#i had to redo these like 10 times so i hope they look alright

[t-u-i-t-c]

Kamen Rider OOO + Insert Songs

#kamen rider ooo #kamen rider birth #hino eiji #eiji hino #date akira #akira date #shintaro goto #goto shintaro #gotou shintaro #shintaro gotou #tokuedit #please do not repost #umbrella.edits #umbrella.posts #umbrella.gifs #flashing lights #flashing lights tw #shout out isn't played in the show but i'm going to include it anyways #i had to redo these like 10 times so i hope they look alright

[variousqueerthings]

We were going to see them all. But he was too busy burning them. I don’t think she ever saw anything // No stars. I hoped there’d be stars

OKAY IT'S HAPPENING IT'S FINALLY HAPPENING! WE HAVE WATCHED world enough and time/the doctor falls

alright, let's keep the yelling to down below (EDIT: yeah these rambles got looooooooooooong)

sexism rank objectification (female character is ogled/harassed/turned into a sex joke by the doctor and/or a lead we’re supposed to root for and/or the camera): 9/10

sexism rank plot-point (lead female character is only there to serve plot, not to have her emotional interiority explored, or given agency to her emotional interiority): 6/10

interesting complex or pointlessly complex (does the complexity serve the narrative or does it just serve to be confusing as a stand-in for smart, this includes visually): 7/10

furthers character and/or lore and/or plot development (broader question that ties into the previous ones, at least two of these, ideally three should be fulfilled): 9/10

companion matters (the companion doesn’t always have to be there, but if the companion is there, can they function without the doctor– and overall per season how often is the companion the focus or POV of the story): 4/10

the doctor is more than just “godlike” (examines the doctor’s flaws and limitations, doesn’t solve a plot by having it revolve entirely around the doctor’s existence): 6/10

doesn’t look down on previous doctor who (by erasing or mocking its importance, by redoing and “bettering” previous beloved plotpoints or characters, etc.): 8/10

isn’t trying to insert hamfisted sexiness (m*ffat famously talked a lot about how dw should be sexier multiple times, he sucks at writing it): 9/10

internal world has consistency (characters have backgrounds, feel rooted in a place with other people, generally feel like they have Lives): 7/10

Politics (how conservative is the story): 6/10

FULL RATING: 76/100 (if I can count….)

I'd have to check, but this might be M*ffat's highest-rated finale (of course there is the finale that comes after this one, but um... that one will definitely be rated lower). I genuinely like quite a lot of what's going on here. and then there's some things I'm going to poke with a stick...

also at this point we confirm: Gomez!Master is simply perfection, she is this era to me!

OBJECTIFICATION: I note that Simm!Master is pretty darn sexist throughout this episode and yes, Simm!Master was definitely a misogynist in his original tenure too, it's just taken to an extreme degree in this one I think, specifically in a strange sort of "see how far we've come now" way, that feels echoed in the next episode with the first Doctor

I'm not sure if this is just me, but it felt jarring and a little out of character, but perhaps he's just reverted to the most extreme type after being a dictator on this spaceship for x amount of years idk. he was generally a little flat for me, but that's something we'll talk about further down

I wish Bill had been allowed to smack him or something at least, because oh boy was there a lack of satisfaction in that part of the narrative in my opinion

PLOT-POINT: okay I was writing this down in "politics" and maybe it is, but the blur is very big in this episode in many ways, so I've decided to put this up here instead -- ALSO THIS IS A RAMBLE TO TRY AND ORGANISE THOUGHTS BE PREPAAARED

if I had a nickle for every time steven m*ffat turned a Black character into a cyberman after being basically killed by a random happenstance that's never addressed again and then they decide to essentially commit suicide rather than keep living as a way to end their stories I'd have two nickles, which... I mean I don't know. it's weird that that's been his go-to twice, possibly not as a conscious choice, and maybe this doesn't even belong under politics, so much as a bit lazy in the absence of signs of it being an intentional callback or recurring thematic event (I mean this may be more about the fact that Danny Pink is a hard done by character as well)

I do think this is one of the worst things to happen to a companion in nu!who (the worst? hard to say, that's subjective, but in the sheer detail of its depiction it's certainly brutal), and I can't say Bill is offered much in the way of agency in the narrative, and listen, I like a tragedy, I like "you missed her by two hours," I like characters feeling so so sad, but I do feel like these episodes dropped the ball on being about Bill, rather than Bill being a cog in Simm!Master's ongoing game with the Doctor (and I'm not even entirely onboard with Simm!Master's characterisation in this episode as being much more than a prop to make Gomez!Master seem better or something by comparison? or maybe John Simm was just up for coming back and they were trying to make him fit in there), and I think that's a shame. I can't place it very easily, but it's kind of a letdown for a character that did feel very go-gettem throughout the season

in these episodes things happen to Bill and around Bill, but not really because of Bill or with Bill driving anything, with the exception of one moment (which we'll get to over in companions matter), and while we do have Bill reacting to those things toooo some extent, I personally don't feel like her emotional interiority is given much focus

in the first one she's more central and there's promise in the second episode when she wakes up and discovers she's a cyberman, but after that she fades into the background for me, which is wild, because she's gone through something so violent and has been betrayed so badly by the Doctor in favour of the Doctor's fucked up little dance with the Master, but she spends her time waiting around and being spoken to with incredible cruelty by Simm!Master and treated with suspicion by everyone else and it's just not even about any of that, except for how it convinces her to die

it's an interesting comparison to, say, Clara whom the Doctor fucked up the universe to save (and Bill's not even dead), but perhaps it's because the Doctor also wants to die/give up and Bill at this point was the big factor stopping that from happening. a lot of her saving him was specifically related to his being self-sacrificial and now she just accepts that death -- but then at the end she begs him to not be dead, but also we don't really see her during the proper battle scenes, which was an odd choice

if she's the Doctor's protector, as she has been often, including at the beginning of this episode, I think she should have been very visibly so

this is very rambly, but I think what I'm getting at is simply that Bill fades into the background of part two of this, in a way that feels particularly sad for the fact that it's such a violent fate

BUT WAHAIT! we do have Heather then coming in to save the day, and I personally like that. Bill was going to head out with her eventually, so I'm pleased. I think one thing about this season as a whole is that I think Bill deserved two and/or more episodes off the back like Martha for example had, but I know this was the final season. this is probably another post, but there's so many interesting underlying things to Bill's story that deserved more space (as it were), but also do I think m*ffat could have done all of that justice? (no)

so with all that in mind, I'm glad she went with Heather (let's hope next episode doesn't undermine tharthjgdksjdflkfjhöjsdlkfjgshjdf)

(my other note, which may also be politics, is that both of the Black female protagonists had the essential function of saving the Doctor from himself, and while Bill also got to be held somewhat by the Doctor in return, ultimately she wasn't the focus of this story as much as the Master was -- which I do think s3 balanced the Master/Doctor madness while also allowing Martha some development, but we may be coming down to subjectivity)

COMPLEXITY: the first part of these episodes is a rare example of a bit complex on M*ffat's side without being too stupid and indulgent -- there's a mystery (in the sense that you might recognise the Mondasians but Bill doesn't know them and the Doctor doesn't know), there's the slow creeping dread, there's the Master. I wish there had been more scenes of Bill trying to escape or figure out what's going on, because ten years and she just hung out there??? and accepted that this was what everything looked like??? no exploring??? really????? (this is companion matters actually, but it does stretch suspension of disbelief on my part)

second half is then a simple "getting attacked trying to stop it" story in which the cybermen are hyper-developing while this little farming community has to be prepared in a very short space of time, which is all fair enough. I think the second half overall is weaker than the first, and I couldn't tell you exactly why. I think a lot of it is quite good, but ultimately some of the character-work gets lost for me, even though it does nail it at the very very end

and I think a reason I'm overthinking a lot this season is because it's the final season -- it's m*ffat's last companion writing, Twelve's (second) last hurrah, Gomez!Master's last outing (and Simm's) and so it feels like I'm not just looking at this episode but how well everything built to this episode, which may not be quite fair, but also... such is the fate of a final-ish episode

it's a good episode. it's also a bit of a microcosm of some of the core Stuff in m*ffat era (although not as much as the next episode will be) -- it ends on a lot of very fun, interesting points, but it's a bit of a rocky road to get there that struggles to give the companion much to do. it feels like this season as a whole was getting to a pretty good place on a lot of these points (if one looks at this rating's system it jumps this season) and it feels like this development was cut short

I can't believe this me making the case for more of the M*ffat era, disgusting. hateful. this isn't who I am I promise!!!

CHARACTERS/LORE/PLOT: I mean yeah! boy ohhhhkay let's list!

Simm!Master returns, reveals he was killed by Gomez!Master and that she in turn was killed by him, but if she remembers that then I'd hazard that's how she survived that, but I don't think we've ever been told how. I love how many blank spots there are in the Master's history, this isn't a complaint. the master just comes back, that's what the Master does

Bill is turned into a cyberman, then Heather pulls her out of the cyberman and they go travelling together

the Mondasian cybermen origin story

the Doctor is going to regenerate but maybe refuses to!

Gomez!Master calls someone a bitch, which I had no idea where to place, but this was my note when it happened: CALLS HIM A BITCH!!!!???!!

(which on that note, that blue guy never returns, he just shoots Bill, gets flipped on his back and disappears from the narrative entirely, feels like a bit of a miss, considering how all of this happened because of something essentially pointless... shot by some random dude... the other main link between Bill and Danny, both seem to be random events, and I'm not sure M*ffat is a deep enough writer to be doing this intentionally for any thematic reason, because Danny isn't that important in the end RIP)

COMPANIONS MATTER: there's a lot I covered in the earlier point about Bill, but she does do soooome stuff, specifically she saves the Doctor's life in the beginning of episode 2, and also pulls him out of the debris at the end and into the Tardis somehow (sidenote, I really feel like the Tardis is so fond of Bill, in a very particular way. the Tardis has favourites and Bill is one of them I believe!)

I think. those are the two main things? otherwise she acts as bait, and then as... I suppose plaything to the Master in a way? summed up like that it's a bit bleak

“GODLIKE” DOCTOR: okay I wasn't sure where to write about this, but let's talk the Doctor and the Master! because this episode is attempting to do three stories, fundamentally

the origin of the Mondasian cybermen

Bill's final story (sort of)

wrapping up this era's exploration of the Doctor and the Master

and of these, I feel like the third is, funnily enough, the least compelling to me in the second half of the story (the first half, where the Doctor is convincing Bill to travel with Gomez!Master, I liked that!)

I actually wasn't a big fan of Simm!Master in this episode for the most part (not the whole part, I liked some of it too -- Gomez and Simm kind of wanting to get it on but also wanting to kill each other feels good, feels right), I felt like a fair amount of the writing wasn't quite... right for his character or went for his most exaggerated traits without any nuance. which, Simm!Master was absolutely a misogynist in his original s3 run (and then just mostly unhinged in the specials), so it's not out of the way that he'd be casually cruel to Bill especially, but Idk. I felt like the dynamic between Simm!Master and the Doctor was minimised to make Gomez!Master seem like her desire to try to get on the Doctor's side is somehow shocking (which I may be reaching but that tying into the continuous derogatory comments at WoMEn didn't sit right with me, like she was "more" emotional or less rational or more prone to Empathy/Feelings than before because of the regeneration, one episode after we've had the line about being past gender concerns), whilst in the same breath stripping Simm!Master of some of the stuff that made him fun to watch and the nuance specifically of his relationship with the Doctor back in the day, because now Simm!Master seems to just not care for the Doctor at all

it's not just cackling and evil-doing that made Simm!Master fun, in a similar way to how the first Doctor wasn't enjoyed despite apparently constantly talking about how women needed to be dusting in the Tardis (did he ever do that, I don't remember that ever... next episode questions, don't jump ahead)

now why do I talk about this in this section -- it's because of how it feels like there's a lot of heaaavy lifting- straaainingly heavy lifting to get the Doctor to make some philosophical points and have some growth and for Gomez!Master to figure out her moral stance that meant that potentially compelling ideas around the Master and Bill (Bill saying she's afraid of the Master in the first episode, Simm!Master pretending to be her friend before selling her out, the cruelty at her after she's turned) weren't realised

and it didn't have to be Simm!Master and Bill as such, but I noticed how excessively cruel the Master is to her without any sort of impact on the plot or the Doctor's relationship with the Master or Bill herself

this episode suffers from trying to get to this point with the Doctor, and with the (as anyone who's been reading these rambles of mine) compelling relationship between Gomez!Master and the Doctor, in a way that flattens Simm!Master into purely villainous and has Bill's emotional journey fade into the background

It's not entirely all the time, but when the Doctor makes a big speech about kindness at both Masters and Simm!Master reacts by saying he wasn't paying attention, it was kind of a letdown. it didn't feel like the big moment I think it wanted to be, and it also felt like everything was building towards giving us this era's Doctor and the Master relationship conclusion and it didn't quite land for me on the Doctor's side (Gomez!Master was great though), because of how lazily Simm!Master was written and a few quite big threads being dropped

I also feel like there was a bit of lack of continuation of the Doctor and Master relationship showing the Doctor's flaws, going waaay back to the 70s when the Master offered to rule the Universe together -- and in nu!who the Doctor's mourning the Master in s3 while the Jones family and Jack and Lucy grieved for themselves, the Doctor promising Bill it'd be fine, despite the Doctor knowing what the Master is capable of, and then Simm!Master doing all of that to her. there's just some... missing puzzle pieces where they're trying to make the Doctor look good, but it doesn't all work for me and as consequence the Doctor's emotional and philosophical journey doesn't land

PREVIOUS DOCTOR WHO: on the one hand super into the Mondasian cyberman origin story, on the other hand the disrespect towards unhinged Doctor/Simm!Master of yore!

on the third hand this line from Gomez!Master at Simm!Master that did feel like the vibe: "I loved being you. Every second of it. Oh the way you burned like a sun. like a whole screaming world on fire" self-destructively destructive is exactly it!

“SEXINESS”: okay so Simm!Master and Gomez!Master being horny is allowed. I actually wish they'd been more horny, specifically about the Doctor. can't believe you dropped the ball here m*ffat I was gonna be okay with it this time! I was giving you a pass! let them be even fuckin weirder!

I also want to note here because of bathos that Nardole is still there mostly doing comedy in a way that annoys me, and I now stand firm on the opinion that this whole season could've functioned without him. I put in my notes that I didn't mind him as much in the second half, but he's just not a character I enjoy

INTERNAL WORLD: I think the concept of the ship is very cool, with down below goes very fast versus up above going very slooow. it does fall a teensy bit apart with some of the journeying, I'm confused about the lifts, especially in the "we can't make it to the Tardis" part where I feel like some of the scifi ideas were streeetching to let the plot happen in the way the writers wanted it to happen, and this also a bit in the development of cybermen and what the timeline was there, but hey, maybe someone has done a rundown of parallel timelines and it all fits perfectly and I'm wrong

do like the idea that Simm!Master went into the downstairs world and completely fucked it up, sowed the seeds for the cybermen there and convinced them that up above was dangerous to the extent that no one did another mission to the up above since the first one. I almost wish that these two episodes had been supplemented by a third one (cut some of the dead wood from the middle-season 3-parter and make that a two-parter) to explore these societies more, give Bill more to do in this world than wait around for... ten years

ten years!????!!!!

but that says something to the fact that I thought these ideas were pretty cool and they made the famously silly-seeming Mondasian cybermen into something quite creepy

POLITICS: so is there anything I could add here that wasn't covered before? Unclear about the choice of sexism in this episode, think it was ill-conceived doing the "character becomes a cyberman" plot with Black characters twice, like that lesbians came into the fore at the end (there's a separate post where I'd like to ask how people feel about Heather in general, but in principle at least I do like it, and I think it's very much a "if only more time had been given to the plot and to Bill!" for me on the whole but I do like it)

*deep breath*

what about the rest of the episodes? technically not that political in feel? there's a dystopian choking society down below that's being tricked into being converted into cybermen, which is deeeply fucked up, there's a farming community up above that's not really explored much as a structure... I think that's it?

there's sort of an ethos about "helping people out of kindness" but I think that part is a bit rushed, but that's Doctor Who-ish. I would love some discussion on the ethics of the Doctor being like "Bill I respect your choice to self-sacrifice, because I will do the exact same"

a few little questionmarks is what I'm saying

FULL RATING: 76/100 (if I can count….)

AGAIN CLAP FOR MICHELLE GOMEZ! TRULY THE MOMENT!

AND ANOTHER CLAP FOR PEARL MACKIE WHO DID SO MUCH IN SUCH A SHORT SPACE OF TIME!

highlights: those two doing Acting, especially in their respective final sequences, spooky origin story and a few Neat scifi concepts, does feel like it emotionally wrapped up this era of DW, some beautiful speeches and lines, gomez!master and the doctor were beautiful

low points: didn't feel the Simm!Master inclusion on the whole, didn't feel like the Doctor entirely worked throughout in terms of feeling his development, Bill didn't get enough to do in the stories themselves

AND NOW! WE'RE DOWN TO ONE! WILL WE END ON A HIGH???

#the measurement #im watching nu!who #im watching capaldi who #episode world enough and time #episode the doctor falls

[talisidekick]

Catear Update

Alright, alright. This took a bit. A lot of personal stuff happened that delayed the progress on this. I'm sorry. But I made a promise because you all voted on that stupid poll (and almost made me wear a tail in public), so here's the progress:

After spending over $50 on a 12in. by 12in. square of 2in. long rust-coloured faux fur (I'm never buying from the US again, it was $10 for the fur, but like $40 in shipping) that took a month to arrive, I took a look at like hundreds of videos that were completely unhelpful in assisting me make catears at all. I then asked my spouse for help because I ... embarrassingly don't know how to sew ... and we started with something simple that I forgot was probably step 1 ...

[Start ID: A photo graph from my terrible Samsung J6 camera of a cardboard piece cut from a cereal box with a bad tracing/template of catears in pencil on it. There's a pair of pliers with blue grips, a red mechanical pencil, some shaping wire, and a wide plastic headband atop it. /End ID]

... drawing a template on spare cardboard. My spouse was also smart(er than me by a lot) and bought some plastic headbands that are just ... way more comfortable than the metal wire ones for like $9 CAD. The band is wider and it hurts less. With a shitty template and apparently we had wire for some reason? I was expecting to have to go out and spend like $15 CAD on some but hey, we hoard shit 'cause we're poor and it pays off.

With the sewing machine set up, Watch came to pay a visit to supervise.

[Start ID: Another shitty picture from my Samsung J6 of Watch, my black cat with yellow eyes, peering through at my spouse (off camera) through the sewing machine. /End ID]

She later discovered she didn't like the sound of the sewing machine and ran off. But you can see a bit of the faux fur we're dealing with on the left.

It's a good time to mention my spouse decided to get super high AF because they're off for a few days and despite being ... inebriated as heck, they powered through. There was only one fuck-up, and I take the blame for that. Some of the fur didn't get stitched right so we'll have to redo the seam, but a less high Witch from the following day has found an easier way to rectify that issue than just trying again and seeing what happens. I don't understand it, but they're confident so I'm going to learn what the heck they were talking about by seeing sometime later this week (I hope). The current state:

[Start ID: A picture (still from my terribly Samsung J6 camera), of all the tools used: a comb to manipulate the fur, pliers to shape the wire, a pencil for the template, pins to hold the fabric together, scissors to cut through thick fabric, a pin cusion that looks like an orange with an attached red chilli-pepper pin sharpener, bent wire, a sewing machine, a headband, and the current status of the catears being stitched together to vaguely look like catears. /End ID]

Part of being a hoarder ... sorry "stingy" is that we had some faux fur in white from some tiny pillow-case we just never got around to getting a pillow for. This worked perfect for the inside of the ears. The stitching done on this is amazing and has a little loop so the wire can be threaded through. I explained this idea poorly to my spouse who then had a brainwave mid-job and executed it 10x better than I had badly explained it ... please note, while high as heck and with no concept of time. We had to stop here for now because reality just wasn't sticking for my spouse at this point, so I cleaned up so our cats wouldn't get up to mischief. As explained earlier, there is a flaw with one of the ears, it'll have to be restitched, but apparently there's a way to fix it involving a sort of 'holding stitch', not sure what that means, but I'll find out when we do this later this week (hopefully).

The ears, as they stand, actually don't really "need" the wire to hold their shape, the stitching does all the work here. The wire will just be there for stability and to somehow attach it to the band (not sure how yet, we're crossing that bridge when we get to it). We're apparently not using glue for any of this because my spouse decided to go for durability. Which I agree with. These may just be my every-day ears for the next bit.

Anywho, there's the progress update some of you have been wanting. I hope to have a finished product soon. We've learned a lot on this, and I do want to make more so the next set will be completely done by my hands (ideally), but right now my spouse is here because I can't sew for shit and they decided to use this as a tutorial for me.

#talisidekick #talisidekick things #catears

[crypticwanda]

I saw you are taking request. I have something simple in mind 👀 hope you can humor me. Make it as fluff as you want 😂

Jealous! Natasha Romanoff: Natasha have been busy with missions and reader have new suitors surrounding her

Hi babe!! Now I realised after I finished this that it was more of a protective!natasha oneshot instead of jealous!natasha so I'm sorry about that! I hope you can still enjoy it and you could send in another request if you would like me to redo it!

My one and only

summary: natasha has been busy with missions lately and some people think that's an opportunity to take you away from her. Little do they know that you belong to nat and she can be pretty scary when she's jealous.

pairing(s): natasha romanoff x fem!reader

warnings: protective/jealous!nat, mild violence, ends in fluff tho

taglist: @myperfectlovepoem @alexleftme @supersourlemon13 @madamevirgo @fayhar

A deep sigh left your lips as you shifted through the paperwork on your desk. It's been a busy week for you and the amount of paperwork you had to get done. Not to mention Nat has been on mission after mission for the last few weeks, and you had only seen her for short amounts of time throughout the weeks.

Even though Nat has been away on missions for the last couple weeks, you knew it was her work and that she was doing what had to be done. And every time you saw her, you reminded her of that. Even though she doesn’t show it much in public, Nat was scared that any time she wasn’t around you, you could lose interest in her. Whenever you get the chance, you remind her of how much you love her and how much you truly care. Plus, is there really anyone else out there better than Black Widow herself?

You were sitting at your desk when you heard your phone buzz next to you, the noise even slightly scared you since the room had been so silent. You grabbed your phone and turned the screen towards you and noticed a text from Natasha. You swiped up and opened the text on your phone.

'Heading back tonight, I should be there around 5.'

You smiled knowing that Nat was going to make it back home tonight and that she could hopefully get a break soon. You replied saying, 'okay, see you then Nat <3' to which she almost immediately read and caused a smile to appear on her face. You set your phone back down as you smiled to yourself, just happy that you'll see Nat again tonight.

Now you were walking around your work building with handfuls of paperwork in your arms, struggling not to drop it. You mentally cursed yourself for trying to make one trip from your office desk to the conference room. You just huffed out air as you continued to hurriedly walk down the long hallway of your work. "Need any help with that?" You heard a voice behind you, and turned your head to see a worker that you've never met before walking next to you. "No I'm fine, thank you." You chuckled as you turned your head back forward. "It's nothing much, I could just help take some papers off your hand." He replied, almost sounding annoyed. "I'm alright." You say as you turn and walk into the conference room, thankful that the man didn't follow you in there. You sigh out of relief as you set the papers on the glass table in front of you and begin sorting them out.

A few hours had passed since then and now you had gotten out of work. Natasha had told you that she was going to meet you at your favorite restaurant when she got back. You had taken a quick shower, gotten dressed, and walked down to the resturant down the street. You felt another buzz on the phone in your pocket and took it out to check it. You noticed that Nat texted you, telling you that she was about 10 minutes away. You smiled as you held the phone in front of you was you walked and replied to her.

As you kept your eyes on your screen, you didn't notice when you had felt someone knock into you while you were walking. You grunted as you felt yourself hit the concrete floor and heard your phone fall to the ground. "Oh sorry-" you heard the person say as you turned to see that it was the same man from before at your work. You mentally groaned as you reached your hand out to grab your phone and fortunately see that it is not cracked. "Sorry." You muttered as you put your phone back into your pocket. The man stood above you and offered his hand to pull you up, but you denied and stood up from the ground by yourself. "Are you okay?" He asked. "Yeah I'm fine, thank you." You said, just trying to avoid confrontation with this guy. You brushed off your shirt before beginning to walk past him before he moved in front of you. "Why are in such a rush?" He asked with annoyance laced in his voice. "I have somewhere to be." You told him bluntly as you pushed past him and quickly walked down the street towards the restaurant with your heart racing.

You calmed down when you entered the resturant and sat down at your reserved table for two. Natasha wasn't there yet, but she kept sending you texts telling you that she was almost there. You had already ordered both you and Nat's drinks as you sat at the table. A shadow came over the table and you looked up, expecting Natasha, but to your surprise it was the man you had previously run into. 'Why won't this guy just leave me alone?' You thought as you looked up at him.

"The seat's taken." You said, now obviously annoyed. "Hey, I think you were being very rude earlier and you should apologize." He said as he put one of his hands on the table. You looked up at him, astonished that he had the audacity to even say something like that. "Any apology? You followed me in here." You snapped as he continued to look down at you with angry eyes.

Before he could respond, he felt a tap on his shoulder and you sighed in relief. He turned around to meet Natasha standing there, looking up at him with peering eyes. "What do you think you're doing?" Natasha asked him as he looked at her. "None of your business." He responded as he turned back to face you. "It is my business if you're talking to my girlfriend like that." Nat told him as she walked in front of him to face him. He looked visually confused after Natasha's statement and kept looking back between you and her.

Quickly, Nat grabbed the hand he had previously left on the table and twisted it around with her arms, causing him to groan in pain. "Now what are you gonna say to her?" Nat asked as she twisted his arm further. "I-I'm sorry!" The man yelped as he was now being pushed to his knees. "Now you're gonna stop going around and harassing women at any chance you get, or you'll have to deal with me again, you understand?" She explains to him as he continues to grunt in pain. He quickly nods his head as Nat releases his arm and he falls back to the ground. He quickly pushes himself up onto his feet and speed walks out of the resturant.

You hurriedly stood up from your chair and happily wrapped your arms around Nat. You laid your head in her neck as her arms wrapped around you tightly. "You don't understand how happy I am to see you." You whispered as you kept your head in her neck. "I have an idea." She smiled as she pulled her head back to look at you. You smiled before attaching your lips to hers and pulling her into a soft, passionate kiss.

#marvel #mcu #mcu headcanons #the avengers #avengers #avengers x reader #natasha romanov #natasha romanoff #natasha romanoff x reader #natasha x you #natasha romanoff x you

[yellowsuitcase]

Oblivious - Part 1 // Draco Malfoy

A/N: This took several days to write, I wrote one and a half other imagines before finishing this. And it’s only the first part of three! I hope you enjoy it and yes I know Fred and George would’ve left Hogwarts by now, but let’s pretend they didn’t ;) Also, to the people who’ve requested imagines, please know I’m working diligently to get them completed, I’ve been very busy lately with school as well as redoing my bedroom. But keep looking forward to them, they’re coming I promise.

Summary: Half Blood Prince era. Draco’s been sneaking away to work on fixing the vanishing cabinet. But his muggle-born Gryffindor girlfriend Y/N has been picking up on his suspicious disappearances. During their trip to Hogsmeade, something unexpected occurs.

Warning(s): SPOILERS!! Swearing, making out

Word Count: 4.2k

Part 2

Y/N skipped through the entrance to the courtyard, singing, “He was a skater boy, she said see you later, boy. He wasn’t good enough for her,” at the top of her lungs, drawing quite a few puzzled stares her way. Draco, her boyfriend, reluctantly followed behind her, his face turning crimson.

“Y/N! Y/N, please stop, people are looking,” he pleaded with her.

“Tough crowd, tough crowd,” Y/N mused, “How about, life is a highwaayy, and I wanna ride it all night long!”

People began to laugh at the Gryffindor’s performance. Draco, however, was becoming more embarrassed by the second. “Love, please, enough with the muggle songs.”

“What? You don’t like my singing, is that it?” Y/N asked while she sat down at the base of their favorite tree.

“You know I adore everything about you, just not the muggle music. What is a highway anyway?”

Y/N’s eyebrows shot up. “Seriously? Do you ever pay any attention in muggle studies?”

Draco gave her a sheepish grin while he rubbed the back of his neck. Y/N swatted his arm lightly with her roll of parchment she’d taken out of her school bag. “Speaking of muggle studies, I have a 25-inch essay to write. Professor Burbage wants us to compare and contrast an average muggle’s day and an average wizard’s.”

“Well, that ought to be easy, your mum and dad are muggles.”

“It’s still 25 inches, Draco, that’s quite a lot,” Y/N said exasperatedly. She huffed as she unrolled her parchment and got to work; she already had 18 inches done.

Draco admired her as she wrote. The fluffy red quill in her hand bounced with the movements of her wrist as she jotted down a sentence. She was squinting her eyes, trying to block out the sun. Her little nose was scrunched up as well as her forehead.

She was so effortlessly beautiful. The littlest things about her were the things Draco liked the most, like the way her hair framed her face, some loose strands falling from behind her ear, and shining in the sun. Or the way she rubs her eyes with both fists after yawning.

“You’re cute when you’re focused,” Draco said.

Y/N gave him a fake annoyed glare. “Well, you’re making it hard for me to focus,” she mumbled under her breath, turning her attention back to her essay while biting her lip to keep from smiling.

Draco smirked, some of his teeth showing, “Hard to focus, huh? Am I that sexy?” he asked while wiggling his eyebrows. He received a quick slap on his chest.

“Shut up! Oh my god,” Y/N said. Draco complied with her wishes and simply gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before rising to his feet.

Y/N looked up at him, puzzled. “Where are you going?”

“I just want to get to class a bit early today. I’ll see you in Dark Arts class.” 

Y/N watched as the blonde boy walked away. She thought it was quite peculiar for him to want to get to class early. Usually, he was begging her to stay with him and be a few minutes late. She tried to shrug it off; perhaps he just wanted to ask his professor a question. Y/N picked up her quill and once again began to write, pushing away the thoughts of what her boyfriend was up to.

-----------

“Perhaps Draco is just putting forth more effort into learning Herbology. The whomping willow is quite a fascinating plant.”

“Luna, I love you but come on. You can’t blame me for being a little suspicious. I mean, Herbology and Draco are like Filch and magic,” Y/N said as she and Luna walked to their next class, “it’s never going to work.” 

Luna nodded softly. “It’s a shame Filch can’t do magic. It’s so wonderful.”

“He doesn’t deserve it, he would use an unforgivable curse on a student in a heartbeat, he would.”

Y/N spared a quick glance behind her. She felt as though she was being watched. Sure enough, when her head spun around, she saw Draco. He smiled as he briskly caught up to her and Luna. He wrapped his arms around her waist and gave her a sweet kiss on the cheek. Y/N squirmed; she didn’t like people touching her neck.

Before she left to go to her own class, Luna asked, “Are you going to Hogsmeade tomorrow, Y/N?”

Y/N had barely remembered that tomorrow was a Hogsmeade weekend. She tilted her head to look at Draco. “Are you going?”

Draco avoided eye contact with Y/N, but he nodded nonetheless. She turned back to Luna. “I wouldn’t miss our trip to Honeydukes now, would I?”

Luna smiled, “I don’t know, you might one day.” She shifted her bag onto her shoulder. “See you then. Goodbye, Y/N. Goodbye, Draco.” 

When Luna was out of earshot, Y/N wiggled out of Draco’s arms. 

“Do you not want to go to Hogsmeade? You don’t have to if you wouldn’t like to.”

Draco shook his head vehemently. “No, no, I’ll go. We can get butterbeer together like we always do. Now let’s get going, I suspect Snape will take 10 points from Gryffindor if you’re late.” The pair headed off to class. 

————-

Draco woke up the next morning with an uneasy feeling in his gut. Usually, his trips to Hogsmeade were enjoyable, but he knew this one would be anything but. 

He’d been given the dreadful task of murdering his headmaster, Dumbledore. He knew he was never gonna be able to do it face to face, so he’d opted for a more indirect option. He and his mother made a trip to Borgin and Burkes early that year and purchased the Opal Necklace. It was reported to have killed nineteen muggles to date. 

He glanced over to his nightstand. The necklace was wrapped in packing paper inside the bottom drawer. His stomach churned when he remembered his plan. He’d have to execute it right under Y/N’s nose. He felt so vile. Since this school year had started, he’d been keeping secrets from her. 

They loved to sit in the courtyard under their tree, often Y/N would fall asleep on his shoulder, and Draco always felt terrible when he had to maneuver her to the grass so he could sneak away to the Room of Requirement. But there’d be consequences if he failed to fix the vanishing cabinet, and he wasn’t about to waste any free time he had. And if that meant keeping secrets and slipping away from his girlfriend, then that’s what he had to do. 

“Goyle, what time is it?” Draco asked.

“Uhh bout half-past nine. Why?” 

“Shit,” he muttered. He was already thirty minutes late for breakfast. Y/N would start to worry if he didn’t show up soon. Mentally preparing himself for the day ahead, he shoved his blanket off and swung his legs to the side of his bed. He opted for his classic black suit. He made sure to stuff the necklace, still wrapped, into the inner pocket of his jacket.

“What’s that, Malfoy?”

Draco snapped his head to glare at Crabbe. “Wouldn’t you like to know?” he spat with an aggrieved look upon his face. He put on his shoes and strode out of the Slytherin dorms. Soon enough, he arrived at the Great Hall. His eyes located Y/N’s instantly. They were filled with worry, but relief overtook them when they met Dracos. She beckoned him over with a wave of her hand.

Once he sat down, he was engulfed in a tight hug. 

“Whoa there darling, is everything alright?” he asked.

“I’m just excited, it’s been a while since the last Hogsmeade weekend. I’m craving butterbeer, aren’t you?” she asked, her eyes danced animatedly with anticipation. 

Draco smiled, “You’re too cute, you are,” he said before he kissed her rosy cheek.

“Are you going out dressed like that? You know it’ll be snowy in Hogsmeade,” Y/N asked. She was dressed in a maroon sweater and black jeans; to her left, she had laid her coat and her Gryffindor scarf and hat. 

“I’ll be sure to fetch my coat before we leave,” he assured her. 

“You’d better go now, we leave for Hogsmeade in fifteen minutes,” said Luna, making Draco aware of her presence. He heeded her words and stood up from the table. 

“Aren’t you going to eat?”

Draco bit his lip. He really didn’t think he could stomach anything at the moment, but he didn’t want to upset Y/N. 

“I’ll save room for butterbeer. Meet me outside?” he asked. She nodded despite the reluctant look on her face. Draco didn’t stay for a moment longer. He turned on his heel and hurried off to his common room. 

“He seems troubled,” Luna stated. 

“I’m glad you’ve noticed it as well. The bags under his eyes get darker every day, it seems.”

“Perhaps he should brew a sleeping draught potion.”

“I don’t think he’d like the idea of sleeping for so long. He’s definitely racing the clock, trying to complete something. The question is what,” Y/N wondered aloud, her face twisted in thought.

"I've seen him coming out of the Room of Requirement. Maybe he's been doing something in there," Luna suggested.

"You have? When? Did he look-," Y/N was interrupted by a voice behind her.

“You coming to Hogsmeade, Y/N?” When she turned around, Hermione was standing there, eyebrows raised. 

“Yeah, I am. Why?”

“Is Draco coming with you?” she asked.

“Yes, but why does that matter to you? I thought you didn’t like him,” Y/N said in a bit of an accusatory tone. What did it matter to Hermione whether or not Draco was going to Hogsmeade?

Hermione looked like a deer caught in headlights. “Oh, uh, no reason. Just curious is all. See you there then.” Then she ran off, presumably to find Ron and Harry.

“What is going on around here?” Y/N asked nobody in particular. 

“There are so many things taking place at once, but I think we all find out about them one way or another,” Luna said. 

“I hope so.”

-----------

Draco did his best to smile while he and Y/N strolled through Hogsmeade. It hardly worked, though. She was beaming with joy, and he was melancholy. All he could think about was the task ahead of him. His plan was to sneak away from Y/N in the Three Broomsticks and find Madam Rosmerta. He would then imperio her to deliver the necklace to Dumbledore. 

It wasn’t like he wanted to cast an unforgivable curse, but there wouldn’t be any other way to get the package to Dumbledore without raising suspicion. He had to do this.

“Where do you want to go first?” Y/N asked, pulling Draco out of his thoughts. 

“Wherever you’d like to go, love,” he replied, not missing a beat.

She sighed, “I asked you where you want to go. Pick a place.”

Draco smirked, “How about the Shrieking Shack,” he said in a naughty tone.

“Draco,” she said in a condescending tone. “You know we’re not allowed in there.”

“Yes, but we could sneak in.”

Y/N shook her head, “Draco, do you really want to have detention tomorrow?”

“Oh, don’t be such a party pooper. Don’t you wonder what’s inside it?”

“Nope,” she said matter of factly.

“You’re telling me you’re not even the slightest bit curious?”

“Not at all.”

“Oh, I see now, you’re scared of it. You’re scared of a shack.”

“I am not.”

“You are.”

“Am not.”

“Are too.”

“Am not.”

“Are too. End of discussion,” Draco said. 

“End of discussion? You don’t just get to end our conversation,” Y/N yelled. But before she could give her boyfriend a flick on the head, he began to run. “Hey! Don’t you run from me, Malfoy!”

He turned his head to see her start to chase after him. She was giggling as she was jogging, her smile brighter than the fresh snow on the ground. Draco loved her smile.

He led her through twists and turns, nearly running into several people before he found his destination. He slowly came to a stop and waited for Y/N to catch up. He grabbed her hand and yanked her to his chest when she caught up. She squealed when he did this. 

“How are you so fit? I nearly died just then,” Y/N said, bent over and panting.

Draco laughed, “You alright there, darling?”

She glared at him, “Where did you take us, anyway?” She answered her own question when she took her hands off her knees and looked around. She spotted the shack instantly.

“Draco, I don't know what you’re thinking, but I’m not going in there.”

“Oh come on, don’t be such a wuss,” he said while grabbing her hand. She reluctantly followed him as he went over to the fence. He put his hands on the top rail and lifted his right leg to plant his foot on the middle one. He gathered his strength and pushed himself up and over the fence. Once on the other side, he brushed himself off and turned to face Y/N.

“Right. Your turn now, love.”

“You made it look so easy,” she grumbled. But she put her hands on the fence anyway. She tried to copy what she’d seen Draco do, but when she tried, she found she didn’t have the strength. 

“You got it, just swing your legs over,” Draco instructed. 

Y/N nodded and attempted to do what he said. She stood on the bottom rail and grasped the top in her hands. Unsure of herself, she looked at Draco.

“Come on, hop on over.”

She nodded and climbed to the top of the fence. She bent her arms and launched herself over the wooden rails. Y/N realized halfway through the jump that things were about to end badly. Draco wasn’t able to move fast enough and could only watch as her right foot twisted when she landed. 

She let out a yelp and fell to the snowy ground. Draco rushed over to her and began to take off her boot. 

“I’ve sprained it. I know I have,” she said, gritting her teeth in pain. 

Draco ran his hands through his hair. “Fuck, I’m sorry, Y/N. I should’ve just taken you to get butterbeer.”

“We still can, I think you’ll need to carry me though,” she said while chuckling. 

Draco momentarily looked away from her swollen ankle to look at her face. Somehow, despite the pain she must’ve been in, she was smiling at him.

“You never fail to amaze me, you know that?” he asked her.

Y/N raised an eyebrow. “How so?” 

Before Draco could answer, his attention was stolen by two redheads.

“Y/N? Is that you? What’s Malfoy done to you?” Fred Weasley called out.

“Yeah, Malfoy, what’d you do to her?” George chimed in. 

Y/N rolled her eyes. “What do you think they’re doing here?” she asked her boyfriend.

“I don’t know, and frankly, I don’t care.”

Fred and George had made their way to the couple. “What’s happened?” George asked.

“Well, I tried to jump the fence, and it didn’t go so well,” Y/N chuckled. 

The twins laughed along with her. “That does sound like something you’d do,” Fred remarked.

“Yes, yes, it’s all very funny, but she’s got a sprained ankle by the looks of it,” Draco said, interrupting the laughter to remind them of the situation at hand. He reached under Y/N’s arms and gently helped her to her feet. She winced when she had to put pressure on her ankle. Draco felt guilt pool in his stomach. He went to jump back over the fence but was stopped short. 

“Malfoy, why don’t you lift her up from that side,” said Fred.

 “And then we can help her over,” George finished.

“Yeah, that’ll be easier,” Y/N agreed. She looked at Draco to see if he, too, thought the same. He nodded and gripped her hips. 

“1...2...3!” He lifted her up and sat her atop the highest rail. He held her steady as the twins helped maneuver her legs to the other side. They then helped her down, being careful not to let her put pressure on her injured foot.

Draco hastily climbed up the fence and hopped down, “I can take it from here,” he said sternly. He crouched down in front of Y/N, allowing her to climb onto his back. Once he knew she was secure, he straightened his legs and started walking. 

Y/N turned her head, “Thank you guys!” she called to the twins. 

“You could’ve thanked them, you know, you would’ve had a hell of a time getting me over that fence without them.”

Draco scoffed. “I would’ve managed just fine without the Weasleys.”

His girlfriend sighed. “I know you don’t like them, but geez, can’t you swallow your pride for one second?”

Draco didn’t reply, opting to remain silent as he trudged back to Hogsmeade.

-------

The pair sat inside the Three Broomsticks, now toasty warm and anxiously awaiting what was to come. For Y/N, it was butterbeer, but for Draco, it was something much less enticing. 

The feeling of the package against his breast made his heart race. He wished he could’ve just enjoyed a drink with his lover, but bigger things were expected of him that day. His eyes hardly left Madam Rosmerta. He was tracking her movements, waiting for the perfect moment to present itself.

“And so I told her that I had no idea what she was talking about. I mean, did she seriously expect me to confess to that? But anyway after that she-,” Y/N stopped talking when she realized the boy sitting across from her was paying absolutely no attention to her story. 

She reached for his hand. “Draco, what’s wrong? Something’s bothering you, I can see it on your face.”

He shook his head, dismissively. “I’m fine, what were you saying?”

Y/N frowned. “Nothing important. But uhm, anyway, what are you doing tomorrow? Maybe we could borrow some broomsticks from Madam Hooch and fly around the pitch,” she suggested. But Draco still wasn’t attentive to her words. He wasn’t even looking at her.

“I’ll be right back, don’t move,” he said, suddenly jumping to his feet. He strode away from their table without looking back. Y/N felt her heart sink. Why wasn’t he paying attention to her?

She decided to pass the time by tracing her finger on the cracks and lines embedded in the wooden table. She grew increasingly bored the longer Draco was absent. Until she heard a familiar voice. Upon raising her head, she saw the trio. Harry, Ron, and Hermione. They sat at the table behind her. She decided to turn around and make conversation as Draco still hadn’t returned.

“Hi, guys, what’s up?”

“Oh, hey Y/N. Nothing much, how about you?” Ron asked.

“Oh, you know, not much, just spraining ankles,” she said sarcastically. 

Ron looked at her with a puzzled expression. His eyes drifted to her foot. “Blimey, Y/N, what did you do?”

Hermione took notice as well. “Are you alright? Should I fetch a professor?”

“No, no, that’s alright, it’s only a sprain. Madam Pomfrey will be able to fix it right up when I return. Thank you, though,” she smiled.

“How’d you manage to sprain it, though?” Harry inquired.

“Oh well, long story short, I tried to jump a fence, and it didn’t end so well,” Y/N said with a slight chuckle. “Actually, Ron, your brothers helped Draco get me back over the fence.”

Ron smiled, “Glad to hear it,” after he spoke, his facial expression changed to one of confusion. 

“You mentioned Draco, where is he?”

Y/N sighed and did a once-over of the pub. “He ran off a little while ago, I’ve got no idea where he is. He said he’d be right back.”

Hermione looked at her sympathetically. “He’ll be back...probably.”

“Oh! There he is,” Ron said. Y/N turned her head back around to see Draco emerging from around the corner. He and Harry made eye contact. They stared at each other for a few seconds before Draco rushed over to Y/N.

“Let’s go, I want to stop at Dervish and Banges,” he said while reaching behind her back and underneath her knees. 

“What? We haven’t even gotten our butterbeer. Draco put me down. Put me down!”

Draco glared at her, fury in his eyes. “Don’t make a scene,” he snapped. This shut Y/N right up. She didn’t protest when he carried her out of the pub. He didn’t stop walking until he reached a bench in an empty passageway. He sat her down first and then took the spot next to her.

“What was that about? What’s going on, Draco?” Y/N asked; she was fed up.

Draco panicked. He didn’t have a lie prepared, but he knew he couldn’t get away with not answering her. Not anymore. 

He said the first thing that came to mind. “It’s my dad. He’s been bothering me a lot lately.”

This was true. Draco’s dad had been pestering him with multiple owls a day, always asking for updates on the cabinet. It was quite frankly driving him mad.

“He keeps sending me owls, he won’t leave me alone,” Y/N held his hand and ran her thumb up and down the top of it. “I left you at the table so I could apparate home. He was expecting me.”

She stopped her soothing motion. “You can apparate that far!? Successfully?” she asked, shocked at her boyfriend’s abilities.

He nodded. “My father requested Professor Twycross give me private lessons. That’s where I’ve been running off to lately.”

Draco felt bile rise in his throat. He hated lying to Y/N, but it had to be done. He couldn’t get her involved in his death eater business. It would be better for both of them if she remained oblivious.

“Well, I’m glad you finally told me. I’ll be here if you ever want to rant about him. He sure has been causing you a lot of stress lately, hasn’t he?”

He nodded and pressed a soft kiss to her temple. Oh, how he wished he could tell her. “Thank you, love. I appreciate that.”

She smiled and went in for a kiss. He passionately kissed her back. He wanted to focus his energy on her now, to try to make up for all the times he’d neglected her.

Draco held her face with one hand while the other traveled to her hip. Without warning, he squeezed it, causing Y/N to yelp and thus open her mouth, which allowed Draco to sneak his tongue inside. He let out a groan, running his fingers through her hair and gripping it slightly.

They were interrupted by the sound of nearby laughter. Draco reluctantly pulled away; he knew how Y/N felt about kissing in public. She gave him a soft smile, her face flushed, and her lips swollen.

“I can’t believe you,” she giggled. He grinned and gave her another kiss, this one just a quick peck.

“I love you, you know,” he said.

She hummed happily. “I do know. And I love you too, Mr. Malfoy.”

Draco laughed and wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, prompting Y/N to push him away playfully. “Stopppp,” she whined.

“Alright, alright. I think it’s about time we head back to Hogwarts. Madam Pomfrey needs to fix my angel’s ankle.”

“That she does,” Y/N said. She raised her arms and made grabby hands at Draco as he stood up. He laughed at her antics. 

“Up,” she demanded. He complied and lifted her into his arms. She immediately nuzzled her face into the crook of his neck and sighed contently. 

He carried her all the way out of Hogsmeade and halfway through the path to Hogwarts before it happened. About ten yards in front of them, Katie Bell rose into the air. Her mouth was wide open as if something was sucking the breath out of her. Draco felt his heart stop. Y/N noticed he’d stopped walking, and she lifted her head to look at him. He looked terrified. She followed his gaze just in time to see Katie fall to the ground. She gasped, and her eyes widened; she didn’t believe what she saw. 

“Draco, we have to see what’s going on, take us over there,” she said.

But Draco had already seen what had caused Katie to float twenty feet in the air. The necklace. It was on the snow, its wrappings flapping in the freezing wind. 

He ignored his girlfriend’s wishes and instead hurried down the path to his left. It was the long way back to Hogwarts.

“Draco! What are you doing?” Y/N asked. She began to struggle in his grip, Draco wasn’t expecting this, and he dropped her. She screamed in pain; he’d dropped her on her bad ankle. 

“Fuck, fuck, fuck. I’m sorry Y/N, please just let me take you back to Hogwarts, it’s not safe here,” he pleaded with her.

She glared at him and then looked behind her. Hagrid was now holding Katie in his arms. Y/N knew she’d be safe with Hagrid.

Draco let out a sigh of relief when she raised her arms, signaling she wished to be picked up again. “Thank you, love,” he said as he brought her back into his arms. “Thank you.”

#draco malfoy x reader #draco malfoy #draco fanfiction #draco malfoy imagine #draco malfoy x you #series #fred weasley #george weasley #ron weasley #harry potter #hogwarts #death eater #luna lovegood #hermione granger #draco lucius malfoy #lucius malfoy #rubeus hagrid #katie bell #opal necklace

[imkylotrash]

I Can’t Fall In Love Without You

Pairing: Trevor Matthews x reader

Request: Trevor and the reader are already in a relationship, and the reader gets jealous when Trevor and Tessa meet. Anonymous

A/N I know the part about Tessa doesn’t last that long but I hope you like it anyway. 

“I’ll be home around 7 tonight.” You quickly put on earrings and the slightest bit of lip stick. He comes up from behind and sneaks his arms around you. Almost instantly you relax into his embrace letting your head rest on his shoulder. 

“That’s awfully late,” he comments placing a soft kiss on your neck. 

“It’s almost New Years and we need to get the annual report ready. Mike completely screwed up August and now we have to redo every month after August.” There’s been chaos at the office for the last two weeks due to the annual report meaning sleeping at the office rather than going home at 4 in the morning. 7pm was not late for you compared to lately but you still wished you could be home earlier. Today’s the 4 year anniversary for you and Trevor and you know he had some things planned but it’ll have to wait for January. Thankfully, he’s been more than understanding and it helps keep you sane. 

“I know, I know. I just wish you’d be home. But I’ll have some dinner ready.” 

“Thank you.” He spins you around and smiles. 

“You look so good I’m reconsidering letting you out of the house.” You chuckle as he places soft kisses on your neck and just below your ear. 

“Then I guess I have to stay,” you whisper grabbing his face to kiss him properly. After so long together you’re still not tired of how his lips feel against yours. But reality hits sooner rather than later and you hurry out the door to face the mess at work. At exactly 7 you park your car in the parking lot outside of your building. 10 long hours in the office and countless arguments later you’re finally free to enjoy the rest of your evening. 

“I’m home,” you call out confused as to why there are no light on at all. The apartment is completely quiet and as you move towards the kitchen turning on light as you go, it quickly becomes clear to you that no one is home. It’s so unlike Trevor to stay out at night but what worries you is that you have no idea where he is. Did something happen? You dial his number praying that he’s alright. 

“Hi, I’m on my way home now. I’m so sorry,” he says sounding rushed. Your heartbeat slowly returns to normal when you hear his voice. 

“It’s fine. You just had me worried. I thought something happened to you.” 

“No, I got caught up at work with the new intern. She didn’t know anybody and I felt bad for her.” You try not to give into the little green monster eating away at your stomach. Trevor has always been too kind for his own good, you know this. It’s part of the reason why you fell in love with him in the first place but why would he spend your anniversary with another girl?

“It’s fine. Should I get started on dinner then?” you ask trying to keep your voice from shaking. You tell yourself you’re overreacting and that this is just a response created by the stress from work. But you just can’t shake the feeling over the next couple of weeks. You swore never to be the type of girl to dictate who your boyfriend can and cannot see but you’ve hardly seen him because he spends all of his time with Tessa. The last straw is him going to an office party without you. Granted he asked you to come but you wanted a quiet night and said he should go himself. Of course, you didn’t actually mean it but Trevor is nothing if not honest so he’d only assume you’d say something if you had a problem. And you should’ve just said something instead of pretending to be fine but it’s difficult when you’re feeling insecure. So the next day as you’re sitting across from him at the table you speak up. 

“Why are you spending so much time with Tessa?” He chokes on his cereal. 

“What?” He puts his glasses on - a habit he has whenever he needs to pay attention. 

“You heard me.” You feel vulnerable and it pains you. The ability to open up is one you’ve never truly mastered and Trevor knows this so he also knows how difficult it is for you to ask him this yet he stays quiet.

“Are you having an affair?” 

“No!” 

“Then what?” you say raising your voice. What is the matter with you? You had a plan to ask him calmly and already you’re yelling at him. 

“She’s just a friend.” His eyes screams for you to drop this but you’ve heard that sentence too many times before and you know what it means. 

“That’s all you have to say? She’s a good friend? You’ve known her for, what, four months?” Everything about him is screaming guilty but you can’t believe that Trevor would ever do something like that to you. 

“What do you want me to say?” He’s cautious and with good reason.

“I want you to tell me that there’s nothing going on between the two of you. I want you to tell me that I’m the only one you love. I want you to fight for me to believe you!” Tears keep on coming even though you’re trying your hardest not to cry. “What I don’t want is you getting defensive about your relationship to some intern at the office.” 

“If I’m being defensive, maybe it’s because you’re accusing me of having an affair. I can’t believe you think I’d do that to you.” He’s hurt and you’re the cause making you feel even worse. How did breakfast turn into this? You take a deep breath to calm yourself down before this gets any worse. 

“Look, maybe I should go stay with my mom for a while? Just to take some time to think things through.” 

“I don’t need to think things through. You want to know what I’ve been doing with Tessa? We’ve been planning my proposal to you. She helped pick out a ring, coordinate with the restaurant. She helped me come up with ideas and talked me out of my stupid ideas. That’s what we’ve been doing.” Words fail you as his sink in. He was going to propose. And now you’ve royally screwed that up. Your silence is interpreted completely wrong and it breaks your heart. 

“I’m sorry the idea of my proposing made you feel so sick. I thought we were on the same page.” He grabs his coat and is out the door before you can say another word. You have to fix this but you have no idea how. Of course you would’ve said yes. How could he ever even doubt that? You grab your own coat and hurry out the door. You can fix this.

An hour later you’re back at the apartment but Trevor isn’t so you hurry getting ready. So many candles to lit and so little time. You change into that red dress that you know he loves hoping that this will be enough. Enough to convince him that of course you’d have said yes if he asked you. Two hours later he finally returns drenched from the rain. 

“What’s all this?” he asks stopping dead in his tracks. 

“Trevor Matthews, you’ve been my source of light for the past four years and I’d very much like for you to be my light for many more years. Imagening my life without you seems impossible and I’m so sorry I ever doubted you. I want you now and forever.” You’re trying to speak clearly but your entire body is shaking. 

“Y/N-”

“Please let me finish before I start sobbing. It’s going to be ugly.” He laughs but stays quiet. 

“I want to wake up next to you and go to sleep with you. I want pancake Sundays and movie dates on Friday. I want the sleepless nights and the mornings in bed. I want all of it and I want it for the rest of my life.” You inhale trying to control the tears that refuse to let up. 

“I don’t have a ring,” you say realising that you’re missing the most vital thing of a proposal. 

“I can do that part,” Trevor says grabbing a small velvet box from his coat. He gets down on one knee and somehow this moment is so imperfectly perfect that you wouldn’t have it any other way. 

“Would you marry me and make me the happiest man? Be mine.” 

“Of course I would.” He slips the ring onto your finger and it’s the most beautiful ring you’ve ever seen.

“Oh, it’s perfect,” you whisper not even knowing how much it would mean to you to have the perfect ring. He stands up and immediately kisses you. 

“I hope you know I’m never letting you go,” Trevor says between kisses. 

“Good.”

#after movie #after blurb #after imagine #after #trevor matthews imagine #trevor matthews blurb #trevor matthews x reader #trevor matthews #after we collided blurb #after we collided #after we collided imagine #awc blurb #awc imagine #awc #hardin #tessa young

[babygirlkiki1016]

Masterlist

Chapter 10: A lovely bond

Chapter 11: Unexpected Betrayal

I resealed the door, drawing the same pattern as before to lock it in place. I was going to miss this little cave, for more memories than I ever could imagine happened here. I ran my fingers over my newly designed dwarven braid, after Thorin saw the one I made he decided to redo my braid into a dwarven rose. It was incredibly beautiful, I don't think I'd ever want to take it out.

"Well, you owe me a tooth." Kili wrapped his arm around my shoulder as we headed to the shifter's home. For he had more supplies that we needed, especially some from my home that we have supplied him with. "I found your courter, I will say I am surprised that it was my uncle. I never believed he could feel that way towards you, but now I understand why he didn't want you to think about marriage."

"Oh really? And why is that?"

"He didn't want you to marry anyone else but him, I guess that means we get to call you auntie now. Auntie Y/n, rolls off the tongue doesn't it?"

"Although I'm glad that my uncle has warmed up to you, why would you want to be with someone who hurt you more than once?" Fili came close to my right, giving me a curious look. I didn't know why I loved Thorin, all he has ever done was make me feel sad. Did I fall in love because I wanted a person that didn't want me?

"I don't know the answer to that Fili, I have no idea why I fell in love with him. Thought I'm glad I did, for he has made me feel something I haven't felt in years." My gaze trailed over to the King who is staring back at me with a soft smile, my heart fluttered. As we made our way to the shifter's home, I rejoined my beloved who led the company.

"Thorin." I greeted, making him glance over at me with the same grin from earlier.

"Good morning amralime, I was beginning to worry you were ignoring me. For you haven't said a thing to me all morning."

"I was busy helping the others pack their things, for some reason they kept bowing as I approached." They had never done that before, and to me it was weird they would treat me such way. It became highly annoying, I had to keep reminding them that they didn't have to do that.

"You are my betrothed, soon you will be the Queen under the mountain. They have recognized you as one of their own, and accepted you as their Queen."

"I've done nothing to prove I'm a good leader, how could they call me such?"

"They first started to admire you when you asked for me to set your people free if you fell. Then you protected us in the Goblin tunnels, and when we were fighting the trolls. Even when you left, you still came back, you showed loyalty. And that's all they can ever ask for, it's all I can ask for." He slipped his arm around my waist pulling me closer to him, that look of adoration now had a permanent place on his features. Yet the small romantic moment came to an end, darkness appeared behind us, an orc pack was not far behind.

"Thorin." The look on my face was obvious, he shouted to the others to get their weapons ready. "This way!" I led them far into the forest, and soon we made our way onto Beorn's land. We ran across the field, the Orcs hot on our heels stop when they hear the creature roaring close by. We rushed to his house with the insanely large bear traveling behind us, quickly I unlocked the door letting everyone in. The creature lunges its head through it, and we all push to close the door. After being slightly injured by the pressure of the gate, Beorn finally moves his head and we manage to shut and lock the entrance.

"What is that?" Ori asked turning to me and the great grey wizard that stood beside me.

"That is our host," Gandalf explained as my focus went to Thorin, who was leaning on the door tiredly. He held his side, I reached forward and pulled away his cloak to see that he was bleeding slightly. "His name is Beorn, he’s a skin-changer. Sometimes he’s a huge black bear, sometimes he’s a great strong man. The bear is unpredictable, but the man can be reasoned with. However, he is not overly fond of dwarves."

"Come, let me fix your bandage." I let Thorin lean on me slightly, slowly I set him down on a nearby stool as the rest of the dwarves questioned if Beorn's abilities were dark magic or not. As Thorin slipped off his top clothing I grabbed a herb from my homeland that we had given to Beorn which he rarely ever uses. It's more of a 'just in case' necessity, good thing he has it.

"What is that?" Thorin took the red egg-like plant from my hand, examining it.

"It's called Arigonis, the juice inside has healing properties, it's a very rare plant. Well was, but we found a way to grow it, it'll heal your injuries all the way. However it will take time, a hour or so tops so don't scratch at it no matter how much it itches." I brought over a small bowl with water within, kneeling in front of him I took the plant and broke it apart. Using the juice and skin, I made this paste-like substance to put on his injuries. He had already taken his bandages off and discarded them to the side. When I looked up to cover him in the red-like paint, our faces were close, it was hard not to kiss him though I hardly doubt he would mind. I got to work in covering him with the herb, and it didn't take long before he went to scratch at it. "Hey, no don't do that." I slap his hand away playfully, he groans in frustration.

"It itches."

"That's how you know it's working, but if you scratch at it your wound won't heal all the way." He wants to scratch it badly, his fingers dug into his thigh so he wouldn't be tempted. Once I was done covering him in the agitating red paste, I washed my hands before making my way back over to him. I removed his hands from his thighs and made him focus on me. I was nervous, for I had never sang in front of anyone before but I figured it would help. I took a deep breath, keeping my gaze to the floor. "Wind howls in my hair, the world stops when you come this near. Starlight on your skin, the sky sways as you pull me in. And I, I wanna swim in your ocean. I wanna know how to love again, Ooh take me into your arm, sirens call, how fast I fall. Beneath your waves, no storm can take my eyes from you." Everyone turned to me, listening as I sang the song my mother used to hum to me when I was a child. "Crash down to my knees, their fears and hopes flood over me.

Your hand finds my own and shows me that I'm not alone. Now I, I'm diving deep in your ocean, I see the way to redemption, Ooh.

Take me into your arms, sirens call, how fast I fall. Beneath your waves, no storm can take

my eyes from you." All gathered around to listen as I sang the vocals, while others closed their eyes to sleep to the sound.

"Y/n." Thorin rested his hand upon my cheek, making me lean into his touch with a need to feel it. His eyes shined with a lovable glare, for he was stunned at my sudden talent.

"Take me into your arms, sirens call, how fast I fall. Beneath your waves, no storm can take

my eyes from you." (Song called Into Your Arms by Ryan Louder & Serena). Thorin's lips found it's way to mine, the rough skin made me crave more but we can only do so much in front of the others.

"You should sing more often." He gave me a pleading look, I rolled my eyes and retrieved another bandage to wrap around his torso.

"Perhaps I will, but for now you need to rest."

"Sing me to sleep, my Queen?" I kissed his forehead, smiling at his request. His hands landed on my waist pulling me in, but he kept me away just far enough where I wouldn't mess up the paste.

"Anything for you my King."

~♪♠♪~

My arms rested around the dwarven man, his hair tickling my nose slightly. Ever since we had proclaimed our love to each other he's been wanting me to sleep by his side. Which of course I was willing to do, but it made me think. How long would I have a moment like this? Surely the other dwarven kingdoms would want him to marry someone suitable, though maybe I am suitable. Once we get those reports and it's shown to the world that my kin is innocent they wouldn't be able to turn down an alliance with the Queen of the Digonisks.

"You seem deep in thought." Thorin's voice rumbled, a shiver ran down my spine at the sudden vibration.

"Have you been watching me this entire time?" He shifted onto his side, those beautiful blue orbs meeting mine.

"No, but I can tell when your asleep and when your not. And when you think deeply about certain things you tend to frown or smile. Today you did both." His thumb caressed my cheek, a gesture to make sure I was alright. "What is it amralime?"

"After this quest, and my kin goes free, won't your people want you to marry someone suitable?"

"You are suitable, there is evidence that digonisks are innocent. Once the humans and the rest of my people realize their mistake, they'll do anything to make their wrongs a right."

"...What if the scrolls aren't there? What if we never find them, will you still love me?"

"Of course." He seemed hurt that I began to doubt his feelings, a determined look appeared. He leaned forward and pecked my lips, but it soon became a more passionate kiss. Luckily we were in one of the empty stables for privacy, or the others would be grossed out. His arms wrapped tightly around me, I settled on top of him and straddle his waist. His bandages remained on his chest, for I had forgotten to take them off last night yet his wounds should be healed all the way now. With a smirk he flipped us over, his muscular figure now above my own.

"We're gonna get caught."

"Let them see." He goes to kiss me again but a loud fake gag was heard from behind him.

"No don't them see." Kili covered his eyes along with his brother, I gave Thorin an 'I told you so' look. "We came to tell you breakfast has been made." They quickly scurried away, sighing Thorin stood and we headed to the dining room. Everyone is sat at a table being served breakfast by Beorn, whose eyes widened when he saw me.

"Y/n." He nods his head slightly as a greeting, but a frown comes upon his features. "What are you doing here with a bunch of dwarves? Shouldn't you be in-" He stopped talking, for he did not want to give away our hidden home.

"No, I've been helping these men for the past few months. Don't worry Beorn they know, and they've accepted me." I stood in front of Thorin, undoing the white cloth that had been around his torso for far too long.

"If your here then who's running things?"

"Lani, my handmaiden why is there something wrong?"

"I've received word from your people that I must pay tribute for the Arigonis. They want me to cut wood so they can collect it." I stopped, pay tribute? I've never had him pay tribute before and Lani knows that, besides it's not that rare of a plant anymore.

"And if you refuse?"

"They wouldn't supply me with it anymore, and if I continue to refuse they threatened to imprison me. At first, I was angry for I never expected this out of you but seeing you now showed me that you had nothing to do with it." Imprisonment? That was nothing like my kin, what was going on while I was away?

"Who gave the order?"

"Fenris delivered me the scroll explaining how things were going to be handled from now on. Though I don't think it was him." There was no way Lani would take control like this, she was an innocent girl, right? Or was she abusing the power I gave her? Maybe it was a misunderstanding, that's not like her, she can barely ask me for something. "They're coming later to receive my answer, they should be here in a few-" Before he could finish his answer there was pounding on the door, well speak of the devil.

"Thorin wipe off the paste, I'll be back." Angrily I opened the barn door to see Fenris, the commander of my armies who immediately bowed along with the rest of his group.

"My Queen! I did not realize you were here."

"I did not realize someone gave the order to threaten my friend, who ordered that Beorn would have to give up his wood for the herb?"

"Well, you did my Queen." I was taken aback, and I could hear gasps behind me. The dwarves watched as I went from angry to absolutely furious.

"I gave no such command, for I haven't been in contact with anyone for quite some time. Where did you hear about this?"

"Lani showed us the paper you supposedly signed, that anyone we give supplies to must pay tribute in return and if not, they shall be imprisoned or worse...be sentenced to death."

@fili-is-my-lover @kirenia15 @lunariasilver @depressedchilipepper @tschrist1 @ayamenimthiriel @ask-the-elf-stuff

#bilbo x reader #fili and kili #fili x oc #gandalf #kili imagine #the company #the hobbit kili #the hobbit x reader #thorin x reader #bofur the dwarf #kili the dwarf #the hobbit x y/n #thorin fluff #thorin x y/n #thorin oakenshield fic

[lunnanunna]

Balancing Act

BTS Extra Member AU

Summary: Lexi comes late to practice due to a late filming and ability to handle both is questioned.

Warnings: none

Taglist: @kimonmars @mythicalamphitrite @hyunmijung @atinygracie @xiaojunssmile​ 

A/N: Hope you enjoy!

Requests are open for each OC! Please let me know what you think.

Lexi sped walked down the hall and to the practice room. She had been held up an extra hour and a half at the filming spot and was now very late for practice. (Hopefully the boys will be understanding.)

She made it to the door and readjusted the strap to her Balenciaga gym back (A gift from Jungkook for her birthday) then opened the door. Once she stepped in, she wished that she hadn’t at all.

The smell of sweat was everywhere. The mirrors were steamed up. All of the boys were splayed around the room in various states of consciousness. Lexi suddenly felt like she had been slacking off. All of the aches and pains, the exhaustion from the 10 hour shoot, plus their comeback prep, seemed miniscule compared to the drained and vacant looks on her members’ faces.

“Ah, she’s here.” Lexi turned to the voice, finding a man that she was unfamiliar with. Judging from his crouched position by the stereo and opened tablet in his hand, Lexi figured he was the famous choreographer that would be working with them for this comeback, Park Hyunwoo.

“I’m sorry,” Lexi said, sheepishly, taking a small bow.

“Hey, Lex,” Taehyung greeted as he walked over to her. He draped an arm around her shoulder and Lexi scrunched her nose at the gross feeling of sweat. (She hated sweat.)

“Hi, Oppa.” She still smiled, leaning up to place a kiss on his cheek in greeting.

“How was the filming? Was there a lot of difficulties?” Namjoon asked from his place on the couch. He was slouched back, legs open, hands neatly folded on his stomach.

“A lot of lines were forgotten, and then it rained, so we had to push back a scene until it stopped. Then there were many many technical difficulties. I came as soon as we finished. I literally propelled myself into Oppa’s car,” Lexi said, giggling at the last part. Just the image of Sejin’s eyes bugging out as Lexi launched herself in and shouted at him to drive, brought a smile to her face.

“You probably scared the shit out of Hyung,” Jungkook chuckled as he walked up to her. Taehyung detached himself from her, as Jungkook came to hug her from behind, nuzzling her neck. He must have been really tired to openly snuggle like that.

“Well, that’s cute and all, but you’ve missed 2 hours of practice. You are aware of how far behind you’ll be now, right?”  Hyunwoo asked. Lexi could hear the annoyance in his voice.

“I’m sorry,” she bowed again, cheeks heating up.

“Hyung, it wasn’t her fault,” Seokjin stated, “She can’t control how filmings go.” Seokjin was right. Lexi had finished all of her parts with ease, but she still had to stay because the other actors in her scenes were struggling, leading to Lexi having to redo her part over and over again.

“I really am sorry. I promise to work twice as hard to catch up. Kookie even sent me the video of the choreo and I’ve been practicing between scenes,” Lexi said, nodding her head hastily.

Jungkook removed himself from her back at the frenzied motions. He stood by her side and grabbed her hand giving it a squeeze to steady her. He could sense her need to prove herself at all cost, and knew that she’d get worked up.

Lexi squeezed back, grateful that her best friend could read her so well. “I promise, that even though I wasn’t working as hard as the guys here, that that doesn’t mean I’m not working hard at all,” she stated, a bit more calmly now.

“Lexi, no one’s saying that you aren’t working hard,” Hoseok said, offering her a warm smile.

Hyunwoo looked at Lexi, and she felt like he was looking into her soul, as if to judge whether or not she was worthy of a place in the group. His eyes locked with hers and then he let out a huff of air. “I understand.”

“What?” Lexi asked, confused about what exactly he understood.

Hyunwoo folded his arms over his chest. “I understand that you being late today wasn’t your fault, but you need to remember that the group takes first priority. Your main focus should be here. I understand that you’re working hard on this drama, but you also have a comeback coming up,” he stated, tone even. Lexi didn’t sense anything off from it. He seemed to generally be worried for her and the group.

“Yes, I’m aware. But the boys and the company have always supported me in acting. I’ve missed some group events due to scheduling, but BTS is my number one. It has always been and always will be. I’d die, before I let the group down,” Lexi stated, seriously. BTS was her life, acting was just something she did on the side.

“Lex, that’s a bit extreme,” Yoongi stated, not liking her choice in words.

She turned to him and smiled. “But it’s true, Oppa. The group is too important for me to let down,” Lexi said.

“We’re all onboard with her acting career as long as she can handle both responsibilities. But she also has us helping,” Namjoon stated, nodding his head.

“Yeah, and you heard her. She practices by herself whenever she gets the chance, even though she must be tired from filming,” Jimin added. Lexi turned to him and smiled.

“I’ll work hard to not fall behind,” Lexi promised, giving a nod.

Hyunwoo looked at her then at the boys, chewing his lip. “Alright,” he shrugged, “As long as you know your limits and weaknesses. If you’ve always worked hard I don’t see why you'd stop now.” He smiled at Lexi and she smiled back even wider.

“Hyung, it’s been a long day and you’ve helped us a lot. We can take it from here and help Lexi out,” Hoseok said.

Hyunwoo contemplated the idea a bit, then nodded. “Alright. You boys were looking good today, and I trust you to teach her well,” he said then he began to gather his things.

“Thanks, Hyung,” Namjoon said, and the others followed in thanking him as Hyunwoo left the room.

“I thought I was going to get yelled at,” Lexi said, sighing and closing her eyes.

Jungkook chuckled next to her. “You were that nervous?”

She opened her eyes and gave him a blank look. “Very.”

“Have you eaten dinner?” Seokjin asked.

Lexi shook her head. “I mean I had a snack, but I didn’t have time to actually grab a meal. It’s kind of late though.” And by late she meant half past midnight, way past dinnertime.

“Well, I think you should eat a proper meal before we start practicing,” Seokijin said, whipping out his phone to order some food for them.

“We could all eat some, then work. I’m kinda hungry,” Taehyung said as he reached for Lexi’s bag and placed it by theirs.

“I like that plan,” Namjoon said as he sat on the floor, the others joining him.

“How far are you in the choreography?” Hoseok asked Lexi as she sat next to him.

“About half way, but I still need to polish the first half,” she answered, pulling out her phone to bring up the video and show him how far she had reached.

“Wah, that’s our Lexi! Such a hard worker,” Hoseok beamed, patting her head. Lexi almost purred at the affection. Filming her drama meant not seeing the boys as much. She really missed them.

“Okay, well the food is on it’s way. We’ll eat then practice,” Seokjin announced.

“What should we do until then?” Jimin asked.

“Lexi could tell us a little bit about next week’s episode,” Taehyung suggested, waggling his eyebrows.

Lexi mimed zipping her lips and shook her head. “You’ll find out along with everyone else,” she said playfully glaring at him.

“Lexi’s good at keeping secrets like this. She’d never tell, so stop asking,” Yoongi said, leaning back on his hands.

Lexi’s Masterlist

#bts #bts au #bts 8th member #bts fanfic #bts scenarios #bts reactions #bts oneshots #kpop scenarios #kpop reactions #kpop oneshots #female kpop additions #rm #jin #suga #jhope #jimin #v #jungkook

[adhd-disaster-willie]

seventeen and strung out on confusion; chapter 2/4

So, I don’t really like this chapter as much as the other one but it’s fine. :/ I don’t have the patience to redo it, so this is what you get :)

Warnings: Homophobia, child abuse, non-graphic description of wounds, panic attacks

chapter 1

---

Alex didn’t quite know how long he’d been curled up on the sidewalk when a figure began approaching him; but he was shivering and crying and really not in the mood to be murdered. The person may not have been headed directly towards him, but they sure were biking fast in his direction and once again, being kicked out and killed on the same night didn’t sound like much fun. So, swearing underneath his breath, Alex stood up and began jogging away, still unsure of where he was headed.

The bike came barrelling towards Alex but came to a screeching halt immediately after passing him. 

“Alex?!” The person, who had a guitar strapped to their back, hopped off the bike and stumbled towards Alex.

“Luke?” Alex whispered, baffled. “What are you-” But he didn’t get to finish his sentence before Luke wrapped him in a hug, burying his face in Alex’s shoulder. Alex decided not to mention Luke’s damp, red cheeks. 

“Dude, what are you doing?” Luke asked, pulling away.

Alex snorted at that. “I could ask you the same thing.” He shoved his hands in his pockets and began rocking on his heels, counting down the seconds until Luke read him like he always does and Alex had to stop him from marching back up the block and yelling at the Mercers until his voice was hoarse.

“Your parents,” Luke muttered, his voice hardening, bitter. “They kicked you out didn’t they?” Luke didn’t get angry very often. Sure, he got upset and disappointed and frustrated, but he wasn’t one to get genuinely furious. He was now though. Alex grabbed his wrist and shook his head. 

“Yes, but Luke, please don’t.”

Luke narrowed his eyes, but backed off. “I’m gonna kill them,” He hissed beneath his breath.

“Not if you die from the cold. What are you even doing out here?”

Luke grew quiet, his gaze shifting to the ground. “Nothing, nothing I was just… I was headed to Bobby’s. The studio.”

Alex nodded, internally berating himself for not having thought of that. But he didn’t want to bother anyone. Staying in the studio for the night was entirely different from asking to live there. But he didn’t have much of a choice. 

Luke, somehow sensing Alex’s thoughts, sighed. “I’m gonna go grab your bike,”he said, giving Alex a quick hug before turning to walk up the sidewalk.

“Luke, you don’t have to-”

“Nah, I do. I’m not gonna make you go back there, and we sure as hell aren’t walking all the way to Bobby’s.”

“Fine. But you need to tell me what happened!” Alex shouted after him, but he was already far enough to pretend he hadn’t heard anything. 

---

Alex’s hands were practically numb after 10 minutes of biking, and his backpack felt like it had doubled in size. Not to mention the only light was people’s Christmas decorations and the occasional street light, and he’d only ever gone to Bobby’s in the day so he was relying about 80% on muscle memory. All in all, not a great situation. 

“Dude, why the fuck is Bobby’s house so far away?” Alex complained, adjusting his grip on his bike handles in hopes that it’d bring back some sort of feeling in his fingers. 

Luke shrugged. He’d been uncharacteristically quiet the whole ride and was yet to explain why he’d run off in the middle of the night, but Alex knew he’d open up in time… hopefully. If it had to be pried out of him, it would; but Luke was never one to keep secrets. At least Alex leaving in the middle of the night wouldn’t take much explanation, except to Bobby’s parents. No one had dared say it out loud, but for the whole year it’d felt like the seconds Alex had before being kicked out were just slowly running out. And this was the last straw. 

“Can we- can we stop for a minute?” Alex breathed, his legs burning. “I have like, no stamina.”

Luke chuckled weakly, coming to a slow stop. They leaned their bikes on the side of the curb before sitting down, feeling relieved that they recognized the area; it was just a few blocks from Reggie and roughly another 5 minutes to Bobby’s place. 

Alex let out a shaky breath. “It doesn’t even feel real,” he whispered, dropping his head and burying his hands in the pockets of his hoodie. “God, they kicked me out.” It was finally settling in and Alex felt sick. “Dad wasn’t even there. It was- it was just Mom and she… She didn’t even seem sorry. She looked at me like I was nothing.” He choked down a sob. “Like I was never her son. I didn’t think she’d ever hate me, but look at where we are now.” Alex didn’t bother fighting the tears this time. His shoulders shook and he brought his knees up to his chest, breathing in slowly in hopes to prevent a panic attack. 

Luke moved in closer, wrapping an arm around Alex’s shoulder and squeezing. “Hey, it’ll be alright. We’ve got each other. And Bobby, and Reggie-”

“Luke, Alex?”

Both boys snapped to attention; they would’ve recognized that voice anywhere.

“Reg?” Luke stood up and took two long strides to meet Reggie, clasping his thin, hunched shoulders. “Shit. Reggie, dude.”

Alex wiped his eyes furiously as he walked over to where Reggie and Luke stood and he once again recognized the pure anger dripping from Luke’s words. Then Reggie moved closer to the streetlight and Alex’s heart plummeted to his feet. 

Reggie’s face was blotchy and pink and his eyes were swollen from crying. His hair was slightly damp and Alex felt sick upon seeing the shards of glass in it. There was dried blood on his cheek and Alex was afraid for him to take his jacket off, but Luke tore it off anyway, inspecting the bruises running up and down Reggie’s forearms and wrapped around his wrists.

Reggie squeaked in protest and snatched the jacket back, his hands shaking.

“They are dead,” Luke muttered coldly. He gestured to both Alex and Reggie. “I am going to actually kill both of your guys’ parents.”

Reggie looked over to Alex. “What did Alex’s parents…” He trailed off, face darkening in realization. 

“Where were you gonna go?” Alex asked quietly, his grip on his fannypack strap tightening. 

Reggie shrugged and went to sit down on the curb. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “But I can’t just leave forever. Sammy… I can’t leave him alone with them.” He shook his head. “I’d hate myself if I just left him there.”

“Olivia moved out last year and left you guys alone!” Luke countered, sitting beside Reggie. “Reg, dude, you can’t stay there!”

Reggie’s expression hardened in a way Alex had never seen. Reggie Peters was basically a human puppy and it seemed Alex had gotten all to used to that fact. “Yea but she knew we had each other, Luke. You don’t get it. Sammy’s just 13, I can’t just leave him. I can’t.” Reggie’s tone grew more hopeless at the last sentence, his lip quivering.

“Fine,” Luke grumbled. “But at least come with us tonight. We’re going to Bobby’s.”

“But what if-”

“No buts. You’re hurt and you smell like beer, we’re not gonna leave you out here.”

“But Sammy-”

“Sammy’ll be ok,” Alex cut in. He squeezed Reggie shoulder and gave a half-hearted smile. “He’s a tough kid.”

Reggie nodded. A quiet sob ripped through him and he buried his head in his knees, leaving damp spots on his jeans from his hair which would probably smell like alcohol for a week.

Alex lay an arm around Reggie’s shoulder and Luke chuckled. ���Yea, group hug,” he whispered feebly, joining the embrace.

The temperature was rapidly dropping and Alex could feel Luke shivering and Reggie’s teeth chattering, his own feet growing numb in his shoes. But for just a split second, none of that mattered. He didn’t have to look to know that they were all crying and that Reggies hair was sticking to his cheek and Luke’s guitar case was digging into someone’s shoulder. They were a family. A stupid, dysfunctional, scarily codependent family, but still. It was something.

---

March, 1995

Despite protest, Bobby’s parents had started giving Alex and Luke monthly allowances; claiming that if they were gonna live there, they were family, not guests. Reggie refused to accept the money; he was still returning to his house at least two nights a week for fear that his parents would take their anger out on Sammy. But the money meant that Alex was finally able to get a new hoodie; one that wasn’t too tight around the shoulders and didn’t ride up every time he lifted his arms. It was nice, too. Sure it’d taken a couple months of allowance to buy, but it was soft and comfortable and his favorite shade of pink. 

“Alex,” Luke whined, drawing out the vowel like a small child begging for candy. “You can’t leave us like this!”

“Luke-”

“It’s betrayal! You- I thought you were our friend!”

“Stop being dramatic,” Alex replied, smacking Luke’s shoulder lightly. 

“Ow.”

“It’s one band practice. If I don’t retake this test, I’ll fail Algebra.”

“Algebra is a stupid subject anyway,” Luke pouted, kicking a rock angrily.

“Bobby’s mom got ice cream,” Alex said. “Now go.” He waved Luke off, smiling impatiently.

Luke trudged away from Alex’s locker and towards the exit, his head hung low. “You’re the worst,” He shouted before walking out of sight.

Alex sighed and chuckled lightly as he turned back to rifle through his locker in search of a pencil; he’d lost his favorite one in English earlier that day (more like Bobby stole it, but same difference). He didn’t like pens because the concept of not being able to fix mistakes was more daunting than it probably should be, and he refused to use any non-mechanical pencils (“Shut it Luke, I’m allowed to be picky about my pencils!”) because he hated having to sharpen them constantly and he had a bad habit of pressing down too hard and breaking the lead. So he couldn't find a damn pencil and Mr. Thomas had said he had to be in classroom by 4:30 if he wanted to retake the test but he couldn’t find a stupid pencil. Alex swallowed and breathed in shakily, glancing up at the clock which seemed to be moving too fast because there’s no way it was already 4:25. Logically, he could just ask Mr. Thomas if he could borrow a pencil, but he didn’t want to be a bother, and he knew there was a pencil somewhere in here. 

Alex cried out in frustration, slipping his backpack from his shoulders and unzipping the small front pocket which he’d reserved specifically for writing utensils. Nothing. Ok. Fine, he’d just borrow one. It isn’t that hard to ask to use a pencil. Right.

Halfway across the hallway, Alex heard snickering drifting from around the corner. He froze and gripped his backpack straps tighter. It was useless, willing himself to keep walking. Not when that laughing was sickeningly familiar. God, Alex hated football players. 

“Awe look he got a new jaaacket.” Someone -Alex refused to try and decipher who- cooed mockingly.

Alex didn’t turn around.

“Y’know when you stopped wearing the other one, we were really hoping your parents had finally beat some sense into you.”

Alex looked at the clock. 4:28. He willed himself to move forward, ignoring the twisting in his stomach. He played out the beat to Now or Never on his backpack straps. 

“Hey! We’re talking to you!”

Why was the hallway so long? Alex had begun to think it had doubled in size since he’d started walking. His hoodie felt too hot all of the sudden and he could practically feel someone breathing down the back of his neck. They were talking to him, but it was muffled, like he was underwater. He tried breathing in slowly. 4:29. His steps quickened. 

“F*g!” 

He couldn’t breathe. Alex couldn’t breathe and he felt like someone had stabbed him in the stomach and was twisting the knife over and over and over again. 4:30. Oh god. They were yelling at him and drawing closer and closer and now he’d missed his chance and was gonna fail algebra and they’d call his parents and then the school would know he’d been kicked out and-

Someone had hit him. He wished he could pinpoint where, but his entire body was numb and throbbing and everything was blurry. He wondered briefly if the shouting was in his head or out of it. And this might be where he could say he’d blacked out, but that wasn’t quite what had happened. He stumbled blindly across the rest of the hall, mostly on autopilot, unable to see through tears and why was he crying??? He never really fainted, but no matter how hard he tried, Alex couldn’t remember what’d happened next. 

---

“Alex!” 

That was Luke, Alex was sure of it. 

“ ‘Lex, come on.” 

Reggie shook Alex’s shoulder and his vision began to clear. Oh. 

“What, why am I in the studio?” He asked frantically. “How did I- my test!” He stood up and not bothering to figure out why he was dizzy, Alex rushed to the doorway. 

“Nope.” Bobby clasped his shoulder tightly and steered him back to the couch. “Sit down, idiot, you almost passed out.”

“Dude, who punched you?” Luke asked, scooting in closer to Alex and gazing furiously at the bruise on his face.

Alex shrugged. “I don’t- I’m not- it’s…”

“Mr. Thomas said you came into his classroom and tried to ask for the test but he wouldn’t let you since you’d just been beat up and then Bobby heard you in the room cause, cause he came up to the school to give you a ride so you didn’t have to walk-”

“Reggie slow down, you’re gonna give him another panic attack!” Luke scolded, swatting Reggie’s chest and shoving him lightly. 

Bobby sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Mr. Thomas is letting you retake the test next week, drink some water.” 

Alex took the glass gratefully and took a hesitant sip. He set the water down and breathed in, settling into the couch, still tense. “ ‘M sorry,” he muttered.

“Sorry? Dude what?” Luke looked at Alex, completely baffled. “What are you apologizing for?”

“I made you cancel practice so I could take my test but I didn’t even take it.”

“Don’t be stupid,” Reggie chided. “We’re not mad at you-”

“Yea it’s whatever asshat punched you that we’re mad at.”

“Bobby, we’re not killing anyone.”

“Yea please don’t get yourself arrested for me,” Alex laughed softly. 

Bobby shook his head and flopped down on the couch beside Reggie. “Fine.”

“Hey,” Luke shook Alex gently. “You want some chocolate? Reg got some of that fancy stuff-”

“No, I draw the line at giving him my chocolates,” Reggie complained, reaching across Alex to slap a hand over Luke’s mouth. “Ew! Dude, you licked me!” Reggie whined loudly as he shook his hand, pretending to gag. “That’s just low.”

“Shut up.”

“You shut up.”

“You’re both stupid.”

Alex let his head fall against the back of the couch, a small smile creeping onto his face.

---

I’m not great at angst, so I’m not quite sure why I thought I’d do well with this fic akhfkldsfh

please tell me if there’s anything else I should add a warning for, I tried to do everything but I could’ve overlooked something. 

chapter 3

chapter 4

#jatp #julie and the phantoms #jatp fic #alex mercer #luke patterson #reggie peters #bobby wilson #trevor wilson #sunset curve #alex mercer fic #willow writes

[fencesandfrogs]

gathering times.

part of my broader lore series.

i’m breaking from my usual lore narration style for a moment to discuss: how cats know when to gather (because it bothers me).

anyway, i haven't seen any other lore about this, so i'd like to say that explicitly, anyone is welcome to use this if they like it. if you want to use the folklore parts (e.g., the story in "full moon.") please credit me somehow, but otherwise idgaf. (a CC0-1.0 liscence, if you are a nerd. if you're not, it's what i just said.)

section one: tracking the moon

so i have this tiny lore thing where so the cats. track the moon as starclan adding claws to the moon and taking them away. so we have four claws to mess with:

no claws: new moon

one claw: waxing cresent

two claws: half moon

three claws: waxing gibbous

four claws: full moon

but cats usually count these in terms of one claw away from new/half/full, like how people used to call november 20th 10 days from december.

also, since only new and full moons matter for most cats, most cats wouldn't think about the waning moon. hence why it's described as starclan clawing at the moon, because they don't care about the precision.

this is also somewhat decoupled from the idea of a half/quarter moon as a unit of time: cats aren't using this to track time (e.g., one claw to three claws), just as a method of measuring where in the moon they are. i'm not sure if this makes sense, i guess it's kind of like saying "monday" tells you where in the week you are, and saying "third week" says where in the month you are, but you wouldn't say "from second week to fourth week," you'd say the dates or be more specific.

look, cats track time differntly. we're going to talk about when first and why second.

section two: full moons

The leaders discussed this, and they agreed. From then on, they would meet the night after the moon had all its claws, and there were no more debates about when the gathering would be.

(full moon.)

yeah so basically i was so angry that warrior cats act like the moon is either new, half, or full i wrote 1k words of folklore about why that is. that will either be published or publishing soon, so i'm not going to recap it.

basically, the full moon is considered to start when the moon is a whisker's length from full (basically, the first night you can't see that the moon hasn't finished), and that day is the holy day for clans who celebrate like that.

the next day is the gathering.

the third day is the medicine cats' half moon meeting (we're getting to them).

mind, i'm still doing a lot of handwaving here, but i do have a limit to how realistic i demand my fantasy cat novels be.

section three: half moons

There was no celebrations to be had on half moon, and the camp was mostly quiet. Moonrise was coming soon, and Dovepaw could see Willowshine and Mothwing climbing the rocks. Jayfeather greets them, doesn’t ask where she is.

(feathers take flight --- footprints)

so basically half moon is when a whisker could be laid straight on the moon. this is still kind of vague, but let's say starclan intervenes.

i honestly can't come up with a better explanation of how they all agree, so at least this is a definition. the half moon is such a vague term like.

anyway.

section four: new moons

“Won’t everyone be asleep?” she asks, and Willowshine’s eyes glitter.

“On the night of the sleeping moon? I hope they’re not done.”

Dovepaw doesn’t know what that means. But she enters the camp, still alive, apprentices sharing fish, flower petals scattered, and she almost does.

(feathers take flight --- footprints)

okay, this is the one that i think is hardest to tell is ambigious. because you might be thinking "new moon is when there is no moon" but this has the same problem as full moon.

luckily, only medicine cats gather on the new moon. so clans can celebrate whenever.

anyway, internet says people can see a moon at anywhere from 1% to 10% as illuminated, and cats have better night vision, and you get about 3 days in the 0% to 5% range, so i'm not really sure what to derive from this.

i mean there are cycles with a new moon and a 0% moon on either side.

anyway, i'm going to say that cats call it the new moon when it's 0% or new. the first day is always the new moon. we're also going to say their vision is good enough that there's no conflict.

(how is this different from the full moon? its a pyschology thing about complete/empty. a cup isn't empty unless there's nothing in it, but it can be full with not very much in it, even if you're holding out for a full cup. also, stop asking difficult questions. i cover this in "full moon." where the answer is basically the same as this one but with better lore.)

section five: medicine cats meet every half moon

“He’s right,” Willowshine says. “Mothwing made me a medicine cat on a second whisker night, and I swear the clan slept ‘til sunhigh.”

(feathers take flight --- riverbed)

so uhh i've never understood what it means that medicine cats meet for the half moon. in older books, it's called a half moon meeting, which implies that it doesn't occur on the new moon or the full moon. but in moth flight's vision i swear they say they'll meet every half moon which is an established unit of time in canon.

so. do they meet every quarter moon or every half moon.

i've gone with every quarter moon. why? the following:

it means i can let cats stay home now and then.

it makes more sense. if you know much about human medicine, rounds/grand rounds (which are a similar vibe with less religion) happen every day to every month, depending on the scale of the encounter. i think meeting every quarter moon makes more sense because they're constantly talking about getting advice from each other, and it would be so much easier to just have jayfeather ask for littlecloud's help at the next half moon meeting than running over, since that's what the point of the meeting is.

i want to.

anyway, new moons for clans and medicine cats can get desynched. kind of like geographic north/magnetic north, and human months vs the lunar cycle. it's not super common, but it does happen and no one really cares.

they meet on a second-whisker night for the full moon. that's basically, okay, in "full moon." i say

"No," said Briarleap. "But when the moon has all its claws, there is always a time where the moon is a whisker's length from fullness. We ought not to waste our energy gathering when the moon isn't full. So the clans must gather the moonrise after the last claw is returned."

and the understanding is, the "last claw" night briarleap is talking about is called "first-whisker night" that's the holy night.

first whisker is the night they meet. because it's supposed to be properly full but sometimes there's a whisker.

and second whisker is the next night, when medicine cats meet.

yes, that does mean any clans that celebrate the full moon have exhausted medicine cats near full moon. this is why meetings are every quarter moon. so they can stay home for a meeting without missing a major important time.

alright, i believe that's all i have for this. as a fun bonus, i have some consistent warrior/medicine cat training timelines.

The typical medicine cat training period is four seasons, although after the first two to three, they are usually alloted a good amount of autonomy.

...

There’s no vigil for medicine cats. They have trained for four seasons, seen the clan at its best and worst, and have already chosen to sacrifice much of a warrior life for the good of their clan. If Willowshine decides to make Dovepaw a full medicine cat, the clan will feast in her honor that night.

(feathers take flight --- riverbed)

the implication here is that warriors train for two seasons, which is why medicine cats are given more authority around then. in riverclan, that's when they move into the medicine cat's den, because their denmates are moving into the warriors den. not always, though:

“Am I going to be all alone when Troutpaw and Rushpaw and Mossypaw become warriors?” she asks. Dovepaw has never slept alone.

(Jayfeather, alone in his den.)

“I don’t think so,” Willowshine says. “They might stay in with you until Fernstream’s kits become apprentices, or you could sleep in the medicine den. You’re always welcome.”

(feathers take flight --- riverbed)

(fernstream is an invention bc riverclan doesn't have any queens they don't age it's a problem i need to redo their allegiances for FTF.)

anyway yeah that's a different story tho.

finally, take these cute words from mistystar to dovepaw:

“Then I make Dovepaw kin, and say she is born from River, as we all are. And I trust her training to Willowshine, and Starclan, to guide her paws.”

(feathers take flight --- riverbed)

#dovefeather #willowshine #mothwing #warriors #warriors au #warriors culture #warriors worldbuilding #warrior cats #mine #txt #3rd #March #2021 #March 3rd 2021 #cloudtail's daughter #jaywing #long #essay #dovewing #lovewing dovewing #kinda i mean she shows up a lot

[captaincravatthecapricious]

Reoccurring Nightmare- Prompt Fill

cw for exhaustion, anxiety, crying

Send me more prompts!  (Bingo by @celosiaa​) The ones with stars are the ones I already have prompts for, the crossed out ones are the ones I have posted! Send me a character, a prompt, and tell me if you want an art or a fic!!!!!! I am captaincravatthecapricious on tumblr!

There is a knocking in his ears.  At his door.  On his person.  On the inside of his skull.  The knocking in his chest.  His heart trying to get out of him.  Anxiety?  Mirroring the knocking on his door for two weeks.  Knocking that should have been Tim or Sasha or Jon.  

Every night the same.  Every night on a passible cot.  In this cramped little room.  Variations on the same theme.  The knocking in his head… in his memory shaking him for the same dream.  Leaving him bleary and only the slightest bit alive during the day.  Turning the past… month?  Into nothing but a sleep deprived blur.  Days having no meaning when nights don’t bring rest.  When there is no daylight, and few meals.  He isn’t hungry because all he can think about is that damp, decaying smell.  Of earth and compost and rot.  Gone past the restless hunger of exhaustion, and straight into the churning nausea of trying to stay conscious.  

His handwriting is worse than it ever has been.  Nodding off at his desk.  The notes he is taking turning into cryptic squiggles as the words blur before his eyes.  

He’s been trying to listen to Jon tell him something for the past 15 minutes, but he has no idea what.  His eyes keep sliding shut and his neck is getting sore from jerking as he tries not to fall asleep.  

“Martin?”  That would be Jon, right?  Yes.  Jon is right in front of him.  It would make sense if it were Jon.  Right?  Right?  Right?  Is he even at his desk?  Is he still backed against the wall at, in his flat?  Spare cloth shoved under every crack?  Duct tape and packing tape and linens and clothes?  Keeping them out?  But the knocking continuing?  Or is that his heartbeat?  

Jon is getting a little alarmed by Martin.  Martin had looked… rough when he burst into his office, weeks ago now.  But he isn’t looking better.  Jon watches Martin repeatedly fall asleep as Jon tries to express his growing… concern about Martin’s current state.  

Jon wrings his hands nervously for a few seconds before stopping himself.  He clenches his hands into fists by his sides to stop his fidgeting.  “Martin…. Are… are you all right?”  Stupid.  Stupid.  Stupid.  Of course he isn’t.  The man is falling asleep at his desk.  He isn’t alright.  

This jerks Martin awake again.  

“Fine  I’m fine!”  Martin’s voice has jumped an octave and breaks halfway through.  

Jon clears his throat.  He really hasn’t planned out what to do next.  What did he even think he could accomplish here?  He could get Martin to the cot, but as far as Jon knows, Martin has spent a lot of time there.  Jon has been keeping later and later hours since Martin got back, and has tried to keep an eye on Martin.  

He needs to do something.  

How did he not get suspicious?  

He should have checked in on Martin.  14 nights.  14 nights he spent sleeping or... trying to sleep... or to be fair about 10 nights sleeping, and 4 nights failing to and working instead... in any case he wasn't there!  He has to do something this time.  He failed last time.  He should have been a better boss.  He should have been less of a right ass.  

"Martin, I have to request that we continue this conversation once you have gotten some rest.  Please."

Well that probably wasn't helpful.  Especially because Martin looks slightly panicked now.  

"It's fine, Jon really.  I'm fine.  I'll just... I'll just get back to this..."  Martin glances down as if checking what he is actually supposed to be working on.  "Followup.  I'll have it for you in an hour, yeah?  I'll bring you tea?"  

Jon pulls a face.  This is not what he was getting at.  "Martin I want you to get some rest so you don't collapse, you can worry about that later so I don't have to redo everything because you aren't awake enough to do it properly."  Well... he got a sentence out, but it wasn't as... kind as he had hoped it would come out.  

Martin's face falls.  "right ...yeah.  Sorry."  Martin makes no move to get up.  

Jon is half afraid that he will just give up and sleep at his desk, which Jon can reliably report is not good for the spine.  And Jon does not have the means to lift Martin, nor does he want to break the touch barrier.  He doesn't know Martin well enough for that.  It had taken him months to get there with Tim.  Maybe Tim could carry Martin... but that is all the farther he get with that thought before Martin bursts into tears.  Which Jon honestly finds even more alarming.  

Jon prefers to do his crying far far away from prying eyes.  The idea of being comforted sounds both very nice and very uncomfortable and if anyone were to catch him crying at work, he would very much prefer they simply pretended nothing was going on. 

Right.  Martin.  

Jon nudges Martin's box of tissues a little closer and just... stands there, staring off just above Martin's head.  What else is he supposed to do?  He could bring him water, but that acknowledges that Martin is crying, which Martin might not appreciate?  Then again, Jon doesn't know what Martin likes.  Would it betray his trust to go and fetch Tim?  Or Sasha?  Or hell even Rosie would be better equipped to handle this.  Jon doesn't know shit about comforting people.  He is half convinced that that is part of the reason Georgie broke up with him.  

He turns on his heal and retrieves water and some biscuits for Martin.  It isn't tea, but Jon has no clue how Martin takes his tea and doesn't want to leave for too long.  Maybe he can shield Martin from the others if they actually come back from lunch on time.  Which ....Jon doubts.  

Martin is doing his best to dry his eyes with minimal success, when Jon returns.  Jon sets the water in front of him and nudges the biscuits in line with the water.  

Jon clears his throat.  "Would you like to be left alone or would you... like a hug?'  

Martin snorts at the clear awkwardness laced in the word "hug."  It's a damp sound.  "Not if you say it like that, Jon.  I'm fine.  I'll just... wash my face and get back to work."

"Martin, please I... you need to rest.  Not just for your work, that was supposed to be a... Martin I am actually worried about you.  Please go and get some rest."

Martin whines slightly and then flushes at the idea that he made such an embarrassing sound.  At least, Jon presumes that is why he flushes.  

He is clearly embarrassed enough to give it up and go to the cot because Martin gets up and heads in that direction.  Muttering a teary, "fine," as he leaves.  

Jon is jolted out of his work by screaming.  He follows it towards Martin's room, heart hammering loud enough to make him dizzy.  "Martin!"  He bursts in without knocking.  And Martin is...

curled up on the cot... looking even more tired and embarrassed.  

"Sorry," he mumbles, having come awake with his own scream, Jon presumes.  Or perhaps when Jon entered. "Nightmares.  I'm fine.  Go back to work.  Or better yet You take a nap."  

The last part was in a sharper tone then Jon is used to from Martin.  

"I'm fine," Jon echos.  Defensive.  He is.  Mostly.  True he's been pulling some ridiculous hours, but that is for Martin.  He needs to help.  He needs to try to understand what is happening.  "Martin, is there anything I can do?"

"No.  Jon.  It's fine.  Go back to work.  I'll have a lie down and then I'll get back to work."

"Would... would company help?  I... I could take a lie down on the floor?  And then you... wouldn't be alone?"

Silence falls heavily.  Jon is worried he has overstepped.  Wouldn't that be just like him?  Make Martin feel worse.  Just like he always does.  

Adrenaline from earlier getting recycled into guilt.  His hands are prickling with anxiety.  He tries to shake them out subtly.  

Martin is staring at Jon's feet.  Or rather at the floor next to them, and has gone a bit red.  

"Look, Jon, I don't want you to sleep on the floor."

"It's fine.  Better than my desk.  It will likely be the best sleep I've gotten in a while.  Think of it as a benefit to me.  ...I... I understand not sleeping well."  Jon also stares at the floor.  He distantly wonders if they are staring at the same spot.  An indirect staring contest.  Indirect like everything Jon does.  Everything just to the left of what he means.  He scuffs his foot on the floor.  

Martin scoots until he is pressed to the wall, and pointedly doesn't look at Jon as he pats the cot next to him.  

Holding himself stiffly, Jon toes off his shoes and folds his jacket, and stretch himself next to Martin on the too-narrow cot.  

Hardly five minutes later, they are both are in an uneasy sleep.  But it is an improvement.  

#the magnus archives #jonathan sims #martin blackwood #nightmares #exhaustion #crying #pre jonmartin #tma #fic #words #my words #art #my art #prompt fill #anon

[allthingsfangirl101]

Apology Flowers–Zac Efron

Zac's POV

By the time we were finally finished filming, it was late. I walked back to my trailer, rolling my shoulders to try and relieve some of the tension. I plopped down onto the couch and leaned my head against the cushion.

I sighed when I heard my phone go off. I sat up and grabbed it off the table. When I turned it on, my stomach felt like I had just been punched. I had 4 missed calls, 8 unopened texts, and one voicemail from Y/N. I also had one text from my brother that made my heart bungee jump into my stomach.

Dylan 😎: Hey, man. How was your anniversary dinner with Y/N? She was pretty excited about it when I talked to her.

"Shit," I mumbled as I quickly called Y/N. I held my breath as it rang and rang and rang. I jumped up and started pacing back and forth as I waited for her to answer. When it went to voicemail, I immediately started to try and explain.

"Hey, babe. I am so so so so so sorry! We have been filming nonstop since I walked onto set this morning. I just walked into my trailer for the first time all day. I'm so sorry, Y/N. I really hope you weren't. . . Of course, you were waiting long for me. Shit. I'm so sorry. You have every right to be furious with me. And you can be angry with me and hold this over my head for as long as you want. I deserve it. I'm so sorry, Y/N. Please call me back. I love you."

I hung up the phone and aggressively threw it back onto the couch. I swore as I angrily ran my fingers through my hair. I looked at the clock on the wall to see it was almost 10:30.

Our dinner reservations were for 7. Originally, I was supposed to be done filming by 6, rush home, shower, and meet Y/N at the restaurant. I sat back down on the couch, feeling like a complete jerk.

Y/N and I have been dating for two years today. I've been late for dates, I've left the country suddenly, and I've come home at 3 am. I've done some truly crappy boyfriend things, but I have never stood her up on a date without texting her at least two hours in advance.

I couldn't help but wonder how long she was sitting at the restaurant waiting for me. I slowly grabbed my phone that had fallen onto the floor, gathering the courage to go through the missed texts and calls. My heart sank into my stomach, my guilt building as I read through her messages.

Sent as 5:30 p.m. Y/N ❤️: Hey, babe. I'm getting ready! So excited for tonight! Love you!!

Sent at 6:43 p.m. Y/N ❤️: I'm heading to the restaurant! You on your way?

Sent at 6:57 p.m. Y/N ❤️: I beat you! Lol. You close?

Missed call from Y/N ❤️ at 7:09 p.m.

Sent at 7:12 p.m. Y/N ❤️: Hey, babe. Let me know when you're on your way, okay? Love you.

Missed call from Y/N ❤️ at 7:33 p.m.

Sent at 7:46 p.m. Y/N ❤️: Hey, babe. I tried calling you twice. Everything alright?

Sent at 8:02 p.m. Y/N ❤️: Hey, babe. I hate to be that girlfriend that texts a million times, but are you okay? I haven't heard from you and it's getting late. Please text me so I know you're okay. Love you.

Missed call from Y/N ❤️ at 8:05 p.m.

Sent at 8:19 p.m. Y/N ❤️: Where are you? Is everything okay? Zac, please call me. I'm starting to get really worried...

Sent at 8:57 p.m. Y/N ❤️: Zac?

Missed call and voicemail from Y/N ❤️ at 9:12 p.m.

I pushed on the voicemail that Y/N left me, my heart sinking even lower when I heard her defeated voice.

"Hey, babe," she said, her voice cracking."I'm in my car, outside the restaurant. I've been waiting for. . ."

There was a pause as Y/N's breath got caught in her throat. I could imagine her looking at her dashboard to see how late it actually was.

"Look," she sighed, "I don't know if something came up or. . . Or maybe you forgot about tonight. . ."

All I could hear as she paused again was her taking a shaky breath. "Zac?" She said, her voice breaking. "Is everything okay? I've been calling you and texting you all night. I just. . . I hated texting you over and over like a clingy girlfriend and. . . Then it got to the point that people were staring at me and whispering. . ."

I ran my fingers through my hair when Y/N started crying. I opened my mouth to say something to her but remembered that this was a message. I officially felt like the worse boyfriend ever when the last thing I heard before Y/N hung up the phone was her crying.

I quickly grabbed my things and ran out to my car. The entire way to her apartment, I kept calling her and calling her. I parked out front and ran inside, still trying to call her. I knocked on the door, nervously bouncing on my heels.

"Oh hello, Zachary."

"Hi, Bianca," I sighed when Y/N's roommate answered the door.

Y/N and Bianca were roommates in college and they continued living together after they graduated. Bianca was a makeup artist but got a degree in business from UCLA to get her dad off her back. Y/N got her degree in Elementary Education. After they graduated, Bianca got a job on a tv show doing makeup and Y/N got a job at a school in the city.

Y/N and I met through Bianca. When I was working on The Greatest Showman, Bianca was my makeup artist. Every day, Y/N would drop Bianca off on her way to school and pick her up on her way home. I ran into Y/N probably hundreds of times, flirting with her every chance I had.

Eventually, I got the nerve up to ask her out. She said yes even though Bianca had tried to warn her to stay away from me. On our third date, Y/N confessed that after the first time she and I met, Bianca warned her that I would just break her heart. Luckily, Y/N ignored her roommate's warnings and went out with me anyway, wanting to see for herself if I would break her heart.

As Y/N and I started dating, Bianca was extremely protective of her. It seems like she has hated me with every fiber of her being since day one.

"Is Y/N here?" I asked, trying to look into her apartment. "I really need to talk to her."

"You do, do you?" She said, crossing her arms over her chest. "Do you have any idea how much of an ass you are?"

"I know," I sighed. "I am. And I want to explain everything. So, please tell her I'm here. I tried calling, but she wasn't answering her phone. . ."

"Of course she didn't answer her phone!" Bianca yelled, cutting me off. "You stood her up, Zac. And not just on a regular date. It was your two year anniversary. Or did you forget?"

"I didn't forget," I said as quickly as I could. "It's just. . . They kept wanting different angles and we kept redoing scenes. I didn't have any control over it, okay? Why am I explaining this to you? Where's Y/N?"

"I'm sorry, Zac," she said with a victorious smirk. "Y/N isn't accepting any visitors."

She was about to shut the door but stopped. "I knew it," she said, her anger coming through her voice. "I knew this would happen. I knew you would show your true colors sooner or later."

"Bianca. . ."

"I knew you would break her heart, Zac Efron."

                       * * * * *

I spent the rest of the night calling Y/N and texting her. I finally fell asleep around 3 a.m. The minute I woke up three and a half hours later, I started trying to call her again.

She continued to ignore my calls and texts throughout the day. I stopped calling her when I knew she would be teaching, but I continued to text her. I tried calling her during her lunch hour, but she still wasn't responding.

"I can't believe you forgot your two year anniversary," Dylan laughed. He came over later in the afternoon when I told him Y/N wasn't answering me. Instead of comforting me, he was giving me a hard time

"I didn't forget!" I defended myself. "We just went over."

"Over? By four hours?" Dylan scoffed. "Wait, weren't you planning on asking Y/N to move in with you?"

He started laughing when he saw the look on my face. I rolled my eyes and took another drink of my beer.

"That sucks," he said, still laughing. "Now instead of moving in with you, she's gonna dump your sorry ass."

My eyes widened and my heart jumped into my throat. "You don't think. . ."

"I was kidding," Dylan said quickly. "Y/N loves you. She would never leave because you stood her up. Didn't she tell you when you first started going out that the only reason she would break up with you is if you cheated on her?"

"Yeah," I said, trying to calm down. I ran my fingers through my hair and let out the breath I was holding. "What do I do?" I sighed. "She won't answer my calls. She's ignored every text I sent her. And Bianca is being her guard dog."

"Damn," Dylan laughed. "Bianca scares the shit out of me."

"Me too," I chuckled. "She hates me. She doesn't even pretend to like me for Y/N's sake. I bet she's trying to get Y/N to break up with me."

"She's probably already tried setting her up with someone else."

It started off as a joke, but we soon realized there was more truth in that statement than joke.

"I gotta do something," I jumped up. "And fast."

                       * * * * *

With a box of chocolates and a giant bouquet of Y/N's favorite flowers, I knocked on their door. I was a little relieved when I pulled up and Bianca's car wasn't in the driveway. I sucked in a breath when the door opened.

"Zac," Y/N said under her breath. My heart sank when I saw her red eyes, tear-stained cheeks, messy hair, and baggy clothes.

"Hey," I said, my guilt making it so I couldn't talk. We stood there, her in the doorway and me on the porch, neither one of us saying anything. When Y/N opened her mouth to say something, I gently cut her off.

"I am so sorry, Y/N. I never meant to stand you up last night. Things got so crazy and we went way over. I know that isn't an excuse and I'm not using it as one. I just. . . I messed up. I messed up big! And you can be mad at me forever. I mean it. Hold it over my head for the rest of my life. I deserve it. I didn't mean to hurt you. I love you, Y/N. And I'm really sorry."

I held my breath, waiting for her response. Her arms were wrapped around herself as she studied me. I felt my stomach flutter when she slowly smiled.

"What are those?" She asked, gesturing towards the flowers and chocolate.

"These," I smiled, "are for you. They're an apology gift for me being an asshole."

She stepped onto the porch and took them from me. As she smelled the flowers, she looked up at me through her eyelashes. I gasped when she wrapped her arms around me and pulled me down for a kiss. I instantly kissed her back, wrapping my arms tightly around her waist.

When we broke the kiss, I leaned my forehead against hers. I rubbed our noses together as the guilt still ate at me.

"I'm really sorry, Y/N," I whispered. I leaned back and looked down at her with my arms still wrapped around her waist. "And I promise I will never stand you up again."

"I forgive you," she smiled up at me. I leaned down and pressed my lips to hers, smiling as she kissed me back.

I broke the kiss and looked down at her. I reached up and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, my hand lingering on her cheek.

"There was something I was going to ask you last night," I said, gathering my courage.

"Really?" Y/N asked, slightly tilting her head.

"Yep," I said popping the P. "And there was a present that went along with it."

"Is that so?" Y/N teased. She giggled when I nodded. "Well then, we should go inside."

She grabbed my hand and pulled me inside. I leaned against the kitchen counter as Y/N got a vase for her flowers. After she put them on the table, we walked into the other room.

We sat on the couch, Y/N instantly turning towards me. I smiled and leaned over, pressing a soft kiss to her lips. When I pulled away, I reached into my pocket. She looked at me strangely as I grabbed a key to my place and held it out for her.

"Here."

"What's this?" She asked, taking it from me.

"It's a key to my apartment," I explained. I took a deep breath before finally saying, "Y/N, last night I was going to ask you to move in with me."

"Wait, really?" She asked, her eyes wide as they looked up from the key in her hands.

"Yeah," I chuckled nervously. "That was supposed to be my big two-year anniversary romantic gesture."

Y/N grabbed my face and pressed her lips to mine. I smiled as our lips started moving in sync. The kiss was short and simple, but there was so much love behind it.

"I love you," she whispered when she broke the kiss, still holding my face. "And I would love to move in with you."

I smiled, pulling her back into my chest as I laid us down. Our lips moved in sync as I hovered over her. I pulled away and started kissing her neck. She giggled as I found her sweet spot.

"Bianca's gonna be pissed," she said breathlessly.

"I'd rather not talk about her," I said, nibbling on her ear.

"Okay," Y/N sighed as I switched to her other side. After spending a little more attention to her sweet spot, I finally pulled away and looked into her eyes.

"I love you so much, Y/N," I whispered. "And I can't believe I stood you up last night."

"Zac," she sighed, reaching up and playing with my shirt. "You have apologized over and over. I've listened to the voicemails and read the texts that you sent. I'm sorry I didn't respond. I was angry and Bianca said. . ."

I cut her off, pressing my lips back to hers. She giggled against my lips and instantly started kissing me back. She wrapped her arms around my neck, pulling me closer to her.

I broke the kiss, smiling down at her. She laughed as I sat up, pulling her with me. I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and pulled her into my side.

Y/N turned on Netflix and we spent the next little while eating chocolates and binge-watching a show. We sat like that, just holding each other and not saying anything. When her front door opened, Y/N looked up at me.

"Oh boy," I whispered. "She's here."

"Easy there, big guy," Y/N teased as she laughed and playfully hit my chest.

"Oh, great," Bianca groaned. "You're back together."

"We were never broken up, B." Y/N said, glancing at me before turning to face her.

"Nice to see you too, Bianca." My comment made Y/N laugh that she quickly covered up by clearing her throat. She sent me a soft glare for Bianca's sake.

"Yeah yeah yeah," Bianca mumbled as she walked to her room, ignoring my comment completely. Y/N and I looked at each other, holding in our laughter until she closed her door.

"Will she ever like you?" Y/N giggled as she leaned back into my chest.

"Nope," I sighed. "She's mad that I took you from her."

"That's probably true," she chuckled. I bit my lip as I thought about the last twenty-four hours and sighed.

"You okay?" She asked as I subconsciously tightened my arm around her.

"I still can't believe I stood you up," I said under my breath.

"Zac," she sighed, sitting up and turning towards me. "You didn't do it on purpose, babe. I know that. And I shouldn't have ignored you. I was upset and needed time to blow off steam. But I shouldn't have ignored you. I should've let you explain what happened that night."

"It's okay," I said as we both chuckled. I smiled as I reached up and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. "I'm really sorry, Y/N."

Y/N leaned up and pressed her lips to mine. Before it could get heated, she pulled away.

"I love you, Zac," she whispered.

"I love you too, Y/N."

I pressed a short kiss to her lips and cupped her face in my hand as I pulled away.

"Happy anniversary, baby."

#zac #efron #zac efron #zac efron imagines #zac efron x reader

[feminaexlux]

A Needed Miracle - Chapter 18: But never complete

I'd been working on this one for months... because I did like 70% in 1-2 sittings and then fell off the face of the planet and I'm now just getting back into the groove.

Hope this is at least interesting to some people >_>

Read on AO3

⁂

(Nine years ago)

As soon as he said the wish Adrien knew he'd fucked up big time. He'd been dissolved, turning into the space in-between his component atoms, the trillions of tiny subatomic particles and… concepts that had initially, through sheer luck, linked up into some kind of personhood and made a pattern of Adrien Agreste.

He'd seen the Null forms of Tikki and Plagg. He knew the presence of the Invader. It was the best name they had at the time. And from there he saw how much he had cost this particular universe in terms of the energy and time it'd take to sink into his wish.

He'd asked for a "redo". A complete and total rewrite of reality because some 15 year old rich white boy with superpowers couldn't handle that his family and his friends had been murdered all around him. Well, in the grand scheme of things maybe it was a little short-sighted. Hawkmoth had been defeated at the cost of a bunch of teenagers playing superhero while there had been this thing looming in the outskirts.

Then he saw that Tikki and Plagg had cheated.

⁂

When he came to, he realized he'd been back in his bed. He blinked a couple of times and scanned his room, making sure that it was actually his room and… he wasn't dead? He wasn't dead. He was… still Adrien by the looks of it, his room being his room and all. He looked down at his hands, suddenly panicking that he'd lost Plagg. He didn't have the ring, holy crap! He turned over and went onto his knees, throwing the sheets and pillows off of his bed in a desperate search for his kwami. "Plagg!?" He yelled out. "Plagg, please let me know you're here!" Adrien cried, half sobbing.

If Plagg wasn't here… maybe Marinette had him?

Adrien ran out of his room and burst out into the main hallway. Apparently it was around the twilight hours, no one had been up and Nathalie (… and his father what the fuck they were both such huge assholes) wasn't around. He managed to throw open the front doors and ran out into the courtyard. Not even the gate could stop him as he vaulted through one of the holes in the giant decorative ironwork head first.

Marinette was only a block and a half away. His Lady had always been so close and he'd been an idiot for not even seeing her right in front of his stupid face. But he could fix it! He could fix it now, thank God. No… Thanks to Tikki and Plagg and--

A silver car screeched to a stop in front of him before he could run across the street to Marinette's house. A car door flew open and his Mother emerged, looking panicked in her white silk sleeping robe. "Adrien! What are you doing?!"

"Mom?!"

She ran to him and wrapped him up tight in her arms. "Adrien how could you leave like that? What were you doing?! You foolish, foolish child! Do you know what time it is?!"

Adrien had been a little… more than a little shocked and overwhelmed with a mix of joy and confusion at seeing his mother in person again. His wish made her come back! But… "Mom, I need to find--"

"You're coming home right now," Emilie said, dragging Adrien back into the car despite his protestations. "Simon, please take us home." Adrien heard a familiar grunt and the car was put into reverse, taking Adrien further away from his… Destiny? No. He'd changed all that. Emilie turned and forced Adrien to look at her by gripping his shoulders and turning him. "What the hell were you doing Adrien?! You know your father will be furious!"

Rage boiled over in Adrien. "I HATE HIM!" Adrien screamed. It all spilled out in the relative privacy of the car, how Adrien had found a Miraculous and became Chat Noir, how he had been fighting Hawkmoth with Ladybug, how Hawkmoth was Gabriel and Nathalie had become Mayura and they had become some disgusting couple thing but that Adrien had supported their relationship unknowingly because Emilie had been dead for a year and--

"That is quite the nightmare, Adrien," his father's cold voice interrupted, coming from over the car intercom. "Come inside. You've caused enough trouble for tonight."

Adrien had arrived at home. They didn't believe him. Of course they wouldn't. There was one way he could prove all that he was saying… that book was still in the safe, wasn't it? He ran out of the car to his father's office and slid away the Klimt-"inspired" painting of his mother. He punched in a few codes but they were all rejected.

"Adrien!" His father's voice boomed at him. Adrien ignored him for the time being, trying in vain to remember anything that might have been important to Gabriel. Adrien remembered how Gabriel had… died loving no one but himself, and punched in a sequence. The safe popped open and revealed…

Nothing? Where did that fucker hide everything? Adrien ran at his father and pulled off that stupid candy-striped cravat, shocking everyone in view. No Miraculous?

Wait… his wish really did reset everything. He stood still in place, staring back at his father. Oh shit, Adrien thought.

⁂

(Now)

It took at most 10 minutes of Adrien and Plagg waiting in Tatsue until Marinette and Luka came down from the apartment and walked toward the car, hand in hand. Longg had already come back sulking, apparently prematurely dismissed by both Marinette and Luka. Adrien got out of the car and opened the passenger door for the pair, but Luka stopped before entering. "Where are we going?" He asked.

Adrien smiled. "A safehouse."

Luka narrowed his eyes at Adrien. "Why?"

"Chances are you've been targeted on purpose, I'll explain more in the car," Adrien said, patting the roof of Tatsue.

"Wait… My sister and--" Luka paled. "I can't--"

"Oh don't worry, Kagami already took them to the safehouse earlier. We tried to take you both as well but Plagg and Tikki said it'd be alright if they watched over you until you both woke up. Can't really argue with them if they already made their minds up," Adrien shrugged.

"Why do you want to help us?" Marinette asked, squeezing Luka's hand tighter.

Adrien put his elbow against the car and rested his chin on his braced hand. "You're looking at the man who forced Universe number 2 into existence," he sighed. "I remember everything from the first one and I need to tell you why we're all here. I can't give you a bigger hook than that, can I?"

That'd been essentially what Longg (and Tikki) had explained to them, but Marinette still reeled back in shock. "This is… this is so crazy," she said shakily, feeling her hand squeezed back by Luka. "I still… I'm still having issues processing all this."

Adrien nodded. "Yeah. Crazy doesn't begin to describe it. Look, even if you still don't trust me you have Tikki and Plagg back and can absolutely obliterate and smear me into a thin paste if you wanted. I have nothing to hide and nothing to hold back. I just need you two to give me some time to explain what I can and show you what I know."

Luka sighed to himself, saying "I don't know where--" when Plagg phased out from Tatsue. "Nevermind."

Tikki flew next to Plagg, both kwami looking back at their holders. "Adrien's right. We need to be somewhere safer," Tikki said gently. "We trust Adrien to tell you the truth."

⁂

The ride to the safehouse was relatively short but plenty awkward and quiet. Marinette had looked back and forth between Luka and Adrien, but one was staring blankly out the window in a dark, pensive mood, still gently squeezing her hand as reassurance of his presence, while the other was staring at them, thoughtful and smiling whenever Marinette looked back at him but adding no additional comment.

Adrien, Tikki, and Plagg had initially given them a quick rundown of what they had experienced in the previous universe. That while Marinette had been Ladybug before as she was now, Adrien had been Plagg's original bearer. Both Marinette and Adrien had been much younger, starting their superhero lives at 13 years old and had years of practice using their Miraculous before the reset. The original Hawkmoth was Gabriel Agreste, but that had all been undone by Adrien's wish because they failed to defeat Gabriel in the end with Marinette dying.

Adrien had no clue who this Hawkmoth was.

Marinette understood most of it, but she'd noticed that Luka just… wasn't here with her mentally. If Marinette could guess what was going through Luka's head, she guessed it must have been worry over Juleka. She was half right.

Luka had been feeling an odd sense of… detachment since Adrien called. Yes, he was currently the Black Cat Miraculous chosen, but… he'd been a placeholder. He wasn't… the original. He wasn't even truly intended to be the one wearing this ring in Universe 2 and Plagg didn't seem to care much for Luka.

But if he hadn't had the ring and he hadn't been partners with Marinette, would they have ever gotten together? Would she have even noticed him?

It did feel like the past decade and change had been him swimming through mud trying to find his place in the world outside of his family. Didn't have a father, lost his mother, had to sell their houseboat, had his sister block any contact from him for the better part of a year, his love life and attempts at rock-stardom were disasters. He finally had things starting to go his way when Marinette literally fell into his life.

And then they each got a Miraculous. It was the first time Luka had felt alive and somewhat in control.

Hearing now that he was just some random asshole swept up in this whole thing was a little bit of a blow to that perspective. Maybe he needed to hand this ring over to Adrien, who supposedly knew how to handle it.

Maybe then Marinette would have a partner that wouldn't be such a fucking liability.

⁂

They ended up being driven to some fancy Japanese dojo and as Luka had been staring out the window most of the ride he saw a formidable looking man with a huge nose ring look over the car. There'd been a split second where that man had locked eyes with Luka, staring him down with a vague but palpable threat of violence in the air.

But whatever that man saw, he deemed Luka (and Marinette, probably?) safe enough and the car drove itself further in, going down a few levels in an underground lot. The car was parked and the doors automatically opened. Adrien moved out first, beckoning Marinette and Luka to follow him.

Having been lead into one trap today, Marinette had been hesitant in falling into another one, but… at least she and Luka had Tikki and Plagg. So she'd use that. She transformed in a pink flash after she noticed no one else was around and there hadn't been any cameras.

"That's… smart of you, actually," Adrien mused out loud, chuckling. "I get it." Both Adrien and Ladybug looked at Luka expectantly, but he… he just sighed.

"We wouldn't be here if I hadn't gotten caught, right?" Luka said. "I'm putting myself, my sister, Rose and Marinette in danger by being this… by being Panthera. This Miraculous shit isn't working out for me, is it?"

"Luka?" Ladybug asked quietly. "What…"

"Kid, don't--" Plagg was cut off when Luka took off his ring.

Ladybug panicked. "Luka!"

Luka opened his palm with the Black Cat Miraculous ring to Adrien. "This was always yours, wasn't it?"

Adrien looked down at the ring. A few moments passed, each one stretching out longer than the previous. There was a real sense of longing in Adrien's eyes and he reached out his hand toward Luka's… and took the ring. It shrank down a little bit and morphed into a signet ring with a flat silver face, blockier than the simple wide silver band it had been for Luka. "You just handed me one half of a universe ending machine, you know that?" Adrien said disbelievingly. "I'm not sure if you're serious. I didn't think either of you would want that back in my hands."

Luka shook his head. "It's always been yours."

"It's a nice thought. You're a better man than I am," Adrien chuckled. "But it's not mine." Adrien tossed the ring back at Luka, who nearly fumbled in catching it. "Not this time."

"You… won't take it?" Luka seemed confused.

"Like I said, it's a nice thought. But I can't use it."

"Can't?" Ladybug asked.

"Can't," Adrien confirmed. "One of those little stipulations in the fine print of resetting the universe. I can't ever use a Miraculous ever again."

#fxl fic #a needed miracle #lukanette endgame #adrien agreste #marinette dupain cheng #luka couffaine #lukanette #endgame lukanette

[starlit-serenade]

Kiss and Make Up

🧡 Summary: Months after a heart-breaking break-up, your best friend Hyunjin begs you to attend a late night party at his home, where you see the last person you'd wanted to see--your ex-boyfriend, Bang Chan. (Requested)

🧡 Word Count: 2,421

🧡 Pairing: Christopher Bang/Bang Chan X Reader / Characters: GenderNeutral!Reader; Producer!Bang Chan; Hwang Hyunjin (Hyunjin);

🧡 Rated: T for swearing / Warnings: swearing / Genre: GenderNeutral!Reader; Angst; Fluff (?);

You stare at yourself in the mirror, wondering if you look good enough or if you need to change any part of your appearance. You want to look attractive enough for the party, but not attractive enough that you'll attract any unwanted attention from men.

Not that you don't like men. You just don't want a boyfriend anytime soon. You just got out of a relationship about a month or so ago and you haven't fully recovered yet.

You sigh and redo your hair. Still, you just aren't satisfied with your appearance, but you promised your friend Hyunjin that you'd be there at 10, and it's already 9:30.

You arrive at Hyunjin's home only a few minutes after you'd planned to. The place is filled with dancing people that you recognize, but most that you don't know. It's Hyunjin's party and the only people here are friends of his, friends of friends, and friends of friends of friends. You don't see him anywhere as you enter the house, but you expect him to be in the kitchen near the drinks, so that's where you start.

You see Hyunjin leaning against the counter with a red cup in his hand, and push through the crowd of people dancing to music to walk toward him. His long, blonde hair is tied back in a messy little ponytail, and he's dressed 

"Oh, look who's finally here," he says. He passes you a cup, which you sip from slowly. "Don't drink too much. We both know your alcohol tolerance is shit."

"It's not that bad."

"Well, there was that one time where you got absolutely shitfaced and threw up, and Channie had to take you back to our dorm."

You glare at Hyunjin at the mention of your ex boyfriend, and he ducks his head apologetically.

"Sorry. I won't say his name."

"You had better not. Why did you want me to come here, anyway?"

"Because I didn't want you cooped up in your room forever, idiot. You need to get out."

There's a long moment of silence between you two, filled by the sound of loud music and people dancing and singing along or talking. You hadn't been to one of these parties in a long time, mostly because you were afraid you were going to run into Bang Chan, a frequent party-goer. But Hyunjin had texted you last night, saying he wanted you here.

You start tapping your foot to the music as you look over the people dancing in the living room. You think, for a moment, that you see a familiar form drift through the crowd and tense up.

 "What?" Hyunjin asks, frowning at you from the side.

"I thought I saw . . ."

Chan emerges from the crowd again, wearing a black cap, and leather jacket over a black T-shirt and black jeans. He looks around before his eyes fall on you.

"Fuck," you mutter,  lowering your head, hoping that he didn't recognize you. You turn your head and stare, wide-eyed, at Hyunjin, who has his hands up in surrender. "Did you know he was coming? Is that why you asked me here?"

"Who?" he asks.

You glare at him accusingly. "Bang Chan," you hiss.

"Well Y/N, I just . . . he asked me to let you know if you were going to be here, because he wanted to fix things with you and--"

"Fuck off," you mutter.

"Y/N, he wants to fix things. He loves you."

"Whatever." You turn around and march past Hyunjin and pour yourself some more alcohol. Fuck it.

You broke up with Bang Chan a few months ago. Not because any of you did anything to each other, specifically. Neither of you hurt each other physically or insulted each other. After just over a year of dating, you knew you had loved him. But that didn't mean the relationship was perfect.

Bang Chan loved you too. You knew that. But he was often too busy to show it. He was also a hard worker, dedicated to his job. That meant that he was rarely home, and when he was, he was always working or too tired to give you enough attention. You had once tried to tell him that you needed more attention, but he waved you off. You eventually realized that you couldn't live like this, feeling alone, and broke it off with him. You loved him, but you couldn't stay in the relationship if you were going to feel isolated. It broke your heart.

You've spent the past few months recovering from the pain of missing him, intentionally avoiding any place you might see Bang Chan. It didn't help that your friend Hyunjin was friends with Bang Chan.

You take another sip of the drink in your hand. You've been trying so hard to get over Bang Chan, and you know that seeing him will undo all of that work. Might as well drink some more so you can survive the rest of the night after seeing him.

Halfway through your third cup, someone taps your shoulder. You turn, and unsurprisingly, it's Bamg Chan. He looks really good. He's removed his baseball hat, so you can see that he dyed his hair back to black sometime since you broke up with him.

"Hey Y/N," he says, looking you up and down. "Can we talk?"

Fuck.

You're halfway through your third cup of whatever-it-was, but you're still not drunk enough for this. You're drunk enough to make stupid decisions, but you're not drunk enough to be unaware of them. Every stupid thing you may or may not do, you'll remember clearly.

"Sure," you say, facing him and leaning your weight against the edge of the table. "What do you want?" you ask somewhat drunkenly.

God, that sounded lame.

"I just wanted to apologize," he says. "I was thinking back to our last conversation."

You can feel your head is dizzy, but you shake your head and ignore it. Chan seems too focused on his speaking to notice.

"I realize that I was being a real dick. I wasn't listening to you back then. I wasn't giving you enough attention.  I was too absorbed in my work, and I didn't see it then. I was too obsessed with my--"

You don't know what comes over you. You just want him to shut up and stop talking. You grab the car of his stupid leather jacket and kiss him. It certainly shuts him up.

He's frozen for a moment, before he places his hands on your waist and starts kissing you back. You hum and your fingers wind into his hair, pulling him closer. He tastes so familiar.

His fingers squeeze your hip gently. That brings you back to reality.

Why am I kissing him? We broke up.

You pull away from him, letting go of his jacket, your hand covering your mouth in shock. Your head hurts. You don't know if it was drunk you or normal you who kissed Chan. You're sober enough to know that that was stupid, though. Chan doesn't know that, though. He could think you're just drunk out of your mind, right?

You push past him and can hear him calling your name. Calling for you to come back. You need to get out of here.

You wake up the morning after, feeling like absolute shit. Your hair is a mess. You're tired, from seeing Bang Chan at last night's party. But it's the weekend and you have no plans.

Your phone has several messages from Hyunjin, asking if you're okay and got home safe, but you're too emotionally exhausted to respond.

After sitting in bed, thinking about how you kissed your ex boyfriend Bang Chan, you decide to take a refreshing shower.

After you finish your shower, you wipe yourself off in your towel. As you stand in the mirror, your towel wrapped around your body, your phone rings and, to your horror, it's Bang Chan. You'd deleted your number from his phone during your last argument, and his from yours. He doesn't have your number memorized, you know that. So how can he have called you?

You pick up.

"How did you get my number, Christopher?" you say before he can speak. You rarely call him Christopher. Usually, it's Chris or Chan or Channie. It's only Christopher when you're mad, and you've been mad at him for months.

He pauses. "A friend we both have."

You groan. "I'm going to kill Hyunjin."

"Y/N, I have a request," Chan says on the other end of the phone. You groan.

"I can't guarantee I'll say yes, but just say it."

He takes a deep breath. "Can we meet for breakfast? I want to just talk."

You know you should decline for your own sanity. But deep down, you miss Chan. You miss his kisses, his hugs. You miss him.

"Alright," you say, your voice coming out much softer than you intended.

"Can we meet at our breakfast place? I mean--it's not our breakfast place anymore. But can we meet there?"

You tense. "Okay."

"Thank you."

You hang up and finish up getting ready for the day. Halfway through dressing yourself, you realize you're wearing one of your nicest shirts, as if you're dressing up for a nice party. You tell yourself you're not dressing up for Chan, but deep down you know you are.

You head to the coffee shop you and Chan used to go to for regular dates. It was a great place to focus on work and school. As you walk in, you see Chan sitting at your usual table. He waves you over and you sit across from him anxiously. The table already has your usual breakfast and drink. He remembered it. Your heart melts. You'd thought he didn't care enough to remember, but apparently he did remember. 

"Hey . . ." he says, smiling nervously, fidgeting with his fingers on the table.

"Hi." You look up at him. He's smiling sadly at you, like you're something he wants so dearly, but just out of reach. Perhaps that's how you felt before. You had wanted to be his, but you never felt like you were when he would only focus on his work instead of you. Realizing there was no point in trying to get his attention, despite him already being your boyfriend, you gave up.

"So . . . last night at the party."

You freeze up. "I was drunk."

"I know," he says. "But you know what they say. Drunk words and actions are sober thoughts."

You glare at him. "Did you call me to breakfast just to rub it in my face that I miss you and kissed you? Why did you call me here, Christopher?"

"You miss me?" he asks, eyebrow raised cockily, as if he couldn't tell from how you two made out last night.

"Christopher!"

"Sorry," he says, ducking his head. "So how have you been?"

"I've been alright," you say. His question feels forced, like an awkward transition, but you answer anyway. "How has producing been going for you?"

Chan winces. "It's been going alright. After we . . . after you left, I didn't sleep for a few days. I didn't want to go home because I didn't want to come home to an empty apartment. Then when I finally went home, it finally hit me that you were gone. I couldn't produce anything for weeks. Changbin and Jisung were worried."

You nod. "I'm sorry that I took you away from your work by just not being there."

"No," he says, shaking your head. "It was good. It gave me time to think. About us. About my role in the break up."

"I'm glad."

"Y/N," Chan says suddenly. You look up at him, and he's staring at you. "I was saying it last night--before you kissed me--but I understand, now, what I couldn't all those months ago. I wasn't giving you enough attention.  I was too obsessed with my work to see that I was neglecting you. I loved you, I love you, and I didn't show that enough. I'm so, so sorry. I want to ask you if I can have one more chance. I don't deserve it, but please. If you give me this chance, I promise I'll be better. I've toned it down with my work. I will listen to you."

You stare at him.

Honestly, you miss him. You think back to your relationship with Chan. You loved him. You still love him. You never stopped. But near the end of your relationship, you felt so alone. It felt one sided. You were in a relationship with Bang Chan, and Bang Chan was in a relationship with his work.

But looking at him now, you know he's grown, and you're sure he's changed. It's not like he meant to hurt you. He was just being stupid and unaware. Now he's very aware of his mistakes, and has changed a lot.

You look down at the food and drink that Chan ordered for you. He remembered your tastes, what you like, your favorites. You'd thought he wouldn't remember things like that. But he did. Perhaps . . . 

"Okay," you say softly. Chan looks up at you, eyes wide in surprise.

"Really?"

You smile and nod. "Yes. One more chance."

His smile is bright and wide, and he grabs your hand from across the table. You feel warm inside. "Thank you, Y/N. I promise I won't disappoint you."

You feel yourself smiling. Bang Chan's smile is something you've missed seeing, and now that he's smiling at you again, months after your breakup, you feel so happy.

"I know." You squeeze his hands gently.

"So . . ." Chan looks around anxiously. "Do you have any plans after this?"

You shake your head, smiling.

"Do you want to spend the rest of the day with me?"

You nod. "I'd like that."

#stray kids #bang chan #christopher bang #bang chan fanfic #fanfic #fanfiction #stray kids fanfic #op #text #bang chan x reader #myfic

[pies-writes-and-more]

PIES’ FIC RECOMMENDATIONS FOR JUNE 2020

Click HERE for the amazing fics I read in May 2020!

NOTE: If you’ve got an incredible fic that you are super proud of or if you think that I should read something you’ve read, PLEASE SEND IT TO ME! I’m really big on StevexFem!Reader, BuckyxFem!Reader, WandaxFem!Reader, CarolxFem!Reader, and Stucky fics!!! (And of course any fics with gender neutral readers is ALWAYS welcome :) )

If you do end up reading these fics, please tag me if you reblog them or comment on them!! I’d love to see your guys’ reactions :)

PS. if these links dont work for some reason, please let me know so I can update this list because I was very distracted halfway through making this so it might not be perfect!

SPECIAL MENTION FIC/POEM RECOMMENDATION

Okay so I’m not doing this because I’m trying to give myself a shoutout however, @wxstedhexrt​ and I have been collaborating in a poetry inspired fanfic collection called Falling! Tis a BuckyxFem!Reader series and if I do say so myself, it’s fucking adorable. 

The real reason I’m mentioning it is because @wxstedhexrt​‘s poems are some of the most real and gorgeously written things I’ve ever met so please give them a look! 

She has this series on Achilles and Patroclus, this collection about the word Silver, gorgeous poems from last year (involving Icarus, Apollo, and Helen of Troy), and so many more!!! Check out the tag #poetry or #mywriting on her blog!!! Send her some love :)

ANYWAYS BACK TO THE FANFICS!

1. Homecoming by @scentedsongrebel | Steve Rogers x Desi!Reader “You bring Steve to Mumbai to meet your family“ Yall want some wonderful representation in your fic reading!!??? READ THIS ONE! It’s so fucking wholesome and I love the whole story line of Steve learning more about his partner’s culture so that he can impress her family. Fucking adorable. 100% fluff with a wonderfully diverse reader and author!!!!

2. Iced Tea by @kaunis-sielu | Steve Rogers x Fem!Reader I don’t think there’s an official summary for this fic ( @kaunis-sielu pls correct me if I’m wrong) BUT LEMME TELL YALL. I AM A SUCKER FOR BIKER FICS. WE LOVE BIKER STEVE. This was 100% FLUFFY and we LOVE IT. Amazing job!!!!!!

3. let me show you by @moteldwelling | Bucky Barnes x Fem!Reader bucky gives reader a “redo” on her first time, and takes her virginity. Listen here people. This smut took my soul and dragged me to hell and back. I am a SUCKER for Bucky fics but this one like took my life away. We love a man who makes sure his lady is having a good time when being intimate with her!!!!! we stan a good boi. Anyways if I keep thinking about this fic, I’mma need to go shower so I’mma end this here. Go read for yourselves and then cry with me about why Bucky Barnes isn’t in our lives. 18+ readers only of course! 100% HOT. FUCKING. SMUT.

4. Under the Rainbow, Draga mea by @binkysteebnpewter | Wanda Maximoff x Fem!Reader Again, I don’t think there’s an official summary for this (pls correct me if I’m wrong @binkysteebnpewter) and YES, I KNOW i put this in my May recommendations but I finished reading the series in JUNE so it is HERE AGAIN and DESERVES to be HERE AGAIN BECAUSE WE LOVE FICS WITH 100% GAY SHIT AND LOVE <3 I am a fucking sucker for the love that Wanda and this Reader have together. If you’re not convinced, ask @wxstedhexrt how much I cried reading it lol. anyways an amazing series that I will continue to go back reading again and again because i LOVE wlw fics <3 

5. Oh no, that’s bad by @andyl394 | Bucky Barnes x Fem!Reader You’re a college student, you’re mad angry, Bucky ruins your paper, that’s not good is it? I read through this 20-part series like there was NO TOMORROW and god DAMN. We love hilarious social media AUs but this one really killed me. I always love Bucky who is soft and shy in fics but the Bucky in this fic was a LITTLE SHIT and i had so much ANGST. Anyways, if you read this fic, you may want to slap the characters BUT I PROMISE THERES AN ADORABLE HAPPY ENDING!!!! 100% INCREDIBLE

6. Home by @evanstush | Steve Rogers x Fem!Reader It’s been 2 years since the last battle and it’s now Morgan’s 7th birthday, and well, Tony being Tony, he prepared a small party for her little girl, inviting everyone from the team, including you. So Kate decided to rip my heart out with this fic and have me on my knees sobbing so that’s cool. That’s it, that’s all I have to say. JK, this fic actually is like half and half FLUFF and ANGST but lord is it worth it. Kate, you know I adore you so much and your fics play a big part in why! God this girl deserves more love on these stories because holy shit I’m DEAD.

7. Baby Self by @honeyloverogers | Steve Rogers x Fem!Reader Alternative to Babies! Assemble, What if it was you that got turned into a baby instead? YALL WANT FUCKING FLUFF!?!?!?! 1000000000% FLUFFFFFFF AND CUTENESSSSSS (with like a little bit of a piece of shit lady who comes around but like its cool because a baby says fuck lol) THIS WAS A FIC WRITTEN LIKE NO OTHER. I LOVED IT SO MUCH. IT WAS SO PERFECT. Think of endgame and that moment when Scott turns into a baby??? Yeah now scratch that and think of Y/N if SHE turned into a baby and the avengers couldn’t figure out how to turn her back right away so now everyone has to take care of this baby HGOIDHFOISHFOISDHF the baby fever was so real in this fic ughhhhh <3 

8. Insecurities by @evanstush | Steve Rogers x Fem!Reader You’re 7 months pregnant, and you can’t help be so insecure about some things. And here’s Kate again bringing me back to life with more wholesome fluff and a wholesome husband who loves his wife so fucking much and ugh i- i read this fic over and over sometimes and it just makes me realize how much i want this adhfoiasjdfoi <3 I aint pregnant but if I WAS i would want this steve to be comforting me ugh 103874203847% FLUFFFFFFF <3 

9. Requested fic (idk if it has a name??? sorry) by @donutloverxo | Steve Rogers x Fem!Reader Request: Hey, as for the headcanon requests how about Steve giving a lift to a girl in need when it's raining heavily or smth? I don't know where this idea came from 😅 Did yall need some confirmation that Sarah Rogers raised her son the fucking right way?!?!? WELL HERE YOU GO. THIS MANS OUT HERE BEING AN ABSOLUTE SWEETHEART <3 ugh we love wholesome drabbles really <3 amazing workkkkk!!!!!

10. Leather and Lace by @queen-kass-the-writer​ | Steve Rogers x AFuckingKickAssFem!OC :) Steve Rogers hardly expects anything to come out of a sleepy night at his new favorite dive bar until a pristinely dressed little lady saunters into the bar with a delicate smile but a wicked uppercut. Biker!Steve x Helena Alright so this is a little different than the above fics because THIS IS AN OC FIC :D now if any of yall know me I don’t tend to read OC fics HOWEVER Kass is INCREDIBLE at churning out fics. I had gave her an idea of a Biker Steve fic and like BAM she made it :O (seriously i don’t know how that is... to have an idea... and actually produce it?!??!) It’s a hilarious story of Biker Steve being head over heels Helena which is adorable (and a character named after me being Bucky’s shithead date lol hilarious) YALL BETTER READ THIS SHIT BECAUSE IT’S 100% WONDERFUL

** ** ** ** ** ** **

Okay so I know that this list is FAR shorter than my last recommendations list. I suckkkkked at reading fics this month lol. I’m definitely going to try and read more in July so here’s to hoping! Love you all a ton :D

#Steve Rogers #steve rogers x reader #Bucky Barnes #bucky barnes x reader #wanda maximoff #wanda maximoff x reader #fic recommendations #pies recommendations list #pies june recommendations #steve rogers x y/n #bucky barnes x y/n #wanda maximoff x y/n

[to-many-fandoms-cant-pick-one]

BLADE TO THE PULSE-

RZ!Michael Myers x Reader

Chapter 1:

Volunteer Hours Be Damned

—————————————————

1.de·lu·sion·al

/dəˈlo͞oZH(ə)nəl/

adjective

* characterized by or holding idiosyncratic beliefs or impressions that are contradicted by reality or rational argument, typically as a symptom of mental disorder.

2.psy·chot·ic

/sīˈkädik/

adjective

* psychotic

relating to, denoting, or suffering from a psychosis.

———————————————————

The first is even worst than the second

Because the second has the gall to be cruel when venting

The first is idiotic at best and naive at worst-

At least with the second you know it's only a matter of time

Before they burst...

———————————————————

"Yeah Mom, I know...I won't-ok...l-love you too. B-." Dial tone followed the abrupt ending to a call that had barely begun. Sighing I glanced up at the neon clock that dimly illuminated my half of the dorm room that I shared with my roommate Kat.

3:49 A.M.

'Why do I want to be a veterinarian again?' Groaning I let my head flop against the clammy light oak wood desk that was provided by the college- and immediately regretted the decision to be so reckless with my body as the tender tissue of my forehead throbbed violently.

"Fucking midterms," I whimpered'"I should've planned better for this." It wasn't that I didn't know the material- I knew it very well- it was my fragile 3.65 GPA, that was hanging in the balance, along with all of my scholarships.

Now here I was at- I glanced back up at the clock-

3:56 A.M.

On a Sunday night.

Suddenly tears of frustration pricked at the corners of my eyes, and I quickly pressed the heels of palms against my lids, because if I started crying now- I wouldn't be able to stop.

I glared at three textbooks spread out on the desk, that were equally judging me in their own way.

"Fuck it."

Dejectedly I closed my books and put them away in my backpack and decided to get ready for bed.

Shuffling sleepily across the 625 sq foot room I trudged past the shared area in the room and noticed the tv was still on, and began rummaging around attempting to locate the remote to turn off the waste of electricity; when then news report for earlier that night began to replay:

"Tonight, the small town of Haddonfield holds vigil for Judith Myers birthday. Judith Myers was 17 years old when she was killed by her 10 year old brother Michael Myers. Some 15 years later the community is still on shock. Judy would've been 32 this year. Michael is now 25 years old and is being held at the Smith's Grove Sanitarium-where he will live out the rest of his lif-"

Losing interest I turned of the tv (I heard about Michael every damn day from my mother), I resumed my nightly ritual of showering- dealing with my hair and picking out my outfit for next the next morning. When I did finally make it to my bed- the fatigue I'd been so keenly keeping at bay, washed over me and gently suffocated be down into the world of sleep.

———————————————————

1 WEEK LATER

———————————————————

Midterms went by smoother than anticipated and I felt a weight lift of my chest, as I made my way around campus. My biology professor Mrs. Whelhers had asked to speak with me regarding a matter for my thesis. And lack of volunteer hours. I looked up at the cloudless sky and sun filled my already impaired vision as I sped walked to the labs, certain that someone was going to jump me for walking alone. My rather feverish anxiousness seemed to roll over me in waves and I clung tighter to my leather crossbody messenger bag that was already digging painfully into my shoulder- the strap taut with the weight of my textbooks.

Luckily I finished my journey completely unscathed- and made my way over to my professors office.

"Mrs.Whelers?" I quietly knocked on the door before calling out again. "It's (Y/N)! You said you needed to speak to me regarding my thesis! I can come back if n-"

Mid sentence the door swung open to reveal a very VERY hungover Mrs.Whelers. I simply stared at her, dumbfounded as I attempted to make sense of her disheveled appearance.

She had heavy purple bags under her eyes- which were rimmed a violent red around her amber irises. Her usually neat strawberry blonde hair looked it was attacked by birds on her way to work, and as for her clothes the were wrinkled. I'd spotted more than on fraying hem and food stain along her skirt and sleeves of her chiffon blouse.

"M-Mrs.Wheler? Are you all right?" I murmured then proceeded to reiterate

What I'd stupidly said a few moments before. "If now isn't a good time for you I would gladly come back another day."

But deep down I also knew that my thesis would be due within the next 5 months and therefore I really couldn't dodge around whatever necessary information she had for me. Especially if it had to do with my volunteering.

Instead the 60 year old woman shook her head and gestured for me to enter the office and waved with a shaky left hand- her wedding ring gleaming in the sunlight that lazily drifted through the tall windows in her office.

Mrs.Whelers began speaking as she sat down, but her words fell on distracted,deaf ears. I'd begun drinking the appearance of the office, all rich maple built in that showed hints of a reddish glow under their glossy finish. 

My professor sighed heavily and immediately I was snapped out of my little trance. My eyes blurred, suddenly watery and after blinking hard to avoid a wave of exhaustion- they refocused with the  precision of a camera lens behind my harsh prescription glasses. 

"I-I'm sorry, could you repeat that...I was a bit caught up in a thought." I mumbled embarrassed that I'd allowed myself to be distracted so easily. Mrs.Whelers looked me up and down cautiously, her eyes narrowing slightly as though she was trying to read the fine print on a document. I stared back at her sheepishly, eyes meeting hers then flitting away nervously. 

I've always been this way when it came to eye contact- skittish and desperate to get away from it. If someone stares at me for too long- I begin to sweat profusely, nausea washing over me like a tsunami...then suddenly my skin feels like its on fire and I'll attempt to find anything on my body to pick at; my face, my arms, my nails, and by the end of it all I'm covered in nicks and scars from my own impulsiveness.

"I was saying Ms.(Y/L/N), that the volunteer hours needed along side your associates thesis are incomplete. Failure to complete said volunteer hours will result in the inability to graduate this upcoming June with the rest of class. More importantly- you will have to redo this past semester, out of your own pocket, your scholarship won't cover you."

"But that'a completely unfair!" I began to protest jumping up almost instantaneously. "I couldn't find the proper volunteer work, every clinic in a 50 mile radius was full for the next THREE MONTHS! I tried every which way possible to squeeze in somewhere; no exceptions could be made!" 

"Unfortunately Ms.(Y/L/N) that isn't my problem- you either find a way to make up the time- in a way that would be approved by the school, or you don't graduate this June. That's final." 

I felt tears swell in my eyes and rushed to grab my bag; I had every intention to run out the door before Mrs.Whelers put a hand on my shoulder to stop me. 

"I didn't call you here to be the bearer of bad news, I wanted to talk about what options you may have; that have been pre-approved by the board..."

I sniffled sitting back down in the white leather arm chair that was seated in front of Mrs.Whelers’ desk. "You already spoke to the board?"

"Yes, they were quite curious as to why a student that has managed to be in the top of her class the past two years, hasn't completed something as simple as her volunteer hours. They realized rather quickly it must've had something to do with the availably of hours, and came up with another idea."

I glanced up at her curiously, "Which is?"

She began to pace around behind her desk as she spoke,"Well considering spring break begins at the end of this Friday- and you will be home for the next week-"

I opened my mouth to tell her there where no clinics back at home that did volunteer work for college students-but she waved a hand dismissively before I could.

"We at the board decided that we would like for you start a branch of animal therapy at Smith's Grove, we know your mother works- so she could be a guide to helping you with patients at first, but this could look really good for your transcripts. What do you think?"

I considered the offer momentarily- I knew getting Mother to agree wouldn't be an issue in the slightest- she’d been trying to get me to work with her at Smith’s for years...

“I could speak to her about it.” I said definitively then added “I’ll email you if she approves of the arrangement.” With a soft smile I moved once more to grab my messenger crossbody and sling it over my shoulder.

“Should your mother accept the boards offer for your volunteer hours I will message to board directly on your behalf, alright?” Mrs. Whelers said leading me to the door. As she opened it I nodded as I passed by- relieved that this problem would most likely have a solution and as long as I completed my 100 hours of volunteer work in the next week, my scholarship and graduation that lie a few months ahead will be safe...

“Have a good spring break (Y/N)!”

“You too Mrs.Whelers...”

Volunteer hours be damned...

***********************************************

A/N: I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter of Blade to the Pulse ☺️. I already have the next few chapters planned so expect an update within the next week or two...

#michael myers x you #michael myers x reader #michael myers #michael #myers #rz!michael myers x reader #rz!michael myers #halloween #chapter 1 #reader is in college #mama is a doctor #mikey is a bastard as always