#What happened to Lionel? They DEFINITELY didn’t eat him

[puppetmaster13u]

Prompt 234

More of the Tiamat Au? More of the Tiamat Au! 

Sharing a body was strange. Ten limbs split between the nine of them- thirteen if one counted the tails and seventeen if one counted the fact that their cloak… skirt… whatever could mimic the wings of their other form. 

One which they would change back to after a few moments- there was much less stumbling when it was all fours. Not to mention that if not for the tails they’d have easily toppled over with how many arms they had making them slightly top heavy. Okay more than slightly, it was taking a bit to adjust. 

Honestly the fields of wheat and other crops did nothing to hide them with how tall even this body was, but it was still better than nothing, and they were using the fact it was the middle of nowhere to their shared advantage. 

At least the humanoid- not human, even now their shared power thrummed through the air, leaking from them- form was smaller than their true draconic one. Well, perhaps they shouldn’t call it their true form, when they were once all human, halfa and liminal alike, but they’d long since stopped being such. So perhaps it was in fact true to call the form they had become as their normal state now. 

Actually, could they even separate now? Or had their power melded together so much that it was impossible now, and an attempt would end them? It would at the very least crack their core- 

“What the fuck.” 

Their head lurched, a little too far if the jolt of pain was anything before it melted away. They were all too used to moving their own necks separately. But all of them agreed that discovery could not happen-

Oh.

It was a child. A preteen with red-orange hair, blue-green eyes, expensive clothing, and most damming of all, large swaths of bruising across his arms. Bruising that did not come from usual play, and looked far too much like hand prints for any of their comfort. 

Someone had very much not been taking care of this child. And that really made them quite angry. 

#DCxDP #DPxDC #Prompts #The Class Pulls a Tiamat #The ennead finding lil baby Lex: Oh no the poor baby… our baby now #Lex as an adult seeing reporter also from smallville: Oh thank fuck- pretend I didn’t say that #Lex raised by the chaos 9 would be twice as horrifying #Lex got tossed over to this small town whenever his bio-father got tired of him #But he has a new mom-dad now & was raised as a feral lil shit #Acts like an ass still towards other rich people #But he was raised by a feral hydra and it SHOWS the first time someone tries to kidnap him #Liminal Lex Luthor #What happened to Lionel? They DEFINITELY didn’t eat him #Ennead: Son you better not become a hero plz you will lose so much sleep & your schoolwork will suffer- #Luthor feels better about Superman because he knows there’s things that CAN defeat him if he turns evil #That’s even if he still ends up in Metropolis lol #Or if he stays human and doesn’t learn dragon shapeshifting from his new parents lol #PFFT Lex Luthor collecting kryptonite not to use against Superman but for hoarding purposes lmao

[eternaljunkyard]

We Who Wander

TMA SPOILERS -- CW Claustrophobia and Strangers

this ficlet is born of the ideas that (a) there were other people able to walk the fearscapes during the eyepocalypse, (b) Joshua Gillespie would have most definitely been able to, and (c) Joshua and Lionel are two of my favorite statement-givers and I think they complement each other,,,, I don't know how this happened enjoy

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

Joshua wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, and didn’t move. He could feel everything pressing down on him, in on him, around him, but he knew it wanted him to squirm, to scream, to panic. He refused to panic. Not again. The humming all around him felt a lot like the way the coffin had once sung each time it rained, and it was oddly comfortable. It reminded him more of routine than fear.

He waited until the crushing, absolute pressure was at its peak, having endured it so long he knew what signs to look for in his body — heart beating out of his chest, joints popping, tears and fear rising unbidden within him — and forced his body upwards. As he had guessed, it was merely soft soil given the impression of unyielding rock, and his hands clawed through it easily. And also as he had guessed, it was only six feet deep, which meant that when it pressed in on him it became somewhat compacted. He only had to dig through about five feet of soil before his hands broke the surface, and he rose coughing from the dirt. He clambered from the pressing hole he had made, aware of the ground contracting around him in a desperate attempt to keep him there, but he had gotten the jump on it and managed to free himself from the dirt. He wanted to lay down, just collapse there on the dirt and rest, but he realized that the ground was still trying to reclaim him and he would not go back to his grave.

He ran. Of course he ran, that was a normal and rational thing to do. The terrain was hilly and shifting, and he stumbled and fell with legs stiff from disuse more than once. But always, the fear of being taken again by the soil as it grasped at him took over, and he staggered to his feet, out of breath and coughing the grit in his lungs. When the soil beneath him stopped reaching for his feet, stopped swelling and shifting, he finally felt safe enough to rest. 

He collapsed completely and just laid there, his body wracked with choking coughs as an impossible amount of dirt was expelled from his chest. When he was done spitting soil, he struggled to a sitting position to assess his surroundings. 

He was in what appeared to be the courtyard of a university, to the left of him stretching the great undulating grassless plain he had just ran from. He shuddered and stood, legs trembling with exhaustion, and analyzed the building before him. It appeared to be a side wall, characterized by a single glass door labeled ‘PULL’ and dull red brick. He figured he probably shouldn’t enter any creepy or mysterious buildings, but to be honest he didn’t want to stand outside any longer after the ground had tried to eat him, so he pulled the door open anyway and headed inside.

He couldn’t decide if inside was worse than the endless crushing underground, but it was certainly close. The halls were filled with eyeless, disproportionate figures that, judging from their uniforms, were supposed to be students. Some of them walked jerkily, like mannequins given mobility, others had arms that dragged on the floor, others had colorful face paint over featureless faces, and still others limped along on limbs that shouldn’t have existed. He shivered and ducked behind a stairwell. The hall was almost entirely silent despite the amount of noise that should have been happening, and Joshua was torn between making noise himself to ease his fear or staying silent to avoid attracting attention.

That’s when he heard the voice, and instead of going to leave, he inexplicably scrambled to find the source. Maybe the relief of finding another human being was stronger than he had previously thought it would be -- because it was a human voice, wasn't it? It seemed to be someone calling out, a man judging by the tone, and he sounded panicked. It took a few moments before Joshua could make out the words the person was yelling.

“Has anyone seen my students? Hello? Excuse me, sir, have you seen my students?” Joshua found himself face-to-face with this person, with rumpled clothes and bloodshot eyes, who was clutching Joshua’s arm with a tight, fearful grip.

“No— I haven’t,” Joshua said with bewilderment. “What do they look like?” He wasn’t sure why this was the first thing in his head, except that he couldn’t let this man run haphazardly about with the monstrosities surrounding them. Had this man been stuck here like Joshua in the earth? “Are they… any of these fellows?” He gestured around them to the disproportionate beings trudging through the halls.

“No, no,” the man said desperately, and he looked at Joshua with such earnest hopelessness that Joshua could almost feel it in his chest. “They’ve all got eyes, you see, these eyes that don’t stop staring, and they’re tall, all about the same height, only a few inches shorter than me, and they're... rather forgettable? They must be here somewhere — I think they may be hurting people. I have to find them.” 

Joshua stared blankly for a moment, and then — he couldn’t believe what was coming out of his own mouth — said, “I’ll help you find them.” What had compelled him to say that? Now? In some horrific change of the world -- or was it just a nightmare? He supposed he just wanted to help anyone he could in this horror show of a world, but no, that couldn’t be right because he wasn’t much of a compassionate person. He had never been, especially not since the coffin.

But now this frazzled-looking man with glasses askew was following him down a hall thanking him profusely and rambling about students and anatomy and the apocalypse, and Joshua found himself leading the man outside, out of the bizarre and uncomfortable school -- "Oh," the man nervously laughed, "When I tried the doors, they were all locked." -- and to the courtyard. Then, he put up a hand to stop the man (both in action and in words).

“What’s your name?” Joshua asked the disheveled professor(?), trying to stay calm as his gaze caught on the undulating earth field in the distance. Apparently, they’d managed to exit through a different door, because now it was to their left.

“Lionel Elliot,” the man said breathlessly, adjusting his glasses — Joshua could see they were broken, now — and laughing with a helpless flutter of his hands. “Yours?”

“Joshua,” he replied. “Joshua Gillespie.” Perhaps the apocalypse wouldn’t be so bad.

#i love these two idiots #i think joshua would be more capable than lionel against most fears except spiral and stranger #i also plan to continue this because lionel with weird apocalypse children gives me life #tma #the magnus pod #the magnus archives #joshua gillespie #lionel elliot #ficlet #tma fanwork #the eyepocalypse

[shootwinterfest]

WINTER MYSTERY - NEW STORY from ASLEEPINAWELL for Shoot Secret Santa!

Winter Mystery by @asleepinawell

also here on AO3! 

"The snow is really coming down now," Reese said as he shut the door behind him.

Shaw inched slightly closer to the fireplace to escape the cold air that had invaded the room when Reese had opened the door. "At this rate we're going to be stuck here tomorrow." 

"At least tomorrow," Root agreed as she swept into the room. She handed a mug down to Shaw before settling in front of the fire herself on the other side of Bear. "The Machine says the snow plows won't be able to get through up here until Tuesday."

Shaw took a cautious sip of her hot cocoa. Yep, definitely spiked, thank god. If she was going to spend the next few days crammed into a cabin in the middle of nowhere with the whole team, then she was going to need some alcohol. 

"How're we supposed to help our number if we're stuck here?" Fusco asked from the chair in the corner. He'd tried to sit by the fire earlier, but Shaw had sent him away for hogging all the heat. Root only got fire privileges because she'd resorted to cocoa bribery.

"Well, the good news is that our number is snowed in as well," Root said. "It'll be hard for anyone to get to them with all the roads closed." She reached across Bear to try to steal Shaw's mug, but Shaw saw her coming and pulled it back out of reach with a warning glare.

"Good thing I packed some extra snacks," Shaw mused as she sipped her cocoa. "The freezer here is stocked full of nothing but microwavable mac and cheese. Gross."

"What'd you bring?" Reese asked, a little too innocently.

Shaw's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "None of your business and no, I'm not sharing. You should have thought of it yourself."

"You're not sharing?" Fusco asked, outraged. "We could all starve here, you know?"

"Way too much shitty mac and cheese for that to happen," Shaw assured him. She eyed the others, looking for any suspicious expressions. Maybe she should hide her food stash before she went to bed, just in case.

"Don't worry, sweetie," Root said, patting her on the knee. "There's only one snack I want in this house."

Shaw choked on her cocoa.

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

It wasn't that Shaw hadn't trusted the Machine when she'd assured them (through Root) that the house was well-stocked with food in the event of them getting stuck, it was that she hadn't trusted the Machine's taste in food, a fear which had turned out to be correct. Thus the small pack full of supplies Shaw had brought for herself. None of it was too fancy: coffee, tea, and cocoa packets, trail mix, a couple types of jerky, a chocolate bar, some pop tarts, cookies, marshmallows (for the cocoa), and a bottle of whiskey. Certainly not fancy dining material, but still, it was stuff with more flavor and texture than frozen dinners and tap water.

"You know, if you hide that somewhere I won't be able to make you surprise spiked chocolate again," Root pointed out once they'd retired to the room they were sharing.

Shaw hesitated over the bag. Root had a point. But…. "That sounds like something someone would say if they were planning to steal my food."

Root paused in mid-stroke of brushing her hair to cast a disdainful look at Shaw. "Sweetie, I'm not interested in your pop tarts."

"That's just what you want me to think." She zipped the pack up and looked around the little bedroom. It was the largest bedroom in the place, but it was still tiny and there wasn't anywhere obvious to hide anything.

Root set aside her brush and sat down on top of the heavy wool blanket on the bed. "When you're done being paranoid about your snacks, come to bed and I'll show you what I'm actually interested in."

That was too good an offer to pass up and Shaw ended up shoving her pack under the bed. If someone wanted to steal it they'd have to get in here without waking her up and good fucking luck with that.

She did make one detour before joining Root, though, to twitch one of the curtains aside and look out at the snow falling.

"We're going to be lucky if we can even get the front door open tomorrow." She could barely see the trees through the heavy snowfall.

"Being stuck here for a few days doesn't have to be the worst thing ever," Root said as Shaw shut the curtains. "I can think of plenty of ways to pass the time."

"Be a lot better if we weren't sharing a tiny cabin with the boys," Shaw said. She walked back to the edge is the bed and, when Root tugged on her arm, let herself be pulled down into the warm blankets and a tangle of limbs. "Guess it's their own damn fault if they didn't bring earplugs though," she decided.

"They'll get over it," Root agreed.

They were both thoroughly exhausted by the time they finally fell asleep. Root, always the late sleeper, might have slept until noon if she hadn't been awoken by Shaw's outraged yell. When she rolled over to see what the fuss was, she found Shaw standing next to the bed looking grim.

"My pack is gone."

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

Root was tired, cold, and (because of the first two things) grumpy. She'd had a lovely evening with Shaw in their isolated snow-bound cabin, gotten to go to sleep in a very warm, soft bed, but then been rudely awoken and dragged downstairs to the living room with the boys and accused of petty thievery. The only upside to the whole thing was that Shaw was currently being unbearably adorable in her efforts to unmask the supposed criminal.

"The facts are these," Shaw stated as she paced in front of the fireplace. "Last night I put my own personal pack with my possessions in it under my bed."

"Our bed," Root corrected.

Shaw rolled her eyes. Her hair was still messy from sleeping but pulled back in a loose ponytail, strands escaping everywhere, and her whole face still looked soft from sleep despite her current level of focus. It contrasted nicely with her stern tone and Root couldn't help but smile fondly while she watched her even if it made Shaw look more annoyed.

"Fine, the bed Root and I both slept in."

There was a soft snicker from behind her in the room. John, probably. Neither he nor Fusco had been awake when Shaw had announced the mandatory team meeting.

"Despite the fact I didn't hear anyone come into the room all night, this morning, my pack had mysteriously vanished. Since we're currently snowed in at an isolated cabin, the only viable suspects are the people in this room."

"You seriously think one of us took your food?" Fusco asked. "Seems to me that the most likely suspect was the person already in the room with you then."

Shaw turned her suspicious stare on Root for half a second and then shook her head. "Everyone is a suspect right now. The door was open this morning when I woke up and it was definitely shut when I fell asleep."

"Oh, that part was definitely my fault," Root admitted. "Bear was scratching at the door and I let him in. I left the door cracked in case he wanted to leave."

"He was?" Shaw looked down at where Bear was snoozing near her feet. "I don't remember hearing him."

"Yes, well, you were pretty worn out," Root said, perhaps a bit smugly.

"If the door was already open, then anyone could easily have snuck in," Shaw said. "Or Root could have smuggled the pack out when she let Bear in."

"Or Bear could have stolen it," Root pointed out. 

"Bear would never! You take that back!"

John cleared his throat. "It's six am. Can we go back to sleep and sort this out later? You can search the place while we're passed out so you know no one will be eating your stash."

"No one is sleeping until the thief comes forward and returns what they took." Shaw turned her full attention to John. "Where were you last night?"

John was sprawled on the couch wearing pajamas that looked like...a suit. "In my room with headphones on until I fell asleep. I only left it to use the bathroom once."

"And do you have any way to prove that?"

"How would I do that?"

Shaw looked back at Root. "I'd like to call the Machine as a witness."

It was Root's turn to roll her eyes. Shaw was being very cute with this whole righteous detective act, but she was really tired and would rather go back to bed and continue using Shaw as a heat source. "She's been having a hard time maintaining a clear signal with the storm, and also there's no cameras set up here so Her information would be limited."

"Reese and Fusco both have phones."

"True."

"Skynet spies on our phones?" Fusco asked in horror.

"There's a total of twenty three different organizations spying on the average phone at any given time. Trust me, She's not the one you need to worry about. She doesn't care about the websites you visit that you delete from your phone history." Root smirked at the terror on his face. "Private browsers tabs aren't really private, Lionel. How long have you been working with us now?"

John looked thoroughly amused by Fusco's discomfort, so Root added, "And John is no exception, though I'm disappointed in his taste." She didn't have any clue what either of them looked at since the Machine actually believed in privacy for some reason, but she must have hit a nerve because the smile fell off John's face.

"None of this matters," Shaw cut in. She pointed at Fusco. "What did you do last night?"

Fusco was bundled up in a threadbare purple bathrobe in an armchair in the corner. He looked even more tired than Root felt.

"Me? I tried to get my beauty sleep and regretted thinking Reese was kidding about the earplugs thing."

"And you didn't leave your room at all?" Shaw asked.

"No, I...wait, I did. Got up to use the bathroom some time in the night, no clue when. I did see someone else up and about but it was dark and they were at the far end of the hall so it could have been anyone."

"The far end of the hall, as in near the door to my room?" Shaw asked. "Did you see how tall they were?"

Fusco squinted at her. "Yeah, now that I think of it they were really short. Maybe about five foot three. Sound like anyone here?"

"Maybe you stole your own food in your sleep, Shaw," John said, amusement in his voice. 

Shaw crossed her arms, her biceps flexing in a threatening way that caused both the boys to stop laughing and Root to have a sudden shift in reasons for wanting to go back to bed.

"This cabin isn't that big and there's nowhere to hide," Shaw said with way more icy intensity than Root thought was strictly necessary for the situation even if it was extremely hot. "It's only a matter of time before I find out who took it." She turned and headed back up the stairs, leaving the others in uneasy silence.

"Shorty really likes her pop tarts, huh?" Fusco asked.

"And how did you know she had pop tarts, Lionel?" Root asked with a smile that was mostly teeth.

"Because I saw when she bought them at the rest stop on the way here," Fusco said, trying to inch his chair away. "Why don't you go talk to her instead of threatening me? You know none of us did it."

"I know nothing of the sort." She stood up and brushed herself off. "I suggest that if either of you are responsible, that you make her pack reappear before she comes back downstairs."

"And how do we know you aren't the one who took it?" John asked.

"You don't."

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

Shaw returned to her room after she finished her second sweep of Reese's room. Root had come upstairs while she was away and was fast asleep in bed again, curled up on her side under all the thick blankets with Bear next to her. The whole scene was kind of endearing despite Shaw's general state of annoyance.

It wasn't like a bunch of junk food even mattered that much; it was the principle of the thing. She doubted Root was the culprit, even if she would have had the easiest access. Though she wouldn't put it past Root to cook up some trouble to keep her entertained while they were stuck. She'd probably consider it some sort of cute gift or something.

There were several feet of snow on the ground outside now and the house was chilly as fuck and Shaw was tempted to crawl into bed next to Root and sleep in the warmth and forget about this whole thing, but.... But she really wanted some goddamn coffee and the almost-acceptable instant coffee she'd packed was worlds better than the shit in the kitchen. 

She decided it was time to be practical about the whole thing. The next step any sane and logical human would take at this point would clearly be to draw a detailed diagram of the crime scene and map out all the possibilities.

Root knocked her map on the floor when she rolled over fifteen minutes later. Shaw cursed and reached down to retrieve it. It wasn't her fault that there'd been nowhere else to spread out her research. 

"Sameen? What time is it?" Root still looked cranky and her eyes weren't quite open yet.

"It's nine." 

"That's still too early," Root grumbled. She rolled over so her head butted up against Shaw's leg and cuddled grumpily against her.

"You tell me who took my food and we can nap all day." That was a lie, but Shaw felt entitled. She was the victim here.

"If I admit to it, can we go back to sleep? It was terrible of me, and you can spank me later."

Tempting for several reasons, but…. "Did you actually?"

"No." The one word was infused with infinite crankiness.

"Then no deal."

Root sighed and then opened her eyes. "Fine, let's get to the bottom of this then." 

"That's what I've been saying--" Shaw trailed off at the look on Root's face. 

Root flung back the covers and jammed her feet into her bunny slippers with murderous intensity. Shaw watched in fascination as she pulled her oversized fluffy robe (pink, with a hood that had bunny ears to match her slippers) around herself and tied the sash like she was preparing for war. She grabbed her taser from the nightstand and raised an eyebrow at Shaw. 

"Well, are you coming or not?"

Shaw trailed after her, half-impressed, half-turned-on, as she hunted down both the boys and corralled them back into the living room. 

"Let's start with the obvious suspect first," Root said, her voice full of that cheerful homicidal glee that did things to Shaw. "Lionel."

She rounded on Fusco, tapping her taser against one palm while grinning at him.

"Why am I the obvious suspect?" Fusco protested, looking around nervously. 

"You're a police officer," Root said as if the answer was obvious. "Now, where did you put Shaw's pack?"

"I didn't--"

The taser crackled threateningly in Root's hand.

Fusco looked at Shaw desperately. "Hey, can you maybe keep your homicidal girlfriend from killing me?"

Shaw shrugged. "Root does what she wants. You should probably answer her question." She'd stop Root before she could do anything permanent.

"I told you, I didn't take it! Sure, I thought about it. You were so uptight about it who wouldn't have?" The taser buzzed violently again and Fusco leaned so far back in his chair he almost tilted over backwards. "I didn't touch it though! I'm not crazy enough to go into that room. Who knows what I would have walked in on?"

Root paused and tilted her head. "That's actually believable. He is pretty spineless."

"Hey!"

On a different day, Shaw might have defended Fusco from the insult, but he'd just admitted to thinking about stealing her pack to annoy her so he was on his own.

"That leaves you." Root turned on John with a bright smile. He failed to look concerned.

"Why would I take it? I actually like the microwave dinners."

"John, you're going to need a more believable excuse than that."

"No, that actually checks out," Shaw said. "He has the worst taste ever."

"Well, if none of us took it then where is it?" Root asked.

"Hey, why are you suddenly free from suspicion?" Fusco demanded.

Root raised her taser threateningly, but Shaw waved her down, suddenly concerned by something else.

"Where's Bear?"

A quick search of all their rooms turned up no Belgian Malinois. 

"Did he get outside?" Shaw wondered. She hoped he was okay out there. His paws might get cold.

"Maybe he's in the basement," Reese suggested.

"There's a basement?" This was news to her.

"Yeah, it's kind of hidden away, but I had to go down there to fight the furnace last night."

"Show me."

The door to the stairs down was hard to spot in a tiny alcove off the kitchen and Shaw had overlooked it last night. The door was also open.

"I think the mystery is about to be solved," Reese said as he led the way down.

The basement was a small, dirty room with a single lightbulb hanging from the ceiling and in the middle of the floor was Bear, chewing happily on a piece of Shaw's jerky. Her backpack was lying ripped open nearby, contents strewn about the floor. Bear wagged his tail nervously when they approached.

"Looks like someone was a very naughty a doggy," Root said.

"It's not his fault," Shaw protested ad she surveyed the damage. "He must have been hungry. Poor guy."

"So we get tasered, but the dog gets a pass?" Fusco grumbled.

"Let's go back upstairs," Reese said hurriedly before Shaw could react.

Shaw bent to see what was left. Fortunately Bear seemed to have ignored the chocolate and cookies and other things that might be bad for a dog's stomach, though there was drool all over everything.

"You're a smart boy, aren't you?" she said, scratching him behind the ears.

"Maybe we should bring everything out of the dirty basement," Root suggested. She had stayed behind when the other two left. "He can keep eating your food in the kitchen."

"Yeah, okay."

Twenty minutes later, Shaw was back upstairs and in bed with a mug of hot chocolate (the cocoa mix had been declared salvageable). Root was mostly asleep next to her again and Bear was at the foot of the bed snoring. Life was okay again.

Shaw felt content enough that she even allowed Root to snuggle up next to her without complaint.

"Sameen, I have a confession to make."

"Hmm?"

"I may have seen Bear take your pack last night."

"What? Why the hell didn't you say anything?"

"I was going to, but your little detective routine was adorable and then I got to threaten the boys and that's always fun."

Shaw was tempted to pour her chocolate on Root, but that would have been a waste.

"Well maybe you get to sleep on the couch the rest of the time we're here."

"Is that really what you want?" Root snuggled closer and brushed her lips across Shaw's neck with just the tiniest hint of teeth.

"Maybe," mumbled Shaw without much conviction.

"I'll make it up to you if you let me sleep for another hour."

"Fine. Better be a really good apology."

"Mmm." Root was already drifting back off, her head on Shaw's shoulder. 

Shaw sipped her hot chocolate, listened to the soft sounds of Root breathing, and watched the snow fall outside the window. All things considered, it was a pretty nice day.

#shoot secret santa #root x shaw #THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR GIFTING US WITH THIS WONDERFUL STORY!!! #person of interest #sameen shaw #root

[cheemerthelizard]

Crusader of Life (Kakyoin x Reader) Chapter 13

After the whole dream fiasco was sorted out, Joseph decided to take a day off from Stand attacks and let everyone relax a little bit before Egypt. Nothing could go wrong. At least, you hope so...

“So, what brings us here, Mr. Joestar?” Kakyoin asked.

“Well, for one, I need to tend to my chickens!” Avdol rushed away, and everyone followed after him, until they reached a small cottage in the middle of the island.

“Hello, everyone!” Avdol said cheerily, looking down at his chickens. “Did you miss me? Hello, Prince! Lionel! Micheal!”

You had never seen Avdol so happy, and his joy was certainly contagious, especially to you.

“That couldn’t be the only reason, right?” Polnareff asked. “Surely there’s more to this pit stop than just chickens.”

Joseph chucked a little bit. “You’re right,” he shrugged. “We have a little... special surprise for all of you. Plus, we’re about to be making our way to Egypt, our final destination. We thought it would be good to let you relieve some of your stress before we face off against Dio.”

“Really?” Your eyes widened with excitement. “You’re actually letting us take a day off?”

“I sure am,” Joseph laughed. “Now, get out of here, before I change my mind.”

“Yes, sir!” Kakyoin chimed. He grabbed your hand and started running.

“Wh-aah! Hey!” You could barely keep up, but you had to if you didn’t want to eat grass for breakfast. “Where are you taking me?”

“You’ll see,” Kakyoin answered, and gave you a little smile. Of course, that seemingly put you in a trance, and you ended up almost tripping.

“Woah! Slow down!” you laughed.

“But we’re here!” Kakyoin had stopped suddenly at a little patch of land with a big rock on it. “A good place to sit and talk.”

“You pulled me along so excitedly to sit at a rock?”

Kakyoin nodded, almost shamefully, and you responded with a laugh.

“I love it when you get so excited about small things like this.” This time, you took his hand and pulled him onto the rock with you. The two of you ended up talking for a long time, almost thirty minutes, about anything that came to mind. Stands, life back home, even just your interests. Times like this were always wonderful with him. Eventually, though, you couldn’t hold it in anymore, and you started to cry a little bit.

“Oh, was it something I said?” Kakyoin asked.

“No, no,” you reassured him. “Not at all. I’m just worried.”

“Worried? About what?”

The tears started to become more rapid with every word you said. “What if I die? What if someone else dies before I can save them? Kakyoin, what if... what if you die? I would never forgive myself if I can’t save you in time. I’m just so scared. All of you are so brave, and you always face danger with no hesitation. I wish I could be like that, but my Stand can’t fight. Ace can’t fight.”

“Oh, (Y/N),” Kakyoin pulled you closer. “Which one of us hasn’t been scared?”

“Jotaro,” you immediately replied. “And Joseph, and Avdol, and Polnareff, and... and you! You’ve never been scared.”

Kakyoin started laughing, as if he just couldn’t hold it in. “Me? Not scared of anything? Are you kidding? This whole time, I’ve been afraid. Afraid we might not make it in time before Holly dies. Afraid that one of my only friends will die in the battlefield. (Y/N), I’m afraid of losing you.”

You sniffled. “R-Really?”

Kakyoin nodded. “And everyone else has been afraid at least once, I’m sure. Both Polnareff and Avdol have been way too close to feeling the kiss of death, and Jotaro and Mr. Joestar are going on this trip specifically to save their family member. I’m sure they’re absolutely terrified they won’t make it in time.”

“I g-guess you’re right.” Your breathing was still very unsteady and sharp, but you had started to calm down.

“Oh, and one more thing.”

“Uh huh?”

“If I die, promise me you won’t blame yourself.”

You chuckled, while still trying to hold in your tears. “I promise, but only if you promise the same thing.”

Kakyoin nodded. “Well, I’m getting hungry. Maybe we should go back to get some food.”

“We definitely should,” you agreed. You shot up from your spot on the rock, and immediately felt a sharp pain ripping through the bottom of your left leg. “Ow!”

“What happened?” Kakyoin asked.

“I think a snake bit me,” you replied, making sure not to cry more than you already had. Eventually, Kakyoin spotted the snake, and started muttering something to himself.

“Red on black, friend of Jack. Red on yellow, kills a fellow. That was red on yellow!” he exclaimed. “We need to get back now!”

The two of you sprinted back from where you came, making sure not to run into anything on the way. You had made it about halfway whenever you toppled over.

“Kakyoin!” you cried. “I can’t feel my leg!”

Kakyoin stood there for a second, until picking you up and carrying you the rest of the way. Soon, the cottage was in eyesight, and you were met with two waving hands.

“Hello again, Kakyoin and (Y/N)!” Joseph said cheerily.

“Mr. Joestar...” Kakyoin was out of breath by the time you had gotten over there. “Snake bite... (Y/N)’s leg... red on yellow... leg is numb...”

“I was bitten by a venomous snake,” you finished his thoughts. “And I lost feeling in both of my legs now.”

“Uh oh,” Joseph’s tone immediately darkened. “That’s bad news.”

“I’m here,” Jotaro burst through the foliage, breathing heavily. “What’s going on?”

“I called him over with Hierophant,” Kakyoin explained. “I was going to call Polnareff, too, but I couldn’t find him.”

“Well, what are we going to do?” Avdol asked frantically. “This isn’t a Stand matter. Killing the snake that bit her won’t stop the venom from spreading.”

“The only way to stop it from infecting (Y/N) is to get it completely out of her body,” Jotaro muttered. Then he gasped. “I have an idea. (Y/N), are you still able to duplicate life?”

“Yes,” you answered weakly. Foam had started forming in your mouth.

“Good. I’ll need you to do that.” Jotaro summoned Star Platinum and had him press his lips to the bite. “Duplicate your blood. I’ll suck out any infected blood.”

“Okay.”

The feeling of blood being sucked from a wound was really weird. And from how forcefully Star Platinum was inhaling, you were sure all of your blood was being diverted straight to it. But you kept duplicating it, and so you never ran out. In fact, you started to feel better. You had almost regained feeling in your left leg, and everything else was feeling fine. Eventually, you had regained all senses, and shouted, “Now, Jotaro!”

Star Platinum wasted no time ridding himself of the infected blood, spewing it to the floor. Meanwhile, Jotaro was making a distorted face, like he had just eaten something he didn’t like. Guess venom blood wasn’t his favorite meal. You quickly wrapped your arms around him, almost crying.

“Thank you,” you were breathing heavily. “Thank you so much. So, so much.”

Jotaro seemed reluctant at first, but in the end, he decided, just this once, that you could hug him, which you were thankful for. How else would you show your appreciation for him saving your life?

“Alright, that’s enough,” Jotaro eventually said, shoving you off of him. “And you’re welcome.”

“Alright, I’ll bet you guys are hungry! How about we eat something?” Joseph suggested.

“That sounds nice,” you answered.

“I’m starved!” Kakyoin replied.

“I’ll go find Polnareff,” Avdol said, walking away.

“Will one of you go start the fire?” Joseph asked. “Jotaro! I’m sure Star Platinum can get it going really quick.”

“Sure.”

And soon enough, the whole team was sitting by the campfire, eating dinner. Apparently a Stand user had attacked Polnareff (again), and Avdol had gotten there just in time.

“And this time, I think I’ve truly learned my lesson,” Polnareff said. “I have to accept that my sister’s soul is now at peace.”

The six of you had been eating in silence for a little bit, until Polnareff spoke again. “Oh, and I heard that (Y/N) had a little encounter of her own.”

You nodded, and gulped down the bite you had taken. “I did.”

“A snake, huh? Must’ve been scary.”

“It kind of was,” you admitted. “I was terrified, actually.”

“We all were, I’m sure,” Kakyoin added. To your relief, the others nodded. Maybe what he said was right. Everyone gets scared from time to time.

Suddenly, interrupting your peaceful dinner, a loud splash came from the edge of the island.

“Ah, the surprise is here!” Joseph got up, and beckoned for everyone else to follow. When you had reached the shore, there was a giant submarine, waiting for you.

“Ta-da!” Joseph exclaimed. “I got it from the Speedwagon Foundation!”

“I don’t know about this,” you muttered. Unfortunately, Joseph overheard you.

“What do you mean by that?”

“I mean, the boat we had before was fine, and there was a lot more of a chance that we would survive if a Stand user attacked us. I’ve just got a feeling in my gut.”

“Well, the Speedwagon guys have already taken our boat back to the shore on the other side, so unless you want to swim to Egypt, I guess you’re out of luck.”

You sighed, and reluctantly boarded the sub. “I’ve got a really bad feeling about this.”

#kakyoin #noriaki kakyoin #kakyoin noriaki #kakyoin x reader #noriaki kakyoin x reader #kakyoin noriaki x reader #crusader of life #stardust crusaders #jjba #jjba x reader #jojo #jojo x reader #jojo's bizarre adventure #jojo's bizarre adventure x reader #fanfiction #my fanfiction

[cheemers-writing-archive]

Crusader of Life: Chapter 13

“So, what brings us here, Mr. Joestar?” Kakyoin asked.

“Well, for one, I need to tend to my chickens!” Avdol rushed away, and everyone followed after him, until they reached a small cottage in the middle of the island.

“Hello, everyone!” Avdol said cheerily, looking down at his chickens. “Did you miss me? Hello, Prince! Lionel! Micheal!”

You had never seen Avdol so happy, and his joy was certainly contagious, especially to you.

“That couldn’t be the only reason, right?” Polnareff asked. “Surely there’s more to this pit stop than just chickens.”

Joseph chucked a little bit. “You’re right,” he shrugged. “We have a little… special surprise for all of you. Plus, we’re about to be making our way to Egypt, our final destination. We thought it would be good to let you relieve some of your stress before we face off against Dio.”

“Really?” Your eyes widened with excitement. “You’re actually letting us take a day off?”

“I sure am,” Joseph laughed. “Now, get out of here, before I change my mind.”

“Yes, sir!” Kakyoin chimed. He grabbed your hand and started running.

“Wh-aah! Hey!” You could barely keep up, but you had to if you didn’t want to eat grass for breakfast. “Where are you taking me?”

“You’ll see,” Kakyoin answered, and gave you a little smile. Of course, that seemingly put you in a trance, and you ended up almost tripping.

“Woah! Slow down!” you laughed.

“But we’re here!” Kakyoin had stopped suddenly at a little patch of land with a big rock on it. “A good place to sit and talk.”

“You pulled me along so excitedly to sit at a rock?”

Kakyoin nodded, almost shamefully, and you responded with a laugh.

“I love it when you get so excited about small things like this.” This time, you took his hand and pulled him onto the rock with you. The two of you ended up talking for a long time, almost thirty minutes, about anything that came to mind. Stands, life back home, even just your interests. Times like this were always wonderful with him. Eventually, though, you couldn’t hold it in anymore, and you started to cry a little bit.

“Oh, was it something I said?” Kakyoin asked.

“No, no,” you reassured him. “Not at all. I’m just worried.”

“Worried? About what?”

The tears started to become more rapid with every word you said. “What if I die? What if someone else dies before I can save them? Kakyoin, what if… what if you die? I would never forgive myself if I can’t save you in time. I’m just so scared. All of you are so brave, and you always face danger with no hesitation. I wish I could be like that, but my Stand can’t fight. Ace can’t fight.”

“Oh, (Y/N),” Kakyoin pulled you closer. “Which one of us hasn’t been scared?”

“Jotaro,” you immediately replied. “And Joseph, and Avdol, and Polnareff, and… and you! You’ve never been scared.”

Kakyoin started laughing, as if he just couldn’t hold it in. “Me? Not scared of anything? Are you kidding? This whole time, I’ve been afraid. Afraid we might not make it in time before Holly dies. Afraid that one of my only friends will die in the battlefield. (Y/N), I’m afraid of losing you.”

You sniffled. “R-Really?”

Kakyoin nodded. “And everyone else has been afraid at least once, I’m sure. Both Polnareff and Avdol have been way too close to feeling the kiss of death, and Jotaro and Mr. Joestar are going on this trip specifically to save their family member. I’m sure they’re absolutely terrified they won’t make it in time.”

“I g-guess you’re right.” Your breathing was still very unsteady and sharp, but you had started to calm down.

“Oh, and one more thing.”

“Uh huh?”

“If I die, promise me you won’t blame yourself.”

You chuckled, while still trying to hold in your tears. “I promise, but only if you promise the same thing.”

Kakyoin nodded. “Well, I’m getting hungry. Maybe we should go back to get some food.”

“We definitely should,” you agreed. You shot up from your spot on the rock, and immediately felt a sharp pain ripping through the bottom of your left leg. “Ow!”

“What happened?” Kakyoin asked.

“I think a snake bit me,” you replied, making sure not to cry more than you already had. Eventually, Kakyoin spotted the snake, and started muttering something to himself.

“Red on black, friend of Jack. Red on yellow, kills a fellow. That was red on yellow!” he exclaimed. “We need to get back now!”

The two of you sprinted back from where you came, making sure not to run into anything on the way. You had made it about halfway whenever you toppled over.

“Kakyoin!” you cried. “I can’t feel my leg!”

Kakyoin stood there for a second, until picking you up and carrying you the rest of the way. Soon, the cottage was in eyesight, and you were met with two waving hands.

“Hello again, Kakyoin and (Y/N)!” Joseph said cheerily.

“Mr. Joestar…” Kakyoin was out of breath by the time you had gotten over there. “Snake bite… (Y/N)’s leg… red on yellow… leg is numb…”

“I was bitten by a venomous snake,” you finished his thoughts. “And I lost feeling in both of my legs now.”

“Uh oh,” Joseph’s tone immediately darkened. “That’s bad news.”

“I’m here,” Jotaro burst through the foliage, breathing heavily. “What’s going on?”

“I called him over with Hierophant,” Kakyoin explained. “I was going to call Polnareff, too, but I couldn’t find him.”

“Well, what are we going to do?” Avdol asked frantically. “This isn’t a Stand matter. Killing the snake that bit her won’t stop the venom from spreading.”

“The only way to stop it from infecting (Y/N) is to get it completely out of her body,” Jotaro muttered. Then he gasped. “I have an idea. (Y/N), are you still able to duplicate life?”

“Yes,” you answered weakly. Foam had started forming in your mouth.

“Good. I’ll need you to do that.” Jotaro summoned Star Platinum and had him press his lips to the bite. “Duplicate your blood. I’ll suck out any infected blood.”

“Okay.”

The feeling of blood being sucked from a wound was really weird. And from how forcefully Star Platinum was inhaling, you were sure all of your blood was being diverted straight to it. But you kept duplicating it, and so you never ran out. In fact, you started to feel better. You had almost regained feeling in your left leg, and everything else was feeling fine. Eventually, you had regained all senses, and shouted, “Now, Jotaro!”

Star Platinum wasted no time ridding himself of the infected blood, spewing it to the floor. Meanwhile, Jotaro was making a distorted face, like he had just eaten something he didn’t like. Guess venom blood wasn’t his favorite meal. You quickly wrapped your arms around him, almost crying.

“Thank you,” you were breathing heavily. “Thank you so much. So, so much.”

Jotaro seemed reluctant at first, but in the end, he decided, just this once, that you could hug him, which you were thankful for. How else would you show your appreciation for him saving your life?

“Alright, that’s enough,” Jotaro eventually said, shoving you off of him. “And you’re welcome.”

“Alright, I’ll bet you guys are hungry! How about we eat something?” Joseph suggested.

“That sounds nice,” you answered.

“I’m starved!” Kakyoin replied.

“I’ll go find Polnareff,” Avdol said, walking away.

“Will one of you go start the fire?” Joseph asked. “Jotaro! I’m sure Star Platinum can get it going really quick.”

“Sure.”

And soon enough, the whole team was sitting by the campfire, eating dinner. Apparently a Stand user had attacked Polnareff (again), and Avdol had gotten there just in time.

“And this time, I think I’ve truly learned my lesson,” Polnareff said. “I have to accept that my sister’s soul is now at peace.”

The six of you had been eating in silence for a little bit, until Polnareff spoke again. “Oh, and I heard that (Y/N) had a little encounter of her own.”

You nodded, and gulped down the bite you had taken. “I did.”

“A snake, huh? Must’ve been scary.”

“It kind of was,” you admitted. “I was terrified, actually.”

“We all were, I’m sure,” Kakyoin added. To your relief, the others nodded. Maybe what he said was right. Everyone gets scared from time to time.

Suddenly, interrupting your peaceful dinner, a loud splash came from the edge of the island.

“Ah, the surprise is here!” Joseph got up, and beckoned for everyone else to follow. When you had reached the shore, there was a giant submarine, waiting for you.

“Ta-da!” Joseph exclaimed. “I got it from the Speedwagon Foundation!”

“I don’t know about this,” you muttered. Unfortunately, Joseph overheard you.

“What do you mean by that?”

“I mean, the boat we had before was fine, and there was a lot more of a chance that we would survive if a Stand user attacked us. I’ve just got a feeling in my gut.”

“Well, the Speedwagon guys have already taken our boat back to the shore on the other side, so unless you want to swim to Egypt, I guess you’re out of luck.”

You sighed, and reluctantly boarded the sub. “I’ve got a really bad feeling about this.”

[jupitermelichios]

Smallville S2E22: Calling

There is 0 cannibalism in this episode, and the only murders are committed by Clark, so I think that makes this a filler. This is the Smallville equivalent of a beach episode.

“There’s been a complete normalisation of his higher brain functions” Patient, eyes rolled back in his head like the kid from the exorcist, “The Day is Coming The Day is Coming The Day is Coming…” Yup, that’s why I call a normally functioning brain!

Wow Clark, Lana does possibly the first legitimately nice thing anyone in this show who isn’t Lex or Whitney has ever done, and Clark’s reaction is to bitch about her making him a homemade birthday cake isn’t enough about his Man Pain. “This might not even be my biological birthday, it’s just a day my parents picked to give me cake and presents and tell me how glad they are they adopted me, birthdays suck.” *LittleKuriboh voice* Our Protagonist Ladies and Gentlemen!

So cut from Clark kissing Lana to him coming down from his bedroom grinning and his mom saying “so how was the party” – did Clark and Lana actually canonically fuck?! I was expecting at least another three seasons of pining before we got there. Good job guys, look at you being proactive.

Oh god is just occurred to me that if they’re fucking they could potentially breed. Oh gods in heaven please don’t let them breed. There are already way too many pregnancy subplots in this show, by which I mean there are more than 0 pregnancy subplots

It’s so sad that the closest thing to healthy parental figures in Lex’s life are the Kents of all people.

Oh fuck you Chloe, your friendship with Lana was literally the only thing going for you as a character and you seem determined to ruin that every time you open your fucking mouth

Holy shit, was Clark Lana’s one night stand? Is she just going to ghost him now she got some D? Because honestly, that’s the correct decision in this situation.

Every time I thin Jonathan Kent couldn’t get any worse, he finds new and exciting way to be a bastard. Just because you’re standing in for Lex’s dad at his wedding doesn’t mean you have to turn into a depressingly straight discount Lionel Luthor! And if I wasn’t already team angry-cupboard-sex-doctor I would be now because she’s the only one in this fucking show who’s prepared to call Jonathan on his bullshit!

Lex is trying to find fun bonding activities to do with Clark, but obviously Clark is going to blow him off for angsting about Lana, because Lex can’t have nice things

He’s the absolute worst, but honestly Lionel is the best thing about this damn show. He’s the only one in Smallville having any fun.

Holy shit cows! They have cows! Okay, they have a cow and a chicken, but animals! Animals who eat animal feed! I’ve been waiting nearly 2 season for this pay off and it’s honestly more narratively satisfying than any of the actual plot in this show.

“I know what we have to do. We have to kill… Clark Kent.” Ahhhhh, I see what you did there writers.

Oh good Chloe’s here. Yay.

“Hey I was wondering whether you want to blow off your best friend’s wedding and spending time with your girlfriend to help me write a story on how a man who was isn’t a coma isn’t in a coma now.” Yeah Chloe that sounds thrilling, lets do your thing. Definitely better than going to Lex’s wedding rehearsal.

Okay on the one hand I like that the costume designers have gone to the trouble of giving Clark a really horrible ill fitting suit. On the other hand I so sad for Lex that he didn’t get to indulge in his canonical favourite hobby of dressing Clark up in expensive suits.

“What, you an known evil billionaire were helping a high schooler get a job at a national newspaper for ulterior motives? How could I ever have predicted that?!”

Oh my gods Clark, how are you making Lex’s literal actual wedding rehearsal all about you? Because that is a special level of dickery!

Wait, the doctor has the Kyptionian key McGuffin. The one hidden in the jar of flour in the Kent’s kitchen. Did he just go through every container in the house?! How fucking long was the rehearsal dinner?!

“We will do battle… with ancient Egyptian laser beams!” And I know no one except me is appreciating the YuGiOh Abridged references in this review, but seriously, the linguist archaeologist man (who as established in previous reviews is terrible and his death may actually marginally improve the fields of both linguistics and archaeology) is just fucking shooting laser beams at Clark, and Clark is using his heat vision on him, and we’re somehow supposed to take this seriously

Aaaand Clark just killed a man. I’d make a joke about how unheroic that is, but he literally committed his first murder in episode two of this show so at this point I think we’re all expecting it.

Okay, I get how to a normal person Lex keeping copies of Martha Kent’s medical records would be creepy and off putting, but angry cupboard sex doctor has been engaged to him for over half a season. How the fuck is Lex being weird and obsessive a surprise to her at this point!

Man, I hate to give the Smallville writers props for anything, but they’re actually doing a really good job with Lex’s slippery slop into becoming a man who would give himself cancer by wearing a Kryptonite ring. Which begs the question, how the fuck did the same people write everything else that’s happened in this damn show.

Ah early 2000s fashion, you were certainly… a thing.

I know they’re trying to string out a one season love story into 10 fucking seasons, but there is seriously no reason for Clark not to just fucking tell Lana about his superpowers.

Chloe: breaks into Clark’s house and spies on him making out with Lana. Also Chloe: Oh my god why would Clark force me to watch this when he knows it would upset me? Fuck you Chloe, you are 10 gallons of asshole in a 2 gallon jug and I hope you drown

#smallville #smallville recaps #charlie watches a thing #the only thing that gets me through chloes scenes is remember how hideous her prom dress was

[ecmlol]

Jude grabs his backpack and gets up

Patty leads the way.

“ she sleeps like a brick .”patty says and points to Justice In Jude’s arm

“ I hope that Jaxy orJax Jax is a good sleeper too”jude says

“ jaxy? Jax Jax? Please tell me it’s a nickname.”

“ it is noah and I haven’t officially named her but he is out votes so far.”

“ oh what’s would her name be?Jackie’s ?”

“ no  Jacqueline with a x not a c”

“ oh that’s different “

“ that it is I really like it”

Jude walks his mother and sister back to her ride. Lucky for jude she was dropped off by German. German is waiting in a near by parking spot.

“ I almost forgot.” Patty take a Small box from her pocket .

“ here you go.please remember to open it alone baby”

“Sure I’ll see you later” jude hands his mother a sleeping justice and watches them walk away.He makes sure they are in the car before walking back to the icu.

As Jude walks he thinks about his plan. He hated doing this but it is time to call Oscar. As well as Jude knows noah he wasnt sure what his mindframe is going to be when he wakes up either way he has to be prepared for anything.

As he walks jude texts his dad. A few minutes later his phone rings.The conversation was quick. Oscar agreed to help and Jude thanks him. Yeap my first born son will definitely be named oscar after this. Jude thinks to himself.

Jude makes his way quickly to Noah’s room where marshal is sitting on one side of the bed . The other side has a pillow and a blanket waiting for Jude in a chair.

“ thank you?”

“ your welcome you are juggling a lot right now and I’ll be as helpful as I can to you “

“ thank you.. any change?” Jude ask as he sits his back pack down and gets comfortable.

“ no unfortunately “

Jude takes Noah’s hand in his and holds it.jude is grateful that Marshal is allowing him to be on the side without the broken wrist.jude kiss noahs hand and relaxes in his chair.The sound of the machines are like white noise and Jude falls asleep quickly. A few hours later jude is woken up by Noah fighting the ventilator.

Marshal is up and out of the room getting a nurse. Noah is clutching To Jude’s hand.His eyes are looking wild.

“I’m here.”

Jude has to step away from the bed so the nurse can help noah.

Marshal and Jude stand near the door to watch the nurse work.

A few minutes later the nurse leaves.

“ can I talk to noah for five minutes alone. Please. I promise I’ll be quick as I can”Jude ask

“ of course. Noah I’ll be back.”marshal tells a noah who is work his mouth like it was sore.

“ hey” Jude says as he walks over to the head of the bed.

“ I feel like I was hit by a truck in the middle of a orgy with a elephant.” He has his sense of humor so that’s good.

“ well lovebug you were hit by a Porsche.”

“ lovebug? Really ?”

“ yeah sorry I finally got inspiration “

Noah laugh

“ oh that hurts don’t make me laugh. I’m having a hard enough time breathing ”noah says

“ I know you have a lot of broken bones. Everything has to hurt. I’m sure you want to go back to sleep but we need a plan on how to deal with zero.

For the next 5 minutes jude and Noah hashedout a plan. After 5 minutes marshel knocks and Jude has to ask for a nother twenty minutes. This time when the time is over Marshal walks in.

“ is everything all right?”marshal ask

Noah doesn’t say anything and jude nods and goes back to his chair and falls sleep.

The next morning jude gets up and calls a Uber to take him to the arena to get his car after he checks on the baby.His drive home seems like it is taking forever . As Jude drives he is thinking about the personal sacrifices that He and noah are making because to the  decision they made this morning. He isn’t happy with the options he gave noah to choice from.

Jude sighs and pulls into his driveway a few minutes later .The house looks quite from the outside jude thinks before getting out of the car.Jude decides to go in through the gym. He figures he can avoid all of his family this way.Jude has the door open and he wishes he went in from the front way.

On the treadmill Chester is jogging he looks up and nods.of course he would start his day in the gym like father like son.

“Good morning “chester says as he slows to a walk

“ morning “

“ I got a text this morning that he’s awake. How is he”

“ in a lot of pain”

“ ah . I hope you don’t mine I put together her crib last night”

Jude stops.

“ thank you that’s a big help. Is my mother and sister up?”

“ yes I think they are getting dressed.”

“ thanks for letting them in.”

“ not a problem. ”

Jude heads to the door.

“ you ok?”

“ I guess”

“ do you mind if I work on the nursery while I’m here.”

“ thank you that is thoughtful of you.”jude said before walking out.

Jude heads straight to the master bedroom to take a shower.

Jude makes quick work in the bathroom. He heads to his closest to pick out his best suit. He wanted to look sharp he had to make a lasted impression on zero.

20 minutes later

Jude walks out with his hair slicked back wearing a dark grey suit.W.W.O.W.W.B . What would Oscar wear went blackmailing. Jude heads for the kitchen for a cup of coffee to go. Jude is greeted to his mom making breakfast.

“ morning”

“ hi baby I hope your hunger?” Patty says with her back to him

“ I can’t stay I have a meeting”jude says as he fixes his coffee.

Patty turns

“ good god jude you look like your father.”

“ good that’s what I’m aiming for .”

Justice waves because she’s too busy eating to talk.

Jude waves back and kisses her forehead before stealing her bacon

“ mom! Jude stole my bacon”

“ welcome to having a big brother babygirl” patty says before wrapping a bunch of bacon in a paper towel and handing it to jude.

“ you all right baby?”

Jude shrugs

“ thanks for the bacon and have a safe trip home”

Patty takes her apron of and hugs and kisses jude.

“ I’m sorry I couldn’t stay longer.”

“ it’s ok”

Jude kisses justice on the way out.

“ bye jude!”justice says

“Bye sis” jude says as he walks out the kitchen.

Chester passes jude on his way out.

“Duty calls huh”

“ yeah I have some important business to take care. I’ll be back at the hospital afterwards.”

“ I’ll see you there” Chester says.

Jude nods .

At the arena zero is sitting patently for jude to arrive.

Downstairs

Lionel is waiting for jude to arrive.

Jude pulls up next to lionel.

Jude gets out and meets Lionel at the dock.

“ I would have thought you would have been at the hospital . Wait are you really going through with this.”

“ I will be shortly. And yes I’m”

“ where’s your little assistance?”lionel says

“It’s her day off.” Jude says Is lionel jealous? Jude thinks to himself.

Lionel and Jude are walking into the arena. Jude is fiddling with his phone.

“ are you all right?”

They board the elevator.

“ I’m good I just need you to hang tight for about 20 minutes in the hall way.

“ what why?”

“ because my brothers is in the building .”

“ Ah I see” Lionel says

The walk to the devil’s playground in quite.Lionel knows jude doesn’t want to talk about anything. She can tell by the look on his face.

They get to the devil’s playground and Lionel has a seat out side.

Jude takes a deep breath before straightening his jacket and walking In. Jude thought is ironic that Halsey’s you should be sad starts playing as he walks in to confront zero. With the birth of his daughter fresh in his mind the song hits him in the gutt.

Zero is siting patiently at the bar with a glass in his hand.

“ about time you got here.”

Jude takes a seat.

“ why did you do it?”

“ what?”

“ why did you hit my husband with a car”

“ you cant be serious right now. You act like you didn’t call me up ten minutes later telling me you couldn’t leave him because you didn’t have a prenup. I was desperate and really pissed at the guys so I hit.”

“ do you seriously think I would ever want you to kill someone?”

“ well last time you thought it was sorta ok when you thought I shot someone”

“ well I was young and dumb. It’s sad that I thought you knew me better .This whole time you got played. I have a twin brother that has been pulling the strings and you fell for it. Hey dad “jude says loudly “can you bring him out.”

“ I thought I wasn’t the only one here

A minute later oscar brings Brandon out.

Zero looks at Brandon and then Jude then back again.

“ what the hell”

Oscar walks closer and hands jude a piece of paper then walks back to Brandon. Brandon is standing quitely at the kitchen door way.

“ I’m so sorry jude” Brandon say upbruptly.

Jude didn’t know what to say to that.

He takes out his iPad and sets it up.

“ my husband has a few demands for his silence. And by the way I record your confession.”

Zero is in shock so he just nods.

Jude plays the video he made with Noah earlier this morning.

Flashback

“But first we became dads last night..”

“ what?”

“Jamie went into labor and had the baby.”

“ seriously but she’s too early did she survive?

“ yes she’s early but not as early as you thinks.”

“What do you mean”

Jude shows him the video.

“ so any ideas how she has your feet?”

“ no.. should I?”

“ ok I figured I asked seeing nothing is adding up. I think she got pregnant using one of your used condoms you like to throw away in the trash.”

“ you really think she did that ? Really? Why can’t you just ask her.”

“ she died last night “

“ I can’t believe it a lot has happen sense last night.i feel like I have been out of it for months”

“ yeah a lot has happened. So she needs a name but you are way out numbered your dads agree with me that naming her after your mother is a great idea.”

“ of course they did.”

“Why not you never said anything bad about her”

“ she was a great mom. I guess I never really dealt with her death.”

“ oh well maybe now is a good time to do it “

Noah sighs

“ not like I’m going any where anytime soon.

There’s a knock in the door

Marshal comes in.

“ can we get a nother 5 more minutes please.”

“ of course”marshal quickly walks back out.

“We need to talk about zero”

“ yeah we do “ noah says in a horse voice.

“ we only have two options Noah. We can turn him in to the police and loss the devils. We can sell the house and move to Florida. Like we planned on anyway. We can be in the same time zone as the rest of our family.You can get a job with another arena . I’m sure lionel cans find a spot and I can be a agent again and be a stay at home dad. We can do family vacation on the weekend with my mom and her family. She can teach me to cook even more then now.

“You sounds like you would be ok with this.”

“ I’m ok with it”jude says as he thinks about all the drama he wouldn’t have to deal with. No more pax issues. They can raise there daughter in a normal old fashion way.

“Ok what’s the the next option.”

Jude hates this option for personal reason.

“ from your injuries I’m pretty sure they can figure out you saw the driver. The lighting is good at the arena so there is no reason not to be able to spot the driver. This was personal it wasnt like you were crossing the street and someone just hit you.”

“ ok. I’m not seeing where you are going with this”

“you say you don’t remember anything from the pass year. We blackmail zero for what ever you want and We keep the devils”

“ what about us and our baby”

“ It just means I have to woo you back.youll play hard to get .It will be hard at first.Ill miss you but we have to make this believable.

There’s a knock on the door.

Marshal pokes his head in.

“ can we get 20 more minutes please” jude says

Marshal disappeared before saying anything.

“ so what do you want to do?”jude says

End flash back.

Noah’s bruised face comes on the screen and zero cringes.

Good.Look at him and see what you did to him. Jude thinks to himself.

“ Jude says I look pretty rough I hope you don’t forget my face looking like this. I want you out La and when you have to come to la you have to inform me. You can’t move with in a 100 miles of la.i want all medical bills paid for.That means rehabilitation too plus I want a 1 million for the rest of your life. “

“ ah blackmail I can handle this. I’m to pretty to go to jail.”zero says

Jude at the moment wants to punch zero in his “pretty”little face.

Jude slides the account number over to zero.

“Lastly the debt between you and jude is done and over you have no claim over anything between the two of you. That means the devils and everything else”

Jude closes his iPad after the last demand.

“ you know what you are the biggest mistake of my life. Noah saved you from going to jail. You’re lucky it wasn’t up to me, I wanted to see you be someone bitch. I made peace with losing the devils. I was ready to move my family to Florida to be a agent and a stay at home dad.” Jude gets up.

“ I know you jude you wouldn’t be happy being a agent again . You just can’t go from being king of la to a no body.”

“ a no body? Really unlike you I know who I am I’m Jude kinkade Medeiros and I’m Noah’s husband Oscar Kinkade’s son ,Justice’s big brother and Jaxueline Kinkade Medeiros’s father. I will always have that! What do you have. Huh? Who do you have?” Jude say before turning to leave.

Jude turns back to a arrogant and angry zero.

“ I can’t wrap my head around the fact that you think you know me. Are you kidding me you slept with my brother then bragged about sleeping with me to my husband!we my be identical but do we screw the same?You don’t know me if you did he would have gunned for you and not noah. Even Lionel can tell us apart. You know what your pathetic you wanted nothing to do with me but you see me happy and you came charging back into my live. Oh by the way I have a prenup I didn’t want it but my father made Noah sign it and guess what he had no problem signing it because he wants me not wait I have or what I can do for him”

Zero shrugs.

“ guilty as charged.”

“Leave me and my family alone unless you want to keep screwing my brother. Then go for it.You two deserve each other . You Two are the most screwed up people I know I hope you like a mental case”

“ mental case”

“ he has split personals” jude reaches the door and keeps walking .Jude leaves all the negativity and his past with zero behind.

He actual feels great like a large boulder been lifted from his shoulder.

Jude almost walks pass Lionel like he forgot she was there

“ Jude? What’s our password “Lionel asked seeing jude just walked out of the room a completely different person.

Jude stops and turns. Jude mustards up a smile.

“ on the rocks”

“ ok I had to check you walked out like someone just gave you a million dollars”

Without a beat.

“ wow YOU really do know me”

“ of course you’re my guy”

“ well let’s go see my little tough cookie and your goddaughter.”

“Goddaughter?”

“ of course your my hag who else would I give the title to.”

At the hospital Noah has been quite all day. Both of his dads have been watching him closely for the pass hour. Noah hates having to revert back to being mad at Chester. Noah figures that a year is the time line he would go back . Right before gettting the job and before meeting jude. The police just left. Noah sticks to his story and same timeline with them as with everything thing else.

“ Nono is there anything I can do.” Marshal ask from the doorway

“ why is he here”

“Noah we explained to you all ready”

“ why didn’t you tell me before.”

“What we do is none of your business Noah “Chester says

“ I shouldn’t had to have seen that.”

“ no you didn’t and I’m sorry you found out that way”marshal says

“ why are you apologizing for? We did nothing wrong marshal”

“Chester you have to understand that no matter how old our children are they are still our children. Sometimes the the badge aid doesn’t need to be ripped off.” Marshal says while cupping Chester face.

Chester stares down at the floor.

“ we should have been honest with them when they were young.”chester says

“ why didn’t you”noah say

“ I was out voted by your mother and your father”chester pulls away from marshal.

“ is that true” noah asked

“ tell him marshal “Chester demands

“ it is. Your mother and I thought it would be best for the two of you. It was going to be hard enough to trying to explain why chester has always lived with us. We where sure rumors would start at some point”

“ that’s why I went back into the service after your sister was born” chester say

“ your sisters arrival was a wake up call.”

“How so?”

“ your mother was a racial mutt and with your father’s background how did they end up with a blond daughter?” Chester say while rubbing his white and blonde goatee.

“ I’m sure it happens” noah said

“ well we didnt chance it so I left for four year.”

“ we took turns visiting for two years until we couldn’t handle living without him so we moved to Virginia and once he was done we moved back. You were too little to remember this . You missed your pop so much and so did we”marshal say.

“ so it’s your fault dad “noah says

“If you want to blame anyone then yes it my fault “marschal says

“ Nono it’s the past the damage is done my boy.”chester says

Marschal walks over to Chester and puts his arm around him.

“I’m sorry I got mad at you “ chester whisper before kissing mashal cheek.

“ I’m sorry for making you hide from our children for so many years “

Marshal gives him a look and Chester sighs

“ an I’m sorry you found out the way you did. We were upset and I was over hiding who I was for other people. I never had a chance to openly love your mother like I wanted. Not winning that coin toss is the biggest regret of my life.” Chester says

“ that must have been hard for you .”

“ very” Chester says as he walks closer towards Noah .

“ your pop gave up a lot to stay apart of his own family.” Marshal says

“ I did it because I was and still am crazy about being your dad.” Chester says

“ I’m glad you got to hold our grand baby first.”marshal say

“ I can’t believe I have a kid and a husband”noah says.

“Yeah and that husband of yours let me pick what name the baby is going to call me too

“ he did?”noah asked

“ yes he did” chester says proudly

“So what did you pick?”Marshal ask

“ I’m grandpa no back seat with our grandbabies”

“ I’m happy for you “ marshal gives Chester a hug.”

There’s a knock on the door.chester and marschal look over at the door.

“ who is it.”noah ask

“ dr overly needs to run a few test.”

“ oh alright I guess I’ll see you guys later” noah says as he is wheeled out of his room.



[nicklangfordmuse]

‘ you could stay here. with me. ’

High school is a tough jungle, whether you’re popular or not. When you thought you’d only get into a fight with friends because of social hierarchy, this was the least expected reason for Nick. He’s never really been the smartest guy in class and he admitted that. But there’d be times that he feels like he can do it, and so he gives it a try. Debate. Just a class debate caused him to get kicked out of the lunch table.

“What the hell, guys? It’s just a debate. C minus isn’t gonna kill your chances from graduating high school.” Nick said, laughing as he was he really confused. “We got the lowest grade in class. It’s definitely gonna hurt our grades for the entire year.” Wesley said and Nick rolled his eyes as he’s never really been one to care about his grades. “We can just ask for...special project. Or whatever. It’s just one class.” He tried to reason but the entire table was already ignoring him. Nick was starting to get pissed so he had to call out the person he’s closest to. “Claire? Seriously?” He asked and Claire flared at him. “I could’ve been fine with a B. You should’ve just kept your mouth shut, Nick.” She said and Nick wasn’t in the mood to convince them anymore. And so, he left the table. Looking around, he tried to find a seat but he couldn’t find anywhere to fit in. Going around, he stopped at the table that had less people and saw a familiar face.

“Hey.” He said, grinning awkwardly as he was holding onto his tray of sandwich and Gatorade.

The girl smiled at him awkwardly, giggling like a Disney princess. “Hey.” She said, putting her pen down as she was writing something. Nick looked down but tried to respect her privacy when he saw that it was a journal. He looked away and cleared his throat, not sure where this was heading.

“You look...lost. Are you...okay?” She suddenly asked and Nick had to chuckle. “I...I guess. I don’t know where to stay. My friends are being total assholes.” He admitted, shaking his head. “If they’re acting like assholes, then I guess friends isn’t the right term for them.” She said, pushing her tray to the side as she moved as well. “You could...stay here. With me.” She added and Nick grinned at her, putting his tray down. “Uhm...yeah. Thanks, Katrina. Just...don’t mind me. I’m gonna eat my butt hurt and...you can continue with what you’re doing.” He said, opening his sandwich as he started eating. She continued writing on her journal while eating her perfectly cut strawberries in half.

Nick munched on his sandwich, letting his anger out in every bite. Unintentionally, he was making a mess, bread crumbs falling as the sauce was dripping. Not only that but the pieces of bacon and shredded cabbage were falling on the table. Turning to his side, he saw Katrina looking at him in disbelief. Realizing that his eating was disturbing, Nick started laughing. Surprisingly, Katrina just laughed along.

“I’m...I’m sorry. I promise. I don’t eat like this all the time. Just...when I’m stress eating. And...I mean, this sandwich isn’t even stacked well. Like...the lunch lady was too lazy to even align it well, you know.” Nick tried to explain and Katrina just kept giggling at him. He grinned at her and laughed too. “Why are you laughing? What’s so funny?” He asked curiously and Katrina shook her head. “It’s just funny how you’re blaming the lunch lady for misaligning your sandwich. You could easily just eat the sandwich gently.” She explained and Nick laughed, putting his sandwich down. “I’m stress eating. I told you.” He said, taking a sip of his Gatorade to wash all the sandwich in his mouth.

Katrina looked at him, curious as to what’s going on in that head of his. Why didn’t he have a table to sit in when he usually sat with Claire and the others? “What are you so stressed about?” She asked and Nick swallowed first before answering her. “My asshole frie—“ He paused, remembering what Katrina said earlier. “Just...ex-friends who rejected me because I lost the debate for our team.” He explained, eating his sandwich carefully this time, putting it down after to clean the rest of his dirt from earlier. “I’m not that smart, you know that. We have a class together, right? But...I just thought I’d share some effort so that I would feel like I deserve the grade they’re giving my team. And so...I volunteered to battle in the final debate and...well, not surprisingly, I lost. I lost hard. I just thought I understood my team’s stand but I ended up siding with the other team so...C minus. And...I’m out of the lunch table.” He explained more, taking another sip of his drink. Turning to her, Nick saw that Katrina was listening. Like, she was ACTUALLY listening to him and it felt weird. His thoughts were that important?

“Anyway. I don’t want to think about that. They’re just a bunch of babies.” He said, putting his sandwich down before turning to her again. “What are you writing there?” He asked curiously but Katrina subtly closed her notebook. “Just...a daily journal. I like to keep notes on a lot of things and...that includes my mind, productivity, the day’s weather, song of the day...” She tried to explain but Nick quickly cut her off, finding something interesting. “What’s your song of the day?” He asked and Katrina pressed her lips together. Opening her notebook, she stared at it before letting out a sigh and closing it again. “Sadly, I don’t have anything yet. I guess...it’ll just have to wait till I get home.” She said, eating more of her strawberries. “You got a car?” He asked and she shook her head. “I’m taking the test next week. My dad said I still need practice, especially with parking.” Nick finished his sandwich and drank his gatorade as he nodded at her. “Alright. You can ride with me. I’m using my mom’s car. She works closer to home, anyway.” He shared, putting his phone down near her. “Put your number in. I’ll call you after my last class.” He added and Katrina was completely surprised. This was all happening so fast and she couldn’t believe this was all actually happening. She awkwardly held the phone and started typing her number. It felt weird to be holding his phone when she’s only seen him use it a lot. Once she was done, she gave it back to him and Nick saved her number.

Seeing the time on his phone, he remembered something. “Okay. I’m sorry to be leaving so soon but...I have to go. I still haven’t done my chemistry homework and I’m sure those guys won’t let me copy anymore.” He explained, getting up as Katrina nodded at him. “I’ll call you later. Thanks again!” He said, jogging away from the table and Katrina just looked at him with an awkward but satisfied smile. Nick will drive her home later.

Last period came and Katrina didn’t really put her hopes up. What if Nick forgot and she was just waiting for nothing? She walked out of the classroom with Polly and her best friend spoke about the neighbor she has that always mows the lawn shirtless. Katrina was so distracted, slowing her walk down as she didn’t want to get close to the door to get out of school. Just before they got there, her phone rang. She stopped, feeling her heart race. “Who’s that?” Polly questioned and Katrina couldn’t control the grin and blush on her face. “It’s Nick.” She said under her breath and Polly was so surprised. “Nick? Langford? Your crush?” She asked, chuckling as her best friend was just blushing hard. “Why is he calling you?” Katrina stared at her phone, feeling her heart race more. “He...Uhm...offered for drive me home. I don’t know. We just...shared a table earlier so...” she explained but the feeling is so much more than that. “Well, what are you waiting for? Answer the phone!” Polly said excitedly for her best friend. But before she could, the girls were interrupted by a voice.

“Yeah, Katrina. Answer the phone. Why you keeping me on hold?” Nick asked playfully before chuckling at the girl. She turned to him, trying to control her blush. “Uhm...I just...I thought you forgot.” She admitted as Nick ended the call and showed his screen to her. “Nope. Got it on alarm.” He said, smiling before realizing she was with someone. “Oh, Uhm...are you...riding with someone else?” He asked curiously but Polly answered for her. “No, no, no. She’s...free for the day. She can ride with you.” Polly said, pushing her best friend closer to Nick. “Anyway, I gotta go...meet my hottie neighbor.” She used as an excuse, signalling for Katrina to call her after.

“Ready?” Nick asked and Katrina nodded at him as they walked out together to where his car is. It was a simple sedan but she’s not gonna complain at all. Getting in the car, Nick fastened his seatbelt before pulling his phone out. “You gotta give me directions. I’ve never been to your house.” He said jokingly with a laugh. Connecting his phone to the cord as he tried to look for something. Katrina was curious but when a song started playing, her heart raced. She could feel the shivers running down every bone in her body.

“Lionel Richie, Easy. My mom says whenever she listens to this song, it reminds her of my dad. And the best way to listen to this is in your car, windows down with the good weather and just enjoying the drive.” He said as it started playing and Nick opened the windows. He started driving and letting Katrina guide him through the roads.

She couldn’t explain it. Right now, she’s inside of Nick’s car, seeing the real him, not the guy the school knows but the guy who grew up with a single mother. Thankfully, she didn’t have ballet training today or else, she wouldn’t have experienced the best afternoon of her life. Watching and listening to Nick sing the song quietly, she could feel her heart curling into a ball more and more for him. This is definitely a crush thats gonna be hard to get over.

Once they got to her house, Nick turned the sounds off and looked at her. “How’s that for song of the day?” He asked and Katrina pressed her lips together and nodded. “It’s perfect. Thank you.” She said sincerely and Nick gave her a bow playfully. “Thanks for letting me sit with you. And...making my day better. I knew I needed a reason to listen to that song again.” He said and Katrina smiled at her before remembering her parents. She couldn’t be spotted out like this with a guy her parents barely know. “I...I gotta go. I’ll see you tomorrow.” She said and Nick nodded, giving her a wave and watching as she got inside her house before driving away.

#verse: baby daddy #back when they were in high school

[mareebrittenford]

The Extra Fakes- Shadow Mirrors

tHey everyone! I was thrilled with the response I got from posting the first part of this chapter so here is the rest. And the introduction to the other 2 members of the Extra Fakes crew, David and Georgia. No powers yet, just hints about them. But be patient.

As always I appreciate any support for my writing, so please check out my novels #1, #2, patreon and ko-fi!

Also here’s a link to the first part in case you missed it

"I've got a new prospect," Lionel tells me.

"Yeah?" I don't care much, but Lionel is always on the lookout for track team talent. Our mediocre team’s indifferent performance at meets is a constant source of shame to him, as if he's personally responsible for every single non ranked finish that the team produces.

We're standing out the front of the main building waiting for everyone to change and straggle out here for the afternoon run. We’ve only been back at school for two days, and it’s killer hot. Summer is hanging in the air like it's never going to end and the low water landscaping in front of the school, with all the beds of pebbles, sand and succulents isn’t doing much besides reflecting the heat back at us. So half of us get to stand here baking while the slackers take their sweet time.

I would prefer to run before school, you know, when it’s cool? But you can guess what kind of reaction that got.

Lionel points out a boy, easily noticed, dressed as he is in his gym uniform rather than the team tee-shirts and running shorts that everyone else is mostly sporting. He's standing off to the side, watching us from under the shadow of a grey ballcap. He's vaguely familiar. I'm pretty sure he's in some of my classes, but I can't remember ever talking to him. He's not much to look at. Small skinny white guy, that cap pulled down to hide his face. But good runners are often small and skinny. Take me for example.

"That guy? In the gym uniform?" I ask, although it’s obviously who Lionel means.

"Yeah. I don't know how I've never noticed him before. But I saw him today in gym class, and he's got something. He’s smooth and fast."

I rack my brain, I can't recall seeing that guy ever participating in sports.

"Maybe he started running over the summer break?"

"Maybe." Lionel sounds dubious. "He's got some grace for a newbie. Anyway, can you take care of him for me? I don't want to crowd him."

Well now I am curious. How good is he? And what has he been doing for the last couple of years that Lionel didn't notice him before? Lionel may not have much in the way of interpersonal skills, but he notices everything, especially when it comes to things he feels responsible for. I know that boy has been going to school here. I remember him, even if I don't remember his name.

And mostly, why is Lionel worried about crowding him? He's usually the high pressure sell, rattling away in prospects ears about  how good a sport looks on college applications and the lower pressure environment of our sport is with it's scope for individual achievements rather than the team teams. Lionel is from a huge family and has no understanding of the meaning of subtlety and personal space.

For him to hand this boy off to me he must be really worried about making a good impression. Or the kid is majorly weird. Yay for Lionel deciding to let me handle the weird ones.

When Lionel leads off down the street I make sure to fall into step with new guy, although honestly I feel like he's matching his gait to mine rather than the other way around.

I wait for him to speak, but he remains silent. Lionel is right, his gait is smooth and easy, his footfalls are quiet even. The bill of his cap bobbing along in my peripheral vision is the loudest thing about him. It's actually pretty nice. I don't like to have my ear talked off on a run, and since I seldom get the chance to run with Lionel once school is in session I usually don't get what I want.

But after a while I notice the people in the main pack glancing back at us. Particularly Brad. The ass. Lionel is pushing harder today making the pack fight to stay with him and Brad is starting to turn that telltale shade of red. It's not a problem for the new guy. He's making no effort to catch the lead pack, but he's keeping the distance between us and them steady.

Brad shoots us another nasty glare as he gives up the fight and we pass him.

"Don't mind them" I say.

The guy makes a noncommittal noise. "Nothing wrong with pushing yourself a bit."

"True. Maybe having someone new around will be good. Some of them could stand to push themselves a bit."

"I don't intend to be any threat to anyone."

Now that's an odd thing to say. Or perhaps not. Perhaps he's the kind of person who doesn't like to make any waves.

"I don’t think we’ve ever talked before. I'm Carlyse."

"David."

Ah, that's it. I can place him now. David Smith. A bland name for a bland boy. And definitely not an athlete.

"Aren't you in chess club? I seem to remember..."

"Last year. That was last year."

He says it so firmly. It makes it sound like something heavy went down in Chess Club. I stifle a giggle, imagining those serious studious kids flipping boards and throwing down. It could happen I guess.

"It's nothing dramatic, I just couldn't handle it anymore."

"Was it too competitive? Because I can tell you right now that Lionel is not going to be okay with you not competing seriously."

He sighs. "You're kinda in charge here?"

"Lionel is in charge. He's Team Captain." I thought he knew that.

"I know, but the two of you, you work together, right? You might not have a captain tee-shirt, but you're a basically co-leader, right?"

I don't view myself like that but okay, I do work with Lionel a lot on team stuff. "Sure, I guess."

"Ok. Well, you probably should know then, just in case I do something-- weird. I've had some stuff happen in my life, and I have some-- anxiety issues. I get stressed, I panic sometimes. I tried, but I can't handle chess or gaming or pretty much anything that's closed quarters and intense competition." "Chess is intense competition?" That's probably not the right response to someone who's spilling some pretty personal information, but he snorts.

"You have no idea."

I think for a moment. I'm curious about exactly what this stuff that happened was, but on the other hand, what if it's something awful? Do I really want to involve myself? If he's as messed up as he’s saying I'm guessing it was something bad. I don’t want to know details.

"I guess you already told Lionel this."

"No."

Then why did he hand him off to me? And tell me that he didn't want to come on too strong?  

"Coach then?"

"No. Lionel just cornered me in the locker room and asked me to check it out so I showed up to take a run. I haven't talked to anyone."

Lionel cornered him. That sounds like Lionel. Probably while he was half naked. It would never occur to Lionel that a stranger getting in your space when you're on the way to the shower would be stressful. And he managed to do it to a kid who’s been attacked or traumatized somehow. Lionel must have freaked him out. And even Lionel is smart enough to realize when he's scared someone.

But still, David had shown up for the run instead of running in the other direction.

"You seem okay right now," I say cautiously.

"I am. Mostly. It's just certain situations that I have problems with. Running is good. I'm outside, it's stupid, I know, but I feel like if I get scared I can just run away. And I don't think any of you could catch me."

"Oh, so you're gonna be like that are you?"

"Just telling the truth." But I can see him grinning, and before I really think I give him a bump with my shoulder, just like I'd do with anyone on the team when we joke around. But-

"Am I bothering you? Should I have not done that?" The sidewalk is fairly narrow, so I'm still in close proximity.

"Nope. You're good. You're the easiest sort of person to be around. You don't want anything from me and you're not threatened by me. It's nice. Relaxing."

I don't think a guy has ever complimented me on being easy to be around before, but he doesn't seem like he's flirting. Despite the heavy topic this feels like a really laid back conversation. Like he said, it's nice to be around someone who doesn't want anything from you.

Lionel drops back from the front group, and falls in on the other side of David. I can feel a change in David immediately. The smooth ground eating gait changes to something more choppy and rigid. I slow slightly, just enough to fall behind the two of them. What he said makes me think he likes having an open escape route.Lionel says a few words, slaps David on the shoulder and drops back some more to the group behind us.

"So," I say, coming back up beside David. "Don’t let Lionel bother you. He's intense but he's okay." Although I have to admit to myself that he can't exactly be described as mellow or easygoing. And he definitely wants something.

"I know. He's just assertive.” He shakes his head. “I know that,” he repeats, almost as if he’s trying to convince himself. “Thanks for giving me space. It probably wouldn't be good for my chances if I freaked out and took off."

"Oh I don't know. He's pretty excited about you. I think he'd overlook most things if you're as fast as you think you are."

I see that grin, that flash of teeth again.

"Good to know."

#

We finish the run back in front of the school. I’m sweating like pig. The combination of the heat and the pace. Particularly keeping up with David. He seems to be moving as easily as he was at the start. He sweating, but he hasn’t even turned the bright red that I’m used to seeing from the white kids.

"How many miles do you normally run a week?" I ask him. This is important fact finding for Lionel. Nothing to do with me feeling slightly resentful that he's so unbothered by the run.

"I dunno. I usually run an hour or so in the morning before school, and then again at night if I get the chance. I don't usually do afternoons. Too hot."

"My thoughts exactly."

"Maybe you'd like to take a run later tonight then?" He's taken the cap off and I can see his face clearly for the first time. His face is average, forgettable. The normal features in the normal places, a lean pale face with earnest eyes. Yet something about the way he's looking at me sends fear skittering down my spine. His eyes. His eyes aren’t forgettable. I feel chilled, despite the heat and the sweat pouring off me.

"Perhaps another time. Keeping up with you today was hard work. I’m done running for the day."

"Tomorrow morning? Or maybe on the weekend?" he persists, not breaking eye contact.

I take a step back.

"No, sorry. I’ve got a busy schedule."

And he flinches. I don't know what else you'd call it. It's like he twitches all over, maybe startles is a better word. Then he hunches his shoulders and pulls the cap down over his face again.

"Okay. Sorry. I gotta go," and he slips between a couple of other people and disappears. I frown, trying to spot him, and then I finally see him over the other side of the parking lot talking to Lionel. How did he get over there so fast? And why do I feel so unsettled?

#

Georgia, my best friend, is waiting for me after I shower. She's not much for organized sports, but she's here after school because she's involved with the school newspaper, she writes lots of quirky articles about random topics.

"So, what's up in the exciting world of journalism?" I ask as I join her.

"Oh so many thrills. I have to come up with something about local architecture by next week. What should I talk about? Creepy Victorians? Or tract houses? Or maybe I should do an expose on heritage listings."

I laugh. "Hey, how about a house that's sometimes invisible?"

She raises her eyebrows. "I'm supposed to be writing about local history, not fiction."

"Trust me. This place is real."

She's amused, and jokes with me all the way to the elementary school where I have to go pick up my little sister from her after school program.

Of course I've pointed out the fairy house to Georgia, and unlike Lionel she was actually interested, but she’s been away staying with her grandparents most of the summer. So she’s missed out on what Lionel has started to call my obsession. If it’s only visible to certain people though she’s definitely on the list.

I roll my eyes at my own ridiculousness and wave to my sister. She bounces out the gate and hugs me, and the supervisor gives me a nod. He sees me here every day. Melody's only five, and I pick her up every day and watch her until my parents get home. I don't mind. She's a sweet kid, and it's usually only for an hour or so. Usually she watches tv and I do homework.

But I’ve missed Georgia, and homework can wait.

"Want to hit Goodwill?" I ask.

It's one of our favorite things to do together. Thrifting clothes. The Goodwill in the strip mall on the corner isn't the best place to shop, there are so many more discerning places that have a consistently good selection, and other less discerning places that are cheaper. But Goodwill has the benefit of being in walking distance and cheap enough. Which suits us today.

Melody complains a bit, but I bribe her with some gatorade chews, probably not the best thing for a five year old to be eating, but I make her wash it down with some water. She probably spent half her afternoon playing on the playground, so maybe she needs the electrolytes as much as I do.

“Haven’t you missed your other big sister?” Georgia asks Melody. “You’re the only baby sister I have and I’d be really sad if you forgot me over the summer.”

Melody giggles.

Georgia always gets a kick out people thinking that they're the sisters, because they can both pass as white, with paler skin and lighter hair than me. It comes of Melody being my half sister. I haven't seen my father in years, and my mom remarried about eight years ago, to Melody's dad, Richard. He's white, and Melody looks a lot like him. I'm darker courtesy of the grab bag of ethnicities on both my mother and father's sides. My father always claimed that his family went all the way back to the mission period. But who knows. I don't really trust my memories of him anymore.

Stepping into the air-conditioned store is a relief after the heat outside. I showered, but I still feel heated and sweaty from the run. I take a few deep breaths. The air in Goodwill isn’t exactly fresh, it smells of dust and Febreeze, but it’s cool.

I look around, deciding where to start first.

I head toward the sweaters and jackets. In weather like this most people aren’t looking at that stuff, which means the pickings are much better. I like to sew, which opens up all sorts of opportunities for a devoted thrifter like me. I can alter clothes that are too large or don't fit right, and I love to find stuff with interesting designs and figure out how to copy them.

When my sister was a baby my mom was on this kick to make sure I didn't feel left out of the family or whatever, and she started doing mommy and me classes with me. I guess she was worried I'd be jealous of this squally baby that took over our house, whose dad actually stuck around. Honestly I didn't mind baby Melody so much. She was cute and seeing Richard doting on her, weird, I wasn't jealous. It made me happy. Like I knew for sure that he wasn't going to leave us. That's when I started calling him dad. It just seemed right, since that was what Melody got to call him.

But despite that my mom must have felt guilty or worried. All I know is that one of the things she signed up for was a mother daughter sewing class, and it was fun. Better than fun. It was amazing. It was like all the things suddenly made sense. Because once I understood the differences in fibers I understood why some clothes make me miserable and some make me happy.

It's the way it feels against my skin more than how it looks. Wool is especially my favorite. I don't get why other people say it feels scratchy. To me if feels like a hug.

At the sweater rack I start by running my fingers across the clothes, searching for that special touch of wool. Or angora, or cashmere. Silk is nice too. Pretty much any animal fiber is great. But wool from actual sheep tops everything.

Georgia has a different strategy. She comes to the same rack but immediately starting to flip through the green section. She loves green. And metallic, and shiny stuff. Where I sort by fabric, then design, then color, she's the opposite, willing to wear any scratchy sweaty synthetic if it has the right color and look. I don't know how she stands it. But, she does find more stuff than me usually. Which she loves. I swear she’s a hoarder.

She holds up a shiny green polyester top and laughs when I wince.

"So," I say.

"So?"

"There's this guy. I think he was sort of hitting on me?"

Georgia looks up in surprise. Guys hitting on me isn't a regular occurrence. Well, Georgia claims that it happens more than I think, that I just don't notice. I notice. But there's nuances that she never seems to get. Flirting is never just flirting. There's always more there. To an awful lot of people flirting is more about them than you. About their status, their attention. Their horniness. You’re just a prop. I’ve let Georgia coax me into going out with a few guys like that (Brad being one spectacular example) and it sucked. Now I know better. So it's not that I'm oblivious to that sort of thing, it's just not worth taking seriously. Georgia thinks I'm too picky. I'm not. Surely expecting that a guy hitting on me is actually into me as more than a girl shaped object, or a way to impress his friends isn’t being too picky. Right?

"What happened?" Georgia demands.

"I don't know. He seemed okay, kinda nice actually. But then he was a little too persistent, you know?"

"Who was it?"

"David Smith?"

She wrinkles her nose, thinking. "I don't know who that is?"

"Yeah, I didn't either. He's a white guy, not much taller than me, kinda skinny."

"Wow. Sounds like a catch."

I snort. “He’s not ugly, just kind of average. He's joining the track team I guess. Lionel has a captain crush on him. I ran with him today. He's a good runner. Graceful."

"So you ran with him, and you thought he was nice and graceful, but then you decided he was too persistent in asking you out? Sounds like you’re just being you.”

I roll my eyes at her. But she’s making me doubt myself. Maybe he wasn’t doing anything besides looking for someone to run with. I sigh. “I don’t know. He was just weird for a bit there. And he’s not cute or anything, although he's got these amazing eyes..." which I suddenly realize that I can't even remember the color of. How does that make sense? I was staring right at them.

Georgia smirks. "Yeah, I'd wait and see then. Maybe he just got excited and he’s not got much skills. Doesn’t mean he’s a jerk. Or maybe he's a jerk. Who knows? Maybe you will want to go out with him at some point. Don't stress until he's shown his true colors.”

Reasonable advice. Even though I know she’s thinking I’m being too shy or suspicious. I don’t think I am. But people I can’t figure out make me nervous. Perhaps he's perfectly normal. Perhaps just he’s lacking some social skills. And hey, I’m used to being around people like that. Maybe he was awkwardly trying to make friends and his anxiety issues made him seem weird. I can give him a chance.

And whatever else he was thinking, he sure he was focused on me as a person. Not on what his chances of getting me to sleep with him were, or what his friends thought. It’d be nice to be around one other guy besides Lionel that wasn’t always focused on that.

But still. I can’t forget that moment of pure fear.

I'm not going anywhere with him after dark.

tagging @pinehutch @focusdumbass @sunsetsrmydreams @maximillianvalentine @q-oetry @timeenoughforamasterpiece Let me know if you want on or off this list!

Also I’m trying to decide how to continue posting sections of this. The whole novel is written (although clearly still completely unedited!) but posting stuff like this on tumblr is messy. I may move it offsite and just post links. I dunno.

#wip boost #extra fakes #superpowers novel #part2

[rum-and-shattered-dreams]

Chapter 3:  There Are Still Good Times. Summary: Stan and Ford discover that even after all these years, they still share some of the same interests. The two discuss the eerie break in Bill's assaults on them as well as their suspicions about Lil' Gideon. Notes: As the title suggests, this is another lighter, mostly fluff chapter. Things may be bad but there's still laughter and an unbreakable brotherly bond.  I should probably note that Dipper and Mabel’s stories are following canon so far.

Part One Part Two More fics Ford sat near the bars of his cell, the flicker of the TV glinting over his dampened cheeks.  He lifted his near-empty package of jelly beans up and shook the last few into his mouth without taking his eyes off the screen. "Thank goodness you defeated Count Lionel!" a woman's voice exclaimed joyfully, "I am simply mortified.  He had no right-!" "He'd better not bother you two again!" Ford threatened, his mouth still half-full of sugary sweetness. "Indeed!" a man replied, "He had better not bother us again!" "That's what I'm saying!" Ford shouted, leaning in closer, his silver hair falling in unkempt clumps over his shoulders. A knock at the door jolted him into an upright position.  He swallowed hard and said in a hushed hiss, "TV off."  The TV obeyed leaving him in the silent dimness of his cell.  He straightened his sweater, cleared his throat and answered, "Come on in, Stan." Stan pushed the door open, a covered tray in one hand and a paper cup in the other.  As usual, two sodas tugged down at the pockets of his boxers.  He couldn't contain a laugh at the sight of his sniffling brother surrounded by pillows and snack wrappers, wiping his cheeks with his sleeve.  "You were watching that sappy romance movie stuff weren't you?" He asked. "What?!  No.  I just...  Got an eyelash in my eye!" He defended, blinking over burning, red eyes. "Both of them?" "...  Yes!" "You do realize this wall isn't soundproof, right?" Stan said with a quirked eyebrow. "Oh.  So you were eavesdropping on me, then?"  Ford joked, pushing the floor pillow Stan typically liked to use through the bars and setting it on the floor. "Well...  You know...  I wanna make sure I don't hear you snoring or anything and wake you up."  Stan wasn't completely lying. "Sure sure," Ford replied with a reasonable amount of sarcasm and suspicion. "Anyway," Stan said, trying to keep the tray steady as he lowered it to the floor, "That Count Lionel sure ruined his chances didn't he?"  He let out an "oof" as he plopped down onto the fleece-covered floor pillow.   "He certainly did!" Ford answered before his thoughts could catch up to him, "He should have- wait..." he squinted and pointed at Stan, "You watched The Duchess Approves too?" "I have no idea what you're talking about," Stan defended,  crossing his arms and looking away with a "humph."  He turned back slowly, lowering his arms.  "...Maybe...  Yeah alright... Ya got me," he sighed, holding his hands up in surrender, "I'm hooked.  The duchess is just so...  relatable, ya' know?" "It's true!" Ford agreed, picking up the snack wrappers and handing them through to Stan.  "She represents a universality of emotions that transcends age and gender...  Perhaps we can watch that movie together sometime?" "Yeah...?  Yeah!  We should," Stan replied, shoving the snack wrappers aside and lifting the lid from the tray.  "Are you even still hungry?  Looks like I made you wait too long for dinner." "I definitely would enjoy some real food," Ford answered, his mouth nearly watering at the smell of the cheeseburger and the sight of fresh salad greens and cherry tomatoes on the plate Stan had revealed. "Sorry I'm a bit late getting down here tonight.  I thought the kids were home but turns out they went out without tellin' me and they just got back a few minutes ago.  Apparently they were checking out the old Dusk to Dawn with Wendy and her friends.  They wouldn't tell me much about it, though so I sent them to bed and asked them to at least tell me if they're going out." "Oh that can't be good that they were there.  After the owners died so tragically, I suspect it might be haunted," Ford said reaching through the bars for a tomato and pinch of lettuce.  He dipped them into the cup of Italian dressing and stuffed them into his mouth. "You think?"  Stan asked. "It's a possibility.  That could be why they won't say much.  They probably think you won't believe them," He shrugged and reached through the bars for the cheeseburger. "Yeah.  Probably.  Hope nothin' too bad happened to them if that's the case."  Stan shifted around on the pillow, his face scrunching as he pulled the soda cans from his pockets.  He popped them open, poured Ford's into the paper cup, and took a swig out of his own can. "I think they would have mentioned it if they were hurt or anything," Ford said between bites, "Or at least I'd hope."   "I'd hope so, too," Stan said, tapping his stubbly chin, "Speaking of hurt, how are ya doin' today?  Looks like your bruises are getting better." "They are," Ford answered, reaching through for the soda cup.  "He hasn't bothered me in a few days.  Not to curse it but...  It's eerie...  As if he's...  Planning something..." "Yeah..."  Stan sipped at his soda.  "I mean, good riddance if he's bored with us but...  I get what ya mean.  It feels..." "Foreboding..." Ford filled in. "Yeah.  Fancy word that sounds like it describes the thing.  Maybe he's just mad that we padded the bars," he added, poking the cotton covered batting he'd glued to them. "Perhaps.  Though, I am surprised he doesn't seem eager to...  prove that won't stop him," Ford said, tapping one of the covered bars. "Yeah...  I mean...  hopefully it helps er...  soften the blows when he has his tantrums but yeah, it still ain't a perfect solution." "Seems like it will help some, at least," Ford said.  He reached through the bars for another handful of lettuce and a few slices of cucumber.  "So, how is Mabel holding up after her break-up, anyway?  Is she still angry at Gideon?" "I'm not even sure we can call that a break-up.  She never liked him like that.  He kinda forced her into it.  And I hate that I almost did too just because Bud offered me a deal for bigger profits.  Thanks for that pathology, Dad," He grumbled sarcastically, receiving a knowing nod from Ford.  "But, she seems alright now," Stan continued.  "Guess it's a good thing it didn't work out after all.  I'm still freaked out by that kid." "I've seen some of those commercials of his that you were talking about.  You're right that something seems off about him.  And that he's as phony of a psychic as mom was." "Yeah, if anyone can see a fake, it's us," Stan agreed, tipping back his soda can to drain the last drops into his mouth.   "It's weird, though," Ford said, reaching through the bars for the paper cup and cradling it in both hands.  "That amulet he was wearing seemed familiar but I can't figure out why.  I don't think I've ever seen it before but...  I don't know." "Looks like he lost it since those commercials were filmed," Stan said, squishing his soda can between his fingers with a crunch.  "Or at least, he doesn't wear it anymore.  I'll keep an eye on him, though.  'Specially if something seems familiar about that to you." "That sounds like a good idea in general.  Keep your enemies close and all, right?"  Ford tipped his cup toward Stan as if toasting to the thought then chugged the entire cupful. "Yeah.  I really don't know what it is he has against me," Stan said with a shrug, "For once, I never did nothing to him.  He just seems to hate that I'm here." "Listen to us..." Ford said, passing his empty cup to Stan.  "Two old men worried about the threats of a child..." "Ha ha, right!  You'd think we're paranoid or something," Stan said, chuckling awkwardly.   "Yeah, you'd think we're constantly on the lookout for signs of a demon badgering us or something," Ford added. "Right?" Stan replied, gathering up the empty plate, cup, and snack wrappers onto the tray and replacing its lid.  "Well, I hate to run off so soon but, I better get back upstairs.  The kids probably haven't been able to get to sleep yet." "Yes, you should go try to sleep yourself." "Yeah.  Not sure I'll be able to what with thinking about that wedding kerfuffle," he said with a wink. "Ah yes.  I almost feel bad for Count Lionel.  But he was out of line interrupting the wedding like that," Ford said, tapping his bearded chin. "Well," Stan grunted, lifting himself from the floor pillow with the tray balanced precariously in one hand.  "I guess we'll have to wait until part two to find out what happens to him.  But for now, good night ya' nerd." Ford reached through the bars and pulled the floor pillow back inside his cell.  "Good night, Stanley," he said with a wave and watched the door click shut behind his brother. Notes: I promise they won't be eating something in every chapter ;). Qebob xob kbt mxtkp fk qeb dxjb.

#gravity falls fanfiction #gravity falls #stanford pines #stanley pines #gravity falls au #the man downstairs au #mo's writing and such

[modestroad]

the one with no title, but with five lava lamps (or how Root found herself with a collection of lava lamps)

A/N: First, I know I’m going to fuck up this post so I’m sorry in advance. I know html, but I don’t know tumblr. Second, a huge thank you to @kate-the-rabbit for her help and for the prompt. The prompt was “ Shaw coming home to the subway and finding Root has a collection of lava lamps “ and that’s...not what I wrote. Because of personal issues, I gave up writing. Now I’m trying to start writing again so if you like what you read, leave a prompt. 

Shaw comes back and Root only has one lava lamp.

That number will change in the following months.

 Shaw wakes up to sheets that a) aren’t white and b) don’t smell that fresh, and for a moment she thinks she’s inside a simulation. Her heart rate goes up and for a moment (just one moment) she panics.

And then she sees Root stretching to the light of a lava lamp in the middle of the room, headphones on, hair up in a messy ponytail, as she tries (and succeed) to touch her knees with her head. She holds that position long enough for Shaw’s body to start to ache.

“Hey,” Shaw says and when Root doesn’t hear her, she clears her throat and tries again, but this time waving her hand. “Hey, hey, Root.”

Shaw doesn’t know if she got her attention or if the Machine told Root that she’s awake, but Root takes her headphones off and smiles, but doesn’t stretch up. “You know, while you were away, I had to go undercover as a prima ballerina and I must say, I was really good.”

6, 741 simulations and not once had Samaritan gotten Root right.

Root gets shot.

John gets shot.

Harold leaves.

Shaw takes Bear for very long walks while the two idiots are recovering.

Surprisingly enough both are following the doctor’s orders to the point where Shaw starts to touch behind her ear just to make sure.

Again, Shaw doesn’t know if the Machine 2.0 informs Root or if Root is being Root, but Root asks for a lava lamp one warm summer night.

“Afraid of the dark, Root?” John teases and Shaw wants to ask when this happened, this relationship between John and Root because last time she checked they didn’t get along.

“Not the dark,” Root licks her lips because talking is still an effort. “Just the boogeyman.”

Shaw might be a little too close to Root’s face when she says, “I thought you were the boogeyman, Root,” and watches, with delight, as Root’s eyes light up with a smile.

She buys Root a purple lava lamp next morning.

To annoy John, of course.

Harold comes back without Grace, but with Italian pastries that he bought from little Italy and twenty minutes of apologies.

John forgives him right away.

Root eats two pastries without saying a word.

Shaw tells him exactly what she thinks of him before eating the rest of the box.

Root licks her fingers and asks for time alone with Harold.

Shaw never learns what they talked about, but the following day there’s a blue lava lamp next to her purple one.

Six months after the fall of Samaritan, Machine 2.0 gives Root her first assignment. Nothing too fancy, just your not so friendly neighbor dealer.

Easy job.

Clean job.

Stretch-your-muscles job.

“Okay, that’s creepy.” Fusco says and Shaw can tell how proud he is to finally know about the Machine. “You can’t tell me this is not creepy. How are you okay with a machine using your voice?”

Root tilts her head and looks at him as if he has grown a second head. “I like the sound of my voice.”

Shaw doesn’t even try to hide her smile. Instead she asks, “Are you going to be alright?” and receives no answer.

Which is why she drives like crazy in the middle of the night after a text from the Machine. A simple HELP ROOT was enough to ruin any plans Shaw had for the night. They didn’t survive a war to lose one of them in a street fight.

Once at the destination, she parks the car, makes sure she has enough ammo, and steps outside. The street is quiet, but that means nothing. For all she knows twenty people are waiting for her. She makes as little noise as she can and uses dark corners to hide, but inside is as quiet as outside.

That’s when she sees the first body.

It’s not Root, but it is enough to make her move a little faster.

The second body has her running into the apartment ready to shoot anything that moves.

She finds three more bodies, but no Root.

“What the hell?” she whispers, and almost immediately she gets another text: FIRE ESCAPE.

She finds Root there, sitting with her hoodie on, staring straight ahead, brooding in silence. Shaw sits next to her saying nothing. When Root wants to talk she’ll talk. It is enough to Shaw to know that she’s alright and not in need of a medical attention. A brooding Root she can stand, a bloody one…she’s not sure.

“I was so tired,” Root says twenty or so minutes later.

“It’s okay,” Shaw reassure her.

“It’s been six months.”

“Root,” Shaw raises her voice, “you died. You didn’t almost die. You died. Flat lined. Your body needs time. Believe me, it’s okay.”

From the way she continues to look straight ahead Shaw can tell that she doesn’t really believe her, but when five minutes later Shaw suggest they move on, Root stands up and walks inside. Shaw starts to put a protective hand at the middle of Root’s back when something in the library caught her eye and she stops.

There, between fantasy and sci-fi books stands a dusty, green lava lamp.

Shaw reaches for her and when Root turns to look at her, she handles the lamp. “For your collection. Those guys won’t miss it.”

The next lava lamp, a yellow one, is a gift from Lionel. His kid needs love advice and Fusco knows he’s the last one to talk. Sure, he isn’t the scumbag he once was, but if he knew what to do he would still be married. So he does the next best thing; he goes to his friends for advices.

He doesn’t even bother with John.

He is a lost cause.

Glasses…well, nope.

He takes Shaw out for a burger and drinks because he owns her a dinner and not because he wants to ask for her help.

Jeez. He’s desperate not that desperate!

That leaves only one person and if he wants to be honest, cocoa puffs has hit one hell of a piece.

And because he loves his son so much he sits and endures all the crazy, but at the end the smile on Lee’s face is worth it.

“Here,” he gives Root a yellow lava lamp. “Um, thanks.”

One year after the fall of Samaritan, Grace gives Root a red lava lamp with a smile and an explanation. “Harold said you love them.”

Root hugs Grace and can tell that the other woman is a little surprised, but she hugs Root back and they are going to get along just fine.

Sometimes Root lights all five lamps and puts ambient music while on her computer. Shaw is sure she does it just to piss her off (who likes ambient music anyway?), but she never can tell with Root. Today though she doesn’t mind. She had a long week, she’s lying comfortable next to Root, and she finds the colours relaxing.

Still, it’s a weird ass collection, and Shaw makes a comment about it.

“My lava lamps?” Root doesn’t take her eyes from the screen nor stops typing.

“Yep.”

“Can you keep a secret, Sameen?” Root asks after a while and Shaw nods. “I only asked Harry to buy me one just to mess up with him.”

“You what?”

“I don’t even like those things.”

For some reason Shaw feels so insulted. Like, so insulted! “You’re such a weirdo.”

“You know what’s weird?” Root stops what’s she doing and looks at Shaw. “I really love my lava lamps. Every single one of them.”

Instead of saying anything, Shaw kisses Root softly and then she remembers something. “But the purple is your favourite, right?”

Root doesn’t smile, doesn’t even break contact, “Yes, the purple is most definitely my favourite one.”

Shaw looks so smug when she says, “Yeah, that’s what I thought.”

#Root #Shaw #Shoot #person of interest #poi #prompt

[asfeedin]

Martin Braithwaite talks signing for Barcelona leaving Leganes and training at home amid coronavirus pandemic

Martin Braithwaite will never forget 2020. In February, he made the shock move from Leganes to Barcelona, with the Catalan club announcing him as an emergency signing three weeks after the close of the January transfer window. In March, he came off the bench to play in the Clasico against Real Madrid. Then, just two weeks later and 20 days after he joined the Spanish champions, football in Spain was suspended indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic.

– Stream new episodes of ESPN FC Monday-Friday on ESPN+ – Stream every episode of 30 for 30: Soccer Stories on ESPN+

Braithwaite was able to return to his Madrid home from his Barcelona hotel before strict lockdown measures came into place in Spain, although things have not slowed down for him while in quarantine. Last weekend, his wife welcomed their fourth child into the world as the Denmark international’s whirlwind year continued.

In the middle of it all, Braithwaite found the time to talk to ESPN about working from home, signing for Barca and connecting with Lionel Messi.

ESPN: The timing of the lockdown means you were able to be with your family for the birth of your fourth child — congratulations!

Martin Braithwaite: Thanks! I’m always trying to look for the positives, and this is definitely one, [the fact that] I could be by my wife’s side during this situation, where she was home alone with the kids — although my mother-in-law has been here as well. I am so happy that I could share this moment because if the season [had not been interrupted], I am not sure I would have been here.

2 Related

ESPN: With three kids and now a newborn, it must be a struggle to keep up with training.

Braithwaite: I am training every day; I’m actually quite busy. I don’t know how but I wake up early in the morning and I go to bed really late. I feel like I don’t have any time in the day. I have a schedule for what I want to do, and it’s fully booked, to be honest. I am just flying around, obviously in my own house, but I feel there are a lot of things to do if you just set up your day.

I do the club’s workout and then something on the side. We talk to the club’s personal trainer every day. He gives us the programme for the following day and wants to hear how we feel about everything. We’re in contact with the club every day.

ESPN: Is working from home difficult for a footballer?

Braithwaite: If the kids are around and they want to ask you a lot of questions and you have to be the dad, you cannot be 100% intense. It’s important when you’re training that you keep that intensity, because when you get back and you have to play the games, it’s all about the intensity. When I start training it has to be really intense, and I have to be 100% focused.

Of course it’s really difficult when you’re at home with the kids around, I saw that in the first couple of days. You need to have a tight schedule and be able to say “OK, I am training at this time, and I am doing it like this,” because if you just wake up and go by the day, the day will suddenly go away and you end up having to do a workout at 10 p.m. — when you have kids, there is always something to do.

ESPN: You still found time to briefly replicate Ronaldo’s famous 2002 World Cup haircut …

Braithwaite: I was just enjoying myself! I was cutting my hair, and I just felt it. I said “OK, let me see how this looks,” and I felt the power, suddenly I felt more technical and everything. [But] I didn’t stick with it, I think my wife wasn’t that happy about it, so I had to cut it off.

Ronaldo was my main idol growing up, that’s the guy I really looked to for inspiration, how to develop myself as a player. I just loved how he played.

ESPN: The lockdown came so early in your career at Barcelona that you didn’t get much time to get to know your new teammates.

Braithwaite: It’s cool, we have a WhatsApp group where we are talking, but I’m not really thinking about that. I am always looking for the positives, always trying to get an edge out of no matter what happens. I am always turning obstacles into something good.

Now, I have time — time that I normally wouldn’t have — so I can do a lot of things that I might not have done before. I have a lot of time to think what I can do better in my game, look at videos, be more detailed in my personal training. I am sure when I get back, [Barcelona] will get an even better version of me.

ESPN: What videos have you been watching?

Braithwaite: I’ve been looking a little bit at my own performances, but only in the games I played since I came here. I cannot really compare my performances in other teams because the way we play here is so different.

I have watched a lot of [Barca] games to try and look how I can fit in. I always like to look at my teammates, how they are playing, how they are passing. They don’t need to adapt to me; I adapt to them. It will help me when I get back, just to be sharp, and I know where the ball will fall down around the box. I will be there waiting, just to score the goals.

ESPN: How do you rate your first three games at the club?

Braithwaite: It’s been good, but I’m always looking to improve. I put a lot of pressure on myself. I like to push myself. I know I will do even better than I have done so far. It’s easier when you play with such good players. I know I just need to make my good movements and they will find me.

You have Messi, who can do everything. The [opponent] is going to focus a lot around him, so I just have to play my game, and my game is naturally running in behind. I think it’s not fun for other teams, you know you have to look at Messi, but you have someone running in behind, so the defenders have to make a choice. Either they follow Messi or they follow me, and someone is going to get the space. You cannot play 90 minutes without giving us space.

I can also come and get the ball, but I don’t need it in this team because we have so many good players. I’m just going to stay focused running behind, making it really difficult for the defence and putting them in a position where they have to make a choice. We just have to take advantage of that when we play. We have such good players that I am sure we will.

Martin Braithwaite joined Barcelona three weeks after the close of the January transfer window as an emergency signing. Pedro Salado/Quality Sport Images/Getty Images

ESPN: Are you missing football?

Braithwaite: Oh, I miss it every day. I am missing it so much. That’s what I love to do. That’s what pushes me to wake up and work out. I really can’t wait to go back.

ESPN: Has it been tough mentally?

Braithwaite: I feel better than I thought, but I think it’s because I am putting my total focus into improving my game. But at the same time I really miss playing and training. My wife asked me what I am most looking forward to, and I think she got a bit disappointed that I didn’t say going out to restaurants eating with her — I just said I want to go to training.

ESPN: How do you feel about playing behind closed doors when football returns?

Braithwaite: If that’s the best way to keep people’s health and keep everyone secure, that’s what we have to do, even though it’s not what we want. We love to play for the fans; that’s what we’ve been playing for since we were kids. The fans are everything, they give us that adrenaline, that rush when we go to the stadium.

Dan Thomas is joined by Craig Burley, Shaka Hislop and a host of other guests every day as football plots a path through the coronavirus crisis. Stream on ESPN+ (U.S. only).

ESPN: Signing for Barca, the coronavirus lockdown, becoming a father for a fourth time. You can’t have imagined all of this happening this year on Jan. 1?

Braithwaite: Not at that moment. I am a guy who dreams big. I believe everything is possible, but I wouldn’t have said it would happen that fast for sure.

ESPN: Is it true you kept Barca’s interest a secret?

Braithwaite: I heard about it at the end of January and then it got more intense in February. I just felt, you know, that I am going to wait and see how this goes. If it’s going to get 100% serious, then I will let [my wife] know, but there’s no reason to get people around me excited. I got excited, but I knew if I told people, they were gonna be talking about it every day. For me, I was at Leganes, I had to perform. When I am at a place, I give 100%, so I didn’t want to put my mind elsewhere.

ESPN: You didn’t even tell your wife?

Braithwaite: Usually I tell everything to my wife, but she only knew three days before I signed because it suddenly got leaked in the media. It got leaked in the morning and I didn’t see her until the evening, when I told her I had to talk to her. She knew why. She understood!

ESPN: How did Leganes react?

Braithwaite: Leganes are an amazing club. The people working there are the best people. I cannot speak highly enough of that club. Sometimes when you leave a club, you can leave with mixed feelings, but they totally understood. They said this is a once-in-a-lifetime chance, so you have to take it. They would have done the same. They truly understood me. They felt it was unfair they couldn’t get a replacement, which I understand.

play

1:16

Martin Braithwaite opens up about how his style of play suits Lionel Messi and Barcelona.

ESPN: How was your relationship with the coach, Javier Aguirre?

Braithwaite: Really good. He’s a special guy because he’s an old-school guy, and my experience has been that the old school have some kind of distance to the players. But he’s the players’ man. You can go and talk to him; he is always thinking about the squad. And at the same time, he’s someone really hard, you know, people really respect him. You don’t have to mess with him, because he will put you in your place, but he has a big heart. [When I left] he told me go and enjoy. He said you have to go, this is your career, this is a big opportunity, of course you have to take it, just go and kill it.

ESPN: Everything’s happened so quickly, has 2020 been a blur?

Braithwaite: No, I remember everything pretty clear in my head, and it’s been a good experience. I have come to the biggest club in the world, but it’s strange because I have always visualised myself there, always been thinking about it.

Arriving [at Barca], with all the circumstances, all the press and everything, of course you feel it’s something big. But when I started training, it was just like another club. I felt it was really natural, I felt really welcome by everyone at the club, all the players, the fans … they have welcomed me with open arms. I appreciate that and when I get on the pitch, I just want to pay [them] back and that’s what I’m going to do.

I visualised playing on the biggest stage, winning all the titles and it has led me here.

ESPN: There must have been moments when you had doubts?

Braithwaite: You have ups and downs along the way. You have moments where you think it’s never going to happen. And then you just click out of it and you just keep working, because you have the goals written down. You say this is what I wanted to do, this is why I wake up early and work hard, this is why I do a bit extra than what people are willing to do, because I have these high goals and I know I need to work hard. And now it has given me so much power, a fire inside me, because all the goals I have put down, they’re coming true. I have seen how powerful it is, and dreams do come true. I know now that I just put my mind to something that seems unachievable and I know I will achieve it.

ESPN: Now you’re at Barcelona, what next?

Braithwaite: Maybe some people would come and feel like, “Wow, I made it,” but I feel like, “OK, now we’re starting, now my career is really starting.”

ESPN: And you have a contract until 2024 …

Braithwaite: I would love to stay even longer, and I am sure I am going to stay even more than four and a half years; that’s how I see it in my head.

Right now, I just want to go and play and enjoy and win titles with this team because that’s what I am here to do. Now I am at the biggest stage, and now it’s about winning titles. This is my aim. Everything that’s possible to win, I want to win everything. And for me, at Barcelona, I’m looking at all these legendary players that played here, and all the periods where they had some of the best teams, and for me one of the goals is to be able to say I played in one of the best Barca teams in a generation.

I want people to be able to look back at the team I played in and say, “Yeah, that was one of the best teams there have been in Barca’s history.” That’s a huge motivation for me, and it comes with a lot of hard work, but I am willing to put in the work. I am excited.

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[sirrobin126]

Heads up:  Very Long post about Lionel Luthor and Martha Kent

Oh my, how glad i am that you spontaneously decided to ask me about that. You could have chosen any ship in the world and yet, here we are, I guess i’ll just have to think of something for Mionel on the fly then. 

Who accidentally pushes a door instead of pulling/vice versa

Martha pushes the pull door but she never gets angry about it, she either silently corrects herself or has a little giggle at the fact that she didn’t read the easily observable sign. It’s not a big inconvenience so it doesn’t bother her, and usually if she misses the sign it’s because she has something more useful to do anyway. Lionel almost never pushes a pull door because he applies the “ten steps ahead” model to his entire life and his commitment to the “Master of the Universe Dramatic Entrance” #aesthetic would be crushed if he messed up something as simple as opening a door. That being said, sometimes he gets so hyper focused on an issue that he will walk headfirst into a door that he didn’t realise was there, and heaven forbid you be in his path for the rest of the day after that. 

Who doodles little hearts all over the desk with their initials inside them

I feel like this is a no-brainer for Mr “I write about Martha in my diary so much my Earth 2 self falls in love with her”, but it’s defs Lionel. Martha is much more about verbal and physical confirmations of affection but Lionel’s not so great at being vulnerable or expressing feelings in words. Declamatory gestures and gifts are far more his thing (also he’s a giant nerd who of course draws little hearts with martha’s name in his diary).

Who starts the tickle fights

Lionel. Martha is ticklish and he isn’t. Never reveal a weakness in front of a Luthor.

Who starts the pillow fights

Well they’re both grown adults so they don’t really have pillow fights, but Martha. Lionel never expects it of her, and ends up copping a pillow directly to the face, leading to feelings of betrayal and wounded pride. 

Who falls asleep last, watching the other with a small affectionate smile

Okay well, this is obvious on the surface considering the frequency and softness with which he looks at her is beyond compare. Lionel gets to sleep very late, and has trouble disengaging his mind so of course he watches Martha, smiling because he can hardly conceive that someone so perfect exists in the world. However, Martha wakes up very early, a habit bred of the fact that she spent most of her adult life on the farm. Now that she works at an office she doesn’t know how to break herself out of the habit, so she either gets up and makes breakfast, or she sits in bed, enjoying the first bit of laziness she’s had in forty ears and watching Lionel. Sometimes it’s because he looks more peaceful, but most of the time it’s the opposite, Lionel talks in his sleep and tends to have a lot of dreams where he argues with people. It amuses Martha to no end, hearing the ridiculous things he debates whilst asleep. 

Who mistakes salt for sugar

Neither of them. Martha’s a big believer in tasting all her ingredients before she cooks them and has just developed the habit of dipping her finger into the spoon before she pours it in. Lionel, on the other hand, hasn’t set foot in a kitchen since 1983 when he tried to make a batch of popcorn (which he burnt) so he doesn’t have much opportunity for mistaking ingredients at all. It’s never happened as a prank either, because who would want to prank Martha Kent? And Lionel is notoriously difficult to prank because he’s so paranoid that he suspects multiple ulterior motives on the simplest of exchanges.

Who lets the microwave play the loud beeping sound at 1am in the morning

Well, Martha would never because she is both competent in the kitchen and a kind person. Lionel, however, has as much experience in the kitchen as he does with altruism. Until he starts wanting to impress Martha that is, and he beings making her stuff in the kitchen (sandwiches, pasta, and anything that he can read how to do off the packet). Then he learns how to use an oven and a microwave and, to his dismay, develops a love of two minute noodles. Martha would be too considerate to let the microwave beep, but a noodle seeking Lionel will often be heard at one am, first by a loud beeping, then a louder swear as Lionel realises he forgot to press the button.

Who comes up with cheesy pick up lines

Neither of them really do cheesy. Martha is a very sincere and sweet person, and Lionel is so besotted that he has no choice but to be sincere in response. However, sometimes his praise of her is so over-the-top and his personality is so #dramatique that he could come off as cheesy if he weren’t entirely committed to the dramatic in every aspect of his life.

Who rearranges the bookshelf in alphabetical order

Lionel. 

“It just makes sense. Why- why wouldn’t you put them in order? Doing it by subject is ridiculous unless you employ some sort of decimal system, otherwise it becomes chaotic as many books have multiple subjects and themes. 

I understand separating fiction and non-fiction, but, why do the books with blue covers have their own shelf? This is…this is a nightmare. Please stop laughing at me, Martha.” 

Lionel’s library is entirely ordered and searchable via his own personal computer catalogue. Martha just knows where she puts things, and if she doesn’t, she’ll look around for it near other books like it. She doesn’t mind Lionel putting the books in order, but if he thinks she’s going to stop putting books she’s just finished at the end of the bookcase so that she can find it again, he’s got another thing coming. 

Who licks the spoon when they’re baking brownies

Martha not only tastes ingredients for their freshness, she can’t help but taste a product before putting it in the oven. Lionel doesn’t even think about licking the spoon. The brownie is what comes after the baking, why would he eat the lesser product just for the instant gratification? Martha admires his willpower in waiting for the finished product, but once it’s out of the oven, his patience vanishes. Lionel doesn’t like to wait. He will do it, but once he sees the benefits outweigh the cost he will spring. This has more than once led to a certain billionaire’s mouth being burnt and sore, somehow Lionel never decides the cost of a burnt mouth outweighs the benefit of hot brownie.

Who buys candles for dinners even though there’s no special occasion

Lionel. Remember when I said Lionel was all about gestures. He may not always be able to express what he feels, but he will damn sure light up the dining room whenever he can for no reason other than to make Martha feel special.

Who draws little tattoos on the other with a pen

Martha. I know, according to the veritas plot line (fucking veritas) that Lionel is the artist, but he tends to keep his stuff more private, and has to be dragged into drawing in front of anyone else. Martha needs to have busy hands so she just picks up a pen and scribbles on whatever is lying around. When she takes messages on the phone she’ll write on anything: old bills, newspapers, her hand or Lionel’s if it’s lying too close. Lionel doesn’t mind, of course he doesn’t, how could he? It makes him smile every time she shows him that casual affection, she doesn’t even realise it, but he treasures those moments like they’re pure gold (or wacky alien tech, which is apparently his major obsession)

Who comes home with a new souvenir magnet every time they go on vacation

Lionel has to go on conferences and shit all over the country. He always wants to buy Martha ridiculous gifts from everywhere, but she won’t have any of it. Instead he buys her the classiest memento he can that doesn’t cost more than the Kent Farm. When Martha has to start going to places for her senatorial duties, she does the same thing, sort of. Martha gets a kind of sadistic pleasure out of seeing Lionel have to pretend to really aesthetically appreciate a tacky magnet in the shape of a cowboy hat with a bad joke about beer written on it, and then sticking it to his pristine fridge next to other magnets in the shape of a corn cob a big pair of red lips, respectively.

Who convinces the other to fill out those couple surveys in the back of magazines

Martha does, but she doesn’t take anything they say seriously. Lionel is reluctant to take them at all, and if they give him an answer he doesn’t like, or he think’s is accurate, you better believe he’ll call the editor to complain. 

Martha can’t prove it, but she’s sure he actually bought one of the magazine companies after  a quiz said that they were only a 44% match. She just happened to notice that the quizzes always seemed a little more rigorous and scientifically based after Lionel got upset with them.

Lionel definitely did buy the magazine, but he didn’t tell Martha because he was worried that Martha would think he’d overreacted. 

He definitely overreacted. 

Thanks @justanotherfan, I can always count on you to care about Mionel, sorry it’s so rambling, I just have so many feelings.

#oh my god #that's such a long post and i'm so sorry to everyone who doesn't give a shit about any of this #but I had to write about it #i had to #also i know this is super cutesy and defs ignoring the fact that lionel is a horrible person and that mionel could never end happily #but what am i best at if not ignoring the fact that Lionel is horrible and mionel is doomed #my fic

[milkyanan]

red wine and roses || yeo one

Everyone needs a little push.

Genre: First time smut ;-) Female reader!

**Warning, there is alcohol in this, but everything is done with consent.*

No matter how much his friends made fun of him for it, Changgu was a very romantic person. Anything and mostly everything you two did had some type of romance in it; whether it was taking your puppy for a walk or going to buy coffee from your local cafe. It was always, always romantic.

In Changgu’s eyes, romance was one of the many ones to really show his love for you. Making you blush intensely or making your eyes tear up always filled with him pride. One thing he couldn't stand was seeing you unhappy.

Over the past few weeks, that's all he’s been seeing.

Both of you had relationships in the past, both of you had experience. You felt like it was the time to really step up your sexual advances, but he wasn't getting it at all.

You made out in the past. You did a lot of touching, under and over your clothes. He's been in between your legs and you’ve been in between his, but it never gets any further than that. It's not that he doesn't want to have sex with you, he just doesn't know how to approach it. He doesn't know how to not offend you or make you upset, and he's too scared of mentioning it. So he never talks about it.

Whenever you bring it up, it's like it flies past his head. It irritated you at first, thinking he was just messing with you, but he really didn't get what you were saying. At all. Your lame pick up jokes weren’t working, (“there’s a sale in my bedroom.” “huh?” “pants are 100% off.” “good thing i don’t wear pants to bed, then.”) (“is your name lionel? cause you make my panties messi.” “LMAO, that reminds me of “do you know messi?” joke. hAHAHHAHA”) He’s completely oblivious to everything you’ve subtly tried.

So, when you straight up told him “I want to have sex with you.” you weren’t expecting his eyes to widen and for him to run far, far away from you.

It's late evening when he calls you and apologizes sincerely, telling you he was just shocked and didn't know how to handle what you told him. He invited you over, saying it was important and that he wanted to apologize face to face. Having nothing to do that night and having not seen your boyfriend since he ran away from you, you agreed.

You knocked on the front door of his apartment a couple of times, and soon enough his pretty face appeared, a soft smile on his lips at the sight of you. He pulled you towards him and kissed you sweetly, pulling you inside during the process and shutting the door behind you. Pulling away from the kiss, you heard the door locked as you peaked over his shoulder and to your surprise, a nicely set table with two fancy glasses of red wine stood in front of you. He pouted at you being sneaky but smiled at the shocked look on your face, shaking your head. “You didn't have to do all of this.”

“Wanted to.” he smiled wider, leading you to the table and pulling out a snack from the cafe he ran away from. Usually, with wine like this, he’d have somewhat a whole meal set, but it wasn't the case this time. That confused you a bit, but you brushed it away.

“I'm really sorry about what happened,” he said, eating whatever snack he had bought. “I really didn't mean to run away like that.”

“It's fine, Gu.” you smiled, raising your glass, letting the red of the wine stain your lips.

He stared, taking a sip from his glass as well. “No, really. I probably embarrassed you. And I look like a duck when I run. I know everybody was looking, mainly at you, and that makes me cringe to even think about.”

You laughed at his words, finishing up your snack since you were a little hungry, shaking your head again. “Yeah, everybody was looking, but it's fine, really.” sipping the rest of your wine, you knew your head was getting a little dizzy, but of course, you wanted more. Reaching for the bottle on the side of the table, you poured more and so did he, drinking and drinking until you didn't know which side the bottle was on anymore. Were you two drunk? No. Tipsy? Maybe a little.

“I really wanna make it up to you.” he blinked rapidly, pushing back his chair and standing. You did as well, both of you stumbling a little as you made your way to each other. Days of being apart seemed to really take a toll on both of you as your arms wrapped around his neck and his wrapped around your middle, lips colliding, the taste of cherry wine sinking into both of your mouths. He groaned into you and you moaned in response, kissing each other harder, until he bent down just a little to pick you up, wrapping your legs around his waist.

He let you assault his neck, painting red lip stains and hickeys all over his skin. Once you finally in his bedroom without much trouble, he gently lied you down, making eye contact with you. Just staring at you had his pupils widening, from love and from the alcohol. You were sure yours were the same.

Getting your clothes off was a struggle. Light giggles were shared when he almost got stuck in his short and you in your pants, but now he was kissing down you undergarment covered body, biting into various parts of your stomach to cheesily leave a heart shape near your side.

You blushed, goosebumps raised in your skin, ignoring his satisfied smirk. “How do you even know how to do that?”

He only winked at you, sending shivers up your spine.

He knew he would be everywhere if he even tried to eat you out, messy and disgusting, and that was the last thing he wanted to do. He made his way back up your body, and you could see how clear his arousal was in his boxers. While he was placing soft kisses on your collarbone, you reached down to grab him through the fabric. At that, he let out a quick breath against your skin, and you grasped him, stroking him, making him pulse and harden even more in your hand. You were distracting him and loving every second of it.

“Y/N-” he was cut off by you shoving your hand in his boxers, something you definitely wouldn't do if you were this tipsy. You wrapped your hand around his length, stroking it nice and slow, admiring the way his eyes fluttered shut and his hips bucked into your hand. You didn't even notice his own hand finding it's way in your panties, his fingers sliding up your slit, gathering your wetness on his fingers. When he pressed gently against your clit, you sighed out in pleasure, grip loosening on his cock.

“Are you done teasing me now?” he muttered, easing his hand out your underwear and sticking his fingers in his mouth. You blushed, partly from his actions and partly from how hot it seemed to be, muttering back a small, “maybe.”

With some struggle, he pulled your panties down your legs, putting his fingers back where they were and pushing them inside of you. You let out another sigh, hands weakly grabbing his arm as he pushed his fingers deeper, deeper, until they pressed up against the spot that made you moan out his name, back arching in intensity.

He smiled, leaning down to place a kiss on the heart shape on your stomach, sliding his fingers out of you and moving so he was on top of you. His boxers were off, length exposed as he rubbed the tip between your folds, leaning down to kiss you sweetly.

“I want to do it,” he blushed, but maintained a steady look in your eyes. “With you.”

You nodded, hips pressing up against him, arms wrapping around his neck. “Please.”

He swallowed a lump in his throat as he eased himself inside of you, the feeling of your warmth better than any other time you were between his legs. Both of your noises of pleasure and relief matched each other’s when he was finally settled inside of you, buried to the hilt.

He looked at you, almost for reassurance, and you just nodded, sweat covering your forehead. “Please, Changgu.”

That was all he needed, not even taking the time to be slow as he started thrusting inside of you, shoulders dropping and loud pants of pleasure leaving his lips. He was gentle, but not slow at all, and you couldn't decide if it was the alcohol or the need to make you feel good. When he gave a little roll of his hips and pushed a little deeper inside of you, you concluded it was both.

You raised your hips to meet his and as soon as he did, he thrusted against your spot, causing your back to arch again and your nails to run down his back. He could only stare down at you, finding you completely beautiful, thrusting harder against that spot to get more sounds to pour out of your lips.

The alcohol had you both in a daze of each other. It seemed like sex was the final push to connect you, to make you one, all embarrassment and shyness gone with the way you were marking up his skin and he was claiming you as his.

You knew you wouldn't last long when his hands reached down, finger rubbing relentlessly against your swollen bud. With that, and the way he continued to pound against your spot, you locked onto him, coming hard, and he watched the way your face contorted in pleasure, his name leaving your lips.

He quickly pulled out of you, grabbing his cock as he came directly onto the heart of hickeys on your stomach, hand grasping at your thigh to steady himself. Seeing you like that, feeling you clench around him and say his name the way you did was all he needed.

When the heart was completely covered, he managed to lower himself back up to you and suck more hickies right in between your breasts. The alcohol had yet to wear off, so he couldn’t make exactly what he wanted, but he was still proud of the messed up red rose appearing on your skin.

#yeo one #changgu #pentagon #pentagon kpop #pentagon scenarios #yeo one scenarios #yeo one smut #changgu scenarios #changgu smut

[jedifighterpilot2727]

Can you do a one shot on how Lexington finds out that Kara is supergirl?

Alright, so I’ve had several requests for this one, and I’ve had it planned out in my head for a while, but I finally got around to writing it this weekend.

Honestly, my head is still spinning from finale spoilers, so I hope it’s at least decent! As always your comments are my life!!

Also, this chapter delves a little bit more into Autistic Lexi, and even though I’ve known I’m autistic for a while, I’m still learning more everyday and I’m always excited to hear y’alls thoughts!!

SuperMom

Read it on AO3 - http://archiveofourown.org/works/10189040/chapters/24418878

The day starts out like any other.

They have a routine down, one that makes things a little easier on everyone, especially Lexi.

They wake up without a fuss, to puppy kisses and sleep tousled hair.  They eat breakfast, (oatmeal, because it’s the only relatively healthy thing that both Kara and Lexi will eat in the mornings). They get dressed, Lena in her most intimidating power suit, because some of the board members seem to think she’s gone soft since becoming a mother and that is simply not the case; and Kara and Lexi in almost matching oxford sweaters. Their braids are even matching today, and Lena forces them into a mini photoshoot that’s quickly texted out to Alex and J’onn.  Purses and a miniature Supergirl backpack are distributed and the dogs are put on leashes and then Luthor-Danvers clan is out the door.

The walk to school is always one of Lena’s favorite parts of the day, with Lexi usually skipping along, stopping to ask questions occasionally about various objects - “Mama, what’s in that building?”, “What kind of tree is that?”, “Why can Supergirl fly?”; she’s heard mothers complain about their children asking constant questions, but it’s taken so long for Lexi to feel comfortable enough to talk to them, that Lena isn’t about to stop her now.

Today, however, is a silent day, with Kara holding Lexi as they walk so she can stare up at the skyscrapers without having to stumble along. At first Lena had tried to protest them carrying Lexi still, because all the parenting books had said things about ‘impeding development’ and ‘coddling’; but Kara had insisted because “Lee, she’s tiny, it’s not like she’s heavy! Besides, we’re making up for all the cuddling she didn’t get at the orphanage!” And who is Lena to argue with that? Because the thought of their little girl sitting at the orphanage all alone makes her tear up a little bit, even now; and the feeling of Lexi’s warmth hugged tight makes her feel like she’s being the mother she never had, (she can’t remember Lillian ever holding her. So Lena doesn’t do anything but smile when Kara catches the little girl up mid-stride, it’s adorable, and it will make Lexi’s day a little easier.  

When they finally reach the school, Lexi heads into the classroom with two hugs and barely a word, leaving Lena with a worried feeling.

“You think she’ll be okay?”

“The city is a little loud today.” Kara offers, passing Lena’s free hand through the crook of her elbow. “She’s probably just a little overwhelmed. But the school is pretty soundproof.”

Lena cocks her head, trying to listen.

Traffic is a little heavy, and if she strains, she can hear the sound of construction work in the distance. She wonders briefly what it must sound like to Lexi with her tendency to have sensory overload, or Kara, with her super hearing; but then the sound of a siren breaks through her thoughts.

Kara tenses up beside her, and she knows her wife is judging the situation.

“Go,” she nudges softly, “Don’t forget school lets out thirty minutes early today.”

“I won’t, I’ll try to bring lunch by if Cat doesn’t insist on completely changing layouts last minute again.”

She starts to make some quip about how she hopes ‘The Queen’ is in a good mood today when soft lips press against hers and all hope of coherent thought is lost. Soft hands cup her cheeks and fingers loosely thread in her hair. It’s quick, and chaste, but it still leaves her a little breathless as she opens her eyes to watch Kara power walk towards the nearest alley.

She stares until she sees the blur of color shoot towards the sky, ignoring the people bustling around her. She swells with pride, and tugs the dogs toward L-Corp.

If she were a whistler, she would definitely be whistling a happy tune today.

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

Her morning is full of meetings, one right after the other - spaced only by Jess’ mini-briefings. It’s a little overwhelming, and she desperately wishes for a few minutes to herself, but it’s the only way she can make it home by six, and making it home by six is definitely worth it.

Her eleven o’clock appointment is a skeevy old man who reminds her of some of Lionel’s old business partners - she makes a note to have Jess buy up his stock under an alias, the last thing she needs is to have her company associated with the likes of him. Once again, she’s grateful for Mac’s presence, people tended to stay in line with an intimidating looking Doberman snoring in the corner.

Mr. Conner is in the middle of a rant about why he thinks L-Corp should invest in petroleum energy versus solar energy when the door to her office opens. She half expects it to be Kara, coming to rescue her from this horrible meeting, but instead it’s Jess, a concerned look on her face.

“Mrs. Luthor-Danvers, I’m sorry to interrupt, but Lexington’s school is on the phone. They insist that they need to speak with you right away.”

The urge to sigh with relief over having an excuse to end this meeting early is outweighed by the sudden panic rising in her throat. She turns to her guest.

“I’m apologize for cutting our meeting short, but I have to take this.“

Mr. Conner looks like he’s about to say something derogatory when Mac lets out a soft growl. She swears that dog has a sixth sense for these things.

“Very well, I trust that you’ll take what we’ve spoken about into consideration.”

It’s only years of training that enables her to keep a tight lipped smile.

“Of course.” She nods politely, waiting for him to leave the office before reaching for the phone on her desk.

“This is Lena Luthor-Danvers speaking.”

“Mrs. Luthor-Danvers, there’s a bit of a problem.”

“What kind of problem?” She asks tersely, and she can hear the phone creak under her grip.

“Lexington has disappeared.”

Her heart catches in her throat.

“What do you mean, disappeared?”

“There was a short blackout, and when the power was restored, Lexington was unaccounted for.”

Every alarm bell in her head goes off, just as she looks up to see several intruders in black tactical gear and masks enter the room behind Jess. One of them slams a gun into her secretary’s head, sending her sprawling and another one steps toward Lena.

“Hang up the phone.”

She hesitates.

“Now, now,” A low voice threatens. “If you don’t want anything to happen to your daughter, you’ll come without a fight.”

The whole thing has Lillian Luthor written all over it, and she feels a swell of hate towards her adoptive mother.

Of course things had been going too smoothly.

“I’ll come willingly, just promise you won’t hurt her.” she reasons, dropping the handset back into its cradle.

The intruder laughs.

“This is too easy, Lillian was right about the kid. ”

Her heart clenches at the mention of Lexi, and she wants nothing more than to lash out at these idiots, but she swallows down her fury, knowing it will get her nowhere. She debates hitting the hidden panic switch on her bracelet but thinks better of it. If Kara shows up then she’ll take the kidnappers out, sure, but then they’ll have no link to Lexi.

Her captors step forward and she extends her hands slowly, bracing for the cuffs. Really she’s been kidnapped so many times that at this point she almost has a routine.

Only this time it’s different.

This time they have Lexi.

This time there’s more at stake than just her life, or even Kara’s life. Kara is practically invulnerable, Kara is a superhero, a savior; but Lexi…

Her mind flashes back a few hours to when Lexi was staring at her latest Supergirl book over breakfast, sleep-cowlicked hair sticking straight up - oatmeal dribbling onto her pajamas.

She remembers the wonder on Lexi’s face as she gazed up at National City’s skyscrapers, chin bouncing against Kara’s shoulder as they walked along.

She remembers the fierce hug, the tiny arms tight around her neck as Lexi bid her goodbye at school.

 “I love you, Mama.”

 “I love you too, Ma Chroi, be good.”

She never thought the day would end up like this, and she’ll be damned if something bad happens to Lexi because of her family name. She feels the adrenaline pound in her chest, and she feels like she could rip apart mountains if protecting Lexi called for it.

Only there are no mountains, and now is not the the time.

So instead she forces herself to remember all the important things that Alex has taught her over the years.

 Deep breaths, steady hands, look at everything, remember everything - you never know when it might be important.

The zip-tie cuffs are too tight around her wrists, digging painfully into her skin, but she has little time to focus on that because there’s the sound of a helicopter outside her window and she’s being pushed towards the balcony door. She’s pulled up inside the chopper, and she feels a wave of relief when they drop a dark bag over her head. It’s a good sign, hopefully one that means they don’t intend to kill her or they wouldn’t care if she saw where she was going or not.

It’s still suffocating and claustrophobic though, and she feels a wave of nausea wash over her. She fights it down, trying to focus on what will happen once they get where they’re going.

Lexi could already be dead.

The thought slams into her from out of nowhere, and she feels the panic rise anew.

There’s no real reason for Lillian to keep her daughter alive, to her, Lexington is no doubt even more expendable than Lena.  

But there’s also no reason for Lillian to kill her, and surely she must realize that killing Lena and Kara’s daughter will only serve to bring down the wrath of the entire DEO - something she surely does not want.

That calms her, because Lillian is evil, but she is a calculating sort of evil and she doubts the repercussions of killing Supergirl’s daughter are worth the gain.

It’s a short ride, and she supposes there’s no need for them to fly around in circles to throw her off, because she has no idea where they’re headed anyway. It’s too loud and the turbulence is too shaky, and she finds herself wondering if they took Lexi in a helicopter as well, and if so, how the little girl fared.

She finds herself being dragged, stumbling out of the chopper and onto steady ground, her legs still wobbly from the flight. The darkness covering her eyes does nothing to calm her, but she forces herself to focus her other senses. She smells salt, and rotten fish past the stale of the bag, and she thinks they must be at the docks, or at least the west side of town. She runs through all of the DEO camera access points, wondering if Winn can see her right now. She wonders if anyone even knows she’s missing, and she hopes desperately that they won’t rush into anything if they do - at least for Lexi’s sake.

There’s the sound of metal clanging and creaking and she can feel the air change as she shoved along. They’re inside now, probably a shipping container or an office building - the ground feels solid, so she doesn’t think it’s a ship; although she can be certain since she doesn’t really have her land legs back.

Her captors are silent, only the stern hand on her shoulder guiding her along. Eventually they come to a stop, and the bag is yanked roughly from her head; leaving her blinking into the sudden light.

Lexi is the first thing she notices and she stifles a sob at the sight of the little girl sitting in a folding chair. She doesn’t look any the worse for wear, from what Lena can tell-  chewing nervously on one of the stim keychains Winn had made for her, fingers flitting over the Supergirl book in front of her. She’s grateful that Lexi seems completely absorbed, she doesn’t want this to be any more traumatic than it has to be. Everything inside of her screams at her to move closer, but her wrists are still bond, and she doesn’t want to risk Lillian’s wrath.

“Now, now, what kind of family reunion is this if she’s all tied up, I thought I told you to release her cuffs when you got here. She’s not going anywhere, she’s too much a sap to leave without this one.” Lillian’s hand flicks towards Lexi and Lena fights the urge to say something sharp and biting because this is about more than just her now.

There’s a moment of fumbling and wrists are yanked tight before there’s a low pop and she’s free, blood rushing painfully back to her fingertips.

“Speaking of my granddaughter …” Lillian glides over to where Lexi is sitting, brushing a hand over her hair.

“She’s not your granddaughter.”

Lillian just laughs, and the sound sends a tremor down Lena’s spine.

“Whatever helps you sleep at night.”

“If you hurt her …” She can’t bring herself to finish the sentence, because she does’t know exactly what she’ll do if Lexi is hurt, doesn’t really want to think about it.

“Oh, don’t worry, you and … Lexington? Is it? Are just bait. You’ll be released just as soon as I get what I want.”

Lena grits her teeth.

“Which is?”

Lillian smirks in that awful way she always had when Lena just wasn’t quite good enough to live up to her standards.

“Really, haven’t we been over this before? I thought even you would realize that I will not rest until I have rid this planet of it’s Kryptonian menace.”

“Oh I’m well aware, I just would have thought you might have moved on to more achievable goals.” Lena tilts her chin in defiance.

“Things are different now, this time … “ Lillian trails off, fingers reaching out for Lexi’s braid.

“Don’t touch her.” Her voice is low and threatening, and even Lillian must hear it, because she backs away.

“Nevertheless. It will all be over soon.”

“She doesn’t even know where I am.” She’s fishing, digging, and Lena hopes desperately it pays off.

“A bottom layer of inter-connected shipping containers, lead-lined, of course, so no pesky Super heroes can see inside. No on notices that these containers never leave the dock, and those who are easily coerced into looking the other way, it’s amazing what money can do, really.”

“Then let me call her, you know she’ll come.”

“Ohh, and risk you two having some sort of secret code? You may not be Lex, but surely even your smart enough to think of that?”

She steps closer and Lena makes a a conscious effort to stay put, even as Lillian reaches out for her hand. Slowly, her wrist is pulled up to eye level as Lillian studies her bracelet.

“Now, where … is it?” Lillian’s fingers trail along her wrist, and she feels the hair on the back of her neck prickle. “Ah, this should do it.”

There’s no sound, nothing changes, but Lena knows without a doubt that Kara and the entire DEO know her exact location. Lillian drops her wrist and steps past her to the door.

“All that’s left now is to wait. Hopefully it won’t take long, and you can still make it home for dinner.”

Bile rises in Lena’s throat and her only hope is that Alex is able to hold Kara back from rushing in head first. Not a good chance, all things considered.

“Make yourself at home.” is Lillian’s parting jab, and then she’s gone, dragging her goons with her.

She’s alone with Lexi now, and she rushes over, kneeling down beside Lexi’s chair.

“Are you alright?” Lena whispers softly, trying not to startle her.

Lexi looks up at her slowly, eyes red-rimmed and and her face blotchy from crying.

“Hey, come here, do you want a hug?” Touching usually isn’t an issue, but it’s best to ask, especially after the drama of the day

Lexi nods carefully before sliding off the chair and into Lena’s lap. She isn’t sure how long they stay like that before she realizes that her own cheeks are wet and Lexi has finally stopped shaking in her arms. She presses a kiss to Lexi’s temple and holds her back to look her over.

“Are you hurt?”

Lexi shakes her head before throwing herself back into Lena’s arms.

“Jus’ loud.”

“Aww, I know, Ma Chroi, it’s alright. It’s alright.” She stands up as carefully as she can, Lexi still clinging to her - though the sniffles have stopped.

A quick observation of the room tells her exactly what she was afraid of, no windows, and only one door.

There’s no way out except the way they came in.  

She stares at the walls, thinking longingly of all the prototypes sitting in her R&D lab that would be so useful right now. But instead she has nothing, no weapons, no tech, hell she doesn’t even have any bobby pins. The room itself is practically empty - a table, some chairs, a few water bottles - nothing of any use. Lexi’s backpack is on the table but she know there’s nothing in it besides its bulletproof lining, a pack of peanut butter crackers, a few books, and a GPS transponder.

She grits her teeth. There has to be a way out of this.

The sound of the door opening behind her makes her jump, and Lexi shifts to look with her. It’s one of Lillian’s lackeys and she feels her stomach set on edge when he motions her forward.

“Follow me.”

“Why should I?”

“Do you have a choice?”

He has a point, and she reaches for Lexi’s backpack before motioning towards the hallway.

“Lead the way.”

He doesn’t much, well anything really, as he leads her down a deserted corridor, taking several twists and turns before they come to a stop. They haven’t seen a single soul and she feels a gnawing feeling in her gut.

“Your brother says hello.” He says, reaching back his fist, and she braces for impact only to have him slam it in the wall. A door pops open, and sunlight floods in, washing the dingy shipping container in a warm yellow glow.

She stares confusedly.

“Lex sent-“

“There’s really no time Ms. Luthor, I suggest you and your daughter get to safety. This whole place is rigged to blow in about forty seconds.”

She doesn’t ask how he knows that - couldn’t even if she wanted to, because he disappears as soon he finishes his sentence. Instead, she readjusts Lexi as best she can and takes off, running clumsily towards the end of the row of containers. The sunlight is beating down, glancing off the pavement and straight into her eyes and she can’t even see what she’s running towards. There’s a blur of people, and she desperately hopes they’re dock workers and not Lillian’s people.

“Lena!”

It’s a voice that makes her want to fall to her knees in relief, but she can’t stop running because ‘rigged to blow’ can mean any number of things, and she isn’t sure what the blast radius is because she doesn’t know if they used C-4, or dynamite, or gasoline. She can feel the explosion as it begins shaking the ground behind her and she stumbles, only to have strong arms catch her up and Kara’s cape wrap around them.

She feels the shockwaves as they ripple through Kara’s body and she clutches Lexi tightly to her chest. The heat of the flames likes the air around them and she’s grateful first hand for the heat proofing work she and Winn had put into the latest version of the suit.

She doesn’t realize that Kara is moving them until her feet touch back down on the ground. She’s shaking like a leaf, and Kara gently pries Lexi from her arms, settling the little girl on one shoulder and pulling Lena into the other.

“Hey, you’re safe, you’re safe.”

Agents and police bustle around them but they stay still until Lena’s heart rate is back to normal and her legs aren’t shaking. She pulls back slowly, taking in the worry in Kara’s eyes and the way Lexi’s fists are clenched in a death grip on Supergirl’s cape.

Not the ideal way to meet one’s hero to be sure.

And she’s sure Kara is glad to be here, but she can see that she wants to be here as Lexi’s mother and not just the resident Superhero, and there is still a shipping container on fire behind them.

She reaches out a hand to Lexi’s back.

“Come here, Ma Chroi, Supergirl has more people to save.”

Kara makes to to hand the little girl over to Lena but Lexi only clutches her tighter.

Lexi’s voice is muffled in Kara’s shoulder, and Lena’s ears are ringing from the explosion.

She almost doesn’t catch it.

“No! Mommy, don’t go!”

She’s sure the look of shock on Kara’s face matches her own.

Kara tugs Lexi back gently, pain filling her eyes as she takes in Lexi’s tear streaked face.

“Nothing gets past you, huh, little one?”

Lexi shakes her head, fingers reaching down to trace the House of El crest.

“This has to be our little secret, okay? You can’t tell anyone.”

“Not even Aunt Alex?”

Lena cant help but laugh through her tears, of course Lexi’s first concern is sharing with her favorite aunt.

“Nah, kiddo, I know all the good secrets already.” A voice sounds behind them and Lexi turns, the most excited she’s seemed all day.

“Aunt Alex!”

“Hey, kiddo, let’s let your mom go put out this fire while we go play with some cool scanners, okay?”

Lexi thinks about it for a moment before turning back to Kara.

“Promise you’ll come back?”

“Faster than a speeding bullet.” Kara promises solemnly, and that seems to satisfy Lexi because she leans into Alex’s arms.

“Come on, Brainiac, you need to get checked out too.” Alex insists, leading her towards one of the DEO ambulances as Kara shoots off.

Alex has barely gotten started with her scans when Lena catches sight of Kara speed walking up in the clothes she had been wearing that morning, press badge dangling from her neck.

She catches Lena up in a tight hug before leaning over Alex to press a kiss to Lexi’s forehead. Once they’re satisfied that Lexi is more than happy to help Alex with her checkup, Kara pulls her off to the side.

“So what was that, exactly? I got a call from Lexi’s school saying she had disappeared and then not five minutes later your alarm signal goes off? And then we track you here and you’re running from an explosion?”

“Lillian. She captured us to get to you; only Lex let us out, and I’m assuming he was behind the explosion.”

“Lex?” Kara’s eyes dart around the dock, “Is he here?”

“No, I don’t think so, it was one of his soldiers.”

“How do you know?”

“He broke us out and led me to the outside and said ‘You’re brother says hello’.”

“What do you think it means?”

“I don’t know.” Lena shakes her head. “But to be fair, my brain is a little fried.”

“Well, you’re safe now, that’s all that matter, we can figure out the rest later.”

“Is Lillian … “ She gestures towards the smoldering pile of rubble where Lillian’s outpost had once been.

“I couldn’t tell, there was too much debris, it’ll probably be a few days before we can sort everything out.”

Lena shivers, and Kara’s arm wraps around her shoulder.

“Are you okay?”

“Honestly? I don’t know. I was scared, for Lexi, and whatever trap they were setting for you… “

“You know what will make you feel better?”

“What?”

“Finding Nemo and hot chocolate.”

“Yeah?”

“Oh yeah, proven cure for all bad days.” Kara says confidently and Lena can’t help but laugh, tugging her wife around the ambulance just in time to see Lexi talking Alex in a Lollipop AND a sticker.

“Everything checks out,” Alex reassures them, setting Lexi down on the ground and waving Lena up. “You’re next!”

“I’m fine!”

“Lee!” Kara starts and she immediately acquiesces because she knows that tone; it’s one she’s used a hundred different times on Kara after battles.  

She sits back and lets Alex poke and prod her until she’s satisfied there’s no permanent damage.

“Do you want a sticker, or a lollipop?”

“So she gets both and I have to pick?”

Kara and Lexi giggle at that, and Alex groans before passing Lena a lollipop and pressing a brightly colored smiley face onto her shoulder.

“Happy?”

“Ecstatic!” She winks at Lexi and clambers out of the ambulance, groaning as she takes in the sight of dozens of reporters lingering around the police perimeter.

“Maureen should be here any minute with the car.” Kara reassures her, “And Jess already arranged for James come and pick up the dogs and take them home.”

“Jess!” She suddenly remembers the sight of her unconscious assistant.

“Is fine, a minor concussion and a nasty bruise.”

She feels some of the tension ease from her shoulders, making a mental note to give Jess another raise.

Tomorrow, there will be questions from reporters and phone calls from worried investors, and a long talk with Lexi about Supergirl; not to mention the  hours spent tinkering with security systems; but for now, she’s alive and Lexi’s alive, Kara’s safe.

For tonight, that’s enough.

And if she drinks two cups of hot chocolate and cries when Marlin finds Nemo?

Well, no one but Kara is awake to notice anyway.

#Supergirl #supercorp #lena luthor #kara danvers #Lexington Luthor-Danvers #the lexington chronicles #superfam

[ibelieveinahappilyeverafter]

Misdirection

Bonjour, mes chers. I have to get ready for work soon and I’ve been feeling a little down and a little obsessed with a favorite old movie of mine so I decided to write a drabble! I know, when was the last time I wrote a drabble for a movie? I hope you enjoy it, none the less!

For those of you who don’t know, by the way, I have a Patr(e)on! If you think I’d be worth spending a few dollars on every month then consider checking it out! There are polls asking YOUR opinion on what I should post next, what stories I should start, and what ones I should work on again! Check it out at the Patr(e)on website with the name mjanderson.

Warnings for: Gunshot wounds, shipping vibes, and mentions of blood Drabble Idea One: What if in the first movie of ‘Now You See Me’ Alma Dray ended up shooting Daniel Atlas instead of letting him go that night of their New Orleans show?

::

Dylan Shrike watched as the Four Horseman performed their second major show and felt a swell of what could only be called pride. It was a struggle to keep his expression skeptical, as if he was loathing every minute he was forced to sit there, but there were prices to be paid in the game he was playing. Alma Dray was far too clever and Dylan was almost certain that she knew more than even he gave her credit for. It had been almost painful to have little to no reaction at hearing her go on about Lionel Shrike and how he did his greatest tricks. How he had seen so far into the future and how he had died… No, Alma Dray was definitely someone to not underestimate- Ah, the bubble exploding bit.

Henley was rather a fan of dramatics, wasn’t she? Dylan had seen that clear enough when he had watched her in Los Angeles and she made her entire audience think she had been torn apart by flesh eating piranhas. Macabre, but wildly entertaining and viciously clever with how she had pulled it off. No one saw a figure moving through the crowd when they were thought to be in mortal peril.

And Daniel caught her just as he was supposed to. They really had come a long way in a year. All four of them clashed no doubt, but on stage they began to work flawlessly as one cohesive unit. Dylan hoped to God that they remembered these shows when this was all brought to a close. They would need it.

As the audience cheered and clapped, Dylan turned his attention to Merritt as the real magic began. Thirty years of planning and hiding behind a disguise and it had all led to this moment. He wasn’t sure where it would go once it was over, but he sure as hell was going to be enjoying the ride there.

The theatrics continued on the stage, each Horseman carrying with them sharp wit and blooming charisma that made them shine where so many other magicians had fallen by the wayside. They truly were deserving of this.

It was only an afterthought that Dylan remembered to play his part, instructing the others to be on standby and making sure everything was planned out as it should be. This was where it got hard and everything had to go just right in order for this to be pulled off.

Dylan wasn’t the only one Tressler had screwed over and judging by how packed the show was, he certainly hadn’t been the last. While a part of him had longed for this for selfish reasons, it was amazing to see all these people finally get what they were owed.

“Hey, is this for real?” Dylan spoke quickly to his team, fighting back a smile at the confusion on the other end. “Is this happening!” It was and it was utterly beautiful.

“We got confirmation, it’s really happening. They robbed him!”

“Do not let them get away!” Grin appearing for only a moment, Dylan quickly pushed himself up, Alma following his lead. Moving quickly, Dylan fell back into his role perfectly, running down the stairs and towards the stage.

“Stop! Stop! Nobody move!” Ah, this was going to hurt, wasn’t it? At Daniel’s cheeky little wave, Dylan increased his pace and took a bracing breath. “Freeze!”

“Quarterback!” Merritt and his mentalism were certainly something, Dylan would say that much for him. Thoughts tumbling, Dylan jumped up on stage, viciously proud when the four escaped with not an ounce of fear in their eyes as the hypnotized crowd rushed up to tackle him.

“We are The Four Horsemen. Good night!”

Now this is where the game really got fun.

Ordering everyone out of the security van, Dylan shouted orders and followed the tracer, shouting out directions that would have his own agents confused and turned around so the Horsemen would be able to get away but still be seen on occasion.

Running through the town, Dylan emerged into the crowd, jumping up on top of the police car and quickly taking stock of the scene. He could see police cars blocking off a few parts, another one vanishing into the crowd that he didn’t bother to track anymore- Ah, there was Alma chasing after Daniel. Remembering how vicious Alma had been in looking beneath the surface and digging into everything, Dylan mentally swore and quickly chased after them.

“He’s heading South on Exchange Place.” Following the two North, Dylan started to gain on them when Daniel climbed up onto the wall, Alma screaming just as he got to the top.

“Stop!” All three of them freezing, Dylan watched with baited breath as Daniel slowly looked back, hands raised in the air peacefully. Dylan saw the twitch in the man’s fingers and knew in a second that he would run the moment he saw weakness- Which he would. Alma Dray was fresh off the desk and seemed to always have her nose buried in a book or file. There was no way she would shoot.

Jogging to catch up with them, Dylan watched as Daniel took a step back and quickly began to turn, Dylan only stumbling to a halt as he heard the sharp crack of gunfire echoing throughout the alleway.

Dylan wasn’t sure which of them was more surprised of the three, and, okay, that had been- That had been a close one. Alma had been a glorified desk jockey, though, there was no way she had actually managed to hit him, even with the close shot.

Alma lowered her gun, eyes wide and face pale as Daniel stumbled off the top of the wall instead of jumping gracefully like he should have. Not sparing Alma more than a glance, Dylan quickly rushed over the wall after Daniel, shocked to see the man was right in front of him- No, shocked wasn’t the right word. Shocked was too weak of a word for what he saw.

Okay, ‘Rhodes’, time to play your part. They were too far in to lose now. Any of them. “Stop right there, Atlas! Hands up, nice and slow-”

“Or what? You’ll shoot me?” Wrong. Something was very wrong here. Daniel’s voice was cracked and shot through. Everything he knew said that he would be fine under pressure. “Afraid you’re a bit too late for that, Agent.” Oh… Oh, no.

Dylan rushed forward and caught Daniel just as the man collapsed, swearing up a storm as he saw Daniel clutch at a spot right beneath his left shoulder, the man’s breath going shallow and panicked. He was going into shock. “Hey- Hey, focus on me, Atlas. Come on, I need you to focus, now.” Daniel’s eyes were glazed and dilated, the man moving as if he was getting ready to take his chances and run away. “Don’t even think about it, you idiot.”

Okay, okay, he had to think this through carefully. Shit- Shit. This wasn’t supposed to happen. None of them were ever supposed to get hurt like this. Ignoring the radio constantly going off at his side, Dylan gritted his teeth and shifted Daniel to get him onto his feet as gently as he could, “C’mon, c’mon, it’s not ending here.”

They only had a limited amount of time before Alma got her feet back under her and started chasing after them again. If she radioed in for help then there wasn’t much that even Dylan could do. If they took too long here then everything could fall apart. Dylan could not let that happen. Not when he had four lives besides his own riding on the line.

“What… What’re you-” Daniel cut himself off with a noise that bordered on a sob, Dylan feeling guilt tear at his insides as he quickly half-carried and half-led Daniel over a split off of the alleway. The parties were still in full swing and Dylan was sure that any agents running by would quickly pass them over.

Guiding Daniel to sit down on the ground and lean up against the brick wall, Dylan knelt down in front of him, “Hey, hey, you’re okay, you’re gonna be okay, come on. You’re a magician, kid. You’re not allowed to die unless you’re on stage.” Tearing at the suit jacket the man was wearing, Dylan pulled and yanked at the shirt until he could see the wound. It… It wasn’t good. The angle Alma had shot at and the fact Daniel had already half-jumped at least made it so the bullet hadn’t lodged itself into the skin, but it was still bad enough that Dylan could understand the kid’s panic.

“‘S more escape artists kind of thing.” J. Daniel Atlas always with a clever quip and last one-liner. Usually that made Dylan pretty damn proud, but right now it was easy to tell Daniel was bluffing his way through everything.

“Yeah, well tough shit.” Jerking his tie off, Dylan bundled it up as best he could before pressing it tight against the wound, gritting his teeth at Daniel’s strangled scream that escaped before he could cut it off. “Hey, c’mon, Danny, focus for me, okay? I need you to hold this in place. Can you do that?”

Shaking like a leaf, Daniel pressed an already bloodied hand to the impromptu bandage, pressing down hard and giving another sob as his body jerked forward. Dylan was there in a second and cupped the back of the younger’s neck, carefully guiding Daniel to rest his forehead on Dylan’s shoulder. “Ssh, ssh, easy there, Danny, easy. That’s it, that’s it. Just breathe for me, alright? You’re gonna get out of this just fine, just breathe.”

He was giving away too much. If the Horseman found out too much too soon then they might try to approach him before the end of this and it could all come crashing down in flames. Daniel was too curious for his own damn good and if nothing else he would be the one to search for answers. Dylan was giving away everything, but… He couldn’t help it.

Noticing the shaking had barely even died down, Dylan clutched Daniel closer and quickly looked around the alleyway. Shifting just enough to grab Daniel’s phone, Dylan sent a quick text to the other three Horsemen before putting it back. How out of it was this kid that he didn’t even notice what Dylan had done?

Taking a breath, Dylan tightened his grip around Daniel for a moment. “Sorry about this, kid.” Letting him go suddenly, Dylan tried to ignore the sharp whimper of pain as he stood up and took a few steps back, drawing his gun and keeping it aimed at the ground at as he used another hand to grab his radio. “Where are you idiots! North on Exchange Place, I’ve got Atlas cornered but he’s been shot. Get me medical and back-up here now.”

There was a panicked gasp from one of the other Horsemen that Dylan pretended to not hear and then a scrambling of footsteps that he was hard pressed to not look up at. They needed to work a bit more on sneaking around, it seemed. Taking another moment to yell into his radio, Dylan glanced back up and cursed loudly and freely, pouring his frustration over what had just happened into his tone.

To anyone listening in it would just sound as if Agent Rhodes was pissed at the Horsemen once more getting away. Which was good. He had slipped enough in front of Daniel… God he hoped he would be okay. More than that, he hoped the pain had been bad enough to blur Daniel’s memories once he was patched up and healed. The last thing they needed was any complications. It was going to be bad enough to try and explain the blood that was literally on his hands. He would come up with something, though. He always did. After all…

It wouldn’t do to have his grand finale spoiled before the rest of the show.

#now you see me #dylan shrike #daniel atlas #atlashrike #Lover's Fool #dylan rhodes #my writing