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bubbles-for-all-of-us · 5 months

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Pretty like the wind

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a/n the thirteenth part! I'm so so so sorry for the wait but girl drained her writing abilities too much and I just couldn't write and then couldn't give you all a shit chapter. I hope you will still enjoy this! ✨🤍 also, your girl is running on 3h of sleep so if there are mistakes, forgive me... I'll fix them when my brain is once again plugged to the internet.🙃

warning: kids, past trauma, substance use... low key seems too little of a list but nothing else comes to mind

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Axel's been desperate for a couple of days now. He had managed to lift off the ground and do a couple of flaps with his wings at the start of the week. The excitement on his face when Azriel carried him back home was unmatched. Unlike anything you had seen before. He was glowing. Radiant. So deeply loved, and it showed. The boy had rambled about it throughout the whole dinner. But Azriel hadn't denied his excitement even once, a proud smile on his face as he let the boy babble on and on.

It felt easy. It was so easy to be there. In Azriel's apartment. To wake up next to him. To watch him come home after a long day. Fetch the kids for classes. Not to mention that his place was ever-shifting. After the first night on his mattress, which was rung by the furthest of walls, Azriel had shown up with Cassian the very next day. Boxes in hand, they got to work putting together the biggest bed frame you had ever seen. He covered the knives stand with some sort of spell. They were there still, a big part of him, but the kids could not reach them. His way of baby-proofing the space. Slowly morphing it into something that suited everyone's needs.

"Lift up and do ten flaps", Azriel's voice floated through the field. The day was beautiful. The sun was out. Warm rays of sunshine kissed the skin. You and Zofie were sitting on a big knitted blanket. The little girl beside you was threading flower crowns. Her tiny tongue was slightly out as she concentrated on her very serious task.

"I can do more", Axel urged. He was standing next to Azriel. His tiny Illyrian leathers clad his skin. His safety armor. A tiny little piece of comfort that the spymaster had gifted to him. Azriel shook his head as he smiled, "Start with ten, then we will see". You could tell that Azriel had also found comfort in teaching Axel. A second chance at a glimpse of a happy childhood. With him and only him in the center of someone's happiness.

For a moment, there was only a warm breeze humming through the field. You watched how Axel got into a position. His determined face faltered, and his eyes darted back up at Azriel. "You will catch me, right?", here it was, that same bitter fear of failing. Of not trusting himself. But Azriel didn't let it settle in as he kneeled next to the boy, "You won't need my help, but if you do, I will be right by your side". Axel's big, golden eyes blinked at Azriel.

"And if I don't make it...", the boy doesn't finish the sentence, but the premise of it is clear. Will you be disappointed? Laugh? Give up on me? Azriel cupped the Axel's cheeks between his scared palms. "Look at me", the spymaster muttered, "You will do it. I know you will. You have to believe in yourself". They looked at each other for a moment before Axel quickly nodded his head, "Okay. I've got this", the boy muttered, Azriel quickly ruffled his hair, "Hell yeah, you do!".

Axel found your eyes across the field. You smiled at him, nodding your head. He could do it, and you did not doubt it. The boy nodded his head one more. A deep breath in. And within seconds, his tiny frame shot up. Axel faltered ever so slightly. Gravity pulling him down. But with one determined flap after another, he managed to stay up above. "Look at me", he beamed from the sky, the wind dancing in his onyx hair. "Y/n! Zo!", he shouted. The girl beside you let out a gasp. Scrambling to her feet as she ran through the flower field to get closer to her brother, "Axel!", she squealed happily. "Good job, honey!", you called right after her, your hand on your chest as you tried to suppress your emotions. One beat after another. Just his energy strained as fast as it was mustard. And the boy slowly sank back down. But the smile on his face didn't seem to shrink.

"Did you see it?", Axel looked across all three of you, breathing heavily. "We did, my love", you beamed at him, leaning closer to kiss his sweaty forehead. "I flew like all of the Illyrians", the boy taped at his leathers proudly, his eyes darting up at Azriel, whose smile was just as big. "I'm so proud of you", Azriel said. "Thank you, pa-Azzy", Axel stuttered, his big eyes suddenly laced with worry, but Azriel only scooped him up in his arms, seating Axel on his shoulder, "You got it, bud".

The kids were far from, content afterward. Too much excitement rushing through their tiny bodies, and now that they were painfully aware that they had Azriel wrapped around their fingers, within a couple of hours you were back in the city, for none other than street pancakes. "You didn't have to say yes", you muttered to Azriel as you two trailed behind the two overly excited younglings. "Why, not?", he said straight away as if tending to their needs had already become second nature for him. "Well, I'm sure you have meetings or people to scare", you shrugged, making Azriel chuckle slightly. The expression easy to miss because his colder mask was back on. What you didn't miss was how some people looked at him. At you all. The emotions were hard to pinpoint, but it was clear evidence that one didn't find the spymaster of the night court casually walking through Velaris streets.

"Look, it's the fountain", the two little monsters came tumbling back, pulling at the skirts of your dress, tiny fingers pointing toward the water fairies. "Now, what did I say about pointing fingers, huh?", you huffed, and the two of them dropped their hands. Quick apologies swirled around, but the pulling didn't ease. Azriel took a heartbeat to look at you three. The way a laugh slipped past your lips as one of the fairy bopped Axel's face making the boy jump back slightly. All courtwork aside, the past couple of weeks have left Azriel feeling weightless. No burdens. No worries. And if something managed to cling to him after a long day, it would all melt away the moment he stepped through his apartment door, hearing your voices and laughter. It felt so good to finally have something that belonged just to him. And it wasn't that territorial fea-male thing. Well, yes, it was, but there was so much more. Azriel finally felt like he had a purpose. His bland days were finally filled with more color. He loved being able to take Zofie to her dance classes. Fetch Axel for training with Cassian. To come home and find you smiling at him. To kiss you softly.

"Can I get two?", Zofie's voice filled Azriel's senses, and his head instantly turned towards the pancake stand. An old lady was already smiling as she looked down at the kids trying to pick their orders. "You won't be able to finish them both, bug," you said as you brushed your fingers through Zofie's hair. "But I can't pick between jam and chocolate", she pouted. Azriel stepped closer, earning a slight bow from the owner, that he quickly returned with a nod.

"Azzy, you pick", Zofie quickly moved towards the spymaster, cleverly making grabby hands at him so that once the order was made, she would be able to see how they were made because, not like Axel, she couldn't see over the stand. "I would like apple crumble, please", Axel said, fingers twirling with the material of your skirt. "And jam and chocolate", Azriel followed suit. You shot him a look, but he was already too occupied by how Zofie was beaming in his arms.

"Add it to my account too", Azriel said firmly, and you shook your head. "Nonsense, let me pay for it", you reached for the satchel fastened to your corset. But Azriel softly took hold of your hand, lacing his fingers through yours. "Don't fight me on this, love", he simply muttered. And stop frowning; it doesn't suit you. Azriel's smug voice filled your mind, making you let out a huff. You're too full of yourself; let me pay for something. You muttered back, but Azriel only smirked. You are paying; it's our shared account. A breath hitched in your throat. A shared account? But only members of the inner circle shared accounts with their partners. And you... you blinked a couple of times. Had Azriel set his claim over you to Rhys? You're not an object. Azriel's velvety voice rang out once more.

You were about to answer him a gasp left Axel's lips, soon followed by Zofie. "Grammy", the two of them said in unison. Cordelia had just set her bags down as the two swarmed her. Jumping. Giggling. "My gorgeous bunch", the woman said, cradling them both in her arms, "I swear you two have grown an inch since I last saw you". They both beamed at her, pancakes long forgotten. Azriel's shadows made quick work of his mother's bags. Tiny little clouds got to work immediately as they moved to carry them back to her house.

"Azriel, Y/N", Cordelia said, turning to you both as you finally approached her hands full of food. "What are we celebrating?", the elderly woman asked. "Grammy, I flew. Azriel took me to the field. I was up in the sky", Axel said excitedly, and your eyes instantly filled up with tears, making you blink quickly. "Oh, sweet boy", Cordelia cupped Axel's cheek, "That's wonderful. Soon, you'll outmatch my Azriel. But don't tell him I told you so". The boy giggled sheepishly, catching a glimpse of Azriel, but his calm expectation didn't change.

"Why don't you two leave them with me", Cordelia said after a moment, "I'm heading home anyway". The kids instantly stepped towards her as if they didn't care for what any of you had to say. "No, ma'am, that...", "Cordelia, darling", Azriel's mom corrected you instantly. "You must be tired, and...", you tried again, only to be met with another smile, "Nonsense, these two are angels. Plus", she muttered, "When was the last time you two spent time alone?". Never. The answer was never. And the fact that the answers sank on you so quickly said it all. You and Azriel had never truly been alone. Had never been on a date.

"Exactly", Cordelia stated proudly. "I'm looking after my grandchildren, and if I see any of you at my doorstep before tomorrow evening", she narrowed her eyes, "Let's say you don't want to know what will happen". Azriel let out a laugh, shaking his head at his mother. "Thank you", he muttered. Cordelia simply leaned in to kiss her son's cheek before she squeezed your shoulder. "Have fun", she winked, turning towards the kids, already pointing them towards another stand.

"Do you want some more?", Azriel lifted the halfway-empty bottle, but you shook your head, "I still have some, thank you". Oddly enough, it felt strange to spend time with Azriel like this. No rush. No need to go places. No kids to look after. No serious worries. Just you two. A quiet apartment and a long night that was still ahead of you two. You shifted, brushing your hand through your hair.

"This feels strange in a way", Azriel breathed out, running his hand over his face, "I mean, I don't want you to feel like...", he was quick to point out, but you rested your hand on his thigh, "We're not used to being together like this". The shadowsinger nodded his head before he leaned back into the sofa, putting his glass on the tiny table that was set on the side. His arms reached forward, pulling at your hand. A chuckle slipped past your lips as Azriel tugged you closer to his chest. "What are you doing?", you breathed, still smiling. "Something I should have done at the start of the evening", Azriel mused, letting out a satisfied hum now that you were pressed against his chest.

Silence filled the room. You let yourself listen to the way Azriel's heart was drumming right beneath your ear. Warmth spread through your body. This, without a doubt, was how peace felt. "Should we play a game?", Azriel spoke up, finally making you lift your head from his chest. "A game?", you frowned slightly, pulling away. "Yeah, like, get to know each other game", Azriel breathed out, a slight pink tint brushing his cheeks. You let out a chuckle. "Okay, I am...", you breathed out, "Are Rhys and Cass your biological brothers?", "Straight at it...", Azriel let out a surprised breath, and worry instantly washed over you. "Was I not supposed to?", your big eyes looked at him. "No, no, it's okay; I like that you're taking the lead", Azriel reassured you wiggling his brows making you rill your eyes in return. You two moved to sit opposite each other. Your legs were tucked beneath you, but Azriel's hand still stayed on your thigh.

"And to answer your question, they are not", he said smoothly. "We meet in the camp. Rhys's mother pulled us under her wing; the rest is history but they feel like blood brothers". You found yourself nodding; you knew that they were in training together. Most people called them the inseparable three for a reason. The loved they shared always made you smile. It was rare. Especially between territorial Illyrian males. "Your mother was from Helion's court," Azriel stated, claiming his turn, "You've ever thought about going there?". You took a moment to let his words sink in. Rhys had brought that up a couple of times, but the idea of going to a place you knew nothing about to meet people you knew nothing about. "No...", you breathed out. "I mean, it'll sound bad, but Helion keeps his angels under tight wraps." Pulling the strand of your hair, you quickly twirled it around your fingers, "If he had use for me, he would have claimed me by now". A rumble left Azriel's chest, "No one can claim you; you make your own choices". His voice was thick with frustration. The thought, clearly, unsettled him. You reached for his hand once more, "Azriel, I know, hence why I said it would sound bad". But the frown between his brows didn't ease until your fingers carefully brushed over his skin.

You weighed your next question for a heartbeat before muttering, "Your hands, can you tell me the real story?", you watched as Azriel's face shifted with emotion. The man was almost a myth. The amount of stories told about him could easily be turned into a book but... most of them seemed so far fetched. For a heartbeat, you even regretted your question, but then Azriel let out a sigh. "You know about the basement...", the spymaster clenched his palms together. "This was one of their games", you shifted slightly, reaching for his hands as you clasped them in yours. Azriel's eyes lingered on your joined palms. "One night they wanted to test how quickly I would heal. So they dunked my hands in oil and set them on fire", his words sounded cold and distant. But then how else would you talk about the trauma that shifted your life. You bit the inside of your cheek as you leaned closer to him. But before you could fully rest against him, you pulled his hands up to your mouth, placing kiss after kiss on the scared surface. He didn't stop you. Didn't pull away. Soaking in the warmth of you. The tender touch.

But your movements stalled at his next words, "Your back", Azriel muttered. You let go of him instantly, drawing back, "What of it?", you asked, even if you knew more than well what he was asking for. In a way, your scars linked you both together. But you've worked your hardest to keep that side of you hidden from everyone. Even yourself. You let your head drop slightly, and Azriel's fingers instantly hooked beneath your chin. If there was something this man was against, it was you feeling small when you were with him.

"You don't have to", he breathed out, his gorgeous hazel eyes piercing through you. Eyes that had captured your soul the very same night you two had come for one another's throats in his room. You chose to swallow your words, turning away from him. Suddenly, your dress felt way too tight on your body. Azriel took that as a sign to drop the topic, ready to apologize when you muttered, "Undo the ribbon". Azriel swallowed thickly. Hesitation stilled his movements. But his trembling fingers still reached for the light blue material. Goosebumps trickled down your spine instantly.

Azriel could see the way your shoulders tensed the looser the fabric got around your chest. Leaning in, he placed a couple of loving kisses on your shoulder blades. He hesitated before letting the fabric fall off your skin, your hand instantly moving to cover your breasts in front. But Azriel was too far captured by the brutal slashes that even now shined red and black against your skin. The angel wings you had didn't start at the same spot where Illyrian wings rooted, which explained why the spymaster didn't catch a glimpse of them while you were in nothing but your silk nightgown.

"I hoped I could heal myself...", you muttered quietly, biting your lip. Azriel's eye snapped back up, and he instantly brought your trembling frame into his chest. Mother, strike him for letting himself gawk like that. He knew what being stared at like that felt like. The scrutiny. The pity. Blimey, his own family still shot him glances like that, and here he was. His strong arms cocooned your frame before he realized the lack of clothes covering your chest. Azriel's cheeks pinked, even if he couldn't see anything that he hadn't already seen. He moved to lift the fabric, but you stopped him, motioning for him to let you go. He got his clue here—you didn't want him watching, so his head wiped to a completely different side.

"I've never been with a male", you muttered after a heartbeat. Azriel's body froze once more. Something deep and territorial, way stronger than before, scratched at his chest. "Was I your first...", his words were barely a whisper, as you chased them away. "Everything so far...", you breathed out. Was admitting this to him awkward? Yes. But he was your mate. Surely, he would realize that eventually. Azriel turned back to face you. Realizing that he probably should have asked if he could turn around in the first place. But he found your shy eyes looking up at him. He reached for you once more. Pulling you over his lap, his hand resting on your hip.

"Thank you for sharing that", he breathed against your neck, brushing tiny feather-like kisses all over your collarbones. The tickling sensation made you giggle slightly before a frown washed over you once more. "I understand if it's not attractive", you breathed out, and Azriel halted in his movements, pulling back to meet your eyes. "Love, I'm more than okay with waiting till you're ready", he reassured you as he brushed his thumb over your cheek. "But that's... you have needs", you whispered, catching his wrist. Azriel let out a breathy chuckle, scanning your face before he leaned in to peck your lips. "I am no longer a teenager who gets a hard-on from any moving thing in front of him, but thank you for your concern, love", he said, utterly satisfied with his answer. "Ew, Azriel", you cackled, hitting his chest playfully. The spymaster's laugh matched yours in no time as he pulled you down on the plush sofa, nestling you deeper into his embrace.

You had hoped to wake up in Azriel's arms the next morning. The intimacy of last night's confessions still lingered. But once the slumber left your body, you quickly realized that the bed felt way too cold. A pang ached in your chest, but you knew that he was a busy man. A note you found in the kitchen proved just that. An urgent meeting. I hate that I had to leave you like that. I will see you in the evening, Az. You brushed your fingers over the paper, turning your attention to the bond, smothering it with soft touches, only to be met with a cold wall. You frowned slightly. But then, he always shut it off when he was out on duty. You knew that if something was seriously bad, he would answer. But nothing was seriously bad and you weren't about to become a needy partner. Brushing the nagging thoughts away, you smiled to yourself. No, nothing was going to ruin the plan you had for tonight.

And it started out so perfectly. From the way you had allowed yourself to explore the city. Wondering from one shop to another. Everyone greeted you with a smile. The streets were humming even in the early morning. All the smells and sounds fill your senses. You tested cheese from a local farmer's stand, listening to the stories about the sheep that he owned. You had forgotten what it felt like to live like this. Now fully understanding why Zofie and Axel loved it here so much. The white, quiet walls of the sanctuary felt more like a prison than a happy home when you compared it to the city.

Your arm was aching from the bag you were carrying, but it didn't seem to bother you today. Your eyes caught the stand full of freshly cut flowers. Like a little bee on a hunt for nectar, you turned its way. The lady greeted you with a wave. She, like the man before, shared her passion for the blooms before wrapping a big bouquet of peonies in paper. The smell of them made your lips taste sweet. But the moment her hands brushed yours, you felt a tight grip on your arms. Dark eyes looked at you. Sharp venomous teeth gleamed, "Silly child, he is not your happy ever after. You're burning in flames of pain for your mistakes", the thick words sounded, making you draw away, nearly dropping all of your stuff. You bumped into someone, pulling your eyes away from the lady, and when you finally blinked, a man was holding onto your shoulders. Steadying you. "Are you alright, dear?", the female called out to you, making you take a double look at both of them. "Yeah", you muttered, feeling your cheeks heating up. "I'm so sorry, I just got dizzy from all the smells", you breathed out, quickly taking hold of your things and hurrying away.

You hoped the feeling of unease would lessen eventually. That the image of that monstrous face would fade. But it stuck around. Sending shivers down your back all day long. The same way it did up at the house of wind. You had felt slightly better at Cordelia's house, where you stopped to get the kids, but the moment you crossed Azriel's apartment's entrance, it clasped right over your throat once more. "Do I put this in?", Axel called out, making you draw your attention back to the two kids. A pot of stew was bubbling on the stove. You pressed a palm against your temple, an odd throb aching there.

"Yes, sweetie, give it a mix too", the two of them had been desperate to make Azriel's mother's stew. Cordelia had cooked with them a couple of times, and now they had taken it upon themselves to show what they had learned. "I need help", Zofie muttered, pulling at your sleeve. She had been tasked with pulling some of the herbs from the stems and dicing them. Yet your body didn't seem to comprehend the request. Axel turned to her instead. "Show me", he said, but you could feel his eyes on you. Both of their eyes are on you.

"Y/N", Axel called out softly, "Is everything okay?" The real answer to that would be that you didn't know. It was the tightness and numbness in your chest that unsettled you the most. You've never felt like before. As if something was missing all of a sudden. You tried to claw out of the hazy daze, "Yeah, I'm...", but your voice died down to the sound of the knock on the door. Axel jumped off his step stool, but you caught him by his shoulder. "Stay here with Zo", you muttered. Deep down, you hoped that it was Azriel or someone from the family, but then Azriel wouldn't knock. He never did.

You cracked the door open as if you already didn't feel confused enough. There she stood. The prettiest pink dress framed her figure. Loose curls fell over her shoulders. Elain. You braced yourself against the doorframe. Mother, don't let this be what you thought it was. "Oh", the female gasped lightly. "I...", she stuttered, suddenly growing fidgety. "How can I help you?", you breathed out, trying to keep your racing mind at bay. "Azriel said we would meet here; that usually means alone", her tone was sweet, but every word sent daggers flying straight into your heart. Silly child, he is not your happy ever after. The voice echoed in your mind. You blinked rapidly, frown marking your features. For a moment, it seemed as if something flashed through Elain's eyes before she mustered a forced smile back on her lips.

"I apologize for interrupting", Elain turned to walk away but halted quickly as if changing her mind. "Actually", she muttered, "I forgot about a little gift", her voice trembled as she pulled her hand out of the dress pocket, opening her palm to reveal a crystal-clear powder. She blew on it gently, flecks flowing towards you. The same invisible hand clawed at your throat. You tried to gasp for air, but it felt useless. You staggered back, the sound of someone grinding their teeth drilled through your head. A scream echoed through the space as your body hit the floor. Muffled noises rang endlessly. Noises. Screams. Zofie and Axel. The last bits of your rational mind called out. You dug your nails into the floor, turning your body towards the kitchen. Black figures swarmed all around, both of the kids trashing in their grip. You reached your hand towards them, but before you could cry out to them, everything went black.

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Taglist: @naturakaashi @hoemadegrace @just-m-2 @thereadinggremlin @i-am-a-lost-girl16 @hijabi-desi-bookwarm

#azriel imagine #azriel x reader #azriel x you #azriel shadowsinger #azriel spymaster #azriel acotar x reader #acotar x reader #acotar x you #acotar imagine #azriel spymaster x reader

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toournextadventure · 1 year

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everyone but her pt.22

Summary: A hidden part of your past comes back to haunt you. At least you've secured a special place in an unusual family's hearts. You would be paying off the debt for the rest of your life.

Word Count: 8.4k Warnings: swearing, violence, murder (in a flashback) Pairing: Wednesday Addams x Reader (everyone but her Masterlist) Taglist: @extinctspino @basichextechml @cfvgbhndun-new-blog @jinxscatbomb @awolfcsworld @suzhiman @gengen64 @eclipsesmoonshine14 @alexkolax @thenextdawn @cacciatricediartemide @cozwaenot @the-night-owl-blr @natashasapphic @elliesbabygirl @alilbitlesbian @irish-piece-of-trash @rainbow-love4ever @audigay @bakugounuggets @myfturn @rockwyn @bigbadsofty07 @andsoigotabutterfly @smromanoff @notheoneforlove

A/N: I've had a clusterfuck of a week and it's only Wednesday morning, so I'm giving y'all this 20mins early because I love y'all dearly 🫶

The sun was out, shining down and leaving a nice little burn to your skin. It was the perfect day to be running around Niagara Falls with Nicky. People were all around, the birds were out, and you were already far too full from street food. It was perfect.

“What next?” Nicky asked once you had both finished your ice creams; you had strawberry and he had vanilla.

“Hmm,” you hummed aloud, looking carefully over everything.

There were carnival games all around, those were always fun. But they cost money, so maybe not those. Go-karts would be fun, but you weren’t tall enough to drive them and Nicky was a bad driver. You could always go see the birds again, but Nicky had gotten bored. There had to be something you could both do.

Oh!

“The skywheel!” You shouted. No one could see, but your little wings flapped under your shirt.

“Really?” Nicky asked, his hand pressing gently on your back to keep your wings steady. It was comforting. “Why? You can see that view any time.”

“But you can’t,” you said. He looked down at you. “I want you to see what I see!”

“Okay,” he said with a smile, and you turned around to look at the skywheel.

It was so much fun! The birds were out, the sun was shining over the water, and the man at the bottom let you go around three times! Even Nicky had fun, pointing out people, talking about how pretty the sky was. Maybe he could appreciate the view a little better when you tried to fly without permission next time.

“Can we go to the gardens tomorrow?” You asked while you picked at the nachos Nicky had gotten. They had tomatoes on them. Yuck.

“We can,” he said. He wasn’t really paying attention to you, but that was okay because you weren’t paying attention to him either. “If you want to.”

“Are we camping again tonight?” You asked. All the tomato pieces finally rested in the corner of the paper tray and you could eat in peace.

“Yeah,” Nicky said with a sigh. “We’ll head out when you’re done eating.”

“Aren’t you still hungry?” You asked.

“Nah,” he said with a smile. “Finish it.”

“Here,” you said, pushing the tray a little closer to his hand, “I saved the tomatoes for you.”

He hesitated, but after looking at you for a minute he reached forward and grabbed a nacho. They were going cold, but you were just happy to share. You had noticed he hadn’t been eating as much since you had left Nevermore for the trip, and he definitely needed more food.

Besides, it was yummy, why wouldn’t he want some?

After watching the sun set over the falls, it was time to start the trip down to where you had both camped last night. It was a nice little spot down by the nature trails below the falls. You had met some nice people down there when you arrived. They had even loaned you a tent!

“Hold my hand,” Nicky said when the street lights were on and you were taking a shortcut through one of the alleys. “Don’t let go.”

“Why not?” You asked, but reached for his hand anyway. It was warm.

“Just don’t,” he said again. His head was looking all around, but you were very focused on the cotton candy the nice man at the cart had given you.

“A little late to be wandering around, don’t you think?”

Yours and Nicky’s heads turned quickly to see two men walking into the alley behind you. They were tall, even taller than daddy. They had some nice smiles on their faces. Were they taking a shortcut to the trails too?

“We’re just going home,” Nicky said. You opened your mouth to argue - you were going to the campground, not home - but he gave you a look that had you shutting your mouth again.

“All alone?” The other man asked with a tilt of his head. “Your parents let you walk alone at night?”

“We can help,” the first man said. “We know a nice place you can both stay.”

“No thank you,” Nicky said. He pulled your hand as he backed away, making you stumble over your own feet. You nearly dropped your cotton candy. “Come on.”

Nicky kept his eyes on the two men as he continued to pull you with him. You tried to walk backwards just like him, but you stepped on something and stumbled, dropping one of the rocks you had snuck into your pocket. Without questioning it, you turned around and bent down to pick it up, your wings fluttering under your shirt to help you straighten up again.

“Would you look at that,” the second man said, and Nicky froze. “We found ourselves a little Outcast.”

“Nicky is too!” You said.

“Y/N, hush-”

“-No no, let her talk,” the first man said. They were walking closer. “You like to talk, kid?”

“All the time,” you said with a smile. He was smiling too.

“What do you like to talk about?” He asked again. The second man was moving sideways. Where was he going?

“Birds,” you said without hesitation. “Oh, and rocks! Wanna see the ones I found today?”

“I'd love to see them," he continued. He took another step closer. "Why don't you come with us to our house and you can show us all the rocks."

"Ok-"

"-Don't touch us," Nicky interrupted, harshly pulling you behind him.

“Don’t get so defensive,” the second man said. You turned your head and saw him standing behind you both. “We just want to give you kids a place to sleep.”

“I thought you wanted to see my rocks,” you said with a huff. The men got closer.

“How about you just come with us,” the first man said as he reached out and grabbed your arm.

“I said don’t!” Nicky shouted.

He dropped your hand and ran head first, hitting the first man's stomach. They both hit the ground hard. You tried to go help, but a big pair of arms wrapped around your shoulders and pulled you back into a big body.

“You’re gonna stay here with me,” the second man said in your ear. He smelled funny.

But the moment the first man hit Nicky with his knee, you lunged forward. Those big hands pulled you back, but you just ducked down further and he let go. Then it was your turn to hit the first man. You knocked him off of Nicky and felt your knee scrape on the ground.

“You fucking brats,” the first man spit out. He pulled something out of his pocket. Nicky was still on the ground holding his stomach.

The moment you saw the knife in the first man’s hand, you turned around to run. You knew to run away from danger, Nicky had taught you that. But you didn’t get very far before you felt someone pick you up. One hand covered your mouth and you bit down hard.

He screamed and dropped you to the ground again. It hurt your feet. You tried to run again, but the man knocked you over. He turned you around, his body pressing you into the hard ground. You turned your head and saw Nicky fighting with the second man.

It didn’t look like Nicky was winning.

“Just stay still,” the first man said above you. He smelled funny too.

Fight back, a little voice in your head said.

What had you seen Nicky do before? He had gotten into fights before, what did he do? Oh! You threw your head forward, feeling the sharp ache when it connected with the first man’s nose. He grunted and pulled back a little bit, but then you felt something hit the side of your face.

Everything started ringing and the alley started spinning. You could feel him pressing into you again, and your wings started to hurt from the ground. Fight back, the little voice said again, so you did. You threw your arms and legs out everywhere, trying to hit something. But then you felt something sharp press against your neck and you stopped.

“Just kill ‘em already,” the second man called out. He sounded like he had been running for a long time.

“With pleasure,” the first man said above you.

No. You felt the knife press into your neck and the sting that followed. What did you do? What were you supposed to do? Nicky had never taught you how to fight a knife!

Knock it away, the little voice said, and grab it.

You thrashed around again, making sure to hit the hand that was holding the knife. The first man groaned again and you kicked your leg up. You don’t know what you hit, but he screamed and rolled off of you. You scrambled to your hands and knees and looked around.

There was the knife.

Your fingers touched the knife right when the first man got on you again. He tried to grab the knife too, his hand much bigger than yours. As soon as you felt your hand grab it, you turned around and swung it.

“Fuck!”

The first man pulled back really fast, holding his cheek. Something red was coming out from between his fingers. He pulled his hand back and you both looked at the blood, and your eyes went to the big cut on his cheek.

“You little bitch,” he said in a mean voice. “Come here.”

He lunged at you again, but you closed your eyes and held the knife out in front of you. Something hit the knife, pushing you back onto the ground again. You heard a gasp and opened your eyes.

The knife was sticking out of the man’s shoulder. He looked at you in shock before his mouth turned into a frown. When he tried to grab you, you pulled the knife out and stabbed him with it again, this time in his hand.

He reached forward, grabbing your wrist and pulled you back. But instead of pulling, you moved forward and he fell onto his back with you on top of him. Stab him, the little voice said; it sounded mean. Without any hesitation, you grabbed the knife with both hands and brought it down. And you did it again. And again. And again again again again again-

-Something warm splashed against your face. The man was screaming, so you closed your eyes and tried to tune him out. You hummed. But you kept bringing the knife down over and over and over and over and over and-

“-Y/N!”

Smaller hands held your wrists, stopping you from bringing the knife down. You opened your eyes again and saw Nicky looking at you. He had blood on his face and clothes and a few cuts all over. Was he okay?

“Let me have it,” Nicky said softly, and he took the knife from your hands. Your fingers felt stiff like they didn’t want to let go. “Are you okay?”

You didn’t know. What had just happened anyway? You were supposed to be at the campgrounds with Nicky about now, right? Why weren’t you both down there with those nice weird people from the other night?

The man wasn’t moving underneath you.

“We have to go,” Nicky said. He was looking all over. “We need to go.”

He wrapped his arms around you to pull you up to your feet. Your legs were all wobbly. Nicky grabbed your hand and started pulling you. You looked back and saw the two men laying on the ground. They were really still. Were they okay?

“We have to go,” Nicky said again as he pulled you further down the alley before you both started running-

“-Smith!”

Your head shot up from the hole you had been staring into the table. The quick movement gave you a headache and made your bruised side throb; jail had not been kind to you. Nothing could have properly prepared you for the difference between the singular Jericho cell and an actual jail down in D.C.

People here were mean.

“You’ve got another date with the detectives,” Officer Hartman called out once you still hadn’t moved.

“Better get movin’, cupcake,” your new bestest friend Erin said with a smug look that you wanted to beat off her. Again. “Hartman might scuff up that pretty face of yours.”

“What would I do without your all-encompassing wisdom,” you mumbled as you stood up, inhaling lightly as the bruises on your torso pulled.

“You sure you graduated highschool?” She asked. “Cause you’re sure actin’ stupid as hell.”

“Still smarter than you and your white trash girl group,” you said with a tilt of your head.

“Wanna say that to my face, Outcast?” Erin asked, standing abruptly to be toe-to-toe with you. In your peripheral, you could see the rest of her gang starting to circle up.

“I thought I did,” you said. She was smaller than you, but far more aggressive. Surprisingly. “I guess your ass and face look the same, that’s my bad.”

“You little-”

“-Summers!”

Erin’s fist stayed cocked and ready as Officer Hartman casually walked up to the group, one hand resting on the baton on her belt. A shiver went down your spine at the sight of it; you certainly didn’t want to be on the other end of it again any time soon.

“Everything alright over here?” Officer Hartman asked, looking between both you and Erin.

“Just showing my little friend the ropes,” Erin said with a sickeningly sweet smile. Oh, you wanted to beat that off her too.

“You can show her later,” Officer Hartman said before turning to look at you. “Let’s get going, kid.”

“See you later, girly pop,” you said with your own smile before you blew a kiss in Erin’s direction.

You’re going to get your ass beat, the voice at the back of your head said. It was almost nice to hear; it had been a few days and you were getting worried it had disappeared. Wow, you were really attempting to make friends with the voice inside your head. Did that make you crazy?

Yes. Yes, it absolutely did.

“Assume the position,” Officer Hartman ordered once you were out of the common area.

It was a bit odd to be accustomed to the cold bite of the shackles placed around your wrists and ankles. To find a certain comfort in the way they were chained to the belt around your waist. You didn’t know what the explanation was, but it was probably something you needed therapy for.

Therapy is for pussies, the voice said. You didn’t necessarily disagree.

“You gonna behave today?” Officer Hartman asked when she started leading you to the interrogation room.

“Yes ma’am,” you said confidently.

“Good girl,” she said. “Maybe we’re finally beating that arrogance out of you.”

You didn’t say anything in reply; it was better that way. But her words made your side throb again. How bad was it now? It had been two days, surely it was looking nice and ugly at this point. But you hadn’t looked at it yet; you weren’t sure you wanted to know. Not that the detectives would care, nor would anyone else you were going to come into contact with.

“Welcome back, kid,” Detective Waller said when Officer Hartman led you into the interrogation room.

“Afternoon,�� you said quietly as you let Hartman unshackle you and then cuff you to the half-circle thing on the table. You didn’t know what it was called, but it was kind of fun to run the cuff chain back and forth on it-

“-Stop it,” Hartman ordered.

“Sorry,” you mumbled, quickly sitting back in your seat to look at Detectives Waller and Pearce. You didn’t like them. Something about them wasn’t trustworthy.

“How you been?” Waller asked once Hartman left the room. He and Pearce seemed more laid back; you certainly did not.

“Fine,” you said. You refused to look up from where your hands were chained to the table.

A lot of precautions for a single 18 year old, the voice mused.

“I hear you’ve been making friends,” Pearce said, his voice always softer than Waller’s. “We can help you with that problem, you know.”

“You’ve just gotta tell us what happened,” Waller finished. He leaned forward to rest his forearms on the desk. “We have proof, so just tell us how it went down.”

“We don’t need to know about the domestic,” Pearce said. “We have an entire room full of people who saw what happened.”

“Just tell us about Niagara,” Waller finished.

This again. They had been asking for over a week at that point. Why couldn’t they just let it go? You hadn’t even remembered it until they brought it up that first day. Maybe you had done it, sure, but how were you supposed to remember all the details?

“Quit looking at your hands,” Waller said harshly. “Look at me.”

And you did. You looked up at him and instantly felt like you were a kid again. The way they were both looking at you like a child about to get scolded. Like all the times when you would get in trouble with your mom and dad and be sent to your room to think about what you did.

It made you feel small.

“We’ve got your prints on the murder weapon,” Pearce said, attempting to take over the conversation. “Just tell us what happened and we can get you away from Erin.”

No he can’t, the voice said.

You kept your mouth shut.

“You’re making it pretty hard on yourself, kid,” Waller said. He leaned further; he was getting too close. “You know what happens when you refuse to cooperate?”

“You already arrested me,” you said. “So you clearly feel confident enough without a confession.” Waller narrowed his eyes. “Not much else you can threaten me with.”

“We can always have you transferred to a different block,” Pearce said with a tilt of his head.

“I hear Block C has a soft spot for Outcasts,” Waller continued.

Don’t listen to them.

“I’m sure you’d make a lot of new friends over there.” Your hands were feeling sweaty.

“You can be cellmates with Miss Byrne.”

Fight back.

Your ears were ringing.

“I think she’s in for killing an Outcast, isn’t she?”

Don’t let them do this.

Your heart wanted to jump out of your throat.

“Think she did. Five, if I remember right.”

“I’m sure she’s rehabilitated now though.”

“Probably wouldn’t even think twice to-”

“-Good afternoon, everyone.”

All three of you whipped your heads toward the door to see a man walking into the interrogation room. His dark hair was slicked back except for one or two strands hanging over his face, and his light goatee was, honestly, pretty fabulous. He kind of reminded you of Zorro.

What was Zorro doing in your interrogation room?

“Can we help you?” Pearce asked when it was clear Waller was still too busy glaring at the new man.

“Jair Moreno,” the man said with a big, bright smile. “I’m here to talk with my client.” He had a comfortingly deep voice, and a stunning accent. It reminded you of Mr. Addams.

“Client?” Waller asked.

“I don’t have a lawyer,” you said with a frown, finally able to voice something.

“Then it’s a good thing I’m here, no?” He said. His smile turned less performative when he looked at you.

Don’t trust him.

“She never asked for a lawyer,” Waller continued. You almost wanted to laugh at how red his face was getting. He was mad.

Good.

“If you keep him around, we can’t talk to you anymore,” Pearce said with a smile that was a rather pitiful attempt at comfort. “We can’t help you.”

“I…” you looked back and forth between the detectives and your (supposed) lawyer. “I would like to talk with him.”

“It’s your funeral, kid,” Waller said with a huff, pushing his chair back harshly and shoving past Mr. Moreno.

“You have the room,” Pearce said quickly before following suit, though in a much less aggressive way. Both you and Mr. Moreno watched and waited until the door clicked shut again, and you were finally alone.

“My apologies for being so late,” he said with a friendly smile as he sat down in the seat across from you. “It took two days to find you.”

“I appreciate you coming, Mr. Moreno-”

“-Señor,” he corrected. “It’s a simple difference, but it makes the white men uncomfortable in these parts.” He winked as if he was letting you in on a little secret.

“Señor Moreno,” you said; the word didn’t sound as pretty coming from your mouth, but he smiled and nodded at you once anyway. “But I can’t afford you. And I never called you.”

“No you didn’t,” he said quickly, “a close friend informed me of the situation. Said you’re like another child to him.”

You wracked your brain to think of who could have possibly called someone for you. Everyone had seen you getting arrested at the Rave’N, so it wasn’t like you could pick from who had known. And you were close with a lot of parents. Had it been a teacher? No, probably not. It certainly wasn’t Sheriff Galpin; he liked you well enough, but you were also a major thorn in his side.

It’s a trap, the voice said. You physically shook your head to get it out. Now wasn’t the time for paranoia.

“I don’t know who would have called,” you finally said. He was being far too nice, it was starting to be a little creepy. Maybe it was the time for some paranoia.

“No?” You shook your head slowly, and his smile fell into something smaller, much more comforting. “Gomez Addams gave me a call.”

Oh.

“Well then I certainly can’t afford you,” you said immediately. Señor Moreno laughed a deep belly laugh.

“He said you would say that,” he chuckled. “That’s why I’m taking your case pro bono.”

“That’s not a smart business decision,” you mumbled, looking down at your hands and away from his gaze. His eyes reminded you of Wednesday’s; dark, like perfectly stained wood.

You’re going to owe them, the voice said. You’ll never be able to repay them. You’ll be in their debt for the rest of your life.

“But it is my decision to make,” he said. You didn’t look up from your hands but nodded absentmindedly.

You felt small again.

“Let’s go ahead and get down to business,” Señor Moreno said.

You nodded and braced yourself for whatever it was he was going to say. You hoped it wasn’t going to be all bad news. There was only so much more you could take.

“Let’s talk about the domestic first,” he said, and you nodded. “We won’t deny it happened, that would be foolish. But what was your emotional state at that moment?”

He blamed Outcasts; he blamed you. Your fist pounded into flesh and bone again and again and again and ag-

“-I don’t know,” you said with a shrug and another shake of your head to get the image of blood out of your mind.

“Were you aware of what you were doing at the time?” He probed. “Or did you only realise afterwards?”

“I…” you sighed. “I didn’t know until after.”

“And it happened impulsively?”

“Yes.”

“Then we shall go with an extreme emotional disturbance defence,” he said. “I’ve used it in New York, I’m sure I can find a loophole here.”

“So it’s actually going to trial?” You asked, your shoulders sagging. You couldn’t handle a trial.

“Not necessarily,” he said, his eyes meeting yours. It was almost hypnotising. He was actually pretty handsome.

Don’t be a whore.

“Now tell me about this double homicide,” he said, looking down at notes that you hadn’t even realised he had. “They have yet to declare it either a murder or manslaughter because of your age at the time.”

“Uh, I was 9- 10,” you blinked frantically. “10, I was 10. Nicky was 14.” So young? “We walked west for a few days and had a mini vacation.” The knife flashed under the street lamps. “Two guys trapped us in an alley one night and tried to kidnap us.” You blinked hard again. “Or not, I don’t know, they just tried to get us to go with them.”

“What happened next?” Señor Moreno asked. His voice was far too soft and quiet, it was unsettling. He shouldn’t be so gentle.

“Uh, Nicky got into a fight with one of them and I got in a fight with the other,” you mused as you shook your head slowly, your eyes darting back and forth but not seeing anything. “The one I was fighting pulled a knife on me, so I knocked it out of his hand and…”

The knife came down again and again and again again again again again-

“And you fought back,” Señor Moreno finished for you.

You inhaled sharply, not realising you had been holding your breath. The room suddenly felt too cold and too enclosed. Your wings itched under the makeshift harness the jail had forced you to wear. You wanted to get out. It was too much, you wanted to leave.

“A double homicide sure, but sounds like self-defence to me,” he said.

“Technically I only killed one,” you mused, blinking a few times to clear the haze so you could look back up at Señor Moreno.

“I suppose that’s true,” he said with a light laugh.

“Guess Nicky was right though,” you said to yourself. “I’ll always remember Niagara.”

“What did you say?” Señor Moreno’s head shot up from his notes. You frowned at him. “Where did you go?”

“Niagara Falls?” You said hesitantly.

“Which side?” He asked. He was leaning over the table to get close to you, his hands reaching out to grab your own. You let out a sigh; you had missed the touch of soft hands.

“Uhh,” you shook your head and your mouth flopped open and closed a few times. “The left side?”

“No no, which country,” he corrected quickly. “Were you on the American side, or the Canada side?”

“I don’t-”

“-What were the falls shaped like?” He asked. He was talking far too quickly, it was making your head spin.

“I…” your eyes swung left and right, over and over as you tried to remember.

“See that?” Nicky asked, pointing to the falls. You could see them perfectly from your spot on his shoulders. “What does it look like to you?”

“A waterfall,” you said with a giggle. He lightly pinched your thigh.

“What else?” He asked with his own little chuckle.

“Umm.” You tilted your head so you could think better. “It looks like a U.”

“It’s a horseshoe,” he said. “Pretty cool, right?”

“A horseshoe,” you said with a slow, dazed nod of your head. “It looked like a horseshoe.”

Señor Moreno let go of your hands - you instantly missed the warmth - and leaned back in his chair. His hands went behind his head and he smiled. He looked at you, looked into your very soul, and smiled. You frowned. What was he smiling about?

“You’re not going to trial,” he said with a chuckle.

“How do you know?” You asked with a tilt of your head. Your palms were getting itchy. And sweaty.

“You’ll find out tomorrow,” he said. “We have a meeting with your parents and their lawyer.”

“I can’t see them,” you said quickly, eyes going wide. “I can’t.”

“They can’t touch you,” he replied. “If they’re smart, they won’t even talk to you.”

It didn't comfort you, not really. What would it matter if they couldn’t talk to you? They would still be there; you would have to face the people who were supposed to care for you. Love you. Who should have been on your side from the very beginning, not getting you arrested.

“You’ll come back for me tomorrow?” You asked.

“Right after we post your bail,” he said with the most genuine look you had seen since arriving at jail.

“You promise?” You asked again.

He looked at you for a moment with a tilted head and slightly furrowed brows. What was he thinking? He’s not coming back for you, the voice said. But he reached out and placed gentle hands over yours and gave them a light squeeze.

“I promise on my abuela’s grave,” he said softly. Oh so softly.

It made you feel small. But in a good way.

Just the knowledge that you were going to get out was enough to make the rest of the day go by faster. You didn’t even care that Erin and her girl gang were glaring daggers at you the whole day. The only thing on your mind was getting to get out of this fucking jail and get back to the real world again.

You ignored the fact that the real world also sucked.

And that you were not prepared to deal with the real world yet.

Because you’re a coward, the voice in your head said.

You still slept like a baby.

The next morning you took your time heading to the showers; you had picked up on the fact that everyone either showered immediately, or not at all. If you waited just a little longer, the odds of you being alone were exponentially high. It worked out perfectly, and since you weren’t too worried about being late to anything anymore, you took your time.

Even though it was a bit cold by that time, it felt nice as it cascaded over your face. With your eyes closed, you could just focus on the sound of the water. The goal wasn’t necessarily to wash off anymore, just try to keep your heart and mind in check. You were almost there. Just a little longer.

The water shut off only a moment later, and you let out a frustrated sigh. Of course you hadn’t been keeping track of the time. But it was okay, you would be out soon and could get a hot shower later if you really wanted it. Now all you need to do was dry off and-

-something hard hit the back of your knees and you immediately fell to the ground. The vibration travelled up your palms and the crack of your knees on the tile resonated through your bones and, if nothing else, the bruises that would paint themselves on your skin would be stunning. Wednesday would appreciate the grotesque colours, that was for sure.

You pushed yourself up and looked down at your palms to see the already reddened, sensitive skin on the heels. It ached, and both of your forearms throbbed lightly with each heartbeat. That was going to be a pain in the ass to-

-something rough pulled tight against your neck and yanked you back off your knees. Your hands instantly lifted to pull against it, trying to get your fingers underneath to ease the pressure on your throat. You could feel yourself being pulled backwards across the slick floor until you came to a stop.

Pull it away, the voice ordered. You couldn’t breathe.

Erin stepped in front of you.

“Hey, girly pop,” she said with a grin as she crouched down to be at eye level with you. “Heard you’re leaving today.”

The thing around your throat pulled tighter; it made you choke.

“We couldn’t let you leave without a goodbye present,” one of the women behind you practically taunted.

“Maybe afterwards you’ll learn not to run that big mouth of yours.” Erin’s grin was malicious at best, downright demonic at worst.

They were smart. You knew they were. The moment they pulled whatever was choking you tighter and your hands tried to pull it down, Erin swung. A solid punch that left your ears ringing and the world spinning. The throb in your eye was instant. Only when you were truly dazed did they really get started.

They were smart.

The bruises on your side had already ached before this. Now they genuinely hurt. Each new blow and kick stole what little air you had left in your lungs, and you didn’t know what to do. Did you keep trying not to suffocate? Or did you try to fight back? You couldn’t do both, you were outnumbered.

Fight back, the voice said. But how could you do that when you felt something crack in your side and you couldn’t fucking breath-

“-What’s going on in here?”

It was as if a switch flipped in the room. They instantly released you, and you gasped for air like your life depended on it. You sputtered and coughed, falling forward onto your hands and knees again except this time you didn’t pay attention to the pain in the heel of your palm.

No, this time you were too busy trying not to choke on your own blood.

“Five to one doesn’t seem too fair.” Miss Ethel’s voice echoed off the tiled walls; it sounded fuzzy through the ringing in your ears.

Something red was going down the shower drain.

“We’re just wishing our little friend good luck in the big outside world,” Erin said quickly. At least that’s what you thought she said, you couldn’t actually tell.

“Get going,” Miss Ethel said. You squeezed your eyes shut when the volume of her voice sent a migraine shooting down every nerve in your body. “Now.”

And just like that, they left. Left you on the floor of the showers with a foggy brain and the taste of blood on your tongue. Stand up. No. No, you didn't want to stand up. You wanted to curl up on the cold ground and lay in a pool of your own blood until the foggiest eased and your throat was no longer on fire.

"Come on, baby, get up," Miss Ethel said in a far softer voice that had reminded you of Abuelita.

Her old worn hands held you by the shoulders and steadied you, not rushing you but there as a crutch. As you moved and stretched and stood up, she was there to support you the whole time. Only when you were back up to your feet did she look up at you with a frown.

"So you’re only good for starting fights, not finishing them?” She asked, looking you up and down to assess the damage.

She needs to shut up.

“Just caught off guard,” you mumbled. Your mouth filled again and you spit near the drain; it was a mesmerising dark red. “I can finish fights.”

“Not today though, I see,” she continued. “Decided to be a gentleman, did you?”

“I had it,” you huffed. Something in her eyes reminded you of someone. Someone who cared. “I didn’t need your help.”

“I can see that,” she said with a solemn nod. “You certainly look like someone who had it covered.”

You gonna let her talk to you like that?

“Listen, baby,” Miss Ethel said, her voice dropping a tone and sounding more like a friend. Like someone who cared. “Stop pushing people away. Soon they’ll quit trying.”

“They already did,” you mumbled, your head falling. Your eyes squeezed shut again as a hammer started pounding away at the inside of your skull.

“Then get them back,” she said. You didn’t open your eyes but could feel her hand on your still-naked shoulder. “All that rage and loneliness has to come out sometime. Don’t put your friends on the receiving end and keep your head up. Sad birds still sing.”

“You sound poetic,” you said, finally opening your eyes to meet hers. “Not like someone who murdered her husbands.”

“Read it in a book somewhere,” she said with her charming smile that was missing a few teeth. “Even black widows have some wisdom buried deep down.”

You chuckled lightly before inhaling sharply. Something was definitely broken, probably a rib. It was sticking into your lungs and it just hurt. Every breath, every movement, it hurt. But you took a slow, deep breath and stood up straight again.

No giving up.

“Let’s get you dressed and ready to be picked up,” Miss Ethel said. “Before anyone comes looking for you.”

Miss Ethel helped clean the bit of blood off of you and tidied you up the best she could with what she had. You picked up the towel that had been wrapped around your neck only moments before. It was rough and white. The scratchiness in your throat came back.

You looked brand new by the time you put your suit back on and was escorted out of the jail. It was weird to be wearing the suit, but you supposed it was all you had. Certainly better than nothing, at least. If it wasn’t for the newly blackened eye and broken nose and bruised jaw and… well, anyway, you would have looked ready for the Rave’N.

In theory.

“Dios mío,” Señor Moreno said when he met you outside the jail, running up to you and checking over your face.

“I’m fine,” you said quickly. “I just wanna go.”

“Of course,” he said with a simple nod before withdrawing his hands. “Then let’s get going.”

He led you to the front where a car was waiting, and you hesitated. These things weren’t just dangerous anymore; now they had rightfully killed Nicky. Sure, you had been in the police van on the way down, but this was… it was different. It was smaller and more dangerous.

It was scarier.

Just get in, the voice goaded you. And against everything you had, your feet carried you until you got into the passenger seat.

You couldn’t recall the ride to wherever you were meeting everyone. Nothing about it registered in your head, almost like a blackout. The only thing you became aware of was sitting down in the chair in that big empty room and waiting for everyone else to show up.

That was pretty scary.

“Good morning, Y/N,” someone said in an accented voice, and you and Señor Moreno turned around to greet everyone.

You remembered the man. Vaguely, of course. He was a friend of your dad’s, someone he had gone to law school with. Stokes; Luke Stokes. He was older now, had more grey in his hair, a few more wrinkles. If you remembered right, he had favoured you over Nicky.

But you averted your eyes the moment you saw your parents enter the room.

“You’ve certainly grown into a stunning young adult,” Mr. Stokes said with a polite smile.

“Thank you,” you said in a raspy voice; it itched your throat again. Everyone quickly sat down and you let your eyes fall to the table.

“Let’s get started, shall we?” Mr. Stokes asked once everyone was settled. “You mentioned you were open to a plea deal?”

“Of course,” Señor Moreno said with his own smile. “A trial would be tedious for everyone, no?”

“I’m glad we agree,” Mr. Stokes said as he started shuffling some papers. It was an irritating sound; he wasn’t even looking for anything in particular, you could tell. “Let’s make this simple. Miss Smith pleads guilty and only serves 7 years.”

“I’ll make it simpler,” Señor Moreno retorted, leaning back in his seat. You felt his foot kick yours slightly. “She pleads guilty, pays her fine, and goes to anger management.”

“Absolutely not,” your dad cut in loudly. You flinched and reached your hand out on instinct; Señor Moreno grabbed it quickly under the table. “Assault and murder?”

“Marcus-”

“-No!” His voice was far too loud, only being drowned out by the racing pulse in your ears. “It’s insulting.”

“We have witnesses for the domestic and prints for the murder,” Mr. Stokes said. Your eyes were closed but you guessed he was trying to calm your dad back down. “Why would we let her off without a sentence?”

The domestic was a simple emotional disturbance,” Señor Moreno said nonchalantly. “Her brother had just died tragically, any juror would understand.”

“And the murder?”

“Just so happened to occur on Canadian soil.” He sounded cocky.

Watch their reactions, the voice said. Again, without any intention to do so, your eyes slowly opened and you looked up across the table.

Your dad was furious; his skin was darkened and there was a fire in his eyes. A dangerous fire. He was looking directly at you like he wanted to lunge across the table and strangle you where you sat. Maybe he did. Maybe he would.

I’d like to see him try, the voice growled. And for the first time in a while, you agreed.

“The United States would never extradite one of their own,” Señor Moreno continued, “let alone a small Outcast child who was defending herself from kidnappers.”

“Any jury would still convict,” Mr. Stokes said. “It’s a good deal, Moreno. Just accept it and let’s all go home.”

The room fell silent. A silence so thick you could choke on it. Everyone was looking at everyone else, watching, waiting to see who would speak first. You didn’t want to take the deal. Seven years in prison? Not even a jail, a prison? You could hold your own, but you would rather die than be subjected to that. There already was very little to live for. It would be the final straw.

Señor Moreno squeezed your hand before leaning forward on the table.

“We will have to reject this deal,” he said with a sigh. “A trial will be tedious, but well worth it.” He looked directly at your dad and you noticed the slightest smirk on his face. “I suppose the knowledge that my client is an Outcast will come to light during the trial.”

Your parents’ faces fell instantly. A laugh tried to bubble up from your throat, and you quickly coughed and cleared your throat to hide it. You bit your bottom lip hard as you looked back up to meet their eyes. For the first time, you saw something that almost made the pain worth it.

They were scared.

“I hope your clients are ready for-”

“-Hold on,” your dad interrupted. “There’s no need for that.”

“So you will accept our terms then?” Señor Moreno asked with a tilt of his head. You turned your head to hide your smile.

Gotcha.

He squeezed your hand again as your parents leaned closer to talk to Mr. Stokes. With another turn of your head, you looked at him. He had a cocky smile on his face that was reserved only for you. And truthfully, you trusted him.

“We’ll agree to your terms,” Mr. Stokes sighed, “but the battery remains on her record.”

Shit.

Señor Moreno looked at you again, waiting patiently for an answer. If a violent crime went on your record, you would never be able to move on. You would have to disclose it to jobs, everyone could look it up and find out. It would ruin your life.

But at least it was a life…

You nodded once.

“We accept,” Señor Moreno said quickly, holding his hand out for Mr. Stokes to shake it.

You hoped you hadn’t just handed your life over to something you couldn’t fix.

—---

The next few days were total chaos. Señor Moreno had allowed you to stay in his guest room before the next day of court. It was a kind gesture, truly it was, but the bed was too soft and the house was too quiet. There was no way to get any sort of sleep so you just stayed in bed, staring at the ceiling and letting your thoughts consume you.

Then he took you to the doctor, letting them check you over. Two broken ribs, one fractured, a broken nose, and some deep bruising. Nothing too horrifying, you had dealt with worse. The horrifying part came when it was time to pay and Señor Moreno didn’t even let you see it. He just paid for it all himself.

“Any child of Gomez’s is a child of mine,” he said with a charming smile.

It made you feel small. And a little warm inside.

Don’t get soft, the voice said, it’ll ruin you.

The day of court was far simpler than you had thought it would be. At least it was now that you had Señor Moreno on your side. The judge accepted the plea and let you off with a simple “you’re young, don’t throw your life away.” You just mumbled a “yes sir” and left with Señor Moreno guiding you out of the courthouse.

“What now?” You asked as you pulled on the tie around your neck. It was a shame the only nice outfit you had was your suit to the Rave’N; it had quickly turned uncomfortable.

“Now you go home,” he said with a smile, still guiding you down the steps of the courthouse. Thanks to your parents’ aversion to Outcasts, there had been little to no publicity. “You’ll start your anger management once the new year starts.”

“And the fine?” You asked.

It had been weighing on your mind since the judge had issued it; $15,000. There was no way in hell you would ever be able to pay that off. A few dozen feet away, your parents descended the courthouse steps, eyeing you for a moment before they looked elsewhere. Your hand quickly travelled to the crystal pendent the Addamses had given you; you still kept it around your neck at all times.

“I can’t afford it.”

“It’s already taken care of.”

You stopped fidgeting with the crystal and nearly tripped over the last stair. Señor Moreno held his hand out to your arm to steady you before you could look up. Mr. and Mrs. Addams were standing near their car with Lurch still inside. Mrs. Addams had a soft smile while Mr. Addams immediately went to clap Señor Moreno on the back.

You didn’t bother trying to keep up as they started talking in Spanish. Abuelita really needed to teach you.

“How are you feeling, little bird?” Mrs. Addams asked softly as her hand reached out to brush against your cheek. You instantly leaned into the gentle touch.

Stop being vulnerable.

“I’m fine,” you said even though you both clearly knew it was a lie.

“Thank you again, Jair,” Mrs. Addams said, and you turned just enough to see Mr. Addams and Señor Moreno walking closer. She still pulled you closer until her arm was around your waist.

She was being far too soft with you, it was making you nervous. But it also left you feeling cared for, maybe even loved. Fuck, when had you truly last felt loved? Mama Weems aside simply because she still had to work all the time, of course. Shit. Now you were just getting sad.

It’s pathetic.

“Of course, Tish,” Señor Moreno said with a smile. “Let me know if anything else comes up.”

“We will,” Mr. Addams said.

Everyone bid their goodbyes to Señor Moreno and watched as he walked away, leaving you with the Addamses. It made you uncomfortable in ways you couldn’t properly express. How much of their money had you wasted on this whole situation? How much time had you stolen from them?

“Are you ready to go home, little bird?” Mr. Addams asked. He still looked to be in good spirits.

You opened your mouth to answer but instantly felt that lump in your throat again. It was not going to cause you to cry, not now. You closed your mouth and nodded once instead, and thankfully they took that as an acceptable answer. Mrs. Addams opened the car door for you to let you in and soon the drive had started.

You couldn’t remember anything that happened on the trip, or even the ride to the Addams house itself. That alone was enough to get your heart racing once again, but you chalked it down to the stress and anxiety of the past few weeks. More than a few weeks. Fuck, how long had it been since the harvest festival? How many weeks had you missed out on?

Fuck.

You had barely gotten out of the car when you felt something crash into you, knocking you back. Your feet steadied the rest of you, but the ache in your body stretched down every nerve it could find. Small, slender arms were wrapped around your neck and, at the familiar scent of her perfume, your own arms wrapped around her waist as your eyes fell shut.

“Never again, cara mia,” Wednesday mumbled into the side of your neck. “Please.”

Oh, how could you possibly say no to that? When you could hear the rare emotion in her voice and feel something wet drop onto your skin? When her nails were digging into your suit and holding you as if you would disappear in an instant? When you could feel her pulse under your fingertips and even just the feel of her body against yours made you feel home?

She’s going to become a distraction, the voice warned. But a distraction to what? And in the end, did you even truly care? Did you care when she felt like home and comfort and warmth all at once? No. No, you didn’t care. You would let her be a distraction to the whole world if that’s what it took to keep her in your arms.

You didn’t bother with an answer, just held her tighter and inhaled deeply once again. The stress of everything started to melt away, even if only for a moment, and you just held Wednesday as if your life depended on it. Maybe it did. Maybe something inside you would break, leaving not even your sanity intact if you let go.

You wouldn’t let her go again.

You would pile corpses in front of her door before the world took her from you again.

#wednesday addams x reader #wednesday x reader #wednesday imagine #wednesday addams imagine #everyone but her au

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meowmeowmeowmeow4x · 23 days

Text

Dark Blue Moon and the Suffering Sun Part 3

Danny would guess they'd gone about 20 miles by the time he'd stopped. They were well within Siren Territory by then, not that that was any comfort, considering the source of most of the trouble in the last six months, but distance was distance. Thankfully, none of his usual enemies bothered to rear their heads, likely licking their wounds from their last encounters.

In a tiny cave blocked off by kelp and coral, Danny leaned back against a wall and caught his breath. Damian had been silent for most of the swim, which was a small blessing. It let Danny think; think about what happens next. The tiny siren loosened himself from Danny's arms, and did a few cursory flaps of his fins.

"Where have you been taking me?" Damian mumbled.

"Around. Can't exactly double back to Amity right now." He hoped Bruce Wayne was an accepting man. He'd adopted kids from all manner of backrounds, but that didn''t help the same nagging uncertainty that plagued him whenever he thought about his own parents. If he'd just doomed Damian to a life without his father, he didn't know if he could live with himself.

Damian floated to the other side of the cave, his eyes on Danny the whole time, arms crossed in a scowling expression.

"And then?"

"I don't know. I give you back to your dad? I wasn't exactly planning out every step earlier."

"Then what were you thinking?" Damian's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Do you suggest I return to the public, to school looking like this? I can hardly breathe over water, let alone walk."

"I don't know! I just..." Danny poked his finger webbing. "I've been doing this for six months. And the whole time, even if it was hard and painful, I never lost someone. No one ever, well." Danny swallowed thickly.

Damian huffed. "You are a poor excuse of a hero."

"I failed you, there's no denying it. I was too late, and I let you drown. I'm sorry. There was no other way, I swear."

Danny looked up to Damian again, but the smaller boy looked away, his expression unreadable. "Take me back."

Yeah, that wasp probably the best he could do for Damian now. Bruce Wayne was probably having the mother of all freakouts, and if Damian never wanted to see Danny again, then that was fine. He was sure the world's richest man would be able to accommodate Damian's needs just fine. Rich people were weird like that.

It took some begrudging glares, but Damian at least allowed Danny to take his hand and use his much better swimming skills, but Damian didn't look very happy about it. Then again, today was probably the worst day in the kid's life.

They were approaching the island at rapid pace, its lustrous palm trees swaying in the distance, a promise of stability, and safety at last.

Motors hummed in the water. Danny's blood froze. Immediately he submerged and ducked near the sea floor.

"What is this delay for? Let me see." Damian pushed against Danny's hand, but the older boy kept firm.

"Patrol boats. Dozens of them. And they're all on high alert. And they've got Fenton tech. Shit."

"Can't you swim past them?"

Danny sputtered. What was this kid thinking? He wasn't some god of the sea! "I can't fight thirty boats by myself! They're gonna skewer us both!"

"What about your camouflage?"

"That would've worked a couple months ago, but these guys have got Fenton Sonars."

Damian did a double take. "The Fentons? You mean the town crackpots?"

Ouch, his parents were a little obsessed, but they definitely weren't crazy. Not anymore. "The town siren hunters. And yeah maybe Jack's not great at hunting, but their inventions work. I've got a scar or two to prove it."

"My father is on that island." Damian growled. "You have to do something."

"But it's not your dad on those boats, is it?" Danny furrowed his brow. "Those guys don't see you as human, or even sentient. They think you're another monster to be studied."

"No thanks to you." Damian challenged.

Danny growled back. "I was saving you! And now you wanna be un-saved?"

They glared into each other's eyes. Danny should really feel bad about squaring up to this literal child, but man was he difficult not to get annoyed at. Deep breaths, Danny, deep breaths. This was going to be more difficult than he imagined.

Damian glared at Phantom, the supposed siren superhero of Amity Park. He wanted to scream, to yell and to cut something open, preferably Phantom, if he weren't his only ticket home, and if only he had his weapons on him.

Such a loss of composure would be beneath him, so he remained stubbornly defiant.

As much as he wished for it not to be the case, Phantom was in all likelihood correct. This horrid, horrid body was new to him. Dozens, no, hundreds of foreign sensations flared from every part of his person, each impulse sending his body wobbling in new, unexpected directions. He would never get through the blockade on his own, which killed half of his initial plans. These blasted sonars killed the other half.

Damian grit his teeth. "Fine." He said, despite the embarrassment welling up at having to admit defeat. "But this conversation is not over."

"I bet." Phantom said, the infuriating cur.

By Damian's estimates, it should have been around midnight when Phantom stopped. They took refuge underneath a larger cave, filled with sparse furniture, a rug and some tables, with dark green curtains over the entrance. Small glowing jellyfish provided faint light. It seemed like the hopelessly domestic scene Jonathan would enjoy.

Damian slithered (He didn't crawl or shuffle. He was too dignified) into the corner of the cave, where he assumed a defensive position and poured all his seething hatred into glaring at Phantom.

"Welcome to Casa de Phantom! Or at least one of them. I've got a couple hideouts here and there. I'd say 'make yourself at home,' but I guess you beat me to the punch." Phantom said with a laugh. How dare he!

Damian hissed. "Tt. I am taking advantage of the opportunity for respite while taking necessary precaution against a rogue element."

"A rogue element? I don't know if you're serious or just pulling my tailfin."

"Do not test me, Phantom."

"Right. Look, I'm gonna go get us some food, so just stay put or something or other. I won't be long and then we can talk about where we go next. Oh, and don't touch anything!"

Damian growled at him again for good measure. Phantom exited the cave in short order, leaving Damian with ample opportunity for investigation. He wouldn't be a Robin if he didn't seize this opportunity.

Damian uncoiled himself and pulled his body along the soft sand. The grains tickled and pricked at his scales. The tables held a number of different gadgets and tools. Human clothes like t-shirts, a few vests and belts were scattered around. The bench held various strange devices, like a glowing blue lipstick, and a thermos of all things. Damian knocked on the thermos, the clanging sound confirming it was hollow. The most incriminating detail of all, however, was the distinctive F logo branded onto the side of each and every device.

How does a siren with no legs acquire so many inventions from siren hunters? He supposes they really are better siren hunting inventors than proper fighters. It was a miracle Jack Fenton hadn't drowned by now, considering how he conducted himself in a fight.

The thermos was lightweight, its metal settling gently against his webbed hands. Videos of Phantom's exploits have been scarce, and grainy, showing very few useable details. Various buttons and lights adorned the thermos, showing it was no ordinary soup holder.

Damian popped the cap off. The thermos' interior contained a circular mechanism of some kind. "What in the world?" Surely this could not be a weapon. The cylindrical design and lack of handholds would have made it too unwieldy. The kickback from any shot would throw off the wielder's aim every time. As Damian peered and tried to get a closer look, his finger slipped on one of the buttons. Blast.

The thermos whined. Its interior glowed blindingly bright. Before Damian could react, a blue beam engulfed his body. Damian felt his body warp and compress into a tiny space, before his vision went dark.

Damian awoke, vision blurry and head pounding. Phantom's smug face floated above him.

"And that's why I told you not to touch anything."

Damian shook off the grogginess and sat up, almost colliding with Phantom's face. "What manner of trap was that? Were you attempting to disfigure me once again for your sick pleasure?! En garde!"

Damian was no good swimmer in this form, but it was easy to launch himself off the floor and into Phantom. Phantom, for his part, didn't sit idly like the last time. He raised his arm and blocked off Damian's access to his neck, a shame, but that did not stop Damian sinking his teeth into Phantom's flesh.

That is, if he could actually penetrate his skin.

Damian blinked in shock. Sirens were supposed to have razor sharp teeth. He'd seen those fangs in Phantom's own mouth. He should be drawing blood right now, but as he was he was barely denting Phantom's scales.

Phantom laughed, as if it just tickled. "Dude, I literally let you out of the thermos. It's not a 'trAP to diSFiguRe yOu fOR mY sIcK PleaSuRe,' it's just a containment device for sirens. Also can you stop that please, it tickles."

Damian flung himself off of Phantom's arm, retreating back into his corner. "How have I not drawn blood?! This is madness!" Damian sucked in breaths through his gills, an endlessly foreign and vulnerating sensation. "The only useful thing about this body was supposed to be its natural offensive capabilities, yet it is unable to achieve even that!"

"Siren kids just have blunter claws and teeth. Youngblood's the same."

"Do not call me a child!"

"Your claws will grow in over time, it's just the nature of things."

"You say that as if you will not return me to my true human form."

Phantom shifted uncomfortably.

Damian pressed. "Well?"

"Yeah about that..."

"Do not tell me you have no way to reverse it!"

Phantom's look of guilt sealed it. Damian's heart sank. Goodbye Robin, goodbye previous life. All his hard work and sacrifice for naught. Phantom had saved him from death by drowning, but suddenly Damian felt as if he were better off dead anyway.

Tears built up. What was happening to him? He hadn't cried since he was five years old, a show of weakness that grandfather had beaten out of him. Then again, he was really one year old back then, artificially grown to a competent age.

"H-hey, d-don't cry or anything, I was just-"

"I am not crying!" Damian shouted. He turned away from Phantom and stuffed his face into his tail, praying somehow the tears would go away on their own. He was Damian Wayne, son of Batman and daughter of Talia Al Ghul, there was no such thing as crying for him, none at all. There had been nothing, absolutely nothing he had been unable to overcome. He was going to overcome this, no matter what. These things he knew.

Why had this feeling not abated?

There had to be a solution, there just had to be. There had to be some kind of surgery that could split his tail into legs again. No that was absurd, what kind of quack surgeon can completely alter someone's species? Perhaps magic instead? Normally he hated the involvement of magic, but if it was the only way. Perhaps Zatara could assist, or he could pawn something off to that Constantine. But nothing ever good happened from associating with that man. Or maybe Aquaman would have a solution, someone well versed in oceanic magic, except Aquaman's claim of being king of the ocean was doubtful considering the siren attacks that lead him and Father to this forsaken resort town in the first place. What if... What if....

Damian felt lightheaded.

A weight pressed on Damian's body. Warm scales against his own, their individual texture segmented, but smooth, like a kind of weighted blanket. A hand laid on his shoulder. Damian remembered where he was, remembered to perform the mental exercises Father had taught him.

Slowly, his breathing evened out. His fins steadied into a gentle lull. Damian's eyelids felt heavy. His chest vibrated in a strange rhythm he couldn't place...

Suddenly the weight disappeared, and Damian blinked himself awake. Phantom retreated a sociable distance away, looking sheepish.

"Sorry, about touching you without your consent, I just saw you were hyperventilating, and I remembered a few classes about this stuff, and I watched that film too, Puss in Boots 2, it was great and-"

"Do sirens watch human media often?" Damian said. He gripped his tail, something solid to keep him anchored.

Phantom seemed to freeze for a moment. "Uhm well, maybe they do! just because we're sirens doesn't mean we're uncultured!"

Damian would have loved to pick this information apart, scan it for weaknesses until he knew this person in and out, but at this moment, he simply sat and let it settle underneath the shame of expressing similar, or even more weakness.

"Speak of this to anyone, and I will have your head."

"Yeah that would be a dick move, so if I ever did that, feel free to take it."

#dpxdc #danny phantom #danny fenton #damian wayne #merman #merboy #angst #dcxdp #mermaid au #mermaid transformation #transformation #transformation angst #damian does a little biting #he smol tho #teef too blunt #panick attack???#i hope i dont fuck this up xD

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mentallyshattered · 6 months

Text

This is part 7 of the "What if Yuu didn't want to go back?" Series!

(I, the author of this work, do not consent to this work being crossposted/translated without my knowledge or used to train an AI, ever.)

Masterlist

The morning brings Rook right to my door, ready to intercept me and Grim on our way to the Backstage Room.

"So, what's this about? It had better be good if you're delaying my brush time for it."

"Alas, Monseur Chat, this is not the place to tell."

"Did Vil send you?"

"Ahh, Monseur Mystery, you are so clever!"

Hmm. Well, as long as I'm not late to class, I suppose. When we finally reach the massive door that leads to Vil's room, Rook knocks twice upon it, and it opens. The other side bears a familiar face.

"Yuu, in here. Now." Vil speaks quickly. Rook pushes us inside the room and closes the door behind us. Vil looks mad. "Why haven't you been brushing your hair?"

I blank. Mouth open, no words blank. Vil shakes his head.

"Come here." He motions to me with his hand. I sit in the chair in front of him, and he starts brushing through my hair. It hurts a little, but I bear through it- kind of my own fault, isn't it?

After a few moments, I gather my courage. "Is this what you brought me here for?"

Vil continues running the brush through my hair. When I look in the mirror, his face betrays no emotion. His voice- as usual- is calm and strong.

"No, I brought you here regarding something else. However, as your housewarden, I cannot let this kind of negligence continue. You do have a human brush, do you not?"

"Yeah... myaah, I've seen it. Not in use, though..."

Rook chuckles. "Still tired, Monseur Chat?" Grim just nods and goes back to purring.

"What did you call us here for, Vil?" Instead of speaking, he hands me another box. It's smaller than the first one, and has a sort of flap on one side. I stare at it, confused, until Rook takes it, removes the lid from the other box, and slots the smaller one neatly onto the side.

"The smaller box contains a toothbrush and toothpaste for Grim. Don't use them now, but he needs to brush his teeth in the evening, preferably with minimal help."

"Minimal help? What, do I levitate the brush?"

Vil sighs. "No, the handle is made specifically to be comfortably and effectively held by a cat. The toothpaste is what I figure you will need the most help with."

I smile. Vil turns my head to the left and starts brushing the side of my hair. "Secondly: it has occurred to me that you, as someone from another world, lack finances, and the only legal documents you have are the ones related to your presence and attendance at Night Raven College."

I swallow. That's been eating at my mind for a while now, but I've been ignoring it. Live in the present, right? "That's correct."

Vil turns my head to the right and starts brushing the other side of my hair. Rook and Grim glance at my face, suddenly concerned, but Vil remains consistent in his demeanor: calm and strong.

"I have paid for your uniforms and school supplies. Do not tell, but do not be afraid to ask me if you need something."

I smile. There's a sickness settling into the pits on my stomach, a fear of what will come after I graduate. I have no documentation- where will I go?

"Monseur Mystery, are you ill?"

"Not really... I hope."

Vil turns the chair I'm on until I'm facing him directly. For once, I see emotion on his face: sympathy and concern. That sympathy leaks into his words as he speaks.

"Are you homesick? I could certainly try sending you ba-"

"No. No. No. Please, please don't." My voice, my words, my feelings spills out of me before I can stop them. "I don't want to go back to where I was, I want to fit in here- and I do. I have friends, I have a dorm, the teachers like me- do you realize how new all of this is? I'm happy. I feel safe. All I need is magic, and... even without it, this place- this world- is more of a home to me than Earth ever was. I've been here three days, and I never want to leave. Ever since I saw Grim, and wound up in Pomefiore, and realized people here like me, I wanted to stay. And that hasn't changed."

Silence. Vil is staring. Rook is staring. Grim is staring, and giving me a funny look.

"Magnificent! Magnifiqué! Spoken straight from the heart- glorious!"

Vil and Grim are still staring, but at Rook. Vil sighs and turns to me, care in his eyes. "I'm glad you're happy here. Don't be afraid to ask me if you need something, okay? And, speaking of..."

Vil hands me a phone. "That's yours. Let me know if you need help setting it up."

I smile. Vil runs the brush through my hair a few more times and motions for me to stand. "You still do need to do your skincare routine and eat breakfast. You have plenty of time. Go put the phone away, and you can set it up tonight."

I smile. So many of my worries and concerns were resolved today, and It's not even first period! Maybe the low blood sugar is making me more emotional. Who knows? At the very least, I can relax, just a little more than I could before.

"Thanks, Mom."

#disney twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland #disney twst #twst vil #twst grim #m!yuu #twst rook #twst yuu #what if yuu didn't want to go back

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briefcasejuice · 1 year

Text

𝐢𝐢. daredevil headcanons!

a giant list of comic, live action, etc. daredevil headcanons i've been growing in a twitter thread since late august. > part 𝐢. | masterlist

COMIC/LIVE ACTION AMBIGUOUS

matt's the kind of person that speaks through their yawns; like he’d be mid-sentence and yawn, he doesn't wait for it to be over till he starts talking again.

matt has auditory hallucinations of his dad's voice when he's sleep deprived and his dad's is the only face he dreams about.

matt texts with full punctuation proper caps and everything, foggy texts with full punctuation but uses a lot of shortenings and emojis, karen doesn't have auto capitalization on but uses full punctuations and cute emojis; she’s a white heart user.

matt soothes a hand over his beard (or chin if he’s going clean shaven) when he's thinking (the way charlie cox does in interviews).

foggy played the acoustic guitar in college (to get girls of course).

foggy has one those dad phone cases with the flap that goes over the screen. matt would've gotten one but it's annoying to handle as a blind person.

matt talks in his sleep; sometimes it's cases he's working on, sometimes it's random phrases like, “gotta keep you safe”, “he's behind there” and other times it's just stupid stuff related to whatever dream he’s having.

every time matt's ‘dead’ or missing, foggy quotes thurgood marshall to himself whenever he misses him, is in a situation where he would usually ask matt for advice or just needs a little support.

matt picks up a lot of foggy's speech patterns and doesn't even notice it (autism).

even though matt wears his glasses a lot, if you've known him long enough you can tell he'd been crying because his nose goes temporarily red for a day after he has a really good cry.

foggy has an extensive dad joke notebook. matt actually learned to read ink with his fingers by stealing jokes from the book.

matt used to hang out with an older stray cat when he was younger, before he was blinded and after he was blinded, for every cat he met, he pictured them as that childhood cat.

matt takes whatever foggy hands him almost on instinct and it’s lead to some really funny scenarios like matt holding all of foggy's belonging in his arms in the middle of a colombia courtyard because foggy can't find something in his bag. he also gets this ultra serious look on his face whenever he takes the items like foggy's trusting him with the world.

COMIC

matt's definitely the type of guy to stand in the living room listening to news on the television for 40 mins — dad style.

matt, foggy and kirsten listen to abba; they’re huge fans.

matt is a certified dark chocolate guy, karen is a milk chocolate gal, foggy will have any kind.

you tell mike and matt apart by which one has smile lines around his eyes.

the reason matt keeps changing the shape of his glasses is because he keeps losing them. whether it be around the city or just random shenanigans of putting it down and forgetting about it.

mike says, “matt jumpscare” whenever matt enters a room he's in.

before stick found matt, mike taught him how to do spinning tricks with his cane. after stick found him, matt became super good at it and taught mike some new tricks. mike noticed the sudden uptake in skill but didn't comment on it cause matt was already good at everything plus at least he was learning cool new stuff out of it.

matt hates lollipops; it's just sucking on your own saliva to him and he doesn't want to be tasting himself (in this context).

both matt and mike have really distinct laughs; matt's is very sudden, enunciated and his head gets thrown back while mike's is like a snort-giggle before he full of laughs and he bites his lip on a smile at the end of it.

sam's workplace once handed out father's day mugs but he doesn't... y’know so he passed it onto matt. matt didn't know it said ‘happy father's day! best dad ever!’ until mike used it. matt had gotten upset because it's his favourite mug and mike was like, “matt, what the fuck, why's your favourite mug the father's day mug?” and matt goes, “the what mug?”

definitely unrelated but after that, matt started buying things for sam which sam thought was really random but it was usually just items matt came across in stores that reminded him of sam.

both matt and mike mimic/mock people with a whiny voice to make fun of them. foggy hates it ‘cause they do it to him (affectionately) the most.

matt uses mike and (or) foggy as sensory anchors.

mike used to be so annoyed at having to 'drag his brother around' after matt was blinded but soon, he got used to it and was really jealous when matt started gravitating towards foggy and trusting foggy to lead him.

matt dreams about mike sometimes which can get really funny because even as adults, mike still has the same 9 year old face in his dreams.

mike got pretty good as acting for matt early on because they'd switch places a lot; it only got more complicated when matt was blinded and suddenly they had to worry about a lot of things only matt could or would need to do. in soule's run mike (spawns) begins existing with an identical pair of matt's glasses — i like to think it's a product of that. matt buys two lots of pairs of the same glasses for a multitude of reasons but one of them's always set apart for mike, not just only in case he needs to act as him but also because they actually take a weird sort of pride in being twins.

LIVE ACTION

matt and foggy would go to ihop in their pjs after doing unintentional all nighters in college.

foggy’s tackled matt into a hug while he had an injury multiple times before and it hurt but matt dare not say it did ‘cause foggy’ll feel bad then order him to stay home.

matt has a slight lisp.

matt and karen like dark chocolate, foggy likes milk and dark (in that order) but will eat whatever's there.

foggy used to say 'dude' a lot when he was younger; brett and matt still make fun of him for it.

karen goes as rapunzel for halloween every year.

matt obviously didn't know they were getting the nelson and murdock sign in 1.09 so: foggy and karen would whisper in foggy's office about ordering it and where to hide it once it gets here etc., matt knew of course he just couldn't let them know he knew because it would ruin the surprise for them.

emergency ice packs (& other medical supplies, lollipops included) in the office.

foggy mimic/mocks people with a whiny voice to make fun of them.

buying silk sheets was one of those 'when i get my first paycheck!' type promises for matt until he met stick who drilled it into his head that he didn't need nor deserve that kind of comfort and he went for a futon (canon). after elektra, when he started forcibly growing older because of the trauma their relationship left behind and the corrupted closure of his father's death he started dreaming like that again and did indeed buy silk sheets with his first paycheck from landman and zack; granted, it was most of his paycheck.

#can you tell ive been hyperfixed on mike for like a month LOL #anyway time to start a new thread #daredevil #daredevil comics #marvel's daredevil #netflix daredevil #matt murdock #foggy nelson #karen page #kirsten mcduffie #blindspot #sam chung #mike murdock #mattfoggy #nelson and murdock #murdocks #stick my head down the canon

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jillsvalentinex · 4 months

Text

The day of the reaping was as annoying as ever. Thea was never fond of things that forced her to wake up early so it came to no surprise to both her and Jace that she woke up in less of a happy mood than usual. she stood in front of the mirror in the bathroom, combing through her hair to get all the knots out from the night prior. She stared at her reflection in the mirror, a noticeable frown on her face. The eye bags under her tired eyes were noticeable, too.

"Thea! You done yet?" The voice of her brother caused her to turn her head to the closed door to the hallway.

"In a minute!" She yelled back before she turned back to the mirror, huffing in annoyance as she struggled with her hair. She quickly tied her hair up in a half up, half down look, pulling a few hairs out of her ponytail to frame her face before she exited the bathroom. She rushed downstairs as fast as she could, entering the living room where Jace stood impatiently.

He flapped his arms up in the air dramatically, heaving a harsh sigh. "You always take forever."

"I'm supposed to look my best, right?" Thea asked in a snarky tone as she stopped in front of him.

"Yeah, well you didn't even do that right. Turn around." Jace told her, watching the short blonde pout before turning around.

"You were rushing me. What did you expect?" She asked as Jace gently pulled the hair tie out of her hair and started fixing it. She felt his fingers comb through her hair as he gathered half of her hair and started tying it up in a high ponytail with the other half of her hair down. Thea glanced down at the floor of her house, nervously fiddling with her hands. "I'm...not going to get picked, right?" She turned her head slightly to the side, making Jace stop what he was doing.

There was a short silence afterwards before Jace sighs deeply while continuing to put up her hair. "How many times is your name in today?"

Thea shifted her weight onto one leg as she stared off to the side. "Like... I don't know. Maybe twenty? Counting each year my name has been put in." She answered.

"Twenty?" Jace questioned, his voice slightly raised from surprise. "What in the bloody hell have you been doing to have your name in the bowl fourteen more times than you need it to be?"

Thea lowered her eyes down to the floor, embarrassed, and began to fiddle with her hands. "I've been...helping...the poorer people get food."

Jace then lets out an amused chuckle because of her reasoning. "Of course, taking after mom; helping others out even when you don't need to." He answered before his face fell back into his normal, stoic look. He shook his head. "No. No, it's highly unlikely you're going to get picked. You'll be fine." He reassured her with a quick nod as he finished tidying up her hair.

Their attention quickly shifts once a blare of a horn sounds off, telling everyone in the district to walk up to the reaping centre. The horn goes off once again shortly after and Thea turns around to Jace for an extra bit of comfort before they'd have to go to the reaping. He cups her face and with a reassuring but stern look, he repeats, "You'll be fine," with another nod before pulling her into a quick hug.

Thea nervously fiddled with her hands as she stood in the crowd of girls, separate from the boys and her brother. She watched as the doors of the Hall of Justice opened, a tall, olive-skinned woman walking out onto the platform. The woman, also known as Irene Diaz, had puffy, black curls in her hair and was wearing what seemed to be a long, tight black dress that ended just below her knees with some kind of black blazer on top, although it didn't look like any normal blazer. She also had a matching black walking cane despite being completely fine without it.

Irene was known for her dark coloured outfits, almost always wearing black, but sometimes there would be times where she'd show up in a little bit of colour, but it would still be within the darker shades. Her makeup was just as dark, but minimal. She had blended in black and red eyeshadow and her eyeliner was done to look like a spider web. Her lips were the same colour as her eyeshadow. Around her lips was black lipstick and the rest of her lips were red, carefully blended in with the black outline with some gloss on top to make it look glossy.

She walked up to the mic near the edge of the platform. Her hands wrapped around the mic, showing off the pointy black nails she had on. "Hello~, District four." She greeted in her usual sing-song voice. "Happy Hunger Games, and may the-"

May the odds be ever in your favour. Thea mouthed, seemingly mocking the phrase as Irene spoke it to the whole of District four. She's heard it so many times it has practically been engraved into her brain.

"It is now time for us to select one courageous young man and woman for the honour of representing District four in the 69th annual Hunger Games." Irene announced, looking back to the male and female crowds separated from each other. "Ladies first." She scanned the crowd of girls to see if there were any hands raised for volunteers, but there seemed to be no one offering up their life as she turned to her left and walked over to the bowl full of girl names.

The air became tense as everyone watched Irene put her hand in the jar. Her hand hovered over the pile of names for a few moments before digging in deep, grabbing a piece of paper and walking back to the mic. She gave the crowd a smile as she opened up the piece of paper. "The female representing district four is..." She said before her eyes turned to the piece of paper, quickly reading the name before announcing it to the district.

"Thea Greene!"

Thea felt her heart sink in her chest. She felt all the girls around her turn towards her, staring at her with blank expressions. Even when Irene called her name again, it seemed like the blonde had turned into a rock, frozen in her spot.

"Well, come on, darling, we don't have all day." She heard Irene speak into the mic with a chuckle, however she was unable to move from her spot. She then felt a hand grab tightly on her wrist, roughly pulling her out of the crowd. She stumbled a little once exiting the crowd of girls by the force of the peacekeepers pull as she stood in between the girls and boys. Having no other choice but to walk forward, she slowly began walking to the platform where Irene stood waiting for her. She felt a harsh push from one of the peacekeepers behind her to make her speed up her pace.

Her breath hitched once walking up the stairs to the platform, Irene waiting at the top of the stairs, walking beside her with a hand placed on her back and stopped once beside the mic. "Thea Greene; our female tribute! A round of applause." Irene announced where the sound of applause was heard from both crowds. Thea turned her gaze over to the boys section, trying to look for her brother's shaggy blonde hair. Her breathing steadied once noticing the tall boy in the crowd. She watched as he nodded his head while staring back at her, trying to reassure her from the crowd although it was noticeable he was just as terrified for her as she was for herself. The clapping soon stopped, allowing Irene to continue the reaping process. "And now, for the boys."

Irene walked to her left where the bowl full of the male's names were. She took off her black glove dramatically, but before she could lower her hand into the bowl, she was stopped by a sudden voice coming from the male crowd.

"I volunteer!" Everyone turned their heads to the crowd of boys, noticing a hand raised in the crowd. Both Irene and Thea looked stunned as the male walked out of the crowd, a few peacekeepers following him from behind as he walked towards the platform.

Irene drops her hand down to her side before walking back to the mic. "Oh, my. It looks like we have a volunteer. Come on up."

Thea watched as the male walked up the steps to the stage. She already knew who he was, after all she did talk to his grandfather just the day before. Morgenthau did say he was planning on volunteering... The resemblance between him and his grandfather was wild. He had the same dark brown skin and an impressively built body, his biceps almost too big for the shirt he was wearing. His hair was short with his sides shaved. He stood roughly the same height as Irene, only because of the fact she was wearing high heels to make herself taller and towered over Thea, almost making him look intimidating if it weren't for his kind smile as he stood beside the mic opposite her.

"Now, dear, what is your name?" Irene asked into the mic with a smile before giving it to the male.

He leaned forward, his white teeth flashing the audience as he gave them a proud smile. "Judas Morgenthau!" He announced.

"Judas Morgenthau; our male tribute, everyone." Irene spoke into the mic before clapping causing most of the audience to clap along also. The applause was bigger than the applause Thea got as a lot more people clapped, even a few people started whistling, most of them being from the academy.

Once the somewhat chaotic applause died down, Irene spoke into the mic once again. "And with that, that concludes the reaping. District four's tributes, everyone!" She announced while placing a hand on both of Thea's and Judas' back, as if showing them off. The applause started up again, but it didn't feel like the same type of applause Thea would usually receive. To the common folk, it would sound the exact same, but Thea could tell something about it was different. Despite that, she flashed a smile at the crowd, albeit a fake one, as the two crowds clapped for the two tributes, one crowd more enthusiastic than the other.

"Happy Hunger games! And may the odds be ever in your favour!"

#finnick odair x reader #thehungergamesxoc #hunger games

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clarafyer · 6 months

Text

Omnomnom dehydrated apple chips are some of my favorite safe foods

Actually yk what I'll ramble about my sensory shit

So like I've loved spicy, bold flavours like hot cheetos, curry, buffalo wings, etc, and I'll never not accept them as a safe food.

Sometimes though my sensory needs just- change back and forth, like from "I will vomit if I eat avocado toast today" to "avocado toast is the only thing I will accept as breakfast today" which is I guess where audhd comes in. There are some foods that bypass all my shifting needs, like strawberries, dehydrated apples, hot cheetos, potato chips, and pasta (ESPECIALLY the bowties omg I love the bowtie pasta)

Aside from taste needs, sometimes I really REALLY need a tight hug, not because I'm having a rough day but just because my body really wants to be under pressure for like 4 seconds and then it's good, aND THEN IT SWITCHES TO "If my parents even just barely touch my hair I will die of the sudden itch and sometimes even pain"

Also florescent lights just kill me most of the time which is why I am very happy that most of my teachers don't have every light turned on in their classrooms

I need socks to walk anywhere around my house but I will have straight up insomnia if I wear them to sleep

I haven't ever gone fully non-verbal but when I talk I either have to repeat myself 4 times because of how quiet I'm mumbling, stutter too much to the point where I just restart my sentence after pausing, repeat a word when I didn't mean to (for example during a chapter review of Lord of the flies I said "Piggy and Piggy" instead of "Jack and Piggy" and I got laughed at D:) ORRRRR I NEED TO BE TOLD TO BE QUIETER BECAUSE I'M RAMBLING TOOFASTANDLOUDDD

I have two special interests: my OC lore, and Genshin Impact. My childhood special interest was- also my old OC lore (7 year old me had the amazing and magical story, ever so creatively named "the enchanted forest") that went on for like 4-5 years where I would always want to talk about it and think about it to sleep, aaaaaand My Little Pony (I'VE REWATCHED MLP AND NINJAGO BOTH LIKE AT LEAST 8 TIMES but I wouln't call Ninjago a special interest bc it was more of an on and off obsession-)

I do also have hyperfixations ofc and they usually last up to 2 months, pretty sure that lines up with the statistical average idk

Also sometimes I just need to- punch something with full force. I never get to though and Ik it'd feel great (I did throw a pillow like 5 times in a call with my friend when I was hyper though so like... I've been able to get that excitement out-)

I'm sometimes really slow or just straight up zone out mid-conversation which is frustrating on both ends

I have a wide and advanced vocabulary for my age but [read the prior paragraph on talking], I usually don't get to use it to it's full potential because of that issue .-.

(I just realized this whole rant about my stuff is gonna be perfect for if I can ever actually get diagnosed by someone yayyy)

Mom told me that as a 1-3 year old I never really played with my toys but just lined them up either by size or color (yk those like- tower thingies with the rings of differing sizes and colors? I always ordered them correctly just out of the need for it to look right)

When I was 5 this girl in Kindergarten had a sling on but it was a fancy bedazzled sling so I really wanted to feel the gems but she wouldn't let me and I got sad :(

I've always loved swings and those like- spider web climbing equipment, still do just because I like rocking around and being able to stretch and hang and maneuver around the differently angled bars/ropes on the spider web thing (SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME WHAT THEY'RE ACTUALLY CALLED)

I also have this like- neck shaking and hand flapping tic/stim, sometimes it's uncontrollable sometimes it's a controllable urge, and when it's a tic it sometimes hurts or is just straight up excessive

Okay my mind is going blank now so buhbye this was super long if anyone read all of that- kudos to you, Idk why you would subject yourself to reading it all ok BYEEE

#actually autistic #undiagnosed neurodivergent #undiagnosed autistic #undiagnosed autism #undiagnosed adhd #autism food #autistic things #autism #audhd #actually audhd #audhd things

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jeongyeonluvr · 10 months

Note

if ur up for it how about jihyo who encourages nd!sana to unmask bc jihyo always wants sana to be able to be herself when they are together <3

You’re not dumb

|| cg!Jihyo nd!Sana (mentioned little!chaeyoung)

•TW: ableism

"Sana, you've been on edge lately. And I haven't seen you stimming in like a week. What's up?" Jihyo asked, cutting up some strawberries for chaeyoung.

"Hyo, stop worrying! I just haven't needed to s-"

"Sana." Jihyo interrupted her, eyebrow raised, "You and I both know that's not true. I've seen you twitching all day! Plus you normally stim all the time!”

Sana winced at her words, clutching her side nervously. It was true, she had been suppressing the urge to stim for nearly a week now.

"C'mon, Sana. I'll buy you ice cream if you let me help, or at least tell me why.” Jihyo grinned at her.

Sana sighed and looked up at the clock. "Okay okay, fine. That's cruel though- you know I can't pass up ice cream!" She groaned, lightly punching Jihyo in the arm.

Sana sighed, hesitant. "I don't know, I just- you know those guys who were bothering us a couple weeks back while we were at practice? Well, I guess they caught me stimming and laughed at me. They- they called me the word we don’t use, and I dont know. It's dumb, I know, but it got to me I guess.” she rambled.

Jihyo stopped cutting the strawberries, crushing Sana in a hug. "Sana, you’re not dumb, it's not a dumb thing to be upset about. Those jerks, I swear to God when I see them, they'll wish they hadn't bothered you in the first place!" Jihyo shouted, crossing her arms.

Sana laughed a little, rocking on her heels.

"C'mon Sana! I'II stim with you! Do it!" Jihyo grinned at her girlfriend.

Sana waved her hands back and forth slightly, excitement growing as she did. She began to flap her hands wildly, giggling uncontrollably as she rocked on her heels and waved her arms. Jihyo laughed along with her, happy to see her finally letting out her pent up energy.

Jihyo ran over to chaeyoung; handing her the strawberries, emphasising she needs to be very careful with the bowl because they ran out of plastic ones and jihyo knows how clumsy the little can be; while Sana was still lightly flapping her hands.

As Jihyo got back Sana let out a yawn, dropping her head onto Jihyo’s shoulders once she sat down on the couch. "Thanks Hyo..." she murmured, barely audible. Jihyo smiled back and ruffled Sana’s hair happily.

#mazzy stuff 🦦#age regression #agere little #little space #kpop agere #sfw agere #agere post #agere twice #neurodivergent

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andithiel · 1 year

Text

How deep is our love?

Written for the @hdcandyheartsfest prompt 14: "Valentine's card". I had a lot of fun with this (I've missed writing fed up Draco and Harry being a little shit!) and I hope you'll like it. If anyone is interested in the cards, you can click the links but do so at your own risk. Thank you so much to my lovely friend @crazybutgood for the beta 💕 Wishing everyone a very happy Valentine's Day whether you spend it with someone or not 🥰 Established relationship | 762 words | Teen and Up (for language)

It’s nine o’clock when Harry saunters into the kitchen, his horrible Gryffindor lion slippers firmly on his feet and his dressing gown open to reveal his red flannel pyjamas.

“Happy Declaration of Monogamy Day!” He plops a bright pink envelope on the table in front of Draco, almost hitting Draco’s freshly poured cup of tea.

Draco turns the envelope in his hands. His name is written in overwrought cursive gold embossed letters on the front, and on the back, there’s a wax seal shaped like a heart. He looks up at Harry, eyebrows furrowed.

“What’s this?”

Harry smiles sweetly, eyes glittering. “Isn’t it obvious? It’s a Valentine’s card!”

Draco narrows his eyes at his husband. He’s known him for too long to be fooled by that innocent demeanour. “Why?”

“Can’t a bloke be romantic for once? ‘Tis the season, after all.” Harry tilts his head, gazing at Draco from under his fringe and batting his eyes.

“In the six years we’ve been together, you’ve never given me a card for Valentine’s. In fact, we both agreed ages ago that the entire holiday is stupid and capitalistic.”

Harry shrugs. “I guess being with you has made me change my mind.” He presses his lips tightly together, but small huffs come out of his nose. “Don’t you want to open it?” he says, voice oddly strained.

Draco gives up, flips the envelope over, breaks the seal and pulls out the card. Harry makes a sound like he’s going to laugh, but quickly reins it in.

The card is the same pink shade as the envelope, with a messy sketch of a person bending over, holding their arse cheeks open, and the text says “OUR LOVE IS DEEP LIKE A BUMHOLE”. Draco stares at it: it’s the ugliest card he’s ever seen in his life.

“Do you like it?” Harry says, his voice still strained and a bit wobbly. “I walked past it and it made me think of you.”

Draco looks at him, at his eyes shining with tears of suppressed laughter, then down at the card again. For once, he’s speechless, until—

“Is that my fucking face inside your arse?”

This is where Harry loses it: he snort-laughs so loudly that Draco’s afraid he’ll wake the neighbours across the street, slumping over the table and continueing to laugh so much that his entire body shakes. Draco starts giggling as well, but not loud enough for Harry to hear, because he’ll be damned if he shows Harry how amused he is.

“I mean,” Harry manages eventually, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand, “it is one of your favourite places to be, so I thought it was fitting.”

“Did you, now?” Draco says, and Harry nods, grinning from ear to ear.

“Yeah. In fact, I knew you’d be so grateful that you’d want to give me a card, and— oh? What’s this?”

He reaches his hand into one of the pockets of his tattered dressing gown (the one that Draco has tried to get rid of for months, but that strangely ends up hanging by their bed after every attempt), and pulls out another envelope. It’s a darker shade of pink than Draco’s, but with the same elaborate letters embossed on it, spelling out “Harry”. He hands it over to Draco.

“Could you read it for me, please? I seem to have misplaced my glasses.” He quickly crams his glasses into one of his pockets.

Draco reluctantly takes the envelope, eyes narrowed at Harry again. He slowly breaks the seal and opens the flap. Harry leans over the table expectantly while Draco pulls out the card.

“Being in a relationship with me means that: you’re one lucky bastard. Just your annual reminder,” Draco reads aloud. He looks up at Harry, whose glasses have miraculously returned on the bridge of his nose.

“Well?” Harry says with an entirely too smug tone to his voice. He folds his hands under his chin, tilting his head.

Draco can only snort, “You gormless twat,” at which Harry snickers.

“That good, huh?” He gets up and rounds the table to sit on Draco’s lap, and Draco doesn’t chastise him for getting his trousers all wrinkled. “Happy Valentine’s Day, you pointy git.” He nuzzles into the crook of Draco’s neck, because he knows how it drives Draco mad.

Draco tugs at his hair to be able to reach those soft lips that he, through some divine intervention, has had the pleasure and privilege to kiss for the happiest six years of his life now. “Happy Valentine’s Day, Scarface.”

#drarry #hd candy hearts fest #andithielwrites #harry potter #draco malfoy #rating: t #prompt: valentines card #i tried to write them as that thread you know #the one where people drive their SOs crazy #doing things they hate to love/love to hate #i imagine draco and harry would excel at this #andi’s candy hearts

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tkworks80 · 2 years

Text

Wings

Chapter 3

Hero name=h/n...I'm working on chapter 4 that might be a finale

"Okay y/n one more round then we are done for the day…25 wing flaps…you got this," the rehab specialist cheered you on.

"Shit Mirio, I'm so exhausted, can we take a break?" You asked while trying to catch your breath. Taking a big gulp of water and smiling "that was awesome…well, back to work, gotta patrol tonight," you cheerfully said.

Walking up the stairs to your agency, you just preferred the stairs for some more exercise. Reaching your floor, you opened the door and was greeted by your receptionist. "Good morning Ms. H/n how are you today? You have 4 messages and here is your mail," the receptionist said while handing u/n the bundle of letters.

You walked to your office without looking up you were reading the letters and came to a halt when you saw a name that was in a red envelope it was Keigo Takami. You went into your office and closed the door behind you. You plopped on the office sofa and opened the red envelope. It contained a letter.

Y/n,

I know you didn't expect to hear from me ever again but, please hear me out. I've been searching for you ever since I woke up from the hospital. So I was shocked to hear you broke our bond and divorced me. Stop acting petty, what we have together is nothing, and I mean nothing can break that. I know you felt some kind of way from the actions I took but, you have to understand that Moni doesn’t have healing capabilities as you do. She would’ve been for sure disintegrated like nothing. Come back to me my dove, if you don’t then I’ll come to you.

Love,

Keigo

You crumpled up the letter and tossed it in the waste bin. Then you thought about it, you should keep it for some physical evidence in case this escalates. Sighing you called Fatgum.

“Hey Fatgum I’m not feeling too good do you think you can cover for me I need to go back home and need to rest,” you asked.

“I don’t see why not…get some rest y/n and see you tomorrow,” Fatgum replied.

You hung up and left the office. You flew back to your home and quickly locked all the doors and windows because God only knows he will try to find an opening if he found out where you lived. He already found where your agency is located.

You kept on thinking about Keigo and how he found you. Your phone rang with a private number you knew in your soul that it was Keigo. You pressed to decline than the phone tinged, it was a voicemail. You called your voicemail.

“You have one new voice mail,” the automated voice stated as it automatically played.

You heard the sound of traffic and some wind. Then you heard his voice.

“Hey y/n, it’s me…I think you left something at the hospital and I want to return it to you. I would return it in person considering I know where you work but, I think that my appearance would bring a lot of media people and I am in no mood to be in the papers. When you get this message please call me…I want to hear your voice” you pressed the number three to save it.

Pacing back and forth deciding to call or not to call, your anger got the best of you and decided to call and tell him in person that you don’t want anything to do with him. And, just to marry Moni. you dialed and he quickly answered.

“Hey…fancy you returning my call babe,” you heard a little happiness in Keigo’s voice.

“Why are you trying to contact me? We are divorced you know,” you answered, your left wing twitched.

“Nah, I don’t accept that y/n…besides the bond, we have,” Keigo was interrupted by you correcting him.

“Had…past tense Keigo,” you scoffed.

“Playing hard to get? I get ya… let's play…but, I’m warning you I never lose,” there was a slight threatening undertone to his voice.

“Your funny Keigo…you truly are…you thinking that I can’t fight? You think I am as helpless as a little bitch…oh speaking of little bitches…how is Moni? I think Moni would be upset if she knew you're contacting me,” you smirked.

“Oh come on sweetheart, do be like that…she was just a piece of pussy,” he playfully teased.

“Keigo, Keigo…your actions proved otherwise…besides she already confessed,” you chuckled incredulously. There was a thirty-second pause. You knew you had got him there.

“You won’t win y/n,” was all Keigo said.

“Is that a challenge Keigo?” you asked.

“Yes…yes it is,” was all he muttered out.

“Well then…challenge accepted,” you smirked. You heard Keigo ending the call.

The night was hot and humid due to the Summer weather. Your air conditioner was off because Keigo could easily exploit the noise in order to sneak into your house. Sweat started to trickle down your neck while you became stealthy in your movements because you didn’t know if he was around. You were startled when the phone pinged due to the text message from Keigo.

Unknown 10:34 pm: Damn y/n…it’s hot…why isn’t your air conditioning on…ah… no matter…my place is cold.

Even though it was scorching hot you still felt cold chills up and down your body. You answered back.

y/n 10:39 pm: Didn’t the commissioner warn you not to look for me? Are you pigheaded?

There was no reply but, a call and you quickly answered.

“You're coming home with me tonight,” Keigo said in a serious tone.

“You are in my element, ass wipe! You’ll never win,” you yelled into your phone.

“Temper, temper y/n…how about when we get home I’ll massage those pretty violet wings of yours and then…” Keigo trailed off.

“I am home dick…and if you attempt to enter my home, I will clip your fucking wings!” you threaten.

“Ohhhh…being so violent…that's so sexy baby, hope you can talk to me like that when I ram that sweet pussy of yours,” Keigo playfully chuckled.

“Ram my pussy you say…that’s laughable…not only do you have wings like a bird but, you have a bird cock,” you chuckled.

There was once again a long pause to the phone call.

“Awww…did I hit a very soft spot, you limp dick,” you playfully teased.

“We’ll see if I have a bird dick the moment I make your cunt my home,” he chuckled.

“What you don’t understand about me Keigo is that I am…” you said then hung up on him and whispered against his ear. “Stealth,” holding a serrated blade to his neck. Keigo swallowed hard.

“Well played pretty birdie but…” Keigo said while two of his feathers were aimed at your throat and you dropped your knife.

“I win,” Keigo smirked.

“Come on Keigo, let's play fair I’ll even make a deal with you,” you tried bargaining with him.

“I could always love games…and what's the deal?” Keigo was intrigued.

“Remember when we were teens? And how we snuck out and played hide and seek in the darkness…if I win then never contact me again and if you win you can court me once again,” you bargained.

Keigo thought about it and smiled. “Fine, I’ll play…location?”

“Where you lost humanity Keigo…The World Mall,” you answered.

“You're kidding me, right? That place is under construction,” he explained.

“Awww…Keigo…you could always change your mind and leave me the fuck alone,” you said giving him an option.

“Fat chance pretty birdie, when?” he replied.

“Tomorrow at midnight, oh by the way…don't be late,” you chuckled while walking back in and closing the door behind you.

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giggly-squiggily · 1 year

Note

I would like to request the other fic I was gonna commission to you for November, of Maxie’s Crobat and Camerupt trying to cheer him up ❤️ if that’s alright. I wanted to request before all of the Pokemon requests were taken 🤣 -@Magma-queen

*runs in with fic in hand, panting and sweating as I slam it down on the table* At...long...last! I've made it! My apologies for the delay friend! This was so much fun to make! :D I love Maxie so much, and any chance to write for Hardenshipping is a good day! I hope you like it!

Today was turning out to be quite the day for Team Magma’s leader.

Starting this morning, he woke up to find his alarm clock on the floor, broken beyond repair. Combined with the reality he was a solid two hours late for the day- he spedran his morning routine and just barely made it to a meeting he had with his admins.

Only to realize he forgot his work bag at home. Lovely.

Adding on to the misfortune, he was attacked by a raid of Wingulls- their target being a Magnemite Croquette he got from the Mauville Food Court. Without his work bag- which in turn had his Pokemon- he was forced to give them his lunch, shaking his head in disgust as they devoured the thing in seconds.

The rest of his afternoon was just little stuff like that. Stepped in a puddle on the way back to get another Croquette? Check. Finding out said Croquette he bought was the last one sold that day? Check. Getting ambushed by a youngster and being called a “Crotchety old man” after he denied him a Pokemon fight? Check.

It was just one thing after another today!

The worst to come was when he returned home, desperate for the embrace of his husband. That was when he saw it- a note on the fridge.

“Max. Went out to help that May kid catch an Octillery. Why an Octillery, I don’t know. Something about a contest or whatever. Hopefully will be back tonight. Love yee! -Archie.”

Tears pricked at the back of his eyes as he read the note, resisting the urge to rip it to pieces as he pressed his face into it, letting out a muffled string of curses. This wasn’t uncommon for Archie- helping out the local trainers was his way of repenting for all the mess Team Aqua made; plus it made the sailor happy.

If Maxie wasn’t in such a depressed state, he’d probably find the idea of Archie wrestling up the hard-headed octopus rather charming.

Maybe in time he would.

Opening the fridge, he finally let the tears fall. There sat a wrapped up plate of dinner, another one of Archie’s handwritten notes with a tiny Octillery blowing a kiss resting on top of the plate.

“Don’t forget to eat. Love yee- Archie.” It read.

Even when he wasn’t here, his husband found a way to make him feel better.

~~~

“Well guys, it looks like it’s just us tonight.” Maxie sighed as he sat back, Camperupt tucked into his side while his Crobat flapped overhead, coming to sit along the top of the couch. While dinner was nice, it didn’t completely make up for the heinous day the redhead had. He still wished Archie was here- what he’d give to lie in his arms while the bigger man stroked his hair, venting all his woes to him as Archie whispered words of comfort.

Camerupt grumbled beside him, eyes big with concern for it’s trainer. It snuggled closer to him, resting it’s massive snout on his thigh while Maxie stroked its tuft of fur. Above them, Crobat shuffled closer, nuzzling his neck and ears.

“Thank you two…I appreciate it.” Maxie leaned back, closing his eyes with a low breath.

Camerupt and Crobat shared a weighted look, not at all pleased with how sad Maxie seemed. There must have been something they could do to fix it.

Seconds passed before Crobat clicked, an idea settling into it’s grin. With stealthy moves, it stretched out a wing, running it along Maxie’s neck.

“Eeh, whahat?” Maxie jumped and shivered, scrunching up at the sudden tickle.

“Crooo!” Crobat cried out in glee, hopping onto Maxie’s shoulder and nuzzling once more, it’s wings coming around to brush and scribble behind his ears. Camerupt. not to be outdone, began to nuzzle it’s own snout against Maxie’s hip, rubbing up and down and sending waves of sensitivity through him.

“Ah! Ahehahhehehehehe! Wahhahait, whahhahahit hold iihihihit one sehehehehecond!” Maxie yelped and squirmed, unable to decide between scrunching up or arching away. “Crohohohohobat! Crahahhahameruhhuhhpt! Stahahhahap iihihihiht!”

If Pokemon could talk, he was sure they’d tell him “No way!” as they carried on their playful game- Camerupt getting closer as it pressed its face into Maxie’s belly. Crobat was dancing from shoulder to shoulder, fluffing his neck and ears while gently nibbling. Maxie could only squeal and cackle, gently nudging at his companions in hopes they’d let him be. “No nohohohoohho cuhuhuhut that ohohohout! Dohohohohn’t tihihiihickle me!”

Again- his Pokemom ignored him. By now Camerupt was more or less sitting on his lap now, huffing ticklish puffs into his skin while Crobat wriggled behind him, clawing gently at his back. Maxie let out a squeal of laughter as he fell to his side, effectively pinned to the couch cushions while the pair drew out the embarrassing sounds.

“Ooohohohohokay! Ohoohoohohkay you wihihihihiin!” He wheezed, cheeks bright red and eyes misty with mirth. Upon hearing his command, the Pokemon stopped. They sat close to him now, Crobat spread out along his shoulders like a shawl, cooing with joy as Camerupt squeezed up to his chest.

“Yohohohu two…you're too much.” Maxie laughed, running a hand over his Pokemon’s forms kindly. “You’ve done that to make me feel better, huh? Thank you.” He sighed, closing his eyes. Camerupt was warm, and Crobat’s cooing sounded like a lullaby to him. “Thank you…I appreciate it.”

~~~

“I’m home! Remind me next time to never use bait again- that Octillery clung like glue! I think I have suction cups on my-” Archie paused his complaints when he saw Maxie on the couch, eyes soft as he took in his sleeping husband. Surrounded by Pokemon- he looked just like he did when they first met.

“Ay, I’ll tell you about it in the morning.” He smiled, going to get a blanket.

Settled in on the floor below, Archie reached up and took Maxie’s hanging hand, squeezing it as he fell asleep.

I hope this was good!

#pokemon #oras #magma boss maxie #maxie #hardenshipping #camerupt #crobat #tickle #tickle fic #poke tickles #fluff #bad days go away #maxie deserves a hug #Archie fights an Octillery and barely survives #they're in love your honor

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glacierruler · 1 year

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Who'd like to hear some random sasi hcs I have? These are all based off of things that I do.

Patton and Remus are both bipolar. However both express it differently.

Patton likes to hide away his depression, putting on a fake smile to not worry his friends. However, when his mania takes place, he tends to run around, make cupcakes, and somtimes he plots pranks with Remus. While bot typically dangerous, sometimes he'll wonder if taking the cupcakes out of the oven with an oven mitt is really necessary. It's also why he's so scared to be around Remus normally. He doesn't want to take something too far during one of his manic moods.

Remus, while naturally chaotic, gets even more chaotic during his manic episodes. While normally he might think trying to fly is cool, he might actually do it if given the chance. He might put his fingers in his mouth(something I've done) to see if he could really bite them off. But his depression swings are the worst. They're bad enough that sometimes he can't get out of bed and he'll break down if asked to do the smallest of tasks. Janus tends to pay more attention to him when he's in those moods, as Janus does get worried about Remus.

Logan likes to scream when he's really happy. But only when he feels safe and comfy doing so. He tends to go to his room right after getting a gift because of this. He also sometimes flaps his hands and jump around when happy or upset over something.

Janus just mehs a lot. You know when you need to do something, but don't want to? So you just go meh. Yeah, Janus does that. He's also worried a lot. Sure being anxious is Virgil's job, but Janus just can't help it. He's lived with trying to keep Remus from 'flying' off buildings that he just thinks all the other sides have to be prone to do it too. And despite him trying to say otherwise, he cares.

Roman has trouble expressing himself, especially through words. Sounds make so much more sense to him. Yes he's creative, but he can just never find the words to describe the mood he's in. And using sounds doesn't always get the message through that today's been a good/bad day for him.

Virgil likes to chitter when happy. He just makes a little chitter noise. Also he totally bites his nails.

#sanders sides #patton #remus #janus #roman #logan #virgil #hcs #my hcs for them #bipolar #self harm #sort of #it's weird

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616marcspector · 2 years

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dude i will pay you to say more about autistic marc spector. fighting off your sister rn

*she runs off crying with a bloody nose*

omg ty gibs ur my hero

ALRIGHT TIME TO TALK ABOUT THE 'TISM. i spoke before about his body language and one scene i really love is the one with layla on the boat.

the way his hands keep moving in calming repetitive motions, the way he's looking at them instead of her for a bit (bc even those of us who are okay with eye contact still need to take breaks cuz it is Hard), the way he's a little jumpy and his speech is a little disjointed even though they're just chilling out on a boat bc we literally do not know how to relax (this one is especially common for autistic people with childhood trauma)

and you can really tell that he's holding everything in all the fuckin time like. you'll find this so much with autistics who had an abusive parent(s), bc we had to mask all the time for fear of attracting unwanted attention, it carries on to adulthood where we can hardly express any of our emotions properly bc we weren't allowed to simply Be Autistic when we were younger yk? like part of it is just the autistic experience of our resting face being like 😐 but then add to it a quiet, sad numbness so even when we're happy abt smthn it's just like a little :) bc we've been masking so long we can barely remember how we're Supposed to enjoy things yk? and like i've had to teach myself to experience things properly, i've had to consciously let myself flap my hands and make my funny little noises and i think someone should let marc know that it's safe for him to stim <3

another thing i've thought a lot about is how he seems to be masking less in ep5! and i think it's bc of the sheer shock of everything and how it's such a different environment and he's around someone he trusts a lot (steven) so he's just so overwhelmed he Has to lose it a bit yk? like compare the scene in ep2 where steven tells him everything is his fault to the scene in ep5 where steven tells him everything is his fault. in ep2, marc shouts, not incredibly loud, but loud enough. he kicks the mirror, lashing out but not physically hurting anyone. he notices the scarab is gone, yells, clenches his fists, etc, but he is still Tense Tense Tense. he's not expressing everything. then we go to ep5, he's gotten more comfortable with steven, there's no one else around, he's been having the most stressful day maybe ever. so when steven says those words, he just Screams. and he hits his head and it hurts but he keeps doing it bc the feelings are too much and He's Letting Himself Feel It. (watching that scene is almost funny to me because when i watched the moon knight trailer for the first time i did the same thing and then i didn't stop crying the whole day 😭). and then he's back in the office and harrow is there speaking gently and he gets something to hold and he's Quiet. and for me that is one of the only scenes where marc actually seems calm (or at least, calmer than usual). he's normally such a big bundle of nerves that feel like they're going to explode at any moment and in that scene he looks like he finally let some of it go.

anyway a different sister is distracting me now so im gonna stop here but please feel free to add on with any more thoughts you have bc autistic marc spector is literally one of my favourite topics in the world :)

#asks #gibs #the autism of marc spector <3 #<- that's going with the aro jake agenda tag #both very important to me #marc spector

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oh-no-a-new-hiperfocus-hit-me · 11 months

Text

I DID IT GUYYYSSS IK LITERALLY NO ONE CARES BUT I FINALLY FINISHED THE DRAFT FOR CHAPTER THREE!!!

It's 2,5k long and wow I'm so proud of me. Ik people write multichapters way longer but I can never finish mine. I've written one shots 5k long but multichapters ?? My kriptonate. I'm so happy djsnsndnndbdbdbd

----

Dabi first heard about the war while changing clothes in the back of an old wagon. She was changing clothes, in the second day of their trip to the east side of the kingdom. They were traveling with more or less fifty people, each with their own affairs to deal with. Most people were riding horses, unicorns, chimeras or other animals, which they were going to do too if it wasn't for Mr Compress pulling a couple favors to get them on one of the wagons.

The guys who were driving it had been talking non-stop ever since they left. Dabi was really, really close to ripping one of their heads off and driving the damn thing herself. She was just finishing putting on a new pair of pants when she heard one of the man mention Chikara.

Chikara was the kingdom next to Akarui. They were insanely powerful and known conquerors. Their king was nameless. Well, probably not fucking nameless. Dabi did think everyone had to have a name. If there was a way to get rid of your name, she'd have found out by now.

In any case, no one knew Chikaras kings name. He was only known as All For One, because of how many soldiers had died fighting his battles. It was whispered in the night, that he had special knights, super strong, enormous and undefeatable. They were called the Order of Doom.

When the woman heard one of the man mention Chikara, she kneeled next to a sleeping Toga and came closer to listen. Though ignoring Tomuras snooring was hard, she still managed to hear the conversation.

"-and she said she was going there!"

" To Chikara ? To fight ?!"

"Yes! I told her it was a terrible idea but she wouldn't listen..."

"I'm sorry pal. I really am."

"It's ok. Me and my wife are working through it. But our eldest daughter ? A spy for the the king ? I mean who would've imagined it!"

"Not me, definitely not me, pal."

"Anyways, that was a couple years ago as you can imagine and her last letter arrived in the beginning of the year. It's been three months since..." He looked back, but everyone was apparently asleep. "Since she told us to run because a war would eclode soon."

"A war ?"

"We are going to Midori to scape... Yes, a war!"

They went back and forth on simpler subjects after that. Partners, kids, food. But the word war kept repeating in Dabis mind for the rest of the night. The temperature seemed to have dropped and the cold wind that came from a hole in the wagons 'ceiling' messed her hair.

War.

▪︎▪︎▪︎

"No! Absolutely not." He pronounced every letter throughly, pinching his eyebrows and twisting his mouth.

"Pleeaaasseee. It's for a friend!" Toga jumped and flapped her hands in the air, and Dabi could see she was mere seconds from taking Shugarakis shoulders and shaking him with all her strength.

"Hey, what's happening here ?" Dabi sat by Shigarakis side, bumling his shoulder. She'd decided it was better to intervine now than to have to deal with a headache later on.

"This dumb blonde bitch-"

"Hey!"

"Call her that again and I'll rip your legs off."

"Sorry. This little bratty asshole-

"Hey!."

"This one's true, thou, Toga. Carry on." Toga made a sour face but didn't protest. Tomura smiled.

"She wants to play at a circus! She thinks she joined a motherfucking clown cult!"

"Hum."

" This is a respectable band! We are musicians! Good ones!" Shigaraki continued, waving his hands as he spoke.

"A friend of mine will be there! The knights in training are going to be special guests. And I heard..." She put one hand on her chin, the other covering half her mouth "I heard the youngest prince is gonna be there." She whispered dramatically.

Dabis heart started beating faster and faster. Her eyes widened, but she forced her normal expression when she realized it. Her hand tightened around the edges of the log they were sitting at. Her other hand dig it's nails into the first one, and soon enough, her skin was soaking with blood and chipped wood.

"Dabi ? You ok ?" Shigaraki looked at her concerned. Toga had apparently seen a butterfly and gotten distracted chasing it.

"Im alright." She knew it wasn't true and she knew he knew it. Her voice was cracking. "We are going to play at the circus."

"What ?!" He jumped in surprise, almost spitting at her.

"Shut up and do it. Don't be a whiney bitch." Shigaraki was probably still chocked given he didn't try to stop Dabi when she got up to leave.

Fuck. Shoto was gonna be there and she'd just agreed to go. No, she demanded to go. What was wrong with her ? Fuck.

▪︎▪︎▪︎

The circus thing wasn't happening for another couple days but she didn't get any rest. First of because they had a couple of presentations already planned. Second because she was thinking of her brother.

Natsuos letters had stopped arriving.

In the first two weeks, she barely noticed it. She was used to letters arriving late, after all she was constantly changing location and although she always gave a list of the places she was going to and the dates to him ahead of time, the mail deliver wasn't exactly precise in Akarui.

But it had been a month and a half. A month and a half since the day the bird left Natsuos last letter in Dabis hand, just after they played in that crowded bar. The mail system might not be precise, but she was pretty sure Natsuo sent his letter through special agente who had pegasus or something like that (she was never that interested in Royal family bulshit ).

In any case, the thing was that the letter was suppose to be here already. And it wasn't. Something must've happened. Dabi thought of the conversation she'd heard. She thought of the war. Could that be it? Could her brothers and sister – her mom — be in danger? Wouldn't he protect them?

Wouldn't the king protect what was left of his family ?

At least, at the very very least, she knew she could keep an eye on Shoto while he was there. Her baby brother. Her responsibility. She hadn't seen him in ten years. How much had the kid grown ? He was certainly not the little boy she had known anymore.

Usually Dabi thought being a pessimist was good, only good things cane when her expectations were worse than reality. But at that moment she wished she could hope for something good. If the worse happened... If the worse happened she'd have to get Shoto, her friends and run.

Oh fuck. Holy. Fuck. She'd forgotten.

She hadn't told Shoto she was alive. You see, running away from your father was really hard when he was the king. She'd spent months planning it, to scape from hell. She'd planned to take Natsuo and maybe even Fuyumi with her, then come back to get Shoto and her mom. After that, with the stolen riches she'd set aside, they could have a new life. And who knows? Maybe one day Shoto or Fuyumi could come back to reclaim the throne. When their father was long gone. Not that Dabi would mind taking matter into her own hands if it was for the sake of her siblings...

In any way, her plans went to shit when The Accident happened. The accident that got her scars, the one she couldn't bare to think about. After it she had to completely change her plans and run off by herself. She scaped in the middle of the night, and met Natsuo in those dark halls to say goodbye.

He was her best friend, and at the time, she thought that was goodbye forever.

But despite her pessimistic beliefs, his first letter arrived six months after she ran, when she got her very first job. Since then, they'd been talking regularly ( or as much regularly as one could have conversations through mail). She told Natsuo to not tell anyone she was alive and well, but deep down, she knew Fuyumi had to know. She was the polar opposite of her sister, who was always the perfect elegant, kind, polite princess. Still, they shared a bond Dabi could not explain, a bond of caretakers and of women whose blood was the same.

Plus there was the fact Natsuo sucked tremendously at keeping secrets.

Dabi was not sure if Shoto knew, though she thought he probably did; Fuyumi had always been soft for him. Still, he wouldn't recognize her. He probably had faint memories of a face she no longer had. The thoughts of her siblings haunted her during those few days, often making her laugh. She laughed because she couldn't cry anymore, because it was all too absurd, because maybe her life was just a fucking joke to the universe.

The others soon enough realized she was behaving strangely. For a couple days Dabi was able to hide her ever growing mess of feelings, but they knew her too well. Compress would ask what was wrong when he thought no one else was listening. Toga would braid her hair ( she hated it, and would immediately unmake the braids once Himiko was done.) Spinner liked to invite her to his games to distract her. Magne and Twice were always trying to hug her and get her to open up (which she hated much, much more than the braids, but the intention was sort of nice).

And Shigaraki... Shigaraki was being distant, and she didn't know why.

Nevertheless, with suspecting of war to investigate and money to earn, the days passed by quickly enough, much for Dabis happiness.

"Oh my God, look! The circus is so big! The colors are so, so very pretty too!" Himiko jumped as Spinner tried — and failed — to held her back. "I can't believe I'm going to met Ochaco-chan again! She's the prettiest fairy to ever exist, and also the bravest and strongest knight! Her blood must be so sweet..." She rambled and moved her hands around in the air, spinning in her yellow dress.

They were all dressed in their fanciest clothes, which included from flowery dresses like Togas to dark suits like the one Twice was wearing. Dabi wore the only thing she had from her old life : the clothes she had scaped the castle with. It was a purple suit with a white shirt underneath, and plain black pants. The suit was adornated in gold, and had the Kingdoms coat of arms in it, because it was for Dabi to use in formal occasions back in the castle. She had covered the coat of arms with a piece of dark fabric, which looked kind of out of place but really, who cared ?

As they approached the circus, more and more people started looking at them. It was a fancy part of town, not the kind of place they usually played at. When they got there, Compress chatted with the man who was producing the show. Apparently he'd heard them play before, and was looking forward to having them there. Dabi suspected it wasn't true, maybe Toga had threatened someone or bribed them to see the knights in training. She immediately felt bad. Himiko wouldn't bribe anyone. Threatening, maybe, though.

The inside of the circus was huge, even bigger than it looked from the outside. There were bailarinas and gymnasts in black suits, a man caressing a lion next to them. A beautiful woman with a long beard went over the presentation with the dancers. Clowns ran around, playing with each other, and...

And an enormous dragon slept in a cage. It was so big the cage could barely fit its wings, and it's deep blue and yellow scales shined in the light. It looked comfortable, at ease, almost like it was safe. But it wasn't possible, dragons had never lived peacefully with humans.

Dabi must have looked more amused than scared, because the showman, who was chatting with one of the gymnasts, walked towards her eith a smile on his face.

"Isn't she beatiful ? She's going to be our main attraction tonight." He cackled. Dabi got ready to fight. There was no fucking way she was going to leave someone to be trapped by shitty people, a mere attraction in their shown.

"She's my wife, you know. She's been resting all afternoon, to have energy to perform tonight. Can you believe she like to sleep in the elephants cage? Haha." As the man laughed Dabi saw that the cage was open, blankets scattered on the floor. The dragon yawned.

"She sleeps better in her dragon form?" The woman didn't mean to ask, but she was so shocked from the conversation she couldn't help turning thoughts into words.

"Yes, actually! I find it to be fascinating. Saori says when she's transformed her rest is far better." He looked at her for the first time, staring at her scars. "Do you know any dragons? Perhaps, family?"

"Yes" she said, and allowed her shoulders to deconstract, her breath to calm down. "I am a dragon." The man widened his eyes even more."It runs in the family." She turned and left.

▪︎▪︎▪︎

The instruments were old, but had clearly been taken good care of. There was a violin for Compress and a piano for Toga, and even guitars for Shigaraki and Spinner. Tomura wasn't happy, he loved his own guitar, and Toga was usually the only one who relied on other people's instruments. It's not like they could transport a piano, so she only played when there was one in the place they were going to play at already.

When they were all set, the showman asked them to rehearse with the dancers. Those people were very skilled, jumping and spinning endlessly like it was nothing. Dabi spotted some metaforms among them, which brought her back to the dragon in the cage, Saori.

Was it really possible for people like her to have something like that? Something alike acceptance? She shut her eyes tight. No. Hope was a damn waste of time. People would just throw her aside again.

When the spectacle finally started, she was relieved. As soon as it was over they could leave. They could pretend nothing happened.

Dabi should've thought something like 'relief' would not last long for her. When the showman started announcing the first number, Toga pulled her sleeve and, smile as wide as ever, pointed to the right side of the bleachers. Waiting for her, was a young boy, hair split down the middle. But he was looking the other way, chatting with his colleagues. No, he wasn't looking; but someone sure was. The knights in training hadn't come alone. Dabi found she knew their companion, and almost tripped as golden eyes stared into hers.

@arson-n-barf if you could tell me if there's anything weird here, that'd be awesome! I don't want to be rude as you've already happened me a lot, I'm just happy you're liking the story so no pressure. :)

#SJAJJSNSNSJS #they will FINALLY meet in chapter 5 #im writing 4 rn :)#we r 500 words in and its definetly going slower than i wanted but still #its progress!!#ive been writing every day and im so happy about this :)

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