#danny just laughs and promises to shave it off (maybe)

[vladdyissues]

College student Danny comes home for Christmas with a new secret mustache he’s been growing. A clueless Vlad cheerfully greets him on the front step before stopping mid-sentence, his eyes going wide and his back arching as he floofs up like a threatened cat, growling softly under his breath

#WHO is this mustachioed stranger and what has happened to his little badger? #danny phantom #danny fenton #vlad masters #pompous pep #just dp thoughts #danny just laughs and promises to shave it off (maybe) #asks

[five-rivers]

Reaching Back

This is a trade with @gally-hin-phantom!  The prompt was the headcanon that Sam and Paulina used to be friends when they were kids.  Enjoy!

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At four years old, Samantha Manson already had a finely developed sense of when something was awkward. This? This was awkward.

The other girl sat across from her, staring at the table, her hair pulled into severe braids on either side of her head. She picked at her food. Samantha had already forgotten her name.

Samantha glanced at her mother, sitting next to her. She was discussing something with the other girl's daddy, her hands moving around like hummingbirds. First they touched her pearl necklace, then the edge of her plate, then the fork, so she could take a quick bite, then the napkin, to clean her fingers and lips, and finally Samantha's shoulder.

Samantha hated it when her mom was like this. It was so- so-! She didn't have words for it.

Something hit her knee, and she jerked her head around to glare at the other girl, who gave her a rather devious-looking smirk. Samantha scowled. She was quite proud of her scowl. It never failed to make her mother stop when she saw it.

The girl turned to her father and said- Something. Samantha couldn't understand it, and that made her angry. She knew a lot of words! Grandma said so. even Dad said so.

Well, 'angry' might have been the wrong word, but her vocabulary had yet to extend to more complex emotions.

"English, Paulina," said the other girl's father. "We are not at home."

The girl, Paulina, pouted.

"You need the practice, love. Ask Mr. and Mrs. Manson."

The girl sighed and turned to face Samantha's parents. "Can Sammy and I go play?" she asked.

"Of course, dear," said Samantha's mom. She patted Samantha's head. "Stay in the living room where we can find you."

"Okay," said Samantha, sliding off the chair. She still wasn't sure how she felt about Paulina, but she didn't want to be at the table anymore. Besides, she'd learned how to play with people she didn't like and still have fun. She had to, since her parents insisted on inviting over the most boring people ever.

At least Paulina wasn't going to be boring.

"Hey," said Samantha, "what were those words you said before?"

"Huh?" asked Paulina.

"Before. With your dad." Samantha poked Paulina in the side, and the other girl giggled.

"You mean Spanish?" The girl puffed her chest out. "It's my native language. But Daddy wants me to learn English."

"Oh," said Samantha, brows knit together. She'd never heard anyone speak another language, except for Rabbi at the synagogue. But what Paulina had said sounded a lot different than what Rabbi said.

"What do you want to play, Sammy?"

Samantha scowled. Only her mother called her that. "That's not my name," she said, crossing her arms.

"It's a nickname! You can call me Lina. Or Pauli, I guess."

Samantha considered this. "Fine," she said. "But then we've got to play evil tea party."

"What's that?"

"It's a tea party, but evil. I get to be Maleficent!"

"Oh, from Sleeping Beauty?"

"Yeah," said Samantha. Maleficent was her favorite, because she turned into a dragon.

"Ooh, ooh, then I want to be," Paulina bounced for a second, thinking, "I want to be Ariel! She's so pretty!"

"But she's not evil," said Samantha.

"Then I'll be evil Ariel."

"Okay," said Samantha. She walked over to her toy chest and pulled out the plastic tea set her parents had given her. "So, the first thing you have to do at an evil tea party is an evil laugh."

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"Hey, Sammy," said Paulina.

"Ugh," said Sam, leaning back against the banister.

"What?" asked Paulina, sitting at the top of the stair. "Nice dress, by the way. Is it new?"

"Yes," said Sam, picking at the floral embroidery. "Can I ask you a favor?"

"Sure," said Paulina.

"Don't call me 'Sammy' anymore. Mom's finally completely ruined it. I mean, I'm not a baby anymore!" She kicked the stair.

"But what would you be called instead? Samantha? I thought you didn't like that, either."

"Sam. Samantha is too... weepy."

"What happened, anyway?" asked Paulina.

"Mom called me 'Sammykins' in front of my whole class. I can't wait 'til third grade when I can go to a normal school like a normal person."

"It's not that great."

"Yeah, but you're there, and maybe I can get away from all the people who just want to make nice because of money."

"There's always going to be people like that, as long as they know you have money," said Paulina. "Or if their parents know."

Sam blinked. There was something to that.

"Oh, no, don't give me that face. The last time, you almost got me banned from the zoo forever!"

"It isn't like that!" protested Sam. "I was just thinking, what if they didn't know? How are they going to find out, if nobody tells them? I'm the only one in my who wants to transfer out. You'd be the only one who knew, and you wouldn't tell, right?"

"Well, yeah," said Paulina. "That sounds like a hard secret, though. You wouldn't be able to have anyone over at your house."

"I wouldn't invite anyone over until I knew they were my friends for real," said Sam.

"Sammykins! Come down and meet your guests!"

Sam rolled her eyes at her mother's voice. "They're not my guests," she grumbled.

Paulina bumped her foot into Sam's. "At least I'm here, right?"

.

Paulina finished her section of the reading, and the teacher thanked her before choosing a new reader.

"Can't even talk right," muttered one of Sam's new classmates.

She turned around in her seat. "Huh?"

The redhead looked her up and down. She could practically see him slot her into the 'new kid' box in his brain.

"She shouldn't volunteer to read if she can't even talk right," said the boy, plaintively, with just slightly more volume.

.

The three day suspension was totally worth it. That'd teach him to talk like that about Sam's best friend.

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"I declare our friendship over!" shouted Sam.

Paulina sniffed. "Fine!" she shouted back. "But I get Danny!"

"Fine! That means I get Tucker!" Sam grabbed Tucker by the back of the shirt and dragged him away.

Paulina dragged a shocked-looking Danny off in the opposite direction. They disappeared behind the play structure.

"Uh," said Tucker.

"Shut up!" said Sam.

Recess ended.

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"I'm sorry for yelling at you earlier," said Sam.

"Me too," said Paulina. She rubbed her eye. "Are we friends again."

"Forever!" said Sam.

"Girls are so weird," muttered Tucker.

"At least we can hang out again," said Danny, digging his elbow into Tucker's side.

"Hey, we're trying to have a touching reunion here!"

"Yeah!" said Paulina.

"What were you two even fighting about in the first place," asked Tucker. He raised an eyebrow. "Was it boys?"

"This is why you don't have any other friends, Foley," said Paulina.

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"Next year," said Sam, "we'll be in middle school." It was the last day of school, and the field day events were starting wind down. Danny and Tucker were still at the dunk tank, trying to soak each other.

"Yep," said Paulina. "It'll be different."

"Yeah," agreed Sam. "No more recess."

"More than that," said Paulina, with a little snort. She tucked her legs up so that her heels rested on the wooden planking of the play structure. "Do you think we'll be different?"

"I hope so," said Sam. "Mom promised I can pick out all my own clothes this year, and I can get my ears pierced." She tugged on her lobes.

Paulina sighed. "Jealous. Daddy won't let me until high school. But that's not what I meant."

"Then what?"

"We won't let anything get between us, will we?"

"No way," said Sam. "You watch too many teen movies, Lina." Sam climbed up to the top of the play structure and spread out her arms. "What would we even fight over, anyway? Boys? Makeup?"

Paulina laughed. "Gosh, no. But, like, drifting, that's a thing."

"I promise you, if we stop being friends it isn't going to be because of drifting. We'll have a giant blow out, or something. Like way back last year."

"What were we even fighting about?"

"I don't know. But I bet it was stupid."

.

"I think Danny has a crush on you," said Sam, pulling on her stockings. This Halloween she was going as Wednesday Addams.

"I know," said Paulina, scrunching her nose.

"What wrong? I thought you wanted to start trying to date?"

"Yeah, but not with a friend," said Paulina. "That would be weird. What if we broke up? We wouldn't be able to hang out anymore."

"Why not?"

"I don't know, it would be weird, wouldn't it?"

"Maybe," said Sam, shrugging.

Paulina sighed. "I mean, I guess Danny's cute and all, and he's trying to learn Spanish, which is like, you know, a gesture, but..." She trailed off and laid down on Sam's bed.

"You think Danny's cute?"

"I guess? Like, you know, a bunny or something. What about you? You thinking about dating? I know some guys are checking you out." She made a face at the last sentence. "You're pretty."

"So are you," said Sam. "But, dating? Gross. No way. Do you think they'll stop if I shave my hair off?"

"Sam."

"No, really. I've been thinking about getting an undercut."

"You're unbelievable."

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"I can't believe your dad is sending you away for a month to learn about girl stuff." Sam mimicked his deep, gruff, voice for the last two words.

"Yeah, well, Mom's not around, so Tia Carmen it is." She stuck out her tongue and folded another pair of jeans into her suitcase. "Don't worry, I'll be back here in time to rock eighth grade with you."

Sam smiled. "I'll miss you."

"Come on, you'll have those two idiots to keep you company."

"Not Tucker so much. You'd think I shot his dog or something." Sam rolled her eyes.

"He'll come around, don't worry," said Paulina. "A friendship isn't going to be ruined over going vegan."

"Yeah. Hey, let me take a pic of you before you go! It can go in our scrapbook."

.

"Just because we're not friends anymore doesn't mean I'm going to spill your secrets," said Paulina. "So you can get down off your high horse and calm down." She pulled paper towels out of the dispenser with a violence that would have startled her at any other time.

Sam slouched against the bathroom door, arms crossed. Her purple-black lipstick made her skin look washed out and pallid. The overhead lights didn't help.

Sam could do so much better.

Paulina pursed her lips and put her hands on her hips. She didn't mention it. Sam wouldn't appreciate it. Hadn't appreciated it, even though Paulina was just trying to help.

Didn't Sam realize that being in charge, being on top was so much better than being laughed at? Didn't she realize that if they had worked together, they could have pulled Danny and Tucker up with them, too, despite how weird they were? Tucker had skills, and Danny was, well, once you got past his weirdness, he was pretty charismatic.

But only if Sam helped. Paulina didn't have enough pull by herself, no matter how pretty she'd learned to make herself over the summer.

Of course, Sam didn't realize, or if she did, she didn't care. Fundamentally, Sam was selfish and self-centered, and Paulina had always known that, she had liked it, but she hadn't thought it mattered.

"Fine," said Sam. "Not that I care what you do. Just stay away from me."

Paulina didn't cry as her oldest friend stomped out of the room. It would ruin her mascara.

#danny phantom #art trade #phanfic #writing

[merlin-wolfgang-trades-hale]

McDanno Proposals #1

For @mcdannoangelwolf who asked for McDanno proposal involving Charlie somehow. I did a few McDanno proposal scenarios and they can be found in my fic here! 

"Uncle Steve!" Grace ran into Steve's open arms.

Steve hugged her and even spun her around. "Hey, Grace. How was school?"

"Good. Nothing exciting to report though. What are you doing here? Where's Danno?" Grace asked as they walked over to Steve's truck.

"Your aunt's birthday is coming up, so he went with Eric to go do a bit of shopping. I told Danny I'd pick you up," Steve replied.

Grace smiled, "You didn't have to. I could have gone to the Grover's with Will."

"What? You're not beginning to get embarrassed by me too are you?" Steve asked with mock hurt. And okay, maybe actually hurt. He knew he teased Danny when he moped about Grace entering her teenage phase and didn't want to hang out with her parents much anymore. Steve could handle it because he knew Grace really, deep down, loved her parents...and that she thought Steve was cool.

She rolled her eyes. "Only when you start acting like a dad. But you know I love hanging out with you."

Steve smiled as he took off. It made him a bit worried about the subject he wanted to talk to her about though. He pushed it to the back of his mind. Right now, it was time to spend time with his girl. "Well, there's something I actually wanted to talk to you about, but I also think it's been a while since we've had one of our Steve-Gracie days."

"True. So where are we going?"

"I was thinking of getting some shaved ice?" Steve suggested.

"Always a classic."

~~

They spend a good hour just catching up. Grace tells Steve about school, college choices, her and Will. Steve, in turn, tells her about the things he can tell her about Five-Oh. The whacky shenanigans, crazy bets, and wild stories that are on the family-friendly side.

"Are you and Danno okay?" Grace blurted out.

When they first got together, no one was really surprised. They apparently tried to keep it a secret, but that only resulted in some hilarious moments in the building. Once it was out in the open, they were no different...other than people could tell when they did it because Steve would have the biggest and stupidest smile. Or that their protectiveness was fiercer, as well as their jealousy.

Grace knew that they had a bit of a relationship problem when Joe passed and then the thing with Greer. But they worked through it and it seemed like it was back to normal.

"What? Yeah, yeah...we're fine. We've...we've worked it out. Sure some days we have moments but they pass." Steve reassured her.

She sighed in relief. Out of all of Danno's partners, Steve was the best for many reasons. He was strong and resourceful and helped keep Danno safe. Steve was also witty and sharp and kept Danno interested mentally, and loved him so damn much. Sometimes though, that love leads to them making bad decisions. In recent events, Steve leaving without keeping in touch with Danno. Grace had given Steve an earful, that's for damn sure.

"So...what is it then?" She asked as she sipped from her milkshake. Steve seemed to want to talk about something serious, so when the shaved ice was gone, they stayed and ordered something else.

Steve fidgeted for a moment, but Grace didn't hurry him. It wasn't every day that Steve acted like this...unless he was in trouble. She wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt, even though her mind jumped from one crazy scenario to another. With Uncle Steve...it was all too easy.

Grace was pulled out of her thoughts when Steve pulled out a ring box and showed it to her. Her eyes widened comically as she reached for it, "No way!"

Steve blushed sheepishly and scratched the back of his head. "Uh, yes way...well, hopefully. I...I love him. I know we've talked about it not mattering, ya know. It's just a piece of paper and our love was bigger than that but...I want to. I want to legally call him my husband. I want to be given rights in case anything happens. I'll try to make sure they don't but...I don't want to be pushed aside if they do."

"Not to mention if you guys ever get arrested, you can't be made to testify against each other," Grace said teasingly.

Steve chuckled, "Yeah, there's also that."

"Oh my god! This is amazing!" Grace said happily.

"You think so? Cos...I'm kinda here asking for a blessing."

"Really?" Grace cooed, it was so cute.

"You mean the world to him, Grace. You're his baby girl and your opinion matters. Your opinion also means a lot to me too...I want to ask Charlie too but more towards when I actually ask Danny. Charlie-"

"He's not the best secret keeper, no." Grace agreed. She scooted over and hugged Steve tightly. "I love you and I love you guys together. You make him happy and you've always been part of our family. You have my blessing. But if you hurt him...just know that I have enough blackmail to get Eric to get rid of evidence for me." She said very seriously.

Steve laughed and pulled her into another hug. "Mahalo, Gracie."

"So! How are you going to do it?"

~~~

"Hey Charlie, how's it going?" Steve asks and holds his hand in a high-five.

Charlie high fives him and smiles, "Hey Uncle Steve! Where's Danno?"

"Oh, he went to go pick up Gracie from practice today. I told him we'd stay here and get some homework done, yeah?"

"Okay. It's not hard. Just gotta practice some spelling." Charlie said as he grabbed his backpack and pulled out his workbooks.

Steve helped him set up and let Charlie explain to him what his teacher said and what was needed for today. They settled in and Steve helped Charlie when needed. He knew he had some time. Grace would distract Danny for at least an hour.

"So Charlie...you know how much I love Danno, right?" Steve began.

Charlie nodded. "Danno loves you too...even if sometimes you make him lil mad."

Steve chuckled, "I know. It's part of why I love him...and you know that we're dating right. That I'm Danno's boyfriend?"

"I've seen you guys kiss, even if there's no mistletoe." Charlie snickered, as a kid talking about 'love' would do.

"That's right. Well, I can't help it. I just love Danny so much...and I was wondering...what do you feel about having another daddy?"

Charlie furrowed his brow, confused. "Like Stan?"

"Eh...sort of. Kinda...I mean me. Do...would you like if I became your other daddy?" Steve asked, not wanting to really get into the whole Stan thing.

"But you are already, right?"

"Well, I do love you like a son. And I help you with homework, and I tuck you in with Danno...I do a lot of dad things. But legally, I am not...but I want to be. I...I want to marry Danno."

"You do?" Charlie asked happily.

"I do." Steve nodded. "But I need your permission...can I be part of this family?"

Charlie chuckled as he leaned over and kissed Steve's cheek, "You already are. But if ya wanna marry Danno, you should!"

"Really? Oh thanks, Charlie...then can I ask you for a favor?"

"What?"

"Can you draw up a card for me to give to Danno, asking him?"

~~~

"I can't believe I'm indulging it," Danny muttered as he served pancakes for dinner.

"It's once in a while babe. And you promised pancakes for breakfast but we didn't have time." Steve said.

Danny rolled his eyes before cutting up Charlie's pancakes in manageable pieces. Charlie was a bouncing ball of energy, so Danny said, "Little syrup...you're so hyper today. What? Did you eat your weight in sugar?"

"No..." Charlie chuckled, looking between Steve and Grace.

"What? What's with the look?" Danny asked with suspicion.

Steve knew that if he wanted this to work the way he wanted to, it would have to happen now. "Charlie's made you a card, and he can't wait to give it to you."

"A card? What's the occasion?" Danny asked.

"You need an occasion to get a gift from your kids?" Steve teased.

"No, but...that smile was really suspicious. What are you plotting?" Danny 'demanded'.

"Go get it and put Danno out of his misery," Grace told her brother, trying and failing, to hide a smile herself.

"Kay!" Charlie wobbled off his chair before running to go get the card he made with Uncle Steve. He ran back and handed it to Danny.

Steve made sure he was sitting in the right place. So the moment that Charlie gave Danny the card, he could reach into his pocket and grab the ring box and be prepared to drop down on one knee.

Danny grabbed the card and opened it. He stared a bit at the writing, not because he couldn't read it but because he was a bit confused by 'Will you let Uncle Steve become Papa Steve?'. Danny put the card down, ready to ask Charlie what he meant when he gasped. Steve was on one knee, ring box held out to Danny, a shy smile on his face. "So? Will you marry me?"

"Yes!"

Steve placed the ring on Danny before kissing the hell out of him. The kids get up and hug them. Danny complains, but not really, about all his loved ones ganging up on him but...he's so damn happy right now he could burst.

#McDanno #McDanno Proposal #Steve McGarrett #Danny 'Danno' Williams #Grace Williams #Charlie Williams #fanfic #mcdannoangelwolf

[twoidiotwriters1]

Young Blood II -(PB/WITS Crossover)

A/N: Peter is also a non-existent character btw, or he never befriended the marauders doesn’t matter the point is that he isn’t here either lmao -Val & Danny

Warnings: Not proofread bc in this blog we don’t fear god

Words: 4,625

Previous Chapter // Next Chapter

Summer 1988

The day was warm and a little windy, it could’ve been peaceful as well, hadn’t been for the constant screaming coming from the garden.

“Ari! Come back!” The little girl shouted anxiously. “Mum told you not to climb that high, you’re too small!”

Mel ran around the tree desperately trying to reach for her little sister, but as an eight-year-old, there was a limit to the distance her arms could reach. She was whimpering and flinching with every movement her little sister would make; behind her, little Harry Potter and Perseus Black approached with curious expressions.

“What are you doing?” Percy asked.

“She’s up there!” Mel panted. “I’m trying to get Ariana, but she climbed all the way up! I don’t want her to fall!”

“You’re missing the games,” Harry complained. “It’s our party and you’ve been chasing your sister around, c’mon it’s almost time for cake!”

“Daddy told me to look after her!” She argued. “Your parents asked you to do the same with your babies! Where are they?”

The boys shared a look and then turned back to her with equal disinterest on their faces.

“The girls are probably in the kitchen trying to steal food,” Harry shrugged. “Who cares? It’s our party, I’m not going to waste it looking after the twins!”

“Mel,” Percy approached, he was usually the one to mediate between them during an argument. “If we help you with Ariana will you come and play? Dad bought us all new brooms!”

Mel didn’t want to disobey her parents, but the promise of a brand new broom waiting for her was tempting enough.

“Okay,” She sighed.

Ariana laughed hysterically above their heads, she hung upside down on the branch and Mel yelped, quickly hiding her face behind both hands.

“Hi!” Ariana waved at them. “You look tiny!”

“Get her down!” Mel pleaded in horror.

“Maybe if we lure her down with food..?” Harry offered, tilting his head.

“I already tried! She won’t come down!”

“Ari!” Percy stepped forward, an easy-going smirk instantly forming on his face. “Would you get off the tree now, darling?”

“Okay!”

With a swift movement and a short jump Ariana landed neatly in front of them, her lopsided grin mocking her sister’s pale face.

“‘Darling’,” Harry snorted. “You sound like our dads.”

“Dad told me we have to treat girls nicely,” Percy replied without an ounce of embarrassment. “Maybe the twins wouldn’t put shaving cream on your pillow if you were nicer to them.”

Harry made a face. “Whatever.”

“Is it time for cake?” Ariana asked, not really caring about what the boys were arguing about. “I’m hungry!”

She ran back to the house, Mel followed her with her eyes, mouth wide open.

“I hate her,” She pouted. “She always does this— Never listens to me just to make me cry!”

“Well, you cry all the time anyway, Mel,” Harry muttered.

The little girl narrowed her eyes and closed her fist ready to throw a punch, but her father’s head peered out the back door to call them in.

“Remus is here!”

The three children ran forward screaming their uncle’s name. The man opened his arms and the avalanche of children pushed him onto the floor.

“Dear god,” Remus grunted. “I swear your kids multiply every time I come visit.”

“Well, it’s like you said, Remus,” Persephone smirked, lovingly patting her belly. “We have to keep ourselves busy somehow.”

“This is why I hate rich people,” Remus teased, staring down at Persephone’s stomach. “So you’re going for the fourth, then?”

“And last,” Persephone sent a glare at her husband, but the man just grinned.

“What are you saying, you twat?” Sirius chortled. “Those books of yours have given you galleons over galleons! You’re rich, you just won’t admit it.”

“He might not admit it, but his robes speak for him,” James joked, picking up one of the twins from Remus’ chest.

“Kids,” Lily called over the yelling mass of tiny bodies. “Ivy, stop pulling your sister’s leg like that!”

“But I want daddy to carry me too!” The little redheaded girl whined.

“No worries dear, that’s exactly why I was born with two arms!” James said, happily picking up his daughter.

Sirius did the same with his younger son Leo, and Matthew carefully took Ariana away from Remus’ leg.

Seven-year-old Lyra Black approached her uncle and held his hand carefully.

“Are you okay, uncle Moony?” She asked quietly. “You fell.”

“I’m okay,” Remus smiled down at her. “Don’t worry, I’m very strong.”

“Can we eat cake now?” Harry asked in annoyance, the adults looked at him and laughed.

“Harry, don’t be rude!” Lily scolded her son while her youngest one, little Joshua, kept his arms tightly around her neck.

“Okay, gather round!” Emily called, placing three chairs together. “Where are the stars of the show?”

Mel, Percy and Harry sat, shoulders touching and squeezing together to fit as close as possible in front of the table.

“Make a wish!” Sirius said blithely.

Matthew flicked his wand and three huge cakes appeared, each with eight candles on them. Mel squirmed on her place excitedly, Percy eyed them with immense interest without making a sound, and Harry was practically hovering over his, ready to eat the whole thing alone.

“Happy birthday!”

Their families clapped at the sight of the three firstborns of the group blowing off the candles. While Sirius and Persephone started to hand out the cake to the guests, Matthew and Remus moved to a corner to chat.

“So, famous writer Remus Lupin is back from yet another tour around the world,” Matt smiled. “What now, Moony?”

Remus shrugged, his eyes fixed on little Mel, who was the oldest out of all the children.

“I have a new book in mind, but this one might be the last I’ll write in a while, I’ve missed most of the kids’ childhood, I want to be close when the real fun begins.”

Matthew’s smile faltered. “What do you mean?”

“Mel starts school soon,” Remus chuckled. “Harry and Percy as well.”

“Oh, but that’s years away!” Matt brushed it aside. “What does it matter anyway?”

“Oh please, don’t pretend you’re not worried,” Remus laughed. “The boys have all they need to be the next James and Sirius, and your daughter adores them, don’t you think they’ll drag her to their mischief?”

The young man looked at his daughter in sudden fear. Remus was right, Harry and Percy had the genes to charm his little girl into all kinds of mishaps, he couldn’t let that happen. He would not let that happen. Matthew was going to talk to Mel as soon as he had the chance.

October 1991

“No.”

“What do you mean ‘no’?”

“I won’t help you with your stupid pranks,” Mel said.

Percy and Harry had managed to intercept Mel before she could go eat breakfast, and now they were trying to convince her to help with their plans before she could leave the tower. It wasn’t working.

“They’re not stupid!” Harry argued. “We just want to put Percy’s cousin in his place!”

“Not a real cousin—”

“Your dad and his mum are cousins, so you are too,” Harry rolled his eyes.

“I had never seen him in my life until he stormed into our compartment acting all stupid!” Percy made a face.

“I’m sorry boys,” Mel sighed. “I promised my dad, my uncle is the headmaster and dad wants me to make a good impression…”

“You’re such a bore,” Harry frowned. “What happened to you? You used to be funny.”

Mel’s face twisted with indignation, she slammed both hands on the table making the two boys jump.

“I am fun! It’s you two who turned insuferable since we started school! You run around with Ron and his brothers pranking people and annoying Malfoy, everyone melts at your feet because your families are rich and popular—”

“You’re rich too,” Percy pointed.

“But I, unlike you, don’t enjoy being the center of attention,” She scowled. “I thought you would be better than this, Percy, you’re supposed to be the sensible one.”

“I am!” Percy replied. “But it’s just… Malfoy, he really gets on my nerves, you know?”

“Well, if you ask me, I think Hermione’s right,” Mel turned up her nose. “You boys are being ridiculous.”

“C’mon, don’t be silly,” Harry let out a silly giggle. “You never say no to a good laugh, it’ll be fun!”

Mel’s brown eyes stared at him harshly, Harry felt a cold shiver ran up his spine.

“I have to set a good example for my sister,” She said. “Leave me alone — and Percy, I hope you think twice before actually doing this, I really don’t understand why you agreed to it.”

“I already told you, Malfoy gets on my nerves!” Percy rolled his eyes. “He’s an idiot and I hate him. I’m not repeating myself, honestly…”

“Idiots,” Mel rolled her eyes. “Both of you, your mothers will send you a howler someday and I for once, am glad I don’t have to be there to witness it. Have fun in detention.”

Harry was speechless. Never, in their whole eleven years of friendship, had Mel refused to help them or show up for moral support. He didn’t understand why she was suddenly acting like this.

“Mel, you’re overreacting,” Percy said, though he was losing his patience. “Even your parents misbehaved when they were here, you should relax, have fun…”

“I’m having fun,” Mel picked up her bag. “Hermione and Erick are fun. Clever too, I enjoy their company — now that I think about it, I don’t think I’ll be listening to you from now on, Paddie, since you clearly prefer to follow Harry around, if I’m honest,” Mel looked down at Harry with a bit of disdain. “Your cousin isn’t even that bad.”

Both boys gasped at her statement.

“He’s not my direct cousin!” Percy said.

Mel left the common room without saying anything else, Ron entered the tower at the same time and she briefly waved at him. He found the two boys there, seated in silent shock, and asked them what was happening.

“Mel, that’s what,” Percy shook his head sadly. “We’ve lost her... I knew I shouldn’t have let her spend all that time with Granger!”

“And Flint,” Harry said through gritted teeth. “She prefers Flint over us! I can’t believe he took away my best friend!”

Percy looked back at him with utter disbelief. “And what the bloody hell am I, then?”

“She’ll come around,” Ron shrugged. “Granger and Flint only care about studying, she can’t possibly love homework that much.”

“I’ll win her back, you’ll see,” Harry’s eyes narrowed. “Mel was my friend first.”

August 1993

“WHAT?”

“I won’t repeat myself, James.”

“Hang on, so you’re saying Dumbledore hired you,” Matthew intervened. “As the new defense against the dark arts teacher?”

“Yes.”

“Even though Snape has been trying to get that place for years?” Matt added, a little smile playing on his lips.

Remus smirked, nodding silently.

Sirius and James roared with pleased cackles, Matthew’s eyes shone and his smile widened, although he tried his very best to remain neutral, typical Dumbledore behaviour.

Emily walked into the room to say goodbye to her husband, the men usually picked a house where to hang out once a month while the women would all spend a whole day in London simply having fun and leaving their husbands to babysit their children for a whole weekend.

“Remus got hired to be our kids’ teacher, Mily,” Sirius said delightedly. “Guess what subject he’ll be teaching?”

Emily froze, her eyes widening.

“You got the job?”

Remus laughed, nodding once again.

“Snape must be having a seizure,” She replied. “Had it coming, the idiot — Mel says he likes to bully our kids, what kind of man is he?”

“Yeah, Harry says that too,” James said darkly. “I’m telling you right now, if that twat tries to bully my girls I’ll go to that castle and turn him into a weasel.”

“I don’t think that’ll be necessary,” Remus said happily. “I’ll keep an eye on him.”

“Do the kids know about this?”

“Nah, I want it to be a surprise.”

“I’m sure they’ll be delighted,” Matthew grinned. “Their favourite uncle teaching them how to deal with water demons and stuff, bet they’ll plan to cause mischief during your classes, Moony, so you better be careful.”

“There’s no way Mel will let them get away with it,” Emily shook her head. “She’s a good girl… even if she misbehaves a little during summer.”

“Hey, Moony, do me a favour,” Sirius leaned over to Remus, grinning. “Take a picture of good ol’ Snivellus once he finds out you’re the new teacher, I just need to see his face.”

September 1st, 1993

The night sky welcomed the children into the Hogsmeade station, the Potter twins ran away as soon as they left the train, following other first-years, Lyra and Ariana stayed behind with Mel, Harry, Percy, Ron, Hermione and Erick.

Ariana tried to remain as close as possible to Erick, she had a not-so-subtle crush on him and everyone except Erick knew it, or at least that’s what she thought. Erick was well aware of it, but since she was two years younger, he wasn’t interested. It wasn’t that she was trying to make a move anyway, whenever he was around, Ariana was uncapable of uttering a word.

Once they got to the carriages they had to split since the group was too big to fit in one.

“See you guys at the feast,” Hermione said politely.

“Sure,” Ron answered.

Mel made an attempt to follow Hermione, but a hand closed around her wrist and stopped her. She turned and met Harry’s eager eyes.

“Let Lyra go with them, you can come with us...”

“I never said I wanted to go with them,” Lyra frowned. “It’s rude to speak in the name of others, you know?”

Percy’s sister followed Ariana to the other carriage, Ron and Percy shared a smirk but didn’t say anything, climbing up the carriage first and leaving Harry and Mel last.

Harry didn’t know why he’d stopped Mel from going, he just knew that as soon as the school year started she was going to leave him and spend the whole year with Hermione and Flint, and he didn’t want that.

As soon as they got to the main entrance Mel tried to find her way to Hermione once more, but Harry stopped her again. Mel let out an annoyed groan and turned to face him.

“What?” She spat.

“Eat with us,” Harry said simply. “C’mon, Mel, just this once?”

Ron whispered something to Percy and he snorted, pulling the Weasley away from the conversation. Mel and Harry were left completely alone one more time.

“We sit at the same table every day, Glasses,” She replied patiently. “I don’t see the difference.”

“The difference is that we have tons of fun during summer and then here you ignore us,” Harry said.

“I don’t ignore you,” She crossed her arms. “I keep my distance. Which is what my dad asked me to do.”

“Ruddy’s exaggerating,” Harry rolled his eyes. “We don’t get in trouble that often!”

Mel raised a brow.

“You have no self-control. All Percy has to do is to dare you and then there you are, throwing firecrackers at Filch. You say I’m the one who acts different, but the truth’s that you and Percy turn into insufferable prats as soon as we walk into the castle.”

Harry’s mouth fell open in shock, he blinked and stammered a reply, something about lies and Mel’s lack of sense of humour when she was at Hogwarts, she sighed.

“Listen, I don’t care if you like the attention, but I don’t, so please don’t try to force me to get involved. You should reconsider your behaviour this year though, Cassia and Ivy are starting their first year, they need someone to look up to.”

“They have you, since I’m such a twat,” He scoffed.

“Very well then,” Mel said, straightening her posture and looking at Harry with just a little bit of pitty. “Have fun, Glasses.”

Once the sorting was over, Cassia and Ivy Potter (both Gryffindors to no one’s surprise) sat next to Mel, although they were doing just fine without her, they were loud and hilarious, soon Fred and George made their way to them.

Harry continued to stare at Mel from his seat, frowning as he watched her talk happily with Ron’s brothers, Percy was fed up with this and decided to address it.

“She rejected your offer again,” He said calmly. “Told you not to try so soon.”

“Well, why don’t you try it, then? Since you’re such a know-it-all?” Harry responded defensively.

“That was the original plan, you prat, but as usual your impulsive arse couldn’t wait,” Percy scoffed.

“I don’t understand why you want her around all the time,” Ron yawned. “I like Mel, she’s fun and everything, but we wouldn’t get as many attention from the girls as we do now if she were with us, right?”

Both Percy and Harry stared at their friend with the same shocked expression. Since they didn’t reply, Ron decided to continue.

“You guys are wasting your time, almost every girl from our year wants you to ask them out to Hogsmeade this year and you’re crying because Mel won’t help you light a firecracker!”

“I never asked them to follow me around!” Percy exclaimed. “I don’t know why they do it!”

“It’s because you’re ‘perfect’,” Ron smirked. “Girls melt at your feet when you hold the door open or offer your little sister your cloak so she doesn’t get a cold.”

“That’s the way Dad taught me to treat people, isn’t that how everyone’s supposed to act? It’s decency!”

Ron looked at Harry and raised a brow.

“See? That’s exactly what I mean. ‘Decency’ I tell you…”

“That’s not the point,” Harry brushed it aside. “I don’t want to date any girls, I just want Mel to admit that we’re fun! Either way she would atract more girls than any of us, she’s a people magnet— and I know she likes to cause mischief as much as us, but it’s just… this has to be Flint’s fault.”

“How is Mel calling you a twat his fault?” Percy snorted.

“He’s a stuck-up idiot, just like your cousin dearest, only that he hides it better,” Harry said. “Mel wants his approval for some reason, so she acts like she hates us when he’s around.”

“Yup,” Ron said in disbelief. “That settles it then, you’re off your rocker. You’ve lost it.”

“Harry, she would never pretend to hate someone to get a boy’s approval,” Percy shook his head. “You have to face it, mate, she doesn’t like to cause mischief, she… she likes being a good student.”

Ron and Harry both grimaced.

“Well, that,” Ron grinned. “Or she has a crush on Flint.”

Harry choked on his pumpkin juice.

“WHAT?”

“We know Ariana has a crush on him,” The young Weasley shrugged. “Who says she can’t?”

Harry’s mouth suddenly felt too dry to respond, at the teachers’ table Dumbledore stood up and everyone fell silent. It was time for his speech.

“To our new students, welcome,” He smiled. “To our old students, welcome back! A few things before you go to your rooms. This year will have two new Professors! I reckon you know them well by now, but still, formalities ask me to do this presentation. First, we have Rubeus Hagrid, who’ll be the Care of Magical Creatures Professor, since Kettleburn has decided to finally retire.”

The students clapped and cheered, Hagrid was loved by most of the school, Harry and his friends included.

“Second, I’m very pleased to inform you that your new Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts is none other than Mr Remus Lupin, who’s decided to take a break from writing to teach you about his discoveries during his years of research.”

The Great Hall erupted into loud and excited exclamations, Lupin was widely known in the wizarding community for his work, the Aurors in training would use his books as a guide, he was a legend. But to the Potter, Black and Dumbledore children, Lupin was their favourite uncle, and they were beyond pleased to have him around.

Remus walked towards the front of the table and smiled at the students in front of him with satisfaction, he gave a short speech thanking Dumbledore for this opportunity and winked at his nieces and nephews with a bit of mischief. He, of course, took the opportunity to send Snape a subtle smirk and nodded towards him, Snape pretended not to notice.

Once the hall started to be emptied, the group of children ran excitedly towards the table, their faces glowing with happiness.

“You should’ve told us!” Harry exclaimed.

“I wanted to surprise you,” Lupin laughed, softly patting his goddaughter’s shoulder, since Mel was currently hugging him.

“You’ll stay permanently?” Percy asked.

“As long as I’m allowed,” The man nodded. “Or at least, as long as there’s one of you here, which will be a long time. I’ve missed too many moments, I don’t want to miss any more.”

“Cool!” exclaimed the Potter twins.

“Wait, does that mean you’ll tell your parents if we get in trouble?” Harry frowned.

Mel scoffed, which didn’t go unnoticed.

“Nah,” Remus grinned. “I think Professor McGonagall takes care of that. Doesn’t mean I won’t send you to detention if I catch you cheating on a test or using magic in the halls. You won’t get any kind of privilege from me, you hear me?”

Harry, Cassia and Ivy all groaned. Percy sighed in resignation, Ariana and Lyra were just happy to have their uncle around. Mel finally broke the hug, she looked at the others ready to lead them like she always did.

“Time for bed, everyone!” She said. “Let’s go!”

As usual, the group obeyed and walked out of the hall after saying goodbye to Lupin, already looking forward to the classes with him. Lyra and Ariana wished the others a goodnight and left to their respective common rooms. Hermione, Erick and Ron were nowhere to be found, and when Percy, Harry, the twins and Mel got to the tower, Percy stopped her before she could go to bed.

Harry wanted to stay too, but the twins dragged him away while they excitedly begged him to give them a tour around the castle the next morning.

“Okay, this is the one time I’m asking you this year,” Percy said. “Harry’s driving me and Ron mad. Please, help us with one of our pranks so he can shut up.”

“You know my answer, Paddie,” Mel tilted her head sweetly. “I can’t. If I help you and then I get away with it people will think it’s my uncle turning a blind eye on me and then Ariana will try and follow along, you know how she is.”

“C’mon, Mel,” Percy implored. “Can’t you just pretend to be at least slightly interested? Harry’s losing his mind, I’m telling you — the twins will call you boring!”

Mel’s mouth twitched a bit and her eyes narrowed, she was adored by the younger girls, she didn’t want to lose that and Percy knew it. She pushed her hair back in exasperation and huffed.

“No. Stop asking.”

Percy ran a hand across his face tiredly and shook his head.

“Fine, but don’t say I didn’t warn you,” He raised a brow. “Harry’s getting desperate, and he won’t play nice.”

“What do you mean?” Mel asked, but Percy was already halfway to the stairs. “Black! What do you mean?”

The boy merely looked at her over his shoulder, a cocky grin on his face as he shrugged without speaking.

“Oh, no...” Mel shivered, already sensing what was coming her way.

May 1994

Saturday mornings were usually peaceful around the castle, Remus enjoyed strolling around the empty halls, but today the peace and quiet was rudely interrupted by a bunch of shouting kids.

“HARRY JAMES POTTER I SAID STOP!”

Remus freezes immediately at the familiar sound. He’s heard that voice before, but he’s never heard it so angry, more so when pronouncing the boy’s name. He carefully turns the corner and looks at the scene:

Percy, Ron and Harry are all staring at Mel with exasperated expressions, behind her Draco Malfoy and Vincent Crabbe float above them, cursing and demanding to be let down. Hermione Granger stands at the corner, looking at the boys suspended in the middle of the hall and she’s between amusement and horror.

“Mellow, didn’t you hear what he called ‘Mione?” Harry demands. “He said—”

“I heard it,” Mel replies bluntly. “But hanging him upside down won’t make him stop, he’ll just want to get back at you like he always does!”

“That’s alright, we have all the time in the world to put him in his place,” Ron shrugs, casually twisting his wand and causing Crabbe to crash against Malfoy.

“Don’t you think this is getting a bit old?” The girl steps forward but Percy gets in the way, raising a brow at her as if silently saying ‘D’you really think you can stop us?’ “Ugh! This is so stupid! You’re acting like children, you’re too old for this kind of stuff!”

“You look so pretty when you’re angry,” Harry teases.

Remus almost wants to laugh at the absurdity of this, the story somehow is repeating itself, how did this happen? Mel and Harry were getting along just fine last July…

He then abruptly remembers that he’s a teacher and he’s currently watching three Gryffindor students attack two Slytherins, he can’t stand there and just watch!

“What’s going on here?” Remus asks in what he hopes is his most convincing angry voice.

Percy’s eyes widen at the sight of his uncle but he expertly recovers, he gives a step forward to the man and and speaks in a polite voice.

“Malfoy was insulting Miss Granger, Professor, he called her… well…”

“He called her a mudblood,” Harry made a face. “As if he’s made of anything better than dung.”

“Enough,” Remus looks up at the boys floating above them and raises a brow. “Well? What are you waiting for?”

Mel pushes Percy aside, he complains under his breath.

“I tried to stop them,” She says to the man. “They weren’t listening — Can you please tell them they’re being stupid?”

“I can’t tell them that, Miss Dumbledore,” He raises a brow. “I saw what you were trying to do, you and Miss Granger can leave, I’ll take it from here.”

Mel nods and turns around to take Hermione away, Percy’s eyes find Hermione’s and he tilts his head lightly, vaguely making a head movement as if saying ‘you’re welcome’, and he smirks a bit. Hermione doesn’t reciprocate, she frowns. Percy’s expression falls instantly.

Harry mumbles something to Mel as she walks past him and she stops, looks him directly in the eye, and responds:

“You are the biggest prat ever.”

Ron chortles beside them, Harry’s jaw tenses as he watches her leave.

“Better luck next time, Harry,” He grins.

Malfoy and Crabbe are already on the ground demanding Remus to send the three boys to detention, and he has to admit he can’t ignore this, he looks at Harry and the boy sighs heavily.

“Yeah, yeah, I know,” He pushes his hair out of his face. “Detention for a week.”

‘I have to talk to the others,’ Remus thinks, watching the three boys leave the hall without looking even remotely sorry about their actions.

Next Chapter —>

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[kileyrose-2003]

Dan Torrance x Fem! Reader Pt.2

A/N: Hello lovelies. This is part 2 of my Danny Fic series where it heavily revolves around Rose. If the ending to this part seems choppy that is because part 3 I am picking up with Rose and Crow’s side of the story. Link to the intro is here , link to pt. 1 is here

I hope you all are having a wonderful day and you all!

Warnings: None

"..By signing this document you are willingly committing to six months of rehab. Upon signing this you are also agreeing to also seclude yourself to the outside for a minimum of two weeks. No visitations either." The elderly woman sitting behind the desk was eyeing you judgmentally and you didn't have to be in her head to know she was calling you a whore.

"Do you understand the terms and conditions?" There was an awkward silence and you looked at Danny. "Dan? You understand?"

"Yeah I do, I just-" He bit his lips and tears started flowing down his cheeks, highlighting his freshly shaved face. "I've gotten so used to seeing you every day and now we're being torn apart again." Dan squeezed your hand.

"I know but Danny, it's for the better. It's only two weeks we won't be allowed to see each other." You tried to comfort him while also contain your emotions.

"That's the minimum though. It could be longer than that and you keep me grounded from sun up when you hold my hand while we have breakfast to sun down when you hold me at night. You're a safe person and I'm scared of losing you."

"D-danny." Your voice cracked. "I'll still be here when you get out and we can still have that but you need help. I love you and I want you to be secure enough where you don't need me for that support. You made it I've 20 years without me and we made it through. We can still make it through. I promise."

He didn't say anything for a minute. "You promise?" You nodded. "I promise." In a burst of energy he picked up the pen and signed the paper before covering his face with his hands.

You stood up and wrapped your arms around his back to hug him. "You did the right thing." He kissed your hands over and over again. "I love you," He whispered so softly you could barely hear him. "I love you too, Danny."

The woman behind the desk coughed and stood up. "Are you ready to begin, Mr. Torrance?" You glared at her and released your grip on Danny. "I guess this is goodbye."

"Yeah.." Dan wiped a tear away from your and held your hand in his. "Goodbye, Y/n." You gave the top of his hand one last kiss before he walked away. "Goodbye."

Once he was definitely gone you walked outside and were greeted by Dr. John and Billy. "He went?" You nodded and your lip began to tremble. "Yeah.."

"You okay?" Billy asked softly. You looked up at the cloudy sky and felt your relating to the dark hues of grey and black forming in the swirls like the windstorm of emotions you felt inside.

"I-" You knees gave in and you dropped to the ground as it began to rain. The drops of water falling as violently as your tears. Both men pulled you into a hug, not caring if they were going soaked. "D-danny.." You sobbed into them. "It's alright, Y/n. He's going to be alright.."

It was one of the hardest things you ever had to do in your life. You cried every single day when you woke up in the morning. Subconsciously reaching out to place a kiss on his cheek in the spot he would usually lay on the bed and find he wasn't there.

The house was empty without him. You started nursing school in hopes of getting a head start on your life with Danny and he'd always be there when you got home clinicals. Dealing with your tears that you had been bottling in all day after getting hours at the local hospice or hugging you tightly when you got to save someone's life in the ER but you couldn't share those moments with him anymore.

More often than not, either John or Billy would come over after they got out to work to check on you. Sometimes they'd stay for dinner that way you didn't feel as lonely and other times they didn't but, you appreciated the support either way and they made sure you were taken care of.

When Danny got out of rehab he changed. Alot. He looked healthy and clean and it made you happy, which made him happy. After six months of not being able to see you just that smile you gave at seeing him clean was worth it.

He was even clingier than he was before after not seeing you for six months. Always having to hold your hand when you went places together but you didn't mind as long as he was comfortable.

It was the first time in a long time you didn't feel the pains of your past coming back to haunt you and you didn't have to constantly worry about everything. You almost felt like you were in a quasi state of peace and so did Danny.

Not long after you graduated from college Danny proposed, probably one of the happiest days in your life next to your wedding.

The wedding itself was small as you and Danny kept to yourself and neither of you had any family. Well, you did but any relationship you had with them was long out the window and you didn't want them near Danny anyways. You were free now and you had the power to make your own choices and live your life the way you wanted to with no one to hold you back.

"You saved me, you know that right?" You mumbled into Danny's chest as he held you while the two of you enjoyed your first dance. "You saved me too. If you weren't here, I'd be long gone. I'd have nothing to live for."

"Sometimes I feel the same way." He dipped his head down to kiss you on the lips and as he did you seen your mother's ghost standing in the corner. Chills ran up and down your spine and that fleeting bliss slowly began to subside.

(Ka is a wheel, Y/n. Ka is a wheel..)

...

8 years later:

"Danny, what did I tell you?" You asked as your husband of five years plopped down next to you on the sofa in your typical salt box, New England style house in Frazier.

"You only said no flowers and there is only one five year anniversary so might as well I spoil you while I have the chance?" You shook your head and began to rip off some of the wrapping paper on the tiny box he laid in your hands.

"I don't need to spoiled, Danny." You rolled your eyes and open the tiny box. There was a ring with y/f/c diamond in the inside and you smiled. "Aww Danny, it's beautiful."

"Aren't you glad I spoil you then?" He grabbed a remote on your coffee table to turn on your stereo and pulled you into his arms. "Danny! Danny, you know I can't dance."

"Now you're just being stubborn." There was some light rock music from the 80s playing softly in the background and though the singer's voice was far from enjoyable, you were content.

"This is nice." You hummed softly and laid your head right up against his heart. "I know..I feel so calm. So at peace. If I could spend the rest of my life with you like this, I would."

"Me too..You don't regret it, Danny?" You asked sweetly. "Of all the people you chose to settle down with, you settled down with me."

"No, because I'm with you. The most beautiful woman I've ever seen. Inside and out." You blushed and moved your head away from his chest, wrapping your arms around his neck that way you could look at him. "I love everything about you." You blushed and giggled slightly. "Stop it, Danny."

"It's true though, I do love everything about you. Your smile, your laugh, the way your hair flows in the wind, how loving you are. Everything about you, I adore." You stared into Dan's eyes and you felt your heart flutter. There was nothing but pure affection for you in his eyes and a feeling of deja vu set in, making your heart sink.

You realized it was the same way you remembered Crow looking at Rose but you immediately pushed that out of your mind. 'Stop it, Y/n!' You told yourself. 'They don't matter anymore. You have Danny now and Danny is your everything. ' "Honey?" He ran his thumb gently across your cheek. "Are you okay?"

"Yes..I just- I love you so so much, Danny." He kissed you sweetly on the lips. "I love you too, Y/n." You held his face in your hands. "Promise me you'll never leave me?"

"I'll be with you until the day I die and after." You caressed his cheek as he swayed you back and forth. "I may not know a lot but, I know enough to know that we go after all this."

"I figured just as much," You smiled and let him spin you. "Tell me Danny, do you think we'll be like this in another 30 years from now when we're old and gray? Because I hope we are."

"Even if we aren't, you'll still be the most beautiful woman I've ever seen." He pulled your body close to his chest and you giggled. "I love you, Mr. Torrance."

"I love you too, Mrs. Torrance. More than anything in the world." He dipped you and you let out a small laugh. Just as he was about to lean down and kiss you on the lips, you heard a clicking noise coming from the next room. "What's that?"

"Little Pen Pal." Dan planted a kiss on your cheek and straightened the both of your bodies out before walking into the next room. Your hands intertwined together.

'Morning!'

'Just us time today.' You and Dan both agreed on but Dan looked at you with those sappy eyes you couldn't resist and you smiled softly and held out a piece of chalk to Dan. "Go ahead." He bounced up like an excited child and anxiously raced over to the chalkboard writing a tiny 'School' with a smiley and you chuckled.

"How old do you think she is by now?" You thought about it for a moment. "I don't know. Maybe 12 or 13. She was little when we moved here and it's been a while since then."

You drew him close once he stopped writing and kissed his cheek. "Honey?" Dan hummed in reply and turned his neck to look at you. "I know we've only talked about it a couple of times but do you want to have a baby?"

There was a pause followed by a kiss on your nose. "I mean..I don't really know. Part of me wants to, but the other part of me doesn't want to put you at risk or just-what if I relapse and I fuck up? Big time. I wouldn't feel right subjecting our child to all that."

"Okay, okay. Just figured I'd ask." You spun him towards you and wrapped your arms around his neck. "Do you want to have one?"

You thought back to your childhood and sure when you were little, members of The Knot were always good with how they interacted with you, you thought you didn't know a thing about raising a child. "I-i don't know. That's what I'm scared of too..me messing up."

"You messing up?" Dan chuckled. "Honey, you're a nurse in a pediatrician's office. If there's anyone who's the baby whisperer here, it's you." You laughed and nuzzled close to him. "Well, that and my childhood."

Dan frowned and cradled your face in his hands, forcing you to look at him. "Y/n, you of all people know I'm never going to push you-"

"Danny," You warned, not wanting to hear the words but he continued on.

"To do or say something you don't want to but honey, you're going to have to open up eventually."

"I know Danny, I know. I'm just not ready for it yet." Tears started to threaten to fall from the corners of your eyes and Danny wiped them away. "Shh..I know. I know. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to you but just know I'm ready to listen when you're ready to tell. Okay?"

"Okay." He kissed you softly on the lips and caressed the sides of your face. You could feel him try to poke through your mind. "Danny!" You shut him out. "Sorry! Sorry! I just..I love you, Y/n. You know that right? And I'd never, ever, do anything to hurt you or let anyone hurt you. You're my world. My everything."

"I know, and I love you too." Your eyes interlocked for a moment as if you were searching each other all through out an he grabbed you by your thighs and hoisted you up that way your legs were wrapped around his waist. "Danny, what are you doing?" You asked, thrown off by the change in mood. "I'm about to show you just how much I love you." You blushed and let out a giggle. "Oh!"

He laughed as he began to carry you off to your bedroom. "I love your response. Just an oh."

...

Hours later the two of you laid all curled up in each other's arms in the aftermaths of your act of passion, talking about every little thing that entered your minds.

"..Do you remember that show from when we were kids that had buff skeleton dude in it?" You looked at Danny like he had five heads. "No.."

"That and Looney Tunes was my shit when I was younger." You laughed and laid your head against. "I person was more of a Disney Princess person."

"Of course you were." You furrowed your brows and looked at Danny. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?" He kissed your cheeks and ran a hand through your locks. "Nothing. Just saying."

"Hmm." Danny laughed and nuzzled you close, enjoying the momentarily silence between the two of you. "God, the stereo must of been on for hours now."

"What makes you say that?" You looked up at him. "Do you hear the song in the background?" You shook your head and he helped you off the bed. "It's older than what the patients at my work listen too."

"Danny, I highly doubt tha-"

When shadows fall and trees whisper day is ending,

"You hear it right?"

'Grampa Flick’s favorite song,' You thought.

"Yeah." Your face dropped but Danny didn't seem to notice. "I don't think I've ever heard it before. It's different, right?"

My thoughts are ever wending home.

"Sure." Your chest felt constricted, like you couldn't breath and you felt like you wanted to run from everything. "Sweetheart?" You stared at the floor. "Yes, Danny?" You responded. "Do you mind if I get in the shower?"

"Not at all. It's almost 4. Isn't our reservation at the restaurant for 6?"

"Yeah. Formal dress."

"I know." He shut the door to the bathroom connected to your room and you held the remote to the stereo in your hand. Out of the corner of your eye you seen your mom standing by the front door to your house.

Night covers all and though fortune may forsake me,

(Ka is a wheel, Y/n.)

Sweet dreams will never take me home.

"Fuck off!" You chucked the remote to the stereo into the other side of the living room before going into the guest bathroom and stepping into the shower as if the water would wash your worries away. Not everything had to be a wheel. This has to be the end. It has to be...”

#doctor sleep #dr sleep #rose the hat #crow daddy #Danny Torrance #dan torrance #The Shining #stephen king #imagine #x reader #x fem reader #fanfiction #fanfic #abra stone

[ecto-american]

Picking Names

Also on Ao3!

Summary: Recently out as trans, the youngest Fenton family members struggles to find a name for himself with the help of his mom.

Rating: K

Inspiration: Pride month! Some inspiration also comes from my own personal experience

"Shouldn't we go to a hairdresser?" He wondered, shifting to pull the towel tighter around his arms.

He hadn't expected such immediate reactions from his parents, especially his mom, after coming out. His dad had hugged and supported him, but it was after dinner that his mom had asked if he wanted her to cut his hair. Of course, he did.

The teen felt his mom tugging on his hair, as she tied off the long length into a low ponytail. On the kitchen table in front of him was scissors, a spray bottle full of water, a hair clipper kit and a few brushes and combs with clips and ties, a handheld mirror in front of them.

"We can do this, we watched dozens of Youtube tutorials," Maddie insisted. "Did you ever pick out a name?"

"No," came the soft reply before he cleared his throat with a light cough. "I've been thinking of a few, but I don't really know what I like too much yet."

"What are they, sweetie?" Maddie asked. She finished tying the ponytail, and she tugged the band down a bit. She reached over to grab the scissors.

"I thought about Dean," he said slowly. He winced nervously as he felt his mom tug on the ponytail a bit, and the pressure relieving with the snip snip snip of the scissors. He paused. "Or maybe something like Matthew, with Matt for short. Or Liam."

"I like Matthew, Matt can be a cute nickname for it," Maddie replied cheerfully.

He swallowed as the last bit of the ponytail was cut, and some loose strands of black hair flew down into his peripheral vision. It felt much more real now with so much of his hair gone. Maddie set the ponytail on the table. Oh, wow. Was his hair really that long before? Well, he and Jazz did have nearly the same length for a long time. Memories of them comparing hair length flooded his mind, and he mentally chuckled. Guess Jazz would always win now.

He glanced forward in the mirror. It looked so weird to have no long black locks of hair around him. It felt odd. A physical and emotional weight lifted off his shoulders.

"Do you know how short you want it to be?" Maddie asked him. His words got caught in his throat.

"Um," he began to stammer a bit as he swallowed. He smiled to himself as he felt his mom peck the top of his head.

"Why don't we use the biggest setting and work our way down?" she suggested. He nodded. She went to open the hair clipper kit. She went through the options, taking out the longest one. "Any other names?"

"...Maybe Chase?" he spoke shyly. "I dunno. There's a lot, and none of them just feel quite right, ya know? I like some names, but they just don't...suit me? I guess?"

"You don't have to decide right away," Maddie assured him. She plugged in the clippers, setting them aside for now. She grabbed a comb and spray bottle, and she began to lightly comb and part the top of his hair to clip up. "I just want to make sure you're going to be called something you want. I know right now, you don't really have the most masculine name." He winced at the light reminder of his deadname.

"Yeah, I know. I just wish I knew what fit me," he confessed.

With the top of his hair clipped off, his mom grabbed the clippers, and she began to shave the sides of his head. He remained silent in thought as the sides were cut. The result was not the best.

"How's the length?" Maddie asked, lightly running her fingers through the newly buzzed hair to brush strays out.

He glanced into the small mirror, and he wanted to cry. So much of the hair being gone brought a sense of comfort he didn't realize it would. He looked less and less like [redacted] Fenton, and more like, well, himself. Who that was, he wasn't sure. But he looked more like he felt. A step closer, only...

"Way too long," he immediately replied. Maddie hummed thoughtfully.

"How much more off do you want?"

"All of it," he confessed. Maddie chuckled. "It'll grow back!" She shrugged with a smile.

"Very true." She switched the clipper's attachment for a much smaller one, and she began to shave again.

Black hair was covering the kitchen floor and was all over his shirt, pants, the towel, everything. The kitchen probably wasn't the best place to hold such an activity. He could only envision finding black hairs in the food for months to come. A glance in the mirror at how much better his hair looked now made his heart skip a beat. Absolutely worth it.

"How's this?" Maddie questioned as soon as the clippers stopped. He grinned widely at the reflection.

"Perfect," he declared. Maddie smiled, brushing away more stray hairs with her fingers.

"It's not the shortest setting, but the third shortest," she told him. She wrapped an arm around him in a brief hug, and he happily squeezed her arm. "Now we just gotta do the top, and then my baby boy's going to look so handsome."

He had a stupidly large, happy grin at that. Baby boy. Handsome. He watched her unclip the top, black hair falling everywhere. She rustled it a bit as she grabbed the brush, brushing it a bit before grabbing the scissors and comb.

"Do I look like a Matthew?" he asked her. Maddie gave a sympathetic smile.

"Not really, honey," she confessed. Her son sighed heavily.

"How did you pick mine and Jazz's names?" he asked. Maddie hummed as she lightly snipped away, occasionally stopping to spray his hair with water.

"Your father picked both of your names," she admitted. "We agreed both times that if we had a girl, he'd name them, and if we had a boy, I'd name them. For Jazz, I had originally picked out Jeremiah, because Jeremy would have been a cute nickname. For you, I had picked out Daniel, or Danny. I always thought it was just a really special name."

"Danny?" he echoed, perking up a bit.

"Yeah, it just had a great ring to it," Maddie smiled. The rate that black hair was falling onto the floor had steadily decreased as the haircut was coming to a close. "You know, we thought you were a boy up until I had you. We had everything for a boy prepared, but then you were born, and it was a little girl." He winced at this. "But then weren't we in for a surprise to find out the doctor was right all along about us having a little boy."

"Really?" He glanced up at her, trying to not move his head to prevent the cut from being bad. His mom hummed in confirmation.

Danny…

He looked in the mirror. Daniel. Danny for short. The name settled well with him. Danny. It just rolled off the tongue. Daniel Fenton. That just flowed really well. Danny Fenton. This name was his name.

"My name's Danny," he slowly replied. Maddie cocked her head a bit at him.

"Oh honey, you don't have to pick that name just because of me," she assured him quickly.

"No, no!" Danny quickly interrupted her. "It's perfect. It fits me, it feels right. And it was supposed to be my name anyway. It's just about time that I use it, right?"

Maddie sighed lightly, a warm and peaceful smile. She ruffled his hair a bit. Stray black hairs flew in the air.

"How's the hair?" she asked. Danny looked in the mirror, and he was beaming.

"It's perfect," he told her. New hair, new name. Even though he was still in Jazz's handme down blouse and a pair of girly jeans, he had never felt so much better about himself. "Thank you so much."

"Of course, Danny." Hearing his name being spoken made his doofy smile grow bigger. "Now go get a shower and wash it to get all the hairs out, I swear you're shedding like a dog." She ruffled his hair again. Hair went flying as promised. Danny laughed, and he got out of the chair, carefully removing the towel.

He immediately wrapped his arms around his mom tightly in a hug. She wrapped her arm around him, squeezing hard and pecking the top of his head. Danny let go, and he began to race up the stairs.

"I love you, Mom!" he called out to her.

"Love you too, Danny."

#danny phantom #maddie fenton #danny fenton #my phics #phics #oc #trans!danny #pride month

[writehardwhumpharder]

Carson Poisoned by Magic - (Part 2)

This part focuses more on Daniel’s end of things. They’ve started working on a way to reverse the poison but things look hopeless. Carson helps as much as he can but it’s up to Daniel, and he knows it. It took a surprisingly angsty turn. Next part will have more Carson whump. 

After Diana looked Carson over they were sure that his condition couldn't have been caused by anything medical. Nothing matched up. The only consistent symptom he had was the high fever that never seemed to go down no matter what they tried. His mom assured Daniel that Carson could handle fevers better than most people and the side effects were a little different when caused by magic. Usually it happened when he took in too much stray energy from many different people at once, confusing the hell out of his system. This was similar in that his body was probably trying to burn away the poison spreading up his arms at an alarming rate.

Diana sat down with Daniel to give him some tips on searching through their books on magic by causes, symptoms, and treatments. Fortunately they had a lot of information on those topics, unfortunately trying to find out what was wrong with Carson was like looking for a needle in a haystack and unlike science, magic often didn't feel the need to follow its own rules.

His phone rang, drawing him out of his thoughts, and Daniel looked down at it with a grimace. He thought he'd put it on mute. Seeing that it was his brother calling he figured he could spare a minute or so to talk to him.

"Where the fuck have you been?! You were supposed to open today!" Jason yelled into his ear.

Daniel found himself getting irrationally mad, already regretting picking up the phone, "So?"

"What do you mean so? You didn't even tell anyone you weren't coming in."

"Yeah I'm busy, so busy that I have to go," he snapped. There was an exasperated sigh on the other end.

"I can't cover your shifts man, you better have a good reason for flaking out like this," Jason said harshly.

Diana sat on the other end of the couch minding her business even though he knew she could hear them with how loud Jason was yelling.

"Carson's sick so I'll be gone for a little while. Don't call me again," he replied, getting tired of this conversion.

"But you-"

Daniel cut him off, "I can't even begin to describe how little I care right now, figure it out yourself." With that he hung up and tossed his phone aside in an effort to refocus.

"Do you need to be somewhere else?" Carson's mom asked tentatively. She could easily watch Carson if he needed to step out for a minute to take care of things.

"Nope, I have the week the off," he replied.

Just as he was getting his notes back in order Carson's door opened. For a second he thought that maybe they didn't close it all the way and a draft pushed it open but after a few long seconds Carson stepped out of his room, holding tightly onto the door the whole time.

"What are you doing up?" Danny and his mom asked in unison.

"I'm bored," and lonely, but Carson didn't say that part out loud. He was the picture of illness. Dark bags settled under his eyes, his skin had lost of its color, and a blanket was draped messily over his shoulders. The fact that he didn't put a shirt on before coming out of his room was proof enough of how bad he must be feeling. Danny could practically see the rays of heat coming off of him.

Watching him cross the room at such a slow and labored speed was borderline painful but Carson looked steady enough to make it to the couch and they knew he'd take it the wrong way if someone got up to help him.

"It's a war zone out here, almost like someone is dying," he commented dryly.

Diana shot him a sharp glance, "That is not funny."

Carson grumbled to himself, he should at least be able to joke about his own shitty situation. Feeling a general tension emanating from his mom Carson chose to sit on the other couch. He had to push a few things onto the floor so he could lay down and his eyes felt heavy as soon as he was settled in. It was a conscious effort not to fall back asleep.

"So where are we at?" Carson asked.

"Well I called your detective friend and he's looking into where you went the other night and who might have something against you. Riley said she'd be available to get anything we need," Daniel told him.

"Mmm, good," Carson replied. He got the gist of it but sort of lost focus after he referred to Morris as his "friend". The sharp pain behind his temples was the only thing keeping him grounded at this point. The constant fever, headache, and occasional coughing fit had really sapped away all his energy.

"So you've figured out that it's a magical poison, thus we need a magical solution," Carson confirmed. His mom nodded.

"But we can't do magic, so even if we find a way to reverse it there's not much we can do." Daniel sighed. He leaned back into the couch and rubbed his eyes. Meanwhile Carson could feel himself slipping. He needed to help as much as he could while he could still think.

"That's not strictly true. There's a box in my closet with your name on it, go get it." He mumbled.

Danny got up quickly to fetch it. It was unusual for Carson to give anyone permission to look through his things but these were desperate circumstances. Sitting at the bottom of the closet, Danny found a shoe box with his name scribbled across the top. It appeared to be leaking something. At first he was hesitant to touch it but once he turned on the light he saw that it was just sawdust settled around it.

It only took a few seconds to find but by the time he came back to the living room, Diana was kneeling in front of Carson, snapping her fingers in his face. He almost dropped the box.

"What happened?"

"Nothing, he just fell asleep again. What's inside?" She nodded at shoebox in his hands.

"Oh, I haven't checked yet."

They sat down opposite each other with the mystery box in the middle. Daniel opened it slowly, expecting it to perhaps catch fire, or disintegrate on contact. Instead all he was met with was more wood shavings and a crudely carved stick.

"What is that?" His mom asked, leaning forward to get a better look. Danny pinched it between his thumb and forefinger as he pulled it out.

"If I'm not mistaken, I think it's a magic wand." He said. It was hand carved with an array of symbols etched in, most of which Daniel recognized. "He must have carved it himself."

"Clearly," Diana commented. Carson was never much of an artist.

"Hey, s'not finished," a mumble came from the bundle of blankets next to Danny.

"Should we let him have that many blankets when he has a fever?" Daniel asked.

Diana frowned, "probably not."

Carson, who still looked very much knocked out, tightened his grip on the top blanket he'd brought with him from his room. Daniel tried to casually peel it off but Carson's eyes snapped open and he practically growled.

"Don't you dare."

It wouldn't have been hard to wrestle it away from him considering he had almost no body strength at the moment but Daniel backed off, looking back at the wand.

Carson's sleepy eyes followed his gaze, "oh you found it," he laughed lazily, "Happy Birthday." With that he passed out again, for real this time.

It was a shame they had to bring out the gift now, unfinished and a month early, but if it would help them do the magic they'd need to cure him, then he was glowing with happiness that Carson had gone through the trouble to make this ahead of time.

Diana smiled, "It must have taken weeks for him to carve in those symbols."

"Yeah," he agreed.

"It's not often I see him put that much time into something."

Danny nodded.

"Must be really special." Diana was anything but subtle when it came to the topic of their "friendship". She had a point though, it looked like it took a lot of effort, but he still had no idea if it would work. Carson did say it wasn't finished.

"We'll set this aside for when we need it." Danny decided, closing the box and setting it down next to the coffee table.

--

They worked quietly until the sun went down, which was at like 4pm in the afternoon this time of year, yet Daniel still felt like he'd spent days looking through these books. He didn't find anything particularly useful in his own notes which wasn't very promising. Even going through Carson's notes proved fruitless, and a little traumatizing. There was some disturbing stuff in there.

Initially, he thought it would be nice having Carson in the living room with them. But after hours of listening to him moan and whimper in his fevered sleep, Daniel couldn't take it anymore.

He glanced over at the foot sticking out of the blankets. Slowly but surely the poison found it's way there too, starting at the ankles and moving up. There wasn't enough time. He didn't know how to do this.

Before he knew what was happening, Daniel couldn't breathe. His chest felt tight and he struggled to bring in a full breath. Something cold washed over his body. A kind of darkness and fear he'd never felt before. While this was happening, the same few thoughts swirled around in his head. What if he couldn't save him? What if he ran out of time? What if he wasn't good enough and Carson died because of him? What if Carson died?

His vision grew hazy from lack of oxygen. It was like the weight of world was actively crushing him. A rapid thumping in his chest told Danny he needed to move, to do something. Break things, run away, scream, just... something. But all he could do was sit there on the couch, covering his face in his hands. If he even looked at Carson he'd start crying. Scratch that, he was already crying.

Diana was in the kitchen making some soup when she heard panicked gasping. Her heart dropped as some kind of motherly instinct took over. Setting the soup aside off the burner she dashed back into the living room. Carson was still deeply asleep but Daniel wasn't reading anymore. She found him curled up on the couch, crying through his hands and hyperventilating.

Unlike Carson, Daniel was a touchy person, he needed that kind of human contact. And while he couldn't regain control of himself and the world was still crashing down on him, it felt nice to have her hand on his back, drawing calming circles.

"W-what- if, what i-if," he could barely choke out the words. "I, I can't. I can't. I can't..." He got stuck in a loop. It was all too much, he couldn't do it. But Daniel also knew that if he gave up, Carson might not survive. He was plagued with even more guilt for thinking that way.

"I need you to breath with me, just like this," she moved his hands so he could see her and started taking in slow, exaggerated breaths. Much like she would with the kids she took care of at the hospital. It took a few minutes but eventually he was able to match her rhythm, breathing at a normal speed again. The fear didn't quite go away but his vision came back and he was vaguely aware of Diana kneeling next to him. When he met her eyes again he couldn't help but throw his arms around her tiny frame, burying his face in her shoulder. She gave him a reassuring squeeze. In the back of her mind she caught herself liking the feeling of having a son she could hug. While she always respected Carson's boundaries, she kept wishing she could do more for him. Daniel pulled away abruptly after a minute, feeling embarrassed. He looked down and wiped at his face with his sleeve. Diana took the hint and wandered back into the kitchen to finish dinner.

A sleepy feeling replaced his anxiety and he felt a little empty, like his mind had gone quiet. It was great in comparison to how he felt a moment ago but Daniel knew he was still far from okay. With no time to waste he got back to work, starting on a different book about dark magic.

Though no one realized, Carson had woken up at some point while Daniel was panicking. He kept his eyes closed but listened to his friend gasp and sob. He couldn't allow that.

The foot that had slipped out of the blankets earlier edged closer to him. He acted like he was just stretching but when his toes made contact with Daniel's knee, Carson drew away some of his pain. Just a little. He didn't give away any of his own energy but he could take on a little bit of his. It's not like he could feel worse than he already did.

Daniel's eyes widened as he felt Carson's foot graze his leg, and while it did, his pain dulled a bit. There was a warmth to it that he recognized, it felt a little bit like taking a sip whiskey to take the edge off. But Carson was in no state to be doing magic, especially magic that would only hurt him more.

"Don't do that," Daniel said, jerking away. "I'm serious, you can't be doing that right now. You need all the strength you can get."

"You stop doing that," Carson replied. He was so quiet Daniel almost couldn't understand him.

"Stop what?" He asked.

"Stop crying."

#whump #oc fic #part 2 #Carson series #Carson Hall #Diana Hall #Daniel Hopkins #Poison #sick #weak #fever #angst #fluff #emotional #crying #panic attack #hyperventilating #Daniel-centric fic

[danny-mcr]

Five Times Kissed: ( Danny & Faith )

( 1 ) @faith-hunter-ltd

Danny was the captain of the football team and it was the single most awesome thing that had ever happened to him. It was also like, literally the biggest responsibility of his life. Up until now, that had just been a word he often misspelled. Needless to say when it came to perhaps their biggest game of the season so far, he was nervous as hell. Like, might throw up nervous.

Yeah, he’d definitely left that part out of the pep talk to the guys. 

The last person in the world that Danny would have expected to see in those stands was her. Faith Hunter. Goddamn. 

For all Danny had told his team to stay focused (yes, even Cole who was spending every other practice making out with Char behind the bleachers), when he’d seen her through the crowd, everything stopped. Danny had it bad, that much was obvious. He’d fallen head first without a helmet for literally the coolest girl in the world and if she didn’t instantly hate his guts, it would have been perfect. 

Life was like that sometimes, right? She was there though. And he played the game of his life. Cliché. It was definitely cliché but if Faith Hunter could show up to a Havensdale High football game then he sure as hell could take a bone crushing tackle for the sake of the win. 

“That’s gonna leave a mark,” he’d mumbled to himself, eyes closed, back in the dirt while the crowd and team erupted around him. 

“There goes your last brain cell.” Where’d she come from? 

“Tell me about it.” 

Faith leaned down (only slightly fuzzy to his eye) and pressed her lips to her hand before pressing that hand to his helmet. Then she was gone, naturally, but he was left grinning like a fool. Cool.

( 2 ) 

“I’m not really one for compromises, Danny. Don’t make me regret this. Let’s just go.”

That’s what Faith had said the night he’d goaded her into coming to some football after party. In all honesty, he’d doubted his stupid grin and stupid speech about the ‘senior year experience’ would work but... Mind you, he had promised to shut up the whole time. How was he supposed to win her over when he couldn’t say anything? 

Then again, considering how often he put his foot in his mouth around her, this might be a good thing. It was, ultimately. He gave her space, kept his lips zipped and mimed terribly from across the room at her. Faith didn’t laugh but Danny could have sworn there’d been a smile.

Honestly? That would have been enough. There was just something about being around her, seeing her, getting to listen to her even just for a minute that made him feel...good. Engaged. Fluttery. Worlds away from her but still willing to yell loud enough to be heard over all the reasons they shouldn’t work. 

But then someone had to play that one Oasis song because of course they did. It was a party. There was beer and a bonfire; they’d just won another game so anyway, here’s Wonderwall. 

His hand appeared in front of her wine stained lips first and she took an excruciating time to roll her eyes before looking up at him. Danny had puppy dog eyes and a goofy grin and he was finally shutting up. 

Faith took his hand. 

Four minutes isn’t all that long but it was all they had. Danny stayed quiet, for once, and she leaned in closer. If the music hadn’t been so loud, his heartbeat would have drowned out the world. Danny McReid was this super popular, super cute, star quarterback but around Faith? Nah. He was just a boy with a ridiculous crush, desperate to impress and clumsy with his heart. 

When she pulled away, her lips barely brushed his cheek. 

( 3 ) 

Danny was so in love with her. 

He knew he’d fallen too fast, too much and Faith wasn’t like that. She was complicated and guarded and smart. She was a genius. His heart had never been anywhere but his sleeve and from the second they’d connected, he’d been all in. 

Faith wasn’t like that. But he didn’t care. 

It was obvious how he felt about her, he’d tell anyone who asked- not that they’d need to ask. She was his girlfriend now and he had already planned out the rest of their lives. Well, enough that he knew he wanted her there. He saw a future with her, no matter what. They were meant to be. She’d tell him that was ridiculous. She did. 

There were moments like this though... Quiet, private, intimate moments like this when she snuck into his room after midnight and curled into his arms while he was still half asleep. Her breathing would slow pretty fast as she drifted off, safe and warm and so much smaller than she’d ever been. 

Vulnerable. Faith Hunter was never vulnerable but in moments like this, Danny thought that maybe she was as close to it as she’d get. He always wanted to be this safe place for her. He wanted to be there, always. Strong and steady and solid. There.

Danny would kiss her forehead or he’d kiss the back of her hand and whisper that he loved her. Or good night, or sweet dreams. 

This was something that was just theirs. Secret. Even after they broke up, even after his world was turned upside down, he still let her in and he still held her close and sometimes, when he was sure she was asleep, he’s whisper that he loved her still. 

( 4 ) 

He remembers their last kiss. 

Well, it wasn’t their last kiss but it was. It was the last kiss they’d ever have as Danny-and-Faith, freshly graduated seniors living in L.A, eating breakfast in bed and ignoring the rest of the world. Danny-and-Faith. Perfect. 

Nothing’s perfect though. He hadn’t known that then, had been too naive and too pushy and too much. It was like the calm before the storm, before the fight, before he stormed out and punched walls and broke his own heart just as much as she did. 

Broke her heart. 

Something was wrong. Faith wasn’t happy in L.A. Their was something between them that Danny had been ignoring for, god, he didn’t know how long. Just...something. Someone. He didn’t want to know, he didn’t want anything to change. He loved her, he loved her so much. 

This was supposed to be perfect.

They’d kissed, like they always kissed but he was holding onto her too tightly. Maybe that had always been the problem. Danny pressed his forehead against hers, holding his breath, trying to remember this moment. Trying to hold onto her. Why did it feel like he had to hold onto her?

Danny kissed her again, and again, and again. 

It didn’t stop it from ending. 

( 5 ) 

Daniel McReid sits at the far right corner of the bar. It’s dingy and badly lit but no one talks to him and the bartender is happy to refill his glass. His leather jacket is worn and he hasn’t shaved in, well, too long. If his mom was here she’d definitely have something to say about it. 

If she was here.

Danny finished his drink. The bartender had refilled it before he even had to ask. 

His phone was switched off- it was always switched off these days. He couldn’t handle the missed calls and worried messages from Carrie and Ruby. From Ryan. Cole, even. He especially couldn’t handle the messages from Shelley Pierce. 

And then there were the messages he had saved on there; the ones that were too damn painful to see again. The temptation to read, to listen, over and over much too strong. 

He was spinning his wedding ring around his finger when he heard the door to the place open and close. Of course he didn’t look up. 

Danny had been a hunter for years now. Well, he was retired now- quit, actually- but his instincts were easily dulled by the alcohol. He didn’t care to look up much anymore. 

They’d both been hunters, actually. A real team. He’d trained her up and she’d kept him smiling. He’d never missed a horoscope either. 

“Are you attempting to drink yourself into an early grave?” 

Well, hell. This one he hadn’t seen coming. 

“What? Did Carrie track you down?” It’s not the hello she deserves but he can’t help it. He’s not exactly a people person anymore. 

“I wasn’t living off the grid, Daniel.” Faith Hunter took the seat beside him and he finally looked up. 

She doesn’t say that she’s sorry for his loss, she already had to do that at his mom’s funeral and Danny couldn’t stomach hearing it again. Not about his wife. Not about his Brianna. 

The ring on Faith’s finger is a familiar blue; she never did let a vampire mess with her again after what had happened what felt like a lifetime ago in Havensdale Valley. He almost smiled at that. 

“What are you doing here?” 

“Having a drink.” 

“Funny.” 

“When was the last time you shaved?” 

A sound that almost sounded like a laugh escaped him. Danny pushed himself off the bar stool then. He paused, lingered too long, didn’t say enough- didn’t say anything. Shutting up, just like she liked. He let out a breath (whiskey tinged) before leaning over and kissing her cheek, beard probably scratching her face. 

“Goodbye, Faith.” 

#prompt #meme: five times kissed #faith #hihrp #otp: do you still love me? #i threw in some aaaaaaaaaangst at the end that you & calla & amy may particularly love/hate fredjik

[hollymartinswrites]

Chapters: 12/? Fandom: IT - Stephen King, IT (Movies - Muschietti), Doctor Sleep - Stephen King, Doctor Sleep (2019) Rating: Mature Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier, Ben Hanscom/Beverly Marsh Characters: Eddie Kaspbrak, Richie Tozier, Ben Hanscom, Beverly Marsh, Bill Denbrough, Mike Hanlon, Original Child Character(s), Dan “Danny” Torrance, Abra Stone Additional Tags: Fix-It, Post-Canon Fix-It, Post-IT Chapter Two (2019), Domestic, Light Angst, Family Feels, Childhood Trauma, Adoption, Kid Fic, Adopted Children, Richie Tozier Loves Eddie Kaspbrak, Eddie Kaspbrak Loves Richie Tozier, Marriage, Eddie Kaspbrak & Richie Tozier Are Parents, Angst, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Minor Ben Hanscom/Beverly Marsh, Beverly Marsh & Richie Tozier Are Best Friends, Catholicism, Richie Tozier Has Issues, Extended Tozier Family, Medical Examinations, Stephen King References, The Shining References, Doctor Sleep References, References to Depression, Depression, Mentioned Sonia Kaspbrak

Summary:

Eddie and Richie embark on the most terrifying experience of all—parenthood. Or, the author desperately needed a domestic, family fix-it for Richie and Eddie and it turned into a much longer, angstier exploration than I expected.

Chapter XII: Richie and Eddie receive some surprising information about their daughter's shine.

“Hello?”

“Hi,” Richie said, wincing as his voice cracked nervously. Jesus, he sounded like an idiot. “Uh, hi, this is Richie. You called me last night. A few times.”

“Oh, yeah,” the voice on the other end of the line said before clearing his throat. “It’s Dan.”

“Yeah, I know,” Richie replied, wincing again. “Um, it’s not too early, is it?”

“No, I was already up,” Dan Torrance replied and Richie had the feeling he was telling the truth. “We’ve been playing phone tag.”

“I know, sorry about that,” Richie said and glanced at Eddie, who nodded briefly. “Um, listen, you’re on speaker right now and I’m with my husband. We had a few questions for you, if this is an okay time to talk.”

“Sure,” Dan answered. “Go ahead.”

“Well, um...Eddie?”

Eddie swallowed before leaning closer towards the phone.

“Uh, hi, I just...” he sighed. “Look, what the fuck exactly is this shine you’re talking about?”

To their surprise, Dan laughed.

“You’re gonna hate me for this,” he said, “but I don’t really know. I mean, I’ve been working with some scientists and researchers and at best, they can just say it’s a form of...psychic ability.”

“So...psychics are real?” Richie asked dubiously.

“Well, I’m pretty sure the ones on TV are full of shit,” Dan replied. “And it’s not like I can look at you and see exactly what’s going to happen in the future. It’s more like...ideas. If that makes any sense.”

“But our daughter sees the past.”

“She’s seeing flickers of it,” Dan explained, “through you guys. And the people around her. At least, that’s what A—what I think she is doing. She’s not reading your minds, if that’s what concerns you.”

Richie glanced at Eddie, who still had a puzzled look on his face.

“Why is it called the shine?” he asked.

“That’s just what someone called it when he explained it to me as a kid,” Dan replied. “The name sorta stuck.”

“Jesus, how many shining people are there?” Richie asked.

“I don’t know,” Dan sighed. “I think there’s a lot more than we think. Probably a lot who don’t even realize they have it. I don’t know why we develop it. I found out recently that I’m not the only one in my family who has it but who knows what that means. Maybe we’re all born with it and it just flourishes in some people.”

Richie and Eddie fell silent, their minds awhirl. Suddenly, Richie remembered Abracadabra.

“Dan, is this...having the shine as a kid...well, I mean,” he said, trying to gather his thoughts. “Our daughter has an imaginary friend. But she said that this friend taught her about her shine. Is that...normal? Or is someone…”

“Is our daughter in any danger basically?” Eddie asked quickly.

“No, no,” Dan said quickly. “I mean, not...shit. Look, there was a group of people who—they’re not around anymore—who could’ve...who, if they found out about your daughter, they could’ve hurt her but they’re all dead now.”

The room seemed to spin and Richie clenched his eyes shut, fighting the instinct to drop the phone and run to his daughter’s room and gather her up in his arms.

“What do you mean they’re dead now?” Eddie asked numbly, his hand gripping Richie’s free one tightly.

Dan was silent for a worryingly long moment.

“I mean just that,” he admitted quietly. “I made sure of it.”

“How can we know they’re all gone? I mean, you said you’re working with scientists. Are people going to show up one day and take our daughter away for tests or some shit?” Richie asked, the tremble in his voice evident.

“No, no,” Dan said quickly. “There isn’t a database of us or something. And I swear to you, I haven’t told anyone about your daughter.” He sighed. “Look, I know how you feel. I have...someone with the shine in my life who’s like a daughter to me. She’s older than your girl but still young, and I can’t...she’s the most important person in my life and protecting her is everything to me.”

Both men gazed at one another, wondering just how much he could understand. Richie sighed and looked down, absently noticing that his hand holding the phone was shaking slightly.

“Your daughter’s imaginary friend,” Dan said suddenly, “does she have a name?”

“Abracadabra,” Richie replied impassively.

Once again, Dan fell silent. Eddie frowned and opened his mouth to speak when the other man said, “Well, I had one at her age, too.”

“So...it’s nothing to worry about?” Richie asked.

“No,” Dan replied, a little too quickly. “Listen, I got to get ready for work. But you can call me anytime. I don’t mind.”

“How do we know you’re not full of shit?” Eddie asked suddenly, eliciting yet another wince from Richie.

Much to their surprise, Dan merely laughed.

“I don’t blame you for not trusting me,” he said. “I guess talk to your daughter. See what she thinks.”

With that, he ended the phone call.

It was ten o’clock in the morning and Richie was alone.

The kids were at school, Eddie was at work, and Richie was in his home office staring at a black Word document. His agent had been on him to increase his writing output and had demanded he work on some jokes for one of his clients’ upcoming visits to some late night show. He had given Richie a rundown of what topics to cover and how to segue into promoting...whatever the fuck this comic had to promote but it had all flown right out of his head.

Richie sighed and glanced at the time. 10:02. Fuck.

He ran a hand over his face and flinched. Maybe he should shave. But he hated shaving. But Lydia had complained about how his kisses were scratchy now. So he should shave. Right? Yes, get up, stretch, shave. Be an adult.

The phone rang.

Richie picked it up quickly, barely glancing at whoever was calling, just thankful.

“Hello,” he said quickly.

“Hey, whoa, that was fast,” Ben observed. “Barely gave it time to ring.”

“Well, you know I always get excited when you call, baby doll,” Richie cooed. “What’s going on? And wait, isn’t it like the middle of the night by you?”

“It’s seven,” Ben laughed. “I’ve been up for an hour.”

“Jesus,” Richie sighed. “I actually had an early start today, too. Fucking sucked. So, what do I owe this pleasure? Something good, I hope.”

“Yeah,” Ben said, “I’m actually calling to see what you’re doing for President’s Day weekend.”

Richie hesitated and furrowed his brows.

“You do realize it’s still September right, Ben? Or is Seattle following like the Julian calendar or something?”

“I know it’s September but you and Eddie have kids and real responsibilities,” Ben explained. “So, Bev and I have to catch you ahead of time.”

“Okay but you must know I can’t think that far ahead,” Richie replied. “I mean, the kids and Eddie are usually off for it.”

“Well, that’s why we’re telling you know, months in advance, to keep that weekend free, okay?”

“Um, okay,” Richie said, “for any specific reason? Is the world ending that day or something?”

“No, but if you get an email confirming your plane tickets to Seattle for that weekend, don’t freak out, okay?”

“What the fuck? You can’t do that.”

“Yes, we can,” Ben replied, a hint of self-satisfaction in his voice.

“Well, we’re just gonna pay you back.”

“No, you’re not.”

“What the fuck, Ben? What’s going on?”

“Bev and I just want you all here with us,” Ben explained gently.

“What about the rest of the Losers?”

“Them, too,” Ben replied. Richie heard a distant voice over the line and then Ben responding. “Bev just finished talking to Eddie. He promised to take the kids out of school the Friday before and take off, too. So you guys are coming.”

“You’re seriously going to pay for all the Losers, plus us AND our kids?” Richie asked incredulously.

“Don’t worry about it.”

“Are you guys getting married again or something?”

Ben laughed.

“No, something bigger than that. We’ll see you then, okay?”

Richie sighed.

“Okay, but this is all very mysterious and I don’t like mysterious phone calls from old friends,” Richie pointed out. “I learned my lesson from Mike.”

Ben laughed again.

“I promise this is much better than confronting a supernatural clown and childhood trauma,” he insisted. “So mark your calendar and we’ll see you then.”

“Alright,” Richie asked, puzzled. “See you then. Love you, you mysterious, handsome bastard.”

“Love you, too, Trashmouth,” Ben laughed again before hanging up.

Richie stared at the phone and frowned, wondering just what the hell he was up to. He sighed. Lydia will be excited to visit Ben and Bev but he worried about Tess. She had never been on an airplane and Richie knew, from his own overwhelming experience as a kid, that it may be too much for her. Time to schedule another appointment with the counselor and get her ready. Good thing Ben and Bev had given them plenty of time to prepare.

He rubbed at his eyes and looked back at the blank screen staring up at him. Richie sighed again, closed the laptop, and walked away.

The following Saturday, the last before October, proved unseasonably warm so after dinner, Richie and Eddie packed up the girls into the car and treated them to ice cream and a visit to the local beach before the sun set.

Thrilled and energized by their post-ice cream sugar rushes, Tess and Lydia chased each other up and down the shoreline, built and stomped on their sandcastles, played chicken with the surf, and watch the few remaining surfers in wonderment. Richie and Eddie sat on the faded beach blanket and watched them, enjoying the cool breeze off the ocean and the sound of their daughters laughing amid the waves. It was, by all accounts, bliss.

Eddie sighed contentedly and leaned back onto his hands, one of which was covering Richie’s. Richie looked over at him and smiled.

“You okay there, Eds?” he asked.

“Very okay,” Eddie replied. He briefly closed his eyes. “We should do this more often.”

“Yeah,” Richie said. “Before winter hits and we’re cooped up inside the house all the time.”

Eddie nodded and straightened.

“What do you think Bev and Ben are planning in February?” he asked.

Richie shrugged.

“Who knows, but it’s gotta be big,” he answered.

“Maybe she’s pregnant,” Eddie offered.

“They wouldn’t fly us all the way out there for a pregnancy announcement.”

“Maybe she wants us there for the birth,” Eddie laughed.

“Yeah,” Richie said, rolling his eyes, “she wants us there holding up her legs as she pushes.”

“We’d be great birthing coaches,” Eddie replied, smirking.

“We’d have to be sedated.” Richie stretched out and laid down, closing his eyes. “It has to be something else.”

“I guess so,” Eddie replied. “Either way, it’ll be nice to get away during the winter.”

“Yeah to Seattle,” Richie snorted. “More grey skies and freezing temperatures.”

“Well, what if we plan another trip? Someplace warmer.”

Richie cracked open one eye to gaze at his husband.

“You wanna risk two big trips in one year with the kids?” he asked. “I mean, Tess has never even been on a plane.”

“I know,” Eddie replied, “but maybe it’ll—”

They were interrupted by Richie’s phone buzzing.

“Ugh,” Richie groaned, reaching into his back pocket and blindly handing it to Eddie, “answer it for me, would ya?”

“Rich,” Eddie said quietly as he took the phone, “it’s New Hampshire. Dan.”

Richie’s eyes flew open and he instantly sat up.

“Answer it,” he said quickly, glancing at Tess and Lydia happily searching for seashells.

Eddie did so, quickly putting it on speaker and leaning in close to his husband.

“Hello?” he said cautiously.

“Hi, uh, Richie?” Dan asked.

“We’re both here,” Richie answered. “What’s going on? Everything alright?”

“Yeah, yeah, just…” Dan sighed. “Look, I think I owe you guys an apology.”

Richie felt a chill that had nothing to do with the ocean breeze.

“What are you talking about?” Eddie asked firmly and Richie noticed his grip on the phone tightened.

“Well, it’s not really...I’m technically not the one who should be apologizing,” Dan said, “and I didn’t want to say anything until I was sure so…” he trailed off and sighed again. Richie wanted to throw up. “Look, basically, your daughter’s imaginary friend isn’t so imaginary.”

“What the fuck do you mean?” Eddie demanded.

“I mean,” Dan said quickly, “for the last couple of months, she’s been talking to my niece.”

Richie wondered how he could feel so dizzy while sitting on the solid ground. He shook his head but that only made it worse. He clenched his eyes shut and tried to quell the rising nausea in his stomach.

“What the fuck are you talking about?” Eddie continued, his face pale and angry.

“My niece,” Dan repeated, as if now it made all the sense in the world, “she’s the one who your daughter has been seeing. She’s Abracadabra.” He sighed a third time before suddenly rambling, “She knows she’s not supposed to do this. But she’s in college now and she thinks she knows better. You know how kids are.”

“No, I don’t know how kids are,” Eddie replied, his voice deadly serious. “And I don’t know how an invisible, imaginary friend can be your living, breathing niece so please explain.”

Richie thought he heard Dan gulp and he couldn’t blame him. It wasn’t fun being on the receiving end of Eddie’s cold wrath.

“My niece can...she has the shine, okay? She’s the one who I’m trying to protect like you’re trying to do with your daughter,” Dan said. “But she’s not making it easy for me. And her abilities are...well, they’re very strong. She can...the researchers call it astral projection but—”

“Bullshit,” Eddie spat. “This is bullshit.”

“And she found out about your daughter,” Dan continued, “and she’s been trying to...give her advice, I guess.”

“How the fuck did she find Tess?”

“I don’t know,” Dan admitted. “Sometimes people with the shine, they can sort of sense one another. And like I said, Abra—”

“Abra?” Richie interrupted.

“Yeah, that’s her name,” Dan said lowly. “Abra has some of the strongest abilities I’ve ever seen. Somehow they crossed paths...either literally or...mentally.”

The two men fell silent. Their daughters were shrieking with laughter and all Richie wanted to do was grab them both and immediately rush home, locking the door behind them.

“I spoke to her today,” Dan continued, “and found this all out. I suspected it earlier but, yeah. So I wanted to apologize. Like I said, she knows not to pull this sort of shit but she’s nineteen and kinda...willful.”

“Are you seriously telling me,” Eddie said slowly, “that a nineteen-year-old stranger has been visiting and speaking to my four-year-old daughter?”

There was a long pause and Richie just knew Dan had to be kicking himself.

“Not physically,” he answered lamely.

“Fuck you,” Eddie responded. “Fuck you and fuck your niece, whoever the fuck she is. We’re done. We’re going to hang up, block this number, and if hear anything at all about someone seeing our daughter, we’re calling the cops.”

“And what are you gonna tell them?” Dan replied quickly. “An invisible girl is bothering us? Look, I made Abra promise to stop. And trust me, I’ll know if she’s lying. But you have to believe that she was only trying to help.”

“Don’t care,” Eddie said.

“Your daughter’s been doing better, hasn’t she?” Dan pointed out. “No more seizures or episodes, right?” At both men’s silence, he insisted, “That’s Abra’s doing. Just remember that, okay? You can be pissed off all you want but she was...she fucked up but her heart was in the right place.”

“We’re hanging up now,” Eddie said.

“This is a New Jersey number, right?” Dan asked suddenly.

Eddie glanced at Richie, who cleared his throat before admitting, “Yeah.”

“Look, Abra is in New York City,” he said. “I’m only telling you this because she fucked up. If you want to speak to her in person, I can...it can be arranged just please remember, she’s still a kid and she’s had some...trauma in her life.”

Both men fell silent again and Richie ran a shaking hand through his hair. Lydia called his name, waving and holding up what appeared to be a giant shell. He waved back.

“We have to go,” Richie said.

“Okay,” Dan sighed.

“And don’t call us ever again,” Eddie said, ending the call. He dropped the phone onto the blanket, his face still pinched with anger. He clenched his shaking hands into fists and shook his head, taking a deep, slow breath.

“Eddie,” Richie whispered, guilt suddenly overwhelming him. “Eddie, I—”

“Block that number,” Eddie said calmly. “I’m gonna go get the girls. It’s getting dark.”

Richie watched as his husband stood, brushed the sand of his legs, and walked towards the shore, their daughters rushing up to meet him with their hands filled with shells. He blinked when he realized he had tears in his eyes and quickly wiped them away, schooling his face into a wide grin as the girls raced up to the blanket, chattering excitedly.

“Wow, look at those,” he said, observing the shells in their outstretched hands. “That’s some excavation work, girls.”

“Daddy said we can put them in the garden,” Lydia announced happily.

“Sure, we can,” Richie agreed. “You guys ready to go?”

The girls whined and begged for another half hour but Eddie was right. The sun was setting and they knew better than to push off bedtime. Both men shook off and rolled up the blanket as the girls carefully placed their shells into a tote bag brought especially for the occasion before taking their fathers’ hands. As they walked up the beach to the boardwalk, Richie noticed Tess peering up at him curiously.

“You okay, kiddo?” he asked.

“Are you okay?” she responded.

Richie swallowed and nodded, smiling broadly.

“Yeah, I’m good,” he said.

Tess turned to look at Eddie but he smiled back down at her, as well. She looked as if she wanted to question them further but she was interrupted by her sister asking for ice cream on the ride home. Richie exhaled a breath, tightened his grip on his daughter’s hand, and thought only of home.

#reddie #reddie fanfic #it chapter 2 #doctor sleep #stephen king universe

[ontherockswithsalt]

A Made Man

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Chapter 24.

“Hey.” I whisper into Noble's messy hair as I set my hands on the bed and lean over him. “Noble.”

“Mm.” He merely hums his sleepy response into his pillow.

“I gotta go soon.”

He turns onto his stomach beneath the covers and murmurs, “No you don't.”

“I do,” I laugh. “It's seven.”

With a quick inhale, he lifts his head, pushing himself up. “Oh shit.”

“It's okay.” I sit down on the edge of the mattress. “I've got a car coming.”

He takes a moment to turn and get himself upright, sliding his hands up his face while he wakes up. Scratching a hand at the back of his head, he finally squints one eye at me. “Damn, how long have you been up?”

I glance down at myself, already showered, dressed and packed. “Not long.”

A soft moan rumbles in his throat and he leans forward, bringing me into a hug. Ducking down, he rests his face against my chest. “You want some breakfast?”

“No.” I wrap my arms around his bare back, my palm skating a path there before moving into his hair. “I'm good. I want you to go back to sleep.”

“With you,” he mumbles, already halfway there.

I have to smile despite the bittersweet tug at my heart. “I can't.”

He sighs. “I know.”

“We knew this one would be short,” I remind him and he nods before I add, “It was fun though.”

I can hear the smirk in the low chuckle before he sits back. “It was fun. Considering you were only here for all of what, sixteen hours or something, we did alright.”

“We definitely… crammed a lot in while I was here--”

Noble's shoulders drop as he tilts his head to offer me an unimpressed look. “Get out of my house.”

Amused with myself, I push against his chest and then dive forward to tackle him back to the pillow as I climb over top of him.

“Ugh!” He calls out a dramatic groan as he holds me against him. “Don't you have somewhere to be?”

“Yes.” Nuzzling my face into his neck, I bite an affectionate little kiss there. Then I force myself to sit back up and reach for my phone to check the status of my ride. “Stay naked. Don't get up,” I tell him as I get to my feet. I need to just go because prolonging the inevitable makes it more painful.

He reaches out to pull me to him once more, dragging palms down my back. Resting his forehead low on my stomach, he sits there for a quiet moment.

I run my hand over his hair, appreciating the way he feels, knowing I'll be without it until the next time.

He manages another deep breath and lifts his head to look up at me. “I'll talk to you tonight.”

“Okay.” I lean down, tilting his face in my hands and press a kiss on his lips. Then another on his forehead before I mess up his hair even more and back away. “I'm out of here. I love you.”

Tipping over to fall back onto his pillow, he settles an arm behind his head. “Love you too,” he murmurs.

Retreating, I go for my backpack, steal one more glance at him before I head out the door. I let myself out as my ride pulls up in front of his house. And once more, I'm on my way back to the city alone.

***

Jamie: Fuck I'm so tired.

I send off the text and let my hand drop heavy on the bed. I shouldn't let myself lie down, but I have a short window of time between getting home from the airport and needing to leave for my dad's. Just long enough to get sleepy with the cold December fog still hanging in the air outside.

Noble: You home?

Jamie: I'm home.

Noble: No sleep on the plane?

Jamie: You know I can't.

Noble: You shouldn't have had that shit tequila. I told you.

I manage a lazy chuckle and type back: That shit tequila was probably the tamest thing that went down last night so I doubt that prompted my fast downfall.

Noble just texts back a smug faced emoji.

Noble: Personally I liked your downfall.

Jamie: I bet. How do you feel?

Noble: Uh… hurting.

Jamie: Are you really?

Noble: lol yeah. But I'm fine.

I probably went harder than I should have for his first time. I really tried, but damn I wanted him so bad and we were four or five cocktails deep. And honestly after the night we had, the teasing and the muttered promises and the anticipation, it's amazing I managed the restraint that I did. Being on top definitely gave me an appreciation of how good he really is to me. As exhausted as I am, I still stir a little at the memory of him inside me and shift as I attempt to suppress the aching want.

Noble: At least I can nap all day. I feel bad you can't get some more sleep.

Jamie: I'll go to bed early tonight. Don't feel sorry for me. It's the best kind of tired.

Noble: Hell yeah it is. Also guess what. Don't judge me, I'm still not dressed and haven't left my room.

Jamie: Seriously? I've flown all the way up the east coast and you're still naked in bed?

Noble: Hey, I showered. But then… you know.

Jamie: It only hurts because that's exactly where I want to be right now.

He sends back a series of hearts and a little pathetic groan rumbles in my chest.

Jamie: Are you wearing your glasses?

Noble: Yes.

Jamie: You're so damn cute.

Damn I'm in some kind of sappy ass mood.

Noble: I'm lazy and fucked. And I miss you.

Jamie: Then I'd consider that a successful weekend visit.

Noble: It definitely was. You did good.

Jamie: I'll try not to be distracted by these thoughts while I get through dinner with my family.

Noble: Let me know how that goes.

***

“Uncle Jamie, where were you yesterday?” Sean questions me as soon as I make my way into the living room at my dad's house. There, my youngest nephew sits on the floor facing the coffee table, a growing stack of Uno cards between him and my grandpa who's half paying attention from the couch with the Jets-Packers game on behind Sean's head. “You missed my game. I scored six points!”

“Aw, bud I'm sorry I missed it.” I dodge the question. “Next Saturday, I promise.”

“Promise,” Sean asserts. “It's our last game before Christmas break.”

“You got it,” I assure him.

“Your turn, Pop,” Nicky speaks up then looks from her cards to me. “Hey, next Saturday you're taking me driving. Don't forget.”

I shrug and look at her. “I can do both. We'll go for a drive in the afternoon.”

She quirks a pleased little smile.

Behind the couch, I lean down next to Grandpa's shoulder and gesture to the cards in his hand. “Play the Skip, and the Draw Two,” I tell him.

Slowly, he turns to look at me. “Do you mind?”

With a laugh, I stand upright, leave him with a gentle pat and look toward the kitchen.

“We can deal you in if you want to play,” he tells me.

“Maybe after dinner. I'm gonna see if they need any help.”

I make my way through the living room and return to the kitchen where Danny and my sister stand at the island prepping a salad.

“Hey, look who it is!” Danny announces.

“Hey.” Greeting him with a happy slap on the back, I move over to Erin and she offers me the angle of her face for a kiss while she works. I oblige and press a quick peck there. “Smells good, Linda.”

“Pork loin!” Danny’s wife calls out.

“Sean missed you yesterday, kid,” my brother reminds me.

I cut him off before he can guilt me more, even though he will anyway. “I know, I know. But I can’t always make it on Saturday mornings. I promised him I'll be there for the next.”

Danny mutters an unconvinced hum and glances up at me. When he does, a smirk slants across his mouth. “What's with you? You look like crap.”

I chuckle. “Thanks a lot.”

“You do look rough,” Erin notes.

“You work a midnight?” He questions.

I swallow. “Nah.” I could use that excuse but it's too easy to invalidate if he wanted. “I wonder if Dad would mind if I went ahead and put on coffee though.” Muttering it more to myself, I turn to the coffee pot on the back counter and starting preparing a pot.

“See?” Erin notes. “After thirty, it's one big downward spiral.”

“Not me,” Danny quips. “Some of us age into our good looks. Ain't that right, Lin?”

“Sure thing, hon,” his wife calls out from the stove in the corner where she works on the sauce.

My brother carries on. “Because I live an honest life--”

I glance up with a roll of my eyes. “Oh, here we go.”

“You don't see me out all hours of the night doing God knows what, missing family gatherings, can’t be bothered to shave--”

“Come on, Danny,” I duck my head away when he reaches out and knocks the back of his hand against my jaw amid Erin’s encouraging giggles. “Where have you seen me out at all hours of the night other than a late tour?”

“I haven't. But that’s the only explanation for this look--” He turns and with peeler in hand, gestures to my face. “What were you doing?”

“Nothing, jeez,” I contend as I return to the island.

“Or who?” Erin murmurs before she slides a chopped carrot into her mouth and coyly averts her gaze.

My brows draw together and I can feel my eyes widen at my sister. “Wh-at?”

“Ha!” Danny coughs. “Exactly.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Then I steal a piece of carrot for myself and crunch down on it.

“He thinks you have a girlfriend,” Erin provides.

“And I think I’ve narrowed it down,” my brother chimes in. “To Laura…”

My gaze narrows while I chew. “The M.E.?”

“Yep. Or--” He tilts his head side to side while he slides his chopped vegetables into the salad bowl. “That lawyer at the D.A.’s office. The cute one with the dark hair.”

Erin points to him. “Michelle. I planted that in your head. But she does have this sweet little crush on you any time you come by the courthouse.”

With a deep inhale, deciding to string Danny along about this, I fold my arms over my chest while I consider the possibilities. “Uh-huh. Where's your evidence?”

“Oh, I'm glad you asked,” He points to me. “For starters, you're way too damn happy considering the crap you gotta deal with all day--”

I scoff. “What, you want me to be depressed?”

“No, but there's been a change, and even your sergeant noticed and we don't appreciate the mystery,” Danny explains.

“Ah. Mm-hm, okay,” I muse. “Not sure that's a compelling argument.”

“Two. You got a picture on the inside of your locker at the precinct of a freakin’ sunrise on the beach. And another of a sunrise in the city from some kinda balcony--”

I can't help the amused breath that escapes with the knowing quirk of my smile. One of those, Noble took and the other, I took from his penthouse one morning and they're sort of the closest thing to him that I can have with me at work that would go unnoticed, mundane at a glance. At least I thought.

“So clearly I'm dating Laura from the M.E.’s office,” I suppose.

“I don't know but the day my kid brother has pictures hanging up of the damn sunrise is the day I start asking questions.”

“Oh, I think that's nice,” Linda speaks up.

Danny turns to regard her. “But this is Jamie we’re talking about.”

“How do you know what I have hanging in my locker?” I question.

“I got my sources.” He shrugs. “And third. I saw a pair of sunglasses in your car that no way you bought yourself. They were obviously a gift.”

“Damn.”

He points at me. “You would never buy Ray-Bans… turtle--” He turns to Erin. “What was it?”

“Tortoise shell Ray-Ban wayfarers,” she contributes. “I saw them. They're a good look but out of your price range.”

I tip my head up, letting out a disbelieving laugh. “You act like I dropped a grand on them or something.”

“Your broke ass would never is all I'm sayin’.”

“Danny--” Linda injects. “Lay off your brother.”

“Don't you agree--” Danny maintains. “That Jamie's been different? There's something going on.”

“He's not a suspect because he's happier, Danny,” she reasons.

“Yeah, Danny,” I agree. “Besides, if I had a girlfriend, why would I keep it from you?”

“Just to mess with me.”

I nod thoughtfully. “Well apparently I'm already doing a good job of that.”

“You got an alibi for Saturday morning?”

Dammit. My tired brain struggles for an excuse that doesn't involve other people he could check with, or does involve someone who'd corroborate if Danny did check. “Uh let's see. I went to the gym. I came home and ate oatmeal--”

“Alright smartass,” he dismisses while Erin laughs beside him.

“I had promised Vinny I'd help him tear out his floors,” I manage. “It took us half the day. That's why I didn't make Sean's game.” Thankfully Vinny really is renovating his kitchen because I wouldn't put it past Danny to drop in on his apartment just to check.

“Tearing out floors,” Danny confirms.

With a nod, I spread my hands as if that's all there is to it. “I'll try to act a little more hostile and bummed out, though. If it would get you off my case.”

“Thank you.”

Linda cuts in. “You two help me carry to the table.”

I reach between my siblings for the salad bowl and cut a disapproving shake of my head. “By the way, I would never date a medical examiner.”

#jamie x noble #now we're getting somewhere hmmmm?

[flowerfan2]

Bound To Be Together - Ch. 9

McDanno, M, A03 A continuous story of Season 9 codas exploring the bond between Steve and Danny as they grow even closer.

Chapter 9: 9.10

When Danny comes back from his trip to the mainland, Steve doesn’t meet him at the airport.  He isn’t sure he would be able to hold it together on the drive back with Danny and Grace, hearing all about the colleges Grace visited and her unbridled excitement for the future.  Seeing the pride in Danny’s eyes.  Not when Steve’s so strung out, so messed up.

But Steve knows when their flight lands.  Danny texts when he’s on his way over.  He’ll be here any minute.

Steve looks around his kitchen one more time, needing to make sure that there’s no trace of blood left behind, no glaring signs of the attack.  He hasn’t talked to Danny about it, although Steve knows Lou filled him in, once Danny was on his way back to the island already and the crisis was over.

He’s still glad he didn’t let Adam call Danny, even though Danny’s going to rip him a new one for it. At this point Steve probably won’t be able to feel it anyway.

With Joe’s last words, he had praised Steve for looking out for his people.  Steve’s going to take this as approval, from Joe at least, for his decision to keep Danny out of harm’s way this time.  He’ll take what he can get.

He can’t let himself think about whether they might have had better odds at the ranch if Danny had been there.  Because while that might be true, it also could have been Danny bleeding out on the floor, or with a fatal shot to the liver.  It might have been Danny that Steve said goodbye to on an empty field, with the sun painting pictures in the sky.

He can’t let himself think about it, but he’s thinking about it anyway, in whorls and circles and spirals that won’t let him rest.

 He hears the front door open and close, and sags with relief.

 “Hey, babe, it’s okay. It’s okay.”

 Strong arms wrap around his shoulders, and Steve digs his face into the thin fabric of Danny’s shirt. Steve’s thoughts quiet with Danny’s touch, and he wants to bury himself in him and never come out.

 “Kitchen’s floor’s not so comfortable.  How about we take this into the living room?”

 Steve doesn’t remember sliding to the floor.  But right now, he can’t be bothered to figure it out.  He lets Danny help him to his feet, and they stumble together to the couch, settling close, Steve clutching Danny’s shirt in his fists.

 “I’m so sorry about Joe,” Danny murmurs.  “So sorry. He was a good man.  I know how much he meant to you.”

 Steve starts to reply, and chokes on his words, swallowing them and rubbing his face against Danny’s chest.

 “For all his crazy, he was like a father to you.  You loved him, and he loved you too.”

 It’s like Danny can see straight into his heart, the wounded place still throbbing from his loss, and this makes Steve cry even harder.  Danny <i>knows</i> him.

 It’s what makes Joe’s death even worse, because Joe gave Steve the perfect opening to tell him about Danny, and Steve chickened out.  Steve’s falling apart, clinging to Danny like the proverbial lifeboat, counting on him to get him safely to shore.  But Steve is so used to hiding that he missed his chance to let Joe know that he isn’t alone.  Or to give Danny the credit he deserves.

 He’s not sure how to say any of this to Danny.  “I didn’t…” Steve starts.  “I should have…” But the tears are coming in earnest now, hard, wracking sobs, and he can’t get any words out.

 “Shh, it’s okay.  You’re okay.” Danny holds him and rubs his back, until Steve can finally catch his breath.

 “Danny, there’s something… I need to tell you something.”

 Danny sits back, and Steve can see now how wrecked he looks, too, dark circles under reddened eyes.    “Are you taking off again to an undisclosed location to be a target for armed thugs? Because if so, I really don’t want to hear it.”

 “No, I…”

 “Lou said you weren’t in any danger right now, that the Omar situation was under control.”

 “Yeah, as far as I know.”  Not in any more danger than usual, anyway.

 “Well then I vote we wait until morning, for…”  Danny lets out a long breath, and looks away from Steve, face drawn with exhaustion. “Well, for anything.  Especially talking.  Because I haven’t slept in a lot of hours, and I’m guessing you haven’t either.  And I don’t want to say anything I’ll regret.”

 Danny’s trying to tamp down his anger, Steve can tell, in the face of Steve’s abject sadness.  Steve gets it.  He’d be pissed, too, more than, if Danny had kept him in the dark about something that threatened his safety.  He figured at the time that Danny would get over it, but being face to face with Danny’s hurt and echoes of stale fear forces him to remember that there’s more than one way to lose him.

 But Danny’s still holding him, one arm around his shoulders, the other stroking restlessly down Steve’s uninjured arm.  He doesn’t seem to be going anywhere.

 “You’ll stay?”  Steve asks.

 Danny’s shoulders slump, and he bumps his forehead tiredly against Steve’s.  “’Course I’m gonna stay, you goof.  Least then it’ll be two against one if some hired assassin comes crashing through your door.  Again.”

 Steve musters what little energy he has left and stands, clasping Danny’s hand as he goes.  They make it upstairs and strip to their boxers without ceremony, climbing under the covers and arranging themselves close, Danny curled protectively around Steve.

 It reminds Steve of the night after the sensory deprivation tank, except then they hadn’t acknowledged what they felt for each other.  Suddenly it’s important to mark the difference, and Steve turns over, cradling Danny’s jaw and pulling him in for a long, hard kiss.

 “Mmm,” Danny hums, pulling back just enough to breathe, while letting his lips slide over Steve’s. “Love you.”

 Danny says it so easily, so matter of factly.  Not lightly – Steve knows Danny would never say it lightly.  But like it’s normal, obvious.  Like it goes without saying.

 Not tonight, though. “I love you too, Danny.  I should say it more often.  I shouldn’t be afraid to say it.”

 Danny, tired as he is, pushes at Steve’s arm and raises an eyebrow at him.  “What’s that supposed to mean?  You say it all the time.”

 Shit, Steve thinks. Sleeping first would probably have been a better idea.

 “Not where anyone else can hear it.”

 Danny starts to argue with him – because Steve has said “I love you” to Danny dozens of times in front of the team.  But not since they’ve been together.  Not with the new meaning, the “I’m in love with you” meaning.  

 Danny flops over on to his back.  “I really don’t think we should talk about this right now, babe.”

 “But I-“

 “We knew we were going to have to deal with it.  Whether to tell anyone, what to tell them.  But honestly, I am so sick with worry right now, worried about how you’re dealing with losing Joe and international terrorists being after you and your whole goddamn Seal team dying on you,” Danny barely pauses to catch a breath, “and at the same time I’m so fucking angry at you for letting me keep gallivanting through the ivy leagues while it all went down…  I really don’t think I could do my best work right now.”  Danny’s still gazing up at the ceiling, but he hasn’t let go of Steve, one hand latched on to Steve’s wrist.

 “Danny, please…” Steve doesn’t even know what he’s trying to say, just that he needs this not to break them, for it not to be too much for Danny to handle.  For Danny to keep understanding.

 Danny turns and looks at Steve, and then gathers him up in his arms.  It feels so good, the strength of Danny’s muscles holding him tight, his stubbly face against his cheek.  It’s an escape right now, he knows it, but he can’t bring himself to turn it away.  

 “I promise you, Steve, we’re gonna work this out,” Danny says, low and intense.  “Whatever you’re thinking, whatever you’re freaking out about, we’ll work it out.  Together. Like every other time.  Okay?”

 “Okay.”

 *****

Sleep had come faster than Steve had thought it would, and when he finally rouses, it’s to bright sunlight coming through the window and the aroma of strong coffee.

 Danny isn’t in bed any longer, but the mug on the nightstand is steaming so he must have just left it for Steve.  Steve hauls himself upright, his body aching and sore, and sips at the coffee until it’s cool enough to drink it down.

 He can hear Danny downstairs, muttering to himself about something and clicking away on his laptop, so he heads into the bathroom and takes a long, hot shower.  He puts off assessing all his cuts and bruises – there’s nothing major, which is a miracle, really – and dries quickly.  He takes a few minutes to shave.  Maybe if he looks presentable enough, Danny will go easy on him.

 Finally, after pulling on shorts and a t-shirt, Steve pads downstairs.

 Danny’s at the table, nodding as he types.

 “Work?”  Steve asks.

 “No.  Grace sent me a draft of one of her college essays.  She doesn’t like it when Rachel proofreads them, says she’s too picky.  She just wants to me to let her know ‘if it’s okay.’”  Danny looks up at Steve.  “I have no idea what she wants me to do.”

 Steve laughs at Danny’s perplexed expression, and it feels good.  Danny isn’t lying in wait to ambush him with accusations or threats. He’s just up early, bringing him coffee and emailing with Grace.  Danny’s here for him, just like he said he’d be.

 “Can we talk now?” Steve asks.  There’s not going to be a better time.

 “Sure.”  Danny turns back to his computer for a moment to save his work.

 “Outside?”

 Danny nods, and they go out on to the lanai.  Steve keeps walking down to the edge of the water, until the waves lap over his feet. Danny follows him, hands in his pockets.

 “You’re doing my laundry,” Danny says conversationally, as he comes up to Steve and bumps their arms together.  The waves are soaking the hems of his jeans.  The fact that Danny isn’t protesting more says something about the progress of their relationship that Steve can’t parse right now.

 The sea is glinting in the early morning sun, and the air is already warm.  Steve curls his toes in the sand, feels the soft grit against his skin.

 “Joe’s been living in Nairobi.  Not consulting anymore.”

 Steve’s not looking at Danny, but out of the corner of his eye, he sees him tilt his head, listening.

 “He’s got – had – a girlfriend.  Zahra.” It feels important to say her name. “He told me-” Steve’s voice catches, and he swallows and goes on.  “He told me not to wait as long as he did to find someone.  Said he sat out too long, and I shouldn’t do the same thing.”

 Squaring his shoulders, he turns to face Danny.  “I should have told him, then, about you and me.  I didn’t.”

 Steve sees Danny take this in, turn it over in his head.  He thinks he can pinpoint the moment Danny decides how to respond.  But what Danny says couldn’t have surprised him more if he’d dove into the ocean and swam away like a mermaid.

 “Why?”

 “What?”

 “Why, exactly,” Danny says, moving in front of Steve and putting his hands on his forearms, “why <i>should</i> you have told him?”

 “’Cause it’s not fair to you.  It’s not… right.”

 Danny shakes his head a little, not satisfied with this.  “I’m not upset about that.  That doesn’t bother me, you know that.  That isn’t the issue.  Try again. Why isn’t it right?”

 “Because – it’s just wrong.” And Danny’s right, that’s not the only problem with Steve’s silence.  “Joe wants – wanted  - me to be happy.  I should have told him I was happy.”

 “Are you happy?”

 Steve’s chest clenches. “You know I am.”

 Danny nods, not arguing, a little smile reflecting how this thought could derail the conversation.  Danny does know, and fuck, if that doesn’t mean a lot.

 “You really think Joe didn’t know that?  That you’re in a good place?  That you’re living a good life?”  Danny asks.

 Steve thinks back on their conversations at the ranch, and at the end, by the ponderosa pine.  About Joe’s reassurance that Steve took care of his “people.”  And about an earlier conversation that day, where Joe got him talking about what was going on in his life, and Steve told him all about how he and Danny were famous comic book heroes now, about Charlie’s favorite bedtime story, about how Grace is sailing through high school.

 “I dunno.  Maybe.”

 “Would it make you feel better to tell him?”

 Steve looks at Danny like he’s nuts, but Danny is being serious.  “It’s too late.”

 “Is it?”  Danny reaches over and cups Steve’s cheek.  “You can tell him now.  Or not.  But there’s no ‘should’ in this, no right and wrong.  This – what we have-”  Danny motions between them, then grabs Steve’s hand, “this is ours.”

 Danny pulls Steve down for a kiss, one that leaves no room for doubt.  “We will tell people when and if we’re ready.  The fact that we haven’t done it yet doesn’t make it any less real. Does that work for you?  ‘Cause it works for me.”

 Steve feels something inside him release, something hurtful and worrisome float away on the waves, washed away by the force of Danny’s belief in him.  In them, together.  “Yeah, Danny. That works for me.”

 Steve wraps an arm around Danny’s shoulder, tugging him close, and looks out over the water.  It’s an entirely different view than sunset over the field by Joe’s land, but just like that was for Joe, this place is home for Steve.  With this man.  No matter who knows it.

#H50 #mcdanno #episode coda #9.10 #my fic

[st0pbeingsad]

Part 4

The next thing I know you’re extending your hand towards me to help you up. I grab your hand and you lead me inside. You open the door and I notice the apartment is trashed. The pillows and blankets you had placed on the couch so perfectly earlier in the evening are thrown about the living room. There are beer bottles precariously placed on the glass coffee table. Leaving rings around where the condensation has formed. I look at your face and I can see that your hurt. Maybe just frustrated which is understandable. 

“Hey. Just breath. I’ll help clean this up and then we can focus on you “making tonight worth it” I laughed which I can tell it took you by surprise. You walk ahead of me and I smacked your ass. Which is perfect by the way. The jeans your wearing make it pop. I’m surprised I haven’t noticed it this whole night.

You turned back towards me and mouth “come here” 

I instantly feel butterflies but I do as you asked. You’re inches from my mouth and you whisper  “When I promise to do something I follow through, and I promise tonight will be worth it”

I swear my heart skipped a beat. I gave a very breathy “okay” and watched you turn back around and head into the kitchen. 

My face is flushed as I’m trying to clean up Danny’s mess. Figuratively and metaphorically. I ditch the beer bottles in an empty trash bag. Replace all the pillows to their rightful place, and fold the blankets and place them back on the couch. I straighten up the xbox controllers that were scattered about, and bring the half eaten chip bowl into the kitchen. I just stood in the entry way for a second and watched you do the dishes. You tied your hair up into the most beautiful messy bun I had ever see. The back of your neck is exposed and I can see you have a tattoo of a starfish. It made me wonder what other surprises you were full of. 

You turned around. I guess you felt me staring at you. “ Don’t worry Sam. I’m almost done and then I’m all yours. Why don’t you go get changed into something a little more comfortable. The bedroom is down the hall to the left.”

I cautiously walked into your bedroom. Exploring my surroundings along the way. The hallway was filled with blown up prints of castles from all around the world. More notably though. On your bedroom wall there was a picture of you and a women who I’m assuming is your mom with a quote above it saying “Death leaves us heartache no one can heal:Love leaves a memory no one can steal” Which I felt was tragically beautiful.

As I’m staring at the picture I notice I didn’t bring anything to stay the night with. My anxiety heightens and I can’t believe I did this to myself. She sent me in here to “get more comfortable” and now I’m the most uncomfortable I’ve ever been. 

The only thing I can think to do is slip off this dress. While I watched it cascade to the floor and form a perfect circle below my feet The only thing I can be happy about is that my bra and underwear match. Though its more of lingerie. The red lace clings comfortably to my body, but since its lace everything is very VERY see through. I hear you coming down the hall so I quickly settle into your bed and throw the blanket over myself to make myself feel a little less exposed.

As you entered the room I see you look at the dress on the floor and then advert your eyes towards me. “Sam..did you have anything to change into?” Your face is showing the hints of a smile, but it’s hard to tell because the lights are very dim. I shake my head slowly.

“So why are you hiding under the blankets?”

“I mean I wouldn’t say its any less comfortable. I just forgot to bring a change of clothes, so I just decided to not wear any.” 

You walk towards the edge of the bed and say “Will you show me?” 

Your voice is so low it’s almost impossible to hear you, but I take the covers off of me and watch your eyes widen and your face instantly fill with need. The fact that your looking at me like this would normally make me feel awkward, but I want to relish in the feeling. You’re looking at me like I’m the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen.

You climb onto the bed and are sitting right next to me, but this tension between us is killing me. I can’t believe I want you this bad already. My head is spinning.

I reach out and find my hands wandering up your shirt. Your skin is warm compared to my hands. “Lift up your arms. I want to see you too.” You do as your told and as I peel off your shirt I just know I have the dumbest grin on my face. I swear your skin is glowing. 

My hands reach around you to unhook the only layer of clothing sitting between us. I unhook your bra and watch you slowly remove it. I can’t stop staring at your body. I’m usually not this superficial, but I swear to god you’re damn near perfect. I run my hands slowly across your nipples and watch your head fall back. I place a free hand behind your neck and bring your lips closer to mine. “Are you going to make beg..” my words were breathy but I think you got the message.

You lean forward and kiss me hard. It’s full of passion and heat. As your tongue enters my mouth I swear my body fills with the electricity flowing between us. Your supporting my back and pressing my body into yours but I know it’s my turn to make you happy. I apply more pressure and lay you down on the bed. All my body weight is on you now. I adjust my legs so they’re on either side of you but we never seem to break our kiss. I take your hands and pin them above your head. I don’t think you’re used to be submissive, but I’m enjoying this so much. While I’m hovering over you I feel you trying to break free of my grip. I break our kiss and say “please just let me fuck you.” You just nod silently and you stop struggling, but I can tell this is new for you.

I take off your belt on your pants and use it to tie your hands together. I can’t take any chances of you ruining this perfect moment for me. Just as I’m tightening the belt you moan. Your moan is all the confirmation in the world that this is okay. I work my way down your body with my soft kisses but tell you to stay right where you are and not to move. I quickly remove myself off your body and scurry into the kitchen. I go back into the bedroom with my ice cubes from the freezer. The look on your face was priceless. I straddle you and say “I hope this is okay” in the softest voice I could put together.

“Just don’t get mad when I’m screaming your name” she winked at me and I just knew at that moment that my underwear were soaked through. Fuck you are so hot. I place an ice cube right in the middle of your chest and your back arches immediately. I pick the ice cube up with my teeth and begin to slowly tease your nipples with the hot sensation of my breath and the cold drips of the ice cube melting in my mouth. Your breath is become so shallow but deep at the same time. I know how much this is turning you on which is just turning me on even more.

I slide the ice cube down the rest of your torso and your body arches. The ice cube is melted by this point but it’s just in time for me to unbutton your pants and shimmy them off your body. Turns out you wernt wearing anything under them this whole time. So now I’m just staring at your beautiful freshly shaved body. Everything looks so soft and smooth and I really can’t wait to bury my face in you and taste everything I’ve caused to happen.

I run a few fingers down your hips and down to your thighs. I grab your thighs and force them open enough for my body to slip right between them. You moan a little louder and it makes me so lightheaded just to hear you. My lips meet the inside of your thighs and my teeth give you soft bites. I work my weight back up to your center, and my tongue slowly finds your clit. You taste like summer. You’re sweet and salty, with your own special flavor that’s so fucking good. I position my arms right under your legs and hike them up a bit and pull you closer to my mouth. I start with slow circles. Massaging you with my mouth is doing something magical for you which makes me want to pick up speed. Your hips are moving with my rythum. You’re making this a beautiful moment for me. I keep with my original speed but I feel you getting close, but I’m not done with you yet. I raise my head and whisper “you’re not allowed to cum yet babe. You need to wait until I say you’re ready” I hear you moan in response. I position my head back in between your thighs but instead I just hover right above your clit and steady my breathing. I slowly slip two curved fingers inside you and I lower my face back into you. Resuming my original speed with my tongue. I pick up speed with my fingers and before I know it I hear you stop breathing and I feel you tighten around me. I know how bad you need this. I say between strokes “okay. You can cum now” and before I was finished with my sentence you released the most beautiful sound I’ve ever heard.

“Fuckkkkkkk Sam....fuck me please fuck me”

Your words make me move faster until my face is covered with your sweetness. I hear you moan after you’ve finished and you’re pulling me up to tell me you’ve had enough.

I settle in with my head on your chest and I can tell you have the biggest smile on your face.

“Jesus Christ. Is sex with you always that good?” you said in between breaths.

“Well I guess you’re just going to have to find out”

[dontcareajot]

( @lygerzero14 thanks for the prompt! It fits the pairing so well 💕)

When Brian had made the decision to leave, he’d hoped there might be some way he and Danny could cling to their relationship. That maybe, by some miracle, long distance might work out for them. But they hadn’t even gotten to try.

When Brian broke the news to him, Danny cried. He tried not to, Brian could see the internal war playing out across his face, but eventually he broke down. He curled into himself so Brian wouldn’t see, brought his knees to his chest and his hands to his eyes. Brian tried to soothe, to make promises, to say what Danny wanted to hear- but Danny was having none of it. After the initial sadness came anger. He lashed out, and where usually he would be blindly optimistic he was now hopelessly entrenched in a feeling of betrayal and loss, and there was nothing Brian could say to bring him out of it.

On the day of departure, Brian couldn’t deny there was a not-so-small part of him that hoped Danny would show up to see him off. He kept glancing around, hoping to catch sight of him, and even kept checking his phone for at least a goodbye text. As he was boarding, still with no sign of Danny, he had to let go of that hope, and it left him feeling hollow, bottomed out. When he’d initially pictured starting this new chapter of his life, going on this new adventure, he’d pictured Danny by his side. It felt wrong to be leaving him behind.

As the weeks went by and Brian still didn’t hear from Danny, he discovered it felt even worse to think Danny could so easily move on. For the first several days Brian would jump every time he got a text, quietly hoping it was Danny messaging him to make amends. But, of course, it was never Danny, and eventually Brian stopped hoping.

By the time Danny actually texts, Brian’s completely given up on the idea. So much so that he has to look twice at the name on his phone and it still doesn’t really register until he opens the message and sees all their other messages, the last few of which are from Brian, begging Danny to talk to him and receiving no response. The newest one, from Danny, simple says, Hey.

Another one comes in as Brian is watching. This one reads, Can I call you?

Brian brings his laptop closer to him and taps out a reply on his phone. Skype.

He waits to see what Danny will say or do with a racing heartbeat. It’s been a few months since he last talked to Danny, never mind saw him. He’s not sure what to expect, or how he should be feeling. When the skype call comes through, he accepts it with shaking fingers.

Danny appears on his screen looking grainy and disheveled. His hair has gotten longer and it’s clearly been a while since he last shaved. He looks a little frayed around the edges. Tired. But oh-so-familiar and definitely still lovely in his own way. He’s wearing a t-shirt Brian gave him almost two years ago. When he sees Brian he smiles, small and hesitant.

“Hi,” Brian says. Just looking at Danny is somehow both painful and euphoric. Memories that Brian’s been trying to block out for months now all come swirling back. He’d be lying if he said he wasn’t a little angry at Danny, but he also just… Misses him. Plain and simple.

“Brian,” Danny says, sounding relieved. “It’s so good to hear your voice, man. I thought, like… I mean, I was scared you wouldn’t want to talk to me.”

Brian swallows. “What do you want, Danny?”

Danny deflates a little. “I just…” He sighs, scrubs a hand over his beard. “I feel like such an idiot, Bri. I know it’s a fuckin’ cliché but I’m a mess without you here, man. And I’ve been thinking about texting you for months now-“

“So why didn’t you?”

There’s a pause. Then, “I don’t- I don’t know.” Another pause. Danny bites his lip. He says, “You know, the day you left… I tried to find you. At the airport.”

Brian frowns, remembering the hopeless way he’d kept looking for Danny, kept expecting him to show up, only to be disappointed.

Danny chuckles, a self-derisive laugh if Brian’s ever heard one. He explains, as if he’s reading Brian’s mind, “I was too late. Your flight was already gone.”

“So why didn’t you contact me?” Brian asks. Even if Danny didn’t want to try a long distance relationship, they still could’ve remained friends. Or tried to, at the very least. Brian feels like they owed each other that, after everything they’ve been through.

Danny palms the back of his neck. “I guess I… Took it as a sign, you know? That, like, I was supposed to move on or whatever.” He shakes his head. “Fuck that, though. I’ve been trying, and being here without you, not even talking to you, fucking sucks.”

Brian flashes back to the last time they spoke in person. To Danny crying. Knowing Danny’s history with long distance relationships, he can’t blame him for being upset. It still stings, though, that Danny was so quick to dismiss the possibility.

Maybe Brian is quiet for too long because Danny starts to babble, clearly nervous. “Look, I’m not- I’m not asking you to take me back. I know that’s… A little much. I just wanted to say I’m sorry, and I understand why you had to leave. Like, I get it. And I was being a selfish asshole.” He admits, sheepishly, “I just miss my best friend.”

Brian heaves a sigh. Danny looks nothing but earnest. “You’re a dick,” he says, not unkindly. “But I miss you, too.”

Despite the insult, or perhaps because of it, Danny lights up. He smiles, wide and genuine, for the first time. It’s infectious. Brian finds himself returning the smile. He quickly adds, “You’ve got gray in your beard, asshole.”

Danny’s smile falters. He leans closer to his computer, examining himself. “Do I?” he asks. Then, “It makes me look distinguished, right?”

Brian rolls his eyes. “Yes, princess,” he says, but it’s fond. It’s only the beginning of making amends but Brian already feels so much lighter. A weight he wasn’t even aware he was carrying around has been lifted. Now if he could just convince Danny to come visit him…

[more prompt fills]

[If you like what I do, please consider buying me a coffee!]

#ninja ship party #polygrumps #shipgrumps #drabbles

[alchemine]

time travel fic redux

In which Jo is jealous of her other self and Danny ponders the consequences of being stuck in 1985. 

previously on: part 1 | part 2  | part 3 | part 4 | part 5 | part 6 | part 7 | part 8

“It means the me you know in the future isn’t really me at all, she’s someone else. That’s why she didn’t tell you about this. It never happened to her.” 

“We don’t know if it’s true, though,” Danny said. He could see Jo starting to get upset, which in his experience meant navigating a fine line between using a calm voice to talk her down from the ledge, and pissing her off by coming across as if he were trying to manage her. “David said it was just a theory, and even he’s only half a physicist by your own assessment.”

Jo shook her head, her face set in stony lines of certainty that made her look years older than he knew she was. “I don’t think it’s just a theory. I think it’s right.”

“Why?”

“Because I know myself, Danny. I know people change over time–God knows someone tells me every day that I’ll change my mind about this or that when I’m older–but I can’t see myself ever changing so much that I’d keep a secret like this from you. I don’t have a problem with bending the truth for the right reasons, but I don’t lie to people I really care about. Does the Jo you know in the future do that?”

Danny hesitated, not sure how to answer. He could have listed off dozens of times when Future Jo had put on a winsome smile and deliberately misdirected someone to get a particular result, but it was true that she was usually honest with him. The only time he could remember her actively trying to deceive him was when her drinking had been at its worst, and she hadn’t been herself then.

“Not really,” he said.

“See?” A bus rumbled past, its backdraft whirling discarded handbills and empty crisp packets along the road behind it, and Jo hunched up her shoulders and pushed her hands deep into her pockets. “A real Future Me would have told you, because that’s what I would do. I’ve got no idea how I’d bring it up without sounding completely delusional, but I’d find a way. Future Me didn’t tell you, therefore Future Me doesn’t know, therefore Future Me is not me. Q.E.D.”

Danny scratched at his cheek, where the three days’ worth of stubble was getting ideas about turning into an actual beard. He hadn’t bought a razor, thinking he might be home before he had to shave, but it seemed things weren’t going to work out that way. “Okay, so what if she’s not? What if David’s right and this is an alternate timeline that split off when I came here? Does it make a difference?”

“It’s just…if I’m not the person you know, that means we’re not friends really.” Jo bit her lip. “It’s too bad. I was starting to like being your friend.”

“You are,” Danny said firmly. “It doesn’t matter if I’m going to know this version of you in the future or not, I know you right now, and that’s all that matters.”

“Don’t,” Jo said, pained.

“Don’t what?”

“Don’t call me that. I’m not a version. I’m me.”

“Well, I’m a version too,” Danny pointed out. “There’s another one of me in this timeline, even if he is still wearing trainer pants. But no matter what, the Danny and Jo who are standing here right now are friends, all right?

“All right.”

“Look at how much you’ve helped me. I’d be starving and freezing to death under a bridge without you.” He gazed down at her, huddled into her army jacket against the cold; dark wisps of escaped hair blowing round her face as the wind picked up. “Speaking of which, we’ll both freeze to death if we stay out here much longer, but we’ve got to talk about what to do next. If you still want to help, that is. I’ll understand if you don’t.”

“I promised I would, didn’t I?” Jo pulled her hands out of her pockets and pushed up a sleeve to look at her watch. “I’ve got an hour and a bit before I need to be home. Where do you want to talk? I’m not going back in there.” She nodded toward the door of the café.

“Back to the hostel,” Danny said. “Come on, we’ll get the next bus.”

Jo wasn’t allowed in the all-male dormitory, so they helped themselves to the hostel’s free coffee and went into its lounge, which was painted in horrible shades of electric pink and blue, and had long benches with vinyl cushions that wheezed when you sat on them. At this point in the early evening, most hostel guests were still out exploring and the lounge was mainly vacant, but a mixed group on the far side of the room had seized control of the communal stereo and were blasting a Dire Straits album, inadvertently but helpfully providing cover for a private conversation.

“Here, this’ll do.” Danny sat down in a corner where two benches met, then leant over, snaffled an empty ashtray from the next table and put it in front of Jo, who gave him a rather pale smile.

“I thought you wanted me to get off them.”

“Not while you’re looking so shaky. Drink your coffee too, it’ll warm you up.” To set a good example, he gulped some of his own coffee, which was weak sauce compared to the stuff that Scott’s French press put out and the triple-shot lattes he bought for Future Jo on his way into work every morning, but was still hot and better than nothing.

“I ought to have stayed in the café.” Jo leant against the high back of the bench and exhaled smoke at the ceiling. “David’s probably phoning his sister right now to tell her I’m losing it. He might even be right.”

“You’re not losing it.”

“You say that as if you’ve seen me really lose it.”

“I have, and you’re not there yet,” Danny said. “Want to hear what else David told me after you went outside?”

“I’m not sure I want to, but I think I need to.” She tucked her feet up underneath her and lit another fag off the end of her first one. “Let’s hear it.” 

“He said the way to get back to the original timeline was to go to the place where the split happened and try to recreate those conditions.”

Jo frowned. “Wasn’t that your brother’s flat, or what’s going to be his flat in the future?”

“Yup.”

“Only you said someone else lives there. How are you going to explain that you need to sit on their sofa in the middle of the night and wait for a time vortex to swoop you up?” Jo drank some coffee and pulled a face. “God, this is awful. If you wanted to settle my nerves, we could have gone for a real drink. I am eighteen, you know, not twelve.”

“Maybe later,” Danny said. Given what David had told them about diverging timelines, he didn’t know whether this version of Jo was going to develop a drink problem or not, but he wasn’t going to contribute to the possibility. “And I’ve got no idea how I’m going to explain it. I’m pure pants at that sort of thing. You always see right through me when I try to make up excuses.”

“Not me,” Jo said softly. She dug at the rim of her coffee cup with her thumbnail, making a ring of crescent-shaped gouges in the polystyrene. “Her. The other me.”

“I’m pretty sure every one of you is cleverer than every one of me, so it’s all the same,” Danny said. “On that note, I don’t suppose you’ve got any brilliant ideas?”

“My brain’s on empty at the moment. I’ll be lucky to remember how to get home.” Jo carved a letter J into the side of the cup like a monogram.

“Well, think about it and tell me tomorrow,” Danny said. He reached over and took away the cup before she poked a hole right through it, and she let it go without protest, her thoughts clearly on something else.

“Do we have until tomorrow? I mean, he didn’t say there’s a time limit, did he? Like the farther you’ve gone in time from the split, the harder it is to go back?”

“He didn’t, but I didn’t ask.” Danny drank the rest of his coffee, which really was as bad as she’d said, and tossed his empty cup and her half-full one into a nearby bin. Across the room, the group with the stereo got to the end of Dire Straits and after a short argument about what to listen to next, put on Tears for Fears instead. “We are financially limited, though. As cheap as this place is, you still can’t pay for me to stay here forever.”

“You could find a job,” Jo said. “Do you know how to do anything besides being an MP’s researcher?”

“No,” Danny admitted.

“Well,” Jo said with the hint of a smile, “if you’d like to wait another fifteen years, I’ll be happy to review your CV.”

“Ha ha, funny girl.”

She’d been teasing, but for the first time, Danny found himself really thinking about what would happen if he simply couldn’t go home again–it would probably be easier to set up a false identity in this pre-Internet age than it would be in his own time, but then what would he do? Get another degree? Learn a trade? He couldn’t work in any sort of political role, where it would eventually become obvious that there were two of him, unless he found the Danny Foster who lived here at some critical point in his education and convinced him to do something else.

“It’s almost six, I’ve got to leave,” Jo said, interrupting his musings. “I’ll have to go to school in the morning tomorrow–no missing Mass on Fridays during Lent–but I’ll get away as soon as I can after and meet you here.” She gathered up her shoulder bag and held it on her lap. “I wish I could phone you if I thought of something brilliant in the night.”

“I do too,” Danny said. “It’d give me something to do besides listening to the drunks in the next bunk over. They look like a couple of Norse gods, and apparently they quaff ale like them too.”  

That made Jo really laugh for the first time in hours, and Danny grinned, relieved to see her feeling better. No matter the timeline or version, he just wanted her to be all right.

#it's cracky crackfiiiiiic #party animals #danny foster #jo porter #fanfiction

[jennyferjones]

October 18, 2017

Hey. It’s been a minute. I’m not sure why I am here. Not just on tumblr - but here in this moment, in this state of mind.. just here. I spent most of yesterday sobbing and well it got better and I felt okay again.. I woke up this morning, groggy from wine but I was stoked. Today is my last day off and I get to spend it exploring LA and treating myself to adventures because you always said self love is important but suddenly, the sadness took over, again. I have never had this much time to just hang out with myself and some days it is so refreshing and exciting and I keep learning so much about myself and other days I get stuck in a trance of overthinking to a point where I am constantly questioning my sanity and my purpose. Rewind - “why are you sad Jen?”I am sad because I lost the the greatest dad I could have ever dreamed of about a month ago. I am sad because I am going to a wedding in less than 3 weeks and weddings used to be one of my favorite events to attend but this time... i’m terrified. I want to feel happiness for the bride and congratulate her but deep inside I am screaming at the top of my lungs for him to come back because you promised me we would slow dance and then break out with our disco moves. This post is not for me. This post is me needing you, papa bear. You know I prefer to write in journals but my hands are shaky and you always told me that you loved my hand writing and that when I become a nurse or a teacher.. they would too. The other day, my car was making a funny noise and I immediately grabbed my phone to call you but it went to voicemail. I’m so confused. We made it through Maya, you were our strength.. OUR GLUE.. our king. You came out of nowhere and gave Natalie and I, a FATHER. Beyond the father we always dreamt of.  You gave us 2 more siblings and those two rascals saved my life and continue to inspire me and motivate me every single day. Who is going to show Danny Jr. how to shave? What if he has questions? Remember when you would force me to sit in the garage to show me how to change a flat tire and check my brake liquid? I wasn’t always paying attention. You were my google. Remember when I decided to get into Buddhism and you started buying Buddhas for the house? && when you shaved your hair for Maya but low key said you can maybe also pull off being a monk. Remember when you used my Spotify to listen to meditation tracks? I laughed hysterically in the car picturing you sitting in your ridiculous Marvel t-shirts in the living room cross legged and humming. You know I’m no good at choosing the “right people” to date. I need your approval. I know I’ll always have it because you’ve always accepted me for me. I pray that I will be lucky enough to meet someone that was as noble and honest and youthful as you. I pray that when I have my own rascals, that he/ she will stay up playing ridiculous video games with them. I pray that they will be patient and present the way you were. Obviously no one will ever be as good at Legos as you.. but you promised me you would build me a house and for goodness sake, we both know that the “Noah’s” from the Notebook are extinct now. I remember when you first came into our lives - I constantly told you I hated you and that you would never be my dad. Boy were my pubescent hormones feisty. I remember when you picked me up from HS on your motorcycle and I was SO embarrassed because of your ridiculous grin when you saw me walking out because YOU KNEW how terrified I was of motorcycles but the next day of course, everyone started a rumor that a very handsome man picked silly emo me on a bike and right now, I would give and do anything to have you pick me up on that bike except the ridiculous grin would be on me. I cannot honestly say mom will ever find anyone as perfect as you because there will never exist a man that can replace you, but I pray that you give mom the strength to be okay. I pray that she will find happiness again. I promise your cubs will drown her in love and take turns bringing her flowers like you did. I miss you. I am going to buy the Bee-gees vinyl today and get a pack of our favorite beer and I will smile because you must be watching down on us right? I want to say I’m sorry I haven’t been on my best behavior but you KNOW I was a born a wild child. I made you a promise. I am going to keep that promise. Thank you, dad. Thank you for everything that you were and are for us. Thank you for being the best papa bear and hey, your cubs are gong to be just fine. You left us a QUEEN and we all know she stays slayin. I have so much more to tell you but for now... I love you. See ya later alligator? 

#personal #grief

[deviantordivine]

part 2

Blake

Blake sat on the steps of the agora, his back to the entrance. He was near one of the white marble columns, thicker than tree trunks and almost as tall as the old firs that blanketed the hills near his winter estate. He sat still enough that he could have been mistaken for one of the statues that lined the perimeter of the grand temple. Even if he’d positioned himself in the middle where a growing crowd of Vessels had gathered and now mingled, he knew his presence wasn’t exactly welcome. He wasn’t exactly a mingler, either.

He could just imagine the unease rolling off the other Vessels as they regarded him, trying to figure out what he would do.

I’m not like that-- like him, he argued to his imaginary scenario.

He sat, his head resting on his clasped hands portraying a look of false serenity. He almost looked like he was praying and not nursing a wicked hangover. He had mastered this stillness from years of toeing the line between outcast and loner. He figured it was easier for everyone if the young Vessel of Hades wasn’t that visible. He learned to absorb noise and release nothing, even in the last couple of months when his circle of friends started to grow.

He always felt like boulder in a room of earthquakes. A room of noise and excitement that echoed and multiplied until it was unbearable-- until he cracked.

Kat understood this a little bit--and drinking ambrosia always helped ease that destructive teetering he felt in big groups.

Today there wasn’t any ambrosia so he took what precautions he could. Isolation and a dark pair of sunglasses would get him through today’s Induction.

He was always losing his footing. Not anymore, he promised himself.

Blake could hear Danny’s fluttering feet before he sat down. Danny wasn’t exactly what he would call subtle, his long limbs and curly russet hair making him stick out. That and the fact that he utilized his ability to fly whenever he could. Where Blake wasn’t generous with his movement, Danny was teetering with energy; his gawky body almost vibrating with the need to stay in motion.

“Hey!” Danny said grinning. Danny was easy to smile, in almost all situations, unlike Blake. “Have you heard who they think is coming? I saw that Ares kid with the shaved head taking bets. I didn’t, obviously, but my money’s on another Zeus-- if the crowd is anything to go by. They don’t announce open attendance for just anybody.”

Danny had a way of steamrolling through a conversation without actually noticing he was doing it. It suited Blake fine because that meant that he didn’t really have to contribute that often. His head and jaw ached and talking was an effort.

“I have no idea.” And I don’t really care.

But he had to admit that Danny was right. Usually only the mayor and the most powerful Vessels get to witness an Induction and welcome a new arrival, which unfortunately for Blake, meant him. As the Vessel of Hades, god of death, he had a standing invitation to basically every important ritual in New Olympus-- whether he or anyone else wanted him to attend.

And since he had been to every Induction since he was Inducted himself when he was eight, he knew what Vessels were represented. Almost everyone if he remembered correctly. Blake’s stomach did a queasy flip flop. Almost.  He tried not to push that thought out of his mind.

“You’re probably right,” Blake said. “Not that we need another Zeus running around. Martin and Harvey are more than enough.”

“True. I just hope the Gift is a good one.” Danny continued, “Elliot’s was the worst, remember? I smelled like fish for a week.”

Poseidon had to have a twisted sense of humor to flood the agora with seawater and seaweed. Blake could almost smell the fishy reek it left in his clothes through multiple washes. He had to throw out his favorite hoodie.

“That was pretty bad.” Blake said, lifting his head. He finally swept his gaze across the temple, taking in the crowd.

He could spot Harvey mingling with a crowd in the middle like he was already mayor, all smiles firm handshakes. The sleet colored suit he wore was fitted to his tall frame, making him seem older than seventeen, and his silver lightning bolt cufflinks flashed with his hands. There weren’t really elections-- no one really cared to go against a Vessel of Zeus for mayor-- but he had a sharp smile on his face like he was campaigning anyway.

Even though he was in the thick of crowd, talking to a some older Vessels Blake didn’t know, Harvey’s friends weren’t too far away. Blake spotted Bianca’s periwinkle curls easily. She was near the middle as she laughed at something Minnie said. Minnie tilted her head up to Bianca and if anyone didn’t know her they would think she was angry, her mouth set and her eyebrows furrowed. But her best friend Bianca had to cover her face with her hand in order to control her laughter. She even clapped a hand onto Mason’s shoulder, his golden glow rising off his skin as he too laughed at whatever Minnie said to them.

They turned their heads with smiles on their faces as Elliot called to them. He pushed his way through the crowd, dark spots forming on his sweater where his dark, wet hair curled onto it. Years of being stuck in class with this group gave Blake an odd feeling when he watched them. He wasn’t their friend, but he knew them pretty well. He guessed it was like watching a group of friends of a television show grow up. He doubted they knew anything about him-- and he didn’t plan on telling them anything. 

Blake peeked at Danny from the corner of his eye and saw how he tried to look like he was scanning the room too, but his eyes kept catching on Bianca. Blake looked away to hide his smirk.

I guess childhood crushes don’t die down so easily.

Blake skipped over Alicia in the corner smoking by a pillar, a blush blooming up his cheeks. He didn’t know much about women’s clothes, but he guessed that the gauzy pink and ostrich feather gown think she was wearing wasn’t exactly day wear. He absentmindedly wondered where her Hephaestus was, or her Ares for that matter.

Farther away was the actual mayor Martin, watching over like a general surveyed a battleground. He looked at Blake for a second, then looked away. Blake could have sworn the sides of Martin’s mouth quirked up just a hair. What was that prick up to?

No wonder Kat and the rest of them never showed up to things like this.

It reminded Blake of the part he had to play, the ever present shadow they lived in. Not as much the shadow of the gods they served, but the myth of the gods themselves. Being in such a large gathering of Vessels felt like echoes of all of the past Vessels were there as well, taking up the precious air in the agora and leaving Blake to choke.

In other words, his hangover had not gone away.

“It’s nearly sunset.” Danny said without looking at the sun behind him. He was hyper aware of time, sometimes to the second, even though he didn’t wear a watch. Blake could see the burnt orange tint of the light cast through the gaps in the columns. The new Vessel should be here any moment. 

Danny drummed his hands on his thighs. He coughed. “So, do you think that there’s going to be something at Bianca’s later?  You know we could just check it out, for like five seconds, it's probably not our scene anyway but--”

Danny’s voice died down or rather Blake stopped being able to hear him as his entire being was focused on the crowd parting. The crowd silenced and parted for the figure walking to the middle of marble space. Blake could only see the back of her head-- could barely register the thick dark curls crowned in sugar-white flowers-- because he felt like he was sinking underwater, everything felt cold and numb and alive all at the same time. 

Every hair in his body was raised and he knew a god’s presence had joined the Vessels. The Induction was beginning. The crowd felt it as well, looking around as the air became heavier. Blake didn’t bother looking around-- gods didn’t take corporeal forms at Inductions. If Blake was the praying type he would have asked that his guess was wrong, that it was another god who had come to give their god.

Any other god. Please.

Time slowed down, or maybe everything was normal and it was his heart that was jackhammering so fast time couldn’t keep up. He was surprised the foundation didn’t shake as he tried to get a grip on himself.

Everyone was kneeling, their arms outstretched to her. She had turned around, confusion written on her face. A distant part of Blake’s brain wondered how she could become a Vessel at her age. She looked like she was in her late teens, like Blake.

His mouth was dry and his breath uneven. He felt like he was unraveling.

Get a grip! He clenched his hands into fists until he was sure he broke skin. He could barely feel Danny’s hand clasping his shoulder and whispering to him, asking what was wrong. Blake couldn’t answer-- he didn’t trust his words. No one but Danny noticed Blake’s distress.

Martin was almost done with the ceremonial greeting, his voice booming out. “-and in our fortune we have found a new Vessel. One who will uphold the wills of the gods, and grant them the power they deserve. Your fate has been carved into Mount Olympus itself.”  

He smiled and Blake gritted his teeth like he was preparing for impact. This was it. This could be the moment that changed everything. Blake clenched his jaw, willing himself not to lose his footing, like he promised.

“Leila, you are to receive your gift as the new Vessel of Persephone. Let fate smile upon you.” Gasps echoed through the atrium like a flock of birds taking flight and then cries of shock as a rumbling sound erupted through the agora. 

The ground and the columns shook and the marble tiles cracked around them as vines broke from the floor and snaked their way up the columns. The vines were as thick as ropes and as they snaked their way up, flowers grew and bloomed. Flowers in shades of blues, purples, yellows, and pinks opened their petals. Blake didn’t know what any of them were but he wasn’t sure that they're supposed to grow the size of his head.

The rumbling continued and the crown formed a ring around the mountain of dirt that burst through the floor. A sapling broke through the dirt and quickly grew up into a full sized tree. The Vessels stared up at the tree as it grew larger and larger and Blake saw Demeter’s Vessel Camille pull the girl out of the way as the tree took up more space. It was like watching a time lapse of the life of a tree. The vines had stopped growing and the scent of flowers hung in the air. 

Leaves sprouted from the reaching branches and then a sea of red flowers bloomed its way through the tree. Then just as quickly, the flowers swelled and darkened into fruit. The tree shuddered and stopped and the scent of flowers was replaced by the sweet and tart scent of pomegranates.

Pomegranates. Of fucking course.

The crowd fell silent once again and Blake swore he could hear his laughter all the way from the Underworld. The last of the sunset was fading and a orange panel of light fell on the girl. Her eyes were wide and the light made her brown eyes practically molten. She was the only person still standing in the entire space. The Gift was given, but the crowd knew what the pomegranate tree meant; the reminder that the myth was never too far away. Blake could feel the crowd holding their breath. Her arm extended up to the lowest branch, her fingers reaching for one of the ripe fruits.

Blake couldn’t take it. The smell of the fruit turned his stomach. He stood up suddenly and made his way out of the agora, down the steps that led to the winding road down the mountain. He knew he won’t be missed and he refused to let the other Vessels see his face, make their assumptions about how he reacted. He pounded down the steps and heard the applause and cheering from behind him.

He didn’t want to be there, he didn’t want to see how it ended, how the floor was crumbling underneath him despite his best efforts. He felt that itch again, the teetering feeling like he was walking on a tightrope with no safety net. Gripping the keys to Chiron tightly, he leaned into that feeling, ducking his head as the last of the sunlight winked out behind the trees.

He headed into the night. I don’t have to keep finding my footing if I’m in freefall.

#persephone #hades #greek mythology #writing #deviant or divine #pt2