (Y/N) end up getting off on the wrong foot.

Pairing: Jack Thompson X Reader

Word Count: 2.3k

Warnings/Disclaimers: None

A/N: I’ve been blown away by all the positive reactions the first chapter got here on Tumblr and on AO3, so thank you so much for that! Hope you all enjoy this one too!

Chapter Two West Coast Strategic Scientific Reserve, Los Angeles (Previous Chapter)

“Sousa, I’ve got more important things to do this morning than interview some egghead pencil-neck geek with you. Go get your gal to do it.”

Jack glanced up from his paperwork in time to see Daniel roll his eyes in exasperation before answering. “I already told you, Jack, the codebreaker’s an old friend of Peggy’s and it would be a conflict of interest if she were present. Besides, she’s busy tracking down another lead on that shooter of yours.”

“Oh.” At Daniel’s words, the freshly-healed gunshot wound on his chest twinged uncomfortably, so Jack brought a hand up to furtively rub at it as he continued. “All right, Chief, when’s this shin-dig supposed to happen? ‘Cause I ain’t got all day to wait around, you know.”

“Peggy said not until eleven, but it could be any time between then and now. Say, you mind waiting here while I take these files down to Samberly, in case the codebreaker shows up early?”

“Sure, just hurry up, would you? I don’t wanna be stuck talking gobbledygook alone with this guy.”

If there was one thing Jack truly despised, it was the way smarter people flaunted their intelligence and made others feel like crap for not knowing about things like quadratic equations and iambic pentameter. Jack was smart – he’d gotten into Cornell on his own merits, after all – but he was certainly no Einstein and that was fine by him. But he’d met way too many people in college who thrived in making others like him feel that they were beneath them; he already believed the SSR had too many scientists on their hands, so he couldn’t understand why Sousa would hire yet another one to clutter the West Coast office.

Daniel stood and slid his arm into his crutch. “Aye aye, Chief.” After giving him a small salute, he grabbed his files and limped out of their shared office.

Unable to refocus on his paperwork, Jack tossed his pen down on the desk, leaned back in his chair and crossed his ankles on the edge of the desk as he allowed his thoughts to wander. Nearly a month ago, he’d been shot in his hotel room as he prepared to head back to New York after they solved the Zero Matter case; the hotel staff had found him right after and from what the doctors said, he’d have been a cooked goose if they’d shown up any later. But unfortunately, since he’d been the target of an attack by an unknown suspect or organization, he was forced to stay in Los Angeles with the West Coast SSR until the case was either solved or closed.

Hopefully that’ll be any day now, he thought to himself as he closed his eyes and clenched his jaw in annoyance; he hated everything about Los Angeles, from its absurd traffic jams and sweltering heat to the utter lack of any decent food. He hated the fact that he wasn’t a real chief, that as long as he was in Los Angeles, he was virtually useless. The women were all good-looking but with the open case and…well, his own off-the-books investigation, he sadly didn’t have any time to chat up dames…

“Um, Chief Sousa?” Jack’s eyes flew open and landed on a woman standing in the doorway with a hesitant look on her face. Speak of the devil, he thought with an inward smirk. “I’m sorry to, ah, disturb you, Chief Sousa, but we have an appointment…?”

Jack yawned and stretched his arms out. “You’ve got the wrong guy, doll, the name’s Jack Thompson. Sousa’ll be back any minute, though, he’s just takin’ care of some paperwork.”

The woman nodded in understanding. “Do you mind if I sit here and wait for him, then?”

“Go ahead.” She gave him a nod of thanks and took a seat in the chair beside Sousa’s filing cabinet; she immediately pulled out a file from her purse and a pair of wire-framed glasses, which she slipped on before beginning to skim the file. Jack observed her with mild curiosity from his own seat; the sunlight streaming through the office’s window illuminated the woman’s smooth skin and made her styled (Y/H/C) hair nearly glow, and her (Y/E/C) eyes, although partially obscured by her reading glasses, had an intensity to them that intrigued him. The women of Los Angeles were all knock-outs, sure, but the one sitting across the room from him had a quiet and effortless beauty to her that had instantly caught his attention; it wouldn’t hurt to try your luck with her, he told himself, could be worth a shot.

He was jostled from his thoughts when she suddenly spoke up, her eyes still trained on her file. “I’d appreciate it greatly if you’d stop ogling me like that.”

“Sorry, sorry.” He bit his lip as he tried thinking of another approach. “So, um, what’re you here to see Sousa about?”

“I’m afraid that’s between me and your boss.” The woman looked up from her file with a raised eyebrow and after appraising him for a moment, her gaze softened. “But if we’re asking questions, then why’re you in the chief’s office and not in the bullpen with all the other agents?”

Jack leaned father back in his chair and placed his hands behind his head with an easy-going shrug. “Just keeping his seat warm, helping him out with some cases, that sort of thing. You know, it’s a wonder how the branch managed to get anything done before I came along.”

“Well, then, I suppose it’s a good thing you’re here holding down the fort.” She quipped, closing her file and taking off her glasses. “I’ve heard talk that this branch was having a, ah…well, a challenging time running smoothly.”

He chuckled. “You could say that again. You know what the chief’s doing now? He’s gonna hire another egghead, this time a codebreaker. Can you believe that?”

The woman didn’t smile or laugh, but instead furrowed her brow. “I take it you don’t approve of codebreakers, Agent.”

“I don’t mind ‘em but let me put it this way: it’s post-war America and the last thing the SSR needs at a time like this is another pencil-necked, stuttering brainiac who thinks they’re better than everyone else just ‘cause they’re a little bit smarter. And it’s actually Chief, not Agent.” Jack corrected, grinning with self-assurance as he swung his legs off the desk and leaned forward in his chair. “Chief Thompson. What about you, doll, what’s your name?”

The woman crossed her arms and spoke, her voice all of the sudden dripping with malice. “Two chiefs for one office? I guess Peg was right about this branch…not that I was expecting any better of the SSR, of course. In my experience, government agencies have always been prone to stupidity.”

For the first time in a long while, Jack struggled to find his words and finally settled on, “You know Marge.”

“If you’re talking about Peggy Carter, then yes, she’s the one who recommended me for the open position of pencil-neck, stuttering brainiac.” She rose from her seat with narrowed eyes and placed her hands on her hips. “And it seems to me that all the issues with the SSR could be quickly resolved if there were more of us around and less of you arrogant, self-absorbed flyboys.”

His indignation rising, Jack jumped to his feet and stepped around the desk to stand before her with his arms crossed. “And apparently I was right about specs always needing to be the smartest in the room. You know, that sort of attitude could get you into a lotta trouble someday-”

“Are you threatening me, Chief Thompson?”

“So what if I am?! I outrank you, and I-!”

“Hey!” Daniel voice cut through the room, and Jack’s head whipped around in time to watch the chief limp into the office and slam the door closed behind him. “What the hell’s wrong with you, Jack, the whole damn building can hear you!”

Jack pointed an accusing finger at the woman. “Sousa, you can’t seriously be considering hiring this…this dame!”

“Call me ‘dame’ one more time and I’ll take that finger of yours and shove it right up your-”

“Whoa whoa whoa! Let’s all calm down, shall we?” Jack let out a huff of frustration and flopped back down at his chair, watching as Daniel took a step towards the woman and offered her his hand. “I’m really sorry about all that, Miss…?”

The woman hesitated a moment before giving his hand a shake. “(Y/L/N), (Y/N) (Y/L/N). It’s good to finally meet you, Chief Sousa, Peggy’s told me quite a bit about you.”

“All good things, I hope. Peg told me a little bit about you too, but I was hoping to learn more during this interview.” He gestured for her to sit in the chair facing his desk and as she situated herself, he made his way around his desk and set his crutch to the side before taking a seat. “Um, just pretend Chief Thompson isn’t here. I’m legally required to have another SSR agent sit in on interviews and he’s the only one not busy right now, so…”

(Y/N) shot Jack a contemptuous glare before smiling kindly at Daniel and handing over her file. “Oh, that certainly won’t be a problem, Chief.”

“All right, then let’s get things started. Can you tell me a little about your background and your experience with codes?”

“Of course. I graduated from Stanford University in 1940 and served five years overseas; two years stationed at the Government Code and Cypher School at Bletchley Park in London and the other three in the field with the OSS. You’ll see in my file that while I was officially an OSS operative, I was loaned out to the SSR to serve as a field codebreaker and upon Captain Rogers and Colonel Chester Phillips’ recommendation, I was assigned to the Howling Commandos to serve as their personal codebreaker from 1943 to 1945. I’ve worked with and have mastered dozens of variants of codes, and I was one of the minds behind the Native American Code Talkers. In the field, I took part in over fifty missions with the OSS, the SSR and the Howling Commandos; the intelligence I decoded aided in the take-down of all Hydra bases and was integral to several other highly-classified operations that I’m not at liberty to discuss.”

Daniel let out a low whistle, clearly impressed. “That’s quite the resumè, Miss (Y/L/N). It says here in your file that you trained Agent Carter in codebreaking at Bletchley Park?”

While (Y/N) gave her reply, Jack jotted down a quick note on the corner of his report. Once he finished, he gave Daniel’s foot a nudge and tilted the report in his direction so the chief could read it.

“So, um, Miss (Y/L/N), have you…?” Daniel’s eyes darted between Jack’s note and the codebreaker’s face. “Ah…” Sighing, he closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose in exasperation. “Jack, your handwriting’s shit so you might as well ask her your own damn question yourself.”

Jack scowled and met (Y/N)’s annoyingly expectant gaze. “Have you actually been trained as an agent or did the Howlies babysit you during the war?”

“Thompson!”

“It’s all right, Chief Sousa. To answer your question, Chief Thompson: yes, I received basic training before I was assigned to the field, the same as any other soldier.” She raised a questioning eyebrow. “Do you have any other questions for me? I want to be sure that you’re on the same page as we are.”

Jack clenched his jaw. “Where do you get off-?”

“Thank you for coming in, Miss (Y/N).” Daniel got to his feet and shook her hand again. “I still need to run a couple routine background checks but as far as I’m concerned, you’re hired. You’ll get a call from me once everything is set.”

The codebreaker’s face broke into a grin as she stood. “Thank you, Chief Sousa. I’m looking forward to working with codes and the SSR again, and I’ll be sure to keep a lookout for that phone call. I hope you have a good rest of your day!”

She collected her things and walked out of the office without so much as a passing glance at Jack, who let out a snort of derision. “Sousa, you must really be flipping your lid this time, you can’t seriously hire-”

“Don’t tell me how to run my office, Thompson. We needed a codebreaker and she’s easily the most qualified applicant we’ve had.” Daniel snapped, sitting back down and resuming his paperwork. Jack couldn’t help but feel a little impressed; Daniel had come a long way from being a meek agent in NYC, even if he occasionally made stupid decisions like hiring (Y/N) (Y/L/N).

After about fifteen minutes, Daniel looked up from his work with a curious expression. “You know, I’ve never seen you so antsy about a woman before. What’s up?”

Jack shrugged. “I dunno, but something about her just rubs me the wrong way. We better find my would-be murderer soon so I can get the hell back to New York and never see her again.”

Daniel appeared as if he’d reply, but at that moment Peggy entered the office; the chief’s expression softened as he gave her a smile, looking every bit the lovesick idiot he was. “Hey, Peggy, how’d your lead pan out?”

“It didn’t, unfortunately. My potential witness was involved in an automobile accident early this morning, I arrived at the scene just after the coroner.” Peggy’s eyes flicked to Jack’s and softened with sympathy. “It seems as if you’ll be staying with us a while longer, Thompson.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A/N: Thank you so much for reading! If you haven’t checked it out yet, I created a Spotify playlist for this series and I’ll be updating it every time I upload a new chapter.

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/21pWY7OiMFj8LaYpxhtVtW

Chapter Three

“Specs and the Flyboy” Masterlist

Tagging: @nnon-it-up @fluffymadamina @remmyswritings @ourstarsailor @darkusangelus @josis-teacup @marvel-jackt-loki-buck @yeetyeetchickenmeat @sameoldbaby @theserenityspace @seeing-but-not-observing @supervoldejaygent @momc95 @brooke0297 @kinda-c0nfused @outoftheregular @mads-weasley

#jack thompson x reader #agent carter #jack thompson #daniel sousa #marvel cinematic universe #strategic scientific reserve

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acreativeme · 3 years

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A Positive Secret

Clinton Skye x Reader

Before the arguing started, Y/N and Clinton had decided that it was okay for her to go back to work. They began arguing shortly afterwards with Clinton taking more assignments away from home and not allowing her to have time to secure a job. Y/N sent out feelers right after their talk, hoping to get into the workforce after three years away.But those hopes were dashed, because Clinton took an assignment away from home.

The arguing started as he was packing to leave for his assignment.

Y/N shut their bedroom door, not wanting to wake the twins. “How could you, Clinton Skye?”

He froze, clutching the strap of his suitcase. “What are you carrying on about, Y/N?”

“You took an assignment away from home! We talked away about me going back to work and you cutting back to help with the twins.” Y/N whisper-shouted, frustration evident in her voice.

He rolled his eyes, pulling some clothes from the closet. “This is a great opportunity for me! I think you can wait a little bit longer to get back to work, I mean it’s been three years and no one has missed you”

Y/N’s jaw dropped, tears welling in her eyes. “Clinton, you don’t mean that.”

Clinton turned to her with a serious look on his face, which broke Y/N’s heart. “I am very serious, Y/N.”

Y/N was speechless, trying to process everything Clinton had just said. In the 12 years that they had been together, he had never said anything so heartless. Clinton eyed her as he left the room, deciding that it would be best just to leave.

Y/N fell onto the bed, not moving until the cries of her children rang through the baby monitor on the nightstand. For the next several weeks, Y/N had focused on taking care of her children and finding a job that she could do from home. Whenever Clinton would call, which was only twice a week, they’d spend most of it arguing about anything and everything. Clinton’s mother would try to get them both on a conference call to work things out, but both refused to talk about their problems with her. After a lot of talking with his mother, the couple decided to go to couples counseling as soon as Clinton returned from his assignment.

Positive..

Y/N racked her brain, trying to remember if she had overlooked any pregnancy symptoms. Nothing was coming to mind, which means all of the stress she’s been under was masking them. How was she supposed to tell Clinton that she was pregnant, when they couldn’t talk without fighting?

Buzz.. Buzz..

Y/N jumped as her alarm buzzed, stating that it was time for her to leave for therapy. She quickly cleaned up the bathroom, not wanting to leave any evidence of the test out in the open for her in-laws to find. She slipped in her sneakers before slipping down the hall to the living room, where her in-laws were with the twins.

She leaned down and kissed both girls heads, “Be good for grandma and grandpa.” She smiled down at them as they acted like she hadn’t interrupted their conversation. She turned to face the older couple, “thank you for watching them.”

Marilou just smiled at her daughter-in-law. “It is our pleasure.” She pulled Y/N in for a hug. “Just go work on your relationship.”

Y/N nodded, squeezing her tightly. “I will.” Y/N said goodbye and rushed to her car. She sat with the motor running, staring down at her stomach. “Let’s go see your father..”

The therapist office was only twenty minutes from the Y/L/N-Skye home, so Y/N made it with ten minutes to spare. She noticed that Clinton’s car was already in the parking lot, though he was not in it. She had to take some deep breaths, trying to calm her anxiety. She hadn’t seen Clinton in person in weeks, which made her nervous and slightly excited.

After that first session, their therapist decided to do both individual and couples counseling-- stating that the pair needed to get reacquainted with themselves as they worked on their relationship. Each week, whether Clinton was in town or not, they would meet as her last appointment so as to not rush the pair to talk. After their first session, Clinton couldn’t meet in person as he was out on assignment but he would skype in. A part of Y/N had begun to ache as the weeks turned to months without him, but the other half was filled with anxiety for how she was going to tell him she was pregnant.

Y/N paced the lobby, one hand resting on her swollen stomach. She had to keep touching it to remind her that she was actually pregnant, because she wasn’t as big with this pregnancy as she was with the twins-which threw her off. Clinton wasn’t here yet, so she still had time to go over her speech-- which she has been working on since she found out.

The sound of the office door opening caused her to jump, dropping her hand to her side. “Clinton.” She clutched her chest.

He chuckled, feeling happy to see her in person. “I’m sorry, love. I didn’t mean to scare you.” His voice was soft and warm, which made her happy.

She smiled softly at him, heart filled with warmth. “I just wasn’t expecting you to come in at that moment.”

He brushed back his hair, weirdly nervous to be talking face to face with his wife. “Jess let me go early, wanting to make sure that I made it in time. I mean, I too wanted to be on time…”

Y/N blushed, feeling like a teenager again. “Well, you are actually early.” She giggled, adjusting her sweater sleeves.

Before Clinton could say anything, the door opened and revealed their therapist, Dr. Rodrick. “Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Skye. How are we tonight?” She asked, signaling for them to follow after her.

Y/N smiled as she walked through the doorway. “Good, tired.”

Clinton nodded in agreement. “Exhausted, but ready to be here.”

Dr. Rodrick grinned, feeling good about the energy she was feeling. “Good, tonight is an important session.”

Y/N’s eyebrows furrowed as she took her seat. “What is important about tonight?”

“We are going to be sharing some secrets tonight. Both of you have been hiding something very important from the other and I think tonight is the night to share those secrets.” She grabbed her legal pad and pen, not noticing the couple shifting in their chairs. She pushed her glasses up her nose, ready for one of them to start. “Who would like to go first?” she clicked her pen.

The couple glanced at each other, both remaining silent. Clinton’s face hardened, wondering what Y/N was hiding from him. Y/N palms began to sweat as nausea set in the pit of her stomach, nervous triggering her morning sickness.

Dr. Rodrick sighed, knowing that they were going to make this difficult. “Alright, I think I am going to pick.” She jotted down about their stubbornness to share. “Clinton, I think that it is time for you to be open with your wife.”

Clinton shifted uncomfortably towards, wanting to look at her as he spoke his truth. “Y/N… I panicked, because I got so used to having you at home when I got back from a case and I feared that was going to change.” There was pain and fear in his eyes. “I feared that you would find something and forget about me and the twins.”

A breath caught in her throat. “I could never forget you or the twins.. I don’t think the girls would let me.” She joked, hoping to break the tension she was feeling. “I just wanted to contribute to the household in a way that wasn’t just cleaning.”

Clinton sighed, finally smiling. “Oh, love. You definitely contribute more than just cleaning, you are basically the backbone of this family.” He reached for her hand, wanting to comfort her.

Dr. Rodrick smiled softly as she wrote down some notes. “Clinton, I am so happy that you opened up to her. I think it is Y/N’s turn to share what she’s been holding back.”

Y/N squeezed his hand, needing some of his strength. “A few weeks after you left for your assignment, I started to feel sick.” She watched as his eyes got big, probably assuming that she had cancer or something. “And before you go assuming that it’s something incurable, it is not. I’m…” She gulped, “I’m pregnant.” she blurted.

He dropped back in his chair, shocked because that wasn’t what he thought her secret was. “Are you sure?”

She nodded, “It’s been four months and I’ve confirmed it with my doctor.”

He nodded, trying to process everything. For a moment, he looked down at her stomach--noticing her swollen bump. “Is it twins again?” He asked, silently hoping that it wasn’t twins again.

She smiled, knowing what he was thinking, “No, it is just a single baby pregnancy.”

He nodded in acceptance, a smile growing on his face. “Yay!” He pulled her up out of her chair and spun her around-- which made her scream and laugh.

#requests #FBI Most Wanted #fbi most wanted imagine #fbi most wanted one shots #one shot #one shots #imagines #clinton skye #clinton skye imagines #sweetswriting

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yostresswritinggirl · 3 years

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21 Years in Another Life Submission

Mother! Mother! By the time I sent this, August 18, I have officially turned 18! I am now legal to drink beer, I can finally drink my icon 😌. I know it's usual tradition to give gifts to the birthday person but I wanted to do a reverse and give something to you and the community. And that is: The Prologue of my Isekai webnovel! I would much prefer if I could also give Chapter 1 but I am currently recovering from tonsilitis and whenever I am not feeling good, my body just makes me sleepy to try and recover

Here's the prologue for "21 Years in Another Life"! -🍺

"It seems you are doing fine Mr. Dante, I'll be back for another check later tonight",

I could only nod and let out a hum as a signal that I understood. The boring white walls of the hospital were something that I had grown accustomed to but still loathed in every sense. The heavyweight of my right hand had a plastic cast of sorts to keep it straight as the needle of the dextrose tube was put inside in one of my veins.

I turned my head to see the dextrose bag hung on the stainless steel IV stand. I watched the small drop that would come out of the bag into the small cylinder that would connect to the tube. I looked back into my life.

21 years of my life. The majority of them are in the hospital.

The sickly body that I was born with not only burdened me but also my parents. Money was no problem for us as my father was the CEO of a well-known company he worked for from the ground up but rather it was the taint in the reputation of the family name.

I was his eldest child but thankfully not his only child. I had younger siblings and all of them have very healthy bodies.

And that is good.

I was about to close my eyes to sleep, not having the mood to read a book or even watch television until, "Oh, should we visit another time?", I tilted my head to the side as I saw my mother enter with my youngest brother, the baby of the family. "No, I was just looking to past the time", I said as my brother walked his way to the side of the bed where my free hand was. That was odd, he usually skips towards me.

I noticed the wide smile that was plastered on his face and the way how his hands were behind his back. "Big brother! I have a surprise!", He said excitedly obviously vibrating with joy, I inhaled a bit to brace myself and noticed the faint natural scent of flowers suddenly in the room.

"What do you have there?", I asked and he presented with three stalks of Sunflowers tied together with a neat little white bow. "I thought you might like them, I asked the nice old couple down the street if I can have some for you", his eyes twinkled and I couldn't help but let out a quiet laugh of my own.

"Thank you", I whispered, touched deeply by the gesture "Mum? Can you put it in the empty vase, please?", My mother nodded as my baby brother gave the flowers to mum.

I sat up with using my dominant left hand as support while my brother removed his shoes. I pat down the spot next to me gently as he climbed up the bed, sitting snuggly beside me as I gave his forehead a gentle kiss.

"I'm gonna start growing my flowers so we don't have to buy anymore from the flower shop", he affirmed to himself as I raised a curious eyebrow towards him, "Oh, why is that?", I asked, already having a hunch as to why he would like to grow them.

"You never really liked store-bought flowers, you said they smell funny", he said as he tilted his head upwards, "Why is that?", He asked as I nodded, "It's not the flowers but more so the paper, there are times that the papers are scented quite strongly that smell of the flowers are not complimented as nicely as I would have liked", I explained to him as he let out an 'Ahhhh' of realization along with gentle nodding.

"Will dad come visit?", I turned towards mom as she finished putting the flowers in the vase, "I hope so, if the meeting ends on time he'll pick up your sister so they can visit you", She sat back down on the nearby sofa as I just nodded. "How are you doing?", I could only give her the usual half-sided smile that I would give whenever my younger siblings are around.

A smile that meant: I don't know how to feel.

My mother could only exhale and gave a gentle reassuring smile and a nod towards me. A smile and a nod that says: I know.

My parents and I don't tiptoe around the topic anymore as if I was a kid. This was a sad reality I grew up in and we just accepted it but we made sure to make the best out of every situation.

The knock at the door caught our attention as my brother was about to open the television. "Come in", My mother called out and the door creaked open and the familiar face of my younger sister peaked through, "Oh! Oh! Look dad! He's awake!", The door opened a bit more to reveal my younger sister and dad, he was holding a canvas under one arm as my sister's bag was slung over the other shoulder of his.

"Hey Kiddo, how you doin' ?", My dad put the bag and canvas down on top of the cabinet as he made his way next to my bed and then ruffled my hair. A comforting feeling, his hand on top of my head as a gentle head pat was enough to help me calm down after rigorous emotions went through me.

"I'm doing fine now, I assume the meeting went well?", I asked and he just nodded along with the usual hand gesture of facing his palm up and down in a sideways motion.

It went well with some people who need convincing, just the usual things then.

"Big brother! My tutor gave me the assignment to draw on a canvas today!", She bounced a bit on her feet before skipping towards where the canvas was put down. She run-walked towards my side as I peered towards the canvas.

It has no color yet just the rough outline of her whole drawing, it seems she will be drawing sunflowers and lots of them. "I didn't have time to finish my sketch since it was already time buuut!", She pointed towards the middle part of the canvas, "This is where you are supposed to be!", I nodded with a smile etching its way onto my lips. She was so excited about it.

"My tutor also said that giving sunflowers to someone means to bring joy to someone's day", she explained before adding, "And! And! I wanted to give you this painting when I finish it so you'll be happy every day", I just chuckled and ruffled her hair with my free hand and brought her in for a side hug.

"And I'll be planting sunflowers in the garden so when you get back back, you'll see it every day and we don't have to buy new ones from the shop", My brother exclaimed. I just gave a nod as we heard a knock on the door, my father creaked the door open and the familiar white doctor's coat peeked through. My dad looked back towards mother and she just nodded and went outside.

I gave a sigh and let my head plop down to the pillow. "Big brother? When can you come home?", My sister's tone was now quite solemn. I just shook my head, not wanting to give them more hope than necessary.

I don't like promises being broken so I rarely make promises that I can't keep.

And sadly, this is one of those times.

The bed shifted a bit until my younger siblings were curled up to each of my sides, I just sighed a bit. "How are you two holding up?", I asked.

"Ehh",

"Mnnggghhh",

They also we're not too sure of it. I let out a breath through my nose, "Remember what I told you guys before? About promises?", I asked.

"Try not to make promises you can't keep", my brother voiced out, his voice coming out meek. They realized I won't be coming home any time soon. We just laid there on the hospital bed.

Closing my eyes as different memories from the times back home came to the front of my mind.

- - -

"Big brother!!!!" The muffled voiced screamed from behind the door. A voice filled with glee, before I could even say the door was unlocked it had slammed right open revealing my younger sister carrying her new case filled with art materials.

I just gave her a big smile, I settled the book I was reading to my bedside table and she made her way towards me. I saw dad peeked through the doorway and put his pointer finger to his lips and proceeded to quietly go away.

Dad had bought Artemis new art materials without mom knowing.

"Big brother! Remember when I made a wish to the shooting star we saw?", She asked excitedly, she bounced a bit on her on feet and, "It came true?", I "guessed" and she nodded, her hair bouncing along with her.

"It came true! The star was also kind enough to also give me a new case!", She heaved the case on the bed and proceeded to open up the case. She pulled out the shelfs that can be easily retracted inside for more efficient compartments.

"Darling?", the door creaked open and we both looked up and saw Mom. She saw the art case that Artemis proudly displayed, mom could only gave a smile and a nod but I could feel her secret fury behind it. It was not directed at us but rather, "Have you two seen your father by any chance?", She asked.

"Nope", "No"

She just hummed and nodded her head a bit, "If you happened to see him, make sure to give him this face", Mom gestured to her unimpressed face with her half lidded eyes and a small frown. Before smiling once again and saying goodbye.

Dad was in a lot of trouble.

- - -

The noises of delight that came from the children as they exited the school gates was one that could be heard from the other side of the street. All of them eagerly excited to come home from school.

I waited just by the sides of the gate, waiting for my younger brother, Artem. I looked over through the crowd of children slowly pouring out of the doors and I just eagerly waited for him, "Need a seat, boy?", I looked behind me and the guard was nice enough to bring out an extra stool, "Thank you", he just gave a friendly wave of his hand and went back to his station while I sat down at the stool.

I pulled out my phone and recalled the phone call that me and Mom had that led up to me being the one picking up Artem for the day.

"Dante? Do you feel alright today?", Mom went straight to the point,

"Yeah, yeah, why'd you ask?",

"If it's alright, can you pick up Artem today for me?"

"I don't mind, why?",

"You'll see when you pick him up",

I patiently waited for my younger brother by the gates. "Brother? Brother!", I looked up and saw Artem running towards me in full speed. He stopped just shy in front of me as his whole body vibrated with excitement. He bit his bottom lip as he tried to hide his smile.

"Come on, we can chat about your day while we walk home", I ruffled his hair as he nodded. I waved goodbye to the guard and we were on our way. Artem had a skip in his step as he told me about his whole day at school.

The activities they did and I just listened intently.

- - - -

I groggily opened my eyes and saw my parents had ushered my siblings out of the bed, my mom was the first one to see me awake, "Had a nice nap?", She giggled and I nodded along, a smile gracing my lips. I noticed how the edges of her eyes were a bit red and how her nose had a specific red tint to it, an indication after crying.

What happened?

I looked over towards Dad and gave him a questioning look and he just mouthed me the word, 'Later'. I just nodded as my mom had brought out a tupperware filled with dinner. "Artemis, can you go to the desk and ask for some spare spoons?", My mom's tone was a bit hurried but my younger sister just nodded and left for the door

"Artem, how about you join your sister? Just don't go to far from her, no?", My mom ushered my brother out the door as well and soon enough it was just me and my parents left in the room. There was an akward silent at first and then

"Mom? Have you been crying?", I asked while sitting up and she just pursed her lips together before nodding followed by a choked sob. I patted the spot besides me and she sat down, they were some tears refusing to fall down. I opened my arms and she just tackled me into a hug, with every inhale she took was followed by a broken sob.

"You've...been...", She sobbed out as I rubbed circles at her back, "Doing...so...well", she choked out before trying to calm herself down. I just sat there and hugged her close, trying to help her calm down.

It seemed the doctor didn't give the good news they were hoping for.

The door creaked open and my mom pulled away, soon wiping away her tears with a handkerchief that my dad had given her. My younger siblings came inside with 5 spoons. "We got the spoons!", My brother exclaimed as they gave mom the untensils.

Mom opened the tupperware and there she had cooked some Beef Stroganoff, my favorite food. "It was your dad's idea to cook your favorite today", she said while dad let out an akward chuckle. "Well, since the doctor had said you won't be coming home anytime soon. I thought bringing you some of your favorite food would cheer you up and give you some break from the Hospital Food", I just smiled towards Dad and gave him a thank you.

It was just comfortable silence until they had to leave, visiting hours were now over and I just waved goodbye to them, with my younger siblings promising to annoy mom or dad to visit me tomorrow.

I just laughed at their response as dad ushered them out of the room. Mom gave me a gentle kiss on the forehead and a farewell to them both. Being left alone in the dim room isn't always a good feeling, especially in recent times.

I toss and turned a bit, trying to find a good spot to get back into napping. The window gave a good view of the sky, it's filled with stars tonight. All of them twinkling individually, I let out a soft sigh before closing my eyes in trying to find a good nap.

- - - -

My eyes snapped open, the heaviness that my body felt before was now gone. I was somewhere else other than the hospital room I was admitted in.

I looked around, I am surrounded by twinkling stars with the ground beneath rippling under my feet with every movement I took.

"My, a young one already here?", I turned around and was met with a masked woman, she was holding a pocket notebook and a stamp in another hand. She looked up and tilted her head a bit to the side.

"You, Mister, are currently in the Realm of Stars" she started as she walked towards me, to ground rippling underneath her feet with every step she took. I swallowed the lump forming in my throat and she stopped right in front of me.

She looked up towards me and was faced with her, "This is the realm where the soul journeys to their resting place", she added before looking through her notebook again and flipping through some pages.

Am I dead?

"Ah, here it is. We usually don't meddle with the laws of life but this is an exception", she hums before taking a step back.

"I'll be frank with you mister, if given the chance to live again...", She gestured with her hands, "How long would you like to live again?", She asked and I was flabbergasted with the sudden question. I gulped once more and I answered, "Another 21 years would be great", I replied to her and she looked at the notebook before nodding.

"Interesting, even if the life you were give doesn't have a clean start?", She asked and I just tilted my head a bit to the side, curious "What do you mean by that?", I asked as she materialized away the stamp and notebook she was holding.

"Let me reiterate again, if given the chance would you live again for 21 years but the body already has a history of living?", She asked and I just nodded, unsure still of her words. All I got was that I get another chance of living for another 21 years.

"Alright then, perfect!", She exclaimed whilst clasping her hand together, "We currently have a body that needs a soul but the old one had already left it and it isn't his time to visit the Realm of Stars", she sighed before a couple of stars started surrounding my whole figure.

"I wish you luck with your new life", she waved goodbye before adding another.

"I'll see you again when your 21 years are finished"

- - - -

My head hurts badly, it was dark all around as I tried to find the feeling in my "body" again.

"Call the doctor!",

Huh? Am I in a hospital again.

"Quickly, we must get his majesty back to the castle before any stragglers from the enemy line comes for us!"

Wait, wait, wait, majesty? stragglers? enemy lines? Did this body participated in a war or something.

What did I get into now?

"Don't worry your majesty, we will get you back safely to the castle", Hold on. Are they talking to me?

What is going on?! I should have asked that masked lady with some questions before agreeing.

Whatever the case, I should take this opportunity to have another 21 years to my life even if I didn't get a clean start again.

I should try to wake up by now.

------------------------------------------

YOOOO NIGHTINGALE SKGBAKJGB FIRST OF ALL HAPPY LEGAL AGE DAY!! YOU CAN NOW BE LEGALLY ARRESTED, I'M SO PROUD AND I HOPE YOU ENJOY THAT DELISH BEVERAGE!!

SECOND OF ALL HOLY SHIT I DID NOT EXPECT THIS, NOT EVEN THE LENGTH I THOUGHT IT WAS JUST A SNEAK PEEK! I LIKE IT, THE TRANSITIONS ARE NICELY PLACED WITH A BALANCE OF NARRATIVE AND DIALOGUE, YOU'RE DOING GOOD AND I HOPE THINGS GET BETTER! FOR YOUR WEBNOVEL AND YOUR TONSILS!!

#exiled community #submission #orginal content #writernightingale

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