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#all but like three of these are canon which sucks
mariana-oconnor · 1 year
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Types of AO3 Summary
Option 1 - The Excerpt:
The quickest, the easiest! Find a section of your fic that contains the main premise of said fic and also showcases your writing. Copy paste that into the summary box. BOOM! Done.
Best used for any fic, unless it's so short the excerpt would be the whole fic.
Option 2 - The No Frills:
Just a description of the fic. No need for drama. No need to complicate matters. Keep it simple, keep it safe.
Example: "A short character exploration of Blorbo's thoughts after Daisy leaves."
Best used for short fics, poems and fics where the style/format is more important than the plot. Or fics that tie directly into a scene/episode from canon or another fanfic.
Option 3 - The Hook:
Draw the reader's interest by giving them a set up with no conclusion. Introduce the main character(s), introduce the status quo, describe an inciting incident, leave a question in the reader's mind.
Example: "Blorbo is a barista at a coffee shop, struggling to pay their bills, but after handsome rockstar Obrolb walks into their coffee shop they find that they have to decide whether a chance at love is worth the cost of fame."
Best used for mid to long fic where there's a strong premise and follow through. Especially good for AUs. Can be expanded for more complex plots or used multiple times in one summary for multiple characters or subplots.
Option 4 - The Sitcom One-Liner:
"The one in which [over simplified description of one of the main plotlines]" This is essentially 'boil your plot down to the very simplest statement you can, oversimplify if possible. The more bizarre or unhelpful the better.
Example: "The one in which Blorbo learns to like cake".
Best used for fics with at least a little humour in them.
Option 5 - The Rule of Three:
Three is a magic number. Find three key moments in your fic and just list them. That's it. Often ends with 'not necessarily in that order' if used for comic effect. If it's an AU, establish that quickly (i.e. 'Star NHL player Blorbo…').
Example: "Blorbo makes a friend, falls in love, and almost burns to death, not necessarily in that order."
Best used for anything, really. Three is a magic number. The human brain loves things that come in threes.
Option 6 - The Trope Lure:
Why bother describing the plot? We all know AO3 readers are here for the tropes. Similar to The Sitcom One-Liner just using tropes instead of plot. Often followed by the phrase 'that nobody asked for'.
Example: "The Space western / A/B/O / Mail Order Bride fic that nobody asked for."
Often tacked on to the end of The Hook or The Excerpt as a tl;dr.
Best used for fic that plays its tropes straight with no shame or second guessing.
Option 7 - The Pre-emptive Strike:
(Not recommended) You just wrote this fic, the self doubt is consuming you. You feel the need to apologise profusely for your existence for no apparently reason. You feel cringe, you think the fic is cringe, you want everyone to know that you think the fic is cringe in case they don't like it and judge you for it.
Example: "So I fell in love with this pairing and had to write this. It's weird and terrible. Lol! I suck at summaries! Sorry!"
Best used for no fics ever. I cannot stress this enough.
(Seriously, I am begging you, don't do this. If you're planning to use this option, rethink it and do one of the others. I guarantee you more people will want to read your fic.)
Sometimes added on to any other summary as a strange disclaimer. (srsly. don't.)
Option 8 - The Unapology:
Embrace the mayhem, embrace the deep dark depths of your soul. The opposite of The Pre-emptive Strike. A combination of The No Frills and The Trope Lure that truly gives no fucks.
You have committed crimes and you are proud of them. You know what your USP is and you're going to make sure your target market finds you. Look upon my works, ye readers, and despair!
Example: "There aren't enough tentacle fics in this pairing, so I had to write one myself!"
Best used for fics with controversial/polarising tropes with all relevant details already clearly stated in the tags.
Option 9 - The Interrogation:
What if you wrote a summary entirely in questions? What if your readers had to read the fic to discover the answers? Who knows what will happen if you do this?
Example: "What happens when Blorbo McBlorbo gets his wish and Daisy doesn't make it to the plane on time? What happens when Obrolb finds out? How will this change Daisy and Blorbo's friendship?"
Best used for... I honestly don't know. This style of summary does not vibe with me. Mystery fic maybe? Sorry guys.
Option 10 - The Multipack:
Got a bunch of shorter fics in one work? No way of summarising them all without a wall of text larger than the Great Wall of China? This one is similar to The No Frills in that you're not describing the plots themselves and similar to The Trope Lure in that often broader genres and tropes are mentioned. What links those fics? Are they all in the same fandom? The same pairing? The same challenge? Just slap that right in the summary. A chapter list with 1-2 word trope/pairing summaries can be included or not.
Example: "A collection of Blorbo/Daisy/Obrolb fics based on Tumblr prompts. Chapter 1: Regency AU Chapter 2: Werewolves vs vampires Chapter 3: Ghost!Daisy Chapter 4: Space pirates!"
Best used for (obviously) works that are compilations of fic.
Option ? - The Void:
I said The Excerpt was the quickest and easiest summary to do. I lied, well... I didn't exactly lie. What is quicker and easier than not having a summary at all? After all, that's what the tags are for.
Example:
Best used for... nothing? Write a summary, guys. Please?
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a-hazbin-reader · 3 months
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love the chaotic-ness of platonic alastor and reader of your posts!! the way you write him is more canon compliant but that makes it even more GREAT. can i req platonic alastor (+maybe rosie as a trio?) with overlord!reader. they just talk shit about the Vees and stuff lmao and do it openly on his radio show. hang out at rosie’s. maybe alastor gets reader to support the hotel too and everyone’s to alastor is like THEM?? You know THEM??? alastor’s like yeah lol we blow stuff up every tuesday and broadcast it where you at
OVERLORD PODCAST OVERLORD PODCAST OVERLORD PODCAST-
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Alastor X Reader X Rosie Headcanons
❌️Romantic
✅️Platonic
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TW: Alastor and Rosie cannibalism
Description: 👆⬆️
The three of you are very busy demons who have demanding jobs so getting together doesn't happen as often as you'd like
But when you get together??? It's almost like you're all a bunch of gossiping old women instead of powerful deadly overlords
Rosie brings the snacks(bring your own if you don't want people meat), Alastor provides the venue, and you pick the topic of discussion
The first podcast was entirely an accident, Alastor forgetting he was on air when you and Rosie suddenly burst in
ALASTOR YOU ARE NOT GOING TO BELIEVE WHAT HAPPENED
He gets so sucked into what you're saying that he forgets about his radio show and everything the three of you are saying is being broadcast live
But a lot of people are tuning into it??? Like everyone is so entertained by the three of you and your conversation
Once you three realize what happened then you all agree that this must become a weekly occurrence
Even the other overlords listen in on it every once in a while, finding it hilarious
Vox is absolutely livid because he's being IGNORED, why is nobody watching tv anymore???
He tries to get you and Rosie on his show instead but the two of you don't even take the offer seriously
The chemistry would be all off without Alastor's sparkling humor anyways
Which makes him throw a huge tantrum that becomes the next topic between the three of you
Y'all are just trashing this man at this point
It's his own fault for providing you three with so much ammo
But nobody is safe
It's just a fun little gossip podcast that somehow blows up and turns into this gigantic thing
But it gives you three an excuse to hang out
Whenever the conversation starts to drift towards the hotel you try to stay out of it for your own reasons
And it does always go back to the hotel, Alastor is running a business afterall
Alastor slowly starts to warm you up to the idea of his hotel, whatever your motivations are or if you believe in it
Rosie also encourages you to at least humor him and go see it
Easy for you say, he's not pressuring YOU
So you give in one day, accompanying Alastor to the hotel
Huh, Alastor wasn't joking when he said that Lucifer's daughter was his partner 🤔
You're not entirely surprised when you see the shocked looks everyone gives Alastor when they see you
WTF ALASTOR WHEN YOU SAID Y/N WAS COMING I DIDN'T THINK YOU MEANT Y/N THE OVERLORD
Who else would it have been, Vaggie???
Everyone nervously watches you and Alastor interact, it's two extremely powerful beings in one hotel
Except for Niffty, she greats you like an old friend, climbing all over you and making maniacal noises
Husk and Niffty are the only ones not surprised by your friendship, knowing that you and Alastor are good friends
They fill the others in on your relationship when they think you two aren't listening
It's almost funny hearing it come from someone else, you had nearly forgotten how you two met
"That's right..! I DID try to kill you! That's so funny!"
"Isn't it? And I do believe I nearly bit your hand clean off!"
You two are fucking deranged
You have a better understanding of why Alastor wants so much support for this hotel now
And you're a little surprised that Charlie seems to believe so genuinely in the idea of redeeming a soul
Regardless of if you're sold in the idea or not, you agree to support the hotel for Alastor
But now you're going to rope Rosie in with you too, if you're gonna go down then the three of you are going down together
But that's unlikely to happen, Alastor wouldn't lead you guys into a death trap
He's never steered you wrong before
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This was so fun to write!!
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marycorcaroli · 7 months
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NSFW HEADCANONS.
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characters: kenshi takahashi, sub-zero, liu kang.
words count: 1626.
warning: fem!reader only, pussy drunk kenshi, creampie, big dicks, talking during sex, daddy kink, praise kink, breeding king, maybe size kink, cuddle-fucking, missionary, cowgirl, dirty talk, full-nelson.
mary ♡: hope u like it ! english is not my first language, i apologize for the mistakes ♡
rules ; masterlist.
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SUB-ZERO (BI-HAN).
— despite how he looks and how he talks, bi-han is quite gentle in bed with you and doesn't want to have too much control over you, he knows that he can intimidate you too much and maybe you will become afraid of him, which will literally kill him. he wants to show you his love that he can't put into words, but his gentle touches and sweet kisses will do the trick.
— he's not the loudest during sex, i think he's just afraid to make any sounds, but he wants to hear you all the time, the way your mouth opens and the sounds that come out of it make his cock move inside you even more. if he sees that you like the way he whimpers or moans, he'll never shut up.
– i think he's pretty shameless and will definitely tell you what he wants to do to you and describe it in every color.
— he is crazy about your breasts and how they look in his palms and the way your nipples harden just from his breath elevates his ego to the heavens. bi-han will suck your tits all the time, he just can't stop and wants to do it all the time. loves to run his tongue over it and leave his drool (he's so dirty and needy 100% canon), will probably leave hickeys around your boobs and then stare at them forever. you can be sitting with friends and he'll just say in your ear that he wants to suck your boobs and you'll be like "wtf??? u ok???"
— a fan of eye contact.
— loves to humiliate, but he'll never go too far and bring you to tears, you're too precious to him, so he mixes it up with kind words to let you know you're still the best.
"where's my favorite, slut? hey, eyes on me, baby."
"show me how much you want that cock inside you and maybe i'll make you feel good."
"don't you dare make a sound, got it? or do you want to be heard? you're that dirty, aren't you, honey?"
— he doesn't have a favorite position, anything where you achieve pleasure and love each other is fine, he likes to touch you, so he doesn't like tying you up or too much bdsm, too much spanking that will leave bruises on you or too much hickeys, no matter how much he loves you, he doesn't want anyone to know about your intimate life, but still, the position he uses most often is cuddle-fucking.
— either he's your sweetest lover who is gently pounding into you, kissing the corners of your lips and whispering sweet nothings, or he's your daddy and wants you to moan loudly for him while he's trying to beat the hell out of you and get rid of the stress.
— he is obviously bigger than you and every time you stand next to him and he sees your difference, he gets blown away and you're already on the bed.
— his favorite kinks are size kink(!), voice kink and dirty talk kink.
— the biggest and thickest cock of all three of them, i just know it and i know that his cock is constantly throbbing when he sees you. bi-han knows that before he enters you he needs to warm you up good because well...his cock is really big, i'm afraid it will rip absolute anyone.
— loves to cuddle you after sex and kiss your whole face, he will take good care of you and change all the stuff you got dirty. he wants to fall asleep in your arms and listen to your heartbeat that helps him sleep and think what he did to deserve you.
KENSHI TAKAHASHI.
— i think he's pretty gentle and doesn't want to force you into things. will insist on your wishes and what you want to do the most. he won't mind if you tell him you want to tie him up, he'll be only too happy.
— based on what he can't see, it will be a little hard for him and kenshi will constantly think he's doing something wrong and if he hears that you're hurting, um, he'll go crazy. but i know it won't come to that. kenshi loves you and respects everything you've done for him, so he wants to repay you in the most wonderful ways every time.
— kenshi can't live a day without licking you and tasting you. He loves the way you wiggle his tongue and the beautiful sounds you make, he's in heaven because of you. kenshi dreams of meeting you after a hard day and asking you to sit on his face so you can get rid of the stress and soak his face in your juices. i think kenshi likes any position where he can suck your clit and kiss your folds.
— he doesn't have the fastest pace, more like a medium pace so you can enjoy this beautiful moment. but if you ask him he will go wild, even with a blindfold he will make sure you can't walk normally the next day. he loves you so he will take care of you ♡
— not the biggest fan of hickeys, he likes kissing your skin and saying nice words more.
— words ! kenshi loves it when you talk during sex and you tell him about how good you feel and how his cock was made for your cunnie. he's still not the most confident so he needs your words of encouragement, but he'll be sure to praise you too.
"ahhh, where's my beautiful girl? you're so good for me, thank you, honey."
"come for me, baby, show daddy how much you love him."
"you understand, don't you? you were made for me and i was made for you and it's the best thing that ever happened to me."
— he can cum anywhere, anything you want, he doesn't really care and wants you to like everything, but kenshi dreams of cumming in you and imagines what your child will be like, but...that's another conversation.
— i don't think he has the biggest dick, but he's not the smallest either. he's been with girls before, i'm sure he knows how to handle it and get you shaking.
— kenshi's kinks: daddy kink, praise kink, breeding king, maybe size kink.
— he likes poses where he can kiss your face and he would love to see it and see the emotions you show, but he also wouldn't mind if you ride him aggressively. for him, the top is missionary, full-nelson and maybe cowgirl.
— he may want to try public sex but will never say so, it turns him on that someone will see you and see how well he fucks you, but your bed looks more comfortable still.
— he will take excellent care of you afterwards and will do everything at the highest level. for starters he will lie with you and kiss you on the forehead to let you know how proud he is of you. he will take a bath with you and give you a good bath. he only needs words and nothing else, he is grateful that after everything that happened you are still here and let him love you.
LIU KANG.
— and finally we have reached the most beautiful man. liu kang is a true gentleman and will faithfully wait for you to want to feel all of him, and if you don't want anything, it's okay, he won't pressure you and will instead cuddle with you for a long time.
— he obviously knows how to bring a woman to a euphoric orgasm and he's going to try it out on you. he likes to see you whimpering under him and asking him to move his fingers faster, but he doesn't want to, he likes to see what a mess you're becoming and he hasn't even gotten his cock out yet.
— he likes any part of your body and will idolize everything, but your neck and shoulders have a special effect on him when he leaves kisses and feels the goosebumps on your skin and the way you immediately want more, wow, he's crazy.
— moans for you, makes the wettest noises, whimpers, he does everything and he's not ashamed, why should he keep quiet? you make him feel so good and he wants you to hear it. really, really loves talking to you during and sex and kissing you between words.
"i don't think anyone has ever evoked the same emotions in me as you have, love, i'm so glad i met you."
"do you feel good, baby? do you want me to speed up?"
"baby, you're squeezing me so hard, i'm afraid i'm gonna cum right now, haha."
— he has a lot of favorite positions and he wants to try them with you. i think liu kang practices tying you up, but not too much so you don't get hurt. he likes to fuck you in the missionary position and then watch you ride him fast and fall off from overstimulation.
— even though he looks like a man who likes sex in public places - he really likes it, haha. wouldn't mind pleasuring you in a restaurant restroom, massaging your cunnie while you talk to your friends and taking you on a picnic where he will lick your pussy and then sit u on his face while you gently suck his throbbing cock.
— he doesn't have a lot of kinks or on the contrary too many, i still haven't really figured it out, but he likes - dirty talk, overstimulation kink and riding kink (he likes the way your tits shake when you ride him).
— the most usual medium pace, enjoying your moment and he has no rush, you have forever ahead of you and he will still have time to thrust into you from behind with all his might and pull your hair while you forget how many orgasms you have already gone through.
— the sweetest when the time comes to take care of you after sex. he will change your bed, give you a massage and bring you anything you want. you did a good job for him and now it's his turn to take care of you.
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youraverageaemondsimp · 8 months
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To Ruin. // Dark!Aemond Targaryen x Niece!Reader
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THIS IS A DARK FIC, READER DISCRETION IS ADVISED, DEAD DOVE DO NOT EAT.
MDNI
block the tag #MAE:DARK!CONTENT to avoid seeing dark content from me.
Summary: you are aegon's and helaena's daughter, being the eldest triplet, you were betrothed to your older uncle Aemond the moment you were born, he seemed to show no interest in you, being lost in his own world until he returns to kings landing and sees you again, in your prime age. // based on this request.
WARNINGS: noncon to dubcon, p in v sex, fingering, orgasm denial, knife kink, blood kink, dacryphilia, breeding kink, choking kink, corruption kink, purity culture, age system is in accordance to medieval/canon standards and not modern but do not worry they dont get sexual until reader is 19, virginity loss, tiddy sucking, thoughts of violence, fucked up shit, age gap (13 years), extreme canon divergence, cunty aemond + not proofread
WC: 4.3k
The moment you were born, you were immediately betrothed to your uncle, Aemond Targaryen. Alicent never wanted to betroth or marry someone from the same family after Aegon and Helaena but Otto convinced her to do so, even if they see it as a sin. Telling her that it would secure the hightower blood further down the line.
When Aemond was informed of this, he laughed, he was just thirteen back then, the idea of marrying someone that was just born seemed comical to him, especially when the babe was his elder sister's and elder brother's daughter, but he quickly accepted it, as he realised it was his duty.
Aegon however, was against it, calling you too young, but he was only sixteen at that time so his opinion was disregarded.
You were the oldest by an hour to your younger siblings, Jaehaerys and Jaehaera.
You were informed of your betrothal to your uncle when you were ten years old, that's when they deemed you old enough to understand what marriage and everything was. Aemond had turned twenty three that year, performing his duties as the prince of the realm, securing aegon's claim to the throne, claiming lands and power back to their hands successfully. At the end, Rhaenyra was successfully usurped, having lost way too much before she died at the hands of Aegon. And then came Aemond's march to Harrenhal, killing off every person that contained even a single droplet of the strong blood, except he spared one, Alys rivers, who he took as his war spoil and a bedmate.
He spent most of his time there with her in Harrenhal, burying himself deep inside of her, and other political matters, only returning to King's Landing when he was needed, just like now, but what he didn't expect was you. He was surprised to see you.
You were no more the gangly limbed child he knew you as and remembered you to be, your breasts and hips were fuller, your face having lost its childlike appearance as you were going through puberty, becoming more sharp and mature, having recently turned seventeen, You were becoming a woman now. You greeted him with a small smile. “Welcome back, Uncle.” you greeted him and he swallowed thickly, hoping you had not noticed how his breeches tightened as he got hard at the sight of you. Your beauty captured him.
“Niece, you've grown.” he comments, eyes shamelessly roaming over your breasts, which you weren't aware of, “You too Uncle, it has been a while since we properly saw each other.” you tell him and he hums, looking at the soft flush of your breasts pushing against the bodice, almost calling out to him to set them free, he fought with every urge to not do so.
It was when he spent some time with you, he realised he didn't know you at all, so he put in effort into knowing you, courting you properly which you were taken aback by, always knowing him to be distant towards you, but that was only because you were a child, you are a woman now, and he was a lot interested and willing to be with you.
It was on your eighteenth name day, which he attended, when he cut off multiple ladies tongues out for bad mouthing you, they had said mean things about you, calling you too old now, that nobody would be interested in marrying you if your betrothal to Aemond was called off, which was unsurprisingly a rumor circulating due to Aemond's involvement with Alys, his disinterest in you and your grandmother, Alicent, doing nothing to make the betrothal move forward. It had been a messy name day but it was also the moment you fell in love with your uncle, impressed by how he defended your honour and your name.
Aemond had to return to harrenhal as there were some pressing issues which needed to be taken care of, and he was less than enthusiastic about it, not even the thought of seeing his spoil made him excited. He was sitting on his chair doing the paperwork when Alys walked into the room, she sat on his lap and caressed his face, “What is it my love?” she cooed and he sighed heavily, not in the mood for her, “Get out.” he said, and Alys was heavily hurt by it, but left nonetheless. His mind was constantly on you, he remembers how your breasts pressed against his chest when you hugged him during your name day, and he immediately gets hard at the thought, that night, he finishes in his hand before cleaning himself up.
You had plagued his mind, cause he couldn't look at his lover nor bed her anymore because she isn't you, he was becoming more and more insatiable, tired of fucking his own hand, he was in need of a real cunt.
He stopped ordering silk green dresses for Alys and instead ordered dresses of material you would wear, the colour palette you dearly loved, and requested her to wear those instead, and do her hair up in a way you did, so he could at least pretend she was you when he fucked her, moaning your name loudly while being buried inside of her cunt. He knew he was being cruel to Alys, but he couldn't give a fuck, and Alys kept quiet, not wanting to anger him, knowing that he could kill her.
But it still wasn't enough, no, because it wasn't you.
Aemond was so delighted when he was called to the keep again, it means he got to see you, it was to discuss matters of the realm, and after what seems like hours, his mother finally changes the topic. Which catches his immediate attention.
“I think it is in our best interest if you marry aemond and y/n soon, maybe in a moons time, there have been various slanderous whispers about their betrothal, and i want to put an end to it.” Alicent says and Aemonds heart picks up it's pace at that. “It's better if we call off the betrothal.” Aegon's voice booms across the chambers. “I do not think it is necessary anymore, not after we have won the war. Rhaenyra is dead, the blacks are dead, my daughter shouldn't need to marry her uncle anymore.” Aegon reasons and Aemond clicks his tongue, “It is my duty brother, to keep our valyrian blood pure, I do not mind marrying my niece.” Aemond replies and Aegon sighs. “You need not perform your duty anymore, she is my daughter, and I do not wish her to be subjected to your cruelty, little brother.”
“My cruelty? What of your whoring?” Aemond grits his teeth, and Alicent visibly flinches at the mention but Aegon only laughs, “I have put it past me dear brother. You however, still are as merciless.” and Aemond scoffs.
“I want to marry her.” Aemond says, tone final, staring daggers at Aegon, and he just laughed. “Alright, Alright, it was merely a suggestion.” Aegon backs down which makes Aemond calm down. “The matter is settled then, the wedding will take place when the moon turns.” Alicent says and everyone nods.
Another moon to finally bed you? Gods be damned, he cannot wait that long.
So he didn't.
He snuck into your chambers that night, through the secret tunnels, he had expected you to be asleep but you were awake, sitting on the chaise, reading a book of some sort, but you didn't hear him enter your chambers, so you jumped when you heard him speak.
“Hello, Niece.” you snapped your head to the direction of the voice and were surprised to find Aemond.
“Uncle? What are you doing here” you asked and he just stalked towards you, “Mhm, is it wrong to see my future wife?” the word wife rolling off his tongue with such delicacy. “No- you misunderstand- i merely meant that–”
“What are you reading?” he asks, cutting you off and coming even more closer to you, he took the book from your hand and you stood up, feeling vulnerable when you were just sitting.
“A romance novel huh?” he asks and you nod, he would love to go through the content to tease you, but he had no interest in wasting his time, he came here with a purpose.
“Dear niece, we are to be wed in a moons time.” he says and you look at him, “Understood, Uncle.” his gaze was too intense, so you looked down in submission of a sort.
He felt his cock stir at that, the way your puffy lips were pouty, eyes darted to the ground, like a good obedient and innocent wife.
Oh seven hells how he wanted to ruin you.
And so he would.
You were surprised when Aemond threw the book on the chair before grabbing you by your arms and pushing you in the direction of your bed, he slammed his lips against yours in hunger, swiping your bottom lip with his tongue, you were frozen in shock before it finally clicked and you used all your strength to push him off.
“We-we shouldn't, we are yet to be man and wife.” you breathe heavily, hoping he'd understand but he doesn't. He pushes you down unto the bed before getting on top of you, you panic, “U-uncle- please.” you were scared.
You knew how dishonourable it is to lose your maidenhead before marriage, it will ruin your reputation, it did not matter whether the person who took it was soon to be your husband. It is a sin, and you were extremely protective over it. After all, your grandmother raised you to be protective of it, saying it is a woman's honour that should not be given carelessly.
“P-please uncle! You said we were to be wed in a Moon's time, then you can have me! Please!” you beg and he smirks, “No can do, niece. No way in seven hells am I waiting that long, not after I have suffered so much because of you.” he says, and before you can say something, he grabs your throat, choking you, “Shut the fuck up. I do not want to hear your pleas.” he says meanly before squeezing your neck tight, making you see stars and leaving your head feeling light as the blood supply to your brain was being cut off due to his ministrations.
“P-pl-ple-” you try to choke out, tears welling in your eyes until he finally lets go of your throat, causing you to gasp for air, the air entering your lungs so quickly making it painful.
Aemond takes the dagger from its holder and starts cutting, tearing up your nightgown, the sound of clothes tearing filling the chambers as you pleaded him to get off of you, how your virtue was an important thing to preserve, how embarrassing it would be if you did not bleed on your wedding night, but all of that fell deaf to his ears, his only mission was to fuck you.
Soon enough, you are completely bare, you crossed your arms across your chest to protect your dignity but he pulled them apart, pinning them to your sides, “Do not hide yourself from me.” he said, voice low, emitting a slow growl. You sobbed.
“P-please, I promise I won't resist or hide myself from you- just wait until our wedding night, I am begging-” he shuts you up by pushing his lips against yours, his hands leave yours before he starts undressing himself, undoing the clasps on his clothing, he pulled apart to completely rid himself of his clothes, feeling to suffocated.
He was very fit, lean muscles coating his body, defining and toning his arms, chest and thighs, you felt yourself clench at the sight of him so bare, you were beginning to get aroused.
Aemond leans and places gentle kisses on your face, before trailing down your neck to lick and bite at them, you felt a burning sensation when he bit too hard, causing you to yelp, he pulled back and looked at the bite in satisfaction, which was now drawing blood. You whimpered pathetically.
You didn't like the feeling of ache between your thighs.
Aemond leaned down once again to take one breast into his mouth, suckling on it like a hungry babe, causing you to gasp, your breasts were extra sensitive considering you were near your moons blood, you gripped his hair and tried to pull him away but, he bit down harshly onto to your nipple making you tug harder at his hair for the pain to subside, however the more you tried pulling him off, the harder his bit and latched on, the other hand painfully dug into the flesh of your other breast, nails biting through the skin, so you removed your grip on his hair, and only then did he stop his inflictions of pain on your tits, beginning to suckle at your nipple in a pleasurable way,
Your hand reflexively went to his hair again, but this time instead of trying to pull him, you held him there like that, arching your back when you felt his warm tongue tickle the bud, shoving more of your breast into his mouth, he hummed in satisfaction before he pulled away with a wet pop, to continue the same thing on your other breast.
It was sensual, it was so slow, and you were getting aroused by the minute but your fear of committing a grave sin still plagued your mind.
“A-aemond-” you say his name making him groan and pull away to look at you, “Gods, when you say my name like that- it makes me want to ruin you so fucking hard.” he confesses and you gulp, his hands part your thighs, exposing your core to him.
You try to clench them shut in reflex but he holds them apart, visibly drawn by it, you felt the cool air hit your clit making you shiver, he trails his hand down your inner thigh before rubbing small circles there, teasing you.
You whine, the ache beginning to get even more stronger, making you buck your hips, hoping his hand grazes over the sensitive part, but he just chuckles, “Greedy are we? What happened to waiting till marriage?” he mocks you and you fight back the tears of shame, he then presses his fingers right onto your core, parting the flesh and caressing your clit, you twitch at the foreign sensation.
His other hand leaves your thigh as well, and he uses both of his thumbs to hold the flesh covering your core apart before he leans down and sucks on your pearl, making you arch your back in pleasure, his tongue flickers over your bud constantly, sending sparks of pleasure.
You were shocked when he did that, how can someone put their mouth over there?
Your hips start to move on their own, trying to keep up with his rhythm, he groans at your attempts and pulls away, you whine at the lack of warmth, “Be still.” he says and descends onto your clit again, and you try really hard to be still but you couldn't help it, you grip his hair, shoving his face into your cunt to the point he was suffocating but it didn't matter to him, this would be the best way to die according to him.
You feel something creeping up at your core, a itch that keeps plaguing you, a certain type of string tightening constantly as he continued his actions, you were confused until you were snapped out of your own confusion by an overwhelming feeling of pleasure hitting your body, causing you to moan loudly into the chambers. Aemond drinks up your release like a dehydrated man before pulling away and looking at your face, he chuckles when he finds you looking confused and dazed, eyes teary, wondering what the feeling was.
“It's called a peak, my love, was it your first time?” he answers, staring at your face and you tilted your head in confusion.
Women can peak?
You knew how the act is performed, the cock goes into the cunt, and you're supposed to lay there taking it as your husband impregnates you. It was taught to you by your grandmother alicent, it was supposed to hurt, not feel intimate. If you're lucky, you'd get a few kisses on your face and neck.
But what aemond did was so foreign, you didn't know you could experience sexual pleasure like this.
“Y-yes, but i- i didn't know.” you blush while saying it, you don't need to finish the sentence before aemond caught on and Aemond almost moaned at the thought that you didn't know anything, that you probably thought that sexual pleasure can only be felt by a man.
Oh how he was going to show you all the ways.
Oh how he was going to corrupt you.
He smirked.
You looked up at him, the tears from the orgasm threatening to fall, and oh gods how that made him want to be extremely cruel, he wanted to ruin you. It set off his blood thirst, something he would only feel while fighting during battles, when he burnt the riverlands with vhagar, when he took the life of his own uncle, when he slaughtered the strong house watching as the blood coats the ground, the screams of men, women and children alike. He hadn't felt that in a while considering the war was long over.
And so he would.
His eyes trail over to the dagger that laid forgotten on the bed, and he reached out for it, changing his grip and pointing the blade at the direction of your body, you look at him in what seemed like fear but he didn't care, he brought the blade down gently, and then pressed it against your skin, piercing through the skin. You winced at the burning sensation, he removed the blade and watched as beads of blood poured out, he leaned down and licked it all up, the iron tasting sweet to him.
You whimpered in pain, feeling the twinge, when the wound was met with his saliva, causing an even more burning sensation to plague at your skin.
He pulled back and watched as the blood smeared onto the surrounding skin, the wound already trying to close up. He looked at your pained expression and decided that he wouldn't be that cruel and scar your body as much as he would've loved to since it was your first time with him, he needed to leave a good impression after all. When you're truly his wife, he'd ruin so much.
He watched as the tears fell down your face, he licked them up before pressing gentle kisses to your eyes. “Shh.. It's okay, I won't do more.” he says and you whimper, trusting him.
He pulls back and grabs his hard leaking cock. The tip all flushed pink, it looked so painful.
It was painful, he was so fucking hard the entire time, he was trying to savour everything before he fully went in, but he realised he had no such patience for that.
He lined it against your cunt, and slid his cock up and down, coating him in your juice before he caught the tight hole which wouldn't open at all, and he realised he needed to prepare more for you to be able to take him.
So he replaced his cock with his fingers, shoving one inside you slowly, feeling all the ridges of your inner walls, wishing it was his cock that was inside you.
He started pumping in and out, curling his fingers from time to time to graze over the rough part located inside you, and you felt your stomach tightening again, and before you could reach your peak, Aemond pulled his fingers out. “H-huh?” you looked at him confused and he smiled meanly before shoving his fingers once again, and making you come to the edge but never topple over it, pulling out every time you were so close. It made you frustrated.
He decided you were relaxed enough to take his cock, so he replaced his fingers with his cock, pushing the tip inside, making you grip your bedsheets underneath tightly.
He wanted to go slow, let you adjust to him, but it was way too much, he finally got to be inside you after what felt like way too long, these past few years he always dreamt of this moment, so he lost control and slammed himself fully inside you cruelly, pushing to the hilt, making you scream in pain, which he shushed you by cooing you and caressing your cheek.
Your legs twitched visibly, he pulled back, thinking he was taking his cock out, you relaxed but then he slammed into you, causing you yelp and then he started pulling and pushing over and over again, the pace messy at the first because your walls were still trying to adjust to him, sometimes even pushing him out.
But then as the continued thrusting, the pain slowly went away and you felt pleasure beginning to rise, causing you to relax around, and he moaned in pleasure when he felt you loosen up around him, not holding his cock in a tight grip that made it impossible to move without hurting you.
He fastened his pace, unable to hold himself back, he fucked into you brutally, breaking your maidenhead, he watched the sight of your maiden blood coating his dick leaking onto the white sheets below, and he moaned your name.
The chamber was filled with lewd noises, wet slapping sounds as his hips rammed against yours, his balls slapping at your ass as he thrusted in and out, sweat coating his eyebrow, he was grunting loudly, he wasn't usually a vocal person, but with you? you bought out the worst in him.
He felt his peak beginning to come, but he wanted you to peak first, so his hand went over to your clit and rubbed small circles over it, and the pleasure intensified for you, you peaked extremely hard, wet fluid gushing out of you, all because of the multiple denied orgasms finally catching up to you.
Aemond moaned as he watched your juice coating his cock, and he was reaching his peak too, “Fuck- fuck- going to fill you up, with my seed, watching you grow round with my child in your belly.” he babbled and reached his peak, his cock twitching inside you, shooting ropes after ropes of cum, coating your walls.
He didn't pull out, staying inside, making sure his seed didn't spill, he began to soften inside you.
He pulled and held you close to him, before he propped down on your bed, pulling you on top of him, his cock slipping from inside you at that, you laid on top of him, head on his chest as you listened to his fast heartbeat, it was relaxing for an odd reason.
He grabbed the sheets and threw them over both of you, covering you and himself and then slowly drifting off to sleep.
The maid couldn't have picked the worst time to enter the chamber in the morning, she usually entered without knocking since you and her were close, but she gasped when she found you stop aemond cuddled and then noticed the blood on the sheets, it didn't take a genius to figure out what went on, and she quickly reported it to the dowager queen.
Enraged was an understatement. Alicent was extremely disappointed, barging into the room, by then aemond had already put on his breeches and he was confused when he saw her, then he figured it out.
You woke up, gripping the sheets tightly to your chest as you watched your grandmother yell at her son, your uncle.
And just then your father barged in, along with your mother, she quickly rushed over to you to check if you were alright and looked at her younger brother in disappointment.
Aegon had never been angry like that in his life, he went straight for Aemond, tackling him to the ground, trying to hit him, “You ruined her! Couldn't your ass wait until the wedding? What was it that made you so impatient?” Aegon yelled at his brother, and Aemond dodged every hit Aegon threw his way.
“Fucking CUNT!” He was mad, and one of hits finally landed on Aemond, punching him right in the face.
“Father! No! Please.” you yelled, but he didn't listen and that's when you started sobbing loudly, which made him immediately halt and rush over to you. Aemond spit the blood that coated his mouth on the ground and got up.
“My dear.” Aegon looked at you sadly, noticing all the cruelty Aemond left on your body.
“The wedding is to be held in a week.” Alicent's voice booms the chambers
“Mother you cannot be serious! He-” the king tried to reason with her, but she looked at him with a stern expression and he backed down, he was the king yes, but he knew he would never stand a chance against his own mother.
Aemond simply smirked, accomplishing what he had wanted, Aegon glared at him.
“Please, I want to be alone.” you say and everyone looks at you, you were extremely tired and you didn't want this hassle.
The matter came to an end like that, you watched everyone leave reluctantly, except Aemond, you looked at Aemond, waiting for him to leave, but instead he sat down next to you and made himself comfortable in your presence.
Aegon grit his teeth, turning around to storm into the room but Alicent and Helaena held him back, and you didn't say anything else, but leaned your head on Aemonds shoulder.
That told everyone what you wanted and they soon left, you allowed yourself to get comfortable in his presence. Slowly falling asleep.
“My sweet girl.” you heard him coo before the sleep finally pulled you under.
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mvskedxrtist · 2 months
Note
Hello there so I saw you write Hazbin hotel you can do this request anytime you want.
Anyway- can I request Alastor x top male reader.
Alastor was in the mood / heat because he a deer demon after all and decide to go ask his husband (reader) too helping just smut and fluff after sex.
Before I request this I already read the rule because I don't want to be unrespectful.
I'm not English so- if I say something that making you confused I am so sorry and apologize for it.
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My Needy Deer
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Wᴀʀɴɪɴɢ: Daddy Kink, Breeding Kink, Praise, Edging, Soft Alastor, Slightly OOC Alastor, Oral (M Giving)
Nᴏᴛᴇ: Thank you for the request! Oh my first request! I'm so happy that I was trusted for this prompt! A new star in the form of this will be in the sky because of you! Aka, thank you so much for this! I'm so excited. Now for this request, if Alastor is a bit OOC, I'm sorry. I really tried my hardest to keep him as canon as possible while doing this.
AMAB!Husband!Reader x Alastor - My Needy Deer
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It was a normal day in Hell, like usual. Murder, sex, chaos, everything was happening like it has. It was three months away from the fated extermination and Alastor decided to just do a normal radio broadcast for that day.
The Radio Demon was taunting Vox once again through his microphone when he got a sinking feeling in his stomach, heat pulling in as his ears fell on his head. "Damn it..." He muttered and walked out of his studio before heading back towards his shared room in the hotel.
Alastor had walked into the room and sighed gently when he saw you reading on the lounge chair. "Well hello, darling." "Oh, hello Alastor. You finished your show early." You got up from the chair and placed the book on the end table as you got up and petted his head.
You instantly noticed how Alastor's grip on his staff was more stiff than usual and that his ears were down. "Al... Are you ok?" You asked him gently and gave him a soft smile which made his face get slightly red.
He had realized once walking in that he was in his heat and you just getting closer to him just made his urges worse. "My dear husband... It's that time of the year..." Alastor told you gently while his tail was shaking gently, his nerves going a bit crazy until you held his hips gently and chuckled. "Aww, ok then baby."
You placed his staff on the side of the bed and pulled him onto the bed, helping him get undressed quickly. Alastor felt his senses heighten even more and helped you take your clothes off quickly before he started sucking your cock quick. "Gah!~ Fuck yes..~" You groaned under your mouth and leaned back a bit to watch your husband become obsessed once again with your cock.
Alastor whined softly as he continued to suck on your dick, trying to stimulate you quickly so then his heat could be solved faster. You grumbled and pushed Alastor's head off your cock before laying him down and sliding into his asshole quickly, groaning loudly from how tight he was.
You smirked at his dazed face, looking down to see the oh so powerful radio demon seem so fucked out. Alastor's tail and ears were down flat as you were pounding his ass hard, crackling moans coming from his mouth. "S-shit!~ H-hahh~ d-daddy~" He wrapped his arms around your neck while he could feel by going deeper.
Your thrusts went so deep inside of him at such a fast pace that he could barely keep his mind clear, only thinking about you filling him with your cum and giving him fawn. "Such a pretty doe~ so obedient for me~" You caressed his face with your thumbs while you thrusted faster, loud clapping filling the room.
Alastor's face flushed slightly from your words and whined softly, his eyes rolling to the back of his head as he came all over himself. You chuckled and kissed him gently as you slammed deep inside of him and came inside of his asshole. Alastor was exhausted and gave you a lopsided smile while you chuckled and ran your fingers through his hair to calm him down.
"How do you feel my deer?" "Absolutely exhausted, my husband." You both chuckled softly and cuddled against one another, resting for the night.
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thankskenpenders · 4 months
Text
Sonic Prime Season 3: Final episodes, final thoughts
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Well, here we are. The final seven episodes of Sonic Prime are out on Netflix, concluding the story of Sonic's adventures in the Shatterverse. I've previously shared my thoughts on the first and second seasons, which I was pretty mixed on, but there were still glimmers of hope. The fluid animation, Shadow being fun in all his appearances, Nine being fairly interesting as a jaded alternate version of Tails, etc. There was enough to make me believe that after some highs and lows there was still the possibility that this show could end on a high note - or at least a decent note.
This did not happen.
Sonic Prime's final season sucks. The ending sucks, and the road to get there sucks. It's left me wondering what the point of all this even was. There are still moments I like that I'll try to highlight, and the animators and voice cast are still clearly giving it their all, but these efforts sadly don't outweigh the overwhelming mediocrity of the story. I would barely even recommend other Sonic fans who are on the fence go out of their way to finish it. I won't begrudge people who got more out of this show than I did, but I think overall I just really, really dislike Sonic Prime.
...The problem, of course, is that all other discussion of the show has been overshadowed by needlessly hostile arguments over its place in Sonic's canon. So we've gotta talk about that, too.
(This post will contain full spoilers for Sonic Prime.)
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The show's out of ideas but they've gotta stretch that shit out to hit the 23 episode mark somehow
Season 2 ended with the big twist that Nine decided to betray Sonic and Shadow, taking the Paradox Prism for himself so that he could go turn the empty world of the Grim into his own little paradise, since he doesn't believe he'll fit anywhere else. Nine has made himself the true big bad of the show.
The main impact this has is that now, instead of fighting endless identical Eggforcer bots and members of the Chaos Council over and over, the good guys and the Chaos Council have to fight endless Chaos Sonic-style robots sent by Nine while he goes "grrrrr I need Sonic's energy to stabilize the Paradox Prism." This continues for six whole episodes until the series finale, when the show decides it's time for Sonic and Nine to quickly make amends, fix everything, and send Sonic and Shadow home.
That's pretty much the whole season.
I cannot emphasize enough just how much of this final season is just fight after fight after fight against Nine's bots, and how fucking boring that gets. The season feels like one long, drawn out final battle that did not need to be nearly this long, but Nine had his big heel turn 2/3 of the way through the show and we've gotta fill up the rest of the time somehow. The novelty of the bots being based off of Sonic's friends (including the Chocobo-sized Birdie from the jungle world) really wears off quickly when they're just used as generic, silent mooks that the good guys have to fight by the dozen like it's the climax of an MCU movie. The first episode of the season with Sonic and Shadow fighting the new bots is pretty good, especially because Sonic and Shadow's dynamic is one of the few redeeming aspects of this show's writing, but after that it just gets boring. Three full episodes in a row are spent showing all the characters fighting robots in an empty wasteland while Nine scowls next to a big beam of energy. I found myself missing the in-your-face attitude of Chaos Sonic so much. He truly was one of the best parts of this show.
While the cast is busy fighting all these robots for what feels like an eternity, various things of varying levels of interest happen. There's a halfhearted attempt to have some kind of rivalry between Shadow and the main Grim Sonic throughout the final battle, but it completely falls flat because Grim Sonic has no personality whatsoever. It's like Shadow beefing with an above-average Egg Pawn. (Actually, no, that would be funny.) There's also a death fakeout with the two other versions of Tails, where they make a makeshift bomb and throw it a little too close to themselves on the battlefield and seem to get vaporized. If they had actually died there they would have had the funniest, most pointless deaths in the entire franchise.
I also realized at one point that they were trying to do the Avengers girl power fight thing with the three versions of Amy fighting a bunch of Rouge bots. This was very funny to me. Actually, so much of this is just following the tired MCU formula to the letter. Fighting over a macguffin, two armies just kind of running at each other and clashing in a big empty field, constant one-liner quips instead of actual jokes, the need to take out key targets to make the whole enemy army disappear, a villain who has a point but has to randomly hurt people so that there's an excuse for the heroes to fight him. When combined with how shit the multiverse stuff is, this whole show really is just Man of Action tackling some of the most played out storytelling tropes in modern pop culture in the most bland way possible. What a bunch of hacks.
By far, the one truly fun thing that happens in this protracted final battle is when a giant robot based on Big appears. It doesn't have arms or legs, but it can swing itself around to use its tail like a giant mace, and it can also shoot Froggy-shaped missiles out of its mouth. I wish the rest of the show was even half as fun as this. Again, Sonic Prime has just enough good moments to make you mad that the rest of the show isn't better.
The thing is, all this repetitive (but well-animated) action and the thin excuse plot would be totally serviceable if I just gave a shit about the characters involved. But I don't. I don't care what happens to the pirate version of Amy who goes "arrr." I don't care about what happens to Hipster Eggman. And unfortunately, by the end, I didn't really care about Nine, either.
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Nine as a villain
It's hard to criticize the story here without it coming off as a broad condemnation of the tropes at play. The thing is, I like many stories that try to do similar things. I love clashes between heroes and villains that are really just fantastical exaggerations of more personal conflicts. I love stories where a tragic, sympathetic villain lashes out at the world as an expression of the pain they feel, and a compassionate hero just has to get through to them. I eat that shit right up. Undertale is my favorite game ever made. Shit, I love other Sonic stories that do these exact things. And Sonic having to fight an alternate timeline version of Tails also has so much potential for drama!
So I can very easily imagine a version of the show where all this works for me. That just isn't the version we got.
Like I said last time, Nine's motivation is just too sympathetic and understandable for his sudden turn to supervillainy to make any sense. He just wanted to start over somewhere where he can be happy after a childhood filled with bullying and loneliness. Nine betraying Sonic and stealing the Paradox Prism to go make his own world? That tracks! Especially since we don't even know if Nine will still exist if Sonic goes through with his plan to restore his original world! But trying to kill everyone in New Yolk City by tilting the world 90 degrees, intentionally targeting the civilian population because it'll get to Sonic? Nope! Sorry, that's a bridge too far. I don't buy it. He's jaded and antisocial, but he doesn't strike me as cruel. Writing in an excuse about him needing Sonic's energy to fix the Prism does not make this make more sense.
This was really just one of those conflicts where it felt like everyone should stop and talk it out. Instead we got six episodes of fighting before one of Sonic's many, MANY attempts at reasoning with Nine throughout the season finally works. This isn't me pulling some Cinema Sins bullshit where I complain about characters in a work of fiction not always behaving rationally - the real problem is that it's just so damn repetitive waiting for this conflict to resolve. This could have been wrapped up in two or three episodes and instead it takes seven.
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A brief aside about that weird Dorkly-ass Sonic Advance 3 flashback scene hacked together with mismatched sprites where Gemerl happens to be present, presumably just because he's a part of the sprite for the Sunset Hill boss, and seeing him briefly makes me remember the extended cast from the games and how much I wish they had just made a cartoon about them instead of a bunch of stock characters wearing the skin of Sonic's friends, but then Gemerl just explodes with the boss machine at the end while Eggman is shown to get away so I guess Gemerl just dies in this flashback
Yeah that sure happened huh
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The ending
Despite having a final battle that felt like an eternity, Sonic Prime is a show that just kind of... ends. And that ending is weird and haphazard.
The understanding I had was that Sonic's normal world had "shattered" when the Paradox Prism was destroyed, and from those remnants these new worlds were created. This is why they use terms like "Shatterverse" and "Shatterspaces" and why there's shattered glass/crystal/whatever imagery everywhere. This is a broken, fragmented version of the real universe. Right? Right?? Isn't that the entire premise of the show? And therefore, if the universe has been shattered, then fixing it means putting all the shattered pieces back together. Which I would assume means that the Shatterspaces cease to exist.
So, in the ending... Sonic's world seems to just exist as another Shatterspace. Restoring the Paradox Prism doesn't seem to combine the worlds or anything, it just fixes the broken portal to Sonic's world that exists alongside all the others. So... what exactly was the point of all the shattered glass symbolism?
Things only get more confusing as the ending progresses. Shadow brings Sonic through the portal before the draining of Sonic's whatever energy makes him disappear, and they're transported back in time to right before Sonic broke the Paradox Prism. Only Sonic seems to remember what happened (Shadow might remember, but he doesn't say anything), and with the Paradox Prism never shattered, it's unclear if the Shatterspaces exist now.
I'm not particularly hung up on the time loop ending. It's very much in line with all sorts of classic morality tales like A Christmas Carol or It's a Wonderful Life, where the flawed protagonist goes through some kind of magical experience and then returns home with a new appreciation for the people in their life. It's always been pretty obvious that was the type of story they were telling. I'm more bothered by the fact that there's no time whatsoever spent on whether or not the other worlds and the characters in them continue to exist. Sonic seems to act like the worlds will go on without him before he leaves, but it's not like we get an ending scene that shows how the other worlds are doing, so they really truly might as well not exist anymore. Sonic just wraps up the adventure from the first episode when he gets home, and before he can explain what happened from his perspective he's interrupted by a mysterious energy wave from off-screen and it's off to the next adventure.
(Despite this odd cliffhanger ending, the show is extremely over and not coming back. I have to imagine this is just a "the adventures never end" type ending and not a hint that more shit is going on with the Paradox Prism.)
This ending is also a terrible resolution to Nine's whole arc, despite him being the driving force of so much of the show. The way I see it, there are are three possible fates for him:
The Shatterspaces continue existing, and things go as Sonic expects them to go. Nine is allowed to make the Grim into his own little utopia, and everyone else leaves him alone instead of punishing him for all the trouble he caused. Instead of finding love and acceptance so he can heal from a lifetime of bullying and loneliness, Nine is allowed to run away, isolating himself from every other living being in the multiverse, and live alone as the god of an empty world with only his own creations as company. Sonic was his only friend, and he's gone forever now.
The Shatterspaces continue existing, but because of the time travel ending, most of the events of the show never happened. Sonic never helped defeat the Chaos Council, so they still control New Yolk City. Nine is back to living in this dystopian city with no friends. He never met Sonic.
The Shatterspaces have been erased. After fighting so hard for his right to exist as his own person and not just a "wrong" version of Tails, when the timeline is altered, he just... stops existing. Along with almost every other character in the show.
Do I even need to explain why these are all unsatisfying?
Misc. thoughts
I skimmed over this, but a lot of the final season is just spent seeing Sonic's friends bicker with the Chaos Council and then Sonic has to beg them to get along to save the universe. It gets old.
We also never really got an explanation for why the Chaos Council exists. They can't have come from other Shatterspaces because there ARE no other Shatterspaces. If the original Eggman was just split into five guys or time travel was involved or whatever, it never comes up. I can live with this, but it seems like an odd omission for a children's show that's constantly bogged down in technobabble explaining the mechanics of its extremely small and finite multiverse.
I have no idea where Shadow was for the first part of the final battle. I figured Nine must have captured him off-screen after Sonic first left the Grim, but Shadow was just... hanging around until his cue in the script, I guess?
Sonic saying "help a brother up" to Shadow was funny
Hipster Eggman pointing to one of the few nameless extras who tagged along for the final battle and going "Who are you? Seriously, does anyone know who this is?" was the only funny thing he did in the entire show
Mangy Tails randomly pressing buttons on the Chaos Council's generator like a curious animal and managing to improve its output was cute
Rusty Rose randomly realizes that the Birdie in her chest actually isn't being used as a power source, and that the Chaos Council was just... using that to manipulate her, somehow? I don't really know how that works but whatever
The Sonic Advance 3 flashback uses the actual boss music from the game, but they can't use the real Sunset Hill theme because they didn't wanna pay Masato Nakamura for using the Green Hill motif, I guess
To my fellow fans of bad games: did you know that Man of Action wrote the story for the bizarre Square Enix game The Quiet Man? The one where the lengthy FMV cutscenes play out with muffled audio and no subtitles because the protagonist is deaf, so you can't tell what's going on? And you had to do a New Game+ playthrough to actually hear the audio and understand what's going on? The worst-reviewed game of 2018? That one? I only learned that recently and it blew me away
So yeah, that's the end of the show. I didn't like it, and I don't think I liked the show much as a whole. I am far from alone in this sentiment, but the reasons why people dislike the show... those vary a bit.
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The canon conundrum
More than anything else, it seems like most other discourse surrounding this show has been consumed by one talking point:
How can this be canon? Why is it canon?
I want to state very clearly up front that I, too, am a person who's noticed and complained about the inconsistencies with the games in Sonic Prime. Some of the characters are a bit off - or, you know, completely unrecognizable when discussing the writing of some of the AU counterparts. I think it's lame to say Sonic and friends all live in Green Hill and act like that's the entirety of their world. That sort of thing. But if Sega says it's canon to everything else? Sure. Fine. There's weirder shit in the canon.
Really, most of this can be explained away pretty easily. The show was written at a time when Sega was still figuring shit out and there were looser restrictions. Why does Sonic act a little more immature? Probably just because Prime is aiming for a slightly younger audience than the games or the IDW comics. (And also it's, y'know, written by Man of Action, who people have accused of only knowing how to write one kind of protagonist for years.) Why do Sonic and friends live in Green Hill? Because that's the most recognizable location from the games, and the game world doesn't get enough screentime to justify modeling multiple different environments, so they just focus on Green Hill. Why is this considered canon to the games? Because this is the first Sonic cartoon that outright references events from the games as things that have happened to Sonic in the past.
But announcing early on that Prime would be canon certainly let fans' imaginations wander. It was one of the few things we knew about the show before it premiered. People wondered if characters from the games and comics who had never made any appearances in Sonic cartoons might get their time in the spotlight. We wondered if it would tie into the lore or any existing storylines in interesting ways, like the IDW comics do. But above all else, we hoped that its canon status would mean that Sonic Prime would finally be the Sonic cartoon that was faithful to the source material with no catches. We've literally never seen the actual world of the games brought to life in a TV show. Sonic X came the closest, but that still took its liberties. And so hype built for this Canon Sonic Cartoon.
And then it actually came out, and after a brief intro in Green Hill based loosely on the games, it spent most of its running time focusing on things like "what if there was a version of Eggman who was a bratty teen who just wanted to play video games?" The disappointment among fans is understandable. I am disappointed. Look at how much I've bitched about this aggressively mid cartoon.
Some fans, however, came up with an elaborate theory about the series. You see, when asked about the show's place in the game timeline during a live Q&A, Ian Flynn (who only served as a consultant on Sonic Prime and did not write any of it) said this:
"I cannot answer because I know the answer, and you haven't finished watching the show yet."
A couple days later, when answering another question about Prime's place in the timeline and also about a writing discrepancy, he said this:
"As to where it fits on the timeline, I can't speak to it because that would spoil the show to a degree. So you're just gonna have to wait 'til it's done. Towards the other point, I don't know how much I can say, so it's probably better that I not comment. That's a really dissatisfying answer, I know, I'm sorry, but my hands are kinda tied on that one."
I feel the need to quote Ian directly here, because these very basic statements about how he can't talk about behind the scenes shit or anything from unreleased episodes was GREATLY misinterpreted by the fandom. People clung onto Ian's claim that we had to keep watching like a life preserver. Some took it as Ian saying that the ending would explain everything. Finally, we'd have a definitive answer for every little discrepancy and the apparent differences in worldbuilding. An explanation for why Sega and the producers repeatedly insist this show HAS to be canon.
And to these fans, the only explanation that made any sense... would be if the ending of Sonic Prime pulled a Flashpoint.
As this theory explained, the Sonic we were following in Sonic Prime wasn't the Sonic we know from the games and the IDW comics, and likewise the world he comes from isn't really the game world. This is a different Sonic who fights a different Eggman in a world that's literally just Green Hill. It was a hint that something was off all along! But in the end of the series, this Sonic would sacrifice himself to merge all of the Shatter Spaces together and form a brand new world, and that would be the more visually diverse world of the games and comics. According to this theory, Sonic Prime was canon because it was a new origin story for the entire franchise.
I want you to really stop and think about how asinine of an origin story this would be. Really drink this in. The idea that there was another, slightly different version of Sonic who went on a kinda shitty multiverse adventure and then sacrificed himself to create the real Sonic that we've known since 1991. People convinced themselves this made more sense than the simple explanation that a different team of writers got some stuff wrong and Sega didn't make them change it. Interviews where producers talked about drawing on Sonic's "mythology" (ie: they reference the games in the show) were taken very literally - they must be saying that Prime's story is mythological in nature, and that this show would be integral to the games' mythology. Why bother making a show that's canon if it's not going to be crucial to that canon, after all?
The final episodes dropped, and none of this happened. Because of course it didn't. It was all Sherlock fandom-level copium. But fans were left confused by the lack of a grand reveal of where Sonic Prime fits in the timeline, believing they had been promised this, and they turned to Ian for an explanation. Ian's answer:
It doesn't matter, b/c Prime wipes itself out. It's sometime after Advance 3*, but otherwise, it's moot. I didn't want to sour anyone's expectations or investment by spoiling how Prime resolves, that's all. If you enjoyed it, awesome. Savor it. If you didn't, then you can safely ignore it. Simple as that.
* About a trillion people have um, actually'd Ian to point out Orbot and Cubot briefly appear in the show, but if we're really being pedantic here we don't actually know how long before Colors Eggman built Orbot and Cubot, so it wouldn't be fully accurate to say a story featuring Orbot and Cubot couldn't be set before Colors. Either way, a story set anywhere around Colors, or at any point later than that, could still be described as "sometime after Advance 3." Advance 3 is just the most recent game that has specific in-game events referenced in the show. Yes I can feel myself morphing into the nerd emoji before your very eyes
Anyway, this is the latest reason Ian is getting death threats on Twitter. This time it's over a show he barely even had any input on!
I'll cut to the chase. It is truly wild to me that people are getting this heated over canonical inconsistencies in a series as historically inconsistent as Sonic, to the point that they think threatening Ian is justified. The aesthetics of the entire world Sonic inhabits change every other game. Sonic Chronicles may no longer be canon due to the Penders lawsuits, but it was canon at one point, and it took huge liberties with Sonic's world, moving Green Hill off of South Island and reinterpreting Station Square as a tiny outpost in a snowy alpine forest region. Characters' personalities change from writer to writer and based on what Sega wants at the time, with some being WILDLY different across different games. One game Sonic will be stoic and cool, the next he thinks "Baldy McNosehair" is the funniest thing ever. Sega's STILL trying to figure out what Amy's personality is supposed to be. We still don't have the explanation for how the two seemingly contradictory backstories for Blaze can fit together. There have been multiple huge, sweeping retcons, and retcons to those retcons. Sonic Forces claims that Classic Sonic is from an entirely different universe than Modern Sonic, and the plot only makes any sense if that's true - otherwise, Modern Sonic would have already known Eggman was going to beat him and take over the world when he did, because his younger self had already lived through that war. All of that makes no sense in the newly reunified timeline, but Forces is very much still canon.
For fuck's sake, we're talking about the series where Eggman blew up half the moon and then it looked completely normal in every other game after, explained away as "the moon just rotated so we can't see the destroyed side from Earth." This has never, ever, ever been a franchise where everything lines up perfectly with no issues. It's not that serious.
The real core problem with Prime isn't that things don't line up 100% with our current understanding of canon, or that Sonic's characterization means this can't be the real Sonic, or anything like that. The problem, as I've been saying this whole time, is that the story is bad. None of these discrepancies would truly matter if the story was better. They'd just be nitpicks. The fact that Sonic and friends live in Green Hill would be the farthest thing from my mind if the drama was more engaging, if the villains were better, if the jokes were actually funny, if more of the alternate universe counterparts of Sonic's friends had more than one generic character trait each, if the multiverse was more creative and varied, if the final seven episodes of this show didn't devolve into the third act of an MCU movie and then just arbitrarily end, if Nine's character arc actually had a satisfying conclusion instead of ending with either isolation or nonexistence. Maybe we'd be seeing people talk about more than just whether or not it should be considered canon if the writing was any good.
"Canon" is not real, and it sure as hell isn't worth sending people death threats over. It's a storytelling tool. Real human beings decide what does and doesn't go into that canon, or how much they do or don't want to draw on past stories, when creating a new story. Serving that canon is secondary to creating a story where the emotional truth resonates with the audience. And Sonic Prime failed to do that. That is its true failing.
And finally, to close out...
Since people will ask, here are my current ranking of the Sonic TV shows, now that Prime is finished.
Sonic Boom
Sonic SatAM
Sonic X
The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic Prime
Sonic Underground
Yes, I'd say Boom is my favorite. It's far from my ideal Sonic cartoon, but it gets a lot of points for being as funny as it is. But the top four are all shows I'd say I like, more or less. They all have their pros and cons.
So now, uh... I guess let's hope the live action Knuckles show coming to Paramount+ is better than the underwhelming synopsis of "Knuckles helps deputy sheriff Wade train in the ways of the echidna warrior" would imply? Maybe we'll get lucky?
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wynnyfryd · 5 months
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Trailer park Steve AU part 37
part 1 | part 36 | ao3
cw: depression, ptsd, references to canonical death and horror
Chapter 9
December
The smudged feeling comes back.
Which sucks, if he's being honest.
Despite the new thing with Eddie and the breathing room in his budget; despite everything going fine with Robin and work and the kids, his good moods never seem to hold. They keep getting muddied up, can't shine through the grubby handprints that threaten to blot them out.
And sure, it's not like he expected one great make out session to change his life (and it was a great one, to be clear; a great make out session and an even better handy later that night in Eddie’s van), but he just…
Shit.
He doesn’t know.
He thought it might feel easier. Life, adulthood; everything. Like the lightness and warmth he felt that night might carry over, might drift through to fill the cracks in him like a blanket of fresh snow.
But they don't, because they can't.
They can't touch the fact that he has no clue what he’s doing. That Steve Harrington's got no purpose, no direction and no point.
Most mornings he's got nothing but his creeping paranoia and a bone deep sense of dread.
The new year closes in like a wet tongue up the back of his neck; hot breath of a drooling grizzly getting ready to take a bite, and the long winter shadows around his house are growing fangs, rows upon rows of razor teeth in petal mouths.
His nightmares tastes like rot and lilac. Something heavy in the air.
And in the mornings he feels stupid when he wakes up shivering in cold sweat, foolish and young and alone. He clutches at his nail bat and peers through the cracks in the blinds, and he feels like a lunatic because there’s nothing out there. Nothing abnormal. Nothing wrong-side up. Just the shadows and the strays; the scurrying of house mice and the skitter of dead leaves.
It’s over now, they told him. It’s over, kid. We won.
They said it all three times.
"Uh...”
Eddie's standing in Steve's doorway, leaning against the frame with his arms loosely folded over his chest, a weird smile on his face like he's deeply fucking confused by what he's seeing but is trying so hard to be cool about it.
Which, like. Fair.
It's mid-morning on a Sunday and Steve is crawling on hands and knees in his gutted disaster of a living room — ripping up the edges of his terrible burnt orange carpet without even pausing to say hello — and the kids will be here any minute to help put up the Christmas tree, and he hadn't meant to do this; knows he looks completely manic, sweat dripping into his eyes, knuckles bleeding from the tack strips, but he woke up trembling from another nightmare and decided that everything had to go.
The nightmare felt too real. Long claws and sharp teeth, squelching muck and snaking vines; a flash of Chief Hopper bloody and shorn in a frozen wasteland, but the chief is dead and everyone's dead and Steve is so tired of being haunted by their ghosts, and in his shaken, post-dream haze he convinces himself that it's this place.
This place is the fucking problem.
This godforsaken tin can with spirits crawling in the walls.
They're clinging on like static just before a thunderstorm. In the floorboards, in the rug. Steve can feel them with each step. How many footprints buried themselves in these worn fibers? How many exhausted treks to the fridge and frenzied rushes to the phone; how many angry late-night pacers and visitors overstaying a welcome?
"Stevie?" Eddie clears his throat.
Steve just wants them all gone. The whole haunted circus — wants to strip it to the bones, start fresh with something new.
So far all he’s done is make the place smell like his nightmares. Like dust and death and lilac as he pulls the carpet up. There’s an oily stain on the subfloor from where he smashed his mom’s perfume, and a green-black mystery splotch by the kitchen that could be water damage, or it could be the remnants of a liquified rat. Or a person; so many people, melted meat monster smashing through the city blood and gore in a demodog's jowls the walls pulsing with membranes like some fucked up rotten womb and—
"Hey." Eddie's boots come into view. Calm commandment in his tone, stepping right into Steve's space. "Look at me," he sighs.
Steve sits back and wipes his brow. The sweat stings his cut-up hands, and he wishes he weren't so busy being a nutcase, because Eddie looks good like this. Standing over him, petting a hand through his damp hair. Making him kneel down at his feet. It’s hot. They could do something with this. Steve could—
"You want to tell me what you're doing?"
Tears prick up in Steve's dumb eyes.
What's he supposed to say? There were ghosts in the fucking carpet?
He shakes his head and sniffs, and Eddie steps in a little closer; moves his hand to cup Steve's jaw. "No?" he lifts a brow.
Outside, tires crunch over the gravel, the kids making a racket as they pour out of the Wheelers’ car. Goddammit.
Steve huffs and gets to his feet; lets Eddie steady him. They share a look. The kids are shouting on the lawn. "Can you take us to Home Depot?"
part 38
tag list in separate reblogs under '#trailer park steve au taglist' if you'd like to filter that content. if you want to be added tomorrow please comment and let me know (must be over 21; please either verify in the comment or have your age visible on your blog)
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y-rhywbeth2 · 6 months
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D&D Vampire Lore Dump #1
Feeding and Diet It's actually more complicated than just "they bite you and eat your blood." Plus what they're able to eat; how often they need to eat; what happens to you if they bite you and what happens to them if they don't feed- spoiler: it's unpleasant. Incidentally, you should reload and kill Cazador again.
(I was comparing stuff across editions and compiling it into something more coherent and then figured I'd info dump about it in case my fixations are useful to somebody out there.)
DISCLAIMER: There are two things to note about the lore presented here: First, while the standard stat block in the monster manual is the default, in terms of lore vampires have this annoying tendency to be incredibly, stupidly varied. They are magical monstrosities ruled by the power of symbolism and superstition above anything else.
The next is that D&D is decades old, spans five editions, several settings and hundreds of writers. One guy establishes a piece of lore, and then the next picks it up goes "nah" and writes something else. I collected info from four different source books, all from different editions, which naturally don't entirely agree on how vampires work. Lore never stays consistent and may contradict itself. You may see information somewhere else from a source I don't have that contradicts what I wrote here. If you read this and like some of this stuff but not other bits, take the good and ditch the rest.
Basically, in D&D, canon is what you decide it is.
Feeding | "Biology" | Hierarchy | Weaknesses and Cures | Psychology
They only need to feed once in a 24 hour period. Vampires can survive between 3-9 months of starvation, but it's a terrible idea. -
There are three different categories of "Undead Hunger." Vampires have two of them and actually need to consume more than one thing to stay "healthy": Blood and life force. -
The blood is obvious. This is categorised as a "diet dependency." It's required to preserve their bodies and powers, and without it their powers* are suppressed as their bodies begin to shut down. *This refers to the powers a vampire gains with age; they cannot lose power they had as a newborn (the base stat blocks given for vampires and spawn given in the monster manual) A vampire requires the equivalent of 12 hit points of blood a day, or it begins to revert into a corpse-like state. Mentally they slowly regress into a desperate, mindless animal frenzy where they'll kill and drain anything containing blood they can get their hands on. Ultimately, if they don't get any blood then they revert into a corpse and they're trapped in their own body as it begins to wither and mummify. They're trapped in a coma, vaguely aware of the passing of time in flashes of awareness until somehow they are fed blood. If they ever wake up again, they will probably wake up feral and absolutely ravenous. -
Vampires rely on the victim's blood pressure to expel blood from the wound they create, lapping and mouthing at the wound rather than actually sucking on it. Being bitten is a highly pleasurable experience that victims can't help but desire, even when they know they shouldn't. -
While the damage done remains, the wounds from a Vampire bite closes itself quickly after the feeding (assuming you're still alive). It does however leave a mark. The bite mark itself is often "less than half an inch in length", and leaves behind a significant bruise that causes no pain or sensitivity to touch. Other side effects include fatigue and a weakened immune system. -
Vampires typically target sleeping victims (less likely to fight back) and favour the blood of their own race above others. So theoretically, Astarion finds elf blood tastes best. -
Drinking animal blood tastes bland and is health-wise akin to drinking tainted water: yes it might keep you alive in desperate times, but it's ultimately bad for you and will probably make you ill. That said, it has no mechanical detriments and a vampire that's forced to live on animal blood will be just as strong as its kin, but considerably bad tempered about it. -
A vampire's secondary feeding requirement is called an "inescapable craving", which means that if a vampire doesn't get that fix then their hunger begins to devour them instead. The pain is described as a spike boring into the vampire's brain, obscuring their awareness. They begin to obsess over feeding to the exclusion of everything else, they become willing to take ridiculous levels of risk to stop the hunger as they become more and more desperate. As they are consumed they become progressively more feral until they're just a rampaging mindless horror driven only by horrific hunger. For vampires, their inescapable craving is life force, which a vampire leeches from their prey through touch leaving the victim weak. Direct skin contact isn't required, if you're wearing full plate and/or the vampire is wearing gloves and they lay a hand on you they can still drain you. Mechanically these were combat abilities, energy/level draining occurred when a vampire struck a target with their own body (usually their hands). Before 5e hit them with a nerf bat, vampires could permanently weaken you this way (you could lose character levels from this). 5e also seems to have rolled life drain into the biting, so a vampire can consume your blood and energy at the same time. -
Post feeding, a vampire starts to look alive. Their skin is flushed and warm and they feel elated and energetic. In contrast, a vampire that hasn't been feeding properly becomes more corpse like and feels "sluggish" (I'm interpreting that as flu-like symptoms). It's purely emotional however, the vampire is no less capable and dangerous and suffers no mechanical penalties. -
Vampires can feed on other vampires, which is actually more filling than living humanoid blood and gives them the ability to communicate telepathically for a few hours. They don't like it though. If a vampire drinks from another vampire then they can be controlled by that vampire and the link forces them to feel affection for each other against their will until it wears off. The results of both vampires in question feeding on each other is described as "debilitating" since they both paradoxically become enslaved to the other's will and forced to "love" each other creating an absolute dysfunctional mess of control, obsession and resentment. The good news is that it only lasts a few hours. -
Some vampires can eat regular food (no nutritional value in it for them) while others would regurgitate it if they tried. As they retain their tongues, vampires can also taste food. That said, it's a bad idea for them to eat garlic, even if they can eat solid food. -
Some kinds of vampires don't drink blood. There's all kinds of weird and wonderful stuff a vampire might be required to consume instead. Spinal fluid stands out. Or the bit about ones who drain the ocular fluid from your eyes. Gale might find interesting things to talk about with the magic eating ones who prey on mages. They're much less common, probably something to do with most people not finding that very sexy. I don't think any of them exist on Toril.
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bonefall · 3 months
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again looking over the reworked history what the hell happened with Ripwater, I wanna know. What *was* that? How did Riverclan kill it?
Oooooh, quite a request! Ripwater, Queen of the Lake, one of the episodes of BB!Po3!
Ripwater is a Wels Catfish, the largest freshwater fish in Europe. The biggest specimen EVER caught was just landed last year, in 2023, 9.4 feet long. It wasn't weighed, but smaller fish than this one have broken 300 pounds.
And it's not a good thing that we're catching so many big ones.
Wels catfish are extremely invasive across most of Europe, introduced for anglers who want to land record-setting catches. They're massive, intelligent carnivores, sometimes called the "freshwater orca" because they will lunge out of the water to catch land prey. They DESTROY the population of anything big enough to fit in its terrible mouth, including fish, amphibians, and even turtles.
They get that big from a mix of constant food and hot temperature. It's a sign that they're devastating their surroundings, and that nothing has been able to kill them for the decades it takes to get so large.
So of course, some dunderhead put them in British rivers, where they've been spreading upwards ever since. Thankfully they thrive better where it's warmer, so they're not too massive of a threat to BB's modeled regions in Northwestern England, but they're fucking coming.
Ripwater's name isn't an exaggeration. That's how they hunt. They gape their jaw and beat their fins like dragons, creating eddies and currents that suck their hapless prey in. When RiverClan names her, it's because they see her ripping the water in half. I was thinking about her recently, and came up with some new stuff. I'll take a brief break from my drafts to serve up some fragments for you.
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[A gray cat with blue eyes, Lakepaw, later BB!Lakeheart, swims in bluegreen water surrounded by lilypads. Below her is the massive shadow of Ripwater, a gigantic Wels Catfish. Its eyes flash in the depths.]
SMALL RECAP OF BB!PO3: (to set the stage)
It is now a breather arc, just dedicated to some worldbuilding!
I feel pretty strongly that Po3's strength is how AWESOME of a slice-of-life arc it could have been. To this end, I removed the Kin of your Kin prophecy from it, until it's revealed only at the very end just before Cruel Season.
That's so I can focus on The Three and their adventures around the lake, without this big prophecy looming over them and making the lower-stakes conflicts look small.
Instead, the various episodes of Po3 are related to problems that their new home presents, with just a teeny bit of Sol's magical influence to spice things up.
While Lionpaw learns about the "meaning of strength" and ultimately learns a terrible lesson he will extend to his kits, and Jaypaw finds his limits and learns to prevent others from defining them for him, Hollypaw is grappling with Fire Alone and how to reconcile her grandfather's legacy with her strict dedication to the Warrior Code.
And SO we find ourselves in one of the earliest episodes of BB!Po3; Ripwater the River Demon. This is like... episode 3 or 4, it's a REALLY early one.
I'm just shuffling it around with ANOTHER RiverClan-centric episode; the Shinewater Plague. The oilspill from TNP is now going to be bumped up to Po3 so it's more about establishing Mothwing and her apprentice Willowpaw, to contrast Leafpool and her apprentice Hollypaw, before Holly swaps to being a warrior. Jaypaw completes warrior training before becoming a Cleric apprentice.
So I don't want them to be TOO close together. Maybe put Ripwater in Book 2 and have RiverClan comment that they don't really want to ask for help because of the last big event, Mistystar hates feeling indebted to ThunderClan.
After all, it could basically replace the "flood" episode from Canon Po3, which is often forgotten about anyway. I'm already having ShadowClan construct dams instead of RiverClan anyway...
ANYWAY RIPWATER
I want to start this episode off with Sol/Harry, who is unnamed, messing around near water. He has a bit of a fish motif going on that I want to establish, and I need to get him to start messing with the Clans good and early.
(Specifically his motif is going back and forth between the koi, also an invasive and notably domesticated species, and the atlantic salmon which is famous for its changing life cycle.)
The Wels Catfish is an invasive species to England, slowly making its way up the island from the South. The fish who will become Ripwater, at this point, is already HUGE but not cat-swallowing huge. She's an 80-pounder.
Sol hits her with some godly magic, which allows her to grow at a rapid rate.
The sort of thing where it wouldn't be COMPLETELY implausible. He just... helped it along.
When we get to her first true on-screen appearance interacting with RiverClan, she is nearly 300 pounds of monstrosity with a length of about 8 feet
I'm unsure how, exactly, ThunderClan comes to know of this. But I DO know that I want Hollypaw to be snooping, and heavily encouraged by her mentor Brackenfur to do so. So, somehow, SOMETHING starts going wrong across the lake and ThunderClan catches wind of it.
Thinking about it, this should probably be her first big action after swapping out of Cleric apprenticeship.
One of the few things she's missing about Clerichood is the way she could be close to Willowpaw without needing to sneak around so much. It's easier to just pass it off as "friendship" and "Clerics need to be close." Leafpool and Mothwing are a similar way.
Possibly work in that Hollypaw's also already seeing Heatherpaw in the tunnels, contrast the two things...
At this point, Hollypaw has a crush on Willowpaw, which is requited, but... it's kinda fading.
She still loves her like a friend, but she's liking Heatherpaw a lot more. It doesn't mean she doesn't CARE for Willowpaw, of course, but
Willowpaw is still IN love, and it's slowly becoming unrequited, when it didn't used to be.
And from RiverClan's POV...
The first disappearance is so sudden they have no idea what's happened. I'm planning for it to be Robinpaw.
(I go back and forth on if it's Robinpaw or Dapplepaw, but I'm leaning towards Robinpaw again, because I like Dapplenose too much to have her get killed off here.)
She went out clamming in the lake with her sisters, Lakepaw and Otterpaw, there was a swirl in the water, and that was it. She was gone.
Just like that.
She never came back up. RiverClan searched for her, following the currents, checking the shoreline, everything. It was like she vanished.
Mistystar is suspicious and doing everything in her power to figure out what happened, but... let's face it. It's the word of two apprentices, who were swimming alone, who swear Robinpaw just went under.
Misty JUST got done with the Shinewater Plague and isn't trying to make RiverClan look like it can't keep track of its own young. The most likely situation is that Robinpaw was sucked down by an undertow that the three of them were too inexperienced to recognize.
So... she's pretty adamant about not sharing this information until Robinpaw's body is found. Jaws Style. "We cannot let the other Clans be alarmed by this, else they might meddle in our affairs..."
(and she's still maybe a little paranoid that some snoop in another Clan is going to find out that Leopardstar wasn't killed by a rogue, y'know.)
I don't want it to be TOO much of a bloodbath, so I'm capping Ripwater's body count at three and just aiming for two deaths total.
I'm also going for a coincidence RiverClan is going to interpret as a pattern; this happens a lot, specifically, when they're hunting Freshwater Pearl Mussels.
Ripwater doesn't like the river as much as she likes the lake, but it has nothing to do with their clamming. They're just going to interpret it as such.
Anyway.
The next one she goes after was lucky. By some stroke, she opens her jaw, and the victim is able to grab onto something before they're sucked in. (Maybe toss in something here were it was Holly who was able to help save them.)
Since the WHOLE Po3 Apprentice Generation is going to be getting more focus, there needs to be more input from the RiverClan apprentices. Lakepaw and Otterpaw obviously need time here, but I also NEED to involve Ripplepaw, to establish how he's going to be seen as one of the strongest in RiverClan by OotS.
EDIT FROM THE FUTURE AS I FIGURED STUFF OUT:
It was Ripplepaw, Otterpaw, and their two mentors on a raft who were attacked next. They were fishing for mussels in a shallower part of the lake.
Otterpaw was tethered to the raft with a flax lead, so it wouldn't float off. Or just tugging it in her mouth. Either way she had a line.
When Ripwater attacks her, she is swallowed on the line like a worm on a hook
And it starts pulling the WHOLE RAFT down, just a crummy bundle of sticks
One of the mentors started shouting to cut the line, else it would drag all of them under, but Ripplepaw dives right down to beat its ass without telling them he's not gonna cut it
Hollypaw just rushed right in, didn't think about it, forgetting she was supposed to be trying to sneak around
Taking control as the natural leader she is, she ordered them to shut up and start pulling the opposite way
Underwater, Ripplepaw braced himself against the fish's lips, grabs Otter's tether, and YANKS
Abovewater, the adult warriors are pulling together, Holly grabs the raft and pulls too
Once their paws touch the bottom of the shallows it's over, one last HEAVE-HO and POP!
Otterpaw is FREE
And when it's finally known that the apprentices weren't mistaken, there's a monster in the water, THAT'S when the debate really starts up. Mistystar does NOT want ThunderClan meddling, and she'll already be pissed off that Hollypaw (and any OTHERS who tagged along with her, I wouldn't put it past Honeypaw to wriggle her little yellow butt into a later draft, or Lionpaw for his massive strength) witnessed something that's not her business.
There's a moment from canon I desperately want to keep; where Squirrelflight comes to fetch her daughter.
(more reason to just say this is replacing The Flood Episode from canon lmao)
It's such an interesting moment, and so forgotten. In a nutshell, Squilf is both furious and concerned that her kit went missing and meddled in another Clan's affairs, but... understands the impulse.
Because it's something she would have done.
So when she scolds Hollypaw, there's this aching feeling that she's scolding a younger version of herself. Calling her arrogant and disloyal, that an apprentice's opinions mean less, and that she needs to listen to "older and wiser" warriors within her own Clan.
In BB, I want to do something big with this. Firestar is the figurehead of Fire Alone, who encouraged Hollypaw's behavior through his deputy, Brackenfur, who he set as her mentor for a reason.
But Squirrelflight is being abused. By Brambleclaw.
This is one of the lowest points in Squirrelflight's life, and she is walking a line between self-worth, the warrior code, and her personal beliefs, just like her daughter is.
SO, since I'm already using Brambleclaw's enabling of Ashfur's physical abuse as one of the contributing factors to Hollyleaf's descent, I ALSO want to show how he acts on other characters.
Brambleclaw, Clan Culture, the pressures of their strength-obsessed social system. So it's gotta be Squirrelflight that reminds her, or even plants the seed in her head;
"What you did isn't consistent with the Warrior Code."
Maybe even have Mistystar herself state this earlier, to be echoed by Squirrelflight, offering an alternate perspective to Hollypaw. Make her realize that ThunderClan's political leanings are not universal or even popular.
But when Hollypaw comes back to ThunderClan, whoever set her to be a snoop wants her to spill the beans. This is also a big WIP part, as Hollypaw struggles with if she's going to obey or not, and I still need to set all the political "players" in this moment.
I know for sure, though, that Firestar's IMMEDIATE desire is to meddle like it's an episode of Scooby-Doo. Though he's savvy enough to be smart about how he phrases it and what actions he takes, his ultimate goal is to put his little cheeto-dust paws all over this. And Hollypaw is starting to question how appropriate that actually is.
This is where it starts to really be a rip in Holly's mind. Clans aren't JUST big, blanket groups with united opinions, they're collections of individuals. Mistystar doesn't want meddling, but Willowpaw is in danger. Otterpaw and Lakepaw went all that time without being believed, after they watched their sister die, because they're lowly apprentices like her. Squirrelflight and Brambleclaw are angry and disappointed, while Firestar and Brackenfur are secretly lathering her in praise.
Now imagine me standing in front of a big board where I'm writing ??? because there's a missing chunk here.
I need to connect THIS part to what comes next, which is where ThunderClan DOES come in and help out. Here's the thought process going on in RiverClan;
Willowpaw comes in to do something important. She adores Hollypaw, knows her value as a Cleric, and knows that StarClan can sway Mistystar.
I want her to have a couple of pieces of a vision... BUT. She decides to interpret it in a way that's convenient, and add a few details.
It's not a tooootal lie lmao. It's just 75% true.
This is the true power of Clerics, when they realize it. No one can actually challenge them without just ignoring them or stripping them of power. They are accountable to StarClan alone.
A mentor simply doesn't say this out loud to their apprentice. It's a quiet secret. And Willowpaw just realized it.
and thinking about it... this should be the thing that finally breaks the budding romance Holly and Willow had. Holly is sickened by this, when Willow confesses how she convinced RiverClan to work with ThunderClan.
But, without even being a full Warrior, the apprentice leverages her power as Cleric of RiverClan, and 200 skill points of Improv Acting, to tell them these things;
"StarClan is so angry with us that they've sent a hog to the water! It's why they've sent a ThunderClan apprentice, we must work with them to eliminate the beast that lurks in our waters. With spears and plans, we must hunt it honorably!"
(Mistystar is defensive, but it's not known why) "We haven't disobeyed StarClan in any way. We'd already accepted their help once before, when sickness drove us to weakness, and it's only let them think they can disrespect our borders as they please. This can't be the holy will of our ancestors."
"It's-- We've been disrespecting this bountiful new land that they've so generously given us. That's what the pile of shells in my dream was. Think about it! The last attack was on the shore where we collect mussels. The second attack was on a cat latched to a raft, and it was only the tether that saved them. And the first..."
IVE GOT AN IDEA, Robin, Lake, and Otter WEREN'T clamming when they were attacked. She gestures over to Lake, knowing that if she doesn't back her up, the theory crumbles.
(Otter is in the Cleric's den, unconscious.)
Lake hesitates, not wanting to lie. Willow jumps back in,
"It's why Otterpaw was attacked," does those little jazz-hands to be like 'come in bitch work with me,' "And it's why Lakepaw has to be involved in killing it, to end what she started, and appease StarClan."
Lakepaw more like I LIKE-what-you-just-saidpaw, "It's true, we were so ashamed to admit it, Mistystar, this is all MY fault, I wanted my siblings to dig up mussels, PLEASE let me atone by stabbing the fish to death"
AND AFTER THAT IT'S NOODLIN' TIME
Mistystar, begrudgingly, accepts Firestar's help, or perhaps reaches out to him. Ripwater is a "Hog in the Lake," a beast too big for them to kill honorably on their own.
ThunderClan is the ONLY Clan that uses spears, and only for boar hunts. To protect themselves and to give their quarry a quicker death.
No other Clan touches weapons for dishonor reasons, as they're heavily associated with the demon Shredtail.
I should have Willowpaw explain her half-truth to Hollypaw here, and it's where Hollypaw just... so very suddenly can't look at Willowpaw the same way.
Jaypaw would definitely face an ableist moment from someone, but it's going to have to be one of those times where he accepts that there IS a very real limit to his ability here. Spears are range-weapons and his whiskers don't reach that far. He can't tell where he's stabbing, and the water is going to make it too hard to smell where Ripwater's dangerous mouth is. He can't be chosen for this hunt.
Meanwhile Lionpaw learns from Willowpelt how to make a spear and it is one of the most satisfying things he's ever done in his life, he's like "this is so awesome oh my god i love weapons"
just gently setting up that he's going to eventually become ThunderClan's head of hunting, and also that he's a lil violent
I feel like him and Lakepaw should hit it off a little because they both think the idea of stabbing a fish in the face is super cool, only for someone to growl at them that they shouldn't be enjoying themselves so much
Maybe Blackclaw, fuck that guy
(absolute tangent but BB!Lionblaze is kind of evolving into a little dork and I love that for him. Local himbo only capable of making friends or enemies, all Clanwide opinions on him are polarized, more at 11)
THE PLAN
So how DO they kill that thing? First of all, it's all about strategy.
Immediately they started making a couple of specialized spears. Most spears they make are exclusively for boar-hunting, so they have a distinctive "lug" that prevents a boar from impaling itself down the shaft to get you.
Someone in RiverClan explains that you don't want a fish having the chance to get off a claw. If Ripwater escapes, they might not find her again until she kills someone else
The solution is that these need to be custom-made, with special claw-shaped prongs, so they're chevron ^ shapes instead of tear-drop points. They stab in, and don't pull out.
So they need to make spears from scratch, which is an intensive process, and they don't have time to waste. RiverClan doesn't want to hunt by water that has a chance of having a freshwater orca spawn and drag you in; they'll starve
And there's only so many artisans in TC that can MAKE spears. Glue, twine, shafts, blades... these are all things that take hours of labor to create.
And MORE IMPORTANTLY, they realized from the Raft Rescue that a tether, attached to a floating object, can be very useful. Each weapon has rope tied through it and is tethered to a raft-- which is even MORE intensive, RiverClan had to repurpose several nets to create so many lines, and they only own three rafts, so the rest have driftwood.
So they only have time to create 3 special water-spears, and bring in 2 modified boar-spears.
Lionpaw is like visibly disappointed he can't have one lmao
The only apprentice given a spear is... Lakepaw. And it's a boar-spear
Because she's gonna be bait. They believe the litter is cursed for their "sin" and she'll be the next target.
But still, they chum up the water near the last sighting with blood and crowfood, like hog slop, and wait.
(Heavy WIP stuff here as we get to a play-by-play I haven't fully figured out yet)
Their plan is to get it on the shore as quickly as possible.
Four cats could pull Otterpaw from its mouth, so 5 spearcats and a dozen strong warriors could pull it onto the shore. Surely.
shorely.
It comes as expected, lunging at Lakepaw. She leaps back and tries to use her spear on it, but she is NOT properly trained with it, she stabs its face, but can't break the skull
RiverClan manages to toss a net at the beast, but it's NOT heavy enough
And they managed to get LAKEPAW with it, pressing her to the beast, her spear is dropped into the water
Someone shouts that it swims like an eel, able to just reverse course unlike a REAL fish which must turn
In the panic, warriors start mobbing it.
she thrashes, and splashes and the net is barely holding her back at all
She smashes a warrior with her tail, buffs another with her powerful head
She's stabbed in her side by a ThunderClan warrior (probably Sandstorm), and she turns on the raft they're standing on, breeching and SMASHING it to bits. Lionpaw and the rest of the cats on this raft get dunked
In the water, ThunderClan cats are useless, and RiverClan cats can't properly handle spears.
Someone from RiverClan, probably Blackclaw, tries to free Lakepaw but is scooped up in Ripwater's mouth.
He's screeching and yowling and trying to hold onto its upper jaw, regularly cut off as she dives under
When Willowpelt gets her spear in, she holds onto that damn stick with her LIFE, getting swung around and dunked in the water and then going back up into the air
Thornclaw, holding the other boar-spear, aims for its tail
But it's not enough; Even with several warriors of RiverClan, five spears, a net, and the weight of the two remaining rafts, Ripwater's managing to pull them towards the depths
She's too big to bite, too large to claw, and too strong to hold down
LIONPAW TIME
He grabs the spear that Lakepaw dropped
Ripplepaw seems to zoom right passed him, running away from the fish. He thinks he must be some kind of coward, the fight's NOT OVER YET!! WE NEED TO HELP LAKEPAW
(In a later draft I might have Lionpaw be on the smashed raft, and Ripplepaw brings the spear to him before turning and bolting back to shore. Either way he doesn't explain himself)
He paddles near one of the rafts, and is pulled up onto it
Firestar calls him a WONDERFUL BOY for bringing the spear
Lionpaw mumbles something enthusiastic around the stick in his mouth, wriggles his butt, and jumps back into the water
Grabbing the net sticking to Ripwater and using it like tree bark, he pulls himself on
Bites the spear by the lug like a handle
And stabs it in like a knife
But it's already starting to pull out, too shallow
Filled with anger and resolve, he bites the shaft, and PUSHES
Harder and harder and harder until there's a crackle, the twine breaks loose, and the lug snaps
The rest of the spear slips in as if Ripwater's made of butter
Figuring that's probably deep enough, he lets go of the net, breaching the surface, sputtering and hacking
He's about to dive again to go get Lakepaw, but to his surprise, she breaks the water next to him
and then he feels the fish bump his paws
His name is called from the shore, and there's Hollypaw and Ripplepaw waving. Ripplepaw TOOK HIS SPEAR'S ROPE. Like a GUY WHO THINKS.
Now there was a team of cats on the shore, all the spent warriors who got thrown off, pulling Ripwater to the shore.
And from the feeling of slimy fish under his paws, it seemed like her fight had been all but spent.
And more cats were swimming to shore now, with the ropes attached to the other spears.
Once on the shore, they're able to discover that, tragically, Blackclaw has died. Mistystar in particular looks deeply torn by this, as their relationship was notoriously toxic. But still, he had been the father of her children, and drowned trying to save a Clanmate. She jumps up onto the massive fish, giving a speech about sacrifice, how Blackclaw and Robinpaw would be honored, and that RiverClan has learned its valuable lesson.
Ripwater was symbolic; it's the greed they had unleashed upon the lake by over-exploiting one resource. From now on, they would be respectful of StarClan's bounty. She thanks ThunderClan for helping to fulfill a prophecy, and offers that their debt be repaid by splitting the meat of the hunt.
Hollypaw, internally: "Oh she's doing that on purpose. She knows ThunderClan hates fish and it would be rude to refuse."
Firestar: "well. how could we refuse."
Sandstorm, quietly, in the distance: "easily actually ew"
CLOSING STUFF
I kinda want some kind of "epilogue festival" where the two Clans legitimately celebrate with a somewhat somber meal sharing. Some of these episodes in Po3 will result in lasting traditions and holidays that are celebrated annually.
At that little "fish festival," it works for Holly to officially break it off with poor Willow, to leave this episode off on a bit of a sad note.
This was one of the first times Lionpaw's power becomes obvious, and it's the sort of thing that wasn't really noticed. I figure it would be good for Lakepaw to ask how that lug snapped, she could barely even get the spearhead in. Lionpaw just brags and says it must be because he's SUPER STRONG.
For some reason he's just making a ton of friends whenever I write these out, I think I'm going to lean into it. Lionpaw's got friends when he's a kid lmao, starts losing them over time as he gets more violent.
It's probably because I really need a comic relief in The Three's dynamic. Hollypaw is very dramatic, Jaypaw is dealing with legitimately stressful social issues, and Lionpaw is violent. Someone has to lighten the mood up a little and it's probably because he's The California Girl himself lmao
At this fish festival he also discovers fish isn't actually that bad. Everyone's being weird about this. It's not really that slimy. It's got a strong taste but that's kinda nice, actually?
Could use some berries but like... "damn why don't we do this more often. this would go great with blackberries."
Ripplepaw: "You think so? I can taste sweetness, can I try to make it at home and tell you how it works out at the next Gathering?"
Lionpaw: "It's not hard, you just mash the berries and stew them in a little water before pouring it over your meat. I learned it from Willowpelt, she's got a mad sweet tooth."
Lakepaw: "No offense Lionpaw, but I always thought you were a total lunkhead. I never thought you'd like, cook?"
Lionpaw: "I mean not really, I'm an awful cook, I can just make simple stuff. Willowpelt's just nice enough to be patient with me, my mentor Ashfur says if I can learn something anyone can, haha."
Just a nice little moment for him.
Blackclaw is being mourned in the mortal plane, but secretly, getting a SCATHING trial up in StarClan. His death was heroic, but his ENTIRE LIFE was treacherous.
From teaching Hawkfrost to follow in his father's pawsteps, to joining him in WindClan's Civil War, and his constant arguing and undermining of Mistyfoot back when she was just a deputy trying to do the right thing.
He goes on trial for a bunch of things he did in TigerClan, too, facing his victims who took his misdeeds to their graves. He's not the only cat in RiverClan who is getting a review like this.
Leopardstar is already in the Dark Forest, and soon, Blackclaw's sent there too.
I decided to kill off Blackclaw here so he could have a VERY cool Land Mar;
(context: all Dark Forest demons now get a cool little evil playset area just for them, where they spawn into after they're thrown out of StarClan. These are called Land Mars)
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It's still unnamed, but it's basically an even BIGGER Ripwater. It goes above and below the river and lakes of the Dark Forest, popping up in any body of water big enough to hold her.
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storiesforallfandoms · 4 months
Text
santa's sister in law ~ bernard the elf;the santa clause
word count: 4292
request?: no
description: in which he is adamantly against the in laws coming to the north pole, until he meets santa's sister in law
pairing: bernard the elf x female!human!reader
warnings: christmas fluff, sylvia sucking a little bit but that's just canon
masterlist (one, two, three)
Merry Christmas everyone! 🎄
a special christmas gift for @omeletdreamer 😌
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Bernard was firmly against Carol's family coming to the North Pole. He liked Carol, don't get him wrong. She was a fantastic Mrs. Claus, and he loved her idea to start an elf school at the Pole. He understood that it was hard to adjust to life at the Pole, especially while she was pregnant. But bringing outsiders there was a big no-no. They were already pushing things by letting Laura, Neil, and Lucy in on the secret of Santa.
But all of his protests fell on deaf ears. Santa wanted Carol to have her family while he was going to be busy, and the other elves just wanted Carol to be happy. It was a thousand against one. So, Santa got into his sleigh and flew to get Carol's parents while the elves fixed up the Pole to look like Canada.
"This is never going to work," Bernard said to Curtis. "There's no way they're going to think this is Canada. Even if they believe these ridiculous store signs, they'll never believe Canada is inhabited by a bunch of children."
"Can you not be so negative for once?" Curtis asked. "It'll be fine."
"We are seriously pushing it with how many people know about the Pole and Santa. You can't blame me for being stressed out over it."
"Everything will be fine, Bernard. We have a plan. We got this."
Bernard huffed a sigh and walked away. He was tired of being brushed off like this. He didn't become head elf for nothing. He knew what he was doing. If only someone would just listen to him.
As he was walking away, he heard something in the distance. He looked up to see Santa's sleigh breaching through the entrance to the Pole. He couldn't see them yet, but he imagined Carol's parents in there, asleep from Sandman's magic, expecting to wake up in "Canada". He cringed to himself. There's really no going back now.
"I need a hot cocoa," he muttered to himself.
The kitchen elves were busy baking away when Bernard walked in. Carol had told them her mom's favorite cookies so they were hard at work making a batch to welcome Mrs. Newman. They were wearing comically large chef's hats pulled down to cover their pointy ears, which made Bernard glad his hair was long enough to do that naturally.
"Hi Bernard," Abby said, giving him a bright smile upon noticing him. "Want a hot cocoa?"
"I'd love one, Abby," he responded, sitting down at one of the tables.
She rushed off to make it for him. He picked up a cookie from a plate in the middle of the table to eat while waiting. Abby returned with his hot cocoa. He blew on it, disturbing the steady steam coming from the drink. He hoped that escaping to the kitchen would give him some time to prepare for Carol's parents.
He was taking his first sip of his hot cocoa when the kitchen doors opened again and in walked Santa, Mrs. Claus and her family in tow. Bernard nearly choked on his drink.
"And here's our kitchen," Santa was saying. "Oh, and Bernard's here too! Bernard is my, uh, he's my...assistant."
Bernard tried not to roll his eyes at the title.
He reluctantly stood and plastered a smile on his face. "Hi, nice to meet you...eh."
Carol's dad shook his hand while her mom pulled him in for an embrace. Bernard wasn't prepared for a third person to approach; a young woman with a smile so beautiful it left him speechless.
"This is my sister," Carol said. "We didn't know she was coming too."
"I'm (Y/N)," the woman said. "Mom and dad mentioned they were coming for a visit, so I asked Scott if it was alright for me to tag along."
"Of course it would be alright!" Sylvia cut in. "Scott's already had Carol from us for so long, he'd never say no to bringing Carol's loving sister with us to finally see her again."
Sylvia had a smile on her face but there was venom in her words. (Y/N) cringed and tried to ignore her mother's comment. "It's really lovely here so far. I'm glad I could come."
Bernard was still tongue tied. He kept opening and closing his mouth like an idiot trying to figure out something to say. (Y/N) was watching him, waiting, while Scott and Carol shared an amused look.
"Let's show you the rest of the place," Carol said, putting an arm around her sister. "We'll meet up with Bernard again later."
(Y/N) smiled and waved goodbye as the group left the kitchen. Once they were gone, Bernard felt like he was freed from a spell. He let out a long breath and slumped back down to the table. His hot cocoa had cooled down enough that he finished the rst of it in two gulps.
~~~~~~
Bernard was up late that night doing his rounds of the workshop. All the other elves had left for the night, but Bernard was often the last one up making sure everything was shut down and nothing was left out of place. With the in laws visiting, he was also making sure the workshop was locked up so no one would accidentally wander in and discover everything.
He was preparing to leave when he noticed the door to the kitchen was slightly ajar. He was sure all the baker elves had left for the night, but maybe someone had stayed behind. He poked his head into the room and almost gasped aloud when he saw it was (Y/N) who was leaning against the counter, a mug of hot cocoa in her hands. She was in her pajamas, clearly preparing for bed. Bernard was about to back away and leave her be, until she looked up form her mug and caught him. She smiled and waved to him.
"Good evening, Bernard," she said.
There was no escaping now. He stepped into the kitchen and cleared his throat, trying not to seem as weird as he had earlier. He discretely made sure his ears were tucked away under his hair.
"Hi," he said. Simple, easy. You can't mess up a "hi".
"What are you doing up so late?" she asked.
"I could ask you the same thing."
She giggled. "Touché. I was having trouble sleeping so I decided to come out for a hot cocoa. That nice baker, Abby I think? She offered to make me one before she left. I was told she makes the best hot cocoa in all of the town."
"Oh, she does. She's the one you go to when you want a good hot drink made."
"She works magic, I'm sure."
Bernard tried not to let his smile falter. "You have no idea."
A silence fell over them. (Y/N) softy blew on her hot cocoa before taking a sip from it. A small trail of foam stuck to her upper lip as she pulled her mug away. Bernard couldn't stop himself from chuckling.
"What?" she asked.
"You just...you have something..." He gestured to his top lip.
She ran a thumb along her top lip, only smearing the foam more.
"Here, let me." Bernard reached up and wiped the foam off with his own thumb. He was suddenly very aware of their closeness when he looked into her eyes. Any words he could ever say were stuck in his throat yet again and he could only imagine how insane he looked, staring at her with wide eyes.
"Thank you," she said. "And thank you for having us here, too. I know it's a busy time of year for you guys. We don't mean to impose."
It took Bernard a moment to remember the story they had been telling Carol's parents: that Scott was a toy maker in Canada and that's why he would be so busy this time of year and needed someone to be there with Carol while she was pregnant.
"It's not imposition," Bernard assured her. "If anything, I think it's going to make Sa - Scott feel better to have you guys here for Carol while he's working."
(Y/N) nodded. "It's very nice of him to have us here considering how my parents tend to treat him."
Bernard thought back to the comment Sylvia had made earlier. The strained relationship between Scott and his in-laws wasn't anything new to him. Scott had mentioned it a few times before, most recently when he was voicing his concerns about bringing Bud and Sylvia to the Pole with Bernard in private. It was evident that both Newman sisters also noticed how their parents treated Scott, and it seemed neither of them were too happy with it.
"I understand why mom and dad get upset," (Y/N) continued. "One minute Carol was a proud principal at the local middle school, and then the next thing we know she's writing us to tell us she got married to a guy we've never even heard of and moved off to Canada to be with him. I mean, even I was skeptical then. But when she'd write to me about Scott and about being here, it was clear that she was so happy and she found the man of her dreams. Who are we to judge the quickness that they got married? As long as she's safe and happy, which she clearly is. But mom and dad don't see it that way. Dad is still convinced that Scott is a cult leader who stole Carol away or something."
(Y/N) paused and looked at Bernard. He had been listening as she spoke, just nodding along and not saying a word. She chuckled a little and shook her head. "Sorry, I'm rambling on about my family drama."
"No! It's-it's fine. Trust me, I've heard similar stuff from Sa - Scott."
She gave him a look. "You keep stuttering on Scott's name."
"Yeah."
He couldn't think of a better explanation besides that. He felt an unfamiliar burning sensation in his cheeks. He wasn't sure if it was embarrassment or just from being so close to her that made him feel that way. She giggled, though; a sound more beautiful than any of the twinkling bells that were often heard around the Pole.
"I'm just glad to be here," she said. "And I'm glad mom and dad can be here for when the baby is born. Maybe that will help them be a little less harsh on Scott."
She finished what was left in her mug and looked around the oversized kitchen. When Bernard realized she was probably trying to figure out where to put the dirty mug, he said, "Oh, I can take care of that for you."
"Are you sure?"
"Of course. You're our guest, and I can handle this."
She smiled and passed him the mug. "Well, thanks for talking to me, Bernard. I guess I should try to sleep again."
"Goodnight, (Y/N)."
"Goodnight, Bernard." She started towards the door, but then paused to turn back to him. "I hope you're not too busy tomorrow. I'd like to spend more time with you."
His face was on fire as she left.
~~~~~~
For the first time in his thousands of years as the head elf, Bernard wasn't concerned with his head elf duties. Of course he was still there if Santa needed him, but he decided not to spend the entire day in the factory and to seek out (Y/N) to spend time with her. She was delighted to see him and was more than happy to accept his offer to show her around "Canada" for the day.
This became a regular occurrence for a few days. Bernard would make sure to check in often to see if he was needed, but if he wasn't he was with (Y/N). He would feel bad about taking her away from her time with her family, but it seemed her parents were more concerned with fussing over Carol than they were about all four of them spending time together. And (Y/N) also assured Bernard that she was making time for Carol and her family as well as spending time with him.
Bernard was more than well aware he was falling in love with (Y/N), and he was also more than well aware of how bad that was. Elves falling in love was nothing new; he had officiated quite a few elf weddings in his time. But falling in love with a human was out of the question. Elves were immortal, humans were not. Scott and Carol were different - upon becoming Santa and Mrs. Claus, their aging processes had slowed down considerably. They weren't completely immortal, but they weren't aging as fast as normal humans did. But that wasn't possible for a human that an elf fell in love with. Even if (Y/N) felt the same way towards Bernard, she would still continue to age while he would stay the same for the rest of time.
But he couldn't stop himself. He was falling fast and hard. Carol's due date was creeping closer, and once it came it would only be a matter of time before the Newman family would have to go back home, meaning that (Y/N) would leave and likely would not come back. That thought hurt Bernard.
Bernard was approaching where (Y/N) was staying one day when she slipped out of the house instead. He was surprised; she had never left before he had gotten there before.
As he got closer he realized that her face was tearstained.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
(Y/N) jumped and turned to look at him. "Oh, Bernard. Sorry, I didn't see you coming. Nothing's wrong."
He was about to point out that she was very obviously upset over something when the door opened again and Sylvia slipped out. She looked like she was about to say something, but she noticed Bernard and gave him a tight smile, one that he had come to learn was very much her fake smile.
"Hello, Bernard," she said. "I was just having a conversation with my daughter. We were talking about spending the day with Carol. We haven't had an all girls day since we arrived. So, unfortunately, I don't think she'll be able to spend time with you today."
"No mom," (Y/N) said. "I said I would join you later for girls time. Besides, you know Carol has an appointment with the doctor. She won't be ready till later."
Her mother was smiling but her eyes were glaring daggers into the younger Newman girl. (Y/N) held the glare before turning to Bernard and taking hold of his arm. She didn't say anything as she dragged him away. He followed anyways, wanting to get as far away from Sylvia as he could.
"God, I don't understand what is wrong with her," (Y/N) said, letting go of Bernard long enough to wipe the tears from her eyes. "I swear she just doesn't want Carol and I to be happy."
"What was she saying?" Bernard asked.
"Oh, she was going off about the fact that I spend so much time with you. Had her usual rant about Scott taking her precious daughter away from her and dad, and then said she'll be damned if she lets it happen with me too. Basically tried to guilt me into not spending time with you today by saying that Carol was upset that she didn't get to see me much, which I know isn't true because just the other day Carol was saying how happy she was that you and I were getting along."
She shook her head. "I'm so sick of it. It's like she can't wrap her head around the fact that maybe, just maybe, life is so busy here that Carol doesn't always have time to visit. It has nothing to do with Scott being manipulative or a cult leader or whatever conspiracy her and dad have cooked up on a certain day."
Bernard listened in silence. He felt bad that (Y/N) had to have these issues with her mother. Carol was hearing it all now, but he was sure (Y/N) heard much more of it when she was back home with her parents.
None of the Newmans could ever understand the way things were with Carol and Scott. They could never know why things were like this, but they likely wouldn't understand even if they knew.
Unless...
It was an idea that shocked even Bernard that he had it. Head elf of the North Pole, Santa's righthand man himself, considering such a thing? After being so against Carol's family coming to the Pole? It was preposterous. But his brain was so clouded by love for (Y/N) that he wasn't thinking proper.
"Come with me," he said. He didn't wait for an answer, just took hold of her hand and pulled her towards the workshop.
His heart was pounding so hard he could feel it in hips pointed ears. He had to remind himself there was no going back. This was going to be huge, and it could likely get him into a world of trouble.
He opened the doors to the workshop and (Y/N) stepped in. She looked around in awe at the working elves, most of which were not hiding their ears as the workshop was supposed to be off limits to the Newmans. None of them seemed to notice the two of them enter, and if they did, nothing was said.
Bernard watched (Y/N), nervously waiting for her reaction.
"Is this...what I think it is?" she asked him. "No, it can't be. I must be dreaming. I fell and hit my head and now I'm in a coma having a very vivid dream that all of these small people who are supposed to be Canadians have pointed ears like they're elves."
When she looked over at him, Bernard had taken off his hat and allowed his ears to peak out from under his hair.
"I've lost it," she decided.
"You haven't," he assured her. "All of this is real. It's why Carol hasn't been able to visit as much, or why you couldn't visit until now. Look, there's so much to know about all of this. So much that I want to tell you but technically I can't because there are strict rules about humans knowing about the North Pole."
(Y/N) had another quick moment of shock that she was able to very quickly recover from. "Rules that you're currently breaking by showing me...Santa's workshop. By admitting that you're an elf, these are all elves...oh my God, my sister is Mrs. Claus."
"It is all very complicated," he said. "But you deserve to know that Carol is truly happy here. She's not being held against her will, Santa isn't manipulative or holding her captive. He loves her so much that he risked you and your parents finding out about him - about us - so that all of you could be here for her while she's pregnant."
(Y/N) still seemed to be stunned. She looked around the bustling factory again, her eyes wide with wonder.
"Wait," she said. "But...if you all went through so much to make us think this was Canada, to keep who Scott is a secret...then why are you telling me now?"
Because I love you. Because I want you to stay. Because I want to be with you more than anything, even though I know that will never happen.
"Because I want you to know the truth," he replied. "About all of this. About...about me."
She was looking at him. He didn't know what else to say, so he just looked back. He waited for an answer. He willed her to say something, anything.
She didn't say anything, though. Instead, she leaned forward and kissed Bernard. It was quick, almost hesitant, and when she pulled away she looked embarrassed.
"Sorry," she said. "I...should I have done that? I should've asked first. Was it okay that I did that?"
He smiled. "It was more than okay."
"Okay. I'm...I'm going to do it again, if that's still okay."
Bernard chuckled and moved in to kiss (Y/N) first. He had only ever kissed one person before - when he was young one of the other elves had gave him a quick peck on the lips and ran away afterwards. Not exactly something glamorous or anything like that. So he was a little worried about whether or not he was a good kisser. Although, something felt so natural about kissing (Y/N), like he could never do it wrong even if he tried.
He paused when he realized a slight hush had fallen over the workshop. He and (Y/N) pulled away to see that all the working elves had stopped what they were doing to look at the two of them.
"Back to work!" Bernard commanded. They all quickly fell back into what they had been doing before. "Bunch of gossips, all of them. Everyone in town will know about this by nightfall."
"I don't blame them. I'd assume it's not every day that they see an elf kissing a human."
He chuckled. "No, I guess not."
They decided to step out of the workshop to talk more in private. (Y/N) looped her arm through Bernard's as they walked, a gesture that suddenly felt much more intimate than it had before.
"I guess it goes without saying that I can't tell anyone about this," she said. "Not even my parents."
"No. Which I know is a big ask, but we can't have the secret of Santa going around," Bernard explained.
"Not like anyone would believe me. They'd think I was crazy if I went home talking about how my brother in law is Santa and how I started crushing on one of his elves. They'd sent me to an institute for sure."
Bernard smiled at her word choice. So she had liked him this whole time, too. Had it been obvious? Or had she been trying to contain it just as much as he did?
"How...would things work...for us then?" she asked.
It was the question he was dreading. The one he continued to ask himself despite knowing the answer to: it wouldn't. He couldn't let (Y/N) hold on to him when she left the Pole. She'd likely never see him again, which was for the best.
Seeing the look on his face, (Y/N) stopped. "No, do not tell me it's not going to work."
"It can't work, (Y/N). There's too much complications between a human and an elf being romantically linked. It's never happened before, and for good reason."
"There's a first for everything."
He shook his head. "No, there can't be a first for this. I can't let you throw away any other romantic opportunities you have for me. We may never see each other after this visit."
"My sister is married to Santa. There's no way I'm not coming back after this. And besides, long distance relationships are a thing."
"This one would be...very long distance."
She slid her arm from his and took his hand in hers. "I'm willing to try. I like you too much to give up without a fight."
Every rational part of his brain was screaming for him to stop. He could not let things go further. It was better for her if they ended everything after that first kiss and went hteir separate ways.
But the less rational part of his brain was louder than the rest, telling him not to give up this chance at happiness outside of work. He deserved to love and to be loved, just like anyone else in the world. If it worked for Scott, it had to work for him too, right?
He sighed and squeezed her hands. "It won't be easy."
"I don't expect it to be."
"You won't be able to be here a lot unless you're willing to give up everything the way Carol did."
"That's fine, we can make that work."
"And if you do end up coming here permanently, you can't tell anyone who I really am, or who Scott and Carol really are. You'll have to lie to everyone in your life. Is that something you can be okay with?"
(Y/N) stepped closer to him so that their noses were nearly touching. "I'm already lying about Scott and Carol. What's one more lie about the man I love?"
Love.
It was enough for him to abandon all hope at resisting her. He closed the space between them, kissing her again so passionately that it made her head spin. She wrapped her arms around his neck to steady herself, while he wrapped his arms around her waist.
He could've kissed her forever. He could've stood there, wrapped around her and her wrapped around him, the cold nipping at them but barely bothering them, forever. He wanted to take this moment and freeze it, to never have to go back to his busy life as Santa's right hand elf ever again.
But she pulled away first, resting her forehead against his.
"I did promise my mom a girl's day," she said with a sigh. "And I think if I blow her off for this, she'll probably actually kill me."
"I guess I'll have to let you go then."
But he didn't, and she didn't let go of him. They laughed and kissed again.
It would be another several minutes before he would finally (and reluctantly) let her go.
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Text
Never Been Kissed (Adrian Chase x fem!reader)
Tumblr media
Rating: Explicit - 18+ only
Word Count: 7.3k
Warnings: SMUT, Second chance romance, Canon typical descriptions of murder and violence, Oral (fem receiving), P in V, Safe sex (male condom), Multiple orgasms
Summary: You're a PI who joins the 11th Street Kids after a chance meeting with John Economos on the dark web. Unfortunately for you, your ex-friend-with-benefits Vigilante is here too. (Based on this ask by anon)
A/N: This took a hot minute. The M&Ms were originally cigarettes but these days I'm a healthy queen free of nicotine -purr.
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Chapter text:
The dim fire exit sign outside the back of the abandoned video store flickers as you suck a peanut M&M between your tongue and the roof of your mouth anxiously. You hope your contact hurries the fuck up - if he makes you wait any longer you’ll finish an entire party bag from nervousness.
It was stupid, really, even reckless, to meet a stranger from the dark web. But when some guy called TechConomos_11 had responded to you in a chat room where you were discussing the intel you had on some sinister goings-on in Evergreen, you knew you had to meet him and his team.
Because you’ll be damned if anyone catches the escaped gorilla before you.
There’s a clink of a padlock and chain falling to the floor, the sound of a heavy emergency exit bar being pushed down and when the door opens you’re face to face with a large, bearded man wearing glasses. 
“Are you the PI?”
If you had to draw a sketch of what you thought a guy you met on the dark web would look like, he would be it. Not a neckbeard, exactly, just someone with the distinct aura of having too much time spent in front of a screen.
You nod. “TechConomos?”
“Call me John. Come inside - the team’s all here.”
You shove the half-empty pack of M&Ms into your bag and he leads you through to the back office. 
“This is Murn, Harcourt and Adebayo.” He gestures to his three associates sitting in the office who each acknowledge you in turn. “And these guys-”
“Fuck it! Fuck, fuck fuck!”
The yelling draws your attention to the window separating the office from the rest of the video store and it’s like a knife in your gut when you see him.
Vigilante.
“Ugh, fuck! It hurts to walk!” Vigilante whines as he limps around. He turns to pace some more but stops in his tracks in alarm when he sees you. He immediately dives to the floor, launching himself behind a desk in a futile attempt to hide.
Vigilante is the last person you expected to - or wanted to - see here. It’s not his usual MO - normally he’d be out hunting thugs and drug dealers. What was he doing caught up in this operation with some tech guy and a team who you suspected were either current or former soldiers?
There’s a roaring laugh and your eyes find Peacemaker, doubled over in his chair, laughing like an idiot at Vigilante sprawled on the ground. 
That explains Vigilante’s involvement. Looks like his idol, Peacemaker, is finally out of prison and the first thing he does is rope Vigilante into whatever this is. The whole thing stinks. Why is there an entire team with two capes looking for an escaped zoo animal? Any why did one of those capes have to be Vigilante? 
You close your eyes and groan. “You didn’t tell me you were working with them.”
“You know each other?” asks Harcourt.
“Just Vigilante.” You sigh and follow them into the video store.
“Hey, asshole,” you say, peering over the desk Vigilante is hidden behind. He looks up at you and props his masked head up on his arm casually as if you didn’t just see him throw himself there a second ago.
“Oh, hey!” he says, feigning pleasant surprise.
“Why are you on the floor?”
“I hurt my pinky toe.”
“Yeah? Which one?” You walk around the desk and stand at his feet to get a better look.
“Nononono! Wait!”
You clock the way his visor-covered eyes dart down to his right foot in panic. 
“Woah, did you think I was gonna kick you or something?” Sure, you have beef but you’re kind of offended he’d think that you’d harm him on purpose.
“No…” he mumbles sheepishly.
“Asshole.” You roll your eyes and sit on the hard wooden surface, turning away from him to face the team.
“Who the fuck is this?” Peacemaker asks Murn before looking between you and Vigilante. “Do you two know each other or something?”
You don’t deign to reply.
There’s a squeak of a chair being dragged on linoleum as Vigilante pulls himself up onto a seat next to Peacemaker with a wince.
“Economos says you want to join the team,” says Murn. 
“That’s right.”
“Why?”
“I know everything that goes on in Evergreen.”
“And?”
“I have information and skills that I want money for. Obviously.”
“How much?”
You were talking about splitting the reward for the gorilla but Murn’s expectant look makes it clear this is a contract. What’s that saying again? A contract in the hand is worth a gorilla in the bush? … Something like that.
“Well, what are you paying him?” You cast your eyes at Vigilante who shrugs. Unbelievable. “They’re not paying you? Idiot.”
Murn and Harcourt glance at each other awkwardly. “This is strictly off the books,” says Murn.
“So you were just going to take advantage of him? No way. I want my pay backdated for all the intell I’ve found for you. And his too for whatever it is he’s doing for you.”
“How do you guys know each other?” asks John, pulling up a chair behind his laptop.
You look at Vigilante warningly and answer before he can open his fat mouth. “I’ve sent some work his way once or twice. And compensated him fairly for it,” you add pointedly.
“Oh, they’ve definitely fucked,” laughs Peacemaker.
“Shouldn’t you be in Belle Reve?” You glare at him.
Peacemaker ignores the question. “Did he keep the mask on with you too?” He pouts faux-sympathetically.
This catches you off-guard. Not Vigilante and Peacemaker fucking - Vigilante is so obsessed with him that you guessed it was only a matter of time.
But he did keep his mask on.
Vigilante groans and leans forward in his chair, resting his elbows on his knees and staring determinedly at his injured foot.
“Ha! I knew it!”
“Enough!” Murn gives Peacemaker a severe look before turning his attention back to you. “John says you know the location of what we’re looking for.”
“I’m not telling you until you get me up to speed with what you’ve got so far. John wouldn’t tell me shit online. Call it a show of good faith.”
“And we’re supposed to just take your word that you actually have useful information?” asks Adebayo.
John opens his mouth to reply but Vigilante beats him to the punch.
“She knows,” says Vigilante, finally looking up. “She’s… she’s a good PI. If she says she knows, she knows.”
“Well, we can’t divulge state secrets just because Vigilante vouches for you. Tell us the ‘where’ and if it checks out - you’re in,” says Harcourt.
You look around at this unlikely group. If you want to catch the gorilla you need their help. You need their weapons. You need their money.
“It’s at the Glan Tai bottling plant. You heard of it?”
“Pulling it up now…” John types on his keyboard. “It makes sense, Murn. They’ve got the production, the distribution channels… This is probably it.”
Distribution channels? What’s the gorilla at Glan Tai got to do with distribution? 
You keep your face neutral - if there’s one thing you’ve learned from this job, it’s when to sit back, shut up and listen.
You try to piece things together as Murn talks about ‘butterflies’ and their ‘food source’. Economos checks highway CCTV footage and confirms that your intel is correct. This is extremely lucky for you because you’re clearly talking about two entirely different things. You wonder if these ‘butterflies’ are some kind of parasite-induced sleeper agent. And maybe the food source is a drug to release them from their fugue state?
“...And the gorilla?” you ask eventually.
“What about the gorilla?” asks Harcourt.
“The gorilla is at Glan Tai.”
“There’s a Butterfly gorilla?” asks Vigilante excitedly. “That is so cool!”
“Is that even possible?” Harcourt asks Murn who nods.
You’ve seen some shit but a gorilla sleeper agent takes the fucking cake. They all seem totally unfazed so you pretend to be too.
“So, what’s our next move? When do we start killing these aliens?” asks Peacemaker.
Aliens.
You discreetly scan the others. Nobody else bats an eyelid at Peacemaker’s use of that word. 
What the hell have you gotten yourself into?
“You two get some rest, come back tonight,” says Murn to Peacemaker and Vigilante. “And you - you’ve got evidence of what we’re doing here?” There’s no point in lying so you nod. “Bring it back here so we can destroy it. All of it.”
You, Peacemaker and Vigilante, leave the video store. You cross the street to get to your car but Vigilante calls your name. You turn around to see him hurriedly limping over while Peacemaker climbs into the Vigilantemobile.
“Hey, I’m glad you’re part of the team now.”
“I can’t return the sentiment.” You scowl at him. Peacemaker beeps the horn of Vigilante’s car. “You’d better hurry up - you don’t want to keep your boyfriend waiting.”
“We’re not in a relationship. You know I only wanted to be with-”
“Don’t you dare.”
“C’mon, can’t you at least tell me why you stopped answering my calls?”
“I already told you - I’m not going to wait around my entire life for a guy who won’t even show me his face. Or tell me his real name.”
“I can’t -”
“Save your excuses for someone who gives a shit.” Peacemaker blasts the horn again. “At least I know you keep the mask on when you fuck him too. It’s not like he’s seen your face.”
Vigilante’s visor-covered eyes avoid contact with yours. His hesitation is like a punch in the gut. 
“He’s seen your face?” You don’t mean to whisper it. The words just spill from your lips like you’ve been winded.
“Not like that. That was just a meaningless threesome-”
“But he’s seen it?”
He nods.
You push him aside to throw your car door open and get in. “Fuck you, V.” You slam it shut and drive away, not even bothering to glance at him standing haplessly in your rearview mirror.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Later that evening, you and John cross-check your intel. It’s becoming clear that this is way out of your fucking league. But if Vigilante can do it, you can too.
Right?
“You want some peanut M&Ms?”.
He accepts a handful gladly. “Why is so much of this about the fucking gorilla?” John asks with his mouth full, looking over your shoulder at your laptop screen.
The necessity of any quick thinking on your part is interrupted when you hear Murn’s voice ringing from the back office.
“You told Vigilante to kill Peacemaker's father?!” 
You and John drop what you’re doing and peer tentatively around the door of the office where Murn is berating Adebayo.
“I didn't tell him to… I just kinda put the idea in his head,” she explains.
“That Peacemaker would be better off without his father?”
Oh no.
“Where’s Vigilante?” you ask suspiciously, joining Murn as he stands with his arms crossed. He looks furious.
“He’s in jail,” mumbles Adebayo. “I might have suggested that if someone were to go in and kill Peacemaker’s dad, all our problems would go away.”
You run your hands through your hair.
“How could you manipulate him like that?” Your combat boots squeak on the floor as you pace across it, catastrophising aloud. “In case you hadn’t noticed, Vigilante is very fucking easy to manipulate. And he has a record. What if he kills someone in prison and gets locked up for life? Or what if he gets himself killed trying?”
“Peacemaker’s gonna see right through this. He’ll know exactly what you tried to do,” says Murn to Adebyo sternly.
They’re fucking crazy. 
“Who gives a shit about Peacemaker? Vigilante is locked in jail with the White Dragon!” You plead urgently. Vigilante is in real danger and all they care about is Peacemaker’s feelings.
“Economos, can you get Vigilante out of the system before he screws us worse than we're already screwed?”
John sighs. “I don’t even know this guy’s name.”
The four of them look at you.
You cross your arms. “I can’t tell you his name.”
“Guess he’s gonna die in prison then -”
“Last name Chase. First name Adrian.” You blurt out his secret that you’ve been holding deep in your chest. “But you can’t tell him I told you. He doesn’t know I know.”
You crowd around John’s laptop as he pulls up Adrian’s file. 
“We shouldn’t be looking at this,” you say as you stare intently at his mugshot - the mugshot you’re so well acquainted with. You’d rather die than admit how many hours you’ve spent sitting at your desk late at night, looking at his police record on your laptop.
And suddenly, it’s like you’re back in bed with him, as he stares breathlessly at the ceiling and you lie there naked on top of his bare chest, looking into his masked face, picturing that very same mugshot underneath it.
“Guess again,” Vigilante says. You can tell even under the mask that he’s grinning, enjoying your questioning.
“Hmm… are you a doctor? You’ve stitched yourself up a lot.”
“You think I’m a doctor and live here?”
Vigilante watches as you make a show of pursing your lips thoughtfully. The warm afternoon sun streaks through the gaps in his blinds onto his bed. It makes it look like there’s a golden halo around your messy bed hair. He tucks a small strand behind your ear as you walk your index and middle fingers along his chest and down his shoulder. 
“Maybe a fireman with these big strong arms?”
He likes you when you let your walls down like this. You’re almost downright playful when he’s satisfied you - a personality trait he still hasn’t extricated from you outside these four walls.
“Man, I am so good at this secret identity thing if I can keep it a secret from a PI.”
You laugh. “I guess so.”
He didn’t know that you had long known his real job. And his real name. Or that you’d trace your fingers over his face on your laptop screen as you tried to reconcile it with the masked killer who was content to let you into his bed but never his real life.
“Wasn’t he our busboy at Fennel Fields?” Adebayo’s question snaps you back to the present. 
“Can you pull him out?” You ask John.
“It’s… done.” He says, with a final click of his keyboard. “Let’s just hope he hasn’t done anything stupid. Yet.” 
Harcourt shrugs her leather jacket on. “I’ll pick him up.”
Great - first he reveals to Peacemaker who he is and now Harcourt who he’s known for a hot minute is about to see his face too. 
You frown. “He’s gonna be really upset we know his identity.” 
“You wanna come and soften the blow?”
“I’ll drive.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Harcourt sits in the passenger seat of your car outside of the Evergreen Police Department. You’ve been sitting here quietly in the dark, staring at the front doors for almost an hour.
“So what’s your deal with Vigilante?” She asks, finally breaking the silence.
“I told you - I threw some contract work his way. Used him as a bodyguard from time to time when I needed the extra muscle.”
“And then what? Why did you call him an asshole?”
“Because he can be an asshole.” 
“That doesn’t sound right. A psychopath maybe. But an asshole? I don’t buy it.”
You keep your eyes focused on the police station door to hide your face. “He doesn’t mean to be an asshole.” You swallow with difficulty. “He just has a code. Lots of quirky little rules he has to follow that makes it difficult for someone ordinary like me to be - I mean, to work with him.”
“Like not revealing his secret identity.”
It’s not a question but you nod all the same.
“So this is your first time seeing him without his mask?”
“That he knows of.” Your forehead touches the cool glass window. It’s like if you stare hard enough at the door he’ll appear in one piece. “I had to do my background checks.”
The doors open and you see Adrian Chase in his cardigan and jeans walking out into the dark night, illuminated by the fluorescent streetlights.
He’s alive.
You roll down your window and he stops dead. He stares at you in shock with his lips parted slightly - unsure whether you recognise him or not.
Harcourt stretches across your seat and calls to Adrian. “We’re here to take you home. Get in.”
When he climbs into the back seat of your car you both turn in your seats. You breathe a sigh of relief seeing him up close - physically he’s unscathed.
“He’s still alive…” He says. “I’m Adrian.”
“Okay,” Harcourt says simply.
“I’m glad you’re not hurt,” you tell him.
He looks up at both of you sadly over his wire-rimmed glasses. “I think I might have made things worse.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After you drop Harcourt off at her motel, Adrian gets into the passenger seat. You let him give directions to his apartment, even though you already know where he lives.
“This is me,” he says when you pull up to his building and park in the spot you’ve parked in on countless occasions.
“I know.”
“Right. Yeah, you’ve been here.”
“A couple of times, yeah…”
His stupid code. You could know where he lives but never see his face. And now you can’t stop yourself from drinking him in - his slightly stubbly chin from his day spent in prison, the way his curly hair is all messed up. He groans heavily and leans his head back against the headrest. “I’m sorry,” he says quietly.
“The guys know how you ended up in jail - they don’t blame you.” He doesn’t say anything. You search his face as he stares gloomily ahead. “What happened in there, V?” you ask.
“I tried to provoke Peacemaker’s dad into a fight. It worked at first - the Aryans took the bait but his dad saw right through it. I think I’ve fucked up the whole mission.”
So Vigilante went into a viper pit unarmed and provoked a bunch of nazis into fighting him.
Deep down, you know it’s fucked up to be attracted to someone capable of such violence but if you’re honest with yourself, it’s what drew you to him in the first place. You knew about the headlines before you met him. And the idea of him taking on a dangerous prison gang really shouldn’t make your heart pound the way it is right now.
You take a deep, steadying breath. “You don’t have to be sorry about that.”
You’ve never touched his hair before but you want to stroke it and comfort him. Tell him that it wasn’t his fault and it’ll all be okay. But he interrupts your train of thought before you can reach your hand out. 
“I meant I’m sorry about us.”
Why is your first instinct to tell him that it’s no big deal that he broke your heart? Stupidly, you want to protect him from it - from the hurt he caused you. Comfort him, put his feelings before your own just because you can tell that right now he needs it.
But it is a big deal. 
As soon as you remind yourself he couldn’t trust you enough to let you in, it feels like your heart is shattering all over again, mourning what you could have had.
Trust.
“I told the team your name so they could bail you out,” you admit, desperate to get the fact that you betrayed him off your chest. “I was worried about you locked up in there.”
He turns his head to look at you properly for the first time all night. The streetlights are reflected in his dorky little glasses.
“You knew my name?” He doesn’t look betrayed - he just looks surprised. “How…?”
You lift your finger from the steering wheel to point at his apartment. “Anyone with your address could find out who you are. And your full name appears on my checking account when you cash the checks I write you.”
“So you know… everything?”
“Yup.”
His eyebrows knit together in a plea. “Why didn’t you tell me before?” 
“I wanted you to tell me. I wanted you to want me to know.”
“Knowing my secret identity would put you at risk.”
“That bullshit and you know it, V. I don’t need you to protect me.”
“Yeah you do - that’s why you had me come with you on jobs.”
“I can handle myself.”
“Then why did you hire me?”
“I was curious about the man behind the headlines, I guess. Then I nearly went broke trying to spend time with you. Do you honestly think I wanted to give you a cut of my contracts for months? ”
He presses his palms into his eyes, pushing his glasses up out of the way and trying to make sense of it all.
“So those jobs were just you finding a reason to hang out?” He drags his hands down his face.
“Well, not at first. But then we started sleeping together after jobs and I wanted to keep doing that.”
“I would’ve wanted to be with you even without those jobs.”
“Oh yeah? You’d have taken me out on a date as Vigilante?” He opens his mouth to speak but closes it again - as if reconsidering whatever he was about to say. “After all that time you still didn’t trust me enough to take off your mask. The last time we saw each other I practically begged you to show me who you are. Then Peacemaker comes back in town and you - what? Just rip off your mask and spill the beans without a second thought?”
“I was being tortured by Goff-”
“The senator tortured you?”
“Well, the Butterfly who had taken over his body. But yeah. He - I mean she - ripped off my mask and tried to cut off my pinky toe. Peacemaker was just there.”
You feel sick thinking about him being tortured. Then you feel sick about feeling sick. It’s not just normal empathy. You want revenge. But you know you shouldn’t care this much. Not when you’ve been broken up for so long.
“Shit, V. That’s horrible.” 
“Besides, if I was gonna show someone my face it would have been you. Not Peacemaker.” He looks at you sadly. “I wish you hadn’t left.” 
“And I wish you had given me a reason to stay, V. I deserved someone who could trust me. And you… you deserved someone you could be yourself with. We couldn’t be that for each other.”
The hurt on your face is plain for him to see - there’s no point trying to hide it. 
“I do trust you. It’s just…” He hesitates. “You’re the only person I know who thought I was cool.”
“Adrian… that’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard.”
Adrian.
It’s the first time you’ve ever called him that and it makes Adrian’s heart leap. Like the two sides of him have finally met you. After all this time.
“It’s not. Everyone else who knows me as Adrian knows I’m a loser. And I thought if I told you I was a busboy with no friends, you’d think that too.”
“You have friends.”
“Yeah, right.”
“The guys in the video store? They were so worried about you in jail. They like you a lot.” He allows himself a small smile like he doesn’t really believe it. “And I…” You pause. How do you feel about Adrian? “I still think you’re cool.”
“You do?”
He looks at you like he can’t believe you’re actually saying the words he was afraid you’d never say.
“Of course I do. You’re still the masked Vigilante of Evergreen. And I’m just… ordinary.”
He scoffs in amazement. “You’re not ordinary - you’re like the smartest person I know. And you don’t need to hide behind a mask to do your job. 
“I’m not that smart.”
“I mean, you found out more about the butterflies than the US government.”
You bite your lip, trying not to smile. “Can I tell you something? And you won’t tell the rest of the team?”
“You can tell me anything.” 
“I didn’t know what butterflies were until today.” He looks extremely confused so you press on. “I met John in a dark web chatroom when I was researching the missing gorilla. And I thought you guys were looking for it too.”
He laughs. A merciless side-splitting laugh that doesn’t take your embarrassment into consideration at all. But it shows off his beautiful smile. And when you see it you can’t stop yourself from joining in too. It’s so ridiculous. You wanted to find the gorilla, and maybe get your PI business mentioned again in the local paper. Now you’ve been roped into saving the world with a black ops team and Vigilante.
You both try to regain your composure and stare at each other, catching your breath. He shakes his head, grinning.
Christ, look at him.
“I sometimes wondered if you wouldn’t remove your mask because you were just a bad kisser. I mean, I saw your mugshot so I already knew you were pretty.” You can’t help but tell him. You know the grainy photo on his record like the back of your hand but in person, he’s frankly gorgeous. 
“Thanks, I know.”
You laugh again. “And modest.”
“You think I fund being Vigilante on a busboy salary? I get a lot of tips.”
“It all makes sense now. The only thing that doesn’t make sense is why you don’t have a girlfriend.”
“Because she didn’t want to wait around for an idiot who wouldn’t even kiss her.”
You stare at each other in the shadowy silence for a few moments. 
“It’s late, we should both get some rest.”
“Wait, don’t go.” His hand touches your thigh and it feels like there’s an electric current buzzing between his hand and the fabric of your jeans. The atmosphere almost crackles, like lighting about to strike in the middle of a storm. It’s the first time he’s touched you since you walked out on him six months ago and never went back. “It’s super late, you should crash at mine.”
“If I come upstairs we both know what’s going to happen.”
He tilts his head and you watch dimples form as the corners of his mouth turn into a mischievous smile. “That’s kind of the idea.”
“A bad one. We need to work together.”
“When has fucking ever stopped us from completing a job?”
“It hasn’t. But when we stopped seeing each other… I was really cut up. I couldn’t concentrate on work for a while. It’s why I needed the reward for the gorilla so badly.”
“Then we just won’t stop this time.”
“Adrian… I’ve only just pulled myself together again. I’m not sure it’s the right thing to do.”
He removes his hand from your leg to unclip his seatbelt. 
“You’re right. I’m sorry.” Adrian gives you an apologetic look. 
You stare at his lips. They’re just there. His whole face is out in the open. And now his lips, and the rest of him, are about to leave your car and you never know when you’ll see him unmasked again. He opens the car door.
“Wait -”
He turns back around in his seat.
“Let me find out if you’re a bad kisser. At least I can tell myself I’m not missing out on anything if you are.”
“You’re gonna be so mad…” He cups your face and brushes your cheekbone with his thumb. “I’m a really good kisser.”
You smile and his lips meet yours. 
It’s nothing like you imagined.
When you had sex it always felt urgent, even dangerous, getting into bed with a masked cape who was wanted for murder. More often than not he fucked you from behind, tugged fistfuls of your hair and slapped your ass. 
But his kisses… his kisses are soft and slow. And good.
You’re totally screwed.
He sucks your lip gently and then his tongue traces across yours. You urge yourself forward in the driver’s seat closer to him, bringing your hand up to cradle the nape of his neck and lace your hand in his soft hair.
Warmth spreads in your chest when he deepens the kiss. You secretly hoped he’d be like this when he was unmasked. Your hot and rough encounters were always fun but in your heart you always wanted him to want you like this. Deeply. Reverently. 
You break apart and press your forehead against his with your eyes closed, feeling your heart hammering against your chest.
“What’s the verdict?” he asks.
You open your eyes to see his green ones searching yours from behind his glasses. He lets out a long, happy exhale when he hears your seatbelt unclick.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Adrian’s bedroom is neat, clean, with framed vintage comic books on his walls and illuminated by a lava lamp on his bedside table. Details you remember from previous visits but barely register this time as you both burst through his bedroom door while he kisses you. Refusing to take his hands from your body, he kicks the door shut behind him forgetting about his injured foot. He regrets it immediately.
“Fuck!” He pulls away and winces.
“Careful,” you soothe, shrugging your jacket off onto the floor and he lifts your shirt off. As soon as your skin is uncovered his mouth finds it. He drags his tongue across your collarbones and between your breasts, nudging the cup of your bra aside so he can find your nipple.
His warm mouth feels almost too good to be true as he sucks on the hard, pebbled skin and moves on to taste every inch of your exposed chest, his deft hands unhooking your bra and tossing it aside quickly. 
The entire day could have been a crazy fever dream. You’ve gone from your heart sinking at the very sight of him to it fluttering like crazy as you lie back on his mattress so he can pull your jeans and underwear off.
“Fuck, you’re so beautiful,” he says, sinking to his knees between your legs at the edge of the bed.
Even though you’re completely naked on his bed while he’s still dressed, you somehow feel less on display than he is right now without his mask. It feels taboo watching his jaw muscles tighten as he works his mouth all over your inner thighs. There’s something so controlled about the way he meticulously kisses the sensitive skin at the crux of your thigh that makes your lip quiver. 
You’ve spent enough time around his quick reflexes to know Vigilante is going to be skilled at eating you out but sometimes, especially in the depths of your despair during your breakup, there was a niggling inkling at the back of your mind that the mask might just be a convenient excuse not to. 
You had suspected, or maybe even hoped, when you hooked up that he had come really, really close to rolling up the bottom half of his mask and tasting you. More than once, you had caught a fleeting glimpse of him at odds with himself, his eyes behind his visor staring at your pussy and his neck muscles contracting as he swallowed thickly, strengthening his resolve and deciding to protect his own identity instead.
But tonight - finally - his tongue slides between your folds and you let out a low whine when the furnace-hot heat of his mouth besets itself over your clit.
Adrian groans when he tastes your arousal flooding his mouth. His hands cup under your ass as he pulls himself closer. You dare yourself to run your hand through his hair again, your fingernails lightly scratching his scalp. It still feels like it shouldn’t be allowed but he doesn’t seem to mind at all as his lips suck on your swollen clit.
“Fuck, Adrian…” His real name still sounds foreign on your lips, like you have to make a conscious effort to say it. 
Adrian looks up at you over his glasses, his pupils wide in the dim violet light of the lava-lamp-lit room. He takes in your glowing face and chest as you lie propped up on your elbows, enjoying the sight of him on the floor between your legs.
His fingers knead the soft, pillowy flesh of your ass like he doesn’t want to let you go anywhere ever again. And you don’t want to. Fuck the mission. Can’t you just stay here forever? In Adrian’s bedroom, panting while his tongue runs firm circles over your clit.
When you roll your hips in encouragement, he lets out a soft little moan sending vibrations over the bundle of nerves - it almost makes you dissolve right there and then. 
“I can’t believe I let you… fuck - let you get away with not doing this before,” you whimper. “So - s’fucking good, V.”
“Adrian,” he says and the tiniest absence of friction when his tongue leaves your clit makes your fingers tighten in his hair, urging him to return to your aching pussy.
“Adrianadrianadrian,” you babble, scared that his lips will leave you again. No more V. No more Vigilante. Just Adrian. Here. Eating your pussy like it’s you who’d been depriving him of this for months on end. Pleasure rises deep in your core like the tide getting ready to crash against the cliff face.
Your brain becomes fuzzy as increasingly desperate noises escape your throat - something strangled between a whine and his name. You squirm against his tongue as he relentlessly continues, determined to draw from you the orgasm that you’ve been desperate for since he kissed you in the car and you realised his mouth would feel like heaven.
The pressure of his tongue against your soaking wet pussy makes you writhe in exhilaration. You barely notice his fingers digging harder into your skin as you arch your spine and throw your head back.
Your thigh muscles tense and relax, trembling on either side of his face. “Adrian, I’m gonna - gonna cum…”
Instead of responding, he sinks two fingers deep inside your cunt, giving you something to squeeze around as every muscle in your pelvis tightens. He curls his fingers slightly and it’s just enough to push you over the fucking edge.
The purplish glow of the room turns blinding white as waves, hot and wet, break over you and your body floods with ecstasy. Your whole lower body stiffens as your walls clench around his fingers and you grind your pussy against his mouth.
Fuck, you’ve been missing out. You haven’t been with anyone else the entire time you’ve been apart and it’s like your body has been crying for exactly this moment without you realising how much you needed it. Needed his mouth on you.
The room comes into focus again gradually as Adrian gives you a last few slow, gentle kisses before sliding his fingers out of your still-twitching centre.
You breathe heavily and look at him kneeling on the floor.
He looks stupidly pleased with himself, the corner of his wet, glistening mouth upturned in a self-congratulatory smile at the way he’s taken you apart piece by piece. You can’t help but giggle from endorphins buzzing through your body. It makes your abdomen hurt from all the tensing you were doing. 
Adrian slaps the side of your ass and gets to his feet, undoing his belt buckle. “C’mon, bend over,” he grins.
You sit up, shake your head and smile. “Nuh-uh, I wanna see your pretty face when you cum.” He blinks a couple of times dazedly. “Did you forget about your mask for a second?”
Adrian clears his throat. “Uh...No?”
He so did.
“C’mere.” You hook your fingers through his belt loops and pull him closer. You kiss the light trail of hair covering his hard abdomen while your fingers work to undo his jeans and pull them down to release him from the confines of his boxers.
God, you missed it. He has a pretty face alright but his cock is fucking perfect.
Your cheeks grow hot feeling him so close. You grip his hard length and draw your tongue across the tip, tasting the salty bead of precum. 
“Take your top off,” you say, looking up at him before running your tongue along his shaft, keeping eye contact.
He grips the hem of his t-shirt and pulls it off over his head. Seeing him in the purple glow, every contour of his sculpted abdomen illuminated sends burning heat to your pelvis. You never thought you were into muscular guys, not until you saw Vigilante take his suit off for the first time. Now you’re not sure if you could go back to anything else. Anyone else. 
You swirl your tongue around the head of his cock but he interrupts you.
“I need to fuck you. Please.”
At this point, you’re so turned on it’s an offer you can’t refuse. You release him and scoot back on the bed. He goes to crawl on top of you but flinches when his injured foot meets the mattress.
“You okay?”
“Yeah, I just need to - ah fuck.”
“It’s okay. Here, lie down. Let me go on top.”
He does so with relief and you swing your leg over his thighs.
“Better?”��
“Fuck yeah,” he says, looking at your naked figure sitting on top of him.
You reach into his bedside drawer where you know he keeps his condoms. Your fingers skirt over what you suspect are bags of candy until you find the corrugated square shape you’re looking for. You take it out and roll the condom on him.
“Okay, easy,” you say, positioning the head of his cock at your entrance. He throbs under the grip of your hand in anticipation. “Don’t overexert yourself.”
“You were totally cool with me over-exerting myself on the floor a second ago.”
“I was talking to myself,” you smirk. “It’s been a while.”
You ease yourself down onto his cock, feeling the beautiful stretch as you adjust to his size. 
“Shit…” he breathes, clamping his hands down hard on your hips, forcing you to bottom out. His eyebrows knit together and he sighs through parted lips, feeling the way your walls stretch around him. He looks so beautiful - you can’t stop looking at his lips.
You lean forward, planting your hands on either side of his head so you can lean down and kiss him. The taste of your juices registers on your tongue as his enters your mouth. You deepen the kiss and Adrian responds by jerking his hips up needily, pressing into your g-spot.
You moan and suck on his bottom lip, gently rolling it between your teeth as he pushes into the most sensitive part of your centre. Searing heat burns low in your belly, spreading to your thighs. You push yourself back up to ride him and grab his wrists, dragging them from your waist to grope at your chest.
“Fuck, you look so hot riding my dick.”
“Yeah? Rose-tinted visor isn’t all it’s cracked up to be?”
You’re teasing him but it seems to spur him on, as he squeezes your tits and jerks up into your bouncing hips. Every wet slap that meets your ears only increases your neediness for him. It burns brightly in your core, making you wetter and even more desperate for your next orgasm.
Every roll of your body sends his cock plunging into you, pushing against you at the perfect angle. God, he feels incredible. Your walls start to convulse around him, clamping down and gripping his cock as your second climax rears its head.
“Adrian, fuck, I’m close…” you plead, frantically chasing your high, wildly gyrating and bouncing in time with his thrusts.
“Say it again.”
“Fuck, I’m gonna-”
“No, say my name,” he says, through gritted teeth, his neck muscles tightening in the soft light. 
His neck.
“Fuck, Adrian.” You lunge forward and bite on his neck. He grabs handfuls of your ass, anchoring himself into you as he thrusts savagely upwards sending pleasure rocketing through you. Fuck he’s deep. So fucking deep.
His name leaves your lips over and over, broken and ragged as every jerk of his hip knocks the air out of your lungs. Bliss ignites and your cry of pleasure is muffled as you moan and run your tongue over his neck, smelling his aftershave mixed with his musky sweat. An explosion, more fierce than any grenade blast bursts through your centre as he pummels his cock with unparalleled force and precision, even as you squirm and shake, unable to keep moving your own hips in time with his.
With every ounce of strength you have you lean up on your arms to look at his face. His eyes are squeezed shut and his facial muscles contort as he sucks through his teeth.
“Cum for me, Adrian,” you murmur sweetly in his ear and he opens his eyes, giving you a terminally helpless look as he slams his hips into your hot, wet cunt and you squeeze around him as tight as you can. With a final thrust, you feel his thighs tighten and his cock pulsing inside you as he cums.
You flatten your body back on top of his - the warm, damp sweat between your chests feels strangely pleasant. His fingers trace circles up your spine, gently tickling your back. Adrian turns his head to kiss you and you both lie for a moment, enjoying the feeling of his lips on yours.
After what feels like a long time of lying in quiet elation, you make yourself climb carefully off of him and roll over, resting back on his pillows.
“Don’t go anywhere,” he says and you lie back watching him dispose of the condom, taking care not to put any pressure on his bandaged toe. He launches himself back on the bed with a thud making you bounce on the mattress. “Good, you’re still here,” he says, leaning on his elbow and looking down at you.
“Where else would I be?” you laugh.
“Well… you usually leave right after. Except that one time I accidentally bought peanut M&Ms.”
You look at him apologetically. In fairness, the mask was hardly an invitation to spend the night - what was he going to do? Sleep in it? “Do you have peanut M&Ms?”
He nods to his bedside drawer and you open it to see that it’s stuffed with the little yellow bags.
“You like peanut M&Ms now?”
He pulls a face. “No way dude, they’re so gross.”
“Then why…?”
“I guess I always hoped you might change your mind and come back. So I bought them whenever I thought about you.”
You look at the drawer - there’s practically enough that Adrian could have made a trail of peanut M&Ms from your apartment across town to his. “You would have made a really sweet boyfriend,” you sigh.
“Well, I mean… I still could,” he says in a would-be nonchalant type of way, pushing up his glasses with his finger and avoiding your gaze.
“Yeah?” You weren’t sure if he’d be open to picking up where you left off. But it feels right when it didn’t before. Now you know him. Really know him. 
He pulls his eyes up and meets your gaze with a smile. “If you want me to?”
“I’d like that. A lot.”
“Sweet,” he says with a wide smile, not bothering to hide how giddy he is.
You open the packet. “For the record, I’m not just staying because of the M&Ms this time.”
“I know.”
“And I’m glad you’re on the team.”
He nods happily, watching you pop a few into your mouth. “Hashtag me too.”
979 notes · View notes
doctorbitchcrxft · 30 days
Text
Skin | Supernatural Series Rewrite | Dean Winchester x Reader
Pairing: Dean Winchester x Reader (Eventual)
Warnings: mentions of assault/battery, canon violence, canon gore (take care of urselves bbies)
Word Count: 5826
Series Rewrite Masterlist
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You and Dean didn’t talk about Toledo. You were back to not talking about much of anything. Your fights had become much less frequent, and when you did fight, it was more playful than malicious. For that, you were grateful. You felt incredibly conflicted about the fact that he was beginning to grow on you. 
‘Like a wart,’ you thought. ‘Or a blister, maybe.’
Whatever he was, he was beginning to chip through your hard exterior. You also found out he hadn’t told Sam what you’d told him about your family which you were surprised by. 
The three of you spent more time on the road than you did anywhere else. When you used to drive cross-country by yourself, you felt yourself beginning to go crazy a few hours into the drive. As much as you loved your alone time, you also craved the company of others. Now that you had it, you weren’t sure how you were going to leave these guys once you found John. 
Dean turned in his seat to face Sam. “Alright, I figure we’d hit Tucumcari by lunch, then head south, hit Bisbee by midnight.” 
He didn’t respond.
“Sam wears women’s underwear.”
“I’ve been listenin’, I’m just busy,” he finally answered. 
“Busy doin’ what?” you placed your head on his shoulder over the top of the seat.
“Reading e-mails.” 
Dean had gotten out of the car and began pumping gas. “E-mails from who?”
“From my friends at Stanford.” Sam still seemed disinterested in conversation.
“You’re kidding. You still keep in touch with your college buddies?” Dean asked.
“Why not?” He still hadn’t turned his attention from his phone.
“Well, what exactly do you tell ‘em? You know, about where you’ve been, what you’ve been doin’?”
“I tell ‘em I’m on a road trip with my big brother. I tell ‘em I needed some time off after Jess.”
“And I couldn’t make my way into that lie?” you asked. 
“What do I tell ‘em, (Y/N/N)? That we picked up some chick in California and took her on the road with us?” he chuckled. “And I don’t lie to them. I just don’t tell ‘em… everything.”
“Yeah, that’s called lying,” you retorted. “I get it, though, the truth is much worse.”
“So, what am I supposed to do, just cut everybody out of my life?”
His older brother shrugged.
“You’re serious?” Sam wasn’t really asking.
“Look, it sucks, but in a job like this, you can’t get close to people, period,” Dean responded.
“How many friends do I have, Sam?” you asked him.
“Me.”
“Exactly,” you giggled.
“You two are kind of anti-social, you know that?” He returned to scrolling through his emails.
“Eh, whatever.” You flopped back on the bench seat.
“God….” Sam trailed off.
“What?” you and Dean asked.
“In this e-mail from this girl, Rebecca Warren, one of those friends of mine.”
“Is she hot?” 
You rolled your eyes. “Dean—” 
Sam ignored the two of you. “I went to school with her, and her brother, Zack. She says Zack’s been charged with murder. He’s been arrested for killing his girlfriend. Rebecca says he didn’t do it, but it sounds like the cops have a pretty good case.”
“Dude, what kind of people are you hangin’ out with?” his brother questioned.
“No, man, I know Zack. He’s no killer.”
“Well, maybe you know Zack as well as he knows you.”
“They’re in St. Louis. We’re goin’.”
“Look, sorry ‘bout your buddy, okay?” Dean chuckled humorlessly. “But this does not sound like our kind of problem.”
Sam wasn’t having it. “It is our problem. They’re my friends.”
“St. Louis is four hundred miles behind us, Sam.” Dean and Sam got into what you can only describe as a staring contest before Dean scoffed; seemingly admitting defeat. Next thing you knew, you were headed to St. Louis.
***
The massive door on the undoubtedly expensive house you’d arrived at opened to reveal a beautiful blonde girl. 
‘Damn all these pretty blonde bitches we keep running into,’ you thought.
“Oh my God, Sam!” she smiled, throwing her arms around her friend.
“Well, if it isn’t little Becky,” Sam jested.
“You know what you can do with that little Becky crap.”
“I got your e-mail.” His tone had become somber.
“I didn’t think that you would come here,” she answered earnestly.
Dean shoved in front of Sam. “Dean. Older brother.”
‘He’s making his fucking voice deeper again.’
She shook his hand. “Hi.”
“Hi,” she smiled back.
“We’re here to help. Whatever we can do.” You peeked out from behind Sam. “I’m (Y/N), by the way.”
“Nice to meet you!” You were only mildly annoyed by how wonderful her disposition was. “Come in.”
“Nice place,” Dean commented, taking in his grandiose surroundings.
“It’s my parents’. I was just crashing here for the long weekend when everything happened. I decided to take the semester off. I’m gonna stay until Zack’s free,” Becky explained.
“Where are your folks?” Sam asked.
“They live in Paris for half the year, so they’re on their way home now for the trial.”
‘Of course, they fucking do.’
“Do you guys want a beer or something?” she asked politely.
Dean obviously did, but his brother stopped him. “No, thanks. So, tell us what happened.”
“Well, um, Zack came home, and he found Emily tied to a chair. And she was beaten up and bloody, and she wasn’t breathing.” Becky began to cry. 
‘She’s even pretty when she cries.’
“So, he called 911, and the police— they showed up, and they arrested him. But, the thing is, the only way that Zack could’ve killed Emily is if he was in two places at the same time. The police—they have a video. It’s from the security tape from across the street. And it shows Zack coming home at 10:30. Now, Emily was killed just after that, but I swear, he was here with me, having a few beers until at least after midnight,” she relayed.
“You know, maybe we could see the crime scene. Zack’s house.”
“We could,” Dean agreed, but you could tell he still wasn’t picking up where Sam was going with this.
“Why? I mean, what could you do?” the blonde asked.
“Well, me, not much. But Dean’s a cop.” Sam patted his brother’s shoulder.
“Detective, actually,” Dean laughed.
“Really? Where?”
“Bisbee, Arizona. But I’m off-duty now.”
“You guys, it’s so nice to offer, but I just— I don’t know,” she said.
“Bec, look, I know Zack didn’t do this. Now, we have to find a way to prove that he’s innocent,” Sam replied.
“Okay. I’m gonna go get the keys.”
“Oh, yeah, man, you’re a real straight shooter with your friends,” Dean mocked after Becky had walked down the hall.
“Look, Zack and Becky need our help,” Sam responded.
“I just don’t think this is our kind of problem.”
“Two places at once? We’ve looked into less.”
Dean said nothing, clearly defeated.
***
“You’re sure this is okay?” Rebecca asked Dean as the four of you walked into Zack's house.
Dean clearly was having fun with the whole “cop” thing. “Yeah. I am an officer of the law.”
You hated how smug he could be. Rebecca came inside with you and informed you that Emily had let her attacker in. 
She then informed you about a recent incident that struck you as odd. “Um, there was something, about a week before. Somebody broke in here and stole some clothes— Zack’s clothes. The police— they don’t think it’s anything. I mean, we’re not that far from downtown. Sometimes people get robbed.” In the midst of her story, you could hear a dog barking angrily across the street. Dean peered out of the window, and Becca came up behind him. “You know, that used to be the sweetest dog.”
“What happened?” you asked her.
“He just changed.”
Dean turned over his shoulder to her. “Do you remember when he changed?”
“I guess around the time of the murder,” she shrugged. 
You found Sam staring at a picture of himself, another college-aged boy you assumed was Zack, and Rebecca that was framed in the hallway. 
Dean came up behind you soon after. “So, the neighbor’s dog went psycho right around the time Zack’s girlfriend was killed.”
“Animals can have a sharp sense of the paranormal,” Sam said.
“Yeah, maybe Fido saw somethin’.”
“So, you think maybe this is our kind of problem?”
“Yeah, prob—” you started, only to be cut off by Dean.
“No. Probably not. But we should look at the security tape, you know, just to make sure.”
You shot him a look. “The evidence is staring you in the face, and you still can’t admit you’re wrong.”
He shot a look back at you that said, ‘Don’t try me.’
Before you could push each other’s buttons any further, Rebecca came over to you, and Dean turned his attention to her. “So, the tape. The security footage— you think maybe your lawyers could get their hands on it, ‘cause I just don’t have that kind of jurisdiction.”
How Becky was buying into Dean’s lie, you had no idea. He was really laying it on thick.
“I’ve already got it. I didn’t wanna say something in front of the cop,” she giggled. “I stole it off the lawyer’s desk. I just had to see it for myself.”
The three of you went back to Becky’s parents’ home to review the security footage. It was of Zack entering his house, but a strange glint on the film caught your eye.
“22:04,” Dean noted the time stamp, “that’s just after ten. You said time of death was about 10:30.”
“Our lawyers hired some kind of video expert. He says the tape’s authentic. It wasn’t tampered with,” Becky added.
“Hey, Bec, can we take those beers now?” Sam asked. 
“Oh, sure,” she replied politely, turning to go to the kitchen.
“Maybe some sandwiches, too?” He was putting on the puppy dog eyes just a bit to convince her. 
“What do you think this is, Hooters?” she snarked.
“I wish,” Dean mumbled. 
“Can you focus, please?” you asked him.
“What are you, my mother?” Your banter was no longer filled with malice, just a hint of aggravation. 
“No, but frankly, the thought of you trying to bang someone makes me want to throw up in my mouth. I’d prefer not to watch it happen,” you replied playfully. “But look.” You rewound the tape an started it over. You caught the glint again, paused it, and realized Zack’s eyes were silver. “There!”
“Well, maybe it’s just a camera flare,” Dean shrugged.
“Does that look like any camera flare you’ve ever seen?” you asked rhetorically. 
He just looked away, defeated. 
“You know, a lot of cultures believe that a photograph can catch a glimpse of the soul,” Sam chimed in. “Remember that dog that was freaking out? Maybe he saw this thing. Maybe this is some kind of dark double of Zack’s, something that looks like him but isn’t him.”
“Like a Doppelganger?” Your brow knitted together, mind trying to wrap around what you were dealing with.
“Yeah. It’d sure explain how he was in two places at once,” Sam said.
Despite the luxurious villa Sam’s friend called home, the three of you didn’t want to intrude on her privacy; opting for yet another shitty motel. Something about this case was bugging you, though, and you tossed and turned all night thinking about it. And then, it hit you.
You pulled on your jacket and boots and rushed over to the boys’ room. A sleepy Dean answered the door. You hated to admit it, but he and his fluffy, mussed up hair were adorable when he’d just woken up.
“Morning, sunshine,” you grinned.
He scratched his head. “(Y/N), what the fu—”
“We have to get to Zack’s house. I just thought of something. “
Sam appeared behind Dean, already dressed. “Whatcha got?”
Dean stepped back from the door, letting you into the room. 
“We saw ‘Zack’ go in, but never saw the killer leave,” you explained. “But of course, we didn’t. Why would the cops be looking for that when they nabbed Zack in his house with his dead girlfriend?” 
Sam was with you, nodding his head.
“Did you have to realize that before five in the morning?” Dean yawned, pulling a pair of pants on.
“Sorry,” you replied sheepishly. “Couldn’t sleep. But I figured that out, so that’s all that matters.”
Dean shook his head and yawned again. “Sam, you’re driving. I might crash my baby if I drive right now.”
***
“He must’ve gone out the back door,” Sam said. You and the brothers were walking toward Zack’s house. “So, there should be a trail to follow. A trail the police would never pursue.”
“I still don’t know what we’re doin’ here at 5:30 in the morning,” Dean grumbled.
“C’mon,” you groaned, dragging his arm to follow Sam around the back of Zack’s house. Sure enough, there was a dried, dark red substance smeared on a nearby telephone pole.
“Blood. Somebody came this way,” Sam noted.
“Yeah, but the trail ends,” Dean added from a few paces ahead. “I don’t see anything over here.”
Just as he finished speaking, an ambulance drove past the house with its sirens wailing. You and Sam looked at each other before hurrying back to Dean’s car. Dean followed the ambulance to its destination where a man was handcuffed and being shoved into the back of a police car.
“What happened?” Dean asked a bystander.
“He tried to kill his wife,” she responded with a hand to her chest. “Tied her up and beat her.”
“Really?” you asked.
“I used to see him going to work in the morning. He’d wave, say hello. He seemed like such a nice guy.” She shook her head sorrowfully and watched as the police car drove away.
The three of you hung around the scene for a while until it had been completely cleared out. You regrouped while you snooped around.
“Remember when I said this wasn’t our kind of problem?” Dean asked as he approached you and Sam.
“Yeah,” his brother answered.
“Definitely our kind of problem.”
You gasped, feigning shock. “Mark it in the calendar, Dean Winchester admitted he was wrong!”
“Watch it, sweetheart,” he retorted.
“What’d you find out?” Sam asked.
“Well, I just talked to the patrolman who was first on the scene, heard this guy, Alex’s story. Apparently the dude was driving home from a business trip when his wife was attacked,” Dean explained.
“So, he was in two places at once, too.”
“Exactly. Then he sees himself in the house; police think he’s a nutjob.”
You paused for a moment, thinking. “You think it could be a shapeshifter?”
“Something that can make itself look like anyone? Sure,” Sam responded. “Every culture in the world has a shapeshifter lore. You know, legends of creatures who can transform themselves into animals or other men.”
“Right, skinwalkers, werewolves,” Dean added. “We’ve got two attacks within blocks of each other. I’m guessin’ we’ve got a shapeshifter prowlin’ the neighborhood.”
“Let me ask you this— in all this shapeshifter lore, can any of them fly?” the younger brother asked.
“Not that I know of.” You shook your head. “But someone ran out the back of his house and headed this way. And then… the trail just… ends. Just like at your friend’s house.” You gestured toward Sam.
“Well, there’s another way to go.” You followed Dean’s gaze down to a manhole.
“Ew, gross.” Your face scrunched up in disgust as Sam started to move the manhole cover. 
The three of you quickly climbed down so as to not be seen. 
“I bet this runs right by Zack’s house, too,” Sam said as the three of you made your way down the tunnel. “The shapeshifter could be using the sewer system to get around.”
You were leading the group, and stopped suddenly when you noticed a pile of blood and skin on the ground. “Blegh, look!”
“Is this from his victims?” Sam looked equally as disgusted.
Dean pulled out his pocket knife and lifted a piece of the skin off the ground. “You know, I just had a sick thought. When the shapeshifter changes shape, maybe it sheds.”
“That is sick,” you affirmed.
He dropped the skin back to the ground and turned to you to wipe his knife off on your jacket.
“Ew, dude!” you shoved his arm. “What the fuck?”
He just laughed in response.
You and the boys headed back up to the car to load up with some weapons.
“Well, one thing I learned from Dad—” Dean began, riffling through the weapons cavity, “—is that no matter what kind of shapeshifter it is, there’s one sure way to kill it.”
“Silver bullet to the heart,” you chimed in.
He nodded and handed you a case of the bullets. 
Sam’s cell phone rang. “This is Sam… We’re near Zack’s, we’re just checkin’ some things out… What are you talkin’ about?”
He seemed caught off-guard. You thought he was talking to Rebecca, but had no idea why she’d be upset with you. You eyed Dean who shrugged.
“Why would you do that?... Bec— We’re tryin’ to help… Bec, I’m sorry, but—” And then he clapped his phone shut, looking disappointed.
Dean found it an appropriate moment to be a bit of a dick. “I hate to say it, but that’s exactly what I’m talkin’ about. You lie to your friends because if they knew the real you, they’d be freaked. It’s just—it’d be easier if—”
“If I was like you guys,” he replied quietly. 
“Sam, I’m not trying to be heartless, but Dean’s kinda right.” Both brothers seemed surprised you were agreeing with Dean for once. “We’re not like other people.” 
“But I’ll tell you one thing.” Dean’s lighthearted tone was back. “This whole gig— it ain’t without perks.” He held out a gun to Sam, whose face was still crestfallen.
You followed Sam and Dean back down the manhole, gun loaded with silver bullets. You carried the case of bullets Dean handed to you in your inner jacket pocket; just in case. After a few minutes of trudging through toxic sludge with baited breath, you noticed another pile of blood and skin on a pipe next to Sam’s head. “I think we’re close to its lair,” you told them.
“Why do you say that?” Sam asked. 
“Because there’s another puke-inducing pile next to your face,” you snickered. 
“Oh, God!” His face scrunched up in disgust.
There was another pile of clothing and rotting skin a few paces ahead of you. 
“Looks like it’s lived here for a while,” you heard Dean say from behind you.
You turned to face him as you spoke. “Who knows how many murders he’s gotten away— Fuck, Dean!” you cried, seeing the shapeshifter in the form of its last victim behind him. 
Dean wheeled around, only to be knocked to the ground by the smirking creature. You and Sam rushed to his side as the creature sped off. 
“Get the son of a bitch!” Dean commanded. 
The three of you sped down the tunnel and followed him out of the manhole. You couldn’t see where exactly he ended up, and you decided to split up. 
Under the cover of night, you headed down streets and alleyways with your gun hidden inside your jacket. You came to a stop at a dead end and wheeled around at the sound of footsteps behind you. The shapeshifter, still in the form of the businessman, knocked you out cold before you were even able to raise your gun at him. 
***
The next time you came to, you felt itchy bits of rope binding your hands, feet, and neck to a cold, metal post behind you. As your vision began to clear, you could see you were in some kind of a dark, dingy room. It seemed like a house, but you weren’t entirely convinced. You heard what sounded like the older brother’s voice coming from behind you.
“Dean?” you called.
“(Y/N), it’s not—” Sam shouted, but cut himself off with a groan.
“Hiya, sweetheart,” he smirked, leaning down to your eye level. He put a hand next to your head on the post. 
You turned your face away from him, straining against the rope. He even smelled like Dean. 
“You are one fucking trainwreck,” he said, searching your face. 
You eyed him curiously. He just laughed coldly in response. “The more I learn about you, the more fucked up you get.”
“What do you mean ‘learn’?” 
As if on cue, the shapeshifter held a hand to his temple, grunting in pain. After a moment had passed, he spoke again. “You made a big mistake telling him— I mean, me— about what you did to your family. If I wasn’t ready to get rid of you before, I sure as hell am now. I hope you’re tellin’ the truth about leaving the second we find Dad, ‘cause I don’t know how much longer I can put up with you. God, from your voice to your personality, you aggravate the livin’ crap outta me.” The shapeshifter leaned back down in front of your face, the two of you only inches away from one another.
“You’re a burden, (Y/N). You’re exhausting to be around. I constantly have to keep my guard up around you. I can’t trust you, not after what you told me in Toledo. How do I know you won’t turn on me and Sammy?”
Tears welled up in your eyes, but you kept them at bay. You instead reared back as much as you could and spat in his face. You had taken him by surprise, but his hand was around your throat in an instant. His lips were inches away from your ear and he squeezed your neck just tight enough to where you were beginning to see stars. “You fucking bitch. Y’know, take your voice and personality away, Dean would definitely wanna fuck you. He thought you were hot the first time he met you. Then he actually got to know you, and, eh, things changed. But I’m sure he’d have tons of fun with Sam’s little friend Becky.” A wicked grin spread across his face. “I think I’ll go pay her a visit.”
He released your throat and you sputtered and coughed when he did. He covered you up with a tarp moments later. You felt pathetic, but you let your tears flow freely now that he was gone, wiggling around to get the tarp off your head. 
“(Y/N), are you back there?” Dean called from somewhere you couldn’t see. 
You knew he hadn’t said those hurtful things to you, but it was still difficult to hear his voice. “Yeah, yeah. I’m here.” Your voice was still shaky from crying. “He went to Rebecca’s, lookin’ like you.”
“Well, he’s not stupid. He picked the handsome one,” Dean gibed at his brother.
You admired his ability to keep his snarky attitude and stupid jokes despite his circumstances. His confidence bewildered you at times.
You pulled at the ropes binding your hands, hissing when you felt the rope creating angry brush burns on your wrists. 
“Yeah, that’s the thing. He didn’t just look like you, he was you. Or he was becoming you,” you heard Sam tell Dean.
“What do you mean?” the older brother asked.
“Yeah, it was like he was downloading your thoughts and memories,” you told him.
“You mean, like the Vulcan mind meld?” 
You giggled. “Somethin’ like that.”
“Maybe that’s why he doesn’t just kill us,” Sam added.
“Yeah, he probably needs to keep us alive. Some kind of psychic connection— ah,” you yelped at the feeling of the rope aggravating your wrists again. The shifter had bound you unbelievably tightly.
“(Y/N), stop, I’m coming to help you,” Dean instructed. 
“I’m a big girl,” you replied sassily. “I can do it.”
Dean had made his way over to you. “Do you have to fight me on everything?” He untied your hands with ease and began working on your neck. 
“Yes, but thank you,” you told him. You still couldn’t look him in the eyes after what the shifter had told you. You were doing your best to keep your exterior steely. You couldn’t deny, though, that his tight-fitting gray t-shirt over rippling muscle and the way he’d helped you were starting to break down your walls a little. 
“Come on, we gotta go,” you heard Sam order from behind you. “He’s probably at Rebecca’s already.”
Dean pushed a window out of the building you were kept in and the three of you climbed out. 
Sam started down the street. “Come on. We gotta find a phone, call the police.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” Dean stopped him. “You’re gonna put an APB out on me.”
His brother shrugged. “Sorry.”
“This way.” Dean led the three of you down the street. You ran shielded by the darkness until you reached a store window. There was a display wall of televisions in it, and the news was on. Conveniently, Dean was the breaking news.
“An anonymous tip led police to a home in the Central West End—” the reporter stated, “—where a S.W.A.T team discovered a local woman bound and gagged. Her attacker, a white male, approximately twenty-four to thirty years of age, was discovered hiding in her home.”
Of course, Dean’s attitude was unwavering. “Man! That’s not even a good picture.”
You looked around nervously. 
“It’s good enough,” Sam said.
“Man!” Dean grumbled, following Sam down the street to an alleyway. 
“They said attempted murder,” you pointed out. “At least we know—”
“I didn’t kill her.”
You nodded.
“We’ll check with Rebecca in the morning, see if she’s all right,” Sam said, looking over his shoulder.
“Alright, but first I wanna find that handsome devil and kick the holy crap out of him.” 
‘He’s still as arrogant as ever.’
“We have no weapons, though. No silver bullets,” you countered. 
“Sweetheart, the guy’s walkin’ around with my face, okay, it’s a little personal, I wanna find him.” He turned to face you, but you couldn’t meet his eyes.
“I get it. We need guns, though.”
“The car?” Sam threw in. 
“I’m bettin’ he drove over to Rebecca’s.” Dean’s face began to heat up. You knew he was thinking about his precious Impala.
“The news said he fled on foot. I bet it’s still parked there.”
“The thought of him drivin’ my car—” he whined.
You shook your head. “Come on.”
“It’s killin’ me,” Dean whined again.
“Let it go,” you and Sam commanded over your shoulders.
The three of you rounded the corner along a tall hedge only to be greeted by the sight of the car.
“Oh, there she is! Finally, something went right tonight.” Dean’s joy was almost contagious.
His stupor was broken by a police car appearing down Rebecca’s street and blocking the end of the road. 
“Fuck.” You spun around the way you came, but another cop car appeared back down that street, too. 
“This way, this way,” Dean began leading you over to a fence and easily climbed atop it. 
“You guys go. I’ll hold ‘em off,” Sam told you.
“What are you talking about? They’ll catch you.” Dean turned into a seated position on top the fence.
“Look, they can’t hold me. Just go, keep out of sight. Meet me at Rebecca’s,” Sam quickly spoke. 
You and Dean hopped over multiple fences, fatiguing your limbs quickly. Several blocks from where you and the boys had run into the cops, the two of you stopped to catch your breath. You sat down on a street corner and tucked your knees into your chest.
Dean sat beside you. “What did he say to you?”
You turned to him. “Huh?”
“The shifter. What’d he say to you?”
You shook your head. “Nothing, it’s fine—”
“(Y/N), you haven’t looked at me once since we left that thing’s hideout. Tell me what he said.”
“Why can’t you drop it?” you spat, looking down at your boots.
“Because,” he protested. “I gave you a chance to explain in Toledo. At the very least, you owe me that.”
You sighed. “He said you think I’m annoying. And, um, a burden. He said you’re trying to find your dad so quick to get rid of me. And that you can’t trust me because of what I did to my family.”
Dean was silent for a moment. “Anything else?”
“He said everything about me aggravates you and that I exhaust you.”
He nodded. “Do you really believe that?” You could feel his gaze burning holes into the side of your face.
“I don’t know,” you answered honestly. “You haven’t exactly proven otherwise to me.” You looked up at him for the first time in hours.
He seemed surprised by that answer.
“Don’t look at me like that. Aside from Toledo and a few seconds on that plane, all we’ve ever done is fight,” you reminded him.
“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” A few moments of silence passed before he spoke again. “But I don’t think those things about you. Honest.”
“I feel like I’m pulling teeth here, Dean,” you remarked. “What do you think of me?”
“I mean, you can be annoying.”
You scoffed, but a smile tugged at your lips. 
“And you’re way too stubborn.”
You raised an eyebrow at him. “And so are you.”
“And you’re too smart for your own good.”
“I wouldn’t say that…”
“Would you let me finish?” he deadpanned.
You took a deep breath. “Yeah, sorry.”
“You just… you intimidate me a little, honestly.” Now Dean was the one who couldn’t look at you.
You were shocked. “Really? Why?”
“Dammit, (Y/N), I’m not good at this,” he sighed. “I know you heard what I said to Haley about that being the most honest I’ve ever been with a woman.”
You giggled at the memory.
“This tops that by far,” he admitted.
You nodded. You’d have this conversation another time. You rose to your feet, and he followed suit. 
“Can we start over?” you asked him.
He eyed you curiously.
“As… acquaintances, I mean,” you explained. “We’re no closer to finding your dad than we were the day I met you, so I imagine I’ll be around for a little while longer. I’d rather us not fight the whole time. It’s getting exhausting, if I’m being honest.”
He chuckles. “Yeah, I guess we can do that.”
“Okay, then.” You cleared your throat and stuck out your hand. “Hi. I’m (Y/N).”
Dean shook his head at your antics despite the smile pulling on his lips. “Dean.” This time, he actually shook your hand.
***
Later that morning, you and Dean had returned to the car for weapons. Thankfully, Dean still had some silver bullets left in the trunk. With guns in hand, the two of you headed back to the sewers. A few minutes into your walk, you came across a rancid pile of flesh, teeth, and fingernails.
“I think I’m gonna be sick.” Your face contorted in disgust. You looked up when you heard a rustling noise a little down the tunnel. You could see a dim glow from the place you’d heard the rustling. You tightened your grip on your gun and let Dean lead the way into the chamber. He nodded his head in the direction of the left side of a figure covered in a tarp at the back end of the chamber, indicating for you to go that way. You followed his instruction and crept up on the figure with him. He pulled the sheet away from the figure, only to reveal Rebecca.
“What happened?” you asked her. Her hands and feet were bound, her mouth was gagged, her hair was a mess, and her skin was littered with bruising and cuts. 
She was still shaking and crying as she spoke. “I was walking home, and everything just went white. Someone hit me over the head, and I wound up here just in time to see that thing turn into me. I don’t know, how is that even possible?”
“Okay, okay. It’s okay,” Dean told her. 
The two of you untied her and made sure she was able to walk before guiding her out of the sewers.
“We’ve gotta hurry,” Dean said. “Sam went to see you.”
When you got to Rebecca’s house, all you could hear was the grunting, furniture breaking, skin hitting skin, and bones cracking coming from the living room. And then, choking. You had no doubt it was Sam.
Dean seemed to pick up on that as well. He hurried into the den, shouting, “Hey!”
The shifter spotted Dean and got off of Sam. Dean shot twice, and with that, the shifter was dead. 
You rushed over to Sam and cradled his head in your lap. “Are you okay?” you asked him. 
He smiled painfully at you. “Peachy.”
You giggled at him. You looked up at Dean standing over… Dean… and watched as he ripped his necklace off the shifter.
You watched Rebecca say goodbye to Sam, and she waved at you and Dean who stood by the Impala. She turned to go back inside her house.
Sam approached the two of you.
“So, what about your friend, Zack?” Dean asked his brother.
“Cops are blamin’ this Dean Winchester guy for Emily’s murder,” Sam jested. “They found the murder weapon in the guy’s lair, Zack’s clothes stained with her blood. Now they’re thinking maybe the surveillance tape was tampered with. Yeah, Becca says Zack will be released soon.” 
You giggled. Dean just rolled his eyes. 
“Get in the car, (Y/N),” he chastised you. For the first time since you met him, you knew he wasn’t trying to tear you down. It was refreshing to have an amicable relationship with him.
As Dean tore down the road, he turned to his brother. “Sorry, man.”
“About what?”
“I really wish things could be different, you know?” the older brother said earnestly. “I wish you could just be… Joe College.”
“No, that’s okay. You know, the truth is, even at Stanford, deep down, I never really fit in,” Sam admitted.
“Well, that’s ‘cause you’re a freak,” Dean quipped.
You loved earnest moments between the two brothers. It made you feel normal; in a weird way.
“Yeah, thanks,” Sam said dryly.
“Well, I’m a freak, too. I’m right there with ya, all the way.”
“Yeah, I know you are.” Sam’s voice softened.
“You know, I gotta say. I’m sorry I’m gonna miss it.” 
You felt one of Dean’s stupid jokes coming on. “Oh, here we go.”
He eyed you in the rearview mirror. 
“Miss what?” Sam asked.
“How many chances am I gonna have to see my own funeral?” Dean smirked.
You shook your head. “And there it is.”
Series Rewrite Taglist: @polireader @brightlilith @atcamillanorrman @jrizzelle @insomnia-bookworm @procrastination20 @mrs-liebgott @djs8891 @tiggytaylor @staple-your-mouth @iloveshawn @jesstherebel @rach5ive @strawberrykiwisdogog @bruhidkjustwannaread @mxltifxnd0m @sunshine-on-marz @big-ol-boat @mgchaser @capncrankle
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youraverageaemondsimp · 7 months
Text
A Joyful Occasion. // Aemond Targaryen x Aegon ii Targaryen x Niece!Reader.
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MDNI // slightly dark.
WARNINGS: p in v sex, breeding kink, 3some, tiddy sucking, m/m/f, poly relationship (?), aemond x aegon, virginity loss, oral (f. and m.), jealousy, manipulation, gaslighting(?), age system is according to medieval/canon standard but no sexual acts until 18, canon typical incest + not proof read.
A/N: this was something I wrote for pure self indulgence since I turned 19 today! thanks to everyone who wished me! I'm so thankful for it, here is the treat I made for myself that I'm willing to share 🤭
WC: 2.2k
It was your nameday today, a joyful occasion, your grandfather decided to throw a grand ball to celebrate it, for it was your 18th nameday, a special occasion for any young woman.
You were the centre of attention, and you did not mind it, liking it in fact, the way the Lords and Ladies alike would come and wish a good evening and an amazing day, occasionally kissing your hand as a greeting, you were having the time of your life.
Two people in particular, were not.
Aegon and Aemond.
Your relationship with Aegon and Aemond is quite a complicated one, you love both the men, they loved you and each other as well, though to others you three looked like people who never got along, if only they knew what happens behind the closed chambers, though you had only shared a few kisses, never really getting to the intimate bit yet, but you knew they both engaged in it with one another.
They were happy for you, celebrating this special occasion, at first at least, but then their mood turned sour, when they spotted multiple people eyeing you with nothing but lust, men and women alike, you however, were none the wiser.
You came down to sit in between them, tired from standing, and you felt Aegon's hand on your thigh, giving it a squeeze and you shot him a look, to which he smirked at. Aemond opened his mouth to talk, and talk he did.
This surprised everyone, you and Aemond having a civil conversation without any snarky remarks thrown at each other? That was until Aegon butted in, throwing in a crude comment which made you annoyed.
“All these meals yet my appetite seems to crave something else.” Aegon perversely comments, you shoot him a glare and Alicent says his name as a warning, but he knew you weren't angry, because the way you rubbed your thighs together told him so.
Jace, your brother, misreading the situation came up and offered you a hand, you looked at him confused but then realised he was asking you to dance and you accepted it with a smile and left to dance on the floor with him.
Aegon's gaze followed your figure, turning around in his seat to watch you dance with jace, his hands on your waist, so did Aemond's gaze.
They both observed how you laughed and how Jace's touch was lingering longer than usual, and that's when they noticed the faint blush on his cheeks, Aegon turned his attention to Aemond and Aemond looked at him as well.
They were communicating in silence and Aemond gave him a nod, and Aegon fully turned away from his attention on you and focused on the table.
That was until he got up from his chair, announcing that he was retiring to his chambers, Aemond did the same after, and you felt your beat quicken and you felt a twinge in your heart, they promised you that they would stay until the end but now they are the first ones to retire.
You lingered around for a bit, unable to keep calm.
And then you couldn't take it anymore, loudly announcing that you were tired and that you wanted to rest, and your mother and father gave you a smile before allowing you to be dismissed.
Your feet led you to your chambers, and then the secret route which connected to Aegon's room, you pushed the stone wall aside and open the door, finding Aemond inside there room as well, pouring a drink in the goblet while Aegon laid on the bed playing with whatever was in his hands.
“You guys promised.” your voice cracked and they turned their attention to you, Aegon smirked before gesturing you to come over to him, and you did, he sat up resting his neck on your shoulder, his hand holding yours.
“I did not like the way he touched you.” Aegon began and you looked at him confused, before then it finally clicked and before you could say anything, Aegon pushed you on the bed getting on top of you.
“Aegon?” you asked and he hummed, trailing kisses on your neck, his hands gripped your sides, holding your waist and he grinds himself against you. “You liked the way he touched you didn't you?” his voice suddenly became angry and you shook your head, and you watched as his lip twitched.
He got off you and you whined when the warmth he provided was gone, he went to Aemond, who was sitting on the chaise drinking, before he sat next to him, kissing him instead, making you watch.
“You do not deserve our love, niece.” Aemond said disapprovingly, you shook your head, immediately getting up and going over to him, standing in front of him. “It seems your brother is enough for you, why do you need us anyway? Do you even love us? I bet you don't” he accuses you and your lips tremble, “I do! I do! Please uncle do not accuse me of such a thing, my heart breaks.” you reply weakly.
“But earlier, you seemed to be having fun with other lords, ladies and your brother.” Aemond raises an eyebrow, and you fall to your knees in front of him, apologising and he grips your face, thumb trailing the underside of your lip.
You watch as Aegon's hand undoes Aemonds breeches, pulling out his half hard cock and giving it pumps, up and down as he kisses, your mouth salivates, you had always watched them be intimate, they never let you join, telling you that you would only be able to after your 18th nameday passes by, yet now, they are still not letting you join.
“Do you know, my niece? We planned something for you, which we thought of giving after the celebration ends, however your naughty behaviour from earlier made us rethink our decision.” Aegon coos as you sniff, rubbing your thighs together, getting aroused at the tone of their voices, and also the fact that you felt so vulnerable.
You always put an act of being tough in front of others, glaring at others and proving your point, you were the daughter of rhaenyra after all, you saw vulnerability as a weakness but then these both men happened, and since then you loved feeling vulnerable, only infront of them of course, people would call it fucked but you wanted to be submissive when it came to them, let them push you around and mock you in private, it scratched an itch.
With teary eyes your hands tried to grab Aemonds cock but Aegon slapped your hand away, tutting, “Ah, ah, ah, no touching.” and you sniff loudly, “Please- please uncle- let me join you both at last, you both have teased me too much.” you beg them and Aegon chuckles meanly. “What do you say Aemy? Should we forgive her? She looks so cute.” Aegon asks Aemond, and he seems to be in a thought for a while, he almost seems to reject the idea, but you had a plan.
And so you undid your dress, letting the sleeves fall down, exposing your breasts to them and Aemonds breath hitches in his throat. He swallows thickly, eyes roaming over your breasts before giving a quick nod.
Although Aegon was said to have an insatiable hunger, he wouldn't have melted or changed his mind because once he decides to be cruel, he is cruel. Aemond on the other hand, gets desperate, especially for his sweet niece who he had a crush on since youth, the idea of finally getting to touch you after all the waiting makes him change his mind quickly.
Aegon tuts as he notices how his brother immediately changed his mind, but he quickly accepts it and pulls you off your knees, causing the gown to fall down and pool around your knees, leaving you bare.
You shivered in the chill air of the night, goosebumps arising on your flesh as Aegon admired the view, licking his lips before he pulled you onto his lap.
Your knees were on the either side of his legs, hands on his shoulders to keep yourself balanced and steady, and he looks at you before kissing your neck, Aemond pulls your face towards his, grabbing you by the back of your neck as he moves his lips against yours, this position was awkward but arousing at the same time, your start grinding against Aegon mindlessly, gasping when he takes your nipples in his mouth, suckling and nibbling on it.
You moan into Aemonds mouth and he pulls away, the string of saliva still connecting you both.
“Take her to the bed.” Aemond commands breathily, and Aegon immediately obeys him, carrying you towards the bed, your legs wrapping around him as he stood.
He places you gently onto the bed before trailing kisses down your body, from your neck to your breasts, to your stomach, to your thighs before stopping at the most precious thing.
Your cunt.
“Fuck, look at her.” he groaned as he held your legs apart, eyes greedily devouring the way your folds glistened in the candle lights. You heard shuffling beside you and spotted Aemond, fully bare just like you, his cock out on full display, hard and almost twitching, appearing as though it had a mind of its own.
You swallowed at the sight.
“Open your mouth”
And you did, Aemond slapped the tip of his cock against your bottom lip a few times before pushing it inside, and you closed your eyes, not knowing what to do.
“Breathe darling, relax.” You heard Aegon coo and you nodded, “It's her first time, Aemy, be gentle.” Aegon adviced and Aemond simply nodded.
It was hard for Aemond to be gentle when your mouth was so warm and wet, wrapped around his touch, the way he felt your tongue move, not knowing what to do with it, where to rest it was driving him into madness.
He grabbed you by your hair, slowly thrusting in and out, you maintained the position, making sure your teeth are not biting onto him and your tongue still as he uses your mouth, your focus was entirely on Aemond that you didn't see Aegon move, only when the sudden feeling of warmth on your core reached your brain did you realise what had happened, Aegon devoured your cunt with such intensity, kissing your pearl with fervour, you gripped his hair as he licked your folds, relishing in the taste of you.
Your moans were muffled by Aemond, and he snapped because of the way your moans were causing vibrations against him, making his pleasure grow high, he grabbed your hair and fucked your face brutal and fast as Aegon continued his ministrations on your cunt.
And before you know it, you reach your peak so intensely, hips pushing into Aegon's face, practically riding it, while Aemond shot his seed down your throat and pulled out.
You panted heavily on the bed, chest heaving up and down. You saw Aegon and Aemond switch positions, Aegon coming to your side to kiss your face and Aemond lifted your hips up, making you wrap your legs around his hips as he lined up his dick against your entrance.
“I'm letting you take her virginity Aemy, you owe me head later.” Aegon winks and Aemond simply hums before prodding at your entrance. Aemond pushed in gently and you gasped at the burning stretch, Aegon hushed you, cooing at you and kissing your face as a comfort.
The painful burning sensation continued to exist as Aemond pushed more and more of his length inside you, before he was sitting inside snugly.
Luckily, Aemond gave you time to adjust and moved only a little, going slow to not hurt you, letting your pain subside and turn into pleasure before he quickened his pace.
You threw your head back as he repeatedly snapped his hips against yours, his pelvis rubbing against your pearl, Aegon latched himself on his tiddies and sucked on them, hands going down to grip his own cock and he pumped himself up and down, moaning against your tits.
Your body was overwhelmed with pleasure, extremely sensitive all throughout and then you peaked once again, crying out Aemond's name as he continued fucking you, chasing his own peak before he spilled himself deep inside of you.
“You finished inside her?” Aegon asks and Aemond nods, “Want to knock her up.” Aemond voices his thoughts and Aegon smirks, pushing Aemond away and settling between your legs, “It's my turn now.” he says cruelly and Aemond nods, taking a small break as he watched Aegon push his cock inside you, causing you whine and grip the bed sheets beneath you, Aegon gripped your hips tightly, thrusting into you at an animalistic pace causing you throw your head back and whine, Aemond was beginning to get hard again, the blood rushing to his cock.
Aegon finishes inside you with a loud moan of your name, while you finish at the same time as well, he leans down to kiss you.
“Let's see who's seed takes first.” Aegon taunts and Aemond rolls his eyes, “Mine will.” and that convo turns into bickering while you lay there, feeling the way both their combined spend leak out of you, pooling on the bed sheets beneath while you try to catch your breath.
It was the best fucking night of your life.
———
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twignotstick · 2 months
Text
Broken Brothers (and How to Fix Them)
Part 1 🧡
Note: This story is based on @cupcakeslushie 's Empyrean Weeping au. These characters are not my own, and this story is in no way canon to the main story. I wrote this as my love letter to the story and the characters. Especially April :)
(And because the au comp has made me go rabid, but that's another problem 🤡)
Tags: Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, ROTTMNT, Mikey & April, Raph & April, NOT MY CHARACTERS, Empyrean Weeping AU, recovery, cooking, mental issues, talking it out because we're adults, sickness, sickfic (kinda)
Warnings (if there's anything I should add here, tell me please!): small physical injury, mention of past injury, description of scars
Words: 2,107
Summary: April was able to figure out her first brother easily. Now, she gets three more, with a couple more issues to worry about.
----------------------
In the few weeks since Mikey had come home, April had been having a blast. Don't get her wrong, she loved Raph. He was her brother. Her best friend, even. But sometimes he could be a little… overbearing? Sensitive? Thought she was dying when she got her period?
Mikey was fun. He swore like a sailor, which made Raph go crazy. He loved talking and listening, even when he wasn't really interested in April's rambling. And ever since Splinter had first shown him the kitchen, they all found out that he could cook.
According to him, he had cooked some before, when he was younger. But man, once he had access to the recipes of the internet, Mikey was an incredible chef. Every morning, he'd wake up to make breakfast for everyone. April had even made a habit of showing up to eat breakfast with the mutants.
It had all been going great! Mikey was adjusting perfectly!
And then he got sick.
April figured it was probably because of the sudden change of scenery. His body was still catching up, and coming to the surface for the first time in his life didn't help either. It was at the most a bad cold, but his nose was stuffed and his throat sounded like a clogged sink. He kept getting coughing fits and dizzy spells.
April had come down to visit. She wanted to check on Mikey, and on Raph. He had gone full protective Mama Bear mode as soon as Mikey even got the slightest hint of a sniffle. April knew that if he didn't get a moment to relax and not worry about his sick brother, he'd probably pull something and get sick himself.
When she arrived to a panicked Raph tossing around couch cushions, she knew her damage control would need to be in high gear.
“Raph?” April asked quietly, dropping her backpack off her shoulder and lowering it next to the couch. “Everything alright, big guy?”
“APRIL!” Raph dropped the pillows he had been holding and whipped around to face her. “Have you seen Mikey?! I went into his room to get him up and he wasn't there. Did you see him on your way in?!”
“Uh, no?” April stepped up and placed a hand on Raph's shoulder. “Take a second and breathe, Raph. With me. In and out.”
April guided Raph's breathing until he finally looked like he had his head on straight again. “Good job,” she whispered. “Now, you said he wasn't in his room.”
“No,” Raph said quickly. “I checked there. I looked under his sheets, I know-”
“Okay, I believe you. Did you check the bathroom?”
“...”
“...”
“...”
“...Raph.”
“I WAS FREAKING OUT! I'VE BEEN SCREAMING HIS NAME, HE SHOULD'VE-”
“Okay, okay, it's okay!” April held her hands out placatingly. “I get it. He's your brother, it's okay to be worried about him. Maybe all the gunk in his nose got up in his ears and he couldn't hear you.” She breathed deeply. “Listen, you go check the bathroom and the dojo. Even if you already checked, check again. I'm gonna go to the kitchen and make myself something, because school lunch sucked today and I'm starving.” April grabbed Raph's shaking hand. “We'll find him.”
Raph took a deep breath and released it, holding April's hand loosely. “Right. We'll find him. He's gonna be okay. Raph's gonna be okay, because Mikey's gonna be okay!”
“Yes, yes, that's right Raph.” April's tone shifted on a dime. “Now go. Shoo. Skedaddle. I got food to eat.”
Raph shooed away timidly. April knew that he was just trying to make sure his baby brother was okay, but jeez. Not even checking the bathroom first? If you're going to lose track of someone, at least start looking for them in a reasonable place.
April made it to the kitchen and stopped suddenly at the doorway, almost shouting out for Raph immediately.
Come on, Raph. There isn't even a door here. Mikey was in clear view of anyone passing by the kitchen.
She saw the scarred, scratched shell of Mikey standing at the counter. She hadn't ever seen the shell from this angle; looking at it straight on. She'd seen it from the side, but looking at it now, it looked 10 times as painful. The gouges were deep.
What kind of monster could have done that to a kid this young?
Why was that kid out of bed right now he's sick why is he-
Mikey turned away from the counter with a plate in his hand. His blurry eyes caught sight of April at the door. He sniffled quietly then rasped, “Hey April. You're here early… You hungry? I'm gonna make some-” he was interrupted by a cough- “s-some… something. I’unno yet.”
“Mikey?” April walked into the kitchen to investigate what he'd been doing. There was a small mixing bowl to the side of the sink and a cup of water. Not even a measuring cup, but one of the old plastic cups they kept in the lower cabinets with a worn cartoon graphic on the side, barely even there after years of washing. “Buddy, you don't need to do that. You're sick. What do you mean ‘early’? It's, like, 4:30.”
Mikey blinked slowly. “Y…yeah. 4:30.”
“P.M., Mike.”
“...oh.”
“Do you usually get up that early? That's not healthy, Mikey.” April started walking around the kitchen island and grabbed one of the stools to pull it out. “You should sit down.”
“Wh- wha? I don't… I don' need to sit down. I gotta make breakfast.” Mikey still clutched the plate in his hands, a shaky smile on his face.
“Mikey, it's almost 5 in the afternoon. You don't need to make breakfast. Sit down, I'm gonna make some food for myself anyway.”
Mikey looked like he was getting more confused by the second. His eyes were watering, but April couldn't tell if that was due to the sickness or him genuinely being upset. “B-but I need to make breakfast.” He turned back to his hodge-podge cooking setup, plate still in his right hand. “W-wait, I can figure out something to make.” He sniffled loudly, catching in his throat and causing him to cough. “I got it, y-you just go see R-Raph!”
“No, Mikey. You need to sit down. Please, I-”
April was cut off by the sound of Mikey sneezing loudly. The force of the sneeze caused Mikey's arm to flail, shattering the plate in his hand on the edge of the sink. His dazed eyes stared at the pieces as they scattered both in the sink and across the tile. April held her hand over her mouth.
Mikey started mumbling curses and apologies under his breath as he kneeled to the floor, picking up the porcelain shards with his bare hands.
“MIKEY!” April rushed over the wreckage, grabbing Mikey by the shoulders and lifting him up. His hands were slightly cut up already by the sharp edges he had grabbed, and his knees had hit some too. “What are you doing?! You are going to sit down now.”
“B-but- But I-”
“Mikey.”
“B-but I broke the-”
“Sit.”
Mikey's tears were almost spilling over, but with April's help, he was able to sit at the kitchen island. His hands and knees were bleeding slightly, but nothing bad. Nothing near as bad as he'd seen, April guessed.
“I'm going to grab the first aid kit. Raph should be here any minute, if he isn't already eavesdropping. While I'm cooking, you can talk to me. Tell me how to make the ramen good like you make it. I'll make it spicy to open up your nose, just how you like. That's what I need you to do today, okay Mikey?”
Mikey looked like he wanted to fidget with his hands, but he knew that wouldn't be good. Wiping his eyes with the heel of his hand, he whispered, “Okay, April.”
April walked to the door, only to find Raph hurriedly coming from the bathroom with the first aid kit already in hand. “Really, Raph?”
“I heard the plate break, what was I supposed to do?” Raph whined with a guilty look on his face.
“Not act like your brother broke, maybe.”
Raph sighed and kept moving past April, sitting down next to Mikey without saying a word. He held out a hand which Mikey met, letting Raph analyze the damage. “We've all broken plates before, it's alright Mike.”
Mikey just hummed, shaking up the phlegm in his throat and getting him coughing again. Raph's eyes widened wildly, but April stared him down the moment he tried moving toward Mikey. Despite the snapper's intimidating stature, he shrank under April's glare.
April smirked and grabbed a ramen pack from the pantry. “So, Angelo,” she said, grabbing a pot from the overhead rack and turning to the turtles, “where do we start?”
Taking a second to compose himself, Mikey started instructing. “If you're making it for both of us, use two packs. A-and don't use that stupid sauce pack stuff they include with it, use actual sauce. I put it up in the…”
----------------------
When it was done, it was by far the best ramen April had ever made. Not the best she had ever eaten, (that prize belonged to Mikey), but it was still really good. Mikey seemed to like it too, and his gloomy demeanor was finally lessening.
Raph left the room shortly after the two started eating. Partly because he wanted to check on his dad, partly because he wanted to rest after over exerting himself in his search for Mikey, and partly because of the look April was giving him. She wanted to have a chat with Mikey, and that was apparent. 
Now, the two sat silently, eating their noodles. April sat just around the corner of the island. She didn't want to sit opposite him, but didn't feel like sitting right next to him. This just felt right.
“You know we want you here, right?” April asked softly.
“What?” Mikey's throat had cleared up just a bit, as well as his sinuses, allowing him to speak more clearly.
“We want you here. You know that, right?”
“W… w-well, yeah! I mean, Raph and Dad literally agreed to fight in the Battle Nexus to get me out! A-and you keep showing me such cool stuff, and bringing me nice things, and-”
“And we're always going to want you here,” April pressed firmly. “You don't need to worry about making us want you here.
“...what?”
“You don't need to worry about making us food, or cleaning up a mess you can't clean up on your own. Especially when you're sick. We should be taking care of you right now.”
Mikey fiddled with his chopsticks, looking back and forth from April to his noodles.
“And it doesn't matter what you do. We'll always want you here. You're family. Doesn't matter if you can't make breakfast, or if you break a plate-”
“Or if I eat the last slice of pizza?” Mikey asked timidly, simultaneously admitting to a most heinous crime.
“Even if you eat the last slice of pizza.” April smirked and pointed at Mikey. “But that's thin ice, bud.”
Mikey laughed for the first time April had heard all day. Sure, it was only a little giggle, and it kicked up another small coughing fit, but it didn't matter. The fun brother she had begun caring so deeply about was finally sitting in front of her again.
“Bad habits are tough to crack,” April sighed. “I'm gonna help you realize that, and it might take a while. Just please, don't forget we love you.”
Mikey nodded.
“You know,” April said, leaning back on her stool and swinging her legs up to sit criss-cross, “I really do love you like a brother already. And I really, really want you to stay. Sooo, imagine how Raph and Splints must feel. Outta this world love, right?”
Mikey's smile softened. “Guess you're right.”
“Course I am!” April stood up with her empty ramen bowl. “I'm gonna put this in the sink for me to wash later, and you're gonna put yours there too when you're done. How's watching some mindless cartoons sound for the rest of the afternoon? I bet I can get Splints to give up the TV.”
Mikey held his chopsticks close and gave the sweetest, most doe-eyed expression. “Do you think I could get one of Raph's plushies, too?”
April huffed a laugh. “Boy, if you asked him with that face, I think he'd give you his whole collection.”
Mikey's face morphed into a mischievous grin. “I'll take that challenge.”
○●○●○●○
The spirits of the tmnt au comp possessed me. I've already written a second part for this. You'll never guess who it's about 🔵🐢
Again, this is my love letter to EW! I am in no way involved with EW, I just wanted to write about how April could get along with her new brothers. Can't wait for the first round of voting in the comp!
Part 2 -> 💙
215 notes · View notes
livingemkayde · 10 months
Text
ch ii. wild things
joel miller x f!reader x unrequited!tommy miller
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chapter two of chaser
warnings: 18+ minors please dni. kissing. mentions of sexual situations. bit of a love triangle forming. age gap, reader is 23 and joel is 35. Tommy is 30. (ages of all characters and plot do not follow canon strictly for the story’s sake). no use of y/n!
a/n: wowza!! after careful consideration i am definitely making this into a series due to all the requests and comments in my inbox!! thanks for all the love on chaser and on my dbf!joel series which you can find all the parts to here. i love u all so much. i had a bit of an idea to write joel x reader mixed with one sided tommy x reader so this will evolve into that. who knows what will happen!! haha….
if you would like to read more of mine: masterlist!
You watch his hands on the steering wheel. His thick fingers flicker on the settings for the radio, or tap on the top of the wheel when you stop at a red light.  It’s intoxicating. He’s intoxicating.  But you already knew that.  “You can’t be starin’ at me like that in the house.”  You blush, snapping out of your dream-like haze. 
For a split second, it does cross your mind to turn around and run away. 
But you’re already here. Joel is looking at you, mouth agape — you’re sure you look the same, if not worse. The little girl standing next to Joel giggles at you, smiling. 
Fuck. 
“Hi,” you say, breathless. You aren’t sure if you’re talking to her or Joel.
 But she squeaks a small hi, reaches for your hand, and pulls you into the house. 
You look up at him as you pass, he sucks in a breath and for a haste second, his eyes glance down towards your chest. Your movements feel slowed as you pass him. Like a scene from a movie — not unlike the feeling you had when you first bumped into him. You look up at him, a worried look fretted on your brow as he closes the door behind you. 
She drops your hand and sits on the couch, Joel sits next to her, you on a love chair across from them. 
It's quiet. 
Way too quiet for what’s supposed to be an interview. 
Joel keeps sending fleeting glances at you like he’s scared of what will happen if he meets your eye for more than two seconds. 
“So…You’re — uh —” he starts, but doesn’t really know how to finish.
“Yeah,” you say for him. He looks back at you, his mouth slightly agape. Joel shakes his head like he’s trying to snap himself out of it. 
“This is Sarah. She’s seven,” he looks down towards her, she looks at you with big brown eyes. Not unlike the one’s attached to the man sitting on the couch beside her. 
“Hi there,” you smile at her. 
“Hi,” she says, her dangling feet swinging off the couch. “You’re really pretty,” she says, shy. 
“Why thank you,” you say, acting flushed. “You’re gorgeous yourself.” 
Sarah blushes. You look at Joel and he stares back. A couple beats of silence and your hands start sweating. 
“Yeah, so I guess I’m your nine a.m,” you say with a breathy chuckle, talking to Joel now — referring to the interview appointment. 
“Guess so,” he says, his southern drawl overtaking his voice. He looks at you with eyes that show a curious emotion. You wonder what he’s thinking. But most of all, you wonder how long this — now ridiculous — interview is gonna take before he tells you to leave. 
So much for a good fuck buddy. 
“I—” he shakes his head again. “Sorry, how old are you?” 
“I’m twenty-three.” 
You are almost certain he swears under his breath. 
“Right,” he says when Sarah gives him a funny look. You had put that on your resume that you submitted a week ago. 
“College grad, or somethin’,” he says, pulling in a sharp breath at the words — and the realization. 
“Yeah — uh — english.” 
“Do you like books?” Sarah cuts into the tension, but she’s oblivious to the heat rising off your cheeks. 
“Love them,” you smile at her, looking around, seeing a children's book on the coffee table separating you. 
Where the Wild Things Are
You smile to yourself. 
“Do you like reading, Sarah?” 
She nods with a grin. 
“I would love to take you down to the library. They’ve got all the books you can imagine,” you say, smiling. 
She giggles and looks up to her dad with pleading eyes. 
You’re not sure why you’re trying so hard to get this kid to like you but after last night, you aren’t really sure about anything anymore. 
You can hear Sarah mumble into Joel’s ear. 
Please, dad? I like her. The lady from yesterday was old.
His eyes cut to yours, and back down to the little girl whispering in his ear. You look around the house nervously. The Carhartt jacket that you distinctly remember from last night is draped on a chair in the kitchen. 
Joel clears his throat, and to everyone in the room’s surprise, extends his hand. He looks a bit scared, and you’d be lying if you said you weren’t terrified. But he utters those words in that drawl and you know you’re done for. Like all those hours before in the bar, then in the bathroom, and after that too when he slipped his name and number into your phone. 
“You’re hired.”
You try to reason with yourself in the split second before you extend your hand to meet him. 
Good pay. Sweet kid. Dad who you already fucked. 
It might not be the worst thing — but it certainly doesn’t reign best in your mind. You take his hand after a beat. Your sweaty palm connects with his sturdy one. He gives you one shake and then drops your fingers. Sarah smiles up at you, you anxiously smile back. Joel gives you a gruff look that makes your pulse race.
“When can you start?” He asks after a few seconds. 
“Tomorrow,” you say, maybe a bit too hastily, calming yourself down you reutter, “Tomorrow.” 
“Alright, well… come ‘round eight. I gotta get to work tomorrow,” he stands, you follow him to the door, he mumbles to Sarah to play with some toys while you talk. 
The cool morning air hits your face when he closes the door behind you. You stand face to face, shy eyes bending through the silence from both of you. 
“I—” you stifle an awkward laugh, “I didn’t know. I wouldn’t…I wouldn’t have come if I’d known, obviously.” 
“Right,” he agrees, looking down at his feet. 
“We can…this can be —” another awkward laugh, “like this okay? Right?” 
“Right,” Joel echoes while sending you a curt nod.  
God, it's like pulling teeth. 
“Look, I’m sorry — we can forget about it, if this is like —” 
“No,” he shakes his head, looking up at you, his brown eyes reflecting sunlight. You didn’t remember his eyes looking like that. But it was dark and you were drunk. 
“It’ll be fine…‘s’alright,” Joel assures, but you’re not sure if he’s talking to you or himself. 
 “Are you sure? I don’t wanna —” 
“I’m sure,” he chuckles. You catch a glint of the guy from last night — who managed to charm his way into your pants in under ten minutes. He surprised you then, and doesn’t fail to surprise you now. 
“Sarah likes you, so…” you raise your brows at his words, he continues. 
“Been havin’ a tough time findin’ someone she likes, and I have t’work,” he breathes out through stiff lips. 
“I understand.” 
You find yourself asking more, even though it might not be the best idea. But like you thought last night — this guy is intriguing — and getting a glimpse into his life even if you both weren’t ready for it might not be the worst thing. 
“What do you do?” you ask, shy. 
“I — uh — I’m a contractor.” 
You don’t really know much about contracting so you fall short with a reply. 
But he fills the silence. 
“I work with my brother. He’s… he lives not too far away. You’ll probably meet him tomorrow,” he says, arms crossing over his chest. 
“Sounds good,” you say, crossing your own arms, your thin sweater not doing much to protect you from the morning dew.
Joel looks towards the street and furrows his brow. 
“Where do you live?” he asks, blunt. 
Your eyes widen in shock. 
“Jesus — I —” he shakes his head, his fingers pinching his nose bridge. “I just — you don’t have a car, m’sorry,” he looks out towards the empty street. 
“Just…wonderin’ if you needed a ride.” 
And so, the gentleman from last night appears just when you thought this might be hopeless. 
“Oh car’s back at the house — I walked — I actually live like four blocks over on Anderson,” you jut with your thumb in the direction of your childhood home — your parents are letting you stay there while they’re on vacation for the summer. 
“Didn’t know we lived so close,” you note to no one in particular, just speaking aloud. 
“You’re in between me ‘n Tommy,” he says, his voice hoarse. 
Jesus. 
“What?” 
“My brother,” 
This small talk is getting awkward. 
“Oh…right, well — cool. All close together,” you say, pulling a smile even though you feel immensely uncomfortable right now. 
“Yeah,” he echoes. “Cool.” 
“So I’m gonna…” you nod your head to the direction of your house. It looks like that shakes him out of this trance of tension you both were put in together. 
“Yeah, right.”
A goodbye is braced on your lips but you hesitate. 
Mr. Miller? 
Joel? 
Maybe you were better off not calling him anything. 
Especially since the last time you were saying the name ‘Joel’ he was asking you to beg for his cock. 
“I’ll see you tomorrow?” you settle for, stepping off his porch, while looking back at him. 
“Yup,” Joel replies, bluntly, “See you tomorrow.” 
_
On your walk over the next morning, you settle into a quiet stroll. 
It’s early, the birds are chirping and the dew from the young morning seeps into your skin, making your hair a bit damp and frizzy, but you don’t mind. 
You didn’t have much time to look around when you were walking to your interview yesterday. 
Honestly, you’ve never taken a good look at your neighborhood, especially this area. Your whole life you’d been driven around by your parents, never stopping to take in the scenery. 
Austin is amazing in the summer. You don’t mind the heat, you welcome it — the sun feels good on your back when you walk over. 
You see a black pick-up truck pull into Joel’s driveway as you round the corner and make your way down the street. 
A man steps out, he’s young — younger than Joel — but you can see the resemblance. You suspect this is the ‘Tommy’ Joel had mentioned yesterday. 
You break into a soft jog to greet him before he walks into the house. 
“Hey,” you say, somewhat breathless. He stares back at you with a confused look on his face. 
“I — uh — I’m Sarah’s new babysitter,” you say while extending your hand. 
He takes it, the recognition of your title sinking in — a smile is brought to his face — it lights up the entire area. 
“Oh — right. Joel said somethin’ ‘bout the babysitter coming this mornin’,” he shakes your hand, its soft grip squeezes yours once and then lets you go. “I’m Tommy, Sarah’s uncle.” 
“Yes — Joel said you guys work together.” 
“Yeah, that’s right,” he says, chuckling. You smile back at him. 
He looks down and sees your bag slung over your shoulder. 
“Let me get that for you,” he says, reaching down to grab the strap of your bag and slipping it off your arm. 
“Oh — thanks,” you try to hide your blush as you follow Tommy to the front door. 
“No problem,” he mumbles, stepping onto the porch, in a light jog, you follow after. 
The door opens before you reach it, a sleepy Joel miller peaks his head out at the noise. 
When he sees it's you and Tommy, he straightens out a bit, a questioning look on his brows. 
“What’s up man,” Tommy brushes past him into the house, you can see him set your bag down on the couch. “Found your new hire,” he teases from inside, already rushing to the kitchen before you’re able to cross the threshold.
You don’t want to squeeze past like Tommy, so you wait for Joel to invite you in. 
“Good morning,” you smile up at him, he towers over you, leaning against the doorframe. 
“Mornin’,” he replies. 
“I just — ran into him outside the house,” you say shyly. 
What are you trying to prove? 
He smiles at you, maybe even matching the smile he had on at the bar. The smile you fell for instantly. A puddle at his feet — this time? No exception. 
“Just come in,” he chuckles, walking away from the doorframe to let you in. 
Sarah squeals from near the couches, running up to you and giving you a big hug. You chuckle while looking at the men in the kitchen. 
“Hi.” 
“Hey, kiddo,” you smile down at her. 
“Can you take me to the library today?” 
“Woah, woah slow your roll. I got a lot to show you before we hit the library,” her smile gets bigger if that’s possible. “I even have some special toys I brought just for you in my bag,” you whisper. 
She laughs, hanging off your arm, and then trots into the kitchen. You follow her. 
“So this is my number,” Joel says when you arrive, putting a piece of paper up on the fridge. 
“Oh, I already—” 
“Call ‘f you need anythin’.” 
Your eyes snap to him when he cuts you off, giving you a knowing look. You blush in favor of arguing, understanding why. 
This might be harder than you initially thought. Especially when you’re in his house, and everything smells like him — like that night. And his brother won’t stop looking at you out of the corner of his eye. 
You catch Tommy in his staring, he quickly looks back down to his cereal. 
“We’ll be back ‘round five,” Joel says, looking over at the calendar hanging on the wall. 
“Tuesday, dad,” Sarah chimes in when he squints at the calendar. 
“Right. Tuesday,” he sighs, his eyes briefly meeting yours across the kitchen. “Tuesday is Chinese. We’ll pick it up on the way home,” he says, nodding at the information. 
“You’re more than welcome to stay for dinner,” Tommy cuts through the tension, smiling at you. Your eyes dart to Joel’s — he has an indifferent look on his face. 
You’re not really sure what to say but the entire Miller family looks back at you with the same set of big brown eyes, a couple sets are pleading, one set is scared. 
“Oh, okay. Yeah, thanks,” you smile back at Tommy. You hope things will be better by tonight because this is getting weird and you only have olives and a carton of eggs in the fridge back home. 
“I’m gonna go load the truck,” Tommy mumbles, still chewing the rest of his breakfast while standing. 
“It was very nice to meet you,” he smiles at you, placing a hand on your shoulder. “If you need anything you can always call me, left my number under Joel’s.” 
You smile, but gruff words pull you away from Tommy. 
“If you need anythin’, call me,” Joel says, emphasizing me. 
You wonder if Tommy touched a nerve. 
Tommy smiles with a teasing lilt, you thank him as he exits. 
“Hang on a sec, Sarah, I’m gonna walk your dad out and then I’ll make you breakfast,” you say, following Joel out. 
Tommy’s head is in the backseat of the truck, rummaging through things. You stand in front of Joel on the porch. 
“Listen this is like…” you aren’t sure what you think this is, but it’s kinda unbearable. 
“Yeah, I know,” he replies gruffly. “It’s — it’s done. Right? We can be professional.” 
“Yeah,” you reply, your voice small. “Professional,” you laugh. His bright eyes mirror yours. 
“Guess I should call you Mr. Miller, then.” 
He sucks in a sharp breath. 
“Don’t call me that,” he says, a chaste chuckle braced on his lips. 
“Joel,” he whispers. “Just Joel.” 
“Okay,” you smile back at him. You can’t help but feel the spark like the night at the bar, when his hands were all over you, and you couldn’t see anyone but him. 
“Just Joel.” 
He nods and steps down from the porch. 
He waves goodbye with two lazy fingers lifting from the wheel as he backs out. 
_
“She’s pretty.” 
Tommy’s voice cuts through the tense silence in the truck. An old country song rings through the worn interior. The A/C is blasting, the sun beating down on them through the sunroof. 
Joel grunts in response. 
“You don’t think so?” 
“Think she’s my kid’s babysitter,” Joel mutters while Tommy stifles a laugh. Joel turns down a street, heading towards the onramp for the interstate. They’re meeting with a new client today, big work on the line. Joel can’t be thinking of you.  
“So you’re not into her?” 
Joel takes a while to respond. Tommy shifts a bit nervously in his seat. But finally — finally — Joel lets out a long sigh and responds. The single word sent Tommy’s way, making him grin— 
“Nope.” 
“Alright,” Tommy says, content. 
It rubs Joel the wrong way. 
“‘Alright’ what?” 
“I think I’m gonna ask her out.” 
When Joel doesn’t respond, Tommy speaks again. 
“Do you think she’ll say yes?” 
“I don’t know. Known her two seconds” Joel bites back a bit too harshly. 
A few tense seconds pass. 
Tommy starts again but Joel cuts him off. 
“Jesus, can we just —” Joel reaches down to turn the radio up. The music drowns out any conversation on the tip of his tongue — kills anything he might regret saying. He tries to let it go. 
Tommy lets it go too. 
_
“Sarah!” you shout from the kitchen.
You look down to the kitchen counter. The sandwich stares back at you. You slather one side with blackberry jam you picked up from the farmers market. The other side with some peanut butter. Crust off, Sarah had pleaded with you yesterday when you picked her up from soccer camp. 
You move to cut the crust off. 
The front door opens from behind you, you don’t bother turning around, knowing who it is before he greets you—
“Hey, baby,” Tommy rounds the corner and gives you a small hug. You hear the front door shut in his wake. You look down to your fingers, the peanut butter getting a bit messy from the heat in the kitchen. 
“Hey,” you reply softly. 
It's been a couple weeks since you started taking care of Sarah. You fell into the Miller’s daily routines with ease, eating dinner with them most nights. Tommy and you have grown close. He’s a friend, a confidant. Someone who you can count on no matter what.  
He’s good conversation, but an even better listener. You find yourself talking to him most nights on the drive home, and even sometimes after that when you invite him in for coffee and a drink. You can talk about anything and he’ll listen, giving his two cents when necessary, becoming a better friend than you could’ve anticipated. 
Anything he had said the first night you invited him in.
You can talk to me about anything. 
You had smiled at him. You wanted to talk to him about anything. And you talked to him about most things — but never all. 
Because there was always Joel.  
“Sarah!” you shout again, checking the clock and seeing it was almost eight. “Get your bag kiddo, I gotta drop you off at soccer by 8:15.” 
You hear her small voice let out a muffled coming as you finish packing up her lunch. 
“Need a ride?” Tommy asks from behind you. 
“I thought you and Joel had to meet with that electrician guy today,” you throw over your shoulder. 
“I always got time for you,” he says in a teasing upswing. You just laugh in response, trying to brush it off. 
You know Tommy is a flirt. You can see it when you go out with him, girls fawn at his feet because he’s charming. The woman bagging your groceries, the waitress at the diner, the neighborhood mom’s coming over to talk when he washes the truck outside Joel’s house. 
You see it all — and you don’t mind when it spills over onto you. It’s just how he is. 
“Brought my car today, thanks though,” you nod at him as you pass the kitchen table, putting Sarah’s lunch bag on the counter.
You hear footsteps rounding the corner, hoping it’s Sarah, but as you look up, Joel’s eyes catch yours. 
“Dammit,” you mumble.  
“G’mornin’ to you too,” Joel says back, sending you a look. 
“No — sorry, just —” you brush him off, he joins Tommy at the table. “Sarah!” 
“We’re gonna be late,” you mumble to him, he sips on his coffee. 
“I’ll give you a ride,” Joel says from his seat, motioning to the truck. 
Tommy’s brows raise, waiting for your response.
“Thanks but I brought my car today,” you brush him off. 
“Surprised that thing still drives,” Joel grumbles under his breath. 
“Shut up, will you?” you say, half teasing, sending him a playful scowl. 
“It ain’t safe is all ‘m sayin’, you sh—” he cuts himself off at the look you give him. 
Tommy whistles from across the table. 
It might look okay. And it might feel okay too. But when you're alone at night and you can’t sleep — you think about Joel. The fleeting glances from the day. The way his hand touched yours when you guys cleaned up dinner. 
It wasn’t torture — but it sure felt like something similar. 
You don’t miss how Joel scowls a bit when Tommy flirts with you playfully. But things seem to be cordial between them — as cordial as brothers can be. 
Sarah skips down the steps, her hair falling out of the pony tail she tried to put up herself. 
“C’mere, kiddo, we gotta fix your hair,” you say when she reaches the bottom step, pointing to a chair beside her dad and uncle. 
Sarah sits, you brush through her hair with a comb, securing it with an elastic. You can feel both men’s eyes on you. 
“All set,” you pat her shoulders, she finishes breakfast, racing to put her shoes on as you grab your keys. 
Tommy stands at your exit. 
“I’ll walk you out,” he says, taking one last sip of his coffee before putting the dishes in the sink. He meets you in the foyer, you scramble to get your sandals on, Sarah slipping into her cleats as you bend down to tie her laces. Tommy grabs your keys and goes to start your car. 
“Bye, Joel,” you yell from the entryway, something deep and gruff rings back from the kitchen.
When you open the door, the soft sunlight hits you. Sarah skips out towards Tommy, he picks her up, throws her up in the air, she laughs and giggles. He lets her settle into the backseat of your car. He opens the door for you, giving you a small hug as you check the time on your phone. 
8:10 am. 
“See you later, baby.” 
“Bye Tommy,” you chuckle at his words, shaking your head as you climb into the driver’s seat. 
_
Honestly, Joel is right. 
You’re confused on how this car still drives. It was your mom’s from when she was in college. It sat in your garage, collecting dust until you pleaded with your parents to fix it up for you. Maybe it’s sentimental value or maybe you just can’t afford another car, but you’ve driven it ever since. 
It’s never been a problem for you. Not until this moment when you found yourself on the side of the road, two blocks away from where you dropped off Sarah.  
Your phone rings in your hand as you hold it up to your ear, leaning against the hood of the car while you look down at the very obviously flat tire. 
“Tommy?” you bite quickly when he picks up. 
What’s up? 
“My tire’s fucked. I need a tow,” you grovel. 
Oh shit. Uh — I can’t leave right now, the electrician needs me. 
“Fuck,” you huff into the hot air. “Okay, I’ll call Triple A, thanks.” 
You’re about to hang up, but a deep voice cuts through the line, Tommy answers it with a tone that you can’t read.
Joel’s comin’.
Your breath hitches. 
Text him where you are.
You find yourself nodding even though he can’t see you. 
“O-okay. Tell him I said thanks,” 
He just left. Listen I gotta —
“Oh – no yeah, sorry. See you later. Thanks.” 
Yeah. Bye.
You shoot Joel a quick text, your fingers shaking unexpectedly. 
You only wait for about ten minutes before you see the black pick up roll around the corner. He pulls up in front of you, and backs up so the hitch is in line with your car. 
Joel gets out, moving to hook everything up. 
“Joel, I’m so sorry, I—” 
“Hey,” he looks at you, you stare back with wide eyes. You were half expecting him to be mad or annoyed. But you forgot how he is. A gentleman. 
“‘S’alright, sweetheart.” 
Sweetheart? 
From Joel Miller? 
But he gives you a pat on the shoulder, motioning for you to help him, unaware he just made you weak at the knees. 
You get everything hooked up, he opens the door for you like always. 
You get in the truck and are met with a tense silence as he rolls into the middle of the road. 
“Don’t say it,” you say, looking over at him, teasingly, waiting for the inevitable, I told you so.
“Wasn’t gonna say anythin’,” he smirks. 
“I know you’re thinking it though.” 
“I know you are, too.” 
“You jinxed me,” you huff, crossing your arms over your chest. 
“I ain’t jinx nothin’.” 
“You so did. This morning, at breakfast,” you say, pointing an accusing finger at him. 
“I just said I was surprised it still runs.” 
“Yeah and now look what happened.” 
He laughs, you both do.
You’re met with silence for a long time. He turns down a couple streets, heading back to his house. 
“You called Tommy.” 
You suddenly feel like it’s harder to breathe. 
“Yeah.” 
“I’m always here if you need anythin’...” he says, but trails off, shaking his head. 
“I know. I just didn’t want to bother you,” you whisper. 
“You’re never a bother,” he says in that drawl. He takes a glance over at you then back to the road. 
You gulp. 
You watch his hands on the steering wheel. His thick fingers flicker on the settings for the radio, or tap on the top of the wheel when you stop at a red light. 
It’s intoxicating.
He’s intoxicating. 
But you already knew that. 
“You can’t be starin’ at me like that in the house.” 
You blush, snapping out of your dream-like haze. 
“I — I’m sorry.” 
He grunts. 
You want to ask him. To talk to him. You want to know if he’s been thinking about you like you’ve been thinking about him. If you crawl into his sleepless nights, his daydreams, his every waking moment like he does to you. 
You’re talking before you know any better. 
“Can I ask you something?” 
His reply is hesitant, but he motions for you to continue. When you find your voice, you manage to squeak out your question before you shut down and die from embarrassment. 
“Is this hard for you?” 
“‘S what hard? Drivin’?” he teases, you give him a shove but he doesn’t react to your touches. 
“You know what I mean.” 
“Not sure I do.” 
Damn. 
Maybe this is all in your head. Maybe when he told you that whatever this might be is over like he did all those weeks ago, he really meant it. 
You shut up after that. Not really noticing your new found silence. 
But Joel does. 
He pulls up to the house, putting the car in park. He hops out first, opening your door, you walk by his side towards the front door. 
When you step onto the porch you expect him to unlock the door, but he turns to you, surprisingly breaking the silence.
“Yes,” he says in a gruff voice. 
You wait with bated breath for him to continue, until he doesn’t. 
“What?” 
“It’s hard for me,” he continues, you look at him.
He looks at you — almost with pleading eyes. It looks like he’s pained to say it. 
“To see you everyday and not…” he trails off, but you know what he means. The thought sends a tell tale stickiness down in between your thighs. 
You nod. 
“It was kinda a fucked up coincidence,” you huff a laugh. He hums in agreement. 
You stand there with him, the tension building to an all time high. 
“Yeah,” he says after a while. “Fucked up.”
“It was —” you bite your tongue. Not sure whether or not to dig up the incident at the bar you both fought so hard to bury. To conceal your relationship from everyone, including yourselves. 
“I know,” he agrees. 
You look at Joel through your lashes. 
He looks handsome. 
He’s always handsome, but when he looks at you with a glint in his eyes and the sunlight makes his brown eyes caramel, it's something entirely different. 
You take a tentative step forward. He doesn’t move back. 
“I’ve missed you,” you say in a hushed whisper.
It’s true. You missed his presence. Most of your time being taken up by Sarah or Tommy. If this whole babysitting thing didn’t happen between you and Joel, you would probably be seeing him at least once a week. 
At least. 
He huffs out a sigh, taking a half step towards you. He looks at you almost sympathetically. And when his hand comes to angle your chin up towards him, his look becomes more painful. 
 Maybe this is the part where he kisses you, and everything melts away. 
He dips his head down slowly. You keep looking back up to his eyes and down to his approaching lips to gauge whether or not this is a mistake. 
Even though you both know it is. 
His lips brush yours, you tremble, but his phone ringing in his pocket snaps you out of it. 
He looks down, at the screen lighting up with Tommy’s name sprawled across it. 
“Hello?” Joel answers. 
Joel? Where the hell are you? The electrician — 
You stop listening after that, stepping back. Joel mumbles some words on the phone while unlocking the front door and opening it for you, like always. 
You give him a small smile and nod for him to go back to his truck. 
He gives you a look — later? 
You nod your head yes while shutting the door. 
Letting out a breath you didn’t know you were holding, you slump onto the couch. 
Later he had said with his eyes. 
_
chapter iii. diced
taglist! comment or message me if you want to be added. (for this series, i took the liberty of adding you to the taglist if you commented that you wanted more parts on chaser. you can let me know if you want to be taken off) kisses!
@sofiparallel @jasminedragoon @rainbowcosmicchaos @akah565
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antianakin · 4 months
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I'd love more fics where someone asks the clones if they identify as Mandos or something and the clones all go "No, those poeple SUCK, who would ever willingly be a Mandalorian??? All they do is kill each other and destroy their own planet. Even the supposedly peaceful ones are arrogant assholes. I'd literally choose to be anything else before I'd ever choose to be a Mandalorian."
More fics where the clones have spent so much time forced to be at war and enough time connecting with the Jedi that even the CONCEPT of being a Mandalorian sounds like a fucking NIGHTMARE to them. Imagine WANTING to be like the people whose whole core culture is about going to war and hating the Jedi? The clones can't relate.
More fics where the clones just AVOID Mando culture entirely. They don't speak the language because they just have zero interest in it, none of them like the taste of Mando food very much, and none of the little Mando traditions seem that interesting or compelling.
A clone sleeps with a sex worker one night and she tries to be seductive by using a Mando endearment she knows and it's an immediate turn off for the clone.
More fics where giving armor to each other isn't this huge meaningful thing. Armor gets lost and damaged all the time, so even if they gave it to someone as a gift, the chances that it would last very long are pretty minimal. The paint designs are meaningful as one of the few ways they distinguish themselves from each other, but it's not more meaningful than their hair choices or tattoos. They don't technically OWN the armor, but their hair and skin is attached to them, which actually makes armor LESS meaningful than hair choices or tattoos. They certainly don't try to marry each other with armor, armor is the most meaningless gift to give someone else. Giving armor to someone is a practical act, not a romantic gesture.
More fics where clones just... AREN'T MANDOS AT ALL. They're CLONES, they're their own distinct thing with their own distinct experiences that would coalesce into their own distinct traditions and cultures.
And more fics where the clones are actually influenced more by JEDI culture than they are by Mando culture because ffs there is not a single Mando character in canon who gave a flying shit about the clones or ever spent a single ounce of time with them, but there were THOUSANDS of Jedi living and fighting and dying with the clones for THREE YEARS STRAIGHT. There is NO culture they'd be more exposed to in a positive way than Jedi culture, and it is honestly criminally underexplored as an influence on clone culture in fics. Where are the clones exploring non-attachment as a concept and realizing that most of them ALSO have no real interest in marriage or kids? Where are the clones studying Jedi philosophies and finding a lot of comfort in them and passing them along to other clones and Jedi philosophies and sayings end up becoming really common among the clones? Where are fics where the clones become some of the most accepting and tolerant people specifically because they learned that from the Jedi?
The clones deserve to be more like the Jedi and deserve so much better than to end up Mandos. I cannot think of a worse fate for the clones, and they've already been through a lot of bullshit.
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