#Chords? My heart is shattered I am sobbing send help | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

jxoxsxsxi · 4 years

Note

For the send a song can you do hold on by chord overstreet

Part one: https://jxoxsxsxi.tumblr.com/post/622738349777731584/hold-me-while-you-wait-by-lewis-capaldi

Sander can't describe what he is feeling right now. This unpleasant feeling in his stomach that makes him want to throw up, but has nothing to do with his hangover.

Robbe had cleaned up the evidence pretty well. Sander only founded an empty package of a special kind of meat and a fancy dessert cake in the freezer. Oh and an empty bottle of Sander's favourite wine.

There was also glass shatters in the bin, and they missed a wine glass.

The older boy had connected the dots rather quick.

Sander was feeling uneasy, and he couldn't concentrate on finishing his thesis, so he decided to clean the apartment a little bit. That could never hurt, right?

He didn't change the bedsheets because he was almost certain Robbe had changed them earlier this week. He cleaned up his pile of clothes and washed their towels.

Sander even vacuumed the whole apartment. Under the bed, he found a small package with a cute bow attached to it. He recognised his lovers wrapping skills, and it just made his heartache.

He saw Robbe sitting on the kitchen desk with a scissor, wrapping paper, and some tape. Tongue slightly out of his mouth because he was concentrating so much. He put the gift back underneath the bed.

Sander didn't deserve a gift or present right now.

Robbe was indeed late home, and it didn't help with Sander's nerves.

He couldn't control himself anymore and texted his boyfriend.

Sander: Baby? Almost home? xx 22:12 This time Robbe replied quite fast.

Robbe: No, it is a mess here. Go to sleep. I don't know if I will be home before midnight. Sander: That can't be healthy? Your shift ends around 21:00, right? Robbe: The shop closes on 21:00, Sander that doesn't mean I am finished at 21:00. I have told you that before.

It made Sander shiver the tone is boyfriend was talking to him. Robbe wasn't like that at all. The younger boy was always kind and understanding, even when he had the right not to be.

Sander bit his lip. He really messed up now.

It was as if the time stopped moving. Sander was just sitting on the sofa staring at the television where some sort of soap was playing. He wasn't paying attention at all. His thoughts had taken over.

Sander knew that he wasn't perfect. Hell no, he was far away from that. He had a lot of bad habits and was difficult to understand. Most people were always intimidated by him and run away before they saw the real Sander.

He knew it was part of his personality, but he always tried to deny it.

The worst flaw a person can have is that of self-deception. Sander had always been like that. He acted on impulse and then created the reason for his actions after the fact. If he was feeling good he did good things, if he was feeling negative in any way he did bad things. He felt like his good deeds meant he was a good person and his bad deeds were justified. In truth he never thought before he acted or spoke, he never stopped to ask himself if his response was the right one, or merely the first knee-jerk reaction that sprung to mind. Whatever he said was almost never true, or at least it was only "true" for him.

A loud sound from the kitchen woke him up. He had a stinging pain his neck and his legs were stiff. The television was still on, but the soap was over.

'Oh shit, didn't mean to wake you up.'

Robbe was leaning against the door frame, eating an apple.

'That is okay' Sander yawns while rubbing his eyes. 'Did you eat already?'

'Yes, someone ordered pizza at work.'

The older boy nodded while examining his boyfriend.

Robbe didn't seem mad at all. He was just eating his apple and scrolling through his phone. A part of Sander wants to ignore the situation. His lover is apparently not planning to make a big deal out of it so why should he do it? Robbe probably didn't care

There is was again, self-deception. It was a big deal and Sander knew his boyfriend cared a lot. He scratches his head while sitting up a little straighter.

'So, I wanted to apologize.' His voice sounds so awkward that he cringes to himself.

Robbe raises his eyebrow, the corner is of his mouth slightly wet. 'What?'

'For last night, I am sorry.'

The younger boy face falls a little. 'Don't worry it is okay.' 'We both know it isn't.'

Robbe didn't really look him in his eyes, but he didn't seem mad. There was also no heat in the younger boy's voice. The boy sighed loudly and let his head fall against the doorpost before taking place on the sofa, looking Sander directly into the eye.

'Sander, I love you more than anything in this world, but we can't continue like this. It has been going on for too long. I simply don't have the energy anymore.'

Robbe bites his lip and lowers his eyes, slightly shifting on feet.

'I want to be there for you and I try so hard, but it is not enough.' His voice sounds desperate and it makes Sander's chest ache.

Sander shakes his head while grabbing his boyfriend's hand. 'It is enough, it is more than enough.' He gives the younger boy a penetrating look, trying to teleport his own thoughts, trying to convince the boy how much he does for him, but Robbe gaze is fixed on the floor.

'But it isn't enough for me anymore.'

It feels as if something explodes in Sander's head. Do you know that sound from the computer that malfunctions? Well, that is the only thing he heard. Error 404. 'I-? Oh-, but-'

'I need you as well Sander so much more than you think. I want to be with you without having to beg for your attention or affection.'

A slap in his face would have hurt less, but the younger boy doesn't stop.

'It feels like I am pissing you off all the time yet you always want me around to give you physical love. I just don't get it anymore and I am tired of figuring you out! So you can tell me what you want! Do you still want a relationship or do you just want somebody you can fuck whenever you please? '

Robbe's voice crumbles during that last sentence.

Sander is processing the words. He doesn't know what to say, he is perplexed.

Robbe sighs and softly nods. The boy attempts to stand up, but Sander stops him. He grabs his boyfriend's shoulders 'I still want a relationship. Of course, I still want a fucking relationship. You are my everything.'

Robbe leans against his lover's shoulder and rubs his forehead softly against the black hoodie. 'Why are you acting this way then?'

'I don't know, baby.'

Sander gently cups his boyfriend's face so that they have eye contact.

'You need to sort yourself out first. I want to help you, but you have to let me in. It is a mystery to me what is happening in your head. We just to talk all the time, what happened between us?'

What happened between them? More like what happened to him. Sander wishes he had an answer for that. A soft finger is tracing his upper lip.

'Why are you going out all the time? Why are you drinking so much? Why are you pushing me away?'

'I just don't feel comfortable.'

'Around me?'

Sander shakes his head. 'I can't explain it, but it has nothing to do with you. It feels as if I can't breathe.'

The last sentence comes out as a stutter. A tear runs down his cheek. He wishes he could explain what he is feeling. If he only knew where to start with it. There was this feeling in his stomach, a constant fear.

Sometimes it felt as if the world was slowly disappearing right in front of him. Or as if he was fading away. Moments where his lungs were burning and his heart beating so fast he was afraid his ribs would break and his skin would be ripped apart.

And there was a void. The black hole in his head, deep inside his soul, slowly swallowing all his hopes and dreams. That was the worst of those moments. The realization of the vacuum, the nothingness, the absurd of his existence. Those thoughts that kept him awake at five a.m. and made him wonder: why am I living for anyway? Did he live for himself? For Robbe? For others? Did it all really matter?

The problem was that there wasn't an answer to his questions and that was the moment his anxiety turned into panic. And when he was panicking he couldn't think clearly. He would start doing dumb shit to forget his fear only for it to return ten times as bad.

A never-ending spiral.

'Please don't leave me' he chokes out. His voice sounds so weak, so soft, so vulnerable that Sander wasn't sure if there coming any sound from his mouth at all.

Robbe shakes his head 'not in this universe, baby. Not if you let me in to help you.'

Sander hid his face in the lover's neck while he was softly sobbing.

#wtfock #wtfock fanfic #sobbe #Send me a one direction song and I will give you a headcanon #or any song #drabble

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alison-anonymous · 4 years

Text

flawsome bandits pt. 8 ♡ sonic

Flawsome Revivals

Very important note that I would love for all of you to read at the end ♡

Warnings - much angst! Mention of death, FLUFF FLUFF FLUFF

♡♡♡

This couldn’t be happening. It was insane how Y/n’s worst fear was something tangible. Something that she could feel as she pressed her fingers against Sonic’s slowing pulse.

She was losing him… again.

Because she was a coward.

The tears refused to stop. Even when a crowd of concerned Green Hill citizens began to abandon their late night dinners and see why this glowing ice blue hedgehog was crying over another one that they could only identify as Crazy Carl’s Blue Devil. Even when Tom and Maddie finally made it back to the scene and felt their own hearts begin breaking as they watched their daughter begin to sob over Sonic’s body. Even when the Egghead responsible for all of this began to make his dramatic descent out of the portal and took a moment to bask in the glory of their defeat. Her tears dripped onto Sonic’s fur as he tried his best to work his way out of unconsciousness, to let his crush know that he was alright, but his limbs felt like jello.

“P-please, Sonic…” Y/n sniffled. “Ge-get up…”

“Well, looky here! Bonnie lost her Clyde, oh, the humanity!” He let out his signature evil chuckle, raising his goggles on to his forehead. “You are such astonishing creatures, aren’t you?” On the ground before him, Tom caught sight of the bag of golden rings. He slyly picked them up and kept a close eye on the scene taking place before him as Y/n slowly raised her head up from Sonic to stare at the evil man in the drone.

The tears continued to stream endlessly down her face as her gaze hardened.

“It’ll be amazing to take you back to the lab to perform some exploratory procedures. Any last words, Bonnie? Clyde?” He waited for a moment as the ice blue hedgehog’s grip on Sonic’s side tightened.

“Go. To. Hell.” Y/n snarled, somehow managing not to choke on her tears. Her e/c irises began to glow a mystical blue as her emotions began to take a toll on her. Eggman’s eyes raised a little in surprise. Funny, he thought Sonic was the only one whose powers were affected by emotion. He shrugged and plopped his goggles back on.

“I can’t tell you how many procedures have been made possible by animal testing. And how am I supposed to one-up others in my scientific discoveries if I’m in hell, hmm?” The whole time he was bragging, he didn’t notice Tom appear behind him and jump onto his drone. Y/n watched from her spot next to Sonic, putting her acting skills to the test. Tom was quick to punch Eggman in the face mid-sentence, initiating a very brave mini-battle between the two until Tom got thrown out onto the ground, groaning in pain. Watching Tom get shoved onto the pavement like that only made Y/n’s emotions grow more fierce as her body began to hum without any use of her vocal chords, an electric light blue pigment beginning to radiate off of her.

“Why would you throw your life away for such useless things? You know, that’s why I don’t have friends.” Eggman rolled his eyes. Y/n’s eyes arched into slits, but for once she actually didn’t have to say anything as the townspeople began to gather around in an attempt to fight off the man. Apparently Tom had somehow gotten the word out already that the second hedgehog was his daughter, as even Crazy Carl was pulling out a chainsaw in order to defend the two.

“You leave those kids alone!” He revved it up.

During all of the ruckus, Y/n had been keeping one of her hands on Sonic’s neck in order to track his pulse, and her heart stopped dead once she realized… it wasn’t there anymore. Panic began to set in as she quickly turned him onto his back, shaking him roughly by the shoulders.

“Sonic? Sonic! No, no, no, no, no, no…” The tears began to spill down even faster as she shook him, every second with no response causing her heart to shatter a little more. “Please! I can’t lose you again…”

Tom, Maddie, and the Green Hills citizens felt their own hearts break as they watched the scene unfold. Y/n’s body practically toppled on top of him as she pressed her forehead against his, her back racking with the sobs.

Sonic… was gone.

“I don’t mean to be indelicate here, but someone should gather up a tub of ice. Keep the body fresh.” Eggman just had to chime in. His words only made Y/n cry worse, in her fit not noticing how her body began to hum the tune she usually sang. Her tears got soaked up into Sonic’s fur, in turn beginning to make his fur hum in return. Were her abilities… healing him? But how could that be possible? Could her powers be deterred due to the emotions she was going through?

“I’m so sorry, Sonic…” She whispered, just quietly enough that he would have been able to hear. “I’m such an idiot…”

“Oh please, he was just a silly little alien! And so is she, regardless of pre-biology! They don’t belong here!” Robotnik cried out in frustration, angered that a death was getting involved in his plans to take the two and go. His insensitivity struck a flame in Tom as he turned towards the man, jaw clenched.

“Those little aliens know more about being human than you ever will. And they aren’t Bonnie and Clyde, their names are Sonic and Y/n. This is their home.” All the while he was talking, Y/n was finally finding a way to say what she had always wanted to say to him, her words coming out as soon as Tom had finished his.

“...I love you, too.”

Sonic’s eyes burst open, supercharged with energy. Electric blue bolts of lightning shot furiously out of his body, enveloping him in the light as he slowly began to rise to his feet. Y/n broke out into a tearful grin as she quickly scrambled to her feet, watching in amazement as the lightning cast brilliant blue shadows across her face, her own body becoming luminescent with her own light, the hum growing louder by the second. Through the midst of the dramatic moment, Sonic’s electrified gaze met Y/n’s luminous one, and he winked.

Shit was about to go down.

“He’s all yours,” Tom spoke to the two, smiling thankfully as he pulled Maddie along with him to the sidelines, getting everyone to back up. Y/n turned back to her rightful side next to Sonic and they exchanged a small smile before turning back to the doctor, gazes hardening and powers maxing to the top. They saw a look cross over Eggman’s face that they hadn’t seen before as he calculated the effects of the two. They were both much more powerful than he had ever anticipated, super fueled by their emotions for one another and for the situation. One on one, he could have taken them. But combined?

Was he… intimidated?

“I think you have something that belongs to me,” Sonic spoke, forming a fist before him as it became supercharged with a clash of lightning. Y/n couldn’t help but swoon next to him, trying her best to recover from it before he noticed. Their combined electricity made Eggman’s drone begin to malfunction as he swerved in an attempt to regain control, Sonic’s bolts eating away at the control panel.

“These are our powers, and we’re not going to use them to run away anymore,” He glanced over at Y/n for approval, who responded by grabbing onto his hand. Another clash of electricity gobbled up their physical touch as Y/n’s abilities began to merge with his, making the adrenaline go through the roof for the two. “And we’re using it to protect our friends!”

Choosing to take the silent route, Eggman slowly began to ascend, pulling on out the lasers as the tension began to increase like crazy. The lasers slowly found their way to Y/n and Sonic’s body, beginning to line up on every single spot of their electrical fur, especially near the heart. Any normal person would have ducked and ran for cover. But instead?

They stood their ground, a slow smirk beginning to make its way across Y/n’s lips.

Sonic gently let go of her hand as he began to get down into a runner’s formation, the lasers following his every move. Y/n squared her feet, placing her fists out before her and channeling all of her power (supercharged with Sonic’s) into her body, beginning to hum her signature tune slowly and methodically. The second that he launched his missiles, the two took off, racing and flying through the air. They had been practicing communicating without words for years and learning body cues, so the second that Y/n saw Sonic jump from the wall of a building to Eggman’s ship, she knew exactly what to do. With their combined forces, they began to pummel the ship by jumping from the walls and onto the ship and back again so quickly that they became nothing but electrical blurs in a moment, setting the whole city up with light. Robotnik did his best to take cover as the windows began to break from their impact, trying not to admit that fear was rising in his chest.

Finally, the two skidded to a stop a couple meters away from him, making quick look-overs to assure that they were alright.

“Oh, now you’ve done it!” Robotnik scoffed angrily.

“News flash, Egghead! We’re not leaving earth. You are. Star Chaser?” He looked over at his partner in crime, who flashed him a knowing smile.

“But of course! Donut Lord?” She turned to her father just as he pulled out one of the rings. He sent them a wink and threw the ring straight behind Robotnik’s ship. Robotnik fueled up his ship and launched it forward with just as much flame as his fury at the same time that Y/n and Sonic began racing towards it. In slow motion, the two began to form the position that Longclaw had taught them a very long time ago in order to use both of their powers to the fullest extent. While Sonic curled up into a ball, Y/n used her powers to float behind him, and used all of her might to give him a super charged push, sending him flying into Robotnik’s ship. As time fell back into place, Sonic burst into the nose of the ship, their combined power causing the entire drone to crumble into pieces, sending Robotnik’s screaming figure straight into the portal to Mushroom Land. The portal closed with a blinding bright light and Sonic and Y/n gradually powered down as the city erupted into applause.

Sonic turned to his partner and gave her the cutest heartfelt smile she had ever seen, holding his arms out wide. She let out a tearful chuckle, e/c eyes returning to normal as she crashed into him, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist and burying her face into his shoulder.

He was alive. And he was okay.

Tom and Maddie jogged their way over to the two just as they reluctantly pulled away, cheeks beginning to turn a bright red as they realized they were going to have to talk soon.

“You did it!” Tom cheered ecstatically.

“No, WE did it,” Sonic corrected, smiling at the two. Tom held up his hand proudly, and Y/n and Sonic jumped up and had a classic Three-Musketeers-inspired high five. A huge smile spread across his lips, and in his ecstatic happy fit, he did the only thing he could think of.

He picked Y/n up by the waist and spun her around.

Y/n was shocked at first, but gradually began to relax into it, letting out a gleeful giggle until Tom cleared his throat and they both froze, Sonic holding Y/n up and her hands resting on the top of his head. Tom raised an eyebrow and Sonic quickly set her down, sheepishly putting his hands behind his back and smiling innocently.

“Ugh, Dad,” Y/n rolled her eyes, but smirked at her father. He simply shrugged.

“Just doing what dads do, kiddo.”

♡♡♡

A few days after the showdown, Tom and Maddie were enjoying a nice, quiet Monday when a loud knock came at their front door. The couple approached the door with caution, glancing at each other skeptically. Who would be coming to their door this late in the afternoon? They swung the door open to reveal a man in a very official looking uniform holding an envelope with two men in military uniforms standing guard by his vehicle. The man gave them a warm smile, causing the skin around his eyes to wrinkle.

“Good day. Are you Mr. and Mrs. Wachowski?” He asked in a deep voice.

“Uh, yep, that’s us,” Tom replied. The man held out the white envelope to the two.

“A token of appreciation on behalf of your keeping quiet about recent incidents that never occurred.” A bit condescending, but who were they to decline a free compensation from the government, am I right? The two chuckled in surprise, Tom taking the envelope from the man and smiling at his wife.

“Wow, wonder what it is?”

“Money to fix the house?” Maddie suggested, her mind instantly going to the wreck that had been left in their place after their first run in with the crazy doctor. Tom nodded.

“Or a letter from the president?” He asked. The man simply smiled.

“You’ll see.” Tom finally ripped the envelope open and pulled out a slim piece of folded parchment. He smiled excitedly at his wife and flipped it open to reveal…

“A… fifty dollar gift card to Olive Garden?”

“Have you tried the Never Ending Pasta Bowl?” The man asked, paying no mind to their obvious dejected expressions. “It never ends!” The two nodded awkwardly until Maddie finally broke the silence.

“Yep, well, thank you! We really appreciate the gesture.” The man nodded and turned to leave right before a question popped into Tom’s head.

“Oh, hey, I guess we can close the file on that Robotnik guy, right?”

“I’m sorry, sir, but no such person exists or ever has existed.” He said blatantly, adding an emphasis to the final part.Tom nodded, clicking his tongue.

“Wish that were true.”

“You haven’t by any chance been in recent contact with two, oh, I don’t know, exotically colored alien creatures, have you?” The man asked, using small hand gestures as he spoke. It was quite obvious who he was talking about. “We would love to have a chat with them sometime, very casual. Maybe a brunch, perhaps.”

Yes. Yes. They would take two very powerful alien hedgehogs who sent an evil doctor to another dimension to brunch. Totes casual.

Yep.

“Oh, you mean the Bonnie and Clyde hedgehogs?” Tom finally asked, allowing the images of his foster daughter and Sonic to pop up in his brain. The man excitedly nodded. “Oh, no, no. Haven’t spoken to the two of them since the incident and probably won’t ever hear from them again.” The man stayed silent for a moment, not doing a very good job at hiding his skepticism as even when they bid their farewells and closed the door, he remained staring through the cracks until the door was shut in his face.

“To be honest, I’m pretty pumped about that Pasta Bowl,” Tom chuckled as the two began to walk back into their living room where their dog rested on the couch next to a certain ice blue hedgehog.

“Not if I eat it first,” she teased, e/c eyes glittering at the mention of food. Sonic’s head popped up from behind the couch and he folded his arms across the top of Y/n’s head, making her ears go to the sides.

“So, you guys wanna watch a movie, or what?” He asked.

“Sorry, bud,” Maddie sighed, leaning into her husband’s side. “But it’s a school night. Time for you to go back to your cave.” Both Y/n and Sonic’s jaws dropped open, the defenses piling onto their tongues.

“What? Mom, come on!” Y/n protested.

“Yeah, it’s only three in the afternoon!”

“You know how you get when you’re tired. And besides, Y/n has some homework she needs to get done without any distractions.” The icy hedgehog’s cheeks burned a deep crimson as her mouth clamped shut. Maddie giggled at her daughter’s reaction, watching as Sonic sighed in defeat, and slid over the couch to begin walking towards the door. Y/n was quick to follow after him.

“I’m not like anything! You guys are so uncool! And I’m not distracting! Right, N/n?” He looked towards his partner in crime only to find her staring dreamily at him with her hand supporting her chin. She quickly snapped out of it once she realized he was staring at her.

“What? Oh, no, of course not! I concentrate just fine around you!” She lied like a sinner in church. A smirk formed on Sonic’s lips as he turned to grab on to the door handle.

“Hey, buddy, where are you going?” Tom asked, a knowing smile on his face. Sonic turned around and looked at the family in confusion.

“You said I have to go back to my cave.”

“We did,” Tom looked over to his daughter and gave her a warm grin. “Y/n?” She took her que with great excitement as she rushed over to her crush and grabbed his hand in hers, practically dragging him all the way up to the attic. As they entered the room, Maddie switched on the lights to reveal an (almost) exact replica of Sonic’s cave back in the woods with some personal touches like a racecar bed, some holiday lights, and some pictures that someone had taken on the great escapades of the Blue Blur, Star Chaser, and Donut Lord. Sonic’s jaw dropped open as he raced across the room, taking in the grand gesture with a pure heart.

“Oh my god… you guys did this?”

“Yep,” Tom and Maddie grinned next to their daughter. “You’re part of our family now, bud.” Sonic felt his heart melt at his words, it was all that he ever wanted. He jumped up onto his bed as the other joined in, Y/n and Sonic in between Tom and Maddie. They all exchanged a big group hug, savoring the sweetness of the moment.

“And Y/n’s room is right down the hall if you need anything,” Maddie chimed in.

“BUT don’t get any ideas,” Tom quickly burst in, making Y/n snort.

“Dad. Don’t make it weird.”

“It’s my job to make things weird.”

♡♡♡

What’s that? No? Flawsome Bandits ISN’T over yet? Even though Alison already reached the end of the movie plot line? That’s right, you incredible darlings, you! Flawsome Bandits is not ending at just 8 chapters! Now, I’m going to explain a little bit so please take the time to read this message. This next part of the story is going to revolve around what I am imagining a sequel to be like by analyzing the post-credit scenes of the movie and what I know about the very messy Sonic the Hedgehog plotline. That being said, it is NOT a sure thing that my ideas will become the very potential sequel. My main idea for the sequel is for Doctor Robotnik to be making his return to plot revenge against our favorite Bonnie and Clyde hedgehogs, but he can only make it back to the realm where Y/n and Sonic grew up and this will be how I introduce Knuckles into the story. I also plan to include Tails as well, and I’m still debating on whether or not to introduce Amy. Metal Sonic may or may not happen, but please let me know if you have any ideas of people or concepts you would like to see in these next chapters! I would love to have some suggestions as I’m looking for a love rival for Sonic (another character that falls for Y/n) and just to help bring more action to the plotline as a whole. There will also be TONS more fluff between Y/n and Sonic, so don’t worry, the gradual buildup was very necessary to prep you all for what’s coming ;) Needless to say, the next update might come a little later than how often I’ve been updating due to me still trying to figure out where I want to take this story. Like I said, suggestions are very welcome! I’ve been experiencing a little burnout, too, so perhaps taking a break to brainstorm with all of you is a good idea. Stay safe and bless all of you little darlings for sticking with me and supporting me through this flawsome journey. It is far from over yet! ;)

♡ a.a.

#sonic #sonic x reader #sonic imagine #sonic the hedgehog #sonic the hedgehog x reader #sonic the hedgehog imagine #sonic the hedgehog movie #sonic the hedgehog movie x reader #sonic the hedgehog imagines #sonic the hedgehog 2020 x reader #sonic the hedgehog 2020 imagines #sonic the hedgehog movie 2020 #flawsome bandits

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beyondtheciouds · 4 years

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Vampires, Stale Scones, and Lucie Herondale

Part 1.

Lucie was in way over her head.

Her body trembled as she bit down on her lower lip to keep from sobbing or screaming, she isn’t sure which. Panicked, all she can think about is the pretty boy’s gleaming fangs. Oh, if only I had listened. She had gotten herself into more than a dilly of a pickle this time. I should have been more careful, she thinks, frowning. A frustrated sigh escapes her chapped lips, knowing all too well the trouble she’s in. Her lips, puffy, and sliced up turn down as she pries the bent hairpin into the lock for the hundredth time. “Ugggghhh.” She wriggles her wrist, sore, and raw underneath the metal handcuff. James…where are you?

Lucie’s ink-stained fingers are a blur as her hands twist and turn the pin in the keyhole, hoping for a break. She all but tries not to think of the fanged boy or the hungry way he had stared at her.

Beautiful was the first word that had come to her mind when he appeared last night. A silhouette against the light of the moon, he had snuck into her cell and stood beside the pole she was chained to. He was watching her the way a predator might watch prey. He kept sniffing the air and licking his lips.

Lucie tried to act unnerved but her blood was heating and her skin was tingling. She felt disgusting; her dress torn and ruined; stained with her blood. Her face and hands were dirty, the nails on her fingers bitten down to the quick from nerves and pain.

His face was arresting. Much like Jesse’s, it had made her heart stop. Sharp lines and all angles, his face had shapes that made sense on statues. Long lashes made his eyes wider and cherub lips could have easily disguised the boy as an angel. Lucie knew better, or she thought she did when she stared back into his gleaming red eyes.

Lucie hears shuffling and looks up, almost hopeful. It has been two days since Grace kidnapped her and brought her to this prison tower. Damp and smelling worse than Bridget’s infamous cabbage stew, Lucie found herself repeatedly gagging or gasping for air during the night. Desperate to get out of her nightmarish fairytale, she had thought about calling to the dead for help, like she had before, but the thought of those rotting and decaying bones in the corner rising to greet her had her dismissing the idea instantly. Gast.

A glance up and amongst the cobwebs, she discovers a window carved into the stone. It is small, but she knows she will be able to fit. It is about thirty feet up and Lucie wonders if she ought to try and scale the wall once she’s able to break the lock. Noises and voices in the stairwell cause her to refocus and stare into the dark. She stuffs the pin back into her hair, mousey curls half hanging down her back. “James?” she whispers, her blue eyes peering eagerly into the shadows. “Is that you?”

Unexpectedly, Tatiana turns the corner. Her face is stern and her eyes are hard and unforgiving under the pale yellow light of mundane candles. Lucie immediately shrinks back into the darkness, unintentionally pulling on her restrained wrist. She gives a little yelp of pain as Tatiana appears before Lucie’s cell. Lucie struggles to catch her breath.

A smile is on Tatiana’s wicked face, “Oh, your brother isn’t coming to save you, dear.” She spits the word at Lucie and clasps her hands in front of her.

Lucie scowls, kicking the six stale scones off the plate and onto the ground. “He will save me. You don’t know my brother. He and his friends will go to the ends of the earth for me.“

Grace snorts at Lucie as she stops beside her mother. Her gray eyes are cool and calm, matching the man all decked out in silver moving to stand beside her. “Sorry, Lucie. Not this time.”

“What have you lunatics done with James!? I demand to know!” Lucie screams, her knees giving out. She drops to the ground, refusing to cry.

The man slowly raises a silver eyebrow at Lucie, pulling her attention to him. His arms are crossed over his chest and the robes he wears sway around his ankles without a breeze. Lucie glares at the man, getting to her feet. She can’t help but noticing that he isn't young or old, but he looks young enough to be her father. Middle-age. The more she stares, the more she feels an odd sense of recognition and the man somehow seems older to her than he looks. Lucie can’t shake it. The feeling, it’s like a parent that won’t give up nagging. His eyes are deep and fathomless, saturated like small stars. Those eyes remind her of somewhere… someone.

The silver man grins, his perfect teeth stark white against his skin. “So this is the darling Lucie,” he croons, his voice thick and sickly sweet like honey. The way he says her name strikes a chord in Lucie and it makes her more apprehensive. “Beautiful and sweet.”

Lucie scowls at the man, goosebumps flooding her flesh as she pulls her manners together. “You may refer to me as Miss Herondale, Mr…?”

The man grins and it is not friendly, “How is your mother, darling? You must tell her and your father I say hello.”

“Who are you?” Lucie squints, still feeling shaken and it isn’t just the man’s offbeat smile or the strange look in his eye.

“Oh, Lucie. Tsk, tsk that you cannot recognize your own kin.” He smiles, deadly and determined to shatter her mind. “I am Belial, your grandfather.”

Lucie gasps, her blue eyes wide with a new fear. “No. You can’t be..”

Tatiana smiles and takes a slight pleasure in the shock on Lucie’s face. Lucie had forgotten she was watching the sideshow. “You did not know, my dear? James did not mention Belial to you?” she asks, eager for a taste of Lucie’s misery. If she can’t destroy Will right now, she’ll settle for starting with his children.

Lucie grimaces, pulling her gaze from the man calling himself her grandfather. She turns and eyes Grace accusingly, “We have a deal, Grace. Remember?”

Grace smiles bitterly, ”We had a deal, past tense.”

“I don’t understand,” Lucie says, scratching her head. She plays dumb for the audience, but she knows this is really between her and Grace.

Grace’s face is concrete; hard and unforgiving like her mother’s. “Don’t play dumb, Lucie. I saw you.”

“What did you see?” Lucie has to ask politely, but she is scowling.

Grace sighs and shuts her mouth. At least she has the decency to keep Lucie’s secret from Tatiana and Belial. Her gray eyes are steel and Lucie knows what Grace knows. I saw you kissing Matthew.

Lucie chews on her bottom lip. The kisses; moments that were stolen between her and her brother’s parabatai had happened more than once. Actually, in the last few weeks, it had been many times, more than Lucie was willing to admit to. Lucie thought they were being discreet. She hadn’t wanted to tell anyone although Matthew wanted to put his family ring on her finger and shout his love for her from London’s rooftops. Lucie thought about it and Cordelia nearly had convinced her that she could heal Matthew; fix him.

Lucie knew which time Grace had been referring to. That night Lucie had felt the chill of a ghost on her back and she knew it wasn’t Jessamine.

One mistake made under the moonlight in Brocelind Forest had caused this nightmare of a mess. The last two days she had been telling herself she wasn’t in love with Matthew. She kept making her mind believe she had made a huge mistake and would make it up to Jesse. Math was like a brother to her… wasn’t he? Jesse was the one for her.

She was Jesse’s girl.

Belial looks on unfazed by the tantrums of two girls. His silver eyes remain on Lucie as if she is a prize-winning animal, his smile thin at the secrets the girls hold between them. “Well now, what do you have to say for yourself, darling?”

“Where is my brother?” Lucie demands again, ignoring his question. She turns cold, blue eyes to him. She gives it her best shot. “I want to speak to Jamie.”

“James is indisposed at the moment. He will be along to join you shortly, my darling.” Belial says, waiting for her to calm down. “For now, let’s talk about your powers.”

Lucie is horrified but tries to play it cool. How does he know about her abilities? She furrows her brown eyebrows, trying to be steel although she withers like a flower inside. “I have no demon powers, I do not have a clue as to what you are talking about.” Lucie pauses and then takes a tentative step forward out of the darkness and into the sunlight streaming in from the window. “I want to see my brother.” She stomps her feet like she did when she was seven and James blamed her for setting the couch on fire.

Belial chuckles, the sound reverberating through the hollow hallway.”Oh, you are a firey darling, aren’t you?” He pauses, considering. “You remind me of your mother at that age. She was beautiful, all passion and righteousness.“ He smiles, the insidiousness at her mother’s chosen life direct. “Your mediocre Shadowhunter future isn’t far off from hers, darling.”

“Stop calling me that!” Lucie shouts as she tugs on her shackled wrist, her heart pounding in her chest.

“Oh, Little Lucie how you underestimate yourself. I suppose, my darling you would. Being second to James and all.”

He is testing her, that much Lucie had already figured out. She keeps her mouth shut, letting the fact that she is usually overlooked when it comes to Jamie simmer in her blood. She will store that fuel inside her head and use it later on the lock when they are gone.

Scuffling in the stairwell and shouting causes Tatiana and Grace to turn their attention away from Lucie. Several long moments later, noises in the hallway send unwelcome shivers up Lucie’s spine as Belial grins at her. Lucie’s mouth is suddenly dry and her eyes dart towards the sounds. James? Cordelia?

A moment passes and then the fanged boy from last night appears in the shadows of the mundane torches. Several of the torches line the wall across from her cell. They emit a very low light, casting ominous shadows. The hall is dark, but Lucie can still see every detail of the fanged boy’s face. Impatient and nervous, she shuffles her feet.

The shadows move and Lucie notices the fanged boy is dragging another boy by his hands. The boy is dressed in familiar gear and is kicking and screaming. His hair is a mop of sunshine that Lucie recognizes.

”Heathen from the underworld let me go! I am the Consul’s son and you are hereby violating the accords, vampire!“

The fanged boy is undaunted by the other boy’s antics and continues to drag the blonde boy towards Lucie’s cell without hesitation. Lucie blinks, not believing her eyes. Not James. Not Cordelia. Matthew.

Matthew came to save her.

The vampire grins and tightens his grip on the boy as he hauls him across the smooth stone floor. "Look what’ I found lurking ‘round the back,” he announces as though this spectacle is staged. “an’ he’s lookin’ for her.” The vampire jerks his head in Lucie’s direction and Belial grins approvingly. “Two dead Shadowhunters are better than one.”

Tatiana breaks a rare smile, genuinely filled with insanity. “Herondale. Fairchild. Check, check.”

“Let go!” Matthew yells again, trying to yank his hands out of the other boy’s tight grip. “My neck is far too dirty to have fangs sunk into it this early in the morning! I’m too young and beautiful to be eaten alive!”

“Relax, I’m not going to eat you, Shadowhunter.”

The fanged boy’s face is calm and collected although his lips turn up at the corners. "Turns out, I’m not very fond of angelic blood so you get to continue to sit and be chained to the pretty one.” He laughs lowly and then stops when he catches Lucie watching him.

Matthew is still carrying on, talking fast like a maniac. The fanged boy moves in a blur. Suddenly, he is close enough that Lucie can see the color of his eyes has changed. They are no longer red, but blue like hers. Actually, as pale as ice, nearly white. Lucie takes a tiny step forward, careful not to pull her chain. She had picked up on his slight accent and now struggles to place the lilt. Ireland? Scotland? Wales? Australia?

“Let me go, you son of a—” Matthew screams, disrupting Lucie’s thoughts on the vampire’s origin and language. Matthew is stubborn, dragging his legs then kicking the air behind him as he is pulled along. He wiggles and twists his fit body defiantly.

Lucie gasps when he turns his face towards the cell, but she is not shocked to find those familiar dark green eyes simmering with rage. “Matthew? What are you doing here?”

The door of the cell opens and Lucie rushes forwards on instinct, only to be yanked back with a yelp of pain. She steps back until the chain is loose once more. “Where’s Jamie?”

“Luce—” Matthew says on a halted breath, his eyes wide. “I came to rescue you like one of your knights in shining armor.” A charging grin sweeps onto his face as he is tossed to the floor of the cell. Lucie has never been so excited to see him in all her life. This means Jamie isn’t far behind, she thinks and smiles to herself.

Matthew as he so often does makes the mistake of taking her eagerness for something else. “Luce,” he says again, his mouth softening. The door locks behind him with a loud clang that echoes through the tower. Matthew tries to stand when the fanged boy hauls him to his feet. He grips Matthew’s arm and pulls him over to the rotten, wooden pole that Lucie is shackled to.

Matthew’s dark green eyes soften at the sight of Lucie alive, relief on his face clear like stream water rushing over rocks. “Are you hurt, Luce? Everyone has been out looking for you. I-I was worried for you.” He eyes her dirty dress stained with blood. “What happened? Luce, are you sure you are alright?”

Lucie breathes her own sigh of relief and her heart melts at Matthew’s genuine concern. She hastily lifts her free arm when he is pushed against her. His body curves around her and she fits beside him like she was made for him.

The thoughts of his naked body beside hers don’t escape her and she sighs, disappointed in herself. She needs Matthew to keep quiet because she cannot have anyone knowing about the two of them and their misdeeds. She will be ruined and sent away like Eugenia.

Unless Matthew proposes and she accepts. Then she will be no better than Cordelia, settling for a lie.

Matthew leans into her delicate shoulder and starts smelling her hair. He gently kisses the bruises on her cheek and the act is so intimate she finds herself nuzzling into him. On instinct, his arms wrap comfortably around her waist, his strong, calloused hands rest easily on her lower back. He feels like home.

“No, Math–not really,“ Lucie says into his shoulder as she hears her heart thrumming like a drum in her ears.

“Good,” Matthew says, breathing heavily. “I’m so glad I found you, Luce. I-I mean, we would be lost without you.”

The fanged boy glances at Matthew, stunned by his honest omission to Lucie while she takes it as a grain of salt. The words bounce off her ears and she flinches. Pale blue eyes watch them for a long moment but the vampire boy does not comment when he continues to shackle Matthew’s foot to Lucie’s foot. The noises of the chain moving draw Lucie’s gaze down for only a minute before her eyes return to Matthew’s expectant face. For a moment he looks the way he did as a child; happy even in a nightmare of a situation.

The fanged boy glances up curiously at Lucie when she isn’t looking. He smiles as the lock around her foot clicks into place. “All set, love.”

Amid her nightmare, Lucie cannot help but believe there is a deeper meaning to Matthew’s words as he stares into her eyes. Lucie is so close, she can see the sweat and stubble beading on his top lip and the bags under those brilliantly mossy eyes.

The thought of being engaged to Matthew frightens Lucie. She tells herself these wild thoughts unnerve her because she always assumed she was just a passing phase for him. Lucie had accepted the fact that she was a childhood memory that he needed to hold onto and one day would let go. Her heart is turned upside down at the truth, her mind swirling with alternative scenarios.

Now she realizes she may have been more all along to the Consul’s second son.

“Where is Jamie, Math?” Lucie, asks, shoving her feelings aside. Matthew pushes a loose curl away from her eyes as the fanged boy moves away from the two of them. Lucie breathes in Matthew’s clean scent, searching for a whiff of brandy. To her delight, she finds none.

Matthew looks up, a frown forming on lips that Lucie can still feel on hers even days later. “I lost track of him when this monster,” he gestures to the fanged boy now leaning against the wall, watching the two of them with minimal curiosity. “caught me yesterday. He held me in the dungeon until now.”

Lucie wants to shake him until his brain rattles in his skull. "Matthew, did you leave Jamie behind? How could you? Where is my brother?"

Matthew shrugs, sighing at the bombard of questions coming from Lucie. “I don’t know, Lu. I..I can’t feel any movement within my rune, but it isn’t fading either.” He pauses, sounding distant, his eyes far as he lifts the sleeve of his gear jacket to show her. “It is unusual, Lucie.”

Lucie wrinkles her forehead, wishing for a wooden spoon ladle to whack him with. “Where did you last see Jamie, Math? It is very, very important you remember!”

Matthew looks over at her solemnly, and it strikes Lucie how rough sobriety looks on him even as the panic about her brother sets in. “James left me five miles from here. In the forest, he heard screaming. Cordelia had been with us until she got lost after two demons attacked us. James and I killed them, but she got mixed up and ran the other direction.” He pauses, thinking. “James went off to find Cordelia. She is missing too, Lucie. You couldn’t feel it either?” He blinks, staring at the brand-new parabatai rune glistening on her pale neck.

Lucie’s skin heats and she rests her head on Matthew’s shoulder to hide from his intense gaze, “We have to get out of here,” she whispers. “We need to find James and Cordelia.”

Grace scowls, her iron eyes on Lucie. She has pretended not to hear Matthew and Lucie talking. “Don’t get too comfortable with Matthew, Lucie. Remember he has a bad reputation; scandalous. ”

Grace is trying to be snide and cruel, but Lucie had never cared about Matthew’s devious past. Besides, she knew a lot more about Matthew Fairchild than she let on, nevermind that Lucie had already been corrupted by his charms.

And wouldn’t it be fun for a while? Something interesting to write about. A love triangle about a childhood friend, a girl, and a ghost.

Grace continues talking over the conspirative whispers of Tatiana and Belial who are watching Lucie with strange looks on their faces. “Here’s your warning, Lucie. Jesse will be out and about soon and I know he wants to have words with you.”

Tatiana’s ears perk up and she shakes her head at the sound of her son’s name. Lucie blinks, looking up. She glares at Grace, then Tatiana. Lucie watches the ugly bird on Tatiana’s awful looking hat bobbing from side to side like it is drunk. Under pressure, she tries not to laugh like a lunatic.

“He will do no such thing. I will not have him fraternizing with these two and besides, I need him tonight.” Tatiana spits, glaring at Lucie and then Matthew.

Grace turns, perplexed. She glances at her mother and Lucie notices Belial shift, uncomfortable. “For what purpose?” Grace asks, crossing her arms over her pale pink day dress.

“Never you mind,” Tatiana says sternly to Grace. She turns on her heel as if she means business and nods her head to Belial. “Let’s be on our way. There are issues to be discussed in private. Come now, Grace and Aiden. ”

Grace shakes her finger at Lucie before following her mother. “You better not disappoint Jesse, Lucie.”

Aiden, the vampire boy bows to Lucie and then vanishes into the shadows. Belial turns to follow Tatiana, but not before he says over his shoulder, “Our conversation is not over, darling Lucie.”

***

Later on, the moon is shining and someone had left another plate of scones at the door while Lucie and Matthew were asleep. A rat pulls on one of the hard pastries with his teeth, broke and sharp. Spiders and other bugs crawl over the others.

It’s a good thing I’m not hungry, Lucie thinks as she eyes the rodent wearily. Lucie and Matthew sit on the hay strewn stone floor chained to each other. Lucie had tried to unlock the lock around Matthew’s foot but failed miserably after several attempts.

One would think this would be pleasant, Matthew thinks as another awkward silence consumes the space between them. He twists his hands in his lap, unsure about what to say. He didn’t mean to lose James and Cordelia, it just sort of happened.

Lucie sits with her chained wrist over her head, sullen and dreary, lost in her own world. After several hours of being chained to her, Matthew was left to assume she didn’t want to lie to him. He considered that might be why she was keeping quiet about Jesse.

The truth was, Matthew felt suffocated by the unexpected thought of another boy wanting his Lu. He was jealous in a way he did not expect to be. He felt threatened.

He had spent years pining for Lucie; lost years denying himself a chance at something real with her. He had kept her and James believing it was a phase, of which he’d get over. And he did until he fell for her again.

Now, after freeing himself of guilt and shame, he has Lucie. Opening up to her, he finds out there is someone else. Someone else who possibly loves her more than him.

Determined to get space, Matthew had moved away from Lucie as much as he could when she refused to answer him. Now, he can no longer deal with the elephant in the room. He has to know.

”Luce,“ he begins, glancing at her. He has placed his hands on his knees, drawn up to his navel. His look is pensive as if he is afraid of her answer. The shoe had seemed to be on the other foot now. He never considered Lucie being with someone other than himself.

It sounds selfish, but it is true.

Lucie seems to come to life at the sound of her name on his lips. It is music to his ears as she starts humming one of her father’s light, Welsh tunes. A light brown curl falls in slow motion into her blue eyes when she turns her skyward gaze to his face. "Yes, Math?"

Matthew is stunned by how beautiful she looks even in a dingy cell with her clothes stained and torn. Lucie belongs in a fairytale and for a brief moment, Matthew is silent as he imagines the story she could write.

To Matthew, for years she had sounded and looked like an angel. For as long as he dared to admit, Lucie Herondale had invaded his dreams. Even when he was with others, he always seemed to dream of Lucie. She had become the first dream of his life and even if this didn’t last, he would still dream of her. Nevermore than in this moment with her face turned up to his did he want her swollen lips on his, but he forced himself to ask the question he knew she didn’t want to answer instead.

His voice is small, heartbroken. “Do you love Jesse Blackthorn?”

#the last hours #cassandra clare #lucie herondale #fanfiction #au #matthew fairchild #grace blackthorn #tatiana blackthorn #belial #part 1 of 3

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toddperrys · 4 years

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Daylight- “I can’t sleep, can I stay here?”

Read it on AO3 // Send me a prompt

Kristoff leaned against the window, staring at the sliver of moon that glowed high above the trees as he fiddled with the strings of his guitar. According to the clock sitting on his bedside table, it was 2:37 AM, meaning the world was asleep, except for him.

Business as usual, he thought. He finished tuning his guitar and gave it a strum. From the corner of the room, a shaggy-haired mutt with wide brown eyes started from his bed and trotted over to where Kristoff sat.

“Didn’t mean to wake you, Sven,” he said as the dog laid at his feet. He plucked a few chords absentmindedly as his eyes wandered to the window. The narrow road that ran past his apartment building was dark and silent, save for a single streetlight pouring orange light weakly onto the asphalt. Beyond the street was a wide swath of woods. The trees quivered in the wind and shadows seem to dance just beyond the forest’s mouth.

He was suddenly drawn from his thoughts by a knock at the door. Kristoff paused and glanced around the apartment. Just when he figured he’d imagined it, the rapping returned, louder this time. He sighed and set aside his guitar.

When he opened the door, he was surprised to see Anna, his neighbor from across the hall, standing outside. “Anna?”

“Hi, Kristoff,” she said. Her auburn hair fell in messy waves down her shoulders and she was dressed in striped green pajama pants and a baggy concert shirt. She had no shoes on, only a mismatched pair of brightly colored cabin socks.

“What are you doing here? Is everything alright?” Kristoff said, noticing the tension her shoulders and nervous look dancing in her eyes.

“Um, yes--well, kind of. C-can I just come in for a second?” she asked. She averted her gaze and bit her lip.

Kristoff nodded and stepped aside. She hurried into his apartment, closing the door behind her. Kristoff led her to the couch where they settled beside each other.

“What’s going on?” he said.

She wrung her hands in her lap. She still wouldn’t meet his eyes. “I just--I’m having a rough night. I can’t sleep, can I stay here? I just need some company.”

“Yeah, sure, whatever you need. I’ll get some blankets and sleep the couch and you can take the bed.”

“No, you don’t have to do that!”

“It’s fine, I--”

Anna burst into tears before he could finish his sentence. Alarmed, Kristoff reached to put his arm around her before remembering the she was only an acquaintance and awkwardly putting a few inches between them.

“I-I’m sorry,” she managed in between sobs. “I’m s-so sorry.”

“No, it’s okay,” Kristoff said, swiveling his body to face her. “You don’t need to apologize, just tell me what you need from me.”

She finally looked him in the eye. Her cheeks were flushed and tears clung to her eyelashes. “I think I just need to talk to someone. You know, just let everything out.”

“Tell me whatever you need,” Kristoff said.

Anna hesitated, “You won’t judge me?”

“I live alone, study animal guts for a living, and only spend time with my dog. I’m not exactly in a position to be judging other people’s decisions.”

Anna sniffed and managed a quiet laugh. It sounded like wind chimes singing in a flower-scented spring breeze. Kristoff thought it was the loveliest sound he’d ever heard.

“I guess just a lot is going on right now with my boyfriend, Hans,” she began. “He’s always been tempermental, but god, never like this. Just every night he comes home in a rage and finds some way to pin it on me.” She paused and chewed her lip for a moment, “Everything used to be so nice, I don’t know what happened.”

“How long has it been like this?” Kristoff whispered, as if Anna were made of glass and speaking at a typical volume might shatter her.

“Too long.”

“It’s all right,” Kristoff said. He gingerly wiped a stray tear from her cheek. His heart pounded when Anna met his eyes, glittering in the starlight falling through the window.

“I thought it was, too,” Anna replied. She stared at the floor. “But then I missed my period. At first I thought it was just the stress of the whole situation, but the days went on and it never came. Finally, I got a pregnancy test from the drug store, and sure enough, it showed up positive.”

She buried her head in her hands as great, heaving sobs wracked her body. Kristoff wrapped his arms around her and pulled her to his chest. She trembled against him, her tears wetting his shirt as she cried.

Emotions rioted inside him. Pain and concern for Anna, anger and frustration at the person who did this to her. He wished Hans were in his apartment so he could give him a piece of his mind. Instead, he focused on Anna and her fragile body cradled against him. Her skin was hot and her hair was soft on his neck. He tightened his arms around her.

She finally took a few deep breaths her crying faded. Kristoff released her and she sat up, grabbing several tissues from the box on the coffee table and dabbing her face.

“God, this is so weird,” she said. “I can’t believe I’m sitting on your couch telling you all this. We’ve talked like, what, four, five times?”

Kristoff laughed, “Don’t worry about it. You’re stressed out and everything’s falling apart and it feels like the whole world is on fire. I get it.”

“That just about sums it up. I just don’t know what I’m going to do about all this,” Anna said. She pulled her legs to her chest and rested her chin on her knees.

“Have you told Hans?” Kristoff asked.

“Yep. He threw a fit and walked out on me. That was last week and I have yet to hear from him again.” Anna sighed, “I always wanted kids--I love kids--but I didn’t think it’d happen this way.”

“If it’s any consolation, based on the single hour you’ve spent here I think you’d be an awesome mom.”

Anna laughed again. It rung in his ears and bounced in his brain and lit up every nerve in his body. He’d be satisfied if it was the last sound he ever heard.

“I hope so,” Anna said. “It’s just that I’m still working on my masters and I don’t have tons of money or time right now. My sister and her girlfriend live nearby so they could help me some, but they both work full time so even then it’s limited.”

“If it’s not too weird to offer I’d be willing to offer some help,” Kristoff said.

Anna met his gaze. Her lips lifted into a smile and her eyes twinkled. “That would be wonderful.”

“Just, if there’s anything you need, don’t be afraid to reach out,” Kristoff replied, fighting the heat rising in his cheeks.

“Anything?”

“Anything.”

Anna suddenly smirked, “Then I say you let me sleep on the couch and you keep your bed so I don’t feel guilty.”

“Seriously?” Kristoff groaned.

Anna laughed and hopped up from the couch, “You should’ve thought about that when you said anything.”

Kristoff rolled his eyes and stood. “Okay then, fine, I’ll keep my bed. At least let me grab you some blankets and a pillow.”

“Deal.”

~~~

Kristoff awoke the next morning to sunlight spilling through the sheer white curtains covering his bedroom window and the blaring of his alarm from the night stand. He shot up and shut it off, fearing the noise would wake up Anna. He pulled one his clothes and shoes as quietly as he could and stepped into the main room, where Anna’s snores echoed off the walls.

Thank god for heavy walls, he thought as he grabbed a protein bar from the pantry and shoved it into his pocket.

He headed for the door, but right as he was about to leave, he hesitated. His eyes went back to Anna. who laid tangled in a blanket on the couch, her hair spilling over the pillow and a bit of drool trickling from her mouth. Kristoff thought she looked like an angel.

He approached the coach and adjusted the blanket so it covered her body before grabbing a notepad and a pen from the kitchen counter. Balancing himself on the edge of the coffee table, he scribbled down his number and tore the page from the notebook. He placed it right by the tissue box so Anna would see it as soon as she got up. Once he was sure she was still asleep, he slipped out of the apartment, his mind still caught on her fiery red hair, infectious laugh, and the hope of seeing her again soon.

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reivenesque · 6 years

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Whump Prompt Challenge: Fever - Hurt Jason Scott 3/3 (PR2017)

A Fevered Dream Final Chapter

« Read previous

Coming back from… wherever it was he’d gone to wasn’t easy. It was exhausting and lonely and scary and he’d never felt more helpless or weak in his life. It was a terrible feeling. It was even worse waking up to pain and mind numbing confusion and not being able to breathe or talk or scream for help, clawing desperately at whatever it was that was choking him and feeling so utterly terrified and desperate and alone even though he could sense the presence of people around him and the voices saying words into his ear that he couldn’t understand.

But it was a soft voice calling his name, a voice that struck a chord somewhere in the deep recesses of his mind that grounded him, that pulled him back into reality. A voice that all of a sudden he missed so much and a presence that offered him comfort beyond words just by being near. He didn’t realize how much he missed her until he was staring at her face.

Mom.

He didn’t remember going anywhere but he most have gone somewhere if he was suddenly returning to the sight of his mom’s tear filled eyes and her showering him in kisses and his dad sobbing softly into his chest. He didn’t think he’d ever seen his dad cry, but something terrible must have happened to illicit such a response from the usually stoic man.

He opened his mouth to ask if his dad was alright, if they were both alright, but no sound came out only the uncomfortable feeling like his throat was made of sandpaper and the air rushing past only aggravated it, sending him into a painful coughing fit that didn’t pass for almost a minute. By the time it subsided, tears were trickling down his face and it felt like his whole chest cavity up into his trachea was filled with lava, burning him from the inside.

But his mom and dad were there, stroking his hair and holding his hand and whispering words into his ear that he could barely decipher; it was only their presence he needed and having them there automatically made everything slightly less sucky.

He barely remembered going into surgery much less coming out of it. But the next thing he realized he was once again fighting his way out of the darkness, emerging into the near blinding brightness of the white ceiling and his parent’s overjoyed faces looking down at him. His whole right leg felt numb, his sore throat that had been slowly healing once again felt like he’d inhaled burning embers instead of oxygen and he felt absolutely bone-weary exhausted he could barely lift his arms an inch above the mattress. But his mom and dad were there and to Jason that mean a lot more than his pain.

It was two days after he first woke up – at least that’s what his mom told him, he had absolutely no sense of time, sometimes he even had to be reminded that he was in the hospital because he’d forget. It was a terrible feeling not being in control of one’s own mind. His mom tried cheering him on and telling him stories about everything and nothing to take his mind off things; even his dad didn’t bring up the topic of the cow or the arrest and he didn’t mention the word football even once during the duration of his stay which was the most surprising.

Almost dying seemed to take precedence over everything else which Jason was deep down rather thankful for – not the almost dying part.

But his day really started looking up when his mom brought Pearl over. At least it would have been if she didn’t burst into tears the moment she laid eyes on him. It was the absolute worst Jason ever felt watching his little sister cry because of him, for him and no being able to rush over and swoop her up into his arms. But his dad was there to do what he couldn’t; lifting Pearl up and over to the bed, placing her at Jason’s side where she immediately latched onto him, her arms reaching across his shoulder and around his neck, holding on tight; her face buried into his shoulder. Jason could only slowly return the embrace; his arms still felt like lead and his movements were heavy and frustratingly restricted, but Pearl needed him in that moment and he’d made a promise to himself to always be there for her – a promise he’d sorely been neglecting unfortunately. He had a lot to make up to her for.

“I missed you, Jason,” he heard her sob and the sorrow in her voice shattered his heart to pieces.

“I missed you too, Pearl,” he said; speaking was painful and his voice came out barely above a whisper but it was enough to get Pearl’s attention who turned up a teary gaze to stare at him intently.

“Are you alright now?” she asked, sniffling softly though not easing the grip she had on his neck.

He nodded, trying to suppress a cough. “I am.”

“Promise?”

He forced a small smile onto his face that he intended to look happier than he felt on the inside. “I promise.”

The answer seemed enough for Pearl who immediately tightened her grip and burrowed deeper into his embrace immediately after.

Jason shared look with his dad who was standing back just watching the scene unfold. A small sad smile came onto his bearded face for a moment before he nodded towards the door, indicating that he’d leave him and Pearl to their privacy for a while.

Jason just let out a sigh the moment his dad stepped out the door.

So much had happened over the course of the last couple of days. He didn’t remember most of it but he could feel the physical side-effects. He was just tired, his leg hurt and didn’t hurt at the same time which was the weirdest feeling; swallowing was painful and there were still so many wires and tubes attached to him he couldn’t even find a position that was remotely comfortable; the only upside to the entire situation was his mom and dad’s presence and now Pearl’s there by his side.

His relationship with his dad had been on the rocky cliffs for a long time, pretty much since he joined the football team at his dad’s insistence. He loved playing football, but somehow, never as much as his dad loved watching him play football. Somewhere down the line, his passion for the game had turned into more of an obligation and it came to the point where he realized that he just didn’t love it as much as he once did. But he played for his dad instead for himself and at one point it just gave birth to feelings of negativity and resentment towards the man that he never hid very well.

The prank with the cow had been only half for that reason. Deep down maybe he’d wanted to get caught; maybe he’d wanted to get kicked off the team. He never intended on going to jail though, that particular outcome still sucked ass.

But the way his dad had looked at him the last couple of days; without the bitterness and the disappointment he’d grown used to seeing on his face, it was unnerving, but not unwanted. He didn’t realize how much he missed having his dad look at him with pride; how much he missed wanting his dad to look at him with pride when it came to something other than football, but there it was, plain as day on his face and Jason basked in it.

A few of his football buddies had stopped by once he was moved into a regular room. Jason appreciated the visit but it wasn’t one he really wanted at that point. They were appreciative of him not ratting them out for their involvement in the unfortunate prank gone bad – as if there was any chance he would have been a snitch anyway, especially considering that it was his own stupid fault for getting caught and ending up where he did. It was a series of bad lucks and bad choices that landed Jason where it did and there was absolutely no one else to blame for it. He just waved off their thanks with the excuse that he was getting tired, which wasn’t even a complete lie anyway.

He knew he was off the team without anyone having to mention it – maybe a small part of himself was even glad; the very small part than maybe even looked forward to not being revered by the people he passed by in the hall and getting a chorus of exited ‘Jason Scott’s by random strangers in town. Maybe it was weird being happy for something like that, but ultimately he was just tired and he wasn’t even talking about the physical kind.

The window at the far corner of his room was open, letting in a cool breeze and the sound of the leaves and the trees rustling in the courtyard below. The sun was shining and there was even the clichéd sound of birds singing in the distance.

Jason missed being outside. He’d only been really awake and aware for a couple of days but already he was getting antsy over being cooped up inside staring at an endless supply of bland white walls. Couldn’t they have been red or something – anything other than bland ass white?

His visitor list was pretty limited, being only his parents, Pearl who was currently curled up sleeping, tucked into his side; the few guys from the football team that one time and an endless array of doctors and nurses, so he was rather confused when a person who didn’t belong to any of the aforementioned group suddenly walked in.

At second glance, he recognized him as one of the kids he’d seen around school, always meandering around by himself tinkering with something or another and not really taking note of his surroundings until he’d inevitably get body slammed into a locker or a door. He’d step in to intervene whenever it happened in front of his eyes but he wasn’t the school’s resident bouncer or anything.

“Umm, hi?” he greeted hesitantly.

“Oh, hello!” said the kid, finally looking up at Jason and then glancing around at his surrounding as if he wasn’t sure where he was or how he even got there.

“Can… I help you?”

“I’m looking for my mom,” he said, “I lost her. Or rather, she lost me would be more appropriate to say because she’s somewhere where she’s supposed to be and I’m right here where I’m not really supposed to be – Have you seen her?” and then as if he just realized what he said, immediately backtracked without Jason even getting a chance to reply. “Of course you wouldn’t have seen her, since you’re there and haven’t been around the part of the hospital where she’s supposed to be which is where I’m supposed to be. I mean –”

“Whoa – whoa – whoa,” said Jason, raising a hand to stop him mid rant. “Hang on, man, one thing at a time. Umm… who are you?”

“Oh, I’m Billy. Billy Cranston! Cranston with an N like cranberry, not an M like crème – you know like, the Kristy Kreme, but with a C not a K. And you’re Jason right? Jason Scott? I know you from school, I mean I know of you – I’ve seen you around school with the other football guys. I heard you stole a cow and crashed a car which is crazy! I don’t know how to drive a car – or even how to handle a cow; I like cows, but I’m kind of scared of them too, but they seem like really chill animals but they’re –”

“Billy,” said Jason, cutting him off, reaching up to massage the bridge of his nose, feeling the tell-tale signs of a headache coming on, “Not that that isn’t interesting or anything, but again – how can I help you? I haven’t seen your mom around if that’s really what you want to know.”

Billy opened his mouth to speak but both their attentions were caught by a sudden commotion coming from – of all places: outside Jason’s window. Jason wasn’t sure how that was even possible; his room was on the third floor of the hospital. However he didn’t have time to wonder over it for long because all of a sudden a dark figure came flying in through his window like something straight out of a comic book, rolling a few times and coming to a splayed halt at the foot of his bed.

Not two seconds after that a yelping Billy joined him on the floor, a third figure having barreled into him from behind sending all three of them landing in a heap at the foot of his bed. Jason sat up higher, careful not to wake his sister still sleeping curled into his side; trying to peer over the edge of the bed at the figures trying to untangle themselves and the violent profane words being thrown around by a distinctly feminine voice.

“What the hell – get off!”

“Guys! Guys! I’d appreciate if you get off me – ow, ow, ow that foot should not be that close to that part of the human anatomy.”

The third unfamiliar voice was just letting out the most insane cackling sound that Jason was convinced that he must have been an escapee from the psych ward.

“I didn’t know there was a party happening just a few doors down I would have brought my party hat,” came another new voice. Jason felt like he was getting whiplash from all the new an unexpected people who literally just materialized in his room.

He looked up to find the infamous Kimberly Hart standing with her arms crossed, leaning one shoulder against the doorframe surveying the scene with an amused gaze.

“Are these guys with you?” Jason asked.

“What? No, I thought they’re with you, since they are in your room,” she answered.

It seemed like the tangled trio finally managed to free themselves from the heap because one by one they popped up off the ground like the strangest version of a human whack-a-mole.

Billy; Jason had just met, but the other two he thinks were also students at Angel Grove High, he might have seen them around school but never interacted – which wasn’t the most shocking thing.

“Guys, that was the strangest and least sexy human orgy I’ve ever been a part of,” said the Asian guy who come flying in through the window like some stunt gone bad in a Jackie Chan movie.

“You guys better stay a million and one miles away from me otherwise you’re all going to catch these hands,” said the new girl.

Jason really didn’t know what was happening, who these people were or why they were even there. “Umm, not that I don’t appreciate the visit,” he said, clearing his throat, “But… who the hell are you guys?”

“We’re the ghost of Christmas past, present and future,” sniggered the Asian guy who seemed to have a perpetual grin carved onto his face. “And this must be Tiny Tim,” he said pointing towards the angry girl in the yellow shirt.

“You wanna catch these fists dude? Keep it up.”

“Dude you came flying in through the window – we’re on the third floor,” said Jason, feeling the thumping of the headache getting more apparent.

“I’m Billy. Billy Cranston. Cranston with an N –”

“Yeah Billy, I think we all know who you are,” said Kimberly, “Billy with the crayons right?”

“No – not with the crayons, that’s distinctly not possible to cram –”

“Anyway, it’s been fun guys,” said the Asian guy, dusting himself off, “But I think I better be out of here before the cops find me.”

“I still don’t know who you are or where the hell you came from,” said Jason.

“It will all be explained to you in due time,” he said in a teasing tone, the smirk still frustratingly present on his face. “But like I said, I really should –” he took one step towards the door and halted suddenly in his step.

It wasn’t anything apparent that happened or even anything that was corporeal, but all of a sudden there was a pulsating wave inside the room that resonated through all five of them, almost like a single pulsing heartbeat that they felt inside their soul.

Jason grabbed at his chest but didn’t feel anything different besides that one wave that washed through the room. He looked around at the four other occupants and realized that they’d felt the same thing.

“What the hell was that?” asked the girl in the yellow shirt, looking down at herself.

“You guys felt it too?” asked Billy, looking half excited and half freaked out which mirrored Jason’s feelings exactly.

All of them exchanged glances from one to the other, as if whatever that happened had forged a connection between them that they couldn’t see, but could somehow feel thrumming in the back of their minds like an itch.

But as soon as the feeling came, it was gone without a trace that it was ever even there.

“Must have been a like the blast of a jet engine or something,” said Kimberly.

Jason decided not to point out that feeling the blast of a jet engine would only be possible if there was a jet engine anywhere in the vicinity.

“You guys are weird,” said the other girl with a scoff, “I’m out of here, gotta go find my brothers,” she said, pushing past Kimberly and disappearing out of the room without another word.

The strange guy also followed her, muttering something about his mom absentmindedly and catching himself like he wasn’t sure why he’d even said it in the first place. As strange and as mysteriously as they’d both appeared, they were gone again. Jason hadn’t even managed to catch their names.

“Well… it’s been amusing,” said Kimberly, “Get well soon,” she said, looking at Jason and giving him an odd wink before she turned on her heels and walked out.

In the end it was just Jason and Billy in the room once again; the three other occupants had come and gone, blasting through the room like a tornado leaving confusion and many unanswered questions in their wake.

“So… did your mom come for a checkup?” asked Jason while Billy was still busy looking over himself, making sure all his limbs were still there and still attached to him. “I think outpatient treatment is on the first floor.”

“Uh? Oh – yeah, I think you’re probably right. I must have hit the wrong button on the elevator. It’s a bit tricky to press buttons with your elbows. I don’t really like touching things in the hospitals. There’s germs and bacteria on all sorts of surfaces you know.”

“Umm… yeah?” said Jason unsurely.

“Well, I should go. Bye,” said Billy turning around and leaving the room without another word, leaving Jason to stare at the door and at the now empty room strangely, his mind still trying to process what exactly had happened, who those people were and what that strange feeling was that seemed to have come over them all at the exact same time. But at least Pearl was still sound asleep beside him, so he laid back down, pulling her closer to his side and just exhaled.

He hadn’t had a moment to think about what had happened over the last couple of days and even less time to think of what was going to happen from that point on. He only knew that he was in a world of trouble, not just with his parents, but also with the school and with the police. His knee was messed up, not beyond repair but he knew that his career in football was pretty much done with. However he found that he was less sad about that fact that he really thought he’d be. The only thing he could do was take it one day at a time, just accept his punishment; being grounded and detention and whatever else was going to be thrown at him; he’d messed up badly and he didn’t think he was beyond punishment. He was going to accept it like a man.

Also once he was back on his two feet, he was going to finally going to solve the mystery of those mysterious people who’d blown through his room and find out what had brought them there in the first place. It might have been kismet, but Jason didn’t really believe in that crap. Maybe it was aliens?

He tried not to wake Pearl up with his laugher at his own dumb theory when he actually tried to process his own train of thought.

Pfft, aliens. As if there was even such a thing.

The end.

#whump prompt challenge #power rangers 2017 #jason scott #dacre montgomery #whump #pearl scott #beverly scott #sam scott #scott family feels #reiven fics #fics: a fevered dream

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echoeblo · 6 years

Text

Justices, randomly chosen Dare to Write prompts, Kei/Brown, Katsuya/Maya, Nanako and Teddie, Goro and Sae

37 - Keiue, “kiss like a punch”

“They started it,” Kei states simply, as if he hadn’t just broken a few bones of delinquent students. He rubs his nose and sneers, blood draining from it steadily.

“That doesn’t mean you...” Brown tries, but pauses. He knows Kei thinks things through, but he never starts physical fights. Getting on people’s bad sides was a habit of his, though. “Look, let’s just put this behind us, okay?”

Kei’s sneer grows and Brown watches, unsure of how to proceed. Pretending he hadn’t watched Kei’s nose get smashed in by an angry classmate was hard enough, but seeing Kei retaliate was something Brown hadn’t expected. “Look, we need to get your nose treated...”

“Those louts are probably in the nurse’s office,” Kei adds pointedly.

“Then we’ll get help elsewhere. Do any of your, uh, ‘servants’...? Can they help you?”

Kei turns away and doesn’t reply for a short time, and Brown wonders if he had said something offensive to the other.

“... my parents will be mad if I come home like this,” he answers lamely, “and the doctors around town wouldn’t hide this from them.”

“Eyes everywhere, huh?” Brown asks, laughing nervously. Kei doesn’t answer.

“... Yamaoka used to clean me up after fights.”

Brown freezes, unnerved. “Oh...” is all he can muster. Kei keeps looking to the side, refusing to meet Brown’s eyes. Brown hesitates before sitting next to Kei and putting a hand on his back, leaning forward to properly look at Kei’s face. “Hey, I’ll go buy a first aid kit. Maybe Reiji can help...? He probably knows a lot more about first aid than I do.”

Kei snorts. “He gets in fights daily! I’d be more concerned if he didn’t know anything about first aid! Though the buffoon probably doesn’t know anything else.”

Brown laughs again, feeling more at ease at Reiji’s expense. Kei turns to look at him and quirks his eyebrow.

Thoughtlessly, Brown pulls Kei into a kiss, startling him. They pull away soon and before Kei can complain, Brown pulls him into a hug and rubs his back.

“I know it’s rough with Yamaoka gone. I love you too, though, so please, let me take care of you.” He rubs circles into Kei’s back and nearly jumps when he feels fists ball at his back. Kei starts shaking and Brown holds him closer, closing his eyes and listening to Kei’s broken sobs.

A wet liquid touches his shoulder and he accepts it as tears before it starts pooling and dripping, and he becomes acutely aware of how wrong his guess was. Panic sets in quickly but Brown tries to force it down as he pulls out his phone.

“I’ll ask Reiji to pick up a first aid kit,” he says, and Kei tries to pull away. “I’ll tell him we’re in class 3-4.”

Kei scoffs. “Even though we’re in 3-1?”

“It’ll give us some time to put ourselves together,” he answers honestly, and Kei nods, leaning back against Brown.

150 - Katsumaya (sell my soul)

“She will never wake up again.”

The voice comes from behind him and Katsuya turns swiftly, putting himself between the two on the floor and the intruder. He gasps as he sees a mirage of the woman behind him, a perfect copy except for her confident stance and startling red eyes.

She smiles, much less candid than any of Maya’s smiles.

“Who are you?!” Katsuya demands, putting his hand on his gun and drawing it.

“I’m a shadow, the true self.”

“That’s not big sis!” comes a cry behind him, and Katsuya turns to meet the crazed eyes of his brother. His hand is holding Maya’s lifeless one and he’s kneeling beside her. “That’s Nyarlathotep, the god that tormented us on The Other Side!”

A laugh draws his attention back to the clone. She holds her hand to him, crystallized light dancing on her palm.

“This is her ideal energy,” she says. As if sensing the man’s confusion, she continues, “The part of her that drives her forward, her dreams and ambitions and energy.”

“Ideal energy...? Is it related to kegare?”

“It is the opposite of kegare. This is her persona and all of her willpower. She needs it in order to keep living.”

Katsuya tenses. “Give it back,” he says, unsure how she even would.

The mirage smiles at him, a mocking smile that sends a chill through Katsuya, and before he can react, she crushes the crystal in her hand. Tatsuya yells something behind him, but his distress is muted by the laughter of the monster in front of him and the dust falling from its palm.

He regains his senses and reaches for her, tries to grab her tie, but the world shifts around him and he finds himself standing in a floating room instead, surrounded by a sea of flickering lights.

“This is...” he starts, before jolting and turning around. “Tatsuya!” he yells, but the boy had already gone quiet, staring behind Katsuya and gripping Maya’s hand tighter.

Tatsuya’s shaking and pale.

“It seems she has lost her sense of self,” comes a voice to their side, and Katsuya turns to the calm being.

“Philemon, what’s the meaning of this?!” he yells, grabbing Philemon’s shirt and lifting him off the ground.

“She has lost her sense of self,” he repeats. “And without a self, one cannot exist. She will pass away soon.”

Katsuya’s hands grip into the fabric. “Isn’t there anything you can do about it?!”

The being watches him. “I am unable to do anything,” he repeats. “You, however...”

Philemon looks between the brothers and the unconscious woman. “Every person has a self. Without this self, their identity and motivation will crumble until they fade away into shadows.”

“What can I do?” Katsuya asks, and Philemon continues watching him.

“Every person has a self.”

Katsuya grips harder, knuckles becoming white, and he opens his mouth to yell before Tatsuya cuts him off with a quiet, “He means we can give up our own personas to her.”

“Our own...? Won’t we die?” he asks, lessening his grip.

Philemon nods and Katsuya feels another chill run through him.

He puts Philemon down and takes a step back, looking at the two on the floor.

“I’ll do it,” Tatsuya says, hand to his heart.

“No, you won’t!” Katsuya answers, and Tatsuya opens his mouth to protest before Katsuya puts a hand over his mouth. “I won’t let you get hurt. Not on my watch. Never again.”

Tatsuya’s eyes go wide for a moment before Katsuya removes his hand and turns back to Philemon. “Take mine,” he says simply, and Philemon nods. He puts a hand to Katsuya’s chest and a light forms under it, crystallizing and shining bright. His body becomes heavy and his mind foggy, but he continues to watch.

The light shatters and moves into the woman’s body, and her hand twitches. Tatsuya’s snapped out of his stupor by the action and he grips her hand tighter, unsure whether to look at Maya or Katsuya.

“Big sis...?” he asks tentatively, and Maya groans, bringing her hand to her forehead dramatically.

“Five more minutes,” she grumbles, and Katsuya lets out a breathy laugh as he walks over and kneels beside her, refusing to look at his brother.

135 - Teddie & Nanako (vantage point)

“I don’t know where I belong...”

The voice is uncharacteristically small, and Nanako pauses her piano practice to turn around.

“What’s wrong?” Nanako asks, and Teddie looks at her with vulnerable eyes.

“Ever since I moved in here, I’ve been living in his old room. It was comforting at first, but now the room is filled with my stuff.”

Nanako tilts her head. “Is that bad?”

“I feel like I’m just taking his place. If I make this place ‘mine’, then where will be ‘his’? I don’t want to take his place.”

Nanako hums, watching the boy thoughtfully. She turns back to her piano, playing a few chords in the silent room - a lullaby her mother used to sing, and one she had never forgotten.

“I can show you your place,” she offers, covering the piano and turning back around. He looks up at her with sparkling eyes.

“Really?” he asks, and she smiles and nods.

“Let’s get our shoes on,” she says, and Teddie hops off the couch.

It’s hot outside, a pleasant breeze in the air. Cicadas chirp from the trees as Nanako grabs Teddie’s sleeve and drags him across town.

“There’s only one place I can think of for you,” she says.

“Where’s that?” he asks, and she smiles at him before pulling to a run up a hill.

At the top and out of breath, Nanako pulls Teddie to the railing. She turns around and leans against the rail, gesturing for Teddie to follow her.

“This is my place?” he asks, clearly confused, and she giggles.

“No, silly!” she says and gestures to the town below. His eyes show confusion for a moment before understanding clicks, and tears well up in his eyes.

He hugs her close and she hugs back. “This town is your home,” she says, and he cries louder.

349 - Sae and Goro (petrifying)

“The ship’s collapsing!” comes the voice within his headphones, and Goro grits his teeth, biting back his sarcastic response.

She really doesn’t need to tell them, considering the dust and cracking all around.

“This way!” he yells instead, directing his attention to his partner. The rest of the team is waiting at the dock, safe, and Goro feels a short wave of relief at having his closest friend at his side.

“Got it!” she yells back, following close behind him. He jumps a table and pushes shadows and masked guests aside, refusing to let them slow him.

His mind starts to itch and the scenery around him blurs, as if his third eye is activating on his own, and he forces down images flooding his brain.

Focus on the now, he thinks, gritting his teeth. They approach a door and the fogginess tells him that it’s locked, that they need someone to go to the security room below.

He slows in front of the door enough to push its handle down and throw himself against it.

The metal doesn’t budge and he bites his tongue, trying to force down the buzzing and images. They’re memories, a distant part of him says, but what memories exist from the future?

Goro closes his eyes as tens of echoes pass through his mind, and he doesn’t even need to hear his fortune telling ally to know that the door’s locked, that—

“Someone needs to go to the security room!”

The room stills and Goro opens his eyes to the pitch black around him. He looks up and meets his own gaze.

“Are you going to let her die again?” he asks himself, and Goro stares as he remembers, remembers all those past lives and failures.

“She always dies because of you, you know. In every world she meets you, she dies far too early, leaving her sister to fend for herself.”

“I...”

“You know how this mission ends,” he says, and Goro takes a deep breath as he recalls the iron wall dripping in deep red blood, a broken body pinned against it by a sword as the water rises.

He takes a shallow breath. “I know,” he answers, his voice heavy. He closes his eyes as his reflection turns into a purple butterfly, and when he opens them again, he’s back at the door, unable to proceed.

“Let’s go,” Sae yells, grabbing his arm, but he brushes it off.

“I can run faster,” he says, and she looks at him incredulously. He gives her a reassuring smile, unsure for the first time in his life if it is fake or candid.

She seems just as confused as he is, but she nods. “I’ll wait for you,” she says, drawing her sword and preparing to guard the area.

He shakes his head. “Wait for me with the others,” he orders, then takes off to the security room, running as fast as his legs can go. His limbs protest the strain - climbing was always his forte, not running - but he ignores them, knowing full well that they wouldn’t have much more work to do after this.

He skids to a halt in front of the control panel, already knowing which buttons he needs to press. The doors unlock and water starts pooling around his feet.

He looks at the screen with Sae on it, quietly praying that she won’t wait for him. He grabs his mask and closes his eyes, focusing instead on the presence behind him.

#p1 #p2 #p4 #p5 #my writing #kei/brown #katsumaya #teddie and nanako #sae and goro #no Ken bc I’ve never played p3 sorry kid #also the Goro and Sae is a bad end from the merry men au I’ve been writing

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