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stillarat · 1 year

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Beloved.

Alt Gabriel x GN!Angel!reader

Word Count: 1.2k

Warnings: gabriel is gabriel, some threats

A/N: this was supposed to be for a request but i read it wrong so yeah, more gabriel coming soon except i read it r i g h t next time

You watched down on the ward assigned to you, a monotonous assignment though one you carried out with great pride. One bestowed to you in honesty and holiness, you watched over them, as the winds carried to you a spine chilling presence–chilling and impure. There he inched closer. Gabriel, but not the one you had wept for; and his intentions were clear to you in that moment. Your chest tightened, they were your one responsibility; you refused to disappoint.

In a heartbeat you took hold of his hand before you may have had a second thought. That is when you saw his face–he towered above even you, casting shadows across your stainless white garments. Every bit of him was long, and his skin was stained a dull but spotless, and blonde locs cascaded down his shoulders. He stared you down, blank faced before his grin curled to the apples of his cheeks.

“Who might you be?”

Whether frozen or stern, the point remained you utter not a word to the man–beast.

“Have you come to rebuke me?” He awaited a response that never came.

“If so I am honored.”

He pulled his arm free from you, circling you like a lion to a lamb. Pulling your spear to your side you tilted it toward his chin, as he walked back round to face you, playing no mind to his former engagement. Grin softening to mild amusement.

He held it just behind your blade, pulling you closer by it even as the smell of his singed flesh rose from his palm, and by it confirming your prior convictions. You rebuffed him swiftly, pressing the head of your weapon to his throat.

“A charming thing you are.” He spoke, lifting his hands to his sides and relenting to your attempts to subdue him.

“Not a word you infernal sycophant.”

“If you insist–myne lovely.” He sighed into his speech, your skin pulled tight over your knuckles–holding your weapon as a lifeline while you pushed your blade further still, knot in your throat pulled taut.

“You are dedicated, I will not deny you this.” Your voice as you spoke–hushed and militant. He attempted to side step you, leading you both into a voracious stanced spiral.

“Your Lord must be proud, what a brave little thing you are.” He cooed, voice crackling in a cruel chuckle. “Very well, I shall abide by thy insistence as of now–We will meet again yonder little bird.”

With a swell of his wings he vanished in a flourish, leaving your heart spiraling under your ribs.

It stuck with you, in your mind always–he seemed to loom even if you were unable to see. He was a force ignorable as much as you wanted to; he made sure of that. He stares dominated your senses, even in the peaceful hours of the morning light, while the brooks babbled and the robins sang to their lovers; still in the silent crevices of the night as fear overtook the mind of you and your ward both. The thumming drum of your heartbeat rose to your head.

And then he managed to catch your attention from the corner of your eye. You snapped around as the world seemed to spin on his own axis in a smooth lag.

“Quick as a whip are we?”

“Why are you still here?” You pressed, hands balled into your fists, pearlescent robes trapped between shaking fingers.

“You my dearest, why else?”

“What else must I say? You’ve entranced me lovely.” He circled you, pulling your arms from their place at your sides. Kissing downward from your wrist and up to your cheeks, holding you still as you pulled against the reign of his arms. You snatched back your hands, regaining your sense grimacing at the beastly thing standing before you.

“You are an affront to all which is holy. You disgrace the heavens you claim as your own.”

“You’ve done it once more–that fire in your eyes, I want nothing more.” His voice let out in a cracked purr, slowly marching up to you as if you had not denied him mere moments ago.

“You know what I believe you to be, do not make me repeat again.”

“I am assured you will come to your senses in due time.”

You scoffed–laughed in his face, his grin dropped on a dime. His mouth muscled into an unamused grimace.

“Tell me, do you believe this to be entertaining? The things of the sort your beloved brother in the lord had taught you in all these years?”

“Keep his name off of your tongue!”

“Beloved, I have spoken nothing of the sort.” He took a seat on the roof of the building where you had both perched among the cool night air swaying past you.

“Whyfor must you make this so difficult for us?”

He turned back to you, his eyes pierced through your shallow veneer of confidence; your voice faltered when you tried to speak. You swallowed back your pitiful tears.

“Why?” Was the only thing that came out in turn, lowering your head towards your feet-quivering as you felt yourself nails digging in through the skin of your arms.

“Hm? “Why?”, why what dear, you must use your words. “What’s the point of this?”, “Why are you here?”. Come now dear, can you manage this, surely?” His head tilted, hair rolling over his shoulder, a smile softing pulling back across his features.

“You’re taunting me.” Hands clenched, voice flat.

“You malignant daemon!” You continued on. “You’re taunting me, you goddamned wretch!” You hollered.

You heard him chuckle, hiding his face from you before you saw him stand up, his back towards you.

“There is hardly use taunting you dear, but you have brought it upon yourself. You must concede–the fire on your tongue…” –He trails off devolving into curling and swaying hand gestures as the words find their way from the back of his throat.-- “Your irascible temper, it holds such myopic levity, and yet I am persuaded and enamored by it all that same.”

“Or do you disagree darling?” You could taste rolling off his tongue, as he peered at you from over his shoulder, adorned with those same glistening locs catching the light of the setting sun.

Your face scrunched in detest, pulling your face away from his testing gaze with a nauseous tension pulling at the back of your throat. He cautiously walked towards you, head held high, and prepared for any objections you might have to his obnoxious proximity all things considered. His hand gilded atop your shoulder as he stepped behind you. You quickly snapped your head around to face him, but he corrected you gently–placing a hand against your cheek, moving it to face the subtle sunrise peeking overtop the buildings and hills, while his form remained in the corners of your vision.

“Are my advances not welcome? My arms, not kind? Are you not satisfied with my undivided devotion, ladybird?” His voice was saccharine, but the threats in his tone were not shielded from your ears, you were not a fool in his embrace. One hand of his came to grasp under your jaw, bringing you head under his as he pulled himself tighter to you.

And the other, outstretched–welcoming, beckoning for you to take hold.

#alternate gabriel x reader #alternate gabriel #alt gabriel #alt gabriel x reader #the mandela catalogue #mandela catalogue #mandela catalouge x reader #alt gabriel x y/n #alternate gabriel x you #alternate gabriel x y/n #alt gabriel x you #mandela catalogue fanfic #fanfic #gn reader

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spookiifi · 11 months

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Alternate Headcanons

Don’t take me seriously. This is all in good fun

If alternates could become tired, they would yawn like cats. They would have multiple rows of teeth, then turn back to their pure forms like nothing ever happened.

It would make the scare factor even larger.

#fi talks #tmc alternates #the first time Gabriel did it my self insert nearly jumped out of her skin #What?#Gabe you never told me you could do that #wtf #the mandela catalogue #analog horror #tmc gabriel #tmcblr #alternate gabriel x reader #tmc gabriel x reader

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my-ultimate-is-ready · 1 year

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from the prompt meme (if you're still doing it ofc) “i’m not wearing any underwear. thought you’d like to know." w Reyes 😈

Gabriel’s back from god-knows-where for god-also-only-knows-how-long, a pause in his suffocating schedule allowing him to spend a few luxurious days at home, so you can live like all the couples around you do. High on your priority list is doing all the laundry your washing machine can handle, catching up on all your favourite shows you swore you wouldn’t watch while he was away, and making dinner together.

At some point in this unadorned normality, you’ve also got to go grocery shopping, and while it’s not the most riveting of things you can do together, it’s significantly less of a chore with him there. It takes inordinate amounts of fuel to keep him running; SEP created a super soldier with a super appetite. So, with Gabriel home and the fridge pitifully empty, it’s a non-negotiable addition to your day.

But what a joy it is to feel halfway ordinary, defaulting to your routine that gets interrupted every other week when he becomes a mere voice over the phone or a few lines of text in a written message.

When he’s home, you live slowly—one day at a time.

Out of necessity, Gabriel’s efficiency is unparalleled. It doesn’t matter how organized you are when he is a master at packing and planning. It’s thanks to him that you’ve never set foot into a store without your reusable bags, and it is also thanks to him that unloading the groceries from the car to the kitchen takes a single trip.

Is any sight more touchingly domestic than him hauling several massive blue IKEA bags as though they’re precious cargo?

Going down the list that he remembered to bring—even though you wrote it, you’d forgotten about it—Gabriel ensures you’ve got all your essentials but can’t find the last ingredient you need. You know it’s crucial that when you have the chance to cook together, there’s no deviation from the recipe, no disrupting the ritual. When he suggests the pair of you should make a stop at another store, it’s not a compromise that you’re unwilling to make, but you’d much rather get back home and have him all to yourself again.

“Maybe we have some left from last time,” you say, trailing out as you scour the shelf for the third time, making a showy pretence of it.

“We don’t,” he informs with a discontented shake of his head, “I checked.”

The addendum to the shopping list was his doing, penned in at the bottom.

“Can we do without it?”

“We probably could, but do we want to? This is the question we have to ask ourselves. You know it’s not going to taste the same.”

He’s too determined for his own good sometimes.

It’s not that you want to rush him; it’s just that you know what traffic is like and how a little detour could throw the rest of your afternoon off. If you weren’t constantly picturing time dripping through the narrowest point of an hourglass, maybe you would have a single chill.

But you don’t, and Gabriel is already wise to some version of that.

Naturally, you think of a way to suggest he shuffle his priorities around and get you home without asking him to blatantly give up—because he won’t.

Beckoning him to lend you an ear with a finger, he leans down so you can whisper: “I’m not wearing any underwear. Thought you’d like to know.”

Something passes over him as he returns to his full height. Once you think he’s past replying, he speaks into a closed fist, “Holy shit.”

“You good?” A bad question, knowing full well you’ve quietly obliterated him.

He clears his throat and assures, “Never better.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah, I was just thinking about how we need to home before the ice cream melts.”

“What ice cream?”

Gabriel steps away, opens the closest freezer, grabs a pint of ice cream, and adds it onto the heap in your cart. “That one.”

Then he slips behind you and helps you steer towards the checkout, whispering in your ear about how he still can’t believe the things that come out of your mouth sometimes.

#gabriel reyes x reader #gabriel reyes imagine #overwatch x reader #overwatch imagine #you asked for sexy and i gave you GROCERY STORE #but am i wrong #this man watches sports and cooking shows with the same intensity.#alternative scenario: you say you're not wearing underwear and he's like. yeah i know #it's all in the laundry i literally just threw it all in the dryer before we left #gabriel reyes puts up with so much bless his soul #gabriel reyes #gabriel #reyes #these #replies #prompt meme

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lumierexfics · 5 months

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Chat Log Name : Holiday Event!

❆ Chat Log Description: Happy holidays! I made this event for fun again because the holidays are coming up which is amazing! The deadline is January 1st of next year (which may seem like a long way but it’s actually really close!) Requests [ 0 out of 7] written…

What type of gift was it?

Secret Gift, No AU

Books, Academic AU

Music box, Time traveler AU

Crown, Royalty AU

A book from their favorite author, Bookstore AU

Lasso, Cowboy AU

Jar of stars, Celestial AU

Pearl jewelry, Mermaid AU

Wedding Rings, Arranged Marriage AU

Matching red bracelets, Red string AU

A mug, Coffee shop AU

A sketchbook, Artist & Muse AU

Opera gloves, Regency AU

Heart, Soulmate mark AU

Mirror, SAGAU / Self-Aware AU (Video games only if requested!)

What type of box is it?

A brown box, Enemies to lovers

A neatly decorated box, Academic rivals to lovers

Familiar yet unfamiliar box, Childhood friends to lovers

A box with heart designs, First love

Subtle letter and discreet box, Forbidden love

Favorite color box with matching tape, Similarities attract

Blue box and orange tape, Opposites attract

Painted wooden box, Friends

Finally, what bow to put on the box!

Yellow bow, Angst

Pink bow, Fluff

Green bow, Thriller

Silver bow, Fantasy

⇗ Special Edition! ⇖

Autumn Prompt List

Cozy Autumn Prompts

Spooky & Autumn Prompts

Falling in Fall

Dialogue For Jacket Sharing

Winter Prompt List

Winter Activity List

Winter Date List

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ice-candy-pop · 2 years

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Soft Winter [Sus gabriel x reader] Fluff One shots

Prologue:

It was winter and you had no one at home, just you.

It was dark at home exactly this night and you only had candles lit up in your room. Waiting for your angel... ------------------------------------------------------

"Huff..." You shivered when a cold wind hits off your figure even though you didn't turn on the AC, but of course it's winter. You curled up into a ball, pulling a pillow close to you when tears started to well up into your eyes.

"Gabriel... Where are you..? I miss you.." You softly mumble when tears keep going, eyes shut tightly, teeth chattering from cold.

You hid yourself under the blanket therefore the cold wind stopped bothering you, as you kept waiting for him, waiting , waiting till you snapped.

You quickly stand up and go get a hot chocolate with some marshmallow in it, literally ignoring how Gabriel isn't here yet. Let me tell you that you don't like being alone and you always need someone to be by your side, depending if they want to...

As you finish making your hot chocolate and go back to your room, shutting the door behind you quietly without noticing a big shadow hovering your figure. After that you went to look up at him, of course he's back but it took him so long to come back home.

You angrily shoot him off to the side and sit and drink your hot beverage while watching the snowflakes falling off from the icy blue sky.

"I'm sorry dear." He said softly. His dead blue eyes lazily targets you when he suddenly starts approaching you but you harshly glared at him but in seconds, your eyes soften. but then the voices in your head start talking which you didn't mind at all. Don't forget that he can read your mind.

Voice1: You should be grateful that he's back!

Voice2: Grateful?! But it took him so long to come back! We've been waiting for him for about 3 hours!

Voice1: And? Does it even need to be so harsh to him anyway? Have patience please?

Voice2: 🖕

Voice1: 😒 -------------------------------- "Pfft dear I'm sorry for making you wait that long, I promise to make it up for you." Gabriel disturbs and chuckles deeply, looks like you forgot that he can READ your mind but he didn’t mind it, it was his fault. You finished your drink and finally looked at him, a sad look. “I’m sorry gabriel… I didn’t mean to be that mean to you, I just- I just want you to be here with me.” You mumbled quickly in a low voice hoping he did not hear that. Oh poor of you, a small little bunny was left alone and waited for their partner for so long. He comes closer then sits besides you, wrapped his wings on you so you could be warmer than before. He raises up his veiny skinny hands and hugs you from behind and kisses your head. Snuggling his head onto your neck, tilting your head to the right. “Oh dear that’s adorable but you don’t have to apologize and after all It’s my fault. I love you.” He said in an angelic voice [not the whispering voice?] He pulls you closer as you finally turn around and hug him back, breathing heavily in his crook of the neck. Snuggling closer to him like a hungry cat pleading to an owner. He chuckles joyfully and runs his slender fingers on your silk hair… "I love you too..." And then you quickly dazzed off to sleep. He’s so cold but inside him is so warm yet so calming, he’s the one of your light, YOUR ANGEL.

#fanfic #fanfiction #tmc gabriel #Mandela catalogue #mandela catalogue gabriel #characterxyou #characterxreader #you #reader #fluff #romance #sus gabriel #alternate gabriel #angel gabriel #toonbriel #Oneshot #gabriel x reader #sus gabriel x reader

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hypnos333 · 3 months

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Left her behind

Lucifer x Angel Wife Reader

Synopsis: Lucifer left you behind to rule hell and have lilith so you were behind cleaning up your broken piece

Your wings were bigger than your body but your heart was bigger than your wings. You were an archangel helping your god important plans for mankind. Your husband Lucifer was a Seraphim and you always wonder how you two ever gotten married.

An Archangel and a Seraphim what an unexpected pair, isn’t it?

As you were talking to a human Adam about what god had told you to tell him. A bad feeling was upon you as you excused yourself to go back to heaven to find your husband.

An hour had gone by and you still couldn’t find him til you saw Lilith and you husband kissing. You were shocked and upset until god touched your shoulder ushering back into heaven saying he’ll handle it. Of course you couldn’t question someone you absolutely trust so you flew up with tears hurriedly to go find Gabriel and Michael.

That’s when you found out your husband has been banished with everyone else who betrayed God and heaven.

They were sent to hell as Lucifer as the leader of it and Lilith as queen. You sobbed so loudly make Gabriel hushed you quietly as he sway you left and right to get you to calm yourself.

Michael came back in with some ice cream with a sad smile. “Let forget about your ex husband my little Beauty” And you agreed. That was centuries ago and during that time you found out Lucifer had a daughter which made you completely forget about him focusing about your home more importantly.

Today was your birthday and you had to go to a meeting about the extermination in hell.

Back in hell after getting a meeting to heaven he told his daughter an important story.

“Over a century ago there was these two angels one in a lower class and another in a higher class they loved each nonetheless. Married in heaven but soon the married man became regrettably enchanted with a human bringing her with him to his chaos but leaving his heart where heaven was at” Lucifer explained

“Y-You left your real wife, dad?” She asked him shock and sadness looking at the sky.

“Sadly so, she was supposed to be your mom” He chuckled as tears slipped out his eyes. The amount of times he goes over to see you but you never reciprocate breaks his heart.

He still wears his gold wedding ring from the day he married you and he can never forget that day.

“Don’t worry charlie i’ll win her back no matter the cost and I’ll bring her here to hell for her to rule with me” He reassured her with determination. They both look up to the sky to see a rare white star down at hell.

Alternative ending

Regular ending

#lucifer imagine #hazbin hotel x you #hazbin hotel imagine #hazbin hotel x reader #lucifer morningstar x reader #lucifer x reader #lucifer x you

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liliacamethyst · 10 months

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Web of Shadow and Light (Part III)

Sequel to Webs of Fate

Miguel O'Hara x SpiderSun Reader

words: 5.2 K

warnings: secret pregnancy trope, swearing, angst, heartbreak, grumpy/sunshine

Part I Part II Part III

The Spider-HQ echo with an unsettling symphony - a child's piercing cries and the hushed whispers of concern from some of the multiverse's bravest Spider heroes. They stand clustered around the smallest yet most powerful disturbance they've ever encountered - a baby boy. His wails have been echoing through the HQ since Miguel left the room, leaving the baby and dozens of Spider-man behind. Each cry is a call for help that pulls at their hearts, demanding attention, challenging their patience.

After much deliberation and coaxing from the rest, Miguel gave his team an ultimatum - they have until dawn to find an alternative solution, before Gabriel has to be eliminated, before the universe collapses on itself. His voice was a cold whisper when he spoke, "Figure out another way by tomorrow morning, or..." Nobody dares to complete the sentence, not even Miguel, the unsaid words hanging heavily in the air. And with that Miguel was gone, and the baby immediately started wailing and hasn’t stopped since.

Now Gwen, with her brows knitted in worry, rocks the baby with desperate gentleness. Her blue eyes are bright with unshed tears, a look of sheer helplessness painting her usually confident face. Beside her Peter B. is attempting to cheer Gabriel up but his efforts as pointless as they are endearing. The usually funny and charming Peter B seems to be losing a battle of wits with a one-year-old. It would've been humorous, had the situation been any different.

The sight of the little baby boy weeping his heart out, oblivious to the chaos his presence is causing tugs at their hearts, binding them in a collective resolution - they must protect this child. The shadows and the light, entwined in this web they’ve all been thrown into. And the clock is ticking.

Hobie scoops up the little boy, cradling him close in an attempt to soothe his relentless tears. "See, the cow says muhhhhh," he coos. His tiny cries falter, curiosity momentarily replacing distress. He gazes at Hobie with wide eyes, intrigued by the cool looking man. "And the butterfly," Hobie pauses dramatically, "well, the butterfly don’t say nothin’." He continues his little game, while rocking the baby gently in his arms. "And the pig says-"

Miles chimes in with an eager grin, "Oink, Oink."

"Nah, bruv," Hobie laughs. “The pig says, ‘You have the right to remain silent!’”

Gabriel’s face scrunches up, and the waterworks start again. Hobie chuckles, "Fair enough, little fella. Cops make me wanna cry too."

Meanwhile Jessica Drew, clad in her black and white Spider-Woman outfit, her dark locks cascading around her shoulders, is leaning against the doorframe, half entering the room, her eyebrows raised. "Well? I assume he didn’t stop crying?“

Beside her Peter B. with his shaggy brown hair and five o’ clock beard just shakes his head.

“This is nuts. Nothing, and I mean NOTHING is working.“ Gwen states.

In the background, the cries of baby Gabriel cotinue, little fists flailing as he continued his tantrum. Jessica, arching an eyebrow, comments, “He’s still going at it?”

Hobie Brown, just gives her a quick nod. “Oh yeah, the kid has got a set of lungs.”

Suddenly, Pavitr Prabhakar, yelps as a makeshift toy, made out of wood and spiderwebs, hit him square in the forehead. "Ow! And one hell of arm throw."

Methodically, Jessica starts running through a mental checklist. “Diaper?”

Peter B. Parker nods. “Clean.”

“Food?” Jessica glances at Miles who holds a baby food jar and a bent spoon.

Miles, in his black and red suit, shrugs. “Kept smacking the spoon out my hand.”

“Nap?” Jessica's questions further.

The entire room answer in unison, clearly frustrated “Literally the first thing we tried.”

Pavitr smirkes at them. “Jinx.” But his joke is short-lived as Gabriels screams become even louder.

Gwen, then takes charge, “Ok, we have to do something,” her eyes flicking around the room with determination. She points to Jess, “You have to talk to Miguel. You’ve been around him the longest, maybe you can get through to him.”

Jess looks hesitant but nods.

“And Peter,” Gwen turns to Peter B who’s still juggling items in his hands, to entertain the baby and stop his crying. “Get Mayday’s toys. Maybe the baby’s just bored.”

Peter gives a thumbs up. “You got it, boss.”

“And Pav, Hobie,” Gwen instructs, her voice steady. “You need to rally the other Spider-people. We need everyone on board to protect this little guy.”

“Margo, you’re with me, girl. We are paying our old friend Lyla a little surprise visit. Something’s a little fishy with her.” Margo nods eagerly.

As everyone scatters into action, Miles stands there, looking slightly lost and raising his hands. "Hey, guys, you forgot about me! What am I supposed to do? How can I help?" he calls out to the rapidly moving group.

Pav whirls around and points at Miles, "You, take care of the little guy, newbie," he says, as Hobie thrusts the still crying baby into Miles' arms.

"Great," Miles grumbles, balancing Gabriel on his hip and looking down at the squirming bundle of tears.

He starts to bounce up and down gently, trying to imitate what he's seen in movies. The baby continues to cry, unfazed by Miles' efforts.

“Alright buddy, let’s figure this out together. I can swing through New York, so how hard can babysitting be?” Miles whispers to the baby.

Hours drag on and Gabriel's relentless cries continue to echo through the HQ. Despite his earnest attempts, Miles, armed with only his spider powers and limited babysitting experience, is unsuccessful in calming the baby. He’s tried everything he can think of – makinf funny faces, telling funny stories in a soothing tone, gently swinging him back and forth with his web-slinging skills, and even humming a little tune (it was Humble by Kendrick Lamar, but the thought counts, right?). At one point, he even tried to entertain the baby by creating animals out of webbing, but that didn’t work either. The baby is relentless, and his cries only seem to get louder.

In the meantime in Miguel’s office, the echoing cries penetrate through the walls. Migel is sitting behind his desk looking at some documents, while Jess stands in front of him.

“Please, Miguel, it’s a baby boy. How did you imagine doing this, huh?” Jess exclaims, her voice rising. “Did you plan to build some sort of machine to just vaporize him? Or did you think of strangling him with your own bare hands? I know you’re not a monster.” But Miguel's face remains stoic, his eyes never leaving the papers on his desk.

“And look,” Jess continues, pointing vaguely in the direction of where the baby’s cries are coming from, “this baby is already older, and nothing has collapsed yet. The universe is still here.”

“I can’t risk any more lives, Jess,”Miguel responds coldly, finally looking up at her.

“But what if there is another way? We haven’t even tried everything. We have brilliant minds here. Let’s...let’s figure something out that doesn’t involve.. that,” Jess pleads, her voice softening.

Miguel looks at her for a long moment but his expression remains unreadable. The cries of the baby continue to fill the air.

Jess then turns her gaze towards Lyla, , who is stationed nearby, her holographic interface flickering with data. “Lyla, what are the kid’s powers? Run a genetics test, a DNA test. We need something to work with.”

Lyla’s synthetic voice answers in an eerily calm tone, "I have already processed the genetic information, Jessica. Thanks very much, genius. As per my findings, the child’s power attributes remain undefined. In regards to the DNA test..."

Lyla hesitates just a fraction of a second, but enough for Miguel to notice. It's an unexpected response from an AI that's programmed to be efficient and direct. A strange tingle rises within him but he pushes it aside, refocusing on the matter at hand.

“is inconclusive.” Jess squints at Lyla. “Inconclusive? What do you mean? Is he an anomaly or not?”

“He’s an anomaly, certainly. However, the DNA analysis is...complicated,” Lyla maintains her composed tone. “Complicated how?” Jess presses on. “Just...unfamiliar and intermingled genetic markers,” Lyla responds vaguely. “The child is an enigma.”

"Miguel, please" she continues, turning back to Miguel, clearly frustrated with Lyla's vague responses that are not helping her case. Her tone is still serious, "this isn't some variation of a monster, this is a baby."

For a moment, Miguel’s gaze flickers, his usual icy aura briefly wavering. "It doesn't matter," he finally grunts, closing his eyes as if to physically shut out the argument. Jessica's voice turns unexpectedly brittle. "I didn't join the Society to kill innocent kids."

Miguel clenches his jaw hard. "We do what we have to do for the greater good. No exceptions." Jessica takes a deep breath, her next words coming out almost in a whisper. "What if there was my Gerald or a version of your-" she begins, but is quickly cut off.

"DON’T. Don't even go there, Jessica" Miguel growls, his hand forming into a tight fist. "And why the hell is it still crying?"

Jessica's gaze softens slightly. "That child, that little boy, probably misses his parents. Parents who are going through hell right now, searching for their baby." Miguel's fist tightens further, a spark of something, maybe regret, guilt, flashing in his eyes. Jessica presses on trying one last time to convince him. "He was found in 586, right? Maybe we can reconnect with Su-"

"No," Miguel interrupts sharply, his voice a final command. “Until tomorrow morning, Jess,” he finally says in a low voice, putting an end to Jess’ outburst. “That’s all. You can leave now.”

There’s a heavy silence, where the only sound is Gabriel’s distant crying.

Jessica looks at Miguel, her gaze piercing. "Think about what you’re doing, Miguel," she whispers and leaves the room, closing the door softly behind her.

In the heart of the HQ, Margo sifts through the labyrinth of Lyla's concealed data. She uncovers a file that captures her attention – the baby's DNA results. "There you are," she mutters to herself, an air of triumph in her voice. As she opens the file, her eyes widen in disbelief, "Oh no…“

"What is it, Margo?" Gwen asks making her way over to Margo.

Margo's voice trembles slightly. "So, while looking through the hidden data, I found the baby's... there was a parental match."

Gwen's heart skips a beat. “I knew something was was off with Lyla. Of course she knows more. Well, who are the little guy's parents?"

Margo hesitates, then blurts out, "Miguel and Sunny."

Gwen stops dead in her tracks, her mind reeling. "I'm sorry, can you repeat that?"

"The baby's mother is Sunny, and the father is Miguel," Margo reiterates, her voice steady.

Gwen eyes widen. "But... are you sure? I know Sunny's baby. I was there when baby Gabriel was born!“

"Yes, I'm sure. There were two parental matches for the baby in the spider DNA logs:Sun Spider and Spider-Man 2099. When was the last time you saw the baby, Gwen? Babies change quickly at that age." Margo confirms.

"Miguel and Sunny? That's not possible... how have we never noticed that there's something going on between those two?" Gwen's mind whirls with confusion.

"Oh, I noticed," Margo's voice holds a hint of smugness, "The way he was sneaking into her room at night? And the way he looked at her every time she set foot in a room, like a lovesick puppy. It was adorable. Wait, nobody else noticed?"

Gwen splutters, taken aback, "What? No, I... well, he's all 'we need to sacrifice ourselves to protect the multiverse. No more traveling for fun'" she imitates Miguel's voice with a teasing lilt, then she adds, "And Sunnys is literally the personification of a warm embrace."

Gwen's mind whirls but she continues, “ Woah, okay lets focus on the important part. I mean, I knew something was wrong with Lyla, but why... why would she do that?"

"There's more, Gwen," Margo says, her voice shaking slightly. "I found another thing in her data. It's... it's about how she's processing information."

Gwen frowns, "What do you mean?"

Margo takes a deep breath before explaining, "In simple terms, Lyla's been teaching herself new things. She's changing, growing beyond her original programming. Her code is self-evolving."

"And the data about the baby?" Gwen asks, her voice barely above a whisper.

Margo sighs, "She's been... twisting it, making the baby seem more dangerous than it actually is."

Gwen's mind reels with this new information, the world around her seeming to tilt. "But why?" she finally manages to ask. "Why would Lyla do this?"

"I don't know, Gwen," Margo admits. "But we need to find out and warn Miguel. And soon."

Meanwhile in Miguels office, the wailing becomes louder, almost as if piercing through the walls, trying to reach something, or someone. Miguel's face betrays his discomfort, as if the cries are tugging at his walls around his heart. There's a weight on his chest, something unidentifiable that makes it hard to breathe.

Suddenly Lyla’s holographic interface hums. She begins to show the outline various strategies for eliminating the child. Her voice, analtytic but almost cheerful, fills the room. “So, we could create a temporal displacement field, effectively erasing the child from existence. Or perhaps expose him to a slow-acting molecular destabilizer..."

"Based on the trial," she continues unfazed by Miguel’s lack of response. "the device should work as intended, wiping out any of its DNA and trace. Be like the anomaly never existed." There's a hint of satisfaction in her words.

Miguel, until now staring blankly at the wall, finally turns towards Lyla, his complexion pale and his eyes wide.

His insides twist painfully, the mere idea of bringing harm to this innocent child becoming now unbearable.

“Stop,” Miguel chokes out.

“Apologies, Miguel. We must consider all options for preserving the multiverse. You out of all people should know that,”Lyla retorts.

But something within Miguel snaps. His ice-cold distant facade crumbles. Rising abruptly, his chair clatters loudly onto the floor.

Without saying another word, he strides out of his office. “Miguel? Are you listening? Where are you going?” Lyla calls after him, but her words are unanswered in the empty room.

Walking down the hallway, Miguel slows down as he passes the room where the infant's cries come from. He pauses when he hears Miles' pleas inside.

“Little dude, if you stop crying promise I’ll get you some cool kicks. Maybe some baby Jordans? Please, please just stop crying,” Miles pleads, his voice sounding desperate and utterly exhausted.

After a moment hesitation, Miguel pushes open the door and steps into the room. His gaze, sterner than ever, as he takes in the scene: Miles looking near defeat, his energy spent trying to soothe the wailing child, his spider suit rumpled and hair disheveled.

"Enough," Miguel comms sharply.

Miles looks up from where he's been pacing with the baby, his eyes wide like he's just been caught stealing cookies from a jar. “You,” Miguel points at Miles, who is holding the still-crying baby. His voice booms with authority. “Put him down”

Miles, slightly dumbfounded, obeys and carefully lays the child down on his makeshift bed. “I need you to return to Earth 586. Get some of his belongings - toys, blankets, anything you can find," he orders, his tone leaving no room for argument.

"But Miguel--" Miles startsbut gets cut off immediately.

"Now," he says, his red eyes flashing dangerously. Miles opens the portal hastily and disspears to your universe.

The crying has subsided to whimpers, and Miguel finds himself kneeling next to the little one, who reaches out for him. As if on autopilot, Miguel’s hands scoop him up abruptly from the bed.

"Quiet, niño. "Miguel growls at him with a low and threatening tone. "I could just... do it right now." His irritation gets the better of him, and he bares his fangs at the little one. This sight shocks Gabriel into silence for a moment, his big, teary eyes widening at the sight.

But then, to Miguel's surprise, the baby breaks into a fit of giggles, the sound infectious and joyous.

Gabriel suddenly mimics Miguel, baring his own little teeth – two tiny milk teeth and the beginnings of baby fangs peeking from his gums, causing Miguel to stiffen in shock.

Caught off guard Miguel's hold slips and Gabriel lands back on the web-shaped bed with a bounce. The baby's laughter ends abruptly and is replaced once more with tears and cries.

Still in shock, Miguel stumbles back a step, but Gabriel's cries soon pull him back into the present. With a sigh, he picks up the little boy yet again andGabriel immediately snuggles into the crook of Miguel’s neck, his tiny arms winding tightly around his throat. Miguel swallows hard, unsure of what to do next.

Then, almost instinctively, he starts to hum a tune he thought he'd long forgotten. "Tú eres mi sol de la mañana, el sol que brilla..." His voice is barely audible, the words shaky. Gabriel's little body relaxes against him, a content sigh escaping his lips followed by a quiet yawn. He nuzzles closer to Miguel, his tiny breaths falling into sync with the rhythm of the song. "...alegra todo, mi corazón," Miguel coninues softly, his mind flooding with memories. He sees a bright, lively girl with the same curious eyes as the boy in his arms.

"Daddy," Gabriella asks, her large eyes bright with curiosity as she looks up at him, "why do you call me your morning sun? I'm not yellow."

Miguel chuckles at her innocence, his fingers gently tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear. He cradles her against his chest, looking into those eyes so full of wonder. "No, mija" he replies, his voice soft with affection "you're not yellow but you are my sunshine."

"But why?" She wrinkles her little nose, her childish curiosity making Miguel's heart fill up with love.

"Because, mijita," he begins, pressing a gentle kiss to her temple, "just like the sun, you light up my world. You chase away the darkness with your laughter and your love. You are warmth, you are joy, and just like the morning sun, you are a new beginning, a promise of a brighter day."

Gabriella blinks up at him, her lips curving into a small, and she hides her smile in the crook of his neck. "I like that, Papi," she whispers, "Sing the song again, please?"

“brilla, conmigo, brilla que brilla, alegrandome esta cancion. Tu eres mi sol de la manana…“

Eyes closed, Miguel draws Gabriel unconsciously closer, his heart full, and for the first time he’s feeling a sense of contentment he hasn't experienced in years.

The moment is shattered by the sound of a throat being cleared, pulling him abruptly out of his peaceful trance.

Peter B is standing in the doorway, arms loaded with various dolls. "Wow, he's finally asleep," he remarks, looking between Miguel and the now sleeping Gabriel with a relieved smile. "I was starting to think that was impossible."

Without responding, or even sparing a glance in Peter's direction, Miguel turns away from the door and heads to the bed. He gently places the sleeping toddler down, pulling a small blanket over him. Once he's confident that Gabriel is settled, Miguel quietly leaves the room, his demeanor as frosty and aloof as ever, making no acknowledgment of Peter's presence.

Peter B is quick on his feet, rushing after Miguel. "I brought him toys from Mayday," he blurts out. "She won't miss them. She's not too good at sharing, but I guess she won’t mind in this case."

Miguel continues his stride, not giving Peter so much as a backward glance. "Que maravilla," he mutters under his breath, his tone dripping with sarcasm. Ignoring the dismissal, Peter B. reaches out and places a hand on Miguel's arm, stopping him in his tracks. Miguel raises an eyebrow and glances back at him half-heartedly, clearly not interested in a conversation.

Peter takes a moment, his gaze intensifying. "Hey, boss," he begins, his voice shaky yet determined. "We can't let anything happen to this boy, right?"

At Peter's words, Miguel closes his eyes and takes a deep, steadying breath.

Back on Earth 586, you're in the throes of a meltdown. Your little boy, Gabriel, is nowhere to be found. You've scoured the whole city of Nea Yorkey, every nook and cranny you can think of, but there's no trace of him anywhere. Desperation gnaws at your insides, and fury bubbles up, hot and fierce. Your mind is in turmoil, swirling with anger and fear, clouding your ability to think straight. One thing is crystal clear though: whoever dared to touch your child will pay dearly for their actions.

You're frantically trying to find a way to contact anyone from the Spider Society, while simultaneously considering every possible avenue to traverse the multiverse yourself. Alchemax - the multinational conglomerate known for its cutting-edge research and technological advancements - seems to be your only hope. As you're about to make your way there, a sound from Gabriel's room stops you in your tracks.

Your Spider senses, already on high alert due to the unexpected circumstances, seem to kick into overdrive. Every instinct within you screams that something is about to happen. Your heart pounds in your chest like a wild drum as you slowly approach the room.

Meanwhile, in Gabriel's room, Miles is having his own share of troubles. In his haste, he stumbles over a toy car that starts making an assortment of noises and brightly lit animations. "Ah, this stupid toy!" he curses under his breath.

A thought suddenly crosses his mind and he wonders aloud, "Wait, does he need a blanket?" Just as he's about to reach for a small bunny stuffed animal that lay discarded on the floor, an intense blast of sonic energy sweeps across the room.

Caught by surprise, Miles finds himself flung across the room, his back hitting the wall with a thud. Before he can even let out a gasp, a spider web shoots out, pinning him securely against the wall. There he hangs, suspended, his eyes wide with shock and confusion. His breath comes in shallow gasps as he attempts to comprehend what just happened. Well its safe to say he didn’t saw that coming.

Miles, still stuck against the wall, manages to blurt out, "Who are you?"

"Who am I?" you echo, incredulity lacing your tone. "You break into my son's room and ask me whoI am?"

Your mind races as Miles stammers, "Wait, your son's room? Wait, are you...are you a Spider-person aswell?"

Ignoring his question, you stride towards him, an aura of threat radiating off you. "Stop talking!" you command, "I ask the questions!" In your hand, a ball of solar energy forms, crackling with power and casting a glow across the room.

"Why are you here? Where is my son?" The words are more of a growl than a question, the motherly instincts in you sending waves of danger rippling across the room. "Your son is okay, please don't hurt me!" Miles pleads with a shaky fear laced voice.

Squirmy and visibly frightened, Miles stammers out his confession, "We-we took him...it was our mission... He's an anomaly...we needed to get him out of this universe, send him to his own, so it wouldn’t collapse and interfere with the multiverse...but he doesn't have one, and I'm so sorry..."

His voice dwindles to a murmur, words tumbling over one another in his haste. Amidst his ramblings, your icy inquiry slices through like a blade, "Who instructed you?"

A sharp wince contorts his face, betraying his fear. "Our boss..." he starts, his voice barely above a whisper, "Miguel... Miguel O'Hara."

The energy in your hand dissipates, leaving only shock in its place. It's almost too much to take in - the idea that Miguel, your Miguel, could have done something like this. "He's okay, we... we didn't know he was the son of a Spider-woman. I'm Miles Morales, by the way." he introduces himself, attempting to inject some normalcy into the situation.

"I'm Spider-Sun," you respond automatically, your voice sounding distant to your own ears.

"Wait … you?" Miles' eyes widen in recognition. "You're Sunny?" When you give a numb nod in response, he continues, "You look more like 'Stormy' if you ask me." Your gaze snaps to Miles, the intensity of your death glare immediately silencing his attempt at humour. "Sorry, sorry," he stammers, raising his hands in surrender. "I just...I've heard Gwen and Peter talk about you."

"They never stop talking about you," Miles continues, trying to regain his composure. "They always say you have such a radiant personality and how much they miss you. They take care of your son, don’t worry. Hes safe for now.”

"What do you mean he's safe 'for now'?" you cut him off abruptly, your voice cold and hard. Miles gulps nervously before responding.

"Eh...we have until morning to find a solution for this...anomaly," he stammers. You interrupt him, seething with a fury that makes him cringe. "My son's name is Gabriel. He is not an 'anomaly'," you spit out the words like they are poison, hating the way they make your sweet little boy sound like some kind of mistake.

"Eh, yes, for Gabriel," Miles corrects hastily, "because, eh... if we don't find an alternative, they need to, eh...eliminate..." He trails off, speaking so quickly and softly that you almost don't catch his last word.

"ELIMINATE?????" You scream and for a split second, Miles is sure he sees your eyes blaze with a terrifying, luminating light.

"We can stop them. We can talk to them and say it's your son," Miles says quickly, desperately hoping to calm you.

"I don't talk. Bring me to my son," you demand. Without wasting another moment, you order him to open the portal. "Y-yes, right away, Sunn... eh, Mrs. Sun, eh... Ma'am," he stammers, visibly trembling under your steely gaze.

It takes him two shaky attempts before he manages to successfully open the portal, his hands still unsteady from the encounter.

Back at the headquarters, Peter chases after Miguel into his office. "Boss, all I'm saying is, what if Lyla is wrong?"

Miguel is pinching the bridge of his nose, a deep sigh escaping his lips. The weight of the situation is quickly becoming too overwhelming and he feels himself teetering dangerously close to his breaking point.

Just at that moment, Gwen, Pav, Margo and Hobie burst into the office, their faces set withdetermination. "Miguel, there’s something you need to know. Please hear us out. Margo and I, we found something.Lyla is - ," Gwen starts but Miguel is quick to silence her with a raised hand.

Just as Miguel is about to speak, the lights flicker, casting an ominous glow throughout the room. Hobie looks around nervously. "Is that eh...normal?"

Peter quirks an eyebrow. "Did you forget to pay the electricity bill?"

The lights flicker even more violently, plunging the room into a dance of shadow and light.

With a violent burst, the door is flung open, and a brilliant surge of light blinds everyone. You stand in the doorway, an ethereal aura glowing around you.

"O'Hara!" Your voice thunders through the room, heavy with wrath and revenge. As Miguel turns around to face the source of the sound, a massive, lightning-tinged sonar blast slams directly into his chest. He's pushed backward, knocked off balance before he can brace himself for the attack. He tries to recoverr, to shift into defense mode but he doesn't get the chance. You're relentless, a solar goddess in human form, hurtling blast after blast at him. Miguel has no time to regain his stance, each attack landing with more force than the last.

Gwen makes to step forward, her instincts screaming at her to intervene, but Peter grabs her arm, pulling her back. "That's Sunny," he says, his voice a mixture of awe and concern. Hobie's eyes widen comically. He cocks his head, a smirk playing on his lips. "Our Sunny, eh? Blimey, I never knew she had it in her. That rebellious firecracker," he mutters, a distinct note of admiration creeping into his typically laid-back British drawl.

Miles bursts into the room, breathless and disheveled. He stumbles towards Gwen, his voice hurried and concerned, "I tried to stop her, but she was...she was furious. Woahhh, I've never seen Miguel get beaten like this before."

And he wasn't exaggerating. Miguel was fighting back, his fangs bared, his claws out and ready but he was no match for your rage-fueled attacks. You were right up in his face, delivering punch after punch at a brutal pace

"Where's my son, O’Hara? What have you done to him?" you demand, your voice cutting through the chaos like a blade.

At your words, Miguel's movements falter. His defense wavers, and he barely manages to gasp out, "Your son?" He doesn't dodge your next blow, doesn't attempt to shield himself or strike back. Instead, he allows you to continue.

Miguel is shocked. His reflexes kick in as he sees the next punch coming and he grabs your wrist, halting your next powerful punch aimed for his face. He locks eyes with you, his gaze holding an emotion you've never seen in him before. Is it fear? No, it's much deeper, more profound.

As he stares at you, your luminescent eyes gradually lose their fiery intensity, shifting back to their human form.

"I... I didn't know," Miguel stammers, his voice a trembling whisper. "Lo – lo siento. I – I didn’t know.”

His breaths are ragged, and you can see a war waging inside him.

"But...how?How didn’t I know?" His voice is choked, your wrist still securely in his grip. “Your son?” Miguel continues,his voice is barely above a whisper. His eyes search yours and all he sees is raw, untamed anger with an aching pain that pierces his soul.

“Yes, MY son!” your voice echoes through the room like a whip. “Did you think that you could just take him from me? That I wouldn't come for him?”

Miguel’s grip on your wrist loosens as he stumbles back. His heart feels like it’s about to explode as realization dawns on him. The dark curls, the small fangs the baby had bared at him –pieces of a puzzle start falling into place. His own blood runs cold.

“Where is he, Miguel? Where’s myGabriel?” your voice breaks as you say the name, and it feels like another punch to Miguel's gut.

“Gabr...” Miguel chokes. “No... no...”

His voice is barely audible, the air knocked out of him by the significance of the name. His knees buckle, and he falls on the floor. "NO."

“You, who I thought would protect any child, wanted to eliminate my – our – flesh and blood!” Tears, full of anger and hurt, stream down your face, but your voice doesn't waver one bit.

Miguel, still on the floor, looks up at you with tear-streaked cheeks. “I didn’t know. I swear on my life, on Gabriella’s memory. I-I wanted to do the right thing. I- I never, -Lo siento.”

There’s a moment of tense silence as you look down at the shattered man before you,the love of your life, the father of your child, who almost made the most horrifying, unforgivable mistake.

Just then, from another room, the faint sound of a baby's cries pierce through the heavy atmosphere. You abruptly yank your wrist out of his grasp and towards the door to leave.

Your heart clenches as you break into a run, following the pitiful cries. You don’t look back.

Miguel remains on his knees. He doenst follow you, he doesn’t dare to move, anchored by the crushing weight of what he's done, as the sounds of Gabriel's cries fade into the background.

"Gabriel," he whispers, the name escaping his lips like a vow. A promise of redemption. And with that single word, Miguel knows he'll move heaven and earth to protect his child.

Part 4 "Webs of Redemption"

Hello, you wonderful souls! I want to say a big thank you for your patience and kind words about this series. I really appreciate each of your sweet comments and messages – they mean so much to me. Thank you all for the insightful ideas and suggestions you contributed for part 3. I've incorporated as many of your concepts as I could because they're simply brilliant. I'm eager to hear more of your thoughts, criticisms, and proposals for part 4. I also want to give a special thanks to Jess, @wolfjessedragon . Her inspiration and amazing ideas were the driving force behind Part 3, and I couldn't have written it without her! love you guys, keep being awesome!

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gatorbites-imagines · 9 months

Note

Was wondering if I could maybe do a hobbie brown request?

I was thinking of something like M!reader being an alternate universe version of Miguel's child who, rather than dying himself, had to watch his dad die, basically becoming a smaller version of Miguel but with some key differences (ie like having difficulties with controlling his powers when he’s emotional or having authority issues) and Hobbie seems to take a liking towards him?

Hobie Brown x O’Hara male reader

Headcanons

Theres really not enough hobie gifs,,,,

I literally got a spidersona whose Miguel’s son lmaooo, not movie Miguel, but like, the Miguel from a different earth. So, the reader is based off of him in this :3c

You would have joined the spider society after an abnormality appeared in your world. Everyone had expected to meet another version of Miguel, since it was set in Nueva York. But instead, they got you.

You were younger, angrier, had less control of your powers, and had little to no respect for authority. And though it pained you deeply to see Miguel, he didn’t have a similar reaction, since he had a daughter and not a son.

Others started to avoid you since you had a tendency to snap at others and your powers made it even harder for you to get close to anyone. Like your dad, you kept to yourself and let yourself stew in your misery.

The first time you met Hobie was during on of your common arguments with Miguel. You two were way too alike, meaning you two butted heads, a lot. You each had your own way of doing things and didn’t like change. Maybe it was the O’Hara in your blood, but you never backed down.

It became a common sight to see the two of you hissing and snapping at each other, you because Miguel looked exactly like the dad who had abandoned you, and Miguel because you were like a reflection of himself and all the things he hated about himself.

After another one of your explosive arguments, you stomped out of Miguel’s “office”, but before you could get fat Hobie fall down from the ceiling and started walking beside you, giving you some compliment about how you never seemed to back down against authority.

In the beginning Hobie had annoyed you a lot, you had tried to chase him off like you had everyone else, but Hobie didn’t seem to act like everyone else.

He had a feeling that you chased off anyone who might like you because you feel you don’t deserve it, and after a long time of needling and prodding, you two became closer. At this time, you were both developing feelings, but you didn’t accept you liked someone, and Hobie felt no need to rush it.

As you became good friends, your image at hq became lighter, as having a friend seemingly was what you needed. Someone who’d talk you down when you fell back too much on your anger and spidery biology, and someone who’d listen when you needed to talk, and Hobie was a great listener.

Hobie ends up learning about your situation. You father was Miguel O’Hara, your earths version of him, and he was spiderman. He had you with your mother, and when you were young he left and never returned. Apparently, he believed that abandoning you would save you, or he felt he didn’t deserve a family.

When he left you had been old enough to know he abandoned you, and seeing spiderman on tv screens and on the internet only made you and your mother feel worse.

And then one day Spiderman died. Not long after that your mother got remarried and you started developing your powers. They had stayed dormant until you reached a certain age, and your mother and her husband had reacted horribly to this.

They turned horribly abusive, and you had to run away when you were a teen. One thing led to another, and Miguel’s brother Gabriel helped you onto your feet. He hadn’t known you existed until then.

Together he taught how to control your powers, he had helped you become spiderman, and then he died. He was your uncle ben you could say, but you held his words close to your heart to become a better spiderman, even though your powers became too much sometimes.

Talking about your issues ended up helping you a lot, and even though you do rage sometimes, its much less now, and you start to get closer to the other spiderpeople around your age.

At some point, when you and Hobie are hanging out in your dimension, sitting on a rooftop and eating something you got from a food truck, Hobie turns to you.

You both have your masks pushed up, or rather Hobie has his pushed up, and yours is a hologram and has just disappeared from the bottom of your face.

Before you can react, Hobie has leaned over and kissed you. You don’t even get to return the kiss before he’s pulled away and returned to his food, acting as casual as ever. Its only when you shake him demanding an answer that he tells you that he likes you.

Thanks to all the growth you’ve done as a person you are able to admit that you like him too, and another kiss is shared between the two of you. And after that, you two became a thing.

Hobie was never one for labels, but hed accept the label of being your boyfriend. He happily told anyone who asked, almost bragging that he was able to get you to agree to date him, which always leads to you rolling your eyes at him but smiling, just a little.

Miguel almost has a heart attack when he learns you and Hobie are dating, because after all this time hes started to see you in a familial light, and you have started to see him in a similar way. He will never be your original dad, and you will never be his daughter, but that’s okay.

Hobie is very proud of you for making such great progress, so he takes you out on a date. He isn’t one for big expensive dates, so it would be something like swinging around his city together, or cuddling in his apartment as you watch a movie.

Maybe it wasn’t so bad to join the spider society as you thought it was.

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spiderpussinc · 9 months

Note

are the 2099 comics THAT bad in terms of racism plus other weird writing choices??? i'm starved for miguel content and would like to read the original comic run but i keep seeing the debate of the original comics being problematic and/or downright just BAD bad (not to mention miguel is supposed to have mexican heritage but he's straight up a white redhead lol)

Some people may disagree but speaking as a latinx writer; it's bad because it is racist, yes! On multiple fronts!! And beyond that, it's also bad as a complete failure of comics structure and compelling narrative.

Longpost, on readmore;

I say this as a long-time capeshit reader, as politely as possible: Miguel's comics are a *paycheck* book. As in; a series a writer does monthly to be paid for it, but with middling aspirations and downright negative characterization depending on where their mood is.

The first few issues of his 1992 run are relatively complete and well-balanced, may even trick you into thinking this story is going somewhere; but that's only because they're the /character pitch./ Ill skip to the end and tell you upfront. That 1992 series ends with the implosion of the whole "2099" line of comics (an universe that included other books, like ghost rider, doom, etc, by other writers) due to dwindling public interest and mass cancellations. The end of that run is basically meaningless, since the whole thing got retconned - and even before that a guest writer had came in and made mistaken character reveals pdavid wasnt happy with and wanted to erase before the finale. The event book that wrapped up that universe was unironically, literally called -- "2099: Manifest Destiny."

Now, I don't like Peter David's writing. I think he's obsessed with the idea of building harems out of his female characters (when he's not fridging them, or making them act ~crazy~ to further alienate them from the protagonist) and it is the kind of grueling, joyless reading experience I can only describe as making you feel Oily Inside. This goes as far as multiple stalking plotlines, the inclusion of a guest appearance from AU s/x slaver Hulk in later years, Miguel's mother being strongly implied to have been forced into conceiving him by his real dad who's the evil CEO of alchemax, general torture painporn. His broader supporting cast is so interchangeable and disposable that they were literally disposed of.

In terms of the racism; I have mentioned how he uses cultures as tokens and does 0 research whatsoever. The way it feels and the way it is deployed is through a lens of Exoticism - tourism. Miguels suit is allegedly "a dia de los muertos costume" b/c pdavid seems to think that holiday is mexican halloween. In the orig book, you'll see plenty of broken japanese and stereotypical orientalist caricatures - after killing his first love interest, pdavid introduces a japanese girl who is unironically, literally named "Xina" (that pretends to be chinese on occasion) to fill in the vacant role. Miguel himself falls right into all the usual latino stereotypes — short tempered, drug addict, sex magnet "latin lover" (this last one also applied to his brother Gabriel, who for the longest time is characterized by just Going Through A Lot Of Girlfriends). And it's kind of insane bc he's still being drawn as a deeply deeply white man, but not even that takes off the burden of the racial microagressions!!! They're the only times pdavid seems to remember that heritage! Then there's the commemorative hanging page. Since you mention the redheadedness; thats another insane thing to me. He has 0% of irish in him. His dad is Blond. Who is this man?

Most of the info in the 2099 run is either revealed to be a lie midway thru (miguel is not mr o'hara's son, nor addicted to rapture) or completely retconned away to be rewritten in new runs. Different writers have tried to come in and do miguel in other team/event books but frankly nothing stands out and most of them get marked as alternate-miguels. Unfortunately, every time marvel decided to give another shot at spider-man 2099 they also brought pdavid back. The newer books were never a success, and theyre just as filled w/ the garbage i mentioned earlier (wow! Steampunk spider-woman is given to pdavid for *ONE* issue and instantly tonguekisses gabriel before leaving, so novel. More fridging ensues. Stalking. Etc.) 2099 as an *universe* has been retconned so many times Nothing is consistent and Nothing is set on stone and frankly i think they should make it an AU separate from main canon and build a whole new world already.

The art in the 2015 + runs consists mostly of tracing, and more of that oily weird feeling applied to fem chars. Perhaps you have noticed in this entire hate review have never once spoken about Miguel's heroic plots and memorable villains --- he has none. At least nothing I can remember or distinguish. (Interchangeable, disposable, etc) There is a vague inkling of "this is an anti-stabilishment spiderman, he fights against The Public Eye, the Corporation Cops!" at the start but much like his cultural illiteracy pdavid has no real insightful politics commentary, so that dissolves into the background in time. Its all buzzwords. All of his plotlines are solved in circuitous or soap operaish extradrama ways; and while some of this is present in other superhero comics, what stands out to me MOST is how utterly fucking joyless Miguel's comics are. It's like going through a slog on obligation. They genuinely gave me a headache every time.

ATSV does a great job of reinventing Miguel and rebuilding the parts of him that showed real promise. Being a different tone-swapped spiderman, futuristic, being more on the tech-science side of crime fighting. Him being a single dad with a daughter is also new. (And he is single! There is no singular mention of marriage or a wife anywhere, he's a geneticist, multiple spider-men we see in this movie were literal clones made in tubes - i am fond of the idea he's a transmasc dad but even if you think he's cis he could have made that baby himself. Adoption is also always there.) I think its very clear ATSV didn't want to bring any of pdavids major weird shit w fem chars to the big screen on the hopes that miguel gets rebooted eventually. I think he's gay. Nobody can prove me wrong.

On that note, Steve Orlando (queer writer, also wrote for DC's midnighter/apollo) did some of the latest 2022/2023 Miguel miniseries. Another reboot! Those were "2099: Exodus" and "Spider-man 2099: Dark Genesis" - i think its campier/trying to tackle superhero plots more head on and trying to do something wide wacky cast focused at Marvel's personal request, but Miguel's future is very up in the air rn. I do really hope they reboot him into something closer to ATSV with latines at the center soon.

What I always reccomend for people curious abt miguel: read his first 3ish 1992 issues, get a general feel and close the book as soon as you feel annoyed. It won't get better. Remember none of it is canon nor has been relevant in over two decades. If you want to know the wider context of his messy chronology, check out some of the 2099 "all comics" type of youtube videos, theres some pretty easy to digest summarizations if u dont wanna waste ur time reading stuff that just got retconned again lol. Most writers now are operating on vibes and that is a freedom you should also allow yourself in your own fanwork.

Putting his panels out of context can be very funny though. (For further curiosity or tangents, there's always my meta tag)

#meta tag #asks #miguel o'hara #miguel ohara #spiderman 2099 #spiderverse #spider man: across the spider verse #atsv #my spider stuff #atsv miguel #miguel atsv #marvel comics #spiderman #itsv #2099

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stillarat · 10 months

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I loved your alt Gabriel X angel reader is there any chance of continuation for it?

i'd for sure be for continuing it if I get some ideas, that first one shot was really fun for me :)

#alternate gabriel x reader #alternate gabriel x you #alt gabriel #alternate gabriel

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spookiifi · 1 year

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@gressfedburger asks:

May I please request a fic where a female reader facesits Gabriel upon his request?

YES YOU CAN. As you can see I'm excited lmao

This is very overdue I’m so sorry for the wait.

In this fic, the reader already knows who Gabriel really is. I’ll still refer to him as Gabriel though to make things easier.

I’m also giving credit to @alternate-simp since they said Gabriel’s a thigh guy. I love the concept.

“When I say, sit, I want to feel your thighs against my face.” He growled, more of a command than anything.

You were afraid of suffocating him, but at the same time, he couldn’t die. He was an alternate.

“Do you trust me?” Gabriel asked from underneath you, snapping you out your thoughts. He ran his hand along your thigh. He couldn’t read your mind, but it his words were enough to put it at ease.

“Of course, I do. Why wouldn’t I?” You remained still.

Gabriel was growing impatient. “I said; do you trust me?”

“Yes, I do!” You glanced down at him. “I want this just as much as you do.”

“Then; Sit. Down.” He grabbed you roughly by the waist and your legs hit the sheets.

His tongue worked like magic, running up your slit before stopping at your sensitive clit. Your alternate angel was ruthless as sucked on your clit.

You cried out suddenly as his tongue pushed past your folds. Gabriel knew exactly what he was doing, and was incredibly skilled.

His grip tightened on your thighs. “So soft, so pure. Spread your legs further, darling.”

“G-Gabriel!” You squirmed above him as he ate you out again. To take the matters into his own hands even more, one of his fingers reached up to massage your clit.

“Coming so soon, my dear?”

“How did-“

“I can sense it.” He chuckled. “Do it, then. I’m waiting.” Gabriel’s tongue dove deep inside you.

Your eyes rolled back into your head as you released around his tongue. He didn’t let go of your thighs, though.

With his amount of stamina, he was going to destroy you by the end of the night.

#submission #not safe for tumblr #gabriel x reader #alternate gabriel x reader #archangel gabriel x reader #bro shows no mercy #thank you for the submission!

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thelightsandtheroses · 5 months

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Four: rumours about my hips and thighs and my whispered sighs

Your Hand In Mine | Joel Miller x female reader.

Chapter Summary: Joel and your relationship continues to develop, as more people in Jackson find out about the two of you. Chapter Warnings: 18+ blog, MDNI, mild smut, brief reference to FEDRA punishments and death, reader is a single parent to a teenager, small town gossip, intimacy and a little fluff maybe? Word Count: 4.1k Notes - Thank you so much for your patience with this chapter. So, a lot of you know that writing smut is not the most natural thing for me and I get very anxious about these scenes so I’ve tried to write this one in a slightly different way as a gamble and I really hope you all still like it. The chapter title is from Is It Over Now? by Taylor Swift

Previous | Series | Next

There’s a polaroid on your bedside table. It’s faded over the years but it still rests in pride of place, tucked into the edge of a framed photo of you and Gabriel in Kansas.

Sean’s sister said it was important to take photos. She said it was important to have a record of your life and loved ones. The only problem was she spent her time behind the camera and you’ve struggled to find any photos of her for Sean since … since then, since FEDRA, since Kansas.

You move to the bedside table and reach for the polaroid, holding it up to the fading daylight.

It was taken Before, by the beach where you spent so much time. It’s Sean and you by a bonfire. He’s trying to look cool with his perfectly undone hair and surfer style, while you’re just smiling widely at the camera.

You were both so young, so innocent, back then.

You love this photo though. It’s a reminder that there really was a time before Cordyceps. That once upon a time, you lived in a world where the biggest worry you had was assignments and college and whether the right people liked you.

You’re different now.

It’s been almost a fortnight since your date with Joel and there’s been a clear shift between you. You were worried it would be awkward the first time you returned to the bench with Joel. The night after your date, you found yourself glued to your home, unable to leave as you paced your room nervously and sleeplessness ruled your mind. You wondered then if you had made a massive mistake.

If you went back to the bench the next day, would he be there? What if he wasn’t? Would it be different and could you cope with those shifts in dynamics?

Your mind had been drowning with anxiety but you did return to the bench. You’ve spent years fighting infected and people- you survived the damn end of the world.

You could handle this; you could handle a little change.

Now you realise that for all that has changed, so much has stayed the same.

You still talk on the bench, but you’re touching him more, you’re closer and closer by the day. You’ve discovered your hand fits perfectly in his.

It’s not like before with two lost souls just sharing a view and waiting for the night to pass.

Often now you end up kissing and oh, that’s becoming one of your favourite side effects of insomnia. You wonder if you ever really need to try and sleep if that’s the alternative.

Now your evenings on the bench are spent together, in easy comfort. You laugh at his stupid jokes - Joel told you that he found a book of them and is working through them with Ellie.

This feels like a beginning.

When you see him in town now, he walks over to you and yesterday he had walked you home from the library because it was ‘on his way.’

It’s tentative though; Joel’s taking his cues from you, from the fact that maybe this isn’t like your dalliances and romances before. In Kansas, for the last twenty years really, you felt like the world was ending all the time. There was no time for build-up in a world like that, for a genuine connection or a slow burn. You might be dead at any moment so there was no time for that. It isn’t that love can’t happen in those conditions, you know Beau and Sean are shining examples of this. It’s just for you, your priorities were Gabriel and survival. Pleasure was perfunctory, relationships were only distant, you didn’t think you were built for anything more.

Now, in Jackson, you can breathe. You can be more.

You want to be more.

It’s just how to make that first step, how to reach out and go beyond the bench. Joel was the one to ask you to the Tipsy Bison after all, if it’s up to you to progress things …. well, maybe you need to be bolder.

You wring your hands together and look ahead of you.

You can barely remember putting your coat on or walking over to this house. It’s early evening and the deep pinks and oranges of the sky are turning dark, lights starting to turn on in the commune you call home to beat the shadows ahead.

You’re outside of Joel’s house, in front of the porch You’ve got this, you think. This is a big step. One that feels filled with trepidation and excitement at once.

It’s the fact you want to open up, want to trust Joel that truly scares you. You can remember the last time you felt like this all too well.

It’s different though. It’s completely different.

This is Joel.

There’s an inherent fear in falling for him, falling for anyone. Trusting someone, letting them inside your life, into the nooks and crevices of your soul? That doesn’t come easily to you. Relationships have always been hard that way, even before the world ended or before Gabriel, or before any of it.

You’ve known him for weeks though. He isn’t a stranger., he’s a friend, one you feel more deeply than friendship about. The two of you bonded through your insomnia led conversations, through your bench. In the dim torchlight, both of you have exposed all too much of yourselves.

This is a step further though, it’s bold and maybe a little brazen but it feels right, like it’s time. You like Joel, you want him. He’s solid and caring and real and somehow it feels like you’ve known him so much longer. You like being with him, like the way his lips feel on yours and the way his eyes warm up when he smiles. You like hearing your name from his voice, how he says it like it’s something special. You can’t remember anyone saying your name like that before.

This is a step further though, it’s bold and maybe a little brazen but it feels right, like it’s time.

You take a deep breath and knock on the door.

Joel leans against the edge of the door, his right thumb in the loop of his worn jeans.

“Hi,” he says, voice low and slow.

“Hey,” you reply, shifting from one foot to the other. “I hope it’s okay that I just stopped by.”

“Of course.”

The two of you settle in his kitchen. You watch him put the kettle on the stove, watch the flames on the hob around it.

You place your hands on the top of a wooden dining chair and then in your jacket pockets and then by your side.

What are you doing?

What was your grand plan anyway?

You’re not sure what you’re thinking. Ellie could be here. This is stupid and reckless and -

“I’m glad you’re here,” Joel says, as if reading your mind. “Everything okay?” His brow furrows.

You might need to work on your poker face.

”I -” you pause, unsure of how to proceed, what to say to the man before you. “I was thinking of you.“

“Oh, really?” Something like relief floods Joel’s face, his brow loosens and there’s a flash of something else in his eyes.

“Don’t let it go to your head.”

“Well, I don’t know where else you want it to go.”

You laugh at his words and feel the tension around you immediately dissipate. “Oh, don’t you?”

“Careful, sweetheart.”

“Careful?”

“I - uh -”

“Where’s Ellie?” you ask as casually as you can, looking around the kitchen.

“She’s out in the garage, wants to turn it into a den or something? Probably won’t see her for hours and hours.”

“That’s a good idea. Gabe would have loved that with ours but Beau made it a gym. Anyone in Jackson can use it though.”

“I heard about something like that,” he says placidly, as if thirty seconds you weren’t flirting.

“It feels odd, like the last twenty years haven’t been enough of a workout, but -”

“It’s normal.”

“Or as close to,” you say softly.

“Exactly.” The kettle is starting to whistle but neither of you move.

“So …”

Joel closes the gap between the two of you.

His lips are on yours almost instantly. For someone who isn’t the most open or transparent in his words, he communicates perfectly with his gestures. The way he puts so many words into the way his lips fit against yours, the hum of a low sound in his throat.

His hands sweep down your side, pushing you against a kitchen counter, your hands bracing the edges as you melt into him.

This isn’t the kissing on a bench, this isn’t like anything you and Joel have done together yet. This is a sea change moment.

As you wrap your hands around his neck to bring him closer, you feel his hands move to where yours were, bracing the edge of the counter as he deepens the kiss once more.

You want his hands on you, not the kitchen counter, you need him.

You can’t tell if it’s the kettle’s crescendo or the blood in your ears but something around you screams. You can’t really care though. The whole house could be burning down now.

Joel pulls away momentarily to turn the kettle off.

“Sorry about that, it got loud.”

“Don’t apologise.”

“You - ”

“I-“

“Sorry, go ahead,” he says, his expression a mix of amusement and something else. There’s a heat in his eyes. It isn’t dangerous; you don’t feel under attack, but you knew exactly what you wanted when you knocked on his door.

You pause, pursing your lips as you try and bring to life the right words, the phrases you rehearsed in your mind as you made the journey between home and here.

Words don’t feel your strength at the best of times though. They fail you and falter and can’t vanquish your foes.

“I’m - I don’t want to talk right now,” you finally say, fixating your gaze on the kitchen floor. For twenty years old, it looks in good condition.

“Really?”

You look up and finally meet Joel’s eyes. He’s smiling at you. You nod.

“So, why’d you come over then?”

“Don’t be an ass.”

“Okay.”

“Is it okay that I’m here?”

“Is it okay you’re here?” Joel asks incredulously, muttering something else you can’t quite make out under his breath. “You’re impossible.”

“I’m impossible?”

“Do you have any idea how hard it’s been?”

You raise your eyebrows. “I live with two men and a teenage boy, I deserve a fucking medal for avoiding the dodgy puns you almost bought on yourself right there.”

“Fuck me.”

You smirk then, uncharacteristically emboldened and raise an eyebrow. “Well?”

“I like you,” Joel says suddenly.

“I like you too,” you say, reaching a hand to touch his bicep, feeling the surprisingly soft flannel fabric. “You’re - I haven’t really dated in Jackson. You’re different, I guess.”

“Good different?”

“Ask me later,” you tease.

He meets your lips. “You seemed so sweet on that bench that first night.”

“Did I? Sweet? I was trying to be standoffish and rude at first so you didn’t come back.”

“But I did.” Joel pauses. “Maybe you weren’t that sweet. I knew you were - I wanted to know you more and then we got talking and - and you’ve been the best part of not being able to sleep in years. Used to numb it all away, but I couldn’t do that here, not anymore. Then there was you.”

“It’s been - been a while, I might -“ Joel says, a bashful look on his face.

“Same, it’s uh, been some time for me too.”

“Okay then.”

“Okay.”

There’s the briefest of moments where you remain silent, separated by an invisible barrier of tension and anticipation.

You break it. You go to him.

It’s time.

It’s the two of you. Lips on you every step of the way to his bedroom, hands entwined with yours as he guides you where you need to be.

You pull your top over your head, keen to lose the layers that are you keeping you from him and you hungrily unbutton his flannel.

It’s how his words oscillate between sweet, gentle encouragement and then convey such unbridled desire and heat in the same breath. His touch is stable, grounded and fills you with heat as his fingers deftly unbutton your trousers, skim over the fabric of your underwear.

You don’t feel uncertain or nervous or self-conscious.

You feel like this is natural.

It’s how his hands explore every part of you, then his lips, accompanied by with whispered words.

It’s power and care together. There’s something different about the way it feels, the way he moves inside you, the way he kisses you, the way he feels.

You feel the tension mounting, the heat building across your body and with every touch, every kiss, every movement, it intensifies, builds in the most delightful way.

You take in every detail of Joel, the heat of his skin, the cross patch of faded and red scars across his body, the sounds he makes and the way it feels as you run your hands through his dampening curls, bring him closer to you in a consuming kiss.

You let go.

You wake up in an unfamiliar but comfortable bed with a beam of daylight blaring through the gap in the curtains . You’re not sure what surprises you more; that you’re with Joel or that you slept through the night.

Joel’s arm is casually strewn over your side, his head burrowed into his other arm and hair dishevelled. You can hear the sound of his breathing, deep and slow.

He looks peaceful like this.

You take in the details of his face. There’s a faded scar by his temple, marks of a life spent surviving and labouring, but asleep he looks younger.

You shut your eyes. You can have five more minutes before you need to wake and get back to Gabriel and your home.

“Hi,” he says, rubbing his eyes.

“Hey. It’s morning.”

“How about that?”

“This was nice.”

“Just nice?”

You shake your head. “More than nice, that work for you?”

“Maybe we ought to make sure - I don’t want you leaving here on just nice.”

You kiss him, let his hands roam down your body as you entwine your own hands around his neck. As his body moves over you and his hand skims down to between your legs, you think you could easily forget about the library or checking in on Gabriel and just spend the rest of the day in Joel’s bed, getting to know every inch of this impossible man.

You hear a loud crash downstairs and Joel winces, rolls back onto his pillow and sighs.

“Next time,” he says.

“It’s a date. Look, I need to get back before Gabriel notices. Do - do you need to run interference so I don’t bump into Ellie?”

“’S fine.”

“Are you sure?”

Joel props himself up on an elbow and regards you carefully. “Do you want me to run interference?”

“I - no, I don’t know. I just wanted to give you the option.” You shrug.

Joel seems deep in thought, his brow furrowed as you wait for his response. For a second, he seems lost, somewhere else entirely.

“There’s no need for that,” he says finally.

“Okay.”

You smile and when he joins you, it’s dazzling. You notice every detail of his face, how his eyes soften when he smiles, how real this moment feels. You could stay here so much longer, you could wake up like this again and again.

You hear another bang downstairs and Joel winces.

“I better get down there.”

You nod. “I’ll be down shortly then.”

Joel nods, smiling tentatively. “I, uh -” He runs a hand over his hair. “Oh, shit I’m no good at this, not anymore, not sure I ever was. “

You briefly kiss him. ”It’s okay. We’re okay.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” You sigh. “Can we talk later though. I mean, I meant to talk to you last night before - before everything.” You need to have that serious conversation about how to move forwards, at one point you will both need to talk to your teenagers, about all of the unsexy, intricate details that are essential but preferably avoided.

“Is that an ominous talk?” Joel asks.

“No,” you say with a smile, “no, it’s not.”

“Then definitely.”

You’re running through a ledger of current book loans when you hear footsteps ahead. You look up and brace yourself without thinking; it isn’t easy to forget years of what’s needed to survive.

You feel your muscles relax as you recognise Maria as she walks into the library, holding her baby closely in her arms.

Maria’s walking over though. You can’t do this in front of her.

“Hi Maria,” you say cheerfully, stepping out from behind your counter.

“Hey,” she says, “I’m sorry, it’s been a while since we caught up.”

“Please don’t apologise, you’ve had more than enough going on,” you say, reaching your hand towards Maria’s daughter’s chubby cheeks. “She’s gorgeous, Maria.“

“Yeah, isn’t she though?” Maria says with a soft sigh.

“How are you doing?” You ask carefully. You can’t imagine how Maria really feels. There is the intense joy of her beautiful, healthy daughter and the simultaneous memories it must bring up of Kevin. You can’t imagine that kind of loss, dread to think what sort of world you could live in without your son.

“I’m okay, I’m good.”

“Good,” you say, trying to wordlessly communicate that if that changes you are here, that you want to be there for her.

You and Maria have been friends since shortly after you arrived in Jackson. When you first entered the community, you were nervous, resistant at best and outright scornful at worst. It didn’t make sense to you a community like this could exist anymore. You needed to find the truth, needed to expose what was really going on.

Maria had found you searching her house one day, eyes wild and on the verge of pulling up floorboards.

It should have been the end of your time at Jackson. She had every right to kick you out of the town for that and you expected her to.

Instead it was the start of a friendship you now rely on. You wonder if Maria saw the truth behind your eyes, could intimate why you might have been so nervous. You’ve never told her though and she’s never asked.

You and Sean haven’t told anybody but Beau. Even Beau only knows a version of the truth. It’s easier that way.

You wonder if Sean is like you - if he’s repeated a story so many times it’s began to feel like the truth.

“I heard - I heard some things on the grapevine and I might have seen you leaving a house this morning” Maria says, her face a picture of contradictions. There’s a sly smile growing on her face but her brow is furrowed.

“Did you now?” You fold your arms, wary of where this is going. There’s only one thing in your life, one person, you think Maria would have heard gossip about.

“So, you and Joel, huh?”

You fight a smile at having guessed correctly. Maria meets your eyes and her expression softens as she watches your reaction.

“It’s … new,” you reply slowly, still idly letting Maria’s daughter clasp your finger and smiling widely at her.

Maria nods and then she bites her lips and seems to ready herself to say something. “He’s …”

“Your brother-in-law?” you note gently, taking a step back to lean against the desk. You’re more certain of Maria’s take on this now and you hope the intention behind your words come through.

Maria sighs, “Yep, you’re right there. Touché.” She smiles, shaking her head lightly. “I didn’t come here to warn you off.”

Good.” You can’t, you realise. It’s not because you’ve slept with him, it’s more than that. You’re coming to realise how deep Joel’s burrowed into your life, how much you care about him.

It is terrifying and wonderful at the same time.

“I guess I was a little surprised though.”

“Surprised?”

“You haven’t shown much interest in dating since you got to Jackson.”

You laugh to yourself, tapping your fingers against the edge of the wooden desk. “Oof, Maria, body blow after body blow, huh? Your mom’s on fire today, sweetheart.” You pause and carefully choose your next words. “It’s not a lie though, is it?”

You take a step back and take a sip from your glass of water as you try and think about the best way to explain what’s happened.

“Look, Maria, I wasn’t exactly looking for anyone, Joel just … turned up in my life and - and I can’t know what this is going to exactly turn into yet or how long, but I want to find out.”

“Okay,” she says, “We can work with that.”

She smiles widely suddenly. “We should all have dinner soon.”

“No, no,” you say, “it is way too early for that.”

“Excuse me, I saw you leaving his house this morning but it’s too early for a dinner?”

“Absolutely it is. I haven’t even talked to Gabriel about this yet and it’s -”

You shouldn’t be surprised that there have been whispers about you and Joel but you’re surprised it’s moved this quickly. Jackson has that cliched small town feel you used to watch cheesy movies about. The one drink with him in the Tipsy Bison was enough to start the rumours but if Maria knows about last night already then the gossip is spreading faster than you expected.

It’s always been difficult to know the moment when to introduce Gabriel to someone you’ve dated, when to tell either party about the other. You love your son and all you have ever wanted is to protect him.

At the same time, you know this feels like something that will become something he needs to know about. You try so hard not to immediately fall for people, to keep your previous relationships at arm’s length, to go into anything with your eyes open and every option evaluated.

You’ve fallen hard before after all.

You shift awkwardly on the spot. You’ll have to talk to Gabriel tonight - keep it brief, keep it simple and casual. It’s only fair he hears about this from you and not some teenage idiot in his class.

“I’m teasing,” Maria says softly, “it’s fine. Though, I know the two of you. So, if this does go where it looks like it will, I’m holding you to that dinner.”

“Deal.”

You’ve almost finished for the day when you notice Joel walk into the library.

“Hi.”

“Hi,” you say, placing the pile of CDs you were checking down. Beau stopped by earlier with a pile of discoveries from the morning’s patrol and to confirm he had noticed you were in last night’s clothes this morning.

Joel looks awkward for a moment, loitering by the counter.

“I know you said we should talk and - I didn’t know where else to find you.”

“It’s fine, it’s a good idea actually.” You gesture over to where you’ve placed two battered armchairs in your attempt to create a reading nook.

“It looks good here, like a proper library.”

“Yeah?”

Joel nods and opens his mouth as if he’s about to say something but stops himself.

“You know, you’re not my first visitor today,” you say casually, “I saw Maria earlier.”

“Oh?”

“Seems we’re the talk of the town.”

Joel runs a hand through his hair. “Fantastic.”

“All my dreams have come true at once.”

Joel sighs. “Do you want me to back off then?”

You look at him, your brow furrows in confusion. “Back off?”

“I know it’s harder when you’ve got kids and especially teenagers - if you want space, to let the gossip die down so we don’t have to - I should have realised when you said about interference.” Joel seems to be reciting something he’s ran through in his mind already.

“I don’t want you to back off,” you say with a smile. “I - I don’t know what we’ll be yet, or if any of this is going to work out at all. Hell, in a week we might be working out a bench custody agreement -”

Joel snorts at that. “Okay, I hear you.”

“I like you, Joel, and I - I had fun last night. I’d like to see where this goes. I need you to respect that I have a kid, like I respect you do. We can’t rush this, we can’t -”

“Agreed.”

“I’m kind of glad you turned up on my bench that night, Joel.”

Joel smiles. “Yeah? Me too.”

Tag List

YHIM: @orcasoul @pedropascalsbbg @yoursoulsunbreakable @iamskyereads @genetics4life @everyth1ngfan @frickatives @perennialdoll247 @joelsgreys @pedrobaby @missladym1981 @noisynightmarepoetry @picketniffler

Everything Pedro tag-list: @harriedandharassed @pedrostories @hiroikegawa @pedrosaidsheispunk @pastelnap

#joel miller x reader #joel miller x you #joel miller x female reader #joel miller #the last of us fanfiction #pedro pascal character #joel miller fanfiction #the last of us #your hand in mine fic

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