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leenthequeen · 1 year

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I am aware that the ending of The Power of The Doctor was somewhat controversial, and there were many people who did not appreciate the decision to have the 13th Doctor regenerate into David Tennant. I do understand their point of view, and so I have decided to write an alternate regeneration scene, hopefully improving the 13th Doctor's ending and giving her a proper send-off. I hope you enjoy :)

THE POWER OF THE DOCTOR: ALTERNATE ENDING

She took one last, longing look at Yaz before the TARDIS doors shut with that familiar creak. She reached a glowing hand down to the dematerialisation switch, and pulled it. The TARDIS groaned into action, the time rotor rising and falling as the engines roared for her last trip.

Her hands began to sting, their cells already beginning the regeneration process.

“Aw…” she said out loud, to nobody in particular, “I wanted to go somewhere nice…”

Still, the TARDIS had served her well during the last few regenerations. She might as well do it here.

The stinging pain was growing stronger and stronger, and was beginning to course up her arms. She gave a brave smile, still speaking to the air - or maybe she was talking to her faithful ship?

“That’s the only sad thing… I want to know what happens next…”

The TARDIS gave a sympathetic hum. She shrugged. The stinging had become a searing, burning sensation, hot around her neck. The glow was beginning to distort her vision, like a heat haze. She wondered who she’d become. She hoped they’d be good.

“Right then, Doctor Whoever-I’m-about-to-be…”

No. She knew they’d be good.

“Tag. You’re it!”

And she let the golden energy burst loose, searing away at every atom of her body, reconfiguring it into something new, something… someone different. The bright white light filled her vision as she let out a cry of something between triumph and pain.

She fell onto the ground.

As the painful light began to fade from her vision, she reached for the TARDIS’s console, hoping to help herself up. She was surprised when she found nothing there.

Wait… she wasn’t a she anymore.

They were pretty sure of that.

What were they, then? What did they look like?

Their vision was blurry… and not just from the new eyes. This incarnation’s eyesight was… bad. They let out a hacking cough, watching golden energy disperse into the air as they did so - their lungs weren’t exactly as great as they had been either.

Still, at least they had eyes and lungs. They ran an internal check, making sure everything was where it should be. Kidneys - check. Legs - both there. Arms - yep. Hearts - both beating regularly.

They got up with a groan.

Their eyesight was pretty bad, but the TARDIS was definitely not what it had been. The control room had completely upheaved itself - it had shrunk significantly, and it seemed to have gone back to a white colour scheme. That was nice. Old-school. The central console was… not there anymore? It seemed to have been replaced with some rudimentary controls on one end of the newly rectangular chamber - not unlike those you’d find on an Earth car. Steering wheel, gearstick, handbrake… all the trappings. At least they had a chair to sit in now - they’d been meaning to install that for ages.

The scanner was weird too. It had been split into multiple different scanners - one big one in the front, above the controls, and two or three smaller ones around the other walls. They provided a 360 degree view of the exterior - a sun-scorched desert, with big red rock formations and dried-out plants. Insects chirped around them. Rassilon knew where they’d landed.

They staggered towards the TARDIS dashboard. They began pressing buttons, pulling levers at random.

“Hey, now, old girl… can you tell us where we are? We-”

They stopped. Their voice was raspy and deep, but it had another, stranger quality. A weird, twangy accent. They’d never had that before. What did the humans call it again? Ah, yes. American.

The TARDIS, for her part, was remaining firmly silent. There was, however, an upside to the Doctor’s experimentation with the new console - they’d found a pair of glasses. Square, metallic, wire-rimmed ones, which seemed to be tailored exactly to this incarnation’s new eyesight. The TARDIS might have been silent, but she could still generate technology - that was a relief, at least.

There was a small mirror set above the scanner, and the Doctor was quick to use it to observe their new face - aided by their new-found glasses.

They definitely looked older than their past incarnation. They were bald and bearded, with rough skin and wrinkles beginning to form. Stress lines on the forehead, bags under the eyes. Hopefully they were just a result of post-regenerative trauma.

They looked down. Oh no. Their clothes had regenerated too? They were no longer wearing the rainbow-striped T-shirt and long grey coat of their former incarnation - that had been replaced with a sober green shirt and gray trousers. Definitely a bit more toned-down.

A twinge of dread shot through them. Their screwdriver! They began to pat down, feeling all their pockets to see if it had relocated with their regeneration. A-ha! They had found something! They pulled the long, wand-shaped object out of their breast pocket, and gave it a close inspection.

The screwdriver had regenerated along with the clothes. It was thinner and made from a dark blue plastic instead of metal. The activation button was on the base, and it didn’t seem to be able to light up. The Doctor flicked it on, experimentally. A small metal nib emerged from the surface. Ah. Not a screwdriver, then.

They looked around the TARDIS, realising now that it was full of strange glass devices - Erlenmeyer flasks, bulbous, round bottles, intricate arrays of tubing… A chemistry lab! Maybe this was the TARDIS giving them a hint - make your own stuff.

Fair enough.

The Doctor crouched down, surveying the piles of plastic pots full of chemical substances. Red phosphorous, phenylacetic acid… Methylamine?

A knock came on the door. The Doctor started, running towards the TARDIS doors. A voice came from outside.

“Hey, I’m done. Can you open the door?”

It was a male voice, loud and deep. Also American. He seemed somewhat frustrated. The Doctor peered through a window. Standing outside was a human male. Younger than the Doctor’s current body - maybe in his early twenties? - with short, scruffy hair and a faint five-o’clock shadow. He was wearing a graphic T-shirt with a skull on it, and some strange, jagged alien script that not even the TARDIS could translate. Strange…

“Who… Who are you?” The Doctor sounded more nervous than they’d intended to let on.

A loud sigh came from outside. “Seriously? It’s me. Who else is going to be out here?”

“I… I don’t know…”

“Just let me in, alright?”

The Doctor opened the door to their TARDIS. The young man stepped in nonchalantly, as if he were stepping into his own house. Was it not surprising to him to see a police box in the middle of the desert? Was the strange interior not confusing?

“Look,” the Doctor began, “I can explain everything.”

The man scoffed. “What do you mean? Are you okay? I mean, Jesus, you haven’t even started the cook!”

“Yeah… yeah… just need… some fresh air…”

The Doctor staggered out of the TARDIS doors, turning to face their ship. It was not a police box. Definitely not. Somehow, the chamaeleon circuit had managed to repair itself… explaining the strange interior. The inside was not full of scanners, it was full of windows. The TARDIS’s interior was merely replicating the nature of its exterior.

The Doctor’s TARDIS had become a large, white vehicle. Four wheels. Long, with plenty of space to hold… whatever was inside. Not as if exterior size had ever been much of an issue with the TARDIS. Whatever this was… it had a name. It wasn’t a car, not exactly - too big. A van? Camper-van, maybe? No. Initials. Something like… Virtual Reality? No. Wrong way round. Ah! An RV!

They looked on in shock and confusion at their new vehicle’s form as the young man stepped out of the door, a gas mask in hand.

“Hey. I don’t know what’s wrong with you, but we got a schedule to meet, yo! We gotta start cooking, Mr White!”

#writing #doctor who #nuwho #13th doctor #fanfic #doctor who fanfic #thirteenth doctor #doctor who fanfiction #original writing #alternate regenerations are my jam besties #regeneration #the doctor #dr who

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awritingcaitlin · 1 year

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Find the Word Tag

I was tagged by @legiomiam! (Sorry I am once again behind on tag games whoops!)

My words are: head, enemy, hold, slump, inside

I'll be tagging: @juls-writes, @saphoblin, @sentfromwolves, @muddshadow, and @tananaphone for the words: run, trust, back, dry, fine

Snippets are from Siege of Berthingtonn under the cut!

🧡HEAD

“Care to go running with me this morning?” Taryn asked.

“Absolutely not,” Rinnie said. “I tried it once and didn’t like the experience enough to do it again.”

Taryn sat up, taking the warmth of the covers with her. “I figured you’d say something like that.”

She got out of bed, climbing over Rinnie as she did so. Rinnie took the opportunity to trace one of the backs of her hands along Taryn’s side and back. Taryn caught Rinnie’s hand in her own and kissed it.

“I’m going to run now,” she said. She stood and rummaged around in a pile of things she kept in Rinnie’s room for her running clothes—a simple shirt and cutoff shorts. She ran a hand through her short brown hair to get the small bits that could small into her face out of it and then disappeared into the washroom.

Rinnie stretched again, taking up the entire bed for a moment, before getting up herself. She tied a sarong around herself and released her unruly red curls from her silken hair bonnet. Using the elastic around her wrist, she pulled said curls into a messy bun on top of her head. It took an extra second because some of the curls caught in the various small hoops she wore in her ears.

💥ENEMY

“We have to stay and help!” Rinnie shouted, finding her voice.

“We have to move!” Killian responded in kind. “There are other bombs about to go off. We have less time than I thought, and we still don’t know who we can actually trust.”

Rinnie’s heart wrenched. Aenehra was a goddess families worshipped. People had likely sought refuge in that Temple, hoping they’d be safer than taking their chances trying to get inside the Gates. She looked down at her hands, covered in blood, and looked back at the rubble. Emotions she had no name for roiled inside of her. She gave Killian a level look.

“I can’t tell you who to trust, but I can tell you who the enemy is.”

“How thin will you stretch yourself?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

🔫HOLD

“Right then,” Killian said, drawing his gun and aiming it at Elenore. “It looks like diplomacy can be put on hold.”

“Take one step closer or I’ll take the shield down,” Bernhard said, his hands hovering over some controls. “You know what that means for all of Berthingtonn!”

“Back away from the console or I will kill you both,” Killian said.

Bernhard didn’t move.

“I said back away from the console,” Killian continued.

🦴SLUMP

Killian pressed his fingertips against the shield, testing. Then he pulled back his arm and punched it. Bernhard couldn’t bring it down fast enough.

The impact of Killian’s blow sent the wizard reeling as if the punch had hit him physically.

“Why do mages always do this?” Killian asked, grabbing Bernhard by his lapels. “Bernhard, you should know better, so I don’t actually feel sorry for you.”

Bernhard looked like he went to call power to himself, but then slumped in Killian’s grasp.

“You’re nearly bone dry,” Rinnie said aloud, for everyone else’s benefit. “Good luck doing anything without a meal and a good night’s sleep first.”

💙INSIDE

“I’m sure it’ll be…” Ryan began.

“If you say ‘fine’ so help me,” Rinnie growled. “That’s how all the stories start.”

“You’ll do great,” Ryan finished instead. “I’m gonna seal you in.” He pointed to a set of levers. “The one with the red handle will cage the gun and line up the hatch. The blue one will open the hatch from the inside. Gods help you if you have to use the yellow and black one.”

“What’s that one do?”

“It jettisons the ball turret if, for some reason, the hatch doesn’t open.”

Rinnie’s heart sunk into her intestines.

#tag game #find the word #my writing #siege of berthingtonn #taryn #rinnie #killian

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calpalirwin · 3 years

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Dinner Games

Summary: During dinner with the Avengers, you and Bucky find a way to keep things interesting

Word Count: 1.5k

Content: use of sex toys, edging, female orgasm, sex in public places

And away, and away we go!

“No,” you heard Bucky say. “No. Absolutely not.”

You turned in confusion, expecting to find him on the phone, but instead he was staring at you with his arms crossed. “Something wrong?” you asked slowly.

“Yeah. We’re going to be late because you have to change.”

“Why do I have to change? What’s wrong with how I’m dressed now?”

His eyes roamed your body, stopping at the hem of your skirt, his tongue darting out to wet his lips. “Look, doll. We have two options here. We can be a little late because you’re going to change. Or, we don’t go to dinner at all.”

“Oh?” you said, cocking an eyebrow and walking over to him. “So you’re saying you can’t control yourself, is that it?” Your voice dropped to a sultry taunt as you ran your fingertips up the front of his shirt.

“It’s not that I can’t, doll. It’s that I don’t want to.”

“Care to make this interesting, then?” you asked, an idea coming to you.

“What do you have in mind?”

~~~

You were stopped at a red light about a block from the restaurant when a small buzz went through your core. “Bucky!” you hissed, shifting one leg over the other. “This isn’t playing fair. You’re supposed to wait until we get there.”

The corner of his mouth was pulled into a smirk, and he let out a chuckle, as the buzzing stopped. “Had to make sure the remote worked. And that it’s not loud,” he explained with faux innocence.

“You’re a menace,” you retorted, uncrossing your legs.

“This was your idea,” he reminded you. “And I’d work on your poker face.”

~~~

You almost thought Bucky had forgotten about your little toy as he lost himself in conversation with Sam and Steve at dinner, and taking cheap shots at Peter and Tony. And you yourself almost forgot as you focused your attention on your own conversations with other members of the team, growing unaware of the restless circles you were drawing on Bucky’s thigh.

You’d made it through appetizers before a vibration pulsed, causing you to gasp as you took a drink, your hand tightening on Bucky. “You good, Y/N?” Steve asked, his eyebrows pulled together in concern.

“Yep, all good,” you forced a smile, before shooting a look at Bucky. “Seriously?!” you hissed at him, barely moving your lips as the vibrations continued. “Not when I’m trying to drink something. Not cool.”

“You’re the one who started it,” he whispered back, looking down at his lap.

Your eyes followed his, noting the small death grip you had on his cock. “Oops?” you offered up innocently, shrugging your shoulders and moving your hand off to rest more squarely on his thigh, genuinely unaware your hand had traveled up that far.

“Yeah, oops,” Bucky replied mockingly, and the vibrations got kicked up a notch.

“I didn’t know!” you said, loudly, fingers gripping into his thigh. “That story. I didn’t know that story,” you quickly tried to recover. “That’s um… that’s a new one.”

There were stifled coughs, raised eyebrows, and shrugs at your outburst before conversations resumed naturally, and the vibrations went back to a slow, steady beat. “Poker face,” Bucky taunted.

It was sheer stubbornness that kept your face neutral and your body relaxed, despite each pulse of the vibrator making you grow wetter. But as your high crept closer, you felt your face begin to warm as you tried to keep control. “B-Bucky,” you breathed, trying to get his attention, fingernails digging into his thigh as you reached for your water glass, hoping the cold water would soothe you.

He turned his head to press a kiss to your cheek, using the chance to coo “Gonna cum? Right here at dinner in front of all our friends?” in your ear.

You could have slapped the sadistic smirk off his face as you nodded, not trusting yourself to speak as your moan rumbled low in your throat.

“Naughty girl,” he tsked, masking his words to you with another kiss.

The vibrations came to a complete stop, and the breath you’d been holding came out in an angry huff. He could at least have the decency of letting you finish. You busied yourself with draining your water glass, shooting daggers at your boyfriend all the while.

“More water, miss?” a waiter asked as main dishes were passed around.

“Yes, please,” you nodded, and drinking half of the refill in one gulp.

You thought that Bucky had had his fun, watching you squirm and try to keep composure. You thought you’d make it through the rest of dinner, the exhilaration enough to tide you both over until you were home. But it was clear Bucky wasn’t quite finished with his game, as you felt his hand slide up your skirt, a finger pushing your panties out of his way before sliding through your folds, humming his delight in how soaked his finger became. “Bucky,” you choked out when that same finger started to draw circles on your clit. “Could you pass the salt?”

“Course, doll,” he grinned, handing you the salt shaker.

“Thank you,” you replied, gritting your teeth, his finger slow and torturous against your clit.

The sound of everyone enjoying their food was enough to mask your moan when the slow vibrations started up again. “Good food,” you commented, easing out another moan. “Wish there was more.”

Bucky took the hint, the vibrations coming faster, the pulsing stronger, and his finger still drawing the slow and torturous circles on your clit. “Really enjoying your food there, doll?” Bucky teased you.

“Mhm,” you nodded frantically, forcing yourself to take another bite. “So good.”

Stealthily, Bucky switched the vibrator on the highest setting, and it took every ounce of willpower you had to not lose it. Bucky felt the tremor beginning in your legs, and watched as beads of sweat started to roll down your flushed face. Even your neck was covered in a blush as your orgasm built.

As to not draw too much attention, Bucky guided your head to his shoulder, metal fingertips cool against your heated skin. “Cum quietly,” he murmured so only you could hear him. “That’s it, good girl,” he coaxed you through your orgasm, as you squeezed your eyes shut tight in his shoulder, your own fingers death gripping any part of him you could find as you let out a long low whimper. “Very good girl,” he praised, a soft kiss finding its way to your temple, as he removed his hand from your clit, smoothing your skirt back into place. Then, loudly he went “Doll, you feeling okay?”

You shook your head, making your moan sound as pitiful as you could. “Think I ate too fast,” you said, pulling away from his shoulder to look at him.

“Jesus, Y/N, you look like you’re either going to faint,” Steve started.

“Or blow chunks,” Tony finished.

“Oh, sweetie, you should go home and get some rest,” Natasha told you.

“Yeah, honestly Barnes, what were you thinking dragging her out when she’s clearly sick?” Tony scolded Bucky.

“Honestly, it’s probably nothing guys,” you tried to defuse. “The food was so good, I probably just ate too fast. Nothing a little rest won’t fix.”

“Mmm, yeah,” Peter spoke up. “I used to eat so fast I’d get stomach aches all the time. But now? I can eat as fast as I want and nothing happens. Hey, Y/N, maybe I can find that spider and have it bite you, too! Then you won’t get sick when you eat!”

You laughed at the youngest Avengers enthusiasm. “I’ll pass for now, Pete, but thanks. I’ll keep that in mind next time I eat my way into a stomach ache. Bucky? Can we go?”

“Yeah, course, doll.”

Quickly you said your goodbyes, before letting Bucky usher you out of the restaurant, both of you letting out a loud laugh once you were safely in the parking lot. “You!” you kept laughing, doubling over and pointing a finger at Bucky. “You’re an asshole!”

“How am I the asshole? This was your idea!” he reminded you, as he helped you into the car.

“You only edge me during punishments and that wasn’t a punishment, Bucky.”

He pulled a face, his fingers drumming against the hood of the car as he thought through the evening. “Oh! Shit, doll, I didn’t realize how close you were the first time. I’m sorry.” His eyes were wide and apologetic as they looked down at you.

“It’s okay,” you told him, smiling up at him. “That was fun. Just wish I could get you back.”

“Oh… believe me. You got me back.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. So can we go home before I rip through my jeans? I don’t think they can grow much tighter.”

“Or…” you suggested, hooking a finger through his belt loop to tug him closer to you. “We could fuck here in the car.”

“God, I love you, doll,” he growled, leaning down to press a hungry kiss to your lips, one of his hands pulling on the lever of your seat to recline it, the only sound being your giggles and the car door pulling shut as he climbed on top of you.

Tag List

@cxddlyash @stanofalotofthings @philthepegacorn @youngblood199456 @binxiboo @creator-appreciator @felixtok @iknowyouthinkimbulletproof @jessalyn-jpeg @lilyoflower @mychemicalimagines @rougese7en @milea @partiesandblurrypolaroids @summerdaughter

#dinner games #bucky barnes #bucky barnes fic #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes smut #marvel #avengers #calpal irwin

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gladerwolfstarkimagines · 3 years

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Reader x Wei and Wing Imagine Part Two - When Korra decided to stick around in Zafou for a while you were pleased for two reasons, their names were Wei and Wing.

Part one here

I’ve tagged some people who wanted a part two, sorry it took so long!! Tagged: @dangerouslysimping @tincdraws

_____

Even since you’d caught their attention that first day the boys were smitten so you saw a LOT of them. You began training with them pretty regularly and team avatar picked up on the fact the twins seemed to occupy all your time.

You were enjoying a nice afternoon together with your friends when you spotted the time and realised your plans with the twins were starting soon. You waited until Bolin and Mako finished bickering with a fond smile before standing up and Bolin immediately frowned “noooo” he cried “we just got here you can’t go!”. “We’ve been here 40 minutes” you pointed out but he just crossed his arms “so?”. You laughed along with the others and Mako looked at you “so where are you heading off to?”. “Do you really need to ask?” Korra smirked and you rolled your eyes. “Ahhh the twins” Mako said with a smirk and you threw a rock at Korra. The gang liked to comment a lot on your situation with the twins and Korra was the worst for it. “Hey don’t attack me you’re the one dating them both”. “we’re not dating we’re just...having fun” you shrugged and Asami laughed “that what you’re calling it huh?”. Korra chuckled “I mean i get it they’re both attractive powerful benders like you....why wouldn’t you want to have fun with them?”. “Exactly” you nodded gathering your stuff and Korra smirked. “Plus I bet the metal bending comes in handy in lots of ways hey y/n?" Korra smirked and Asami laughed along with her. "What does that even mean?" you asked confused and Korra shrugged watching Asami with a smile "I don’t know but I bet the fact they’re both so physically fit being metal benders comes in handy". You frowned “I never thought about it that way just because they’re metal benders...Asami what’s your experience with metal benders being more physically capable?”. Asami paused “Why would I....”. “Well because Korra’s a metal bender I figured you’d know all about that” you grinned as both the girls went bright red and babbled while Mako laughed. “And on that note goodbye” you smirked and headed off.

“You’re late” Wing called as you reached the yard and you frowned “I know sorry I got lost, your home is huge”. “Yeah we’re pretty rich” Wei commented and you laughed shaking your head “yeah? Well maybe you should hire a bodyguard for these training sessions? I’ve been kicking you around so much it should be illegal”. Wing smirked as Wei’s swagger dropped and he stumbled over words trying to think of a comeback. “Don’t strain too hard” you smiled sweetly and patted his shoulder before walking out onto the yard. Wing followed you still smiling and you glanced at him “does that smile mean you forgive me for being late?”. “Totally” he grinned and you smiled, Wing had a really nice smile especially when the sun shone off his face like that....you were distracted from your staring as people called out Wing’s name. You looked up and saw there were some spectators today. You didn’t recognise any of them but you soon saw why, they were clearly here for Wing and Wei only. “Who is that?” you asked smirking and Wing looked at you awkwardly “some...friends”. “Just friends?” you asked smiling and Wei appeared “why are you jealous?”. “You wish” you grinned catching the helmet he tossed to you and throwing it to the side “no helmets, my trainer told me they’re crutches that dim your bending, she said earth bending is all about taking risks and showing brute strength”. “You know the more you talk about this swamp woman the less i think she’s real” Wing commented and you went to argue the crazy swamp lady was totally real when Wei waved to the girls above making them all cheer. You watched slightly annoyed at how much Wei seemed to enjoy the attention and he smirked “you done talking yet?”. “You done showing off to your girlfriends?”. “Just about” he smirked and you rolled your eyes.

You would all start off stood an equal distance from one another and attack one another fairly. But Wei and Wing had a habit of forming an alliance against you and it was their favourite thing to do when they were losing. They did it whenever you got into a good rhythm and as soon as you were getting into your stride they crept closer. It was always harder when they could help one another so you actively tried to keep them apart. You loosened Wing’s footing and launched an attack at Wei focusing all your attention on him. “You’ve got this Wei” a spectator called and you heard several other girls cheer him on. Given this advancement you began attacking Wei harder. He was hardly blocking your attacks and Wing just watched. “Aren’t you going to help?” Wei called but Wing just shrugged “nah i’m good”. The girls began chanting for Wei and it only made you smile because he was going to lose. You moved closer and closer, your attacks only marginally missing him and he was struggling big time. You felt the winning strike as you released it and could see Wei knew it was over too. You heard the crowd above gasp as your disk roughly crashed into Wei and smirked slightly. “I quite like your cheerleaders Wei” you called as he stood back up slowly “their gasps of concern really warm my heart”. Wei rolled his eye as Wing laughed. “Whatever you’re just jealous”. You snorted “maybe if you were a better metal bender but at the moment....”. You were suddenly interrupted by shouting. “What are you doing in here this is private property!” a voice called and the girls all began to argue. Bataar junior appeared in view and spotted you all “Wei how many times have i told you no sneaking your cheerleaders in here!”. Wei shrugged “ahhh come on Bataar, I can’t disappoint these lovely ladies”. You rolled your eyes at the same time as Wing and Bataar junior. “Well I can” Bataar junior replied coldly “out!” he yelled and all the girls began to disperse. “Bye Wei! bye Wing” they called and walked away. Wei watched them go before his eyes fell to his oldest brother “so were you just here to ruin my fun or did you need something?”. Bataar glared “I am here because I need your help, I need someone to metal bend the new machine me and dad are working on, mom’s busy with the avatar, Huan would never do it and I can’t think of anyone else, so one of you need to come help me”. Wei and Wing looked at one another. “Not it!” Wei cried suddenly and Wing swore “really we’re doing that? Are we four?”. “Yep, it’s the easiest way and you lost so run along and leave me and y/n alone” Wei smirked stepping closer to you. You saw Wing look down at that clearly unhappy with that scenario and stepped forwards “don’t worry you won’t miss much, I was only toying with Wei to keep the match going but now you’re gone I won’t have much motivation to...”. Wing smiled “ow really?” and you nodded “yeah why did you think I was going easy on you? Your eyes look really good in this sunlight”. Wing blushed and you smiled seeing the shyer twin react to compliments. “Okay well I’ll go help Bataar and see you guys later?”. You nodded “totally” and smiled. Wing smiled brightly at you before walking away still wearing a dazed look.

You turned back around to see Wei heading towards the other end of the field. “Wei?” you asked and when he didn’t reply you followed him. “Wei?” you called and he looked over his shoulder “ow well I was just thinking if you’re worried I might be too boring for you how about we make the stakes a bit higher?” he asked. He pulled a lever and parts of the ground fell away to reveal different terrains and objects. “Nice, why have you never shown me this?” you asked and Wei shrugged “my dad only just finished making it, he wanted to go a big show of it with a lot of people but as we’re alone I figured we could give it a test run?”. “Totally” you grinned excited to use the different terrains and surfaces to your advantage. “And one more thing to make sure i definitely can’t bore you....” Wei pulled out two pieces of cloth “why not do it blind?”.

You’d trained blind before, your earthbending teacher had made you do it all blind initially but that had been a while ago so you were a little out of practice. Combine that with an unfamiliar environment and terrain you hadn’t experienced before and you were way out of your depth. But you’d never admit that to Wei. You walked to your end of the field and tightly tied the bandage around your eyes. You took a strong stance and let Wei attack first. You deflected his shots without retaliation and just worked on getting your bearings. “What’s wrong?” Wei called “not so confident anymore”. You heard his voice come from your left so sent a disk that way. You heard a soft grunt and smiled “and that’s why you shouldn’t talk so much loudmouth”. “Good point” Wei called back and then went silent. So silent you couldn’t even hear him moving. That made you panic.

You moved away from your position as quietly as you could, trying to make sure Wei wouldn’t know where to find you. You were making good progress when you stepped onto a new terrain with a loud crunch. You winced as immediately attacks were sent flying at you. You managed to dodge some by instinct and began moving quicker trying to escape Wei’s range. You lightly ran over the terrain but Wei just followed you. He seemed to gain on you no matter where you ran and so you stopped and maintained your ground. You were on some loose rocky terrain so footing wasn’t good but at least now Wei had to block your attacks. You sent rock and metal flying at him but after a while you didn’t hear anything. “You know...you’re not as good at this as I thought you’d be” Wei said suddenly right next to you. You jumped and backed up but hit a wall. “Yeah...we’ll i’m not done yet”. You strook out at Wei but he sensed that. Wei retaliated by moving the earth beneath your feet making you slip and he took his opportunity. While you were trying to stay upright, he snapped metal around your waist and fixed it to the wall without any hesitation. He simultaneously secured your hands in rocks meaning you couldn’t move. You grunted in shock and breathed heavily, utterly surprised and a little bit annoyed that you’d lost. “I think I win” Wei said coming into view as he tugged your blindfold off your face. “Of course you’d say that” you huffed and Wei laughed “you’re pinned against the wall, i have your hands trapped and i’m holding a massive piece of metal”. You shrugged “I could still get out of this”. “Ow really?” Wei asked and you nodded confidently “easily” and Wei laughed. “God you’re stubborn” he grinned watching you. “I know” you said staring at him “you got a problem with that”. “Nope, I actually rather like it” he smiled tracing your jaw lightly “your confidence is...impressive, I’ve never met someone quite like you”. You smiled in reply and just looked up at him “I know”. Wei laughed shaking his head before his eyes fell to your lips. He dropped the restraints from your body but didn’t step away and neither did you. He closed the distance between you and just when his lips were about to touch yours a voice called out “Wei? Are you there?”. Wei paused centimetres away from you and you felt his body slump “sometimes I hate having so many siblings”. You smirked and Wei moved away from you slowly. Wei stepped out of the shadows and looked around “Opal? I’m down here, what’s wrong?” he called. “There you are!” Opal cried with relief “come quick Mum’s fighting with aunt Lin!”.

You and Wei ran to the gardens to see Lin and Su yin were indeed fighting. You gaped shocked at how good they both were. “Korra shouldn’t you....” you called but Bolin shook his head “this is how siblings fight, they’ll be fine”. You raised an eyebrow but were brought out of your thought by Wei and Wing. “Go mom!” Wei called and you saw Wing frown “what’s wrong with you they could get hurt!”. Wei shook his head “mom won’t get hurt she was trained by the greatest earth bender that ever lived!!”. “So? What is she hurts aunt Lin?”. Wei paused “we have really good medics?”. Wing groaned storming off and Wei sighed “someone’s in a bad mood”. “I mean he does have a point” you shrugged “they could both get hurt”. “Yeah” Wei nodded “but Wing’s just jealous that’s why he snapped”. You frowned feeling bad, “maybe one of us should go after him?”. Wei nodded “sure but I know you’ll make more progress than me”. “But he’s your twin, don’t you know him better than anyone?”. “Yes and that’s why I know without a doubt you running after him will definitely improve his mood”. You laughed shaking your head “fine, i’ll go comfort your brother”. Wei nodded “have fun, but not as much as we had of course...”. Wei grinned at you suggestively and you looked down blushing. “I’ll see you” you replied after a brief pause and rushed after Wing.

You caught up to Wing quite quickly and spotted him not far away on the path. “Wing!” you called and he paused “y/n?”. “Are you okay?” you asked “Wei thought that was a bit unprovoked”. “I’m fine” Wing sighed “just....I have to finish doing this for Bataar”. You nodded your head “how about I help you? Two metal benders will get it done faster than one”. Wing smiled softly “sure, it’s this way”. He led you into a large laboratory and you whistled impressed. Your job was literally just straightening out some pieces of metal but there was a lot. You got to work but it was boring and slow. “You know you don’t have to help” Wing called after a few minutes and you smiled “was my face that obvious?”. He nodded “go find Wei, it’s okay I don’t mind”. You frowned at how Wing said that, as if you would obviously prefer Wei. You enjoyed your time with Wing just as much as your time with Wei, but Wing didn’t seem to expect that. “No I promised to do this and so I’m going to finish this if it kills me”. Wing laughed and then frowned in thought “well we could talk, that could make it go faster?”. You nodded your head “sure what do you want to talk about? Metal bending? The avatar? How rich you are?”. “I have a question actually” Wing replied and you nodded “shoot”. “What’s your family like?” Wing asked and you paused “mine?”. “Yeah...I just realised I never ever asked, I can’t believe how rude Wei and I have been that we didn’t even ask you about your family”. You laughed “it’s fine, my family is good! Small but good, it’s just me my mom and dad, we were kind of outsiders in our tribe. The water nation isn’t progressive and so many people were wary of my earth nation dad and then me too when I developed earth bending...but then I met Korra and that all changed! Being her friend literally overnight changed my life. My family was no longer shunned but respected and acknowledged and it was all because Korra ordered it” you said smiling fondly “Korra...she’s my best friend in the entire world”. You were cut off from your speech by said best friend. Korra, Asami, Mako and Bolin were walking by and they all of course spotted you. Korra grinned as she looked from you to Wing. “Well what do we have here?” she asked strutting into the room “the sparring wasn’t enough to get rid of all that tension I see”. You sighed and looked at Wing “forget everything I just told you, Korra I will kill you if you don’t get out and leave us alone this second!”. “Okay I’m going...just keep it PG in here okay? Avatar’s orders!”. You earth bent her out of the door and groaned “Wing I’m so sorry....” but Wing just smiled a small blush on his face “it’s fine...it’s just what family do”. You nodded your head and Wing glanced at you “what she said was true though...I am glad I got to talk to you privately, sometimes it feels like a constant show between me and Wei when you’re around...so it’s nice to talk without feeling any tension or pressure”. “Yeah it is” you smiled “it’s also nice to just talk and not throw rocks at each other”. Wing smiled “yeah, did i miss much earlier when i went with Bataar?”. You blushed slightly remembering how close Wei had come to kissing you and struggled to look Wing in the eye “not much, he showed me the new special feature your dad worked on”. Wing frowned “we were saving that to show you next week...trust Wei to jump the gun”. “Ow sorry I didn’t know” you frowned but Wing shook his head “it’s not your fault it’s Wei, he loves getting the upper hand but you know what? This time I won’t let him”. Wing stood up suddenly and you jumped as he held out a hand to you “come with me”. “Where are we going?” you asked and Wing grinned “Wei isn’t the only one with secrets to show off”.

You followed Wing into the centre of Zafou to a guard tower. The guard recognised Wing and he managed to talk his way inside the building, telling them his mother wanted him to oversee the procedures tonight, whatever that meant. The guard looked at him and then at you sceptically before letting him inside. Wing led you to the top floor and onto an airship that was waiting to take off. You caught it just in time and watched as it soared into the sky. Wing led you to the front of the airship with huge windows and smiled. “I don’t suppose you’re going to tell me why we’ve stowed away on an airship?”. Wing shook his head “nope! So don’t bother asking”. You nodded your head “okay fine” and Wing paused “wait that’s it, seriously?”. You smiled “I’m not always unreasonable, if you want me to wait and see...then i’ll do that”. Wing nodded his head “i’m impressed, you deserve the best seats, come on!”. Wing led you to a ladder and grinned at you before climbing. When he reached the top he stepped out of a hole onto the top of the airship and moved so you could follow. “It’s a bit cold and it may be a bit too much if you don’t like heights...” Wing started but you cut him off. Your eyes were instantly captured by the view and he doubted you were listening. “Wow!” you yelled leaning over the railing “this is amazing!” and Wing smiled. He joined you by the railing and pulled you back a bit “these railings aren’t my father’s best piece of work so maybe don’t lean on them too much”. “Got it” you nodded “this is amazing Wing, it’s so beautiful, thank you for showing it to me!”. Wing smiled “this isn’t it yet”. “What else could you show me?” you asked and Wing smiled as the creaking sound started “this”. You watched amazed as the giant metal walls of Zafou began to move. They slowly began to bend down towards the ground and you watched amazed as they began fitting into one another. “The gates....they’re closing to form domes” you said amazed “your dad really is the best architect in the world!”. Wing nodded “he is” and you turned your gaze back to the ground. All over the cities domes were forming as the walls closed to form protected perimeters. The metal looked beautiful and shone in the setting sun sending out blinding reflections. Finally the last dome was sealed just as the sun set. “So did you like it?” Wing asked and you grinned “like it! That was amazing! Just when I think this city can’t get any cooler...thank you for showing me this” you smiled and Wing blushed “no problem”. You smirked as he looked away first and stared out at the sealed domes. “If you’re cold we can go back inside” Wing asked and you smiled “I know I’m an earth bender but i’m half water tribe too, this is nothing”. “Ow yeah” Wing asked and you smiled seeing him shiver “but we can back inside if you want?”. “No it’s fine” Wing said “if we go back inside then we’ll get back quicker”. “But you’re cold” you said pointedly “come on, I won’t think less of you just because you can’t handle the cold”. Wing blushed but nodded. Wing led you back inside and you smiled as he walked swiftly to the heater. The ship landed and you were transported back into the centre of Zafou. You stared up at the closed dome, now amazed by them having seen how they worked and Wing laughed grabbing your arm to stop you from falling over. “Stop staring at the sky” he smiled “it’s not a good gift if it makes you injure yourself”. “I can’t help it” you grinned “and either way it will be an amazing gift I’ll always remember!”. Wing smiled but went quiet in thought “better than Wei’s?” he asked suddenly. You paused wondering how to answer that and Wing sighed “sorry i shouldn’t have asked you that....whatever you and Wei do is between you two”. You nodded your head “it is...and honestly I just have a really good time with both of you, it’s not a competition” you added pointedly and Wing blushed “yeah I I know...but with siblings everything feels like one”. You were going to reply when you came around the corner to your home and found all your friends sat outside but there was a new edition. Wei was sat in the middle of your friends and was in the middle of a story. He stopped abruptly as soon as he saw you and smiled “y/n....and my brother”. “Hi” you smiled “what are you doing here?”. “Well he came to find you but you weren’t here” Korra answered before Wei could speak “you should really keep better track of your boys, one got lost” Korra finished and your eyes widened. “Korra i’m going to kill you” you glared but the others all just laughed. Wei blushed and stood up heading towards you. “I’m sorry I hope you weren’t waiting long?” you asked and Wei shot you a dazzling smile “it’s no problem, I was just nearby and thought i’d stop in that’s all...” before he looked at Wing “have you calmed down from earlier?”. Wing nodded “yeah, y/n helped with that”. You felt the heat rise to your cheeks as Wei tried to decipher the meaning of that. “We went for an airship ride” you clarified and Wei nodded “cute date but bet you didn’t show her the underground caverns? That’s the most beautiful place in Zafou, you have to let me take you to go see them!”. You nodded “yeah sure but can we do it tomorrow? I’m beat...you guys really know how to tire someone out”. The brothers both blushed and you smirked at how alike they were sometimes. “Of course we’ll get out of your hair” Wing grinned “see you tomorrow y/n”. “Bye y/n” Wei echoed and you waved to them before joining your friends on the grass. “So how were your dates?” Mako asked and you rolled your eyes “ha ha very funny”. “I don’t know how you have the time for two boyfriends” Mako continued and you frowned “well didn’t have two girlfriends at one point? Surely you’d understand?”. Bolin hooted and even Asami and Korra laughed at Mako’s embarrassed expression. “Ouch, point taken I’ll shut up” Mako replied and you smiled. “As much fun as it to see you roasting Mako we have news” Korra said. You stared at her expectantly and Korra took a dramatic pause “we’re leaving tomorrow!”. “Tomorrow?” you asked “so soon?”. “Yep first thing in the morning!” Korra explained “Opal’s coming with us so there’s no reason to stay any longer”. Excitement filled you at the thought of seeing an air temple but it was bittersweet. You loved being in a metal bending city and felt like you fit in. Not to mention two men who had made your time here very enjoyable. You frowned “you couldn’t have told me earlier?”. Korra shrugged “you were gone all day!”. You sighed going inside and wrote a message to Wei and Wing. You explained the situation and asked them to meet you at the airship tomorrow morning. You had some farewells to give.

The next morning

You paced anxiously on the launch pad as there was no sign of Wei or Wing. “I still can’t believe you told me so later Korra” you complained. “Again you were out all day, how was i meant to tell you?”. “I don’t know but you should have told me before Wei and Wing left, you knew I’d want to say goodbye to them”. Korra sighed "their sister is leaving, trust me they’ll show up”.

The avatar had a way of being right far too often and today was no exception. Not 10 minutes after you scolded Korra Wei and Wing appeared and she shot you an *i told you so* look. You ignored her and rushed forwards “you got my note!” you cried happily and the twins nodded. “Yeah sorry we’re late we had to grab something” Wei explained waving a box he had in his hand. You nodded “well you’re here now” and the two brothers smiled. “I’ve got to admit it’s going to be weird not having you around” Wing frowned. You smiled and Wei nodded “yeah we’re going to miss you, a lot!”. You blushed and laughed “i’ll miss you both too but I mean, once the airbenders are all set up...there’s nothing to say I can’t visit? Or even you guys could come to the temple! Or the water tribe!” you said excitedly to Wing “I promise this won’t be the last you see of me”. “What a shame” Wei joked and you rolled your eyes pushing him. “You know i’m only kidding” he grinned “we will hold you to that promise y/n” he said turning very serious “if we don’t hear from you in 6-months we’re turning up at the air temple”. You laughed and smiled at them both “well I promise that won’t happen, you’ll be hard to forget”. “Well still don’t try too hard eh?” Wei asked and he leant forward to hug you. You wrapped your arms around him tightly and smiled “thanks for letting me kick your ass so much, it’s really boosted my ego”. Wei rolled his eyes but smiled “no problem” and moved away from you. Wing stepped forwards more awkwardly and hugged you more tenderly “take care and don’t let the water tribe get you down, your family sound amazing and they must be if they’re anything like you”. You smiled blushing “thanks, your family’s pretty good too” and stepped back. “Y/n you done yet?” Korra called and you waved her away. “I’m just saying everyone’s onboard apart from you...” before Lin yanked her inside. “Wow even our aunt approves?” Wei frowned and Wing nodded “wait is that a good thing?”. “I’m not sure but I really should go”. “Ow before you go we made you this” Wei said pushing the small box into your hands. You blushed and smiled at them “you did...how many times did you break out into an argument in the process?”. “I stopped counting after the thirtieth time” Wing replied and you laughed before opening the box. Inside was a necklace was an intricated metal pendant, it used various metals which were woven together using very precise bending. “Guys this is beautiful!” you cried “thank you so much, now I have something to remember this trip by”. “It’s no problem” Wei smirked and Wing nodded “we’re just glad you like it”. “I love it” you cried and hugged them both tightly. “But now I really should go...we’re creating a scene”. The brothers laughed and stepped away from you “of course, go...we’ll talk to you later”. You nodded and with a last smile walked up the runway.

The airship took off and after waving goodbye to everyone you collapsed onto a sofa beside Bolin. “Wow who would’ve thought I’d leave Zafou with a girlfriend?” Bolin asked and Korra smirked “yeah but y/n had you beaten, she got two boyfriends and they’re twins!”. You punched Korra’s arm and Bolin laughed. “You know the one good thing about leaving Zafou is you’ll stop teasing me about Wing and Wei now”. “Don’t be too sure about that” Korra grinned and you raised an eyebrow “stop or i’ll starting teasing you about your crush on Asami”. Korra’s eyes widened and flitted to Asami who was across the room talking to Mako”. “What, how do you know?” she cried far too loud for someone trying to keep a secret. “How? You all but announced it” you grinned “you’re crazy for her Korra, anyone can see that”. Bolin nodded backing up your claim and Korra blushed shrugging “I guess I am”. “So truce?” you asked and Korra nodded her head “fine!” and stormed away. You watched her go smiling before you looked out the window where Zafou was disappearing from the horizon. You took the metal necklace out from your pocket and turned it over in your palm You’d hidden it from the others to avoid their teasing but now admired it openly before fastening it around your neck. You touched the pendant as it dangled from your neck and smiled. You wouldn’t be forgetting the Beifong twins anytime soon and you were sure somehow, someway you’d see them again.

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thunder-at-dawn · 3 years

Text

Echos In The Caverns

word count: 2,096

summary: while exploring, tubbo made an incredible discovery, and was desperate to show his best friend in grand-tubbo-fashion! however, that was just the one thing that led them to discover a large problem.

if you couldn’t tell, this fic was heavily inspired by the minecraft caves and cliffs update, i think it turned out nicely :D also if you tag this as ship i will personally hunt you down and whack you with my block button

warning: this is a sfw tickle fic! don’t read if that makes you uncomfortable :]

Tubbo_: TOMMY

Tubbo_: TOMMY ARE YOU THERE

Tommyinnit: what

Tubbo_: wheree are u

Tommyinnit: i’m at my house

Tommyinnit: why

Tubbo_: can yoyou come to your hotel

Tubbo_: and wear clothes that you don’t mind getting dirty!!!!!

Tommyinnit: why??

Tubbo_: you’ll see!!!

…What?

Tommy always knew that Tubbo tended to be quite the… holder of schemes. Good schemes? Maybe. Bad schemes? Also maybe. It really just depended on the day. It wasn’t irregular of him to not say what his plans were either, the young boy was often one for surprises.

Tommy looked down at the clothes he was currently wearing. A red and white baseball shirt and some khakis, also known as what he wore pretty much everyday. He had plenty of other shirts and pants that looked similar, (if not, the exact same) so it would be fine if he got just one outfit a little wet.

The young boy headed out of his small residence, which wasn’t at all far from the hotel at all. He walked down the prime path, entering the gate and heading for the front of the hotel, only to see no one there.

“Tubbo? Where are ya, bee boy?” He mumbled under his breath, looking for his best friend. He wandered around to the back… maybe he was there?

And there he was.

Tubbo had his back turned, placing a line of redstone dust along the ground. He stood up, wiping the dust off of his hands, then turned around with a grin.

“Tommy!!” He ran over to his best friend, engulfing the other in a tight hug.

“Tubbo! You’re gonna get fuckin’ redstone dust all over me.” He grumbled, though a smile was on his face. He could feel Tubbo take his hands, guiding him over and walking the two of them next to a lever that wasn’t there the last time Tommy was here.

“Okay, so earlier, I decided to dig straight down, right at this spot.”

“Idiot.” Tommy poked fun at his best friend.

“I thought it would be a bad idea too, but let me finish. Anyways, I just wanted to do it because, y’know, I wanted to see where it would take me! And man, I discovered something incredible, Tommy.” Tubbo turned around leaning down a flipping the switch of the lever.

“So that’s what you’re going to be showing me, right?” Tommy crossed his arms.

“Mhm!” The older of the two stood back up, looking at Tommy with excitement in his eyes. “Just be sure to be prepared for the drop!”

“…The drop? Wh-”

Before Tommy could finish, he heard the sound of pistons and felt the ground disappear underneath him. Before he knew it, the two of them were falling. It was pitch black, and the two of them were falling and screaming. They let out two different screams, Tubbo’s out of thrill and adrenaline and Tommy’s out of pure fear.

It took about ten seconds of falling and screaming for them to finally see light, but Tommy was too terrified to open his eyes. Instead, he was met with the chilling feeling of cold water. Panicked, he opened his eyes as much as he could and swam to the surface, gasping for air.

“TUBBO! WHAT THE FUCK?!” He yelled at the other, who had also risen from the surface. “What the fuck was that for?! You can’t just make us drop like that with no warning, I thought we were gonna die! I-“

“Oh, quit whining and swim to the shore!” Tubbo brushed him off. Tommy huffed, but obeyed, throwing his arms in front of him to propel him forward. Tubbo got to the shore first, and pulled him out of the water.

“Tubbo, why the fuck did you think that was a good idea?!”

“Tommy- Tommy, calm down. One, I would never kill you on purpose. And two, this was the easiest and quickest way down! Anyways, look behind you. Turn around.” Tubbo said to him. Tommy rolled his eyes and turned, expecting nothing grand, but his eyes widened in shock.

It was the most incredible thing he had ever seen.

A roaring waterfall poured water into the lake they had just dropped into, and sides of the waterfall were lined with purple gemstones. Ores lined the stone walls and lush moss covered the ceiling, draping down. Small, jagged rocks on the ceiling were covered by moss, and it looked like someone, likely Tubbo, had placed torches and lanterns around the area.

“What… What is this?” Tommy asked, jaw agape.

“What you’re looking at is the coolest cave the two of us will ever lay eyes upon.” Tubbo grinned, placing a hand on Tommy’s wet shoulder.

“…Holy shit, Tubbo! This is fucking incredible! A-And you found this just through digging down?!”

“Yep! Now come on, there’s tons of cool things here that you gotta see!” The ram hybrid grabbed Tommy’s hand, running around the lake and dragging him along.

Tommy honestly wasn’t sure if he had ever seen anything this amazing before. He got to climb hills of stone and ore, swim in the grand lake, and he and Tubbo even found an axolotl! They took it in a bucket with water, and since it was pink, they agreed on the name of “Technoblade Jr.”

Eventually though, all good things had to come to an end. The torches wouldn’t fend off monsters forever, so the two of them decided it was best to go back to the surface. Tubbo said that he had dug out a staircase through the stone that led to the surface, somewhere near Eret’s castle.

There was only one small problem. They couldn’t find it.

“I-It should be this way!”

“Tubbo, we’ve been down here for, like- for fuckin’ ever!”

“Okay, we’ve been here for a few hours at the most. And majority of that isn’t even us searching for the stairs.” Tubbo rolled his eyes.

Tommy sighed as he and Tubbo only found another dead end, a wall covered in vines and moss. “Face it, Tubbo. We’re lost. We’re fuckin’ lost, and we’re going to have to spend the night here.” He set a torch on the wall, taking a moment to sit down.

“Oh, don’t say that, Tommy!” His friend sat down next to him on the ground. Tommy crossed his arms, looking away and making Tubbo frown. “Look, we can always make a new staircase! It’ll take a while, but we can do it!” He nudged Tommy lightly with his elbow, but only got more of the silent treatment.

Tubbo huffed in annoyance. Tommy tended to get silent when things didn’t go his way, which was understandable. But it would get frustrating to Tubbo sometimes, he wouldn’t lie. And what’s worse was that he could clearly tell that Tommy was upset, and he wasn’t saying anything about it. He lightly leaned against Tommy’s shoulder, the silence being oddly comforting for a moment.

Tubbo stood up, leaving Tommy to mope by himself. He had to admit, this was a cool place to be lost in. The sights were incredible, and there were so many things he hadn’t found in caves before. Glowing squids, axolotls, crystals, cave vines…

Cave vines.

That’s it! He knew exactly what would cheer Tommy up! Why didn’t he think of this sooner?

Tubbo walked towards the longest vine he could find that draped from the stone ceiling, standing on his toes to pull it down and grinning as the vine snapped in two. He threaded the vine through his fingers, glad to find that it wasn’t rough and didn’t have anything sharp on it. He sat down next to Tommy, holding the vine in his hands.

“Tommy…” He leaned towards his friend, still not getting a response. Quietly, he draped the vine around Tommy’s neck. The other noticed, but said nothing. That is, not until his shoulders scrunched up when he felt Tubbo pull the vine across his neck.

“Tubbo-” He said softly, slamming his lips shut afterwards.

“What’s up, Tommy?” He asked, lightly scratching the other’s neck with his fingers.

“Where’s that smile, big man?” Tubbo used his other hand to poke his friend in the side a couple of times, grinning as he saw a smile start to form at the corner of Tommy’s lips.

“Tuhubbo, quihit it!” He giggled, starting to move away before Tubbo wrapped an arm around him and pulled him close, trapping him in a half-hug.

“There we go!” Tubbo scribbled his fingers across Tommy’s stomach, making the young boy squeal and bury his head into Tubbo’s shoulder as an attempt to hide his face. Tommy laughed, trying to grab at Tubbo’s hands.

“Don’t even try to fight back, mister.” He rolled his eyes. “I wanna make sure that you keep smiling! These caves are no place to be sad!”

“TuHUHUB- *snrk* TUHUBBO! Dohohon’t!” Tommy snorted, eventually grabbing onto one of Tubbo’s wrists. Tubbo brought his other hand back to drill his fingers back into Tommy’s stomach, the other laughing and eventually grabbing onto Tubbo’s other wrist. Both of them grinned as residual laughter spilled out of Tommy’s mouth.

“You’re so fuckin’ mean.” Tommy huffed out, unable to fight a grin.

“Oh, come on, you were sad! What else am I supposed to do, not what I do whenever you’re sad?” Tubbo rolled his eyes, smirking. “Besides, you didn’t fight back. We know you liked it.”

Tommy blinked, feeling his cheeks warm up, then narrowed his eyes. “Oh, you’re asking for it.” He growled, holding the other’s hands above his head.

Tubbo squeaked, already starting to squirm. “Wahait, no! Nonono, dohon’t!” He said, unable to stop giggles from coming out from hiding.

“Aww, what’s wrong, Tubbo? Are you scared? Scared of just a little tiny bit of tickling?” Tommy smirked, holding his wrists firmly and letting go, shooting his hands into his friend’s underarms. Tubbo immediately broke, instantly leaning towards the ground to try and get away.

“NoHOHO- gehehehet oHOHOut of thehehere!” Tubbo giggled, twisting his body to try and push off Tommy’s hands.

“You did the exact same to me! It’s only natural to expect revenge!” Tommy scribbled more rapidly, grinning as the other squealed and started to kick his legs. “Wow, Tubbo. Sometimes, I honestly forget how fuckin’ ticklish you are. And then I rediscover it for myself, and I remember just how ballistic you go every time!”

“ShUHUT UHUhup, yohou dihiHIhick!” The ram hybrid yelled through giggles.

“Hey! Well that’s just rude now, isn’t it? Guess you need to learn a lesson, huh?” Tommy asked, chuckling as Tubbo rapidly shook his head. Tommy started to squeeze up and down his thighs, and the other squealed, throwing his head back and hugging himself.

“TOHOhoHOmMY!! NohohoHOHO!!”

“Oh, you brought this onto yourself, don’t even try to “Tommy, no” me!” Tommy played around, trying to see what would work back. Squeezing the back of Tubbo’s thighs made him squeak, squeezing rapidly up and down made him squeal, and raking nails up and down the inner thighs made him cackle.

“TOHOHOMMY!! PleheHEAHase, I- StohoHOhop!!” Tubbo rocked back and forth.

“Hmmm… alright.” Tommy said after a moment of thinking, drawing his hands back.

“Wahait, really?” A giggly Tubbo was quite surprised, starting to sit up.

“…No.” Tommy smirked, suddenly pushing the other’s shirt up, leaning down, and blowing a raspberry on his bare stomach. Tubbo shrieked, retreating back to the ground instantaneously.

“NOHOHOHO- AHAHAHAHA!!! TOHOHOHOMMEHEY!!!” Tubbo squirmed around, trying to get away as Tommy now scribbled and clawed as his stomach with all ten fingers. His laughter echoed throughout the caves, filling Tommy with glee.

“Come on, you deserve this for all of the times you got back at me!” His friend grinned, leaning down to blow another raspberry right onto Tubbo’s belly button. The ram’s laughter went silent momentarily, then came back in the form of cackles with hiccups mixed in. Tommy stopped, laughing softly and ruffling Tubbo’s hair.

“You feeling better, big man?” Tubbo asked with a stupidly large grin on his face.

“Much better.” Tommy grinned, standing up and extending a hand towards his friend, helping him off of the ground. “Now, come on, grab your pickaxe. That staircase isn’t gonna build itself now, innit?”

Tubbo nodded, pulling out a pickaxe and starting to help Tommy dig out a path to the surface. He looked behind him one last time, deciding that he needed to come back here again sometime with Tommy, and maybe some other friends.

After all, it’s good to go back to places that bring you happy memories, right?

#dawn writes #lee!tubbo #ler!tommy #c!tubbo #c!tommy #dsmp tickle #they switch but i’m not tagging it because this was intended to only lee tubbo #anyways this should not have taken this long to write goodbye #🐝 tubbo: bee boy #💿 tommy: the hero

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hasquetzorkukudoneanythingwrong · 3 years

Text

Nice to meet you

Rex: *waking up* huh!? Where... am I? Is this.... the infirmary?

Rex had awakened in a bed in the chaldea infirmary after narrowly surviving the events of the Fuyuki singularity... then opening the door, Dr. Romani entered the room to check up on him.

Roman: hey Rex! How're you doing?

Rex: I feel fine.... nothing hurts..

Roman: good to hear.

Rex: so.... what the hell happened?

Roman: well... after you and the twins and Mash got back from that singularity, you all fell unconscious and had to be taken here to recover. Thankfully, no major injuries, in fact you should be able to leave later today!

Rex: oh! That's cool!

After a moment of silence, Rex asks a very important question.

Rex: so.... it's real right? This whole... save the world thing? We're really the only ones left that can do anything about it?

Roman: ....yes, unfortunately we are.... I wish that wasn't the case but.... it's all on us... you and the twins especially...

Rex: yeah.... I figured.... so.... is the summoning system ready yet?

Roman: ...why do you ask?

Rex: because.... we've got a world to save.... and I'm.... I'm ready to go... but we need servants

Roman: now wait a minute Rex, I said you're good to leave later today, but I'm not sure you'll be able to handle the strain of that just yet

Rex: oh come on, Doc! You and Da Vinci already said I have abnormally good magical circuits, surely I can handle it!

Roman: I still think it's a bad idea at the moment

Rex: the world is at stake! Human history as we know it is at stake!

Roman: all the more reason to make sure you're at your best!

Rex: I'm raring to go right now!

Roman: *sigh* can't you just wait a few more days?

Rex: do we even have that much time?!

Roman: Rex, we can't take big risks

Rex: and we can't waste time either! C'mon just 1 servant! I already have a Catalyst and everything!

Roman: *sigh* you're not going back down are you?

Rex: nope!

Roman: fine.... after you're good to go, you can go and summon 1 servant! But just one! You got that!?

Rex: crystal clear!

Roman: good... let's hope things turn out well...

Later, when Rex was cleared to leave, he immediately went over to the summoning room with his catalyst, a big green feather. He entered the summoning room, and saw the machine, ready to go.

Rex: there it is.... and I'm about to use it.... now did it go again? Just place my catalyst on the center and pull the lever?

Rex did just that, placing the large green feather near the center of the summoning circle and went back to the lever to get ready to summon an ally in this fight to save the world.

Rex: man.... how is it just now hitting me, that I'm going to be... just bringing a person here, out of thin air! Will I be able to handle it? Will they be mean? Will they kill me on sight?

Rex looked at the feather he placed on the circle

Rex: ....he said it'd bring about a mighty Aztec warrior.... but who could that be....? Well... only one way to find out!

Rex pulled the lever to the machine and it started up!

The little white orbs of light could be seen circling around, shimmering a gold light, until they formed a ring, that split into three and then a large column of light appeared at the center, in the column the appearance of what seemed to be a warrior pulling a chariot formed.

Rex: rider.... I think that's the symbol for the rider class....

Then soon after the column dissipates, and in it's place a very tall and beautiful woman could be seen...

Rex, internally: HOLY FUCK!!!! THAT HAS TO BE THE MOST BEAUTIFUL PERSON IN EXISTENCE!!!

The woman before him had wavy blonde hair, wore a redish top, with what seemed to be a red "skirt" an ornate headdress and was decked out in golden jewelry and jade green gems aswell. But another thing that stood out, tremendously about her was her height, Rex could see she was easily a little over 7 feet tall... Rex loved everything about her appearance. Then the blonde woman spoke up

???: Hiiii! The Goddess Quetzalcoatl arrives in the ring! Huh? I expected nude priests, but you're an adorable little summoner. Heehee, I don't suppose you're interested in tall, older women?

Rex responded, without thinking

Rex: y-yes! I'm very interested in tall, older women! They're my favorite!

Quetzalcoatl: oh, is that so?! Then I think we'll get along just fine!

Once Rex finally composed himself, he finally processed what she said

Rex: wait... did you say you're.... the Goddess Quetzalcoatl?!?!

Quetz: Si! I am! But you can just call me, Quetz if that's too much.

Rex: I'm just trying to process how my catalyst allowed me to summon a FUCKING GODDESS! and an extremely powerful at that!

Quetz: oh, Master! You're going to make me blush!

Rex: right.... I'm your master.... that'll take some getting used to....

Quetz: if you want me to call you something else, I can

Rex: n-no... master is fine.... I guess...

Quetz: ok then!

Then the door to the summoning room opened up, and Romani walked in, looking for Rex.

Roman: Rex! Did you already sta- oh! You already summoned someone...

Rex: yeah... Dr. Roman, meet the goddess, Quetzalcoatl!

Quetz: Hola! Nice to meet you!

Roman: wait... did you say... GODDESS?!?!

Rex: yup...!

Roman: but... that should be impossible! I knew you had good magical circuits but.... A GODDESS?!?!?!

Rex: I'm just as surprised as you are, man! I guess I got real lucky with my catalyst!

Roman: ok but, how did a feather!? Help you summon her!?

Rex: good question

Then, Quetzalcoatl picked up the feather and examined it... to her it was... familiar... but she couldn't say why...

Rex: uh... anything wrong, Quetz?

Quetz: hmmm?! Oh, it's nothing master! Just lost in thought! So, what's the first order of business!?

Rex: good question, I guess... introduce you to the others?

Quetz: sounds good to me!

Roman: well they twins and Mash are in the cafeteria, if you wanna see them.

Rex: oh yeah, I'm starving! Let's go!

Then the three of them left for the cafeteria to eat and introduce Quetz to the others.

Pffft! Seriously papá?! You actually said that to her?!

Y-yeah! What about it?!

Who just... says that?!

Now now, mis hijos, don't laugh! You're father wasn't thinking, is all...

Ok but also... why is that the first thing you ask him?

!!!!!

Well... um....

Did you already fall in love and wanted to know if you were his type?

I-I wouldn't say that.... but there was this... tightness in my chest.... when we first laid eyes on each other.... I couldn't explain it...

Does sound a little like love....

Maybe so....

A/N: so here we go! If you couldn't tell, this was a revisit of how summoning Quetz went! But with some Retcons along with reactions from the kids too! Hopefully you guys like it! Will be doing this for a while with a few more stories!

Tags

@exmeowstic @grievouslyxorvia @hasjalterdoneanythingwrong @hasmataharidoneanythingwrong @haskamadoneanythingwrong @havetheavengersdoneanythingwrong @hasmerlindoneanythingwrong @renmeo @neptuknight @writer-and-artist27 @hasspartacusdoneanythingwrong

#fate grand order #quetzalcoatl #mastersona #rex #wife #rexcoatl #eduardo #maria #romani archaman

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fandom-sheep · 3 years

Text

MCC 18 SEP 21

Yellow Yacks and Cyan Coyotes with a little Aqua Axolotls. Part 1/1

The only reason I didn’t forget MCC was because I got the notification for Eret.

I have Wilbur on my TV. I’m going to watch Eret on my phone. And I’ll have Tommy on my iPad probably.

Wilbur throwing a tantrum and saying he won’t play.

I feel like a true Gen Z member with my multiple screens of minecraft.

I’m only just getting the Wilbur notification.

I love watching everyone run around before MCC and scale things.

Griefing the thumbnail. 😂

Wilbur just causes problems on purpose when it comes to group photos doesn’t he.

He just loves finding ways to cause problems.

Wilbur got a coconut!?!

I didn’t mean to type the question mark originally. But I am a bit confused.

Wilbur just stocking up on coconuts

True friendship is a quote book. I have several.

Baby banana boo.

Wait. I heard the word tumblr

Scott what did you do with tumblr?

I’m scared. Only Eret permitted on tumblr.

I remember watching hole in the wall as a tv show as a kid.

Wilbur’s glasses that don’t do anything.

There are September discounts for subbing?

Neato.

The conversations in my work discord are something else.

Not surprised that Wilbur is going for top swearer of MCC

But my residents are going to walk by my door and judge me.

Alright I apparently wasn’t signed in to twitch on my iPad and it took me entirely too long to learn to remember it.

Tommy looks like he’s really concentrating. Oh wait never mind.

Wow the yaks are in first currently. I might be cheering for a winning team for once.

Alright I have my iPad split screen between Tommy and the MCC website.

Everyone break the elevator!

In the game, not in the building I work. I don’t want that paperwork.

Stick together and place many block.

I’ve been in Wilburs position. “I’ll be captain” “yeah let’s let Wilbur be captain”

Not a single POV I have up is synced. But that’s life.

Oh not starting out strong.

Just keep going. Ignore the falling people just like ranboo last time.

We are at the absolute bottom for this game.

Where’s a bag of popcorn or something?

“Stay down there. That’s how I won that one time” -Ranboo

Down they go.

They didn’t have anywhere to run.

Second round!

Oh that wasn’t their best idea. It was fun seeing Erets POV of that.

Go Teams.

Turning down the volume on yellow yacks to listen to aqua axolotls.

Aqua please. You have so much potential.

Nope.

Switching audio again.

Yellow back at the bottom.

Ranboo ranboo ranboo ranboo

Down he goes. 😂 the timing of that was funny.

Please. Don’t die

Wilbur. Scott. Please.

Scott uncovering the creeper.

Their plan is literally just sit and be.

To be fair that’s my plan for everything I do.

Oh cobwebs are smart.

I’m eating very salty Chick-fil-A chips and need water.

We are still doing ok. Wow.

Cobwebs man. The real MVP.

They are still in 10th

COBWEBS!!! And Wilbur standing on the edge of a block.

THEY WON THAT?!?!!!!

It moved them from last to eight. But still. Wow.

Holy cow. How did that happen.

I always forget what the acronym game is.

Oh yeah. Wilbur snuck and found this. I remember.

Go team!

Oh the website updates faster than the game. But we’re starting off decent.

I’m going to have to take back that statement aren’t I?

Go go go go

Fly fly fly fly

Build build build build

Go Wilbur!

Rafter strat.

Wilbur found the rafters and everyone else loved it.

Blocking his own jump. 😂

I really should do the inside joke chair emoji thing for laughing. But I don’t care.

Tiktok is nice. Depends on the side you are on, but it’s nice.

We are doing halfway decent. I’m proud of us.

Wilbur is struggling and I think he might cry.

Not bad. I don’t think.

Power sweater.

This game in MCC has rainbow road vibes

I’ll have to make that it’s own post since I feel that’ll be popular ish.

Holy cow we hit first on the website!! How?

Ranboo sweet one.

They said no peaking to Wilbur.

Wilbur making them block stuff off and the like is so funny.

Run yaks run!

I missed the moment Wilbur just mentioned. Oh well I’m sure I’ll see the clip.

First last first.

Hey 4th overall. Look at em.

Wilbur switching to full screen to show us his M&Ms.

Let me balance my water bottle on the bedpost above my head. No way this could possibly go wrong in multiple ways.

Double coins. Gorgeous.

Chickens are being sniped.

What’s going to work? TEAM WORK!

I don’t think I have ever watched a game of grid runners in my life?

Alright game should start any second because it started on the website.

Alright stream is delayed about 13 seconds.

Go teams go!

Wilbur just sniping targets.

We’re doing ok.

All this dirt.

Go go go

We’re completing things first.

Cake!

Wilbur got in!

Now they eat

Oh but they are falling.

Oh wow the painting is complicated. My friends and I would fail to communicate so fast.

Is this lever thing just find the button but complicated?

Go you got the levers!

Items grab!

My friends and I would seriously struggle unless I was allowed the lead. But I would lead us off a cliff.

Everyone get ready to go in as soon as the cake is done.

Exit! You guys are so close! Please!

Woohoo!

Go Ranboo! Go Scott!

Come on guys. Come on. Good communication.

I think I like watching Wilbur with MCC because he had a similar strategy to what I would do.

Wilbur why did you try to act cool!!!

They keep saying they are miles ahead but not according to that scoreboard.

You placed 3rd. Good job y’all.

I’m excited for bonuses.

They have another minute until the others run out of time.

Good soup.

Oh wow. Ranboo and Wilbur really are always totgehe.

We are doing well. I see the board changing on the website so much.

Where will they land.

Looks like 2nd or 3rd

Fourth overall. Not bad.

Lap time is logical.

Audience vote?

Look at me redownloading twitter.

Can you not see how others have voted on twitter?

Oh there it is. It only showed mine for a sec there.

Battle box looks close. I voted ace race.

Oh it all looks close right now.

Long break my beloved.

I don’t have time to start my laundry but still. My beloved.

Game 5/8 so MCC won’t be too much longer.

I look up and Wilbur is shaking his ass at George. I’m not surprised.

Phil and Sneeg judging Wilbur.

Wilbur twerking on Phil and Sneeg joining.

Poor Phil.

Wilbur just having visited so many random places with so many random words just gathered.

Oh wow parkour tag is low. But so is sands.

Oh wow it was a tie. Between Sands and Parkour

“Wilbur is Sand Daddy” -Scott and then all the agreement noises.

Sands of Time is my favorite practical game

Maybe because Wilbur is really good at it. And Ranboo had been trained by him.

This is just good.

I swear Sand daddy is going to kill me during this.

I am just going to pass away.

My stream delay though.

Wilbur who says he stays very quiet as he makes circus music noises.

Minecraft Rhinos. Because I can’t spell their real name.

I don’t quite understand sand of time. But I like watching. It’s like college football.

I am missing the only college football game I care about for MCC.

Go Team.

No blue yet.

All the mobs.

“You better not die” sung to the tune of Santa clause is coming yo town. -Wilbur

Keep it up guys.

Oh no. They lost the key.

Oh good they found the key.

You can tell Wilbur had a musicians brain. He just hears something vaguely lyrical and starts singing a song.

Gotta promote your band whenever you can I guess.

I listened to the last Ep for like an hour and a half yesterday while I went about my day.

I wonder how we’re doing?

Only a few seconds.

I could warm a heating pad in the amount fo time they have left.

Ranboo doing these puzzles so amazingly.

Quit caring about what others think. Just do your thing.

I swear the sand daddy thing.

I love the cage of shame for not tracking your sand.

I zoned out. Red cyan orange?

We’re almost 15 minutes into sands.

I want to play Minecraft on my iPad right now.

Wait the website updated. We were 6th?

Yikes. I thought they did better.

3rd overall though!

Wait what was that about most influential improv thingy? Good for them.

Build mart!

Oh Ace Race. Wilbur calling Ace Race his girlfriend now.

I want to see the enemies to lovers fan fictions of Ace race and Wilbur.

Oh wait I can do that. I can verbally tell one like I have others in the past.

I’m excited to watch this.

Wilbur flirt with the race.

I’m not mentally prepared for this.

Everyone just joined because they don’t want to miss Wilbur x Ace Race.

Oh no. He’s not doing so well.

Oh Wilbur is giving us more.

Complicated history…

Whispering to Ace Race and Solidarity.

You’ve got it Wilbur.

Keep on talking. Keep your brain busy while you play.

Mommmm Wilbur is flirting with Ace Race again!

He’s whispering though so I can’t quite hear it and will have to find a clip channel that added subtitles.

Oh teams are changing on the website.

“What are you doing in my women Philza?” -Wilbur

“I will end your bloodline which is canonically also me.” -Wilbur

I can not track all the quotes from this. That’s beyond my abilities.

Wilbur did halfway decent, but it still uncomfortable.

Ace Race is a person now. Also the fact that Wilbur compliments Ace Race so much.

Sally v. Ace Race.

I want to find that fanart now.

Scott honey. Confirmed cannon is everyone fancies the fish.

4th. Not bad.

We’re still talking Ace Race x Wilbur

Build mart! My dearest buildmart!

I miss them sliding around in the sleds.

Grab da flowers!

We’re in 1st at the minute.

Come on yaks!

No coyotes!

Hurry hurry hurry.

Work discord going it’s thing again.

Oh we’re dropping fast.

Move the redstone! Thank you

Alright back on top. Keep it up.

Nevermind.

I love the way the build spaces for the different teams work.

Who is the person on the build?

Oh first again? Nevermind.

Oh we popped up to second. We’re so behind. Come on.

Duck!

Good soup energy. Now all I can think is the bi wide energy song.

Time is running out.

Yeah we aren’t catching up to first. Just hold second.

Where is granite?

Game over.

Third overall now. Not bad. Last game time they can possibly pull it into dodge bolt.

I need to go get a picture with the President of the university for a game with my work.

Good Soup.

I’m sitting here making popcat noises while waiting.

Game time! Go team! Survive!

Wait where did the steamer go? I wasn’t paying attention.

He’s back.

He’s swearing for his points on the swearing list.

Is pee a soup? No. I don’t think it’s think enough under normal circumstances.

Karl is apparently swearing according to Twitter. Good for him. He deserves to swear some as a treat.

Everyone running and leaving shubble.

Oh good they are all together.

Just keep running.

4th so far.

Cars. Beep beep.

Ranboo breath child.

Calling Wilbur like some kind of golden retriever.

Bow boy

Scott is leader now. Because otherwise they are arguing.

We are playing the don’t die strategy.

Come on team.

Did I put my cut in this post? I did.

Ranboo having stolen the airdrop. And he has a thing!

Oh the boarder is right behind them.

They are fighting Dream?

Nice Will.

We’re in fourth.

Boarder is right there.

Sapnap? Nope.

Pink attack and they book it.

Oh no. There goes Wilbur.

Is it just Scott?

Scott vs the world.

Just Organe and pink. They came third.

GO ORANGE!

Please. Please let us do it.

Overall third. Pink overtook yellow.

Sadness.

Ranboo has achieved: Found Hated Game

Ranboo has been hit by Survival games so many times now.

If they had just lasted a tiny bit longer they would have come second.

Cheering Orange I suppose.

I have no skill at picking winner POVs.

I have 3 teams I was at least kinda watching. And none of them are in dodgebolt.

Gosh can hear Ranboo tweaking.

Wow. Yellow yaks just as a team twerking.

What is Wilbur chewing on? Wilbur don’t chew on things that probably aren’t meant to be chewed on.

I can hear the band outside of my window. I think my campuses football game is starting.

The drum line practiced outside my window all the beginning of the semester so it’s fun seeing them march to the stadium.

Oh and there are the cheerleaders.

Oh right I was watching MCC! Who’s winning?

Come on Orange. So close.

Wait I looked out my window. Why is the band walking back to where they were?

Along the sidewalk?

I thought it was game time for a minute.

Oh dodgebolt could go either way.

Distracted by Jesus.

Grian! You got this!

Nice Grian.

Oh Grian has a chance!

Oh!

It’s so close!

Ooo ooo!

I’m so invested.

I SEE THE CONFETTI IN THE SITE! But I don’t want to miss the shot.

Come on Grian.

I know you do it. But you’ve got this

YESSSSS

Woo hoo!!

That was a good MCC. Now to do the chores and homework I originally planned to do today.

That was a nice stream.

Scott is separating Ranboo and Wilbur?

Please. Scott.

Don’t separate the beings.

You know. Twitter needs to politely bully Scott into keeping Ranboo and Will together.

Oop and that’s Wilbur done. That was fun.

See y’all next time!

#mcc #wilbur soot #ranboo #Scott #dangthatsalongname #shubble #yellow yaks #delayed liveblogging

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keelywolfe · 4 years

Text

FIC: Welcome To Backwater (spicyhoney standalone)

Summary: Stretch isn't running away, not really.

He took the bus.

Only to end up in a little town in the middle of nowhere, meeting unusual people, dealing with unexpected happenings, what the hell is going on in this place?

Tags: Spicyhoney, Midwest Gothic

~~*~~

Read Chapter One on AO3

Read it here!

~~*~~

Stretch honestly wasn’t sure what state he was in anymore. Not philosophically, but literally, as in United States of etcetera. He’d drowsed off with his skull leaning against the cool glass of the bus window somewhere around three am, the drone of the wheels on asphalt lulling him and the darkness outside broken only by the brief, glaring flash of the occasional car passing by.

When he woke again the sun was high in the sky and the view outside was a blur of endless green. Fields of it as far as the eye could see, corn, maybe, he wasn’t up on all the traditional crops of the Aboveground or at least not enough to know them by sight.

His legs were cramped from being curled up on the seat next to him all night and Stretch shifted with a grimace to put his sneakers back on the floor. Didn’t exactly uncramp him, he was too tall for that, but it did change the angle so, hey, at least a small favor.

The rest of the bus was more empty than not, the other passengers mostly sitting on their own, sleeping or reading or playing on their phones. None of them gave him even a passing glance and that was fine by him. Probably got all their stares in last night when they first got on the bus. There’d been plenty of side-eyes and outright stares as Stretch made his way down the aisle to an empty seat. No surprise there, Monsters had been on the surface for a couple of years now, but it wasn’t like there was enough of them to make a sighting anything less than exotic for Humans. He was more grateful that no one tried to talk to him, eager to make a Monster Friend like they were a fucking Pokémon to add to their collection.

He’d met plenty of Humans like that over the years; put them off politely and they only tried harder, put them off rudely and they got loudly pissed. Couldn’t win that game and eventually Stretch got tired of trying.

He let his head fall back on the padded headrest with a sigh, closing his sockets. Not much point in thinking about that right now, that was the sort of shit that landed him on this bus.

His grungy backpack was on the floor, overstuffed to the point of the zipper straining and the sleeve of a spare hoodie trailing out of the side like an extra arm. Stretch managed to contort himself enough to reach down and dig his headphones out of the side pocket, relieved to find them charged for once. He poked the earbuds into his audial canals, heh, earbuds with no ears, it sounded like the start of a bad joke, and turned on a playlist. Soothing eighties, that seemed to fit in with the scenery outside. Or maybe not; from the occasional run-down barn the bus sped past, their peeling paint still advertising Mail Pouch chewing tobacco, this place didn’t seem to have crawled out of the sixties yet.

He was barely through the first song when the sorrowful refrain about the boys of summer was cut off by his phone letting out a persistent buzz. His brother’s picture popped up on the lock screen and it was probably his imagination making that sweet, smiling face look so judgmental.

Probably.

His thumb hesitated over the answer button before decisively settling on decline and he’d barely settled back into his seat with the melodious voice of Don Henley when it started up again. He let it go this time, every short burst of buzzing echoing through his skull until it stopped. It didn’t ring again.

By then the song had changed to ‘No One Is To Blame’, Stretch went ahead and skipped it. He didn’t really need to chew on any irony right now, it would kill his appetite for breakfast.

~~*~~

It was a few more hours before the bus pulled off for a pit stop and by then, Stretch was ready to start chewing on his chair arm. Might’ve if he thought the seats had been cleaned anytime in the past decade. He didn’t have a stomach, exactly, but they still needed to eat to replenish their magic and the hollow gnawing of his hunger was making him lightheaded.

Come to think about it, he wasn’t even sure when he’d last eaten. Sometime before yesterday morning, maybe even the night before when he’d sat picking at the meal his brother spent so much time making, trying not to see the worry in those starry-eye lights, silently hoping Blue didn’t say anything past ‘good night’. Shouldn’t have wasted the wish, not like they ever came true, anyway. The stars he’d wanted so much to see lived up to the ‘twinkle twinkle’ advertisement, the ‘wish upon a star’ part, not so much.

When he’d stuffed his backpack before heading off to the station, he hadn’t thought far enough ahead to even grab a granola bar or a bag of chisps. All he’d been thinking about was getting it done, getting out, down to the station to hop the first bus going anywhere.

That bus rolled to a stop with a loud hiss of compressed air, the bored-looking driver yanking the door lever open. Stretch let all the Humans get off the bus first, shuffling their sleepy, dead-eyed way down the aisle as they groaned and stretched, many of them already reaching for cigarettes. The last thing he needed was a rough elbow from some impatient jackass who couldn’t wait another minute to load up on gas station chili dogs for the trip. He waited until the last Human was almost off before making his own way down, the laces of his untied sneakers trailing behind him as he shuffled his way out.

After hours in the air conditioning, the humid air was almost stifling, the smell of gasoline thick along with the smog of exhaust.

The gas station was about as unimpressive as the barns they’d passed. No shiny neon signs here advertising regular and premium below a well-lit emblem of a Shell or a BP. Not even a bright red ‘Kum and Go’ to make adults snicker quietly above confused children’s heads. The ancient pumps looked as if their first service was to the Model T and every time the door opened it was heralded by the loud, rickety clang of a cow bell.

He was itching for a cigarette of his own, but not on an empty stomach. Might be out of luck for chili dogs after all in a place like this, but there was still hope. According to the travel guide he’d filched from the bus depot back in Ebott, this was the exact sort of place that might carry such exotic foods as pasties or whoopie pies. The guide didn’t have any pictures, but Stretch was hungry enough to take a chance.

He made his way across broken asphalt studded with cigarette butts and old chewing gum, already hungrily ready for at least a Snickers bar. Maybe that hunger was why Stretch didn’t see the short guy coming out the door, completely oblivious to the clanging warning of the cowbell as he rammed right into him and nearly knocked the overflowing paper sack right out of his hands. Both of them grabbed for it automatically, fumbling to keep from dropping it and instead the brown paper tore from top to bottom and sent a shower of cans tumbling down to the sidewalk.

“fuck!” Loudly said in two voices, very nearly in unison. Stretch was already on his hands and knees collecting silver cans with ‘Coors’ scrawled across their condensation-dewed sides. The shorter guy took a minute longer, bracing himself on a cane as he slowly reached for a can that’d rolled over to an overflowing pedestal ashtray.

“man, i’m sorry,” Stretch panted, snatching up the last can that was attempting to set a world record escape to the gas pumps.

“ain’t your fault,” the short guy grunted as he struggled back to his feet. “bag was damp from the beers.”

Now that Stretch wasn’t trying to herd cans, he got a better look and what he saw froze him in his tracks. He couldn’t not stare, not when his beer bumper was another Monster and more than that, another skeleton. Which was bizarre, Stretch only knew two other skeleton Monsters aside from his own brother and this was absolutely not one of them. None of them had jagged, sharky teeth and blood-red eye lights, a nasty looking crack running narrowly through one socket.

Nor did they need a cane to help them along on beer runs and the other skeleton was struggling to gather the cans up in his arms. He tucked two into his jacket pockets and tried jimmying the others into the crook of his elbow, but one of them squirting free and launched into the air.

Stretch caught it before it got too accustomed to flight, barely managing not to drop the already dented can back on the pavement. “here, let me help,” Stretch said.

The other skeleton was already shaking his head, reaching for the can, “nah, i live right around the corner, i’ll stack ‘em by the curb and make another trip.”

Yeah, because half the people from the bus wouldn’t wander out of the station and take advantage of the offering of free beer, that wasn’t gonna work. “at least let me get another bag from the clerk.”

The skeleton snorted aloud, “mitch don’t hand out bags, brought that one myself from my store.” He hesitated and added, reluctantly, “but if you really wanna give me a hand, the two of us can carry ‘em pretty easy.”

The bus was only on a fifteen-minute stop, gas, grub, and go. Anyone not in their seat got left behind according to his ticket stub, stated boldly in oversized text, and there probably wasn’t another bus station where he could catch a ride for fifty miles.

Stretch gave the street they were on a glance. They were in the middle of a shaggy, rundown sort of town, this gas station was probably the only one around. Barely he could see a plain, unlit sign on the building on the other corner that said starkly, ‘Groceries’. The local restaurant was probably called ‘Eats’, everything was fried up in the same bacon grease poured out from an old coffee can, even the pie. It was a screaming advertisement for the kind of Podunk town where everybody knew everyone, and outsiders were looked at with jaundiced suspicion.

And a Monster lived here.

Stretch took a couple more beers that were threatening to make another escape from the other skeleton’s arm and shrugged. “lead the way.”

It was slow going, not only because Stretch’s legs were about as long as the other guy was tall, but the other skeleton had a pretty bad limp, grunting with each step he took. Stretch hoped guiltily he hadn’t made anything worse by nearly knocking him on his ass, but if he had, the guy didn’t complain.

True to his word, they didn’t have far to go. The skeleton led the way towards that grocery sign, unlocking the door with a heavy, old-fashioned key that looked like it would be more at home in a castle rather than a grocery store in midwestern Cornsville. He pulled the door open enough for Stretch to grab it, another cowbell jangling overhead like an epidemic, and he held it open while both of them shuffled inside into a renewed rush of blissful air conditioning.

The grocery store didn’t exactly live up to its name. Maybe it was more a grocery shop or even ‘market’ with no ‘super’ tacked in front. The groceries consisted pretty much of a few rows of tall racks and a couple coolers, the shelves lined with cans, toilet paper, and other random dry goods. There was a wide counter by the door with a register sitting on it that’d probably been there for a hundred years and an incongruous credit card scanner nestled against its side.

The skeleton dropped his beers on the counter with a clatter of aluminum. He hopped up on a tall stool and popped open the cash drawer, shoving a couple bills into it as he waved a hand at the scarred wood of the bare countertop. “you c’n set the beers here. help yourself ta one.”

Beer wasn’t exactly what he’d been thinking about for breakfast but Stretch popped the tab anyway and took a long drink, unable to help a grimace at the bitter taste. The other skeleton let out a chuckle that deteriorated into a phlegmy cough, grabbing his own can and gulping down half of it in one swig.

Stretch looked around the shop, at the cans of beans and pickle jars with a fine layer of dust, out the front window where the view of the town was obscured by a couple years’ worth of blurry fingerprints. “you know any place i can get a room around here?”

The skeleton raised both brow bones. He finished off his beer and let out a mellow belch as he popped the tab on another. “planning on hanging around for a while?”

“maybe,” Stretch said, then shrugged. “probably. if i can find a job.”

The other skeleton considered that. His phalanges were sharp at the tips, chipping new little pits into the countertop as he drummed his fingers on it. He came to some sort of conclusion, his toothy grin widening, “tell ya what, i might be able to help ya out with both. you mind the store in the mornings,” he patted the countertop and ran his fingers lovingly over the ancient register, “and ya can stay in the spare room over the shop. ain’t much, but there’s a bed an’ a window. might be enough for a while.”

It sounded like a pretty good deal. A little too good and Stretch squinted suspiciously. “why?”

That grin soured. “let’s say ya got a trustworthy face. looks a lot more like mine than anyone else around these parts, too.”

That made Stretch wince a little, confirming what he already expected. They were the only Monsters in town and from the unkempt look of the store, the locals weren’t that keen about having them around. Be stupid to stay in a place where he knew he wasn’t wanted, even stupider than letting the bus go on without him.

In his pocket his phone buzzed loudly, making him jump. It buzzed once, twice, then Stretch reached in and pressed the silence button. Then he held out a hand to the other skeleton. “deal.”

To his surprise, the skeleton gave his hand a long look, studying it. Nothing to see but plain bone, his own fingertips blunted, and with a yellowish nicotine stain between the first and second knuckles. Stretch almost pulled it awkwardly back but before he could, the skeleton reached out and took it, shaking it almost painfully hard. “deal. guess now that i’m your boss, you’ll need my name. you can call me red.”

“stretch.”

The other skeleton, Red, laughed loudly and slapped his good knee, “yeah, that suits ya.” He hopped off the stool and limped around the countertop. “c’mon upstairs, there’s a shower, too. might want to put it to good use. welcome to backwater, kid, hope you stay a while.”

~~*~~

Red’s dour description of the room wasn’t quite accurate. For one, the room was larger than Stretch pictured, nearly the size of the shop beneath it. There was a bed, yeah, but also a card table and a couple chairs. In one corner there was a television so ancient there was a set of elderly rabbit ear antenna on top. But the whole setup was less dusty than the store downstairs, like maybe the previous tenant wasn’t that long gone.

Stretch didn’t ask. Sometimes not knowing made it easier to sleep at night.

The promised shower was in a bathroom only slighter larger than a closet, the hot water heater groaning audibly and pouring out a grudging trickle through the showerhead that spent alternating minutes as lava hot and icy cold. Despite that, it felt good to rinse away the layer of road dust he’d accumulated, soaping up with a leftover sliver of soap he found.

When he got out of the shower, a threadbare towel around his pelvis offering limited protection to his modesty, there was a steaming bowl on the table. Filled with a thick stew, blobs of meat floating in a greasy gravy, and a hunk of bread with it, along with another beer.

Stretch wolfed it all down hungrily, easing the last of his physical discomforts, then flopped down on the narrow bed. Red had told him to take the day to settle in and he could start work tomorrow. That sounded like advice well worth taking. He had a place, he had a job, and he had his phone on silent. He could text his bro tomorrow.

Yeah.

He turned on the television, but no matter how he moved the antenna, the only show that came in was static. He switched it back off, contemplated Netflix on his phone, and then decided that sleep was probably the number one choice for entertainment today.

The mattress was thin, the springs threatening to poke through the worn layers of cushion, but right now it might as well be stuffed with angel wings. Stretch closed his sockets and let sleep claim him.

~~*~~

Stretch wasn’t sure of the time when he woke, the former sunshine streaming in turned to a darkness deeper than he’d seen since they came out from under the mountain. No hint of bitter moonlight crept in through the curtainless window.

He leaned up on an elbow and tried to kick the tangled blanket around his legs loose, his sleep-tainted thoughts slow in coming back online.

When his mind finally booted up, Stretch flopped back on the sagging mattress with a groan. He was in the little town of Backwater, that was right, in the room above Red’s shop. An unfamiliar place, that was all, the only ghosts around here were his own memories, the only sound his own breathing. He wondered sleepily what had woken him, giving the picture window that took up half of the side wall a glance, and went utterly still.

Eyes. A deep, unrelenting gleam of crimson coals staring in at him from the other side of the glass. Rus couldn’t move, terror welling up thick and rancid, a primordial fear rising into his throat from his soul, shivering its way like a sin down his spine.

That crimson gaze flickered in a blink and Stretch let out a hoarse cry, his paralysis broken enough for him to scramble back, heels kicking at the covers as he cowered against the wall, waiting for the crash of breaking glass. Long minutes of nothing ticked by, his panic slowly fading, and when Stretch opened his sockets again, there was nothing outside the window but blackness, not so much as the yellowish aura of a streetlamp peeking in.

“fuck.” Stretch rubbed his forearm over his sockets, blinking hard, and looked again. Nothing, exactly as it should be outside a second-story window. He sank back against the mattress, swallowing down the hysterical little laugh that tried to bubble its way out.

“jus’ a dream,” he mumbled aloud and hearing his own voice was steadying. A dream, yeah, an eerie little hallucination brought on by too much beer and too little food, all wrapped up in this strange place. Stretch dragged the thin blanket back over him and rolled to his side, defiantly giving the window his back as he settled in to sleep. Tomorrow was gonna be a busy day and he was gonna need all the rest he could get.

He fell easily back into a weary, dreamless sleep and never noticed that crimson stare returning, gazing through the glass like deep red lamplight cutting through the darkness.

-tbc

#spicyhoney #papcest #keelywolfe #underfell #underswap #underfell papyrus #underswap papyrus #underfell sans #underswap sans #welcome to backwater

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jellydishes · 3 years

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i was tagged by @cartadwarfwithaheartofgold with wip wednesday! tagging @the-temple-of-sacred-asses, @storybookhawke, and @robot-thighs

first up is a piece of Its Just A Jump And A Twist, an ongoing time travel story wherein a post inquisition leliana gets to go back and time to redo origins:

The first time this wheel had turned, a much younger Leliana had found herself weeping in a corner of their temporary camp barricaded behind bookcases. She'd had her hands over her mouth, trying to muffle herself so she wouldn't disturb her companions. It hadn't been the death alone that had twisted her belly up in knots until she had to cry or scream or else would burst with it, but the very act of being in the tower. Of wandering claustrophobic halls choked with blood and fear that had thrust her right back into a different place, a different torture room at the hands of someone who had sworn she would always be there to protect her. A fallen mage just within view through a gap in the barricade looked at her with Tug’s sightless eyes, and Leliana had retched behind her hands.

That was when cool hands had curved over her own, freezing Leliana's roiling thoughts long enough to lift her head and stare until the person crouched before her had resolved itself into Amleda Tabris. Amleda and her hesitant, crooked smile and the warmth of comforting words Leliana could no longer remember. She remember how warm they had felt, though, pushing the earlier chill in her chest back until she could breathe again. Amleda had always done that for her, whenever a chance-caught glimpse of red hair or some combination of words made the whole world shake loose beneath her feet, leaving nothing left but Leliana and old scars. And somehow, that space came to include Amleda, too.

And then it didn't.

Back then, Leliana had obeyed an impulse she couldn't have named at the time, one that moved her to brush her lips across Amleda’s in a soft, hesitant kiss. Had breathed out, once, then she realized. Remembered. And made to pull back and pull away because Amleda wasn't responding. Wasn't moving, wasn't speaking or laughing with her or doing anything but staring wide-eyed, her mouth hanging open. Leliana's hands had come up to wrap around her belly, and that must have been when some lever was finally pulled in Amleda’s brain, because she had lurched forward and brought their mouths crashing together again, and for the first time.

Their first kiss. A brief moment of beauty shared in a place of despair. And she was, the weight of decades pressing her into a floor that knew none of it as she stared at that spot. The ghost of flustered, shared laughter echoed in her ears. She could almost hear the quiet, nearly whispered, “I have enough space on my shoulders to carry one more worry, if you want to let go of it for a little while…”

A noise at her back, boots over loose stone and half-dried blood. Leliana didn't turn away. She should have, but at that moment she felt unbearably weary. Too much time had been lost that could never be regained, no matter what year she was in. Memories of dead women who still stood beside her, looking back and forth between the empty corner and Leliana’s dry eyes. Leliana opened her mouth, then let it fall shut. “Have I ever told you about that warden?” She croaked after several long moments.

“The one who died?” Amleda asked cautiously, and she had every right to, Leliana thought, not without irony.

“The very same. I saw-” Leliana's mouth twisted up at the corner in a poor imitation of a smile, or a laugh that never came. “Certain things remind me of her,” she said instead. “Sounds. Places. It is all too easy to…”

She'd almost said remember, but thankfully Amleda finished, “Imagine what happened? I know how that goes. Dangerous snare to go sticking your hand into, believe me. Start off trying to imagine what it had been like for them, if you could have stopped it somehow, and then it's fourteen years later and you've wasted more than half of your life trying to relive one day.”

Leliana’s throat tightened. Amleda was talking about her mother, Adaia Tabris. Adaia. Leliana was caught once again by another memory, this time of a red stripe etched across glittering eyes and down the angles of her cheeks, a hoarse, laughing voice promising to tell her children's children of what Leliana had done for her this night. A warm hand clasped around her wrist, in the way of warriors, and then she had been gone.

Leliana had never known if Adaia had kept that promise. Back when Amleda had been alive to ask, it had seemed too… self-serving to ask, as if she were trying to insert herself into a life that didn't need one more presumptive human, and then it had been too late.

Leliana closed her eyes, then opened them. “And, what do you do then?” She asked. Her voice wobbled traitorously, and she hated it in that moment. “When you've wasted your entire life looking backwards?”

Somehow, Amleda’s hand had found its way into Leliana’s gloved one, and there it stayed. Neither curling her closer or pulling away, and gradually Leliana relaxed. “You breathe,” was Amleda's quiet answer. “You get up and you breathe and you put one foot in front of the other until you can't do it anymore, and then you do it some more.”

“What if I can't? What if it stays with me all the days of my life?”

“Then you live for them, too. Get up and breathe and put one foot in front of the other, and if you can punch a pissant or four on your way down, then that's what has to happen. I certainly won't shed a tear.”

“How do you know?” Leliana was laughing all the same, and rugged free a questionable handkerchief to scrub at her eyes so she wouldn't have to look Amleda in the eyes.

“Because it's me,” Amleda said, and Leliana’s heart froze. “I carry my mother with me, the same way I carry Neleros and everyone who's come and gone from my life. Same way you do. We all carry our burdens. Mine just feel like an obligation. How about you?”

Leliana swallowed hard. In that moment, she wished for nothing more than a release from this conversation. “I hide,” she said in a voice that was so strained that it emerged as a rasp. “I seal the memories away in a box and bury it where no one, not even myself, will ever find it.”

A silence ensued. Amleda’s hand still curled loosely in her own, and Leliana couldn't bring herself to move for fear of Amleda pulling away, or turning into dust. Of none of this having been anything but the cruelest joke since the beginning. “I thought you said you were a storyteller.”

“I am.” Despite herself, Leliana turned a curious expression on Amleda, which was a mistake. Amleda was tired, streaked with soot and fluids best not thought on, but her eyes were fixed on Leliana, and she couldn't look away.

“Storytellers don't bury uncomfortable truths, do they? They remember the hard ones, too, the ones with barbs that rip and tear and hurt because sometimes hurt is what people need to realize they are still alive and able to fight and laugh and live. Battle cries from everyone who isn't alive to do it themselves. That's you. You wage war on their behalf, and you can't do that if you're too busy choking from swallowing your own secrets.”

Leliana stared at her until Amleda’s beautiful brown skin blurred in front of her. She let out a small, unwilling sound when Amleda wiped her tears away, and stood up on her tiptoes to kiss the corner of Leliana’s mouth. “Stick with me, we’ll get you remembering sunshine again,” Amleda promised. “That's what we do, right? We’re the heroes of this operation.”

second up is a bit of a thing for tma where gerry gets to meet his dad via even more time travel fuckery:

Gerry eased out a breath and drew in another that shook and rasped on the way down. "Look," he started to say, stopped, then tried again. "I'm not going to say that any of this bullshit equals out on some great cosmic abacus in the sky, but someone like you should have the chance to know that what you did mattered. And I don't know if I'm the one to do that. I never had the chance to know you."

Eric was quiet for several moments. "But you know yourself, right? You had the chance to learn who you are and who you wanted to be. That's what I want. Wanted, I guess."

"You're not listening." Something small and sharp and raw dug between his ribs and made his voice come out sounding odd to his own ears. He didn't know why he had this urge to make Eric understand, but he did. "I don't know if it was worth it. What's the point if small and petty people like her win and people like you lose?"

"You mean like us. But… you don't sound small and petty to me. You sound like someone who struggled and kept struggling but didn't stop trying, anyway. Hard to call a heart like that small." Eric fell silent again, his brow furrowing in thought. Then he added slowly, "I let her win, because I couldn't stop loving her. Seems like you beat me on both those counts."

#Dragon Age #The Magnus Archives #wip wednesday #sometimes i write

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chocolatequeennk · 4 years

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Forever Timeless, 2/23

Summary: Two months after the Dalek Crucible, the Doctor and Rose are getting used to having the biggest family on Earth. As they visit Leadworth in 1996, Victorian England, a mysterious desert planet, and Elizabethan England, those family and friends often help in unexpected ways. But no matter where they go or who they’re with, it’s always the Doctor in the TARDIS with RoseTyler–just as it should be.

Ten x Rose, Donna x Lee

Betaed by @saecookie, @rudennotgingr, @pellaaearien, and @jabber-who-key

Tagging @doctorroseprompts for Doctor/Rose content

Part 7 of Being to Timelessness

AO3 | FF.NET | TSP

Ch 1

Chapter Two: Another Year, Another Adventure

Rose glanced at the familiar faces standing around the console as she worked quickly to set the coordinates. She tugged at the bond to get the Doctor’s attention. He checked the destination and immediately nodded.

“Barcelona!” he enthused.

Rose smiled and sent them into motion while he started rambling about the planet.

“Gorgeous tropical resort. We’ve been twice. Beautiful beaches, gorgeous waterfalls to hike, and—”

“Dogs with no noses,” Rose said along with him.

Donna raised an eyebrow. “You’re both nutters,” she said, shaking her head. “Dogs with no noses? How do they smell?”

The Doctor giggled. “Exactly!”

Rose planted her feet and everyone quickly grabbed onto something before the TARDIS landed on Barcelona with a teeth-jarring thud. “Barcelona,” Rose said, waving at the door.

Donna and Jenny exchanged a grin, then ran up the ramp and pushed the door open. Brilliant sunlight streamed into the console room, and Rose could smell the salt tang of the ocean in the air.

“Oh, I have missed this!” Donna said.

“Missed travelling the galaxy, or not spending hours on a plane getting someplace?” the Doctor asked.

“Both!”

Jenny and Donna stepped back inside and picked up the bags they’d left by the door. Before they left, Donna turned around and pointed at Rose, then at the Doctor. “All right, we’re going to leave you to celebrate your anniversary on your own. But you’d better come for us on time.”

“Or you’ll do what?” the Doctor retorted.

Rose groaned and pressed her fist to her forehead. She could hear the scowl on Donna’s face when their friend answered the Doctor.

“Or I’ll tie you down and bleach your hair blond,” she snapped.

Rose’s hand dropped to her mouth to hold back a laugh at the horrified expression on the Doctor’s face.

Donna nodded once, sharply. “Excellent. We’ll see you in a week, then.” She left the TARDIS and swung the door shut behind her.

“But… That’s…” The Doctor ran his hands through his hair.

Rose walked over to him and pulled his hands down, then smoothed over the most sticky-up pieces. “Don’t worry, Doctor. I like your hair too much to let her do that to you.”

He straightened his tie and preened. “It is pretty great, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, I love your hair.” Rose waited a beat, then said, “So I’ll make sure I’m driving when we go pick them up.”

“Oi!”

The Doctor grabbed for her, but Rose laughed and twisted away from him, adjusting the navigation settings as she went. She felt him following her movements and knew the moment he had remembered they were actually on their way to their own holiday destination.

“So do I finally get to find out what your secret holiday plans are?”

“Well…” she said, stretching it out the way he did. “I’m not sure if it’s check-in time yet.”

The Doctor narrowed his eyes. “This is a time machine,” he reminded her. “Which I’m fairly certain you are aware of.”

“Yeah, you might have mentioned it.”

He raised his eyebrows and gestured at the console. Rose laughed, but she finally obliged him. “Prepare yourself for the holiday of a lifetime,” she said dramatically as she threw the dematerialisation lever.

The ship spun into the Vortex, and Rose twirled the opposite direction, dancing around the console until she was next to the Doctor.

“Do you know what?” she asked.

He grinned and pressed a quick kiss to her lips before finishing the familiar line. “Travelling with you—I love it.”

The TARDIS landed, and the lights in the console room flashed. He looked up at the time rotor. “It seems I’m not the only one excited for this trip.”

Rose slung her deceptively small bag over her shoulder. “We’ve been working on this together. She says you’ve never been anywhere like this before.”

“Welllll, I’m not sure about that. Not this exact place, maybe, but—” The Doctor pulled the door open and stopped talking immediately.

Rose stepped up beside him and took his hand. “Welcome to Critias.”

The idea that had come to her while reading to Tony had taken a firm hold of her mind. As soon as they’d gotten home that night, she’d asked the TARDIS if it was even possible.

Is there a planet like Atlantis? Once they found the answer, they’d jumped at the chance.

The Doctor walked down the narrow alley as if in a trance and pressed his hand to the glass, fingers splayed out. A curious puffer fish swam forward to sniff at his fingers, but when he realised he couldn’t actually reach them, he swam away.

“This is…” The Doctor paused, then shook his head. “This is incredible, love. Thank you.”

“We explore the stars, but we never really touch this frontier,” Rose said.

“Another adventure with you.”

“Another year with you,” Rose corrected. “Happy anniversary, Doctor.”

Really, the Doctor reasoned, there was only one proper response when your bond mate wished you a happy anniversary. And so he wrapped an arm around Rose’s waist and pulled her close for a kiss.

“Thank you,” he murmured against her lips. “I love it.”

Rose pulled back and looked up at him, her nose wrinkled up a little. “Enough that it makes up for not getting a present? I didn’t get a chance to get you anything.”

The Doctor rested his hands on her hips and smiled down at her. “Absolutely. Although…” He pressed his tongue to the back of his teeth. “I don’t have a gift for you, either.”

Rose laughed. “You helped my mum and Pete set up their furniture last weekend, and you didn’t start one fight with Mum. That covers you for at least our anniversary.”

The Doctor chuckled. “All right. Now, where is this hotel?”

Rose pointed over his shoulder and he turned around to look at the building. It was positioned against the outer wall of the city, and he could easily imagine the kind of views the rooms would have.

He took a few steps down the alley, but Rose grabbed his hand and pulled him back. “I know I was joking when I said it wasn’t check-in time yet, but it really isn’t. I didn’t want to waste half the day by not getting here until mid afternoon.”

The Doctor nodded quickly. “Excellent decision. So, what should we do first?”

“Walk?” Rose suggested. “I can’t get enough of the view from the edge of the city.”

They moved from the alleyway to the path that snaked around the edge of the dome. “No, neither can I,” the Doctor agreed.

A giant piece of brilliant red seaweed floated by, the current picking up little tendrils and tugging them in different directions. A few more metres down the path, they watched a family of seahorses swim by.

“Why did they build a city under the ocean?” the Doctor wondered as they walked.

“I looked into that actually,” Rose said. “The planet was really struggling with overpopulation.”

He snorted. “So they decided to spread into the ocean? They’d squeezed out everyone on the surface and now they’d move into the fishes’ place too?”

Rose pinched him in the side. “Thought you were enjoying the trip,” she said pointedly.

“Oh, I am!” he said quickly. “Just… You know what, never mind. You’re right. So, there were too many humans on the surface—they are humans, it seems?”

Rose shook her head. “Nope. Critians are humanoid—I suppose you could say they look Time Lord—but they aren’t human. I dunno how they’re different exactly, but they are.”

The Doctor bit his tongue before he could launch into a rant on Rassilon spreading the Gallifreyan body type around the galaxy. There was a time and a place, and this was not it.

oOoOo

Their suite was an incredible underwater oasis. The hotel was situated against the main exterior bubble of the city, and each room actually bulged out into the open sea.

The Doctor watched the fish swim by while Rose slept on their first night there. He finally fell asleep as a jellyfish lazily drifted past.

The view when he woke up was not so tranquil. Several long tentacles were wrapped around their domed ceiling, and a giant eye peered in through the glass.

His quick indrawn breath and suddenly tense muscles were enough to wake Rose up. “Wha’s wrong?” she asked groggily.

The Doctor had processed what he was looking at, and he was a little embarrassed to have been so easily startled. “Just found a Peeping Tom,” he said, trying to deflect from his own reaction.

Rose rolled slightly and looked up at the ceiling. The Doctor could feel her trying to grasp what she was seeing, and then finally she giggled. “Look, he’s stuck on you, Doctor.”

The Doctor rolled his eyes and huffed. “Really, Rose?”

Rose shifted closer to him, sliding her leg over his and wrapping an arm over his chest. “I dunno,” she whispered against his neck. “Stuck on you’s not so bad.”

The Doctor hissed and tilted his head back when she kissed the sensitive spot on his jaw, just below his ear. Rose smiled and scraped her teeth over the spot before sucking gently.

“Yeah, I like being stuck on you.”

The Doctor’s eyes blinked open, his gaze still met by the steady curiosity of the squid. He arched an eyebrow, then rolled over so he was looking down at Rose. “I’d rather watch you than our friendly cephalopod,” he murmured.

Rose laughed again, just as he pressed his lips to hers.

oOoOo

The squid was long gone by the time the Doctor and Rose were enjoying breakfast in bed. “What do you want to do today?” the Doctor asked in between bites of a fluffy pastry.

She shrugged. “Whatever you want. It’s a new planet to both of us—it might be fun to just hit all the main tourist spots.”

She bit into a pinkish fruit, and her eyes widened. “Try this,” she insisted, holding a bite out for him.

The Doctor wrapped his fingers around her wrist to hold her hand steady, then he bent to pull the fruit off her fork with his teeth. As soon as the flavour hit his tongue, he knew why Rose had been so insistent.

“Mmmm, banana.” He smacked his lips and immediately selected another slice from the tray. “A sea banana,” he added gleefully.

“Did you know there were other fruits in the galaxy that tasted like banana?”

He scoffed. “If I knew there were other perfect foods in the world, we would have them at home.”

Rose shook her head and laughed. “Of course, why did I even ask? I guess finding some sea bananas to take home is going on the list of must-see attractions.”

“Oh yes!”

They shared bites back and forth, enjoying all the unique flavours of Critian food. Once the platter was mostly picked clean, Rose kissed him on the cheek and slid out of bed. “Why don’t you look up things to do while I take a shower? I bet you can find out what that fruit is and where we can get some.”

The Doctor took the tour guide tablet from the nightstand and made quick work of his research. He learned that kaju, the sea banana, was a favourite food of the Critians. There were several speciality food shops selling it, but only one farm you could tour. He’d just booked two tickets for the morning tour when Rose exited the en suite, wrapped in a fluffy white robe.

“Your turn.”

He handed her the tablet. “Why don’t you find something for us to do this afternoon?” he suggested.

Rose waited until she heard the shower running, then she pulled out the outfit she’d hidden at the bottom of their suitcase. The soft denim of her favourite dark jeans fit her perfectly, moulded by countless wears.

But her top… She sighed when the soft wool jumper brushed against her cheek as she pulled it over her head. The TARDIS had put it in her closet yesterday when she’d been packing, and Rose hadn’t needed help connecting the dots.

She’d just laced up her black boots when someone knocked on the door. “Concierge service!”

Rose walked to the door, leaving her leather jacket draped over the chair. A uniformed employee stood on the other side of the door, a tray in hand.

“Hi!”

The concierge held out the tray and Rose took the envelope. “Your tickets to the underwater garden just arrived,” they said.

Rose blinked, then she shook her head. “I don’t suppose that’s where those delicious sea bananas are grown.”

As she asked, she heard the shower turn off. She started a mental countdown to when the Doctor would appear.

The Critian tilted their head, a hint of confusion crossing their face. “If by sea bananas, you mean kaju… then yes, this the one public farm where it is grown. After the tour, you will be able to buy some of the fruit to take home.”

Rose laughed. “I bet we will. Thank you,” she told the alien. The employee bowed and exited the room.

“Who was that?” the Doctor called from their bedroom.

“Concierge services with our tour tickets,” Rose replied.

“Oooh, excellent! I hope they have a little shop. A little shop to buy all the kaju we want! Can you imagine, Rose?”

“I’m pretty sure I won’t need to use my imagination by the end of the day,” Rose said under her breath.

“I heard that!” The Doctor’s voice was coming closer, and Rose rubbed her palms on her jeans. “I’ll have you know…”

His mouth fell open when he saw what she was wearing. From a man as verbose as him, his silence was extremely gratifying. “Doctor?”

The Doctor slowly lowered his hands from his tie and walked towards her. His eyes were dark, and anticipation buzzed through Rose as she waited for his response. “That jumper is mine,” he said, his voice raspy.

Rose bit back a smirk. “The TARDIS put it in my closet,” she told him. “Think that means it’s mine now—possession is nine-tenths of the law, after all.”

His Adam’s apple bobbed.

The sleeves hung past her wrists, and Rose pressed her wool-covered hand to her cheek. “‘Sides, I like it. It’s soft.”

His fingers twitched, and Rose waited just a second longer before smiling brightly at him. “Come on, we need to get going if we’re going to make our tour.”

The Doctor gaped at her—at Rose, standing just six feet away from him, wearing clothes that used to be his. Rose, who was now giving him a cheeky smile as she waved the tickets in front of his face.

“Don’t you want to go see the kaju farm?” she asked, almost managing to sound innocent.

He growled and moved quickly to pull Rose into his arms. He could hear her heartbeat speed up and his two hearts held tempo with hers.

“Rose Tyler…”

Her pulse was racing now. “Yes Doctor?” She smiled, teasing him with the tip of her tongue.

The Doctor dipped his head down and pressed his lips to hers, following her tongue back into her mouth. Rose slid her hands over his shoulders and a moment later, he felt them in his hair.

He shivered, and before he could lose himself in the kiss, he slowly pulled back. Rose’s eyes fluttered open, and her passion-glazed expression tempted him again.

Instead, he slowly removed his hands from her waist, tugging on the hem of the jumper as he pulled away. “We’ll come back to this later,” he promised.

She blinked a few times, then smiled up at him. “Oh, yes,” she agreed.

The Doctor took her hand. “But for now, kaju!” Rose laughed as he pulled her out of their suite, and he giggled along with her.

Rose hip checked the Doctor as they left the hotel. He glanced down at her, his eyebrow raised in question. She smiled and shifted closer to him, putting her free hand on his arm.

Nothing. Just love you, that’s all.

Yeah? I love you too.

The Critias streets were busier than they had been the day before, and they arrived at the garden entrance just as the tour was starting. “Wait wait!” The Doctor waved their tickets over his head. “Two more!”

A teenager waved at them from behind the counter. “I can take your tickets!” she said, her high ponytail bobbing with each word. She smiled brightly when the Doctor handed them over. “Have fun! Corin will show you all around the farm.”

They joined the queue, and a young man with a shock of black hair draped over one eye scowled at them. “We all ready then?” he asked.

“Oh yes!” The Doctor bounced on his toes. “This is going to be the highlight of our trip.”

The guide rolled his eyes and turned around. “Come on. The entrance to the tunnels is this way.”

“Tunnels?” Rose asked as he led them along a boring hallway.

He shot her a look over his shoulder. “Well yeah. Kaju grows under the sea. How did you think we were going to get there?”

Rose had half a mind to call him out for his surly attitude, but the Doctor started talking before she could. “I bet you love your job,” he enthused. “You probably get all the kaju you want, for free.”

The kid huffed. “Why would I want any of that nasty stuff?”

They reached a glass door in the exterior bubble of the city, and he turned around and held his hand up. “All right, listen up everyone!” he called out, raising his voice to be heard over the hum of machinery coming from the next room over. “We have built glass tunnels in a path around the kaju beds. Along the tour, you will see kaju in various stages of growth. At the end, you will have a chance to taste fresh kaju, and to buy any of the products we make in the factory you hear behind you.”

He crossed his arms over his chest and raised his eyebrows. “Please stay with the group at all times. If you do not, you will be escorted out of the tunnels and asked to leave the premises.”

The whole group murmured their assent, and he grunted and opened the doors.

The light in the tunnel was dim. Rose squinted, trying to get a glimpse of the garden before stepping out under the sea. She and the Doctor were at the back of the line, and she gasped when she finally realised why the light was so eerie.

The glass tunnel had formed an arbor for a network of tangled vines. The artificial lights used by the farm filtered through the greenery, like sunlight through the leaves of a thick forest. Rose pressed her hand to the glass and watched the way the leaves drifted in the current.

“Why don’t you like kaju?”

Rose blinked; that was the Doctor’s voice, but it was coming from the other side of the tour group. She looked around and spotted him standing next to their guide, his eyebrow arched in surprise.

Corin was a good six inches shorter than the Doctor, and he scowled up at him. “Because it’s a disgusting fruit and I don’t know why anyone would eat it.”

Determination pulsed over the bond, and Rose groaned. “Excuse me,” she said as she made her way through the tour group to join the Doctor.

“Have you ever had kaju pancakes?” the Doctor asked. “Or kaju toffee pie?”

The kid sneered. “No, thank you.”

He spun on his heel and addressed the whole group. “What you see above you is an arbor of fully grown kaju. As you can see, the plant is a vine that needs some sort of support to grow on. If you’ll follow me, our next stop is a bed of kaju seedlings.”

The group moved slowly through the tunnel. The light changed as the vines overhead thinned. Finally they entered a large, round room, big enough for everyone to look out at the ocean floor.

“Like most vines, kaju can be grown from starts. However, one of the things we sell as a commercial garden are seedlings. Ambitious gardeners buy kaju plants from us to start their own garden.”

“Oh!”

Corin levelled a glare at the Doctor. “They do have to be grown under the ocean, so unless you have a proper growing environment, don’t even bother.”

The Doctor pressed his tongue to the back of his teeth. “Right. Yeah,” he said slowly.

Rose narrowed her eyes. We’ve got regular bananas, remember? She wasn’t sure the TARDIS could make an underwater room, and even if she could, Rose had no desire to start a kaju farm.

The Doctor pouted, but she shook her head firmly. Bananas are perfectly good.

Bananas are brilliant! he corrected. Rose raised an eyebrow and the Doctor rolled his eyes. All right, you win.

They were given five minutes to watch the gardeners carefully tend to the young plants, then Corin led them down another tunnel into a different open room.

Row after row of vines draped over arbors spread out around them. “These kaju plants are at the height of their production cycle. Much of the kaju you eat comes from plants just like these.”

The group murmured and spread out to watch the workers carefully trimming the vines and harvesting ripe fruit. Rose blinked when she realised the whole fruit was small and round. It looked much more like an orange than a banana.

“What about fried kaju? Or kaju served with ice cream and chocolate?”

Rose debated pulling the Doctor back, but Corin really deserved to be pestered. He had been rude from the moment the tour started. So instead, she rocked back on her heels and watched.

“I can’t stand the smell, or the taste, or the texture,” the kid spat out. “The seeds get stuck in your teeth and if you eat too much, it stains your tongue bright pink.”

The Doctor backed away half a step and blinked several times. Corin nodded sharply and spun around to walk away.

Rose joined the Doctor then and tugged on his sleeve before he could chase after the kid. You can suggest other preparations later, she told him, feeling slightly mischievous. Maybe he should try kaju bread, or chocolate dipped kaju.

The Doctor nodded, then stuck his tongue out for her to examine. “Ish ma tongue bwight pink?” he asked.

Rose laughed. “Nope, just regular pink. Apparently you haven’t had enough kaju yet.”

It was mesmerising to look at the evenly laid out rows of kaju and the careful way the attendants cared for the vines. But after ten minutes, they were directed down another tunnel, back to a door.

“The garden part of our tour is over,” Corin declared dramatically. “Behind this door, you’ll find the factory where we produce kaju jam and other items for sale. Please take a pair of noise cancelling headphones when you step inside. The machines are incredibly loud.”

Rose winced when he opened the door. The entire group pressed their hands to their ears until they passed through the door and could take a pair of the headphones.

How are we supposed to hear the dulcet tones of our tour guide like this?

She needn’t have worried. His grumpy voice came through the headphones, and when she looked at him, she realised his headset had a microphone as well.

“Today we’re manufacturing kaju pie filling,” he said, gesturing at the conveyor belt where empty glass jars were filled with a creamy, kaju coloured filling. “The filling is produced in that large vat over there.” He pointed up at a vat near the top of the production line. “Raw kaju is cooked down and blended, then sugar and spices are added.”

Out of the corner of her eye, Rose saw the Doctor nodding. She shook her head; she had a feeling there was a kaju pie in their future.

They watched the assembly line for a few minutes longer. After the jars were filled with pie filling, lids were tightly sealed on and labels wrapped on the jar. Then they shot down to the end of the line where they were packed in boxes by workers.

“If you’ll follow me.”

The tour group slowly filtered out of the factory back into the blessedly quiet hallway. Two employees were waiting, one ready to take the headphones from them and another with a tray of sliced kaju.

Corin opened the door to the sales room and gestured through it. “That concludes our tour. You are now free to buy as much kaju merchandise as you would like.”

The Doctor sidled up to him. “Have you ever tried kaju bread?” he asked.

The young man’s face turned red, but the Doctor ignored it.

“What about chocolate dipped kaju? Dip slices in chocolate and then freeze them. Fantastic treat for a hot day.” He paused and scratched his sideburn. “Er, is it ever hot here?”

“Listen,” Corin growled. “I do not like kaju. I will never like kaju. It doesn’t matter how it’s prepared, it’s a vile fruit and I refuse to eat it.” He smirked suddenly. “But if you like it so much…”

He ran off quickly before the Doctor could say anything. A moment later he was back with a jar in his hand. “Kaju jam.” He ran off again and returned with two large tubs. “Kaju butter and kaju yogurt.” He left and came back with bags in hand. “Kaju fruit leather, chocolate covered kaju, and dried kaju.”

The Doctor’s arms were full. He stared down at the bounty then up at the guide. “Thank you!”

The uncharacteristic smile melted away into the familiar scowl. “You are an absolute nutter,” the kid growled. Then he spun around and stalked off.

The Doctor heard something rolling on the floor and turned around to see Rose with a trolley. She took a few items out of his hands and they filled the cart with everything the guide had brought.

“What was that about?” the Doctor asked, still wondering what had gotten into the guide.

Rose laughed. “I think he thought that if he brought you enough kaju products, you would realise it was disgusting. Then you’d have to find a way to put it all back.”

“Huh.” The Doctor scratched at his sideburn. “Well, let’s see what other kaju products we can find.”

Thirty minutes later, they left the farm with several bags full of kaju products. By mutual agreement, they detoured to the TARDIS to put it all away.

The ship sang to Rose as they walked through the door, and she started laughing. “Someone’s glad I talked you out of growing our own kaju,” she told the Doctor.

oOoOo

The street lights had shifted from their bright daytime mode to a nighttime setting when the Doctor and Rose finally made their way back to the hotel. Street musicians played beneath the street lights, and stray cats darted into the shadowy corners to hide.

The Doctor swiped their keycard over the pad and the door slid open. It closed silently behind them after they entered the room. Rose tapped the lamp and soft light filled the room.

“So was that a good way to spend our fourth anniversary?”she asked him.

He chuckled. “It was a brilliant way to spend our anniversary,” he agreed as he shrugged out of his coat.

He had just tossed it onto the coat rack when someone knocked sharply on the door. Rose raised an eyebrow, and he grinned at her. “Just a little late night snack I ordered for us,” he told her. “Why don’t you go get settled in the living room and I’ll bring it in.” He waited for her to move into the living room, then tapped the door control.

“Your dessert, sir,” the server said, presenting a covered tray with a flourish.

The Doctor lifted the silver cover just enough to make sure everything was as ordered. Chocolate, kaju, mellora berries, and a decanted bottle of Rigellian wine. Perfect.

“Thank you.” He took the tray and the server nodded once, then walked away.

Rose was curled up on the sofa under a blanket when the Doctor entered the living room. He set the tray down on the coffee table and crossed the room to the fireplace controls. “This will warm things up pretty quickly,” he said once the cheery gaslit flames started.

He stuck his tongue out at Rose as he walked back to her. “I suppose it’s a good thing you filched that jumper from me,” he teased. “They don’t exactly keep the ambient temperature of Critias very warm.”

He started to pour two glasses of the wine, while still watching Rose from the corner of his eye. She rubbed her cheek against the jumper again and shook her head.

“That’s not why I wore it,” she said quietly.

The Doctor set the decanter down and turned to face Rose. Her playful attitude had faded into something softer and warmer. “Then why did you wear it?” he asked, genuinely curious. “To turn me on?”

Her eyes twinkled. “A little. But mostly…” She reached for his hand. “This jumper is something from who you were when I met you. Today’s our anniversary and…” She brushed her thumb over his pulse points. “And I married that Doctor, too.”

The Doctor opened his mouth, but he couldn’t push words past the lump in his throat. Instead, he slid closer to Rose on the sofa and reached for her over the bond at the same time.

I love you. He brushed his fingers over her cheek, and when Rose tipped her face upwards, he took the invitation and pressed a kiss to her lips. I love you now and I loved you then. You are my forever, both past and future.

Rose sighed and scraped her fingernails over his scalp. I loved that you, with your leather jacket and jumpers. I love this you, with your suits and Chucks. You have always been my Doctor.

The Doctor moved his hand down to Rose’s waist so he could pull her closer. As she shifted into his lap, the feeling of soft skin under his hand pulled him out of the kiss. He looked down at the bare leg slung over his own and swallowed.

“Are you…” His voice squeaked and he cleared his throat. “Are you wearing anything under that jumper?”

Rose slid her hands over his shoulders and played with the hair at the nape of his neck. “Why don’t you find out?” she suggested.

The Doctor closed his eyes and took several shallow breaths. Then he shifted his weight and pushed himself to his feet, holding Rose close as he stood up. “I think it’s time for a change in venue.”

oOoOo

A visit to Critias was almost like a beach holiday, except in all the ways it wasn’t. Their ocean view room gave them a view into the underwater life instead of the surface. They didn’t see their squid friend again, but several other forms of sea life floated by to say hello.

They rented diving equipment and went out into the water, but they couldn’t feel the sun on their faces. The marine animals around the resort were so accustomed to visitors that they didn’t move as the Doctor and Rose slowly swam past.

But the strangest difference, and the one that helped Rose when it came time to leave, was that there were no sunsets. She loved watching the sun set over the ocean, but they couldn’t even see the sun from who knew how many leagues under the sea.

There were no stars, either, and after a week beneath the surface of the ocean, both she and the Doctor were ready to be out in the open air.

They packed up their belongings and paid their bill, then walked back to the TARDIS.

The Doctor slung his coat over a strut and circled the console, adjusting the navigation controls as he went. “Be careful,” Rose warned as he spun a dial wildly before stopping it and twisting it into place. “Remember what Donna threatened to do if we don’t pick them up on time.”

He clapped his hands to his head, protecting his hair. “That is not happening,” he declared adamantly. “Not in this lifetime. This body would not look good with platinum blond hair.”

Rose nodded. “Then watch what you’re doing while you’re setting the coordinates.”

The Doctor huffed, but he slowed down, being careful to notch each dial in exactly the right spot. Rose watched, and she nodded when he set the last one in place.

“All right, let’s go.” Being closer to the dematerialisation lever, she grabbed it and shoved it into place.

The TARDIS made a grinding sound as she moved into the Vortex, and Rose stroked the console. “Come on, old girl,” she muttered. “I know you’ll take us where we need to go.” The grinding didn’t stop, but a soft hum joined it. Both Rose and the Doctor let out a breath.

The landing rocked them a little, but they straightened up and walked to the door. The Doctor reached it first and reached for the handle. “Come on, Rose. Let’s enjoy the look on Donna’s face when she realises we’ve made a perfect landing.”

The first thing he registered when he opened the door was that it was night. Well, a few hours off, he reasoned, even as his hearts sank into his plimsolls. Maybe we’re early, even.

But not only was it not morning, they were nowhere near a city. He stared at the large house in front of them, trying to make sense of where they were.

Rose patted him on the arm. “I think you’ll look gorgeous as a blond.”

#ficandchips #ten x rose #dwfic #fic by Nancy #doctorroseprompts #this is your surprise bonus chapter this week #next week we'll be back to every tuesday like always

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takeflight-hermitcraftau · 4 years

Text

Chapter 3- The Storm

Warnings: Panic attacks, vomit, near death experience via drowning.

A few days had passed, and Grian was plotting yet again. He was planning on going into Mumbo’s base, and building a little meeting room to propose his newest idea. He jumped down Mumbo’s water elevator, laughing to himself before getting stuck. He yelped, struggling out of the door before getting punched across the face by a slime block. Grian sputtered, looking at the machine that had knocked him to the ground.

“Really Mumbo? What is this? An anti-Grian Machine?” He laughed, before quickly going over to Mumbo. He poked the man, seeing him just sitting down on the ground, eyes closed and in a deep meditative state. He giggled mischievously, looking around the area for the certain spot he knew would lead to the other side of the mob farm. He mined through a few blocks, putting them back as he walked through the small hallway. He wasn’t sure how Mumbo could get through these tight hallways with his huge wings. Even with his smaller ones this was difficult and tight. The hallway opened up to a slightly larger room, and he quickly made he way over to the ravine. He had already planned out the area he was going to use for this idea, and his inventory was filled with everything he’d need.

About an hour later he was done, the gravel ‘accent wall’ done and a lever by his own chair. He grinned excitedly, opening his inventory and pulling out a nice red suit he had made himself with wool. He pulled off his red shirt, stretching out his wings to make the process easier. He looked down at himself. He wasn’t anything to sneeze at, but not some sort of model either. He was slim, having recently gained much more of a swimmers body than anything. He glanced behind his shoulder, where his wings attached to his upper back.

The red coloration of his wings molded down seamlessly into his back. He grabbed the white dress shirt he had gotten off of Scar (the two were rather similar body type wise), throwing it over his back and letting his wings slot into the opened section in the back. It was nice to be able to have others help him with clothing. Back home it was hard, given he’d always need help cutting out patterns in his shirts that allowed his wings to come through. But Scar helped him out big time, giving him a patterns to use to make shirts and whatnot. He buttoned up the white shirt, stretching out his shoulders. It was definitely a tight fit. But honestly?? It didn’t look half bad on him. He took the red suit jacket, and slipped that on as well. He had to reach behind him to zip up the area around his wings, so it fit better and looked a lot more professional.

He just lazily pulled the red dress pants over his gray slacks, and then groaned as he realized the green tie. He unbuttoned the jacket, and struggled to tie the tie around his neck. He privately messaged Scar.

Grian: hey dude. How do you tie a tie?

GoodTimesWithScar: Oh my goodness. Your hopeless.

Grian: I knooooww.

Grian laughed a bit, but Scar told him he was busy right now, and he took that answer and just tried to pull up a video on his communicator. He took about ten or so minutes trying before he finally got it, and just then it came up on his communicator that Mumbo had stopped being AFK. He grinned, rushing up to the little window he had made behind Mumbo’s spawner. He heard Mumbo laugh at seeing him, walking up to the mirror.

“What are you doing?” He asked, and Grian just beamed.

“I am here to propose the deal of the century!” He said, his smile wide.

“Get over here.” Mumbo said, smiling tiredly at the energetic body. Grian walked through the small hallway, beaming. “What are you wearing?” He laughed.

“I’m Here to give You! The deal of a life time.” Grian said. “Also! What is this?!” Grian held up the tag, and Mumbo laughed. Grian just sighed. “Follow me! We mustn’t waste time.” Grian grabbed Mumbo’s hand, dragging him through the tiny hallway once again.

“This isn’t really a professional entrance.”

“Well it’s what I had to work with.” Grian laughed, getting into the ravine and climbing up the stairs, just dodging mobs and arrows.

“Not very safe either.” Mumbo laughs, taking his sword and killing a skeleton attacking Grian. Said dirty blonde laughed, getting to the room before the meeting room.

“This is where my secretary works. If i had one.” He joked, and Mumbo laughed a little. He still had a grip on Grian’s hand, a part of him not wanting to let go of it. Grian was just. So excitable. His little giggles were adorable and it sent Mumbo into another plain when he managed to get the little gremlin to laugh. He didn’t romantically love the man, no. He wasn’t gay after all. But he loved the man platonically, despite only knowing him for a few days. Grian somehow had that effect of the other hermits. It felt like they all knew Grian all their lives already.

“So, Mumbo.” Grian said, letting go of Mumbo’s hand to sit down at the chair he had made. Mumbo sat in the chair beside him, looking over to him. “As you know, most of the hermits have these little groups of theirs. ConCorp, New Hermit Order, excetera. I want to propose a new group between us! You’re the only hermit i really know so far, so i wanted to make a partnership. So if i need redstone help you’d be able to help me, and vise versa!” Grian smiled, reaching towards the lever. “And the name of this partnership??” He pulled the lever. “BUILDSTONE!” The gravel fell to reveal the name, besides one stack of gravel.

“Wow Grian.”

“See?? This is exactly why I need your help!” He laughed. Mumbo couldn’t help the little laugh that left him as he watched Grian shovel the gravel away. He looked at the logo Grian had on the wall.

“I see. Well, Grian. I’d love to have a partnership with you! I really do need the building help.” He smiled. Grian gaped at him.

“With that deathstar of your’s i doubt you do!” He said. Mumbo laughed again.

“No seriously I suck when it comes to building.” Mumbo smiled shyly. Grian just laughed.

“Well! I’m glad to have you as a partner Mumbo! And the name is totally up for debate. I just kinda threw this together.” Grian added.

----

Grian was sitting on the platform of his base, looking up at the sky and thinking of what to do next. Mumbo said yes to his proposal, He now had the tag, AND he couldn’t even go tag someone else! He huffed, going through the days footage and just starting to edit as he laid on the floor. A brief thought crossed his mind. He should go and find this world’s borders. He nodded to himself, standing up and saving the video as it was for now. He’d finish editing it later.

He yawned, looking up at the sun as it was starting to set. “Better go quickly.” He muttered, taking off and flying up past the rim of his base so far. He just headed towards Scar’s base, just starting to fly without any real purpose of motive. He flew past the volcano that Scar was building, whistling to himself. “That man is a terraforming God.” He muttered to himself. He saw a outline of a person on top of the volcano, but paid it no mind. He just figured it was Scar.

He hummed, just feeling the wind in his hair and wings. He allowed his mind to wander for a moment, his eyes closing. He wondered what he should do next for his base, who he should try to get in contact with next. Grian dipped down closer to the water, letting the waves crash against his hand as he flew. He knew that there was mostly ocean for a few kilometers, but he didn’t really care. It would still be a nice and relaxing fly.

‘Why did the watchers let me go?’

The thought appeared in his head, sudden and quickly. He let that thought fester and stay. One thought grew into 2. Then 3. And before he could control it his mind was filled with negative thoughts and feelings. He felt fear gripping at his core, its ice cold hands restraining him. There was no where to land. His chest was heaving and he felt tears falling down his cheeks and the thoughts of him not being good enough roared through his head. The thoughts telling him he was a cruel monster. He wasn’t normal. Wasn’t okay.

Grian just flew into the ocean, letting the bitter cold water wash over him the soaked his wings and made it impossible for him to fly. But he didn’t care. He floated on the ocean surface, wings spread out as heaving sobs left his body. “Why would they miss me?” He heard himself say. He gasped for air, hands pulling at his hair. He knew this was a panic attack. He was prone to them. Taurtis usually helped him calm down. But he was out here, alone with only the ocean to comfort him.

He noticed water dripping onto him, and his eyes opened for a moment. Harsh stormclouds were forming above him, and he gasped. Oh fuck. The light dripping turned into a harsh and rapid rain, the ocean starting to twist and turn. He dived underwater to avoid being knocked unconscious, swimming back towards Scar’s island. Why couldn’t he see it anymore? How far had he actually gone??

Was he lost??

He poked his head above the water to look around, only to get knocked under by a huge wave. Panic once again settled into his bones, the need to breathe burning at his lungs. He swam back onto the water’s surface, his wings just dragging behind him and weighing him down. Oh god why couldn’t he just get out of the water?? Why couldn’t he fly?? Another wave crashed into him, and it drove him deep underwater. Grian just started ti swim desperately, using his wings to propel him under the water the best he could. He needed to get to dry land, to breathe. He swam towards the surface a final time, his head spinning and everything moving far too fast.

“GRIAN!” He heard a voice call out, and he felt a warm hand grab his. He was pulled out of the water and into someones arms. He could feel leather, but that was about it. His eyes closed and he gasped uselessly for air. “Its okay buddy. We’re gonna get you help. I promise.” Grian kept his eyes closed as the person re-adjusted their hold on him, and he was officially knocked out.

“What do you mean he was flying to the border?!”

“I don’t know! I just saw him fly past and i noticed the storm clouds! I don’t know what else he would be doing!”

Grian came too to hearing the two bickering voices. His lungs felt heavy, and before he knew it, he threw himself over the side of the bed, dry heaving and coughing up water and salt.

“GRIAN!” two voices yelled in unison. He just groaned in response, and he felt someone push him back into bed.

“Oh my god man, you scared us to death!” Grian’s eyes focused, and he noticed that mustache he was so fond of.

“Mum...bo?” He rasped, his voice sore from inhaling salt water.

“Yes its me, you absolute spoon.” Mumbo brushed some hair from Grian’s face. “Are you okay? Actually don’t answer that I know you’re not.” He said. Scar was standing behind him, a towel thrown over the water now on the floor.

“Yea man. You took quite a beating.” Scar fretted, having taken off his jacket at some point in time. Grian put his hands on his face, grounding himself. He felt leather move around his arms. Oh, so that’s where the jacket went. He just groaned, closing his eyes again. “Grian?”

“I. I had a panic attack out at sea. Came randomly.” He muttered, as Mumbo handed him some water to help soothe his throat. Mumbo frowned.

“Why didn’t you message one of us to help you?”

“Didn’t wanna bother you guys.” He said, sighing. Mumbo just nodded, helping Grian sit up. “And i was too far out. You wouldn’t have found me before the storm.”

“Grian, you’re lucky i saw you from my little island.” Scar said, sitting on the bed and touching Grian’s forehead. “And you’re burning up!” He fretted. Grian just pushed his hand away.

“I’ll be okay Scar.” He smiled, slowly going to stand up.

“Oh no you’re not.” Mumbo said, pushing him back down. “You’re sick.”

“And you have a mustache. Are we done stating the obvious?” Grian shot back before he could control himself. He covered his mouth with his hand quickly. “Oh my god i’m so sorry I didn’t mean for it to come out like that!” He said, watching Mumbo for any signs of anger. He only got a light hearted laugh back.

“Its quite alright mate. Guess i do sound a bit like Captain obvious don’t i?”

#Hermitcraft #Hermitcraft fanfic #Fanfiction #Grian #Mumbo #Goodtimewithscar #wing au #Avian au #Grian is the spoon this time #Tag #Sticking close to cannon thus far

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sasskarian · 3 years

Text

WIP Whenever

I was tagged a while ago by @mayihavethisdanse for a WIP Wednesday. Well. We’re making that WIP Wednesday-except-it’s-actually-friday-and-however-many-days-later.

Forwarding that tag, with lots of love but no pressure, to @natsora, @asaara-writes, @athreehundredthirtythree, @thievinghippo, @theherocomplex and @thebisexualmandalorian

I think we’ve through most of my WIPs so let’s loop back around and get some of that sweet sweet Inquisitor/Fairbanks action. Except it’s actually Dorian and Quiz’s brother being adorable while Bull does something surprising somewhere to be a sweet partner to his idiots-in-love.

***

“Ethelan has never met a rule he doesn’t take out back and rob for loopholes, assuming he doesn’t murder it outright.” She catches herself playing with her bracelet and forces her hands to still; the day has barely begun and still, she already misses Evariste something fierce. “Mamala always despaired of the both of us troublemakers.”

A muted thump from the far end of the room announces her brother dropping through the last missing section of roof and he waves at her in cheerful conspiracy before bringing a finger to his lips. Quiet, he means, and sure as a rock-climbing halla, Ethelan tiptoes through the teetering stacks of books with ease. Isera rubs a finger across her lips, trying to erase or at least hide the growing smile, as Dorian takes a minuscule bite of the tiny cake. Shadows cling to Ethelan even as he nears, somehow stepping through the sunbeams of the library as if they can’t touch him.

Dorian sits up straighter, eyes narrowing, right as Ethelan leans over him, the rich auburn waves of his hair obscuring Dorian’s face for a moment as he’s kissed out of his brooding rather soundly.

“Speak of the demon,” Isera says, laughter bubbling up her throat with abandon. The two of them— three, when Bull gets involved in the shenanigans— are a delight to watch, and in the wake of Corypheus’ death and Solas’ disappearance, delights are becoming more rare.

“You!” Dorian leans back so far his chair wobbles dangerously, pushing against Ethelan’s hands in feeble protest. “What are you doing here, you heathen!”

Eth rounds the table and sits on the edge, perching his ass right on Dorian’s meticulous notes with the ball of his foot just between Dorian’s thighs on the chair, and leans his cheek against his upraised knee, sighing dramatically. “You don’t visit, you don’t write,” he says, the lilt of the Dalish thicker in his voice than in Isera’s own. “A body would think you don’t love me anymore.”

Dorian hisses like a teakettle about to boil over as Eth nips forward and steals himself another kiss. “I’ve been busy,” he says on a splutter, flushing red all the way up to his hairline. “The Breach may be gone but magic is still seriously out of balance! Do you want the world imploding? I certainly don’t.”

“Work, work, work.” Ethelan grabs two fistfuls of Dorian’s robe and levers himself right into the mage’s lap with great cheer. “How’s a hero supposed to rescue the pretty princess if he keeps hiding himself in books, now?”

“I am not a pretty princess!” Dorian snarls, trying unsuccessfully to shove his lover out of his lap, ignoring Eth’s delighted, Who said I meant you? “Get off, you awful boy.”

“What, here in front of your Maker and everything?” Ethelan blinks innocently. “And I thought you were the shy type, vhenan!”

Isera’s self-control finally breaks at that, and her cackle all but shakes the dust from the rafters; above her, several ravens join in, their croaks filling the air as Leliana peers over the balcony, one brow raised in question. Her brother shoots her a wink as Dorian, successfully distracted, gives up on the morning’s research and leans his head into Eth’s neck with a sigh. Sounding only slightly put out and altogether softer, Dorian loops his arms around him and says, “You’re awful. You know that, right?”

“Aye, I do,” Ethelan says, running his thin fingers through Dorian’s hair with the air of a very smug cat who knows the songbird is well-caught and not going anywhere. “I really am, darling.”

***

Your honor, they’re idiots and they’re in love

#ask box games #dragon age #dragon age inquisition #dorian x lavellan #dorian pavus #my fic #i did the thing

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beyoncesdragon · 4 years

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Vogue (Harry styles x Reader)

Requested: No

Warnings: nope, just fluff and an exhausted reader and my English/grammar

My Masterlist

Fame had always been exhausting. But this week it just had reached an almost unbearable point where I just wanted to snuggle myself into a blanket, fall asleep and don't wake up again. The press, the expectations, the paparazzi, even the fans were just too much. Everyone expected that new music would be written soon, new songs recorded and tour dates for an eventual album fixed. It was just...a lot. And today there was another interview to do, one with Vogue. Not that this wasn't cool, it's just another thing to do, another thing stacked on top of my responsibilities. a few seconds ago my manager had informed me again that this would be a partner interview, but it didn't faze me much. The interview was from this new series of interviews they did with different celebrities: a room full of pillows and mattresses where you just laid and answered questions. The celebrity would dress comfy and cosy. The whole point was basically to archive a relaxed atmosphere so „we" as in celebrities would spill as much as possible. Just because we felt comfortable. They would always pair up two people, but neither of them was informed on who that partner would be. The thing with the comfy clothes by the way was a joke. No one dressed in his pjs or went without makeup. Neither did I. But I insisted on no makeup, because I wanted to be able to snuggle myself in those blankets. I also decided to wear a comfortable two piece, which looked fashionable enough without being tight and stiff in all the wrong parts...not gonna have that. Who my partner will be, would reveal time: I'll meet him or her at vogues. I pushed my hair from my face away and quickly skimmed over my Twitter. Again, thousands of tweets were tagging me at something, messages had been sent privately and people had retweeted, liked or commented one of my tweets. In the beginning of my career I had sometimes answered those private messages, on twitter and Instagram. But it had become nearly impossible to continue this habit. There were just too many. Sure I tried but it was mostly the lack of sleep that made me drop my phone during tipping and sent me away in deep, dreamless hours which weren't long enough. A maximum of five hours was common, there had been days I haven't slept a solid two hours. The downside of touring, definitely.

A door opened and a friendly young woman welcomed me. She immediately guided me from the room „backstage" to the actual set, a flat pool filled with stuffed pillow-chains, welcoming me to jump into them. She advised me to wait at the corner right next to the door, whilst they still set up cameras and microphones. Suddenly some walked right into my back, the hard push causing me to stumble forwards, almost falling down. Luckily, the person who collided with me, grabbed my arm and prevented me from it. „M'so sorry I haven't seen yeh...my thoughts were somewhere else. Yeh okay?" I smiled up into a slightly worried face. Green eyes, brown, curly hair, broad shoulders and a silky, very feminine shirt (or more like, blouse). Mr Harry Styles. „I am fine, don't worry. I guess...you are my interview partner?" he smiled shyly and nodded. „Looks like it. Very nice to meet you." he went in for a slightly awkward hug, both of us still very shy. „Likewise. Do you think they are ready for us?" he shrugged, peeking around the corner. "Yeah they are. Let's do this." A small flutter of excitement sparked in me and I nodded quickly, following him on set.

The interview started with Harry and me being introduced to the camera before we both spoke a quick intro for the format snuggling ourselves into the comfortable pillows. The interviewer, a kind looking guy in his thirties sat on a chair a bit higher than us and not visible for the camera. He then quickly welcomed us, just for the sake of the camera. "Now, have you two met before?" Harry and I both shook our heads. "I have never met him in a closer way, just spotted on the red carped maybe." I explained and Harry nodded. "Yes me too. But I am very glad that we actually meet now, I really like your music." I could feel a proud smile spreading on my lips at his words. "That really honours me, I am serious. Not to sound cliché, but I listen to you quite often. Meet me in the hallway is one of my favourites." Harry had a pleasantly surprised look on his face. "Oh really? What do you listen to the least?" he then asked cheekily and I grinned. "Sign of the times. Terrible song, absolutely not Pop-Award worthy." Harry now had an amused sparkle in his eyes. "Oh you think so?" I nodded eagerly. "Sure." He faked a disappointed expression before sighing deeply. "Guess I should end my career as musician and go back to baker." I giggled, nudging his arm playfully before turning back to the interviewer who watched us with mild amusement.

The interview went flawless, the questions were never boring or inappropriate. But since I had just little sleep per day due touring i , I felt myself growing tired. The pillows and the generally relaxed vibe in the studio were calming to no end and not helping with keeping me awake. I yawned tiredly, making Harry look over. "Tired?" I nodded sleepily, giving him an exhausted smile. "Want another pillow?" he asked patting on a pillow next to him. I wasn't quite sure if he was inviting me to come a bit closer or if I was just interpreting that because I could use a little cuddle right now. I nodded with a shrug, deciding to just scoot over. "Okay wait I can throw...or you could just do that." Harry said with an amused chuckle. I laughed quietly sitting up again in attempt to move away again. "I am just joking, I'll move over again..." but Harry just shrugged, suddenly seeming a bit nervy. "Oh I don't mind, you can stay here if you feel comfortable." I could see the hint of a blush spreading on his cheeks as he sucked his lip between his teeth, chewing almost apprehensively. I could feel my heart speed up when I carefully leaned back into his stretched arm. I gave him a quick smile, trying my best not to show how much of adoration I just felt for that curly haired man. "Thanks Harry, I really appreciate it. Oh and I am not trying to make a move on you, just for the record." I quickly said towards the camera. Harry gave me a slight nod, the corners of his lips twisting up. "All good love." The interviewer had watched us wordlessly before speaking up again "And you really don't know each other?" the interviewer asked again, surprise clearly displayed on his features. Harry and I nodded again and the interviewer nodded. "Okay, adorable. Ready for yet another question?" I nodded, leaning affectionately against Harry's chest. I could feel his arm tighten just a little bit, but it made me smile. "Hit us." Harry laughed softly. "Alright. You both are on tour at the moment right? How is it going so far?" I let Harry answer first this time and closed my eyes. To be honest, I haven't felt so relaxed in weeks. "It's going well...yeah it's great. I always liked this part of my job the most, even though I have now found the beauty in studios. Performing live is still my number one favourite thing to do. It just can get very exhausting sometimes. The traveling, jetlag, the rush and well, performing as well is very draining." I nodded approvingly. "Yeah the lack of sleep...I love touring as well, it's an incredible feeling to connect with fans like that. They definitely make it all worth it. It really is the lack of sleep that's sort of a killjoy." Harry hummed approvingly "Yea sleep's a problem." The interviewer nodded seriously. "So how much sleep do you get on a average day on tour?" Harry shrugged softly. "Around five to six hours on good days. Being solo and doing your own thing drastically extended my sleep." I looked up at him. "Same here, maybe five or six. Pardon me, but what exactly do you mean with the drastic extension of your sleep schedule since being solo?" The interviewer said nothing and just let us talk. "With One Direction we slept around four hours per day since we had very early morning and late nights. We always toured and similarly recorded a new album, especially the last one was hard because of that." I nodded slowly. "So it's literally Made in the A.M.?" Harry nodded. "Yeh." Was his quick response before we both looked back towards the interviewer. "How are you still able to perform on that lever with so little sleep?" he asked us. "I guess it's partly the adrenaline rush you get when you go on stage. But also you learn to live with it and fall asleep when and where ever. I wouldn't go so far and say that you get used to it, but you learn how to handle. But I guess its still very unhealthy for the longer run and it makes you pretty vulnerable and sensitive. Or so I experienced it." The interviewer nodded and looked at Harry. "I second that. I think you can't really consider it being as hard as suffering from insomnia for example, but it's definitely hard." I closed my eyes during the time Harry talked and just listened to the steady beat of his heart. It was incredibly calming and it caused my eyes to grow heavy and sink shut slowly making me drift off. "However I think...love? Ye're not falling asleep on me are you?" Harry suddenly asked and I snapped up, embarrassment making my cheeks grow hot. "I am really sorry oh god. I am just very, very tired...what was the question again?" people around us from the vogue team, including the interviewer and Harry laughed. "No problem. You mentioned something about being more sensitive and vulnerable with the lack of sleep. How do you mean that?" he asked kindly. "Well, when you live the life of a public figure, if you like it now or not, you are pretty much all day and all night watched. And judged and criticised for literally everything you do, or not do. Everyone seems to look at his opinion as especially important and significant and feels the urge to share it with the world. All that, protected by the anonymity of the internet. Suddenly everyone has balls." I quickly pressed my hand over my mouth. "Sorry I should not swear." The interviewer waved it off. "Don't worry about that, we can beep it out. Carry on." I nodded reassured, clearing my throat. The topic had me worked up quickly. "Okay great. Back to the internet; I think its pretty cool that everyone can share their thoughts for everyone to see, I really do. It gives everyone a certain degree of liberty, which is important don't get me wrong. I just feel like it gets a bit too much when people twice my age blindly degrade me for how I dress or how I look. Like, I haven't asked, can you get on with your life now, I am also not constantly judging you, or am I? It's really sickening, let me tell you." Harry had started to draw soothing circles on my back, grinning softly about my sudden outburst. "I don't struggle with criticism, I feel like its important or else you lose sight of what's really important in life. But with what I do struggle, is hate. I have never, do not and will never understand the concept of projecting all of your failed dreams, flaws and blemishes in form of jealously drenched hate on one person. She's too skinny, She dresses too revealing...can't you just stop and concentrate on becoming a supportive, nice person? Just let me live for god's sake!" I pushed out frustrated. Harry hummed softly, now carefully caressing my hip, circling softly over my hipbone. I took a deep breath, trying to fully collect myself again. "I am sorry I went off on that like this, but it really bothers me." I finished and the interviewer nodded understandingly. "I absolutely agree. Just speak freely, no one will be stopping you." I gave him a small smile but shook my head. "No I got to stop now. I really need media training, urgently." Harry's laugh vibrated through my body making me smile a bit. Almost as suddenly as my energy came back, it left again, leaving me even sleepier than before. I relaxed completely in Harry's arm, head leaned against his chest again. Harry just pulled me a bit closer, now resting his head on top of mine. I wasn't entirely sure if he was just doing it out of reflex but I felt a deep wave of comfort and relaxation wash over me. A state of raw happiness came over me and I thanked whatever powers made this meeting happen. There wasn't any sexual tension between Harry and I, no one tried to seduce the other one or flirt in any way. But we both responded excellently on each other, almost as if we would actually be friends for longer than maybe an hour. The interviewer seemed to catch on my state of mind and immediately asked me about it. "Are you feeling good? You look very relaxed." I nodded quickly, squinting up at Harry to give him a smug look. "I really am, I have never had such a relaxed interview in my life and I don't ever want it to end." Harry grinned and nodded. "Yeah me neither. I could definitively get used to it." The interviewer smiled happily, but then gave us a bit of a sad look. "That really honours me guys...the thing is only that our time is almost over. I am sorry." I pouted disappointed, leaning back at Harry's chest as if to protest. "That's too bad really." Harry said with a sigh, not making any effort of getting up or letting me go. Not that I wanted though, it was just nice to know that it was mutual. "Well I am afraid so. But anyways, thank you for tuning in and a big thank you to your two guests for joining today. Have a nice day, until next time." The interviewer spoke fluently, ending the interview skilled. Harry and I waved into the camera with both big, but sleepy smiles. I knew from watching previous episodes that they would now let the camera roll for about thirty seconds to blend this in as a little special in the end, after the outro. "We should record a song together soon." Harry suddenly said, wrapping the other hand around me no as well. I nodded softly, a smile spreading on my lips. "I would love that." I answered and could feel him taking a deep breath. "And maybe also go for tea together...if you like only, I mean I could understand if you couldn't I just heard about busy schedule and touring..." I chuckled softly, turning my face towards him. His eyes were fixed on the fabric of my pants and a soft blush had crept up his neck, softly colouring his cheeks. "I would love that too Harry. Very much actually." I then answered before pressing a quick peck on his reddened cheek. Harry's dimples only deepened as he threw me a smug look.

#Harry Styles #harry styles imagine #reader insert #harry styles x you #harry styles x reader #one direction imagine #imagines #tell me what you think #feedback is greatly appreciated #how did I do btw #harry edward styles

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soyeahitsmiddleearth · 4 years

Text

Return Her pt. 3

The Company (and friends) x Reader

Bard the Bowman is quite accommodating (and cute too), but how will the others feel about you clicking so easily with him?

No amount of words or hyperbolic phrase can express the joy you feel when you see Bilbo coming in clutch with a ring of keys and a big smile on his face.

First he releases Thorin, and then you.

When he sees your disheveled appearance and swollen face he falters and looks as if he wants to say something. Bilbo says nothing, but his eyes linger on you as he goes to free some of the others.

Thorin immediately approaches you to you while Bilbo frees everyone else, his hand reaching up to lightly press against your warm cheek. “I told you Master Baggins would have a plan."

You nod your head once, a smile brightening your features, "You did, and you were right.”

Once everyone is freed from their confines Bilbo ushers you all down to some sort of cellar, kitchen thing.

The first thing you notice are the unconscious guards - passed out drunk - behind the large shelf the hobbit snuck you behind. In front of you all is a huge pyramid of barrels and you can’t help but to stare at it with confusion.

The others speak in hushed whispers when Bilbo tells everyone to get into the barrels, and though a bunch of them protest Thorin shuts it down and tells them to just trust him.

Everyone files into a barrel each, and while you have to bend your legs awkwardly in order to fit into your own, you end up fitting rather well.

Bilbo stands a few paces in front of everyone and you find yourself wondering what he’s going to do next.

Suddenly there is shouting that comes from somewhere else and the guards start to stir, and right away Bilbo rushes over to a lever just out of the way and pulls it.

The next thing you know, your stomach drops and the barrels drop into a large body of running water.

Your head goes under and you breathe in the water unintentionally, panicking internally before your head resurfaces.

When you break the surface of the water you gasp loudly, pressing your hand to your chest as you hack and cough up the water you accidentally choked down.

You don’t have much time to recover before your barrel begins to drift away, like everyone else’s.

There’s a splash from behind you, and when you look back you see that Bilbo has jumped in.

He flails and grabs at air, trying to find something - anything - to hold onto.

You lean over the side of your transportation and grab for him, getting a hold of his hands and hauling him closer so to try and pull him up. “C-Climb in!” You cry.

Your efforts to hoist him up don’t do you any good, though, because he can’t get enough momentum to pull himself in nor do you have the upper body strength to lift him.

When you realize that you cannot keep ahold of him anymore you pass Bilbo along to a dwarf much stronger than you so he won’t drown, and the relief is instant.

A lot happens between escaping and getting in the water, and when the Orcs try to kill all of you because they decided now was a great time to show up, you found hopelessness seeping into you.

Even worse? The water gates are closed and now you’re all stuck, barrels bumping into each other as Thorin yells his internal distress.

Kili decides to play hero and jumps out of his barrel, running up to pull the lever while also fighting orcs on his way, when suddenly an arrow shoots through the air.

At first it seems like Kili doesn’t realize what happened, but then he collapses with a cry.

“Kili!” Fili yells in anguish.

You begin to try and get out of your barrel, yelling his name as well, when an orc gains on him with it’s weapon raised. Another arrow splits through the air and this time it’s from an ally, for it kills the orc and Kili is out of harms way.

Your gaze snaps to the source of the projectile and see the red-headed elf Tauriel.

As soon as you see her you whoop and pump your fist in the air, “Yes!"

Her gaze slides over you and an expression akin to relief passes over her countenance, but you don’t get long to think on it for abruptly the gates open and everyone starts to flow out of the underpass.

Kili flops over the side and lands into his barrel, a gross snap resounding as the end of the arrow breaks off and flies in some random direction.

The expression on his face is pained, but when you try to inquire on if he’s okay the roaring of the water drowns you out.

Things move very quickly after that.

You grip onto your barrel for dear life as you fall down a short waterfall, head going under again, and when you resurface you splutter and cough loudly, your eyes and throat beginning to burn.

You’re vaguely aware of Orcs being killed around you and the elves chasing after the foul beasts, but you’re too dazed from the fast pace of things to properly process anything.

When an arrow pierces just under your hand, though, you sober up.

Since there isn’t any way that you can help anyone against the Orcs attacking you all, you begin to try and steer your barrel as it swerves left and right so they don’t have to worry about your safety.

The elves kill the orcs along the way and, probably unintentionally, keep you all safe. The blond-elf Legolas, who separated you from everyone at the beginning, gets saved by Thorin while he’s distracted with some other orcs.

You would’ve liked to see how the rest of it plays out, but one of the beasts jumps onto your barrel and swings it’s long sword seemingly out of nowhere; and to avoid losing your head, you duck down further into your barrel.

You vaguely make out the sound of someone calling your name, but the rushing water is so loud you can’t decipher who it is nor how close they are.

Something whips through the air as it tries to stab into you, and when you look up there’s an arrow sticking in its head.

It falls back and when you poke your head back up you see Tauriel looking at you with her bow still drawn.

You cup your hands over your mouth and yell, "Thanks, hot-stuff!” And then go back your barrel steering.

—

Many different things transpire after all the excitement.

For example Kili had to be tended to, Thorin started to be pushy and complain about losing time, oh and a bargeman is now smuggling you all on his boat for gold after threatening to kill Ori.

Everyone is now huddled together at the front of said bargeman’s boat, and after Oin took a look at the bruises so unfairly inflicted upon your arms and face he leaves you to your own devices at the back of the ship with the bargeman you now know as Bard.

They are all discussing the payment they owe, but since you have nothing to offer up (other than yourself which, I mean hey this guy is pretty good looking) you stay out of it.

Bard looks on ahead at the waters to avoid killing you all in a crash, though his gaze flickers down to you ever so often with curiosity sparkling in his lovely greys *I have no freaking clue what color his eyes are*.

He then speaks softly, “This companionship you have with the dwarves… is it mutual?”

It takes you a moment to figure out what he’s implying before you realize how this all must look. A battered human girl quietly tagging along with a group of male dwarves, disheveled, bruised, and being timidly quiet away from the others curled up on yourself (for warmth, but he doesn’t know that).

Your face heats up and you nod your head frantically, “A-Ah, no… Er, yes. It’s mutual. I’m fine. They’re my friends, I just… ah, ran into trouble with the elves is all…”

His eyes look out over the water again and he nods his head, “I don’t doubt their honor, I am only making sure… But I never knew elves to be violent like that.” He looks at you again and you can see that he doesn’t completely believe your words.

“I know… The elf king, Thranduil I think, wanted me to tell him something but I didn’t wanna. I guess he’s just not used to someone telling him to screw off.” You smile cheekily (ignoring the throbbing that takes place when you do), and Bard seems taken aback before a smile of his own works its way to his face.

“I suppose,” he pauses for a moment, then muses, “The way you speak is odd. I’ve never heard someone quite like you before.”

Ah shoot, you forgot that you’re supposed to be blending in better.

“Oh… yes. Um, I come from a place where.. speech patterns are much different. You see-” You’re cut off by one of the dwarves calling your name.

You sigh dramatically and stand, offering the bargeman a kind smile, “Forgive me. I have to see what those brats want.” Without further chit chat you turn and approach them, hands on your hips while you look down at them expectantly.

“What is it?”

They all stare at you for a few moments before Thorin speaks, “Why do you talk to him so? You’re not giving anything away now, are you?”

You just stare at him quietly with annoyance clear on your face. Like, did he really just ask that? After getting hit around and stuff for them you’d think he’d trust you a bit more.

“Of course not! After taking all of this”, you gesture to your face and arms, “to stay silent from that elf guy, for you, do you really think I’d go blabbing off to some man we all just met?” That sure silences them.

“Maybe you shouldn’t talk to him so much. We don’t know him.” Dwalin grunts out earning an eye roll from you.

“I’ll talk to whoever I want thank you very much. I don’t need permission from any of you, I’m a big girl and a big girl can have friends.”

“Male friends?” This time it’s Fili, and you sigh loudly.

“Oh, you too? You’re all men! And you’re the only friends I have. How must that look?” Everyone goes quiet again, and this time you smile triumphantly. “That’s what I thought. Now… Bard, our host, is awfully lonely over there and I’m going to speak to him again- and you won’t say a word about it.” And you leave before anyone can say anything else.

Dwalin grumbles something under his breath, and Thorin simply rolls his eyes while Fili mumbles his discontent to his agreeing brother. Even Bofur, Nori, and Dori are sneaking glances over at the two of you conversing every so often.

It’s safe to say that they are rather jealous.

#kili #fili #legolas #romance #reader insert #thorin oakenshield #thorins company #fanfic #the hobbit fanfiction #the hobbit bilbo #the hobbit #the company of thorin oakenshield #tauriel #the company x reader #reader #return her #tolkien #return her pt. 3

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