#but nope just... just waitin here :] still... for any news

[bread--quest]

mokita !! aaand 6 my favourite number. they don't have to be in the same piece i just couldnt choose between the two on what to send

hiiiii i swear i didn't forget about these! i just ummm was saving them for a rainy day. yeah. and its not actually rainy right now but i am waiting for the bus and whenever im waiting for the bus i am, emotionally, waitin' for the bus in the rain (in the rain). ok anyway here u go

mokita (kilivila): a painful fact everyone is aware of but which--out of compassion--no one mentions

All of the Masgor Marimorts know that Phanta's always been a little...odd. Talking to people who weren't there, smiling at the wrong times, having imaginary friends long past when she should have grown out of it.

Most of her friends have been imaginary, really. In hushed conversations late at night, Hazel and Joel wonder why it is their sweet little girl can't find anyone living to hang out with. She's all of 14 now, and mostly remembers the basic politenesses they've tried to teach her and doesn't usually mention ghosts for at least 15 minutes of conversation, and they think she's perfectly charming even if she is a bit strange, so why can't she find any living friends?

Shelie's hypothesis is that even if Phanta may insist on clinging to beliefs with no basis in reality, they're her little sister, and they've never done anything wrong in their life, and high schoolers are stupid. So there.

Phanta, for her part, doesn't usually seem bothered by this. And the rest of her family has become quietly resigned to the sad fact of it. And yet, when Phanta starts chattering on about her new best friend Leviat at the dinner table, Hazel still hopes enough to ask "And where'd you meet?"

"Oh, the graveyard!" Phanta says happily.

Hazel and Joel exchange glances. Shelie sighs. They all agree, without saying anything, not to push it. Let Phanta have her ghosts.

"That's great, honey," Hazel says.

an-n-n-nother day goes by! so hold me tight, hold me tight– or don't!

"I'm pretty sure my whole family thinks you're not real," Phanta says brightly, balancing precariously on the graveyard gate.

"Watch it, idiot, don't fall off and crack your skull open," Leviat says.

"Or– they think you're a ghost, and they don't think ghosts are real," Phanta says, leaning backwards against Leviat's good advice so the gate swings backward. "Whee! Anyway, don't you think that's funny?"

"No."

"Yes you do! I can tell!" Phanta struggles to lean enough to swing the gate back in the other direction–"Watch it—" and is eventually forced to concede defeat. "Anyway, even though it's funny to let them keep thinking that, I still think you should come meet them! Shelie would really like you, I think. You both like a bunch of the same stuff, like being good at crosswords, and doing surgery on stuffed animals, and hanging out with meeee!" They do little jazz hands on this last word.

Leviat rolls their eyes. "I already said no, and I will continue to say no until you give up or the sun fucking explodes, the latter of which is starting to seem more likely."

Phanta sighs. "Oh well. Doesn't really matter, I guess."

"Nothing does."

"Nope!" She hops off the gate and swings it fully open invitingly. "Come on, let's go see if they've come up with a new kind of pasta yet!"

#chattin #asked and answered!! #hold me tight or don't is the 6th song on my 2022 spotify wrapped technically but when i got this ask the 2023 wrapped hadnt come out #and also COME ON. its so perfect!! #oc: phanta masgor marimort #bo my friend bo #HI i hope i did leviat right!!!! i went back and read some old rp logs to try and get their vibes. i miss them #sonder scribbles

[ruinmegently]

pull me under — felix / wash

context: Wash ends up getting taken with the New Republic group. Some time has passed.

Wrote this for my partner and wanted to share. 🍯

--

He's a monster, right? Like, ain't nothin normal goin on up in that head'a his. Or, maybe a few things. Cause Felix can function — he can pretend to be a person and not a thing wearing a skin suit — but that doesn't mean it's easy, or that the rage that makes up more of his being than muscle or sinew is any simpler to control.

He's mad at everything. The whole fuckin world. Let it rot. It would've let him. Eye for an eye, after all.

But most especially he's mad at Agent fuckin Washington.

The guy's gonna ruin everything with his swimmy gross baby blues and disgusting smile. Felix could handle it, really, he's had his fair share of pretty faces to fuck around with.

But the niceness? The way Wash makes him feel seen?

Fuck off with that, man.

"Hey," Wash says, nudging Felix's shoulder with his own. They sit side by side on the edge of the dock, feet dangling above the underground lake. They could dive in. Sink into the pitch. Let the hungry unfamiliar fish pick them apart until they're nothing but bone, indistinguishable.

"Where are you?"

Felix shakes his head, glassy eyes focusing in. He squints at Wash.

"Right here, ya dumb fuck."

Those awful eyes watch him for a good long while. A hum builds in the other man's throat. Wash turns away with a half-smile. Stares down into the blips of bioluminescent tendrils swimming around in the lake.

"It's okay, you know. To wander off. Just come back and say 'hello' every now and then."

Their hands are so close. Rough and calloused, palms resting on the wooden dock. A pinky finger inches over and lays across Felix's own. Felix jolts his hand back like he's touched the hot burning eye of a stove. Wash doesn't say anything, doesn't move away. Just keeps looking into the depths of the lake, that idiot smile still warming one corner of his mouth.

Felix scowls down at his own hand, now lying palm-up in his lap. He wants to reach over and dig his nails into the squirming, squishy meat of Wash. Needs to see this guy bleeds the same kinda blood as everybody else. Just a worm. Just as insignificant as the people whose lives Felix has destroyed in the wake of his own madness.

The army really makes a man outta ya, huh?

He doesn't rip Wash apart. He should, and he knows this bone-deep. But he doesn't.

"Ya ever wonder why we're here?" he says instead, the words pouring out cause he's too full and drowning and Wash has poked enough holes to ease the pressure but maybe Felix has gotten used to it — to bursting at the seams, spilling out so quick reckless violent there's even less of himself left than the people he ends up washing away.

Wash snorts. Shakes his head. Felix feels compelled to clarify. A certain heat rises on the nape of his neck. His words run away with themselves, he's just the guy stuck watching them leave.

"Like, what the fuck's the point, right? People like us? We should'a died a long fuckin time ago. I mean, we're damaged goods all pieced together, just waitin for the repo man to come collect. Meanwhile John Doe down the street keels over due to a heart attack and leaves behind his husband of fifteen years and like two-and-a-half daughters. That ain't fair. Life's not fuckin fair. So why us? Why are we here?"

Panting (because of the tirade, and not because of the tight coil in his chest only cinching tighter, nope, fuck you), Felix turns wild eyes onto the guy sitting placidly beside him like Fi ain't some monster in the closet.

"Two and a ... half?"

Wash blinks at Felix.

Felix blinks at Wash.

"... that's what you took away from that?"

"I mean, how can you have half a daughter? Even if she's really short, she's still one whole person."

"I fucking hate you."

Wash grins like he's in a long running contest with a star to see who's more luminous.

Felix bares his teeth, the mask of crazy slipping through. It's too much, okay? He can only take so much of himself. He blew Locus off again about the mission. Second time in as many months. Big guy's getting suspicious. Not that there's anything to be suspicious of, just. It isn't like Felix to not jump the gun.

And fuck, he ain't even riding another gun. Because of course it's some demisexual romantic piece of shit he's developed this garbage fucking crush—

Wash reaches over again. The dumb idiot pinky curls around Felix's (when did he drop his hand, put it back there between them?) and this time Felix just stares at it. At this point of contact between them. At the second try despite Felix's earlier rejection, reaction.

At the sound of that same gentle hum building in the back of Wash's throat.

"C'mon big bad, you know why."

Felix looks away. Stares so deeply into the water he imagines he can see pale sightless eyes roaming in the deep.

"Because if I'm stronger than you, and if I'm faster than you, then I can kill you." Yeah. Simple, easy. He's here because he's better. Because he's a survivor, a murder—

"What?" Wash says with a laugh. He shakes his head, smile at odds with the perplexed look Felix gives him. "No no no."

The Freelancer scoots closer. His pinky finger squeezes gently. He stares forward while Felix digs a crazed (needful, desperate) glare into the side of his head.

"You're strong, yeah. And you're fast. And that's what helped you survive when all the odds were against you, sure."

Wash takes a deep breathe.

"But that's not why you're here, Felix."

The guy turns, then. Gives Fi a once-over that crawls beneath his pores and digs up all his secrets. The ones that really matter.

"You're here cause you're not done. Sure, maybe John Doe down the street has a family, but that's not the only important thing, you know? You're just as important. The life you haven't lived yet, matters. The story you haven't told yet, it means something."

Wash shrugs, kicking his heels into the water. Droplets splash up. He watches them attentively, seemingly lost in thought.

"Just because you don't know why doesn't mean there isn't a reason."

Felix pops.

He pulls their gently joined hands apart only to fist through Wash's short blonde hair.

Drags him in for a vicious kiss. One that proves how unholy Felix is. He groans dirtily into Wash's mouth, parted on a surprised gasp, and before the wild animal inside Fi drives him into quite literally biting out Wash's pretty wiggling tongue, Felix—

Jerks back and shoves Washington into the lake.

They guy drops like a rock, only, y'know, with a yelp and a whole lotta flailing.

Wash breaches the surface quickly and yells, "Fucking asshole!" but he's giggling too, and Felix can't help the broad, toothy smile plastered on his lips, or the way he snarls when Wash splashes water up onto him.

He dives in soon after, fully clothed, and wraps himself so tight around the other man they sink, and sink, and sink. But that's okay. Cause Wash is there to kick strong legs and pull them right back up.

After they reach the surface, Felix is still gasping for breath when Wash kisses him like maybe that's why they're here.

#rvb #washlix #rvb fanfic #felix mcscouty #david washington #rvb felix #rvb wash #i really truly and deeply feel that wash would be so good for this psychopath #ruinpost #ruinwriting

[shoegazely]

@godclaws :

     he  seems ….   shy ?    maybe  that’s  not  quite  the  right  word  for  it .    he’s  got  this  look  on  his  face  when  he  turns  to  her  that  reminds  her  of  her  brothers  when  she  used  to  tag  along  on  fishing  trips :     why  the  hell  are  you  talkin  right  now ?   you’re  gonna  scare  the  fish  away ,   rosemary !     nevermind  that .  her  momma  would  deem  him  reserved ,    which  rosie  thinks  is  a  nice  way  of  saying  he  seems  pretty  uninterested  in  talking .    sorry ,    new  friend !    that’s  just  too  bad .    you  took  the  bait  &  now  you’re  reeling  in  your  prize :    one  (1)  up  and  coming  country  music  singer !     

           he  does ,    unfortunately ,    not  give  her  the  answer  she  was  looking  for .    she  imitates  a  game  show  buzzer ,   shaking  her  head  in  playful  mock  disappointment .    ‘  not  quite  what  i  was  lookin  for ,    but  i  promise  i  won’t  hold  it  against  ya .   —–   wait ,    you  didn’t  remember ?  ’    her  eyes  grow  a  little  wide ,    surprised  at  the  notion  that  someone  could  be  unaware  of  a  holiday  ( especially  valentine’s !  )     so  late  in  the  day .    ‘  well  jeez ,    i  hope  you  ain’t  got  someone  waitin  for  ya  at  home  who’s  wondering  why  you  didnt  give  em  flowers  yet ,  ’     she  teases ,    tone  still  lighthearted  &  chipper  as  she  sips  her  drink  heartily .

           when  her  own  question  is  volleyed  back  at  her ,     rosie  responds  by  wrinkling  her  nose  in  dramatic  distaste .   ‘  neither ,    actually .  ’     turning  over  her  shoulder  to  point  in  the  direction  of  the  stage  where  her  guitar  patiently  waits  for  her  return ,     she  gestures  in  the  general  area .    ‘  i’m  actually  playin  tonight !    so  th’  right  answer  to  my  question  would’ve  been  that  you  heard  my  music  and  just  had  to  find  out  who  was  singing .     —–    i  actually  play  here  every  week ,    but  usually  just  on  mondays ,   wednesdays  and  fridays .    so  today’s  special .  ’   her  dimpled  grin  returns  easily  at  his  introduction .    maybe  she  misread  him !    maybe  he  actually  won’t  mind  her  pestering  him  so  much .    ‘  knox ,  ’    she  repeats :    shouldn’t  be  hard  to  commit  to  memory ,     it’s  not  a  name  she’s  heard  very  often .    ‘  i’m  rosie  howell .   pleasure  t’  meet  ya .  ’

the first thing knox notices about her is her playfulness ; not just for imitating a game show buzzer, but also for the general way in which she speaks and moves -- her vibe, as banks would've called it. actually, she does seem pretty similar to banks, his old band's bassist. or former bassist. knox has no idea if he's still even in the band, and it doesn't really matter, does it? either way, maybe that's why knox finds himself loosening up even more, setting down his drink to fully look at her and take her in. the next thing he picks up on is her southern accent, something he doesn't hear a whole lot, and it screws with his head a little bit, because then he's left wondering if he has an accent. surely not? he's just from california, after all.

shaking loose those internal thoughts, knox grows surprised at her apparent shock at him not remembering valentine's day. it almost makes him laugh, but he's not quite drunk enough to be doing that yet. "i guess i fumbled the bag," he says with a smile, "considering i got the question wrong." a pause, as he thinks of how to respond to the slightly painful reminder that no one's home waiting for him, least of all silas. "nope," he says, popping the 'p.' "i should probably consider myself lucky. was never any good at picking out gifts anyway."

knox raises a brow in surprise, following her pointer finger to the stage, listening intently now that music's involved. an even wider smile appears on his face. somehow, out of all the people in this bar, he managed to sit by someone who's a musician. "well, i just got here," he grins, "but now that i know they play live music here, i'll have to come back." knox shakes his head lightly, sipping at his drink again. "that's awesome, though, that you're a musician. i dig that." he hums softly. "it's nice to meet you too! rosie the guitarist. and singer. i'll make sure to remember that! it's always nice to find a fellow musician in these parts. i used to be a drummer, and played some tambourine sometimes too. if you ever need a backup band or something, maybe i could play with you!" he grows excited at the mere prospect. it wouldn't be the same kind of music scene as before ; no drugs, just simply playing at small bars and venues. it would be nice, and calm, and ... well, his parents would hate the mere idea, but knox is already in. maybe he can find a gig somewhere, if rosie doesn't need a drummer. and she probably doesn't, but now that the thought's in his mind? it'll be nearly impossible to lose the idea now.

#i need to figure out a name for this thread omg #but !!! ugh i love rosie you have no idea she's so great

[wildcatofgreen]

⚰️👪🧱😱

headcanon memes; comfort character edition

"Woof, that's uh... That's a lot, chief! I mean, can't say I'm mad but stones.

"I mean, let's get at 'em I guess? Can't be that bad."

[ ⚰️ ] what are your muse’s greatest regrets? what would flash before their eyes when they’re on their deathbed?

"Nope. It is that bad. Right off the bat. Fuck.

"I mean... ugh, Iunno. Still kinda banged up about the Lyli thing. Wish we both said somethin' sooner. She's still my bestie--dun't get me wrong, but damn, if I jus' told her back when Sony left for the first time I think a lotta that drama could'a been avoided.

"An' dun't even get me started on the drama. That shit makes me regret even lovin' Lyli in the first place. That I could throw away my damn husband like that, 'cause of some stupid shit I did. Spirits above, that had'ta be my second biggest fuck up.

"First bein' lettin' Lyli run off on her own. Lettin' her get hurt like that. If I fuckin' knew she was gonna get tortured I would'a never fuckin' left her. Not for a second.

"If she asked me 'ta come with her 'ta help her dragon stuff I would'a, honestly. I know I got so much here in Shang Tu, but I was jus'... waitin' for her 'ta say somethin'. Anythin'.

"But. She wanted 'ta go alone. An' I'm okay with that. She's with Merga, apparently. She's got good company. She'll be okay.

"But that torture shit... I think seein' Lyli so burnt and hurt, that'll be what I see before I die. Constant reminder of how bad I fucked up that day. Swear I regret it every day.

"Eugh."

[ 👪 ] what is your muse’s relationship with their parents like? was it always this way?

"They're dead, dickweed. I ain't ever know my parents. One thing closest to 'em was my sis and she fuckin' left.

"Most I know about 'em is that they loved me. That's what Cory tells me whenever I ask."

[ 🧱 ] how would you describe your muses’ morality? what are their core values?

"I--... Iunno. Like.

"I... Iunno!!! Like, I know my cores--if ya see someone in danger, help 'em. No stealin' from people who look like they need the money. Dun't bully people unless they're asshats an' they deserve it. No killin'.

"But my overall morality...? I jus'... I ain't got a clear answer for ya. I try 'ta be good, I guess. I'm like, a hero, right? So, I gotta be good. It's apart of the job or somethin'.

"Don't hurt no one who don't deserve it. Help your friends out. Be good. That's... that's what I stand for, I think. Jus'... bein' good."

[ 😱 ] does your muse have any specific fears? where did those fears come from?

"Nah, I'm completely fearless. Jus' another great quirk of Carol the Wildcat~.

"Haha... yeah I'm jokin'. I ain't... as scared of death as I was before--I can thank Bapho for that--but it still kinda... messes with me. Jus' ain't somethin' I'm ready for--ain't somethin' I feel like I'll ever be ready for.

"An', I guess I also got a 'lil fear of... Iunno, people leavin' me? That... that one feels new. But it's scary, bein' all alone. No one there 'ta help ya, no one there 'ta even talk to ya, even if it's negative. I'd take a conversation with someone who sucked charlies jus' so I could talk 'ta someone, if I ain't have nobody left.

"I can't stand bein' alone. I really can't. Not even for a fuckin' second, it's just... it's awful. It makes me get this pit in my stomach and I feel that empty feelin' again and it makes me not wanna speak 'ta anyone anyway but like I wanna speak 'ta someone but my thoughts keep tellin' me that ain't nobody wanna speak to ya in the first place an'--

"Iun't... Iun't wanna think about this no more, man. This fuckin' sucks. This fuckin' sucks real bad.

"Fuck."

#carol's cruisings #diffxrentwxrlds #asks #meme answers

[mouse-fantoms]

*screams in at least make it make sense*

Numbers don’t be adding up here

#you would think that 93% of CRITICS who have watched it who have said ‘yeah this is worth watching’ is telling #but nope just... just waitin here :] still... for any news #also side note coming from a tall girl (I’m about 5 foot 11 something like that) ...it’s not... no... OUR LIVES AIN’T MOVIE WORTHY DIFFEREN #...we’re just people like it’s not... it’s not that inconvenient or dramatic :/ #sorry one did not come here to hear me rant about Tall Girl (haven’t seen it just have heard a lot about it) #also... hey... maybe instead of enabling stuff that has toxic relationship stuff in it like giving it 3 movies... maybe ya shouldn’t do that #idk I mean it’s just a lil suggestion... like maybe don’t do that... #enable something that shows off positive mlm friendship and relationships and has respresentation and shows grief etc. etc. like enable that #jatp #julie and the phantoms #jatp netflix #netflixwewantjatp2 #netflixwewantjatps2 #netflixwewantjatpseason2 #renew jatp #jatp renewal #jatp julie #julie jatp #julie molina #jatp luke #luke jatp #luke patterson #jatp reggie #reggie jatp #reggie peters #jatp alex #alex jatp #alex mercer #jatp willie #willie jatp

[cozyenigma]

A Single Word

Soulmate AU? Soulmate AU 😌

Pairing- Reader/Yancy

Word Count- 1239

Request?- Nope!

Summary- There was always a lot of build up and curiosity over what words your soulmate would say to you. You got just the one but that was all you really needed.

Tag List- @cookielover0001010 , @swag-droid

For most people, obviously their words meant a lot to them. With all the talk of soulmates and different tropes in movies and books, it was hard not to pay attention really. The first words some special person would say to you were stamped somewhere on your body. There was endless romantic potential obviously. You’d seen dozens of social media posts, often complete with professional photo shoots, of loving couples with their words front and center.

Some were funny in retrospect. Plenty held deeper meaning later on in a relationship. Even countless more were just a simple hello. Some people even had entire rambling paragraphs that’d take up huge swathes of skin. Regardless, they seemed to bond people together in some way and as a kid you couldn’t help but be excited as you waited to see what yours would be. You and your friends took endless little personality quizzes predicting what you’d get. Back then you used to write on the back of your hand with a marker, just to imagine the shape of the words.

So, when your words finally did show up, you were more than a little disappointed. Because it wasn’t words, plural. In a quick scrawl, small and unassuming on the inside of your left arm, was just one word.

Oh.

When it first showed up, you'd spent so long just looking at it. It wasn't even a hello. What were you supposed to make of it? What was the context? Was it a disappointed "oh" or a surprised one? When your friends had gone around showing off their brand new words, you stayed in your seat and held your arm close to you.

Nowadays your word didn't bother you as much. When someone's words came up in conversation you didn't mention yours. Some of the anxiety was still there but you figured it could've been worse. You could find plenty of examples of people having swear words somewhere obvious on their body. Most days you didn't think of your word at all.

Like almost every other case though, the day when it did was one you'd remember.

You sighed, happy for the cup of hot chocolate in your hands. It was just warm enough you wouldn't freeze out here during a short walk but not warm enough that you could skip the winter wear. Hot cup between your hands, you decided to cut through the park on your way home. You'd seen a few people around but the park was mostly empty still. It was peaceful and quiet. Snow and slush crunched beneath your shoes as you walked.

Taking the time to enjoy the scenery, you spotted someone walking their dog coming your way. You moved to the side without much thought. As you neared, you could see it was a man with a big, happy looking dog with him. You sipped at your hot chocolate.

Just as you went to pass him though, your foot slipped against a patch of ice. One weightless instant later you were on the ground. You wince at the stinging in your hands, seeing that you'd crushed your cup as you fell. Lamenting the loss of your hot chocolate was the least of your worries though.

Your eyes widened as you looked up at the man in front of you. His coat was well and truly soaked. Hot chocolate dripped off him and his dog sniffed at the puddle around his feet. Luckily you missed the pooch completely.

His owner was less fortunate and blinked down at the mess he suddenly found himself in. You realized you should be apologizing right now. Preferably before the both of you froze out here.

"Oh my god," you were scrambling to your feet as best you could, trying not to fall again, "I'm so sorry!"

Now that you looked closer, that looked like a pricey coat. One that might need to be dry cleaned and preferably not, y'know, covered in hot chocolate.

"I can pay for that?” You offered lamely. You desperately hoped it wasn't that expensive.

The guy glanced down at himself and back at you, eyes wide. You grimaced at the wet feeling in your shoes, unsure if it was just water or more hot chocolate.

"It didn't burn you, did it?" You eyed the wet splotch on him. A shuffling at your feet drew your attention downwards and you saw his dog sniffing your shoes. "I'm glad I didn't get any on your dog at least."

Still the man just looked at you. He didn't even seem upset about the coat. In that moment, he stared at you like you'd appeared out of thin air. Like the world had stopped with you standing here in front of him. The sort of look that you weren't at all used to getting.

Then, and only then, did he speak.

"Oh."

The cup dropped from your hand. Now that you were on the other end of it, you think you might know how he felt. You thought over what you'd just said to him. There was heat rushing to your cheeks but it wasn't from the cold.

"I think I should probably apologize again," you said scratching the back of your head, "considering you uh- have all that somewhere on you?"

He huffed a laugh. This whole time he hadn't taken his eyes off you. "Better than what I gave youse. I had somethin' to go off of at least."

"Go off of?" You asked.

Nodding quickly, he unbuttoned the wet coat and yanked up the hem of his shirt. Written across the right side of his stomach was what you'd said to him in your handwriting. It took up a good chunk of real estate.

"See, I was always a dog person but figured I would actually need to have a dog at some point," he stooped down and scratched the dog between the ears. "Plus he's a good walkin buddy, so, thanks for that.”

"You got him because of your words?" As if he knew you were talking about him the dog wagged his tail, expecting pets. "What's his name?"

"Ah, well," he rubbed the back of his neck, "his friends call him Wheels."

"His friends?" You asked, giving Wheels a good scratch.

The man let out a little laugh. "Well that's how ya get the best nicknames."

He held out a hand, a dopey little grin on his face. "Name's Yancy."

You introduced yourself, returning the handshake. Yancy didn't bother buttoning his coat back up, instead taking it off and tying it around his waist. You grimaced.

"Still feel bad about the coat though."

"What, this?" He picked at the sodden fabric. "Ain't mine. Friend I borrowed it from won't miss it neither."

"If you say so," you scooped up the cup you dropped before chucking it into a nearby trash can.

"But if ya really wanna make it up to me," Yancy smirked as he pointed towards the park exit, "youse could let me buy ya a new drink sometime?"

You couldn't help it. The tension broke then and you laughed. "How's that supposed to make it up to you?"

"I've been waitin' years for this," Yancy was already walking ahead you, Wheels trotting happily by his side. His words were easy like you’d already known each other for years. Bubbly, he turned as he walked so he could face you. "I got lotsa questions, doll."

#yancy x reader #yancy ahwm #writersofmark #yancy #youtuber ego #reader insert #markiplier ego x reader #ego fanfic #My writing

[johnnycranes]

[reupload cuz i decided to post this chapter here as well since i met a lot of new people in the fc5 fandom recently <3]

next chapter of Some Kind of Second Chance is up. special shoutout to all my mutuals who tagged me in WIPs and to the amazing @desertvvitch who motivated me to post this thing!!

Whole thing is up on AO3

Word count: 3,364

Chapter 6: Revelations and Rifles

When Sydney came to, part of her hoped the hit she took to the head also knocked her memory back. But nope, still didn’t know who the voices in her head were.

She opened her eyes and the first thing she saw was a wall decorated with different pictures of the Seed family and of Eden’s Gate. Next thing she noticed was that she was sitting on the floor and her wrists were bound in front of her to a metal pipe, kept in place with a ziplock tie.

She looked down at herself and saw she was still dressed in the shorts and tank top she was in when she left her cabin, the only thing missing was her jacket.

Looking around a bit more, it didn’t appear to be like any of the cabins in the compound. More like the inside of a trailer house. Something glinted on the floor and Sydney realized there were shards of glass littered around the room of what looked like a small trailer. If she could just reach out for a sharp enough piece, she could find a way to cut open the ziplock tie.

Whoever took her clearly didn’t think this all the way through, practically handing her a means to escape.

Oh shit, or was this some kind of creepy Saw thing? Either way she wasn’t going to stick around to find out.

She stretched her leg and started pushing a few shards towards her with her foot. Thankfully her captors were also kind enough to leave her sneakers on.

Sydney was able to drag some shards close to her when she heard a door open. She hid the shards under her legs quickly as the footsteps of whoever arrived got louder.

Two men wearing Eden’s Gate clothes walked into the room, sneering at her as soon as they spotted her. They didn’t look like anyone she knew.

“Good morning, sunshine.” The one with long unruly hair said.

“So sorry if we kept ‘ya waitin.” The bald one said.

Sydney shook her head. “Oh not at all. Just woke up actually. Comfy floor here.”

“The fuck?” Long-hair asked.

“You have any idea why you’re here, girlie?” bald one asked, and Sydney assumed he was trying to sound intimidating.

“Why bother? You’re gonna explain it to me anyway ri-”

The bald one slammed the butt of his rifle onto her knee. She groaned in pain, but made sure not to lift her leg so much as to make sure the glass was still hidden.

Hopefully they leave her alone again so she could escape.

It was safe to assume these two were part of the group of soldiers who didn’t like her. So Sydney’s only other option of getting out was someone in the compound noticing she was missing, unless of course the two idiots who captured her were actually smart enough to cover their tracks.

How long was she out? All she could tell from the light coming in from the window was that it was daytime.

“You have the guts to speak to us like that? After all you did, sinner.” Long-hair snarled the last word at her.

Sydney rolled her eyes. “Like I said, still waiting for you to fucking explain.” As far as she was concerned, they could even be Resistance agents in disguise who waited for the perfect chance to strike.

But then again, why target her and not the Seed family?

“You think yer so clever, fooling even the Father with yer fake amnesia bullshit.” Bald guy said.

Sydney huffed out a dry laugh. “Trust me, I wish it was fake. Maybe then I’ll know why you two assholes are pulling stupid shit like this.”

“Enough!” Long-hair yelled. “How dare you. How dare you think we can just accept you into our family, attend sermons with us, all because you supposedly forgot.”

“I did.” Sydney emphasized. “You can ask the doctor, he-”

“You just don’t forget the people you killed!”

Sydney froze.

She what?

The silence was deafening and that’s when the voices attacked. Screams, cries, incoherent shouts, gunshots, explosions, fires. They all invaded her mind.

Her blood ran cold, her hands started shaking and her head was throbbing.

She couldn’t freak out, not now. She tried to keep her breathing under control, long enough to ask, “What?” but it came out so pathetic and soft that she wasn’t surprised when they cackled at her.

Long-hair walked in circles around the room as he narrowed his eyes at her. “Killed. Put a bullet in their heads, threw dynamite at them, hell even cracked open their skulls with a fucking shovel!” He stopped in front of her and tightened his fists. “They were my friends! They gave their lives to protect the Father from you. And now he claims you’ll protect us?”

His fist collided with her cheek. He hit hard but it was better than him using the butt of his rifle.

Or actually shooting her with said rifle.

Sydney slowly turned her head back to face them, ignoring the throbbing in her cheek. She could thank him, actually. At least it distracted her enough to calm down a bit.

There were still so many questions she wanted to ask, but asking her captors may not be the greatest idea.

Their friends? So she killed people from the Project?

She instantly thought of Elena, Trevor and Benjamin.

Who did she kill? Why did she kill? And if she did kill people from Eden’s Gate, why was Joseph okay with her staying on?

Then she remembered the Father’s words the day she arrived at the compound.

So now you shall atone.

Oh fuck. Is that what she was atoning for?

He struck her again. “You are a sinner unworthy of joining us at Eden’s Gate! We will avenge our fallen brothers and sisters, we wi-”

“That’s enough, Kevin.” the bald one said as Kevin punched her once more, on the same cheek and Sydney had to spit blood out.

Kevin backed away from her to face his companion. “She deserves a lot more punishment for everyone she’s killed, Norm. You know that.”

Norm sighed. “We got lucky capturing her when we did. But people will wonder where she is soon so we gotta kill her now.”

Even though her face stung and she had to blink a few times for her vision to steady, she was conscious enough to hear what they said. Sydney knew she was running out of time. If she wanted to escape, she had to do it quickly.

With both her captors distracted and turned away from her, she shifted her legs, feeling the cool glass underneath as she inched them closer to her wrists. She dragged her hands down the pipe and closer to the floor, slowly so as to not get their attention.

Some of the shards cut the inside of her leg but it didn’t matter. She could bandage them up when she was free. She couldn’t bandage a bullet hole to the brain.

Sydney finally got one shard close enough to her hands. She stretched her fingers to grab it and fiddled with it as quickly and as subtly as possible.

Thankfully Kevin and Norm were still busy arguing.

“It’s not enough to just kill her and get it over with!” Kevin yelled. “She showed no remorse, so why should we?”

“Because if they catch us we-”

“Rook! Rook, you here?” All three of them froze when they heard a voice from outside the trailer.

Sydney didn’t know whether to feel relieved or frightened when she recognized it as Benjamin’s voice. She couldn’t just scream for help. What if he didn’t have a weapon with him? What if they shot him first? Or shoot her then him?

She hid the broken glass in her hand, closing it in a fist.

“Shit. I told you we shoulda killed her right away, Kev!” Norm hissed.

“Shut the fuck up and let me think!”

Benjamin yelled again. “C’mon, Rook. You better not have left the island.” His voice sounded closer that time.

Kevin took two shallow breaths and gripped his rifle tightly. “All right new plan. We kill ‘im both.”

Fuck this wasn’t good.

Sydney chanced using the shard again. She needed to get rid of them before they hurt her and Benjamin.

“What?” Norm whispered nervously.

“He’s gonna come in regardless.” Kevin said. “I’ll shoot ‘im soon as he opens the door. Then we shoot her. Ain’t that what you wanted?”

Norm shook his head. “We don’t kill our own, brother.”

“I’m the one doin’ the work. I’ll be the one to accept atonement for this. Now stay here, keep your gun on ‘er.”

Kevin left the room quietly… on his way to kill her friend.

Something inside Sydney snapped.

She saw visions of herself breaking necks and cracking bones. She couldn’t see the faces of those she killed, but there were so many. She could easily kill Norm now, free herself with the broken glass then slice his neck open or stab him in the vocal cords.

She knew she could do it. Then she could shoot Kevin easily right before he got to Benjamin.

She could.

But she wouldn’t.

If she was a killer before- and by the sudden wave of images that invaded her head, she really was - she wasn’t one now.

Norm wasn’t focused on her, instead staring out the room probably at Kevin, looking like a nervous wreck. And to think he took a cheap shot to her knee just a while ago.

Sydney took that chance to finally cut through the ziptie. She didn’t waste any time and went straight for a still fidgeting and panicking Norm.

No killing.

So she stabbed his hand with the broken shard before he could react and fight back. He screamed as he dropped his rifle and Sydney grabbed it.

She heard Kevin yell ‘What the hell!’ from out in the corridor but she ignored it. Too busy getting her revenge on Norm by slamming his head with the butt of his own rifle, effectively knocking him out.

She took cover by the wall beside the open doorframe and yelled “Benjamin you better have your damn gun with you!” at the top of her lungs.

“Rook?!” Benjamin called from outside.

Then she instinctively ducked her head when bullets whizzed by her. “You fucking bitch!” Kevin screamed over the gunshots.

She checked the ammo of her own gun and thanked Norm for having it fully loaded.

If Kevin was still inside the trailer, that meant Benjamin was safe. And she had to make sure that didn’t change.

“Stay where you are, Ben!” Sydney screamed over another hail of bullets.

“What the hell’s happening?” was his reply.

Kevin cackled, his footsteps getting closer. “Like you care what happens to my brothers and sisters. I’ll make sure you don’t hurt anyone else!”

Sydney gripped the rifle tight, and after taking a deep breath, she moved out of cover and saw Kevin with his gun aimed right at her.

Jacob’s voice rang in her head.

‘You’ve been a damn good shot since you got to Hope County.’

She shot Kevin once, in the hand close to his rifle’s trigger. Kevin dropped his gun, yelping in pain.

Sydney slammed her rifle onto one of his legs, causing him to fall over.

She stood above him, keeping her rifle aimed. She kicked Kevin’s own weapon away as he groaned in pain on the floor.

“Finish me off then. Release that Wrath within you.” He pointed at the tattoo on her chest weakly.

“Shut up.” she hissed.

“You can’t run from your past, sinner. You ca-”

She put the rifle away to bend over and punch him hard in the face, knocking him out. There, now she paid them both back for what they did to her.

Sydney stepped back until she felt a wall behind her and slumped down, taking deep breaths.

Her adrenaline rush was slowly fading and she could feel the stinging pain on her face again and how her wrists were sore from being tied up for God knows how long.

She heard a door slam open followed by hurried footsteps. She looked up and saw Benjamin, his pistol out.

“Rook?” he asked softly.

If Kevin and Norm were telling the truth and she did kill people from the Project, maybe everyone else probably knew. And the scene in front of Benjamin probably looked suspicious, what with her being the only one conscious among the three people inside.

“They kidnapped me. They were gonna shoot you so I escaped, knocked them out and-”

“Whoa whoa whoa, easy Rook.” Benjamin placed his gun back in his holster and raised his arms up peacefully. “I know you didn’t have anythin’ to do with this.”

Sydney could only nod stiffly, grateful to her friend. “How’d you know to look for me?”

Benjamin placed his hands back down, and knelt beside her. “Elena got worried when you didn’t show up for breakfast this morning. She went to your cabin to check in on ya but you weren’t there. She asked me to help look for ya.”

He turned to Kevin then back at her, smirking. “Though it looks like you didn’t need my help.”

“What time is it?”

“A little past nine in the mornin’.”

She rubbed her sore wrists. Ok so she wasn’t out for long. Bless Elena’s kind heart for worrying over her. Sydney made a mental note to hug the old woman the next time she saw her.

“Let’s get you outta here, Rook.” Benjamin said, standing from his seat. “Need to get some ice for yer face.”

She frowned and looked over at Kevin. “What about him? And his friend in the room over there?”

“Pfft, assholes’re outcold. I’ll send somebody to get ‘im when we get back.”

Which reminded her, “Where are we exactly?”

“Still on the Father’s island. We’re in a little trailer not too far from the compound.”

Sydney laughed dryly. “How the fuck did those two even sneak me out of there?”

“Bah, prolly while everyone was attending the early sermon. Jacob’s right, we got great guards but anyone could pass through if they knew what our church schedules are, dammit.”

Sydney lifted her head up hearing the redhead’s name. “Does Jacob know? That I was gone?”

Benjamin sighed. “No, not yet. The plan was to tell him if I didn’t find you around the island. Luckily these two idiots were too afraid to stray far.”

Part of her was relieved that Jacob didn’t know. It meant she had time to process this new information by herself first. If he were the one who found her, she might’ve exploded and demanded answers from him. What were he and Joseph hiding from her? Why were they hiding it from her?

Sydney took one more deep breath before carefully standing up, mindful of the small cuts she still had on her legs from the glass. She strapped the rifle to her shoulder and brushed her hair away from her face.

She nodded at Benjamin and placed a hand on his shoulder as he helped her stand. “Thanks, Benjamin. For not accusing me of attacking them. Wasn’t sure what you’d think when you walked in and saw two bodies on the floor.”

Benjamin chuckled. “Aww hell, Rook! I got your back, I know you ain’t gonna hurt any of our own, unlike the two fools you knocked out.”

She smiled tiredly at him before heading out of the trailer, Benjamin following behind her.

Outside, there were two Eden’s Gate trucks. She found her jacket in what was probably Kevin and Norm’s vehicle.

Benjamin guided her to the passenger seat of the other truck before getting into the driver’s seat himself.

He started the engine before turning to her and softly saying, “Hey, I don’t know what those two said to you but, you’re a good person, Rook. We know you’re atoning.”

Sydney let out a short sob, willing herself not to cry. She nodded, keeping her eyes on the road in front of her.

And because she didn’t trust her voice not to crack, she simply said, “Thank you.”

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

It was a short drive back to the compound. Benjamin insisted she visit the infirmary first while he went to find Elena.

The doctor informed her nothing was broken. He gave her an ice pack for the swelling on her face to go down and disinfected the cuts on her legs. Thankfully the punches she took weren’t that strong, she only had a few bruises that should be gone in a day.

Elena practically busted the infirmary doors open, her eyes frantic until she spotted Sydney. The old woman looked like she was about to cry, hugging Sydney tightly. Sydney couldn’t help but hug her back, thanking her for being one of the reasons she was able to escape.

When the doctor was done assessing her, Sydney was free to go.

“You need me to stay with you, hun? Just ‘til you fall asleep?” Elena offered as they walked back to Sydney’s cabin.

Sydney shook her head. “That’s very kind of you to offer but I’ll be fine, thank you. You’ve done more than enough for me, already.”

“Oh hush girl! Like I said, we’re family. Then I’ll be back later to drop off your lunch. You just lie down and get your rest.”

“Thank you, that’d be great.”

They went their separate ways and Sydney saw her cabin in front of her.

She would’ve been relieved if not for Jacob leaning on the door.

She felt her heart sink. As much as she wanted to talk to him about what happened, she needed time to go over her thoughts first, untangle the memories that had begun to resurface.

Sydney stopped right in front of Jacob, who stared down at her intensely.

“You look like shit.” he simply said.

“It looks worse than it feels.”

He brought his hand up to move the hair away from her face, surprising her. He whistled as he looked over the swelling. “Damn, that’s still gotta sting though.”

Her chest tightened as Jacob casually and gently touched her, staring at her with those piercing blue eyes of his that sparkled when he genuinely laughed.

Funny how just a few hours ago, she did see them sparkle and she heard that wonderful laugh of his that made her smile when she and Jacob were talking over glasses of milk.

Then she got kidnapped, found out she was a killer and they didn’t tell her.

She turned her head slightly and Jacob paused before putting his hand back down. “The doc said I should be fine by tomorrow.”

He was still blocking her way and Sydney was about to politely ask him to step aside when he suddenly said, “The guys that took you, they-”

“I didn’t kill them.” she hissed.

“Hey, relax. I know. Your friend Benjamin told me.”

“Then can I go? I wanna get out of these dirty clothes already.”

“Look, Sydney I just-”

“Not now just… not now.” Sydney said softly, hoping he wouldn’t push her further. She didn’t feel like exploding in front of Jacob and the whole compound.

She needed to be alone with her thoughts, settle the crazy mess in her head first.

Jacob sighed heavily before finally moving out of her way. “At least get somethin’ to eat.”

His arm brushed hers as he passed her. She didn’t look back at him as she entered her cabin and closed the door behind her. Ironic how the last time they parted ways, it was a completely different mood.

Sydney took a quick shower to wash all the dirt and blood off of her before putting on some clean underwear and dressing in an oversized white shirt with the Project’s logo on it.

Her cheeks and jaw began to throb painfully and she patted them with the ice pack she was given. She stared up at the ceiling and allowed herself to process what she learned earlier, hoping the voices in her head would cooperate.

#jacob x sydney #jacob seed #deputy sydney williams #far cry 5 #far cry #jacob x female deputy #my writing #my fic

[wiypt-writes]

Leave No One Behind

Ch 9-Doctors Orders Part 1 Co written with @icanfeelastormbrewing​

Episode Summary: Hannah has a cold and of course Ari takes it upon himself to look after her. Once that little obstacle is out of the way trouble finds them once again on the morning of her birthday…and hell breaks loose at the Red Sea Diving Resort.

Episode Warnings: Bad Language words. Smut (NSFW no under18s)

Episode Pairings:  Ari Levinson x OFC Hannah Horowitz

A/N: This chapter is going to be split into a number of parts, posting over the next few days. A lot happening here. It ran away with us a little bit! Hope you enjoy, we’re proud of this one!!!

Leave No One Behind Masterlist // Main Masterlist

Chapter 8

“Hey you with the pretty face, welcome to the human race. A celebration, Mr. Blue Sky's up there waitin', and today is the day we've waited for.”  Mr Blue Sky by ELO

 Ari woke early the next morning and he immediately could sense something wasn't right. For starters Simon wasn't curled on his head, not that he was complaining but it felt quite strange to feel him at the end of the bed and not all over the pillow. Speaking of the pillow, he noticed Hannah's head wasn't on it, right next to his, even before he opened his eyes. Why couldn't he hear her breathing? And what was that other noise? Just with that thought he bolted his eyes open only to find Hannah sat up in bed, coughing.

Shit.

His eyes quickly roamed the dark room, it was still dark outside, but he could just make out her bare back as she was sat up, her knees bent to her chest as she tried to stifle the coughs in the palm of her right hand.

"Hey, you ok?" Ari asked with his sleepy voice before clearing his throat.

Hannah nodded in response but continued to cough as she did so.

Ari shifted on the bed and sat up, gently moving so he could see her, ignoring Simon's grumble as he was jolted from his position by his feet from where he was watching Hannah, again. Ari glared at him. He and that dog were going to need to set some ground rules. Well basically just one; no grumbling at him while on his fucking bed. 

He heard Hannah chuckle softly at Simon's reaction and he reached out to rub her back. Damnit, she was warm to the touch, so he moved again to lay the back of his hand against her cheek.

"You’re hot, Firefly."

"There’s a joke in there somewhere, Lobo." she mumbled before breaking into a hacking coughing fit again. "Fuck, I feel like shit Ari."

She definitely sounded like shit too.

"Let me get you some water." Ari offered before hopping out of bed. He found his shorts and threw them on and then he headed over to the small dresser where there were a couple of bottles. He grabbed one with a swift movement and brought it back to her, twisting off the cap. Hannah took a drink under Ari's watchful eye, spluttering a little as she coughed again but she managed to drink half of it before she handed it back. "You must have gotten a cold." He smiled sympathetically at her. "Or some random tropical disease." she coughed again, just before sneezing.

"Nope. You got soaked in the rain yesterday, Firefly." he stated, a little smug at the memory of her wet clothes sticking to her body.

"I’m the doctor not you." she managed to state between coughs and then looked at him. "Besides, you don’t get colds from getting wet Ari, it’s a virus."

Ari chuckles while rubbing her back softly. "Alright, is there anything I can do to make you feel better?" "Drugs, Ari. I need some paracetamol and whatever else we have in the kit." Ari saw her scrunch her nose and she groaned. "Fuck."

"What?"

"The medical kit is in the office." "I’ll go fetch it sweetheart. You stay here." Ari offered, happy to be of use and take the reins. "I can’t Ari, I need to get back to my hut before anyone sees me…" and with that she set into another load of coughing and sneezing "...or hears me for that matter."

Ari pondered for a few seconds, noticing she was right as the first rays of sun were beginning to sweep through the window. "Then I’ll take you to your room and then I’ll go get the stuff."

She nodded "Can you pass me my dress?"

Ari picked it up from the back of the chair but turned to look at her "Han, it’s still damp." She groaned.

"Hang on…" he said before Hannah watched him disappear in the bathroom only to emerge from it a few seconds later with a towel in his hands "Wrap yourself in that for the time being."

"Yeah, cos that’s not gonna look suspicious."

"This whole thing is gonna look suspicious, Han. Stop being a pain in the ass and do as you're told." the natural leader in him commanded.

Grumbling, she took the towel, stood up and wrapped it around her before taking a shaky step. "Jesus."

"You ok?" Ari asked as he threw his shirt on.

"Just dizzy." Hannah replied as she stood put and rubbed her temples.

Ari rounded the bed concerned and in a quick movement hooked one arm under her legs, the other round her back beneath her shoulders. He was sure she was going to protest at the sudden movement and change of position but she gave a little sigh instead and relaxed into his arms, tucking her head into the crook of his shoulder and Ari thought that was clearly testament to how ill she was. 

He made his way to the door with Hannah in his arms and clicked his fingers at Simon who followed him.  He opened the door with one hand, peeking out and once he had checked the coast was clear he quickly and quietly made his way to her hut. Praying to God and all the saints he didn't run into someone coz, honestly, he had no fucking idea how he was gonna be able to explain him carrying a semi-naked woman bridal style from his hut to hers.

 Once he had reached Hannah's hut he stepped inside and closed the door behind him, taking a deep breath and letting relief wash over him before he set her gently on the bed. 

"That's it, sweetheart. Want me to tuck you in?"

Hannah shook his head while adjusting to the new position "Just pass me a cami and a pair of sleep shorts from the drawer."

He headed over and did as he was told, gently dropping her clothes onto the bed next to her.

"Can you manage or…" he asked, hands on his hips and nodding to the items of clothing.

Hannah smiled at his concerned face "You’re the expert at getting me undressed Ari, I’ll manage the other way round just fine."

He chuckled "Ok, I’ll be back in a moment."

Ari left her to it and headed to the main area. Once there he tried not to warn anyone of his presence by bumping into furniture as it was still fairly dark in that part of the resort. He carefully went into the office and turned on the light, locating the medical bag immediately and searched for the meds Hannah had asked for. Just a few seconds later he jumped out of his skin when he heard Max's voice.

"What are you doing?"

"Jesus, Max. You scared the shit out of me." he hissed, trying to buy some time to come up with a feasible excuse.

Max chuckled and then nodded to the box of pills. "You ok?"

"Just a headache. Needed some paracetamol." he said casually, avoiding visual contact with Max and looking at the pills in his hands instead.

Next thing he knew Max was handing him the water bottle in his hand. "Here I’ll get another."

And of course then he had to be watching him so Ari had to take 2 of the damned tablets himself before he managed to fob Max off, grabbing another 2 and heading back to Hannah’s hut once Max curiosity had been duly satisfied and he had watched him turn around and leave.

"What took you so long? Couldn't you find the bag?" Hannah blurted out when he saw him coming into her hut.

"I found something more than the bag. Don't ask." he said as he sat on the edge of the bed and handed the pills. "Here."

She frowned and sat up straight and reached for the water while he explained about his encounter with Max making Hannah chuckle and shake her head before breaking into another coughing fit.

"Are there any side effects to taking painkillers without being in pain?"

"Yeah, Lobo. Hair loss." Hannah deadpanned.

 "No need for sarcasm." he narrowed his eyes at her.

"Well, stop asking stupid questions." she quipped before taking the pills with a mouthful of water, wincing. “My throat feels like I’ve been swallowing glass." "Want me to arrange for you to stay in bed all day?" Ari asked, his hand falling to her knee.

"I’ll be fine in an hour or so, besides if I stay here all day I’ll be bored and there’s stuff to do and ..." she whined.

Ari scoffed and cut her off.  "Ok let me rephrase that, I’m gonna arrange for you to stay in bed all day."

"No, Ari, like I said, it’s boring." she insisted.

"I’ll come keep you company as much as I can." he tried to bargain, knowing full well she wasn't one for following orders she deemed stupid.

"Oh yeah? And what you gonna tell the others as to why you keep sneaking in here to see me?"

"That I’m coming to check up on my teammate." he rolled his eyes. "Yeah, like you did with my aerobics classes…when Rachel noticed and asked why you never checked on hers?" she asked, a wicked smile on her face.

"No, that’s….I didn’t…" he sighed. "Well, can you blame me?" he asked with a whiney voice.  Hannah laughed and he smiled "You weren’t exactly being discreet, Levinson"

"Ok, look, forget about that now. I’ll figure something out." he said as he leaned over to kiss her frowning when she pulled back.

"Yeah I wouldn’t do that if I were you."

"Yeah, good point. Although isn’t a cold contagious days before symptoms?" he cockily asked.

"Hark on you Dr Levinson."

"You know, Guy Thomas is technically a doctor, I mean he has a PHD so…" 

She laughed loudly which made her cough. "In fucking Anthropology!"

"Details…" he smiled broadly.

Hannah snorted and locked her eyes on his "You’re right though. Chances are you already got it." Ari chuckled. "Ok, I’m gonna go for my run before everyone gets up. You gonna be ok?" "Sure I’ll manage. I’ve lived alone for the last 4 years Ari, had plenty of colds…" Ari grimaced, he didn’t like to think about that. For some reason it made him a little upset though he knew it was illogical as she was a grown woman and a doctor nonetheless. "Just try and get some sleep. When they start asking where you are at breakfast I’ll use it as an excuse to come see you, tell them I’ll come find out."

"Make sure it’s you who comes, please." she pleaded as she got under the sheets and rested her head on the pillow.

"Of course it will be. I’m the boss, can do what I want."

She sat up again and gazed at him. 

"Don’t let Sammy come or I’m never leaving this hut again."

"Dramatic much?" he tried to joke. "I know him, he won’t let me out of bed for days." she said and Ari could read the concern in his eyes.

 "Neither would I given the chance, albeit for a much different reason." he quipped cheekily, trying to brush her concern away.

His eyes sparkled with satisfaction as he saw Hannah's jaw drop. She slapped his arm and broke into a coughing fit. "You’re an asshole Ari. You can’t say that when I can’t kiss you properly."

"Then I’ll say it again when you can." he said, rubbing her thighs over the covers

"Promise?"

"Damned straight it is."

Hannah grinned before leaning back on her pillow again "Go, before I climb you like a tree and infect you with my virus."

"Now that's an image I intend to dwell in all through the day, Miss." he said before kissing her head and getting up and walking to the door. "Thing is firefly…" and he turned to look at her, one hand on the door handle. “…you infected me 9 years ago."

"That is so lame!" she said as she threw a pillow at him "Go. Now."

He chuckled and stepped outside closing the door behind him.  Hannah then looked at the pillow and groaned. "Now I gotta pick that up."

As if on cue Simon trotted towards the pillow and flopped down on it, looking up at her.

"Ok, guess I don’t…" she shrugged

**** Ari was hoping his run would keep his mind occupied and help quiet the noise in his brain. He was worried about Hannah and though he was well aware it was probably only a cold and, yes, she was a fully trained doctor who knew exactly what she was doing, he still couldn't help but think about how poorly she had looked and sounded. 

Fuck it.

With a sigh he turned his Walkman off when he was still a mile or so away from the resort. He couldn't concentrate on what he was listening to and the headphones were constantly falling from his head due to his furious strides. He wasn't in the mood and every little thing in the universe was apparently conspiring to bug him. 

Damn, Ari. Are you listening to yourself? 

His inner voice slapping him on the back of his head was the final straw. He groaned and quickened his pace, longing for the moment the cold water in the shower would ease the stiffness he was feeling in his muscles and mind. 

"I thought you were ill." Max greeted him when he emerged in the main area after making it home and showering.

"I had a headache. Hence the painkillers. And guess what, they killed my pain. So here I am." he explained, a bit too harsh.

"Woah chill man." Max frowned as he raised both his palms as a peace gesture.

"I’m perfectly chilled." Ari huffed as he sat down on a chair.

The truth is she wasn't chilled, not even remotely. He knew there was nothing he could do and Hannah would be probably asleep once the effects of the pills had kicked in, but he was twitchy as fuck to go check on her. "You look worried Ari." Rachel stated. More as a warning of his conspicuous behaviour than as a real concern.

"Do I? Well I’m not. What’s for breakfast?" Ari asked, trying to put on a genuine smile on his face but failing considerably.

"Whatever you want. The guests don’t arrive until 11 so it's up to you what you want. There’s plenty of bread for toast and pastries in the pantry." Rachel replied, squinting her eyes at him.

"Ok, I’m gonna grab some coffee." he said as he got up, praying someone asked about Hannah soon coz he was now seriously worried. 

He was not only worried about her but also about acting cool when they would eventually ask. He wanted it over and done with as soon as possible coz he didn't know how much time he was going to refrain himself from snapping at someone or something. He grabbed his coffee and then an idea came to him. He poked his head back into the main room and asked if he should throw a few rounds of toast in for everyone, knowing if he made enough there’d be some left over and they would be bound to notice one of them was missing.

An instant later Rachel came in to help. They made the first batch in silence, his mind still racing, and as the second batch was in she turned to him. 

"So, come on, don’t bullshit me Ari. What’s going on?"

"What do you mean what’s going on?" he asked back while cursing at a piece of toast who was still too hot for him to grab.

"You’re twitchy. You and Hannah had an argument already?"

"What? No…what makes you think that?" 

Rachel looked at him with that seemingly expressionless look that was yelling cut the crap and Ari sighed. It was Rachel after all, he could trust her and it would do him good to blow off some steam with someone.

"She’s ill."

Rachel frowned before asking "What do you mean? Like bad ill?"

"No, it’s a cold but she’s feeling pretty rough." he explained as he grabbed the bread from the toaster and dropped it onto the plate. He felt relief as he uttered those words, explaining what was going on to another person had really helped him realise he really shouldn’t be making a big deal out of it.

"Ah. Ok. Want me to go check on her?"

"No, I told her I would when you all realised she hadn’t shown for breakfast…" he paused and then bit his lip "Look, can…can you just maybe ask about her out there? My nerves are on edge."

Rachel smiled "Sure, good look convincing Sammy to stay away."

"Actually, I was hoping you could help me with that." he asked somewhat shyly.

"How?"

"You’ll figure something out."  His shy request had morphed now into a wicked smile making Rachel roll her eyes at him.

"You owe me Levinson. I don’t like lying to him, it’s not fair." she conceded but waved her index finger at him.

"You don’t have to lie to him…just don’t tell him the truth."

"Where I come from that’s called lying, Ari."

"You know what I mean, Rach." he remarked as he flashed his signature cheeky smirk at her.

"Come on man, I’m hungry." Max's voice suddenly startled them both.

Ari seized the opportunity and gave her one last pleading look at Rachel and she groaned before pointing at him again.

"Fine, let's get this over with but I mean it. You owe me, big time."

"I know, and if it's any consolation I don’t like all the sneaking around either but until Han is ready to tell Sammy there’s not much I can do." he shrugged.

"Whatever." she said, grabbing one big plate and handing it to Ari "Take the toast out there, Romeo."

They headed back out of the kitchen, carrying the communal breakfast and Ari sat back down, a bit more collected this time.

"About time, what were you doing? Baking the damned bread?" Max whined, raiding the toast plate.

"You wanna eat that toast or wear it?" Hannah cut his protests.

"Woah, easy Rachel…what’s happened this morning, why is everyone so tetchy?"

Ari looked at Rachel and she understood. The sooner they get this over with the better but just as she opened her mouth to speak, Sammy cut her off.

"Where’s Hannah?"

Everyone looked at one another for a few seconds. The only thing that could be heard being Max munching his toast. Ari tried to hold back the relief sigh he was dying to exhale. Rachel wasn’t needed after all, he had to thank Sammy for that.

"I ain't seen her." Jake, who had been getting the matches for his tan ready, shrugged. "Or Simon actually, he’s normally here before she is…"

 "I’ll go see if everything’s ok with her." Ari offered, standing up.

 "I can go." Sammy frowned.

No. No. No. Ari froze and panicked for a few seconds and gave Rachel a meaningful look.

"Let Ari.” Rachel l blurted out before pausing. "Because of Simon…you know the dog doesn’t like you, and it will only put you in a bad mood if he starts growling and you’ll end up arguing with Hannah.”

Well, that had been bold but it seemed to have worked as next thing he knew Ari heard Sammy grumbling. "stupid little gargoyle."

"And that’s why he hates you. You insult him, you hurt his feelings." he told Sammy, trying not to seem too eager to fuck the hell out of the room.

They were all too focused on their own act to notice Max who was simply looking at them, munching his toast. He clearly wasn’t buying any of the shit Rachel was saying.  Whereas Jake was too engrossed in cutting the matches he had previously taken from the matchbox with a knife, his coffee long forgotten.

"It’s a dog Ari, he doesn’t know what I’m saying." Sammy continued grumbling.

"Well he clearly reads your body language then."

"Yeah…that’s true. He copies body language too." Max deadpanned, sitting back on his chair.

Ari did his best to keep a straight face, ignoring him but clearly hearing his sniggers. Rachel was the one to glare at him and he shrugged as he resumed eating his food.

Thankfully, Rachel then took charge of the situation and started explaining the schedule for the new guests that would be arriving a few hours later, Ari took the opportunity and stood up, heading out  for Hannah’s hut. Gently opening the door he saw Simon was snuggled around her head and she was dozing. He approached and sat on the edge of her bed and watched her for a few seconds before feeling her forehead. She was still warm and he sighed.

Simon moved his head and licked the back of Ari’s knuckles when he recognized him.

 "You looking after her pal?" he cooed at the dog and moved his hand to scratch under the dog's chin, "Good boy."

Simon wagged his tail and rolled over demanding more belly scratches from the hairy human that seemed to be sharing his mom's bed. Ari chuckled as he obliged, rubbing his pink and black spotty belly.

"Demanding little bastard." he softly whispered so as not to disturb Hannah's sleep. But it was too late. With a little sigh she stirred at the movement, blinking.

"Hey, how you feeling firefly?"

"Still crappy." her voice came out hoarse. 

"Yeah, you’re still warm. You should rest in bed till you’re feeling better." he ordered softly.

"Yes Dr Levinson… or Dr Thomas, whatever." she said before yawning and Ari chucked. "How was it out there?"

"Not bad. I asked Rachel for help but it wasn’t needed, Sammy asked before she could."

Hannah nodded and shuffled down a little in the bed, coughing again. Ari waited until she was done and he then leaned down over her, one hand either side of her shoulders as she was led on her side. 

"Ok sweetheart. I’m gonna go back out now but once they know I’ll sneak to see you whenever I can." 

 "I’m just gonna sleep Ari, I don’t need babysitting." she grumbled.

Ari raised an eyebrow playfully. "Ok, so you don’t want me to take care of you or keep you company? That’s fine, I get it…" he mocked a complaint, a soft smile on his face.

"Shut up." Hannah groaned.

"And now you don’t want to hear me either." he chuckled and kissed her forehead. "Get some rest and shout if you need anything." and he pondered for a moment before speaking. "On second thoughts, just don't shout. Your voice is terrible today..." and he stopped when he saw her mouth drop open "You know what I mean, Firefly."

"Ari?" Hannah asked as he made to stand up. "Yeah?" "I could use some orange juice." she beamed at him before sneezing for the umpteenth time.

"Ok, I’ll bring some for you." Ari wandered back to the main area, all the way thinking how he was going to pull his next stunt. Just act natural, Levinson. You got this, he thought as he entered the main area, his hands falling to his hips as he walked in.

"Where is she?" Sam asked once he spotted Ari was back.

"She’s sick Sammy." and he held his hand up to stop Sammy’s impending babble. "It’s just a cold."

Sammy frowned. "A cold?"

"That’s what she said." He shrugged and turned to walk to the kitchen. "She asked for some paracetamol and orange juice." he said, ignoring the fact Max was narrowing his eyes suspiciously after he caught Ari with the pills before. He opened the fridge, considering if it would be good for her to drink cold liquids, and poured a glass of orange and went back into the main dining area just as Sammy walked in from the office with the box of pills and gestured to the orange juice.

"Want me to take it? I can examine her."

"She’s a doctor too, Sammy." Jake snorted.

Ari was getting more flustered by the minute. He just wanted to get rid of Sammy and get back and check on her again. Damned it. He knew he was being ridiculous but she really didn’t look well at all and if he had his way he’d be curled up besides her all day. He would trade posts with Simon on the spot. He looked at Rachel as a last resource, silently asking her to take the reins. 

Rachel took a deep breath and turned to Sam. "Sammy, she won’t want her brother fussing." She then turned to Ari. "Take her some toast too in case she feels like eating something." she said while putting a few slices from the large plate on the table onto a smaller one. "Tell her I’ll check up on her later and grab her laundry."

Thank you Rachel.

"I bet Simon is eating that toast." Max quipped.

Jake chuckled. "That’s a point, should we take care of him today?"

Ari shook his head. "He was curled up on the bed with her, looked pretty comfy. I’ll take him for a walk if he wants to go but to be honest I don’t think he’ll leave her."

“Unless it’s you.” Max quipped.

“What do you mean? Ari asked.

“Simon is conveniently deaf unless you or Cracker are talking to him.” Max grinned “You’re like his parents, it’s cute.”

Ari rolled his eyes and with that he headed back out, down to her hut. God, he was sweating already and he had showered less than an hour before. Simon looked up when Ari got in the hut. Hannah was asleep so he placed the orange juice, toast and pills on her bedside table before leaning to kiss her head.

"Sleep tight, my Firefly." he whispered as he straightened up and looked at Simon. "You coming buddy? Let’s get you some food and go for a walk, huh?"

Ari watched the dog look at Hannah, then him and then back to Hannah again, hesitating. Sammy could say whatever he wanted, but that dog did understand what they said to him. No one was gonna convince him otherwise.

"She’ll be ok pal." Ari rolled his own eyes at himself when he realised he was explaining to the fucking dog. But Simon was proving his point as he stood up and walked down the bed, jumping off the side. Ari saw him stretch and wag his tail as he headed out, Simon at his heels. 

*****

A few hours later Rachel went to Hannah’s hut and knocked on the door, walking in after Hannah told her to do so. Rachel found her sat up in bed and thought Ari, though being a painful drama queen, was right. She looked awful. Her nose was red, her eyes looked tired but at least she was reading.

"How are you feeling?"

"A little better, thanks. I had a good sleep and the meds seem to have worked their way into my system." she explained and then she paused. "What time is it by the way? I can’t find my watch." she asked Rachel as she scanned her bedside table and drawers again.

 "Maybe you left it in Ari’s hut…I mean if you slept there last night…" Rachel offered, cocking an eyebrow.

Hannah looked at her and sighed, rolling her eyes.  There was no point in even denying it and she wasn't feeling strong enough to either. "How much do you know?" "Well from what the pair of you have told me and the fact his tee was mixed in with your laundry, I’d hazard a guess at all of it." "Ari’s shirt was..? Shit!" Hannah groaned.

"Yup, shit indeed. You’re lucky I spotted it before your brother did. Thankfully it was next to a pile of your panties and he wasn’t looking." Rachel chuckled at Hannah's mortified expression before continuing. "Then there’s also the fact that the dress you were wearing yesterday was on the chair in his hut. I washed that too, you can thank me later, or we can talk about how his bathroom was missing a towel and curiously enough there’s one that seems to have appeared on the floor by your bed. Your pick."

Hannah groaned again and rubbed her face down her hand.

"By the way it was the shirt he was wearing for dinner the night he came home." Rachel winked at her.

"Yeah I know…he left it here and I forgot I threw it in with my stuff." "You two had yourselves a welcome home party, huh?" Hannah laughed at Rachel's wriggling eyebrows and coughed a little. "Don’t be so nosey."

"Look, I’m happy for you two, I really am. And I love to see you happy, you deserve it but…well, Max suspects something and it’s only a matter of time before Sammy and Jake figure it. Especially if Ari is as shit at keeping a cover as he seems to be. He was a wreck this morning."

"A wreck?" Hannah asked, surprised. "I’ve got a damned cold, what’s he so fretted about?" "Well according to him you looked really bad and were burning up, moments from death…you know that type of thing. I had to smack some sense into him in the kitchen before he blew it with the rest." 

Hannah rolled her eyes. "He’s such a drama queen."

"When it comes to you he is. You should have seen him. Shittiest Mossad agent ever." Rachel mocked him.

Hannah laughed again and, as usual that morning, her laugh was punctuated by coughs.

"Luckily Jake is too focussed on his tan to notice and Sammy…well Sammy is oblivious and to be fair probably doesn’t even want to even consider anything like that so…"

Hannah pondered what she had said for a minute and looked at her. "You think we should come clean? I mean Ari said he would happily tell everyone but I’m not sure if I can handle Sammy already."

"That’s up to you. But the longer you leave it, then surely the harder it's gonna be?" Rachel smiled at her, sympathetically.

Hannah rubbed her eyes. "I don’t think I can do this until I feel better, and then it’s my birthday next week and don’t want anything to spoil it."

"I can’t answer Hannah, I can’t tell you what to do." Rachel patted her leg.

"I’ll speak to Ari about it." she mused and Rachel laughed.

"What’s so funny?" "That man will do whatever you tell him to do. I know that, you should know it by now." Hannah shook her head, though Rachel may be right that was not what she needed at that moment.  "I don’t want him to just do what I say, just want him to help me make a decision." She looked at Rachel and then grinned "I see you did a pretty good job covering the marks on your neck, unlike yesterday."

Rachel blushed. "You saw them?"

"Yes." And the grin on Hannah’s face turned into a grimace.  "And I don’t want to think about it. He’s my brother."

"Ari told you?"

Hanna nodded.

"Bastard."

"I’d already figured it out. I told them ages ago the pair of you were…you know, or at least there was something going on. He was like a bear with a sore head when you were on leave." Hannah explained

Rachel squinted her eyes at her. "Like you were when Ari was gone?"

Hannah shrugged, to be fair Rachel was right, the Navons were pretty shitty at concealing their feelings. And speaking of concealing?  "FYI that concealer on my desk is pretty good if you need to borrow it."

Rachel stared at her blankly and Hannah swept her hair to the side to show her the now fading bruises Ari had given her the other evening and Rachel snorted. 

" Wild Ari, huh?"

"You got no idea." Hannah smirked mischievously.

"Pity Sam is your brother. We could have traded stories." Rachel shrugged amused.

"Don’t get me wrong Rach, I’m happy you’re with him. He needs someone in his life that’s for sure but…yeah, no. I’d rather not listen to them…but if you need to talk hey, I can pretend you’re talking about Chef Aziz…"

At that the pair of them burst out laughing and Hannah had another coughing fit just as Sammy walked into the hut.

"What are you two laughing at?" he asked as he glanced at Hannah. "You feeling better, Han?" "Loads. Rachel is great company." she said, raising her eyebrows at Sammy who went immediately red and cleared his throat. "Need some water Sammy?" Rachel who was sitting on the edge of the bed slapped Hannah’s leg through the covers and mouthed to her Don’t be mean.

Hannah shook her head and looked around, allowing her brother to collect himself. "Hey, where’s Simon by the way? He bailed on me…"

"He was with Ari. They went for a walk then down to the diving hut and then Ari was going out with Jake to prep the tour route for tomorrow." Sammy explained.

 "Has Simon gone on the boat with them?" Hannah frowned.

 "Yeah, why?"

 "I thought he only went diving because he wanted to be with me." she pouted. "He’s been stuck to Ari like glue all day." Rachel confirmed.

 "He even ignored the new group of tourists." Sammy scoffed.

"Judas." Hannah grumbled, folding her arms.

****

3 days Hannah was in bed laid up, and Ari hated it. He’d popped in as much as he could, stealing half an hour or so here and there to lay with her, until Sammy pulled him up at one point over lunch on the second day.

I’m the doctor, she’s a doctor…I don’t see why you have to be checking up on her all fucking day.” Sammy pouted.

“Because you’re busy with the guests.” Ari reasoned “I’m the manager so I can just float about. Besides, it hasn’t been all fucking day, I’ve been to check on her like 3 times to take her some water and something to eat, that’s it.”

Nevertheless, he backed off after that. On the 4th day Hannah eased back into light duties so Ari managed to spend some time with her during the day as but he continued to sleep in his own hut to allow her to sleep properly to fully recover and also to avoid further suspicion as he had also developed a little sniffle himself and was running out of excuses to the rest of the team as to what it was.

But all this meant it was nearly a week since they’d last managed a night together, and it had left him a total needy bastard.

One morning he arrived at the main area of the resort after he’d been talking to a few guests who had asked him for ideas of what to do in Port Sudan. He headed into the main rooms, looking for Hannah, mentally ticking off where she could be. She wasn’t with Jake and Sammy as they were out diving, she wasn’t with Rachel and Aziz helping set up for lunch and Max…well he had no idea where Max was at all. He stood pondering for a moment when he spotted Simon trotting out of the office and he gave a grin.

Bingo.

Hannah was looking through the filing cabinet in front of him as he stepped into the room, silently. He took a moment to appreciate her, taking in her long legs right from her bare feet up to the hem of her pale, strapless blue sundress which hung mid-thigh. It curved neatly over her ass and hips trailing the curve of her waist up to her shoulders which were bare, hair pulled into a messy pony tail, halter neck of her bikini tied at the nape of her neck.

Fuck this, it had been far too long. And he was horny as hell. The damned world could wait.

He shut the door with his foot and she jumped slightly, turning to face him but before she could register what was happening his lips were on hers, the kiss demanding as his hands held her cheeks, tongue finding its way between those soft pillows, sliding forcefully against the roof of her mouth. She let out a soft moan and her hands moved directly to the ties on his swim shorts. His lips curved into a smirk at her demanding nature, the fact she wanted him just as much was getting him even more worked up, and she pulled back to look at him a little, her fingers undoing the string easily as his hands slid to her waist, yanking her even closer so their pelvises were flush and she could feel his arousal pressing into her stomach.

“Stop smirking.” She mumbled, and he chuckled a little, his nose brushing hers “Cocky bastard.”

“You want cocky?” he muttered, his lips brushing hers, the feather-light touch sent a shiver down her spine as his mouth slid to her jawline and that spot on her neck just behind her ear. “I’ll show you cocky Firefly.”

His lips crashed to hers again as he pivoted them away from the cabinets and towards the desk at the side of the room, his movements effortless as she gave into his directions completely. Submission had never been her strong point, but when it came to Ari she was weak and now was no exception. She was weak to his touch, his mouth, his every damned action as she allowed him to man handle her, his hands gliding up her back to her neck, fingers of one grasping at the nape as he held her face to his, his mouth dominating hers.

In a quick, almost forceful movement he spun her round, his mouth trailing open mouthed kisses down her neck to her shoulder, moving to the other side to repeat the action and she let out a low keen of delight.

“Shh.” He stopped, what he was doing and Hannah stilled, her breathing deep. Once she’d obeyed he picked up where he had left off, his hand sliding up over her covered breasts, palming them in his large hands, letting out a gently sigh of his own as he felt her nipples peak through the material.

“Ari…we can’t…” She mumbled, suddenly coming to her senses as she heard voices pass by the reception desk “There’s people outside…”

“I don’t care.” He whispered into her hear, his right hand gently sliding back7 up her neck, fingers flexing over her smooth, delicate throat “You can be quiet, right?”

“I…” he cut her off as he tilted her face to his, swallowing her protests with another filthy kiss, his other hand moving down, rucking her dress up, the pads of his calloused fingers tracing a slow path up her inner thigh. He gently brushed over the spot between her legs and a soft growl rolled in the back of this throat as he could feel her arousal through her bikini bottoms. He released her mouth, his lips staying millimetres away from hers “You’re fucking soaked baby girl”

Hannah couldn’t find the words to reply. She was putty in his hands, and happy to let him take control. All truth be told she was aching for him too, and although this hadn’t been going on long in the grand scheme of things, the way he did make love to or fuck her had her craving for his touch whenever she could get it. She let out a gasp as his fingers brushed her bottoms to one side, skating her slit as he found her nub and began to coax at her expertly. She bit her lip, hard, the taste of copper flooding her mouth as she found herself desperately trying to control her noise.

Releasing her throat, Ari’s other hand gently pressed at the base of her spine, bending her forward a little over the desk and her hands splayed flat against the wooden surface sending a few papers floating to the floor, her check pressed to the cheap oak. Ari moved her bikini to the side, and with one hand still on her back he used the other and gave himself a few strokes, before he lined himself up and sank into her.

“Fuck…” She hissed between gritted teeth as he pulled back, sinking straight back in again, his eyes focussed on the spot they were joined, watching himself move in and out. His thrusts were slow, deliberate at first, and his eyes flicked to Hannah’s face as her head raised from the desk, tilting back slightly. He saw her jaw slacken and in a flash his hand reached out, palm clamping over her mouth.

“Gotta be quiet sweetheart…” he grunted out, his other hand gripping her shoulder so he could pull her back onto him and he picked up the pace, fucking her with desperation, like a man starved.

The sound of skin slapping skin, her muffled moans and his own low hisses filled the room as he continued his assault on her spot, his cock dragging against her walls again and again. It was quick and dirty, and before long Hannah could feel herself unravelling. Ari felt her too, the tell-tale fluttering of her clamping down on him signalling she was close.

“Nearly there baby?” he asked, even though he knew the answer and she gave a quick nod, his fingers flexing over her mouth. Releasing the grip on her shoulder he reached around, found her clit and she felt the teasing of his thumb and forefinger as he rolled it between them, his chest pressing to her back, mouth nipping at her ear. With a shudder, the world faded to nothing but a bright, white light and she came, her groan stifled by his hand as she bucked back, eyes fluttering shut, knees trembling as she went limp over the desk. Releasing his hold on her mouth he grabbed her hips, his own snapping back and forth with enough force to jolt the desk slightly, causing it to scrape over the floor as he felt his balls contract and he came inside her, hard, and it was all he could do to keep himself from yelling out.

“Fuck…” he mumbled, his hips slowing to a stop as his head fell forward a little, his breathing deep, T-shirt sticking to him as sweat coated his entire body. He took a moment before he stepped back and looked down as Hannah pushed herself up, his hands gently pulling her up by her hips helping her to stand.

“Cocky enough?” he quipped as he straightened his pants whilst she turned to face him, her cheeks flushed. She reached up and pulled her pony tail free, shaking her hair out whilst she shook her head, grinning at him.

“One word for it.” She arched an eyebrow as she re-tied her hair and squirmed a little, feeling his release dribbling down her inside leg “And now I need to go change.”

“I thought bikini bottoms were supposed to be waterproof.” He chuckled, pulling her in for a quick kiss.

“You’re an ass hole.” She mumbled, before she pulled away, patted his chest and opened the door. The sound of the guests outside grew louder as the flow of fresh air filled the room, well, fresher seeing as it was fucking hot out there too, and with a last glance over her shoulder she smirked and left.

Part 2

#leave no one behind #Ari Levinson #ari levinson x ofc #ari levinson x original female character #red sea diving resort #chris evans #chris evans characters

[dc41896]

POV

So I’ve been wanting to write something based on the song pov by Ariana Grande and then a certain someone decided to attack my heart strings yet again playing the piano so this is an idea I thought of lol. Also this is a sequel to Between the Lines.

Pairing: Chris EvansxBlack Reader

⚠️: None, all fluff! (Well maybe a teensy amount of sad times because of the lyrics)

“There she is,” Chris smiles entering the small make shift studio holding two steaming mugs. Joining your bundled form on the grey loveseat, he hands one to you before sweetly kissing your cheek and moving your legs to stretch across his lap. “So how’s my two-time Grammy nominated superstar doing?”

That’s pretty much all he called you now, besides his usual baby and honey, ever since the list of nominations were announced a couple months ago. Every time the words left his mouth, you found yourself giddily smiling and feeling as if you were in a dream you were bound to wake up from any moment.

Like other artists, winning a Grammy was always one of your ultimate goals and now that there was a possibility you could take home not one but two, you felt immense pride and excitement that your hard work was paying off. This excitement soon turned into stress though with the added preparations you needed to complete as the big day quickly approached. Since you were also performing, you and your team had been busy thinking of what the perfect song choice would be as well as concepts that would match.

So far everything was perfect until your pianist had an unfortunate accident requiring him to have surgery on his wrist. Now you were even more stressed wondering if there were any other people you knew that could fill in.

“A little overwhelmed honestly,” you sigh placing your phone down before noticing what exactly was in your mug. “How did you know I was craving cocoa?”

“Well knowing how stressed you’ve been lately, I figured you’d want some since that’s when you crave it most.”

“Aww thank you baby,” you smile leaning over to wipe his mini chocolate mustache before kissing his lips.

“Still looking for a piano player?”

“Yea but with it coming up so soon, we might just have to do the backup song which isn’t entirely a bad thing, but then I’d have to think of a totally new concept, outfit, then we have to rehearse, I’d have to tell the producers at the show we changed it-,”

“Hey let’s take a break from that okay?,” he speaks trying to calm your rambling and very apparent nerves. Taking your hand, he pulls you closer to sit on his lap guiding your head to fall on his shoulder. “I know things aren’t going how you want, but everything will work out. You’re gonna have an amazing performance that people are gonna talk about for the rest of the year, and no matter what, me, your family, friends, and fans will be so proud of you.” Bringing your hand to his lips, he peppers kisses along your knuckles and fingertips making you smile as you snuggle closer to his neck.

“Thank you.”

“No problem, you know I’m always here.”

Soothingly rubbing circles in your back the way you loved for him to do, you nearly let the vibrations from his humming lull you to sleep before an idea makes you sit up, staring at him now confused.

“Honey? You okay?”

“Yea...yea I just thought of something. What about you?”

“What about me?”

“You play piano for me! I mean you know the song you’ve heard it plenty of times, heck you even helped with the melody. Then that way nothing has to get changed!,” you excitedly answer holding onto his shoulders.

“Yea all of that is true, and I’d love to help but are you sure? Y/N that’s your night, I don’t want anybody trying to say I’m somehow tied into your success when that’s not true.”

“Chris, you and I both know people are gonna talk no matter what, and as long as I’m with you sadly someone’s gonna think that and try to spread it everywhere. But I don’t care what anyone says, and you shouldn’t either,” you smile moving your hands to rest on his partially bearded cheeks. “Like you said it’s my night and sharing it with the man I love will make it even more special. Especially if he’ll be right beside me the whole time.”

“Whether I was physically on that stage with you or not, you know I’m always beside you.”

Closing the gap between you, his lips capture yours in a quick yet passionate exchange before he rests his forehead against yours.

“Now if you win, does that mean my name goes on it too? I mean as you said I helped with the melody and I am providing my services,” he states as you both laugh holding onto each other.

“I don’t know about the name inscription, but we can work that out later,” you answer.

———

“Alright five minutes guys!,” Gina announces fluffing your curls one last time. Noticing your infamous lip bite as your knee rapidly bounces, Chris places both hands on your knee quickly kissing your cheek before being swatted away by your best friend giving you a much needed laugh. “Hey relax, no smudging the makeup until after they say cut.”

“Two minutes!,” a voice yells as you try your best to breathe.

“You got this alright? You’re gonna do great!” Giving you a quick hug, she disappears behind the cameras and soon you hear the cheery presenter in your ear as she begins introducing your performance.

“Alright now I’m not trying to be biased, but this next performer is one of my favorites! She’s been killing it this year with the release of her highly anticipated debut album which led to her two Grammy noms tonight. Performing from her personal studio, here’s Y/N.”

The piano softly plays in the background as the camera focuses on you perched on a wooden bar stool. Pulling the sleeves of your pullover sweater over your hands, you take a quick deep breath as your cue to start approaches.

It's like you got superpowers

Turn my minutes into hours

You got more than 20/20, babe

Made of glass, the way you see through me

You know me better than I do

Can't seem to keep nothing from you

How you touch my soul from the outside

Permeate my ego and my pride

I wanna love me

The way that you love me

Ooh, for all of my pretty and all of my ugly too

I'd love to see me from your point of view

I wanna trust me

The way that you trust me

Ooh, 'cause nobody ever loved me like you do

I'd love to see me from your point of view

Glancing over at Chris in his backwards cap, grey tank, and sweats a small smile forms on your lips watching his fingers delicately press against each key. He could feel your eyes as he looked up with a smile himself winking at you and making you innocently giggle.

I'm gеtting used to receiving

Still gеtting good at not leaving

I'ma love you even though I'm scared

Learnin' to be grateful for myself

You love my lips 'cause they say the

Things we've always been afraid of

I can feel it startin' to subside

Learnin' to believe in what is mine

I wanna love me

The way that you love me

Ooh, for all of my pretty and all of my ugly too

I'd love to see me from your point of view

I wanna trust me

The way that you trust me

Ooh, 'cause nobody ever loved me like you do

I'd love to see me from your point of view

Standing from your seat, you slowly make your way beside him on the bench resting your head on his shoulder while the camera pans around to catch your cute exchange.

I couldn't believe it or see it for myself

Know I be impatient

But now I'm out here, fallin', fallin'

Frozen, slowly thawing, got me right

I won't keep you waitin', waitin'

All my baggage fadin' safely

And if my eyes deceive me

Won't let them stray too far away

I wanna love me

The way that you love me

Ooh, for all of my pretty and all of my ugly too

I'd love to see me from your point of view

I wanna trust me, ooh

The way that you trust me, baby

'Cause nobody ever loved me like you do

I'd love to see me from your point of view

As he plays his last few notes, your arms gently wrap around his bicep and your chin rests on his shoulder before you peck the corner of his mouth. His lips twitch into that adorable smile you love so much after mouthing “I love you” and all those around cheer with claps and whistles.

“You did amazing honey,” he whispers cupping your cheek with his warm hand.

“Thank you, and you too Mozart.”

“Nope, we’re not making that a thing. We both know I literally could never,” he replies making you both laugh before being startled by Gina’s squeals.

“Girl you won best new artist!”

“Wait what?”

“You won! They just told me so you can go ahead and make your acceptance speech! They’ll play it when the category comes up.”

You have to be nudged by a chuckling Chris being in such a state of shock. Oh course you hoped and wished you’d win, but you didn’t expect it to actually happen. Returning to your barstool, you try to collect yourself as the signal is given that the camera was rolling.

“Wow, um hi everybody! I honestly didn’t think this would happen,” you nervously laugh. “Um first off thank you mom and dad for your support even though I was probably really annoying singing all over the house all hours of the day. Thank you to the fans, of course, for your support as well from streaming to buying my music and all the other ways you guys have been so amazing to me. I may not be able to respond to every single post, tweet, or DM but I see you guys and from the bottom of my heart I truly thank every single one of you. My friends and my team, I love y’all so much and appreciate all that you guys do to help and keep me sane.”

“And to the one who inspired the song that helped me get this award,” you sigh peering past the camera to see a glossy eyed Chris leaning against the wall. “Thank you for being exactly what I need when I need it, whether it’s a cuddle buddy, a partner in crime for late night food runs, or a friend to remind me to love myself when I’m doing the opposite. I love you and I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you.”

Rotating the silver band on your ring finger, you hold up your hand with a shy smile to reveal a sparkling princess cut diamond making everyone around beam with excitement, and surely those who would be watching at home.

Taglist: @fumbling-fanfics @honeychicanawrites @honeychicana @lady-olive-oil @themyscxiras @melinda-january @lovelymari4 @maxcullen @literaturefeen @damnitaa @curlyhairclub @plokyu23 @fullofmelaninsarcasmandepression @nunubug99 @felicity-x0 @ellixthea @jojolu @jnk-812 @brwn-sgr @captainsamwlsn @wildfirecracker @nina-sj @iammyownlover @chaneajoyyy @scoop93535 @secretmysteriousperson

If anybody wants to be tagged, has asked to be tagged but don’t see your name, only want to be tagged for certain people I write for, or no longer wish to be tagged just let me know🤓!

#chrisxblackreader #chrisxwoc #chrisxreader #chris evans

[queenabstract]

OH MY GOD THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR YOUR PATIENCE!!! I know its been forever since I posted a request and I'm getting to work on all of them. For now...

Here's a Jussy x Cooper request

Poppy, Branch, and the rest of the Snack Pack were on their way towards Vibe City for a get-together party. It was true that the funk trolls could’ve gone to each tribe themselves to pick them up, but the other tribes had assured them that they didn’t need to go through all that trouble. The leaders and small groups from each tribe were going, and the Snack Pack would’ve gotten there sooner if it weren’t for what Branch spotted falling from the sky.

“Guys, wait. What is that?” Branch asked, pointing at the falling figure.

“I can’t tell from here, it’s really far away.” Biggie said.

“Wait, it looks closer than I thoug-”

“OH MY GOD! It’s a troll!” Smidge freaked out. A troll fell down from the sky and landed somewhere in the forest not too far away from them. The Snack Pack raced to find the troll to make sure they weren’t hurt.

“Where did she come from?!” Poppy exclaimed when they found her. “Is she…alive?” Branch checked her over. Mr. Dinkles made a sound.

“Oh yes! You’re right, Mr. Dinkles! I will give her the kiss of life!” Biggie said and started to lean down.

“Wait no!” Satin and Chenille held him back with their hair.

“I don’t think that’s necessary, buddy!” DJ Suki said as she and Fuzzbert tried to push him back.

“Hey guys, relax. She’s breathing.” Branch said. The troll’s eyes fluttered open.

“Hey, are you okay? You fell from really high up!” Poppy exclaimed.

“Oh, I uh…” The troll looked confused and lost for a moment before snapping back to reality.

“Yeah! Yeah, I’m feeling great actually! My name is Jussy.” Jussy held out her hand.

“My name is Queen Poppy.” Poppy said as she shook Jussy’s hand and helped her up. “Also, this is Branch, Biggie, Mr. Dinkles, Guy Diamond, Tiny Diamond, Satin, Chenille, Dj Suki, Legsly, Smidge, and Fuzzbert!” Poppy introduced them all.

“Well, it’s nice to meet you all.” Jussy said.

“By the way, we were heading to a party back in Vibe City, wanna come with us?” Poppy asked.

“Uh, yeah!” Jussy nodded.

“Come on, then. Let’s go!” Poppy grabbed Jussy’s hand and started running.

“Guys wait we don’t even-” Everyone else ignored Branch and started running too. “Know where she…came...from nevermind.” Branch rolled his eyes and started to pick up the pace.

Everyone kept running until they came to a river where a raft was waiting for them.

“Well itz bout time you showed up!” Dickory exclaimed.

“Dickory, we’ve only been waitin five minutes.” Hickory smirked.

“Hmph.” Dickory crossed his arms. The group got on the raft and started floating down the river.

“Why the raft?” Jussy asked.

“Well, when we float down the river far enough, the Funk Trolls will be able to pick us up and bubble us up into Vibe City!” Poppy explained.

“They use bubbles to get us into their UFO thing.” DJ Suki said.

“Oh, that’s so cool!” Jussy clapped in excitement. The group chattered for a while until they got to the pick-up point.

“So, Jussy, which tribe are you from?” Poppy asked.

“Tribe? Oh…I’m uh…not from any of the tribes.” Jussy said.

“Really? Okay then, you can be our guest of honor!” Poppy said.

“Cool!” Jussy cheered. The bubbles came down all around them and pulled them up into Vibe City.

~Somewhere in Vibe City~

Cooper was finally done getting ready for the party after putting on his silver rings in his dreadlocks and brushing out his fur and tinsel. His parents had already gone out onto the stage, but his brother was still with him to help him figure out the rings.

“And that’s it!” Prince D said after putting in the last ring. “Looking sharp, Coop!”

“Thanks, D!” Cooper thanked him.

“Now come on, mom and dad are already on stage!” D said and led Cooper to the stage. One of the funk trolls’ instruments had been broken, so the music wasn’t able to start yet. Cooper took this extra time to meet up with his friends.

“Hey, Cooper!” Poppy waved and ran up to him.

“Hi, Poppy!” Cooper ran towards her too. They met in the middle and gave each other a big hug. Everyone else except one joined in on the hug.

“We missed you, Cooper!” Satin exclaimed.

“It’s been a while!” Legsly said.

“Pop village hasn’t been the same without you.” Branch said.

“Nice seein ya again.” Hickory smiled.

“Aw, guys! I missed you too!” Cooper said as they all parted from the big group hug.

“Oh! Oh! Oh! Cooper, I want you to meet someone!” Poppy said, jumping up and down. “We met her on our way here! I want you to meet, Jussy!” Everyone moved out of the way so that Cooper could see her.

“Hi!” Jussy waved excitedly. Cooper felt his heart skip a beat as soon as he saw her. She was the most beautiful troll he’d ever seen. A dark blush was forming on his face, he wasn’t sure if his lungs were working right. Even his legs were frozen.

“EARTH TO COOPER!” Branch wildly waved his hands in front of Cooper’s face.

“Wha- huh?” Cooper asked.

“You completely spaced out, you okay bro?” Prince D asked.

“Y-Yeah. I’m fine.” Cooper said, the blush fading a little bit.

“Well then, let’s get Partying! Ow! Ow!” Poppy cheered and skipped towards the stage. Cooper turned back to Jussy, barely keeping himself from getting lost in her eyes.

“SO! I-I mean…uh…So…what-where. WHICH tribe are you from?” Cooper asked her.

“I’m not from any tribe.” Jussy said, walking alongside him as they walked towards the stage.

“Oh. S-So you’re like a…solo…troll? Like Smooth Jazz Chaz? I mean not like Smooth Jazz Chaz but like-as in-not his music. I don’t have anything against smooth jazz! I mean…the others probably do. Not that I’m saying it’s a bad music genre! I-I just…” Cooper trailed off when he heard Jussy chuckling.

“Y-Yeah. I’m a solo troll I guess.” Jussy shrugged.

“Cooper! We gotta go come on!” Darnell called him.

“I’m coming! I’ll see you in a bit.” Cooper said.

“Okay, see ya.” Jussy smiled and waved at him as he walked away. Cooper blushed again seeing her smile and accidentally tripped over his own feet. He blushed harder in embarrassment and ran to the stage.

~Later~

Quincy and Essence almost immediately noticed how flustered Cooper was around the new troll. They decided to let Cooper go off stage to hang out with her after Darnell made a comment about it. She seemed nice enough.

“Hey, Cooper! Not singing anymore?” Poppy asked.

“Nope! H-have you seen Jussy anywhere?” Cooper asked, looking around to see if he could spot her himself.

“Yeah. She’s right over there.” Poppy pointed over to where Jussy was getting a drink. “Wait, why do you wanna kno-”

“Thanks Poppy!” Cooper cut her off and started speed-walking towards Jussy.

“What was all that about?” Branch asked as he walked up to her with a drink in each hand and handed her one.

“I don’t know.” Poppy took a small sip of her drink. After a few seconds she gasped and ended up choking a little.

“Woah, are you okay?” Branch asked worriedly.

“Yeah! I’m fine. I just realized it! Cooper has a crush on her!” Poppy squealed.

“Wha- really?” Branch asked.

“Yeah! Isn’t that sweet?” Poppy smiled widely.

“I guess so. But with how he was stuttering and literally tripping over himself earlier, I don’t know how he’s gonna talk to her now.” Branch asked.

“I know what to do!” Poppy’s face lit up and she started running towards the stage.

“Poppy? Poppy! What are you doing?!” Branch called out and chased her.

“H-Hi, Jussy.” Cooper was still a blushing and stuttering mess.

“Hi, Cooper!” Jussy smiled at him excitedly. Cooper was almost starting to wish she would stop so that he could just breath normally. He did his best to get himself together and put together an actual sentence.

“I hope you’ve been enjoying yourself. A-As one of the princes of Funk I want to make sure everyone is having fun.” Cooper said nervously.

Okay, going good so far.

“Yeah, I’m having a lot of fun! I just feel like a bit of a stranger…so it’s a little awkward.” Jussy shrugged and laughed. Cooper himself started feeling a little awkward.

Oh shoot.

“Oh! Looks like Poppy got them to change the music.” Jussy pointed towards the stage. Cooper turned around and spotted Prince D high-fiving Poppy. The music had been changed to a love song.

~with D and Poppy~

“Great idea you two, hopefully Cooper gets the message.” Prince D said.

“No problem, he’s also our friend, we’re happy to help.” Branch nodded.

“I already ship them, I hope this works!” Poppy squealed.

“Cooper is a lot like mom, so even if he was tripping over himself earlier, he’s probably got himself together by now.” Prince D smiled.

~Back with Cooper and Jussy~

Cooper smiled knowingly. He silently thanked them for this chance and held his hand out to Jussy.

“You don’t have to feel like a stranger around me. Wanna dance?” Cooper started blushing again. Jussy was blushing too.

“Absolutely.” Jussy accepted his hand. Cooper did his best to keep his breathing under control despite his quick-beating heart.

Wise men say,

Only fools rush in.

But I can’t help, falling in love with you.

Shall I stay?

Would it be a sin,

if I can’t help falling in love with you?

Cooper couldn’t relate more to those lyrics right now. He barely met her today and she had him wrapped around her finger.

Like a river flows,

surely to the sea.

Darling, so it goes,

some things are meant to be.

Cooper took a deep breath and spun Jussy around. He gathered up the courage to sing as well.

“Take my hand, take my whole life too. For I can’t help falling in love with you.” Cooper continued dancing with Jussy and kept spinning her around, making her laugh. “Like a river flows, surely to the sea. Darling, so it goes, some things are mean to be.” Cooper loved the sound of her laugh. “Take my hand, take my whole life too. For I can’t help falling in love with you.”

I can’t help…falling in love with you.

Even after the party was over, Cooper and Jussy promised that they’d meet up again soon. Jussy didn’t think that Cooper would visit the next day.

~The very next morning~

“Hey, Jussy! Rise and shine, sleepyhead!” Poppy shook Jussy awake. Since Jussy didn’t have her own pod, Poppy let Jussy sleep over in her’s.

“Oh, good morning.” Jussy yawned and stretched.

“Get ready I have a friend I want you to meet!” Poppy jumped up and down excitedly.

“Really? I thought I met everyone yesterday.” After the party, Poppy had shown Jussy all over Pop Village and introduced her to almost every troll.

“There’s still one left, I accidentally forgot.” Poppy shrugged.

“Oh, okay. Just give me a minute.” Jussy got up and started getting ready.

A little bit later, Poppy led Jussy to the other side of the village. Jussy noticed that they had walked very well far from any of the pods and it seemed that they were heading out of the village.

“Where exactly is this friend of yours?” Jussy asked.

“Well…she doesn’t exactly consider me a friend.” Poppy shrugged. “But we still talk sometimes. She’s a hunter and a designer. When she was little, she promised to make a special outfit for each and every troll. Satin and Chenille called her out when she learned to make clothes and forgot her promise. She dedicated herself to her goal just to spite them. When she heard about you, she asked me to bring you to her so that she could make you something too.” Poppy explained.

“Oh! Well that’s nice of her.” Jussy smiled. The two kept walking until they reached a tree. Poppy pushed a bush to the side to reveal a small door.

“We’ll have to crouch down to get in, she’s still working on making the doors bigger.” Poppy said. Jussy got on her knees and crawled through. The door led to a small tunnel that was just as small as the door. There wasn’t any light, so she kept blindly going for a few minutes before she suddenly started falling. Jussy let out a scream and kept falling for a few seconds before she landed on a big pile of cotton. Poppy landed next to her, laughing and giggling like a child.

“Poppy! What did I tell you about using that entrance? Its easier to enter through Branch’s bunker.” A voice said.

“But it’s a lot more fun this way! Also, this is Jussy. Jussy, meet Abstract.” Poppy introduced her. Jussy rolled off of the pile of cotton and looked up at the troll that was towering over her intimidatingly. She was a sky-blue troll with pink hair and pink markings on her shoulders and a pink techno troll on her chest. There were pink markings on her ears and freckles that covered most of her face. Abstract stared at Jussy with a glare and leaned down. For a moment, Jussy thought Abstract was about to hurt her, especially with the way she was showing her fangs.

“I’m sorry, I don’t have the best vision. I broke my glasses last week and I can’t find my contacts. I’ll be right back.” Abstract sighed and walked away.

“What…huh?” Jussy turned to Poppy, extremely confused.

“What?” Poppy asked.

“I…she…” Jussy pointed in the direction Abstract had left. Poppy kept staring at her for a few seconds before she understood.

“OOH! You thought she was going to hurt you? No, no, no. She looks different compared to all the other pop trolls, but she’s still one of us. She naturally gives off that scary vibe cause of her eyes, fangs, and hunter instinct. But she never has and never will hurt a troll no matter what. That’s a promise she never forgot.”

“HAH! I FOUND THEM!” Abstract came back running and got a better look at Jussy without glaring at her.

“Okie let’s get a good look at you! Definitely can pull off any color of the rainbow. Green would suit you best though. Butterflies? Yes! Butterflies! I have the perfect materials for you!” Abstract exclaimed as she circled around Jussy.

“I’ll leave you to it!” Poppy smiled and skipped away.

“Come on, I have all my things in another room.” Abstract led Jussy out of the small room. Once they were out, Jussy saw that they were now in a huge room that was filled with different plants. “This is my underground bunker. Its connected to Branch’s by that tunnel.” Abstract pointed towards a tunnel that had a cart sitting in front of the entrance. “We also have a few other backup tunnels incase one collapses. He collects all of his backup food from here, and its also one of the main sources of food for the entire village.” Abstract said.

“Wow! How long have you’ve been doing this?” Jussy asked.

“Ah…since I was around fifteen. I helped Branch build his bunker a long while before I even started making this one. Our brother Cooper was a tiny little troll at the time.” Abstract smiled.

“Cooper is your brother?” Jussy asked.

“Yeah. The three of us had the same adoptive mother.” Abstract stopped for a moment. “We’ve always had each other’s backs from the start. Being the three most different from everyone else…you met him already?” Abstract asked.

“Mhm! Yesterday at the party in Vibe City we danced together and became really good friends.” Jussy blushed a little.

“You both danced togeth-oh…oh…” Abstract suddenly looked annoyed. “So that’s why she brought you up…jeezuz. Follow me. I have all of the things I need in my room.” Abstract picked up the pace. She had Jussy stand in the center of the room on top of a stool. She took a few quick measurements and pulled out green, black, and white fabric. She put a blindfold around Jussy’s eyes.

“Hey! What’s this for?” Jussy exclaimed.

“I don’t like trolls seeing how I make the clothes. It’s kinda like a secret family recipe. Nobody’s allowed to know but me and my brothers.” Abstract explained. “Just try to stay as still as possible.”

~Meanwhile~

“You’re gonna visit her already?” Prince D asked. Smirking at his brother.

“Yes! I am! Plus, it’s not like I’m just visiting her, I’m also visiting my other friends.” Cooper said, digging through his dresser for his hat.

“Mhm. Cause you can’t help, falling in love, with, her.” Prince D sang, teasing Cooper. All that did was earn a glare from his twin. Darnell laughed. “I’m just messing with you. Plus, you don’t have to rush. Its really early in the morning.” Darnell yawned. “Honestly, you should’ve just been waking up right now.” Prince D said.

“Sorry, I’ve always woken up right before the sun rose growing up in Pop Village.” Cooper said.

“But why though?” Darnell asked.

“Ever since the pop trolls took me in, that’s just how its been. Abstract said that Branch always woke up an hour before sunrise to leave the pod and work on his bunker before our adoptive mother could catch him. She got him to sleep a little later and she started waking up early and would have me get up too so that the three of us could work on it together. We tried to adjust to a later sleeping schedule after it was finally done, but we ended up stuck like that.” Cooper laughed.

“Adoptive mother? You never mentioned having one before. You said Abstract raised you and Branch.” Darnell mentioned. Cooper stopped looking for a moment.

“We used to have one. I don’t remember her much…anyways, have you seen my hat anywhere?” Cooper asked. Darnell shook his head.

“Nah, bro. Where’d you see it last.” Darnell asked.

“I don’t remember!” Cooper exclaimed. He kept looking through drawers, under the bed, and everywhere else in his room. But no matter what he moved or shoved around, he couldn’t find his hat. There was a knock on his door.

“Hey, Cooper. Have you seen-oh.” King Quincy noticed his son panicking.

“You lost something too, huh?” Quincy asked.

“I can’t find my hat anywhe-what happened to your cape?” Cooper asked. Quincy was wearing a purple cape with yellow stars instead of his usual golden one.

“I couldn’t find my cape anywhere.” Quincy laughed.

“Sorry, I forgot to tell you both.” Queen Essence walked up next to Quincy. I took your hat and your cape to Pop Village. The hat had a rip and the cape had an unremovable stain in it. I asked Abstract for help.”

“You did?” Cooper asked.

“I think Poppy said something about taking Jussy to meet Abstract today.” Darnell mentioned.

“She did!?” Cooper started to worry. Abstract had always been protective of both Cooper and Branch. If Jussy was meeting Abstract today and Poppy told Abstract about his crush on Jussy, he didn’t want there to be an ugly fight. “We gotta get to Pop Village now!” Cooper exclaimed.

~With Jussy and Abstract~

“Eek! That tickles!” Jussy giggled.

“Sorry.” Abstract tried not to laugh. She was putting the finishing touches on the outfit and she had accidentally poked Jussy with the needles a few times, causing her to laugh. When Abstract had started, Jussy felt like a bunch of blankets were thrown on top of her, then they slowly started to wrap around her and started to feel lighter. Abstract finally took off the blindfold.

“I could do better than this, but its still one of my best works yet. What do you think?” Abstract spun Jussy around to face the mirror. She was wearing a short green fairy-like dress with black sleeves that had green butterflies, silver leggings, and a green sparkly silk fabric that was wrapped around her waist and connected to her wrists.

“Woah.” Jussy stared at herself in the mirror.

“Oh! Almost forgot.” Abstract left for a moment and came back with something in her hands. “And there! Done.” Abstract had given Jussy a pair of silver butterfly earrings.

“You do this for everyone?” Jussy asked, surprised.

“Everyone that will let me. It helps me feel connected with the other trolls. Each one has their own unique design that I create on the spot. I have made some other unique pieces that have them come back for another outfit for a party or other special occasion. I’m not as popular as Satin and Chenille, but I have a hella lot more customers.” Abstract beamed proudly.

“You run a shop?” Jussy asked.

“Mhm. You have a crush on Cooper?” Abstract casually changed the subject.

“Maybe.” Jussy blushed. “Wait, why’d you change the subject so suddenly?!” Jussy became flustered.

“Well, he’s my brother. I like to get to know the trolls that possibly want to date him.” Abstract shrugged.

“Uh…I remember Poppy saying you’re a hunter?” Jussy mentioned.

“Mhm. I am. I don’t have much of a choice. I have to hunt down predators for meat.” Abstract smiled, showing off her fangs. “You seem like a nice troll, and I made a promise to protect my village, but when it comes to my brothers, I won’t hesitate to hurt someone to protect them. Ya got that?” Abstract crossed her arms.

“Yes, I understand.” Jussy put her hands up.

“Good. Cooper should be here any minute now. Queen Essence dropped off his hat and King Quincy’s cape after the party yesterday so I could fix them. I assume the real reason Poppy brought you here was to use me to set up another date for you two. Which I don’t mind…but it would’ve been nice if she had actually told me. Anyways, Queen Essence should be here any second. I’ll ask her if she can take you with her to Vibe City so you can see Cooper. Just…no funny business.” Abstract pointed a finger at Jussy as she grabbed the hat and cape and put them on top of a desk.

“Yeah, got it!” Jussy put her hands up again. There was a sudden slam that caused them both to jump.

“Uh…Queen Essence must’ve sent a guard to get them instead?” Abstract asked more than said.

“ABSTRACT WAI-ACK!” Cooper came running in and ended up tripping over his own feet and fell down.

“Cooper!?” Jussy exclaimed.

“Cooper!” Abstract smiled. Cooper rushed himself to get back on his feet and froze when he saw Jussy. “Hey Coop, whatcha doin here?” Abstract asked, she had expecting him to still be in Vibe City. Jussy sighed in relief when she realized he was okay and smiled.

“Hi Cooper!” Jussy waved at him. Cooper was starting to blush again.

“Uh…Coop?” Abstract asked, a little concerned.

“If being super cute is a superpower, this troll has it!” Cooper thought to himself.

He already knew Jussy was the most beautiful troll he ever laid his eyes on, and she somehow looked even more beautiful. The sparkle in her eyes and the way her smile seemed to light up the entire room made Cooper’s heartbeat quicken. Abstract started to realize what was going on. She grabbed the hat and put it on for him and handed him King Quincy’s cape.

“Your mom dropped these off yesterday. Sorry if you turned your room upside down looking for it this morning.” Abstract turned to Jussy. “Hey while you’re here, should may as well take Jussy with you.” Abstract pushed Jussy towards Cooper.

“Oh, uh h-hi Jussy!” Cooper managed to finally find his voice.

“Hi Cooper.” Jussy giggled. Abstract saw the way Cooper melted at the sound of her voice and smirked.

“Damn he’s got it bad.” Abstract muttered to herself. She gave Jussy a little nudge towards the exit. “Why don’t you go ahead and go outside. I need a minute to talk to Cooper.” Abstract said.

“Oh, uh, okay!” Jussy nodded and skipped outside. Abstract waited until she heard the door close and then turned towards Cooper.

“I know that look.” Abstract said to him. Cooper smiled awkwardly and turned away. “As much as I love teasing you sometimes, which is the only reason I made that dress,” Abstract laughed when Cooper gasped and glared at her. “I don’t want to see you get hurt.” Abstract became serious. “We went through a lot when we were younger. A lot of trolls deceived and tricked us. And even today its easy to mistake a liar as a genuinely kind troll. Jussy seems nice…but I just want you to be careful.” Cooper listened to her and sighed.

“I know you worry, but you gotta believe me, she’s not that kind of troll.” Cooper said.

“You just met her yesterday and I can see that you’ve fallen crazy in love with her.” Abstract pointed out. “Sometimes it ends up with the sweet happy ending, but I’ve witnessed it end with broken hearts firsthand. Are you sure you can trust her even as a friend?” Abstract asked.

“We’ve encountered a lot of bad trolls in the past, but she’s not like any of them.” Cooper smiled and blushed a little bit. “I’m sure, without a doubt, that she’s the one.” Abstract sighed and nodded.

“I just…I want you to be safe. You know I’m just looking out for you, right?” Abstract asked.

“Yeah, I know. I’m just glad you didn’t scare her away.” Cooper chuckled.

“Oh, I was close to doing it. But she’s a lot braver than most pop trolls when it comes to seeing my fangs, or me in general, I’ll give her that.”

“That’s good. By the way, why did you make the dress the way you did?” Cooper glared at her again.

“Whaaaaat? I don’t know what you’re talking about. It’s not even one of my best works.” Abstract tried to refrain from smiling. “I just happened to make her sparkle like a star and look like a fairy, so what?”

“YOU MADE HER LOOK LIKE A GODDESS!” Cooper burst. Abstract started laughing. “I’m already barely able to keep myself up and put a sentence together around her, are you trying to make me have a heart attack?!”

“Oh, stop being dramatic and get out there. Woo your goddess and show her how much you love her. Just remember what I said.” Abstract gave Cooper a shove.

“Yeah, I got it.” Cooper said and ran outside to find Jussy. Abstract waited a few minutes until he was gone to go outside as well and found Poppy waiting for her.

“Proud of yourself?” Abstract asked.

“Yes!” Poppy squealed as she watched Cooper and Jussy walking and talking to each other. At least, Jussy was doing most of the talking. Cooper was a blushing mess. Any troll could see how deeply in love he was with her at this point.

“You could’ve just asked me to help set up a date between them instead of tricking me into doing it.” Abstract said.

“I didn’t mean to do that. I just wanted you to get to know her since Cooper has a crush on her-”

“Head over heels, deeply in love with her you mean?” Abstract asked.

“Yes…I didn’t know Cooper was going to show up.”

“But you were counting on it, weren’t you?”

“…Maybe.”

“Just let me know when they start planning the wedding so I can help with her dress. I might have my doubts, but I have a feeling that they aren’t separating any time soon.” Abstract said. Her ear started twitching. She could literally hear Cooper reciting poems to Jussy now.

“Well someone found their courage fast.”

@jade-green-butterfly

Once again I am so sorry for making you wait so long for this. I got major writer's block while writing since I'm not used to writing OC x character requests. I hope you don't mind me inserting my own OC into this. It was the only way I could find a break through my writer's block. Also, here's an offer if your interested.

I'm working on a Trolls AU and this is how I pictured you in it. The wings not only are actually working wings for flying, they're extra armour for the back. Jussy most likely wouldn't come in until extremely late in the story, but if you're interested, let me know!

Here's a lil extra fanart

I was teaching myself how to use my different colored pencils while coloring these so some of the pictures have a weird color. I used filters to fix it as much as I could.

#trolls #trolls world tour #hickory #cooper #poppy #branch #DJ Suki #Legsly #Tiny Diamond #Guy Diamond #Biggie #Mr. Dinkles #Satin #Chenille #Fuzzbert #Smidge #Dickory #King Quincy #Queen Essence #Prince D #Cooper #Abstract #Vibe City #Trolls x Reader #Trolls x OC #Cooper x Jussy #Coosy #Request #Art #You have so much patience it's amazing

[ifuckedchrisevans]

One Beer - Part One

*this is a work of FICTION. Don’t like? don’t read :)

*All pics in the collage are from pinterest 

This is also my first time attempting a mini series so please go easy on me! Let me know what you think.

Based off the song One Beer by Hardy you can listen to it HERE

High school sweethearts AU with Chris | You and Chris just graduated high school. You have an amazing summer planned before you and your friends part ways for the fall and go on to your separate schools. But what happens when things don’t go as planned?  

🎶Seventeen in a small town, weak knees in a CVS. Door locked in the bathroom, what’s it gonna be waitin’ on that test? 🎶

You took one more deep breath before climbing out of your car and quickly walking into the CVS. You wandered around the store for a few moments to make sure you didn’t recognize anyone. In a small town like this, it’s a miracle you don’t run into at least three people no matter where you go. 

You swallowed the lump in your throat and walked under the sign that you'd been avoiding for so long, “Family Planning”. 

You grabbed the first one you laid your eyes on and hastily made your way to the counter to pay for the test. Your sweaty hands swiped the pink and white box off the counter and shoved it into your sweatshirt pocket.

After speeding home you ran inside for the bathroom, locking the door behind you. It was 3:00 pm. Your parents wouldn’t be home for another hour. That gave you just enough time to take the test and throw it out far, far away from the house. 

You placed the test on the counter and set a timer on your phone. With weak knees you leaned on the wall and slid down to the floor. 

“This can’t be happening” you whispered to yourself, blinking back tears. 

Through the tears a small smile made its way across your face when you thought about how much fun you had with Chris that night. 

*Flashback*

The alcohol was flowing and everyone was celebrating the end of senior year. You were finishing your fourth cup of jungle juice when you felt a pair or strong arms wrap around your waist. You closed your eyes and smiled, inhaling the oh so familiar scent of his cologne. 

“You look absolutely breathtaking tonight,” his raspy voice whispered in your ear. 

You turned around in his arms to face him. Your (Y/E/C) eyes looked up, meeting his drunken, goofy grin. You sloppily pressed your lips to his. 

“One more cup?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes, please!” you giggled while you walked hand in hand to the kitchen. 

Chris poured you another cup of jungle juice and grabbed another beer for himself. Just as you were taking the first sip of your new drinks, “Country Roads” by John Denver started blaring from the speakers. 

Chris took your hand and the two of you made your way back to the make-shift dance floor in the living room to sing at the top of your lungs one last time with your friends. 

“I never want this night to end” you thought to yourself, looking at all of your friends around you laughing and singing along. In just three short months everyone would be moving away for their first year of college. 

You had gotten into your dream school and Chris was going to start pursuing his dream of acting. You were going to visit each other every weekend, taking turns on who would drive to who.

Chris' drunken voice pulled you from your thoughts.

“What do you say we ditch the send off and go straight to the room?” he said as his hands started to wander your body. 

*BEEP BEEP BEEP*

The timer went off and brought you back to reality. Your shaking hand silenced the alarm. You closed your eyes, said one more silent prayer before you slowly stood up to look at the test. 

You stood there hoping you were reading it wrong. Maybe you read the instructions wrong? Maybe it’s the lighting?

Nope. It was right. Those two pink lines were staring you right in the face. 

“Fuck” you whispered. Wiping the tears from your eyes. 

Your phone lit up with the handsome brunette’s face on your screen. Chris must have just finished work. He promised he would call as soon as his shift ended. 

You took a deep breath and swiped the screen to answer.

“Hello,” you said quietly.

“Hey, baby! I just got off,” Chris beamed through the phone

“Oh, uh, that’s great!” you said, trying to sound like nothing was wrong.

“Is everything okay?” he asked.

“Yeah, yeah, of course, everything is fine. I just, uh, woke up from a nap.”

“A nap? You never take naps, are you feeling okay?” Chris asked, his concerned tone only growing stronger. 

“I-I’m okay, I felt a migraine coming so I decided to close my eyes for a few minutes.” you said, rubbing your forehead.

Chris was not buying any of this. Why were you even trying to play it off? You were going to have to tell him anyway.

But what are the chances this is 100% true? These give false positives all the time. There was no sense of causing unnecessary stress. 

“Baby? You still there?” Chris' voice pulled you from your thoughts. 

“I’m here, I really need to go lie down, I think this is a migraine coming. Call me after you eat dinner?” you said with a sigh.

“Sure, get some rest and I’ll call you soon,” Chris said.

“Talk to you soon,” you whispered.

“I love you,” he said in a gentle voice. 

“I love you too, Chris.”

The line hung up and you looked at yourself in the mirror. 

“These things are wrong all the time, there’s no way this is right” you said to yourself.

You wiped the tears from your eyes and wrapped the test in toilet paper before you stuffed it into your sweatshirt pocket. You had to get yourself and the test out of here before your parents got home. 

After gathering your purse and your keys, you run out to your car. You find yourself mindlessly driving around town. Twenty minutes pass before you decide to park in the mall parking lot. You chose the lot near the entrance of the now out of business SEARS department store. 

“How am I supposed to tell him?” you wondered out loud. “I have to tell him.” You said to yourself. 

Your trembling hand reached for your phone to call your boyfriend. It only took two rings before Chris answered. 

“Hey, baby! How are you feeling?” he asked.

“I’m alright,” you said quietly, “c-can you meet me somewhere?” you stuttered.

“Of course, (Y/N), are you okay?” you could hear the fear in his voice.

“No,” you squeaked, “can you come meet me at the mall? I’m parked in the back lot.”

“I’m on my way,” Chris said, rushing out his front door and into his car. 

 Ten minutes passed before Chris’ car pulled up next to yours. You felt sick to your stomach when you saw him. His blue eyes locked with yours. 

You got out of your car and climbed into his passenger seat. 

“Baby, what is going on?” Chris asked, cupping your face in his hand. 

“Will you still love me after I tell you?” you asked in a low voice, looking up at him through your eyelashes. 

“Nothing in this world could make me stop loving you,” he whispered. 

You took a deep breath and reached into your sweatshirt pocket. You unfolded the paper that was wrapped around the test, and sat it on the center console between the two of you. 

It felt like hours passed before Chris said anything. 

“A-are you sure?” he stuttered out. 

“I think so,” you said, your voice was barely over a whisper. 

“Chris, what are we going to do?” You cried.

He leaned over and wrapped you in his arms, “it’s okay, shhh, we’re gonna be okay.”

Chris pulled back from the hug and cupped your face in his hands. 

“I’m not going anywhere, we’re in this together,” he stated, his blue eyes watered and a single tear fell on his cheek. 

With a soft smile, you wiped it away with your thumb. 

“I’m scared,” you admitted. 

“Me too,” he whispered.

#Chris Evans au #chris evans #chris Evans fanfic #things i wrote #one beer

[x-reader-theater]

Doubt {2}

Relationship: Lucifer Morningstar x Non-Binary!Reader

Summary: And so begins the adjustment to life back on earth. What does it have in store for you, and how will you feel after everything Lucifer does for you?

Warnings: Cursing, Graphic Body Horror, Lucifer being a Bastard

Word Count: 4724 words

A/N: Please like and reblog, and make sure to share it with people if you like it! This isn’t going to be that long, but each individual chapter is at least 3k words so... I’m sorry but I’m also not loll. Also, if you like reading things on AO3 more, you can read it here. 

[Prev.] <= [First] => [Next]

Chapter 2:  The Big Bad Wolf Caught an Angel

You walk down the stairs the next morning to see Lucifer talking with the Detective. 

"Ah! Angel! How good to see you again!" Lucifer says. 

"You as well Lucifer," you say, going to join him at the bar. "And you as well Detective Decker. I don't think we've really had a chance to talk." 

The detective nods. "You know, I would love to. But, Lucifer and I have a case. So if you wouldn't mind, we should get going now." 

The detective gets up and grabs her things, looking at Lucifer to follow her. He gets up suddenly and follows her, waving at you before he goes, leaning into you, and saying quickly, "Maze has had her fun, it's my turn tonight." 

You nod and watch as he walks out with the detective. 

The door closes behind you, and you listen as one set of footsteps start to walk away, while another stays still. You walk closer to the door and lean up against the wall as you listen in to what the two are saying. 

"No, Lucifer, I can't be nicer. She's cra-!" The detective yells, before quieting her voice. "Crazy…" 

"They are not crazy. They're scared," Lucifer says. "This is new to them." 

"Huh. Never thought you'd care about someone other than yourself." You can hear the shock in her voice being masked by indignation. 

"Yes, well. This is a special case…" Lucifer says, and you smile. 

They begin talking about whatever case they're working on and you walk away back to the middle of the club. You smile as you pour yourself a drink, and take a sip from it. 

[Now Playing: Devil's Waitin' by Black Rebel Motorcycle Club]

"So, what do you want to eat?" Lucifer says as he bursts through the front doors. You look up from the book you're reading. 

"I'm sorry?" You ask, putting the book down. 

He walks over and sits next to you at the bar. "I want to remind you how… amazing earth is. And so, we… are going to get something to eat. What do you want?" 

"Do we need to eat?" You ask. "Because, humans need to eat to survive. But, we're not humans." You hold up the book you were reading. 

"Where did you get that? And what is that book?" Lucifer asks. 

"Oh this?" You ask, holding up the book. "Maze gave it to me. Said it would help me 'Understand humans' or something."

"Is that… a romance book?" Lucifer asks. "She gave you a cheesy romance book to learn about humans?" Lucifer looks at you like you're insane before grabbing the book out of your hands and putting it down on the bar. "Nope. Come on. I'm going to take you out and teach you all you need to know about humanity." 

"You lost my place!" You say as he drags you away. 

"It's not worth it anyways," he says, stopping before you get to the door. "I was going to say we need to change, but you look lovely in that dress, angel." He's smirking again. That same smirk as before, the one he had when you met Arianna. 

"Let's get to dinner," you say back to him, patting him on his chest. 

"Ooh, alright angel. Whatever you say." 

[Now Playing: Devil's Head Down by Pearl and the Beard]

"So, what is this place?" You ask as Lucifer leads you out of his… automobile? No. He called it a car. 

"This is a restaurant. Humans come here for some sort of, mating ritual for their relationships," Lucifer replies, placing a hand on your back to lead you towards the entrance. He tosses his keys, yeah, you knew that one, to a man standing in front of the restaurant. You don't know that one yet. "Usually we need reservations for this place but… I know the owner. He owes me a favour." 

You stop Lucifer for a moment, turning to him, confused. "Reservation?" 

He sighs and starts moving forward again. "I'll tell you later."

You shrug as you walk inside. 

The place is flashy and elegant, with lots of red upholstery and gilded furniture. The people in the restaurant are equally as opulent, dressed in fine silks and satins, dripping with diamonds and brightly colored gems of all shapes and sizes. You look around in awe at everyone, and then look down at your own short cocktail dress that Maze lent you and start to feel very underdressed. 

Lucifer leads you past the line of waiting people directly to the front. There are a few shouts of protests behind you, but when you get to the front and Lucifer flashes a smile, the stewardess smiles at him and moves closer. 

He puts a hand out to stop her. "I'm sorry, but I'm taken for the night. Can you get Joey for me?" The girl nods, stunned, and walks in the opposite direction. 

"That's very impressive," you say to Lucifer, who looks down at you, eyebrows raised. "Is that the thing you can do here on earth?" 

Lucifer smiles a wide, toothy, half grin, and says, "Well, one of the things. I can also find out people's darkest desires. The things they want most in the world." He grins and looks away toward where the stewardess left, before looking back down at you. "Why do you ask?" 

You shrug. "I was just wondering. Mostly because, like I told you before, I can see people's true selves. Like, I don't see the man you present as. I see the man you are. Underneath all that." Lucifer nods, looking away. You sigh and point over toward a table where a man is talking with a woman. "See that human man there? He has two faces and his eyes are always shifting. It means he's duplicitous, he likes to lie a lot. One of his faces is looking at the girl across from him, but the other is looking at a girl across the room. He's telling the girl he loves her while his eyes are looking at another woman." 

You look back to Lucifer, his red, shining skin and red eyes are contorted into shock and awe. "And you got all that just from looking at some man's face?" You nod. "Now that's impressive." 

You shrug. "God gave me this ability. I looked upon his true form and he blinded me, and when he gave me back my sight, he blessed me with this gift." 

Lucifer looks down upon you with pity. "But, you never get to see the way people look on the outside. People spend time on their appearances, to make themselves look good. I mean, I chose the way I looked specifically because of that. Because I was attractive to people." 

You smile up at Lucifer and run your fingers over his face. "But that means I get to know you for you. I get to look past the appearances and see who you truly are inside."

"A monster?" 

"A man."

"Lucifer!" You hear someone call to you. Looking away from the man in question, you see someone, who you presume to be Joey, with his arms out, grinning wildly. The Stewardess is also walking back. Her face is round, and covered in crumbs, but she's skinny as a twig. All she wants is to eat a cupcake, and you suspect she likes to sneak one every now and again. She also has an unread script attached to her waist, denoting that she goes to auditions but doesn't prepare enough to get any good jobs. 

Joey on the other hand has every single pocket stuffed with dollar bills. He likes to cut costs in the kitchen and with employees, paying them less than he actually should. You also see his cuffs are stained red, but his shirt is a pristine white. Interesting. 

"Joey!" Lucifer says, patting the greedy man on the shoulder. His face looks like a lightly tinted green and yellow. 

"Lucifer! I just want to thank you again. Without your help, I would never have been able to open up this place," Joey exclaims and the Stewardess leans in toward Lucifer, who smiles guiltily and pushes her away. "Susannah! Get back to work!" 

She seems to snap out of her lustful gazing and walks back to her podium. 

"Yes, I need a table for two, Joey," Lucifer says. 

Joey looks you up and down before looking at Lucifer. "Seriously?" He says it as if he doesn't believe Lucifer is going to have dinner with someone like you. "You're going to have dinner, alone, with this guy?" 

"Not a guy," you say quickly, watching as Lucifer's face drops the smile it was holding. 

"Get us that table, Joey," Lucifer says, his voice dropping to barely above a whisper, a low growl underneath it. 

Joey gulps and nods quickly, grabbing two menus from the stewardess' podium before leading you to an outside table and setting the menus down in front of you. He smiles at Lucifer before walking off, not even glancing your way. 

Lucifer grimaces in his direction before turning back to you, looking genuinely sorry. "I'm so sorry about him. I didn't know he'd be such a…" 

"An asshole?" You supply, 

Lucifer laughs. "Yes. I suppose that fits." 

You smile, but cock your head to the side. "You don't seem like the kind of man to apologise for someone else's actions, Lucifer. Why do you keep doing it for me?" 

Lucifer goes to talk, but pauses, biting his lip. He actually thinks about what he's about to say to you. "I-" he goes to say, but he cuts himself off to think a little more about his words. "I can talk to you about things no one understands. Maze never fell, she was created in hell, the Detective doesn't believe me, the doctor doesn't believe me." Lucifer grabs your hand and squeezes it. "I don't have to hide anything from you." 

You smile and squeeze his hand back. "Thank you." 

Lucifer smiles, and you see matching long canines to Maze's. He leans in close and says low, "I wasn't kidding. You look ravishing, angel." 

You smile and look down at your dress again. "You think so? I feel very underdressed," you say, looking around at everyone else sitting outside with you. 

Lucifer leans in again and says, "I would have you right now if I could. I'm sure Joey wouldn't mind…" 

You smile politely and take your hand away from his. "I think I'm alright, Lucifer." 

He leans back in his chair, and you look around, suddenly feeling a little overwhelmed. You look back over to Lucifer and say, "I don't just see people's true forms." Lucifer looks up at you as you say this, waiting for what you're about to say. "I can also hear things most people would not. I can hear heartbeats when I'm close enough, and I can hear voices from other rooms." Lucifer is looking at you confused. "I heard what Detective Decker said this morning. About how I'm crazy."

"You're not crazy," Lucifer says suddenly, getting up from his chair slightly. 

"Why? I would think to a human I would sound insane," you say. "Why aren't I crazy?" 

"Because if you're crazy, then what does that make me?" Lucifer asks. He's not telling, but people are looking at him now. 

You nod. "The detective doesn't understand," you say quietly. "She doesn't understand what it's like to fall." 

Lucifer looks up at you, not really sure what to say. You sit in silence for a little bit, drinking your wine with Lucifer. The silence isn't uncomfortable, but you definitely still have a lot to talk about. It's as if the words are hanging in the air, and none of you are willing to reach out and grab them. 

And then Lucifer gets a call. He takes out the small device you've seen a few other humans holding, and puts it up to his ear. 

"Ah! Detective! To what do I owe this pleasure?" He asks. You lean in, taking in his intonation, the way he's talking to her. You hear something on the other end, Detective Decker sounding stressed and rushed. 

"Lucifer. We have another case. At the pier," she says into her phone. "I'm on my way to Lux now, I'm coming to pick you up."

"Oh, no, my dear detective. I'm not at Lux. I'm out, having dinner," Lucifer says. 

"Oh! Oh, okay, uh, I'll text you the address. I'll see you there? Yeah. Yeah." The detective says, and you hear the click of the phone call ending. 

"Well," Lucifer says, putting his phone away in his pocket. "I have to go, you know, a murder happened and all. I'll drop you back off at Lux, and I'll be back, probably." He gets up and walks around the table to you, helping you out of your chair. But before you can take a step away, he pulls you in and whispers low in your ear, "And then we can finish what we started tonight." 

He practically has to carry you back to his car. 

[Now Playing: Moon River by Audrey Hepburn]

You smile at the song coming through the speakers, closing your eyes, and setting down your book for a moment. You lean back into the, probably, really dirty couch. You let the music wash over you, a music that you didn't get in either heaven or hell. You smile as you open your eyes, tilting your head from side to side with the music. 

"What is all this?" You hear someone say. Opening your eyes, you see the bright red face of Lucifer staring back at you. "You having a little fun there?" 

You hold up the book you're reading. "I was just reading, listening to some music. Maze taught me how to use the sound system. Introduced me to this thing called Spotify," you say, putting your finger in the book and closing it. "Have you ever heard of it?" 

"Yeah. Yeah. Of course I've heard of it," Lucifer says, sitting down on the couch as well, putting your feet into his lap. "Now, what are you reading this time?" 

You hold up the book. "It's a children's book. There's a 24 hour bookshop down the street. I… went down there, because I was bored and I kinda… stole it…" 

Lucifer's eyes light up and he looks at you in shock and awe. "You stole that! I'm impressed! Our little angel doing some truly devilish deeds at last!" 

You smile, then look down at the book, guilty. "Yes, well, then I went back and left a twenty on the counter because I felt guilty."

"Ooh, not so good. But! It's a start!" He says, putting his hands on your ankles. You flinch away from the touch, and you look away, feeling guilty. "Is something wrong, Angel?" 

"I'm still not used to… touch," you respond, folding the page you're on and setting it down on the ground. 

"Do you want to get better?" Lucifer asks, hovering his hand over your legs. 

You feel your cheeks heat up and you move your legs back over his. "I- I wouldn't be opposed. I think… it may be good to get used to it. It won't help me if I flinch every time someone bumps into me on the street, or I have a breakdown because someone touched my hand while I was giving them money…" 

"We'll go slow," Lucifer says, placing his hands back on your ankles. You stop yourself from moving away again, and just let him stay there. 

Eventually you fall asleep. When you wake up the next morning, there's a blanket on you, and you're still on the couch. But, there's no sign of Lucifer except that your feet are a little cold. 

[Now Playing: Blue Healer by Bird Talker]

"So. I'm glad you came to our session today," Doctor Linda says. She sounds a bit surprised though, which you don't really expect. "How did you get here?" 

You shrug. "I walked." 

"But- but that's a long way! Why did you walk?" Linds asks, even more surprised. 

You shrug again. "I don't exactly have anything to do." 

"So, what have you been doing?" 

"Reading. Sleeping. Talking with Lucifer and Maze." 

"Do you have any other friends?" You think for a moment. Then two. Wracking your brain for any names, any at all. None come up. And apparently, you take too long for Doctor Linda. "Well. Maybe that's what we should do first. Give you something to do, get you to meet more people…" 

You think for a moment. You might have an idea. 

[Now Playing Howling at the Moon by D Fine Us]

"Okay, it's really simple. The drinks aren't that hard to make," Maze says to you, yelling over the music.  You nod, watching Maze pour the drinks with much precision and grace. She hands you the mixed cocktail, and when you go to take a sip, she stops you. "Ah, ah, ah." She points to a woman at the bar who's looking at you annoyed, and you sheepishly give her the green tinted drink. She takes it from you rather forcefully, and you have to step back a bit so it doesn't spill on you. 

"Sorry, sorry," you say to the woman as she walks off. You don't think she heard you. You turn back to Maze feeling guilty. 

She rolls her eyes and starts making another drink. A man comes up to the bar, handsome fellow, with black hair and brown eyes and skin. He smiles at you and you smile back and you feel your cheeks heat up. 

"Wh-what can I do for you?" You ask the handsome man. 

"A whiskey," he says, leaning in so he doesn't have to talk as loud. 

You look back at the wall of alcohol, before turning back to the man and saying, "Which one?" 

He leans in closer, smiling. "You choose." 

You smile and turn away, looking at all the bottles on the wall. Not knowing which one is which, you turn to Maze and whisper in her ear, "What's the best whiskey you have?" 

You gesture with your eyes towards the man who's looking around now, tapping his fingers on the bar. Maze smirks and reaches down underneath the bar, pulling out a bottle from amongst a bunch of very expensive looking bottles. You mouth 'Thank you' to her, and she smiles at you. 

You grab a glass and walk over to him, pouring a small glass of Whiskey for the man. He smiles at you and takes a small sip, letting you watch as he swallows slowly. 

"Mmm. This is divine," he says. 

"Not quite," you reply with a smile. 

The man laughs and takes another sip of his whiskey. "So, what's your name?" 

"[Y/N]. And you?" You ask in reply. 

"Gabriel," he responds. 

"Like the Archangel?" You ask with a laugh. Gabriel laughs under his breath and nods. "Huh. You seem… nothing like him…" you mutter underneath your breath, barely loud enough for even you to hear. 

"My parents were- are Catholic. They thought it was funny to name their son after an archangel," he laughs at that. It's not particularly funny, but it's funny to him. "And I thought it was funny that their only son went off to college and partied every day." 

"You sound more like a demon than an angel," you say. 

He smiles. "Oh? And what would you know about that?" 

You scoff and look away from him, over your shoulder almost. You look back at him and say, "Quite a bit, actually." 

He looks at you disbelieving, but like he wants to drag you across the bar and… do something to you. 

"Oh! Well! What do we have here?" You hear someone say. Looking up from your staring contest with Gabriel. "The Angel having a little fun on the job?" 

You roll your eyes and pour a glass of whiskey for Lucifer. You give him the glass and he takes it from you, brushing his fingers against yours. You don't pull your hand away, you don't flinch, and you let your hand stay there for a couple of seconds. Finally, Lucifer pulls his fingers away, but you don't stop looking at him, and he doesn't take his glowing red eyes away from you. 

"Oookay. I don't know what this thing is, but-" you hear a slapping sound on the bar -"Here's a fifty. I'm going to leave you two… yeah." 

You hear the chair scraping and you finally blink and look away towards Gabriel. "Wait!" You call after him. He stops and turns around. "It was nice talking to you!" 

He smiles and nods, turning around and leaving Lux. 

You turn back to Lucifer who raises an eyebrow. "What, did I ruin your moment?" Lucifer asks. 

You glare at him, though there's no malice behind your eyes. "I was trying to make a friend." 

Lucifer scoffs. "Make a friend? He wanted to bend you over the bar and take you in front of all these people!" He waves his arm out and you roll your eyes. 

You scoff. "Are you jealous?" 

Lucifer leans back in his chair, mouth agape, looking shocked and offended that you would ever imply that. "I beg your pardon! The devil isn't jealous!" Lucifer says. 

You laugh lightly behind your hand. "Okay. Okay," you say, leaning back and putting your hands up. "So the devil doesn't get jealous." You smile at Lucifer. "You know that book I was reading before?" Lucifer nods slowly, looking at you like you're confusing him. 

"What- what does this have to do with anyth-" Lucifer asks but you cut him off. 

"Shhhh!" You say putting a hand up. His eyebrows shoot up and he leans back in his chair, folding his arms across his chest, waiting for you to continue. "Now. The book I was reading was ‘The Three Little Pigs.’" Lucifer scoffs and rolls his eyes and you put up a hand again. "I know, I know. It's a children's book, it's meaningless drivel, blah blah blah. But there was something about it that reminded me…" You shake your head. "Anyways, the story's about these pigs and the houses they're making. Now there's this wolf who really wants to get into those houses, and the story frames the wolf as the bad guy. He wants to get into the houses and eat the pigs. I don't think he actually wants to do this. I think he wants to be in the pig's lives, but instead of asking nicely, and respecting them, he blows down their houses, until one of the pigs builds a house that the wolf can't blow down, and he's shut out of the pig's lives." You let out a breath and Lucifer goes to talk, but you cut him off. "What I'm trying to say is, Lucifer…" You reach out and grab his hand. "Don't be the wolf who caught the angel. Don't get jealous and destroy the nice things you have. You never know when someone will build a wall you can't break down." 

You get up and walk away from Lucifer, and you hear him calling from behind you, "I'm not jealous!" 

[Now Playing: Illusion of Bliss by Alicia Keys] 

 You stand in front of the mirrors again, looking at your wings, at the perfectly white bone protruding from your back. You move them up and down. They don't hurt anymore. At least, you don't notice any pain. You're sure there's still some underneath there somewhere, but you must have gotten used to it. You watch as your wings flex out to their full size before relaxing back into their original state. They haven't gotten any bigger or smaller since the last time you checked. You guess that's good. That means you haven't done anything good or bad. 

But do you want that? To live in stagnation for the rest of time while humanity withers and dies from wars waged in God's name? 

"[Y/N]! I wanted to talk to you about tonight!" 

You turn to the door and watch it being opened by someone, by Lucifer, and you go to hide your wings. 

But it's too late. 

"Angel-" Lucifer stops as he watches the bone fold back into your skin, which fuses over it, and the scars reform, and stanch the blood flowing from your back. "Wha…" 

"I can explain!" You exclaim, putting your hands out. You don't know if it's to protect you or Lucifer from you. 

"Your wings…" he breathes out. He reaches out but there's nothing to touch. You turn around, and let your wings once again break through your skin and blood once again falls down your back. 

While you can't feel Lucifer's hands on your wings, you know they're there, the presence of another celestial being near you is almost enough to make your knees weak. It's stronger on earth than in heaven. At least in heaven everyone's considered celestial. 

You feel him touch where the base of your wings meet your back and you flinch away. 

"I'm sorry…" Lucifer whispers. He sounds in shock and awe. "Have you ever thought about cutting them off?" 

You back away at that and turn around, folding your wings in protectively behind you. "What! I would never!" You take another step back. "How could you even say that?" you whisper. 

"Well, you're a fallen angel now!" Lucifer says, taking a step closer to you. Your back is against the wall now, and you're shaking your head now, tears rolling down your face. "Besides, they're useless anyways."

You shake your head again, even more fervently now than before, and you say quietly under your breath, "No… no…" You look Lucifer in the eye and glare at him. "No! I will not cut off my wings!" You fold them protectively around you. "I-I can't! I won't!" 

"But why not!" 

"Because- Because I just can't! If I do, God wins! And I can't let that happen," you say, and Lucifer stops. "I can't let God win…" You look down at the ground, at your feet, and grab your wings. "If God really is all powerful, all mighty, and all good, why do bad things happen to good people? Lucifer, you of all people should understand. I can’t let my hatred of him push me to rash decisions. I don't think my feathers falling off is his doing. This isn't him  because this is a cruel and- and a fucking awful thing to do! And if God really is kind, this isn't him. And if it is, I doubt God even cares for one measly little angel who got pushed out of heaven because they said one. Wrong. Thing." 

Lucifer takes a step forward now, his arms at his side. "Angel…" 

"What!" You yell at him, but he doesn't flinch. 

"Your… your wings!" He says, and looking over, you see new bones growing from the ends of them. You gasp and reach out, feeling as the bone shifts in your hands, getting longer and longer, before finally, they stop growing. Your wings are the size they were before. You hear the bone clacking together, and you smile as tears start falling down your cheeks. 

"How-how is this possible?" Lucifer asks reaching out to touch your wings as well. Your hand finds his on the bone, and you leave your fingers together. 

"I think it's my doubt," you say. "When I questioned why I ever doubted God, when I thought I shouldn't have done it and maybe I would still be in heaven, these bones-" you point to the ones that just grew back using your free hand "-fell off. And turned to ash, just like my feathers. I think it's some- some kind of sick test!" You say, anger penetrating your voice as you spit the words out. Lucifer unclasps your hand and walks away from you, running his fingers over his head. 

"So what does this mean?" Lucifer asks and you walk up to him, turning him around so you can see into his red eyes. 

"What this means, Lucifer, is that God wants me to doubt him. And I don't know why." 

[Now Playing: Like a Star by Corrine Bailey Rae]

#lucifer #lucifer morningstar #fox lucifer #lucifer tv #lucifer x reader #lucifer x gn reader #lucifer x gender neutral reader #lucifer x nb reader #lucifer x non-binary reader #lucifer morningstar x gender neutral reader #lucifer morningstar x non-binary reader #my work #My writing

[abusybuzzingbee]

Hook Man | Supernatural Season 1 Episode 7 Rewrite | Dean x Fem!Reader

A/N:::: Thank you all for being so patient while I sorted this chapter out. Enjoy! :)

Pairing: Dean Winchester x Fem!Reader

Major Characters: Dean Winchester, Reader, Sam Winchester

Warnings: Canon level violence, language, Dean and the reader being assholes to each other TW: mentions of suicide, self-deprecating thoughts

Word Count: 6,030

Summary: In a small town haunted by the spirit of an evil preacher, Sam gets caught up in a crush he feels he should not have. Meanwhile, the reader and Dean continue their bullshit. 

Series Masterlist

Season 1 Masterlist

Click here for the series playlist!

‘Well, you can tell by the way I use my walk

I’m a woman’s man, no time to talk’

“Stayin’ Alive” by the Bee Gees played through your headphones that led from your ears to your back pocket where your iPod was stowed away.

‘Music loud and women warm, I’ve been kicked around

Since I was born’

You had woken up that morning with a strong desire to get your nails done. The polish job you had done on yourself weeks ago looked horrible, and it was time for a change.

‘And now it's alright, it's okay

And you may look the other way’

You had gotten some acrylics put on in a bright shade of red. Your music choice and the way you carried yourself back to the coffee shop you had left the Winchesters at expressed the confidence you were feeling.

‘We can try to understand

The New York Times' effect on man’

Dean refused to let you drive the Impala to the nail salon you went to, but you did not mind walking; it burned calories.

‘Whether you're a brother or whether you're a mother

You're stayin' alive, stayin' alive’

You straightened your sunglasses on the bridge of your nose and took another proud look at your nails. Most girls were able to get their nails done whenever the hell they wanted, and would not be as elated as you were once they had gotten them done. However, you did not always have time between jobs to take care of yourself.

‘Feel the city breakin' and everybody shakin'

And we're stayin' alive, stayin' alive’

As you walked up to the café you had last seen the boys at, you spotted the older brother at a table outside of the coffee shop. 

‘Ah, ha, ha, ha, stayin' alive, stayin' alive

Ah, ha, ha, ha, stayin' alive’

You took your earbuds out and shoved them into your back pocket with your iPod.

“Nice of you to join us, princess,” Dean remarked while you sat at the round table across from him. 

“Ew, don’t call me that,” you grimaced. “That’s your name for your hook-ups.”

He looked up at you over his laptop. “And what would be wrong with being one of my hook-ups?”

“I don’t know, everything?” you snorted, scratching the side of your nose with the end of your nail.

The older brother apparently caught sight of your nails and shook his head. He turned his attention back to typing on the computer in front of him. “I don’t know how you can function with those.” 

“And I don’t know how you can function with your head up your ass, but here we are,” you snapped back. Taking a deep breath, you regained your composure. “What’d you guys do while I was gone?” you asked Sam. 

“I called the FBI, had ‘em check their missing persons data bank. No John Doe’s fitting my dad’s description. I even ran his plates for traffic violations.”

“And you got nothing?”

“Nope.”

“I’m sorry,” you told the brunet.

“Eh, it’s alright,” he tried to shrug off. You saw right through it, and it seemed as if he knew you did. “But, uh, Dean thinks he found a case. Some guy got mauled by the Invisible Man according to the sole witness.”

“Well, what are we waitin’ for?” you smirked. “Let’s go.”

***

“Sam, you got purple shit on your hands,” you told the younger brother as you got into the Impala. 

The boys had come to pick you up from the motel they had dropped you off at about an hour earlier.

To your surprise, Dean chuckled at your comment.

“Dean made me paint our new roommate purple,” Sam grimaced.

“Oh,” you nodded, “must be a game today.”

“A big one, apparently.”

“So, where are we headin’?” you asked.

“To church,” Dean responded.

***

The muffled voice of the preacher carried through the ornate wooden doors of the church Lori Sorenson went to. Sam told her that she was the witness and her father preached at said church. 

Dean led the way through the large doors and held it open for his brother. You tried your best to shut the door quietly, which you did successfully. The congregation hardly noticed you had come in. The three of you sat in the back of the church. 

The voice of the preacher finally registered in your ears as you stared forward blankly. “The loss of a young person is particularly tragic. A life unlived is the saddest of passings. So, please, let us pray. For peace, for guidance, and for the power to protect our children.”

Sam lowered his head just like the rest of the congregation, but you kept yours looking straight ahead. You were not a believer in any sense of the word. 

The younger Winchester nudged you with his elbow, motioning for you to bow your head. You did so reluctantly. 

***

“Y’know, that was the first time I’ve ever gone to church,” you told Sam as you walked out of the mass. 

“Really?”

“Yeah, no, and I definitely don’t regret never having been before after that.” You paused. “That felt like a cult gathering,” you went on.

“Stop talking,” Sam nudged you when he noticed some of the people exiting the church around you giving you strange looks. 

You laughed, quieting down as you walked toward a young woman who you assumed to be Lori. 

“Are you Lori?” Sam asked the brunette.

“Yeah,” she smiled, turning to face you.

“My name is Sam. This is my brother, Dean, and our friend, (Y/N).”

“Hi,” you smiled while Dean waved.

“We just transferred here to the university,” the younger brother continued. 

“I saw you inside,” Lori replied. 

“We don’t wanna bother you. We just heard about what happened and--”

Dean cut his brother off. “We wanted to say how sorry we were.”

“I kind of know what you’re going through. I-I saw someone..get hurt once. It’s something you don’t forget.”

You cast your eyes up to Sam’s face, which was still toward Lori. 

Lori nodded slightly, her smile faltering. 

The reverend walked up to your group.

“Dad, um, this is Sam, Dean, and (Y/N). They’re new students.”

Dean shook Reverend Sorenson’s hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, sir. I must say, that was an inspiring sermon.”

“Thank you very much. It’s so nice to find young people who are open to the Lord’s message.”

It was incredibly hard for you to resist the urge to snort out a laugh.

The older brother chuckled. “Listen, uh, we’re new in town, actually--” he began to lead the reverend away from you, Sam, and Lori, “--And, uh, we were looking for a, um, a church group.”

Catching on to what Dean was doing, you told Sam you would see him later. Sam looked down at you questioningly while you gave him a knowing smirk. 

The tune of “Rocketman” by Elton John left your lips as you whistled, leaning against the car in wait for the brothers. 

Dean was the first to walk up to you. He stuck his hands in his pockets before settling back in the spot on the Impala next to you. 

An awkward silence fell between you both after you stopped whistling. A few minutes passed before Dean spoke up. 

“Y’know, I’m surprised,” he started.

“About what?” 

“You actually kept your mouth shut for more than two seconds.”

“Bite me, Winchester,” you grumbled.

***

Dean lead you and his brother through the rows of books in the town’s public library. Sam was hot on his heels to converse with his brother as they walked.

“So you believe her?” Dean asked.

“I do,” the younger brother responded.

“Yeah, I think she’s hot, too.”

“No, man, there’s something in her eyes. And listen to this: she heard scratching on the roof. Found the bloody body suspended upside down over the car.”

“Wait, the body suspended?” you jumped in, stopping in the middle of the aisle the older brother had led you to. The two Winchesters followed suit and faced you.

“That sounds like the Hook Man legend.”

“Yeah, I know,” Sam nodded.

“That’s one of the most famous urban legends ever.”

“You don’t think that we’re dealing with the Hook Man,” Dean said.

“Every urban legend has a source. A place where it all began.”

“Yeah, but what about the phantom scratches and the tire punctures and the invisible killer?”

“Maybe Mr. Hook Man’s a spirit,” you suggested. 

Dean shook his head, doubting you once again, but headed off to ask the librarian for the town’s death records anyway. 

***

A little while later, you and the boys were sat at a table in the center of the library watching the librarian set large boxes on your table.

“Here you go. Arrest records going back to 1851.”

Dean blew some dust off of the top of one of the boxes and coughed, making you snicker.

“Thanks,” he said.

She nodded, replying, “Okay,” and then walked away.

“So, this is how you spent four good years of your life, huh?” 

“Welcome to higher education,” Sam remarked. 

You opened up one of the four boxes, grimacing as you looked down at the large number of files inside. 

***

Hours later, your head was hurting from the amount of reading you had done. Dean scrubbed a hand over his eyes and yawned before Sam piped up from the shelf he was leaning over behind you. 

“Hey, check this out. 1862. A preacher named Jacob Karns was arrested for murder. Looks like he was so angry over the red light district in town that one night he killed 13 prostitutes. Uh, right here, ‘some of the deceased were found in their bed, sheets soaked with blood. Others suspended upside down from the limbs of trees as a warning against sins of the flesh.’”

While Sam talked, you were busying yourself looking over another page in the file. When the brunet finished speaking, you went on, “Get this, the murder weapon? Looks like the preacher lost his hand in an accident. Had it replaced with a silver hook.”

“Look where all this happened.”

“Nine Mile Road,” Dean read. 

“Same place where the frat boy was killed.”

The older Winchester was impressed. “Nice job, Dr. Venkmen. Let’s check it out.”

You put the document you were holding back into the file and helped the boys clean up your table. After that, the three of you left the library with Jacob Karn’s documents in hand.

When you opened the doors, you were surprised at the fact that the sun had almost completely set. 

“Jesus, we were in there a while.”

***

By the time you got to Nine Mile Road, the sun was gone. The black night enveloped you and the Winchesters, save for the few patches of road illuminated by the streetlights.

Dean popped open the trunk while you slammed the car door behind you. He handed his brother a hunting rifle. 

“Here you go.”

“Uh, it’s a spirit, dude, not a deer,�� you reminded Dean.

"Yeah, I got that, smartass. It’s rock salt.”

“Huh. Salt being a spirit deterrent,” Sam added, taking the rifle from Dean.

“Yeah. It won’t kill ‘em. But it’ll slow ‘em down.” The older brother took some rope out of the weapons box before shutting the trunk. 

The three of you began walking toward the trees lining one side of the road. 

“That’s pretty good. You and Dad think of this?” Sam inquired. 

“I told you. You don’t have to be a college graduate to be a genius,” Dean replied.

You heard a rustling noise coming from the trees and shrubbery behind you and stopped walking. 

The younger Winchester pointed his gun toward the sound, and you jumped behind him. He cocked the gun simultaneously.

“Put the gun down now! Now!” he yelled, aiming his own pistol at you. “Put your hands behind your head.”

“W-w-wait, okay, okay!” Dean stuttered out while you immediately shrank to the ground, laying your weapon down.

“Now get down on your knees. Come on, do it! On your knees!”

Deciding it best to follow his instructions, you remained on the ground.  

“Now get down on your bellies. Come on, do it!”

Once again, you followed the man’s instructions. 

“He had the gun!” Dean protested.

“Shut up, jackass!” you ordered harshly. 

***

The next morning, you walked out of the sheriff’s office confidently with the boys hot on your heels.

“I saved your asses,” you said proudly. “Talked the sheriff down to a fine. Somebody give me an academy award.”

“But how?” Sam questioned.

“I told him you were a dumbass pledge and that Dean was hazing you.”

“What’d you say you were doing there?” 

“I told him I was Dean’s girlfriend.”

Dean about choked on his own spit. “You what?”

Sam ignored him and kept asking questions. “What about the shotgun?”

“I said that you were hunting ghosts and the spirits were repelled by rock salt. You know, typical Hell Week prank.”

“And he believed you?”

“Well, you look like a dumbass pledge,” you smirked. 

Sam punched your arm playfully, making you laugh. 

A few moments later, your attention returned to the sheriff’s station when multiple police officers sprinted out of the building and sped off in their cruisers. 

You looked up at Sam, who mirrored your concerned expression. 

***

Poor Lori sat wrapped in a disposable blanket on the back of a parked ambulance, and you watched her as Dean drove the Impala past her. 

You could see Reverend Sorenson talking to the sheriff about something, but they soon disappeared from view when the older brother turned down another street. 

Once he parked the car, you and Sam walked with him around the back of Lori’s sorority house. 

“Why would the Hook Man come here? This is a long way from 9 Mile Road,” Sam pointed out. 

“Maybe he’s not haunting the scene of his crime. Maybe it’s about something else,” Dean suggested. You pulled him by his shirt collar back against the wall of the sorority house when you noticed two sorority girls coming out of the side entrance of the house. 

“What the hell was that for?” Dean questioned. 

You nodded your head around the corner behind which you were hiding. 

Dean’s aggravated glare immediately softened when he saw the two pretty girls. 

“Dude, sorority girls!” he whispered to Sam. “Think we’ll see a naked pillow fight?”

“You are such a pig.” You shook your head as you scaled the side of the house, managing to get up onto a ledge attached to a balcony. 

Sam climbed up after you, grabbing the hand you offered to help him up onto the ledge. 

You got up from your knees to follow Sam.

“Uh, a little help?” Dean called quietly from down below. 

You looked over the edge. “Hm, no.”

“(Y/N), c’mon,” he begged. 

“What’s the magic word?” you smirked. 

His mouth dropped into a frown, but the older Winchester begrudgingly said, “Please?”

You were still smiling. “See, that wasn’t so hard.” You got to your knees, leaning over the end of the ledge. Dean grabbed the hand you extended, and you helped to pull him up. 

Dean followed you over the railing of the balcony, but he was the first to head to the window Sam had gone into.

“I’m waiting, Winchester,” you told him, finding toying with the boy fun. 

“For what?”

With your hands on your hips and putting most of your weight to your right leg, you cocked your head to the side. 

He finally caught on. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.” 

You rushed in front of him to go into the window first, turning around to stick your tongue out at him. 

Not a moment after you found your footing, Dean took it from you once again. He caused both of you to stumble as he fell through the window behind you. 

“Oh, sorry!” he told you. 

“Be quiet,” you muttered, choosing not to let your annoyance overcome you.

“You be quiet!”

“You be quiet!” you bit back childishly. 

For some reason, the architect who designed the sorority house thought it was smart to put a window inside of a walk-in closet. You stood up once again between two rows of clothing hanging from the walls. The younger brother looked through the small crack between the doorframe and closet door, waiting for someone to leave the room before the three of you headed into it. Once he spotted that whoever the people in the room were had left, he pushed the door open. When it made a small creaking sound, all three of you pressed your backs to the shelves in the closet. After you were sure the cops had gone, you walked into the bedroom. 

Your jaw clenched and your body tensed when you looked at the macabre scene before you. The first thing to catch your eyes was the bed, blocked off by caution tape and covered in blood. Next were the words scratched messily into the wall. Words that you assumed had been written by the Hook Man with his hook after killing the sorority girl since the words were dripping with blood. 

“Aren’t you glad you didn’t turn on the light?”

A symbol of a cross with four ‘x’s around the outside of it was beneath the words. 

“‘Aren’t you glad you didn’t turn on the light?’” Sam repeated the phrase embedded into the cream-colored wall. “That’s right out of the legend.”

“Yeah, that’s classic Hook Man all right,” Dean added, tapping the end of his nose as he said his next sentence. “It’s definitely a spirit.” He walked over to the window.

“Yeah, I’ve never smelled ozone this strong before.”

“Hey, wait,” you cut in. “Does that look familiar to you?” You pointed to the cross beneath the letters. 

“No, why?” the older brother asked, coming back from the window.

“I think it was on the hook in the drawing. There was a, uh, a chain attached to the end of the hook Jacob used I think with a pendant hanging from it.” With that, you headed off to the window in Lori’s closet. The boys followed you back to the Impala. 

“Keys, please,” you ordered. 

Dean followed your instructions, tossing the car keys to you so you could open it. 

After grabbing the Jacob Karns file from the backseat, you handed it to Sam. The brunet walked around the front of the car to sit on the hood while he looked through the papers. 

“Y’know, I’m surprised,” you told Dean.

“About what?” 

“You actually didn’t fight me on something for once. And you let me touch the keys to your car, all in the same day.”

“Bite me, (Y/L/N).”

You snickered to yourself, following Dean to sit next to Sam on the hood of the car.

“It’s the same symbol,” Sam confirmed. “Seems like it is the spirit of Jacob Karns.”

“All right, let’s find the dude’s grave, salt and burn the bones, and put him down,” Dean responded. 

Sam flipped to another page in the file and began to read. “’ After execution, Jacob Karns was laid to rest in an Old North Cemetery in an unmarked grave.’”

“Well, shit,” you mumbled.

“Ok. So we know it’s Jacob Karns. But we still don’t know where he’ll manifest next. Or why.”

“I’ll take a wild guess about why--” Dean began, walking around the car to the driver’s seat, “--I think your little friend Lori has something to do with this.” 

***

You were somewhere you never thought you would ever be-- a college party. Sam and Dean’s new fraternity brothers invited them to it. A tall, handsome guy was chatting you up. He told you his name at some point, but you had since forgotten it. 

“Whaddaya say we get out of here?” he asked you. 

“Hm,” you pretended to be in thought, “I don’t think you’ve earned that yet.” 

“No?” he smiled.

“Uh-uh,” you replied playfully. 

He leaned his face down to yours slightly, his arms working their way around your waist. “What can I do to fix that?”

Your arms found your way around his neck. “I’m sure you’ll figure something out.”

He leaned his face further down to connect his lips with yours. You closed your eyes as you kissed him back, making sure to keep your drink level in your hand.

The two of you made out for a few more minutes before you were called away from him by Sam. 

“Sorry,” you told the boy, excusing yourself. 

You and Dean walked up to Sam simultaneously. 

“Hey,” Sam greeted the both of you. 

“Man, you’ve been holding out on me,” Dean started. “This college thing is awesome!”

A pretty girl passed Dean by, and he winked and smiled at her.

“This wasn’t really my experience,” Sam grimaced. 

“Let me guess. Libraries, studying, straight A’s?” you teased.

The younger brother nodded. 

“What a geek,” Dean jested. “Alright, you do your homework?”

“Yeah. It was bugging me, right? So how is the Hook Man tied up with Lori? So I think I came up with something.” Sam unraveled a piece of paper. 

You took another sip of your drink while Dean read from the page.

“1932. Clergyman arrested for murder. 1967. Seminarian held in hippie rampage.”

“There’s a pattern here. In both cases, the suspect was a man of religion who openly preached against immorality. And then found himself wanted for killings he claimed were the work of an invisible force. Killings carried out—get this—with a sharp instrument.”

“What’s the connection to Lori?” Deam inquired. 

“A man of religion? Who openly preaches against immorality?” You waited for Dean to catch on. 

When he suddenly understood, you went on. “Except maybe this time, instead of saving the whole town, he’s just trying to save his only daughter.”

“Reverend Sorensen. You think he’s summoning the spirit?”

“Maybe,” Sam answered for you. “Or, you know how a poltergeist can haunt a person instead of a place?”

“Yeah, the spirit latches onto the reverend’s repressed emotions, feeds off them, yeah, okay.”

“Without the reverend ever even knowing it,” you added. 

“Either way, you should keep an eye on Lori tonight,” Dean told Sam suggestively.

“What about you two?”

You caught Dean staring at a beautiful blonde smiling at him from her position by the pool table. 

“I’m gonna go see if I can find that unmarked grave,” he said reluctantly. “C’mon, (Y/N),” Dean commanded as he walked away shaking his head in disappointment. 

***

Deep inside of Old North Cemetry, you and Dean walked around with flashlights in hand looking for Jacob Karns’ grave. 

“(Y/N)!” Dean called from several graves over. 

You jogged up to him. He was shining his flashlight on the grave in front of him. The same symbol that was on the hook and scrawled into the wall of the sorority house was engraved on the headstone. 

“Nice job,” you nodded. 

‘Wow, you actually weren’t a bitch for once.”

“Fuck off.”

***

Dean had taken off his jacket and button-down a while ago, just as you had abandoned your hoodie on the grass above where you were now digging. The two of you stood back to back in the hole you dug, continuing to drive your shovels deeper. You wiped the sweat from your brow with the back of your dirt-covered hand. 

“That’s it.”

“That’s what?” you asked.

“Next time, I get to watch the cute girl’s house.”

“Oh, come on, dickhead, let’s just get this over with.”

Finally, your shovel hit the wooden box the priest was encased in. You broke through it. 

Dean looked over your shoulder at Jacob Karns’ remains. “Hello, preacher.” He threw his shovel up to the top of the hole.

“Gross.” You scrunched up your nose as you did the same with your shovel. 

Dean clambered out of the hole, disappearing from your vision as he walked away. 

You almost climbed out of the ground when your foot slipped and caused you to fall back down. 

Dean peered over the grassy ledge at your slumped over form. “Need help, princess?”

“I got it,” you grumbled, feeling as though he was mocking you. You tried to climb out of the hole once more but failed.

“Sure you don’t need any help?” 

“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you, asshole?”

“Yeah, maybe a little bit,” he smirked.

“Dick.” You reached your arm up to him. 

“Bitch.” He grabbed your hand and pulled you up next to him.

“Thanks,” you muttered. 

“Mm-hmm.” Dean had his back facing you as he pulled a few items out of his duffel bag. He turned to throw you a box of salt before grabbing a bottle of lighter fluid. You poured the salt over the body while he poured the fluid. 

“Goodbye, preacher.” Dean lit a match and dropped it onto Jacob Karns, completely engulfing the pine box in flames. 

“I’ll never get used to that smell,” you told Dean as you began packing up the bag. 

“Of what, a sizzling decomposed body?”

“Yeah,” you grimaced. 

A few moments of silence passed between the two of you while you worked to clean up your mess. 

“Dean?”

“Hm?” 

You paused. “Nevermind.”

“No, what’s up?” 

Once again, you hesitated. 

“(Y/N).”

You could not bear to look at Dean. “Am I a burden to you?”

“No,” he answered. 

“Dean, be honest with me.” 

“What do you want me to say, (Y/N)? You want me to tell you I hate your guts and wish you were dead?” 

You got up and turned to look at him. “Well, do you?”

“No!” He lolled his head to the side before bringing it back to the center. “Why would you even ask me that?”

“Because if you didn’t really think that way, then why else would the shifter say that to me?”

“You’re still on the shifter, huh?”

“How could I not be?” You bit back. “Picture this. You and your best friend’s brother fight all the fuckin’ time. It’s all fun and games until Toledo, Ohio, where he thinks you’d have the chops to murder somebody. Murder someone close to you. Then he tells you that he’ll be glad you’re gone when you finally find his dad. Oh, not to mention he tells you you’d drive your family insane enough that they’d kill themselves. So when a shapeshifter walkin’ around with his face, it’s really not that hard to believe him when he tells you your best friend’s brother thinks you’re a burden.”

Dean was completely silent. “(Y/N)--”

“Save it, Dean.”

***

You had not said one word to Dean since you left the cemetery. Even now as you walked down the hallway of the hospital Sam told you he was at, you would not speak to him.

There were police officers stationed a little way before the entrance to a hospital room that Sam and the sheriff were standing in. 

Dean tried to push past the two cops, but they put their hands on his chest to stop him. 

“No, it’s alright, I’m with him. He’s my brother,” he told the cops before waving and calling to Sam. “Hey! Brother!”

“Let them through,” the sheriff told the two officers. 

“Thanks,” you said to the policemen while you walked past them.

"You ok?” Dean asked Sam once the three of you had met halfway. 

“Yeah.”

“What the hell happened?”

“Hook Man.”

“You saw him?”

“Damn right. Why didn’t you torch the bones?”

“What are you talking about, we did. You sure it’s the spirit of Jacob Karns?”

“It sure as hell looked like him. And that’s not all. I don’t think the spirit is latching on to the reverend.”

“Well, yeah, the guy wouldn’t send the Hook Man after himself.”

Realization washed over you. 

“Lori,” you cut in. 

“Yep,” Sam affirmed. “Last night she found out her father is having an affair with a married woman.”

“So what?” Dean questioned. 

“So she’s upset about it. She’s upset about the immorality of it. She told me she was raised to believe that if you do something wrong, you get punished.”

“Ok, so she’s conflicted. And the spirit of Preacher Karns is latching on to repress the emotions and maybe he’s doing the punishing for her, huh?”

“Right. Rich comes on too strong, Taylor tries to make her into a party girl, Dad has an affair.”

“Remind me not to piss this girl off,” the older brother tried to joke. “But I burned those bones, I buried them in salt, why didn’t that stop him?”

“You must have missed something.”

“No. I burned everything in that coffin.”

“Did you get the hook?”

“Crap,” you started. “I don’t remember seeing the hook.” 

“I don’t get it, why do we need the hook?” Dean asked. 

“Well, it was the murder weapon, and in a way, it was part of him,” his younger brother replied. 

“So, like the bones, the hook is a source of his power.”

“So if we find the hook...”

“We stop the Hook Man,” the two boys said simultaneously. 

***

Aside from a few comments you made to Sam, you remained abnormally quiet throughout the rest of the day. You had gone to the library, where Sam discovered the hook had been sent back to St. Barnabas Church-- the church where Lori’s father preached. You and the Winchesters figured that the hook was the reason the priests that preached at St. Barnabas had been cursed for the past two-hundred years. The hook had been reforged into something else, however, hence why the three of you were heading back to the church to try and find it. 

Dean slammed the car door behind him, immediately barking orders at you and Sam. 

“Alright, we can’t take any chances. Anything silver goes in the fire.”

“I agree. So, Lori’s still at the hospital. We’ll have to break in,” Sam added.

“Alright, take your pick.”

“I’ll take the house.”

You followed Sam wordlessly.

“Hey,” Dean called after you and his brother. “Stay out of her underwear drawer.”

You scoffed, continuing your walk up to the Sorenson house. 

As you and Sam rooted through the living room together, Sam finally decided to comment on your strange behavior. 

“What’s goin’ on with you, (Y/N)?”

“Hm?” You were hardly paying him any mind, continuing to go through the items in one of the side tables. 

“(Y/N),” Sam said again, but softer this time, “What happened?”

You sighed, turning around to face him. “You remember how I told you the shapeshifter said I was a burden to Dean?”

He nodded. 

“Well... I asked Dean if he really thought of me that way.”

“And?”

“He said ‘no,’ but of course he’d say ‘no.’“

“Wait, so you asked him to give you an honest answer, but you wouldn’t accept ‘no’?”

“Well, now that you say it it sounds fuckin’ stupid, but--”

“’But’ nothing,” Sam cut you off. “You’re pissed at him because he told you you weren’t a burden?”

You were silent. 

“(Y/N)... you don’t think you’re a burden, do you?”

You remained quiet once again, turning back to the drawer. You forced the lump that had formed in your throat down and went back to work. 

“So, how’d it go with Lori?” 

“(Y/N), don’t change the subject.”

“Sam--” you warned. 

He sighed. “I kissed her.”

You spun back around. “Why don’t you sound happier about that?”

“Because I pushed her away.”

“Oh,” you said quietly. You were not quite sure what else to say to that. 

“It just didn’t feel right.”

“I get it,” you told him. “It probably won’t for a while. But you’ll get through it. And I’m always here if you need help.”

“Thanks,” the young man answered. “I’ll always be here for you, too.”

You nodded sharply, turning back around to continue your work. 

***

“We got everything that even looked silver,” Sam told Dean as the two of you descended the stairs into the church basement. 

The older brother was throwing everything he had found into the furnace.

“Better safe than sorry.”

You dumped the bag of silver things you were carrying into the fire, but your head jerked away from the flames when you heard footsteps on the floor above you.

“Move, move,” Dean demanded quietly, taking his gun out of his back pocket. 

You took your gun out of the back of your jeans before you headed up the stairs behind Sam. 

All three of you were surprised to see Lori sitting in a pew alone and sobbing her eyes out. 

You lowered your gun and went back down the stairs. Dean trailed behind you. 

Aside from the crackling flames, the room was silent while you and Dean worked. Only a few minutes later, however, you heard pounding footsteps heading down a set of stairs separate from the one you and Dean had come down. Not a moment later came Sam’s muffled howl of pain.  

You sprinted up the stairs and held your gun out in front of you. Dean took the lead and dashed down the set of stairs he thought Sam and Lori had gone down. 

“Sam, drop!” Dean yelled before you got into the room. 

When you rounded the corner, you saw Sam crouched down on the floor with a horrified Lori huddled in the back right corner of the room. Dean shot the Hook Man, causing him to disappear. 

“I thought we got all the silver,” you expressed. 

“So did I,” Dean affirmed. 

“Then why is he still here?” Sam asked. 

“Well, maybe we missed something!”

You looked over at Lori. “That cross on your neck.” You pointed to the small silver cross necklace she wore.

“What?”

“Where’d you get it?”

“My father gave it to me.”

“Where’d your dad get it?”

“He said it was a church heirloom, he gave it to me when I started school.”

"IIs it silver?!”

“Yes!”

Sam ripped the chain off of her neck. 

Not a moment later, a horrible scratching sound came from down the hallway you and Dean entered from. 

You rushed out of the room down the hallway to where the scratching was coming from. Using your gun, you shot at where you thought the Hook Man was. Of course, he decided to make himself invisible at that moment which made your targeting only that much more difficult. 

“Sam, Lori, get outta here!” you yelled. 

Sam hesitated for a moment before grabbing Lori’s hand and taking her down the hallway in the opposite direction of where the Hook Man was. 

Within the next second, the scratching sound stopped, and all signs of the Hook Man were gone. 

You wheeled around when Lori shrieked. The Hook Man was towering over them with his hook raised in the air. Before you could move to aim your pistol, the spirit began melting from his hook down through the rest of his body. 

Dean returned a few moments later having destroyed Lori’s necklace. He glanced over Sam and Lori’s huddled together bodies, giving them a knowing look.

***

The sun had risen by the time you were almost through with your interrogation. 

“Yeah, we all saw him. We fought him off and he ran,” you explained to the police officer writing your statement down on a notepad. 

“That’s all?” he asked. 

“Yep,” you replied, popping the ‘p.’

“Looks like your buddies are headin’ out.” The officer gestured to Sam getting in the Impala where Dean already sat with the end of his pen. “You best get goin’, too.”

You nodded with a tight-lipped smile in response. While you got into the car, you noticed Sam looking in the passenger’s side rearview mirror at Lori. 

We could stay,” Dean suggested to the brunet. 

The younger brother shook his head. 

You turned around in your seat to see a sad-looking Lori as Dean pulled the car away from the scene. With a shake of your head, you turned back around, crossed your arms over your chest, and slumped down in your chair. 

So caught up in your own world, you did not see the strange glances Dean kept throwing you in the rearview mirror. 

Feedback is always appreciated and tags are open!

Series Rewrite Babes:

@rach5ive​ @ppeachygemss​

Dean Girls:

@akshi8278

#dean winchester x reader #dean winchester x you #dean winchester x y/n #dean x reader #dean x you #dean x y/n #dean winchester #dean #sam winchester #sam #reader #reader insert #supernatural rewrite #supernatural series rewrite #supernatural #supernatural reader insert #supernatural series rewrite dean x reader #spn #spn reader insert #spn series rewrite #dean winchester angst #dean winchester x reader angst

[fookinfandoms]

A Promise | Billy Butcher NSFW

So I kinda noticed that there isn’t a lot of stuff on the blessing that is Billy Butcher, so I thought why not, I have no life. Let me know if you want a part 2!

Warnings: Teasing, language (duh, it’s Butcher)

Pairing: Billy Butcher x Reader

Let me know if you want to be added to a tag list at all!

________________________________

Now, you loved Frenchie, you really did.

Like a girl loves her annoying little brother, and said girl just wants said annoying little brother to shut the fuck up.

God did this man drag on in meetings. His accent was lovely, sure, but he just went on and on about Vought and Compound V like you all weren’t aware.

You were supposed to be having a beautiful little dinner with your boyfriend, but instead he dragged you here. The two of you sat on the couch, Butcher’s hand resting on your thigh as he paid attention to the Frenchman rambling.

‘Emergency meeting my ass.’ You scoffed to yourself.

Butcher’s head turns to your for a split second, and you give him an innocent smile. His eyes squint at you slightly, but you face your attention back to Frenchie.

M.M stands with Hughie in front, and the both begin arguing with something Frenchie has said. Great. Kimiko stands to attention, almost ready for a fight.

“Wow baby,” You chuckle to yourself. “This is the best damn date ever.”

“Yeah no kiddin’ love,” His hand squeezes your thigh, and he frowns at his friends. “No fuckin’ kiddin’.”

“You bring me here, knowing damn well I’ve heard all of this shit before.” Your head rests against the back of the couch.

“Just a recap, that’s all i-,” Butcher’s hand leaves your thigh. “Put the fuckin’ boy down girl!”

Your eyes return to the scene in front of you, and you groan in frustration. Kimiko had Hughie in a chokehold, whilst M.M and Frenchie tried calming her down.

Butcher shakes his head, muttering words to himself. You stand, your dress bunching around your thighs as you straighten it out.

“Where you goin?” Butcher grabs your hand, stopping you from walking away.

Turning to him, you raise an eyebrow at him, and he removes his hand. You bend down so you’re eye level, placing both hands beside his head.

“You promised me one night to ourselves,” You whisper. “One night of a romantic dinner and no fucking work.”

“I know love,” Butcher’s eyes wander to your cleavage, his voice clearing as his eyes return to yours. “We’ll get there, won’t be long.”

Leaning forward, your lips brush his ear as your hands clench against the couch.

“Just so you know, love,” Your warm breath tickles his ear. “I was planning on trying a lot of new things tonight.”

“Oh yeah?” His hands grab at your waist, the two of you both drowning out the noises of your associates arguing.

“A whole night of fucking,” You bite his lobe. “And having my lips wrapped around you.”

Butcher gulps and before he can pull you closer, you’re already walking away.

“But if you want to spend your time working, be my guest.” You shrug at him, picking up your purse.

Someone calls your name, but you ignore it, until it’s heard again.

“(Y/N) can you please talk some sense into her! She can’t just go around putting people in headlocks!” Hughie whines to you, his face hot as he gets his breath back.

“Well don’t piss her off then, and she won’t do it.” Glancing around, you notice Frenchie talking to Kimiko as she calms down.

“I didn’t mean to piss her off, I pissed Frenchie off which means I pissed her off too.” Hughie puts his hand to his throat, the red marks from Kimikos grasp still fresh.

“You’ll learn soon lad,” Butcher stands behind him, smacking him on the back roughly. “Behind every man is a fuckin’ strong woman.”

You roll your eyes, and your boyfriend grins.

“You guys are leaving?” Hughie grimaces at Butchers smack.

“Date night.” You both nod, speaking at the same time.

“But the meeting isn’t over.”

“Look Hughie no offence, but if I don’t leave right now, I’ll shoot you all myself.” You didn’t even think twice at your words, and again, Butcher grins.

“Can’t keep a woman waitin’ Hughie.” He smacks him on the back again, before making his way towards you.

You hid your farewells to the others, ignoring M.M’s speech about how the meeting wasn’t over. Butcher’s hand slides to your waist as you walk towards his car, and he pulls you close.

He lets go when you’re there, and he opens the door for you, giving you a little curtsy.

“Don’t start kissing my ass now,” You slide into your seat. “You had your chance.”

Butcher chuckles, peering in.

“I’m alway’s kissin’ your ass love,” He shuts the door. “And you love it.”

He’s quickly by your side, his hand straight onto your thigh as he starts the car.

“So where does my lady want to go huh? Starkind, Junepar, Alenica?”

He lists a few more restaurants, but you ignore him.

“Babe? Are you even listenin’?” Butcher’s already onto the main road, his eyes darting between you and the road.

“I’ll take you to fuckin’ McDonald’s if you say nothin’.” He’s joking around, but you continue to ignore him.

“Look, I’m sorry alright, I made a promise and I broke it,” He clears his throat. “I love you, and I’m sorry.”

You break a smile, but he’s too focused on the road to see.

“Fuck, what do you want (Y/N)?” His accent comes out thicker in frustration.

You push his hand off of your thigh, and he mutters to himself.

Almost immediately, your hand reaches for his groin.

“Oh.” Butcher stops his muttering.

“I don’t want any Starkind,” You squeeze him, and he groans. “Or Junepar or Alenica or McDonalds.”

You pull his zipper down, sliding your hand into his pants.

“I want my boyfriend to take me home, and fuck me so hard that I can’t walk for days.”

Your soft hand grips his cock, already hard and ready, and you stroke him slowly.

“Fuck,” Butcher groans, his hands gripping the wheel. “Keep that up and I’ll crash the fuckin’ car.”

“Okay.” You let him go instantly, and he whines at the loss of contact.

“I mean, by all means love, keep your hand there.”

“Nope,” You pop the p. “You said it yourself.”

“You really want to go home?” He adjusts himself with his free hand.

“Do you want to fuck me?”

Butcher steps down on the accelerator in response.

___________________________

Let me know if you want a part 2!

#billy butcher x reader #billy butcher smut #butcher x reader #butcher smut #the boys x reader

[mindwideopen]

https://youtu.be/iWa-6g-TbgI

Ok. I will start by saying this is NOT Eddie Murphy’s fault... not at all... ohhhh Rick jaaaa-aaaames....

Rick James: oh fuck...

Kari: yeah... why would you make Eddie Murphy sing this song? Eddie is NOT a stick in the mud! The man, is fly! And not, for a white guy. He is fire in the hole of the ass of life! He entertains, and talks about life in a way that makes me shit the corn flakes that I had for breakfast when I’m watching him after dinner, ok? And to have him sing/complain about how his girl, who sounds like an absolute delight by the by, who wants to “party all the time” while he stays home, and is bitter about the fact that she’s having a great time in her life, is ridiculous!

Rick James: cocaine is a hell of a drug...

Kari: I wouldn’t know about that, Rick, as I’ve never touched the stuff, but I do know that having a “party mindset” is a better way to live than sitting there complaining about someone who does. Why is he not partying with her? Why doesn’t he put diamonds on his own fingers too?

Rick James: (whispers) diamonds on his fingers too...

Kari: ok, Rick, I’m not singing this song, ok? You don’t have to “repeat whisper” after I say the line...

Rick: yes, I do.

Kari: fine, whatever. The point is, Eddie is a fun, amazingly talented human being man, that enjoys people, and parties, and life. So the fact that you have him singing, upset about partying, is ludicrous.

Rick: no, he’s a rapper. Eddie doesn’t rap, he sings.

Kari: looooord....

The lord: nope. You’re on your own here...

Kari: right. Fine. Rick, you clearly can’t go back in time and fix what has been, but let’s rewrite this shit, ok? Cause it’s whack.

Rick: fine, but he won’t sing it again.

Kari: good point. No rebuttals for past hits... fine. Then I have a few more questions about this video, if you’ll be so kind to indulge me...

Rick: nope.

Kari: good, I’ll ask anyway, because I’m the one having this conversation with myself. Rick, you and Eddie came in very late to this video, where were you? This is your song. And you kept everyone else waiting. I blame you for that.

Rick: yes. I like to make an entrance...

Kari: it’s rude.

Rick: yes, it is.

Kari: then, Eddie had to smooth it over with the guys in the corner. He shook their hand. The one guy said, “party all the time?” Cause he wanted to make sure that you guys weren’t mad, cause you were very late. And Eddie agreed, internally, with his Eddie smile, and implied, “yes, party all the time. We’re still good.” And the guy was happy. But Man, if that was MY ass that was waitin on YOU, I would’ve said, “oh! Party all the time?! No! Where have YOU been? The party is supposed to be yours, and it’s already started for like 2 hours now. So no! But yes, cause now the video is finally gonna start. And I have a fuckin nail appointment that I may miss because of your late ass, so pick up the pace next time. And I’m not talking about the salsa, which is generic, and also if you’re gonna get salsa, go to a fuckin Mexican restaurant and support the families and shit! And you, do neither! And now everyone here is all confused, so much so, that they forgot why they were even there. The one guy that shook Eddie’s hand was like, “wait a minute (that was implied)” and then he had to ask Eddie, “party all the time?!” Like saying, “ Am in the right studio?! Are we still doing this?! Cause it’s been 17 hours and my ass hurts from sitting on whatever the hell I’ve been sitting on… ok, it’s a window sill and it sure as hell isn’t a lazy boy or any sealy postupedic shit so now my ass is asleep, and has developed yet another crack and maybe even the beginnings of a new asshole cause pain, but see, I’m polite as fuck, and I won’t ask you like Kari would, so I’m going to politely ask you, “party all the time? Just to get my point across, but still be the nice guy I am.!” Now, you see, Rick, you are making Eddie have to make things right with everyone because of your wackaschmoo behavior.

Rick: yes, yes, he did.

Kari: Eddie Murphy is a pleasure, and you have to be more cognizant of the way you make him look. He loves people. Now, what do you have to say for yourself?

Rick: well, say “no” to drugs.

Kari: if you say no to drugs, you are drawing attention to drugs, therefore saying yes to drugs by talking about drugs. So don’t think about drugs. That’s how you eliminate drugs.

Rick: you are a ball buster.

Kari: what can I say? I am. Because nut and ball are 2 separate words, that when put together, make a ball sack. Sometimes you have to dissect the shit to get the meaning of what you’ve been saying flippantly for years... & I yes, I happen to like to party all the time, in my own mundane way, and you’re not down with that.

Rick: I am now. Wanna go get some coffee? Cause I know that’s how you like to get down...

Kari: yes to both.

Scene.

Kari: Now Rick… it’s been over 2 years since I wrote this about you, and I blamed you for making Eddie late in this video waaaay above☝️ up there.

Rick: yes, you did.

Kari: But you didn’t do that. You were working in the studio when Eddie came in.

Rick: yes. Yes I was.

Kari: why didn’t you just say that it was that white dude’s fault? He’s the one that ran down the stairs with Eddie.

Rick: what white dude?

Kari: the white dude that had on the Cosby sweater.

Rick: I’m Rick James bitch.

Dolemite: who is this bitch ass mf-er talking like me trying to steal my act?! Bitch, are YOU for REAL?!

George Carlin: Carl Sandburg could’ve have written a better tag.

Kari: but he’s a baseball player…

Carlin: exactly.

Scene.

#Eddie Murphy #partymusic #party #partytime #partyallthetime #80s #pop music #rick james #funny #funnyshit #music video #mind wide open #kari keillor #Youtube

[clansayeed]

Bound by Circumstance ― Chapter 23: Happily Ever After

PAIRING: Nik Ryder x trans*M!MC (Taylor Hunter) RATING: Mature

⥼ MASTERLIST ⥽

⥼ Bound by Circumstance ⥽

Taylor Hunter (MC) has made it good for himself in New Orleans; turns out moving to a new city fresh out of college to reinvent yourself isn’t as hard as people make it out to be. Things only start to get confusing when he finds himself the target of a malevolent wraith. Good thing someone’s looking out for him though — because without Nighthunter Nik Ryder as his bodyguard he definitely won’t survive long in the twisting darkness of the supernatural underworld he’s tripped into.

Bound by Circumstance and the rest of the Oblivion Bound series is an ongoing dramatic retelling project of the book Nightbound and the rest of the Bloodbound series. Find out more [HERE].

Note: Circumstance only loosely follows the events and plotline of Nightbound, and features a separate antagonist, different character motivations, and further worldbuilding.

*Let me know if you would like to be added to the Circumstance/series tag list!

⥼ Chapter Summary ⥽

For now.

[READ IT ON AO3]

They make sure the first thing Kristin sees when she opens her eyes is the pair of them on either side of her hospital bed. Both of her hands in theirs and they’re so close to being able to hold back the tears in their eyes.

But when she licks her dry lips and looks them both over with groggy delirium, only to say “I think I’m over Mardi Gras, guys,” they’re her first words in a week that’s felt like an entire year and how could they do anything but ugly cry as loud and messy and utterly ridiculous as they possibly can.

“Now don’t go marryin’ that idea, Cookie,” Vera blubbers; wipes her thumbs carefully to preserve her wing-tip, “‘specially when you see the place our friend’s got hooked up with.”

“Nope, I’m sticking to water.”

Taylor snorts with a fond roll of his eyes. “Yeah, I’ll believe it when I see it.”

And even though they know for a fact she’ll make a full recovery she was found in a cemetery—at night—and her coma lasted several days; so Taylor and Vera don’t make much of a fuss when the doctor kicks them out. She makes them promise to come back as soon as they can, which of course they do.

They’re waiting to the elevator when a melodic humming catches Taylor’s ears; he knows that voice.

Sure enough Tilly strolls around the corner, pushing a cart with a squeaking back wheel in front of her without so much as a touch. Her hands have better things to do — like spoon a healthy heap of strawberry jello into her mouth.

The cart doesn’t even slow when their paths cross but the elf doesn’t let that stop her from grabbing two jiggling cups and plop-plopping them into Vera’s hands. A wink and twitch of her nose and she’s off around another corner as though she was never there.

Vera stares down at the jello in wordless confusion. Before she can say anything the lift arrives and doors slide open.

“I’ll explain on the way,” Taylor promises, plucks his gifted jello cup and presses the button for the ground floor.

They leave the hospital full of jello and laughter. Which was probably the elf’s intention.

Two blocks away from the Graveyard Shift Taylor stops them; puts a gentle hand on Vera’s upper arm and moving them out of the way of tourists still loitering around the Quarter in waves.

Judging by the fall of her face Vera’s been expecting this — and it’s not a conversation he’s excited about either but ignoring unseemly topics is something that hits a little too close to home these days.

“Have you decided what you’re gonna do?”

“Been a little busy, Tay.” Easygoing tone now clipped; curt. Almost cold but he knows it’s not her. “We shouldn’t keep everyone waitin’.”

“I think they’ll understand.”

“Okay — I tried t’be nice but I guess I just gotta be blunt. I don’t want to talk about it.”

His silence is long enough to wedge a bolt in her defense — has Vera peering up through her curls where he waits patiently. Which only frustrates her further. “You’re annoying sometimes, you know that Taylor Hunter?”

He shrugs — she’s not wrong. “Nik makes sure I don’t forget.”

Silence, and more silence, and a few attempts to weasel around him and continue down the sidewalk that end in a childish bout of fake-out standoffs; then she finally accepts defeat.

“I wanna stay, really I do. But I moved away to distance myself from this—this life. And if I stay then what have the past couple’a years of my life been for then, you know?”

He knows, and nods; she continues, “My biggest thing is… I don’t know who my momma is without the Touch; without bein’ Lady Smoke. Hell I’m not even sure she knows. You should see how she’s been actin’ Taylor; three whole days later and she’s back in her office actin’ like nothing has changed.

“But it has. And sooner or later word’ll get out what happened to her an’ that she doesn’t have the same leverage as she used to.” She worries her bottom lip between her teeth; she’s been doing that a lot recently. “It’d be nice to think about her givin’ it all up but I know she won’t. What if she turns to somethin’ equally terrible or worse to keep people fearin’ her?”

There’s a light to her eyes that wasn’t there before; maybe even Vera didn’t know how much Vera needed to vent the things weighing her down. And Taylor? Well he empathizes; literally. Her worries are his worries. Her concern is his concern.

And because she knows in her heart of hearts that Tonya Reimonenq is not only capable but likely to try and regain any echo of the power the bloodwraith took from her — by any means necessary — he knows it too.

Taylor wishes he had certainties for her. That he can give her the definitive this is what will happen and this is how we’ll deal with it of the matter. But he can’t.

“No matter what she does, the New Accords will keep her in line.”

The look she gives him; will they though? isn't by any fault of hers. In fact it’s Vera’s healthy caution that’s helped them all this way so far so he trusts it as much as anything else.

“Don’t stay because you want to keep an eye on Tonya. You’ve got Nik and me for that.” He links their arms, doesn’t miss her little breath of relief when they continue walking.

“Stay because you want to. I’d sure love it if you did.”

“I’ll give it a real thought, okay?”

“I could ask for nothing more.”

They enter the Shift together and everything is the same — everyone is exactly as the pair left them. That isn’t a good thing.

“Raise your voice at me again, go on.”

“Kathy will you stop goadin’ the werewolf?”

“You’ve got one last chance Jensen.”

“Guys, please slow down. ‘Taking minutes’ was made for typing and I don’t have another pen.”

“Oh hon’, you don’t need to get the arguments in the minutes.”

Krom flashes a sheepish smile through his tusks at Garrus from across the booth. The bartender is content to keep his distance from the arguing going down in his establishment but he stays because that’s what he agreed to.

Though judging by the bottle of teal-tinted absinthe he’s nearly polished off that might be something of a regret on his part.

Cal leans back in the booth with both hands over his face — probably with the same frustration Nik doesn’t even try to cover up beside him.

“This is useless…”

Across from him Kristof smacks his lips, beer in hand, and nods to his nephew. “First thing we’ve agreed on all day, pup.” And when he makes like he’s about to pull himself away from the uncomfortable situation Katherine snatches at his wrist. Her grip looks practically dainty against the muscle of him but every single soul in the bar knows it to be anything but.

“Sit the fuck back down, Jensen.”

“Nah, I’m done with this shit fer th’day.”

Pull your weight and help me, says the look Katherine snaps at Ryder.

Who leans forward on his elbows with fingers steepled and a hard glare given to the Alpha at the other end of the table.

“If you leave now we just have to start from scratch tomorrow. Do you really want to drag this out?”

Cal groans and continues his useless attempt to become one with his leather seat. He’s just as frustrated as his fellow wolf but Krom’s got him walled in; no chance of escape.

But the thought of having to repeat the ordeal is, luckily(?), terrible enough that the wood of the seat creaks to accommodate the Alpha as he settles back in.

“Fine. But come sunset I’m outta here; I got shit t’do.”

Katherine agrees with a nod. “It won’t take that long.”

“The Lamrians didn’t take this long,” mutters Nik under his breath; and its only then that he looks up enough to see Taylor and Vera’s combined amusement where they’ve been watching everything unfold like a governmental pantomime.

“Gettin’ your kicks over there?”

“Absolutely.”

Vera gives a silent touch to his arm — had mentioned before they left that she’d need to make a few work calls at some point today for the sake of both her job and Kristin’s. While she heads up to the Shift’s apartments Taylor drags a stool over to join the fray of frustration.

Does Kristof still make the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end? Yes. Does he look over at that bearded frown and think of the large jaw of canine teeth that could very easily tear him to shreds? Yes.

Does the way he has his arms crossed over his chest, red faced and muttering something under his breath, make him look like a kid angry at not getting his way?

Yes.

In fact the wolf actually seems to lean away from him when Taylor makes himself comfortable; beady eyes trained wary on his hands.

“Something to say?” Katherine only asks because she isn’t wholly unconvinced his attitude isn’t just another tactic for distraction.

“Just keep them flashy fae fingers to yer’self an’ we’re peachy.”

Can anyone blame him when he wiggles his perfectly normal (thank you very much) fingers in Kristof’s direction, then? No, no they cannot.

Krom offers up the long scroll of parchment for him to take — already half-full with the agreed-upon duties, limitations, and expectations of the Quarter’s new Council members.

Being the largest population in city limits by a wide margin, the Mayor’s neatly scrawled signature is the only one beside rules not of his own design. Sure it had been for the best that they not involve anyone who didn’t need to be (and in the Lady de la Rosa’s well-put words, it was smart “not to demand action over one with such influence over the innocent and ignorant”), but that didn’t mean they were met with open arms at City Hall.

In fact, Taylor ended up having to get Elric to come down and ‘lay down the law’ with the man. Perks of having an immortal father who had been to every Mayoral inauguration since the city’s founding.

Seeing as the Mayor (and the humans by default) had literally the least amount of things to worry about, too? He was kind of a dick about it.

Below that were the duties of the faire folk of Lamrian and their Lord Elric and Lady Thalissa.

Lady Thalissa who had not been happy to see Taylor again — but who had also been under the assumption that he had been the one to involve Elric in the events of Mardi Gras. Once they cleared that up (read: once Elric had confessed to leaving Lamrian of his own free will and sort of… falling into everything after) she was rather warm and friendly; even offered to help her (step?) son learn how to better control the magic within.

And of course there was a separate clause specifically for Garrus underneath; who was far too pleased to be considered his own separate sub-category.

The Jensen Pack is up next on the ‘Get Everyone to Agree’ List and following itinerary that had been drawn up by the weary survivors of the Beau-Keyes Garden. But getting Jensen himself and his nephew—who as it turns out is some kind of were-royalty on his mother’s side and if Cal thinks they aren’t going to be talking about that at the first opportunity he’s sorely mistaken—to agree on anything is about as difficult as… well anything else they’ve done so far.

So he has a little hope at least.

“So what’s the biggest argument so far?” He asks finally; gives the parchment back to Krom to roll up for safe-keeping. He’s fallen in love with his new unofficial title as Council Scribe. They’re gonna need to buy ballpoint pens in bulk though.

Nik’s smile drips saccharine and laden with spite. “Dividin’ of authority.”

“It just ain’t natural!” Kristof resumes like someone pressed ‘play,’ “The Alpha doesn’ answer to nobody, that’s jus’ how it is. Here or in any pack you’re gonna run foul of.”

To everyone’s surprise Cal actually agrees; “It’s more of a biological thing than a code or rule. You get more than one Alpha in a room and someone’s gonna come out on top; that’s just the animal kingdom.” Then, with an obvious reluctance; “And I’m no Alpha. It’s a born thing. That’s why Kristof took over pack duties in the first place.”

Taylor looks between them. “What about Octavia?”

“Beta’s beneath my authority, but if there’s any hint’a disagreement it can get ugly.”

“Well that sounds like bull. I’ve seen her disagree with you… pretty much every time you’ve been in the same room.”

The were scratches his chin; averts his eyes with a huff. “That ain’t a pack thing. That’s a… us thing.”

Subtlety wasn’t even an attempt on Nik’s part — his hand coming up in a suggestive and hard-to-misinterpret squeezing motion. Thankfully Kristof only growls, but Taylor sees the mischief in the hunter’s eyes and knows it could have been way worse. It could have been dog-related.

“Okay; well right there you have something that goes against the norm’, right? Why can’t other things? Start off small… build up to an equal foothold in the pack.”

“I’m not returnin’ to the pack, Taylor.”

Their reactions are telling; that Kristof is the only one unsurprised by Cal’s insistence means he knew (and yet he’s still being an ass?) about his nephew’s choice to stay a lone wolf.

Not that it does anything for privacy but Taylor can’t help lowering his voice when he asks; “Are you… are you sure?”

“Sure as salt.”

“But what about Donny?”

“Donny’ll be fine. We already talked it out —”

“‘We’ who, who is ‘we?’” And the simmering pot of Katherine starts to boil. “Not you two ‘we,’ because that — that would be crazy. That would mean you two came to an agreement on something.”

But Cal just shrugs and nods — doesn’t see the danger quite yet.

“Yeah, ‘us two,’ we. Kristof’s an asshole but he’s a brother, too. Always will be.” Which is a statement that goes undisputed; the opposite actually — judging by the noise of agreement. “I get t’see him whenever, an’ even talked him into letting me back home for important stuff; holidays, y’know?”

“And what do you get out of this?” Katherine can’t help but ask. Kristof shrugs it off.

“I can’t go ‘round backin’ up on my word — ‘specially not punishments an’ the like. Opens the pack up to weakness and loners who ain’t so kind comin’ ‘round sniffin’ fer trouble. Ain’t that right pup?”

“Exactly. So we both like the idea of me pullin’ a neutral-party sorta deal. Keepin’ an eye on the city and territory and, on the off-chance, helpin’ out any stray weres. If any packs come down this way they’ll be Kristof’s problem. It’s a good arrangement… I’ll be the Garrus of the wolves.”

Heads turn as there’s an odd noise from the direction of the bar — pink tickling at Garrus’ cheeks as he looks Cal over with amusement.

“You wish you could be me, little wolf. No one’s me but me, myself, and I.”

“I jus’ mean —”

“Relax, darling. I know exactly what you meant, I just had to say it.”

From her point on the U-bend of the booth Katherine gives a shaky exhale. Pinches the bridge of her nose and mouths her way up to seventeen in silence before she can breathe without yelling at someone.

“So what you’re telling me is that you can compromise and agree on things… you’re just actively choosing to argue about the official Council bullshit.”

“Yeah, sounds ‘bout right.”

“Can’t agree with th’pup too much — he’ll get an ego.”

A long silence. Then…

“I hate both of you.”

When Octavia comes around at sunset she isn’t alone. Donny runs into his brother’s arms, because by now everyone in town knows at least some version of the truth of what went down at the Beau-Keyes House that night, and he’s that distinct mixture of angry-happy that only comes with being family.

And being family to someone so chaotically dumb that it sometimes all works out in the end, at that.

Speaking of — Taylor needs to call his mom soon. He should write that down or something.

Cal’s so excited to see his little brother again that he forgets to say goodbye. Not that they’ll hold it against him. Who wouldn’t need a drink and greasy bar food to unwind after spending all day yelling and being yelled at?

Katherine tugs on her leather jacket; takes the poster tube acting as safehouse for the new Council Accords and slings the strap across her chest.

“You’re not staying?” asks Taylor in surprise; she’s just been so around the last couple of days that it’s weird to see her heading out.

“No rest for the wicked,” though he doesn’t miss the little quirk of her smile as she says it, “but really — sun’s down so the vamps are out, and we still need de la Rosa’s terms and agreements.”

“Will Cade be there?” Though he feels stupid for asking and already knows the answer.

She humors him though. “Yeah. From the looks of it we’ll need to work in the same exception clauses for him that we have for Cal and Garrus, if not something like it.”

“Seems like we’re making a lot of those.”

“Seems like maybe we need them.”

Katherine throws an expectant look over his shoulder; Taylor turns to see Krom holding up an apologetic stone in the midst of being dragged to the back by a very eager Garrus. “You’ve got ten minutes!” She calls, and means it.

With Nik upstairs and the curtain closing behind the eager new couple that leaves Taylor and her alone for what might very well be the first time.

He’s not talked to Katherine much — not one-on-one. Makes an awkwardness hang weird between them, tilted too far to one side and sending the whole room just slightly off.

But he’d be lying if he said he hadn’t hoped for at least a small opportunity to talk to her without nosy interruption.

“Hey, if you have a sec —”

“Have you seen them since?” Apparently he wasn’t the only one eager to take advantage of their free moment.

Maybe it’s a trick of the dim bar lighting but Katherine almost looks disappointed when he shakes his head. “The last time was on Mardi Gras. They were watching the whole time, though.”

“The Fate is always watching. They’re bound to witness.”

Yeah, I remember. “You never explained… how you knew. Back at the Coven house.”

Which was on purpose if the look she gives is anything to go by. Has her ruffling her fingers through long plum waves — working out little knots like a nervous habit.

“You’re right.”

“You don’t have to — I mean yeah I’ve been dying to ask but you don’t have to say anything if you don’t want to, Kathy.”

The nickname draws her attention, makes her look him in the eye with a weight of importance. “It’s just complicated, that’s all.”

And he wants to push the issue, literally feels it crawling up his throat itchy and large enough to choke on. But he also understands how hard it is to talk about something before you’re ready. Like, more than most.

How many minutes has it been now? A question she’s gotta be wondering too; she keeps looking behind him hoping for a large stone interruption.

“You know Ryder’s from around here?”

Taylor blinks. “I mean, I figured… he sounds pretty local.”

“And I don’t.”

“No.”

“Because I’m not,” a beat, “but this isn’t my first time in town. No that… that was a couple of years back. I came here for one reason—one person.”

Ah, got it. “The Fate.”

“Usually they don’t get themselves tangled up in stuff like this, you know? They just watch. So when you need to get in touch with them, there are certain rites and rituals to follow.” Katherine’s eyes grow wistful, she snorts; “Be glad we didn’t have to get involved in that nasty business. I’m in no rush to jump those hoops again.”

Again? “So… what did they say?” What he really wants to ask is what did you see them for but he doesn’t, they don’t know one another well enough for that. Maybe some day.

“We never spoke. I backed out right at the edge. I mean I don’t regret it; that night I ended up finding this place, getting in on the hunter crowd, meeting Ryder — actually maybe I regret that bit.”

She doesn’t, not at all. He can tell. “That night, too, was the card game I won Cadence’s job in.”

“Which worked out for you.”

“Ha, depends on who you ask.” She hikes the strap higher on her shoulder, continues tugging at her hair. “That’s not — there’s a point to this I promise. Because The Fate doesn’t exist in this world. They can’t, physically; they’re beyond us. So in order to get to them you have to…”

“You have to leave this world.”

It dawns on him then, what she’s getting at. And she knows he knows because there’s the barest hint of pity behind her guarded gaze. Knows it’s not a vulnerability she allows herself often.

Maybe this whole time he knew. Somewhere deep down, anyway. In the same place where The Fate had hidden the attack at the theatre.

Let me do you this kindness.

“I… I died that night, then.”

“I think so, yes.”

The surprising part is how not painfully difficult that is to process as a fact; a statement instead of a question instead of an ultimatum of martyrdom. He’s finding it more difficult to imagine what to say to Nik because no doubt the hunter would find a way to try and blame himself about it.

Then again… Nik very well could have died in the Garden that night. But surely even the fae couldn’t bring people back from the dead. Surely only someone with power like The Fate had that capability.

Surely.

Taylor doesn’t quite know where he went but when he comes back the look Katherine gives him isn’t reassuring in the slightest. Like she’s ready for him to collapse, shaking, the existential crisis delayed up until right at this very moment with only a half-stranger to comfort him.

“Are you going to be okay?”

Which isn’t a hard question to answer in the least. “Yeah. I mean if something was gonna happen it probably would have by now, right?”

“Jeez, way to jinx yourself.”

“Hey I never said I was the brightest bulb in the pack.”

“Ain’t that right.”

Whatever time they had been allotted by the universe to bring those revelations to light is up. Ryder rounds the staircase down, heavy boots with heavier steps on the creaking metal. And he’s one foot on the floor when the back curtain draws back to reveal Garrus buttoning his waistcoat back up whole Krom hastily tugs on his tee.

Tactless Ryder whistles at the pair; makes Kathy roll her eyes and mutter an insult under her breath, along with; “Pretty sure that’s a couple dozen health code violations, Gar.’”

“I have my own health code.”

“Pretty sure something was violated back there.”

Which is such a terrible innuendo and so terribly typical of Nik that when he goes to pull Taylor into his space by the hip he makes a show of active resistance — a protest statement that says that kind of terrible pun-making is simply not allowed.

Though it’s not as bad as the one that comes to mind at Krom’s stony expression.

The troll looks like he wants to crawl under a rock.

Taylor surrenders eventually. Allows himself to be pulled in close where he can rest his chin on the man’s duster.

“You two crazy kids sticking around?”

Back behind the bar Garrus is already back at work with bottles in hand. Easily recognizable now as the ingredients for Ivy’s favorite bubbly brew; and she should be back soon, shouldn’t she? How long can an exorcism take, even on a house as large as 937 Prytania Street?

Taylor shrugs. “I guess. Midsummer is canceled while the theatre is being fixed back up so I’m…” Gonna be broke soon, is what he is. Something to worry about at a later date.

But the look Nik gives him — there’s something else on the Nighthunter’s mind.

“Up for a little adventure?” Which is a proposition that Taylor should very much turn down were he any kind of sane person, especially given everything they’ve been through this week.

But… What the hell, sanity’s overrated.

The cemetery was supposed to be roped off or something. Reasonably it should have been. But god forbid the city take down one of their biggest tourist attractions; all the dead bodies.

“You know, I thought you meant—like—apps and sodas at a bar or something.”

Because sure, there are people who might find walking hand-in-hand in a supposedly haunted cemetery in the last waning streaks of the sherbet evening to be romantic.

Taylor just isn’t one of them.

There’s that familiar tick in the man’s scarred brow looking down at him. Not that it makes everything better… but it definitely doesn’t hurt.

“All the weird shit we’ve done by now and you thought ‘adventure’ was code for— what, a vanilla dinner date?”

“Oh, so this is a date huh?”

“I would’a thought that was obvious.”

“Nik Ryder — nothing about you is obvious.”

And that fact isn’t contested — isn’t worth being contested because they both know better. But for some reason Taylor’s chest feels a little bit lighter when he breathes again. Purely metaphorically, though, as he has to borrow his hand back for a second to adjust where his binder rides up uncomfortably in the humidity.

It’s kind of weirdly beautiful the way Nik’s hand is still held out a little from his side — waiting to be taken back up. He doesn’t let it wait long.

Okay, maybe he’s a little wrong. Maybe there’s one thing about the Nighthunter that’s obvious; but he has a sneaking suspicion it’s only that way because Nik lets it be.

Obviously this thing, them — without words or long discussion over candles and spaghetti or passionate clinging kisses in the rain or anything else years of rom-com consumption have said define a relationship — isn’t going away.

It’s like everything else they do; an impulse, a behavior felt in the gut. No filter, no holding back.

They walk the paths and rows of Lafayette and talk. A comment or question here and there; half the time they’re so focused on trying not to interrupt one another they end up walking around and around in silence. Normally for him silence is an awkward thing; silence has almost always meant something that has been said or needs to be said hangs a heavy burden. Not this time. And, if he dares to believe it, maybe not for a long time coming.

On their fifth (or is it sixth?) go-around they come to a natural stop. Nik’s head tilted up to watch the night clear over their heads — and Taylor just watches him with awe; with joy.

“Hey, Taylor?”

His name, so it must be important. “Yeah Nik?”

“Thanks for savin’ my life.”

“Any time.”

Two words that make the man stop; turn to look at him fully. Something swimming in his eyes all weird and misty but still, somehow, kinda beautiful.

“You mean that, don’t you.” The way Nik says it — it definitely isn’t a question more than it is a fact he’s always known but never been able to put into words. Like knowing the sky is blue, or that there’s more to the world around them than anyone could possibly imagine.

Taylor nods. “Of course.” Obviously, how could you ever think I’d do anything less? That I wouldn’t do more?

Then clammy hands are on his cheeks and Taylor lets himself be pulled into the kiss. Lets it come to them both as naturally as breathing and just as necessary.

Just like the last time — though under vastly different circumstances — he’s shaking tip to toe when they break. Surely there’s gotta be some supernatural way to make it so they need to kiss more than they need air. He should get on that.

He’d been asked on ‘a little adventure’ but it makes sense now that in true Ryder-fashion he had been vague on purpose. One of those ‘the adventure was inside us all along’ sorta deals. Which would have been preferable to nearly dying numerous times, apparently actually dying once, dealing with shady goblins and supernatural mobsters and finding out he wasn’t entirely human at all… right? Right. Totally right. Even if he ended up finding the father he never knew and piecing together a ragtag ‘found family’ trope and—if he was reading all of the signs correctly—getting a smokin’ hot boyfriend out of it all.

At some point probably they’ll be pulled apart. A patrol officer could catch them, here out in the open as they are, and threaten to remove them from cemetery grounds. A ghoul could arise from the ground between them intent on wreaking havoc in their now peaceful (however temporary) city. Or maybe some long-slumbering kraken will awake from the depths of the Mississippi and start eating hungover tourists.

Yeah, at some point they’ll probably be pulled apart.

But that’s okay.

They’ve faced worse.

#nightbound #playchoices #playchoices fanfiction #choices nb #nik ryder x mc #nik ryder #katherine nightbound #cal lowell #vera reimonenq #nightbound mc #mc: taylor hunter #garrus #ivy #krom #oblv: bound by circumstance #oblv: new chapter #; my fics