#can you live without the hugs and the shared podiums and the shared dreams and greece?

[introspectivememories]

nah because crofty is genuinely insane because why would you say that about your coworker???? and to his face??? "this man knows lewis hamilton. friends, teammates, childhood buddies, rivals, everything but a lover." hello???? why are you saying that to nico rosberg's face???? why are you, as the lead f1 commentator, writing fanfiction about your coworker???? about him and his ex???? and also, what an insane thing to say about someone else's relationship!!! "everything but a lover"... just show them having gay sex onscreen, it would be less intimate than whatever the hell you just said.

#it's been almost 3 years since that happened and yet i still rotate that moment in my head like a rotisserie chicken #'everything but a lover'.... what a terribly intimate thing to say about another person #like isn't that more romantic than actually being someone's partner??? they are everything to you but a romantic interest #wow... they are your friend your brother the little butterflies in your stomach... everything and anything but a lover #because like you can live without a lover but can you live without the tender smile your friend gives you when something good happens? #can you live without the hugs and the shared podiums and the shared dreams and greece? #also imagine lewis coming home and eciding to watch a recap of the race and then crofty just says this... like what the fuck do you even sa #i just /know/ that the industry is scheming to bring them back together again bc what else could this have been? #david croft #lewis hamilton #nico rosberg #brocedes #f1

[unsolvedjarin]

I was going through a Charles video that mentioned him blacking out in the car at some point. Since I’m a sucker for angst, I was wondering what it would be like for mentor!Seb if it were the reader in that situation instead. Perhaps the season before the one he retires? And maybe we could see more of the reader’s friendship with Charles? Only if you feel inspired by it, of course.

Either way, thank you for sharing your fics with us. They are my favorites and I’m really grateful for having found your blog.

gif by luchitohamilton

EVERY UNIVERSE.

pairing: (mentor! sebastian vettel x ferrari driver! reader) (charles leclerc x teammate! reader)

summary: qatar is a difficult, hot, and taxing track. that along with you having food poisoning, well…that might not end too well for you. thankfully you can always rely on sebastian and charles to be there for you.

word count: 4k

note: can you guys tell i took inspo from mark webber throwing up in his car and the qatar race this year? it was so sad to watch everyone seem so tired especially lance and logan. anyways, the plot kinda got away from me at the end, i do apologize but the seb feels were too intense 😵‍💫

content warning: car crash, mentions of throwing up, inaccurate depictions of food poisoning

part of this series but can be read without!

“Ready?”

A familiar voice makes you turn around from your pre-race preparations. “Depends on what your definition of ready is.”

Charles smiles, “I know it’s our first race in Qatar but c’mon, it isn’t that bad.”

“Isn’t that bad? I might melt in the car! Doesn’t help that I almost missed this one because of food poisoning.”

“Ah yes, how could I forget that,” he teases. He couldn’t forget it, because you’d been complaining about it endlessly for the past three days. You had food poisoning because Mark Webber invited you to lunch on Thursday, and accidentally gave you something dodgy. You’ve yet to forgive the man. “Well at least you’re starting from P4. Lets you fight for P1, no?”

“Against Lewis and Charles? Please. In my dreams, maybe. Plus, you’re starting P3, asshole.” You retort, turning back around to put your balaclava on. The second it’s on your head, though, it gets pulled off, and you look behind you for the perpetrator. “Charles give it b– SEBASTIAN!”

The Aston Martin driver gives you a grin before hugging you tightly, lifting you off the ground a bit. You didn’t expect to see him before the race, but the surprise was definitely welcome.

“Oh but if it was me I would have gotten scolded,” Charles mutters, but his complaints were left unheard.

“Just came to wish you luck before the race starts. P4! You’re going to get a podium, I’m sure of it,” Sebastian beams, letting you go from the hug.

“That’s what Charles said too. He was more delusionally optimistic, though. Said I was gonna win.”

“Because I believe in you! Is that so bad?” Charles complains from the side, his comment ignored once again.

“Well maybe Charles is right— you could win. Meanwhile I’m starting in the midfield, again.” Sebastian complains, groaning a little bit.

“Oh cheer up Seb, you survived Ferrari for 6 years, you’ll live.”

He lights up a bit at your joke, moving to say something before an Aston Martin mechanic shows up outside the Ferrari garage. He wasn’t allowed inside, but it was obvious he was looking for Sebastian– who also wasn’t allowed inside, yet mysteriously got in. Nothing to do with him being friends with your mechanics of course, yeah, totally not.

“Ah shoot, well it looks like they’re looking for me,” Sebastian sighs. He starts to walk away before he pauses and moves back towards you, “Hey, stay safe, okay? New track, it’s dangerous. I know we’ve done practice and quali but you can never be too careful. Plus, it’s sweltering hot. Hydrate.”

You roll your eyes fondly, “Yes, dad.”

His face scrunches up a little, “Don’t ever call me that again, I’m not that old.”

“You could barely work my Instagram the other day! All I asked was for you to open Lewis’ stories!”

“Psh, whatever. I have to go, see you after the race, yeah?” He asks, giving your arm a quick squeeze. You nod, murmuring a goodbye to him. He wishes Charles good luck too, before saving his engineer from the Ferrari mechanics blocking him.

“So he can pull your balaclava off– which you hate, by the way, let me remind you– but if I even try adjusting your helmet straps so it’s safer you slap me off?” Charles speaks up, making you break eye contact from the Ferrari garage doors.

You roll your eyes at him with a smile, “You have got to forget that. It was one time. And it was a soft slap to the shoulder!”

“The point still stands,” he retorts, making you give up on the conversation.

“Whatever, Charlie. Just get ready for the race. Stay safe, okay?” you say, putting your balaclava on again. He gives you a quick kiss on the cheek before leaving, a sign of good luck between the two of you. It makes you smile a little before you hop into your car.

Okay. Qatar. New track, new conditions, but still the same old you. You could do this.

The lights go off one by one, and you grip the steering wheel with anticipation like you always did. Race starts still made you nervous no matter how long you’d been racing. One light goes off…then the next…then the third…the fourth one follows…and then…

“AND IT’S LIGHTS OUT AND AWAY WE GO!”

The first few laps were a breeze, maintaining your position in fourth despite Fernando being on your tail the whole time. You noticed the car was slightly hotter than usual, but decided to ignore it and chalk it up to new changes in the engine.

Around lap 25 you started to feel a bit dizzy and sick during the sharp corners, cursing yourself internally for having such bad timing with the food poisoning. “Charles is 0.200 seconds ahead, feel free to overtake,” your engineer buzzes through the radio.

“Copy,” you reply, not really paying attention, still feeling sick. You overtake Charles with ease around the outside, him not putting up much of a fight because it would have taken both of you out. Now you just had to maintain this position for…dear god, 32 laps.

“Lewis 5 seconds ahead, focus on tire degradation instead.” Your engineer’s warning goes unheard, though, as you noticed the cockpit was getting way too fucking hot.

“The car’s burning up,” you say into your radio, getting only a simple “Copy, we are checking,” back.

“Okay, Y/N there are no problems with your engines, I repeat; no problem.”

What? That’s impossible. You felt like you were melting in there. “Are you sure? Can you ask Charles if his car feels like the sun too?”

“Negative, focus on the race.”

Oh you were going to kill them one day– if they don’t kill you first. A few more laps passed in those horrible conditions before turn 5 rolled around and as you swerved your car, you started to see black spots around your vision.

That can’t be good, you think, having to close your eyes for a second before shaking your head and snapping yourself back into the race. Thankfully Charles had pitted earlier and had a 3 second gap to you. “I don’t feel too well.”

“Copy. Is it the car?”

“Well it’s definitely part of the problem.”

The next few turns were torture, your head bobbing around as you faded in and out of consciousness through the fast corners. Charles was catching up now, and you knew if you didn’t do something soon, he would pass you.

You wanted this podium. You needed it. If you got P3 you would grab P4 on driver standings.

There was a slow corner coming up that was a good overtaking spot, and so you had to defend.

As the turn came around– faster than you expected– the extreme heat of the car, your headache, sweat, food poisoning, and dizziness came together and you suddenly felt light, as if you were flying, before a jolt knocked you out of your consciousness completely.

You were out for less than a minute, but that minute counted for everything. You completely turned into Charles, him having to swerve onto the gravel just so you wouldn’t crash into each other. Your car, however, still had more speed in it, and you were headed towards the wall on the very far side of the gravel.

Thankfully, the rough rocks had shook you awake enough that you were able to swerve away from the wall extremely last minute and only take the tail and back wheel of your car out.

The next few seconds were a blur.

You still felt faint, but could hear a muffled voice headed towards you. You knew the back of your car was completely ruined and you were out of the race, and you put your helmet in your hands in disappointment. You were having such a good run before this happened. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

The muffled voice running towards you was closer now, and you registered it to be Charles. He was saying something but you could barely hear him with how your ears were ringing and how the seat of the car was still hot.

The man quickly realized you weren’t hearing him, and opted to come closer and lift your visor up. “Smoke. Car. Get out!”

He didn’t need to tell you twice. You pushed yourself up but barely, Charles having to lift you up by your shoulders. Once out of the car you completely collapsed on the floor, only having your teammate catch you.

“I think I’m gonna throw up,” you say drowsily, still fighting the urge to pass out.

“Safety car is coming, stay with me now,” he replies, tapping your helmet so you stay awake. You were grateful your friend was there with you.

On track, however, Sebastian had just been informed of what went down. “What the fuck? What happened?”

“L/N completely turned into Leclerc. Driver error, push on for P9.”

Sebastian hated how his engineer sounded like a robot reporting a technical statistic. He saw the aftermath of the accident for a split second, and it didn’t look like your car was in good shape. He worries about what shape you were in. “Are they okay?”

“Safety car is coming out for L/N and to crane the car, but other than that they seem fine.”

“Injuries?”

“Please focus on the race, Sebastian.”

“INJURIES!” he shouts into his radio, annoyed. He wouldn’t be able to focus on the race until he knew you were alright.

“Uh…L/N seems to be out of it and on the floor, but they’re okay. They’ll be fine, Seb.” His engineer adds the last statement to reassure the man. He knew you meant a lot to him. Seb nods to himself in the car, carrying on with the race. The faster this finished the faster he could get to you.

The safety car came out and they all slowed down, Sebastian finally being able to take a second long look at the accident. Your car was still there, the smoke coming out of it being extinguished by a personnel. Sebastian thinks he ought to have a word with the Ferrari mechanics after the race. He then notices you, on your knees in the gravel, only being kept up by a driver he can only assume to be Charles. Sebastian thinks that should be him there supporting you, but at the same time he’s glad he wasn’t the one who you nearly crashed into. He couldn’t have it on his consciousness that he could have hit you.

“‘m sorry for ruining your race,” you mumble, still being held up by Charles. The man shakes his head, “It was ruined before that, don’t worry. My engine was acting up.”

You knew he was lying to make you feel better, his engine was completely fine. He was headed for the podium earlier, his first in a while. And you completely botched his chance to get it. The thought makes you sob a little, along with the fact that you ruined your own race.

Crying wasn’t the greatest thing to do, though, as it only made you more lightheaded. Charles notices this and takes your helmet off for you, despite your protests pre-race. You were grateful that he did, though, as the second he took your helmet and balaclava off you felt like you had a breath of fresh air for the first time.

“Better?”

You nod, unable to speak. You still felt dizzy and sick. Charles felt annoyed that the safety personnel were taking so long to get to you, waving them over to walk quicker. Squinting your eyes a little, you find them with some health personnels, and you sink a little lower into the gravel.

“God not again,” you groan, remembering the events that unfolded back in Spa. You did not need to go to the medical tent. As you attempt to get up, however, you fall back down as your vision blurred. Looks like medical tent it is again.

The rest of the race went particularly well. Lewis won the race and Fernando got his first podium since 2014– which you reminded yourself to congratulate him for once you were out of the medical tent– and Seb ended up P9, a position higher than where he started. That would usually be a mediocre result but with his shitty car, you were pretty impressed.

“Water?” A familiar voice makes you look away from the TV screen in the room. Charles sat beside your bed, holding a plastic bottle of water. You nod and take it from him, chugging the cool liquid down.

“Sorry again for ruining your race,” you say as you finish drinking. Charles shakes his head, “Stop apologizing. You passed out, that was no fault of yours.”

“You passed out!?” A loud concerned voice makes both of you snap your head towards the door of the room. Sebastian stood there, still in his race suit like the both of you, a shocked look on his face.

“Is that what happened? You passed out mid race?” He asks again, but this time softer. He walks towards your medical bed– which you insisted you didn’t need– before putting his hand on your forehead to check if you had a fever. The action makes you giggle, but Sebastian had a serious look that shut you up quickly.

He shakes his head with a sigh, “You have a bit of a fever.”

“Any other fun observations?”

Sebastian didn’t seem to be in the mood for your wit, though. “You could have been injured. Just a few meters and you could have fully hit the wall. If you were just a few seconds late waking up you would have–”

He shuts his eyes and stops himself. He didn’t want to think about what could have happened anymore. His voice got wobbly during the end of his statement, making you realize that he was stopping himself from crying. You absentmindedly sit up and reach for his hand, squeezing it gently.

“I’m here, Seb. And I’m fine. Look at me.”

The older driver does, slowly opening his eyes. You squeeze his hand a second time, a soft smile on your lips. “I’m here. And look, I’m completely fine. You’re not getting rid of me that quickly old man.”

Seb lets out a chuckle at that, moving to hug you tightly.

“Don’t ever scare me like that again,” he mumbles into your hair. “Why did you even pass out?”

“I was already a little dizzy before getting in the car because of the heat but I tried ignoring it. The car was overheating too and it made me dehydrated, I think. My drink pouch wasn’t a lot of help either when the water was steaming hot. Plus…” you trail off, not really wanting to talk ill of Webber.

“Mark gave her food poisoning when he took her to lunch,” Charles butted in, making you give him a look. You forgot he was in the room.

“Mark? As in Webber?” Sebastian asks, Charles nodding in response. “The bastard.”

“Oh c’mon Seb, he just wanted to treat me to lunch. It’s not like he poisoned my food on purpose.”

Seb sighs deeply before agreeing, “You’re right. Sorry. I’m just– I don’t know.”

“I get it. I mean, this is my second time at the medical tent in three months. Makes you think how accident prone I am,” you joke. Sebastian laughs, and you’re glad you got the worried look in his face away.

“The one in Spa was completely your fault, but we may have to pin this one on Mark,” Seb teases. You shoot him a grin, “Yeah, we can say that.”

Before you could talk more, though, a PR person from both Ferrari and Aston Martin came in to fetch Charles and Sebastian.

“What about me?” you ask, getting up from your bed. It wasn’t like you were injured or anything, you were just a little sick and had a bit of a stomach ache. You’d already thrown up earlier, so you felt pretty normal now.

“Sorry, we have orders to keep you here.”

You scoff, “Please. What can they do if I walk out?”

Before the Ferrari PR agent could reply, though, you were already out the room. She stands there helpless, making Sebastian and Charles chuckle to each other before following you. You were always stubborn when you wanted to be.

The second you’re out of the medical tent, camera flashes overwhelm your eyes. You walk past them as you always do, but the contrast of the light to the night sky makes you a bit lightheaded again, having to hold Sebastian’s arm for support. He moves your hand from his arm to his own hand, interlocking it with yours and pull you through the crowd. There were no words needed to be said, he always knew what you needed. You’re starting to think he can read minds.

Once past the annoying lot of cameras, you make it to the media pen where at least they pestered you in a more civil way. The interviewers were all over you and Charles, looking for some inside scoop on ‘Ferrari drama.’ Turns out, the media thought you tried to purposely take Charles out a la brocedes style. Because of this you had to clarify to every person you talked to that, “No, I did not try to take Charles out on purpose. I passed out. We’re good. Yes, we’re still friends.”

Once that was all over, you headed over to the Channel 4 area to give a certain someone a piece of your mind. “Mark Webber.”

The man turns around to the mention of his full name, smiling when he notices who it is. “Y/N! Glad you’ve come and joined us! We’re on in about five minutes, we can do a segment about the crash but if you wanna talk about something else on screen that’s fine too, we can–”

“You gave me food poisoning!” you butt in. “I cannot believe you.” His coworkers give him a look, as if they were holding in a laugh at him being scolded.

Mark stands there with his mouth agape, unsure what to say. “Wasn’t that three days ago? Are you sure it’s me?”

Rolling your eyes, you reply, “Yes, I’m sure it’s you. It started three days ago, and guess who I was with when I ate something unusual three days ago? Oh right, it’s you!”

He pauses for a moment before bursting into laughter, trying to cover his mouth to no avail. “Sorry, it’s not funny that you almost crashed, I’m glad you’re safe, but– ha!– I cannot believe it was because of the dodgy Indian food!”

You gave him a shove, trying to act mad, but the smile on your face betrayed you. His laughter was contagious. “You are such an asshole.”

“Awh cheer up,” he gives you a side hug, ruffling your hair a little. “Sorry for giving you food poisoning, mate. I’ll make it up to you, whaddya think about lunch on me tomorrow?”

You escape his side hug when you hear him say that, “Absolutely not! I’m never trusting you again with food recommendations.”

The statement makes him laugh again, and you chuckle along with him. Hard to be mad at someone who didn’t do it on purpose. Sebastian walked over to the two of you, having watched the interaction from afar.

“Look who’s coming over,” Mark mumbled, making you notice Seb trying to pretend to just ‘bump’ into the two of you. “Still competitive ‘till now, eh? Don’t worry, I’m not trying to out-mentor you,” Mark says out loud, grabbing the attention of the German.

Seb tilts his head with a faux oblivious look, “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” He grabs you by the arm and ‘discreetly’ pulls you over to his side. ‘No idea’ my ass.

The Australian scoffs with a grin, “Whatever you say mate. Listen, I gotta get back because our feed is going live in a few minutes, but you two take care, alright? Nice to see you again Seb.”

“You too, Mark.” Sebastian replies, this time genuinely. While the media knew the two drivers were now on good terms, they didn’t know just how close they had gotten. The two went bowling at least once every two months just to catch up with each other, you being there for half their competitions– yes, they still competed. Apparently that sense of wanting to beat your former teammate does not go away. So far this year, Mark’s been winning.

Before Mark completely walked away, he looked back at you for a second, “Oh, and, I am happy you got out injury free from that nasty crash. Genuinely glad you’re okay. Sorry that my dodgy food contributed to your sickness.”

You wave him off, “It’s fine, Mark. It’s not like you could’ve known I would get food poisoning. Although, next time maybe check online reviews.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” he smiled, waving you a goodbye as he ran to his coworkers who were already getting impatient.

You shake your head with a grin, “Well at least that’s over with.”

Sebastian slings his arm around your shoulder, “True. So want to get dinner?”

“Absolutely not. I think I’m done with food for a good while.”

“Well you have to eat something,” he insists, as you both walk through the paddock. “How about we get room service?”

“Eh, it’s late, I don’t really want a repeat of Monaco 2019.”

Monaco 2019 was when you and Seb got room service at 10pm because you didn’t check the time. Safe to say the staff weren’t very happy with that. You both felt so bad while eating that food.

“We can just get McDonalds then,” you suggest.

“McDonalds?” Charles asks, popping out from god knows where.

“Jesus, where the hell were you hiding? The atoms?” You ask.

“I was here the whole time.”

“You were not,” Sebastian comments. Charles simply shrugs, tagging along with the two of you, not caring that he was obviously third wheeling a moment. “So McDonalds?”

You roll your eyes, “Yes, McDonalds. But you’re paying because you’re tagging along.”

“No fair! Sebastian is richer than me!”

You both give Charles a look at the same time. Charles thinks it’s eerie how alike the two of you were.

“Charles,” Sebastian starts, patting the Monegasque’s back with one arm with his other still slung around your shoulders. Your accident made him very clingy, but you weren’t about to tell him that. “Let me phrase this as nicely as I can; you are from Monaco. You are rich.”

Charles lets out a sigh, “Fine. I’ll buy the food.”

You clap, “Fuck yeah! Food on the rich man!”

“We have the same salary in our contracts?”

“Shh, that’s not important,” you say, shushing Charles. “Food on the rich man! Although, we may have to go to the hotel right after and just get take out. I can feel Mark’s Indian food from three days ago still fighting with me.”

Charles is the one to roll his eyes this time, “I’ll get the car so we can get there faster, your highness.”

“Thank you, Lord Perceval.”

“Don’t call me that!” he shouts, already walking away to the parking lot.

That left you and Sebastian alone again, just enjoying the company of one another, walking slowly down the paddocks. There were few people now, most having gone back to their hotels to call it a night.

“You know, I’m glad I found you.”

The words make you look up at the older driver, who you find smiling at you. “What do you mean by that?”

“I mean obviously we would find each other, there’s only so many drivers in Formula One. But I mean I’m glad I found you in this life.”

“Do you think we don’t find each other in other lives?”

Sebastian pauses and thinks for a second. He’s thought about the other career paths he could have taken throughout his life– other lives he could have lived. He knows there’s no logical way, but he thinks he still would have found you in those lives. The thought makes him smile to himself.

“No, I think we do.”

“Well then good. Because me too,” you reply, giving him a smile of your own. “Why did you suddenly think about it though?”

Sebastian shrugs, “I don’t know. I just felt suddenly sentimental. Feels like a chapter of my life closed but I’m not sure what or why.”

Little did he know that he would start contemplating retirement a few weeks after that.

“Oh well, it doesn’t matter. Whether we find each other in other lifetimes, I mean.”

Seb raises his eyebrow, him now being the one confused. “What do you mean?”

“I mean we’re both here now. Enjoying each other’s company. Why bother thinking about versions of ourselves in other universes when we’ve got each other in this one?”

Sebastian gives you the most genuine, softest smile at that. “I love you, I don’t tell you that enough.”

You scrunch your face, “Ew. Sounds like a love confession. Sorry but you’re too old for me.”

“You know what I mean. I love you but not in that way. That’s just gross,” Sebastian says, hitting your shoulder.

“Relax old man, I’m just teasing,” you giggle, trying to avoid his hit. “Love you too. Ew. Sorry, not great with verbal affection. Pretty sure that just made me throw up a bit, and that’s not even with the help of the food poisoning.”

Sebastian just shakes his head, “Okay c’mon now, Charles will be annoyed with how slow we’re walking.”

Later that night, the three of you watched a cheesy romcom while sharing a shit load of fries and chicken nuggets. As you carried on through the night you thought to yourself that despite the hardships of F1, the crashing, the disappointments, the injuries– it brought you a second family you never thought you’d have. And you wouldn’t trade it for any other universe.

Although, maybe a universe where you didn’t get food poisoning.

#sebastian vettel #charles leclerc #sebastian vettel x reader #sebastian vettel x you #sebastian vettel imagine #charles leclerc x reader #charles leclerc x you #charles leclerc imagine #formula one #formula 1 imagine #formula 1 x reader #formula 1 #f1 fanfic #formula 1 x you #f1 imagine

[eternally-racing]

not private, not secret | oscar piastri

wc: <1k (short n sweet 😌)

pairing: oscar piastri x reader

genre: fluff

pairing: oscar piastri x reader

summary: you and oscar have kept your relationship secret for this long, but oscar can't help but celebrate with you for his very first formula 1 win.

----

You were well accustomed to being a shadow in the McLaren garage. It’s the way you and Oscar had decided you liked it best.

There was no pressure from the media, no mean comments on social media, and the less prying eyes into your relationship, the better. Only a select few people on the team knew that you were Oscar’s girlfriend, the rest easily bought up the lie that you were the daughter of a very rich investor in the team who wanted to be at every race. It usually wasn’t that hard to keep quiet, but today was a big day and you could feel your heart pounding out of your chest at every turn. For the first time in his Formula 1 career your boyfriend was leading the race, and with only a few more laps to go you were praying that today would be the day that his dream came true. As you looked to the pit wall you could see Andrea’s foot nervously twitching against the foot rest of his chair, he felt it too. This would easily be the biggest moment of Oscar’s career if it comes true, and there are only a few more laps to go. 

It’s a moment you never want to forget as the checkered flag comes out for Oscar’s car. You can’t stop the tears leaking out from your eyes as you hear the jubilation on his voice through the radio. This is a moment that both of you imagined for so long, but the reality of the situation surpassed all of your expectations. It’s a full celebration with the team as everyone is thoroughly overjoyed. You’re swept up with thinking about Oscar that you don’t even notice the other papaya car cross the line after Oscar. It’s a 1-2 finish, there’s not much more a team could ever wish for in a race. McLaren hasn’t felt joy like this in years. There’s a full sea of papaya out in front of the podium to greet the race winner, and you’re not sure where you fit into things - you blend in easily with the crowd while simultaneously being swept up in it. You’ve made a couple of friends in the garage and stick closely to them as the party already seems to be beginning on the paddock. 

You’ve never seen Oscar like this before - he takes a minute in the car before getting out (you can only assume he was wiping his tears of joy, even if he is too stubborn to admit it). You have your phone out taking a couple of pictures yourself - you know that there’s 1000s of cameras around that are also pointed at your boyfriend, but you want to remember what it feels like to see this moment through your eyes. 

After hugging his engineer and the rest of the team members, you can see Oscar’s gaze start to wander around the paddock, and it’s only once he changes directions do you figure out that he’s looking for you. There’s cameras flashing and the live TV feed clearly following over his shoulder, but your eyes are only locked on each other as Oscar reaches out for you. He stays in your arms for long enough that people can probably get the hint that you’re someone special.

“I really couldn’t have done this without you love, thank you” Oscar says with tears pooling in his eyes. This is his “I made it moment”, and he wants nothing more than to share it with you. There’s so many words that you want to say, but you find yourself speechless as you stare into Oscar’s eyes. Instead, you go with the action that you’ve dreamt of doing ever since you started dating. It’s your first helmet kiss of what will be many more to follow. Oscar warned you that it wouldn’t taste very good, especially given the dusty race conditions of the day, but it brings such joy to your heart to be able to celebrate with him.

When Oscar’s up on the podium he points to you as he lifts the trophy up to the cheers of the crowd, mouthing an “I love you” to you down below that you know will make the rounds on social media. But you don’t care one bit about that anymore. People could throw all the hate in the world your way, but there was nothing like the pride of celebrating your boyfriend’s first f1 win.

-----

author's note: was in a bit of a writing slump working on pt.2s for a lot of my other fics so i just wanted to write something short and sweet! hope u all enjoyed it :) My ask box is still open as always if you have any requests. Until next time! - Em <3

#oscar piastri #formula 1 fic #oscar paistri imagine #oscar piastri x you #oscar piastri fanfic #oscar piastri fluff #f1 imagine #f1 fluff #op81 #oscar piastri x reader #oscar piastri x yn #formula 1 x reader #formula 1 fanfic #f1 x reader #oscar piastri fic #mclaren f1

[tutuandscoot]

I know everyone loves the moment in the knc when Tessa and Scott win gold in 2018 and it’s gonna be etched in everyone’s minds forever. I feel like people mainly focus on Scott jumping up and then their hug(s) which, yeah fair 🥺 but I feel like we don’t talk enough about Tessa’s high pitched little scream right before Scott pulls her up and we don’t talk enough about Scott’s muffled yell into her shoulder after he sets her down from the hug. Truly the most iconic knc ever.

O•M•G YES!

Why don’t we talk abt this more?? T’s lil scream is.. I don’t want to say my fave part of it bc that’s silly.. but yes let’s talk about that. Them both screaming ‘YES’ but vocally and physically that coming out in very different ways.

The fact that you can HEAR her scream “YES!” Obviously none of us know her personally and we just make assumptions based on footage and things they say publicly and at least here in my space I hope everyone feels they can appreciate and love them for who they are without all the BS takes, so (hopefully) the consensus is she’s such a sweetheart and is reserved and quieter compared to Scott but the fact is even though they are very different they are both very competitive perfectionists and as much as they made their comeback *PROJECT as I’m now referring to it* about writing this incredible chapter in their lives together and improving and exploring and challenging themselves removed from how the judges reward them and had come to learn that medals don’t signify how great you are, they set the goal of winning that gold medal FOR EACH OTHER and they both wanted it more than anything to culminate all this hard work, represent their country, do their country proud, stand on the top of the podium together one last time…. *takes deep breath😮‍💨*

She wanted that. He wanted that. And their reactions are fully, unfiltered, completely in the moment reactions to their goal being achieved by having the performance of their dreams. As is said in the book by their families in regards to their reaction immediately after they finished their program, ‘the scene was so them’. And the same is true of their reaction in the K+C, almost polar opposite physical reactions but inside feeling the exact same thing. I love how they are different but feel so many things the same way 🥹

Her scream is soooo her (again without knowing her). The humble little bby muffins they are do not hold anything back in that moment of celebration and let everyone know just how much they fought for it.

The fact that she’s holding a water bottle then drops it as she screams before he picks her up. Like that’s so T 😄🥹. Even now I think ‘bby angel maybe don’t hold anything I guarantee you the celebration will require your hands to be free’.

Then as I said on a shared post the other day how he kinda turns to her as if telling her to get up immediately but don’t worry he’s already getting her up, like I almost think he’s about to like cradle her up- one hand behind her back and other under her knees, he’s so desperate to hold her and it’s just like there’s no time to wait. She doesn’t get to her feet at all he just throws her up (reminds me of when I was really little and my dad would lift me and throw me in the air- not saying that’s what is like here with TS- not the father/daughter thing just the physical action and the size difference..) and the fact from her reaction she’s kinda rendered paralysed and is folded forward and he’s so full of energy he has enough for both of them to jump to their feet.

Then of course we can’t see from the board in the front but the way she’s hanging there mirrors exactly how they celebrated on the ice when he skates into her and just as matter of physics him going into her makes her go up and her little legs dangle for a moment with the purest freaking smile I have ever seen:

(Honestly have you ever seen a more precious human being???)

And then YES EvErYtHiNg that was going on on his side of that hug. The fist pump, THE HAND COVERING THE FACE AS HE ‘CRIES’. The gently putting her down still pressed into her. The SCREAM INTO HER SHOULDER- exactly the same as their end pose- which btw I can’t believe people actually thought he was biting her there 😑 he was screaming “YES” into her, and not that it was conscious but as he said later on he was trying so hard to contain his excitement, not celebrate before the dance was over- give the end pose a minute to settle there, so he screamed where it would be made least obvious, which was into her with his mouth against her 🥲.

And then let’s KEEP GOING BC I HAVE THINGS TO SAY ABOUT THIS. But as they briefly let go and she says (it seems the most obvious but can’t be 100% sure) “thank you so much” which is just too freaking perfect as a mirror to him saying that exact thing to her at the end of Mahler in 2010 🥲🥲… the SOFNESSSSS in the way he goes back in to hug her. Like all that excitement and euphoria and squeezing so tight then that slight but overwhelming calm for those few moments, so briefly taking her like how all us ladies want to be taken; the kiss and the soft squeeze and the sweet whispering fuckinggg hell scoot ur too perfect 😩 + assumably T re/starting the laugh cry with that shudder (same as here in K+C at worlds 08 🥲🥲🥲- first appearance of the laugh cry)

And the ‘😃 we fucking did it 😃’ third hug’.

Seeing them go through at least 3 different stages of excitement in the k+c alone, then ofc everything on the ice and that beautiful story of their quiet little hug back stage where they just wanted to stay there for as long as possible. (S favourite moment from the games 🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲)

The best we can get from that is him asking her to go backstage with him and then disappearing behind the curtains:

Ahhhhh what a freaking moment. And the best part is re watching it and going through all those emotions with them when you care about them so much and know how hard they worked for it❤️

#ask #pyeongchang olympics #k+c #fd: moulin rogue #I love getting to commiserate with people who love these precious beans as much as me 🥹

[hamilgodd]

This feeling

—Is driving me crazy.—

Pairing: Lando/Oscar | Mention of Carlando

Word counting: +800

Warnings: Slight jealousy, self doubt, not a lot of dialogue.

Oscar is proud, not only of having climbed ten places; but that Lando had achieved second place. A race that had left them breathless, that had brought out the best in each of them and that in the end, everything had paid for their effort.

He feels his hands tremble and his face begin to hurt a little because of the smile he knows he carries; he observes with eyes full of happiness the podium where, bathing in champagne and with the trophy of the second place Lando celebrates. His partner, friend, confidant, boyfriend... has made a spectacular career and all his effort has borne fruit leading him to be on that podium, being admired by the whole world.

The mechanics next to him celebrate, the camera flashes blind him for a few seconds; he can hear the screams of the fans behind him while waving pennants with the characteristic orange color and Lando’s number. He deserves it; he deserves to be celebrated, loved, admired and recognized; he deserves the brilliant trophy, the kind smiles, the soft hugs; he deserves everything and Oscar is sometimes afraid.

Fear of not being enough, of not being up to his height; that at any moment the other will get up one day and realize that Oscar is not the one he wants by his side.

He can see the way they look at each other, or at least how Carlos does it. With tranquility, with tenderness, warmth, love... so much love that it is impossible to overlook it. He observes him with longing and a little mixed sadness that can be seen in the way he passes his arm over the shoulders of the lowest, in the way he attracts him and sticks him a little more to his side. It’s too much, too much; it’s painful to see because it feels right. The two of them are like pieces of a puzzle that fit perfectly, and Oscar feels like the card that no one knows where he is going.

Know the story of both of them perfectly, what they lived in their days as companions; those dreams that they never realized, that longing that was never said out loud. Lando has had no qualms about telling him, because for the Briton it is nothing more than a memory that has remained in the past, something that will never be and that no longer has a chance of happening. But Oscar can see the moment when his gaze wanders, in how he clings to Carlos with a little more strength than necessary, as if for a few seconds he misses what they never had.

The media add wood to the fire that slowly burns his heart, photograph after photograph is published on every social network you can imagine. Under the bright lights of the podium and their smiles that are reflected in the trophies they hold, they look incredible, magnificent; two potential world champions. Talent overwhelms them and Oscar feels like a zero to the left. The statements they both give at the post-career press conference, the way they end each other’s prayers or how they seem to share little jokes that only they understand don’t help either.

Everything is too much and he doesn’t want to be the person responsible for ruining the spirits.

He walks to the garage where silence reigns because the team, eager to go to celebrate, has already abandoned it. The lights are turned off and his footsteps that resonate around the place calm him slightly. He doesn’t want to think about anything he has seen, he doesn’t want to let doubts consume him for something that hasn’t happened and isn’t going to happen. But it’s tiring, living under the shadow of a ghost that lives everywhere is exhausting.

“I was looking for you everywhere” he jumps a little when he hears Lando’s voice coming from behind him “I saw that you were for the award on the podium, but I couldn’t find you after that” there is a stop of happiness still in his voice. Oscar does his best to smile without his negative emotions being present.

“Congratulations on that P2” chooses to answer instead “you made a wonderful career” there is not a trace of a lie in that statement, there is nothing more than love and adoration that seeps into his voice.

“It’s incredible, I still can’t believe it” he slightly raises the trophy he’s been carrying with one of his hands “it’s not a first place, but it feels like it is”

“Soon, I am sure that you will soon be able to win” Oscar knows that Lando is waiting with excitement and anxiety for that Grand Prix where he is proclaimed as the winner, where all the lights of the spotlights are on him to celebrate his victory. “Shouldn’t you be celebrating?”

“The mechanics have gone to dinner and Carlos has invited me to the party with his team” the Briton can see the almost imperceptible grimace that Oscar makes and the way in which it is removed uncomfortable. They haven’t been together for long, but he is proud to be able to say that he knows him almost perfectly;

He doesn’t like to see him that way, hiding what he feels so as not to overwhelm him. Lando wants to tell Oscar that he has nothing to worry about, that there is no one else; that he could never have. That those moments of uncertainty are a thing of the past and that they are going to stay there no matter how much others want to relive them. There is no space in his life for the years that have already left, there is only room for the present that he lives and the future that he longs for.

“You should go celebrate” the Australian tries to convince him but Lando has other plans in mind.

"I don’t want to leave you behind” he promises that he will do everything necessary to show Oscar how much he loves him. In addition, spending a night with the minor in his arms in that hotel room where they are staying; it sounds like the best celebration you can think of.

So this was a bit difficult to write cause I keep wandering into the angst side and I really wanted to be cute(? So, i think this is a very acceptable middle ground. I am wondering if I should do a second part(?

#f1 #formula 1 #formula uno #formula one fanfic #lando norris #oscar piastri #carlos sainz #carlando #oscar/lando

[its-nebula]

I Don’t Belong Here

Prince!Kokichi x Fem!Reader

Walking through the meadow in the early morning always calmed you down. Getting a chance to smell the morning dew, witnessing the fawn leap and nibble on the grass, peering at the sky as it painted a glorious picture of oranges and reds. All of it was just so peaceful. With a tiny grin, you made your way over to the tiny pond hidden among all the trees. Grazing your fingers over the water, you watched as the fish swam about without a care in the world. 

You gasped as they so abruptly swam away from you, yet you immediately knew what the culprit was. The chimes of the bell from the tower rang loud, and you froze in place. It was officially 7AM, and surely, your  fiancé would be looking for you at any moment. Sadly, the beautiful moment would have to come to an end, as it has every morning since you’d moved in to live with Kokichi.

After you slowly rose to your feet, you brushed off your nightgown, then started your stroll back to your domain, the chime of the bell growing louder with every step you took. The birds flew away from the trees, bunnies and rabbits hid in their dens. You chuckled to yourself a little, knowing the purpose of rigging the bell to chime so early in the morning was to intentionally piss people and wildlife off.

As you entered the castle, peeking around to make sure nobody would see you. 

“Good morning, Duchess.” The castle’s maid, Kirumi, greeted. You jumped at her words, turning around quickly. “I assume you went for another stroll today?” 

“Kirumi, please! I already told you not to call me that...” You trailed off, looking down at the ground. 

“My apologies, S/O. However, I do hope you know once you’re married, I’ll be honor-bound to refer to you by that name, as per the request of the Royal Family.”

“Yeah, I know.” Sighing to yourself, you dusted off your nightgown again, then cleared your throat. “Will you be so kind as to read off all the duties for today?”

“Of course.” She pulled a scroll out of a pocket on her skirt, and unfurled it. “Request eating arrangements for the guests, confirm musical arrangement, confirm decorations, rehearse ballroom dancing, and dress fitting, my lady.”

You nodded your head. “Thank you, Kirumi. You may continue with your duties now.” Giving you a nod back, she hurried off to the kitchen.

“Don’t forget to put ‘explain why you don’t love your evil prince anymore’ on that list!” You heard the all-too familiar voice of your betrothed from behind you, and you rolled your eyes playfully. You couldn’t help but smile as he hugged you from behind, giving you a tight squeeze. “Why do you always get up so earlyyyy? Your side of the bed is always so cold in the mornings!”

“You’re the one who had that bell built to chime at the crack of dawn!”

“Niheehee, isn’t it soooo funny? Just think of all those people in town annoyed that they have to wake up early on all their days off! It’s the perfect way to remind them who’s really going to be in charge in a few days!”

You couldn’t help but laugh a little with him. After all, that chaotic energy was something you loved and embraced about him. If there was one thing Kokichi wasn’t, it was a normal prince. Still, you couldn’t get the feeling of nervousness out of your mind. You loved Kokichi with all of your heart, you truly did. You wouldn’t want to be with anybody else, and you knew that he felt the same way about you. Something still just felt off, but you brushed it aside as wedding day jitters, since you had that feeling since you had moved in with Kokichi. 

“Their leader’s going to be so big and bad...minus the big part.” You teased him, and he pouted.

“Laugh all you want, but just you wait! If my looks apparently won’t get me respect, I’ll have to rule...by fear.”

“Yeah, you’re going to TP their houses. The good thing is that you’re small enough to pull it off!” You laughed, and he started with his fake tears.

“YOU’RE SO MEAN TO MEEEE! I’M AN EVIL PRINCE! WAAAAAAAA-”

You cut him off with a kiss, giggling softly. He happily kissed back, grinning at you mischievously when he pulled away. “Heehee, I knew you still loved me, S/O! Okay, I have to do all the booooorriinnngg planning stuff now, but I’ll see you later to rehearse! Goodbye~” He gave you one last kiss on the cheek, then went into another room to take care of his princely duties.

The day grew on, and all day you had Kirumi by your side, who helped you complete your tasks. Surprisingly, you’d gotten done earlier than you expected, thanks in no small part to your maid handling things efficiently.

“S/O, I’ve heard that Kokichi isn’t quite ready to dance quite yet. Would you like to do the fitting first?”

“I’d love that, Kirumi.” You smiled at her as you followed her into the bedroom, where your seamstress was starting to set up her materials. You greeted her with a smile, standing on the podium that she had set out. Looking at yourself in the mirror, you couldn’t help but remember a time from which you were basically a random girl off the sidewalk. Your original room was nothing compared to the giant, extravagant bedroom you shared with Kokichi. Your whole house alone could probably fit in the dining room that you ate in now. You came here from almost nothing, and in just a couple days, you would have everything you could ever want.

You slipped into the dress, gawking at just how pretty it looked on you. It was crazy to think that not even long ago, you didn’t even dream of wearing something this expensive or nice looking for a second. It felt strange that it was you were looking at in the mirror, and not somebody else. Now, in just a few short days, tens of thousands of people would see you in this outfit, and you would be officially be royalty.

It wasn’t until the seamstress placed the crown upon your head that all the feelings suddenly started to hit at once. You, S/O, were going to be royalty. Did you even deserve this? Did you deserve to have any of this? Your soon-to-be husband grew up like this, he had experience with all of this, and you had nothing. No matter how many bells and whistles you adorned, nothing will change the fact that you had no idea what you were doing. 

“Oh my Queen Bee~ I just got the jewels on my crown affixed, what do you- oh damn.” He gaped at the sight of you in your dress and crown, after walking in without so much as even a knock. How rude, but that wasn’t what you were concerned about. “I sure picked the hottest girl to be my queen, didn’t I?” He started checking you out.

“Kokichi...” Again, you couldn’t help but laugh, even when you were in the worst of moods. He just had that about him, he never failed to make you fall in love all over again. “You don’t really think I’m cut out to be queen, do you? Be honest now...”

“Don’t tell me you’re as dumb as that peasant we saw the other day, S/O! What was his name...? Kaito? Well who cares, because I know you’re better than that!”

“But Kokichi...I don’t feel very royal.”

“Royal, shmoyal. Have you seen yourself in the mirror?!”

“Yes, but-”

“S/O, listen.” He held your hand as you stepped off the podium, so you could get used to moving around in your dress. “You’ll do great. Do you think one of these other boring princesses could rule by my side as well you could?”

“Well...”

“Ugh. Don’t answer that.”

“But, you’re so experienced and all, Kokichi. Look at where I came from. Face it, I don’t fit in.”

“It doesn’t matter where you came from. What matters now is the present and doing your best to be the best queen you can be. Look, could the old you do this?” Without warning, he started waltzing with you, and you quickly fell into the rhythm, laughing as Kokichi hummed a tune as he danced with you and spun you around. Both Kirumi and the seamstress just watched as you two danced around the room, with Kirumi making sure nothing fell over if you bumped into something. As you stopped, Kokichi dipped you into a long kiss, Kirumi and the seamstress clapped for the two of you.

“Kirumi, scratch ballroom dancing off the list.” You told her breathlessly. As she did, you looked at Kokichi, who had a smug smile on his face.

“Weeelllll?”

“Yeah, yeah, you’re right. Now go away, I need to get out of this dress for dinner.”

“Aww, you mean I can’t stay and watch?” As you got ready to throw a shoe at him, he quickly exited the room, and you shook your head.

Maybe this is where you belonged after all.

#danganronpa x reader #danganronpa #danganronpa imagines #kokichi oma #kokichi ouma #kokichi x reader

[the-writings-of-kaos]

Humans, the pets: An epilogue

Abduction log: Home never tasted so good

He was going home.

———

A tall alien figure was atop a large podium, standing at a lectern as the other councillors moved to sit in their seats as the high councillor had done. Readying to make the announcement. The spotlights turned on as the crowd lights were dimmed. And the high councillor, began to speak.

“Peoples of the galactic alliance. It has come to my attention that a new sapient species has been found, and contacted. I will be displaying images of them now.”

On a giant screen above the councillors images of humans in cities going about their daily lives were viewed, pictures of humans around camp fires sharing stories as the fire burned brightly. And one last image, of humans participating in war games, the one so famously now known to the galaxy as chess. The images faded to black as the crowd slowly regained cognitive focus, the immensely adorable images fading out of their minds as the screen turned to black.

“As I’m sure you have noticed, they are by far the most adorable sapient species we have come across thus far. And while I’m sure many of you would like to find them and bring them to the council, I’d like to set something on the table to be if debate.”

The high councillor paused before setting a large text block to be displayed, carrying the information that needed to be shared.

“This species, when we first contacted them, was originally taken form their home planet and sold as a pet. While the owners were lucky enough that this one was complacent, he did however kill an entire platoon of reptilian pirates who were unlucky enough to attempt to raid the ship they had been on. With a zero enemy survivor count.”

Shocked gasped could be heard throughout the crowd, as aliens began to puzzle over how such a thing could be true. Finally someone from the crowd shouted out.

“Show us proof!”

The screen blinked onto security camera footage. Showing little being walking towards reptilian pirates with his arms outstretched for an embrace. The crowd was heard awwing and cooing as they saw the little being hug the reptilain. Before they went silent as the pirates head was spun clean off. and fell to the ground. The high councillor continued.

“We have returned this, human they called themselves, and inquired the officials of their race as to what army or mercenary group they were part of. We were then informed that this was not any trained military combatent, but instead a technician undergoing their third class education.”

More shock gasps and panicked murmurs erupted from the crowd, before being silenced with a wave from the high councillor as they continued.

“Yes yes, quite shocking. Now back to political matters.”

The high councillor clears their throat before continuing

“This race know as the humans, have colonized much of the galactic arm of their home planets location. They already have more planets then any known military force in the alliance, and it seems that they have been preparing for first contact ever since they began dreaming of reaching out to the stars.”

The crowd went into a crazed exsplosion of discussion, bigger then even the triglybornitites. They simply couldn’t be that big of a race. The crowd went silent again as the councillor began to exsplain.

“They have many great arts, stories, legends and myths. But something has caught my attention, something they call fictional art. It is where they create art works and writing pieces from mental illusions, and create wonderfully as they put it to borrow a human phrase, magical separate worlds within these art works to tell fake stories to entertain each other.”

The councillor paused to let the confusion calm down.

“With these works they created fake stories, of them reaching the galaxy and finding no one here. Because of this they have been blessed with joy of our appearance, they are ready to become alliance members at once. But here is the issue...”

The councillor took a moment before continuing, themselves needing a moment to subside their own unnerve.

“The humans are unspecialized, they do not have a purpose as soon as they are born. And they end up searching for that purpose multiple times throughout their lives. And this is what makes them such a threat. They are what we now know are called generalists, well at least biologically.”

The crowd was shouting in confusion and misunderstanding over how such a race could form. Without specialization how did they choose their jobs, their lives their purposes. All this was still erupting from the crowd as the councillor shouted over them.

“This is why the technician when the ship was attacked, was perfectly able to defend the ship and succeed in their victory. They are capable of improvised combat, they have over seven forms of combat arts, which they teach to eachother as young as adolescents. Because of this they are a major military threat, and they can adapt to almost any environment. They spread themselves across their planet from their equator to their icy poles and still seek out more places to spread to. They have cities on volcanic islands, entire metropolis’s in locations of recurring natural disaster.”

The crowd was panicking as the proof was displayed on the screen, images of places known as Hawaii, Florida, and the Cari-bee-an where the ocean waters regularly barade the shores.

“As a final note...”

The crowd went silent

“We have ammited them as a defender species, and we will have them fight with us!”

The crowd cheered, these juggernauts of the galaxy were here to protect us! This is the best thing to happen since Zarzac the fifth was defeat a hundred years ago.

———

“Hello humanity, this is captain Shammerock of the extra terrestrial species affairs commission. And it is with my most highest honour I’d like to announce we are no longer alone in the Milky Way!”

All across human space people were celebrating, the human home system Sol 3 with their three blue and green perals orbiting the sacred yellow dwarf as the celebration was wrought with triumph. Earth, Mars, and the newest edition Venus, freshly cleared of toxic atmosphere and colonized moons of rich resource.

A message popped up on the dash of the commison comms officer. And was sent all across the human communications and information platform. A message the galaxy was yet to know the mistake of making.

“Dearest human race. From the people’s galactic alliance.

It is with grateful heart that the alliance appoints the human race as a defender race. Along with free trade and access across all allied space, this includes the human race to fight with and for the alliance as a whole. And to aid those in the alliance should they ever need it. Welcome to the alliance, we are pleased to be having you. -people’s galactic alliance”

———

-Several weeks ago-

Abduction log: Sweet (but not real) sorrow

———

Hequ’lutik: Kafr’litik!!! The kenal called and demanded we be there imeadiatly!!!

Hequ’lutik galavanted through their accommodations, looking for their bond partner. Finding them in the relaxation room, getting ready after having heard Hequ’lutik.

Kafr’litik: Quiet down, do you have any idea what it could possibly be about?

Hequ’lutik: Not a clue, the kenaler sounded panicked and demanded that we get there as soon as possible.

Hequ’lutik and Kafr’litik charged out of their accommodations, quickly running into the transportation pod to be taken to the nearest drop point to the kennel.

———

There they were, the awful beasts who had locked him up in their ship for all of his recent memories. The same ones he could only assume were simply playing along with him, like he was a toy.

Smith spoke into the translator that the doctors had given him after the kenaler figured out he was sapient. It beeped quietly, as it translated the words roughly and spoke to the kenaler beside him.

———

The drop pod had arrived, and the wholly bison inside were frantically trying open the hatch. As little being beside Gorgash attempted to speak through the translator.

Gorgash: sorry could you say that again little being?

Little Being:When am I allowed to leave home? I do not wish to meet them again.

Little being gestured with their upper left appendage to the Whooly Bison running towards them, faces of worry strewn across their face.

Gorgash: Soon. The things in blue need to talk to them, and you together.

Gorgash pointed to the blue dressed new contact committee members, who were coming over aswell. Then all at once everyone arrived.

———

Hequ’lutik springed from the drop to the kenaler and littlebing standing in wait, Kafr’litik following close behind. When they got there, she noticed three Sig’abons wearing blue colour clothes had arrived aswell.

Hequ’lutik: Kenaler! Exsplain yourself! Why have you called us? Was little being hurt? And what are they doing here?

Hequ’lutik gestured a appendage to the first contact committee members, before rushing over to Little Being to look them over for any damage. Much to her suprise, the people in blue held her back. As Little Being, looking as cute as ever in their new protective wears, raised their upper appendages in a means of protecting themselves from her.

Kafr’litik: ok ok, what’s going on here? Why won’t you let us near our pet?!?

Leader member: Your ‘pet’ is a NR class organism.

Hequ’lutik: I don’t care how smart they are, Little Being is my pet. And you will give them to me or I will sue you and your kenal.

Gorgash: That means they are a newly discovered race! You fur for brains, bull dropping.

Kafr’litik: Whoe whoe. Newly discovered race? What do you mean?

Leader member: I mean they are a sentient organism, that was kidnapped and sold to you as a pet. And miss Hequ’lutik step away already, you know how dangerous they are. And we aren’t allowing you to harass them.

Hequ’lutik: Ha! Bull dropping!?! You must be off your atmosphere sir, because there is no way they are sentient. They can’t even articulate any excuse of writing or language!

Kafr’litik is stepping away, getting ready to turn around and dash back to the pod. A committee member grabs him before he leaves, and locks his hooves together before he can run off.

Hequ’lutik: What are you doing!?! We are innocent of any crimes you are accusing us of, unlock my partner this instant!

Leader member: I’m afraid we can’t mam, you and your partner are to be taken in for questioning as to how you didn’t realize that your ‘pet’ was sentient. And to direct us to the buyer you got them from, so we can locate their government before they launch out something to find them. Cmon move it.

Gorgash: Follow me Little Being, let’s hear what your slavers have to say.

Little being: Don’t call me small and cute, my name is Smith.

———

A message popped up on my dash, from a kenal in one of the core worlds. They found something and needed a first contact team imeadiatly. As well as an interrogator to figure out what was going through the heads of the owners.

Looks like they need me there too.

Authors note

Alright, I made some edits and I will be doing a second part to the epilogue. Hope you enjoy.

As always credits to my fellow authors, prompters, and commenters.

#humans are space australians #humans are space orcs #humans are weird #humans are adorable #humans are space oddities #humans the pets

[theymakemegayer]

Reputation: Chapter 2

author’s note: In a few hours we will have another QB update, and I have so many mixed emotions about the next chapter... Here’s something I hope can make you guys feel better.

PLEASE TAG POEPLE WHO WANTS TO READ POPPY X MC FICS. I know today’s update will mess up the tags for Poppy.

TW: for a little cursing, I tried to censored it tho

Chapter 1

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After parting ways with Zoey, I enter my classroom for my first subject. My eyes scan the vacant seats. I had just put my laptop down when someone spoke behind me.

 "Well, isn't this very exciting. Bea Hughes." Her voice was dripping with sarcasm, turning around I was met with Chloe frowning at me.

 "You've got to be kidding me. You again?"

 "You think I enjoy seeing your face early in the morning? You must be still asleep and dreaming newbie." She crossed her arms in front of her. 

 I laughed humorlessly, "Don't try to be funny."

 Her lips tugged into a smirk, "You know what would be funny right now?"

 I raised my eyebrow, a part of me starting to get nervous. This was definitely bad news. Plastering a smile, she casually dumped her coffee on my laptop. My eyes grew wide. She laughed at my reaction.

 I scowled at her, "What the hell is wrong with you?" 

 A voice interrupted us. "What is going on here?"

 I turned around and my eyes landed on Ina standing at the top aisle, a briefcase in hand. Holy Shi-?

 Chloe smiled at her, "Nothing Professor Kingsley. I'm just helping Bea clean up the coffee she spilled in her laptop. She is so clumsy."

 My mind blacked out for a moment, all I can think about was Chloe calling her Professor. Like falling down on the ground and being slapped by reality, realization hit me.

 "Y-you're my professor?" I managed to voice out.

 Ina cleared her throat then plastered her professional smile. "If you're in my Behavioral Science in practice course then yes." Then she proceed on the podium ready to start the class.

 I sat weakly trying not to look at Ina. I took a couple of breaths calming my racing mind and heart. 

 This should be some kind of joke right? I cast a look at her surprisingly she also looked at me at that moment. I avoided her gaze.  I groaned internally. God this is so awkward and messed up.

 After my grueling and awkward first period I rushed out of the classroom calling Zoey and wanting to meet her in our dorm. 

 I was already in our dorm building when someone called me out.

 "Bea! Wait up!" I turned around and saw this random guy power walking towards me.

 "That clapback against Poppy yesterday was all over my social media. It was epic!" He said once he was in front of me.

 "Oh... thanks?"

 "You don't know how much it means to me that someone is finally standing up towards Poppy. I'm totally on your side."

 "Thanks. I'm happy to stand up too towards people like that."

 He grinned, "I'm Benji by the way. Your residence advisor. If you ever need anything, I'll be here."

 "Thanks Benji, but I need to go already." I glance at my wrist watch.  "I need to meet up with a friend. It was nice meeting you Benji."

 "Sure! it was nice talking to you, Bea." He said waving goodbye to me.

 Once I arrived at our shared dorm memories of my dilemma and stress came back into me in full swing. I was pacing back and fort in our living room area when Zoey arrived.

 "Hey you okay?" She slouched on the couch facing me.

 "Zoey..." I pouted. 

 "What happened? It's sounded like some kind of emergency when you called."

 I sighed and plopped down beside her. "It is." I huffed before telling her what happened.

 "Okay you what now?" She exclaimed looking me dead in the eye.

 "Ina... Professor Kingsley she was the one I met at the speakeasy last night." I groaned hiding my face on my hands.

 "You guys kissed?"

 "We made out to be exact. Thank God you called me last night Zo. I don't know how messed up it will be if I happen to sleep with her." I groaned again. 

 "You sure you don't like her Bea? Almost everyone in Belvoire has a crush on her. And you happen to even made out with her. Heck you were so close with sleeping with her too."

 I groaned removing my hands on my face I looked at her in the eye, "Please don't remind me and Zo having a crush is different with practically making out with her."

 "Oh then let me add that apart from having a crush I'm sure some of the students thirst for her." 

 I sighed, "Well yes Ina is attractive, but knowing that she's my professor. I just can't Zoey. Seeing her a while ago became so awkward to me."

 Zoey wrapped me in her embrace. "Sorry I should have known you're really different from the people around here Bea." 

 "This scholarship I have is really important to me Zo. I can't afford to be this careless and lose this." My voice was muffled in her shoulders.

 She caressed my back soothingly, "I'm sure you won't lose this. Have you talked to Professor Kingsley yet?"

 Sighing I withdrew from our hug, "Not yet. I was so shock seeing her a while ago. I can't talk to her yet nor be left alone with her."

 Zoey frowned, "You seem really stressed about this Bea. Wanna go out again tonight?"

 I raised an eyebrow, "What's on your mind?"

 She grinned, "Let's crush the Alpha House's Welcome Week Bash tonight! It'll help with your ranking, you'll have a good time and maybe will bump into Poppy there and piss her off." 

 The moment she mentioned Poppy, I swear I was already sold to crush this party, but of course I won't admit that to anyone specially not to Zoey. She'll get mad if she knew.

 I beamed, "Okay you had me sold with pissing Poppy off. " A little lie won't hurt right?

 **********************

 We arrived at the party an hour ago. The only 'almost' mishaps we had was getting inside - which was an easy job if you had me and Zoey; with the right charm and words Michael let us in. The music was blasting loudly, the people occupied with different games and drinks, and the frat boys diving once in a while in the jello pool - the party was in full swing.

  "Bea! Bea! Bea! Bea! Bea!" People chanted as I won another game. I grinned at them when a clap suddenly cut through the cheers.

 "How lovely. Luis and his brothers already done with their charity work for this semester. Don't mistake it for kindness Farmsville."

 I turn around at the sound of that voice and came face to face with Poppy. She's with Chloe and I think that was Veronica who was busy with her phone.

 I rolled my eyes, "I was starting to think when you will show up and grace us with your presence, Poppy."

 She rolled her eyes, "I must say hanging out with the boys is definitely a step up from this another nobody." She gestured dismissively towards Zoey without taking her eyes off me. "You know I think we can be friends Farmsville. You clearly learned how to dress up too." Her eyes roamed at me. Oh God. Please this is torture. I tried to school my expression even though my mind was about to explode. Her eyes finally landed on my face a smirk ghosting on her lips. Bea focus.

 "And why would I want to be friends with a bully like you?" I crossed my arms staring at her hard.

 "Because I ran this school. You have two options here, I can make your stay here like a living hell or..." She grinned sweetly, "I can make it heaven. All you have to do is leave the dead weight here." She smirked at Zoey who was glaring at her.

 I frowned not liking how she addressed Zoey, "You know what Poppy? Zoey is better than you in every way." I step closer at her standing in my full height. "If you wanna be friends with me" I smirked, "Here is a little tip." I leaned closer and I swear did her breath hitched?  I whispered, my breath tickling on her ears making sure she was the only one who can hear it, "I just need you to be Poppy, not Poppy Min-Sinclair or any of these masks you wear, just you." I leaned back and plastered my sweet, sweet smile as I watch Poppy's dumbfounded reaction - and something I can't name flickered in her eyes.

 Not even a second passed when she scowled at me, "You wish Farsmville. We ran by my rules not yours."

 I sighed dramatically, "Well it's your lost then." I stepped back and smirked at her. 

 She was about to speak again when Ford interrupted us , "Hold that thought." He ran towards the pool and dived.

 Poppy shrieked darting away from the spraying jello. Carter - which I found out to be Poppy's boyfriend slung his arm around Poppy. "It's just a little jello babe. C'mon let's jump too! It'll be fun." 

 Wriggling free from Carter she glared at him, "Do I look like I am dressed for a swim on that colored sugar?"

 "But -"

 "Hang on!" Luis suddenly interrupted. "Sorry bro. I'm just thinking, Bea seems really cool I bet she'll love to join the fun and swim in the jello pool. What do you think?"

 "I mean, I'm always up for new experiences." I stated with a grin. 

 "See! Come on Bea!" Luis cheered.

 Grinning as an idea popped in my head I yelled, "Poppy hold your breath!" 

 Shocked she spoke, "Why would-"

 But before she can even finished her sentence I was running towards her and pushed her towards the pool. She shrieked, "BEA HUGHES!"

 "Can't let her have all the fun." As I leaped in the jello pool I can hear people cheering, a bubble of happiness surged through me.

 When I finally got up I saw Poppy completely mufunctioning, "There's like jello... in every crevice of my body."

 I inched closer to her, "Was jello pool that bad?" I laughed when she threw me a glare.

 "This is your fault Farmsville." 

 I raised my hands in mock surrender, "Hey I just wanted you to let lose a little." 

 "Stop talking to me." She growled. Oops is she really pissed off now?

 "Cannon ball!" Luis yelled only dressed in his underwear as he dove spluttering more jello towards Poppy and me. 

 Poppy shrieked again. I can hear Chloe desperately saying, "Somebody help her. She has a jello phobia." While Michael laughed, "Nice look Pops! The green really brings out your eyes."

 Poppy screamed finally reaching her limit. Carter finally helped her out of the pool bringing her some towel. 

 "I AM GOING TO KILL YOU ALL." She yelled one last time before sprinting inside, while Chloe and Veronica followed her.

 Feeling a little guilty I decided to get out from the pool to dry myself up. 

 "Bea!" Zoey called out for me. I sat at the edge of the pool and she swam closer to me. She smirked, "Love how you pissed off Poppy."

 I smiled at her trying to bury the feeling of heaviness inside of my chest. "And I love how pretty you look right now." 

 Zoey laughed, "Flutterer."

 At the corner of my eyes I saw Veronica and Chloe entering again. Okay, where's Poppy? It was probably not helping at all that Carter just dove passed us towards the jello pool. Oh damn it.

 "Hey Zoey. I just need a little bathroom break." I stood up carrying the towel with me. "I'll be back." I winked at her before power walking inside the house. 

 I almost gave up on finding where Poppy might be when I stumbled on the garage. She was standing - her back facing me and mumbling to herself. "I hate that Farmsville." She groaned.

 I suppressed my smile before speaking, "Don't you think hate is a strong word to use?" 

 She whipped her head around so fast and threw a glare at me once she saw me. "What are you doing here Farmsville?" She said through gritted teeth.

 "I can be anywhere I want you know. You don't own this." I gesture on the garage where we are.

 "Didn't you pissed me enough today? Do you really want a death sentence so bad?" She glared at me.

 I laughed and raised my hands in surrender. "Okay, okay. I'll stop teasing. I just stumbled here, I swear." 

 She raised an eyebrow, "Then get lost. I don't want to talk nor see your face." 

 I crossed my arms, "What are you even doing here alone though?"

 "I'm waiting for my driver. I'm going home since I feel so grossed out thanks to you. Now will you leave me alone." 

 Instead of following what she said, I stepped closer towards her. 

 "Are you deaf? I said get lost." 

 I lifted my hand holding out the towel I had in me and ignored her as I wiped out some jello remains on her hair. She flinched the first time the towel touched her hair. 

 "Relax. I swear I was just cleaning a jello out of your hair." I mumbled. 

 She remained silent which was surprising, so I look at her and that was when I realized I was standing too close to her. My hand stopped wiping her hair in mid-air and my eyes grew wide at the realization. Poppy was looking at me intently. Her eyes wasn't glaring at me, but it was searching for something in me. I can feel the heat creeping on my cheeks because of the way she looked at me.

 "W-What?" I stuttered stupidly.

 "Why are you doing this Newbie?" She whispered like her question itself was not meant to be heard by anyone, but I heard it - I heard her. The tone of her voice was softer and clearer than her usual tone.

 I gulped, "I'm doing nothing. What do you mean?"

 "You..." She was still looking at me before sighing and averting her eyes from me. "Whatever. Forget I asked anything." 

 She took a step back and turned her back towards me. "Just answer this one thing." 

 "Yeah?" I spoke my voice quivered a little as I fidgeted with the towel in my hands.

 "Did you mean what you said earlier? That tip. You only need me to be Poppy and you will be my friend?"

 I grinned as warmth blossomed in my chest, "Yeah." 

 At that moment Poppy's car arrived.  A man opened the door for her. Before stepping inside Poppy halted like she wanted to say something. She shook her head a little before finally entering the car. What were you gonna say?  I tried to bury that curiosity as I watch her car leave. I finally let out the breath I wasn't aware I was holding back. 

 "Today had been weird." I mumbled as I started walking back inside.

#poppy x mc #queen b poppy #poppy min sinclair #makepoppyali2020 #fanfic #queen b

[fluffy-marshmallow-heart]

A Twist of Fate ch.33 -With This Ring

The Elementalists au

Beckett x MC (Oriana)

Words: 1965

Series Master List

Complete Master List

There's only going to be a couple more chapters after this :)

This AU is set after everyone graduates Penderghast, and Beckett and Oriana were never friends. Fate, however, may have a different plan for them.

Beckett and Oriana arrived at the Town Hall, where Oriana quickly slipped inside a restroom.

“Beckett…there’s no café here.” Tom strode in the hall’s doors, looking around confused.

“Yeah…why are we here? Dave chimed in. “Melissa called me on the way over to make sure this was the right place.”

Beckett grinned as he pulled on his suit coat and buttoned it. “It’s a surprise. Will your wives be here soon?”

“Already here.” The women came in and kissed their respective husbands. “Where’s Oriana? I thought she was coming.”

“I swear Beckett, if she up and left you again I’m going to find her just so I can strangle her. It’s not okay what she did, and it’s not okay that you made my husband worried sick all weekend long!”

Melissa’s voice was raised, and Beckett had to admit she was a bit terrifying when she’s mad.

“She’s just freshening up. Come on, your seats are reserved, and this won’t take long.” Beckett walked into an atrium with a few lights strung about and fake potted trees. Overall, it was a quaint area. A kind-looking man approached the group.

“Mr. Harrington?”

“Yes, that’s me, we spoke earlier.” Beckett reached out and grasped his hand, giving it a firm shake.

“Ms. Miller was such a ray of light this morning. She’s clearly excited for this. Normally we do not provide the wedding license and perform the wedding on the same day, but I’m glad we were able to make an exception. And where is the young bride?”

“Wait, wait, wait. Bride?? Wedding license?? What are you talking about?” Melissa cried.

“He’s talking about our wedding.”

Everyone looked back at the doors, where Oriana was calmly walking in with an exuberant smile. “We’re getting married today.”

Beckett’s jaw dropped as he took her in. He hadn’t known what she grabbed that morning to wear, but seeing her now took his breath away. She was wearing a white, flowing dress that flared mid-thigh, with a halter tie instead of sleeves, a plunging neckline, and low cut in the back. It was identical to the dress she’d worn on their first date, except this one was a shimmering white, while the other was yellow as the sun. Her white heels showed her shapely legs, and her smile would warm any heart that came near her. Her fiery red hair had a blue hair clasp in it, and she was completely radiant.

“Wow.” He murmured. I can’t believe she’s mine. She’s all mine. How did we get here? How did I get her to agree to this? I’m the luckiest man on the planet right now.

Oriana reached the group, planting a kiss on Beckett’s lips before turning to their friends. “I’m sorry I caused so much worry and pain for everyone. I thought I knew what was best for everyone. It ended up being the worst thing for everyone, though.”

Beckett clasped her hand in his, and the two of them together faced the four people standing in front of them. “Please forgive me.” Oriana whispered.

Dave and Melissa hung back a bit while Tom let out a whoop and grabbed the two lovers into a hug. “God, I’m so happy for you!! Of course, you’re forgiven Oriana. If Beckett forgives you then so do I.”

“It’s so good to have you back.” Jessie chimed in, joining in the hug. “To be honest, when Tom called about lunch, I had a feeling you two were eloping. I’m thrilled I was right.”

The judge cleared his throat. “I’m glad to see this is a happy time, however, we do need to get started.”

“We don’t have the room for long.” Beckett explained. “Since everything is so last minute, we’re lucky this is happening at all.”

“Yes, it’s not like you to rush into things.” Dave said quietly. “But if you think this is right…then I support you.”

“As do I.” Melissa agreed.

“Thank you.” Beckett and Oriana said together, grinning at each other when they realized they spoke at the same time.

“Ugh, you two are so freaking cute.” Melissa muttered, stepping forward and embracing Beckett, then Oriana. “I want to stay mad but just…you’re so disgustingly cute and I adore you.”

“Places, please.” The Justice announced at the podium.

Dave hugged Beckett tightly. “I’m happy for you.” He murmured. “I’m so glad she’s back and you’re doing this.”

“Not rushing?” Beckett asked.

Dave shrugged. “I’m a bit surprised you wouldn’t have a big wedding…but I get not wanting to wait to marry your beautiful bride.”

“Thank you.” Beckett told him. “Your support means everything to me, really.”

Dave, Melissa, Tom, and Jessie sat in the front, all had mile wide smiles on their faces. Beckett and Oriana stood in front of the podium, fingers intertwined. Beckett’s heart was thumping wildly; he thought it might even jump out of his chest.

The judge began the ceremony. “Marriage is a special place, the sheltered environment in which we can endlessly explore ourselves in the presence of another and in which we can offer the possibility of true reflection of another. As the writer Richard Bach has so beautifully stated, “A soul mate is someone who has locks that fit our keys, and keys to fit our locks. When we feel safe enough to open the locks, our truest selves step out and we can be completely and honestly who we are; we can be loved for who we are and not for who we’re pretending to be. Each unveils the best part of the other. No matter what else goes wrong around us, with that one person we are safe and at home. Our soul mate is someone who shares our deepest longings, our sense of direction… Our soul mate is the one who makes life come to life.”

Beckett felt Oriana squeeze his hand, and he looked over to catch her glistening golden eyes. She smiled at him, and his heart grew larger than he ever thought it could. He had a couple more surprises for her, he just needed to wait until the official got to those parts.

“May your love create a safe haven for you both on the journey that lies ahead of you. Deeply listen to each other-to your dreams and to your frustrations. Help each other. Let your love be an inspiration to those around you, to reach for what is good in all of us. May your love be so abundance that you have plenty to share with the rest of us as well. It is your love that has brought us together here today. May it grow deeper and sweeter with each passing year.”

Beckett drew a deep breath. This is it. The moment I’ve been waiting for since the day I laid eyes on her. This is the day that proves dreams really do come true.

“Do you, Oriana, take Beckett to be your partner for life? Do you promise to take time to talk to him, listen to him, and care for him? Will you share his laughter, and his tears, as his partner, lover, and best friend? Do you take him as your lawfully wedded husband for now and ever more?”

“I do.” She said with a watery grin.

“Do you, Beckett, take Oriana to be your partner for life? Do you promise to take time to talk to her, listen to her, and care for her? Will you share her laughter, and her tears, as her partner, lover, and best friend? Do you take her as your lawfully wedded wife for now and ever more?”

“I do.” He murmured, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear.

“Do you have rings to exchange?”

Oriana’s eyes widened in panic. Beckett smirked at her as he reached into his pocket…and took out two simple white gold bands, handing them to the judge. Her mouth fell open as she looked at him confused.

The judge took them both before giving the larger one to Oriana. “Repeat after me. Beckett, I take you to be my lawfully wedded husband. I vow to love you and care for you as long as we both shall live. With this ring, I thee wed.”

Oriana repeated the phrase line by line as the officiant spoke, slipping the ring onto Beckett’s left ring finger.

“Now Beckett. Repeat after me. Oriana, I take you to be my lawfully wedded wife. I vow to love you and care for you as long as we both shall live. With this ring, I thee wed.”

Beckett repeated the lines as given, slipping the smaller silver band onto Oriana’s delicate finger.

“I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss.”

The two newlyweds joined lips instantly, their passion igniting the fire between them, as their friends cheered. They walked down the aisle, faces beaming, eyes sparkling.

“Now I get why you needed the half day” Dave joked, as he signed the marriage license as witness. “This was incredible, and such a great surprise. God, Melissa’s right, you’re fucking adorable together.”

“You guuuyssss!!! Oh my god!!!!! You’re married!!!!!” A shrill voice sounded, and Oriana noticed it came from Beckett’s phone, which Jessie was holding. Her jaw dropped as she saw the faces of Zeph and Shreya on the screen, their smiles so wide she thought their faces might crack.

“You…you….” Oriana’s hand flew to her mouth as she looked at Beckett. He smiled softly.

“Can’t get married without your best friends. I know my friends are pretty great, but…so our yours. Since they couldn’t physically be here, I dialed the number and slipped my phone to Jessie.”

“At first I had no idea what he was doing. You should have seen their faces when I appeared on the screen instead of you two.” Jessie laughed. “Lucky they were too surprised to talk right away, so I just quickly turned the phone to you guys so they could see.”

Oriana threw her arms around her husband’s neck, kissing him fiercely. “God, I love you.”

“I love you too…my dear wife.”

“How did you get the rings?” Oriana asked incredulously. “We decided to get married this morning, and you haven’t left my sight until now.”

“You went to the bathroom at one point, right after you called to book the wedding.” He told her.

“So? That was like. Three minutes.”

“It was enough time to make another call to city hall. I hired our officiant to purchase a couple rings. He slipped them to me as we shook hands when we arrived and you were changing.”

“How…do people just do whatever your ask?” Oriana exclaimed. “How is that even possible? Isn’t he a government employee?”

Beckett nodded. “A government employee I paid to take an early lunch break and go to the jeweler. I know the rings are nothing fancy, but…”

“They’re perfect.” She blurted out. “It’s even the right size!”

“I know.” He shrugged. “I gave him the sizes.”

“You knew your ring size?”

“Of course. When I bought your engagement ring, I had myself sized at the same time.”

Oriana just looked at him in awe. “You’re amazing, Beck. I’m so glad I married you.”

He pulled her close to him. “I’m so glad you said yes.”

“Oriana, what do we call you now?” Melissa asked. “Are you staying Oriana Miller, or will you be Oriana Harrington?”

“Harrington.” Oriana answered right away, not even a slight pause, never taking her eyes off of Beckett. “Definitely Harrington.”

She’s taking my name?? We never discussed this! This is the best day of my life!! It already was but…nothing will ever beat this day!!

“Mrs. Harrington, should we get out of here?” He whispered in her ear.

“Yes. Let’s go.” She whispered back.

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  ***I had help from the internet with the ceremony itself, I cannot take credit  

#beckett harrington #Beckett x Mc #beckett x oriana #beckett harrington fanfiction #beckett harrington fanfic #choices beckett harrington #the elementalist #the elementalists #choices the elementalist #choices the elementalists #the elementalists fanfic #te #te fanfic #te2 #te2 fanfic #playchoices #playchoices fanfiction #playchoices fanfic #choices stories you play #choices te2 #A twist of fate #Twist of Fate #fluffy-marshmallow-heart #fluffy-marshmallow-heart fanfic #fluffy-marshmallow-heart fanfiction

[cptnsantiago]

i hope i never lose the bruises that you left behind

summary: It was seventeen years to the day. Everyone he knew said it would get easier, that the pain would lessen; and he thinks he’s figured out why. This revelation only makes it more painful. 

Jake is forgetting her.

read on ao3 / major character death

-

Jake hasn’t seen Amy in seventeen years.

He’s 58 years old now; their daughter is fully grown and about to graduate from college. She’s thriving, maybe because she barely knew Amy. Maybe because she didn’t have to experience the same trauma he did. Luna had only been four years old when Amy was shot in the line of duty. He still remembers it so clearly. Every time the memory returns to the forefront of his mind, he digs the heels of his hands into his eyes so hard until he sees stars.

Stars are more beautiful than watching your wife fall to the ground again and again.

It was seventeen years to the day. Everyone he knew said it would get easier, that the pain would lessen; and he thinks he’s figured out why. This revelation only makes it more painful.

Jake is forgetting her.

He’s surrounded by memories of her, photos and videos. But he can barely hear her voice or her laugh in his head anymore. He used to close his eyes and see her beautiful smile with the crinkles forming as the smile grew, or her concentrated frown with the other cute crinkle in her eyebrows. She rarely shows up in his dreams anymore, it had been a few months since she last made an appearance in his imagination where everything was okay .

Since Luna was old enough to understand the pure grief her father experienced, the day had always gone the same. A schedule of sorts. She was her mother’s daughter.

Jake usually remains in bed until Luna shows up with two bowls of Lucky Charms at midday. They would eat in silence, even when she was a child and she would want to wake him up earlier, she would remain silent. Luna knew it was the hardest day of the year, it always was. She would eat their favourite cereal in silence before snuggling, the both of them silently crying.

Luna usually leaves after thirty minutes, allowing him sometime to drag himself to the shower and put Amy’s favourite flannel on - it’s old and in tatters, but she always loved it on him so he’ll sew the crap out of it until it falls apart -  so they can go about their day. This process usually takes over an hour. His chest constricts, walking around their room, trying to function without her. The room is a mess and she would loath it; so he needs to clean it. Sometimes he thinks to himself that he doesn’t want Amy to be upset when she gets home. It’s been seventeen years but sometimes he believes she might come home.

Jake usually exits his room by 1:30, and they get out of the house a half hour later. The drive to the graveyard is exactly 34 minutes away, and he tries his best to keep himself calm on that drive. Luna was already freaked out enough by driving in Brooklyn, and with her nerves amplified by the day itself, he needs to remain sane. So he closes his eyes.

This time he can’t force the stars to keep one of the most distinct memories of Amy away.

~

“Okay Luna, you’re spending the day with Grandma and I need you to remember one thing.” Amy is squatting in front of Luna, hands on her shoulders. “Can you remember what it is?”

“That I’m the best kid ever?”

“Yes, of course.” Amy rolls her eyes with huff of laughter, “But what about Grandma’s rule?”

“Don’t touch her paint without her express permission…” Luna tips her head back and slumps her shoulders. “The walls aren’t canvas.”

“Good girl.” Amy pulls her in for a tight hug, “I’m sure if you ask nicely, Grandma will let you paint your own vase.”

“Really?” Luna pulls back, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

“Definitely. I’m sure she’ll even show you the vase I painted at your age!” Jake interjects.

“I love you, mija.” Amy pulls her in, squeezing her one last time, before letting her go.

“Love you more, mom.”

Amy scoffs, trying to hide her growing smile. “Not possible! I love you the most.”

“I can prove that I love you more!!” Luna stands proudly, hands on her hips. She holds the pose for a moment before wrapping herself around Amy again, smothering her face with wet kisses, finishing off with a raspberry to her cheek.

“I’ve been convinced.” Amy laughs, tucking the loose strands of hair out of Luna’s face. “What about you dad?”

“I think you’ve finally been beaten, Ames.” Jake kneels down as Amy gathers herself, “Now it’s my turn.”

Jake joins Amy in the car just a few minutes later , she has a dreamy smile on her face and has a hand over her heart. “I can’t wait to have another baby.”

“Luna is spectacular, she’s gonna be the best big sister.” Jake notes, lacing his fingers with her spare hand and running his thumb over her knuckles. “I can’t wait either.”

Amy leans over her seat to place the softest, and probably the most intimate kiss they’ve ever shared. Jake sighs happily as the separate, leaning against her forehead. “Do you think your mom knows we’re pawning Luna on her so we can have hot baby making sex today?”

“Definitely. She can read minds!”

~

He wishes more than anything in the world that Amy had said yes to calling in sick so they could spend all day together instead. But Amy insisted he go to work, because he had a stupid important killer perp still on the streets. He tries to shake the thought away, one that haunts him. It was his important case that got her killed.

He doesn’t even notice they’ve arrived until Luna places her hand on his. “Dad?”

Jake looks from her hand to her face, a weak smile appearing on his face as she does the same. In a way, he will forever have memory of Amy. Luna was almost a clone, in personality and looks. This was both a blessing and a curse; some days it’s a great comfort that they were so alike, it was as if she was always there but then other nights it made Jake miss Amy so bad that he would cry to the point of not being able to breathe properly.

“Dad? Let’s go, yeah? Mom’s waiting.”

“Mom’s waiting…” Jake’s hands begin to tremble under Luna’s, his throat tightening. “Maybe you should just go, I’ll wait in the car.”

“Dad, I’m here. I won’t leave your side.” Her grip on his hand only becomes tighter, and her eyebrows knit together just like Amy’s always did. “Promise.”

Jake always struggles visiting her grave. He’s never been able to go alone, or with anyone but Luna. After all, she’s the reason he’s still a reasonable member of society seventeen years later. Jake hadn’t been a great parent. Luna tries to convince him otherwise, but there were countless times he had been unreliable. Not being able to get out of bed for weeks sometimes and she had to step up to look after the both of them.

Daddy, I can’t imagine how you feel. I know you miss her. Luna at eight years old, only just beginning to really understand the reality of what happened.

Stop blaming yourself, she made her choices. This isn’t your fault, dad. Thirteen year old Luna when he had barely left his room for two weeks.

Tell me more about her. I want to know her more, dad. It had only been weeks after a two week stint in bed and missing a parent-teacher conference.

He eventually opened up, it was the first time they went to her grave. Only his second time there since her funeral. He cried for the first time in front of Luna there, really cried. Jake told her all about his life with her mother before she was born, after she was born.

His healing process had been long, but he did return to being a functioning member of society outside of work. Still, he had weak moments like any human, and sometimes they were so heavy he forgot how to breathe. But he did it anyway.

Jake had only kept the day’s leading up to Amy’s death secret to Luna, she didn’t need to know or experience that pain if she didn’t have to. He never spoke of the funeral either, about his epic meltdown and being held down by Captain Holt as he experienced a pain unknown to man.

~

Gina had stayed with Jake overnight before the funeral. She helped get Luna ready, and cried with Jake as he asked her to help him with his buttons as well. Luna had mostly been confused during this time, always asking her aunts and uncles why daddy couldn’t stop crying and asking when mommy was coming back .

Jake didn’t remember arriving at the graveyard, only remembering the sight of her casket ready to be lowered into the ground. She would absolutely hate being buried underground, too claustrophobic, he had thought. People made speeches he couldn’t listen to and he somehow managed to drag himself up to the podium and unfold his paper with great care.

“A-Amy… Amy Santiago, um… She, she was-” Jake shakes his head, squeezing his eyes shut and letting the tears fall freely. A few moments that felt like an eternity later, he felt a hand on his shoulder. Holt. Jake moves aside and allows Holt to take over.

“Amy Santiago is the love of my life.” Holt starts, his voice already cracking but continues with a clear voice. “Amy is the smartest person I’ve ever met. So smart, and funny and wonderful and beautiful. She is the best mom and the best wife. Amy really was the ultimate human slash genius, none of us at the nine-nine couldn’t keep up with her if we tried.”

Jake and a few others laugh slightly at this, and he wipes fresh tears off his cheeks before Holt continues. “Amy was a strong and determined woman, she never let anything get in her way. Her dream was to become the youngest female Captain in the NYPD, and I’m grief stricken that I’ve lost her but also just as bad that she was only able to make it to Lieutenant before she passed. She would have made the best Captain, sorry Ray.”

Holt takes a pause as he reads on a few sentences. “I don’t know how to live without her, and it’s so unfair. To me, to Luna - she will never really know her mom and that makes me angry. She’s the best woman I’ve ever known and she won’t know her. That’s the worst, pardon the language , fucking thing about this. I miss her, I’m going to miss her for the rest of my life. I love you forever, Ames.”

Soon after, when the casket is lowered is when Jake loses it. He collapses besides the ditch, his hand laid flat on the and he just can’t breathe. Amy is really gone and she’s not coming home.

He feels Holt wrap his arms around him, and he thinks even Luna runs up to him and hugs him. It’s not very clear but if it was, he hoped she would never remember this moment.

~

It’s a hard day, it always was. But watching as Luna places Amy’s favourite flowers on the gravestone before sitting on the damp grass and pulling Jake down with her truly warms his heart. “Hi mom.”

“Let’s get into it. Our daughter is actually the smartest woman ever. End of story.” Jake laughs softly, “But really, tell her Luna.”

“Okay, so. I’ve told you before that I’ve been studying forensic science and psychology, and I’m almost done with that degree. I’ve decided to further my education, gonna get a masters so I can be a more of a leading force in the field.” Luna pauses for a few moments, as if giving Amy the chance to react. She twists her hands and takes a deep breath before continuing, “I hope you’re proud. I’ve worked really hard to do well, and I know dad is proud and he never fails to remind me of that. I just hope you are too.”

“Of course your mom would be proud, Luna.” Jake takes her hand this time, seizing the opportunity to be the comforter for once. “She would so adore the smart, independent woman you’ve become.”

Luna nods with a shy smile, tucking her hair behind both ears just like her . “I miss you so much, mom.”

“We both do. So much.” Jake adds with a sad sigh.

“I don’t know if you’re feeling it too, but this year feels especially heavy and sad.” Luna shrugs, “I keep watching videos of us from when I was younger and the photos. So many. It just sucks that you’re missing from all the photos now.”

Jake nods along with this, managing to hold back his own tears and wiping the ones falling down Luna’s cheek. “Any other updates for mom?”

“I met this guy, pretty recent, and I really like him.” Luna looks away, knowing what her dad’s face said without looking at him. “ Dad it’s pretty new, and isn’t now a good time I can tell you both ?”

“I guess. I will be getting more info later, get ready for dad cop.”

Luna lets out a snort, and it’s lighter from that moment. They joke and chat as if Amy was there next to them, and it was just a regular picnic as a family. It’s not long before Luna stretches and stands up. “Shaw’s? Everyone’s gonna be waiting for us.”

“Uhm, I think I’m gonna hang back here.” The shock is evident on Luna’s face, it takes her a few moments to process what he’s said.

“Dad, are you sure?” Luna kneels next to him again. “Are you gonna be okay?”

“It’s been seventeen years since I’ve been alone with her... I owe her this.” Jake shrugs, “Go ahead without me. I’ll meet you there.”

Luna crashes into him, hugging him tightly. “I love you, dad. Bye mom, I love you the most.”

With a press of her fingers to her lips onto the gravestone, Luna is gone. Jake is alone with Amy for the first time in seventeen years. Jake simply sits there for a few minutes, staring at the engravings on her stone. Her final resting place.

Lt. Amy Santiago

August 7, 1983 - October 19, 2024

Ultimate human slash genius.

Daughter. Friend. Mother.

“Hi Ames. It’s been a while.” Jake bites his lip, a sudden guilt washing over him as he sits there longer. “I’m sorry I’ve never come to talk to you alone. I was… scared? I don’t know, I miss you so bad. I can’t bare coming here to talk to you and you not being able to talk back but… That’s not fair to you.

“I don’t know if it’s my age, or my general goldfish memory b-but I feel like I’m starting to forget you. Not forget you but just the little things. Smaller memories that aren’t significant but they’re precious, every moment with you was important and it’s fading .

“They discontinued your favourite shampoo. I kept using it so I would never forget what you smelled like, but one day I went to the bodega to stock up and they were out. I looked everywhere, Amy. But now they don’t make it and I can’t quite remember what you smell like, it was flowers I know, but I don’t know at the same time…. And your laugh… I can’t hear it as clearly, I have to watch videos to remember it. I feel so awful, how can I forget my wife like this. I’m a bad husband, a bad dad and god I miss you Ames.

“Luna was right. This year is harder, and I just want you in my arms again. I can’t remember how it feels to hold you in my arms, I just remember it was good. You were good. Great. All I needed in this world. You were too good to leave us so soon. I know you would hate me for this but I still blame myself. I can’t stop it, you are the one that helps me think logically but you’re gone and you have been for seventeen years. Because of me.

“We keep on having all these celebrations lately. Like Nikolaj got an art deal with a comic book publisher, and Charles was so proud. It was a great party, and I went home that night and all I could think about was how you weren’t there.

“I wish I had been more careful. If I hadn’t been so careless in the first place, I wouldn’t need to call for stupid backup. You’re gone because of me. Amy, I’m so sorry. You should have been here for Luna growing up. You should have been able to make Captain. It was my case - Amy, I can’t forgive myself.

“I want to remember every detail about you. But I can’t. What your lips feel like, how it feels when you run your hand through my hair, how it felt when I would return the favour. You deserved so much better. I love you and I’m so sorry.”

Jake lets himself go then, sobbing until he can’t get air into his lungs and it hurts. “How does it hurt the same? I wish it wouldn’t hurt this much. I wish you were alive.”

He doesn’t know how long he’s there crying but he assumes it’s a few hours. Luna shows up eventually, a bottle of water and a muffin in her hand. She helps him up, and he lets one last tear fall before Luna helps him walk to the car. His suspicions of how long he was there are confirmed on the drive home as he watches the sunsets, driving past Shaw’s.

Arriving home, he heard Luna mention cooking dinner but he hears nothing past that as he lays on the couch, his eyes heavy from crying.

~

This case had been kicking his ass. Weeks spent on it, more women were being killed and he couldn’t find him. A survivor had even been able to give a good enough description of him to find the identity of the man, but he hid well. So well. When he was finally spotted a precinct over, Jake had immediately rushed out, nodding when Amy offers her support with a few officers as a back up.

And on his way there, there was an updated report of shots fired. It very quickly turns into a more serious situation, and the backup he didn’t think he’d need was summoned.

Amy.

She was a very capable lieutenant, but the thought of the two of them being out in a situation such as this together made his stomach turn. This would be the first time they’re out in the field together in dangerous conditions, the first time they were in danger at the same time. He almost freezes.

Luna.

This was too risky, a chance one of them could get hurt was doubled, even with backup. He almost wants to tell her to go back, he didn’t want to put her in danger. But he knows his wife, she would argue and this was not the time nor place. Amy would stay. They couldn’t leave Luna alone, they had to be careful.

Amy gives out her orders, and positions are taken. Except he fucks it up, he had been too in his head about Luna potentially being by herself. Jake ends up where Amy is supposed to be, and at first it seemed like it was going to work out for them. The victim is lying on the floor, only a graze to her face but she’s terrified.

The perp had been right next to her, holding his gun at her head. Jake and Amy had their own weapons aimed at the man, telling him to freeze and put the weapon down. Amy’s eyes skirted to the shaking girl on the floor, ready to protect at a moments notice.

He sees everything in slow motion, and of all the things present Jake wants to forget, this was the main one. He watches as the main raises his gun anyway, and Jake is firing his own weapon as the perp does as well. He wishes he didn’t see Amy in the corner of his eye, jumping in front of the innocent girl, struck by the bullet despite her vest and collapsing to the ground.

Amy groans loudly as she hits the floor, clutching her thigh as the girl scuffles away and Jake is shouting something into the radio and he disarms the bleeding criminal on the ground. All he can focus on is his wife on the ground, blood rapidly flowing from her leg despite the pressure she’s trying to put on it.

Jake rips off the jacket over his vest as he slides to his knees next to Amy, taking her bloody hand in his as he uses his other hand to apply as much pressure as he can. “Hold on, Ames. Ambulance is coming.”

His tries to make his voice as soothing as possible, but he watches as the blood doesn’t stop even with the pressure he’s put on the wound. The bullet must have hit a major artery. Fuck.

If Jake had just focused on his orders, he could have taken out the perp from behind with the butt of his gun without anyone getting hurt. But instead he was on the floor next to his wife who was slowly bleeding out. “Where the fuck is the ambulance?”

“Hey, Jake. Look at me.” Jake hesitates before looking down at Amy. She’s so pale, but she attempts to smile at him, trying to sooth him when she’s the one bleeding out on a dirty floor.

“You’re gonna be okay, Ames. Just stay with me okay?” Jake voice cracks, adding more pressure and watching as it does nothing to stop the bleeding.

“I’m okay. I’m with you.” Amy reaches her bloody but uninjured arm up to touch his cheek. “Jake, I need to say something.”

“Amy no, we’re not going there.” Jake shakes his head furiously, “The ambulance will be here soon. I’m not leaving your side.”

“Tell Luna I love her, Jake. Make sure she knows this, okay?” Jake looks down at her again, somehow paler than before and now she’s crying. “I love her and never let her forget it. Support her, be the great dad I know you are.”

“Amy stop, you’re gonna be okay.” Jake is sobbing at this point, he hates the idea of her thinking she’s gonna die. Because she wasn’t.  “You’re gonna be okay and you’re going to continue to be a great mom to Luna and our family is only gonna get bigger. Just stay with me.”

“Jake…” Amy struggles, “Promise me you’ll both be okay?”

“Amy, I… I can’t. We’ll all be okay together.”

“ Jake , please.” Amy hiccups, her arm now too weak to stroke his cheek.

“I… I promise.”

They spend the longest minutes sharing words of love, and Jake is still insisting that she’s not going anywhere but there is so much blood - his jeans and other clothing is drenched in it. “I love you forever, Ames.”

Amy motions for him to move closer, and when he’s close enough she threads her fingers in his curls and pulls him down for one last kiss, whispering her reply. “I love you forever.”

~

Jake wakes up with a gasp, and he can’t find air to put in his lungs. “A-Amy, Amy.” It’s all he can manage to get out and Luna rushes to his side, her hands gripping his shoulders so he stops shuddering. “It’s all my fault. My fault.”

“Dad, no. Please take deep breaths, remember what we practiced when we feel scared.”

Jake really tries but he can’t stop crying. It was his fault. His fault, he could have followed orders correctly. He fucked up, it was his fault Amy was dead.

Luna pulls him in, holding him tight until somehow his breathing evens out and the tears are less of a waterfall. “I need to know what happened that day, dad. I want to help you. It kills me to see you hurt like this and blame yourself when I’m sure it’s not your fault.”

Conflict rages inside him. Luna is surely mature beyond her age, and she deserves to know but she shouldn’t need to know. It hurts, so why should he burden her with the knowledge of what happened that day? To help himself? He was used to the pain that came from that memory dream that appeared often. He won’t be selfish like that.

“Dad, please .”

Jake gives in, and he doesn’t realise how much of a relief it is to talk about it. He had been set in his stubborn ways and always refused to go to therapy, to recover .

Luna cries a lot, and he holds her the way she has done for him countless times after the nightmares he’s had over the years. “So mom sacrificed herself to protect that girl from this criminal. And you blame yourself?”

“I could have done something different, like properly follow orders instead of being skittish. Things would have turned out so different, and this was my case. My case that took us out on the field that day. I could list so many more reasons her death was my fault, Luna.” Jake laughs with a sarcastic huff. “No matter what anyone has ever said, I stand by it being my fault.”

“You know who I blame?” Luna asks softly.

“Me? Because it’s my fault.”

“No. The criminal, for being a criminal. Trying to hurt an innocent woman, who was then bravely protected and kept alive by my hero mom.” Luna’s passion matches the way Amy got angry, maybe even exceeding Amy. “This was in no way your fault. Mom was doing her job, and she died.”

He was the reason he couldn’t remember her voice on demand, it was his fault he can never run his hands through her hair. It’s his fault he can never be truly happy again. “But-”

“No, dad, I’m talking!” Luna screeches. “You’ve been torturing yourself over this for seventeen years and it’s time to stop! It’s tragic and I miss her and I know you do so much, but you can’t blame yourself when it was the criminal who pulled the trigger. You didn’t kill Amy. A murderer did.”

“God, your passion matches your mother and I’m just a little scared.” Jake laughs, more tears streaming down his face. “I think I can accept that? With a bit more time… That it’s not my fault.”

“I think mom will rest even easier knowing you’ve said it.” Luna wipes her father's tears off his face, “Forgiving yourself for things you can’t control is the only thing that will bring you peace.”

“I’m so glad you got your mom's smart genes. So wise.” Jake says, “Now, tell me what you made for dinner and I’ll tell you some new stories.”

“Oh! Yes!” Luna claps happily, still sniffling. “I found a recipe written in her handwriting so I cooked that!”

“Oh sweetie .” Jake grimaces, unable to control his laughter. “I got a story for you! But first you’re gonna want to throw whatever concoction you made in the trash. And quick .”

It will forever startle Jake to look at Luna. What a miracle he had created with Amy, his reason for living. She had become everything he and Amy had wished for, late at night when Luna was pressing on Amy’s spine and she couldn’t sleep. She was so her own person but so like Amy. How Jake would have coped without her in his life he doesn’t want to know.

Jake doesn’t think he will ever fully recover; Amy was the most important person in his life. He almost doesn’t want to stop feeling the pain, it helps him remember. The good and the bad, and his memory is bad enough that those smaller things about her are gone. It breaks his heart.

Amy will stay with him forever, she’s a permanent scar on his heart. He couldn’t blame himself, hurt himself, forever. It wasn’t fair to Luna, almost as unfair as having her mother ripped away from her at such a young age. Jake forgives himself, for Luna.

So Jake cherishes the scar, he feeds it with love and new memories made with Luna. It’s all he can do, for Amy.

#my fics #jake x amy fic #peraltiago #peraltiago fics #brooklyn nine-nine #b99 fanfiction

[raeynbowboi]

My Hero Academia: Next Gen A Kiribaku Family AU

Word Count: 3,164 Chapter: 1/1 Language: English (US)

Fandoms:  僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia Rating: Teen and Up Audiences Ships: Kiribaku, Tododeku, Miritama, Hatsumiida, Momojiro, Shinkami Categories: Next Gen, Family AU, Flash Forward, Original Character, Sequel Series

It took all of Kyotsuki’s willpower not to throw up. She immediately regretted taking the dare, but there was no way she was backing down now. She focused all of her attention on swallowing as she forced the slimy egg yolks down her throat. Across the counter, her dad was chugging vigorously and slammed down his mug first. “Ha! Told you!” 

Kyotsuki groaned as she lowered her glass in defeat. “Okay fair is fair, it’s my turn to scrub the toilet.”

Her dad smirked, his arms folded with smug satisfaction, “Just cuz I’m getting old doesn’t mean I’m a pushover, Kyocchan.” That was an understatement. Even after years of battle injuries, bone fractures, and even partial hearing loss, her dad was a force to be reckoned with. Kyotsuki was a lot like Dad in many ways. She looked a lot like he did when he was a teenager, especially in the narrow red eyes and lopsided grin. Luckily, Dad was really pretty when he was her age, so it translated nicely to her face. Her hair stuck out like Dad’s and Grandma Mitsuki’s, but fortunately for her, enough of Papa’s genes snuck in to not only tint her hair black but gave her hair an all-around more spiked look as opposed to Dad’s puffball of ash blond hair. She’d seen the old videos of the completely unhinged rage of his high school days. One might assume he would have tempered his anger with age. In actuality, he was just better at directing it where it belonged. He gave her a shit-eating grin and tussled her hair, “Better luck next time.”

From the kitchen table, Papa sighed, “You two are disgusting. I swear, it’s a good thing I took Dad’s name. Nobody would believe you were a Kirishima.” He brushed his fingers through his spiked up red hair, his black roots beginning to show again. Like his husband, he wore his wedding ring on a necklace to keep it safe during combat. Sure, a lot of kids had parents that were pro heroes, but Dad and Papa were too cool to be that boring. They were the most dynamic duo in Japan. Red Rocket: the two-man team of DynaMight and Red Riot. Kyotsuki had seen some of the old interviews and news stories of her fathers in action. Papa was often the voice of reason in their household, making it surreal seeing him so violent in the field.

Kyotsuki’s brother Akkahito groaned and pushed his breakfast away, “I think I’ve lost my appetite.” He lowered his head, his long black bangs obscuring the striking ruby eyes that he and Kyotsuki shared.

Dad frowned, “What’s the matter, did you worry yourself sick again?”

Akkahito shook his head, “No, Dad. I just… I’m worried about the entrance exams. That’s all.”

Papa looked up from his coffee, “What? Why? You have a really strong quirk.”

Akkahito frowned, “Didn’t you and Dad have to beat up robots as a part of your entrance exam? Last time I checked, androids don’t dream of electric boogeymen. It’s kind of hard to mentally manipulate a hunk of metal.”

Dad smirked, “Tell that to Tetsutetsu.”

Papa groaned and rolled his eyes, “Not the time, Katsuki.”

“Fuck you, Ei. That was funny.” Kyotsuki gave her dad a stealthy nod of approval when Papa wasn’t looking.

“That was twenty years ago, Akka,” Kyotsuki stated as she slid into the seat next to her brother, “And besides, once they realized the test was unfair to students like Hitoshi Shinso, they changed the entrance exams. Your quirk should be fine.”

Akkahito just scoffed, “Easy for you to say. You’re a Bakugo. You’re like a double alumni. I’m just an Osodo.”

Kyotsuki nudged her brother playfully, “Hey, Dad and Papa saw the work in progress you are and decided to spend money on this cute little trainwreck. They paid good money for my surrogate, but I could have just as easily popped out with one eye and tentacles from the waist down. They chose you, Akkahito. They got stuck with me.”

Dad crossed the kitchen and set his mug on the table, “Honestly, fuck all of it. Bakugo. Osodo. What last name you go by doesn’t mean shit. You’re going to ace that exam because you’re smart and you have a good quirk. Because you’ve studied and trained to get here. And even if you fail, we’ll be proud of you so long as you gave it everything you have. Never forget the family motto.”

A small smile blossomed on Akkahito’s face, “You don’t have to win first place, but don’t fucking come home without a participation ribbon.”

Dad nodded with a smile, “Damn right. You can be a loser, but don’t you fucking dare be a quitter.”

Akkahito took a deep breath, “You’re right, Dad. I shouldn’t deny them the joy of telling me I failed to my face.”

Papa frowned, “Well, you’d get a letter, but whatever works to get you ready, Akkahito.”

Akkahito gave him an appreciative nod, “Thanks, Papa.”

Dad glanced at his phone, “Speaking of getting ready, you two should get going if you don’t want to be late.”

Papa stood up and grabbed a banana from the counter and handed it to Akkahito, “Even if you’re not hungry now, you’ll be glad you had something to eat.”

Kyotsuki thrust a triumphant fist in the air, “C’mon, let’s knock ‘em dead! Plus, just think of all the cute guys we might end up meeting.”

Akkahito raised an eyebrow and smirked, “Cute guys? Well if you’d led with that argument, we could have avoided this whole pep talk.”

Kyotsuki ignored her brother’s snarkiness and dragged him out the door.

  The UA Campus was even more impressive in person than it was in pictures or on TV. This was the place where Dad and Papa met. Where they learned the tools that made them the most popular hero duo in the country. The sprawling campus, the pristine topiaries, the brownstone rise-up dorm buildings. It was everything she’d hoped for. Suddenly, a wave of memories crashed into her. All the times as a child she’d begged Daddy and Papa to tell her stories of the people they met here. She wondered what their first thoughts were when they crossed the threshold and arrived at the institution of their dreams.

“Kyocchan!” Kyotsuki’s daydreaming was interrupted by the sudden surprise hug she received from Fubuki Midoriya. Her green and white hair looked like a snow-covered pine tree, her bright brown eyes glowing with the comfort of a glass of warm cider on a cold winter’s day. Her twin sister Royuka trailed quietly behind her, her cool blue eyes a striking contrast to her fiery red hair. Even though they were twins, Kyotsuki always thought Fubuki looked more like Deku, while Royuka looked more like Icy-Hot.

Akkahito greeted them with a friendly nod, “Midoriya twins, nice to see you again.”

Royuka turned to him, “I figured we would. I don’t know why Fubuki’s acting like this is the most unexpected plot twist ever.”

Fubuki scoffed, “I knew we’d probably see them, but I thought we might see them during or after the exam. It was a nice surprise to find them waiting at the entrance.”

Royuka remained stoic, but the exasperation radiated from her tone, “I told you we most likely would. We’re practically neighbors.”

“You must have a weird definition of ‘neighbors’,” Fubuki mused, “They live like five blocks away from us.”

“Hence my use of the qualifier ‘practically’.”

Kyotsuki chuckled, “Can you two agree on anything?”

“We can agree that if it comes to it, you guys are going down!” Fubuki cheered.

A small smile appeared on Royuka’s face, “Well it’d be defeatist of me to disagree with that.”

Akkahito cleared his throat as the three girls turned their attention to him, “Well it won’t matter that we’re here if we don’t get signed in and actually take the exam.”

A giggle escaped from Fubuki, “Always the clown, Akka.”

He let out a faint laugh, “You know me. I can’t keep a straight face.”

“You can’t keep anything straight, gay boy,” Fubuki teased.

“As stimulating as this conversation has been,” Royuka interrupted, “Akka is right. We can catch up when we’ve finished the exams and we’re not racing the clock the be on time.” Without another word, she turned and strode toward the main building. Fubuki unhinged herself from Kyotsuki and skipped after her sister throwing a friendly wave over her shoulder.

Kyotsuki turned to her brother, “Well, this is it. The day we become pro-heroes in training. Are you ready?”

Akkahito shrugged, “Well we can’t fail the test from out here.”

“That’s the spirit!” Kyotsuki said with an exaggerated enthusiasm, “I love it when you’re feisty.”

“Can we just go in now? I’d like to fail by noon so I can go home and overanalyze every mistake I made for the rest of the day and your chipper optimism is cutting into precious wallowing time.”

“Fubuki was right,” Kyotsuki huffed, “You are a constant clown.”

  As the written exam came to an end, and UA staff collected the test papers, a mature woman stepped up to podium on the auditorium stage to address the UA hopefuls. “Good day to you all. I’m Principal Herisu. I hope to see your smiling faces one day grace the halls of our lovely academy. However, the spots in our hero course are limited. Only thirty-six of you who apply today can be admitted into the hero course. UA strides for excellence and to ensure that as many hero hopefuls with different types of quirks can be admitted as possible. As such, we have taken to a new system for our entrance exams. In order to be enrolled in this academy, you had to fill out a quirk registration form. On that form you were asked to specify the type of quirk you have, be it an emitter, a mutation, or a transformation type. However, in the past, quirk assessment tests were focused on testing for damage output, which unfairly pitted the test against applicants with non-emitter type quirks. The staff at UA takes pride in offering a chance to all kinds of hero hopefuls, every student will be given an exam that caters better to their quirk type, ensuring that the odds are fairer for everyone involved. There are three separate quirk training grounds, and you will be tested based on how your quirk is classified. Emitters will go to Gate A, Mutations to Gate B, and Transformations to Gate C. Good luck to all of you, and as we prepare for an exciting new year, let us remember our institution’s legacy as we all strive to live Plus Ultra.”

Kyotsuki followed the crowd out into the hallway where three monitors gave directions to the different exam gates. She wasn’t surprised when most of the students veered toward Gate A. Emitter quirks made up the biggest percentage of quirk types, which meant there was far steeper competition. She struggled among the surge of applicants to catch sight of Akkahito, but if he was anywhere near her, he was lost in the flood of people. He’d be fine. They’d practiced relentlessly for today. She couldn’t let herself get distracted from the task at hand. If she was going to get in, she needed to bring her A game. Principal Herisu had said that the exams had been altered to better accommodate for a wide array of quirk types. There was no telling what that might entail. Were they expected to fight teachers? Upperclassmen? Small time pro hero volunteers? If it was anything like that, she’d really have to control herself. The last thing she needed was to put someone in the hospital before she was even admitted to the school. While lost in thought, Kyotsuki failed to notice the crowd had stopped moving and collided with the person in front of her. Before she could apologize, she heard a startled yelp and felt a solid force knock her back.

“Oh no! I’m so sorry! I didn’t hurt you, did I?” Kyotsuki opened her eyes to find a girl looking down at her with gentle eyes and long brown hair.

Kyotsuki rubbed the back of her head as she sat up, “I’ve had worse during sparring practice. It’s no big deal, assuming I don’t have a concussion.”

The girl offered her a hand up, “I’m Rikiba Hogoku. You might as well know who to sue.”

Kyotsuki rubbed the back of her head as if the friction would somehow dull the pain. “Kyotsuki Bakugo.”

Hogoku looked at her with shock, “Bakugo? Not the same Bakugo as the Dynamic Duo: Red Rocket?”

Kyotsuki laughed meekly, “Yeah, that’s Dad and Papa. I could get you an autograph if you like.”

Hogoku’s face got flushed, “N-no need to trouble them. I can’t believe it though, I mean you’re a second-generation hero. And not just any hero, the most iconic tag-team heroes in Japan! You’re practically guaranteed a spot in this school. Which means if you don’t pass, I’ll always have the guilt of wondering if it’s my fault. Oh my god, I gave the celebrity a concussion.”

Kyotsuki just laughed and gave the girl a clap on the shoulder before she went too far down this melancholic road, “Don’t worry about it, Hogoku! I’ve had concussions before. Let’s just say DynaMight doesn’t have a firm grasp on the concept of ‘overkill’. Believe me, if I had a concussion, I’d know it. There’s no need to beat yourself up over it.”

Hogoku’s shoulders deflated in relief, “Okay. I’ll stop bothering you now.” She began to turn away when, Kyotsuki caught her shoulder.

“How’d you do that, anyway? I’m like almost completely lean muscle and you knocked me flat on my ass like it was nothing. Which it seems like it was, considering you didn’t even mean to do it.”

Hogoku’s eyes drifted to the floor, “It’s nothing special. I just create force fields.”

Kyotsuki’s eyes widened, “Woah, that’s amazing! You must be great at rescue drills. Do you know how much weight and pressure your quirk can withstand? I wonder if your quirk could stop my Shrapnel. Based on how easily you knocked me down, I bet you could. Considering the speed of an average bullet to be around 762 meters per second and the durability of an armored car for comparison, your quirk should totally be able to withstand mine. Wow, so you’re like practically invincible!”

Hogoku stepped back in surprise, “No one’s ever thought my quirk was impressive before. My family is among the first families in Japan to develop quirks. It’s part of our legacy. Of course, you’re the daughter of two of Japan’s greatest heroes. I’m sure your quirk must be truly amazing.”

Kyotsuki shrugged, “It’s pretty good. See, Dad doesn’t just make explosions, it’s actually his sweat that’s explosive. Papa has a hardening quirk. Well the two came together so that I can take the liquid sweat in my body and harden it into sharp needle sized barbs. And Dad’s ability to ignite said sweat became translated into being able to fire that hardened sweat like bullets. But unlike Dad who can only make explosions with the sweat on his hands, since Papa’s quirk applies to his whole body, my quirk does too. So, I can fire my sweat bullets from any pore on my body. And the more I fight, the more I sweat, and the stronger and sharper my Shrapnel quirk becomes.”

Hogoku blinked in bewilderment, “Wow, and I felt like my quirk was stupid before. That’s so-” The rest of her statement was cut off by an aura of silence that fell over the crowd. Kyotsuki and Hogoku looked to the front of the pack where a mysterious man had appeared. The man wore a long brown trench coat with the collar raised to hide his identity. The man’s head was covered by a brown fedora, and he wore a black mask over his entire face, leaving only his eyes visible. He stood on a raised platform with a microphone in hand as he addressed the applicants. “It pleases me to see what an impressive selection we’ve got this year. I will be your primary administrator during part 2 of your entrance exam. My name is Mr. Ayatsuru, though you’ll be referring to me by my hero name, Mastermind. But enough of the formalities, I’m sure you’re more interested in the specifics of your exam. So, here’s how it’s going to work. Behind this gate is a state-of-the-art functional city training arena meant to test your ability to fight in an urban setting. At the start of the exam, the doors will open, and you will have an hour to rack up as many points as you can. Now, before you start theorizing on how you’ll be gaining points, let me put your little minds at ease. You’ll be fighting me. Or rather, you’ll be fighting my toys.” Mastermind’s trench coat flew open as two men leapt out from underneath, each armed with a knife. The crowd instinctively either backed away or dropped into a ready fighting stance before Mastermind continued. “They’re no threat to you right now. The city you’re about to enter is full of people. But none of them are real. They are all puppets under my control. Some are criminals. Some are hostages, victims, and wounded. Some are merely surveillance drones. They are training dummies, so don’t be afraid to hurt them. But if you hurt innocent bystanders, you will face a penalty. I cannot tell you what is worth how many points. It is your task as hero hopefuls to make the right call and impress not only me, but the committee of staff that will be evaluating your performances. You have fifteen minutes to strategize, then the gates open.”

As Mastermind walked off the podium to go prepare the exam, Kyotsuki felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to see Akkahito flanked by Fubuki and Royuka. Kyotsuki sighed in relief, “There you guys are. I was afraid I wouldn’t get to wish you guys luck before the exam started.”

Akkahito huffed, “Luck? It’s going to take a lot more than luck. Fair exam my ass. This is just as unfair as it was when Hitoshi Shinso went here twenty years ago.”

Kyotsuki’s shoulders slumped as the realization hit her. Akkahito’s quirk revolved around triggering fear in his opponents. There’s nothing for a empty-headed puppet to fear. “Oh Akka…”

The steely glare he met her with took Kyotsuki aback. She’d never seen such a hardened look in his eyes, “Don’t pity me, Kyotsuki. We’re Bakugos. We don’t roll over and give up when things get hard.”

She arched and eyebrow, “Are you saying you have a plan?”

A smirk slid across his face, “There’s more than one way to strike fear in people.”

#my hero academia next gen #kyotsuki bakugo #kiribaku #family au #next gen #mha #bnha #kiribaku family #kiribaku family au #next gen fic #kiribaku fic #kiribaku kids #tododeku kids #tododeku #momojiro #momojirou #shinkami #my hero academia #boku no hero academia #tsuchako #hatsumiida #miritama #testukendo #tetsukendou #secret love child #hawksdeavor #erasermic #oc #mha oc #mha fanfic

[rin-rue]

Cringe (Steve Rogers x Reader) One-shot

Warning:18+ and dark themes.

Song inspiration: Cringe- Matt Maeson

It’s been ten years. Ten long years since Bucky’s been gone. It was hard the first time to lose my best pal, but this time…it was different. I thought we would be okay again, be able to live out our days together, but he just couldn’t deal with his demons. I couldn’t stop him from leaving and he didn’t want me to.

“You need to find someone that wants you to take care of them. You can’t save me Steve. I’m sorry.”

The moment he left I tried to pull it together, tried to set my feelings aside, but those would be his last words to me, and the next week I would find out he put a bullet through his brain. I loved him, and I drove him away.

After his funeral, I met her. The woman I would love with all my being but would always let down. Her eyes were the kindest and she was so pure. She didn’t deserve what I did to her. All the alcohol and drugs. The fights, the blood, the late nights. She stayed through it all. She was so strong when I wasn’t. I needed help and she helped me.

She took me out, she kept me busy and I learned how to channel my anger into helping people, and I felt good. I was me again.

I stopped drinking and smoking. I stopped getting into fights and stopped yelling at her. I got better, and we got better.

I loved her and she loved me, we got married and settled down. I became “dad” and she became “mom”. We had two precious girls and later she also gifted me a son. We were happy.

But that all changed.

We lost a baby

I relapsed.

I got better.

But there was still something wrong.

The dreams of him kept coming, I could never save him in time.

 I look at the bottle of pills spilled over the bathroom counter and looked at the ugly monster that showed its face in me. What had I become? I was supposed to be Captain America, I was a husband and a father now. I couldn’t be doing this, other lives depended on me.

I tried to keep up the act, so y/n wouldn’t know, but she did. I would see less of her as the days went on. At the end of the day it wouldn’t be her I was sleeping next to at night, it was a broken woman with sad eyes that were once filled with love. I was no longer the man she wanted.

 The alcohol was the next to touch my lips.

“Steve?” She walks over to me and sets down a stack of papers on my desk. “You need help.”

“I’m just tired…” I watch as she grimaces.

“You’re just tired…well so am I.” I set down my beer and grab the papers.

“Divorce? Y/n you don’t want this, do you?” She evades my eyes and moves towards the door. I reach out to her, but she pulls back quickly.

“I love you Steve, but you aren’t the same man. First it was Bucky…I know it was hard, God Steve I know, but we got through it, didn’t we? We’ve been together ten years, married for eight. We were so good Steve.” She slides down the door way and onto the floor.

“Do you hate me now? I can’t even touch you without you-.”

“We both lost a child Steve, we both lost Bucky…it isn’t fair that I always have to be the strong one. Nothing is fair!” She bursts into tears and slams her hand down on the ground. I crouch down and brush the hair away from her eyes. She was so pale and so fragile, I feared losing her. “What’s wrong with us Steve?” she whispers and shakes her head.

“I make you cringe now…I’m nothing but a man that brings his family pain. I’m so so sorry y/n, you don’t deserve this…” She places a hand on my cheek and traces circles with her thumb.

“I’m sorry too…I’m sorry that I couldn’t make you see what was in front of you, instead of looking to the past. I failed you that way.”

“Y/n don’t apologize, it’s my fault. It’s all my fault…I couldn’t save him. I couldn’t even be there for you when you needed me. I was supposed to be your support, but I-I.”

“Steve stop doing this to yourself...”

 That was the last night we slept in the same bed. The last night we shared a home. I moved back into my old apartment with Sam and went to meetings at the VA with him. He got me a job. He tried his best to get me out of the house, but I still never felt happy.

After three months of recovery, I was allowed to go back to the Avengers Tower and start over to hopefully become Captain America again. I was welcomed back with open arms from everyone, but not from the one person that mattered. Y/n would only talk to me through Sam. I understood she needed time away from me and how bad our life had been, but I still loved her. Thankfully I was able to see the kids on my time off, with the supervision of Sam.

One night as I laid in bed, I recounted all my memories I had with y/n, all the good and the bad. All her smiles and laughs, the way she would part her hair, and the way she would bite the side of her lip if she was nervous or thinking. One memory stuck out in my head and it was one I wish I could forget.

 “Steve? Oh my God!” Her arms wrap around me and pull me up into her lap, “Steve, please!” A hand wipes the tears and sweat from my face. I’ve hit rock bottom.

“I’m so sorry y/n…I just miss him.”

“And that gives you the right to hurt yourself!?” Her voice cracks and soon tears spill down her face, “Just because he’s gone, doesn’t mean you need to go too. You have a family! Two little girls and a little boy who love you! You can’t leave them Steve.”

I shut my eyes and sob loudly. I hear a soft knock on my bedroom door and hear Sam walk in. “You okay man?” I sniff and wipe my face with the side of my arm.

“Yeah, I’m just just, I just love her so much.” He sits down at the edge of my bed.

“You need to show her you can be responsible and a husband, a father. That’s all she wants. You need to start taking care of yourself, man. Just give it a little time.” I nod and pick up my phone.

“Do you think it would be alright if I phoned her? Just to say goodnight to the kids…and her.” He pats my shoulder and sighs.

“I suppose it would be okay. Night Cap.” He leaves my room and shuts the door. I flip open my phone and type in the numbers then listen to it ring.

“Hello?” it was a man’s voice.

“Uh yeah, hi. Is this y/n’s number?” The man pauses a second then speaks again.

“Yeah, yeah it is, who is this?”

“Steve, her husband. Who are you?” I could feel anger bubble up inside me. Suddenly the man’s voice was replaced with hers.

“Steve, why are you calling? It’s late.” She didn’t sound very impressed.

“Who was that?!”

“My brother Steve! It’s my brother! He came to stay with me and help out because you-“ She goes silent and I hear my son’s voice asking to her who she was talking to. “Steve, James wants to talk to you.”

“Daddy?” his soft voice says excitedly, I feel my heart ache “When are you coming home?”

“I’m not sure buddy. Daddy’s still in recovery.”

“Fighting your monsters?” My breath hitches in my throat. “Mama says its like fighting all the bad guys.”

“Yeah, Buck it is…how is your mother? Your sisters?”

“They’re annoying and mom is..” I laugh “…she’s sad daddy. She cries a lot and stays in your room. Come home.”

“I will soon. Tell your mama goodnight and make sure you give her lots of hugs and kisses. I gotta go.”

“Okay, love you daddy.”

“Love you too, goodnight.” He hangs up and I set my phone down beside me.

 As time went on, the world started becoming a better place. There wasn’t as much crime or enemies to fight and all the darkness that once resided in me, had packed his bags and left during the night. I was finally back, and I intended to stay like this. There was something I needed to do and I needed help.

“So you want me to hold a press conference?” Tony says leaning back in his chair, “What for?”

“Its not a press conference. It’s a birthday party for y/n.”

“Yeah but with the press. Why do you need them there?”

“Because I need to give a public apology.”

 Sam had y/n and the kids out for the day, while the rest of the team and I got the Tower ready for the party. All her favourite foods and drinks were all set out on large tables and I had gotten Tony to gather all our family pictures and put them into a collage on the walls. Everything looked great.

I walk around the room and look at every photo. We had wedding photos, funny photos of us and the kids, but as the years went by, the smile she had became more forced. That was something I could never be able to make up for, all the lost time.

 I soon got a message from Sam saying they were on their way and I quickly got everyone to their places. All the press sat in their seats and all our friends and family were seated as well. All I had to do was wait. I stand up at the podium and take a deep breath. The doors at the back swing open and Sam walks in with y/n behind him, she stops and looks around at the silent room filled with people. The kids run up and find the rest of the avengers.

“I know everyone is wondering why I called you all here today. Well, I would like to send out a public apology.” I look down at y/n and our eyes meet “You all may think that I am a hero, that I’m perfect, but I’m far from that. I have struggled with my addictions to alcohol and drugs, that I tried to use as methods to get past the pain that I was feeling inside me after losing a close friend.” Sam smiles up to me and nods for me to continue “I was at my worst when I met the woman that saved me. She pulled me out of the darkness and showed me love and that life was worth living. I married that woman. I made it my goal to love and cherish her, but I let her down.”

She walks further up the aisle and watches me closely. “We were lucky enough to be blessed with a beautiful family of two daughters and a son, but the pain of losing our fourth child pushed me over the edge. When I should have been there to comfort her, I relapsed and began to tear our relationship apart. We were supposed to be a team, and my selfishness and recklessness almost cost me everything.” I felt the sting of hot tears run down my cheeks “Y/n I’m sorry. I’m so sorry I put you through so much. I wasn’t a husband, I wasn’t a father, I wasn’t a friend or lover…I was nothing but a poor excuse of a man.” My voice cracks,

 “I love you with my whole body and soul and I want to make it up to you. So I’m making a public promise to you that I will never become that man again. I promise to love and to hold you like I should have. I promise to take you out dancing and to treat you with the respect you deserve, and I promise that I will be there for you when you need me. I will never put my troubles above ours as a family. I love you y/n and I need you. I need your love and your touch. I want us to be a family again, I need my best friend.” The room erupts in applause and camera’s flash, but the only person I could look at was y/n. I walk off the stage and towards her, she runs to me and wraps her arms around me and presses her lips to mine. “Happy Birthday y/n.” She laughs through her tears then kisses me again. I lift her up and grip her waist as she hugs my neck.

“Steve, I missed you so much. Come home.”

“That’s all I’ve wanted for so long.”

#Steve Rogers #steve x reader #captain america #oneshot #steve rodgers x reader #drug abuse

[lindseyluvsdrag]

Scorned Bridges Ch. 1

Fourth Installment of my OMC series. If you need to catch up before reading this, you can do so here (X) but I have a few “clips” in there to refresh ya memories ;)

Thanks for the patience guys, I hope you enjoy it :) Ignore any typos!

TW: Suicide Ideation, SMUT

Dressed in his favorite beanie, hoodie and ripped up jeans, Matt approached the doors of the elegant venue but was stopped by security.

“Sir, this is a black tie event.” “This event can suck my-” “Matt!” Jason squealed excitedly as he made his way over. “What are you wearing?” “Clothes,” he sassed. The brunette rolled his eyes. “Did you seriously come to a charity event dressed like that?” “This is for charity?” “Ugh, yeah. Did you read the full invitation?” “No,” he admitted, only slightly embarrassed as his anger outweighed anything else. “Well, yes. Due to my recent epiphany, I just want to do better things with my life. This is a charity event I put together to benefit kids struggling with disabilities, kids who have been abused, kids who feel neglected…all of this was in the invitation. If you didn’t want to come then you shouldn’t have, rather than showing up with an attitude.” Before Matt could reply, his stomach contorted in knots when he witnessed his ex-boyfriend cross the room. “What’s Apollo doing here?” “I invited him to speak.” Matt narrowed his eyes at his ex-husband. “What are you up to?” “What do you mean?” “I see you all over Instagram with this guy, who’s not even that cute, and now all of a sudden you’re throwing charity events and inviting Apollo? What the hell is going on?” “First of all, what’s on my or anyone else’s Instagram is none of your business. Daniel owns Understood, a nonprofit organization that provides help to parents of kids who have learning and attention issues. I reached out to him and we decided to collaborate. I wanted to include kids who have been abused so we can raise money for all of them. Apollo is a well known model with dyslexia who can bring awareness to the fact that so many kids are dropping out of school because they’re made feel stupid when they aren’t. So that’s my goal tonight and if you feel like being an asshole, please save it for someone else.” The rant left Matt feeling so shitty that he debated turning on his heel and leaving but he had a bigger heart than that. “Jason, I’m really sorry. If you’ll let me, I’ll come in and support wholeheartedly.” The brunette smiled. “Even if you’ll stick out like a sore thumb with that sock on your head?” “I’ll check my ego at the door.” “Thank you,” he said softly. “Let him in.” The burly security guard stepped to the side and allowed the man to enter. “I want you to introduce you to someone. Hey, Daniel,” the brunette called. “No,” Matt whispered in protest. “Ugh, this is gonna be so awkward.” “Yeah?” the bright eyed man replied. “This is Matt, the ex-husband you’ve heard so much about. Matt this is Daniel.” “It’s so nice to meet you,” he said, tone effortlessly charming. “Likewise,” Matt said dryly. “He’s also the one that called you trade.” Matt wanted to punch the brunette in the arm for that, but to his surprise, Daniel cackled. “Oh my God, that’s amazing. I wish.” The man raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t you guys hooking up?” Jason folded his arms and gave Matt a look as he waited for the satisfaction he’d receive from Daniel’s answer. “Nooooo,” he assured. “We were super close in school but after that we just kinda lost touch. I missed his crazy ass but not that much.” Jason gave his friend a playful shove. “Besides,” Daniel continued as he raised his left hand. “I’m happily married.” “Oh…” Matt’s face made Jason smirk. “‘If you’re trying to make me jealous it isn’t working’,” the brunette mocked. The man turned bright crimson. “Well it didn’t.” Jason leaned in to whisper in his ear. “I’m glad because I’m beyond these childhood games. If I was fucking someone, you’d never know it…darling.” The glacial way that the brunette spoke made the hair on the back of his neck stand up. “We’d better get going,” Daniel said as he checked his watch. “Okay,” Jason chirped. “Later, Egghead.” “Later,” was his barely audible reply as he watched the man make his way towards the stage. Matt shook whatever the unknown emotion he was experiencing off and began to make his way towards the decadently decorated tables. He didn’t see any familiar faces until he spotted Apollo seated at a table that was full minus the seat next to the model. The man took a deep breath and made his way over. When Apollo made eye contact with him, his smile was bittersweet. “Is this seat taken?” Matt asked. “I don’t think so,” he said quietly. The man had no idea how much he’d missed the heavy Greek accent until now as he pulled out the chair and sat down. “You look great.” “Thanks…and so do you. Especially if you were going to the park.” “Yeah… I wish I could blame the fashion choice on a misunderstanding, but it really was me just being a jerk. I’m ready to own up to my mistakes and be that man again. Ya know?” Apollo nodded. “I’m sorry for not making you more of a priority…but like the amazing guy that you are, you went on to achieve something most of us dream about. You’re a true inspiration.” Apollo’s smile was soft. “Thank you.” “And I hope that you can forgive me.” “I do,” the man assured. Matt wanted to say more but Daniel’s tapping of the microphone on the podium made him hold his tongue. “Is this thing on?” he joked. “Hello everyone and thank you so much for coming out to support such an amazing event. We all know that kid who may struggle with learning, fitting in or accepting themselves and maybe you are that kid. As someone with ADHD, growing up was really tough; being misunderstood or mistaken for this being this burden on everyone would always upset me, so I made it my dream to help kids just like me. That’s why I founded Understood. To help parents better communicate with their children, because change starts in the home,” he said, finishing with a warm smile. “Thank you.” After everyone showered him in a hefty applause, Daniel spoke again. “Our next speaker will be Jason Dardo.” The brunette swiftly took the stage and his spot in front of the podium. “Good evening ladies and gentlemen. I’ll keep it short and sweet because there’s gonna be an amazing after party once we’re done.” The audience chuckled. “In addition to loving, everything that the Understood foundation stands for, I just wanted to bring awareness to children who are being abused and feel like they have no voice. They get to school and tell their teacher that they 'fell down’ or 'they were playing too hard’ out of sheer fear of retaliation from the ones who should love them the most: their families. So I want to add a new division to the Understood foundation that travels across the country, school to school, educating teachers of the warning signs and educating kids that love should never hurt.” His words were met with thunderous applause. Jason grinned and pulled a massive key from underneath the podium, urging Daniel to return to the stage. “This is the key to the new Understood rec center that is going to be opening in downtown Brooklyn. A place where kids can come and get help or just to have fun. I plan to have one placed in every major city across this country and I won’t stop until I do. Deal?” With tears in his eyes Daniel nodded and pulled Jason into a hug. The brunette kissed his cheek before turning towards the podium once more. “I honestly don’t think any of this will be possible without the face of the century, Apollo Katsopolis!” The model had a warm smile as he pushed himself away from the table and towards the stage. “Thank you for coming,” Jason told him as they embraced. “Thank you for having me.” Apollo graciously stood in front of the podium. “I’ll have to admit that I’m a little nervous. You’d think that someone who poses nude all the time would have more if a backbone but I don’t. Growing up I wished that I had a support system like Understood because it would’ve brought an end to the bullying, crying myself to sleep and the feeling of being so worthless that I wanted to end my own life. But I took those same emotions and channeled it into proving all the voices of people who doubted me wrong. And I want to use the platform that I’ve been blessed with to bring awareness to kids just like me. Dyslexia is not the disability,the voice in your head telling you that you can’t is. Thank you.” A little emotional from finally opening up and allowing himself to feel free for the first time in his life, Apollo quickly turned to leave the stage but Jason stopped him. “You are a big part of why tonight had to happen. What I did to you represents what happens to millions of kids everyday and it has to stop. So on behalf of you, me and Understood, I’ll be donating one hundred million dollars to schools across America and Greece to get more help for kids with dyslexia and other learning disabilities.” Apollo couldn’t hold back his tears any longer and broke down, but he wasn’t the only one. There wasn’t a dry eye in the place and the person who was the most moved was Matt. The man realized that he had to do better and that nothing should hold him back from achieving his goals. He couldn’t let any more opportunities pass him by and as the speakers left the stage, he chased after the man that he knew he couldn’t live without. “Hey,” Matt panted when he caught up to him. “Hey,” he replied. “Your speech was amazing.” “Thank you.” There was an awkward silence before Matt decided to just stop beating around the bush. “From the moment that I saw you, I knew that you were the one for me. Everything about you, enhances everything about me and I am dangerously in with you. From pizza to every Queen album, nothing in my life is complete until I’ve shared it with you,” he sniffled. “And I want you to be mine again.” The man smiled. And with tears streaming down his face he pulled Matt close until their lips connected in a passionate kiss. “I love you.” “Forever starts today, babe.” ---

Matt wiped the lens of his camera with his shirt before placing the viewfinder to his eye as he pointed it towards his lover.

“What are you doing?” the man grumbled from the bed.

“Capturing art,” he replied as he took a picture, then another.

The man covered his face with the blanket. “It's too early.”

“But you look so beautiful when you first wake up,” Matt protested. He grabbed the edge of the comforter, pulled it away and continued to take pictures.

He giggled. “Would you go away?”

“Nope,” Matt chirped as he straddled the man and zoomed into the his nose.

“Moró!” Apollo boomed with laughter. “I’m not that attractive.”

“You are to me.” Matt leaned down and kissed his boyfriend.

“Mmm,” he hummed. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

They kissed.  

“Are we ordering in today or would you like to go out to eat for my last day before I go back to work?” Apollo asked.

Matt rocked his hips against his lover's groin. “Ordering in.”

Apollo let out a lusty exhale. “You read my mind.” He pulled Matt down into a kiss before helping the man out of his shirt and then boxers. After he was stripped down to nothing, Apollo guided Matt's waist to his face and took his dick into his mouth.

Matt gripped the top of the headboard in order to steady himself while Apollo worked his mouth up and down his shaft.

“Fuck, babe.”

The model took the praise in stride as he encouraged Matt to balance himself so that he could slip his fingers into him while still worshipping his dick with his mouth.

Matt giggled as he held on tighter to the headboard. “I'm gonna falllllllll.”

Apollo secured one arm around Matt's waist for added security while he deep throated his boyfriend's shaft and fingered his ass.

“Oh my God,” he moaned.

When Matt's dick was finally rock hard and oozing precum, Apollo rolled them over so that his lover's back was against the feather down mattress topper. The man took his time to leave a trail of gentle kisses from Matt's neck to navel before pushing his thighs towards his chest so that his mouth could have unobstructed access to his ass. He gave it firm licks and paired with two stroking fingers followed by a third, it had Matt moaning within no time.

“Mmmm, yes. Right there, baby,” Matt encouraged as he ran his fingers through Apollo's hair.

The model went on for several minutes, making sure that Matt was prepped and ready for everything that he had in store for him. He pulled out the last condom that they'd been reduced to after spending days sequestered in the bedroom. After Jason's charity event, the couple rushed to Matt's place in order to make up. And makeup. And makeup.

Apollo smeared a generous amount of lube onto Matt's hole and his own dick before pulling Matt close by the thighs.

“Eísai étoimos, moró?” he asked to see if his lover was ready.

“Nai agápi mou,” Matt responded after asking Apollo how to say ‘yes, my love’ in Greek awhile back.

Despite choppy dialect and having emphasis on the wrong syllables, Apollo thought that the man's attempt to speak his language was beautiful.

“You're so damn sexy,” he exhaled with lusty, hooded eyes.

Matt pulled the man down into a kiss and as they made out, Apollo took the opportunity to press his cock against his lover's entrance. Matt was tense for only a second before relaxing and allowing the man to slide his full length inside of him. No matter how many times they made love, Matt always needed to adjust to having Apollo fill him up and the man's tender kisses always seemed to help.

When he was ready Matt always braced himself by wrapping his arms around Apollo's back and the man took this as a cue to begin thrusting. Apollo always started off slow to make sure that his lover was okay. When Matt's expressions went from questioning to lusty or when Matt just demanded to be fucked harder, the man would pick up speed. Apollo pushed his lover's thighs closer to his chest, adjusting the angle so that he could have prime access to Matt's prostate. When he found it, Matt quivered in pleasure.

“Fuck,” he yelped out. “Harder, baby, please.”

Apollo always saw this as a personal challenge. He pinned Matt into the position even tighter and began to pound into the man's ass.

With each thrust, Matt whimpered out in pleasure. And when his toes began to curl, he knew exactly whose name to call.

“Apollooo,” he moaned. “You’re so good, fuck! I'm gonna cum.”

Apollo firmly gripped Matt's dick in his strong hand. “Not yet,” he ordered as he slowed his thrusts.

“Babyyyy,” Matt whined but Apollo quickly silenced him with a kiss. After a minute, Apollo released Matt's dick and began to thrust again.

“I hate edging,” Matt panted.

“You always say that until you have the best orgasms.”

He giggled. “True. But yo-” Matt squealed when Apollo pulled out and flipped him over onto his hands and knees.

“You hate edging, huh?”

Matt’s knees buckled when Apollo thrust right into him. He grabbed his lover by the waist and used it as leverage to relentlessly pound his ass.

“Yes, I hate it! I just wanna cum!” Matt declared.

“Oh, I'll make you cum,” Apollo assured. He gripped Matt's hair and gave it a firm tug as he continued to passionately fuck his lover.

Matt didn't have announce when he was about to cum, but the light tremor of his limbs let Apollo know that he'd done his job.

“Shit,” Matt moaned as a load of cum leaked out of his dick and onto the sheets.

Apollo pulled out and flipped Matt back over onto his back. Matt gestured for the man to come closer and when he did, he removed the condom and took his lover's cock into his mouth.

Matt deep throated Apollo's dick until Apollo exploded. The man swallowed every drop of the man's load until Apollo flopped onto the bed next to his lover.

“You're so perfect,” the model said as he pulled him close.

Matt lifted his camera and took another picture of the man. “No, you are.”

---

Jake pounded on Jason's door for the third time that day. “Hey, Jason! Whatta I need to do, take out a billboard to get my jacket back?! It's Dolce and Gabbana and I want it back!”

“Go away!” the man shouted from the other side.

“Give me my jacket and then I will!”

Jason didn't reply.

“You know what?” Jake grumbled as he rounded the building until he found the fire escape. He gave himself a silent yes when he discovered that the careless man had left the window unlocked. He opened it and made his way inside. “Jason! I'm getting my jacket!” Jake declared before the stench of warm alcohol, rotten food and horrendous body order hit his nose. “What the fuck is that smell, bro?!”

The man made his way out of the guest room down to the living room where he saw Jason sprawled out on the couch. With stained clothes, matted hair, a full beard and surrounded by trash, the man looked as if he hadn't moved from that spot in weeks.

“Dude, is that you that smells like that?” Jake wheezed.

“Get...out,” Jason snarled.

“Where is my jacket?”

The man didn't respond.

“Okay, I guess whatever's in your closet is up for grabs then.”

“Go ahead... I don't need it anymore.”

Jake began to make his way towards the bedroom but he stopped, gagged on the deep breath he took and turned around. “What's wrong with you?”

“I just don't...want...to live.”

“Why? You had that amazing charity event a few weeks ago. You're doing great things for kids across the country.”

“You think I actually care about that stuff?” Jason retorted. “I only did all of that because you told me that if I got my shit together, Matt would want to take me back.”

Jake made a face. “I said that?”

“Yes! At Max's wedding!”

***

“Heyyy Jakey-Pooo,” Jason slurred as he threw his arms around the lonely man at the bar. Jake cackled. “Um, hi? What the fuck did you drink?” “Vintage Merlotttt. It’s my favoriteeeeee.” “Well that’s good I’m glad you’re having a good time,” he said as he slid out of the uncomfortable embrace. “Are you having funnnn?” “Yeah…I couldn’t bring myself to have those drinks I mentioned earlier, but I had a tea and the music is really good.” “Goodddd. Okay so listen,” he slurred. “What’s up?” “Matthew James Lent, my heart, is with another man and I need youuuu to tell himmm that I’m pregnant so he can come back to me.” Jake suppressed his laughter. “Is that so? How far along are you?” “I’m gonna have this baby any day now and he needs to be there for ussss.” “I’ll be sure to pass on the message.” “Thank youuuu,” he said as he threw his arms around the other man once again. Jake politely pushed himself away. “I’m gonna go smoke a cigarette and then probably head out to the airport.” “You wanna know a secret?” the brunette whispered. The man exhaled. “Sure, Jason.” “I think Max should’ve married youuuu.” “I think you must’ve put a little crack in your wine. I’m not gonna be somebody’s secret.” “He didn’t mean it like thatttt.” “Okay. Well I appreciate your opinion. Now you wanna know a secret?” “Mm hmmm.”

“I think Matt is so weak for you that he’s really struggling with not just giving everything up to be with you again. But he’s trying to hold out as long as possible in hopes that you get your shit together.”

Jason gasped. “I willllll I promiseeeee.”

***

“And I fucking did!” he shouted. “He was supposed to come back to me but instead he's a betraying asshole!”

Jake held his nose when the nauseating smell of Jason's breath reached him on the other side of the the room. “How's he betraying you?”

“We made vows, damnit!”

“Yeah, before you divorced him.”

“But even after all of that, he himself told me that if I got my shit together that we'd get back together!”

***

“You don’t get to just be an asshole and then come back when it’s convenient for you. I’ve had it, Jason. You seriously need to work on yourself before I’d ever consider being with you again. Until then, please don’t contact me.” Matt wanted to hang up then and there, but he couldn’t before he said the next part. “And don’t do anything stupid. Try not to be so clumsy…don’t put metal in the microwave…if you take an Uber with a sketchy driver, have pepper spray handy, okay?” At this point, the brunette was bawling his eyes out. “But Matt,” he pleaded. “I gotta go. Take care of yourself, Pumpkin.” Once he heard the dial tone, Jason buried his face into his pillow and cried himself to sleep.

***

“Jason, Matt called me that night and he said that he'd only consider getting back with you if you got your shit together. That was no promise.”

“It's still so fucked up!” the brunette sobbed. “I want him back!”

“Well...Matt is happy with Apollo so I can't help you with that.”

Jason grabbed the nearest sharp object and placed it to his own neck. “I can't live without him!”

Jake made a face. “Is that a spork?”

“Yes! And I'm not afraid to use it!”

The man chuckled. “Okay, Princess. Where is my jacket?” He turned and made his way to Jason's bedroom. Jake quickly sifted through the designer garments but when he didn't see his jacket, he decided that Jason's Versace coat would be an equal trade off. He grabbed it off of it's hanger. “This better be of equal or greater value,” he ordered as he made his way back to the living room.

The couch was empty and Jason was nowhere in sight.

“Jason?”

Jake heard faint shouting coming from the back of the house.

“Don't do it!” a stranger pleaded. “I'm sure you have a lot more to live for!”

“I don't!” Jason shouted back.

Jake rushed towards where the voices where emanating from and ended up on the fire escape yet again just to find Jason teetering on the edge of the guard rail.

“Jason...what...are you...doing?” Jake calmly asked.

“I don't want to live anymore, Jake. My family hates me, Matt hates me, Miss Vanjie went home first- I have nothing to live for!”

“Jason... nobody hates you and we were all upset that Miss Vanjie…” the man fought the urge to say it twice more, “when she went home. But dude, you live on the fifth floor, if you fall, that will kinda hurt.”

“I want it to hurt. I want to die,” he sniffled.

“But what about all the things you have to live for? Um...ugh...what the fuck do you like?”

“Nothing!”

“Pfft, I know you like sex. If you're dead, nobody will top you. Well, I mean, some people may be into that but it only gets them off and not you because ya know…” he made a cracking sound as he stuck out his tongue and rolled his eyes to the back of his head.

“I don't want anyone but Matt topping me anyway! And he won't anymore so fuck it!”

“Okay, well what about Max? He needs you.”

“Unlike me, he's happily married.”

Jake scoffed. “Dude, are you coming in or not? I'll call Matt right now and tell him that you're talking nonsense.”

“Good. Tell him that I'll always love him and I'll miss him,” Jason sniffled. “And…”

Jason trailed off as Jake checked his watch. “Look, I have a shoot in 20, can we wrap this up?”

The disheveled brunette took a deep breath. “Okay, I'm ready.”

Jake rolled his eyes and finally decided to grab the man and pull him back to safety. Jason's protests and flailing arms wafted the strong body odor directly into Jake's nostrils.

“Holy shit,” Jake said with a gag. “On second thought, just go ahead and jump. You already smell like a four day old corpse.”

“What do you think I was trying to do, asshole?!” Jason shouted as attempted to return to the guard rail but Jake firmly grasped his arm.

“Get your weird ass inside. I can't let you jump because cops would question me and if cops questioned me, I'd miss my photoshoot and if I miss my photoshoot, I'd lose money and if I lose money, I'd bring you back from the dead just to kill you again. Now go, get inside,” he ordered.

Jason grumbled under his breath.

“Okay, shall I call Matt and tell him that you smell like an extra from the walking dead?”

“No!”

“Then get your sour ass in the house!”

Like a toddler, Jason stomped and marched back into the home. Jake waited for the sour waft of air to fade before following the man.

“You seriously need to shower.”

“There's no point,” Jason groaned as he made his way back to couch. He flopped down, sending debris of trash and stale food around him.

“Whatever,” the other man retorted. “Do what you want, you won't get Matt back regardless. You smell like shit and you haven't even genuinely changed.”

Jason frowned.

“Bye, dude.”

After Jake made his exit, Jason sat up and grumbled as he wiped his eyes. He pushed himself off of the couch and entered the bathroom and turned the shower. The man peeled off his clothes and stepped underneath the hot cascade.

Jason's phone buzzed from the other room. When it went to voicemail, Sofia began to speak.

“Hey, Jason...it's your sister. I know it's been months since we've last spoken but...you need to come to Atlanta soon...it's Vinny.”

---

Jason's heart pounded against his chest as he slowly made his way up the limestone steps of the Atlantean mansion. He slowly entered and was instantly flooded with nostalgia when he saw the carrera marble pillars that he used to peak behind during hide and seek.

“Hello?” he called. When the man's voice echoed through the house, the sound of small pitter patter steps came rushing towards him.

Jason gasped. “Hi, Scout!” The man scooped up his nephew in his arms and kissed his cheek. “How are you, buddyyyy?”

“Good! How's you?”

“I'm good! Oh my God, you've grown so much.” Jason kissed his cheek again just as his sister rounded the corner.

“Hey, Jay,” she quietly greeted.

“Hey,” the man responded. “Where is he?”

“Downstairs...he refuses to go to the hospital.”

“What's wrong with him?”

“I don't know but he's always coughing and so weak all the time. I threw a party recently and he could barely keep up with the planning.”

Jason frowned. “How long has this been going on?”

“About a month.”

“Why didn't you call me?”

“Jay, you wanted nothing to do with either of us. We tried reaching out- you missed my wedding.”

The man turned away. “You guys broke my heart. You lied to me!”

“And we tried everything to fix it!”

“I lost Matt! There was no fixing that, Sofia!” The man quickly became emotional so Scout wrapped his arms around his uncle's neck.

“No cry. Bad mama!” he chastised.

Sofia scoffed and sucked back her own tears.

“Mio figlio!” Vinny excitedly greeted as he made his way to the foyer. He was pale and had clearly lost a significant amount of weight. His usually effervescent personality seemed to be toned down to a mild state.

Jason quickly rushed over to the man that he'd seen as a father figure for his entire life and threw his arms around him.

“Chokey!” Scout declared as he slide out of the embrace before teetering over to his mother.

“Vinny, are you okay?”

“I’m fine, mio figlio. I'm just so happy to see you.”

“No, you're not fine, Vinny,” Sofia retorted. “I called Jason because I know you're sick.”

“Mia figlia, having allergies hardly counts as being sick these days. The show must go on.”

“Allergies?” Jason asked.

Vinny grabbed Jason's shoulders. “Allergies,” he assured.

The brunette sighed in relief.

“Why would you need chemotherapy for allergies?” Sofia continued.

Vinny loudly exhaled. “My dear, you are mistaken. I've had no chemotherapy.”

“So...you're okay?” Jason asked again.

“Yes.”

He turned to his sister. “He's fine, Sofia.”

“If you want to buy his bullshit then that's on you. But remember that he was there when you signed your divorce papers so if you're going to continue to be mad at me then you have to be mad at him too.”

“I'm mad at both of you.”

Vinny frowned. “What can be done to fix this?”

Jason shrugged.

“I'll throw a party! A big celebration of you, mio figlio. I want you to see how you are appreciated.”

“Whatever,” the man grumbled.

“I'll get started on it right away,” he said excitedly. Vinny turned on his heel, obviously too quickly as evidenced by the way he became light-headed. The man desperately searched for the nearest wall to cling to for support.

“Are you okay?” Jason asked, clear worry in his tone.

Vinny closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths before answering. “I'm fine. Just a little dizzy.”

Jason frowned and looked at his sister who gave him the 'told you so’ look.

“Don't worry, mio figlio. I'll throw you the biggest party Atlanta has ever seen.”

“Vin, I don't want a party.”

“Senza Senso! You need a party! There will be cake and music and wine and guests! Maybe I can get Matthew to come.”

“I- ...you think he'd come?”

Sofia rolled her eyes.

“Maybe,” Vinny replied.

“And you promise you're okay?”

“Pinky promise,” the man assured.

“Okay,” Jason sighed. “I'll take a party.”

“Urrà!” This time, Vinny was careful to not move too fast as he made his way back to his office to make plans.

“If you can't see that he's sick then you're fucking blind,” Sofia said accusingly.

“He said that he's fine,” Jason practically hissed. “Now if you're done, I'm going to the Ritz.”

“Why are you staying at a hotel? You know our house is nicer than any hotel.”

“I know but-”

“Jason go bye bye?” Scout asked, expression a frown.

The man sighed. “No, Scouty I'll stay.”

The toddler cheered as he wiggled out of his mother's arms so that he could rush to his uncle. Jason picked him up and kissed his cheek.

“It'll be just like old times,” Sofia said.

Jason's mind instantly flooded with traumatic memories of staying in the house.

“Welcome home.”

>>>

#pearlet fanfiction #pearlet #omc verse #scorned bridges fic

[growingxpains]

⚡ (but the reverse for Pete and Adam?)

⚡ Muggle Hogwarts AU || meme || accepting.

Pete will deny it until his dying day, but he thought it was really stupid when his best friend put his name in the Goblet of Fire.

Pete has known Kyle Grace his whole life. They grew up together in the same small wizarding community and spent their formative years imagining what their lives would look like when they got to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Not even ending up in different houses was enough to break these two best friends apart. In fact, it made their bond stronger as they ignored the norms of finding your family in your house and nowhere else. It took a few weeks for their classmates to grow used to seeing a Hufflepuff and a Gryffindor bouncing between their house tables to have meals together, but they eventually did. It was Pete and Kyle and that was the end of it.

Now, as the tournament loomed in the future, it very well could be. Pete silently wished any other name would be called when they picked their champions after the feast.

Tonight, they were sitting at the Hufflepuff table, and even being surrounded by the friendliest young witches and wizards couldn’t draw Pete out of his own mind.

“Pete? Hey, Pete? Snap out of it,” came a voice to his right before fingers snapped in his face. He focused long enough to glare at his best friend who was smirking in his seat beside him. “Thought I lost you for a minute there,” Kyle teased. “Dreaming about anyone in particular?” he asked, waggling his eyebrows before sending a pointed glance at the boy further down the table.

Adam jabbed his elbow into Kyle, who laughed in response. “Don’t talk to me about making eyes at Hufflepuffs, Grace. You will lose that game every time,” Pete said quietly.

Kyle rolled his eyes. “Not the same thing,” he complained.

“You’re right. I haven’t been pining since first year like some people.”

Kyle shook his head, his cheeks a hilarious shade of pink that Pete would have teased had he not been so worried. “I don’t know why you’re my best friend,” he grumbled.

“Yeah, I really wonder,” Pete nodded before taking his first bite. “So, you ready for this?” he asked hesitantly.

Kyle nodded, seeming to shrug off any worry he might have. “Yeah, it’ll be fine. Whatever happens, happens. Besides, it’s a shot to save the shop.”

Kyle’s grandparents ran a small magical bookshop that had struggled in recent years. Kyle put his name in the Goblet solely for the prize money. He just wanted to save the shop. It was for that reason alone that Pete hadn’t fought his insistence on putting his name in.

He nodded and was about to respond before the happiest Hufflepuff took a seat beside them. “Hey, Sawyer,” Pete greeted with a fond smile when Kyle went uncharacteristically quiet. His best friend always seemed to whenever the bubbly blonde was around.

“Hi, Pete,” she said to him before turning her attention to Kyle. “Hi, Kyle,” she greeted warmly, tucking some hair behind her ears. “Good luck tonight.”

He looked at her blankly before a well-placed smack to his back from Pete had Kyle blurting out a quick “Thanks.” They shared a smile and Pete rolled his eyes and shook his head. Idiots, the pair of them.

They were saved from any more awkward conversations with a call to attention. Champions for the other schools were called and a hush fell over the room when it was Hogwarts turn. Pete felt himself freeze when the flame spit out a paper. He shut his eyes, already knowing what the name would be. He could feel it.

“Kyle Grace!”

The cheer that erupted from the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff tables was thunderous. Pete looked over at Kyle who looked shocked his name had been called. Sawyer wore a wide grin and congratulated Kyle happily, though Pete could see the worry in her eyes. They all stood and Kyle pulled Pete in for a tight hug before making his way up front, encouraged by slaps to the back on his way.

Pete sat down numbly, his eyes following his best friend as he left the hall. Sawyer slid closer, her hand landing on her shoulder comfortingly. Someone slid into his line of vision, stopping Pete from staring blankly at the door Kyle had just walked through. “Are you okay, Pete?”

He focused on Adam, the 7th year Hufflepuff that had been filling Pete’s dreams for months. He nodded silently, his eyes wide. Adam smiled sympathetically before reaching for his hand. “Come on,” he said, standing and leading Pete from the table. “No one will even notice,” he said before leading him through the castle corridors. They ended up in courtyard and Adam made Pete sit on one of the stone benches, their hands still firmly entwined. “You can let it out.”

Pete couldn’t take his eyes off Adam, but he nodded and shut his eyes tightly, feeling Adam’s arms come around him. “He’s my brother. He’s my brother and he could die, Adam. I don’t know what to do,” He told him, his voice breaking. “I should have told him this was a mistake. I should have made him stop.”

“Shh, I’m here. I’m here for you, I got you,” Adam told him, tugging him closer. For the first time since this madness started, Pete allowed himself to feel all the panic and worry he’d been repressing. He trusted Adam with this part of him.

Later, he’d think about that all night.

But Adam held Pete until he finally calmed down enough to return to the common room.

The next few months flew by. The first task, which featured a night in the Forbidden Forest blindly seeking the key to the next task, passed quickly enough. Pete had watched anxiously from the viewer's podium, waiting for Kyle to emerge in one piece. Sawyer sat by his side, nervously watching with him. Adam dutifully sat to his right, where he had been the last few weeks, silently offering his strength when Pete felt his most stressed. Pete had come to rely on him and his crush only grew deeper.

“He’ll be fine,” Adam reassured him, giving his hand a squeeze. “You and Kyle sneak off to the Forest all the time. He knows it better than just about everyone,” Adam whispered to him.

Pete looked away from the forest entrance for the first time all night to smirk at Adam. “Keeping tabs on me, Armstrong?” he asked.

Adam grinned widely. “There he is. That’s the Pete Nelson I know.”

Pete smiled at him. “Know and love?” he teased.

“Something like that,” Adam replied, giving his hand another squeeze.

Pete smiled even wider, feeling more like himself than he had in weeks. He opened his mouth to tell Adam just that when a cheer erupted around them. Adam looked away first, grinning and standing to applaud. Pete watched him for a moment before standing himself and sagging in relief.

There Kyle stood, bruised but grinning and holding something metal in his hand. He looked into the crowd and saw the three Hufflepuffs and smiled at them. Sawyer was the first to break from the crowd, running to Kyle and throwing her arms around him.

Pete gave Kyle a moment to enjoy that, turning to Adam instead. The happiness in his eyes robbed Pete of his breath. Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck. Without thinking, Pete wrapped his arms around Adam. Hugging him tightly seemed to be the only thing stopping him from kissing him senseless. Adam returned the hug before pulling away to drag Pete down to Kyle and let the brothers reunite.

Later, when it was just Kyle and Pete slowly making their way back to the castle, Pete smiled to himself.

“What’s that grin for?” Kyle nettled him. “Got something you want to tell me, Peter?”

Pete looked up at him and paused. “What?” he asked, frowning when Kyle started laughing. “What?” he asked again.

“You’ve got it so bad. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you like this.”

“Like what?” Pete asked.

“You know. Happy. In love. All that,” Kyle said, grinning.

Pete shook his head but couldn’t hide a smile. “Alright, champion. I think the excitement of winning is getting to you.”

“You keep telling yourself that, Pete. I know what I saw.”

Pete looked down and smiled to himself. He couldn’t even deny it.

“Dear Lord, Pete, just ask him already. I am so sick of you two making eyes at each other when I’m trying to have my meals,” Kyle complained from his desk. Charms class had broken into small groups to practice their new spells, and while some people wanted to work, Kyle wanted to harass Pete for not yet asking Adam to be his date to the Yule Ball.

“As I’ve told you, I’ll ask Adam as soon as you ask you-know-who,” Pete said, not looking up from his notes.

Kyle sat up and leaned in closer. “Keep your voice down,” he said, looking around to see if they’d been overheard.

Pete snorted. “Amazing. You’re a Gryffindor, house of the brave. You’re the Hogwarts champion and you can’t even find the courage to ask out the girl you’re in love with. Who, mind you, is equally stupid over you.”

“You don’t know that,” Kyle muttered, leaning back again.

“Right. If I’m so wrong then why is she marching over here right now?” Pete asked, looking up to wave at Sawyer.

Kyle tried to sit up again but lost his balance and nearly ended up on the floor. “Hi,” he said, grinning brightly.

“Hi,” Sawyer echoed, her bravado from moments before seeming to freeze for a moment. Idiots, Pete thought to himself.

He sighed and took pity on the lovesick fools. “So, Sawyer. Have a date to the Yule Ball yet?” he asked.

She blinked, coming back to herself and shook her head. “Uh, not yet. I was waitin’ for the right guy to ask,” she said, sneaking a glance at Kyle.

“Oh yeah? He’s an idiot for making you wait. Don’t you think Kyle?” Pete asked, turning to his friend.

Kyle shot him a look, his ears red. “Uh, yeah. Biggest idiot,” he agreed. “Listen, Sawyer-,” he began before being cut off.

“Kyle, will you go to the dance with me?”

There was a pause where both Kyle and Pete looked at Sawyer in surprise. Kyle started nodding without saying a word and Pete couldn’t help but thank Merlin that he was here to witness this.

“Uh, yeah. Yes, I mean yes. Yes. I would love to,” Kyle responded, standing up and smiling at her.

Sawyer beamed. “Good,” she said, a light blush coloring her cheeks. She smirked after a moment. “Don’t make me wait so long for the next dance, Handsome,” she teased.

“You got it. I will never make you wait again, Beautiful.”

Pete had to roll his eyes at that.

He closed his notebook with a snap and left them to stare into each other’s eyes and snuck out the back.

He made his way to the courtyard where he knew Adam spent his time in between classes and he wasn’t disappointed. “Adam! Hey!” he called out, grinning when Adam looked up from his book and smiled at him.

Pete jogged over and came to a stop in front of him. “So, uh, I was wondering,” Pete began, rubbing the back of his neck. Adam stood up and smiled at him. It was distracting. “Uh, you probably don’t want to, or maybe someone already asked you, but I’d kick myself if I didn’t try. Do you maybe want to go to the dance with me?” Pete said in a rush.

Adam raised an eyebrow at him as he spoke, but a grin slowly spread across his face. “You want to go with me?” he asked.

Pete nodded. “There’s no one else I’d rather go with. There’s no one else at all. Just you, Adam.”

Adam grinned wider and closed the distance between them. His hand found Pete’s neck and he tugged him closer and sealed their lips together. Pete smiled into the kiss, his own hands gripping Adam’s robes and keeping him close.

When Adam pulled away, he laughed breathlessly. “It’s just you, too,” he told him before leaning in for another kiss.

He might not have gotten a definite yes, but Pete got something much better. He was terrified when the Goblet picked his best friend, but it hadn’t been all bad. Not at all.

Plus, he was actually brave enough to ask Adam out and Pete couldn’t wait to hold that over Kyle’s head later.

#pete x adam #hogwarts au #meme me baby #this was probably better in my head #but basically kyle is a dork #and pete is a worrywart #and adam is the best always #my stuff #heartfullofxfright

[cocoarosalia]

Rocking the cradle Chapter 14: Sacrifice

Sammy pushed his legs to the limit

'faster'

Every breath he drew in burned

'Faster'

He felt like he was going to collapse

"FASTER'

But he couldn't stop, he couldn't afford to

Not after the promise he made

*Flashback*

Nothing could prepare his to face this. One moment he's covering her ears and the next she's rushing out into the open classroom alone. He thought that if he kept telling her that things would be alright that she would at least be calm enough not to do anything stupid.

But when he saw those door swing open and her standing rigid in front of the very thing that gave her nightmares…

He found himself ready to fight the fire alongside her

He got as far as creaking the doors barely an inch open before his sister yanked him away and held him down with all her weight.

“Sophie, what the hell!? Get off me!” He growled

“You were about to do something stupid, so no”

“Let me go! If I don’t go out there she’ll get killed!”

Sophie’s eyes narrowed

“And what were you gonna do, huh?”

His mouth gaped like a fish. He hadn’t entirely thought of that.

“What? Were you just gonna run out there, declare your love for her and strike down the evil witch like in our bedtime stories?”

“I-I don’t-” She smack her hand against the wall. His lips were shut tight

“Shut up sammy!” She whispered harshly “This isn’t a fairytale. If you go out there and that woman is insane enough to kill kids then what chance do you have!?”

He recoiled in guilt from feeling the wetness of her tears on his face

“She won’t kill Elly. That’s her kid stupid, that’s why she’s here” She hunched over in fear and sorrow, her voice shaken and cracked “But if she kills you...then I’ll be all alone.”

Sammy relaxed his arms and just held onto his sister. It pained him every second he wasn’t out there fighting to keep Elly safe, but being in that cramped cabinet, listening to his sister quietly sob on his shoulders was far worse than anything that wicked old hag could dish out.

His ears perked up when he could hear Elly’s voice again

“Please mommy, just...please keep your promise”

He could just barely see between the doors, but what he could see was enough.

Sammy pulled himself and Sophie out of closet in just enough time to see Elly disappear over the buildings.

She was gone. In one clear, swift moment the girl he promised to protect was gone and it could be for forever.

All the words he wanted to scream got caught up in his throat. He fell onto his knees, his fists balled up in frustration. He could’ve saved her, but he couldn’t leave his sister behind. He felt weak and helpless. There was nothing he could do and he knew that perfectly well.

“What are you doing on the floor stupid”

He was going to respond but Sophie didn’t bother giving him the chance

“You wanna help save her right? Then get up, we have to go”

His twin pulled him to his feet. They shared a look of understanding and ran as fast as they could through the halls

‘I swear I’ll do something to save you Lemonhead. Just don’t start crying ok?”

*End Flashback*

This is exactly what happens when you hire a drunk to teach a senior class

Once again the professor was passed out drunk from a night of drinking before hand, but rather than spend the time doing anything productive like study or have thoughtful conversation the class had a much more fun idea.

Which is how Nino and Adrien ended up having a competition on who could stack the most stuff on top of their drunk teacher without A) knocking anything over or B) waking them up. Currently there was a 50 dollar bet on Nino fucking it up with Chloé throwing in a clean hundred if Adrien makes it as tall as the podium.

The class held their breath as Nino took his turn

‘150 euro’ Nino chanted in his head ‘I win and we’re going on vacation baby!’

But then the door slammed wide open

And the tower of school supplies came toppling over, just like his dreams

“My vacation…” Nino whimpered

No one had time to celebrate or mourn as the twins rushed straight to Alya to try and explain the situation.

They were talking a mile a minute, working desperately to get someone to act quickly

“Woah woah you two! You’re gonna make your mom dizzy with all this back and forth.” Nino advised, recovering from his loss to try and be of help “Talk slower, what happened”

Sammy couldn’t bring himself to say it, so Sophie blurted it out instead

“Elly’s gone”

The whole room crashed into silence

“W-what do you mean gone?” Marinette asked cautiously “Do you mean lost, ran away, what?”

“H-her mother came and just started destroying everything. She hurt Mlle Morel, Colette, we thought she was gonna kill all of us. Elly gave herself up to protect us.”

Marinette couldn’t think straight. Why was her mother here? That wicked bitch shouldn’t even know where they were. How? How did she find them?

“Wait”, Marinette suddenly gripped Adrien’s shoulders “What did the woman that came to shop look like; the one that harassed Eloise?”

“Um, she was tall, blonde hair, green eyes, smelled like cigarettes-”

“I knew it! That’s how I knew her”

Adrien tilted his head “The cigarettes?”

“What? No! the green eyes. Earlier today there was some tacky dressed woman outside the door, and the other day...while we were at the park” Marinette’s voice got smaller and smaller until eventually she didn’t say anything and tears fell from her eyes.

It was painful for Adrien to admit too as he pulled her in for a hug. Elly’s mother had been stalking them for a while and they realized it simply too late.

His mind was set

“I’m going to get her back...I swear”

Before she could even protest he released her and headed straight for the door

“I’m sorry!” yelled Sammy finally. Adrien halted his steps but didn’t face him

His voice came out so broken “I promised her that I would fix this, that I would never let her get hurt. But I failed. And now she’s gone and there’s nothing I can do to help her-”

“Enough”

Adrien walked back up the steps and stood, arms crossed, before Sammy.

“You did what you were supposed to, if you had gone after her you and your sister wouldn’t be here to tell us. So I’m telling you this now, stop beating yourself up over this and wipe your tears. It’s unbecoming of a man anyway”

The knowing smile on his face calmed Sammy’s nerves.

Adrien ruffled his hair “Now if you want to do something even more useful, take everyone to their kids. I’m sure they’re eager to make sure everyone’s ok”

He wiped his face and showed his usual toothy grin

“Yes sir!”

Adrien ran out the room with Marinette close behind

“I vote we split up to try and find her, cover more ground” Marinette nodded in agreement, thinking it’d be the perfect excuse to slip off and transform.

If she were to be truthful, she was highly impressed by Adrien’s maturity toward Elly’s could be first love.

...doesn’t mean she’ll let him off scot-free though

“Sooo that heart to heart back there…”

“Yes he is a good kid, yes i’m sure he will grow up to make some girl VERY happy, but you will NEVER get me to agree to that girl being my sunshine”

“You’re so protective” She giggled before they broke off down separate roads

“Till the day I die” He responded with a light-hearted laugh.

*Boom*

People scattered in all kinds of directions at the sound of the third explosion that afternoon.

“Isn’t this wonderful El?” Noémie hummed cheerily “You always said that you wanted to see paris!”

Eloise had retreated into herself for protection. She was nothing more than a mute doll as she sat in her mother’s clutch, silent and scared.

“Hey” Her mother barked “I come all this way to save you and all you can do is stare? Didn’t those worthless “Guardians” teach you any manners”

That stung a little harder than Elly expected and so she did something that old her would’ve been too scared to do

She fought back

“They’re not worthless!” She rebuked “Mama and Papa take good care of me and they taught me lots of things!”

Noémie was taken aback by this random act of defiance. Not for very long though as she coated her surprise in loathing

“I AM YOUR MOTHER!” She raged “and in case it hasn’t gotten through that matted, repulsive hair of yours, they’re not here to help you are they?”

She raised her hand to bring it down onto Elly’s face

“So know your place, abomination.”

someone gripped tightly on her wrist

“I wouldn’t be so quick to say disgusting things like that” Ladybug challenged “Her parents are on their way and I highly doubt they’d be ok with you brutalizing their child.”

Elly was dropped like a bag of rocks as Noémie turned to face her next objective

“Oooo if it isn’t the illustrious Ladybug, here to defend the city and banish evil from whence it came”

She eased in, her mouth just inches from her ear

“Just the person I was hunting for”

Ladybug leaped back when she felt a hand on her earrings. She ended up bumping, back to chest, right into Chat who had not an ounce of his usual mirth in his eyes.

“So are you after the miraculous?” She snapped

Noémie shrugged carelessly “Not particularly. I’m after a lot of things, Money, notoriety, a banging ass man that I can pound into the wee hours of the morning. But your little sailor moon bling? Not on my list.”

If glares had the potential to kill, Noémie would be a flaming corpse on the ground right now.

“Then why!?” Chat Noir suddenly barked “Why destroy the city? Why kidnap a child?”

“Well the short answer, my dear pussy cat, is that I’m just that fucked up. But the long answer is much more interesting.”

She pulled out yet another cigarette and from the smoke ran a ring of flames around Eloise, preventing any chance of escape.

“You see, I’m actually a victim! Living a life of poverty and despair, my only solace in this world was my only flesh and blood, sweet baby Eloise over there.”

Chat’s electric green eyes never let her out of his sight as she paced around lazily

“So imagine my shock and horror when I find that my only daughter has disappeared. Adrift, cold, hungry, wandering helplessly in our tiny gutter town wondering where her doting mother could be. I was sooo worried.”

“Drop the distressed mother act” Ladybug warned “You aren’t fooling anyone”

Noémie groaned “Fine, I wanted my daughter back and I figured the quickest way to do that is to strike a deal with one very powerful friend. So here’s the deal…”

She hopped up to the top of a lamp post and presented herself like some pageant queen

“Ladybug and Chat Noir, I am Mère de la Mort and I am here for your Miraculous. Relinquish them to me and I shall leave this city in peace for the rest of it’s days”

“And what about the child?” Chat called out

Mère de la Mort had a look of genuine confusion “Uhh you’re not a very bright kitten are you? She goes back with her real mother of course! And when she arrives she’ll receive the necessary punishment.”

“Hey El," She called out to the ring of fire "how does the cabinet for three days sound? I promise I won’t forget to feed you this time!”

The duo attacked her both sides, trying to catch her off guard, but she easily fell off her post in a simple dodge

“No deal!” Chat protested “Leave now and this can end peacefully. We’re not giving you anything”

La Mère feigned astonishment “Nothing? Oh that’s a real shame, I don’t think my children will be too fond of that.”

“Children?” Out of nowhere the lamp post was jerked back and forth wildly as mind controlled citizens sought to bring it down by sheer force

Ladybug lost her footing and was moments away from falling onto the cobbled street. Chat caught her by the waist and landed them safely a few feet back.

“Thanks kitty,” Ladybug said “but we need to save that little girl. I don’t know what that akuma’s object is, and it’s beginning to be difficult for me to care, but maybe if I can get close enough to her we can find out.”

“Ok simple enough, one problem though, how do we get past ‘The Children’ and keep Mère de la mort still enough?”

Marinette racked her brain for an answer. There had to be something keeping her here, but what?

She scanned the scene, and it hit her!

“Chat, can you make this fight as entertaining as possible?”

He scoffed “I can be a regular class clown if you’d like”

Ladybug unclipped her signature yo-yo

“Good, then try to keep up mon minou” She charged straight into battle, yo-yos a blazing.

*minutes later*

Chat sidestep another rock that was launched at his face.

“Um bugaboo? As much as I enjoy wounding my local postman, who by the way has a mean right hook, I’m starting to run out of steam here”

Ladybug was doing no better. The adrenaline and big talk they had built up was catching up to them and fast. Any more of this and their bodies were gonna crash, hard.

Luckily Mère de la mort had done exactly what Ladybug had hoped. She was seated rather comfortably with a latte in her hand, yucking it up at their hopeless attempts at getting close to her.

‘Dumbass’ she thought smugly

“Chat can you handle things here?” She asked

“Oh yea sure, not like I’m doing anything else today”

Thanking her favorite partner in crime, Ladybug focused all her attention forward. Pushing down the soreness in her muscles she broke out into a dead sprint right at Mère de la mort’s head.

Something was off though, she wasn’t getting up from her seat.

She was just...watching her.

Ladybug roared in anger and hurled her weapon right between her eyes

Mère de la mort didn’t even bother blinking. The yoyo fell cleanly into her hand.

It was a trap

Ladybug was yanked quickly forward. With no real plan in mind she did the only thing that came to mind.

She used her head...

No, literally

Headbutt...solid contact

Hurt like a bitch

Mère de la mort shrieked in pain “I’m gonna fucking kill you”

Even with her dizzying headache Ladybug stood strong, eyes blazing in rage

“Ditto”

It was like an MMA match. Both women punching and clawing at each other with no semblance of a fair match. There would be no real winner, just one body less bloodied than the other.

But it was like this was just a pastime for La mère. Every free moment she got she was pulling out another cigarette, smoking it down to the hilt and flicking it onto the battlefield

“Is this some kind of game to you!?” She huffed “Do you gain ANYTHING from this!?”

Mère de la mort laughed, coughing up a bit of blood from what was sure to be a punctured lung “Of course I do, Excitement”

Ladybug stopped “What are you talking about?”

La mère staggered forward “This is the most alive I’ve felt in years. I don’t give a fuck about that kid. Honestly as soon as we get home i’m just gonna kill her. Why? Because at the very least something will happen.”

Ladybug tripped over her own feet trying to put distance between them. “Unfortunately for you though, I’ve grown bored of this fight. I think it’s time for you to think about your actions”

She was suddenly blasted with a thick cloud of smoke, covering the whole courtyard in darkness.

“Hah, you think this can stop me?” Ladybug’s yoyo spun faster and faster but the smoke just wasn’t moving anywhere. It was like it was alive with the sole purpose of pushing her down with its stench.

‘Fuck, no choice then. This’ll put an end to everything” She called out her last resort. Lucky Charm. This’ll solve everything, that sick bitch will be put down and she can save her Lovebug. All with the help of…

A map

‘This joke has gotten so old’ She thought to herself

She had nothing, absolutely NO use for this item

Her legs gave out and she was left on the floor

“Aww is the itty bitty buggy left with no tricks up her sleeve?” Ladybug looked all around for La mère but she could see nothing in this thick fog

From a distance Chat had finally beaten down the last minion when the smell of smoke filled his nostrils.

He ran for the cloud but was held back by the biting odor

“You know” La mère called out, seated yet again beside a cafe table “If I weren’t a stupid fucking heroine trying to poke her nose in other people’s business, I’d try running away right now.”

She yawned dismissively “Especially since those cigarette butts littered around you can have quite a bit of kick when a little heat is applied”

Ladybug suddenly took grim notice of her position. Everywhere she looked there were cigarettes just haphazardly littered about. She tried getting up but her legs would not move, they were too tired. She was stuck.

The voice came out small and desperate.

“Chat”

He needed no other call. Chat bolted through the smoke, desperate to get to her, but he couldn’t see even his hand in front of his face

Mère de la mort rose from her chair and pulled a match from her chest. Using the bottom of her shoe she sparked it to life.

“Mommy!” Elly screamed out. La mère lolled her head around to look over at her.

“Please” she begged, the tears streaming from her eyes “Not them. Please don’t hurt them anymore”

La mère thought it over. She tapped her shoe, furrowed her brow in contemplation, really made it convincing.

“No” she said flatly “and not because you ran away and not because you disobeyed. But because it’s just too much fun seeing you miserable”

She flicked the match at the cloud

There was a scream

a booming noise

And all at once

There was silence

As the dust cleared there was only Chat, his body crashed through a display window, clutching a eerily silent body.

An aching pain shot through his whole system, he could barely keep his eyes open. He pushed through it and forced himself upright to check on his lady. He had hoped that the suit would have bounced off some of the blast.

But there was no suit

There was no ladybug

Only a tattered and bruised Marinette lying limp in his arms.

His brain didn’t know what to catch up to first. The fact that one of his best friends (and so called “Wife”) was ladybug, the fact that he had just seen her beating down an akuma with no plan, or the fact that he had to find out via explosion.

He checked for a pulse. It was terribly faint.

All other questions seemed irrelevant now.

“Mari” he called out, lightly shaking her “you have to get up now”

Her eyes were not opening. He nudged a little harder “Princess this is no time to be tired. You've gotta give me a sign, anything. You know Elly can't grow up without you.”

He pushed away some broken wood to find anything that might wake her up but even if it was there it was all burnt to a crisp by now. He tucked her in close to his chest, just enough to hear a whisper “Fine, I can’t grow up without you either." his heart ached as he cried over her "Please Mari, please don’t die on me.”

A gentle breeze ghosted across his neck

He briskly wiped off his tears and breathed off a sigh of relief

“So it was the studious mother that was defending her child in the name of a mother’s love...how anticlimactic”

the sound of crunching glass resonated through the broken shop when she strolled in

Chat couldn’t even look his daughter in the eyes. The pain filled horror on her face was enough to shatter his heart alone. She stood in the doorway, silently begging for him to tell her it would all be ok. Chat gripped tighter onto Marinette. This was no way for her to see them.

La mère gripped at his hair and stared deep into his jade-like eyes “My my, now that’s a cute face if I’ve ever seen one. Hey, if you like my little Elly so much, I wouldn’t be opposed to making another one with you.”

Chat swiped at her face, claws engulfed in black flame “Feisty and a little crazy? I think I rather like you.”

La mère looked down at Marinette, all blacked out and bloodied. She tutted disapprovingly “Not looking good is she? Quite frankly you aren’t looking too hot either pet.”

She squatted down looked into chat’s hate filled eyes “I’ll give you one more chance. Give me the miraculous and I’m on my way. No one will have to die today. I suggest, however, that you make a decision fast, my patience and charity are quite running quite thin.”

his mind raced a mile a minute with any possible ways out of this. But it was hopeless. Even if they did get away, there was no guarantee that Elly would go unscathed. There were out of luck, both good and bad. Adrien's met with Elly's. The smile on his face made her cry.

“Hey sunshine” he consoled “I know things aren't really good right now, but mama and papa need you to promise something ok?”

Elly hiccuped relentlessly as she nodded

“Promise us that you’ll still be our smiling little sunflower until we come to get you. Then I promise, you can cry all you want ok?”

It took her a while, but eventually she gulped down her tears, wiped her face with her sleeve and put on her brightest smile “Ok papa, I promise I won't cry anymore."

He return her warm grin with one of his own “There’s our happy girl”

La mère stood between them and glared down “Do we have a deal?”

Wordlessly, Adrien removed his ring. Even with his superhero healing the scars that littered his body would probably take forever to heal. He removed Marinette’s earring with a gentle hand and handed them over, all the while giving La mère a look of pure rage.

“Pleasure doing business with you. My offer for another Elly still stands by the way”

And like that it was just Adrien and Marinette. Laid out on the boutique floor with nothing to show for their efforts. No powers, no plan, no Eloise

His nose pricked with the scent of thunderclouds

'It's going to rain soon' he turned to look outside 'fuck'

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