#and who could forget little antonio

[poppadom0912]

Uncle and Niece

Characters: Will Halstead x Daughter!Reader, Jay Halstead x Niece!Reader, Adam Ruzek, Kelly Severide, Sylvie Brett, Antonio Dawson

Warnings: Nothing

Summary: Everyone is introduced to the uncle and niece duo.

A/N: The ending of this was very rushed because it got really awkward and I didn't want it to get to long. I dont really like this but I am posting this in celebration of me getting my first job!!!!

*****

Jay hummed to himself, idly scrolling through his phone reading some messages while he took the occasional sip of his coffee. He managed to get a full night sleep without getting woken up by someone calling about a crime scene, allowing him to wake up earlier than usual.

Making sure everything was clean and clear, Jay clipped his gun and badge to his belt, slipping on his jacket but before he could open the door on his own accord, his doorbell rung, confusing him as to who would be at his apartment at this time.

With caution, Jay opened to door and was surprised to be met with a frantic looking Will. The doctors hair was a total mess, bags under his eyes, his coat haphazardly put on over his scrubs, his bag just about sitting on his shoulder with his hand clutching a smaller hand.

"I am so sorry but I need a really big favour man." Will said, panting as he just about managed to get all his words out. He looked like hell but his little girl on the other hand, no a single hair of hers was out of place.

Looking back and forth from the father and daughter duo, Jay eventually connected the dots, sighing as he did so. Going through all the possible scenarios in his head as to what the worse would happen if he went forward with this really big favour.

"The daycare at Med isn't open and no one is available to babysit but I had no idea you were working. You know what? Leave it, it's fine, forget I ever asked." Will rambled, only now noticing that Jay was leaving for work.

"Dude, it's fine." Jay shook his head, huffing as though he was hurt at Will trying to leave. "I'll take her to work with me. Everyone will love her and it'll be our first official time hanging out together."

"You sure?" Will replied, apprehensive as he let go of Faith's hand, letting her hold Jay's instead. "I owe you man."

"Nah, it's fine." Jay shook his head again, smiling down at his niece. "We'll have fun at the precinct."

"Alright Faith, be good for Uncle Jay Jay, okay? Make sure he stays out of trouble." Will said, bending down so he was eye level with his daughter. A smile she inherited from him plastered her lips as she bid her goodbyes, pressing a loving kiss on his cheek as she waved him away.

"Bye daddy! I love you too much!" Faith shouted down the hallway, watching Will hurry into the elevator, not wanting to be late. "I love you!"

"I love you too baby!" Will shouted in reply, enthusiastically reciprocating her wave which totally contrasted his completely messed up appearance.

With the elevator doors closing, Jay and Faith were left alone for the first time in both their lives. Looking down at the three year old, the three year old craning her neck to look up at her thirty something uncle, she gave him a toothy grin sending this weird feeling in Jay's gut. All of a sudden, he felt this strong urge to protect this little being with all his livelihood no matter what the universe sent this way. It was weird.

"Okay, let's go to work."

*****

For the entire car ride, without being prompted to, Faith was rambling on about anything that came to mind and Jay was intently listening even though he struggled to make out a few words. Faith spoke about her toys, her amazing father and how excited she was now that she was three since it was her birthday a month before Will suddenly showed up in Chicago.

With her much smaller hand in his, it was weird as to how something so small could exist but it was a miracle it could, the uncle and niece duo walked into the 21st precinct. Jay patiently held her hand at all times as she took one step at a time, the steps were much bigger than the normal ones she was used to but she denied any of his help.

Before Jay could make a clean escape, making a dash towards the metal gates, he was stopped by a very familiar voice causing him to come to a halt, screwing his eyes shut at the impending doom he was about to face.

"Chuckles, what do you have here?" Trudy projected, her hands on her hips when she noticed the tiny human being accompanying one of her detectives.

"Sargent, this is my brothers daughter Faith. Remember Will? The doctor?" Jay replied apprehensively, crossing his fingers he wouldn't get reemed in the middle of the district.

"Sure, anyways, Faith is an amazing name for such an adorable girl." Trudy, shrugged it off, leaning over the desk as she started gushing over the toddler. "I see your uncle missed out on those beautiful red locks, disappointing really."

Faith smiled, giggling despite not understanding what Trudy meant but Jay did and he felt slightly offended. "Okayy and that's enough for one day, we'll be upstairs if you need us sarge."

"It's time to say bye now Faith. Say bye Trudy!"

"Bye Bye!" Faith smiled, waving at the older woman who unbeknownst to her had become the most amazing person in the three year olds eyes.

*****

Whoever came up into intelligence, their footsteps could be heard against the wood flooring, allowing all the detectives to know who was coming up based on the force or speed but this was confusing.

There was definitely more than one person, one being bigger than the other but both going at the same slow pace. No one was able to make out who it was till they made an appearance.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, Jay and Faith made it to the top of the staircase and were in the bullpen. For Jay, it was nothing amazing and he was here everyday, it was basically his second home but for Faith, it was both scary but amazing.

"Woah! Who's incredibly adorable kid did you kidnap?" Adam teased, a smirk on his face, being the first to notice the little girl that no one knew. Getting up from his spinning chair, he set down his coffee and leaned against his desk to get a better look at the duo.

"Jay, you never told us you had a daughter." Erin said accusingly, also smirking as she joined in the teasing. She was slightly shocked but easily hid it along with her confusion and slight irritation.

"Her name is Faith and she's my niece." Jay said with some pride, introducing Faith to all his colleagues. "My brother put me on babysitting today, so I expect all of you to be on your best behaviour."

"Sir yes sir." Adam's smirk didn't falter, walking towards the pair, bending down so he could offer his hand. "It's lovely to meet you Faith, I'm Adam."

"Hi." Faith replied, taking his hand confidently but she didn't move, simply holding it. She smiled at him, flashing a toothy grin in his direction. "Are you a superhero like Jay Jay too?"

"Indeed I am, aren't you smart?" Adam said rhetorically, pushing himself up so everyone else could talk to you. "We're gonna get along great."

"So Adam's already introduced himself." Jay rolled his eyes, pointing at Adam who stood proudly with his hands in his pocket. "This is Antonio, Erin, Al and my boss is Hank. They're all detectives like me."

At his last five words, Faith's whiskey coloured eyes automatically brightened and everyone noticed. She shuffled on her feet, her eyes sparkling in wonder as she looked at them all.

"Hey, you wanna hear a funny story about your uncle cause I've got too many." Antonio spoke up, smiling at the widening smile on the three-year-olds face at the mention of stories. Without a second thought, her hand was out of Jay's grasp and she walked straight to the Latino who picked her up, sitting her on his desk.

Besides Hank and Al, Antonio had the most and probably best experience with children and it definitely showed.

With a soft smile, Jay watched as the senior detective divuldged into a most likely embarrassing story before he walked away, slipping past Erin and moving towards Hank who he had much to explain to.

*****

Thanking all the forces in power today, Jay's brows scrunched in confusion at the purple hair tie that had somehow ended up around his fingers, a cute plastic flower cheaply glued to the front of it.

Throughout the day, Faith had been given a tour of the bullpen and even had the chance of manning the front desk with Trudy when intelligence went out.

It was just after lunch and Faith had woken up from a very good nap, the painless indentations on her face proving such. But, her hair had gotten completely messed up and Jay was now stuck.

Faith giggled at the confusion painting her uncles face, the adorable sounds washing away any of the impatience Jay just had. It was crazy how the toddler made him feel, even though she wasn't his own child.

"You know what, you look great Faith." Jay shrugged, tucking her red curls behind her ears, patting down the uncontrolled frizz all around before picking her out of her carseat and gently setting her on the ground.

For the billionth time today, Faith found herself in awe of the firehouse. She had only ever seen them in her cartoons and despite her excitement, she could feel the nervousness bubbling in her stomach at how big everything was in real life.

As if sensing her miniscule amount of anxiety, Jay scooped the toddler into his arms dramatically and walked up the apron and into the firehouse where he could see squad sitting at their table.

Jay's sudden action shocked her, sending butterflies in her stomach as she shrieked, laughter easily following suit when he wouldn't set her down despite her poor pleas.

The sound of childish laughter interrupted any conversation happening at the squad table, all their heads turning to find the source and to say they were confused was the least they could say.

"Hey man, you good? Whose baby did you kidnap?" Kelly asked, getting up from his chair, giving the detective a typical bro hug while minding the toddler perched on his hip.

"You remember my brother right, he's a doctor at med." Jay said, continuing when the lieutenant nodded. "This is his daughter Faith. Faith, this is one of my friends Kelly, he's a firefighter. Can you say hi?"

"Why do you have a girls name if your a boy?"

Her innocent question shocked them all. Jay's eyes went wide as he stared at his niece, Kelly was a mix between laughter and shellshock while the three squad members immediately began laughing.

"Faith, I what-"

"Oh my gosh! Who is this beauty?" Sylvie said, preening at the sight of the girl as she exited the ambulance. "She looks exactly like the new doctor at Med you know. Oh yeah, did you know that he has the same surname as you Jay, crazy."

"That's my brother Sylvie and this is his daughter Faith." Jay replied with ease, a smile on his face at the rambling paramedic.

Before she could address the fact that he had a brother, she frowned as she cast eyes on Faith's unruly hair.

"Does she have a hair tie?"

"Yeah, it's here, why?"

"Give her here."

And with that, the blonde paramedic disappeared into the firehouse with his niece and her cheap hair tie gone from his wrist.

"Boden's waiting for you inside his office Jay."

"Oh yes! I actually have work to do. Thanks severide."

#one chicago imagine #onechicago #one chicago x reader #chicago pd x reader #chicago pd #chicago med x reader #jay halstead imagine #jay halstead x reader #will halstead #will halstead x reader #jay halstead #will halstead imagine #daughter reader

[rhoorl]

Delta Landscaping | Chapter 10: Tio Frankie

Series Summary: In this AU, the boys of Delta Force start a new business post-Colombia. 

Series Masterlist | Chapter 10 A03 Link

Series Rating: Explicit (18+) 

Word Count: 6.2k

Previously on As the Mule Falls: Melissa was a woman on a mission, uncovering some details on Cousin Joel. Did you catch that Frankie grew up with Benny and Will? Santiago had to face the guys and talk about his intentions with Melissa, which brought up some bad memories for Benny. 

On This Episode: Frankie visits his sister and her family in Dallas. (Side note: Can I tell you how hard I had to resist to call this chapter Frankie Does Dallas? Ok, back to the show.) We learn a bit more about Frankie's past and get a healthy dose of Tio Frankie. Following the argument with Santiago, Benny makes a rash decision. And we get a Neighborhood Watch group chat.  

Chapter Warning: TW: death - As we explore part of Frankie's backstory we learn that both his mother and father have passed, and what happened in the aftermath. Also a mention of infidelity and learning the paternity of a baby.

If you ever have questions about any of the content, please reach out. The last thing I want is for someone to have a negative reaction. Overall this is a happy, silly series but it is grounded in some reality. 

*Cue the Real Housewives music and roll opening credits*

The ding of the seatbelt sign turning back on woke Frankie up from his nap. He was thankful to have gotten some rest on the flight after a bit of a frantic morning. He liked getting to the airport early with time to relax, but that didn't happen thanks to Santiago who was late picking him up from his early morning appointment. They then, of course, hit traffic, causing Frankie to have to run through the terminal to catch his flight.

As he looked out the window at the vast expanse of the Texan terrain, Frankie got a bit of a lump in his throat. Although they had been talking weekly and having regular FaceTime calls, he hadn’t seen his sister in person in well over a year. He wasn’t proud of the state he was in during that period of his life. He’ll never forget the sound of her voice when he called to tell her he missed his flight and wouldn’t be able to be there for Leia’s first birthday. Valeria wasn't mad, she was disappointed, which hurt him more. He wanted her to yell at him and tear him down, but she just seemed defeated. Without their father or Frankie there it was yet another reminder of how quickly her family had disintegrated. 

After their mom Alejandra unexpectedly passed away, their father Felipe withdrew from everything. She was the love of his life and without her, he didn’t know how he could go on. They met in their early 20’s working at a hotel in San Antonio, shortly after Felipe arrived in the U.S. from Colombia. She was a housekeeper and he worked in maintenance. It was love at first sight and they quickly fell into a whirlwind romance. They got married and welcomed Frankie all within a year of meeting, with Valeria following two years later. 

Frankie always wondered what would have happened to his father had he not had two kids to take care of. Most days, Felipe could barely move from the couch, leaving Frankie to assume much of the care for his little sister, who was only a toddler when Alejandra passed. Frankie doted on Valeria and she adored him. 

After about a year, Felipe decided to relocate his now smaller family. He knew Frankie and Valeria deserved better and frankly, he needed the support too. He had to get out of San Antonio, a place where he was constantly reminded of Alejandra. The grocery store she always shopped at, the park where they took Frankie and Valeria, or the school where she worked. He saw everything through an Alejandra filter. Austin seemed like a good destination since he could be closer to his family, which he knew would be best for his children, and get a bit of a fresh start.

The Morales family of three ended up moving into a working-class neighborhood a couple of houses down from the Millers, a family with two boys around the same age as Frankie and Valeria. The Millers quickly adopted the Morales kids into their little family, giving them another place to stay after school when Felipe had to work late.

Speaking of work, Felipe bounced around to different jobs to make ends meet. In Colombia, he studied to be an engineer, but when he came to the U.S. he had to take whatever jobs he could find. He ended up as a jack of all trades, realizing there was a lot of value for someone who knew how to take things apart and put them back together. One Saturday, as the kids were playing in the backyard, Abel, Will and Benny’s father, asked Felipe if he wanted to work for his brother Sam’s contracting business. From then on, Felipe was a loyal worker, thankful to both Miller families for their friendship and providing the means for a steady income. 

As the boys got older, Frankie tagged along on jobs during the summer with Will and Benny and their cousins Joel and Tommy. They all developed a close friendship and Felipe was thankful that the boys looked after Valeria too, not that she needed it. She was a firecracker from a young age, similar to her mother. There were so many times Felipe could see flashes of Alejandra in Valeria. At first, it made him sad, but with time he felt like it was a gift. That his wife was sending him little reminders.

Frankie always felt guilty for leaving home at 18. He had dreams of being a commercial airline pilot, but couldn’t afford it, so he decided to pursue the military instead. Sure, he would come home occasionally, but it was never quite the same. And the deeper he got into his Delta Force work, the more reclusive he became as he tried to reconcile all the things he bore witness to. 

Frankie’s endless cycle of self-loathing was further fueled by the fact that his little sister thought the world of him and was his biggest cheerleader. He never understood how she could have such unwavering support and unconditional love for him despite all the ways he had disappointed her over the years, yet she remained a steady constant in his life no matter what. 

Delta Force was ultimately the reason why he couldn't be there when his family needed him most. For months Felipe wanted to come out to Florida and see his son, but Frankie always found some excuse. It also didn't help that at the time things were especially tumultuous with Raquel, so he was in no state to see his father. Frankie promised himself that he’d call his dad after his next mission. 

When he and the boys finally landed back on U.S. soil and he was able to turn his phone on, Frankie was inundated with messages and voicemails. He clicked on the most recent one from Valeria, well, actually it was Alyssa who spoke with a grim tone. She shared that Felipe had suffered a massive heart attack and passed away suddenly. Upon hearing that, Frankie collapsed in a heap on the tarmac. 

He felt so many competing emotions. Sadness and grief over the loss of his father. Guilt because Valeria had to deal with it all while not knowing if Frankie was safe. Anger at Raquel for fucking him up so much in the head that he was robbed of the chance to see his father for the last time. He also felt like he let his father down and wasted so much time pushing him away.

The jolt of the plane’s wheels meeting the ground brought Frankie back to the present. As the plane taxied, he reflected on his session from this morning. He and his therapist talked about how this trip was a momentous occasion. It was the start of a new chapter in his relationship with Valeria and a chance to bond with his niece and nephew.

He flipped his phone off of airplane mode and saw a text come through from Valeria.

Valeria: Hope your flight goes well. Sorry but I can't pick you up. Trying to convince this asshole judge to give us this warrant. If it gets late Tim will cover, but meet me at my place. I have the rest of the week off …. Tim says you owe him a beer!

Valeria: Love you 🩷🐰

Frankie: All good. I'll get an Uber. Tell Tim I say hi.

Frankie: Love you too 🐰

Frankie smiled, his little sister as feisty as ever. She was equal parts smart and brave and always unapologetically herself. He was thankful to her partner in (fighting) crime and mentor, Tim. Although she didn't need protecting, it still gave Frankie peace of mind knowing Tim was looking after her in the field. He was also thankful they both moved off of the narcotics unit and onto white-collar crimes. On the home front, Frankie was equally thankful for Valeria’s partner in life. Alyssa was single-handedly the best thing to ever happen to her. Frankie held out a little hope that one day he'd find a love like theirs.

______________________

Benny, already dressed and ready for the gym, stood in his kitchen eating a bowl of cereal staring at his phone. He was expecting a call and hoped it would come before Will woke up. He waited and waited and of course, as soon as Will sauntered in to make his coffee, the phone rang. 

Benny cleared his throat and answered, “Hey, Herb, how’s it going?” He was actively trying to avoid Will who now was looking squarely at his little brother. “Ha, yeah it’s been a while,” he paced around, listening to the man on the other end of the line. “Yup, yeah I can be ready. Where’s it at?” He drank the milk from his cereal bowl and put it in the sink. “Cool, yeah, wasn’t Omar one of Lights’ guys or something? Huh ok. How long ago did he make the switch over?” Benny could practically feel Will’s eyes boring into the back of his head. “Yeah, sounds good. Guess I gotta start training, huh? Ok, talk to you soon Herb.”

“What the fuck was that?” Will piped up as soon as Benny ended the call. 

“Nothing,” Benny tried to walk around Will, but his brother stood his ground, squaring up and looking him in the eye.

“Didn’t sound like nothin’ Ben. What kinda shit are you getting yourself into, huh?”

Benny crossed his arms in front of his chest and threw his head back as he rolled his eyes. He was trying to avoid exactly what was happening now. With a big sigh, Benny responded, “Look, I…I was texting with Herb last night and he said he could get me a fight and before you freak the fuck out, it’s just a one-time thing. His friend has this guy who was some hot shot boxer up in New York City who’s switching things up and get his footing in the MMA world.”

“Sounds like Herb is setting you up to get your ass kicked. Ben, you got knocked out cold the last time. Do you really want to lose-”

“Hey! I didn’t lose that fight. Fucker used a 12-6 elbow and got his ass disqualified,” Benny scoffed.

“Ok, Benny. You’re right, I’m sorry,” Will gave him a tight smile, trying to pacify his brother before he got more riled up. “How soon?”

“Middle of August,” Benny responded flatly, already knowing what Will was going to say. “I know, I know. I’d love to have more time to prepare too but it’s fine. It’s gonna be fine, Will.”

Will sighed, knowing that it was a wasted effort to try and convince Benny since his mind was made up. As easygoing as Benny typically was, if he had his mind set on something there was no wavering. “How can I help?”

Benny was taken aback for a moment before a big smile came across his face.“There’s the spirit,” he slapped Will on the chest. “Maybe you can come to the gym with me, help spar? Once Fish gets back he can help too. I'm gonna have to do two a days at least. Can you run with me some days?”

“What about Connor?”

“I’ll still work out with him, but I’m gonna knock the kid out by accident if he tries to help me fight” Benny smirked. “I'm great at what I do, but it’s gonna take him all summer to put on some muscle.”

_______________________

Frankie took a deep breath as he stood at Valeria's doorstep. As he was about to ring the doorbell, the front door swung open and Valeria practically threw herself at her brother, burying her face into his chest.

“Hola mi conejita,” he smiled, hugging her tightly, and lifting her off the ground. “Te extrañé.” He put her back down, seeing tears starting to fall as she pulled back to look at him. “Please don’t cry.” He wiped the tears from her cheeks, cradled her head, and brought her back into his chest. 

She sniffles, “Sorry, Paco. I just,” she pushed back and grabbed his face with both of her hands, stroking his stubble, “Fuck, I’m just so happy to see you!” She smiled through her tears and ushered him inside. “You look good, hermano. Better than good, you look amazing! I like the salt and pepper in your beard, it looks like dad’s.” She turned to face him, running her hands down his arms until she reached his hands, giving them a squeeze.

“Thanks,” he wrapped his arm around her shoulders as she walked him to her kitchen table to sit. “Feelin’ good too.”

“¿Quieres un cafecito?” She asked, heading over to the gigantic espresso machine in the corner of her kitchen counter. Alyssa's job as a top caterer in Dallas meant they had all of the fanciest appliances in their kitchen. Frankie nodded and she got to work. “How are the boys?”

“Good. They’re all good,” Frankie smirked. “Benny said to tell you Will says hi.”

“Ay dios mio, ese sinvergüenza,” she chuckles. “You know how many times I had to cover for his ass back in the day? The nerve to still give me shit about his brother,” She shook her head as she poured the coffees. “Y Santiago? Is he off traveling somewhere chasing after a woman?” She walked over and sat with Frankie.

“No, no he’s been home for a while. Trying to keep him out of trouble, but you know how he is. We've been spending a lot of time at Will and Benny's place,” he smiled, taking a sip. “Got a lot of nice neighbors, it’s been… nice.”

“How nice are the neighbors?” She raised an eyebrow, studying her brother who rolled his eyes.

“No, nothing like that. Not for me, at least. You should talk to Will though, he’s been extra…nice,” he smirked before taking another sip. “What time do you have to pick up the kids?”

Valeria looked at her phone to check the time. “Ah, we should probably leave in like half an hour. Well…ah sorry, I assumed you wanted to come. Do you want to come? We could surprise them! They think you aren't coming until later.”

“I'd love to,” Frankie’s eyes softened.

______________________

“You ok?” Connor asked as he took over the squat bar from Benny, who had been uncharacteristically quiet that morning. 

“Hmm? Yeah, sorry man. I just ah…kinda did something without really thinking through it.”

“What’d ya do?” Connor grunted out between reps.

“I signed up for a fight.”

“You’re fighting again?” Connor finished his set and rested his arms on the bar as he caught his breath.

“Well, kinda I guess. Well, yeah, I am,” Benny sighed and readjusted his hat. “I don’t know what I was thinking… I dunno, I figured they’d moved on and there wasn’t gonna be a spot for me on the card, but…they took me seriously and found me a fight.”

“You're gonna win right?”

“I sure fuckin hope so,” Benny inhaled deeply. “Shit, my last few fights didn't end the best.”

“Do you know who you're fighting against?”

“Yeah, this guy Omar.”

“Well, Coach Ben always says that you can tell a lot about an opponent by watching film on them. You can pick up little ticks and tendencies. This guy have any fights you can watch?” Connor offered as he moved around to spot Benny on the bench press.

“That's a good point. I think I can find some stuff on him, he just recently got into MMA but he was a boxer too.” Benny finished his set and sat up on the bench, pulling his shirt up to wipe the sweat off of his brow. “Wanna help me train?”

“Me? You'd kick my ass in like two seconds. I don't think my mom’ll be too happy if I-”

“No, no not like that. I have Will and Fish to beat up on,” Benny winked. “No, I meant like with the video stuff. D’you think you could watch his fights with me?”

“I don't really watch MMA man, I'm more of a WWE kinda guy.”

“That's fine. It's probably good you aren't familiar with it now that I think of it, you'll pick up on shit I probably wouldn’t see.” Benny gave Connor an encouraging smile before knocking on his shoulder. “C'mon, you don't want me to get my ass handed to me do ya? You'll lose out on a training partner.”

Connor smiled, excited that he could finally help Benny with something. “Deal. When do we start?”

_____________________

On the way to pick up the kids, Valeria filled Frankie in on what each of them liked. Antonio was obsessed with Star Wars, especially after playing with some of his Tio Frankie’s old toys. Valeria found them when she went through her father's house before the estate sale. Leia, on the other hand, only had eyes for Minnie Mouse, a fact Frankie was thankful he knew beforehand so he could get her a birthday present.

Frankie tried to stave off his nerves on the drive. He wasn’t a stranger to the kids, thanks to FaceTime, but he still wondered how they’d react to him in person. It always made his heart melt to see Antonio’s face light up when Valeria passed him the phone to talk to Frankie. He'd show off all of his toys and talk a mile a minute about shows Frankie had never heard of. Leia was a bit on the shyer side, but Frankie was so enamored with his little niece. She reminded him so much of both his mother and Valeria when she was younger.

“Hey, they’re so excited to see you,” Valeria reached over to squeeze her brother’s arm. “I could barely get Antonio into his classroom today, he wanted me to take him to the airport to see his Tio,” she laughed.

Valeria parked and Frankie took a deep breath before getting out of the car. He took his hat off and ran his fingers through his hair as he and Valeria made their way down the hallway to Leia’s classroom. He was oblivious to the fact that he turned heads as he walked by, but Valeria noticed; her powers of observation enhanced thanks to her day job. She smirked to herself and rolled her eyes. Her whole life all of her friends either had a crush on Frankie or one of his friends. 

When they reached the classroom, Valeria knocked on the door and waved. Leia spotted her and ran to the door. 

“Mommmaaa. Hi momma!” the toddler babbled. “Momma. Up!” She lifted her little arms up, wanting Valeria to pick her up. 

“Hola mi niña, did you have a good day?” She asked the little girl, looking over to her teacher who smiled and nodded.

“She had a lot of fun today,” her teacher handed over Leia’s dinosaur lunchbox.

Leia wrapped her arms around her mother’s neck and then her eyes locked with Frankie's, as he gave her a shy wave. He could see the wheels turning in the little girl’s head. She definitely recognized him, but it seemed like she was trying to figure out how.

“Hola mi princesa,” Frankie offered, pushing his hat up a little bit so she could see more of his face.

She paused for a moment before her face lit up, “Tio Fankee!” She wiggled in her mom’s arms, signaling she wanted to be put down and put down fast. She ran over to Frankie and wrapped her arms around his leg, drawing awws from parents passing by.

Frankie let out a breath he didn’t realize he had been holding in, his shoulders relaxing as he looked down at the little girl reaching her arms up. He scooped her up, planting a big kiss on her cheek which made her giggle as he tickled her.

Valeria looked on and felt a mix of emotions at the scene playing out. Her brother loved kids and always had a soft spot for them. She knew he would make the most amazing father, which is why the situation with Raquel still stung. Frankie had been over the moon to have a little one on the way only to have that ripped away. It took everything in Valeria to not fly to Tampa to beat Raquel's ass the day Frankie called to say that the baby wasn't his. She felt a rage she had never felt before, hearing her brother sound so low, so defeated. Little did she know the spiral that still awaited them both. 

Even though that was in the past, she could still see the pain in Frankie’s eyes as he held Leia. She knew he was thinking about what it would be like to hold his own child. With Leia firmly perched on Frankie's hip, the trio walked down to Antonio’s room. He was sitting at a table, reading when his mom knocked on the door. 

“Mamá! Is Tio Frankie here?!” The little boy quickly shuffled out of his seat, running over to the door ignoring his teacher’s pleas to walk instead of run.

Frankie hid on the other side of the door, giving Valeria a wink as he heard his nephew shuffle over. “Peek-a-boo!” Frankie popped out, surprising Antonio whose face went from fear to utter joy in about one second flat.

“Tio Frankie!!” The boy wrapped his arms around Frankie’s waist before Frankie bent down, Leia still clinging to him like a koala bear. 

“You’re getting so big, pollito. You taking good care of your moms and sister?” The little boy nodded, wrapping his arms around Frankie’s neck. “Good job, I’m proud of you, buddy.”

“Tio Frankie?”

“What?”

“Why do you call me pollito?”

Frankie chuckled, looking up at Valeria who laughed and rolled her eyes. “Actually, your Tio Benny gave you that nickname when I sent him a photo of you in the hospital when you were born,” Frankie laughed. 

Valeria shook her head. She vividly remembered how Benny’s first reaction at seeing a photo of Antonio was to say he looked like Chicken Little from the animated movie.

“C’mon, let's get home,” Valeria grabbed Antonio's things. “Mommy is gonna make Tio Frankie his favorite - breakfast for dinner!”

“I'm so happy you married a chef,” Frankie looked over his shoulder as he and the kids made their way down the hallway, Antonio talking a mile a minute about what he learned that day.

Valeria stood back a second to take in the view of her brother walking down the hall, holding Antonio's hand with Valeria still clinging to him. It was the most complete she'd felt in a long time.

__________________________

David: Liv, are you sure you don't need help for the party? I have a whole mood board going.

Ty: I'm sorry Liv. You know he can't be stopped once he gets going…

Olivia: Aww thanks D. But I don't know how much space we'll have. I just picked up some stuff from the Dollar Store, we should be fine. But if you all want to dress up, I won’t stop you! 😉

David: SAY LESS! Ty and I have the perfect costumes.

Ty: This is a child’s birthday party babe, not a circuit party. Don’t worry Liv, we’ll be appropriate.

Megan: Send the name of the rink over to Melissa, she'll find you the goddamn blueprints by the end of the day 🤣

Katie: Seriously, what she can uncover with a few uninterrupted hours is frightening

Melissa: oh stop it!! You weren't complaining when I was showing you what I found about Cousin Joel

David: 👀 I'm listening

Melissa sends a few photos from her folder titled Cousin Joel Discovery 

Ty: Holy shit 🥵

Olivia: Oh hello Cousin Joel!! 🔥

Megan: Ty can you please do a welfare check on David

David: WHEN IS HE VISITING FOR THE LOVE OF GOD I NEED TO SEE THIS MAN IN PERSON 

Ty: Megan and Kat, please do me a solid and give me fair warning if Cousin Joel ever comes to visit. I’ll need as much time as I can get to construct a Jurassic Park-level enclosure for David 

David: you can't hold me back! I'll gnaw through it RAWR 🦖

Olivia:💀🤣

Lucille: He is very handsome. Although he looks a bit like trouble. 

Katie: You think so?

David: I like trouble, love it actually.

Ty: 🤦🏽‍♂️

_____________________

“Tio Frankie, Tio Frankie! Can we play Star Wars? Who’s your favorite character? Which ship do you think is the coolest? I think the A-wing is the coolest. What color lightsaber would you choose? I like green like Luke. What about-”

“Ohhhh ok,” Valeria ushered the boy inside the house, Leia on her hip as Frankie dropped off the kid’s backpacks and made a beeline to Alyssa who was busy preparing dinner. 

“Hola, Lyssa,” Frankie said as he kissed her cheek. 

“Hey Frank, you look good hermanito!” She gave him an up and down.

“Hey babe!” Valeria shouted as she made her way down the hallway to change Leia’s diaper.

“I’m so glad you’re here Frank, she’s been so excited ever since you called,” Alyssa smiled as she pulled some biscuits from the oven.

“I’m glad I’m here too,” he leaned up against the kitchen counter. “This all smells amazing, thank you. I know the last thing you probably want to be doing is cooking after you do it all day,” he chuckled.

“Oh stop it! And not have a chance to hear you rant and rave over my cooking! I’ll take that any day! Besides, your sister is doing this low-carb thing so it gives me an excuse to make biscuits and gravy since we both like it,” she winked.

“Well, I’m glad to be your conspirator…as usual.”

Antonio came crashing into the kitchen with a plastic bin of toys. “Tio Frankie! Can we play? Pleeeeease!”

Frankie could not resist his nephew’s little face, looking to Alyssa for confirmation. 

“I have about 10 minutes until dinner is ready. If you eat all of it and Tio Frankie isn’t too tired then you guys can play after dinner.”

“Yeesssss!” Antonio jumped up and down and headed to the living room to take all of his toys out.

“Oh shoot, wait, I have something,” Frankie stopped and opened up his suitcase, taking out two bags. “Pollito, come here,” he smiled as the little boy bounded over.

“But, it’s not my birthday Tio Frankie, it’s Leia’s at the end of the week. Mamá and Mommy are taking us to the aquarium.”

“I know, but I wanted to get you a surprise too. Here open it,” Frankie handed over a plain green bag just as Valeria walked back in with Leia.

“What do you say?” Valeria raised her eyebrows and gave that mom look her son knew quite well.

“Gracias Tio Frankie.” The little boy put the bag on the ground and reached in, pulling out a Lego helicopter set. The biggest smile came across his face as he turned the box over to read it. “This is so cool!”

“You know that Tio Frankie can fly one of those, right?” Alyssa called over her shoulder.

“You can fly? Like Luke Skywalker?!”

“Ha, well, my ships aren’t as cool as Luke’s but yeah, I can fly a bunch of stuff.”

The little boy looked in awe at his uncle. “Woooow that’s so cool.”

“Maybe one day, you all can come to Florida and I’ll take you all up in a helicopter,” he smiled.

“I’m good to stay on the ground with the baby,” Alyssa called over. “One and done for me, no offense Frank.”

Frankie shook his head, remembering the time he took his sister and her new girlfriend up in a helicopter. It was then he really knew Alyssa loved Valeria because she tried to overcome a fear of flying just to impress her.

“That would be so fun! Mamá can we do that?! Can we do that pleeease!!!” Antonio jumped up and down.

“Si, mijo, we’ll go visit Tio Frankie. And guess what? We’ll get to see Tio Santi, Tio Will, and Tio Benny too! They haven’t seen you in a while and I know they’re probably so excited to see you,” Valeria ruffled her son’s hair.

“Maybe after dinner, we can try putting this together?” Frankie held up the box just as Leia walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his legs. “Hola princesa, c’mere!” He picked her up and she gave him a kiss on the cheek. Frankie kissed her on the forehead and brought her in for a hug, his eyes getting misty.

“Dinner’s ready! Let me get the kid’s plates together and you two help yourselves.”

_______________________

Will finished loading the dishwasher and sat down on his couch with a beer to watch whatever game was on TV. He felt a bit off all day, still processing that his little brother was going to need to be in fighting shape in 47 days. 

Benny was impulsive in his decision to reach out to Herb. Will knew Benny would rather step into an octagon than face his feelings and talk. He wished Frankie was there, he always seemed to be a bit of a Benny whisperer. But since Frankie was on his trip, Joel was with Sarah, and Santiago was on a date, Will stared at his phone before deciding who to text. 

Will: Hope you had a good day

He took a deep breath, resting the phone against his temple, feeling his phone vibrate not too long after.

Katie: It was a Monday 😕 How was yours? Did you drive anyone to get M&Ms today?

Will: Ha, no Mr. Jacobs didn’t have a sweet tooth today. Just wanted to get some deodorant and his meds.

Katie: Lol

Katie: How’s Benny?

Will: Fine. This morning I found out that he’s signed himself up for a fight.

Katie: Oh. How do you feel about that? 

Will: Eh, I don’t know. It makes me nervous. I don’t want to see the kid get hurt.

Katie: You’re a good big brother 💗

Katie: But you’ve said he’s really talented, right? So he should be fine?

Will: Yeah. I don’t want to put pressure on him, but he should be ok. Especially once we get started training.

Katie: Buuut…

Will: He’s doing this because he doesn’t want to deal with stuff and this is the only way he knows how to process shit. I wish he’d just talk to someone, it doesn’t even have to be me.

Katie: Oh. I’m sorry. He sounds a lot like one of my brothers actually.

Will: Yeah?

Katie: Yeah. Nate was like that for a long time.

Will: What changed?

Katie: He found his girlfriend. I’m shocked every day that he found someone to put up with him!

Will: Ha, well, I feel like he’s going to be so focused on this fight that anything like that will be the last thing on his mind.

Katie: I understand that. 

Katie: Hey, you guys are still planning on going to the twins’ party on Saturday right?

Will: Yeah. You actually reminded me I need to go get a present from Ben and I 

Katie: Maybe we can go to the store after work on Wednesday? Then come back to my place. I’ll wrap it for you 🙂

Will: Sounds like a plan

________________________

“That was so good Alyssa, thank you,” Frankie got up and started to collect everyone’s dishes.

“You’re welcome and you stop that right now and go to the living room to play with your nephew,” Alyssa winked at him as she grabbed the plates out of his hands.

“Tio Frankie, Tio Frankie! Can we play? Mommy said we could play after dinner, and it’s after dinner and I ate all of my food.”

“Let’s go,” Frankie ruffled the boy’s curls.

Valeria helped Alyssa clear the table and gave her wife a kiss before swooping up Leia and walking over to the living room. 

Frankie helped Antonio put together the helicopter, telling the little boy about the different parts and what they do. They had fun playing, Leia making her way into her uncle’s lap to observe. 

“Oh, can I give Leia her birthday present?” Frankie looked up at his sister, now sitting on the couch with a glass of wine observing. 

“Tio Frankie, her birthday isn’t today.” Antonio reminded him.

“It’s ok, mijo. Besides, Tio Frankie won’t be here for her birthday,” she smiled at the boy. “Yeah, Paco, let me go get it.”

She came back with a little pink bag stuffed with white tissue paper and handed it to Frankie.

“Here you go princesa. This is for you,” he set the bag on the ground in front of his niece. She studied it for a moment and then looked back up at Frankie with her big brown eyes. “Go ahead, mira, you just take the tissue paper out. He grabbed her little hand and helped guide one of the pieces of tissue paper out. 

She smiled and then attacked the rest of it before pulling out a stuffed Minnie Mouse toy. The Minnie Mouse was dressed in a pink dress with white polka dots, a matching bow, and pink shoes.

Leia let out a big gasp and brought the toy in for a big hug. “Momma, Min Mou!” she babbled. 

“Aw, wow! How nice, Tio Frankie got you a Minnie Mouse! Que linda! What do you say?”

“Ank ooo Tio Fankee!” Leia managed with a big smile on her face before wrapping her little arms around Frankie’s neck. 

“You’re welcome,” Frankie whispered, giving the little girl a kiss on the top of her head. 

Alyssa finished up cleaning and came over to tell the kids it was bath time which started a bit of a meltdown from both of them since they wanted to spend more time with Frankie. With some coaxing, and a promise Frankie would read them both a story, they were off to the bathroom with Alyssa as Frankie sat up on the couch with his sister. 

“It’s exhausting isn’t it,” she smirked.

Frankie leaned all the way back on the couch, the back of his head resting on the back of the couch. “Ha yea, but they’re awesome, conejita. I’m glad they seem to like me.”

“Like you?! They love you, Paco,” she leaned over giving his arm a comforting squeeze, making Frankie smile. “D-do you ever think about having some of your own?”

He nodded, his eyes cast downward with a tight smile.

“So I have to ask because I’m your sister, but… are you seeing anyone?”

“Ha, no. Honestly, I’m not really looking for anything. It’s been good to just kinda…I dunno focus on me, you know? I’m at peace with where things are.”

“I’m so proud of you,” she patted his knee. “Hey, I was going to send this to you, but since you’re here, I figured I could give it to you.” She got up from the couch and walked into her office to grab a small box.

“What? You didn’t have to get me anything,” he furrowed his brows as he took the box from her.

“I know, but, I want you to have this. Open it.”

Frankie took the box, undid the bow, and opened up the lid and he instantly felt tears welling up in his eyes. In the box was his father’s watch, a gift the Millers got him when he retired. Frankie didn’t have much of his father or mother’s possessions, so this was truly special. 

“He wanted you to have it. I found a box of stuff in his room and there were some notes in there about what went to who,” Valeria told him as she rubbed Frankie’s back.

He brought the heels of his hands up to his eyes, rubbing them before looking over at her. “Thanks, this is awesome.”

They sat together as Frankie composed himself before Valeria finally broke the silence, “I have some other stuff too, mostly photos if you want to go through them tomorrow. I also have some jewelry, like Mom’s ring if you want it.”

Frankie tilted his head down and raised his eyebrow, “and why would I need that?” 

“I’m just saying! If you ever need it, I have it. And I think you’ll be asking for it soon.”

Frankie chuckled, shaking his head, “what do you mean?”

“I just…I had a dream that you met someone soon,” she smiled.

From a young age, Valeria thought she had a gift. So many times she felt like her dreams predicted the future. She had a dream the week before she met Alyssa that she was going to find her soulmate. Nearly every time Frankie was off on a mission, she would have a dream that he would return safely. And she, unfortunately, had a dream that Frankie and Raquel were not going to last, but she didn’t dare tell him that.

“What kind of brujería are you on now?” Frankie chuckled. He was skeptical when it came to his sister’s dreams, always thinking the outcomes were more a matter of coincidence rather than fate.

She started to laugh as Alyssa came back in, to let them know Antonio requested Frankie read a book about the Star Wars ships for his bedtime story.

“Good luck and don’t let him ask you too many questions,” Valeria winked as Frankie got up and made his way to Antonio’s room.

Next chapter

Next week on As the Mule Falls: Frankie returns home to Tampa. Olivia's twins have their birthday party *cue a montage of Benny skating backward and racing Will around the rink, David still sneaking in his Stanley cup, Frankie checking his phone, Santiago avoiding Melissa, and some fun Star Wars decorations* 

A/N: To my Frankie fans, I hope you liked getting a little more of a spotlight on our favorite pilot. His story is just now starting to pick up. Speaking of, here's a shameless plug … have you read my Frankie one-shot Turbulence? If you haven't, consider it your homework before the next installment. How do we feel about Benny? Dipping into bad habits or is he just working through things in his own way?

Thank you so much for being here and reading. I hope you are enjoying this ride! I love reading your comments and reblogs, they seriously make my day!

Taglist: @goodwithcheese / @gemmahale / @trulybetty / @patti7dc / @periodtsparadox / @ramblers-lets-get-ramblin / @maggiemayhemnj / @mysterious-moonstruck-musings / @avastrasposts / @meveispunk / @chaoticfestninja / @beboldbebravethings / @casa-boiardi / @katw474 / @linzels-blog / @laughing-in-th3-purple-rain / @pimosworld / @lynnchun / @anoverwhelmingdin / @lilmizmoz / @pedrit0-pascalit0 / @titlee78 / @noisynightmarepoetry / @inept-the-magnificent / @perennialdoll247 / @for-a-longlongtime / @readingiskeepingmegoing / @harriedandharrassed / @musings-of-a-rose / @anavatazes / @sherala007 / @midnightraain / @partyofone3414 / @inthedarkestnight / @millennial-teenybopper / @csarab615 / @darkheartgatita / @southernbe / @weho2kcmo / @itspdameronthings

#delta landscaping #frankie morales fanfiction #frankie morales #triple frontier fanfiction #triple frontier

[eirianerisdar]

hi! i'm really loving icarus, you're a wonderful writer! but i just had a quick question. i love the flock graphics, and they're super helpful! would it be possible for you to maybe list the species of birds for the main 'characters' of the story as well? you don't have to post example photos or anything crazy, but i think just a list like that would be helpful too. sometimes i forget who has what kind of wings, and i think having a list so i can google image the bird would be great.

if that's not something you want to do or don't have time to do or something, no worries!! i really appreciate you taking the time to write icarus in the first place <3

Oof I might as well do a general guide! I never thought a maxiel wingfic would spawn so many specific wing allocations but here's the general list:

Paddock wings in Icarus:

Current grid:

Daniel Ricciardo - Scarlet Macaw (colourful, nimble flyers)

Max Verstappen - Peregrine Falcon (raw speed, inherited from his mother)

Sergio Perez -Crested Caracara (a type of mexican bird of prey)

Lewis Hamilton - Greater Bird of Paradise (beautiful wing plumes, lovely singer)

George Russell - Blue swallow (beautiful metallic-blue feathers, scream like madmen when they fly)

Carlos Sainz - Spanish Imperial Eagle (white epaulets, very regal)

Charles Leclerc - White Dove (need I say more? Perfect white wings, exploited because they're pretty but so intelligent in pathfinding)

Lando Norris - Lucifer Hummingbird (Small, colourful, likes to hover in place)

Oscar Piastri - Little Lorikeet (One of the smaller types of Australian parrot. Very cute)

Yuki Tsunoda - Japanese Long-tailed tit (Photos should be self explanatory. They fly like ballistic missiles)

Alexander Albon - Crested Fireback (National bird of Thailand. Beautiful dark blue and fiery plumage)

Logan - Blue Jay (Commonly found in Florida. Blue, like Logan's current posting, and his eyes)

Pierre Gasly - Osprey (A bird of prey often found near coasts along the European shoreline, and Pierre is from Normandy)

Esteban Ocon - Black Stork (Tall, gangly, also migrates through France)

Fernando Alonso - Kestrel (a type of small bird of prey, hunts by biding their time and waiting then divebombing)

Lance Stroll - Snowy Owl (Lance is cuddly ok and I didn't want to make him a Canadian goose because that's his dad)

Valtteri Bottas - Bullfinch (Look it up. The picture is self-explanatory. The manliest of men)

Zhou Guanyu - Chinese Red-Crowned Crane (A crowned crane for the champion of the universe, as translates his name)

Kevin Magnussen - Raven (Viking. quoth the raven.)

Nico Hulkenberg - Crow (he keeps coming back. As wily as many of their bird counterparts but has a bad rep for being a bad omen)

Retired drivers or drivers not currently on the grid:

Sebastian Vettel - Swiftlet (Extremely good fliers, reaching up to 160km/h and pulls insane G-forces)

Mick Schumacher - European robin (Very cute. Universally liked. Same wings as his father)

Nico Rosberg - Eurasian Sparrowhawk (a bird of prey that hunts by ambushing before a high-speed, agile chase)

Jenson Button - Northern Harrier (hunts in a high-speed flight close to the ground, exceptionally good listeners)

Mark Webber - Cassowary (look up a photo. Just look at it.)

Kimi Raikkonen - Giant Albatross (King of gives no shits, flies very long distances without a care)

David Coulthard - Bush-Stone Curlew (White trousers!)

Romain Grosjean - Red-tailed Hawk (I chose the bird of prey that could best mesh with the phoenix metaphor)

Antonio Giovannazi - White-spotted Starling (Very pretty plumage)

Daniil Kyvat - Great Bustard (I honestly don't remember why. Distributes in Russia)

Nyck De Vries - Common European Sparrow (Small. Commonly found. Unfortunately often hunted)

Nikita Mazepin - Flamingo (Need I say more)

Sir Jackie Stewart - (Clipped) Merlin Wings (Extremely fast Scottish bird of prey. In-fic, Jackie was one of the generation of drivers that clipped their wings, permanently robbing them of flight)

Team Principals and people in the paddock:

Toto Wolff - Black Swan (self-explanatory)

Christian Horner - Golden Eagle (A bit pompous. Matches his hair)

James Vowles - Magpie (Utterly clever, not from any particular prestige)

Fred Vasseur - Partridge (Affable. Cuddly.)

Guenther Steiner - Shoebill (self-explanatory, look up a photo)

Cyril Abiteboul - Eagle Owl (something about his face is very Eagle Owl)

Micheal Italiano - Kookaburra (laughs when they shouldn't)

Zak Brown - Chicken (self-explanatory. Literally and metaphorically)

Andreas (mclaren) - Common Quail (short lifespan)

Mattia Binotto - Pigeon (wants to be as pretty and loved as Charles. Is a public nuisance instead)

Otmar sznafnauer - Peacock (Struts around, can't really fly)

Resident Bastard:

Jos Verstappen - Cuckoo (Cuckoos are brood parasites, and lay their eggs in nests of birds of other species'. The cuckoo parent therefore does nothing while other birds raise their young)

#I've probably missed a couple minor characters so if anyone has any questions feel free to drop a reply and I'll answer #f1 #f1 wingfic #f1 wing au #icarus #my post #writing #fanfic

[lolita-lollipop]

saw you were taking encanto requests so i wanted to pitch in and ask for something that includes all the grandkids, who decide to kidnap adopt a girl just a few months younger than camilo and mirabel. they do this upon learning that her family is neglectful and she’s never known love. so they treat her like a beloved little sister, perhaps living out their fantasies of having a sweet baby sis.

YANDERE MADRIGAL FAMILY X READER

I’m sorry this is so late- literally forgot to post it💀

It was Antonio’s door ceremony , the village was lively with color, flowers bloomed at every green patch of grass, the members of la familia madrigal could be seen happily buzzing around the village, happy to accept any congraduations from the citizens. You were stuck in the shop all day, selling old items from way before you were born. Your parents of course, we’re off celebrating the new induction to the small boy named Antonio, leaving you to deal with everything, yet again.

You knew you should be happy, today marks a new day of flourishment for the village, but you just can’t seem to swipe that scoul from your features. Sure, you’d made very good friends with the madrigals, they were your best customers, Luisa often came in your shop to speak with you, Camilo would disguise himself every time, but you always knew it was him, and Isabela… she thought this place was too dirty, so she had taken you on somewhat of a date to the flower fields. Abuela had come in once or twice, didn’t buy anything, but spoke with you for a brief few minutes. The madrigal family was lived across the board, they were the reason that you were even alive today, but still, you couldn’t be happy for them. It was selfish. But it was true.

They were lively people, and they treated you like a a little sister or a daughter, but everytime you go to one of these ceremonies, every time you see mirabel and her mama in the plaza, you are just reminded of everything you’re missing in life. They have love, they are close knit. Someone would know if they go missing, or if they are found hung from the ceiling, someone will care for them. They know that no one will just forget them and go on with their lives. It always just sparked endless jealousy in you whenever you saw them smiling together, laughing together. And then they unknowingly rub it in by inviting you to their family dinners, by having sleepovers in Isabella’s room, or being hugged by Luisa. It was like they were just trying to prove how much you didn’t fit in.

You wish you had an Abuela that cared about your family, or a mama who would hold you close and comfort you when upset, or a papa who bragged about your accomplishments to others.

Especially now, as you stood in the crowd of people, watching at the golden family ascended the stairs of la casita. everyone around was cheerful, wearing the best of their best outfits, dancing and singing, just awaiting the reveal of Antonio’s room. You were a stark contrast to the general tone of the room, you had hoped that tonight maybe your parents would spend time with you, but they left yoh in a corner the second they left. You know, it’s sad and stupid to be mopey for no reason, but you couldn’t help but set a sad mood. It showed through your features too, a sad scowl and droopy eyes displayed on your face, you didn’t talk to anyone. Not even Isabella when she tried to feed you some of the arepas from the snacks. You didn’t realize that the entire madrigal family was solely focused on you, even Antonio was worried. Why were you sad? A fiesta is meant for smiles and flowers and madrigal weirdness, not a sad child longing for attention.

While in your daze, longingly staring at the family, you failed to notice the putter patter of la casita trying to speak, that was until it tapped at your foot. The tiles under your two feet moved around, fluttering and twisting until you snapped out of whatever trance you were in. You tilted your head down with a sorrowful smile at the times, which had now rearranged themselves into a smiley face.

“Hi, casita.” You said no more words than that, and it seemed to understand, leaving you along for a few seconds, before scuffling back with one of the pretty red roses isabela had grown. Of course la casita thought it would help you, being a smile yo your face, but instead it just furthered your sorrow, oh great! Isabel’s flowers that you would never be able to grow even if you had a green thumb! Wonderful! Your frown deepened.

“I really just- I don’t want to do this right now. Can I be alone. Please” you talked to the floor like a madwoman, but the tiles hook left to right, almost as if to say no. You let out a sigh, and continued to drone out the rest of the world, now solely focusing on the tiles, and the house that oh so desperately wants to make our happy. So it left, again, just for a few seconds. Only to come back again, this time in the shape of an arrow, pointing towards the set of stairs behind a wall, almost hidden.

“Oh? What? Do you want me to follow?” The tiles shooks up and down, and your questioned it for a solid moment, looking back at the family and the party, it probably wasn’t respectful to just run around someone’s house, before remembering that this is why you’re sad “oh damn it all, what have I got to lose?” You huffed, and followed the arrow.

You remained silent at the rest of the travel through the home, step by step, la casita placed pillows behind you as if it expected you to fall, you didn’t notice of course, too focused on how the tiles seemed to glow more and more as you followed them. You walked up and up and up until you reached the top, and heaved yourself past the hallway too. You’d never seen this part of the house, maybe they just kept it hidden from everyone else. But it was beautiful, flowers were painted along the borders of the walls, and vines hung from the ceiling with roses and lights attached to them, you smiled at the sight. How pretty. La casita seemed happy at the soft upturn of your lips, yet it wasn’t done. It shook the wall in front of you, sending the wood creaking and squeaking. Your brows furrowed at the sight, is this all it wanted to lead you to? A wall?

You pressed your hand flat against the wall, softly huffing, all at once you seemed to remeber that sorrow, that anger at your own parents, yoh were just trying to distract with stupid games with some stupid house, a stupid house that you’d stared at every time you passed, a stupid house that you lingered by, a house that was filled with curiosity and joy, but now just felt sorrowful. You placed your forehead against the wAll, closing your eyes and attempting to stop yourself from letting your tears run free. Yet one still rolled down your cheek.

“Y/n! I was wondering when this would happen.” You heard a voice behind you speak up, but you didn’t move, too flustered to care that someone was experience you crying. After a few seconds you could recognize that voice as Camilla, gone was that playful tone, he seemed utterly worried, you could hear it in how worry and frantic ness was laced in his tone. When you had finally pried your eyes open, finally reigned your emotions in enough to not start sobbing, you were met with a shocking sight

A glowing door in place of the wall, reading “y/‘ madrigal”.

“C-Camilo? What?” You questioned, backing o from the door the second you spotted it, you did nothing but hit Camilla chest, and he gripped your shoulder, keeping you in place and pushing you towards it.

“It’s okay- it’s okay. Just open it” he gushed, shoving you forward gently until you stumbled to the door, your initials were engraved on the doorknob. It was pretty, but it didn’t feel real. Why would this be happening, maybe this is a dream. You stared at the door skeptically, and reached your hand out, skeptically, but before you did anything (also skeptically) your attention was drawn to a voice.

“But today isn’t just a day for antoñio, we have someone special, someone new!” You were able to recognized the voice as Abuelas, seconds after the announcement, there was a bright spotlight on you, and you brought your hand away from the door to shield your eyes.

“Dear y/n has been bruised, neglected, and hated for all of her life. Pobre pequeña Bebe. We’re giving her a new life! A new chance to be loved!” Abuela announced and splayed her arms out, her demanding voice sparked motivation in the eyes of the citizens. They all stared at you in pure awe for a few moments, then the crowd erupted in cheers, screaming for you. It’s not like it wasn’t obvious how miserable you were, they see Bruno more than you, and they don’t even talk about him!

Now you were utterly confused, if you refused this, and went down the stairs, then you would be either seen as 1. A coward, or 2. A sign of bad luck on the village, it would weaken the magic. But if you said yes, then… we’ll you don’t know what’s gonna happen. The cheers of the drunken adults and hyper children VILLE dyour head, and you did nothing but freeze. It wasn’t until a warm hand pressed on your shoulder that you snapped out of it, you spun around to meet the living gaze of mirabel and Camilo, along with Luisa. They stared at you for a few good long moments before Luisa spoke up.

“Open the door, la casita is never wrong, it knows what you want cariña, just open it” she softly spoke, which was odd because there was nothing soft about this woman. She looked her hands under your arms and placed you back in front of the door, which you continued to stare at. Her hand rested at the small of your back, almost threatening that it would help you open it if you didn’t do it yourself.

So, yoh reluctantly raised your hand to the doorknob, and twisted it. The second you did the door swung open completely. Revealing… a room. Your room. Well, your NEW room. It was calm, peaceful, it somehow appeared to have no curling, like the cielimg was the night sky full of stars. Bells hung from nonexistent hooks and they jungles as cool wind blew by. A bed was centered in the middle of the room, huge and white, with small stuffed animals scattered about.

The cheers behind the door became louder for a moment, but were completely shut out when the three young teens came into the room behind her. You flew around to meet their gazes, about to be extremely angry with them, but… isn’t this what you had wanted in the end? To be part of the family, to get rid of your jealousy?

“I-I don’t understand”

“It’s okay honey- you don’t have to understand, just let us take care of you, let us give you the love you never got” Luisa smiled and picked you up gently, for someone so broad and menacing her touch sure is comforting. You weren’t that much younger than her really, although you were the same age as mirabel, it felt odd to be called “honey”, either because it was coming from her, or you’d never felt that before.

“This… is crazy. Absolutely loca” you huffed out, more to yourself than anyone elsestaring around at the peaceful room. Mirabel couldn’t help but smile at your amazement, she couldn’t blame you for being so cute, but sometimes it distracted her. You were absolutely adorable. She made her way around to you while the other two stared at you with love, pulling you towards the bed, and closer to her, she remarked:

“You know, I’ve always wanted a baby sister, I’m the youngest so it’s only natural. This is so amazing! I finally get to have you!” She smiled and tugged you close, wrapping her arms fully around you, and pulling your head into her chest. You stiffened at the touch, unsure what to do with your own hands. Do you hug back or stand still? Or do you wrap your arms around too? What do you do what do you do what do you do what do you do.

“It’s okay. Those terrible parents of yours never taught you how to be lived, but you’ll get used to it. Just let yourself relax cariña, we’ll take care of the rest. No one will bother you while you’re here” Camilo remarked, now at mirabels side, he stroked your head and grabbed one of your hands to wrap around the girls waist. at the mention of your parents you perked up, in the midst of all this chaos you’d forgotten about them! Holy crap they totally saw you being admitted or whatever into this family! Oh they’re gonna be so pissed with you.

“I’m sorry camilo. B-But I can’t stay here, I can’t be part of this family. I’m not part of this family. I have parents, and even if they don’t treat me like… like this, I love them” at that their bright smiles dropped, you didn’t even notice it, but it was like a light switch turned off behind their eyes, and now all that was left was a dark, creepy look. Camilo brought his finger to your mouth to shush you, feigning hurt the entire way through.

“Love is only real if it’s mutual. We love you, and we all know you love us. You don’t have to be scared of them anymore. I’ll- we’ll protect you” his finger stayed on your lips as he said this, a menacing smile plastered across his face. Somethings wrong here. You just couldn’t place what. Of course they knew that your parents probably would be upset that you are part of them now, that is if they were alive, if they weren’t being turned into mush by isabelas flowers at the moment.

“I know but- I just have to work and they’ll be mad if I can’t an-“

“Hush, you’re too small to work, just let us all take care of you. The village doesn’t have any objections, they love you as much as we do. Just let us have you okay? Well keep you safe! Well love you” mirabel piped in, now taking her own turn in shushing your, it was quite odd how she called you little, when in reality you were only a few months younger than her, and maybe a few inches shorter. Huh. Weird.

“But-“

“I said stop. You aren’t going back. They’re gone, they left the second you became one of us, they don’t care” Luisa spoke for the first time again, her words shut you up right away. It made you sink into murabels chest, it made tears cloud up in your eyes as you failed at keeping them in. It made your heart beat faster. Would they- could they even do that to you? Why?

“Oh.” You spoke, and as Luisa stroked your back, Camilo held your hands and kissed them, and mirabel hugged you, all on top of a big fluffy bed. All of your tears and pain seeped out, and you cried into them. All of the sadness built up over the years of neglect, of never feeling enough, of jealousy, all that rage channeled at your biological family for never even trying to be good. It flowed freely out of your body in the form of tears, Luisa held you close as you cried, completely unbothered. Sympathy showed on all three of their faces. Yet they kept checking at the door, maybe for Abuela, or one of the parents.

They didn’t mind sitting like this, sitting with you, for a while though. It was nice to comfort you.

After all

You are their true baby sister

———————————————————————

Have we moved past the encanto phase?:

Absolutely not

Should we have by now?:

Yes

But will we?:

N o

sorry that this is so crappy, I just wanted to get something out- tell me if you hate it!

I really appreciate comments, good or bad!

#platonic obsession #platonic yandere #soft yandere #yandere platonic #yandere encanto #encanto #julieta madrigal #pepa madrigal #la familia madrigal #madrigal family #familia madrigal #madrigal #encanto yandere #yandere mirabel #yandere Luisa #yandere pepa #yandere camilo #yandere mama #yandere papa #yandere brother #yandere family #yandere madrigal #Luisa #pepa #bruno and julieta #Camilo #mirabel #abuela madrigal

[synergysilhouette]

An alternate take on "Encanto" (2021)

Back to my rewrites! Everyone raves about this movie, but I've got some things I'd rework, personally.

Have Luisa and Isabela play larger roles in the story with Mirabel. It was easy for me to forget Luisa was Mirabel's sister since they don't really interact much, and she and Isabela need more time for their arcs to fully flourish. Examples include placing "Surface Pressure" later in the film so that her breakdown is more gradual as she keeps bottling up her emotions, as well as Isabela's breakdown being less obvious and more of a surprise to the audience, as she's more convincing about going along with Alma's wishes. We could also get a scene where Agustin comforts Luisa after she loses her gift, having a similar moment to Fa Zhou and Mulan.

2. DON'T FORGET ANTONIO! It was stated that Antonio is like a little brother to Mirabel, but he weaves in and out of the story, his most important role being discovering his powers and providing Bruno with a new vision cave in his room. It'd be fun to see him tag along with Mirabel, Luisa, and Isabela.

3. Flesh out Dolores' feelings for Mariano, and make Mariano feel like a person with substance. She only mentions it for short periods of time in WDTAB and AOY, and it comes across as very unsatisfying. When she confessed to him, I was like "Oh yeah, I forgot she liked him." Plus maybe alter Mariano a bit; the general vibe is that since he has a lot of love to give, he's quick to rush things, but I like the idea that he gets to know people a bit better to show he's serious about being in love (and idk if Dolores was serious about him wanting a lot of kids, but I think that'd also be a factor for him being careful with who to give his heart). With Mariano, he's kinda used for laughs, falling in love at random and being Isabella's punching bag twice, with Mirabel referring to him as a big, dumb, hunk. He's more of a plot device than a character. I'd probably rewrite him so that he has a crush on Isabella, which his mother (or was she his grandmother) encourages similar to Alma pushing Isabela. Given his romanticism and similar mindset of pleasing the family, he essentially only focuses on Isabela since he thinks the marriage is happening without question and tells himself to only focus on her perfectionism, inadvertently stifling her individuality.

4. Embrace Mirabel's parents more. A big part of the story is how alone Mirabel feels, but at times it makes her parents look bad. They pose for a picture without her and they don't stand up for her until AFTER she goes missing. Plus I feel like their feelings about the family aren't focused on since they've already gotten used to it; seeing how inferior Agustin feels and how as the oldest, Julieta feels like she has to be perfect would've been a nice touch.

5. Dolores has telepathy. Dolores knowing what everyone says at the EXACT moment they say it as well as knowing that the rats were concerned about the magic despite lacking animal communication (though Antonio could've told her, she mentioned it like she knew it firsthand) feels like she has telepathy rather than purely having superhuman hearing.

Lemme know what you think! I may edit this later.

#encanto #mirabel madrigal #the family madrigal #isabela madrigal #luisa madrigal #bruno madrigal #disney #disney animation

[helianskies]

How about #23 for UKSpaFr? It could be a love triangle 🤭

okay so,, not really gone for love triangle but it is definitely frukspa what a lovely decision hehe

Reunited

“He should be out of there by now. What’s taking so long?”

“Yeah, but don’t forget he’s also probably waiting for luggage, and there’ll be a queue at border control. His flight only landed half an hour ago.”

Francis gives a tut and begins to hold himself. While he looks cold, it is probably because he wants a hug that is likely still waiting to have its passport checked. Arthur would have… offered him some kind of comfort, if he had even the slightest belief Francis would accept it. But he wouldn’t. So he doesn’t.

“I wish he’d picked an earlier flight,” Francis rattles on, starting to slowly pace, two steps one way, two steps back. “You are sure you’re happy to drive back?”

“Of course,” Arthur replies. His eyes do not leave the exit from customs. “It’s not too far.”

“Only an hour and a half,” the other scoffs, and then sighs. “I hope he’s eaten something for dinner. La cuisine est fermée. It’s too late to cook him anything decent.”

“Good job I shoved some snacks into the car, then,” Arthur supposes, mustering up a smile. He looks at Francis, who has returned his gaze to the doors as another small flock of people start to emerge. Another wave of disembarked passengers. “He’ll be here soon,” he assures him. “I mean, he could be on the loo for all we kn—”

“Antoine!”

“Francis!”

“Arthur!” the same blond cheers quietly, as Antonio comes hurtling down the ‘departures only’ zone, and launches himself at Francis.

He’s used to such scenes. They have always been very hands-on in that way. Arthur prefers to do so in private. Though, even he has to admit, it does make him happy to see Antonio be swept off his feet for a rather dramatic spin, which makes him give a little surprised scream before demanding he be put down. The way he gives Francis’ arm a light smack for the move is rather entertaining.

“No picking me up, I’ve told you before,” Antonio finishes chiding Francis, although he is smiling, as is Francis (as is Arthur). And then he turns to the other. His smile grows. Arthur’s heart leaps and bounds. “Are we doing hugs, too?” he asks. “Or would you rather wait?”

Arthur is unsure at first. There are a lot of people around, a lot of eyes, a lot of noise. A hug sounds good. Frankly, given that he has just had to go two weeks without one from Antonio, a hug sounds great. Antonio has been away seeing family, and, even though he has had Francis and Francis is just as loving and doting, Antonio is—

“Hug it is!”

“O-Oh— Uh—” 

It seems, in the end, he has had no choice in the matter.

(But, secretly, that’s okay.)

“I’ve waited ages for this,” Antonio tells him as he practically swings from Arthur’s neck. He presses a hasty kiss—a big fat smooch—to the blond’s face, before he pops back off, pinches Arthur’s cheeks in greeting, and then says to them, “I’ve missed you. Both of you,” as he makes grabby hands towards both of them—a sign for them to each take a hand.

Dutiful as ever, both Francis and Arthur obey.

���So,” Francis says, as he takes Antonio’s luggage in his free hand and gestures for the three of them to head for the exit, “you survived your little family gathering?”

“Only just!” Antonio remarks with a soft snort of laughter. “I tell you what, I’m glad to be back. Which I didn’t expect to say, considering it’s absolutely heaving it down outside, but… well, you know what family’s like.”

Arthur hums. “Tolerable for five minutes, before they’re doing your head in?”

“Yeah. But,” Antonio then presses, tugging the pair of them closer to him as they pass through the building’s exit and out to the fresh (and wet) air, “I really am happy to be back home.” 

He looks between them both, and then gives Arthur the same kind of kiss on the cheek as before, before then giving Francis the same treatment. He breathes in England, embraces the cooler climate and shakes off that of his native Iberia, and, as though a switch has flicked in his brain, he suddenly asks:

“I don’t suppose you brought any food with you, did you? The coffee on the plane was awful, and I didn’t have time to grab anything at the airport before my flight…”

Arthur shares a look with Francis—one of amusement, one that says ‘I told you so,’ (which earns him rolling eyes, a lop-sided smile)—and he assures Antonio that, yes, there’s food in the car. 

“Oh, I love you!” Antonio proclaims in turn, squeezing both of their hands. “You have no idea how much that means to me!”

“Yes we do,” Arthur and Francis remark in unison, however; Antonio gives a laugh, suggests they head for the car before he takes his hunger out on them and gobbles them both up (affectionately, with kisses, because he loves them so, so much, he clarifies).

The car drive back is easy and pleasant, even in the rain. Arthur is kept happy by Antonio’s contagious enthusiasm, telling them both about his holiday in between snack breaks. Francis checks in on him every now and then, too (at one point, his hand comes to rest on Arthur’s as it sits on the gearstick, and a quick glance shows that Francis, too, is happy). 

And by the time the three of them get back, it’s dark, it’s cold, it’s miserable outside. But when they step back through the front door, all they feel is a restored warmth and comfort, knowing they are all finally home again.

[ ficlet collection is here on ao3! ]

#helia writes #hetalia #hws england #hws spain #hws france #frukspa #frain #engspa #if things seem awks between arthur and fran they aren't entirely meant to be and im sorry #i struggled a little with getting a lot into this one #but. arthur is awkward and insecure as ever bless his lil cotton socks #a semi-closeted romantic wedged between two very loud and proud romantics how will he ever cope ;0

[jungle-angel]

First Halloween (Fanboy x Reader)

“Alright little man,” Mickey said to the wriggling little three month old laying on your bed. “You are gonna look so cute in your Halloween costume.” 

Antonio wriggled and gurgled as Mickey zipped him into his Halloween costume, his chubby little arms flailing and poor Mickey struggling to get him in. “Sheesh, eres impaciente, hombrecito.”

The baby laughed a little as if he enjoyed annoying his father, but in no time at all, Antonio was in his Halloween costume. Mickey’s huge grin could hardly be contained, even as he whipped out his cell phone and snapped a whole mess of pictures. “Oh, your great grandmother is gonna love this,” he chortled excitedly. 

“Mickey you good?” 

“Yeah (y/n), I’m still in the bedroom!” 

“You wanna hurry it up?!” you called. “I might need some help with the hair!” 

“Gimme one sec!” 

Mickey lifted Antonio from the bed and moved him back into his own room, carefully placing him in his crib before heading back in to help you. “Your need help with the hair?” he asked you. 

“I dunno,” you sighed in frustration. “Honestly, the people that did Carrie Fisher’s hair....”

“Babes, I’ve got this,” Mickey chuckled. “You forget, I grew up in a big family and have an older sister who does hair for a living.” 

“Ok,” you said. “You win.” 

Mickey took your hair into his nimble fingers, working away effortlessly until at last it was done, your hair looking like a pair of huge cinnamon rolls stuck to the side of your head. 

“Alright Princess Leia,” Mickey teased. “Han Solo will be right back.” 

“Oh shit!” you blurted out. “I just realized, I need to feed Antonio.” 

“Alright, you go do that, I’m gonna go get changed.” 

You immediately went to the nursery and picked Antonio up, sitting right in the rocker to feed him as best you could. Alot of people had told you from the get-go that feeding would be painful and at times it was, but as soon as you got used to it, it hardly hurt at all. 

As soon as Antonio had been fed, burped and settled, Mickey popped right back in wearing his own Halloween costume. “Isn’t he cute?” he asked with a huge grin. 

““Oh my God,” you half laughed. “As if a Baby Yoda didn’t give me enough feels already, Mickey.” 

“Hey it was either this, or we go as Ghostbusters and he’s Baby Slimer,” Mickey told you. 

“So are we gonna get going, or are we just gonna stay here and nerd out?” 

“Right, right,” Mickey stammered. 

The two of you headed out to the truck and loaded up, putting Antonio into his carseat before heading to the Floyd ranch. Tonight was always the best time of year for the ranch, seeing as the squad got to set up and manage the haunted hayride every year.

It wasn’t a long ride at all, only a half hour at most before you two had pulled up to the ranch, people already having arrived just before sundown in an array of costumes, young and old, kids and teenagers as well as seasoned old salts. The leaves on the trees had turned burning shades of red, orange, brown and yellow while the heavy smells of hay, apples and fresh picked pumpkins was everywhere. 

“Holy shit!” Rooster exclaimed. “Looks like you guys went all out with the Star Wars thing.” 

“Yeah and you look like you just stepped out of a Bram Stoker novel,” Mickey chuckled. 

“Hey, Rusty wanted to be Mina so I had no choice but to be Jonathan,” Rooster said in his defense. “Look, I’ve even got a stake in the belt-loops of my pants.” 

Bob emerged onto the porch a moment later, his Indiana Jones look complete with a real bullwhip at his side. “Is that my favorite nephew?!” he exclaimed when he saw Antonio. 

“You wanna take him?” you laughed. 

Bob gladly took Antonio, still in his Baby Yoda costume, littering the baby’s cheeks with kisses and telling him how cute he was. “God I’m nervous,” Bob remarked. “The wife’s due in a few months.” 

“You’ll do fine,” Fanboy assured him. “By the way, what time’s the haunted hayride?” 

“Seven thirty is what Dad told me,” Bob answered as Antonio sucked on the end of his pinky. “He’s all excited because he gets to chase people with a giant knife.” 

“Isn’t that illegal?” you asked him. 

“Well, he was originally gonna make a homemade flamethrower but Mom talked him out of it pretty quick.” 

You guys laughed, trying to picture the whole thing going down. Regardless, you all intended to make it the best Halloween to remember.

#top gun maverick #mickey fanboy garcia #fanboy x reader #robert bob floyd #bradley rooster bradshaw #dagger squad #dagger squad halloween #headcannons to come

[acewithapaintbrush]

My entry for week three of @wdtajn for the prompt crossover and also for @empty-cryptid cause they wrote a super cute Encanto/One Piece crossover and I was like ohhhhhhhhh I wanna write Bruno and Luffy interacting too! So yeah, without you this wouldn't exist. Enjoy.

👒👒👒👒👒👒👒👒👒👒

"Wahoooo! Sugoi ne! It's like Arabasta in here!" 

The boy with the strawhat turns in a circle, his head tilted back so far that his hat almost falls off. He's got his hands up and shielding his eyes even though there is no sun in Bruno's room that could blind him. 

Bruno thought that he would grow annoyed quickly with the overly excited visitor, but he's actually enjoying himself. This Luffy has a childlike wonder to him that is contagious.

When he'd arrived in a flash of light in the middle of their family breakfast (literally falling onto their table with a bone breaking crash) it had only taken him one second to find his bearings and greet them all with a cheeky "Yo!" and a bright smile. Not even Isabela threatening him with her spiky vines or Pepa gathering a cloud with lightning above her head had fazed him too much. He'd simply gushed and ah'd and said something about devil fruits and how Pepa's power was just like Nami's weapon and since his Nami is the strongest navigator ever Pepa must be super cool and strong too, right? 

Needless to say, Pepa had been ready to adopt him just minutes after meeting him. 

Surprisingly enough he hadn't been especially impressed with Luisa holding the table threateningly over his head. The reason for that became abundantly clear when he offered to help tidy up and lifted a nearby table with nothing but one arm. These noodle arms hide a lot of muscles, apparently. 

After a lot of back and forth to get the whole story out of him (pirates and devil fruits and rubber powers and a legendary treasure, oh my!) Abuela's hospitality and Luffy's obvious lack of ill intentions (he'd let Antonio use his rubber arms as a swing during the entire conversation without batting an eye) had won out and he'd been allowed to wait in Casita for his friends. 

Bruno has been tasked with keeping an eye on him during the day, much to the consternation of all the kids who wanted to play with the newcomer but were instead sent into town to take care of their chores first. The journey to Bruno's room took forever because not just the youngest Madrigals have taken a liking to their surprise visitor, but Casita as well, letting the boy use her stairs as a slide over and over again. 

"I don't know what that means." Bruno admits. He watches as Luffy plops down and starts gathering sand around himself. He must be as old as Isa and Dolores and at first sight he doesn't really act it. But Bruno can also see the sinewy muscles in his arms as he gathers the sand or the way his gaze took everything in before entering this room, as if assessing his surroundings for threats. It was a fleeting moment and Bruno only noticed because he was watching the boy so intently. There is something about this boy (man?) that makes you take notice, that makes you straighten your spine and tighten your fists. 

It's like watching a tiger play. A big cat, cute one moment but ready to rip your throat out at the slightest sign of danger in the next, and don't you dare forget about that. 

Agustin and Felix had snorted into their coffee when Luffy had declared himself the captain, but Bruno has no trouble believing it. 

No trouble at all. 

Bruno sits down and continues watching as Luffy builds a sandcastle. Or a goose. It's hard to tell. 

Some of his rats have come over to investigate and instead of shooing them away or being disgusted, Luffy only blinks at them for a second before including them in his play, setting them on little hills and smoothing down some sand so it becomes a slide. 

Any lingering apprehension Bruno might have had about the guy disappears. 

"You are very… calm about all of this." he starts slowly. "It must be scary, trapped in another world?" 

"Nah." Luffy is distracted by two rats angrily squeaking at each other over the slide. He just adds another. "My Nakama saw the whole thing. I'm sure they have already caught the devil fruit user and are figuring out how to reverse this."

"You have a lot of faith in them." 

"Sure I do! They are the best!" 

"Would you tell me about them?" 

Luffy lights up so much, Bruno fears he's going blind. 

And then he talks about all of them. How they met and who they are and their dreams and ambitions and why they are the greatest people in the whole wide world and how he would be lost without them and that he's so happy they decided to follow him. He talks about every single one of them with so much love and appreciation that it's hard not to fall a little bit in love with this crew just by his descriptions alone. 

It's also not hard to imagine why they all follow this boy to hell and back either. 

And then he talks about this One Piece and his dream to become the king of the pirates. It should put Bruno off (pirates are the bad guys, right?) but instead he grows excited. He is a storyteller at heart and this makes for an amazing story. 

He finds himself once again explaining that there are no devil fruits here, just their magical candle and how it came to be. Luffy nods along with stars in his eyes. 

When Bruno tells him what his gift is, Luffy almost bounces off the walls in excitement. 

"The future???? Honto ni??? That's so cool!" 

"Oh. Well." Bruno chuckles, a little bit flustered by the open admiration. It's been a long time since someone other than his family has called him cool. "I could show you. I mean. Maybe show you when your friends get here? Or maybe how you find the One Piece?" 

How, because "if" never even crossed Bruno's mind. 

Of course Luffy is gonna find it. 

Luffy's "No!" is a bit more forceful than Bruno expected, but before he can shrink back or register any hurt, Luffy grins at him  and clasps his hands around his crossed ankles. One of the rats has curled up on top of his hat for a nap. "No way! I don't wanna know how we'll find the One Piece. That would take all the fun out of it. I don't wanna go on a boring adventure!" 

"Fair enough." Bruno says and shrugs. 

Yeah. There is nothing worse than a boring adventure. 

Good thing there is rarely a boring day in the life of the Madrigals. 

"But hey! Can you look where we'll find Sanji's favorite cooking spoon? Someone… Not me! Definitely not me! But someone lost it when they were playing sword fighting with Usopp. As a good captain it's my duty to find it before Sanji notices and hits that person. Not 'cause it was me! 'Cause it wasn't! Okay?" 

Bruno just laughs. 

#encanto #bruno madrigal #wdtajn #one piece #one piece monkey d luffy #one piece crossover #Encanto crossover

[gamergirlbonestaskforce141riot]

Ok, it is the last day of September, leaves are turning yellow slowly but surely. Imagine someone coming to Riot and then this dialogue happens.

"Wow, cant imagine, the summer is really over."

"Yeah, me too. I`ll be missing it."

"Why?"

"Well, because despite everything, it was actually... fun."

My question is, who is Riot talking to, and why would she describe this summer as 'fun'? What is her most wholesome memory from this summer? What made her smile, what would she retell to her friends?

[Disclaimer: extended Spanish dialogue would be written between <>]

''Are you ready, sweetheart?''

Christine Vega nodded slowly, her eyes still drinking the view of the sea beyond the cliff where she was standing. The cool breeze gently rustled her blonde hair, but she was so absorbed in the sights that in that moment, she didn't care.

Colonel Alan Cameron, of the Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland, retired, smiled fondly and crossed his arms, leaning against the jeep.

Each day that passed, his granddaughter looked more and more like her mother. From the looks down to the stern attitude which she adopted in life. Hard on herself. Selfless towards others. Now at 18 years old, she was all grown up.

Colonel Cameron looked back at the country house behind them, now closed and dark, devoid of life. The cattle had been sold to the neighbours, the family heirlooms that were important had been either stashed or packed in the luggage that filled the trunk and backseats of the jeep.

The only thing left was to say goodbye.

''I can't believe Summer is already over'' He commented, turning his head to watch his granddaughter again. She was still there, hands in the pockets of her jeans, staring into the ocean.

''Yeah. I'll miss it''

''Why?'' Calmly, he approached her to stand by her side, with his arms still crossed.

''Despite everything, I had fun, grandad'' Christine looked up at him with a smile, but the Colonel couldn't be fooled that easily, as weak as he was for his little girl.

Last year had been absolutely awful, for the two of them.

First, his wife had passed of a sudden, unexpected illness. Then, a mere month later, during the school year, his son in law's parents, Christine's other set of grandparents, passed away within a week of each other. Her abuelo for complications with a chronic illness, her abuela supposedly of a broken heart.

Christine's parents couldn't even come back from their job in Africa in time for the funerals, and everything fell on her shoulders. The Colonel was about to retire, and still had to sell his house, and thus the teenager stayed home, being taken care of by the neighbours, who would be now in charge of watching over the house while she moved to UK to study.

Because she had been accepted into Cambridge to study History. The Colonel was so proud of her he could burst any time.

''Which was your favourite part, sweetheart?''

Christine hesitated, leaning against her grandfather's body to rest her head against his shoulder.

''That I forgot everything and we just had fun travelling around'' She murmured, remembering the two month long road trip they had just finished, visiting as much of the country as they could. ''I won't ever forget it''

''<¡Christina!>'' An older woman's voice called her from behind them, and grandfather and granddaughter turned to face one of the neighbours, a woman that had been her abuela's best friend.

''<Adela... I'll miss you>'' Christine hugged the teary frail woman as delicately as she could, while Adela kissed her cheek repeatedly.

''<This is your home, don't ever forget about that. Ah if Luisa and Antonio could see you they would be so proud>'' The old woman sniffled. ''<You're going abroad to study! Like your dad!>''

''<I'll come back as often as I can to see all of you>'' Christine assured tenderly, unable to pry away from the woman's clutches, so her grandfather came to the rescue.

''We should get going, sweetheart''

The teary old woman still had to be convinced by the rest of her family, all of which came out to see them off and hug Christine for the last time in a long time.

When she finally could get into the jeep her own eyes were teary. Colonel Cameron looked at her with a knowing smile, and brushed her cheek with his knuckles.

''Cheer up, sweetie. It's not everyday that you get to go on a road trip with your old grandpa''

''We just arrived from one!'' Christine laughed, waving at her neighbours as the jeep made its way to the road. ''But I'm going to enjoy this one too''

''The freedom before drowning in books, innit?''

''I could always enlist like you'' She smiled widely, knowing full well that was something her grandpa would have liked, but he shook his head, laughing.

''And your parents would kill me for that''

As if they cared, Christine thought, looking out of the window, mentally saying good bye to the rolling hills and the green forests, to the cliffs and the sea.

#cod original character #cod oc #call of duty original character #cod fanfic #call of duty fanfic #cod mw2 #call of duty #call of duty modern warfare #call of duty modern warfare 2 #riot vega #christine riot vega #call of duty oc #call of duty fanfiction #call of duty fic

[thecomicsnexus]

TMNT: THE LAST RONIN - RE-EVOLUTION #1

March 2024

By Tom Waltz, Kevin Eastman , Esau & Isaac Escorza, Ben Bishop, Luis Antonio Delgado, and Shawn Lee.

With the resistance running low on manpower, it's up to the new turtles to rise and save the city.

SCORE: 9

You could say that, because this is a pretty much reimagined version of the turtles, there would be enough room for bold creative choices. But some of these choices, well, one in particular, was the reason the Turtles weren't well received on ocassions.

My concern, right now, is that the Turtles seem to be having "special abilities." In this issue we found out that they can use telepathy, something that was always kind of implied to exist but never abused, for the sake of storytelling. Did they learn this ability through the Splinter journal? If that's the case, why didn't Mikey use this ability in the previous two stories?

Another special ability came up at the end of this issue, which reminded me of the issue where Miles Morales debuted with a unique super-power.

Apart from that, this issue finally acknowledged one of the main points of this version. That the Hamatos and the Orokus had a feud. This was already present in "The Last Ronin," but because they didn't spend time to explain it, we only had a couple of interviews that detailed it.

Well, the feud feels a lot like the Mirage version, but with some unique characteristics that fit better in the Roninverse. I am talking about Nagi being Saki's father.

Now, this on itself brings additional questions. If Nagi already had a full-grown son, why was he after Tang Shen? What happened to his wife? Or is this a case of the unreliable narrator?

Another big question is how Splinter knew ninjitsu, as it was never explained, like in other versions, that he imitated his master. We shellheads can assume that was the case, but I guess the Turtles simply didn't know about that.

Another significant detail in their narration, was the bit about the ooze. They never explained what it was, so perhaps there is a story behind it that will be explored in the future?

Perhaps the best moment of the issue was when the Turtles were finally put into action. It took some time, but they are finally here.

Now, you could read this book and think. These are basically the same turtles with different looks and names. And technically, I wouldn't be able to deny that. There are some slight differences, like Uno being more overconfident than Leo, or Moja being more passionate about injustice than Raphael. But... they are very similar.

But this story is just beginning, so perhaps they will start becoming their own characters after this.

I appreciate having April still around, but I feel like this book should have a maximum percentage of panels dedicated to the parents (April and Casey), hopefully below the 40%. I kind of want to see stories about teenage mutant ninja turtles, not Huntress Jones. So I really hope that they start becoming the focus of the story in the next few issues. Sure, give me storylines involving all these characters, but don't forget who the readers are buying the book for.

Other than that, I saw many improvements when compared to the last two stories in the Roninverse. There are no oddly-positioned flashbacks, the story is more linear, and the world feels a little bit more familiar now (and expanded).

I want more stories in the Roninverse, and I am wondering it this should continue being mini-series, or if it should become an ongoing series. I guess that, since the Roninverse is such a big hit, writing for the trades is the way to go, so either option would work.

#comics #review #tmnt #teenage mutant ninja turtles #post modern age #2024 #the last ronin #the last ronin re-evolution #esau and isaac escorza #idw comics #idw publishing

[adri-2022]

Unknown Story

Fandom: Chicago PD

Characters: Jay Halstead x DawsonSister!Reader

Warning: mention of drug addiction/ allude of rape/ blood/ angst

Word count: 1353

Jay Halstead Materlist

A/N: Hey guys. This is a request from @whxgehd I'm sorry it took me so long to do it. I hope everyone likes it.

Don't be afraid to leave your comment!

------

Picking up your bag, you were met with the sound of Hank Voight’s voice coming from the outside of your house. Instantly fear overcame you. Here is the thing -you didn’t want to see him or anyone from the team-, you were doing stuff you weren’t proud of. You were Antonio’s little sister, everyone in Chicago knew you, so that meant you knew practically everyone. Opening the door, you were met with those green eyes that made you fall in love, even if he didn’t see you that way,

“Hi…Jay. How are you?” you said tucking a piece of hair behind your ear and smiling weary at him, behind him Hailey and Hank -damn did they think you would make a run for it-,

“Hey gorgeous. How are you?” he gave you a small smile, before it faded into worry. You smiled back -dimples showing-,

“Fine. I actually have to run, so…” “You’re not going anywhere Y/N. We might need to ask you for a couple of favors” Hank cut you off giving you the look. You knew who they were after, and you knew what they wanted from you.

“Sure…” you looked at Jay fiddling your fingers -nervous reaction-, Jay nodded knowing what you were asking. “…but I’ll only talk to Jay” you said now looking at Voight and Hailey, which made Hank nod before leaving.  

Everyone who met you or heard about you, knew you were the softest girl in Chicago. Always looking to help, sometimes in the community centers helping those who didn’t have anything. But your favorite place to be, was the veterans support group, the reason behind this was so you could help Jay with his ptsd. You were truly a gift, too good to be true.

A couple of days later, going over the plan in your mind walking inside where you were going to meet with Garret -you felt nervous-, the team was going to hear everything, and you knew Garret had a big mouth.

“Y/N! Hi. What got you coming here so soon? Thought you had enough” this made Jay tense inside the surveillance van, locking his jaw. At the same time, you shut your eyes lightly before walking over to him.

“What? Cat got you tongue spicy mamma” he continued now standing in front of you looking down at your tiny frame -dark look in his eyes-.

“Sarge…” “Standby” Jay was shut down by his sergeant, but that didn’t stop him from standing up, running out of the van when he saw Garret grab your forearm. No way in hell he was going to let this scumbag touch you. Unknown to him this was something out of habit every time you came to get Antonio’s fix.   

“Hey! That’s enough. Y/N we’re leaving” Jay said while walking towards you, which made Garret pull you closer and tight the hold in your arm making you hiss.

“Ha. Party got interesting. Let me guess you’re her cop boyfriend Halstead…” “Garret- please” you pleaded for him to shut up and let you go, but he looked down at you and gave you a mischievous smirk. Just then Jay smack his hand making him let go of your arm,

“Touch her again. I. Dare. You” Jay said with a stone-cold look and an even lower tone, while you tried to pull Jay back -who now was toe to toe with Garret-

“I don’t have to. She’ll come to me eventually. She knows it’s for her brothers sake. Right Y/N?” Garret cockily said, looking at you, which made Jay even more angry. Turning around throwing his arm over your shoulder while pulling you protectively to him and giving your head a kiss.

“Don’t forget Y/N!!” you heard Garret scream before you both were outside. After receiving an earful from Voight, Jay drove you home. He wanted to ask you a lot of things, but before he got the chance you climbed out of the truck and into your house.

Now it had been a couple of days since the Garret incident -him being a wanted man now-. Jay hadn’t heard anything from you -but not for long-. Him and Hailey were patrolling, chatting about random stuff, when the static of their radio was heard,

“Wanted suspect on the loose, grey car going south on Belmond. Bystanders identified a female passenger, stab wounds, condition unknown” just then the car sped in front of them.

“5021 George, we’re in pursuit” a couple of streets ahead a patrol cruiser cornered the car. The driver getting out and opening fire towards Jay and Hailey’s car which resulted on an open fire between them, before he could run away Hailey managed to shot him in the chest making him fall unarmed. When Jay saw who it was, he raised his eyebrows I surprise -Garret-, walking closer to him,

“She called for you…” he said while choking on his own blood, this made Jay confused.

“What are you talking about?” “Ha. Little Y/N- she cried while I stabbed her…calling out for you…” he smirked watching Jay’s face paled, before he ran towards the car. When he opened the back door, his blood ran cold looking at you bloodied chest and your pale, lifeless face.

“Hailey!” instantly she was next to him, “oh my god…” she whispered, feeling for a pulse -since Jay was frozen, eyes wide and watered- finding one before telling Jay to put you in their car. The patrolmen would take care of the scene, you were priority. In the back seat of their car Hailey heard as Jay silently cried, putting his forehead on yours and caressing your hair.

“Please…please don’t go. I need you, please hang on for me…” “Jay we’re here!”

On the waiting room Jay paced from side to side, hands clear of your blood and eyes red. Antonio and the rest of the team were silent almost on another world. Jay was certain Antonio knew more than he let out,

“She’s alright. We managed to stop the bleeders; it’s going to be a hard recovery, but she’ll live” Will told the team, making his brother hug him in relieve. Before he told Hank you wanted to talk to him. Unknown to his sergeant, Jay started to walk towards your room. Stopping in front of the door when he heard your voice,

“I used to buy Antonio’s fix for him. He didn’t want to be caught by someone he knew. I- I don’t remember when it got so hard, I just wanted to help but I didn’t know how” you said voice trembling, which made Jay’s stomach twist -so you were doing deals for your brother-.

“Why were you in the car Y/N?” Voight softly asked, watching as you looked up to the ceiling before you started crying,

“H- He told me if I didn’t go with him. He would go after Jay, and he would kill Jay- he- he said he was going to make me watch” “Y/N…”

“He knew I would agree to anything, I love Jay too much to just stand by and watch…h-he did things…and I- I can’t I’m sorry” you sobbed, Hank noticed Jay stood by the door pained expression on his face, tears in his eyes while he shook his head then looking towards his feet.

 Hank stood up exiting the room, giving Jay a squeeze on his shoulder and continue walking away. Taking a deep breath Jay brushed his tears away before stepping into your room.

You immediately looked at him and tried to smile, making Jay walk to you trying to keep his tears at bay and be strong for you. Pulling his hand towards you, he climbed into bed wrapping his arms around you,

“You don’t have to pretend to be alright for me…” he whispered, and by the tone of his voice you knew he felt guilt. You pushed yourself closer to him, giving his chest a peck, “It’s not your fault- and don’t argue. I would do it again no questions asked” you sniffed slightly feeling him tight his grip on you, kissing your head,

“I love you too…”

#jay halstead x y/n #chicago pd imagines #jay halstead #jay halstead fluff #jay halstead x reader #jay halstead x you #fan fiction #one chicago fic #jay halstead angst

[rhoorl]

Delta Landscaping Chapter 11: Right on Target

Series Summary: In this AU, the boys of Delta Force start a new business post-Colombia. 

Series Masterlist | Chapter 11 A03 Link

Rating: Explicit (18+) No smut in this one, just some angst.

Word Count: 6.8k

Previously on As the Mule Falls: We got a heavy dose of Frankie, learning a bit about his backstory as well as the relationship between his sister, sister-in-law, niece and nephew. Valeria is a detective, literally. Did you catch who her partner was? 😉 Benny signed up for a fight a little sooner than he’d like, but thanks to Will and Connor, he’s going to start training. The Neighborhood Watch learned a bit about Cousin Joel thanks to Melissa’s research. 

On this Episode: Frankie is still in Dallas, being the best uncle. We get a scene with the Pikes. Will and Katie get in their own heads. Benny and Santiago go to Melissa’s for a consultation. Connor helps scout some of Omar’s fights. There’s a Target run, literally. Will and Katie go to Target on the hunt for birthday gifts for Olivia’s boys. Will and Katie open up. (I made a little moodboard for this episode).

Chapter Warning: Difficult parent relationships. Unsupportive partners. Domestic Marcus Pike comes with his own warning. 

If you ever have questions about any of the content, please reach out. The last thing I want is for someone to have a negative reaction. Overall this is a happy, silly series but it is grounded in some reality. 

*Cue the theme music and roll opening credits*

TUESDAY

“Hey Hermano, how’s it going? How’re the kids?” 

“Oh they’re great, they’re already so big, Pope” Frankie chuckled. Santiago called to tell him that the cleaning lady needed to reschedule for later in the week. Frankie had a few moments to himself while Valeria and Alyssa got the kids ready for bed so he was happy to catch up with his friend. “Leia is so beautiful man, and Antonio is a lot of fun. Took him to his first Rangers game today.”

“Nice! He like it?”

“Loved it, especially once V told him I used to play. I bought him a baseball and we found an old glove of mine Pops kept. We’re gonna toss the ball around when he gets home from school tomorrow.”

“I’m glad you’re having a great time man, I really am.”

“Thanks, me too,” Frankie smiled to himself. “How’re things there? You behaving?”

“Funny,” Santiago rolled his eyes. “Yes. I’ve been busy, had a date last night, and may have another one tonight.”

“Nice. You been over to Benny and Will’s?” 

“No, haven’t been that way at all since you left. But I will tomorrow, Benny and I are headed over to Melissa’s.” Frankie gave a sarcastic grunt, prompting Santiago to fill in the gaps. “I texted him earlier today, by the way. We’re all good. Did you know he signed up for a fight?”

Frankie sighed, “Will told me. I wish Benny would have said something before he called Herb. That guy’s going to feed him to the damn wolves.”

“You think it’s going to be bad, huh?”

“Not if we can help it. The guy was a boxer, so not the most ideal match-up for Benny’s style, but we’ll figure it out. When I get back we have to make sure he’s sticking to his training. Hoping this compressed timeframe makes him focus.”

“Yeah, he doesn’t have a lot of time to prep, huh?”

“No, but if anyone could do it, it’s Ben. Oh shit, I gotta go. I have to read the kids their stories.”

“Tio Francisco to the rescue!” Santiago laughed. “Ok man, hey I’ll see you in a few days. Can you text me your flight stuff Thursday night? I’ll set an alarm for myself for Friday so I don’t forget.”

“Sounds good man.”

WEDNESDAY

Will shuffled into the kitchen, surprised Benny wasn’t already up making himself an egg white omelet and coffee. Another difficult night of sleep made Will extra groggy, so he grabbed one of the larger coffee mugs and brewed two K-cup pods in succession. This morning he had an early volunteer shift at the VA after switching shifts with someone the day prior. He wanted to have time to come home and get ready for whatever the evening may hold with Katie.

Although they were on a mission to buy birthday presents for Olivia’s twins, Will hoped they would have some time to hang out afterward too. He was enjoying getting to know Katie. She was funny, smart, and had a calming presence, which he didn’t realize how much he needed. It was nice to have someone other than the guys to talk to.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of heavy steps coming from down the hallway. Benny turned the corner, his red and black basketball shorts slung low on his hips. His silver pendant rested in the patch of hair on his chest, glimmering as the sunlight caught it. Will assumed Benny had a shitty night too based on the state of his brother’s hair, which was sticking up in various directions.

“Hey man,” Benny yawned as he walked towards the coffee maker. 

“‘Sup Ben.”

“You’re up early.”

“Can say the same for you,” Will leaned against the kitchen island watching as his brother grabbed some coffee creamer from the refrigerator. 

“Hmpf,” Benny scoffed. 

“Shitty night?”

“Yea. You?”

“I’ve had better,” the corner of Will’s mouth slightly went up. “What’s the plan for today?”

“Welp, I’m gonna go to the gym here soon, or go for a run, I haven’t decided, maybe both. Pope’s coming over around lunch and we’re going to Melissa’s.”

“That will be interesting,” Will chucked.

“Yeah, no shit. Anyway, we’ll see how that goes. But I was thinking of having Connor over later. Gonna start to go over some film of this Omar guy. The kid found some of this guy’s fights on YouTube.”

“Oh really? Nice, that’s good.”

“Yeah, figured we could order some pizzas or something if you want in on that.”

“Oh ah,” Will rubbed the back of his neck. “I have plans tonight.”

Benny perked right up at the sound of this, the corners of his mouth going up slowly before he was full-on grinning. “Oooo, what plans do we have tonight?” He waggled his eyebrows. 

“Nothing like that,” Will rolled his eyes. “We,” he pointed to Benny and then back to himself, “need to get a gift for the twins. Party’s on Saturday and I don’t want to scramble at the last minute. I mentioned it to Katie and she said she’d help me out.”

“Oh, I’m sure she’s going to help you out in more ways than ow-” Benny feigned an injury, even though all Will did was push him in the chest. “You can’t injure me, I need to be in fighting shape,” Benny could barely get that out without busting into a fit of laughter. 

Will tried to keep a neutral face, but he cracked a smile. “Don’t be dramatic. And I’m not trying to put any pressure on it man, she’s nice. I’ve … I dunno, I’ve liked having a friend.”

“I’m your friend,” Benny offered, giving some puppy eyes coupled with a dramatic pout. 

“You are Bean, but with her, it’s…different.”

“How different are we talking?” His eyes narrowed over his coffee cup as he took a sip.

“I’m,” Will sighed. “I’m trying to figure that out. There’s clearly something there, but I don’t know what that something is right now. I...I don’t want to mess shit up.”

“I get it, she’s special to you, I can see that,” Benny smiled. “She’s cool as shit and for what it’s worth she seems to really dig you too. She’s always all smiles when you’re around.”

Will got a distant look in his eyes, which Benny knew well. His brother was processing, trying to sort out his thoughts. 

“Look, don’t try and figure it all out on your own,” he clapped his brother’s shoulder. “Have fun. Enjoy time with your …um…friend. See what happens…”

“Yeah, we’ll see.”

__________________________

“Vic? Vic, where are you?” Marcus called out as finished buttoning up the cuffs of his dress shirt. He and his family were living in a short-term apartment the local FBI office set up as part of his relocation package. It was…cozy…to say the least and his wife, Victoria, was chomping at the bit to close on their dream home and finally move in.

He came around the corner to their kitchenette, where Victoria was busy cutting up some strawberries to top Nicolas’ stack of pancakes. The boy quietly sat at the coffee table in the living room doodling in a coloring book, while his little sister Mariella happily sat in her highchair smearing some yogurt around. Victoria looked up as she heard Marcus’ footsteps, her eyes softening at the sight of her husband.

“It’s not a big place, Marc, I can’t go far,” she laughed as Marcus came up behind her, kissing her neck. “Mmm, I like this suit. Que guapo,” she turned around in his arms, straightening his tie before resting her hands on his chest.

“You know you’re as beautiful now as when I first saw you?” He wrapped his arms around her waist, making her giggle as he kissed her.

“Ewwww no kissies!” Nicolas called over, prompting Marcus and Victoria to pull away from each other with a smirk.

“Hey! I just love your mom, Nico,” Marcus smiled over to his son. “Besides, I have some good news.” His eyebrows shot up and he was trying to suppress a big smile.

Victoria tilted her head to the side, observing her husband. He was usually chipper, especially in the mornings, but something seemed different. “Ok, shoot, what is it?” 

“Ah, I thought you’d never ask!” He put his arms on her shoulders, squaring her up to look at him. “What if I were to tell you, we’d be able to cook breakfast in our own kitchen by next week?”

There was a pause as Victoria took in what Marcus said before glee danced across her face. “Oh my gosh, are you serious?” She squeaked, throwing her arms around his neck as he lifted her off the ground.

“Just got a text from Ethan. Everything went through, the sellers are going to virtually sign. We could close as early as Monday, but since you start work next week I wanted you to tell me what you want to do.”

“Shit…I mean shoot,” her eyes cut over to Nicolas, who was in his own little world coloring a dog with a green marker. “Well, let me talk to the school and see what we can do. Vanessa is moving down this weekend, so she can at least help with the kids. I can’t believe we’re so close!”

Marcus smiled back at her, the corners of his eyes crinkling. “Whenever you want to do it, he said he could make it happen.”

“Ooo, actually, I wonder if we can make Monday work! Tuesday is the 4th so I’ll be off and daycare is closed, we can start to move some stuff that day.”

“I think that’s a great idea, I’ll text Ethan later,” he kissed her forehead.

“Mariella!” Victoria turned around to see her baby, smearing yogurt around her high chair. Just as she was about to reach into her hair, Marcus intervened.

“Slow down there pumpkin,” he cooed. “You eat the yogurt, see,” he pantomimed eating the yogurt, which prompted a fit of giggles from Mariella. 

The ring of his phone alarm snapped Marcus back to reality. “Ugh, shoot, I have to get going.” Victoria gave him an exaggerated pout, which turned into a smile as he kissed her. “Have a good day. I love you.”

“Te amo,” she kissed him back.

____________________________

Today’s workout was a tough one for Benny evidenced by the way his shirt drenched with sweat clung to him. His muscles felt heavy, no doubt due to the quick ramp-up in activity thanks to his upcoming fight. He decided today called for some cardio and weight lifting.  

As he walked through the front door, he figured he had just enough time for a quick shower and a power nap before Santiago showed up. It was times like this he was thankful his friend was always late to everything. He decided to take a quick detour to the couch, sprawling out to stretch his muscles a bit. As he scrolled through Instagram his eyes got heavier and heavier and eventually, he closed them for just a moment. 

Pounding at his front door combined with his phone vibrating on the coffee table woke him with a bit of a startle. As if by instinct, he immediately shot up and took in his surroundings, on the defensive in case any threats were around. Realizing he was in his own home, and not in a jungle with a rifle in his hands, he blinked and slowed down his breathing. He heard his name being called and once he registered it was Santiago’s voice, he let out a breath and opened the door.

“Hey Pope,” he gave a half smile, ushering Santiago inside.

“You look like shit, you just wake up?”

“Fuck you….maybe.” He ran his fingers through his hair and his eyes narrowed. “The fuck is that?” He pointed at Santiago’s neck. “Someone give that to you or d’you get so desperate you used the vacuum cleaner, ow!”

Santiago smacked him upside the head with one hand while the other covered his neck. “First of all, fuck off. Second of all, yes someone gave it to me.”

Benny tilted his head. He couldn't help the accusatory look that swept across his face. 

“I went on a date last night, nice girl I found on an app…and before you make a smartass comment, it was a real dating app.”

Benny threw his hands in surrender, “I didn't say anything. You planning on seeing her again?” 

“I dunno we'll see.”

“Well…she certainly um…left her mark,” Benny was ready this time, blocking Santiago's arm and the two play fought for a second. 

________________________

The day was dragging on painfully slow for Katie. The start of a new month meant lots of planning meetings where people droned on and on about goals while offering the most bullshit rah-rah speeches for motivation.

She'd been texting with Megan off and on all day about random things, their usual daily stream of consciousness coupled with funny memes and gifs.

Megan: So Wine Wednesday? 🍷

Katie: Can't. I have some errands to run tonight.

Megan: Oh what's on tap? An exciting run to Target?

Katie: Damn, actually yes. Am I that predictable? I'm going to get a gift for the twins. 

Megan: Wait, I thought you already got them those Lego sets? 

Damn, she doesn't miss anything.

Katie took a deep breath before composing the next text, knowing what the response was going to be.

Katie: I did, I'm helping Will. 

She waited, no immediate quippy response. Instead, she saw the chat bubbles start and stop before she finally got a response.

Megan: Nice! What else do you have planned 👀😏

Katie: Not sure, I told him I'd help him wrap it. Figured we'd pick up dinner. Idk I haven't planned it too much.

Megan: Yes, please help him wrap it. 😆

Katie: What's that supposed to mean?

Megan: Make sure he wraps his 🍆

Katie: I'm sorry, did David steal your phone? Where is Megan and what have you done with her?

________________

“So you have any idea what she may want us to do?” Benny readjusted his baseball cap, flipping it backward as he and Santiago walked over to Melissa's.

“Just vaguely, some stuff in the backyard, I don't know the specifics.”

“Hmpf.”

“What?” Santiago countered with a pointed tone.

“Just, you're not one to jump at the chance to get your hands dirty. It's one thing to help us because we force you, but it's something else for you to do it willingly.”

“I'm trying to be nice. Besides, who knows? Could be fun…I had a lot of fun fixing up your place. It was nice for us all to…I don't know, be together again. Working on something and seeing it come together.”

This admission made Benny stop in his tracks. “Damn, Pope…that's…really nice, man. It's nice to hear you say that,” his face softened, one of the corners of his mouth curling up as he reached for Santiago's shoulder.

Santiago gave a forced smile before clearing his throat, “ok, enough with the sappy shit. Let's go.”

Santiago rang the doorbell and the door flew open a few seconds later. Melissa was all smiles, although Benny noticed her head slightly cock to the side at one point when Santiago turned his neck and his hickey was visible. 

It was a rather quick consultation. She had a blank canvas to work with in her backyard. Benny brought his notebook and quickly started to sketch a few ideas down which she loved. They went back and forth a bit, Benny drawing and erasing several times since she was a bit indecisive as to the placement of a few things. They finally landed on a couple of flower beds, some rockwork, and a few palm trees. Nothing too elaborate. They reasoned it would take a couple of weekends to do at most.

“Can I keep this Benny? I'll show Danny when he gets home this weekend and then we can start. Maybe next week?” 

“Yeah, of course, wanna take a picture of it on your phone? May be easier to have a digital copy.”

“Oh yeah, sure.” She snapped a couple of photos of the pages in his notebook. “Well, thank you boys again. I'll uh…see you around.” And with that, she politely ushered them out, closing the door a bit forcefully.

Benny waited until they were well down the block before he broke the silence. “Damn, she's maaad at you.”

“Huh?”

“Dude, she barely looked at you. It's the most she and I have ever talked. Your little friend there seemed to rattle her,” he gestured towards Santiago's neck. 

Santiago shook it off, “Nah. I think you're reading into it.” Wanting to change the subject, he quickly transitioned to asking what Benny and Will were up to this evening.

“Will's hanging with Katie and Connor is coming over to watch some fights with me. Wanna help?’

“Sure. Yeah, sounds good.”

___________________

When Will arrived back from his shift, Benny and Santiago were on the couch playing a video game. Well, Benny was playing, Santiago was cursing up a storm, annoyed that he couldn’t beat Benny. Will was a little surprised to see Santiago still there, but the two seemed to be having fun, despite Santiago’s frustration. Laughing to himself, Will went down the hall to his bedroom, deciding to check in on Frankie before he got ready.

Will: How's uncle life treating you?

Frankie sent a couple of photos. One of him and Antonio all smiles at a Rangers game wearing matching shirts and the other of him lying on the ground of Valeria’s living room with Leia crawling all over him with the biggest smile across his face.

Frankie: So fun. They're great, you'd love them.

Frankie: How's Ben?

Will: Eh, he's ok. He's been training and tonight he's going to watch some of the guy's fights 

Frankie: Benny? Watching film? Holy shit, if Coach Montoya could see him now.

Will: No shit right?

Will: Well, hey, I don't want to keep you. I'm glad you're having fun. Give the kids a kiss and tell Vale and Lys I said hi.

Once he was showered and dressed, Will walked back into the living room, a soccer game now on the TV.

“Ok, ah…don't wait up for me,” Will smirked as he grabbed the keys off the hook and checked to make sure he had his wallet and phone. 

“Oh don't worry we won't, you kids have fun tonight,” Santiago winked.

Will tried to quickly, but nonchalantly leave before his brother could make a smartass comment. Unfortunately for him, Benny was too quick and managed to make a joke about not being a fool and wrapping his tool. Will rolled his eyes and walked out the door, hand raised in the air giving his brother the finger as he closed the door.

Truth be told, it has been a while since Will had sex. He was confident in his abilities, thanks to years of practice, but Katie was different. She wasn’t some random hookup, she was someone he could see a relationship with – the problem was he wasn’t quite sure what type of relationship that would be. He pushed aside that thought and got in his Jeep for the quick drive down the block. 

When he parked, Katie was already walking out the door, ready to hop in and go. She looked effortlessly beautiful, her hair up in a ponytail with a baseball cap on. Will recognized her leggings, it seemed she had a lot of the same style just in different colors. Practical, he reasoned. She paired them with an oversized Star Wars-themed T-shirt. It was from the newer stuff Will wasn't as familiar with.

“Hey, thanks for picking me up,” she said as she climbed into the Jeep, reaching over to give him a quick hug, which he reciprocated. She breathed in his scent, which smelled like Irish Spring soap.

“Course. You're the one helping me after all,” he pulled back slightly and smiled, his hand lingering on her back just a beat before he let go and returned to face forward to put the car in reverse. “You have a good day?” He turned around looking out the rear window, one hand on the back of her headrest as he reversed out of the driveway.

“Not bad, halfway through the week so that's exciting. How about you?”

“Good, easy. Had an early volunteer shift this morning.”

“Ooo how was CVS? Pick up anything exciting?”

He laughed. “No, Mr. Andrews switched it up today and wanted to go to Walgreens.”

Katie exaggeratedly gasped, “Whaaat? No way! Look at him coming out of his shell.” She smiled as they continued their small talk on the short drive over to Target.

As they walked up to the store Will slightly turned and pointed at her shirt, “I gotta ask, who's on your shirt.”

She stopped walking. “Wait. Are you serious? I thought you were a Star Wars fan.”

Will smirked. “I am, of the original stuff. I haven't really paid attention to anything recent.”

“You don't…you haven't watched The Mandalorian? Isn't Boba Fett your favorite?” She pointed to the tattoo on Will’s forearm.

“Mandalorian…that's the one with baby Yoda right?”

Katie dramatically clutched both hands to her chest. “His name…is Grogu.”

Will laughed as he grabbed a cart, leading the way to the toy section. 

“The Mandalorian is seriously so cool, you'd love it,” she knocked her shoulder into his. “We should watch it!” She offered with a hopeful smile.

“Yeah ok, I'm willing to give it a shot since it comes so highly recommended. I trust you,” he smirked.

She gave him a quick smile and returned her gaze ahead, but he could still see her smiling out of the corner of his eye. When they reached the toy aisle, Katie went through a bunch of different options. Will was adamant about finding something different for each of the boys, figuring they each had their own distinct personalities and interests. 

Katie knew one of the boys was really into card tricks, so Will picked out a magic set. The other was obsessed with Fortnite, something Will knew absolutely nothing about. Luckily, Katie's best friend at work had a son about the same age who was equally as obsessed with it, so she knew enough to navigate the selection. She also texted Olivia to make sure the boys didn’t already have what they picked out. Will was thankful for her due diligence since they were able to make a quick swap. Apparently, David and Ty had already bought one of the items Will picked out.

The pair was efficient, a little too efficient. Will didn’t want their trip to end. He was having fun just walking up the aisles, so he suggested a loop through the store. It was surprising to him to see all the random stuff that ended up finding its way into the cart. He reasoned it had something to do with the fluorescent lights or some subliminal messaging in the soft rock playing through the store’s speakers. It gave him flashbacks to his fiance who could not be trusted inside a Target by herself for fear she'd buy the whole damn store. 

It was amusing to see how excited Katie got over the most mundane things. She smelled nearly every new scent of hand soaps and she went absolutely giddy over these fabric bird figurines donned in various themed outfits. But what Will enjoyed most was seeing her smile. Based on the limited knowledge he had about her recent past, it sounded like she hadn’t had much to smile about.

When they reached the checkout, Katie emptied the cart putting all of her stuff down followed by the birthday gifts. She slid a divider between the two sets of items.

“What’re doing?” He furrowed his brows, reaching for the divider and putting it back. 

“It's so the cashier knows whose stuff is whose silly. You really don't do a lot of shopping huh?”

Will rolled his eyes, “I know what that thing means, but no I'm taking care of it.” He started to reach for his wallet.

“What? No I…”

“I insist,” he cut her off. “This…has been a lot of fun and you saved my ass by texting Liv. Please? I want to.”

She sighed, resigned to the fact that she wasn't going to convince him. “Fine. Under two conditions.”

“Shoot,” he smirked, leaning forward onto the cart’s handles. He was amused at how quickly she folded.

“One. I get dinner. You keep that in your pants,” she motioned towards the wallet in his pocket. There were a couple of teenagers in line behind them who started giggling since all they could see was Katie pointing to Will’s pants. “Fuck,” she brought her palm to her forehead. “You know what I mean.”

“I do,” he laughed, putting his hands in his pockets. “Ok, go on, what's the second condition.”

“I get to name him Will,” she picked up one of the fabric bird figurines and held it to Will. The bird was decked out in the stars and stripes, fitting for the upcoming Fourth of July holiday. 

He rolled his eyes and chuckled, “Sure, Kat.”

___________________

“Is pepperoni ok?” Benny looked between Santiago and Connor to confirm before placing his delivery order.

“Yeah that works for me,” Santiago nodded.

“Thanks, Benny,” Connor chimed in.

“‘Course. Thanks for helping me scout the competition,” he winked. 

After placing the order Benny went to the kitchen to grab a few cans of soda. He placed the assortment on the coffee table and Santiago quickly grabbed coasters for them all, knowing how annoyed Will would be by rings on his coffee table. Benny was about to sit down when he realized he had forgotten something and ran back to his room. He emerged a few moments later with his trusty notebook in his hand and a pencil.

“Ok, I'm ready now!” He plopped down on the couch.

“You're taking notes?” Santiago looked over a bit confused. 

“Yeah…you used to take notes when we'd get briefed on missions, what's so different?” Benny countered. 

“You're right Benny, sorry. So…where's this guy from?”

“Well, I looked him up and he's from Queens.” Connor offered as he queued up the first video.

At the mention, Santiago perked up, “The guy's from New York?” Connor nodded, looking at Benny confused. “What's his name again?”

“Uh, Omar Assarian.”

Benny side-eyed Santiago, “What, you know this guy?”

“No, I don't, but I may know people who do. I mean, I did grow up in New York so, I dunno let me see.” Santiago started typing away at his phone as Benny nodded to Connor to start the video. 

They intently watched the fight and then another and then another. Benny would ask Connor to pause the video every now and again so he could take some notes. He keyed Connor into some of Omar's strengths and weaknesses along the way, noting that the man had great footwork, which made sense given his boxing background.

“You think you can beat him Benny?” Santiago cut in.

“I think so. As long as I can get him to the ground and off his feet. Not really looking to get punched in the face by a boxer if I can help it.”

“I guess I never asked, do you have like a specialty or something?” Connor asked, taking a bite of his pizza. 

“I'm good at a lot of things,” Benny laughed to himself. “Uh, I started off as a wrestler, it was one of the sports I did in high school. So I'm good at submissions I guess, and grappling. I also learned Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu which helps with the submissions. MMA to me is like…a game of chess. I know you see all of these kicks and punches and shit, and I can do that too, but there's something about finding that…weakness in an opponent and just exploiting it. That’s what I like the most.”

________________

“There, all set,” Katie smiled as she finished curling the ribbon of the last gift she wrapped. She looked over to Will, who was sitting cross-legged next to her on the floor of her craft room. 

His eyes softened when they met hers, the corners of his mouth perking up. “Perfect. Thank you, I uh…couldn't have done it without you.” She looked down and brushed his compliment aside, starting to pick up the scraps of wrapping paper and ribbon. “Besides, if I'd gone with Ben, we'd probably still be in the toy section,” he laughed. “We would have come home with a bunch of shit. I didn't realize there were so many different kinds of Nerf guns. Lil Bean would have lost his damn mind if he had that many options as a kid.” He chuckled, relieved to see her laughing.

“Wait…Lil Bean?” She furrowed her eyebrows, clearly wanting Will to fill her in on the apparent nickname.

“Ha, yea that's what we called him growing up. Joel really is the only one who still calls him that consistently, I guess because he's the one who came up with it,” he chuckled, clearly reminiscing on some fond memories. “Benny has always been tall and lanky, like a string bean.”

“Aww…poor Benny!” She stuck out her bottom lip.

“Ha it's ok, he ended up kinda liking the name. I think if I came up with it, it wouldn't have gone over so well.” He got up offering her his hand to stand up. “But since it was Joel’s idea he ended up coming around.”

“So, you're close with your cousins then?” She asked, her hand lingering in his just a beat longer than she intended before dropping it to quickly gather up the presents.

“Uh yeah, Joel and Tommy are basically our brothers too. And then once Frankie moved down the street we were a starting five,” he laughed, following her out of the room and back to the living room.

“Where does Santiago fall in?”

“Pope? Oh, I met him during basic training. He was my battle buddy,” she gave him a confused look, “we couldn't go anywhere on base alone, we had to travel in pairs. The two of us got assigned to each other and I guess I've been stuck with him since,” he laughed.

Katie observed Will’s demeanor. He was so much more relaxed and at ease when he talked about the guys. His bright blue eyes seemed to shimmer. It was clear to her that he cherished those he held close. 

“Aw that's cute, you two make a nice pair,” she winked, sitting down on the couch. She turned on the TV and started to click buttons on the remote.

“Oh please don't tell him that,” Will groaned. 

“It's so sweet that you guys have each other.” She looked over and smiled.

Will noticed her smile didn't quite reach her eyes, it was a bit guarded, a brief wave of sadness washing over her before she pushed it away. He recognized the behavior since it was something he did too. He didn’t say anything right away, letting her navigate the menu on her screen, queuing up the show.

He cleared his throat, “You have people too, right? Megan? The rest of the neighbors?”

She looked over at him with a tight smile, “Yeah. Yeah, they’ve been great. Honestly, if I didn’t have Megan…” she trailed off, shaking her head and taking a deep breath before she looked over at him. She was met with a warmth in his eyes, something she’d grown to seek. It made her feel seen. “And at work, I have Miranda. She was my first real friend when I moved down here, you’d like her she’s awesome.”

He tentatively reached his hand to her thigh, keeping an eye on her reaction, before giving her a reassuring squeeze. “Well, you have me too…ahem, and the guys. You need anything, we’re here, y’know that right?”

She put her hand on top of his, returning the squeeze. “Yeah. Thanks, Will. I appreciate that, hasn’t always been the case.”

“Look, ah, I…if you don’t want to talk about it that’s cool, but I’m here if you do.” He rubbed the back of his neck, hoping she picked up on the subject he was referring to.

“Thanks. I won’t bore you with the story, it’s not really that exciting,” she said with a tight smile. 

“It’s your…reality. I don’t find that boring.”

She turned towards him, one knee tucked up on the couch. She took a deep breath. “Things started off well. Seb was charming and swept me off my feet,” she started to fidget looking down at her hands. “But as time went on, I felt like my interests mattered less and less. It was small comments here or there, but it eventually became more frequent…like, I don’t know…like I was annoying him with the things I got excited about…So eventually I just either stopped doing those things or I’d do them in secret.”  

“You sound a lot like Benny,” he gave a small smile once her eyes met his. “His ex was like that. It was like living with our dad again. She really wore him down.” 

“Can I ask how?” 

Will cleared his throat, turning to face Katie, their knees touching as he rested his arm on the back of the couch. “Benny’s a good man. He’s a talented kid in so many ways. Good at everything, it’s actually kind of annoying sometimes,” he chuckled. “He just…finds something and suddenly he’s great at it. Happened with baseball…wrestling…the army. He was one of the most elite snipers in the whole force. He could do all of these crazy calculations in his head in seconds and was super accurate. It’s one of the reasons his call sign was Ace.”

“Wow, I didn’t realize all of that.”

“Yeah, he doesn’t like to talk about it. Don’t ever call him Ace,” he cautioned before continuing. “We’ve ah…we’ve had to do some pretty bad stuff, stuff we aren’t always the most proud of. It’s weighed on him over the years, on all of us really…” Will trailed off, realizing he had already said more than he should have. The guys all tried to be as vague as they could when it came to their military service.

“Hey, you don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to but if you do I’m here,” Katie squeezed his hand.

“Thanks, Kat,” he smiled, before continuing. “For as talented as he is athletically, he’s just as talented with creative stuff. Hell, he may be even more talented when it comes to that. In his heart, he’s an artist. He draws, sings, plays guitar. He had this dream when we were younger of being a comic book artist. He’d draw these little cartoons for me, all of these elaborate stories that somehow were all connected, I don’t know how he did it,” Will laughed. “But one day our dad found his notebook and lost his shit.”

Katie tilted her head, her forehead creasing, “why?”

Will took a deep breath, “Oh, it’s complicated. But I think at the core, our dad had this vision for Ben. Pro scouts were coming to watch him play baseball before he got to high school. Basically, our dad saw anything that wasn’t revolved around sports as a waste of time. Our dad is, uh, competitive. And he took a lot of pride in the fact that his boy was a prodigy.”

“How’d that make you feel?”

“Me?” Will was caught off guard. He’d never had anyone ask him that before. “Um, I guess…I think I felt a lot of things. A little jealous, I guess. I had to work my ass off to be halfway decent at anything and Ben didn’t even have to try it seemed. But I also wanted to protect him. I saw how excited he got when it came to stuff like drawing and music, it made him happy. Like really happy. Our mom supported him as much as she could. They had a little hiding spot where she’d stash some notebooks and colored pencils and stuff for him. But my dad found it one day and threw it all in the trash. Shit, he all but set it on fire before I stepped in. Stuff at home got kinda bad after that which is why I left the second I could. I always felt a little guilty I guess, leaving Benny there by himself.”

“Is that why he enlisted? To get out of a bad situation too?”

“I think it was kind of a fuck you to our dad. He turned down a full-ride scholarship to play baseball at Texas and a contract to play in the minors. Our dad didn’t talk to him for months. Benny would call home, and if Dad answered he’d immediately give the phone to Mom. But, eventually, Benny did what Benny does and he excelled. Once he got handpicked for Delta Force, our dad started to change his tune.”

“Damn.”

“Yeah…took years for their relationship to get to a halfway decent place. I think that’s why Benny has always had a soft spot for Joel. In many ways, Joel was more like a dad to him than ours was.”

“How about you and your dad?”

“Eh, it’s…complicated. The way he treated us…our mom, it’s…not how I’d do things, I’ll say that much.”

“Well, you are your own person,” she offered her hand again to him, rubbing circles on the back of his hand. “I can see how much you love your brother and your friends. They’re lucky to have you. You’re a good man too, Will.”

Will sat quietly for a moment, his eyes sought Katie’s. He felt a warmth cascade over him. Even though he was sharing a lot about Benny, his own past was wrapped up in so much of it. Opening up like this took months with his VA therapist, but Katie listened without judgment, and with genuine curiosity.

“Sorry, I kind of unloaded all of that,” he chuckled. “I guess it’s not really something I think about a lot.” 

“I hear you on that,” her eyebrows shot up, a sarcastic grin on her face.

“So what were the things you kept from your ex?” 

Katie was a bit caught off guard that Will turned the conversation back to her, she hoped that he’d get distracted by his own story and forget. She should have known better, Will was too considerate of a guy to dominate a conversation.

“Oh ah...I guess a lot of the little projects I came up with. I’ve always really loved interior design. That’s what I thought I wanted to go into when I was younger. I wanted to design houses that would end up in magazines, y’know?”

“What changed your mind?”

“I have the misfortune of being good at math,” her sarcastic tone made Will laugh. “When it came time to look at colleges, my parents really wanted me to pursue a business degree. I think my dad got a kick out of me potentially following in his footsteps. I know they didn’t mean it, but they kind of always made my design stuff seem like my little side hobby rather than something I could really do. Hell, I helped my mom redesign parts of our house when I was in high school.”

“What happened when you got to college?”

“I kept collecting photos and notes of design ideas. My college dorm room looked so nice, I had people coming to me to help them with theirs. I had like an unofficial side business,” she laughed. “Then when I graduated and I was off on my own I finally had a place to make how I wanted. And then I met Seb…” she trailed off, clearing her throat. “I eventually moved into his place. He was…particular about his space so I didn’t really feel like it was mine. I felt like a visitor. Which is why I was so excited when we finally started looking at houses. He told me I could do whatever I wanted.”

“So did you?”

“Ah, yes and no. I wanted him to feel comfortable in the space, so I’d ask questions here and there to gauge what he liked and didn’t like. He’d make…I don’t know, little comments about how something looked stupid or was a waste of time. He also wasn’t handy at all so I had to do it all myself. I guess I eventually stopped caring.” She looked down, fidgeting again with her hands.

“But you have this place, right?” He gave her a small smile, motioning to the space around them. “You can make this into whatever you want.”

“Yeah. It’s an overwhelming thought, but … I don’t know, exciting too.” She looked around.

“Hey, how about instead of watching this,” he motioned to the television, which had moved to a screensaver due to the lack of activity, “we talk about your ideas for the kitchen? We can come up with a plan for the projects you have in mind.”

A big smile came across Katie’s face, excited that Will was genuinely interested in hearing what grand plans she had for the space and that he was willing to help.

Next Time on As the Mule Falls: We pick up where we left off with Will and Katie. Frankie returns home to Tampa (for real this time, I need to get him back to Florida for…reasons). The Neighborhood Watch descends upon the local skating rink for a party that’s sure to be the best in the galaxy. 

A/N: Hello! Apologies for the delay in getting this chapter out! How do we feel about Katie and Will? Melissa was a bit salty about Santiago – do you think they’ll talk about it or avoid each other? 

Thank you so much for reading and supporting this story. Some of these storylines are starting to come together and I’m excited about where we’re going!

Taglist: @goodwithcheese / @gemmahale / @trulybetty / @patti7dc / @periodtsparadox / @ramblers-lets-get-ramblin / @maggiemayhemnj / @mysterious-moonstruck-musings / @avastrasposts / @meveispunk / @chaoticfestninja / @beboldbebravethings / @casa-boiardi / @katw474 / @linzels-blog / @laughing-in-th3-purple-rain / @pimosworld / @lynnchun / @anoverwhelmingdin /@lilmizmoz / @pedrit0-pascalit0 / @titlee78 / @noisynightmarepoetry / @inept-the-magnificent / @perennialdoll247 / @for-a-longlongtime / @readingiskeepingmegoing / @harriedandharassed / @musings-of-a-rose / @anavatazes / @sherala007 / @midnightraain / @partyofone3414 / @inthedarkestnight / @millennial-teenybopper / @csarab615 / @darkheartgatita / @southernboyfan / @weho2kcmo / @itspdameronthings

#delta landscaping #triple frontier fanfic #triple frontier fanfiction #triple frontier #triple frontier fic

[gamerbearmira]

Papatonio: Prologue

I AIN'T FORGET ABOUT Y'ALL PAPATONIO FANS <3333

I was re reading some snippets, and had reread some Papatonio ones. And I got inspired. So.

This goes out to the ones who have been here since Paptonio. I know I've neglected it, and after finding the old doc for it, I decided to finish the prologue and give y'all a little drawing as well <33 We going back to our roots

PAPATONIO FANS COME IN HERE AND COME GET Y'ALL JUICE❗❗❗

----------

Antonio wasn’t stupid. In fact, he was quite smart. He noticed things, things other people didn’t notice.

Like how even after helping her, Isabela still was mean to her and took credit for finding out about the new exotic plants. How his hermana Dolores would hear Mirabel crying herself to sleep but wouldn’t help, so he had to by bringing her some water. How hermano mayor stopped trying to make Mirabel laugh. How his prima Luisa stopped paying attention to his Mirabel more and more.

But he also noticed it in the adults. It seemed worse with the adults.

Like how Abuela would yell at his Mirabel for no good reason. How Julieta and Agustin would show her pity. How his mama and papa would push her aside when she tried to help or even talk.

Antonio didn’t like it. He and Casita would help her. He didn’t like it when Mirabel was sad. And it only got worse as he got older. The family slowly started to forget she was there. Mirabel would take her plate up to the nursery and eat while crying. Antonio would join her, when he could.

Antonio would hang out with Mirabel constantly. His other family members may have forgotten about her, but he didn’t. He couldn’t. She was too important to him. While he was out doing chores, which was usually guiding animals to help around town, he would always look for Mirabel in the square. He tried asking his other family, but they either ignored the question or just didn’t care enough to know her whereabouts.

“Mirabel?” Isabela scoffed. “How should I know? She tried too hard anyway, it’s good she’s out of the way. You should finish your chores while she’s gone.”

Antonio hated when they said things like that. He hated it when they hurt his Mirabel’s feelings.

Over the years, Antonio noticed something. Mirabel got quieter and quieter, only ever opening up to him. She would disappear for days at time, worrying the heck out of Antonio. She noticed that she would try to blend into the background.

He was 6, and she was 16, when he noticed that she had stopped trying to talk to her other family members. She only talked to Antonio and Casita. Not that it mattered; they hadn’t seen the difference. But Antonio did.

He was 7 and she was 17 when he noticed that Mirabel wasn’t coming to breakfast, lunch or dinner at all. The family didn’t realize it, because they were too caught up in playing happy family. But Antonio did.

He was 8 and she was 18 when he saw Mirabel visiting their Tio Bruno in the walls more often. Bruno never minded the company, and Mirabel finally had someone else to talk to. Eventually, when he could, Antonio would go with Mirabel. Every visit, Antonio and Mirabel would talk with Bruno and give him more food and water, keeping him company. The family was always paying attention to themselves, so they didn’t know. But Antonio did.

He was 9 and she was 19 when Antonio noticed that Mirabel wasn’t at Dolores and Mariano’s wedding. Everyone got an invitation, except Mirabel. He tried to get her to come, he really did, but she said it was best to stay away. So, despite being one of the groomsmen, he left early, just to stay with Mirabel. The family noticed Antonio was gone, and he told them he felt unwell. But they didn’t notice Mirabel was gone. But Antonio did.

He was 10 and she was 20, only a month away from turning 21. Antonio noticed something. Mirabel was gone. And not like before where she would disappear for a few hours and come back. This time, she left and didn’t come back. After 2 days, Antonio got worried. He sent animals far out to the forest to search for the girl.

He himself searches Casita and the town. He looked everywhere, leaving no stone unturned. He asked around the town, but everyone either didn’t know, or didn’t care. At one point he even asked his family. It was the same as the town. They didn’t know or care. Julieta and Agustin didn’t even seem half as worried as they should have been.

“Tia! H-have you seen Mirabel? I’ve been looking for days, and I can’t find her!” Antonio said, frantically explaining the situation.

Julieta glanced at him before turning back to her stand. “O-Oh Mirabel? You know her, she’ll be back. Just give it a while,” Julieta brushed him off, sending him on his way.

Antonio hated how his family reacted. They didn’t care for his Mirabel. Not like he did. He loved her with all of his heart, no matter how big or small it was. He would find her, if it was the last thing he did.

That’s what he thought. And he tried. But he never found her. 4 weeks went by, and he never found her. He didn’t stop looking though. Everyday, he would tell some animals to help around the villagers and take the rest to look for his Mirabel. And he never stopped. And yet…

He never found her.

—

Antonio walked into his room, animals who had been with him that day walking in. His eyes were puffy and his throat was sore, but he didn't care. He couldn't bring himself to care. Not after what happened.

For almost 2 months, Mirabel had been gone. And only he and Bruno had noticed. Bruno tried his best to help, and so did Antonio's animals, but it was all in vain. Mirabel was nowhere to be found.

And the family didn't care. Abuela sure didn't and none of the cools cared…expect maybe Luisa. She showed some sympathy and tried to help but she was always busy, and Antonio knew she needed her breaks when she had the chance. Dolores and Mariano were newlyweds, and Camilo wasn't much help. His parents may have tried, but they were focused on Dolores at the moment.

The boy sniffled, wiping away his tears. He slumped to the ground, tears falling despite his best efforts to stop them. He could hear his animals talking to him but…he couldn't comprehend what they were saying. He couldn't, because he had failed. Failed to protect Mirabel like he promised her. He wasn't there for her.

"I'm sorry…I'm sorry Mira…" Antonio sobbed, gripping the grass below him. He sat there and cried, uncaring of his surroundings. He didn't care how pathetic he looked, he felt pathetic.

He sat there, animals surrounding him. Eventually, he heard his name being called. Over and over. It got louder and he looked up, seeing a constrictor talking to him. Something about his bed…hammock…baby…

Wait. Baby?

"What?" Antonio asked and the boa repeated what he had said. There was a baby. In his hammock. No way. That's impossible, there were no new babies in the family, and babies don't come out of thin air…right?

But then again. Magic was a reoccurring thing. So maybe…

"Show me," Antonio said and followed the boa to his tree. Climbing the steps, he could see something moving in his hammock. And it definitely wasn't an animal. Moving with more haste, he finally came up to his hammock. And peering over he saw it. A baby girl, wrapped in a teal blanket, sleeping. "What?"

Antonio moved toward, looking on in disbelief. So he hadn't been lying, there really was a baby. A baby girl? She looked familiar. Too familiar.

"Do any of you…know who this is?" Antonio asked. All of the animals replied negatively, except for two. Parce and Pico. The two who had been there since the day he got his gift. He watched Parce walk over and sniff the baby. His eyes widened for a moment. Pico watched carefully before turning to Antonio and chirping something. And Antonio froze at his statement.

"That's…her? Is it really?" Antonio asked, throat becoming dry and scratchy. Pico nodded and Parce confirmed. It was true.

This baby was Mirabel.

Antonio stood shocked before he finally seemed to blink away his trance. Carefully, he scooped up the little one, getting a better look at her. And he could see the resemblance. He had seen countless pictures of the family as babies; and as of late he had been looking at albums with Mirabel in them. And he recognized her; this was the same baby that had previously been seen in Julieta's arms in photos.

"It's really you…you're back," Antonio said quietly, crying. He held her closer. Still sound asleep, Mirabel had cuddled deeper into his arms. "I missed you so much…" Antonio said as he cried, slumping to the ground as he hugged her.

"I won't fail you this time. I'll always protect you and be there for you," Antonio promised.

------

Antonio starts freaking out 5 minutes later cause. It’s a newborn baby and. He’s always been the youngest and has never cared for babies. ANYWAY

DID YOU GUYS LIKE IT...I hope you did <333

Hopefully you can't tell where the writing style slightly changes. Half of this was written in like April and the rest in November. BUT THE DRAWING IS RECENT❗❗

Hopefully y'all liked this, this is for you loyal ones, I really appreciate y'all <33

Might do asks later 🥱

#my asks are open #my asks #encanto #encanto au #au #encanto mirabel #encanto antonio #papa antonio au #papatonio au #papatonio

[whumpasaurus101]

*takes u out of my pocket*

my most talented son!! 🥰🥰💖

do you have any shock collar content for asher 👀

EEEEEE *INTENSE HAPPY FLAPPY HANDSSSSSS*

Okay ik ive been texting you loads abt how much i hate this and what not BUT ONCE AGAIN, IM SO GRRRRR CAUSE I WISH I DID A BETTER JOB IM SORRY- i acc havent really written much shock collar so i feel like maybe i can write it a lot better HUIKJDHKDH but someday i wanna do party time part 2 and have more shock collar content in that >:3

masterlist

CW: shock collar / cursing / 'mutt' used as a name

---

“Let me go!!!!” Asher growled, fighting off the men who were holding him. They shoved him onto the floor in front of Antonio’s desk, who stood from his seat, taking off his glasses with a heavy breath, “Boys?”

“Sorry for disturbing you boss,” One of the workers sighed, almost out of breath from how much effort it took holding back Asher, “But this little shit was trying to cause trouble with a newbie.” The worker emphasized his sentence, kicking Asher hard in the ribs.

Antonio had run this boxing gym for a while now. He has dealt with all kinds of fighters. The broken, scared, defiant, confident, weak, strong, you name it. But Asher? Asher, quite frankly, made Antonio want to quite frankly beat the ever loving shit out of him. Antonio sighed, rubbing his eyes tiredly before nodding, “Leave it with me, thank you boys.” And with that, the group of trainers walked back to the training gym, out of Antonio’s office.

“I didn't do shit,” Asher growled, rubbing his side while practically pouting like a child. “I highly doubt that. I can always pull up the CCTV security footage if you’d like.” Asher froze and shook his head quickly, only making Antonio chuckle, bending over slightly and tilting Asher’s head up by a finger under his chin, “You never learn, do you?”

Asher growled, ripping his face away from Antonio, “Don't fucking touch m-” He was quickly cut off as Antonio grabbed a fistful of his hair and yanked his head so he was face to face with Antonio, “Listen here, you little shit. I am sick and tired of putting up with your bullshit every fucking day-” 

“…technically it's not e-every d-”

“Silence.” Asher was backhanded hard and a small whimper escaped his lips before he tried to cover it up with a growl, but just Antonio chuckled, walking over to his desk and opening a drawer, “Do you remember that day I used the taser on you?” 

Asher instantly paled, gulping and shifting anxiously, “Oh o-of course. How could I ever forget such a wonderful day. You know what, you and I have the most amazing time tog-”

*click* 

Asher immediately looked up to Antonio, “Wha-what the fuck-” His hands flew up to his neck, desperately trying to pull at whatever had been latched around his neck. “Hm, what’s the matter, little pup?” Asher growled, rushing up to his feet as he clenched his fists, “Don't you dare call me that.”  

Antonio smirked and chuckled, “Ohhhh, you will want to watch your mouth from now on.” Asher’s eyes turned cold and he stepped right up to Antonio’s face, jutting out his chin in defiance, “And why’s that?” 

Antonio’s eyes practically sparkled as he took out a controller, simply pressing a button and watching the show happen before him. 

Asher’s eyes went wide as his whole body seized up and with a cry as his knees buckled and he collapsed to the ground. His arms flew up to his neck, desperately pulling at the shock collar as much as he could, “SH-SH’T- Tu-turn ‘t o-o-’ff-ff-” His whole torso and back seized up, twitching and beginning to shake. Antonio chuckled, bending down to his hunkers and brushing a hair away from Asher’s face, “Beg me, dear.” 

Asher growled, snarling as he grit his teeth, “Like sh-sh-i-it I will.” Antonio smirked, “Suit yourself,” And with that, Antonio stood up and sat at his desk, starting to fill in paper work he had been procrastinating for weeks. 

Asher slammed his fist against the floor, trying to get Antonio’s attention. His body was on fire. His lungs felt as if lightning struck through them. “Th’s ‘s b-BULL,” He bellowed with another punch to the ground. Antonio just chuckled, spinning his pen with his finger absentmindedly, “You know what I want, Asher.” 

“Wh-wh’t you want, n-nah, bu-bu’ wha-whatchya ne-...nee-d is a li- FUCK- a li-fffff-fffe.” 

Antonio simply hummed, his fingers twisting up the dial to the control, smirking as a scream ripped from Asher’s throat. “I must admit, I’m impressed at your pain tolerance,” Antonio chuckled, “I mean, managing to keep that annoying act up while being shocked at nearly the highest setting. I'm… almost… surprised…to be honest!”

Asher’s body twitched with a grunt, “Th-th’nks alo-ot, asshole.” Antonio studied him for a moment more before switching off the collar, watching with a smirk as Asher’s back slumped to the floor, his body aching as he tried to catch his breath. Asher cursed under his breath as his body occasionally twitched, glossy eyes staring at the ceiling, “Ge-get it ‘ff…”

“I told you what I wanted, dear, and you haven't given that to me. So, shall we continue, or are you willing to beg?”

Asher clenched his jaw before bringing his eyes up to meet Antonio’s, “Bri-bring it, bitch.” Antonio scoffed, rolled his eyes before turning the dial full. Asher screamed  this time, his whole body completely seizing as his head hit the floor, heels digging into the carpet of the office, his back arching in pain, “Sh-sh’t, pl…”

“I'm sorry, speak up darling, I didn't quite hear you,” Antonio pressed, knowing how close Asher was to breaking. He watched as Asher’s face screwed up, what the fuck was he to do??? He wanted the pain to end more than anything but there was no way in fuck that he was about to beg to Antonio.

Suddenly the shock stopped as there was a knock on the door. Antonio slammed his fist against the desk, “What is it,” He growled, “Nobody is to come in while I’m work-”

“My sincere apologies.”

Asher froze at the familiar voice. Fucking Rodger. 

“Heard my boy was causing trouble.” 

Antonio scoffed, “When is he not?” That made Rodger chuckled, “Mind if I sit in?” Antonio gestured to the seat where Asher lay near, “Take a seat! I'm not letting Asher leave until he begs- but… you might wanna get comfy, god knows how long he’ll take.”

“Well, Asher, “ Rodger chuckled, delivering as hard of a kick as he could to Asher’s ribs. Asher groaned, his hand flying to clutch at his ribs with a groan, “F’ck o-o-’ff…” Rodger laughed, looking up at Antonio, “You really think he’s going to break???”

Antonio simply shrugged, “Worth a try though! Want a go?” Rodger quickly extended his hand, “Oh, you fucking bet.” The second the control was put into his hand, Rodger instantly turned the dial.

“FU-FUCK- Stopstop-st- SHIT- stop-” 

“Not the words I’m looking for, Ashy boi.”

Asher snarled, his top lip curling up, “D-dn’t call me tha-thah-” “I think that's the least of your worries right now,” Rodger scoffed, resting his feet up on top of Antonio’s desk, ignoring Antonio’s disapproving look. 

Asher’s eyes fluttered as his head suddenly felt dangerously light, “Sh-sh’t…” Antonio gulped, his eyes snapping over to Rodger, “He-hey uh, take it easy on him, he looks like he’s about to pass out.” Rodger simply waved his hand dismissively, “Oh please, he’s just being a dramatic little shit.”

“Mmhnn-” Was all Asher managed before his eyes rolled up to his head, and his body fell still. Silence. 

“Dramatic?”

“I can hear you smirking.”

“You know, you can always leave the mutt with me for a week or two, I’d bet I could have him broken in that amount of time.”

Rodger laughed, shaking his head, “Funny. Hilarious. But I might take you up on that offer, I could do with a break from the idiot.”

“Sounds like a deal, you just hit me up and I’ll be there.”

“Deal. Now, help me carry him to the car, will ya?”

---

THANKIE SM FOR READINGGGGG 💜💜💜

Taglist: @likeit-or-whumpit @milk-carton-whump @yesthisiswhump @appy-polly-loggies @happy-whumper @hold-back-on-the-comfort @tears-and-lilies @heathenwhump @whumpkinpie @happy-little-sadist @shywhumpauthor @cursedscribbles @whump-queen

#AKIAAAAAAAAAAAAA #SORRY THIS TOOK LONGER THAN I WANTED TO WRITE #AND SORRY THIS IS SO SHITTY SUIJDKHKDHJ #THANK YOU SMMMM FOR THE ASK EEEEE #asks my beloved #AKIAAA ILYYY EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE #whump #whump drabble #whumpee #whumper #lee wrote something :o #whumpblr #whump writing #whump community #asher #rodger #antonio #shock collar #shock collar whump #electrocution #electrocution whump #ask #answered #THANKIE AGAIN <3 #also #if you see any typos #no you dont <3 #ILYYYY AKIAA

[bekahdoesnerdshit]

Scrawled on the first blank page of a stolen spellbook:

Day 1: Already working on a way to get you back; some rich old lady knows a way to get the magic we’re gonna need. She reminds me of that shitty “migration and language” professor you had, so you can imagine how much fun dealing with her has been.Met a weirdo in a mask who you’re gonna hate, and a little illiterate wizard who’s gonna give you a heart attack. Also been dealing with the burgermeister’s swaggering little attack dog, and you know how I prefer to deal with guys like that. I’d say you’ll hate him too, but I’m pretty sure you’re not gonna have the chance to meet him. Shame.

Stupid how quick I forgot how to not miss you. I hated you for decades, and having you back for a week was enough to ruin all that hard work. Really appreciate that, Hugh.

Day 2: Almost died today. Figured you’d want to know, so you can yell at me about it later. In fairness, it was because I was trying to be a good person. I could have just taken Kai and left, but I didn’t.…thought about doing it, though. Didn’t fucking matter in the end, but I guess I wanted you to know that too. That I tried to do the right thing. Anyway. Ireena’s dead. Turns out vampires here only know one trick; pick a fight nobody wants, kill one person, and leave. Izek’s(1) dead too though at least, so let’s count our victories where we find them. And then. And fucking then. That rich old bitch who’s supposed to help me get you back? Decided that our deal is off, because she got Strahd to do her dirty work for her. And then she had the fucking audacity to lock me up in her stupid, ugly house. I’m writing this now to keep from going to town with my crowbar in here until something happens. You’ll have to excuse me if my handwriting is shit right now; I’m fucking furious.

…I can’t believe this smug, entitled dickhead is keeping me from spending the night with you.

…I’m gonna pry up a floorboard and take a shit down there.

(1)Sorry. Izek is the ‘swaggering little attack dog’ from before. Dropped his name with a lot of confidence there before remembering I’d given exactly zero context. Thank god I had so fucking long to sit and proofread this thing tonight!

Day 3 Got screwed over for having a shred of empathy for someone who just lost someone they cared about. Started to forget that I’m the only one here who gives a shit about saving you but don’t worry: I got a swift kick-in-the-dick reminder and now my head’s back on straight. Not making that mistake again.

Strahd showed up in Vallaki which, I cannot stress enough, is not my fault. Not for lack of trying! But I didn’t get to help kill the burgermeister or hand over the anti-vampire bones. This mess is deeply, entirely, not my fault. Anyway. He made it clear that he calls the shots there now, and you know what? Say what you will about the guy, but he knows how to make a fucking entrance and command a crowd. I bet his Lang201 students never fall asleep during his lectures.

At least one good thing came of today: got to see one of the consorts(2) beat to shit and left to die. Other than that we picked up another stray (this one had a huge book of Barovian history; you know I started tearing through it immediately), fought some fucked up werewolves, and… oh yeah! Got backed into a corner and forced to waste a day helping out this random family and their vineyard, instead of going to Krezek after dropping Uke off. Like we had planned. Like I said, kick-in-the-dick reminder.

I don’t care what anyone has to say about it; I’m going to Krezk. Alone, if it comes to it. I’m not chasing after some fucking- gem, or whatever. They can figure it out on their own.

(2)Not Antonio. The one who killed Ireena, who I would have loved for you to meet. God, that would have been great. …great for me, that is. You would have hated her. And I would have loved that.

Day 4 I won’t admit that it was a fun fight. You’re going to be the only person who ever reads these, but I still won’t give them that satisfaction. As far as they get to know, I was mad to be forced to go and grumpy the whole time I was there. And to be clear; I was. Mad about it, that is. But it’s…fine. Because I’m so fucking nice, I’ll be the bigger person and let it go. We’re heading to Krezk in the morning, so at least we’re back on track.

Oh by the way, I took Dylan to get a tattoo for her last birthday. She said she wasn’t gonna tell you until she moved out, but she told me I could tell you if we ever spent twenty minutes together without fighting. She was obviously joking, but here we are. We’re well past twenty minutes, I think. It’s a little rainbow beetle on her bicep. It’s pretty cute, I think she did the sketch herself. She handled the whole thing like a champ.

Day 5 Spent most of today traveling to Krezk. Spent the rest of the day in Krezk. Great stuff.

Going to see the Abbot tomorrow. Supposedly he's the guy that can fix you, and I’m gonna knock him around until he does. See you soon, hopefully. I’m getting bored of journaling.

Day 6 Fuck them. Fucking spineless, brainless, self-righteous cowards. Sanctimonious hypocrites. Bastards.

I don’t answer to them. If they think that I’m going to bow down and let them rip this chance away from me without fighting back, they got another fucking think coming.

I’m not leaving Krezk without you. And I’ll burn the bridges I have to to make it happen.

forget he exists when you look away stay focused

writing in notebook. about us? followed us

[The writing is jumbled, scattered and hard to read]

puts thoughts in your head

Forget he exists when you look away

[Crosswritten with the previous line, illegible]

trades in secrets? knowledge? have to assume he takes it. BAD IDEA

Day 7 I didn’t write that.

No. Obviously I did. I hacked through my t’s at that annoying angle I picked up from you, and looped the l’s together in that way I picked up to annoy you. No one else has breathed on this thing in the last week. Obviously, I wrote it.

But I don’t remember doing it.

Am I going

Alright, alright. No point freaking out about it; let’s take it one step at a time. Way I see it, there’s three explanations:

Someone took and wrote in your spellbook since the last time I opened it, which was earlier this afternoon (found your weird Elder Tongue transcription by the way. You’re gonna be so mad if I crack it without you)

I’m not I’m starting to My mind isn’t reliable. Unlikely.

I wrote it, I’m right, and there’s a creepy little pervert skulking around the shadows.

Number one’s impossible, the only time your spellbook isn’t in my holster is if I’m writing in it. Leaves two and three, and between one where I’m losing my mind and I’m not, well. If there’s one brain I trust, it’s mine.

Day 8 You’ll never guess who showed his stupid, ugly face again.

Mhm. That’s right.

Y’know, I’ve been thinking about it the last few days, what I’d do when we ran into him again. I thought I might try to play it cool, not give him the satisfaction of having got to me. Get in some quips about not having to pay alimony anymore, or about getting full custody of the kids. I don’t know. But when I saw him, I just- I saw red. I didn’t hear a word out of his mouth, I just. I just shot him. And hit him. Over and over and it felt

Did it feel good? We didn’t kill him. I don’t think we came close. He almost killed Zavisza. Would have too, if Strahd hadn’t shown up to monologue at us again. He wants one of our tagalongs (both of them, technically, I guess. We gotta stop taking in strays) and instead of just letting him have the guy he wants (So sorry to see you go! Best of luck! We’ll miss you! Etc.) our stupid, self-important paladin and his dumbass little savior complex—

I can’t even put how stupid it is into words. Thank fuck I’m lucky enough that you’re going to be unlucky enough to have to sit through it with me. You’ll see. You’ll be just as annoyed as I am.

But. Apparently, there’s a scroll of Raise Dead in the ruins of a swamp town south of Vallaki. This is it, Hugh. This is- It has to be. It has to be. We’re going to go to this stupid swamp, we’re going to find this woman and take her scroll, and I’m gonna fix you.

See you soon.

Day 9 Another travel day. You should be proud of how responsible I was, even with Flips trying his hardest to get us killed by goading us on into the swamp tonight. We’re camping out here on the edge, and we’ll head in fresh in the morning. If nothing else goes wrong (one can dream), I’ll get my hands on that scroll and have you back tomorrow.

And, well. When something does go wrong, let’s at least hope it’s a quick detour. Because otherwise, we’re going back to Plan D(3).

(3)The “D” is for “De-face”, of course. Look, it made me laugh. You can lecture me about that joke being in poor taste tomorrow.

Day 10 Berez is, uh. Was, I guess. Berez was It was a shitshow. Who cares.

Almost got myself hanged when we went back to I mean. Who fucking cares.

Hugh, I’m scared. Terrified. Everything has gone wrong every step of the way to get you back, and this is going to be the same. Borris was dead when we got here, the scroll was gone. Who’s to even say it’ll actually be in this stupid tower when we get there? What if someone else has used it? Burned it? What if it doesn’t work, if resurrection just doesn’t work here? What if it does work but you come back wrong? Hurt? Broken? A rat?? What if this was all for nothing?

If I keep saying “tomorrow”, eventually I’ll be right.

#when your wife is killed in front of you and you're handling it soooo so well. ahah #ransom kitwell #cos2 #mine #word count: 1792 #me tossing this bit out the window now that allie is back and i don't have her spellbook anymore: Good riddance!!!

[oh-no-another-idea]

Manuscript search tag

Thank you to the wonderful @autumnalwalker for the tag! Such a strange collection of words--I’ll be honest, I cheated a little and purposefully added these to the ever growing first draft 😉 Words: instill, physical, rational, character, & muse.

Instill:

Paris frowned. “You’re not saying hide until midnight, are you.”

Velia grinned. “That would be too easy. I say, instill a sense of dread in them, let them wonder just who they’re up against. Maybe they’ll give up.”

“They won’t,” Lewis said.

Physical and Character:

Velia threw the door open and climbed up the ladder on to the roof. Beyond the caboose, forest and hills rolled by. The roof was iron beneath her, a physical manifestation of her stomach. Without her coat, the wind was an icy companion.

Antonio trusted her. Hadn’t they just said he could no more judge character than judge a goat raising competition? The blind caring in his face…it made her want to vomit, hurl what was left of her meal over the side.

Because she couldn’t live up to it. She could never be who he wanted her to be. And she hated that.

Because she wanted to believe maybe he could be right; that she was good, someone trustworthy and brave, deep down. If he believed it, and she pretended, perhaps she’d learn, over time.

She didn’t have time.

Rational:

Antonio made as though to reach in his vest pocket, realized he was missing his vest, and cursed. “Oh wait,” he said, frown clearing up, and went digging in his trouser pockets. He withdrew his piece of the plans and held it out to Velia.

“You already gave me a piece,” Velia said as the car shuddered again.

“I know,” he replied, totally calm and rational. “I think you should take them all.”

Muse:

“Velia,” Antonio said happily, “If I could, I would bring you home with me, and every time a tutor or a business partner or my father tried to give me a hard time, I would sick you on them. That glare could give that poor little snowball good odds down in the inferno.”

Velia tried not to be flattered and failed.

“Maybe she could glare at you too,” Lewis said, “Up there in your brocaded office. Maybe she could remind you to use your position to organize better working conditions all across the world.”

“Be my muse, you mean?” Antonio asked, but he was looking at Lewis. “Maybe so.”

No pressure tags for @dontjudgemeimawriter @dogmomwrites @did-i-do-this-write @dontcrywrite @catchingbigfish @sleepy-night-child @e-klair @hd-literature @thedahliafrog and back to @autumnalwalker also, to look for flour, flower, for, and forget <3

#tag games #find the word tag #wip: invisible girl