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babymetaldoll · 4 years

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Getting down the germs (Spencer Reid/Reader)

Prompt: What if germs haven’t been discovered?

Summary: Spencer and Reader analyze a world where germs don’t exist, and how Reid’s life would be like...

Category: Fluff

Content Warning: none

Pairing: Spencer/Reader

Word count: 1.6K

Masterlist

- “I wonder how your life would be if germs had never been discovered”- (Y/N) thought out loud and gazed at Spencer, smiling playfully. They were waiting for their lunch in a small cafeteria they liked to go to whenever they had a slow paperwork day at the BAU. It felt almost unreal to be sharing a meal not thinking there was an unsub to catch in the next hour.

He hesitated for a second before answering. He was caught off guard by her smile, and for a second he forgot he could speak, words piling up in his tongue, not making his way from his lips. She made his brain turn into mush, that was a fact.

- “I don't understand how germs could never be discovered”- Spencer murmured a few seconds later.

Of all the answers he had in mind, which mostly referred to an endless amount of data and facts about germs, those words were the best he managed to say. (Y/N)'s smile had completely wiped off every functional brain cell he had.

- “Well, imagine all the things people haven't discovered yet”- she simply replied, and took a sip of her lemonade. Just like that, Spencer was left speechless.

All the things people haven't discovered yet. That was interesting, but though it was a thought Spencer could lose himself in for days and maybe weeks, at that minute all he could concentrate on was all the things he hadn't discovered yet, such as the taste of (Y/N)'s lips. Or how her warm skin could feel against his hand when he finally first touched her. He hadn't discovered how it would be to hold her hand. Just as simple as that. He lived in a world where germs existed, but all his dreams were a "what if".

- “That's overwhelming”- Spencer whispered, answering to (Y/N)'s earlier comment, and then looked down.

- “Would you shake people's hand if germs hadn't been discovered?”- his best friend asked, and her eyes didn't leave his. She felt how her whole body shook, staring at Spencer, but she couldn't stop doing it anyway. She didn't want to either, but it felt physically impossible to take her eyes from his. He was a magnet she couldn't move apart from.

It had been that way since day one, when the two of them started at the BAU, five years ago. They were both extremely young to be part of the elite of the FBI, but their abilities had put them where they belong. A few weeks into the job and Reid had finally managed to talk to her without stuttering. He wasn't good with people, especially with women. Least with a woman he found attractive. (Y/N) had no idea how to approach someone like Spencer. He had an IQ of 187, the guy could read 20.000 words per minute. She was dumb compared to him in any possible way. There was no way he could even notice her, so she did what anyone would do: she fell into the friendzone and stayed there for the next five years.

She was the girl he took to the museums every weekend, and he was the friend she crawled to random geek conventions. She loved to be there for him, even when it meant she was his best friend. (Y/N) knew Spencer had a thing for JJ when they first joined the BAU, they even were out on a date, but nothing came from it. It didn't matter to her anyway, she could see how Spencer looked at JJ, he never had those longing eyes when he talked to her. It was clear, she was just his best friend and JJ the object of his desires.

- “I don't know... I guess...”- Reid answered and (Y/N) nodded. Their food arrived and the two of them focused on their dishes for a few seconds. Silence fell between them, but it wasn’t awkward. It never was. They were perfectly comfortable in each other's company, being quiet wasn't something to worry about. They could perfectly spend a whole weekend in silence, reading, or watching movies.

Those were Spencer's favorite weekends, 'cos he didn't have to make his best effort to answer in a normal voice and like a normal human being each time (Y/N) talked to him.

Though he had managed to control himself and act normal when they were alone, inside Reid’s head there was in a deep and constant struggle. He knew he loved her. More than that: he was in love with her. And that was enough reason for him to act silly from time to time. Ok, all the time. He could ramble for hours when he talked to her, and it was worst 'cos she never cut him off, which meant he literally could go on, and on, and never shut up.

He was scared one day he could ramble for so long, he could end up telling her his true feelings. But he knew he was never going to have the guts to do it.

- “Why do germs freak you out so much?”- (Y/N) stopped eating. She was halfway into her salad, but she wasn't really enjoying it. The dressing wasn't real good. Besides, Spencer had gotten her a red velvet cupcake for breakfast, which had spoiled her appetite for the rest of the day.

- “We're estimated to have around 1,500 bacteria living on each square centimeter of skin on our hands, and although viruses don't set up shop on the skin the way bacteria do, the viruses that cause diarrhea and respiratory infections can hang around on the hands long enough to spread from person to person”

And Spencer hid behind what makes him feel secure the most: facts

- “It states that microorganisms known as pathogens or "germs" can lead to disease, they invade humans...”

- “But honey”- it gave him goosebumps each time (Y/N) called him that- “If you don't get sick from time to time, your immune system is gonna be as weak as the taste of this dressing.”

"Honey". It was just too sweet, too cute, too... endearing for him to handle. No one had ever called him a pet name before. Not her mother, not... anyone. Sure, JJ called him "Spence" from time to time, and some of her friends caught it as a BAU nickname, but it was nothing like being called "honey" by (Y/N). No, that was different. And when she used the whole "Honey bunny" surname to refer to him, he swore anyone could see him melt.

- “What if germs were the coolest thing on earth? and everybody was trying to get them?”- Spencer narrowed his eyes and made his best not to laugh. She was rambling on their way back to work, and for once he was glad to be the one listening to someone else rattle on.

- “What is it with you and germs today?”- he simply asked and chuckled lightly. He was happy that day. And he wanted to enjoy it before a case darkened his mind.

- “I don't know”- (Y/N) shrugged and smiled at him- “I guess I'm just... curious what is it with you and germs”

- “I just hate them”- Spencer answered looking at her, licking her ice cream- “You didn't finish your greens at lunch, you didn't earn that dessert”- he teased and she grinned

- “Want some?”- her words seemed to play with his mind, and make his cheek blush right away. He did, he wanted some. He wanted some so badly it ached him. So he didn't answer.

- “You didn't seem to be scared of Lila Archer's germs... we all saw you sharing your straw with her, among other things...”

- “(Y/N), that's...”- but he is flustered and his friend won't stop teasing him for it.

- “I don't have the cooties, but I know that won't make the difference 'cos she was half-naked and you were...”

And he snapped. He grabbed the ice cream cone from her hand and licked it all. His tongue traveled through every inch of sweet, tasting it and looking into (Y/N)'s eyes as he did. He had no idea what he was doing to her. She was having trouble keeping her thoughts in order, she had to remember they were on the street and that he was just her best friend in the world to stop herself from throwing herself to him.

Spencer had enough of the Lila teasing. It wasn't just this time, it has been years of listening to the same thing, over and over again. For a moment or two, he was almost sure (Y/N) was jealous, but after a few seconds, he remembered she was just his best friend having fun with him. That was it. So he grabbed the ice cream cone and lick it. It was his way to tell her he didn't care about her germs. In fact, he wanted to have her germs on him if it mean he could kiss her.

- “There! see? now we have the same cooties! end of the story”

(Y/N) held her ice cream cone again and licked it. Her best friend kept looking at her with the corner of his eyes.

- “So... germs exist, but you don't care about mine?”- she whispered after a few minutes. Her voice was almost untraceable, but Spencer knew that tone.

- “Germs exist and I hate them”- he explained and kept looking ahead- “But yours are ok...”

- “Oh...”- (Y/N) nodded and bit her lips, trying her best not to smile.

- “I mean... we've probably already shared them all, we've been friends for years, we can't keep track of everything we've done”

He can, he does. He knows. (Y/N) nodded her head again and continued eating her ice cream in silence until they reach the BAU again.

- “So my germs are ok then...”- she whispered and elbowed him as they waited for the elevator. Spencer chuckled looking down.

- “Yeah, your germs are alright.”

#spencer reid #spencer reid fanfictions #spencer reid fanfics #criminal minds #one shots #matthew gray gubler #matthew gray gubler fanfictions #spencer reid fluff #matthew gray gubler fluff #spencer reid imagines #spencer x reader #doctor reid #babymetaldoll writes

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365days365movies · 3 years

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April 12, 2021: Mrs. Doubtfire (1992) (Recap)

Hey, Robin Williams. Been a while.

I’m sorry that I haven’t watched your movies for a while, and that I always skip your comedy stand-up when my phone’s on shuffle. I just...let me explain. Since I was a kid, you were one of my favorite entertainers. That might as well have started the day I was born, because...well, we share a birthday, fun fact. But it definitely continued with the first movie I ever saw in theatres.

While I don’t quite remember the first time I saw it, Aladdin was one of my favorite childhood movies, and I knew that you were the voice of the Genie from an early age. You might have actually been the first actor I ever knew by name. Which makes sense, because your stardom during the ‘90s was nearly unparalleled.

The next film I remember seeing (and hearing) you in was Ferngully: The Last Rainforest. That also starred Tim Curry, who would also be a major figure of my childhood. It also wasn’t the best movie, in hindsight, but it is the only time I’ve heard you rap since.

But eventually, I watched your forays into live-action, too. Jumanji, Hook, even the objectively bad Flubber, are all movies that I vividly remember watching during childhood. I was really excited for Flubber, even, and I LOVED Jumanji growing up. I liked Hook, too, but I appreciated that more as I got older.

Of course, during this time period, you also made less family-friendly films. The Fisher King, Good Will Hunting, Dead Poets Society, Good Morning Vietnam, and What Dreams May Come were all very successful, and cemented your reputation as an actor. I also haven’t seen any of them. In fact...I don’t think I’ve seen any of your dramatic roles, and that’s something that I’ll fix this year. Hell, in a few days, I’ll watch The Birdcage, another of your big hits of the ‘90s.

But why haven’t I seen them up to now? Well...I was going to watch these films, about seven years ago. But...I haven’t been able to bring myself to do it. Because it hurts. A lot.

I know that this is a downer, but my relationship with Robin Williams today is tainted by his tragic death. I was fucking BROKEN when his death was announced, and I really haven’t been able to watch him since. I’ve seen Aladdin recently, but that’s about all I could stand to watch. I mean, the guy shares a birthday with me! I’ve always loved his comedy stylings, and his improvisational skills are something I’ve internalized to a certain degree.

So, yeah. This one’s tough. But, it’s about time I moved on, and celebrated the man’s career for what it was: stellar. And that also brings up an important question, that some of you have probably asked by now:

HOW HAVE I MISSED MRS. DOUBTFIRE, WHAT THE FUCK

I KNOW I KNOW OK?

Look, I’m not entirely sure how I haven’t seen this movie, because I’m MORE than aware of it! I remember it airing during the ‘90s, my Dad AND girlfriend love this movie, and I know FOR A FACT that my family owned both the DVD AND THE VHS of this movie! So, how? HOW HAVE I NOT SEEN IT BY NOW?

I honestly have no idea, but let’s fix it now, huh? Yet one more man-dresses-as-woman movie this month! And no, I am not watching White Chicks...because I’ve already seen White Chicks. Also, it’s...problematic.

SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Recap

Daniel Hillard (Robin Williams) is a voice-actor, and a good one. Which, given that it’s Robin Williams, isn’t entirely inaccurate. He’s also a voice actor with a spine, as he morally objects to a scene in the cartoon that he’s performing for, in which the main character smokes. By the way, I’m 99% sure that this cartoon is animated by Chuck Jones, and it looks well-made.

Anyway, this leads to him quitting the cartoon altogether, and allows him to pick up his kids early from school. These kids are Lydia (Lisa Hykub), Chris (Matthew Lawrence), and Natalie (Mara Wilson), and it’s Chris’ 12th birthday. Daniel arranges a...surprisingly large party, given that it’s completely impromptu, and it comes with a petting zoo and complete trappings. However, it’s not a party of which his wife will approve.

This wife is Miranda (Sally Field), a successful architect and the breadwinner of the family. After getting a call from the neighbor about the party, she comes home and busts the outrageous party. And for the record, I’m entirely on Miranda’s side here. This party is INSANE, and very irresponsible, given the fact that Daniel currently has no job. And yeah, he’s a very loving father, and a good person, but...it’s too much.

Miranda feels the same, and after 14 years of frustration, she realizes that she no longer loves Daniel. In a genuinely sad scene, she tells him that she wants a divorce. And she goes through with it MUCH to Daniel’s detriment. He has no home, as he’s staying with his brother, Frank (Harvey Fierstein) and his partner Jack (Scott Capurro). He also still has no job, meaning that he has no way to provide for his children. This means that he has no ability to provide, and the judge awards Miranda full custody. Oof.

However, this is a conditional arrangement, as another hearing for joint custody will be held in 3 months, and if Daniel can get a home and job in that time, he has a chance. He performs a litany of voices and impressions with his court liason, Mrs. Sellner (Anne Haney), which amuses me, but not her, and he gets a job in order to be with his kids for more than one day a week.

Meanwhile, Miranda IMMEDIATELY starts dating fellow designer and old flame Stuart Dunmeyer (Pierce Brosnan), like, almost before Daniel leaves the house. He bids a heartfelt goodbye to his kids, with the promise that he’ll see them on Saturdays. And now begins the absolute hatred and petty bitchiness of Daniel and Miranda! Seriously, it’s...it’s fucking terrible, and it takes away from my sympathy from either side. I get that divorce is rough and ugly, but GODDAMN, neither of them perform the act with any form of tact or grace.

This is put on display during the kids’ visitation to Daniel’s semi-crappy new apartment, which doesn’t even seem that bad, to be honest. Miranda dropped them off late and picked them up early, as if to slowly starve Daniel of time with his kids, which is extraordinarily shitty of her, fuck me. Daniel’s not taking it well, understandably, but then does something...really dumb, when you think about it.

See, Miranda’s looking for a nanny, to help watch the kids and clean the house during the week. Daniel volunteers his services, which is actually a good idea, but Miranda says she’ll think about it, which we ALL know means no. I DO NOT like Miranda, even if I understand the initial reasons for the divorce. She’s being especially spiteful, and it’s not a good look.

Daniel’s stupid idea, though, is to change the phone number on the ad for the nanny, which Miranda shows him before she takes the kids. Instead, he calls her number, and pretends to be various terrible applicants, until finally supplying his own applicant: the completely fictional Euphegenia Doubtfire (Daniel Hillard).

Daniel plays Mrs. Doubtfire as an elderly British woman, and a seasoned nanny in her day. Which is why it’s weird to me that, when he does to Frank and Jack to help him make an elaborate disguise as Mrs. Doubtfire, that they go through various other impressions and get-ups. Which, yes, is goddamn hilarious, but also makes NO SENSE, given that they’ve already established her character to Miranda. Funny, but nonsensical.

But, regardless, Euphegenis Doubtfire comes into being, and introduces herself to Miranda and the kids. Mrs. Doubtfire is exactly what Miranda’s looking for, although the kids aren’t exactly overjoyed, ESPECIALLY the oldest, Lydia. Also, during this first meeting, Miranda openly bad-mouths Daniel in front of the kids, in just the WORST fuckin’ way. I genuinely dislike Miranda A LOT. Again, the divorce was certainly justified, but I REALLY don’t like her. Daniel loves his kids, and they’re HIS kids, TOO. Stop using them as weapons against him, OOOOOOOOOOOH I DON’T LIKE MIRANDA

Anyway, that evening, after she’s officially been hired by Miranda, Mrs. Doubtfire heads home, only to find court liason Mrs. Sellner waiting to speak with Daniel. After a litany of puns, and a humorous changing scene, Daniel accidentally throws the Mrs. Doubtfire mask out of the window, and is forced to improvise through equally humorous circumstances. Hence, the above meringue mask scene. Has anybody tried that, by the way? Could that work as a groundbreaking beauty technique? Or would the sugar just feed the skin bacteria and give you acne? Genuinely curious.

Now going between his job as Daniel and the nanny job as Doubtfire, Daniel’s not doing too badly for himself. The nanny job begins, and Mrs. Doubtfire IMMEDIATELY contrasts with Daniel, creating a disciplinarian atmosphere in place of Daniel’s formerly loosey-goosey attitude. Which is interesting, and it works! I mean, it’s not how I would parent, but it does work. Doubtfire makes the kids to their homework, rather than watch TV, and then attempts to make dinner. Instead, though, the dinner’s ruined, and Daniel orders takeout and makes it LOOK like homemade food. And it looks good, too! Daniel’s full of hidden talents.

After dinner, as Mrs. Doubtfire’s leaving, Lydia apologizes for backtalking her earlier, and thanks her for making her mom happy with everything she did that evening. he also says that she’s still a bit messed up about her dad being gone. And yeah, it’s sweet-but-sad.

Going forward (and in a montage set to Aerosmith’s Dude Looks Like a Lady), Mrs. Doubtfire takes care of the family, and Daniel even betters himself to become a better Mrs. Doubtfire. Which...to be honest, Daniel REALLY should’ve done this before. I get that he needed the pressure of losing the kids to do this, but...look, Daniel really wasn’t that responsible of a parent, and the fact that THIS is how he learns to be so is...not great. Like, here’s an example, OK: take Donald Trump.

Yeah, I know, what’s this politics doing in my peanut butter? And WOW, that reference is older than me, but anyway. Let’s say that, in two years, a new politician comes on the scene, and her name is Karyn Walldottir. She has somewhat centrist views, and behaves in a way that’s inclusive to the majority, and backs up her claims and promises with evidence (at least true enough for us to suspend our disbelief). This is, of course, Donald Trump disguised as a woman in order to gain custody of the United States of America again. Naturally.

Karyn Walldottir gets elected in 2024, and all of her policies are markedly different from Trump’s and Biden’s, but leaning closer to Biden in progressive standpoints (assuming that that worked for him come 2024). While Trump is doing this specifically to be president again, he ends up revising his personal policies, and being a better person and president for the country. A literal impossibility, I know. But suspend your disbelief to ask this question:

WHY THE FUCK WOULDN’T HE DO THAT IN THE FIRST PLACE? IT MAKES NO FUCKING SENSE!

OK, now that that dumbass (and mildly horrifying) thought process is concluded, let’s get back to Mrs. Doubtfire. In the process of Mrs. Doubtfire’s ingratiation with the family, Miranda’s been dating Stu, whom Mrs. Doubtfire subtly insults when they meet. And yeah, Daniel’s being a little petty here, but it makes a bit of sense at least.

That night, after an accidental intrusion by Chris when Mrs. Doubtfire is going to the bathroom, Daniel’s basically forced to tell Chris and Lydia his little secret, which Lydia’s happy about, but Chris is understandably weirded out about. But, they agree to keep the secret from their mom and younger sister.

At his OTHER job, delivering film reels from a TV station, he witnesses the filming of an extremely boring kids educational TV show, and comments as such to another man watching. As he quickly learns, this is the owner of the station, Jonathan Lundy (Robert Prosky), on whom Daniel makes a good impression.

In the meantime, Mrs. Doubtfire has a talk with Miranda about their love lives, real and fictional. Daniel realizes how badly Miranda had been suffering in their marriage, which she never told him because...well, he never seemed to take anything seriously. Which is entirely fair...but this is why Miranda’s a tricky-ass character. She’s got two sides: there’s the justified caring mother and strong woman, and there’s the PETTY ASSHOLE who genuinely doesn’t care about Daniel or his feelings AT ALL. Jesus.

And Stu...look, Stu is LITERALLY a Gary Stu, who’s mostly perfect. Sure, he’s not always been that way, but he definitely is now! He’s responsible, wealthy, in love with Miranda AND her kids. And yeah, at a country club that he’s a member of (OF COURSE he is), he privately badmouth Daniel in front of Mrs. Doubtfire, calling him a loser, and...yeah, he’s not really unjustified in that statement. Fact of the matter is, Stu is barely even a plot device.

Meanwhile, in Daniel’s day job, he finds himself alone in the studio, where the toy dinosaurs from the TV show are still sitting on the table. He plays with them, gives them voices, sings some songs, and impresses Mr. Lundy, who’s there in the shadows after all that. He’s impressed, and invites Daniel to dinner to talk about a potential future show at the network.

But then, it’s also Miranda’s birthday coming up, and Stu’s holding a dinner for her, to which Mrs. Doubtfire is invited. Trouble is, it’s at the OH FUCK IT. YOU know what this is. It’s at the same time and place as the Mr. Lund meeting yaddayaddayadda LOOK. We ALL know how this is going to end. It’s the GODDAMN LIAR REVEALED TROPE AGAIN. And here’s the thing:

I FUGGIN’ HAAAAAATE THE LIAR REVEALED TROPE

You know, that thing in movies (especially family movies of the ‘90s) where somebody starts off a situation with a lie, they get deeper and deeper into that lie, grow close to people under false pretenses, and then OH NO! THE LIAR IS REVEALED! And everybody’s angry and/or sad, the liar slumps off, defeated and broken, but then realizes the error of his ways, while everybody else realizes the same thing, and he comes back to vindicate himself, and is welcomed back with open arms. And it introduces unneeded tension AND I HAVE ALWAYS FUCKING HATED IT.

Let’s list the examples, shall we? A Bug’s Life, Aladdin, Mulan, The Road to El Dorado, Chicken Run, How to Train Your Dragon, Klaus, Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted, Megamind (SUBVERSIVE MY ASS), Over the Hedge, Rango, Toy Story, Steven Universe (the whole Pearl/Sardonyx arc, which went on for WAY too long), the list goes on and fucking on. And I GODDAMN HATE IT. Not to say it can’t be done well. Disney actually usually does a pretty good job with it, and Dreamworks uses it A LOT, but almost always pretty well. But sometimes...GOD. Either way, it’s still used FAR too fucking much. And look. Here’s another one. Joy.

Look, at this point...I will freely admit that I'm biased against this trope, but it’s also obvious where this is headed. Basically, Daniel switches back and forth between the dinner with the family, and the dinner with Mr. Lundy. With Mr. Lundy, he gets absolutely SMASHED. Great. Great decision, Daniel.

So, yeah, Mrs. Doubtfire’s also smashed, which is pretty goddamn apparent to them all. At this point, I’m wondering why Daniel, as Mrs. Doubtfire, didn’t just say she was sick as hell, and had to go home. Or, considering the fact that Daniel proposes her as a show idea regardless, the switch wasn’t even necessary! And that means that none of what’s about to happen, happens. Or, here’s a crazy thought, maybe Daniel shouldn’t have POISONED STU’S FOOD WITH CAYENNE PEPPER THAT HE’S ALLERGIC TO!

YEAH! Because that causes Stu to go into anaphylactic shock for a hot sec, causing him to choke. Mrs. Doubtfire does the right thing and gives him the Heimlich maneuver, and in the process, SURPRISE! IT’S BEEN DANIEL ALL ALONG! BUH BUH BUHHHHH DA DA DA DAAAAA DA

Yeah, so Miranda is understandably ENRAGED by this revelation, and it’s all over. Daniel represents himself in court at the custody hearing, but the judge deems his “lifestyle” dangerous for children. Which...yikes, Judge, that statement didn’t age well AT FUCKING ALL. But, given Daniel’s admitted stupidity with this whole idea, he’s not wrong about the dangerous part. But, I have to say, Daniel’s speech in his own defense is nice...although he also says he’s addicted to his children, so let’s throw a second yikes on there for good measure.

The speech moves Miranda...but not enough to prevent Daniel has his custody stripped away from him! GOD THEY BOTH SUUUUUUUUCK. Daniel’s a broken man, and Miranda and the kids are similarly broken without him and Mrs. Doubtfire. However...Daniel’s career isn’t broken AT ALL, as Mrs. Doubtfire is now a kid’s show host! Yeah! And she’s a hit! And again, it brings me to wonder why Daniel DIDN’T APPLY HIS OBVIOUS TALENTS LIKE THIS IN THE FIRST GODDAMN PLACE

Realizing that she made a mistake, she goes to the set during the filming of a show. She congratulates him on the show, and he replies by stating how broken he is now! Thanks, Miranda! Well, after an argument, and after Miranda sees how badly she’s messed up someone she used to care for, they come to an agreement: joint custody. FINALLY GODDAMN IT

And good, because I don’t want them back together. I have to give this film props for that: they acknowledge that these two are NOT good for each other, and they deliver a message in the end: families are families, no matter how they’re shaped. One mom, one dad, uncle or aunt, grandparents, adoption, two separated or divorced parents...oh, also, two dads or two moms. Yeah, that isn’t said in Mrs. Doubtfire’s final monologue, which is odd considering Daniel’s brother and his life partner...but it’s also kid’s TV in the ‘90s, so I guess that sadly makes sense. And with that, and their new family arrangement, Daniel takes his kids on an afternoon out, as himself.

...Look. That’s Mrs. Doubtfire, yaddayaddayadda LOOK. I don’t dislike this movie. In fact, here: have this mini-Review:

Cast and Acting - 9/10: Good, although Brosnan was a little stiff.

Plot and Writing - 5/10: It’s an idiot plot, what can I say? It’s actually based off of a book, which was a surprise to me, but it was adapted by Randi Mayem Singer and Leslie Dixon, and...eh. Still an idiot plot.

Directing and Cinematography - 8/10: It’s Chris Columbus, you get what you get. Definitely has that Home Alone flair to it.

Production and Art Design - 8/10: I mean, yeah, the Doubtfire disguise was good most of the time, but...I dunno, I could still tell it was Robin. But, still, it was good. Took 4 hours of makeup, fun fact.

Music and Editing - 8/10: Music by Howard Shore (ooh, Howard Shore!) was pretty nice, especially the ending theme. Editing by Raja Gosnell was...RAJA GOSNELL???

OH GOD. Yeah, OK, I see what happened here. Also, I didn’t know he was an editor! I just know him as the director of the Scooby-Doo films, Beverly Hills Chihuahua, The Smurfs films, Big Momma’s...

...OK, no, I am not doing Big Momma’s House OR the Madea movies. THE TROPE-BUCK STOPS HERE! I am moving on to something else! But, of course, I have to sum this up in a Review. See you there!

#mrs. doubtfire #mrs doubtfire #chris columbus #robin williams #sally field #pierce brosnan #harvey fierstein #robert prosky #mara wilson #comedy april #user365 #365days365movies #365 movie challenge #365 movies 365 days #365 Days 365 Movies #365 movies a year #moviegifs

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longinglook · 3 years

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I may or may not have spent my entire Sunday binge watching all of I told sunset about you and Gaya sa pelikula and now I have so many thoughts and feelings that I need to write about them so here we go! Under a read more (if tumblr allows me to) because it’s 2k words hehe

First of all, I knew next to nothing about both shows before starting them. I had seen a couple of gifs here and there, but really had no idea what I was in for.

I started with I told sunset about you, which has 3 episodes out of 5 out. All I knew is that it was going to be beautiful and possibly sad, and it was. Everything about this show is so high quality, from the audio to the dialogue to the locations to the acting, just wow. The production is better than a lot of movies I’ve seen, and every technical aspect is perfect. I am really loving the plot so far as well, I find the childhood friendship to stubborn rivalry to grown up friendship again very relatable. I think it’s a very common experience for a lot of non straight folks to develop an extremely close bond with a same sex friend when you’re too young to realize what you’re actually feeling for them until you’re a lot older and suddely the jealousy and possessivenes all make sense.

I love the recurring themes sprinkled throughout the episodes, starting from the chinese vocabulary that expresses the core thoughts of the two main characters: rival, intimacy, secret, male protagonist, as promised. They could easily be the episode titles, or the names of imaginary sections the show could be divided into. It’s a great way to integrate metaphors and deeper meaning into the plot.

That’s how most of the communication goes in this show, deep emotions are never conveyed through words because words are scary and loud and they can’t be taken back once they’re out there. The plot advances though stares and gestures and touch and gorgeous shots of the landscape. The pace is slow with hour-long episodes that could each be a movie of their own. This worried me a bit before starting, and I have to admit that at times I struggled to stay focused, especially during scenes that set the mood but don’t do much plot-wise. This is just a personal preference, though, and in no way I see it as a flaw.

The dancing around each other the main characters do, sometimes literal, is frustrating but it determines an emotional build up that’s just starting to reach its peak. This is one of those shows that has me screaming if only they talked to each other, but the silences and unspoken words are so well directed and acted that it works. I struggle a lot with keeping in mind that they’re still in high school, they’re very young and I can’t expect them to act rationally just yet.

I was really worried about Teh possibly going the insufferable Theory-of-love-khai way, and I am still not 100% sold on him. When he started helping Oh-aew again it felt like he was just doing it to make himself feel better about the whole thing. It was frustrating to see him so possessive and jealous while also so deeply in denial about his own feelings, to the point where he had me rooting for Bas instead. He was getting better, but then he fled at the end of episode 3 and now I have no clue what’s going to happen next. About this, I really have no idea if they’re going for a happy ending or a sad one. I’m really hoping it will be good, because so far there has been barely any emotional payoff for all the repressed longing and misunderstanding the show has put us through.

I do like their dynamic a lot though, I have a weak spot for childhood friends reconnecting and an ever weaker spot for informal mentor/mentee relationships. Oh-aew asking Teh to tutor him until he passes the admission exam was an almost exact mirror of Yuri on ice Yuri begging Victor to be his coach until he retires and I loved that a lot.

Now on to the one issue I have with this show: it feels too much like an art film. It reminds me of Moonlight and Call me by your name, in the way that I wasn’t able to connect with those movies because they are too perfect. They are so beautiful and carefully crafted that I can’t fully immerse myself in them. There’s a filter that stops me from relating to the characters and constantly reminds me that this is not reality. It’s pretty, it’s extremely well done, but it feels like art. It has some quirks, some scenes that feel too artificial. One scene in particular, the one where Teh buries his head in the paper Oh-aew wrote with his coconut scented pen to sniff it, which is a direct parallel to Call me by your name, bothered me in particular. Just as it felt over-the-top and purposefully weird in the movie, so it feels in the show. It’s a way of showcasing how a confused teen deals with attraction he barely understands, it’s raw and animalistic in a way, but it’s so quirky that all it accomplishes is to remind me that I’m watching an lgbt show. It makes me wonder if a scene like this would make sense in a straight relationship because here it seems to highlight how different and primal his attraction is. If I had to pinpoint it, I’d say that I have a problem with media showcasing queerness though peculiar, purposefully awkward scenes like these instead of normal kissing and cuddling.

Overall, I can’t wait to see how this show ends and I still think it’s one of the best bls to air in 2020, if not ever. It’s refreshing to see something with a big budget used well! So far my rating is 8/10, which I know is a lot lower than what everyone else seems to think but it’s still very much subject to change! Just hoping they won’t pull a Make our days count, but I doubt they’ll go there.

And now Gaya sa pelikula. Wow. Again, I knew next to nothing about this show before watching, and I was coming from a 3 hour I told sunset about you binge watch, so the bar was pretty high.

And boy, did this show deliver. I was blown away by the depth and the humor of it. It feels like the writers had fun taking all sorts of common tropes and stereotypes just to show everyone how well they can be evolved and made complex. Two strangers who somehow find themselves sharing an apartment sounds like the start of so many fanfictions out there, but it’s so well executed and interesting that you don’t even stop to think about how weak the premises for their meeting are. It doesn’t matter and it’s not even that far-fetched, either. The sister and the neighbor are also two characters that start off as extra stereotyped, but in just a few scenes they unveil an incredible depth and backstory. It blew me away.

Each character is so realistic. Everything they do and say makes sense, they all have their reasons and their past and they react accordingly, it’s so coherent. It’s impressive how everything takes place inside the house and you barely realize it because things happen and the plot moves anyways, and the way information about external events and people is conveyed is so seamless that you don’t even notice it. In only 7 episodes (so far) they have managed to give everyone a complex background and personality through the use of objects and small details and wow don’t get me started on the music.

The soundtrack is SO GOOD. I never really pay attention to music in shows but it plays a very important role here in my opinion and, well, it’s exactly the kind of music I like listening to and ahhh I just spent 4 hours playing the first kiss song on loop so I might be biased. Right from the start in episode 1, when Karl gives in to Vlad’s music and starts dancing to it, it’s established that it’s an important element to the mood of each scene. I love how the dancing I talked about for I told sunset about you comes back here, but while I saw it as a hesitant dancing around each other there, here it’s the opposite, it’s freeing and it’s about accepting yourself. And the end of episode 6 highlights this, with the beautiful quote “You are entitled to a love that lets you dance without fear and shame.” It made me cry a looooot.

I think the development of their relationship is masterfully done. It doesn’t happen too quickly nor too slowly. Karl goes through some needed shocks that act as his wake up call. When I’m watching bl shows I care the most about them feeling real and relatable. I don’t want to feel like they were written by a straight person trying to guess what it’s like to be gay. Now I didn’t look anything up about the Gaya sa pelikula writers, but I’d be very surprised if they were straight. I can relate to both Karl and Vlad for different aspects of their stories and their worries and thoughts. There was one part in particular that hit so close that I had to take a few breaks because it hurt too much. I am a lesbian, I’ve had relationship with a girl that lasted over a year, I am out to some friends but not all. I never came out to my parents, who are both very open minded and friends with a lot of gay people and would love me just as much if I told them, and yet I can’t. It’s not just that, I am terrified by the idea of them already knowing or being able to guess. When Karl freaked out over his uncle guessing, it hit me so hard because I’ve felt the same way so many times.

Episode 7 was amazing. I hate badly written drama the most, and 99% of shows can’t come up with any good reason for drama but they have to put it in there anyways and it sucks. This was the complete opposite, I adored it and I say this as a lover of fluff. It feels right, I think it’s an issue that would come up between two people like them. They are both right and the only thing that could happen there is what actually went down. I definitely think things will be fixed by the end and I am looking forward to it, but I am very glad this issue was included because it’s so important and so true to many lgbt people’s lives.

Another aspect I absolutely adored are the multiple references to lgbt theory and language, and Vlad has some of the best lines I’ve ever heard coming from a bl. When he tells Karl not to be afraid of the word, when he explains that “you don’t look gay” isn’t a compliment, when he scolds his sister for not acknowledging the things she used to say to him by covering them up with her ally act, those are all such important and educative moments that I hope everyone listens to. I love that Vlad is not correcting some ignorant bad guy, but it’s his accepting and loving friends and family that make the mistakes, because sometimes being supportive your own way isn’t enough if you’re not actively learning from the ones you want to support.

This is a 10/10 for me right now. I can’t find anything I don’t like about it. It never feels boring, it never feels overdone, it never feels cheap or unoriginal. It went straight to the top of my favorite bls.

And now I can’t help but compare the two a bit, because yes they are two different shows but right now the relationships they portray have reached the same point: there has been a climax and now the one who is more confused about his sexuality is panicking and taking a step back. It’s a coincidence that I watched both shows on the same day when their last aired episodes end in such a similar way, but it really leads me to compare the two. I don’t want to put them one against each other or say which one did it better because that’s not the point of this, they are both two amazing and important shows who are excelling in what they’re doing.

Gaya sa pelikula is down to earth, it’s explicit and it’s straight to the point in explaining what’s going on inside each character’s head. It feels like watching real people deal with real struggles. I told sunset about you is a lot more subtle and quiet, and since we don’t really have a clear insight in the characters’ heads sometimes it’s hard to completely understand what’s going on with them. It’s a completely different way of narrating, and while Gaya sa pelikula makes me feel like I’m a part of the events, I told sunset about you feels like I’m just spectating from an outside perspective. They are different choices, but one of them ends up feeling a lot more emotional to me than the other.

To wrap it up, I highly recommend both shows and I can’t wait to see how they’ll end! They are both among the best shows of the year, both free of all those annoyingly stereotyped characters and plot points that most bls tend to overuse.

#meta #gaya sa pelikula #like in the movies #i told sunset about you #text

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thorne93 · 3 years

Text

History Repeats (Part 9)

Prompt: Life’s hard, right? Well throw in a not so great job, a broken heart, and chasing a pipe dream in LA. But could someone come along to make all the bad shit disappear? Or is he just another heartbreak waiting around the bend?

Warnings: language, drug addiction, alcohol addiction, angst/heartbreak, adult themes (??)

Word Count: 2711

Note: Aesthetic made by @mrs-dragneel-stark-solo because she’s absolutely amazing Beta’d by @like-a-bag-of-potatoes and @mrs-dragneel-stark-solo . Brainstorming from @carryonmyswansong

**Song Inspiration: Delicate by Taylor Swift

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A package arrived and you nearly screamed from joy. You unwrapped it immediately and grinned ear to ear. You’d had an idea some time ago, but had only gotten around to it recently. But now, you could put your plan in motion. Hayden would be home in probably forty-five minutes so you began to set out candy, cokes, and got the popcorn ready to pop with melted butter and salt on the side.

Hayden walked in, looking beat and you felt bad for him, but seeing him was always the highlight of your day, even if he didn’t feel the same. Again, you were plagued with the question, how and when did Hayden go from he friendly face you enjoyed seeing, your savior of the day to the man you could hardly stand being away from? At this point, you didn’t care, you were just happy he was here, with you, whether he felt the same or not.

“Hey! How was work?”

“Exhausting...I think I’m just gonna hit the hay,” he said, walking in.

“Wait! I have something for you!” you said, running over and grabbing his hand and pulling him on the couch.

He plopped on the couch, his head resting on the back with his eyes closed. “Ugh. Y/N, I’m tired. Can it wait till tomorrow?”

“Well...technically, it can, but I can’t! I have a surprise for you!”

“A surprise? What is it?”

You grinned and pulled up a basket, the first DVD on top.

“Open your eyes,” you instructed.

He propped one eye open to look at you, and when he saw you were holding something, he opened both and sat up. He looked at the object on top, picking it up.

“In the mouth of Madness…” he said curiously as he flipped it over in his hand, then looked at the next one sitting on top of the pile. “Street Law? Y/N, why do you have old movies I played in?”

“Because we are going to have a marathon of your movies!” you exclaimed, giddy.

“What? Why?”

“Well...because I’ve never seen a lot of these. I’ve seen you in like two things, and I don’t think that’s right. I want to fully understand my roommate,” you explained with a beaming smile.

“We...You really don’t have to do that,” he insisted, getting shy as he leaned forward and started looking at the movies. “Wow. You really got all of them…” he mused, almost under his breath. “But I’m barely even in In the Mouth of Madness,” he remarked.

“So? Your face is in it, so we’re watching it.”

“And why am I being subjected to this?” he asked as he fell back on the sofa and propped up his feet.

“Because,” you started as you hopped up to pop the popcorn, “I need you here to make fun of you when you stay cheesy shit in these movies.”

“And how do you know I say cheesy shit?” he retorted, spinning to face you, resting his chin on the couch, looking more than adorable.

You shrugged. “Doesn’t every actor, somewhere, have a few skeletons in their closet? I’m sure out of all of these films, at some point, you said something totally stupid, and it’s my duty as your best friend to make sure you don’t live it down,” you teased as you stuck your tongue out at him.

Grabbing the popcorn, butter, and salt, you headed back to the couch and plopped down beside him, starting the first movie that was already queued up.

The two of you settled in for a long marathon, and you got through several films, until you reached Life as a House, which totally blew you away. The opening scene of Hayden made you audibly gasp.

“Oh, my god, that’s you!” you shouted as you pointed at the TV.

“Yeah, that’s kinda the point, Y/N,” he joked before you slapped his shoulder, causing him to laugh.

“No, you jerk. Like...That’s you! You look so…”

“Young?”

“I was going to say different. You don’t look much older than now. Oh my god, you’re such a brat!” you commented as you watched the film. Usually you tried to keep quiet during movies, but this was just too good and too easy to mess with him.

“Uh, no, he’s a brat. I’m not,” he corrected, pointing to the screen and glaring at you.

“Well you play the part pretty well,” you joked with a sideways look.

“That just means I’m an excellent actor and I take no shame in that.”

“No one said you should.” At this, you stuck your tongue out at him. “I am loving the outfit,” you mocked.

“Oh, just shush and watch the damn thing,” he commanded, gesturing to the movie.

You giggled and quieted down to watch the film, trying to ignore the fact that you did really like him in this role. It was the first time so far he looked...of age. He had a goth look to him and at one time, you’d really been into goth yourself. He didn’t look half bad with black hair, but his blonde fit him so much better.

The movie progressed nicely. You really did think he was acting very well, seeing as Hayden could never act half as bratty and annoying as his character, he made it believable. But then...at a particular scene, he was in a shower and your hormones started to stir in ways you wish they didn’t. If you’d been watching this alone, it would be one thing, but actually sitting next to the guy who was getting you hot and bothered, being your best friend, made it feel insanely awkward for you.

It didn’t help then, that later, in the same shower, his female co star kissed him and he orgasmed prematurely. Regardless of the fact that it wasn’t real, that the character was facing embarrassment...you were highly aroused. The sounds he had made, the expression he wore, it was all dangerous mix of an aphrodisiac for you. Because like it or not, real or fake, Hayden had just made orgasmic sounds, and you hadn’t realized until that moment how badly you wanted to hear the real thing.

Chancing a glance at him, he was sitting with his right arm resting on the couch, propping his face up with his cheek resting against his fist. He looked so...calm, and observant.

“Are you okay?” you suddenly asked.

He turned to you, breaking out of his trance. “Huh? Yeah, I’m fine. Why?”

“Well, I just realized, I never asked you if it was okay to watch all of these or if you’re comfortable with it or whatever. I just sort of made you do it,” you noted meekly.

“Y/N, it’s fine. It’s kinda fun reliving these films.”

“Good. If it gets weird or awkward or anything, let me know,” you assured.

“You mean because I just came on screen with you watching? No, not awkward at all…” he said evenly before shooting you a half smile and turning his attention back to the screen.

After the film was through, and you were done crying, you picked up your glass and went back to the kitchen for a refill when your hand accidentally knocked into the counter, smashing the glass in your hand to pieces. The bottom part of the glass broke off onto the floor, the top piece in your hand had entirely shattered, shards and pieces flying everywhere. When you looked down, your feet had tiny bloody streaks everywhere, and your hand had shards of small pieces of glass in them.

“Y/N?” Hayden said as he turned around at the noise. “You okay?”

“Uh, yeah, a glass broke. I’m fine though.”

“Oh, shit. It's everywhere,” he said as he jumped up and came over. He picked up the big pieces and put them on the counter. “Oh my god. Your hand,” he noted as he looked at it. “Don’t move, you could get cut worse,” he instructed as he looked around at all the tiny shards. Without warning, he suddenly grabbed you bridal style.

“Hayden!” you shrieked, scared of him dropping you, your arms flying.

“Y/N, stop. I’m just carrying you over here so you don’t step on the glass,” he said as he got you on the sofa. “Don’t let your feet touch the ground. You don’t want to get glass stuck in there. I’m gonna clean that up and I’ll be right back.”

“Don’t be ridiculous! I can clean up a simple glass breaking,” you argued as you started to get up before Hayden pointed at you and gave you a warning look.

“Don’t. It’ll take like two seconds. Just sit.”

He ran to the closet and got the broom and worked on sweeping nearly all of the kitchen then came over to you, examining your cuts on your legs, feet, and hands. He was still in jeans and boots, so he had been safe from the glass, but you were in a shirt and pajama shorts, barefoot, leaving you open to all the glass.

His fingers traced over your feet, lightly touching up your leg, the sensation much stronger than you anticipated. You and Hayden touched all the time, grabbing his hand to pull him somewhere, hugging every now and again, hitting him playfully...But now, he was tenderly, gently, touching you, and shortly after that orgasm scene in your head, so your body wasn’t responding in the typical sense, sending a blush to your cheeks.

“They look okay, nothing too deep, just need to be cleaned up. Where’s your kit?”

“I’ve got peroxide and cotton balls and all that in my bathroom, the bottom drawer on the right,” you informed, thrusting your chin towards your room.

“I'll be right back.”

“Hayden--”

“Shut up,” he said without looking at you as he walked away.

When he returned, he set to cleaning you with a wet washcloth, wiping the little streaks of blood everywhere, then used peroxide on all the spots that came back up, patiently, gingerly tending to your minor cuts, his attention seemed hyper focused on the task at hand. Meanwhile, your eyes were planted on him, watching him, drinking him in, etching the lines of his face, his fingers, his jawline, his neck all to your memory.

Once your eyes hit his fingers, your thoughts went to places they shouldn’t explore, places that shouldn’t be explored. But, you couldn’t help it. Hayden was beyond any man you’d ever met. He was...everything you’d ever wanted from a man and more. He was a father, a caring, loving one. He was a best friend, loyal, patient, willing to listen to you vent and bitch and whine and complain on end. He was a hard worker, never complaining of long and hard days, not much. He was talented and funny and understanding. He was kind and thoughtful.

You wanted to know everything about him. You wanted to share nights with him as well as days. You wanted to know what it feels like to greet him when it got home with a kiss, instead of a friendly wave. You wanted to know what it was like to wake up next to him. You wanted to know what his scruff felt like before he’d shaved in the morning. You wanted to know what it was like to call him in between shots and tell him how you loved him, how you wanted to see him.

Sometimes, you wanted to just pretend, even for a second, that he was yours. That when you were sitting together on the couch and his arm was around you, that it wasn’t a relaxed friendly gesture. Sometimes you wanted to pretend that when he walked in the door, he didn’t go to separate bedroom, that he joined you in yours...

You wanted to know if he felt the same. You wanted to know if you danced in his dreams too. If you plagued him at work. If you were an ever present force in his life as well. You wanted to know if he looked forward to seeing you. You wanted to know if he desired touching your skin, all over.

Did he want any of that?

Suddenly, he was done treating your feet and legs and he looked up at you, his eyes filled with so much wonder and mystery, you were captivated by them as he gave you a soft grin.

“Can I see your hands?” he asked and you silently obliged, turning them palm up so he could start the same routine. The entire time, you stayed mesmerized by him, watching him, just in awe that you’d met someone like this.

And that’s when it hit you. You didn’t want to wait another day to see if he felt the same. It’d been nearly four months since you met. And for some time now, you’d felt some pretty deep feelings for this man, and every day it was getting harder and harder to ignore those feelings.

“There, all fixed up,” Hayden said with a wide grin as he sat the cotton ball on the coffee table.

“Thanks...Would….would you wanna go out to dinner?”

He frowned slightly. “Tonight? But it’s after midnight,” he commented. “If you’re hungry I’m sure we could find something--”

You shook your head, slightly laughing of embarrassment and nerves, no trace of real humor in the chuckle. “Uh, no, not tonight. Like, I don’t know, Saturday or something?”

“Uh, maybe, why, what's up?” he inquired as he continued to clean up the supplies he’d brought out.

“Uh...I...No reason,” you said, shaking your head, the same nervous laugh escaping as you sat back on the couch. “What’s next? Star Wars I think. Awesome. I haven’t seen this since it came out and I’ve completely spaced it since then…”

Hayden noticed you rambling, your cheeks heating, your hands shaking and it suddenly clicked in his mind.

“Y/N, why did you want to go to dinner?” he softly demanded as he took the dvd case from you and sat it down, situating himself on the edge of couch so you could look at him.

Taking a deep breath, you weighed your options of answering. On one hand, you could save face and save the friendship if you just told him to forget it. On the other hand, you knew that if you denied your feelings, you would always wonder if it was a missed chance at a great opportunity.

“I...uh….I was asking you on a date. I just wanted to see if you wanted to go for dinner and drinks or...whatever…” you explained, your eyes on your lap as you toyed with the hem of your shirt.

Hayden’s eyes cast down as well as he mulled over how to answer, and the fact that he had to think about it was answer enough.

“It’s fine, I get it. You’re not interested. No big deal. I swear,” you promised. “We can still be friends and all that.”

Inside, you were twisting. You’d made a fool of yourself. Now he knew that you had feelings for him and he didn’t return them. Would he feel awkward around you now?

“Y/N...I...I just...I’m still getting over things with Rachel,” he explained. “I just...I’m not sure I’m ready.”

You nodded. “No, yeah, I get that. It’s...delicate. It’s too soon. I understand. I’m sorry I brought it up,” you said, trying desperately to sound normal. A stiff silence hung between you two before you finally piped up and said, “Star Wars next?”

“Uh, I should be getting to bed. We’ll finish tomorrow, yeah?” he asked, his brows going up, hoping you weren’t offended, probably.

You nodded. “Sure. Yeah. No problem.”

Standing, you smiled a goodnight smile at him, and he returned it. “Well, goodnight. See you in the morning,” you quietly said as he returned a salutation and you went to your room, closed the door, and got into bed. Before you knew it, hot tears were streaking down your face, staining your pillow. Quickly, you turned on music so he couldn’t hear your heartbroken sobs.

~~~~~~~~~~

Forever Tag:

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Hayden Christensen:

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History Repeats:

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#history repeats #hayden christensen x reader #hayden christensen fic #hayden christensen

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welllpthisishappening · 4 years

Text

Feeling As Good As Love

Emma is excited about this weekend.

It's always good — this thing they do, with the house and the ocean and the friendship that seems to stand the test of time. But now, there's an added bonus. Because this year she and Killian aren't just coming to the house on the beach with that friendship moniker hanging over them. They're coming as a couple.

A real couple. That kisses. Regularly. And Emma's excited about that too.

She just didn't expect her friends not to believe her.

----

Rating: Teen, with kissing and some friendship-type swearing Word Count: 5.8 K AN: Listen, this is absolutely the fault of @shireness-says who I realize I keep blaming for things, but she keeps sending me prompts and like...it’s her fault. So basically the prompt was “Okay but like what about a reverse fake dating trope? Like, two people who are together and go home to their families at Christmas but can’t convince anyone that they’re really a couple & everyone thinks it’s a joke.” It’s not Christmas, because it is May right now, but no one believes Emma and Killian want to kiss each other right on the mouth. At all times. I’m me, so naturally they set out to prove otherwise.

And I think this puts Panic! At the Disco in the lead for lyrics as titles.

Also on Ao3 if that’s how you roll

----

“You know, you don’t actually have to do this.”

Emma doesn’t let go of the plate in her hand, but her eyebrows furrow slightly and Mary Margaret actually has the gall to blush. There are soap suds on her elbow. “Wash the dishes?” Emma quips. “Nuh uh, I’m totally doing this, then I won’t have to do it the rest of the weekend.”

It’s a thing, this annual thing they do — renting a house out East, after Memorial Day, but a few weeks before the tourists descend on the Hamptons and the beaches and the vineyards on the North Fork. And it’s fun, it’s always been fun, college friends and an almost ridiculous amount of alcohol, although none of it ever comes from those vineyards on the North Fork because they’re not actually made of money.

It’s also the first time Emma has brought someone with her.

Kind of.

Killian always comes with them, has been part of the group for as long as she can remember, because he’s been friends with David for as long as she can remember, but this not-so-annual thing the two of them are doing, is pretty new and even more exciting and she might actually be in—

They’ll get there, she’s sure. Presumably after she finishes washing the dishes.

And once Mary Margaret stops staring at her like that.

“Ok,” Emma sighs, shaking her hair off her shoulder for fear of her own issues with soap suds. “What’s your damage?” “Are you quoting things at me?” “Yes, because I don’t understand what’s happening and when I am confused I fall back on tried and true movie quotes. So, c’mon Winona Ryder, what’s your damage?” “Her name wasn’t actually Winona Ryder in the movie,” Mary Margaret points out.

Emma rolls her eyes. With her whole head. “I know you’re not drunk yet,” she says, “because Scarlet and Phillip aren’t back from the liquor store yet—” “—Them having to go to the liquor store at all seems to suggest that we’ve already blasted through our liquor supply. Which, you know, that’s kind of troubling. For us, as people.” “Did you say blasted?” Emma asks, and whatever sound she makes is less a laugh and more like general misunderstanding. Maybe Mary Margaret has been body-snatched. “Like that’s a genuine word you used in this real-life conversation. That the two of us are having.” “Yeah, speaking of two of us…” “Were we?” Mary Margaret grabs a glass. With maybe a bit more force than absolutely necessary, all but yanking the towel off her shoulder, and Emma’s not moving so it’s almost impressive when it feels like her mind trips over itself a bit. While trying to figure out what the hell is going on.

There are footsteps coming towards them.

“Ah,” Ruby says, leaning against the kitchen door frame. “Are we doing this then?”

Emma’s jaw cracks when it drops open.

Mary Margaret grits her teeth.

She’s totally going to break that glass.

And that will inevitably piss off Regina. She’s the one who booked this house. AirBnB, whatever. All Emma knows is that she made sure both her and Killian’s payments were Venmo’ed to Regina almost on time and that her nearly-serious boyfriend who she might genuinely be in—whatever with has a habit of over packing socks.

Killian brought no less than twenty-four pairs of socks with him. For one weekend. Four days, three nights. With her. In one room.

It’s the first time they’ve ever been away together. And now this is happening. Whatever this is.

“That’s not an answer,” Ruby continues, five steps and one jump until she’s perched on the edge of what may actually be a marble counter. “He’s playing some stupid video game with David, anyway, so it’s not like we’re going to be interrupted.” “What video game?” Mary Margaret asks. Neither she nor Ruby flinch when Emma throws her hands in the air.

Soap suds land on several different cabinet doors.

There are an obscene number of cabinets in his house.

“They’re really serious about Mario Party,” Emma says, like it’s obvious. It kind of is. She knows for a fact that David had texted Killian about bringing his DS with him that weekend, mostly because she was lying next to him when he got the text. “And seriously—what is going on with you guys? Was this conversation preordained?” Ruby clicks her teeth. “More like a discussion was had in passing, but—” She cuts herself off when Mary Margaret’s cheeks flames. “Look at you,” Ruby accuses, “you’re not helping at all. Emma is going to think we were gossiping.” “Weren’t we?” Mary Margaret counters.

“I mean—well, gossip is such a dirty word and this...Em, you don’t have to fake on our behalf.”

Emma blinks. Once. Then does it again. She flutters her fingers, which only leaves a bit of moisture clinging to her pants, and that’s a little annoying. Not as annoying as the prospect of her two best friends gossiping about something she still doesn’t understand, but that’s neither here nor there.

“Say words,” she demands. “In something vaguely resembling a sentence.”

Ruby squeezes one eye shut. “It’s just—ok, we know that there are couples up here and Regina and Locksley are in the middle of full-on wedding plans, which is—you know, it’s annoying and opulent. Is that a good word?” Emma lifts her eyebrows.

Mary Margaret’s cheeks look like they’re half a second from combusting, they’re that red.

And Ruby isn’t done.

“Plus, y’know me and Dor are obviously pretty fucking cute and M’s and David stare longingly at each other every moment of every day.” “That’s not true,” Mary Margaret objects, but both Ruby and Emma make near-identical sounds of disagreement and she suddenly seems very preoccupied with her feet.

“All we’re saying,” Ruby adds, “is that we get it if you felt like you had to show up with—you know, someone special. But...this is—” “—Silly,” Mary Margaret finishes.

Emma can’t move her eyebrows any more. If she does her actual eyes are liable to fall out, and then Regina won’t get her deposit back and that will only end badly.

Eyeballs on the kitchen floor presumably aren’t covered in incidentals.

“What” Emma breathes, “are you talking about?”

Ruby scrunches her nose that time. “It’s just—you and Jones? Really? Like, c’mon, if you were going to pick someone to play boyfriend, there had to be someone better.” Emma is going to have to write Regina a check for damages done to this house. Whatever rushes down her spine is a mix of sudden and rather jarring anger and complete disbelief at what she’s just heard, the words bouncing around her brain like they’ll be able to find a more legitimate order that way.

Head on a swivel, Emma gapes at the two other people in the kitchen, dimly aware of what sounds like an exceptionally competitive round of Mario Party.

“You can’t be serious,” Emma says, voice low and, she hopes, as threatening as possible.

Ruby shrugs. She’s running the gamut of bodily-movement reactions, it seems. “You guys have known each other forever and now you’re going to date? You hated each other when you first met. When’s the last time you and Jones spent time together alone?” “When I spend the night at his apartment. Like last night.”

“Nah, c’mon, who do you think we are, Em? Idiots?” “Apparently,” she shouts, and there goes any sense of threat. Now she just sounds a little unhinged, the word practically snapping out of her and Mary Margaret visibly recoils. Emma pinches the bridge of her nose. “So, wait, wait, wait, let me get this straight. The two of you,” she waves an aggressive hand between them, “legitimately believe that Killian and I are faking our relationship because I feel bad that Robin and Regina are disgustingly in love?”

Mary Margaret lets out a breath, even as her eyes flit towards Ruby. “Not just them,” she reasons. “Everyone’s always kind of paired off here and you’re…” “Oh my God.” “We’re not trying to be insulting.” “And yet,” Emma grumbles, tugging her hands down either one of her cheeks and no doubt leaving angry red streaks in her wake. That’s good. She’s angry. And confused. And angry. And she’d kind of like to make out with her boyfriend.

This was supposed to be the weekend she got to make out with her boyfriend. And tell her friends that she and Killian had been dating for months.

There’d been a plan.

They'd talked about it.

Nowhere in that plan did either one of them expect their friends to think they were lying.

That’s a confusing sentence. Emma is very confused.

Maybe she’d been onto something with the body-snatching idea before.

“This is insane,” she mutters, mostly to herself and at some point she’s started pacing. “This is—you know Killian and I have been dating for like..a really long time. It’s not like we’ve tried to hide it. You guys are just unobservant.” Ruby doesn’t look convinced. “Name one date you have been on.” “Excuse me?” “One date. Name one date that you have been on with Killian.” “I don’t have to prove myself to you! Or my relationship.” “And yet,” Ruby echoes, expression turning particularly pleased. Emma resists the very real urge to knock her off the counter.

Emma screws her mouth shut, mind racing to find something really good, but she hadn’t been entirely prepared for show-and-tell and the noises in the living room are actually starting to get very loud.

Ruby makes a pitying noise in the back of her throat.

“No, no, no,” Emma stammers, gaping at her and a still-flushed Mary Margaret. “I just—ok, ok, I had that police officer’s dinner. Two weekends ago. Fancy dress and ties were required and all that? Killian came with me.” “As a date?” Mary Margaret asks. “What else would he come as?” “Your friend,” she suggests. “Like he’s done for the last three years.” “Yeah, but there was no ripping off of each other’s clothes those other years! It was—passionate! Heated, even. No, God—Ruby stop laughing, this isn’t funny.”

Ruby holds up a hand in what Emma can only assume is surrender, but then she notices just how much her shoulders are shaking and she’s definitely trying not to laugh so, like, game on or whatever. “No, no, definitely not funny,” Ruby agrees. The words wobble out of her. “But like—heated, honestly. You and Jones?” “We can be heated! We can be hot! For each other, specifically.” “Em, this is almost getting embarrassing.”

“I will kick you,” Emma warns. “Like, really hard.” Mary Margaret rests a hand on Emma’s shoulder before she can take another step forward, an expression that’s in the realm of motherly and comforting and it might be the worst thing in the world. At least on Long Island. Possibly the Tri-State area.

“This is not embarrassing,” Mary Margaret promises. “That’s not a word we agreed on.” Emma growls. “So it was preordained?” “We just want to make sure you’re happy. And that you and Killian don’t feel like you need to—” Another shrug. One of them is going to dislocate a shoulder sooner or later. “Put on airs for us. It’s just us. No judging.” “Say that again,” Emma challenges.

Mary Margaret exhales. “We’re not judging. We only have your best interests at heart, both of you. And it’s not as if you two have ever really showed you were interested.” Of all the things that could possibly be the last straw in this conversation, Emma is almost pleasantly surprised to realize it’s that particular sentence.

She rolls Mary Margaret’s hand off her.

“We are constantly touching each other,” she hisses, a little concerned by the red that’s started to cloud the edge of her vision. “He is always putting his arm around me. I sat on his leg when we were drinking before!” “But that’s just normal,” Ruby argues, and Emma genuinely has no idea what she does at that. It hurts, at least, the sound that races out of her and the burst of heat in her chest, which can’t be healthy and presumably is what, finally, draws Killian to the kitchen.

His eyes sweep the scene as soon as he steps on the linoleum floor, one side of his mouth ticking up when he meets Emma’s gaze.

“You ok, love?” “No,” she sneers. “Can you tell these idiots that we’re into each other?” “Wait, what?” Emma waves both her hands again, snarling at her friends. Ruby barely blinks. “We were only telling Emma that we, uh—” “—They don’t think we’re dating,” Emma finishes. Killian freezes. From the top of his head to his obviously sock-covered feet.

He stops and stares and stares some more and then—

He laughs. Loudly. Uproariously. Head thrown back and shoulders heaving, desperately trying to catch his breath while the laughter bounces off the kitchen walls and settles into Emma’s soul, which is admittedly a little melodramatic, but this has been the strangest fifteen minutes of her life and she still really wants to kiss her boyfriend.

It’s nice to know she still has her priorities straight, at least.

“What is happening right now?” Mary Margaret murmurs, as Killian wipes away the tears that have fallen on his cheeks.

“Sucks not to know, doesn’t it?” Emma snaps. “Wait, wait,” Ruby says quickly, “is this laughter at our question or at the prospect of dating Emma, because if it's the second one, that kind of seems like a dick move, Jones.” Killian scoffs, and it only takes three more steps for him to be in Emma’s space with his arm around her shoulder and his lips ghosting over the top of her hair. She widens her eyes at Ruby. “It is not laughter at the prospect of dating my girlfriend, no,” Killian drawls. “Are you double checking on us, Lucas?” “You guys can’t be dating.” “Says who?” “Us,” Ruby cries, nearly falling off the counter when her limbs flail several different directions. “That’s—M’s you’ve got to back me up on this! It’s weird.” “Weird,” Killian echoes. “That I’m dating the person I like?” “When did you start liking Emma?” “I don’t think I have to tell you that.” Ruby lets out a triumphant sound, like she’s won something and Emma can’t imagine what the prize is in this situation, but it might be the genuinely ridiculous amount of alcohol Will and Phillip have seemingly just gotten back with.

“Where is everyone?” Will yells, what looks like an actual crate propped up on his hip. He narrows his eyes when he takes in the kitchen and the half-finished dishes, gaze darting Ruby’s direction.

She curses. Loudly.

“Not exactly subtle, is he?” Killian mutters, mostly to Emma. She turns into his side, curling both arms around his middle, so he’ll kiss the top of her hair again, but maybe to prove a point and Mary Margaret may never stop looking at her feet.

“You guys going to be weird about this?” Will asks. “Now that we know you’re faking?” “No one is faking anything,” Emma objects. “Sure you’re not. Did you come up with a relationship backstory on your way up her? That’s kind of rom-com, don’t you think, Em?” “We didn’t have to come up with anything! We are living the rom-com.” “You and Jones?” “Me and Killian.” “You know you guys only have one bed in your room,” Ruby chips in, apparently missing some form of self-preservation. “Is that going to be a problem?” Killian shakes his head. “We’re definitely going to use that one bed. Thoroughly.” “My brother is here,” Emma mumbles. He smirks at her. “But,” she adds, “we’re definitely going to use that bed. With the condoms that we brought.” Mary Margaret makes a strangled noise, Will chuckling while Ruby continues to curse and David demands to know why isn’t anyone giving me something to drink so I can fuck up Wario right now?

“He brings up a very good point, Swan,” Killian grins, and Mary Margaret sounds like she’s choking now. Serves her right.

Emma hums. “Is that even how the game works?” “Only one way to find out, right?” “Something like that, for sure.” He flashes another smile, eyes bright enough that for half a second Emma forgets everything that’s happened in that kitchen and she still has dishes to watch, pressing up on her toes as soon as Killian ducks his head.

Their friends boo.

She flips them all off.

And it’s honestly not bad for the rest of the night — there are more discussions of how to properly play Mario Party and an almost alarming amount of alcohol, most of it horribly mixed by Aurora and Ruby, but no one mentions fake dating again, and Emma’s grateful for that. Until they all traipse upstairs to go to bed and there’s really only one bed and both Regina and Mary Margaret stare just a little too long before Emma closes the door behind her.

It takes her about fourteen seconds to get mad again. “Go ahead,” Killian chuckles, dropping onto the edge of that one bed so he can tug off his socks. She seriously cannot cope with his socks.

“I’m sorry, what?” “I know you’ve been waiting to curse them up one side and down the other, so let’s have your worst.” “It’s stupid that you know that.”

He nods, lips pursed as he crooks a finger at her. Emma huffs, but moves into the space between his legs almost immediately, Killian’s hands on her hips and hers on his shoulders and she takes far too much joy in how quickly his eyelashes start to flutter. His head falls to her stomach. Top-tier, peak relationship status.

“I know everything,” Killian mumbles, mostly into her shirt. “And I know that it’s ridiculous they think we aren’t in—” She doesn’t dare breathe when he cuts himself off, both of them dancing around something big and important and it’s almost an appropriate amount of time, but Emma is Emma and she doesn’t want to fuck this up and maybe that was why she’d been so nervous to admit that Killian Jones is ridiculously good looking.

Like almost painfully good looking.

She cards her fingers through his hair.

“I have an idea,” he says.

“Yeah?” “I think we should go all in. All those romantic comedy tropes Scarlet was talking about. Lean in to every single one of them.” “How many tropes could there possibly be?” Killian makes a noncommittal noise, glancing up which is really unfair because his eyelashes are almost offensively long. “We’ll make a list.” “Just like that?” “Just like that,” he repeats. “Why? You have other things to do tonight?” “Oh, you’re a menace.” He nips at her hip, Emma jumping and possibly giggling. Killian’s eyes are definitely getting bluer. Maybe it’s the lighting in that room. Their room. Together.

She can’t believe he brought so many socks.

“That will be thing number one, I think,” Killian said. “Blatant and obvious flirting.” “You don’t think we flirt enough?” “Not constantly because we’re not animals, but—you know, could probably do with a bit more. Tell you that I think you’re stunning? Regularly?” Emma gags. Killian keeps going. “Bewitching? That I’m fairly certain your hair has magical properties? Regarding its ability to reflect light?” “Oh, yeah, use that one,” she laughs, and it’s not very hard to get him to lay next to her on the bed. Which may actually be made of feathers, if its overall level of comfort is any indication. “What else, then?” “Endearments, naturally.” “Naturally.” “And, uh—” He clicks his tongue, eyebrows shifting in a way that undoubtedly defies the laws of gravity. “PDA.”

“Say PDA again,” Emma challenges. Killian blushes better than Mary Margaret, she thinks. Presumably because she wants to kiss Killian more than she wants to kiss Mary Margaret.

There’s been a disappointing lack of kissing so far.

“Public displays of affection,” Killian says, pausing between every word until Emma’s whole body shakes with the force of her laughter. “I’m going to constantly touch you.” “Could be worse.” “Oh yeah?” “I mean—” Emma drags her fingers up his side, shifting his shirt until she reaches skin and the plane of his stomach and— “Shit, stop that,” Killian grumbles. “It tickles.” Emma’s eyes widen. In perfect tandem with what feels like a rather large expansion of her heart, another burst of heat that isn’t quite as jarring as it was in the kitchen. And Killian shifts half an inch backwards. “Don’t,” he warns, but Emma swipes her tongue across her teeth. “Swan, c’mon, that’s—” Pouncing is a very ugly word, but Emma is way too busy discovering other areas of her boyfriend's body and Killian stops talking rather quickly. As soon as her tongue is in his mouth.

And they do make a list. An actual physical list, with bullet points and a plan, that Killian keeps in his pocket because Emma doesn’t have pockets in her dresses and it’s easier for his hand to squeeze her knee if she wears dresses.

That’s bullet point number six.

There are seventeen.

It becomes something of a game for them — Killian making sure to call Emma love at the end of what seems like every sentence, while she alternates between babe and sweetheart, but that second one kind of sets her teeth on edge and, one time, on Saturday afternoon while they’re picking badminton teams because that’s something they do on this weekend, he calls her—

“C’mon, darling,” Killian says, slinging an arm around Emma’s shoulders. “We’re going to absolutely destroy Nolan and Nolan.”

Every one of their friends groan.

Emma very nearly passes out.

The word ricochets off her soul, or something less ridiculous. Even after Killian and David finish debating the proper terminology for the shuttle-thing. She’s never been a darling before. Darling is for committed relationships and longevity and happily ever after and her racquet nearly flies out of her hand when she tries to return Mary Margaret’s serve.

“You ok, Swan?” Killian asks, and good that’s good. A much-needed return to normal.

Emma nods. She can’t seem to do much else.

Somehow they win the match. David decrees it’s called a match.

And Killian seems to take the public displays of affection fairly seriously — pulling Emma onto his legs when they sit around the fire on Saturday night, nosing at the back of her neck or that one spot just above her shoulder blade that makes her shiver. She almost constantly has her fingers in his hair, tracing idle patterns with her nails. There are absent-minded kisses and kisses that make her toes curl, standing on sand or in the hallway or...well, anywhere really.

It’s something almost close to wonderful, which isn’t really a change of pace for Emma and Killian as a couple, but this level of couple’dom is—

“You’re laughing,” he accuses, but the words get lost between their mouths and there's not much space between their mouths.

Emma shakes her head. “I’m having fun.” “That was the point of this weekend. It always is.”

“Yeah, but I mean—” She grits her teeth, neves creeping up her spine and taking root in the back of her skull, and she hates that it happens. Emma is the worst kind of pessimist. Or, rather the best kind, depending on how you look at it.

“I like you too,” Killian says.

“Presumptuous.” “Tell me that’s now how the sentence was going to end, then.” “Well, ok yeah, but—this is just...being full-on relationship, it’s been good, right?” “Are you double checking?” “A little,” Emma admits. “I—this was the plan, and I know it was the plan. That we were going to stop trying to hide and—”

“—I really don’t think we were ever good at hiding it.” “Tell that to the rest of our friends. Mary Margaret and Ruby staged an intervention. It’s...I guess what I’m trying to say is that I’m glad you were willing to prove how stupid into me you are.”

Killian barks out a laugh, tongue finding the corner of his mouth. “Yeah, that’s totally what I am.” “I knew it.”

Those same friends, however, don’t seem to get the memo.

Maybe they need new friends.

“I don’t know,” Will says, halfway through a Sunday afternoon BBQ that could feed a small army. “I’m still calling shenanigans.” “Shenanigans,” Emma echoes.

“You heard me the first time. It seems like you’re trying too hard.” “To be in a relationship?” “Yuh huh,” Will nods, flipping more than one burgers at the same time. “You see that? That was impressive as fuck.” “You’re a poet,” Killian mutters. He must have some kind of Emma-focused sixth sense too, because she feels an arm curl around her middle before she can get into any sort of pacing groove, grunting when he pulls her back against his chest.

And kisses behind her ear.

Regina quirks an eyebrow. “I don’t know, actually. There has been a pretty good amount of eye making, even before we got here.”

“I don’t make eyes,” Emma argues. “No, but he does.” Killian’s cheek brushes the side of Emma’s head when he nods. “That’s true, I’ve been making eyes for quite some time.”

“See,” Regina says, “This is—if this is fake, it’s a serious commitment to the cause.” “The cause of kissing my boyfriend?” Emma challenges.

“Yeah, that one. Ok, pop quiz. Killian, when was your first kiss with Emma?” He doesn’t tense. He doesn’t flinch. His hand might tighten a little, but Emma chooses to believe that’s actually a positive and she’s very glad for it. If only because that’s the main reason she stays upright.

“Junior year of college,” Killian replies.

Will drops the tongs. It’s patently absurd.

“Hold on, when?” David demands. He’s already half standing when Mary Margaret levels him with a look, flopping back into the plastic chair with enough force it nearly breaks. “Junior year of college. I thought you started dating a few months ago.” “Yeah, we did.” “And?”

“And,” Killian repeats. “We’d gone out, you and Mary Margaret left early. So I walked Emma back to her apartment, it was raining. We hit all of those rom-com tropes. She even had my jacket on.” Emma can’t catch her breath. Which is really ridiculous since she’s not moving, but she was always fairly positive she was the only one counting this as their first kiss and—

“You were drunk,” she cries. “You can’t possibly remember this!” Mary Margaret audibly gasps. That’s more ridiculous than Emma’s breathing issues.

She twists against Killian’s chest, meeting his steady gaze with something that can only be described as ever-increasing and seemingly inevitable insanity. He smirks.

The bastard.

“Trust me,” he says, “I’ve spent way longer than I’d be willing to admit remembering just that. You took your shoes off as soon as we got into the lobby.” “Because they hurt my feet.” “Mmhm.” “What happened after that?” Aurora asks sharply, elbows on her knees and chin on her hands and no one has noticed that some of the hot dogs are starting to burn.

“She’s a very good kisser,” Killian replies. Easy as that. Emma’s back to not breathing. “Told me it was nice that I walked her home, I said I probably deserved some kind of reward, she glared at me, I waited very patiently and she—” Emma remembers the rest. She doesn't need to hear it. She reenacts it, instead. Her hands fly to his shirt, fingers curling into fabric that’s different than it was when they were twenty and buzzed on alcohol that was only marginally worse than what they’ve spent all weekend drinking and Killian is absolutely smiling when she kisses him.

The bastard.

Part two.

And she resolutely refuses to acknowledge any sounds from the peanut gallery, pushing up on bare feet so it’s easier to sling an arm over his shoulder and push her fingers into his hair. He tilts his head, lets his tongue sweep along her lips and she might sigh, but he might also groan and he definitely closes his eyes.

Emma’s always liked that about him. Killian closes his eyes when he kisses her — like he’s uninterested in anything else, like anything else means less than nothing when he can nose at Emma’s cheek or drop his mouth along the curve of her jaw. It also gives her half a second to stare at the overall length of his eyelashes, so it’s kind of a win-win for her.

He’s just as out of breath as she is when they pull apart, color in his cheeks and Emma’s heart threatens to burst out of her ribcage.

That’s probably not covered under incidentals either.

She’s got to stop thinking so violently. Especially about her own body.

Will whistles.

“You guys suck,” Emma announces, and that’s not the first thing she planned on saying, but nothing has really gone according to plan that weekend and she has thoughts on that.

Patent pending.

“First of all,” she says, holding up one finger. Will is trying very hard not to laugh. Ruby isn’t trying. “Killian and I have been dating for months. Genuinely months. And, ok, yeah we kissed one time in college, but we didn’t start dating for awhile, and that—”

Emma is still holding up her finger when she turns again. Killian’s smirk is going to stay permanently etched on his face. “That was kind of stupid, wasn’t it?” “Your words, not mine,” he chuckles.

“I definitely thought you were good looking in college.” “I desperately wanted to date you in college.” “No shit.” “What is happening right now?” Phillip yells. Emma doesn’t have an answer for that. It’s less disappointing than it was on Friday night.

“No shit,” Killian repeats. “You were—I don’t know, this force of nature. But you were also David’s sister and—” “—She’s still my sister,” David interrupts. Regina throws something at him. It might honestly be her sandal.

Emma doesn’t bother double checking. She’s rather busy swooning, after all.

Killian kisses the bridge of her nose before he continues. “You never take anyone’s garbage, love. Mine included and that wasn’t really why I was stupid into you, but it was a big part at the start, and then we kept hanging out and you’re—” She doesn’t mind when he shrugs. Probably because of the previously discussed swooning. Honestly, Emma is swooning so bad. “You’re the smartest person I know. And stronger than anyone else, on some existential level.” God, she hopes she doesn’t start to cry.

That’d be kind of lame.

And, somehow, there is more.

“I worry about you, you know. Every time you leave my apartment and go save someone. It’s—I count minutes from when you text me that you’re on the train until I hear the lock click. It’s insane. Might be affecting my blood pressure, really.” “She has a key,” Ruby whispers. Not very well, but something about the thought Emma assumes. “She really has a key?” “I really have a key,” Emma answers. “I wasn’t kidding about spending multiple nights a week at his apartment.” “We could probably do something about that,” Killian adds. Will whistles again.

Emma’s jaw drops. That’s kind of disappointing, really. She wishes she had some kind of sweeping something to respond with — romance on another level of romantic-type expectations, but she’s still her and she’s still a little pissed they haven’t been dating since their junior year in college.

“Em, Em,” Ruby presses, “I’m pretty sure he’s asking you to move in with him.” Killian hums. “She’s annoying, but she’s right.” Ruby sticks her tongue out. “But, but,” Emma stammers, “that wasn’t on the list.” “You guys made a list?” Regina balks. “None of you believed us! Which, honestly friendship demerits. Negative friendship standing. We are a good couple, and we like hanging out and we’d been hanging out forever, and this just kind of...happened. It should have happened before, maybe, but our first date was getting ice cream in the Village because none of you will go to the Village with me and I—Killian always will.” “That’s kind of how boyfriend’ing works,” he chuckles. “Is that a word?” “Absolutely not,” Mary Margaret says. “Should we apologize now?” “Probably,” Emma sighs. “Because it’s—none of this has been fake, and we’ve been on relationship overdrive for the last forty-eight hours and I mean...is it so shocking that we could be in a relationship?”

Silence.

None of them answer, and Killian is still staring at Emma because, she realizes rather belatedly, she hasn’t actually told him she wants to move into his apartment with a bed that’s even more comfortable than the one here or that she also counts down the minutes because she sleeps better with him than she has in years, so naturally she tilts her head up and—

“I love you,” Emma says. Killian’s eyes bug. “And I think I have for a really long time, but we were always friends and—” “—That’s not going to change, love.” “Well, yeah, that’s how good relationships work. Are you just going to gloss over the sentiment?” “Absolutely not,” Killian mumbles, gruffer than usual. And probably because half of the letters get lost in more kissing, a distinct arch to Emma’s back when he actually dips her like some goddamn romantic comedy.

Mary Margaret might take a picture.

Emma kind of hopes she does. It’d look good in a frame on the wall. Their wall.

“I’d like to move into your apartment,” Emma says, and she definitely giggles that time. There’s no way around it, not when Killian’s lips drag along the side of her neck and pepper every inch of her face.

Several people awwww out loud.

As they should, really.

“I love you too,” Killian says.

“Ok, good.” “Good.”

There’s more kissing after that. As there should be, really. Part two. “So, uh,” Will says, and he’s picked up the tongs at some point, “you guys want celebratory hamburgers or…” “If you don’t put cheese on my burger, I’ll throw your fucking tongues in the ocean,” Emma guarantees.

Killian crows. Or something. It’s nice, and that’s really all she cares about. “That’s my girlfriend.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Ruby groans. “We’ve heard. Do we toast to the happy couple?” “Absolutely,” David says, reaching into the cooler to grab wine coolers. Like they’re juniors in college. They toast several times.

And Emma doesn’t sleep much that night, but that’s something she’s willing to concede. Especially when Killian lets her pick the music on the drive back the next morning.

Like any good relationship.

#cs ff #captain swan #captain swan ff #cs fic #captain swan fic #i did this instead of working #and because it was sunny outside

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galactic-magick · 4 years

Text

Not So Different: Virgil x Reader

Request: Can I get uhh new side (Pride?) Who is female and everyone is surprised and it's virgil x reader and lots of him being jealous even tho u aren't together and angst and him being the big spoon and stuff ty mwah (sorry if this is badly written I'm going on 1 hours of sleep in the past 2 days hahaha okay - @hhh-angels

Summary: You are Thomas’s prideful side, and you immediately bond with Roman for obvious reasons. Virgil doesn’t like that very much…

Words: 1400+

Warnings: angst, jealousy

Author’s Notes: I hope you like this! There’s a few time-skips cuz I wanted it to be kinda slow-burn and build up the angst lol. (Also I’d just like to say there is no Roman hate here! He’s kinda viewed as the bad guy in this but I promise I love him plz don’t come after me)

“Hi!” you pop up next to Roman, waving to Thomas. Everyone jumps, but you’re so happy to actually be here that you don’t mind their intense reaction. Deceit’s done a great job at hiding you for years, and you’re finally getting to reveal your existence.

You represent Thomas’s pride. You’re not really either a light or dark side, since pride can be used in so many different ways. Pride can be used for good, such as when Thomas is confident in his achievements, ideas, and sexuality. But if it gets too strong, it can become an issue. Excessive pride can lead to being self-absorbed, insensitive, and arrogant, and unfortunately that may be the reason you’re here.

“I’m sorry, who are you?” Thomas asks.

“I’m your pride!” you grin. “But you can just call be Y/N,”

Roman looks you up and down, “But, why are you-?”

“A girl? I just felt like presenting myself this way. Do you need me to change?”

“No, no, of course not! We can sing Disney duets together!” You and Roman immediately start singing “A Whole New World.”

Virgil rolls his eyes.

Thomas stares in disbelief, “I’m still confused, why are you here? Where did you come from?”

“You tell me, Thomas,” you laugh, continuing to sing with Roman.

“Did you guys know about her?”

“Not particularly, no,” Logan and the other sides shake their heads.

“Virgil? Is she another dark side?”

“Not exactly,” he sighs. “But I- I should’ve been able to stop her,”

“Why?”

“Yeah, why, Virgil?” your singing stops and you meet his gaze.

“I’m the one who’s supposed to balance out Thomas’s ego with self-consciousness and insecurity,”

“Who needs that,” Roman scoffs.

“Actually, he does need it,” Logan corrects, pulling up a chart. “Think of it as a modified Yerkes-Dodson curve. With anxiety, one side of the extreme is complete carelessness, and the other is full-on panic. With pride, one side would be self-loathing, and the other would be narcissism. Ideally, everyone should be in the middle, having confidence in yourself but not so much that you become ignorant or put others down,”

“Is she here because…I’m on the second side?”

“Oh no…” Patton mumbles.

“Nonsense! I see nothing wrong with Y/N being here,” Roman objects, draping an arm around your shoulders. Virgil cringes a bit.

“Technically, Roman is correct,” Logan admits hesitantly. “As long as you don’t listen to her excessively, nothing detrimental will come of her presence,”

“Okay…” Thomas exhales.

“Her getting too close to Roman is what you really need to worry about,” Virgil grumbles.

“Hey! I thought you guys were past this?”

“Maybe not,”

“Well fine, Virgil, we’ll go if you have such a big problem with us,” Roman sneers, taking your hand and sinking down.

Over the next few weeks, you and Roman have become best friends. You’ve written approximately 15 musicals together now, sung every single Disney song multiple times, and have brainstormed millions of ideas on how to help Thomas achieve his dreams in the most extravagant way possible.

“I don’t know how much longer I can take this obnoxious behavior,” Logan closes his book and slams it on the table. You and Roman are very loudly reenacting Hamilton in his room at the moment, and the noise is filling the entire mind palace.

“They’re just having fun, Logan!” Patton shrugs, playing some Go Fish with Virgil.

“Come on, Patton, you know Roman’s just going to corrupt her,” Virgil groans.

“Now, Virgil, I may have had my doubts before but there’s no need to be mean,”

“I’ve had it,” Logan stands up and stomps over to Roman’s door. “CAN I PLEASE HAVE SOME PEACE AND QUIET FOR THIRTY MINUTES?!”

With that, no one so much as breathes loudly for the rest of the day.

It’s probably way past midnight now, but you still can’t sleep. You head to the kitchen to grab a snack, jumping when you see Virgil there as well.

“What are you doing here?” you shriek.

“I could ask you the same thing,”

“I suppose so,” you grin, hoisting yourself up to sit on the counter. “I guess I wouldn’t mind the company,”

“I usually come down here to be alone,”

“Look, I know you hate me, but you could just kindly ask me to leave,”

“I don’t hate you,”

“You don’t?”

“No!” he sighs, rubbing his eyes. “Are you really so self-absorbed that you think if people aren’t all over you they hate you?”

“Excuse me?” you shoot back. “I’m pretty sure you directly said you didn’t want me around!”

“I did not say that. I said you need to be under control, and teaming up with Roman is not going to help that,”

“What’s wrong with Roman?”

“Can’t you see he’s using you? He only likes you because you’re so similar and you can sing princess songs with him!”

“And how is that bad, exactly?” you retaliate. “He’s the only one who’s been nice to me since I got here, so sorry if my choice in friends isn’t to your standards,”

“It’s just-“

“You know what, Virgil? I really thought we would get along. We both have the capacity for good and evil, and we both help to balance Thomas out. We have a lot more in common than you think,” you slide off the counter and walk out.

You and Virgil don’t speak for a while after that. Not that you talked a lot before, but that fight really solidified things. You can’t even make eye contact with each other, it’s like you’re not even there.

Roman keeps asking you what’s wrong, but you just shrug him off. How are you supposed to tell him that he’s part of the problem? That maybe if you weren’t so close, Virgil would consider talking to you?

You never meant any harm when you revealed yourself. You really thought you’d be able to get along with all the sides, but it seems that Roman’s the only one who celebrates who you are. Logan barely tolerates you, and that’s only when you’re not being obnoxious with Roman. Patton’s alright with you, but he gets a little jittery if you suggest anything that compromises his morals. And then there’s Virgil, and you know how that’s going.

You don’t really feel like you have to apologize, it’s not in your nature anyway, but you’re sick of having to avoid him all the time now. You need to talk to him again whether he likes it or not.

You swing open the door to his room without knocking and sit on the bed, “Hi,”

“Is privacy just something you don’t understand?”

“It appears so,” you laugh. “Look Virgil, I know you’re mad at me, and honestly I’m mad at you too, but I don’t want to be anymore,” You take a deep breath, “I like you. I wish we had a better start, but I’m willing to start over,”

“Are you serious?”

“Yes,” you scoot closer to him. “And I told Roman to leave us alone for the rest of the day, so don’t worry about him,”

“You didn’t have to do that,”

“I know I didn’t. But I did. So do you want to hang out or not?”

“I guess so-“ before he can finish, you grab his hand and drag him out of his room to the main area of the mind palace.

“You pick a movie, I’m gonna go steal some of Patton’s cookies,” Virgil watches you, stunned, before flopping on the couch and scrolling through the selection. He starts one as you sit down next to him, handing him some cookies.

“Just want to make sure, you actually want to hang out with me?”

“Yes, Virgil. If I didn’t I wouldn’t have asked,” you drape a blanket over the two of you and settle in.

As the movie goes on, you subconsciously rest your head on his shoulder. He stiffens immediately and you jerk back up.

“Oh my gosh I’m so sorry-“

“N-no, it’s fine,” he releases his breath. “I’m just…not used to people doing that,”

By the time the movie’s over, you’re fully asleep and Virgil freezes again, unsure what to do. Should he carry you to your room? Leave you here to sleep? Wake you up?

He slowly wraps his arms around your waist and lies down with you, being careful not to make any sudden movements. Despite his efforts, you squirm a bit in your sleep, but thankfully you don’t open your eyes. He fits his chin in the crook of your neck and dozes off himself.

He knows you didn’t have to give him a second chance, but you did. You were right, you weren’t so different after all, and he’ll always be thankful for the opportunity to be something more to you.

#virgil sanders x reader #virgil sanders #sanders sides x reader #sanders sides #thomas sanders

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ficsinhistory · 4 years

Text

Analysis and Theories - Cobra and Mongoose/Better off Fred - Disney finally learned how to balance comedy, emotion and action!

Cobra and Mongoose

Hiro and Fred's friendship! It's as cute as these two are always so close, not least because, as was established in the first episode, if the gang were to leave it would be just them. So these tips are cool to see from how they are friends and rely on each other.

The fact that the video game is the same as "Pray Date"! And this time, Fred really won, different from last time! And bonus point for everyone, including Baymax, to have a headphone!

The snakes!! The fact how they attack Fred and how Heathcliff intervenes is so amazing and well animated!! And how sordid and deadly they are!

The poison! Since snakes are robots, they have to throw the poison to be absorbed into the skin. And this happens in real life, there are substances that do it! It was a great recurring joke!

When Hiro comes to help and Heathcliff leaves a cell phone with a dramatic message even though he's barely there!

All the message in question! That butler is so dramatic and I love it!

The fact that Heathcliff knew how to shuffle tracking signals, he was a spy, so well played! Aside from the fact that Hiro took this as a personal challenge to his genial intellect, I love my pompous and intelligent son!

The restaurant where the first battle took place! It's so beautiful and the aesthetics of south asia and how it has influences beyond the Japanese in the city. Because San Franscisco really is full of other cultures and San Fransokyo being part Japanese doesn't erase that. Which is very cool.

Cobra. That's it, that's the whole point.

I love this villain!!! Everything about her is perfect! She is menacing, fun, smart and, as the name says, acts and moves like a snake! Outside I loved the design! And the whole sequence of conversation before the fight was the best! She remembered Momakase, but you can see the difference from her!

Reference to Mary POpPins! Eclipse WHO?!

Heathcliff fighting!! He has a sword in his umbrella and fights masterfully, all this is perfect and from how Fred is with a vase on his head during the fight and is paralyzed again!

In real life, Mongoose are natural predators of cobras and have a layer of fur that makes them immune to poison. So, well drawn writers, well drawn.

Cobra analysis. Unlike Momakase who steals objects, Cobra works on stealing technologies to steal objects, which is a good differential the two thieves. And how Hiro takes offense at his neurotransmitter being stolen. Not least because the last time this happened, his brother was killed. He must not have good memories of it.

Heathcliff's past itself! This, for those who do not know, is a reference to Alfred who was a spy before serving the Wanne. And the fact that he has this whole story with Boss Awesome, and saved the life of said hero in a volcano and how snake should have died and in the end Heathcliff ended up as a butler is cool.

"Who took these pictures?""You have not changed since then?"Hiro Hamada asking the right questions!

Mention to Boss Awesome. Rip Stan Lee.

And he explains it through a spy pen. Carmen Sandiego fans Rise UP!!!

Farewell! How Heathcliff loves the family he works for and Fred, whom he must see as a nephew and he having to leave to preserve that same family is sad. And how he makes Fred swear not to go after him is also sad, because Heathcliff had to use one of the things Fred loves most to make sure he doesn't follow him. It shows how important Fred is and how he knows that because Fred cares so much, he can't risk it.

The memories of Fred and how Heathcliff was with him from the beginning are touching. Fred as chaotic as he is, he really cares about who he loves. And from how his family sometimes travels a lot, it implies that the only parental figure was the Butler. And Heathcliff has no family outside the Fredericks.

It's lil Fred! It's cute!

Cobra's encounter with Mongoose! Cobra had so many robots and how it was on the roofs with the lights in the cities! This avoids the confusion of having people in the middle of the fight, as preserving identity and gives the fight drama on the roof™ !

Fred coming and " breaking” the oath. Oh, the old technical detail of that was a copy! And how he didn't steal the spotlight, thanks to the snakes. That was Heathcliff's past after all.

The final fight!!! From how Heathcliff changed clothes in the best Magic Girl style, with an effect phrase and everything, and in the fight with the umbrella and the giant snake?! It was all for me! He looks good in white!

Hiro helping!!! And of how, in the end it was Heathcliff who arrested Cobra having the spotlight from start to finish! Perfect!

The scary smile joke! I think people too!

Cobra in my top 3 of non-main villains!!

Better off Fred

The beginning has the reference of “guys,guys,guys” from Big Hero 7 (if I don't), but less lively.

Fred being extra™ when heartbroken and having it right in sight!

Baymax can now be a surgeon. Tadashi worked very well.

Honey wanting to know more and Gogo just begging not to. A classic!! Honey Lemon being the mother of the group as always. And Gogo just not getting paid enough!

Flashback! I love how Fred met Olivia. It was very Fred and having someone who liked rare comics is very something that would happen.

I love Olivia! She is super cute and I understand why Fred fell in love with her. She is funny, cool and is actively a nerdy girl, without the vibe of ”no like the other girls", which I quite liked. She is feminine, but not conventionally feminine, reads comics and no one in every episode talks about it. She is actively a nerd, with beanies, colored hair but no one points out that she is the "stranger" for it or she demeans other girls for not being like her. She is a girl who likes rare comics and with a good attitude! Thank You Disney!

The nerd crush music! And the whole gang balloon sequence.

The rejection and what was led to it. They talk about family until culminating in her revealing herself to be a Mole. But, let's be honest, Fred can be pretty chaotic, but he had spine to call the girl he liked right away for a date. Maybe Hiro can ask for some advice.

"Since when have you been there?"The writers recognizing the absurdity of some jokes and out-of-nowhere pops adds 10 years to my lifespan!

Everyone saying listening to Mole was a bad idea! But Fred is in love so he top! Stupid in love, huh?

The music of the transformation sequence speak just that!

The gang in fancy clothes!!! This is not training!!! They look beautiful! And man, Honey looked good in that dress and Hiro kill in that suit. My son looked beautiful! And points bonûs for giving him a real formal costume.

Baymax tie!!!

The arrival of Fred, or rather, Frederique. And how Honey tried to warn him that being himself is the best approach.

Fredsorna. That's a word in canon in BH6. That's... I didn't expect it.

It was all just very shameful when Fred wasn't himself.

Olivia not being traditionally female again. She wears a dress, but it is simpler and instead of high heels, she wears a pair of sneakers. And nobody says anything! Not to mention that I would use.

Points to Disney for showing that behaviors like imposing themselves on someone, invading personal space and acting like the other had no choice is NOT attractive. The media has done this for years and show, mostly to a male group, that being aggressive while flirting is cool. So Disney show showing that this is scary is all I want. I'm glad Olivia dumped her ex, including.

Mole is unbearable!! This kid is evil pure and Fred really got down for it. He really liked Olivia and wanted to spend time with her and gremiling ruined it!!! Besides paying Bluff was only low, even for him.

Olivia listening to everything from afar. She didn't want to leave him badly, she just went... fool.

When Supersonic Stu and Sue appeared! They may be bad, but that Stu has more family support than a lot of people!

Some may find it strange that everyone only delivers their belongings, but we have to remember that without the police and Big Hero 6, most people are defenseless and in the end they are still villains. They can hurt.

Fred saving the day with Olivia's help and using references! That's style!!!

She taking off her glasses and being a lousy actress. I love it.

Fred being honest with Olivia. He explaining everything and being vulnerable and explaining everything is very cute and open, being the opposite of her ex. And from how Olivia understands it is very cool and how good that it all ended well for them with a meeting of giant monster movies.

And Mole stuck on a piano! Please less Mole on eps!

Olivia / Fred will be interesting!

Conclusions and theories:

Cobra's coming back! Maybe after Hiro since he led him to his overthrow? She's a very rancorous villain. And definitely behind Fred and Heathcliff! Anyway, Disney I want to see her again!!! Maybe along with Momakase or even Sirque, who is another tech thief.

Heathcliff! He was amazing!! Best unofficial uncle!

Olivia!! Another one that will appear again!! And now Hiro and Fred can talk about their girls officially! I loved her and want to know more about this girl and the relationship between her and Fred!! And with the rest of the gang!! She's just super cute and I want to know more in general.

I... kind of noticed a pattern here. As much as Karmi as Olivia has names based on nature, more specifically plants and has positive characteristics. Olivia makes reference to olive trees and the name means “friendly”, “beauty” and “kind”. Karmi means "orchard, garden”, "my vineyard “and other things like” hardworking“,” golden “and even”, ”generous". It would seem that the love interests of these heroes are amazing and brave people with names of a similar nature. Interesting.

She and Karmi would get along very well, by the way. You know, two fangirls.

I like how the two episodes focus on the theme of the season that seems to be family. And this can yield interesting things.

I have this theory even that the episodes will start to have more plot and complement each other more when all the villains of the hexagons appear and then, the grand Big bad (or the villainous driving force of the season) will appear, complementing the NBB.

So far we have most of the villains, just missing Momakase, and along with them,story lines related, with the theme family, that will converge even more. The NBB and the sisters has the theme of Brotherly Love, along with Hiro's conflict with the separation of the gang established in the first episode, apart from what may be the push to the Big Bad that I believe to be Braggtech, brought in the first episode and that I think will be developed in the episodes ahead, in addition to the

Hardlight and the Super duo brought the romantic love of a family to both Hiro and Fred, with Harlight taking an extra line on what may be Karmi's rise as a heroine and how all these changes in her will affect her and Hiro's relationship. The Supers have a strong relationship with Fred and Olivia.

Cobra too, but she may have a more forward role more related to Braggtech, in my opinion.

Apart from the other villains that remained from the second season. Of course, not everything will be connected, but the main plots yes.

Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.

#big hero 6 the series #big hero 6 #bh6 the series #bh6 #big hero six #big hero six the series #meta #analysis #theory #hiro hamada #fred #big hero 6 the series spoilers #bh6 the series sp #emy review

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bird-in-a-cage · 4 years

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Hey, guess what, its a sequel that absolutely no one asked for but I’m forcing upon you anyway because I got really into this idea and one google search led to another and I needed to get this out of my brain!

Part one is here. Probably best to give it a read first so you know what the hell is going on. But, for everyone who has already done that here’s part two of California Dreamin’. Enjoy some spectrophilia!

Lucid

The adults only section of Family Video was always a hive of sleaze. Most of the time though, thankfully, it was empty. Steve could always tell when someone would first walk through the door if that was their intended destination or not. They would stop, check out other titles, pick up a case of two from the shelves and roll it over in their hands, very visibly debating with themselves, all the while slowly but surely making their way to the back corner where it was all hidden behind a thick beaded curtain to give the illusion of privacy. The reality was it was never private. There was a camera in the top corner, blinking red and bright. A deterrent.

That didn’t stop some people though.

Robin was on Twizzler duty again, now doing it everyday to piss Keith off, seeing how far she could push until he snapped but in her own way. A drop of water slowly breaking through a mountain. It was kind of fun really, to watch her loudly eat the red candy but not give any eye contact to him as he walked around the store every now and then, giving all her attention to a copy of The Turning of the Screw. It did mean Steve was on return box duty again though while they had their little silent war. Robin mouthed thank you as he went off to start, then went back to being as unbothered as ever.

Steve took the two cases that were left after he’d done the rest of the store and dipped through the thick beads. Thankfully today the room just smelt like hot plastic rather than suspect body odour. One side of the small room was horror movies deemed too graphic and violent to be put on public display. Video Nasties. Steve had rented a couple a few times, they weren’t all that scary or good, but then he was probably just biased to that situation, having dealt with real life monsters that wanted to eat him and kill everybody and take over the world. On the other side were pornos.

Why anyone would publicly rent a porno tape he would never understand. Maybe some people just didn’t have an imagination. Watching one was just fine, no problems with that at all, and it was common practice for a dirty magazine or two to be passed around the locker room as a joke, but actually walking into a store with the intention of just renting a tape to jack off too? No, Steve couldn’t understand that. Probably because the shame of having to do it would burn him alive, but that was another matter. He slotted a case into a mid level shelf, a Terminator parody so wittily titled Penetrator, all these tapes had such awful names, when a case lower down started making its way out from the shelf. Steve rubbed over the pendant under his shirt, it was ice cold.

Of course he’d visit now.

With a grin he couldn’t hide even for a second, Steve nudged it back into place with his foot. Another title further up poked out. Mad Max: Beyond Thunderbone. Steve shoved it back home too.

“Cut it out,” he muttered low only so no one could hear him if anyone was close by. He was still grinning though, so much his cheeks started to burn a little. Another case slowly wiggled free and stuck out at eye level. For Your Ass Only. Steve bit his lip so he wouldn’t giggle and give the specter that followed him the satisfaction, pushing it back in place with two fingers. A final case at shoulder height was brought out into the light of day. Risky Jizzness.

“You wanna tell me why this looks like you pretty boy?” The voice floated around Steve’s head, deep and sultry. Billy was in one of those moods. Steve pushed it back into place and kept his almost whisper tone.

“Because my boyfriend is a ghost and I’ve gone completely insane so staring in a porno was the next logical step, obviously.” Steve felt a warmth envelop his chest, leaving his arms free to rearrange tapes and put the final one from the box back in its place. It was instantly comforting and a little tight. Easy to imagine Billy just stood behind him, holding him for real in the middle of his work day, resting his head on Steve’s shoulder and being a distraction from the monotony of stacking video tapes in alphabetical order.

“You should have mentioned that was your end goal, I’d have been more than happy to hold the camera.”

“Uh huh, sure, cause that’s all you would be holding.” He could feel Billy’s dirty grin burn his cheek, heat pressing and creeping up along his jaw like slow kisses.

“You know it baby.”

Steve still wasn’t sure on a lot of things about this, whatever this was. Whether anyone could hear what Billy was saying was a big point. He tended not to come out if there were other people around so it wasn’t as if Steve could test it. Even if he could he would look totally crazy, which he still wasn’t entirely convinced he wasn’t anymore. His mental state was one of those things he didn’t think about too hard. Like the Cold War, or being sucked back into dark, monster filled tunnels. Their presence was always there but it didn’t affect his day to day life so much. If anything, Billy following him around some days made Steve happier. More at peace. Of course it raised a lot of questions like why and how, and why and how again because there would definitely need to be several rounds of why and how before anything even started to make sense.

Then there was the where. Billy didn’t think he was in hell, was pretty sure he wasn’t in heaven, and wasn’t entirely sold that he was in the middle place either. They spoke about it sometimes when Steve slept and was whisked away to either the quarry or the beach, wherever Billy wanted to be that night. Steve kind of liked the beach more, it was always bright but not hot, calm and tranquil. It felt almost like a little vacation away from Hawkins. They would always lie next to each other on brightly coloured beach towels. Steve had never seen Billy in the lime green board shorts he liked to wear on beach nights, but he certainly wasn’t complaining. Even if Steve was stuck wearing what he wore to sleep and looked ridiculous by comparison. There was never anyone else there to judge.

That was just another thing they hadn’t quite worked out yet. Turns out no one gives you an instruction manual when you die and become a spirit just floating around, stick in limbo. You kind of just have to figure things out yourself. Billy had worked out how to change his clothes and the landscape of where he pulled Steve too. He hadn’t yet worked out how he did that though.

“I just, think, and here we are.”

He’d worked out how to pick things up and put them down, push and pull and throw. Steve would sometimes leave objects on the kitchen counter for Billy to touch and move, getting such a thrill just seeing an empty Pepsi can be flipped onto its side and rolled away with a hollow clatter into the trash can on the other side of the room. Steve had suggested that maybe Billy was stuck until he found his purpose, but neither of them could think what that would be. Max was fine every time she came into the store to just hang around, get a break from the noise of the arcade next door, and let Robin suggest scary movies she should watch even though she wasn’t old enough to rent them yet. There was never a mark on her, which is what Billy was worried about but would never say out loud. He always pretended to be such an asshole and that he didn’t care, when he was blatantly obvious he did.

“Maybe you have to save a baby or something? You know, push a stroller out of the way of oncoming traffic?” Steve suggested while they were on the beach. Billy pushed himself up off his towel printed with lavender stripes onto his hands to look down. The sun was shimmering off his forever perfect body.

“This isn’t the 30s. And I’m pretty sure that only happened in silent movies,” he smiled like Steve was an idiot. An adorable idiot. His adorable idiot. Steve reached up to cup Billy’s jaw. That golden skin still felt numb under his fingers. They would need to work on that.

“Pretty sure that us being here right now means anything is possible.”

They’d both worked out that the pendant turning icy cold instead of just its regular cold meant Billy was close by instead of just in the general vicinity, still invisible sadly but his presence was there. Small steps. They were slowly piecing it together. It wasn’t as if either of them had any time limit on it all. But really, a manual would have been helpful. Even a small information pamphlet written in Chinese was better than the nothing they had.

---

Billy was still in that mood that night. Even as Steve’s clock ticked around to three am and he still couldn’t sleep. He lay on his stomach, staring at the hands move slow around the face. He wanted to sleep so badly, he could feel the gentle pull around his chest come see me, I miss you but no matter how hard he tried it just wasn’t happening. Maybe it was too warm out, the air too soupy to properly relax into sleep and drift away. The sheets were long kicked to his ankles. He could feel Billy getting restless. The pendant felt like it was frozen, trapped between his chest and the sheets. Steve tried one more time, squeezing his eyes shut and hoping to just be hypnotised by the soft monotonous tick tick tick. But five minutes later he was as awake as ever. He kept his eyes shut though. Wishful.

The warmth left his chest and became more direct, felt like a hand stroking his back over his t-shirt, drifting up, rubbing the back of his neck and through his hair. Steve couldn’t help the small purr that gathered in his throat. He was a sucker for having his hair played with. By anyone. With permission obviously.

“I’m sorry Bill,” he mumbled into his pillow, head still turned towards the clock. “I’m trying...”

Steve didn’t get a response. He wasn’t really expecting one, sometimes Billy didn’t respond, couldn’t respond. It was just another thing they hadn’t worked out yet. In truth he wasn’t sure if his words were more for his spector boyfriend’s sake or his own. The hand pressed firmer. Steve easily imagined those tan fingers rubbing the little spot behind his ear. It definitely felt real enough to fool his brain that the other side of his bed wasn’t completely cold and empty. A gentle pull on his shoulder had Steve laying flat on his back, eyes still closed towards the ceiling.

“You’re making this harder you know…”

He felt heat on his cheek, across his jaw, over his lips. Kisses he couldn’t reciprocate no matter how much he wanted to. One hand became two, felt over his chest like they had done so many times before. Steve knew their pattern. What those blue eyes once liked to see. He chuckled and peeled his shirt off, tossing it to the floor.

“There. Happy now?”

Steve didn’t get a verbal response. Instead the touches became hotter, drifting over his skin with purpose, invisible fingers raking through his coarse chest hair, pressing and circling slow around his nipples. The heat left his face and worked its way down, across his now exposed collarbones one by one, his skin prickling as they crossed his body in two perfect lines. With his eyes closed it was so easy to imagine Billy was there. He kind of was. Steve moaned softly for him. One hand continued its way down, pressing over the waistband of Steve’s briefs. He chuckled again, putting his hand where he felt the pressure, slipping his fingers under the material, plucking them off his hip and circling towards his middle.

“You want these off too?”

Steve giggled a little, feeling nibbles on his earlobe, the phantom hand rubbing slow and firm over his lower stomach, through his happy trail. The air felt thicker still as his body got excited from all the direct but indirect attention. Steve definitely felt like he was being watched. He kind of liked being watched like this. He kicked his briefs off into the bundle of sheets at the foot of the bed, already half hard. He pictured Billy’s smirk, his tongue poking out from between his teeth in approval and arousal. It made Steve grin in return to the empty room as he flopped his arms up above his head to touch the underside of the headboard, reminding him that this was real, he hadn’t drifted off to sleep quite yet.

That seemed to get Billy’s blessing. The kisses placed to the side of Steve’s neck were searing. It felt so real, felt like sucking and that wicked tongue lapping over his skin to make bright red marks everyone would see, high under Steve’s jaw. They caused his dick to kick. He groaned feeling a hand suddenly around it. Thick and strong, pumping up and down with little abandon. The friction was delicious. Impossibly so. He was soon completely hard, pointing up towards his stomach, the first few drops of pre hitting his skin. Everything felt so real. The kisses moved back to his lips, desperate and pressing and wanting. Steve opened his mouth and felt a tongue slide along his own, dragging out sounds from his throat that sounded alien even to him, as he kept getting stroked and played with like a toy. Hips bucking up into a memory of Billy’s hand, tight and firm, thumb pressing along an underside vein.

Then there was nothing. Steve panted in the dark, left teetering on the edge of almost there but not enough. But then there was pressure on his shoulders, hands hanging on, thumbs rubbing in circles where his collar bones ended. Steve gripped the headboard tighter before his cock was pressing into an ever familiar tightness he could never forget. Even with his eyes shut they still rolled into the back of his head, a groan escaping his lips before the tongue was back, capturing and swallowing his sounds of pleasure. His cock sunk further and further until there was nothing more to push into.

“Jesus…” Steve managed to get out somehow, voice ripped and cracking deep. “You gonna bounce for me baby?”

He could picture that grin, a deep flush high on those freckle covered cheeks, eyes dark with desire and want before the movement happened. Steve felt his brain just about stop. It had certainly stopped trying to make sense of what was happening to him. Billy bouncing on his lap was one of his most favourite things. The way his chest glistened with sweat, the way his stomach pulled tight, pushing his abs further on display, the way his hair would stick to his forehead, the way his athletic thighs would clamp around Steve’s hips. Even though he was taking Billy was still definitely the one in control.

Steve moved his hands from under the headboard, felt fingers lock between his own almost immediately as the drag on his cock got faster, more desperate, less rhythmic and far less precise. He started muttering things to space that’s it baby, just like that, keep going I’m so close, his head started swimming as the heat low in his gut started to pull tight and impending. Steve wanted to keep going though, keep feeling all of this for as long as possible. The hands heavy on his own. The scorching kisses over his cheek and neck and lips. The impossible warmth and tightness around his cock, dragging and pushing quicker and harder. To just keep picturing Billy’s strong hips working and rolling, his thick cock aching and desperate to be touched but keeping Steve pinned so it couldn’t be, pre pooling into his belly button.

Steve came over his stomach with a cry.

The kisses over his jaw were warm instead of hot as he panted hard, chest heaving and heart rapid, skin shiny with exertion. One hand holding his own was the only feeling that remained as his cock fell lip over his hip. An unmistakable smell of smoke suddenly filled the air after what would most definitely have been two clicks of a zippo with a homemade etching of a skull on the side. Steve couldn’t help but laugh tired and worn out.

“God you’re an asshole.”

Warm arms clamped on around Steve’s chest again, the gentle pull. Come see me, I miss you, I love you. Steve was just about tired enough this time to fall.

#harringrove #my writings #billy x steve #steve harrington #billy hargrove #cross posted to ao3 #ghost smut #steve x billy

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billyhardgrove · 4 years

Note

Friends with benefits- 10,13

Word Count: 3.4k approx.

Warning: Swearing

Summary: You and Billy get in a fight because he tried to make a move on you…again.

PROMPTS:

10 – “We’re friends! Remember that?”

13 - “If I would’ve known we’d end up this way...I would’ve just stayed at the bar.”

“You’re unbelievable, Billy!” You practically screamed, glaring at the blonde that stood across from you. You were flustered, exasperated, pissed off.

“Jesus Christ, Y/N. What’s your fucking deal?” Billy was just as irritated, agitated that you weren’t cooperating with him when he wanted you so badly. “This is what we’ve been doing for the past 6 fucking months! What are you suddenly getting so offended about?”

“That’s exactly it, Billy! Fucking is all we’ve been doing. We’re friends! Remember that? We were friends long before we became whatever-the-fuck this is, so why can’t we be like that again?” You retorted, your hands running through your hair out of habit as your chest heaved with how riled up you were.

Billy merely scoffed at your argument. He made it very clear to you – to everyone – of his promiscuity, so really, in his mind, you had no reason to be pissed since you were fully aware of what he was like if the pair of you were to go down this path six months ago. Sex was probably on his mind too much to be healthy, so in turn, it was supposed to be obvious that if you were to fuck him then it would become a very frequent thing.

But now it got to the point where you were over it. Not over him as such, or the times that you spent together, but more so the lack of commitment.

You felt so fucking dirty every time he left your apartment, so used and slutty, and perhaps you spent a fair bit of your time showering heavily after he had left in a somewhat metaphorical attempt to rid the filth that stained your skin.

You hated it.

You hated how you couldn’t stop yourself, no matter how nasty you felt afterwards. He was addictive and the sex was fucking incredible, but it was simply when he left that made you feel so ashamed. The idea that he would surely just be heading to his next booty call without a second thought about you. No fucking commitment.

You’d never really had a friends-with-benefits relationship before this, but you knew Billy had many… simultaneously.

And that lack of commitment – even though you knew it was a no-commitment relationship – made your bones rile with sleaze that you couldn’t handle anymore.

This whole thing with Billy simply began with a drunken mistake, that led to another and then another. And soon the two of you had this somewhat arrangement, both sober and drunk, to just give it a shot and see what happens. Of course, at the beginning it was fun, but then you began to notice that every time Billy and you were together you seemed to fuck, and your mind overthought and your conscience noted sense; you never just hung out together like old times.

You missed the old times.

With your sassy attitude and strong confidence, it was a strange thing when you and Billy spoke for the very first time. He was of course cocky and insulting, degrading and rattled with no filter, but you merely countered back showing just how feisty you were at his inappropriate comments. And for some bizarre excuse, that was the reason the two of you just seemed to get along.

Strange.

To everyone else, it was strange. For Billy was the one to get in trouble, to fuck around with the law. But yet the two of you had formed this close platonic friendship together and it was a weird thing to see. For Billy never really hung out with a girl unless it was to fuck her and leave. But no. Back then, with you, the two of you watched movies together, partied together and looked out for each other, with no signs of any romance or lust.

But now, that seemed to be nothing but a fucking memory. For now things were complicated. You should never have fucked him the first time, because that never would have led you to where you were now.

Your feelings were unfair and you didn’t mean to fall for him.

But that’s what happened, you guessed. It was a common thing for a friend-with-benefit relationship to turn into a one-sided unspoken love affiliation.

And hell, did it fucking suck.

Perhaps that’s also what led you to finally go over the edge with the way Billy seemed to just use you now. The ‘friends’ part of friends-with-benefits seemed to be shadowed into the dark.

But your friendship was too good to be thrown away, yet that seemed to be what he was doing, unknowingly tearing it apart before he’d finally be done with you. You’d seen it happen on the side lines, watching the heartache of the girl as he laughed in their faces for falling for him. Hell, you’d even given Billy advice on this sort of thing with the numerous other girls he was with, but never did you think it would happen to you.

So why not beat him to it, you thought. Sure, you’d try save the friendship first, but if push came to shove, then you didn’t see why you couldn’t just cut the cords before he could. It would save your embarrassment even if it wasn’t what you wanted.

“If I would’ve known we’d end up this way...I would’ve just stayed at the bar.” You uttered out, your arms falling to your sides.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake.” Billy mumbled to himself, shaking his head at you. He was scared that this would happen, truthfully. He knew there was only so much you would take until it would push you over the edge at how hooked he was to you.

“Why do you always have to come to me for a fuck? Why can’t you just call one of your many other girls?” You questioned, dying for some answers as to why with you he was just so goddamn needy.

For another thing you had noticed over time was, with the other girls it was perhaps a once a week thing whereas with you it seemed to be every other day – or even every day - if you were free. So why did he feel the need to fuck you so much more than his other girls, why did he feel the need to keep coming back to you when he could go to any one else - and then when he was done he could come hang out with you. Why did sex have to be such a frequent thing? It was weird for him to be so consistent and persistent.

“What are you talking about-“ Billy tried to play innocence but you were so done with his bullshit. He knew what you meant but he was refusing you his truth.

“Tell me now, or go.” Was your ultimatum. You wanted to put an end to this – both the argument and your fucked relationship. Anger overpowered dread and embarrassment, and you felt the determination to not be convinced otherwise of your intentions. It was for the best- or so you kept telling yourself.

“Y/N…” Billy sighed, rubbing his hands over his face as he took a step closer to you, without you really taking notice.

“Answer me.” You spoke again, your voice more authority driven and threatening yet quiet. “Or leave.”

Taking another step closer to you, you absentmindedly took a step backwards, completely unaware of both his and your actions while your arms crossed in front of you as you stared up at him. But it wasn’t until your back hit something hard and cold that you realised he’d backed you into the wall of your living room.

Billy towered over you, quiet and seeming to make no move of answering you, but he merely looked at you with that same expression he used too many fucking times on both you and probably a thousand other girls. It was a look that made you feel so special, special to him; a look that would hypnotise you to submissiveness; a look that charmed you to the sheets.

But it wasn’t working this time. You were defiant, your fingers drumming on your arm as they were crossed while you stared at him with a scowl. You weren’t going to fall for it.

Billy brought his hands to the wall on either side of your head, his face was close to yours as he gazed at you, another thing he’d do as he hoped that would be the action that would be enough for you to give in; to give in to his want and hungry need.

But he was really trying your patience right now

“Billy, I swear to God. Just go, you’re such a dick.” You spat, noticing how sly he was being about it all. Why couldn’t he just be himself and be sincere for a second?

Turning your head away from his, you could tell he was surprised at your comment. But you felt no regret. He could be such a goddamn child sometimes, only choosing what he heard and ignoring things that were important or serious to other people.

But Billy’s jaw clenched in sudden anger and his teeth gritted tight.

Slowly taking the rejection and stepping away from you, you thought he was going to leave, just like that.

But, oh no. Billy never left an argument unfinished – or more like un-won. For all of a sudden his voice was strained, his eyes dark and nothing but stubborn frustration radiating from him.

“Jesus, fuck Y/N. You don’t fucking get it!” Billy unexpectedly burst out loud, his tone suddenly accusing, and you couldn’t stop the small gasp from leaving you at how unanticipated it was. “The only reason I wanted to fuck you again is because it’s fucking great, you’re fucking great-“

“Wow, thanks-“ You spat, not at all approving of his attempted explanation. Did he really think complimenting you on how good you were in bed was a sufficient excuse? Was that really what kept bringing him back to you?

You felt like a fucking cast off, a fucking object for when he needed you to tend to his horny pleasure. It insulted you that that was seemingly the only reason he stuck by your side after all this time. Was that really all you were to him?

“Fucking hell, let me talk, would you?!” Billy was growing infuriated with how impatient you were. Sure, he’d grown used to your attitude after being friends with you all this time but it also was something that annoyed him to no end.

And yet ironically it was also the thing that brought him back to you the first time you talked. No one had ever talked to him with such disrespect and audacity before, and for some reason, Billy admired that about you. The idea that you didn’t let people walk all over you and you stood up for yourself, putting people in their place when they were out of line was refreshing for him.

But right now, at this fucking minute, he was tempted to tape your goddamn mouth shut if you so much as interrupted him one more time. Because what he was saying, it wasn’t easy. And truthfully it was the last thing you thought you’d hear from him.

“I care about you Y/N. So much it fucking petrifies me. I’m so scared of whatever this thing I’m feeling is, and it terrifies me that when we’re on bad terms, my whole fucking mood with everyone is angry and annoyed, because that’s how I felt towards you. It’s not fucking fair that you have so much fucking control over my goddamn mood.”

His tone was so dark and blaming, intimidating to someone who overheard, but you ignored his tone as you took in his words. And you opened your mouth to interrupt him again with offence but he shot you a look to keep quiet, his face so close to yours as you remained stubborn, your scowl on your face and your arms still crossed.

“You’ve fucked me up. So fucking bad. I had a great life before you waltz into it, I did what I wanted, smoked what I wanted, fucked who I wanted – but now, now you’ve got me second guessing everything! Every-fucking-thing!” Billy practically yelled at you, stepping back from you for a second as his hands tugged at his hair in such resentment. His eyes were wide and wild as he stared at you tainted with so much rage and adrenaline.

“Now the fucking idea of getting into a physical fight because I’m angry makes me cringe because you’re in the back of my fucking head telling me to ‘wise up’. The idea of smoking some shit that’d get me beyond off my head doesn’t appeal to me because for some fucking reason when I’m simply hanging out with you makes me feel a way ten times better than drugs ever could…And fucking another person? Y/N, the other day I was getting head from some girl and all I could picture was you. You were the only thing in my mind and how you were so much better than her. And then do you want to know what I did next? To try and get myself to enjoy it more, I pictured that girl’s mouth as yours and as a fucking result, I moaned your goddamn name out loud. Fuck, Y/N, you’re just everywhere and I can’t fucking get away from you.” His hands slammed back against the wall on either side of your head as he was so worked up and exasperated. But you didn’t even flinch. His dark eyes bore into yours, swirling with so much pent up frustration as he seemed to finally be voicing the thoughts that had been chewing at his mind.

His words were so criticising of you, as though you had betrayed him, as though this was all your fault, as though you should be begging for his forgiveness for bringing that upon him and you couldn’t help but scoff at his attitude. How fucking typical. Billy was never one to take responsibility. It was always someone else to blame, never him, even for the most ridiculous things such as now.

But Billy ignored you, his head all of a sudden hanging low again as he avoided your eye contact. Taking in a breath, he sighed.

“…but I don’t think I want to get away from you, Y/N.”

Your eyes widened a little bit, everything seeming to change within a sentence. His voice was feeble, nervous, timid, and the sudden need to avoid your gaze caught you completely off guard.

“I-I…I don’t know what the fuck I’m feeling. I don’t think it’s lo-“ He cut himself off, sighing deeply, before restarting. “I don’t think it’s the L-word, because hell if I knew what that felt like.”

Time seemed to stop for a second as everything clicked into place. Was he confessing what you thought he was?

As his words repeated in your head, you couldn’t help but let a small smile tug on your lips at his adorable refusal to say love. He was simply terrified of the word. And it was amusing that such a big brawly guy as Billy would be scared of such a feeling, of a simple emotion.

Taking a deeper breath, Billy’s voice was small and quiet. “I know I’ve been treating you like shit, Y/N. And I’m sorry. It’s just, in some twisted way, all I want to do is fuck you because it prevents us from hanging out. Because if we hung out like old times then I just fucking know it’d give me the opportunity to find another fucking thing I like about you. And I don’t fucking want that. I’m scared that if I hang out with you like before, then I’ll fucking fall for you – hell, I don’t know if I’m even capable of falling for anyone, but that’s not the fucking point. I’m scared of falling for someone, Y/N. And I can’t fucking help it…

“But yet, do you wanna know the other excuse I have for fucking you so much? It’s because I’m able to show you how much I care about you without speaking it to you or without you being aware of whatever the fuck I’m feeling. Actions speak louder than words, right? But only if the other person knows what the reasoning for those actions are, and I guess I missed that bit out.”

His words were so jumbled and he struggled to get across what he wanted but you could put the jigsaw together. This was so different for you, a rare thing really.

You’d only ever seen Billy be so timid and nervous about something one other time, and it was a time that he had approached you for comfort, because he knew you would give it to him. And back then, it had warmed your heart that Billy had chosen you to rely on for solace and sympathy. You were probably his closest friend because you had seen a side to him no one else had. He had put that trust in you and he had chosen you to be there for him.

And now he was showing that side again. All you wanted to do was kiss him, to put his worrying nervous mind at ease.

Boy, it was so strange to see Billy like that. You had seen him do things that made people believe he didn’t have a good side, you had seen him do things that some would plead him guilty for. The last thing anyone expected was for Billy to have a soft side. And honestly that was your favourite part. That you knew Billy better than anybody, you knew things of him that no one else did, and yeah, it made you feel special to him. But instead of a superficial special, it was a truly, one hundred percent special that no one else had.

Unfolding your arms, you stared at him, the way his eyes gazed at the ground, the way his chest slowly heaved as it calmed down from his previous outburst, the way his eyebrows furrowed as though the realisation of what he was saying just hit him.

Billy didn’t expect to be confessing half of this stuff to your face, but he’d said so much already, there was no point backing out. He couldn’t just deny it all because that would be a goddamn obvious lie.

“Fuck, I could be fucking everything up right now.” He sighed still avoiding your eye contact as you remained quiet. “This is probably the scariest thing I’ve ever done – which says a fucking lot considering the stuff I’ve been through.” Billy rambled, and you stayed quiet, patiently waiting for him to finish. “But Y/N I think…I think I might like you…really like you.” Billy whispered the last words, held with such terror and fragility. He was so nervous for your reaction.

And your heart swelled at those words.

Maybe it wasn’t a one-sided love after all – or like in Billy’s words.

You couldn’t help the small smile that played on your lips a bit while you stared at the nervous boy in front of you as he still avoided your gaze.

God, this honestly felt so surreal, so dream-like. Never did you think he would feel somewhat the same way as you. And yet this was real, and yet he did.

Bringing your hand carefully to rub Billy’s cheek, you tilted his head up so his eyes finally met yours. Worry and hope gazed back as you let a warm smile spread across your face. You couldn’t keep him in that unknowing misery any longer and so, saying nothing, you let your actions speak instead of words.

Leaning forward, you felt your lips meet his and you kissed him hard, you kissed him passionately, and he responded instantly. With his hands resting on your hips and waist, Billy groaned into the greedy kiss before pressing you tightly against the wall, smiling a little at your response to his overwhelming confession.

God, he never meant for this to happen, for your friendship to twist into more, but that didn’t mean he regretted it. No, Billy was sure this was probably one of the best things to happen to him because finally after working his way through a countless number of girls, he had won the only girl that mattered and the only girl he had wanted all along, you.

#billy hargrove #billy hargrove x reader #billy hargrove drabble #billy hargrove writing #billy hargrove blurb #dacre montgomery #dacre montgomery imagine #dacre montgomery x reader #dacre montgomery writing #stranger things #stranger things series #stranger things writing #stranger things imagine

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thenexusofsouls · 4 years

Text

Former Muse: Marya Maximoff

MARYA MAXIMOFF (Biological aunt and adoptive mother of twins Wanda and Pietro Maximoff.)

Type of Character & Fandom/Source Material: Canon-divergent character in the Marvel fandom based loosely from concepts in MCU’s Age of Ultron, some 616 influences, and a large amount of my own development and interpretation of this character. Basically, I am trying to create an MCU version of her, and since we know next to nothing about her in Ultron, I will be adding a lot of my own original elements in fleshing her out. So her background will have some core ideas taken from 616, especially about her relation to the twins, but changed to fit the teeny bit we know about her from Ultron. After that it’s just me running amok with the character and fleshing her out in original ways, haha.

FC: Noomi Rapace, specifically in Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows

Race: Human, but a genetic mutant like the twins

Age: Currently mid 40s... exact age would depend on the ages of related muses in threads and details of background

Occupation: Usually as a baker or cook in a bakery or tavern type setting. Fortune teller and tarot card reader on the side.

Potential Triggering Material in Threads: Well... Marya deals with a hefty dose of racism, criticism, and/or mockery on an almost daily basis for her nomadic lifestyle and culture (Romani), her religion (Jewish-Polytheistic), and if she’s in the United States, her thick accent and imperfect grammar when speaking non-native languages like Sokovian or English (her native tongue is a Romani dialect). Also, other potential trigger warnings for things like severe head injuries and amnesia.

Negative Personality Traits: Haughtiness and tending to be overly forgiving of people simply because she knows/likes them or is related to them.

Positive Personality Traits: Tenacity, thick skin, but also kindness, empathy, and strong motherly instincts.

Background: Get ready for me to walk all over the comics here, haha, but as I said I’m creating my own largely movie-compliant version of Marya Maximoff. She is a Romani witch in a family in which mutant genes and the ability to successfully engage in witchcraft are somewhat hereditary, especially among females. She and her sister Natalya both had magical abilities, albeit different ones. Marya has dreams that are premonitions of the future, but they are often vague and she may not fully understand the meaning of them until it is too late. She can also glean images or emotions from touching objects or people, a talent she shares with her niece, Wanda. Although the twins believe that she is their mother, Marya is actually their biological aunt. Her sister Natalya is actually their mother, but not long after giving birth, she gave her children to Marya and her husband Django and went into hiding as Magda Eisenhardt in an attempt to throw off the twins’ dangerous father, known as Magneto. At the time, Marya and Django had lost their own son and daughter, and so they welcomed the twins readily. They officially adopted them, and the twins have never been told that their parents were not actually their parents.

Marya’s husband Django was not a mutant, but he was an accomplished pickpocket and thief. Think of that what you will, but what he did helped to support his family and put food on the table when work was scarce, and he taught his adopted son Pietro his skills. This was something Pietro continued to do well into his teenage years in order to support himself and Wanda while they were living on the streets following the bombing they believed killed both of their parents. He also used his skills to assist the poor, disadvantaged, elderly, and sick citizens of Sokovia, a community he and his sister had come to call home. Marya saw stealing in a different way than most, and there was a code to it. Never steal from those who have less than you have. Never steal from family or trusted friends. And in her mind, the Romani people had been placed at an inherent disadvantage simply by virtue of the fact that they were seen as lesser by many European communities, mostly White or at least believing themselves entitled. Because of that, Marya saw Django’s stealing as efforts towards the balancing of wealth and resources back in their family’s direction.

Marya was a kind and loving mother, but she was not afraid to set boundaries for the twins or discipline them the same as their father. However, she did her best to understand, nurture, and accommodate their individual personalities as they grew older. Wanda was shy, quiet, and often obedient, whereas Pietro misbehaved a lot, had trouble focusing on a single task, and had endless amounts of energy. Because the twins were so different, Marya recognized that they needed to be cared for and encouraged in different ways. They didn’t learn the same way or respond to criticism the same way either. Marya always thought it was very important that the twins be nurtured in ways that best suited their personalities and needs, but also helped them grow and improve as people. She did her best to do that, and to make sure Django did the same.

When the twins were six, little Wanda was assaulted by a boy her own age, and the child had cursed him impulsively in her panic and rage. Unfortunately, the budding witch had no idea her curses carried real power, and the boy had a fatal accident the following morning. The boy’s death, rumors of Wanda’s witchcraft, and rumors of Django being a thief are the main reasons why the Maximoff family had to leave Transia and the village they had been living in. They traveled alone in their vardo for a while, joining up with Roma caravans as times. Settling ultimately in Sokovia, they worked toward having a permanent home and were able to purchase an apartment. Everything seemed to be going well for them, until the wars raging around them caught up to them. When the twins were ten, a shell was dropped on their apartment building. Marya and Django fell through the floor, while Wanda and Pietro hid under a bed, ultimately being trapped for two days. Django was crushed and killed by falling rubble, and Marya suffered a severe head injury among other things. This caused her to have amnesia, not remembering who she was beyond her first name.

The twins were saved after two days, but Marya lingered in the rubble for almost four. By the time she was able to crawl out on her own, she was dazed, malnourished, and badly injured. Not remembering herself in her amnesia, she wandered the streets and was taken in by a family who didn’t know who she was. Meanwhile, the twins were taken as wards of the government and were ultimately placed in foster homes that didn’t work out. Marya, once she was at least physically healed, left Sokovia, not realizing that she had a reason to stay. She returned to the nomadic lifestyle she knew, even if she didn’t remember the people she had spent it with.

From here she can go wherever a thread needs her to. She can remain in Eastern Europe, travel to Western Europe, or even make her way to the U.S. Those are the likely places she would end up. After three years, she began to remember who she was, and did attempt to look for her husband and adopted children. She was told that her husband died in the bombing and that the twins survived, but she was never able to locate them. Not many were willing to help her, either because they couldn’t or because they were prejudiced against her way of life and thought the twins were better off in foster care. If they only knew where the twins actually ended up... It breaks her heart that they were never found, because she loved Wanda and Pietro very much, like her own children. She still holds out hope that she will find them someday.

Potential Starter Ideas:

Well, certainly finding out she was still alive would be an interesting plot for a Wanda or Pietro muse, whether before or after the events of Age of Ultron.

What if she saw video on the news of what happened with Ultron in Sokovia and recognized the twins?

She can also be a stand-alone muse for Marvel or non-Marvel muses to interact with, just in her own life. She’s an enigmatic and adventurous sort.

Fun facts: Marya’s innate mutant powers with regard to premonition and gleaning information about people and objects she touches or is near to help her a great deal with her fortune telling and tarot card reading businesses. Perhaps she misleads people doing this, but she sees it as infinitely more authentic than outright playing them without any knowledge of them whatsoever. Also, she feels that if done via tarot cards, palm readings, or other such avenues, the information she does convey to them is better received than it would be if she revealed herself as a witch. She actually does not know anything herself about being a mutant, what that means, or that her witchcraft is something genetic that she is able to do, she only knows that magic runs in the blood of her family, whether it takes the forms that hers and Wanda’s magic does, or more physical forms like Pietro’s. She believes that “the blood of the Old Gods runs in their veins,” which basically means that their bloodline is believed to be an ancient one blessed with favor by various gods of the natural world, some of the same ones they still worship today within the polytheistic part of their religion.

#muse: marya maximoff #{i expect this muse to be really low activity and that's fine}#{but it would be fun to explore her a bit}

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angelcatsiel · 4 years

Text

I reblogged an ask game thing the other day but no one sent any asks so I just fuckin answered them all because I was bored and I am learning to not give a fuck what anyone thinks of me and it was fun

1. What is your favorite childhood story of yourself?

This is a hard one. I want to think of a funny one but my childhood wasn’t great. My dad has told me that when I was a toddler, before I can remember, he used to play AC/DC and I used to put clothes pegs in my hair for some unknown reason, stand on the sofa and violently headbang.

2. What is the stupidest way you have ever gotten hurt?

When I was about 11, I was swinging on a swing in the garden, and got curious about what would happen if I put my hands right at the very bottom of the chains while I was swinging. The answer was that I fell off backwards and hit my head. I went in to my dad crying, calmed down, and went back on the swing again. I tried to work out what exactly I had done to cause myself to fall off. I remember thinking, I think I held the chains near the bottom like this... and tested the theory, and fell off again, and hit my head again.

This is one of many stupid injuries. Other considerations were the time I climbed up a slide and hit my head on the bar at the top and knocked myself out, or the time I got kicked by a horse in a field and grabbed onto the electric fence to hold myself up.

3. What was the first PG-13 movie you watched?

Literally no idea.

4. What was the first R rated movie you watched?

I think it may have been the first Deadpool? Haven’t seen that many tbh

5. When was the moment you felt most badass?

When I was about 8, I was at the park with my brother, and this much older kid (maybe about 16 or 17, hardly a kid) with an aggressive dog stole my brother’s ice cream money. I marched up to him and demanded he give it back. He let his dog off the lead and it sniffed around my ankles and growled, and he told me it would bite me if I ran. I stood there and stared him down for a good 20 seconds or so before he called back the dog and walked away. I didn’t get the money back.

6. What is a band you can reliably always love?

Marillion. Favourite band, always.

7. What is your favorite form of self expression?

Probably singing even though I’m very bad at it.

8. What is something from your childhood you wish you still had?

My stuffed rabbit Hoppy. I haven’t been able to find him in several years. Can’t think about it too hard or I’ll cry.

9. Where is your favorite place on earth?

The Isle of Wight. My dad used to take me and my brother there for holidays every few years. It’s beautiful and full of memories, the most precious memories being the time we saved up vouchers in the newspaper to go the year after my dad left his abusive wife and ended up homeless. We were so poor but with the vouchers we could just afford to go, and it was the first time I saw my dad happy in a long time.

10. What is the longest friendship you have ever had?

My best friend @van-helsa124 who I have known since literally nursery and I love her so much.

11. Is there anyone is your life you wish you had met sooner than you did?

Maybe my friend Luce who I only met a couple of years ago, but we’ve grown close pretty quick.

12. Do you believe in ghosts?

Yep definitely. Pretty sure I was visited by my gran after she died and I’ve had a few creepy experiences.

13. What is the coldest water you have ever swam in?

No idea tbh, I don’t swim much

14. How old were you when you learned how to swim?

Maybe 8 or 9? I had lessons in primary school.

15. What song do you listen to when you’re sad?

Never Grow Up by Taylor Swift. It’s my cry song.

16. Are you an adrenaline junky?

Yep! Love roller coasters and stuff like that, and would love to do something extreme like jump out of a plane or something.

17. What is a song that takes you back to childhood?

I have a few but the main ones are probably Man on the Moon by REM, and You Were Right by Badly Drawn Boy.

18. What is your favorite word?

Not sure I have one. For some reason the only one coming to mind is a place not too far from where my family live called Biggleswade, and I have to say it every time we drive past because I love saying it. I also love saying tiddies at every opportunity.

19. What is your least favorite word?

Don’t think I have a least favourite either, the usual infamous ones (e.g. moist) don’t really bother me.

20. What scent reminds you of childhood?

Cherryade. I drank some several years ago and the smell before I tasted it transported me immediately back to my childhood and a memory I’d completely forgotten, which was my gran constantly buying me a shit ton of cherryade every time I stayed over her house.

21. Were you sad when you found out clouds weren’t like pillows, or did you never think that?

I don’t think I was sad, I think I was just curious and interested to learn, and I tried to come up with new interesting ways of describing the feeling of clouds in my head, since even as a kid I loved to write.

22. When in life did you laugh the hardest?

A few times come to mind and they all involve @van-helsa124. A lot would make absolutely no sense, no matter how much I tried to explain. They’re now ‘friendship memes’. The only one that might be explainable is the first time we ever got drunk, to celebrate achieving ultimate friendship, after we found out that her mum had believed me and her were in a relationship for a year and a half. We even created our own drink, named the year and a half, which was literally just a mix of vodka, koppaberg, rose wine and cloudy lemonade. Tasted better than it sounds. Got me drunk in about 0.5 seconds. Ended the night hugging her trash can trying not to throw up while she read me a destiel fanfic to take my mind off feeling sick

23. What makes you laugh when you don’t feel like laughing?

Old yogscast videos.

24. Do you come from a big family?

Fairly big, lots of aunts and uncles and cousins.

25. What is your favorite part of yourself?

My positivity and the inner strength that I have, that helps me find happiness and courage even when my mental health is low.

26. What is the worst pain you have ever felt?

Trigeminal neuralgia pain (facial nerve pain). Spent 90% of January this year constantly crying and even screaming in pain. Hospital couldn’t do anything for me. I get occasional flare ups now but nothing that severe, but it’s probably going to come back. Feels like someone trying to rip out my cheekbone and jawbone or like someone is literally drilling into the bones in my face, and that’s the milder part. Every so often that pain is interrupted by stabs of sharper pain like electric shocks which have caused me to collapse to the floor screaming. 0/10 do not recommend

27. Do you swear often?

Not super often out loud but very often in my head.

28. Do you get confused for being older or younger than you are?

People always assume I’m younger than I am. I get asked for ID for everything.

29. What is your favorite way to eat a potato?

Probably roast potatoes, but they’ve gotta be done right. Soft inside, crispy outside, and obviously with herbs and spices.

30. What is the best compliment you have ever received?

Honestly no idea.

31. Describe yourself in 6 words?

Slightly unstable yet somehow happy weirdo

32. What is the worst insult you have ever received?

Can’t think of any major insults either lmao no one talks to me apparently

33. Have you ever taken in any media that changed your life?

The Good Place and Supernatural. With supernatural it wasn’t the actual show so much as the friendships it made me and the confidence and happiness the conventions gave me, at a time when my mental health was at its worst, although the show helped massively too. Idc if it’s cringey, it kept me alive. The Good Place changed my entire worldview and actually made me less afraid of death.

34. Have you ever collected anything?

My model horses! I have at least 10 at this point

35. Strangest thing you have ever broken?

As in bones or objects? Can’t think of any objects and the only time I ever broke a bone was when I broke my toe at like 12:01am on new year’s day when I got up to pour myself another drink and tripped over the table

36. Weirdest food you have ever eaten?

I’m not that adventurous with food so nothing that weird

37. Childhood nickname?

My dad would call me Flo. Not sure why.

38. Most people you have shared a bed with in a non sexual manner?

Two. Shared a bed with my best friend and my other friend Josh, once at a convention, once at Josh’s birthday. Birthday one is a bit blurry as I was drunk but at the convention I got to be in the middle and spooned Josh while my best friend spooned me and it was very cosy

39. What is something that makes you fall asleep?

The Marillion song Angelina, or this one ASMR video that’s supposed to be the sound of being in the Impala with the Winchesters. Laugh all you want, I like it.

40. Did your parents ever accidentally lose or forget you?

No but my teacher did once, can’t remember the context, I think she had to drive me and some other girls somewhere for some club event and when we got back to the school she forgot me in the car because I was so quiet lmao

41. If you were a superhero what would your weakness be?

I would be a terrible superhero and have many weaknesses. Loud noises would immediately put me out of action. Someone makes eye contact with me and I disintegrate immediately

42. What food reminds you of home?

Tuna pasta! With this one specific sauce that my mum used to make it with

43. What is your comfort food?

Probably also that tuna pasta. And chocolate. A shit ton of chocolate.

44. Cold room with lots of blankets or hot room with no blankets?

Cold room with lots of blankets, no question.

45. No shoes without socks or no shoes with socks?

No shoes without socks

46. Do you run hot your cold?

I am presuming this means ‘do you run hot or cold’ and the answer is, usually, both simultaneously. My body has no idea what temperature regulation is. Catch me out for a walk in short sleeves in the snow, sweating profusely while violently shivering bc I’m feeling extremely hot internally but my skin is freezing (and yes, I have actually done this). Do I have some sort of legit medical issue? No one knows, least of all my doctors!

47. Favorite condiment?

Probably ketchup. Though I also love garlic dip. Does that count as a condiment?

48. What utensil do you use the most?

Probably my tongs for turning chicken and stuff

49. When are you most comfortable?

Any time I’m home alone, just doing my own thing

50. If you could be really good at one thing, what would it be?

Singing! I would love to be an amazing singer but sadly I am a terrible singer though I do practice every day in the vain hope that maybe my voice will improve. If the neighbours could hear me they would have killed me by now

#personal

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pkmnsdarkqueen · 4 years

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Drabble-So calls my heart to bad decisions. (Sinnoh)

Based on this , cause I can’t get it out of my head and I think it’d be funny to give mini versions of the crack ideas I said. Cut cause of length.

“You know as architecturally fascinating as this place is I think I like the Eterna base better.” “Wait seriously? All of the fun planning stuff that you love is here though. I mean we just read through notes in a lab about the lake guardians. That is your exact cup of tea.” “Yeah I knoooow but it was so much more dilapidated. How is this place still so clean?” “The various roombas might have something to do with it.”

Will chimed in as he stepped to the side to let another one slide by. When they talked to Cynthia she had mentioned the leader having an affinity for robots and machines which is why both Karen and Will hadn’t batted an eye at seeing a roomba in every room puttering around.

Still Karen had expected it to be a bit more chaotic. I mean at least some wall paper starting to peel, a nick in a wall here and there, but no the place was just uncannily spotless. It made her wonder if anyone was still living there. They had encountered said issue before which had thankfully resolved itself. This time though she wasn’t so sure since as far as she knew they hadn’t met many Galactic members.

Continuing in their exploits they both looked around the giant hall they’d entered. There wasn’t anything in the room except of course another roomba, guess they all were active this time of night, and a large podium area built into the room. As soon as they saw this Karen already knew what Will was about to say.

“I want to get up there.” “Ok well let’s keep looking around and see if we can find stairs or another door, or-” “No way that’s lame, and these trips are for fun remember!”

Will cut her off running towards the wall starting to jump. The woman shook her head watching him miss the ledge by a long shot. Oh she already knew this wasn’t going to end well.

“And how are you going to get up there from this room? That ledge is a whole you taller, and if you hadn’t noticed this place is stupidly minimalistic.”

She countered leaning against one of the walls to watch the show. He had moved from trying to jump it to knocking along the walls of the room. Personally she hoped he had taken her advice and was looking for a hidden stair case or something. Sure enough at one point there was a hollow thud causing both of them to perk up. Will grinned from ear to ear starting to see what objects he could manipulate. A hinge, a lock, some part of a door, and sure enough he was able to locate the spot to press on the wall. The panel cracked open with a small pop, and Will flung the door wide revealing chairs. Again practically spotless organized room with many stacks of chairs.

“This is how.” “Oh this is going to be a bad idea.” “It is not ye of little faith! Watch me dazzle you with my genius.” “I’m going to tell Lance those were your final words before you broke your neck.”

Karen told him watching him use the dolly to position a stack by the wall. He could possibly reach now but looking at the chairs she wasn’t sure how steady taht tower would be. Sure they were your regular auditorium like chairs which was better than folding chairs, but as he said she was ye of little faith.

“I’ll be fine, just be sure to catch me if I fall.” “No way, if I do that you’ll probably take both of us down. If you fall I’m going to say karma, and then laugh in your face.” “At least one of us will be able to laugh at my pain because I’m betting on a few broken ribs if I fail.” “How reassuring.”

Despite the shaking tower and general poor decision this was He was making progress. He always had the better sense of balance and so she watched silently as he grunted and huffed his way to the top of the stack. By the time he reached the top he had gotten the right height too, and was able to reach over to grab the lip of the wall. A few more scrambled moments and he had managed to crawl his way on to the other side giving a final kick to the chair pile which started to tip. HIs victorious pose of with two fisted hands in the air was met with the crashing applause of many chairs crashing to the floor. So much for this place being kept practically spotless.

“You know I admire the grit that took, but question. You could of floated there Mr. Hi yeah so I’m psychic.” “I know but I want to save it in case we run into something or someone dangerous. Like what if this Cyrus guy has befriended Girintina right after getting sucked up in that world between worlds and he’s watching us right now with the weird science over there, gets mad we’re wrecking his stuff and BOOM!”

He emphasized smashing his fist on the short wall.

“Girintina and him burst through and attack us!” “I think that marathon of all the Godzilla movies followed by season one of Stargate SG1 was a bad idea.” “You’re just like killing my imagination.”

Will pouted having found a few pieces of paper to ball up one of which he threw at her. Easily it was caught by the woman who, out of curiosity started to unfold it. Huh, well this was interesting.

“Hey Will the paper you tossed down looks like an old speech. Damn you know some of the phrases in here look familiar,’this is of upmost importance, you know the price of failure.’” “Secrecy is key, keeps your senses sharp, oooh I found the one I used to hear all the time! Don’t disappoint me.”

The elite mocked using an older deeper man voice to pull a chuckle from Karen.

“Oh but you sure did disappoint, but not as badly as Sham and Carl did some days. We really outclassed them so soon after joining, you know they had every right to be mad at us for that.”

The woman chimed in remembering well the day they basically became the right hand men and pushing those two out of their place. Despite being both younger, and not around as long they were quite the trained soldiers. In retro-spect that was not a good thing, but in some weird way Karen still felt pride in that.

“I’m sorry I think you mean Coral and Shoe which I remember him calling them once because he forgot their names. I fully agree that they had every right to be mad at us. We were nothing but some dorks that showed up, I came already born with powers, you are just well, you’re yourself.” “You know normally you say that as an insult.” “And this time I mean it as a compliment because compared to those two you came in Black Widow even without training yet. Then next thing you know we’re top dogs, we manage to connect with legendary pokemon, and are given control to command them, we get trusted to guard the main plan in the end, and are openly the favorite. I don’t blame them for hating our guts as kids. To be fair we deserved that hate, and all the other hate we’ve gotten. It’s a good thing like came and kicked us in the nuts when it did because if it hadn’t I’m telling you right now we would of likely ran that branch of Rocket after Pryce up and zipped off!”

The psychic started to rant. It was always fun when he started this. It was like watching a comedy special done by a very well dressed individual, with the accompanying hand gestures and pacing. All it took was a little audience participation and he’d go on a roll. What better place for him to give a speech than here.

“Oh us run the joint, huh? Now this I want to hear.”

Karen encouraged seeing her friend grin as he straightened up.

“Let me tell you then! Now we both know if we knew the real reason that garbage human being wanted our help, reunite a lapras with it’s family, we would of revolted!” “Revolted?” “I fucking said it! Viva la revolution, and everything because we both knew all the shit we’d gone through wasn’t worth THAT! So if you’d listened to me and backed off of Blue when ya did we would of had not one, not two, but three legendary birds, and Ho-oh and Lugia cause there is no way we’d give them back after finding out his big plan. SO we’d take those birds, we’d rally up some of the other Rocket members in the other districts who’d follow us cause we ACTUALLY would manage to have control over real legendary pokemon and played our cards right till we and our group were strong enough to take down the league.”

He stressed grabbing the edge of the concrete wall to lean in.

“Cause when you put Karen and Will together we are such goddamn unstoppable forces not even Arceus can stop you and I.”

Karen was grinning watching him give his little motivational speech and clapped her hands shouting encore a few times to boost the dramatics of his little speech. He of course did not take this in a humble stride giving dramatic bows as if they had a large audience to entertain complete with blowing a kiss and pretending to weep. All dramatic exaggerations until one sweep of his hand and misstep seemed to be a bit too grand. Unaware there was more paper scattered on the ground his foot started to slip. HIs latest ‘thank you’ was cut short as he felt his weight go over the edge. Even grabbing it was no good as he started to tip. Karen stopped her applause once she saw this breaking into a run as she raced over to catch him. Although she too took a tumble after not seeing a chair by her feet.

There was a crash as the chairs collided with each other again now with an added person. The one to land after skidding against the floor was Karen. Will floated above her giving a hiss knowing that had to hurt.

“....well, now who forgot I could float.”

He muttered feeling her hand grab his ankle and yank him down. With concentration broken he fell the last half a foot. Ok maybe he deserved that.

“You know funnily enough I was about to swing the conservation to talking about how it’s a good thing we ended up where we are. Life has a way of kicking folks like us down a peg.....or in this case pride comes before fall.”

There was a long pause as Karen simply stared at him dead pan before shaking her head starting to laugh. Sure she was still bruised and so was he, but hey they might as well enjoy this laugh even if it was a stupid one.

#drabble #for fun #psychic master will #(cyrus i watching them and judging them)

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timegal25 · 5 years

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The Odd Side of Youtube

YouTube, the popular video sharing website, has been around for over a decade. It’s had it’s over abundance of videos themed around Fortnite, “emotional apology videos” stuffed to the brim with ad revenue, a disturbingly high number of poorly animated nursery rhymes, and surprisingly graphic skits targeted at kids. But it’s also been an outlet for creative expression and connection for those outside the mainstream. For a socially awkward and isolated kid who found companionship in watching YouTube, fandom videos offered a sense of connection, belonging and reassurance that there were “odd people” out there who shared his interests and passions.

While the vast majority of people know about things like “Gangnam Style” and “Let’s Plays,” not as many can say they have extensive knowledge of the various niche fandom videos that make up a good portion of the website itself. These are the odd clips that either you only come across by looking up directly, or have randomly pop up in your recommended feed with no real reason as to why. In my case, I remember a majority of these from watching them when I was younger, and then rediscovering them when looking deep into the site on late night nostalgia binges. It’s a common hobby of mine, and it usually leads to me finding some of the strangest things as a result. Oddly, a great many of these strange finds just so happen to include Sonic the Hedgehog.

Let me preface this by saying what follows is in no way an attack on any of the creators of these videos, nor is it a call for others to go out and harass them. In fact, that’s part of the point. Many of the people who create some of the more odd or innovative content on YouTube are doing it as creative expression of who they are or what interests them. It’s a place to express a part of themselves, and it takes courage to do it. It’s easy for those who aren’t so brave to attack the creators. I actually enjoy a lot of the content I’ll be referring to because the people behind it are genuine and clearly having a ton of fun making it. This is all done in good fun, and shows just how strange and odd fandom culture as a whole can be. And for some of these innovators who dared to put themselves out there, it paid off big time just by how fondly remembered they are by those who talk about them. Now that that’s out of the way, let’s begin.

Part One: Hedgehogs and Dragon Balls

To start things off, let’s look at a project that is fully animated. Before YouTube, there was the popular website Newgrounds, a place where you could watch videos, play games, and just mess around. This is where a lot of influential and important creators got their start by posting their little animations on the site. On August 14, 2006, user Chakra-X (real name Aaron Cowdery), posted the first part in a three-part movie called Sonic: Nazo Unleashed with part two coming a week later and part three following in 2007. All three parts were later uploaded all into one HD remaster under the title of Sonic: Nazo Unleashed DX on YouTube in 2014. The film follows Sonic and his friends as they take on the mysterious and powerful Nazo, an unused form of Sonic from a promotional video for the anime Sonic X.

Now what makes this special from say the dozens of Sonic themed fanfics that follow a somewhat similar premise? Chakra-X did something no one had dared to do before. The animation was very heavily inspired by the anime megahit Dragon Ball Z and its then airing sequel Dragon Ball GT . The sound effects used and the presentation of special moves were ripped right from the series and even parts from the climax are just ideas presented in the show such as two characters fusing to make one new powerful being. In 2006, it was unheard of to see Sonic characters perform such high speed anime action. What was even more notable is that it was created by one single guy on the internet. The professionally produced Sonic X TV show that was airing at that time paled by comparison, even with a team of professional animators with high tech equipment.

In the decade since Nazo Unleashed originally came out, Chakra-X has been a part of various animated collabs and now works for Titmouse Inc , an animation company that has done work for companies like Warner Bros., Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, and even Disney. What was even more inspiring for me, Chakra-X is a young black man . This was the first I’d become aware of anyone who looked like me being a much sought after animator. It told me that I could be him, I could be in his position if I put in as much effort and love into a creative project. And with how amazing the upcoming sequel he’s working on looks, I feel that kind of hopeful inspiration even more.

The next piece I’m going to examine is another well known series in the Sonic fandom community that also is heavily influenced by Dragon Ball Z. While it is also animated and is full of high speed action packed fights, this one has its own amazing identity. The series I’m talking about is the always spectacular Super Mario Bros. Z by Mark Haynes, aka Alvin Earthworm, starting in 2006 and going until 2009. While this series was originally created on Newgrounds, it’s real exposure and popularity came from being uploaded to YouTube.

The series follows Mario, Sonic and friends as they go on an epic race against time to secure the powerful chaos emeralds from the clutches of the evil Mecha Sonic. Much like Nazo Unleashed, the influence of Dragon Ball Z series is anything but subtle, with the plot of “good guys need to find powerful objects before bad guys” being one of the key ways to describe Dragon Ball as a whole. One of the key things that makes this stand out on its own is the fact that this entire series is animated using sprites from the games. Just about every character that wasn’t made specifically for the series has their models taken right from their games. Mario and Luigi for example come from the Mario and Luigi role playing game (rpg) series on the Gameboy Advance (GBA), while the Sonic and Shadow sprites come from Sonic Battle also on the GBA. An extra step is taken by having the characters act like they do in their retrospective series. Mario and Luigi never actually use dialogue boxes in their games, with other characters still understanding them. The same is true here with the brothers’ words never actually being seen on screen. Going that extra step to emulate the games made the videos feel more authentic.

I was relatively young and new to the internet when Super Mario Brothers Z (SMBZ) started popping up. I wasn’t fully aware of what sprite animations were, as they weren’t as easy to make or common back then as they are now, so I would see all the action and Sonic and Mario on screen together and I thought that it was an actual game. I wanted to play it so badly on my Gameboy Advance SP. On one trip to a Gamestop, my young self boldly walked up to the lady working the register and asked “Hey, do you have Super Mario Bros Z ?” She gave me this look that said either she knew exactly what I was talking about or didn’t have a single clue at all and just nicely said that they didn’t. I went on to repeat this at several more gaming stores before I realized that it wasn’t a real game, nor did it ever claim to be. It was then that I started looking for games I wanted myself because sometimes just saying a title out loud can make you look like the strangest person around.

What made the SMBZ series so attractive and so entirely different from anything found on YouTube at the time was the animated action. You might think that since the series is using pre-made assets and models, that there must be some limitations on what can be done. However, with a bit of help from some custom new sprites as well as some fast editing and sound effects, things can get insane . Being able to translate the speed and intensity of a Dragon Ball Z fight is hard enough to copy with regular animation, yet Mark was able to do this with 2 dimensional sprites and flashing lights. And even that pales in comparison to the pure adrenaline of fights concerning the series main antagonist, Mecha-Sonic.

Originally starting off as a mostly side boss in Sonic and Knuckles , Mecha Sonic became a fan favorite thanks to this series. Like any good antagonist, he can easily prove himself as a threat to the heroes while also being able to take the hits himself. This comes across easily in the series most popular episode, Brawl on a Vanishing Island . This 30 minute episode has a variety of characters going up against each other, but the mood quickly turns the second Mecha Sonic arrives and absorbs the power of the Chaos Emeralds. What follows is an absolutely brutal beatdown of another team of antagonists, the Axem Rangers X. The speed, the sound effects, alongside an amazing remix of Sonic and Knuckles’ Doomsday Zone playing in the background, this is a simply amazing bit of animation that can’t really be put into words without it sounding absolutely ridiculous. And much like with Nazo Unleashed, so much of this was done by just one guy.

After episode 8 in 2009, things basically ended on a cliffhanger with the series being presumed over. Haynes had his own life and things to deal with, and something that took up so much time to make could be easily seen as poor use of it. In the years following, many others tried their hand at sprite animations with heavy action scenes with that becoming its very own subgenre on YouTube. Then, in 2016, Mark made a glorious return with the first episode of what was basically a reboot of the series. Fans loved it, amazed to see how far things had come. And then..there was basically nothing else. Originally, Haynes had a Patreon set up so that fans could fund him making this as well as possibly being a way for him to make this his job. It was shut down, most likely due to him directly saying it was going towards the series and Nintendo seeing it as someone else profiting off their IP. With any funding that could go towards rewarding all this time and effort being taken away, as well as Haynes having more important personal things and depression, it is unlikely that we’ll see an update anytime soon. It’s been three years since the first episode went up on YouTube, and while I still hope someday he’ll return, but as someone who knows that forcing yourself to make something others want even if you don’t want to is like, the personal happiness and health of Mark Haynes is so much more important. He’s already left an amazing legacy on the net, and the stuff he’s given us is already great enough as is.

And now to go from flash animation, to sprite animation, we’re reaching the next logical step. Out of all the series discussed in this part, this one is my absolute favorite. And it is one of the weirdest things out there. Another crossover series featuring the world of Mario and Sonic, alongside a few notable others. One that’s full of action and character, and it’s all animated in PowerPoint (no, I’m not kidding), this is Chocobro Cinemas’ The “Dimension” Saga. Strap in, things are gonna get really, really weird.

The series started in 2007, with Dimension Mix-Up as it followed various characters from Super Mario Bros, Sonic the Hedgehog, Frogger, Invader Zim, and Calvin and Hobbes. That was all 100 percent serious, and to the credit of both this and Super Mario Bros Z, there is a feeling of self-awareness running throughout the whole series. I unironically love this entire series from start to finish, mostly just due to the fact that there’s so much creativity and love being put into something that most people would just brush aside as another cheap fanfiction. When I originally found this back in 2007, it was like the most amazing thing ever. The computer I had at the time took forever to not only load flash animations, but even playing them took like 5 years for just a few seconds. I hadn’t really known what Newgrounds was fully back then either, so Super Mario Bros Z also wasn’t something I watched at the time, and I came across this. An action filled adventure that had characters not only from Sonic and Mario, but also Invader Zim which was still super huge at time, and Calvin and Hobbes?! To a megafan of all those things who would actually spend their time on Fanfiction.net reading stories about this stuff (Yes, even Calvin and Hobbes), this was like the holy grail. Also Frogger was there, so...that was cool?

This story should not work, these characters all being together on screen expecting viewers to care for them all should not work, this idea of using powerpoint back in 2007 to simulate animation of any kind should not work. Yet somehow...it does. Even with the fact that this is clearly just a camera recording a screen at this point, there’s something rather entertaining about it all. And the action isn’t half bad for something made with a tool that clearly was never meant to be used in this way. It can actually be creative with how some fight scenes are done. The whole of episode 6 is able to show off a giant robot boss battle with some pretty decent speed, while episode 8 can trick viewers with its looping backgrounds. The best part of this comes just from watching how not only does the quality of the video improve over time, but so does the writing and the story. Dimension Takeover and Dimension Obliteration are amazing and admittedly addicting watches that have the same level of love and care put into them as the previous two series discussed in this. Giving the fans such high quality action and adventures while also doing a really great job of making all the interactions feel like they’re from their source material. Well, at least as close and one can get when you have a hedgehog talking to an imaginary tiger and a group of cartoon frogs. I can’t say thank you enough times to the people who’ve made all their series, as my love of writing stories based on my own favorite series probably wouldn’t be as strong today. And hey, one can surprisingly do a good job with powerpoint. At least it wasn’t just a slide show.

Part Two: These literally are just slide shows!

Sticking to the topic of Sonic, he seems to be a super popular subject for crossovers. Besides Mario, he and his friends have appeared in both official and nonofficial meetups with all kinds of pop culture favorites. The one series that seems to dominate the realm of Sonic crossovers online is My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic . The series itself has had quite the impressive run of nine years, with its final episodes airing this year. What probably would have been seen as just another cheap product placement by the majority of people if it hadn’t been for the rather large audience of grown up fans that for a time basically ruled the internet. While in the later years the fan base has shrunk as all fandoms do, there are still those that happily enjoy watching cartoon ponies and doing various things related to them online, myself included.

Now how does a super fast and cocky blue hedgehog that saves the day from an evil egg shaped man and his army of robots have any kind of connection to a cartoon about six colorful and talented ponies as they go through their lives learning about and solving problems with the power of friendship? Well, both are series that have similar characters with Sonic and Rainbow Dash both being blue,fast, and cocky. Both series deal with giant world ending disasters by using powerful gems and the power of teamwork. And both believe in the real power of friendship. So, yeah. There’s bound to be a ton of fan series based on seeing these two worlds meet up. And hoo boy, Youtube sure seems to love hosting a ton of them.

The common theme in all the Sonic/My Little Pony Crossovers in this part is that they’re all going to be slideshows. There might be a few clips from the shows or games, maybe a piece of fanart or two, but 99 percent of the stuff in these videos is just going to be static text. Let’s start with the...highest quality one of the three brought up in this part, Sonic X Equestria by Speedstar Productions . The plot is nothing new. Eggman shows up to wreak havoc and Sonic must team up with the cast of My Little Pony, or Mane Six as they’re called, to help stop him. When I said most of these are just slideshows... I wasn’t kidding. The entire series will go from random screen cap to random promotional images, with text overlaid on the bottom. There is no original voice acting either, with the only voices that occasionally can be heard coming from the clips or sound bytes. There is no promised sense of consistency either, as photos of the characters can be pulled from different seasons, games, comics and shows all together. In this, Sonic is supposed to have his normal modern look but some screenshots are from Sonic Boom which is a show with different designs. Another example of this comes from shots of Twilight Sparkle. This show takes place in the My Little Pony world after Twilight becomes the princess of friendship and gets her own wings. Even shots from the first episode will use photos of her without them. It’s never actually a thing that matters to the show, as it acts like everything is on model, and that we can perfectly see everything that’s going on.

Another thing that this and many others like it seem to have in common is the idea that Sonic is the one doing all the work, while all the ponies just kinda...watch in the background. Sure, Twilight will pitch in with her magic every once in a while, but if Sonic’s taking on Eggman? He’s mostly going in solo. Sure, these ponies have easily taken on things like chaos incarnate, and powerful tyrants with black magic. But a man in a giant robot suit? Too unpredictable . Sure, one could argue that it’s because the mech being used in the fight only has images of Sonic fighting it...but in a later episode , the girls join in a fight that’s entirely animated! I shouldn’t be mad about this, yet I am!

Though..despite the rant, I still find myself enjoying watching this series. I can’t fully explain if it’s ironic or if it’s unironic. Maybe it comes from the fact that everyone still acts in character to their on-screen counter parts, leading to interactions that fans wanted to see. We want to see the ponies talk to Sonic characters, and help take down Eggman. The use of actual pictures from the shows and games helps too, making us help visualize it as if it were an actual episode. Maybe it comes from the fact that it feels like something I would watch in the early days of Youtube. The kinda low effort yet also decent attempt of trying to make events appear coherent in some way, even if the images shown aren’t the most in continuity. Though, episode 11 is literally the Shadic vs Nazo fight from Nazo Unleashed. Those things aside...this is still kind of a guilty pleasure watch that I’ll binge from time to time.

Sometime last year, I was looking up Nazo Unleashed videos late one night, due to that time bringing out a large sense of nostalgia for days gone. As I was looking, I saw a thumbnail that stuck out to me. Or rather...a title that stuck out to me, as well as a runtime that had my interest set to max.

The Adventures of Sonic in Equestria Nazo Unleashed The Movie HD , by Adam Selvig, is a title that feels like it should be one of those videos that promises an upload of a current movie in HD that only links to scam sites that will give your computer a virus. It isn’t that. This is a slideshow that’s the length of a movie. College lectures aren’t this long. The best way to describe this one is that Sonic and the ponies must come together to defeat Nazo as well Tempest Shadow, a character from the My Little Pony movie. Also, Sonic and Rainbow Dash have a daughter called Sondash, which is literally just art of a child Rainbow Dash. This series is weird. Another strange thing is that a lot of the channels posting Sonic / My Little Pony stuff in series like this...usually have around 1K subs. That’s nothing to any major Youtuber, but the idea that even just one thousand people subscribe to watch this stuff as soon as it comes out..is just mind blowing.

This film is part of a series, one that started all the way back in January of 2018. The playlist for this thing says that the series as of March 4th, 2019...is 103 videos long?! And with seemingly all of them in the 20 minute range...the question becomes, how long has Selvig been working on this thing, and does he have others help him with it? And again...why is it always Sonic that seems to be doing everything around here? Are the ponies just lazy now that an outsider is here?

The odd thing is that there are so many Sonic/My Little Pony crossover videos on Youtube, but when looked into, so many of them are the exact same content. Stills and transparent photos with clear backgrounds with text overlaid. And so many are able to get these creators at least a few hundred subscribers. In a surprisingly deep sea of similar executions, are there any left that stand out above the rest? Good news, there is at least one series that goes in another direction. In more mixed news, well…

This is Harmony and Chaos by Michael Evans. While originally popping up as text on gradient background sometime in 2017, the whole series is now being voiced over by its creator. That’s all this is. Text on a background while one man narrates over it in various voices. And for the most part, there isn’t much there at all in terms of action. Now, I’m only nine episodes in this seemingly sixty plus episode run with multiple seasons series, so I might be wrong. The main focus of this series is romance, and boy is there a lot of it. If there’s a male character from Sonic and a female character from My Little Pony that interact a lot in this thing, there’s a pretty good chance they’ll end up smooching somewhere on down the line. This sounds exactly like what many seem to see fan bases as general as, writing overly long amounts of fan fiction that are also chock to the brim with romance and needless drama. In this series, Rainbow Dash is getting a divorce from her husband who she thought was cheating on her, when really he only made it seem that way so that she wouldn’t have to know that he was dying from a deadly disease. It’s a move right out of the soap opera playbook.

Despite all of this, I find myself coming back to all of these series and watching them in huge chunks. It comes from a sense of odd curiosity on how the story is going to play out. It also helps that the people behind this stuff seem like just genuinely nice people that want to post their creations online and share it with the world. It’s just that the stuff they make is really weird, not bad, just strange. And even then, it’s not the most strangest thing on the net that’s out there.

Part Three: Big Adventures, Bigger Casts

The best way to start this final part was with an image. An image that perfectly tells someone everything they need to know, as well as absolutely nothing at all. Welcome to Pooh’s Adventures , a seemingly endless number of movies and tv shows that are “edited” to include characters from Winnie the Pooh, My Little Pony, Transformers, Thomas the Tank Engine and so, so many more. I put edited in quotes because really, does this count as editing in any way, shape or form? To give a basic plot outline of just about every single Pooh’s/Thomas’/Insert Character name here’s adventure, large group of characters are inserted into popular movie or show, where they help the main character of said movie or show against the antagonist who is now usually joined by other villains from various forms of media. Rinse and Repeat for every movie ever with vague hints of events from previous adventures running into this one. Take any movie, and there’s a good chance there’s at least the idea for a Pooh’s Adventures on it. Like for example Winnie The Pooh vs. Jaws , which while not a real movie as of this writing does have a devoted page on the fan wiki . And it seems to promise quite the cast of characters.

It can actually be somewhat hard in trying to find some of these, due to the fact that they’re just full movies with other copyrighted clips put in at random intervals. Those that are still up on Youtube seem to be the ones that use the most obscure of movies as their source . And just like with the Sonic/Mlp stuff, all of these channels seem to have at least a few thousand subscribers thanks to it. Of all the adventures that still remain on Youtube, Winnie the Pooh Goes to Hotel Mario / Pooh’s Adventures of Batman Forever is the one I’m most proud still remains. There is no connection between the two, besides the fact that both Hotel Mario and Batman Forever are both seen as surreal experiences that have very little connections to their source and are enjoyed in a “so bad it’s good” way.

There are still ways to find both older and newer uploads of the various adventures online. Many of the members will just upload their older stuff to Google Drive or Dropbox , and more recently, a lot of uploads are being moved to Pandora.tv, a mostly Korean based website where they can run ads on the video.

The wiki for this fandom is massive, with there being over thirty five thousand articles as of the time of this being written, with new ones being added or updated seemingly every few minutes. Most fantasy wikis can’t reach numbers that high! Though, most of the pages on it are bare-bones with only a single line or two for a ton of characters while others are pages clearly ripped right from other fandom wikis. There’s also ideas for series that are just the title and then nothing else, along with transcripts and posters put next to dozens of dead or empty links. For a site that seems so bloated and full, it’s actually pretty empty and hollow upon closer look.

I wanted to share all of this because so much of this resonates with me in some way, even Pooh’s Adventures , since I’d be lying if I said I haven’t thought up crossovers with insanely large casts that really should have nothing to do with each other.I guess in a way...I saw these all as the things I wanted to make but never knew how to. I’ve always wanted to animate, to tell my stories with these characters that I know and love to as many people as possible, to hear their feedback on all of it. That’s why I got so passionate talking about all certain moments or episodes, it’s all the things I would do! They’re people just like me, and that’s why I wish Mark Haynes the best in his life, why I’ll say the guys who work on the Sonic and My Little Pony seem like nice people. That’s why I’ll be so amazed by someone having a thousand subs or more. I see myself in these creations and the experiences of their creators. The pains of depression, the joy of seeing how their work has influenced others, the effort and care put into these things. I want to see them succeed and be supported, because that shows me that I can succeed too.

#informal essay #crossover #sonic the hedgehog #pooh's adventures #smbz #Super Mario Bros Z #sonic #super mario #Mario bros #nazo unleashed #My Little Pony #my little pony friendship is magic #dimension mix up #youtube #essay #calvin and hobbes #invader zim #fandom

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justatiredghost · 5 years

Text

Unsolved Academy Ch6

It’s time for Klaus and Dave to film the next episode of their ghost hunting show! Unfortunately, there are some unforeseen consequences waiting for them. - Both Vanya and Ben were filming today; they were working on their editing, trying to make things more dynamic or whatever, Klaus wasn’t really sure. He wasn’t very involved with that part of the process, he was mostly in charge of the social media side of things and let Dave and Ben and sometimes Vanya take care of the editing.

“Okay, let’s get this party started!” Klaus said, punching the air in his excitement.

This was promising to be a great episode and he couldn’t wait to get going. They took their positions in front of the old building and the moment Ben gave the signal that they were ready, Dave launched into the introduction.

“Hey everyone, we’re back with a brand new episode. Sorry we took such a long break there, but we have a special treat for you all. Today we are joined by two famous actresses! Welcome, Allison and Claire Hargreeves, so glad you could join us today.”

“It’s a pleasure to be here, thank you for having us,” Allison said with a radiant smile.

“I’m not famous,” Claire objected.

“Yet,” Dave said. “So! Tell us what we’ve got here, Miss Hargreeves. Allison,” he clarified.

“Well, this old abandoned office building behind us has had a surprisingly dark history. Even after it’s closing there have been rumors of ghost sightings. That’s why it was chosen for the location of our new movie.”

“Ghosts Like Us, a lovely romcom starring our very own Allison Hargreeves,” Dave said. “I can’t wait to see it!”

And I’m not just saying that because I’m dating your brother.”

“Well thank you,” Allison laughed.

“Seriously, he’s a big fan,” Klaus said.

“One of the first things I did when I got here was marathon all of your movies,” Dave said.

“And we’re definitely going to have a watch party when this one comes out,” Klaus added.

“Oh, god,” Allison said with an embarrassed laugh.

“But back to the task at hand,” Klaus leaned down, resting his hands on his knees so he was closer to Claire’s level. “Claire! I heard you’ve been allowed to wander around the set. Have you seen anything strange?”

“I don’t think so,” Claire said doubtfully. “I think I saw a ghost in the basement while I was exploring when I wasn’t supposed to be.” Looking guilty, she glanced over at Allison but avoided eye contact. “But that might have just been one of the actors in makeup, I’m not sure because mom was calling me and I had to go. And it’s creepy down there.”

“Here’s hoping we get to see whoever it was again tonight,” Klaus said. “Now, I know Dave here, giant nerd that he is, usually gives the rundown of the history of the building, but since this one’s yours, why don’t you go ahead, Allison.”

“I’d be happy to,” she said. “Like I mentioned, it used to be an office building, but freak accidents kept happening, people getting hurt or dying. I mean, it’s an office building, it shouldn’t have been that dangerous.”

“So we’re thinking a curse, ghosts, or OSHA violations?” Dave asked.

“Exactly,” Allison laughed. “No one was arrested, but I’m not sure that really means much. Regardless, enough people died that the company had to close up shop. Several other businesses have moved in over the years, but they all eventually moved out after suffering high casualties as well. None of them ever made it a full year.”

“Well, seems like there’s certainly plenty of reasons for the place to be haunted,” Dave said.

“That’s for sure. The story goes that the main ghost spotted here is that of a repairman who died when the basement collapsed in on him. They didn’t find his body for weeks. He’s said to slam doors and push people down stairs”

“Great, well, let’s go piss off a ghost! Maybe if we’re really lucky we’ll get him to chuck us down a few stairways!” Klaus said, throwing his arms in the air.

“Cut,” Ben said. “Great job everyone. Especially you, Claire.”

“I did okay?” Claire asked.

“You bet you did,” Klaus said. “Are you trying to steal the spotlight?”

“Maybe,” she replied

“That’s my girl,” he said, ruffling her hair. “Come on, I think Uncle Diego is here to pick you up, I’ll give you a piggyback ride to his car.”

“Aw, can’t I stay?” she asked.

“Sorry, honey, it’s getting late and it’s a school night,” Allison said.

She seemed disappointed, but was giggling again by the time Klaus ran her over to her ride.

“Now, there’s a lot of filming equipment and props already set up, but check this out, this was here when we first arrived.” Allison pointed out a large bulletin board as they entered, filled with notices and flyers.

“Hell yeah, Taco Tuesday!” Klaus said.

“Oh nice,” Dave said, looking over his shoulder. “Any chance we can get in on that? Although I guess the business putting it on is probably long gone.”

“Unless you want ghost tacos. Probably not that appetizing.”

“No not that,” Allison said with a long suffering sigh. “That.”

Above the lunch schedule was a notice with ‘Warning’ written at the top in large red letters.

“‘The owners of this property are not liable for any injuries or damages that occur after business hours’,” Dave read.

“Is that even legal?” Klaus asked.

“Aw man,” Dave said. “That ‘s gonna make it kinda hard for us to sue them if we get killed.”

Allison was amazing at this, full of energy and enthusiasm, weaving stories, the three of them able to play off of each other with ease. Klaus had no doubt this would be one of their more popular episodes and he was having a blast. They could definitely learn a thing or two from her and he made a mental note to talk to her about lessons or something later. If nothing else maybe she could recommend some improv classes. Maybe even get them a much needed discount.

“Hey, thank you for this by the way,” Klaus said during a lull as they swapped out the batteries in the equipment.

“It’s nothing, really,” she said, waving a hand. “It didn’t even take any convincing on the producer’s part. She seemed pretty excited about the whole idea. Maybe because I let Claire do the asking.”

“Ooh, roping your daughter into doing your dirty work, hmm?”

“Oh not at all, this was all her idea!” Allison said proudly

“Wait, really?”

“Of course! She is a big fan, after all. I should be thanking you guys though, this has been a lot of fun.”

“We’re glad to have you,” he said, hand on her arm, glad that they were getting the chance to be closer after all these years. He’d missed what they used to have.

“Down this way is the basement,” Allison said, leading the way. “Apparently police have already searched but some stories insist there are still bodies from missing employees buried under here.”

The dark was a familiar thing to Klaus. Of course it was, his dad had locked him in enough mausoleums over the years that it was pretty much a home away from home. He was getting better, though, now that he actually had the support system for it, working on how to deal with the fears and the nightmares instead of just trying to force himself to endure until the panic attacks kicked in. Sure, he still slept with a nightlight on, but that was part of the point, getting to choose for himself when he faced it.

He still hated the dark and he probably always would. And as he reached the bottom of the stairs, he hated it more than usual. He was just hit with too much, too fast. It was dark, so dark, and the air was filled with the smell of mildew, damp and thick. It brought with it memories, clawing hands grasping at him, voices begging and screaming. He’d apparently never be free of his nightmares of graveyards.

But there was more. The mold and the dark, the low ceiling and the walls that seemed to push in on him made him feel like he was trapped in a tiny motel room again, shoved into a closet for hours, tortured and tortured until he could barely remember what it was to be anywhere else. He staggered back, overwhelmed, and almost bumping into Vanya. Dave was at his side almost immediately, steadying him.

“Woah, woah, hey,” Dave said, rubbing his arm soothingly. “You okay?”

Klaus looked to Vanya and somehow she looked the way he felt. He had done his best not to think about the little box Luther had locked her inside, it was too terrible to even imagine. How many days, how many weeks had she spent trapped in there when they were children, with nothing but the sound of her own heartbeat?

“Vanya?” Dave asked, spotting her expression as well. He glanced between the two of them, obviously concerned.

“I think you guys can handle this bit without us, right?” Klaus said.

He didn’t want to pull out of Dave’s warm and comforting arms, but he couldn’t leave Vanya like this either, so he took her hand and led her back up the stairs, back into the light. They’d been in musty places before, of course they had, it was practically their job now, so Klaus wasn’t really sure why this out of all the places they’d visited was the one that did it. Maybe it was just too much all at once.

It was probably the same for Vanya. She had a strong stomach, so few things bothered her and as far as he knew, she wasn’t all that claustrophobic. Klaus was angry with himself that this was getting to him so badly, and no doubt she felt the same. She held the camera tight against her chest and Klaus stretched in the newfound freedom of the wide hallway, breathing deeply as the others filed back up the stairs behind them. Allison went to Vanya, but she waved her away with an embarrassed smile

“Hey,” Dave said, rubbing Klaus’ back and pressing a kiss to his cheek.

“We’re fine, all good,” Klaus said, leaning against him briefly. “Why don’t you guys just film this bit without us?”

“Are you sure?” Dave asked, looking between the two of them. “We can stay here for a bit, or we don’t even have to do the basement, we can just do the rest of the building.”

“We’ll be fine,” Vanya said, mustering up a reassuring smile.

“See?” Klaus said. “Now off you go, you have an episode to film.”

“Okay,” Dave said, popping his collar and turning to the others. “Let’s go get this ghost. Punk won’t know what hit him.”

“Punk?” Klaus echoed, trying to stifle a laugh.

“Yeah,” he said. “I mean, Claire is gonna be watching this episode. I’m trying to keep things PG.”

“Right,” Klaus said with a fond smile as he straightened Dave’s collar, folding it back down, before giving him a gentle shove in the direction of the basement. “Just go already.”

He knew Dave was being silly on purpose, trying to make him and Vanya smile and Klaus loved him for it. He had the same impulse, to make others laugh when they were upset. Having someone else do that for him instead, knowing Dave would always make sure he was able to smile, meant more to him than he thought it could and he probably had a ridiculous grin on his face as he watched him leave.

“I appreciate the thought,” Allison said to Dave with a laugh as they headed downstairs.

Vanya slid down the wall until she was sitting on the floor so Klaus dropped down beside her. He let out a heavy sigh, resting his head back against the wall. Thankfully he hadn’t had a full blown panic attack, but he still felt rattled. He just focused on his breathing, trying to calm his pounding heart.

“Thank you,” Vanya said, voice small.

“No sweat,” he replied, flashing her a smile. “I don’t really like dark, cramped places either. With how often we were locked up, I’m starting to wonder if dad had some sort of obsession.”

“Wait, you were locked up too?” she asked, horrified.

“Oh, yeah,” he said, glancing away and waving a hand dismissively. “You know dad, it was no big deal.”

Klaus had a problem with not talking about things. He had never seen much of a point, everyone had their own problems they were dealing with, they didn’t need Klaus’ on top of that. So instead he’d always just made jokes, exaggerated and tried to make people laugh. In the end, people stopped believing anything he said. Even on the few occasions he truly did go to them for help. At some point he just gave up trying, assuming none of them would care. Except maybe Ben.

Dave cared, though, and he wouldn’t let him do that. Klaus was getting better at not just trying to hide it all away, but that didn’t mean he was as open with the rest of his family. That was a much longer work in progress, there were still too many bridges to rebuild there. Besides, he still didn’t know how much he should share, it still felt like they probably didn’t want to know. .

“Knowing dad, I kinda doubt that,” Vanya said, leaning over to bump against his shoulder. He smiled at her, grateful. “Did he build a box for you too?”

“Nah, it was a crypt for me,” he said.

“What the fuck,” Vanya whispered.

“It was only overnight. You got kept in your little prison for weeks, right?”

“Still fucked up,” she said.

“That’s fair,” he said, climbing back to this feet to stretch. “Thankfully, he’s dead now so we can leave whenever we want.”

“What, you want to go get ice cream again?” she chuckled.

“Unfortunately I’m on the clock, you can take me out next time.”

“Deal,” she said, standing to join him when they heard the others approaching.

They were laughing and talking as they climbed the stairs and Klaus couldn’t help but smile. Once he once might have felt left out but right now more than anything he was glad they were all getting along. Knowing he actually had a place and wasn’t going to get abandoned helped too. He knew Dave and Ben especially would never do that to him. He had a place here, and people who cared about him.

“Overall that was a pretty uneventful night,” Klaus said, stretching.

“Yeah, did you even see any ghosts?” Dave asked.

“Well,” Klaus glanced over at the only ghost in the room. He was standing around awkwardly, face an unpleasant blue. “No historical ghosts, but there is a guy who died out back choking on a sandwich.”

“A sandwich? Well that’s not ideal,” Dave said.

“It would have been nice to see a ghost that could confirm the stories but I think we still got a pretty good episode,” Allison said.

“It’s almost time for us to get out of here,” Vanya said. “Shall we get packed up and head out?

“Roger that,” Dave said, giving a solute.

They all started grabbing bags and equipment, carrying it outside to the car. Dave ran up to Klaus before he could do the same, hand on his arm to get his attention.

“What’s up?” Klaus asked.

“You sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, all good,” he said with a smile and was surprised to realize that he meant it. He brought his hands up to rest on Dave’s shoulders, always seeking to physically reassure, for both of their sakes. Sometimes these things could take a day or so to really hit him, and he supposed that was still possible, but he really did feel okay right now.

“What was it?” Dave asked.

“Just-- all of the basement,” Klaus said gestured broadly. “I didn’t realize the mustiness would get to me so badly. I guess that’s what happens when you’re tortured in a shitty motel.”

“Oh, love,” Dave said, pain in his voice as he cupped Klaus’ face, thumb brushing across his cheek.

“I’m fine, really,” he said, leaning into the touch before placing a quick kiss to Dave’s lips.

“I wish I could take your nightmares, you have too many,” Dave said.

“No way I’d let that happen,” Klaus scoffed. “You already have plenty of your own.”

“Fair enough,” Dave laughed.

It was a little sad, having to say goodbye to Allison and Vanya. It was one of those nights Klaus just didn’t want to end. He waved as they drove away, putting his arm around Dave as he leaned into him.

“Hey, we should go get breakfast,” Klaus said.

“Is it breakfast or dinner at this point?” Dave asked. “Either way, I could eat.”

“Oh, shoot,” Ben said, counting bags in the trunk of their car. “I think I left a mic upstairs. Hang on, I’ll only be a sec.” He sprinted off towards the house.

“Aw, he took the keys with him,” Klaus said as he tried the door. They leaned back against the car together, hand in hand as they waited. Dave leaned over and kissed his shoulder.

That’s when Klaus saw it; a familiar figure crawling across the grass towards him, leaving a trail of blood, most of his face missing as he screamed in agony.

“No,” Klaus said, flinching into Dave as he averted his eyes. “I didn’t summon you, how are you here?”

“What is it?” Dave asked, wrapping an arm securely around him.

Klaus wanted to fold himself into those \arms and disappear, but the screaming was loud, too loud, it was everywhere. It went beyond sound, in his very skull. It shouldn’t be like this anymore. Normally if Klaus poured enough of himself into a ghost it became more solid, more human as they regained awareness, but something was wrong, it felt too terrified, too frantic. How--

No, it couldn’t be. His grip on Dave tightened and he felt frozen to his very core.

“Dave, I think-- I think we’re in trouble.”

“What?” Dave said, looking around quickly and Klaus could see him slip back into the role of the soldier, assessing the situation, looking for cover. He knew Dave hated that that still happened on occasion, they both wanted to forget their time in the military, but right now Klaus was grateful for it.

“The ghost from the crime scene is here, but there’s no reason for him to be. Unless the person he’s attached to is also here.”

“I thought he’d been attached to a location?”

“That must have changed somehow. Unless buildings have suddenly learned to move, in which case I think we have much bigger problems,” Klaus said, unable to stop himself from falling back on jokes.

“Does that mean his killer is here?” Dave asked, horrified. “But why? How?”

“I don’t know, maybe they somehow found out that we talked to the cops and followed us? Ohhh wait, shit,” Klaus said, smacking himself on the forehead. “I may have kinda sorta accidentally talked about it on our blog.”

“Really?” Dave said, but he looked impressed instead of angry. “You’ve been doing great with that, by the way.”

“What can I say, I’m a natural when it comes to social media,” Klaus said although he didn’t feel proud at all. “The people love me. But right now we should probably get out of here”

“Come on,” Dave said, turning back towards the house. “We should probably go find Be--”

As Dave reached the back of the car, a figure stepped out from behind it, swinging a crowbar. Dave tried to dodge, but it came in too fast, clipping the side of his head with a sickening thud. Klaus’ blood ran cold in horror as he watched Dave smack into the side of the car and crumple to the ground. He could feel bile rising in the back of his throat, sick with dread. No no please, his mind screamed, he couldn’t lose him, not again.

He screamed Dave’s name and made to scramble to his side, but the stranger was faster. He stepped over Dave, standing between them, as he raised a gun to point at Klaus. He was a large man, wearing all black and even had on a balaclava which would have made Klaus laugh if the circumstances had been different. Right now, though, he needed to act. He reminded himself that he was the target. If Dave was still alive, he might just be able to get away so long as Klaus could provide enough of a distraction.

“Don’t even think about running,” the murderer said, apparently reading his mind.

Without even waiting for a reply, he fired the gun. Pain shot through Klaus’ leg as he stumbled to the ground, a snarl on his lips. He tried to focus, to find something he could use to his advantage. And then he spotted Dave moving, quietly and carefully dragging himself to his feet. He was alive! Klaus tried not to let the relief show on his face as he stared down his attacker.

“You’re the idiot who almost got me caught?” the masked man said with a laugh.

“Normally people at least have the decency to be impressed by the whole talking-to-ghosts thing,” Klaus said, hoping to keep him talking, keep him occupied.

“Pathetic,” the man said. “Well, as much as I’d love to make this nice and slow and painful--”

As he took aim, preparing to fire again, Dave launched himself at the killer, knocking the gun to the side just as it went off, firing a shot into the grass only a few feet from Klaus. Dave was bleeding from a wound along the side of his skull and he was obviously unsteady on his feet, leaning into the killer as they grappled for the gun and Klaus knew they only had a matter of seconds before this went south.

He could try to hobble over there and help, but what if he didn’t make it in time? Or what if the two of them weren’t able to overpower the murderer? Movement caught his eye and he spotted the ghost of the victim still there, hovering just behind them, hand reaching through his murderer as if he was trying to help and Klaus knew exactly what to do.

Acting fast, he channeled every ounce of energy he could into that ghost. It practically fell forward onto the killer, blood pouring from the missing section of his skull, a horrible grin on what was left of his face, his jaw only half attached. The murderer gasped in horror and headbutted Dave who collapsed immediately, stunned. Now that he had the gun free, the murderer turned it on the ghost, firing shot after shot into it. The ghost didn’t even flinch. He was already dead, what was that supposed to do? He just laughed, a horrible gurgling sound.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Klaus lurched to his feet and scrambled forward. He might hate fighting more than anything else, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t good at it. He grabbed the murderer’s wrist that was holding the gun and jabbed him in the throat with his free hand. As he doubled over, Klaus twisted the man’s wrist and managed to rip the gun free, sending it flying out of his hand and well out of reach. The murderer stumbled back, gasping and choking.

And then he drew a second gun from his coat.

You have got to be kidding me, Klaus thought.

Before he could even take aim with the new gun, the murderer was ripped off his feet, pulled backwards and up into the air. Klaus, Dave, and the ghost all looked up to see Ben’s monsters rip the murderer apart, raining bits of blood and gore all around. Klaus had already seen this happen too many times before and took the opportunity to kneel beside Dave, helping support him and checking his injury. Just as quickly as they appeared, the monsters receded back into Ben who immediately ran to their side.

“Are you guys okay?” he asked, breathing heavily.

“Wow,” Dave said in awe. “That,” he pointed at half of the corpse of the killer lying nearby, “is gross. But that,” he pointed at Ben, “was fucking awesome! You have got to teach me that sometime.”

(Next chapter)

#klaus hargreeves #dave katz #umbrella academy #the umbrella academy #klave #unsolved academy #fanfic #my fic

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