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ciaraswritings · 1 year

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Anxiety

Disclaimer: I do not own DC or their characters, or their settings. This is certainly not canon.

Warnings & Topics: Social anxiety disorder. 18+, if you please.

Word Count: 1.7K words

Summary: fem!Reader is struggling with social anxiety while attending Bruce Wayne's birthday party, but then she meets a woman named Barbara who helps her escape. Very happy ending. Just fluff & stuff.

Author's note: Thank you all so much for reading. I hope you enjoy.

How the hell did I end up here, I asked myself.

I pressed my back to the mahogany wall as colors and watched the pastel colors swirl past me. I should have never come to this event, this celebration. I'm not even sure how I got invited to this. I had barely ever crossed paths with Bruce Wayne. Sure, I'd edited news stories covering his spotlight before sending them off to be published on the internet, but I could never bring myself to meet with him face to face. I'd talked with him over the phone, fact checking a wild take that a journalist had submitted, but in the two minutes and five seconds that we had chatted, he had obviously decided I was suitable to be invited to his birthday reception.

That's what I absolutely love about my job. I can sit in a dark office all day, I don't have to see anyone face to face, all submissions and communications are sent via email. I'm trying to make arrangements to work from home, so the stress of being so close to the other offices won't be on my mind. My job only requires a computer and phone, after all.

My boss was overjoyed when he heard I had been invited to the big event. Any more excitement, and he would have started a fire with how fast words were spilling out of his mouth. His thrill, however, did not match my own by a long shot. I thought back to when I was sitting in my comfy, swiveling office chair, staring up at the balding, sprightly man who was positively demanding I accept the invitation and attend the event. I don't think I even verbally responded to him at the time. My plagued mind overtook my body, and still had ahold of it even then as I tried to blend into Bruce Wayne's wall.

Social anxiety disorder, my constant companion. My nemesis, my excuse, my greatest hurdle. The only reason I stood there in my old prom dress is because my boss has been on such edge lately, and like my coworkers, I wasn't ready to risk the consequences of saying no to him right then. My anxiety was to blame for that too, coincidentally enough.

As the sea of long dresses and black suits moved past, I tried my hardest to remember my therapist's favorite phrases. Be aware of your body. Be aware of your surroundings. How is your body reacting to this situation? I could answer the last question easily enough. My heart was beating out of my chest, my stomach was churning, sweat was appearing on my trembling hands. Fear was wrapped around my throat, my breathing labored. An older gentleman in a very nice suit gave me a concerned look before his glamorous college-student wife pulled him towards the dance floor. Yes, please go, stop looking at me. I wonder how many people are looking at me right now.

Be aware of your surroundings. I tried, I really tried. I tried to take in the luxury of the room. The velvet curtains, the gold trim, the expensive art, the... was that a tapestry? Be aware of your body. I attempted to become aware of my physical senses. Deep breaths, eyes closed, trying to relax my tense muscles.

"Ma'am, are you alright?"

My eyes flew open. A young waiter with a tray was quizzically observing me from a couple feet away.

I can't do this anymore. "Yes! Yes, yes, I'm alright." Fight or flight mode had been activated. Not bothering to thank him, I slipped past the waiter and made a not-so-graceful getaway to the hall. Lush ivy and large chairs decorated the long room, along with a huge mirror that I planted myself in front of, my entire brain trying to retake control. But no, the sickening, uninvited fear had ahold of my entire body.

Looking up into the mirror, I was not exactly pleased by what I saw. My eyes were full of adrenaline and my mascara was running slightly. My dress was wrinkled by where I clutched it at the hip. My hair was the only thing that didn't look frazzled (thanks to an hour of straightening before I had left for the party). Using the tip of my finger, I tried to clean up the mascara around my eyes.

"Did you get bored too?"

My finger nearly went into my eye, startled by the unexpected and unwelcome voice. I wanted to run like a deer being threatened by a panther. I turned nervously to the owner of the voice, and my fear alleviated if only for a moment by the spectacularism of the person I saw. A red haired young woman in a black velvet dress had approached me, a single party-goer from the roar of festivities behind her. I could see the door swinging closed from when she had entered. My anxiety lurched and I could feel liquid coming up in my throat. A hard swallow later, and I assumed my most casual pose. "You could say that."

The redhaired woman turned, pulled her lipstick from her clutch, and repainted her red lips in the mirror. "I'm not even sure why I'm here, my father is the one who actually knows Mr. Wayne."

"I don't know him at all. Bruce, I mean. Not your father." Oh, that sounded so rude. "Sorry... about that."

She turned back around and gave me a shiny smile. "Are you okay?"

Hell no, I'm not okay. "Yes, of course." My hands were still trembling and my cheeks were flushed. Breathing hurt. The radiant woman in front of me could obviously see through the lie. Her head cocked, her beautiful, wavy red hair swayed.

"You don't seem okay," her concern was evident, but I wasn't in the mood for people being concerned and trying to make me talk about it.

"I'm okay, I just haven't eaten today. So... I should probably go do that," that wasn't even a lie. I had only had coffee today so I wouldn't throw up from nervousness tonight.

"What's your name?" asked the woman who was freshening her eyeliner in the mirror.

"(Y/N) (L/N)."

"I'm Barbara Gordon. It's good to meet you. And funny enough, I'm hungry too," the stranger straightened and shook my still shaking hand. "Want to go get something? I can't fill up on shrimp and caviar."

"Neither can I, seafood isn't my favorite." I was shocked at my own boldness. My fear had released its painful grip slightly, but it was far from gone.

"Me neither. I could go for Chinese," Barbara smiled at me. "Want to join? My treat."

Now this was an unexpected decision. She seems nice enough... I want to so badly. It'd definitely be a way out of here, and with a nice person. But what if she's not nice? What if she's not who she seems? What if I mess up in front of her? What if she invites more people? "I'm not sure..."

"Hey, it's okay. I'm chill, I need a way out of this place too. I mostly came for my dad, he loves Bruce. I'm just... not in the right place to party like this."

How about this, my brain bargained with itself. If it turns out bad, we never have to see her again. If it goes good, then we... still never have to see her again. "What the heck. Got a place in mind?"

"Of course, come on! I can't think of a better time than two well dressed girls getting the best Chinese in town. We can take my dad's car."

My hands had slowly stopped trembling. I think it's going to be okay.

...

My escape with Barbara was a needed lifesaver. She made the car ride pleasant, complimenting my dress, asking me about my job, commenting on my hair. I think she sensed that I wasn't as comfortable talking about myself, so she told me about her own life. She was a college student, she was multilingual, she lived with her dad at the moment, but was looking into getting her own place. Listening to her talk was relaxing, knowing I didn't have to talk about myself, no risks of stumbling over my words like I did earlier.

We arrived at what looked to be a family-owned place, it wasn't a chain restaurant, which I sort of admired Barbara for. The best Chinese food came from small restaurants, and she seemed to acknowledge that. The woman assured me she knew exactly what I would like, telling me she'd order then come join me.

I slid into one of the empty booths. Actually, all of them were empty. Too late at night for most people to get takeout, but Barbara and I were evidently not the same as those people. She joined me at the table with trays that smelled much tastier than the takeout Chinese that my boss had delivered at the office every day for lunch. "This looks amazing, thank you so much."

"No, thank you for coming with. It's nice that I found a friend to do this with." Barbara smiled before picking up one of the cartons.

Friend. The word felt so new. "It's been a really long time since I've had a friend." Anxiety brewed and steamed in my throat, but I forgot all about it when she slid her phone across the table to me, a new contact form ready to fill out on the screen.

"Well, now you have one," the redhaired woman said with a smile, before taking another bite of the food.

...

That was four years ago to this day. It's Bruce Wayne's birthday again, but neither of us are on the guest list. That's perfectly okay, we have our own party going on for us. Empty Chinese takeout cartons lay on the coffee table, an actress on the television screen dramatically screams in fear, and I am laying on Barbara's chest, my finger becoming accustomed to the new diamond ring.

I look up at her, admiring how her fiery hair glows in the pale light of the television screen. Anxiety? Hah, not around Barbara, not anymore. Finally finding a person I can experience only joy around... that feels good. Her hand rests on my head, holding me close. Her eyes are focused on the television, but by her smile, I know her mind is somewhere else. She notices I'm no longer interested in the film, turns off the TV, and smiles down at me. Butterflies, not anxiety, fill my stomach.

"Did you get bored too?"

"You could say that."

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randomvarious · 28 days

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Today's compilation:

Neferiu Records 2000 IDM / Drum n Bass / Techno

Got a pretty nifty debut comp here from a little Canadian label called Neferiu Records that seemed to specialize in IDM and hip hop throughout its ~thirteen-year tenure. Founded at the turn of the millennium by a guy named mantrakid—who supplies his own piece of experimental dub techno with "Live v. 1.0" on this very album—Neferiu was inspired by the music from a largely European digital subculture called the demoscene, in which groups of computer nerds would make cool and stunning audiovisual presentations called demos and enter them into competitions. Not very well-versed in this stuff myself, but looks like there's some playlists of awesome demos that have been made throughout the years up on YouTube. If you love old computer graphic art, I would suggest you definitely give those a look.

Here's a neat and trippy demo I found from 1997, for example:

youtube

Anyway, being that the demoscene is a mostly European thing, it makes sense that with IDM and other related forms of computer-based electronic music being heavily driven by the internet itself, that a Canadian label would be able to recruit a bunch of European talent for its own releases. And that's exactly what seems to have happened here with this CD.

Now, I know that in the header for this post I've described this album as being IDM, drum n bass, and techno, but that's only because there are multiple tracks from each of those genres on here. Really, this is way more of an electronic music smorgasbord than I've let on. There's also a great lo-fi house track that sounds like it was recorded off of a cassette or something by Sweden's Lukas Nystrand, a piece of downtempo, and a drill n bass tune too.

But my absolute favorites on here are a pair of IDM tunes, one by a duo from Stockholm called Frank and Bill, and another by a Polish-Canadian duo called Ilkae. Frank and Bill contribute "Asfaw," a song with this little glint of a proto-trap edge in its beat that gets undergirded with some sweet, dusky pads at around the minute-mark, before continuing to add a slightly distorted chiptune-y melody to complete the package; and then Ilkae's "Kk," which is the very first track that they ever released together, seems to answer the question, "what if music box, but IDM?" Pleasantly placid chiming synths dominate this one, as they play over a constantly pecking, rhythmic bed.

And I'd be remiss if I didn't mention "Haloaw" by Helsinki's Lackluster too, an IDM tune with a much darker vibe than the rest of these. Lackluster's first 'major label' release was on the UK's deFocus, whose 12-inch sampler, Two You See?, I posted about just yesterday; and "Haloaw" also appears on another comp I've posted about in the past, one from Miami's Merck label called Squadron Sampler, which I said might just be the greatest IDM 12-inch comp that's ever been made, period 😯. That release also has Brothomstates and a teenaged Machinedrum on it.

In all honesty, I really didn't love *all* of this release, though. There are certain points where this album gets to feeling a bit listless and a little too out-there for me, personally. But still, as Neferiu puts it on their own Bandcamp page for this debut, "…you got yourself heat. Oldschool heat, but heat none-the-less." And that definitely rings true.

More of this type of stuff on the way 😎. And check out this album and the rest of the Neferiu catalog on their Bandcamp too!

Highlights:

Krii - "Futura" Abstrakt - "Infection" Frank and Bill - "Asfaw" Lackluster - "Haloaw" Lukas Nystrand - "Music - Wheres the Harm?" Ilkae - "Kk"

[P.S.: All of these are Bandcamp links except for "Haloaw" and "Kk," because those are the only ones that I could find on YouTube.]

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juni-writesx · 2 years

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zhongli comfort because i require it. pg.

warnings: depressed and tired mc. because hahahahaha life sucks. mmm fluff. bad writing because ayo it's me. no beta / not super proof-read because i'm lazy af and horrible at genshin so it's a win-win.

pre-relationship because i'm a sucker for characters that *really* like each other and be absolutely oblivious to the others feels.

mc is traveler. take your pick if you're lumine, aether, yourself, or your own oc <3 (no names named, as i find it ruins the moment. just the occasional use of 'traveler'.)

this is also untitled as of right now because i'm awful at coming up with titles for writing.

on mobile and i have no idea how to do a read more so oopsies.

-----++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++--------

amber eyes take in your form — from the way your shoulders have drooped, how there's a missing smile on your features, how your eyes do not seem to hold the same candle fire or passion within them, to how you seem a bit unsteady on your feet.

after being your traveling companion for quite some time, it would be inattentive for someone of zhongli's nature to not notice something amiss.

"hello, traveler," he says as he watches you come into his field of vision. the sun was shining in liyue, the birds were chirping, and the sounds of a waterfall flowing far off in the distance had been soothing enough to help lull you and your party to sleep that night.

and he watches, still, as you seem to straighten up your shoulders, smile that adorable smile of yours... and yet it did not reach your eyes, he noticed. it didn't help, either, that it seemed by the way you stumbled just a little, he had startled you when he spoke.

"zhongli!" you reply, doing your best to sound the most cheerful, chipper you could muster. in truth, you were exhausted. but thankfully bathed, as that is where you'd snuck off to. a nice and warm pool of water not too far off that caught your eye as you approached the area you were setting up camp last night.

Celestia above, you knew you were in desperate need of a good washing. Some time alone. to sort out thoughts that were beginning to plague you. to soothe the ache and wear in your bones and muscles from your travels. for a sense of self. . .

"...?" zhongli tilts his head to the side, observing you. and you notice that it appears he's furrowing his brow and looking at you inquisitively.

You blink. "....Is everything okay?"

"I'd asked the very same question just a moment ago. Did you not hear?"

A faint laugh escapes your lips. "My apologies. Must have water in my ears..." and you make a small show of doing your best to make it look like you're trying to get water out of them. You certainly didn't want to tell the man before you that you'd completely dazed out and were not listening to him. . .

for someone that is known as the listener, he sure is a talker.

He straightens his head, though his brow remains furrowed. "Very well then, I will just repeat myself." a beat. "Though the rest of our traveling companions are still resting, I have prepared some breakfast and tea," and he motions to the pot over the fire. "It may not have simmered for as long as I find optimal and ideal, but it should be sufficient enough. Would you like some?"

He'd noticed as of late that you were not eating as one normally should — six small meals a day was what he has come to understand, and his observation noted that you were down to maybe two.

You're not too surprised at the offering of breakfast and tea. There's always a member or two of your traveling companions that have offerings of some sort of meal as you all camped. You appreciated the effort and time they took to make meals, though, truth be told, you were were often not hungry due to depression, anxiety, worries.

"Some tea sounds great!" and you're genuinely enthusiastic about this, as the gentle breeze has caused goosebumps to form across bare skin. The warmth of the tea would settle them in no time.

The fact that you did not even mention breakfast does not go unnoticed by Zhongli as he retrieves a tea cup from one of the bags at the campsite. When he has poured the tea into the cup, he hands it to you. His eyes soft, brow unfurrowed.

You note he looks concerned.

"Thank you." The cup is warm in your hands, as you knew it would be. "I towel dried as best as I could, but I guess I'm still a little cold."

You don't notice the slight confusion that crosses his features at your comment.

He knew that you had a bit of a chill but his concern was more for your lack of appetite. . .now he has another thing to be concerned about.

"Here," you hear him say before hearing the sound of fabric rustling. "Take this."

Before you could open your mouth to protest, you feel the weight of his jacket upon your shoulders and his hands linger there. . .gently rubbing them soothingly. "I hope this suffices." His voice just above a whisper.

"Now, why don't we have a seat?" He suggests.

You nod a little, liking the idea of sitting in the warmth of the sun, sipping on tea, and being in the presence of him. And you allow him to guide you gently — large hands still upon your shoulders, to a small little area aways from where the others are resting. a rock formation the perfect size of a small bench for the two of you. You don't mind that your thighs are touching as you stretch your legs out before you.

"What is troubling you, Traveler?" He inquires softly after a few moments of silence. "Forgive me if I am prying, and I will not pressure for an answer if you do not wish to speak of the things that are on your mind. . .but I have noticed that you have not quite been yourself as of late."

"I'm fine." You reply, much too quickly. You readjust your posture just a little for your shoulders to be held high and you smile — though, again, Zhongli sees out of the corner of his eye that your smile does not reach yours. "...Just a little tired."

"Did you not sleep well last night?"

You remember waking up at some ungodly hour from the same nightmares that have plagued you ever since your twin had been taken away from you. "No."

"Is there anything that I could do to help?"

A soft sigh escapes you, and you allow your shoulders and body to relax. "I don't. . .I don't know." you admit. "Sometimes. . .I want to talk about how I'm feeling," you grip the teacup a bit more, feeling it's warmth radiating against your palms. "But I don't want to be a burden."

Zhongli turns his head to peer over at you, and he can see the battle of emotions you're going through. "You could never — would never — burden me." His voice is soft once again.

You lean against him, and he makes no move to leave. If anything, it almost felt as though he had shifted his position a little in order to be as close to you as possible. You chalked it up to it being just your imagination.

In this position, Zhongli cannot see the expressions on your face nor in your eyes, but it is much easier for him to brush his lips across the crown of your head — the thought crosses his mind, yet he lets go of the image.

He feels that maybe if he wasn't looking at you — concern and worry in his eyes — than it would be easier for you to speak of your troubles and of what was on your mind.

Comfortable silence falls between the two of you as you make work of your tea. The warmth of the drink, of the sun, and of Zhongli has comforted you and rid you of the goosebumps you'd had. "Zhongli?"

He hums in response, and you can feel it as much as you can hear it.

"Do you ever have regrets?"

For a being that has been alive for well over 6,000 years, he could, for certain, say that there were many a thing that he has come to regret with the passage of time. But, in a way, if he had not taken the winding paths and roads that his immortal life has led him down. . .this very moment may have not come to exist. You, in his life, may not have existed.

"Sometimes," he says instead of a wholehearted 'yes.' "I do well not to think of the what ifs or have beens."

"I regret not waking up before them." You whisper; the teacup in your hands are set between the two of you and you bring your legs up close enough for you to hug them.

"I regret not doing more to save them...."

"You did what you could at the time. Do not discredit yourself for the circumstances you were in. Perhaps this journey is one that you needed to take."

You can't help but let out a bitter laugh. "Not everything that occurs to us in life should be some sort of a lesson to be taught for one reason or another, Zhongli."

"And I agree, Traveler. But what has occurred has happened, and there is no way to change the past. All we can do is continue on the stone path forward."

He sighs softly; his eyes focusing on the crown of your head as he slips an arm around you to pull you just a tad closer.

You do not stop him.

"Life is full of twists and turns, of things that are the utmost painful,. . .but that should not be a deterrent to continue to fight for what you believe in or the resolution of an outcome. There's always an end to contracts."

"I just want them home."

He wonders where you would go, what you would do, when finally being reconnected to your sibling. He can't help but to feel a twinge of sadness and pain when his mind wanders to the thought of you leaving his side one day. Would you ever return to Liyue? Would you ever think of him?

"I know. . ." He whispers, and you feel that he has leaned down a little; his voice sounds closer than it has been.

"I keep having nightmares of the day we were separated. The look in their eyes as they reached out for me as they were sealed away. . ." your voice trails off as a lump in your throat forms and your eyes begin to tear up. You sniffle a little,

as Zhongli's lips brush against your hair on the top of your head. He dares not to press down to have you feel his lips on the crown of your head. ". . .I regret not being able to do anything to stop the Unknown God."

"Let us make a contract." The arm around you reaches up in order to tilt your head to look at him, and he maneuvers enough to still be close to you but also able for his gaze — full of promise and something else you cannot name — to have you captivated and locked.

"I will happily give you my assistance in seeking out your sibling with you, no matter the time or distance it takes to do so. In return. . ." His gaze softens more. "You inform me whenever something is troubling you, and allow me to do what I can to help you."

'...help to take care of you' the words are on the tip of his tongue but he swallows them down.

"I—." you begin. The look in his eyes rather intense, and you're unsure if it means to be. Maybe he's worried simply because the two of you are friends and merely traveling companions. "You're sure it won't bother you?"

"I'm as sure as the formations of these rocks that were formed by Rex Lapis many moons ago."

". . .Alright," you reply, voice soft. "Thank you, Zhongli. . .for listening, and for your concern."

"You're welcome," and he smiles at you softly. "Let us get back to the others now. I am certain they are awake."

With a nod, you stretch your legs back out and almost regrettably move away from the warmth and comfort of Zhongli in order to stand up. "I'd like some breakfast, too, even though it's probably cold by now."

"Not to fret. It's nothing that I cannot warm up a little for you and the others to enjoy." He stands as well, and places one of his hands on your shoulders. a comforting gesture. The other hand has grabbed the teacup to bring back to the campsite.

You feel a little bit better — grateful to have someone to talk to that's willing to listen to your troubles and worries, and give you sound (though sometimes confusing, because Zhongli can talk in riddles sometimes) advice.

#genshin impact #zhongli x traveler #zhongli genshin impact #genshin impact fic #zhongli #zhongli comfort #zhongli fluff #genshin impact fluff #fanfiction #juni writes

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seancamerons · 8 months

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1, 10, 15, 16

Thanks for leaving me some fanfiction asks too!!

How long ago did you start reading or writing fanfiction? Damn, I had to been when I was around about twelve or maybe thirteen. I don't know if anyone remembers the-ndotcom message boards, various Degrassi message boards (mainly Degrassi boards aka DB, anyone around, I honestly doubt it?), and of course, fanfictiondotnet my online life in the mid-2000s.💗

When I was third grade, I remember writing things that resembled fanfiction. Typically based off of some shows I saw (such as Sabrina the teenage Witch, TGIF line up was awesome) or books I read like The Boxcar Children or Junie B, for these writing journal prompts for school the teacher would assign us. When I say it's all cringe and embarrassing as hell, Let's just say I'm glad no evidence of that writing existed. That wasn't even the tip of the iceberg there, I also wanted to *be* a friggin' author. I'd even include these cheesy bios for each 'book' I would make for myself bc I'd always see them in books I read in childhood.

Fast forward to 2003, my first fanfiction (when I knew I was writing fanfiction) was a doozy for Degrassi written about Sean, Craig, and Emma in some weird season 2 timeline with a love triangle, an ill-fated camping trip, Sean's newly sober mother made an appearance in the form of a camp organizer desperate to reconnect with her son and bring him home much to his chagrin, and other things I forgot about and wouldn't wanna think much on. I was basically winging it. I'm afraid it's gone. I had notebooks and notebooks filled with stories around this time.

10. Worst writing habits? Abandoning and giving up without a doubt. A horrid habit that becomes tempting when I get writer's block, and then I just start the hell over and make something totally new and forget about it drop it like a bad habit, and the cycle comes back around like a shitty boomerang. I then will read the old one months or even years later and be filled with regret or have five million new ideas for said abandoned story. Maybe then I rework it in the future someday or in a whole dif story which has been done before. I am already my own worst critic, but I hate super flaming, negative criticism that shit doesn't help anyone except be tempted to give up.

Some fic I abandoned needed to be, such as the Zoemund vehicle in a weird alternate season thirteen titled The Starlet and Dealer. Not that I need to explain myself, but I didn't feel right writing something portraying a couple with literally no chance on any planet, not even interested in men on the whole didn't make much sense. Also who would read that considering all that? It's available on fanfictiondotnet who cares? I moved on it's never gonna have an ending.

Backtrack has more of a chance of getting an ending, and yes, it's an *almost* ten-year-old fic, just saying.😄😄😄

Another habit is simply beating myself up, comparing myself and just simply hating on myself which I gotta stop doing. Honorable mention, stuff like not being in the mood to write, or getting too much on my plate and then not writing.

15. One-shots or multi-chapters? Multichapters Angst? Yes. Fluff? Yes. Smut? I'm not that brave ha, not for a lack of trying. I usually do the ol' Disney-style cut away. I'm so lame. Hurt/comfort? Yes. Fantasy? Nah. Romance? My bread and butter🥰. Which one is your favorite? Hmm I'd say romance with multiple chapters all the way! Which one is your least favorite? My least favorite is when the protag gets pregnant and the whole story is just fucked after that because it just doesn't interest me. It's just so unoriginal and a little predictable. Unpopular or popular opinion who cares, not every love story or romance ends with a baby or a pregnancy 🤷‍♀️. I'm down for a wedding that would be something fun to tackle in writing. No, really though, out of the listed, I'd say I don't care for fantasy.

16. What’s your favorite headcanon or trope? For semma related fic's stories, I like incorporating things such as emphasis on photographs, flashbacks to past events, and some other memories from their past relationships with one another or things we didn't get to see. For example, Emma had this little box with moments like movie ticket stubs, Sean's old denim jacket (before he started wearing hoodies), Emma's retired dolphin pants, obviously photographs, a few burned mix CDs, letters, and or notes passed from class, and more miscellaneous items.

As for Emma and Jay another Degrassi pairing I write often, for example, I like including a treehouse motif. It's a long story, but in my invented backstory for Jay, Connie (Fancy) is his mother, She left his father for Mr. Edwards (Darcy and Clare's father) she met at the strip club. They had an affair resulting in pregnancy so there's a drama with that. Obviously, Jay and Darcy clash (naturally) and act like they're not related at school is an arrangement beneficial to both for Darcy's popularity and Jay had a reputation to uphold and also there's Jay's young maybe five year old half-sister from Randall and Connie named Christina affectionately nicknamed Chrissy. Jay resents his mother for leaving their father and making this new family with these stuck-up people he seems to detest and what it did to his father who had fallen in a reclusive depression since their divorce.

Chrissy idolizes Jay and serves as an honorary shipper for Emma and Jay, and sometimes provides comic relief. At Jay's dad's house is where the treehouse comes in, and Jay's super attached to it and his father too who he is still close with. The treehouse is a special spot for Jay. He eventually brings Emma into his world and treehouse, and the setting symbolizes a lot in their relationship. All this lore was created long before Jay or Darcy had a canon backstory or last names purely based on speculation. There's also related Jay/Alex lore about their past relationship, invented things from their dysfunctional childhoods. I also have a host of headcanons for Emma, Manny, and JT's childhood memories growing up together.

For tropes, I dig the first love/true love, mutual pining, enemies to lovers, slow burns, and secret relationships/forbidden love is always fun to write. I recently attempted a fake dating story Faking It/(a03)

This all is a lot of fun to write. Thanks Emma! I hope you also like writing responses to these type of questions! I’m always available and down for more questions about fanfiction! 💌

#asks #tht70sblog #💌 thank-you for the ask!#writing #writing tag #fanfiction #fic #degrassific #semma #emjay

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dearweirdme · 11 months

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The issue about tae/nnie has taken so much space in my brain for about a month now and it's making me go through such an unhealthy obsession.

I get bothered whenever that video appears in my timeline, but I'd still deliberately look for more clues and connections. I get an irrational satisfaction whenever I see posts dragging the girl (which I think is so evil of me. I mean, I never really liked her even before this, plus, her show really made me hate her more). I never engaged in fanwars. I'm just on the sideline, reading hate posts one after another. I would intentionally look for tags and stuff related to them. It's mentally exhausting. I'm beating myself up so much over it. I'm trying to find answers in an unhealthy way. It's not good.

I understand why fans are still having a hard time accepting it considering it all started with an accidental follow, then the gurumi photos, then now this. We've been debunking this for so long, so it may take awhile to accept everything. I'm still not sure if it was them coz the narrative was full of holes and downright suspicious. We haven't seen Tae in that jacket and hat, but the pants and shoes were the same. The Celine bag was there, too, held by the manager. Jennie was seen in that outfit, too, days after that. Jennie's hair was the same. Also, that fan who asked for an autograph, although super suspicious coz how in hell was she bringing a magazine with her at that time of night. The clearer video looked definitely like Tae, so I dunno what to believe anymore. They were seen getting inside the hotel, too, so, I dunno anymore.

I've been reading posts denying the rumors, too, so it's honestly just so confusing.

Thing is, nobody really knows what's the truth, only Tae and Jennie and their companies do.

I've been reading your asks, and there were a few who are convinced that Tae is not gay. Maybe we just read him wrong, and he's just an LGBT ally. However, I disagree with the anon who said Tae can't be gay because of Wooga or Bogum coz men can be friends with gays, too. I have gay friends and straight male friends, and they get along just fine.

It's been almost a month, and we still haven't gotten our answers, and surely, there won't be any confirmation happening ever. We will just live through the confusion until one day, this will just become part of our memory as their fans.

For now, we just have to remember why we became fans in the first place. We always have to hold on to that reason why we chose BTS, what they did for us. We need to continue supporting them. We don't own them. They make us happy, we should let them find their happiness, too.

Also, I realized how fickle our minds can get. If we're not mentally strong, we can get swayed easily. We create our own truths and beliefs based on our own understanding and judgment, so we have to try surrounding ourselves with more possitive things.

We're all in this together! Happy Festa!

Hi anon!

I fear you are making yourself very unhappy at the moment. I'm glad you recognize what you're doing isn't good for you. Maybe step out for a bit?

At this point you're unlikely to find out anything new about the Paris footage. But I don't even think that's where your real problem lies. You feel too unsure about Tae and Jk probably, and you're expressing obsessive behavior because you want to make sense of things and go back to feeling safe in your believes. But the thing is, we will never know exactly what's happened, so you are likely to always have a hint of doubt in your mind. That is what you have to come to terms with, living with doubt.

Doubt can make people feel really unsafe, even when it doesn't involve themselves. Just try to tell yourself that you are safe (at least I hope you are). Whatever happens to Tae and Jk has no physical effect on your safety. You yourself are not being attacked or harmed. Try to avoid reading hate. Hate is a nasty thing, it will never make you happy. You don't have to look at stuff containing Jennie if it makes you sad. It's all about choices anon, you just have to make the right ones for yourself. You do have some control here, you have the control to filter what you see.

#anon #taekook

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kaeyazuha · 2 years

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As much as I wanna say “Lmao maybe Sneznyaha is why” I can’t bring myself to think so. Mainly because, if rumors are correct, the Tsartisa was once the archon of love. If I really had to put anything down, it might be Fontaine. Justice has always been a shaky term when thrown around because everyone has their own version of it. But at the same time, the Teyvat we know now isn’t the same Teyvat as the Abyss Twin knew. A lot of changes happen and it’s to the point they’re fighting for a dead nation.

I’m thinking that our adventure is parallel to our twin’s but in a sense of a downward spiral. They’re getting more snarky, blunt, and full of themselves. And I wanna believe that the twins balanced each other out in a sense of keeping the other in line. Tbh, it seems to be a coping mechanism from being separated from their sibling for so long with rarely any help. The only help we get from is Dainsleif but he appears so rarely for the Traveler. So for them to start getting arrogant and egotistical seems like they’re trying to cope and possibly impress their sibling to come back.

This is coming from someone w abandonment issues and would do whatever they could as a child in hopes of garnering attention HAHA. So this spiral we see could possibly be the Traveler either 1) seem independent as if they don’t need their twin. Which might make said Twin come back. 2) a way for them to think they’ll do just fine without said Twin because they’ve done everything together before this. 3) a wack ass form of telling themselves that everything is fine. Or 4) all of the above.

I kind of hope we get a character that knocks the traveler down a peg or two. Just a simple reminder that they’re not a god even if they are from another world. Teyvat has its own laws, after all. And I’m sure Celestia wouldn’t take too kindly for an outsider of their world acting all high and mighty.

I like to see their arrogant act as a coping mechanism. A way to hide that they’re honestly not doing that great and just want their family back. Because, let’s be honest, if we kept helping people but never got the help we needed, we’d get bitchy. At least I would.

Sorry for the late reply!

That makes sense, I like it! I forgot where Fontaine is, but I think we'll get there after Natlan and before Snezhnaya, so hopefully we can see what happens soon enough. Also a fair point about Teyvat changing over time. Maybe there will be ruins from an older time in Teyvat with more clues :0

YES I've noticed Genshin loves to do things in pairs, and I love the idea of that applying to the siblings as well. After Makoto died, Ei spiraled. Same goes for Venti and his friend, Zhongli and Guizhong, Kazuha and his friend, etc etc. but a lot of things come down to a pair seperated by death, leading to the spiral of the other person. While our sibling isn't dead (yet) I'd like to think this is worse than that, knowing our sibling is out there and could come to us at any time and chooses not to. Not to mention all the hints and even the blatant words of a few straight-up telling us that our sibling doesn't care for us anymore.

That makes perfect sense. Honestly I think a combination of all 4 seems likely. I feel like there will be a point where Traveler is just so pissed and fed up with all of it, that they just quit for a time. However, I'm really hoping the big meltdown happens in front of the sibling. I want traveler to be angry and yell at them for all the hell they made traveler go through to find them and travel the world, yell about Celestia and its lies, all the losses that happened, etc. BONUS POINTS if the sibling in turn does the same. Genshin's usually good at angst if nothing else so hopefully this happens, it'll be a good way to see where they both stand.

YES YES YES I thought Raiden would be a reality check, but no- we've technically been beaten several times- Dvalin (I think), Signora, Raiden, Osial, etc. The difference is that even in those fights, we came back and beat them. I want there to be a fight that traveler just can't win. I think there's almost nothing worse than feeling powerless, especially for someone like traveler.

I haven't thought of it that way. :0 I figured Traveler was just slowly getting fed up and desensitized to other people's issues, so they distanced themselves as a result- but I like the idea of a coping mechanism! That's smart. And hell yeah, I'd be beyond pissed off by now, I'm honestly impressed at both Traveler and Paimon's patience.

#kycasual

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ajab-leher · 3 years

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do you ever just have this ugly scary emotion that makes you feel so terrible? when you want sympathy and somehow express yourself in a way that gets you sympathy and then.

and then you feel like you manipulated someone into sympathizing with you, because somewhere it feels so wrong that you got it? that you got it because you wanted it and because you asked for it?

#anandita talks about her emotions #anandita don't overanalyse everything you cause or encounter challenge FAILED #anandita's sad hours #(i am not actively sad right now!!!! i found this tag and i'm gonna use it now ajahdhsh)#but like! the feeling i get when i feel like i have manipulated someone but logically i know that's not inherently menipulative to #yknow express your negative emotions because you want comfort or warmth or sympathy or sometimes #yeah i sometimes want my sadness to be seen as i feel it and like that's a form of wanting attention #and thinking of it like this #it really makes sense that i'd beat myself up over it because i appear to have some weird schema that tells me i cannot ask for attention #that if i get it ever it should be earned??? does that make any sense?#and just yeah i'm gonna sort through these emotions and grow healthier one day!#and maybe being aware is the first step to it? yeah!#and this makes me think i'm not as open emotionally? i had a phase where i used to very openly express my negative emotions #but that was unhealthy too because i wasn't anything but them? i used to feel sad and i kind of made that my whole identity?#but i think moving on from that phase i've begun to deflect my sadness even though i feel it very deeply #i don't want other people to see it and identify it with me #and maybe it's because i'm afraid i'll be perceived a certain way if i do and i don't want to make anyone uncomfortable #or obliged to be gentler or kinder (or SYMPATHIZE ureka!!!!! or pity too ig) to me purely because i am sad #but i don't know how i want to be treated? or how i want people to tread around me? or how i want comfort?#and i'm gonna figure this out #by projecting these onto my characters and resolving them ahfhsjhd #look at me revolutionising psychotherapy! this is non-directive questioning my dudes!#(just kidding!!!!! I'M NOT QUALIFIED FOR THIS STUFF)#anandita challenges her core schemas!#(but i'm kinda proud about integrating elements of cognitive therapy in resolving my fanfiction's conflicts tho)#personal attack!

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angel-riki · 3 years

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Dazed & Dreaming {Ch. 3 }

summary: Y/N's life was always quite normal, some may even consider it boring. However, Y/N enjoyed her simple life and the little pleasures it brought. Unfortunately, that all changed the day she found out her best friend's biggest secret. Her discovery leads her down a rabbit hole of a new and confusing world she never knew existed. She must now navigate this new life filled with love, fear, and the supernatural. What awaits her down this path?

pairing: enhypen x reader (vampire au)

warnings: light swearing

word count: 1,658

chapters: [Ch.1] [Ch.2] [Ch.4]

~~~~~~~~~~

God, the weekend can't come soon enough. You sighed as you strolled through the hall to go grab the books for your next class. As you approached your locker, you noticed Heeseung was there waiting for you. He was hard to miss since he towered over all of the lockers. Has he always been this tall? Your heart fluttered and you couldn't keep from smiling. He waved at you as you got closer.

"Hey, Y/N!" he said cheerfully.

"Hello," you replied, "What are you doing here? Not that I mind or anything!" You tried not to sound rude, you were just confused. Your schedules were completely different and his locker was in an entirely different wing than yours. Usually, you only saw each other at lunch.

"I just thought I'd come see you...I missed you," he admitted.

You were not ready for that answer. It was like he was trying to make you fall in love with him. Your face was burning up, you probably looked ridiculous.

"Oh, that's really sweet. I missed you too," you returned his kindness with a giggle.

Now, it was his turn to blush. He looked away from you, trying to contain his smile. It seemed like you had the same effect on him that he had on you.

Heeseung ended up walking you to your next class, chatting on the way. You were sad you only got to talk for a few minutes, but you'd see him soon since lunch was right after.

You set your stuff down at your desk and pulled out your books. As everyone settled into class, your teacher announced that today was going to be a work day. You were relieved because you had a couple of assignments you desperately needed to catch up on. You cracked your knuckles before getting to work. You managed to focus surprisingly well, considering Heeseung was taking up 90% of your thoughts. You ended up getting completely caught up with all of your assignments before the bell rang. Feeling accomplished, you packed up your books and headed to the cafeteria.

*****

You looked around for Jake and Heeseung like usual, tray in hand. You spotted them sitting with three other boys that you didn't recognize. Two of them were blonde and the other had black hair. Maybe they're those other boys that Jake and Heeseung talked about, you thought while heading to their table. Jake looked up from their conversation and noticed you approaching them.

"Hey, Y/N!" He smiled wide while motioning for you to sit next to him. The rest of the boys looked up and noticed you as well. You waved at them all, a bit intimidated. As you joined them, Jake introduced you all. "Everyone, this is Y/N. Y/N, this is Sunoo, Jungwon, and Niki," he explained. You smiled at the new faces,

"Hello, nice to meet you all," you said with a gentle smile. Wow, they're all so cute, you thought. Were all of Jakes friends this good looking? The three boys stared back at you in awe.

"Wow, you're Y/N? Jake has told us so much about you!" Sunoo chimed in excitedly. He really reminded you of a puppy.

"Yeah, he talks about you a lot," Niki admitted.

"It's nice to finally meet you!" Jungwon added with kind eyes.

You became less tense as you heard their words. You were touched, Jake really talks about me that much? You looked over at him and you noticed his cheeks were dusted pink. Why does he seem embarrassed? You decided not to think into it too much as the boys carried on their conversation.

"Where's Sunghoon? Shouldn't he be here by now?" Niki asked, confused.

"He had lunch detention so he'll probably get here pretty late, if at all," Jake said. They all chuckled. None of them looked surprised, a few even rolled their eyes. This seemed to be a common occurrence.

Everyone continued on talking and eating for a few minutes before the boys suddenly perked up and began waving at someone. You turned around to see who they were waving at.

Oh no.

It was that strange boy you had run into in the hall last week. The universe just loved making you uncomfortable, apparently.

"Sunghoon, you're here!" Sunoo exclaimed happily.

"How did you get out of detention?" Jungwon asked.

"I got up and left." Sunghoon said like it was obvious.

"Didn't the teacher try to stop you?" Heeseung joined in.

"No, she went to the bathroom."

The boys laughed and shook their heads. Sunghoon sat down at the table as Jake began to introduce you once again,

"Sunghoon, this is Y/N-"

"Oh, we've met." Sunghoon cut him off, grinning as his eyes went to you. The rest of the boys looked slightly confused.

"Uh yeah, we're in the same english class. I didn't know he was a friend of yours," you chuckled nervously as you tried to explain yourself. You didn't want anyone to get any weird ideas since Sunghoon seemed like he was trying to imply something else.

"Ah, that makes sense," Heeseung said. They all nodded, understanding now.

"So, how did you get detention this time?" Niki asked, changing the subject.

"I didn't do my homework." Sunghoon answered.

"What class was it for?" Jungwon questioned.

"English."

Jake perked up at his answer. "Oh, you should have Y/N help you! She's great at english and you're both in the same class, it's perfect!'" He explained. You shot Jake a look for volunteering you.

"What a good idea, Jake." Sunghoon turned to you, smirking with his tongue in his cheek. "Whaddaya say, Y/N?"

"Uh, yeah sure," You laughed awkwardly and accepted his request, not wanting to appear rude. Although you really did not want to.

"Great, I'll see you after school," he said, pleased with the way things were playing out. You weren't expecting to start today, but you weren't about to argue with him.

*****

The end of the day finally came as you checked the time and sighed. Time to go meet up with Sunghoon. You grumbled as you headed to the library. How did I let myself get roped into this?

You entered the library and looked around for the dark-haired boy. You noticed him sitting far off in a corner by himself. As you walked over to him, you realized he didn't have any of his books or work with him.

"Where are your books?" You asked, confused.

"Eh, I didn't feel like bringing them," he said, uninterested.

"Why would you ask for my help if you clearly don't want to do the work?" He was starting to get on your nerves.

"Because I wanted to see you, obviously," he said smugly.

You scoffed before sitting down next to him and pulling out your books for him to use. You weren't going to let him off this easy.

"Well lucky for you, I have my books with me. So let's get started," you retorted. He rolled his eyes at you. "Hey, you wanted this, not me." You said, holding your hands up defensively. He sighed and accepted defeat as you opened the book and began going over the assignment.

You had only been working for about 15 minutes but you were already over it. Tutoring him was like pulling teeth. You would put in the effort to thoroughly explain something to him, just for him to write down the most half-assed answer ever. And what made things even more frustrating was that you could tell he understood everything perfectly, he wasn't dumb. He was actually quite smart, he just didn't care and didn't want to care. You quickly realized he didn't actually even need your help. Your patience was wearing thin as he began tapping his pencil against the table rather loudly.

"Can you please stop that?" you asked, unamused.

"Anything for you, princess." The nickname dripped off of his tongue so naturally. Too naturally. You rolled your eyes and turned back to your book. Yet, your heart was beating faster than you'd like to admit.

You continued working, but after a while he stopped listening and just began staring at you. You didn't want to give in. You carried on while trying to ignore him. Sadly, you failed. You turned to face him, visibly uncomfortable.

"Are you even paying attention?" You asked.

"Not to the work, just to you." He answered honestly.

Why were your cheeks getting hot?

"Why do you keep doing that?" you questioned, irritated.

"Doing what?" He said with a teasing grin.

"Saying weird things," you said, "Do you like making me uncomfortable or something?"

"Yeah, I do. It's fun. Plus, you look really cute when your flustered." He stated simply.

You hated to admit it, but he did have an affect on you. You convinced yourself that it was just because of his good looks. There was no way you actually liked him, right? Right? Either way, you were not going to give him the satisfaction of knowing he had such an effect on you. You stood up and gathered your things, wanting to get out of there as soon as possible. You were frustrated in more ways than one.

"Aw, leaving so soon, princess?" he asked.

"Yes. You're driving me crazy." You replied, already heading towards the library doors.

"Yeah, in a good way." He said, satisfied with himself.

You pretended not to hear his last remark as you left.

After exiting the building, you finally felt like you could breathe again. God, Sunghoon was suffocating to be around. Jake, why did you have to befriend such a jackass?

~~~~~~~~~~

Hello! Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I tried to pick up the pace and add some more ~romance~ hehehe. I also finally introduced all of the boys except Jay (don't worry he'll come into the picture very soon). Until next time!

~Elle <3

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acciocriativity · 3 years

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You and Me II || Harry Potter

Pairing: Draco Malfoy x Slytherin/Reader

Summary: After years at Hogwarts, your life would really begin and nothing could be better than to start this new phase with your official birthday party, but the next day does not turn out quite as expected.

Warnings: For those who haven't read the first part yet, Tom Riddle is not Voldemort in this fic. The first wizard war was against another wizard but its consequences are still valid! Just pure fluff and an implied bit of smut.

Word Count: 3,0k

A/N: This is obviously the part two of You and Me, but it’s not necessarily related, so you can just read this one as a one shot but the first part gives you a lot of context for this, ok? ok then. (Happy really early Birthday Katie! I'd like to post this on your bday but I was too anxious for this. Hope you like it!)

Part I

04/27/1997

"You're really not well, how can a person be in this state when their birthday is so close? I've tried to understand and still can't", the brunette's bored voice made itself present in the room for the 4th time in the day and as I prepared my answer, she held up her hand and delivered her own hypothesis first. "You can't be sad that we're finishing seventh year, I swear for Merlin's sake, if that's the case, I'll...", the words slipped slowly from her mouth, as did the calmness remaining in her.

"Even though anything you have to say sounds like a lot of fun, it's not the case. I really want to start my own life, have my own job and all that. I'm just thinking a lot lately, too many things have happened, we've all changed so much", I didn't bother to look at her, still focused on the ceiling painted like a blue summer sky and she didn't mind asking permission to lie next to me on the bed.

"We had to grow up eventually, although some took too long, in fact, I can point out for sure that half the boys still act like kids", we both laughed until our bellies ached.

"Well, good for us then because Draco and Blaise are not on that list and don't even dare look at me like that, you know he's changed a lot", I heard her amused giggles and already imagined what was coming.

"I wasn't even going to say anything this time, it's really impressive how you just stick up for him, I hope it's the same with me", I frowned and looked at her as if she was out of her mind, and there were chances she really was. "Since when do you need protection from someone?".

"I never said I needed it, but it's nice to know I have it", she shrugged without looking me in the eye and I decided it would be better to change the subject, because nothing good ever comes out of a Pansy, who is unseasy in any sense.

"So, about your...," she started. "Pansy, what do you…”, I said at the same time, but I just smiled and waited in silence for what she had to say.

"I was going to ask about your parents, you're going to have to live with them in a month, so how are you feeling about that?", she just glanced at me.

"That's been going through my mind, I have no idea what it's going to be like but it's going to be better than anything that's happened in the past, that's enough for now", I sighed.

"You know you can come to my house, right? You can hide there", I agreed with a smile and we continued in a comfortable silence.

04/29/1997

7:30 A.M.

On the morning of my birthday, I woke up in the best possible way. The warmth emanating from Draco's body and the thick blanket kept me unfazed by the freezing wind coming in through the window. I didn't want to move and I didn't need to.

I sighed satisfied with the position I was in, curled up under the blanket hugging the blond's bare torso, with no responsibility or obligation other than to enjoy my day.

"Morning, love", his arms pressed me tighter against him, I could feel his calm breathing and somehow, I felt calmer too.

I left a few kisses on his bare skin and the goosebumps they caused on him made me break out into a little smile. "Good morning, love", I whispered leaning back against him.

"Come here, let me give you a proper happy birthday", he gave my hair a quick pat and lifted my chin to look at him.

As soon as I crawled closer to him, his arms entwined around my waist and pulled me even closer.

"Happy birthday my love", he left several little kisses on my face and neck before moving to my lips, but our moment was interrupted by a noise on the window.

A gray owl incessantly beat its beak on the window pane, we looked at each other, neither of us wanted to get up, but it would be too cruel to leave the poor thing waiting there.

"It's my birthday, I have the right to ask you to go", I gave a brief kiss on his lips before letting him go to the war field.

I stayed warm while he opened the window further so that the owl could get through, as well as the icy wind.

He rushed back to my side in time to see me tear the seal off the letter I received.

"It's from my parents, they are really working hard this year. I have to admit that", I told him as I scanned the paper.

"At least they realized what a great daughter they have, she's a little mean but still great", I was too busy reading the letter to notice his cunning and more icy than usual hands pass around me.

I jumped out of bed as I felt the shock of our skin contact and he had the audacity to laugh, I had to control myself too much not to grab my wand.

"Draco Lucius Malfoy, you are dead now", I climbed into bed with my pillow, ready to fight.

20:00 P.M.

A few hours later, I was getting ready for the party in the Slytherin common room, everyone was invited since after this stressful year, a party would be nice and I couldn't physically kick anyone out.

I was barely concentrating in my makeup, Nala was running back and forth between my feet wanting attention and I couldn't give it to her or for the next few hours, no matter how much it broke my heart.

"For Merlin's sake... Nala! Sit!", it saddened me to see that she obeyed but still wanted to come running to me, that deserved a good reward.

I fed her one of her favorite cookies and petted her shiny fur before going back in front of the mirror. I checked several times to make sure I was ready.

"See you later my love, mma will be back soon", I waved to her and went downstairs before I gave in.

There were already a lot of people when I arrived, the new song by The Weird Sisters was so loud that Pansy didn't hear me, even though I called out 2 times as she passed by on the other side of the room.

As I made my way through, many friends stopped to congratulate me and also to chat a bit, by the time I realized what I was supposed to do, more than 10 minutes had passed.

"Have you guys seen Pansy? I was looking for her", I said before turning my own glass of buttered beer over and leaving it in Tom's hand. "See you guys later", my eyes were glued on the blond guy standing in the corner and in less than a second, I was walking towards him.

"What the hell am I supposed to do with that?!", I heard his indignant voice but ignored it along with all the other people, who tried to talk to me on my way to him.

"You know, the delay is only elegant because it doesn't last more than 5 minutes", he was smiling even though he hated tardiness.

"Maybe for most people, a queen is never late love, the others were too early. Especially when it's her birthday", I stopped in front of him. "You haven't given me my present yet, I'm waiting", I pointed to my own lips.

He chuckled and looked at me for a few seconds before he said something, even with the lights flashing I could still see the twinkle in his eyes, which still reflected mine equally.

"Are you asking this as a gift around too?", his smile widened as did mine, he took a step closer.

"Does that mean you're not going to give it to me? I had high expectations for this one in particular", something in his gaze changed, I could clearly tell but it was gone as quickly as it appeared.

"That particular one can wait, right now, I have my main gift", he took his hands off his back and in them was a green velvet median box with silver details.

I was almost breathless just admiring the package once it was in my hands. To top it off, a green silk bow and I had the impression that he had made it himself.

When I opened it, my jaw dropped. A silver necklace with an emerald heart carefully displayed in the box.

"Draco, you really didn't have to give me something expensive", he didn't answer me, instead took the necklace and helped me put it on.

"It seemed like an appropriate gift, now that we will no longer be living by Slytherin rules, it’s a nice way to say goodbye", I didn't think twice before I kissed him.

"I love you, I'll never get tired of saying that", I whispered between kisses. "You won't forget that, right?", I sighed as he brushed his lips across the skin of my neck.

"I have no reason to forget love, I...", we were interrupted by a forced cough behind me.

"Why don't you two just go into a room? No one has to see this scene", Blaise's unmistakable voice sounded and I felt my boyfriend giggle, not moving out of position.

"You can go after your girlfriend instead of getting in our way, wouldn't that be a brilliant idea?", I didn't see what happened, but a nice answer wouldn't be."So where were we honey?", he raised his eyes to meet mine.

"We better save that for the end of the party love, wasn't that your idea?", I pulled away from him and took his hand. "You have a whole party to enjoy."

"I already regret that decision, thanks for reminding me", he mumbled that and a few other things I couldn't hear.

07/01/1997

7:00 A.M.

"I still can't believe this is our last breakfast at Hogwarts", Astoria commented amidst the silence that had formed at our table.

"I still can't believe it's really over, it seems like any minute now I'm going to wake up and be back in third year", Pansy added.

"Well, I hope you'll make better decisions if you go back there tonight. No one forgot the hair Pan", my remark made everyone laugh for the first time in the day, a bit of pride grew inside me.

"Just because Hogwarts is over doesn't mean we're going to split up. None of you have any right to be this down today", Theo said and I was forced to smile as was everyone else.

"I was glad to be rid of you, at no point I was sad," Blaise muttered but we could all hear him and we all laughed once again.

8:00 A.M.

"What are you thinking?" he was with his eyes closed leaning against the train window, but I knew he wasn't asleep.

"How familiar everything here is, the worn leather of the seat, the smell of candy in the hallway and of trees coming in through the window. Other things will be familiar 7 years from now, it's just weird to think about it," he continued in the same position but held out his hand to me.

"That's true but I feel better knowing that we will continue to be each other's constant," I intertwined our fingers and we continued like that until we arrived.

11:00 A.M.

"It's time for the gifts, we prefer to give you personally. I believe you will like it", my mother said as soon as we sat down on the couch in our living room.

I smiled not knowing how to respond, since I usually got the same thing every year, money or more paint, and I was pretty sure they didn't choose in person.

"Go ahead, open it. We decided to give two separate presents this year, the pink wrapping is mine and the purple one is your father's", the two boxes were right next to me on the couch, so why was I hesitating so much to pick them up?

A lot was going on in my head, they have changed a lot in the last year but why? I could be dreaming of the ideal day, but no dream was as vivid as this one.

I took a deep breath and opened the pink first, I expected to find anything but my stuffed bunny, he was washed and clean, different from how I remembered, but still the same.

"I thought I lost or tore it a long time ago", I managed to say as I hugged him like one who finds an old friend, but he was beyond that.

"He was really in a rough state, but I was able to fix him. It was in one of the boxes in the basement, remember how you got it?", I agreed again, a wave of memories washed over me.

My parents had just arrived home from a business trip, it was the first time I had been alone at home without them.

"Mommy, Daddy!", I ran down the stairs as fast as my little legs would allow and threw myself into my father's arms, not caring about his wet coat, which soon became even wetter. "You promi-promised that you would be back soon”.

"Oh my love, something unexpected has happened. We were never going to leave you alone for so long," her hands wiped away my tears and took me in her lap. "So, for you never have to be alone again, we brought a little friend, he will always keep you company when we have to leave."

That wasn't enough to calm me down but it made me curious enough to stop crying, I didn't have any friends before that.

I hurried to open the other package but there was only an empty picture frame with no photo inside.

Before I could open my mouth to ask for an explanation, shapes began to appear from the black background.

I recognized the picture, me still a baby in my mother's arms and my father behind her, hugging us both but as soon as I blinked, it was gone.

Another picture formed in its place, I was older, about two or three years old, this one I had never seen. I was on my mother's lap holding a drawing that I had made and possibly looked terrible.

More pictures appeared and disappeared but I didn't wait to see them all at that moment.

"I loved these gifts...thank you Mom and Dad," I made a great effort to hold back the tears as I hugged them both. "They are the best presents I have ever gotten."

23:00 P.M.

"What are you two doing out there at this time of night?! Draco, have you been drinking now?", Narcisa gave us another stern look before opening the door and shoving us inside.

We walked in almost tripping over the living room rug, laughing at each other, to the point where tears formed in our eyes.

"Shhhhhh, my dad must be working... uhhhhhh, he's not going to like this, u-um," his hand covered my mouth.

I pushed his hand away from my face. “Me?Shut up? You're practically screaming you idiot!".

"You two, I don't want another peep out of you. Come up quietly. Your father doesn't like to be interrupted," she whispered, but it was enough for us to agree without hesitation.

"Yes, Captain, I mean, ma'am," he pulled me up the stairs before her patience ran out.

07/02/1997

14:00 P.M.

"What do you mean, you don't remember what happened?", the blond was clearly trying hard not to laugh and I sighed, still under the blanket.

"I don't remember Draco, did your mother really not hate me? I can't believe we came here...", even though no one was watching me, I started to blush, or was it just the fever? There's no way to be sure now.

"That could never happen, she made sure to request your favorite tea. Now get out of there before it gets cold", he tried to pull on my blanket but I used all the rest of my strength not to let him.

"Noooo, out there that's too cold. Come here, it's too cold for you too", I took one of my hands from the comfortable warmth to pull him to me. "You didn't have to get up so early to get this", I whispered but soon after started coughing.

"There must be a potion to help you, I'll just get it and then...", he was ready to get up from the bed but I didn't let go of his arm.

"I just want you, please stay here? The elf will bring it anyway", before he could protest, I covered him with the blanket. "You're not well either, let's just lay down for now".

He opened his mouth to deny it again but all that came out was a sneeze, after this he just gave up and lied down too. We were both screwed but at least we were together, right? I tried to think positive.

[ @x-dratie-x @fa-me]

Harry Potter Masterlist

#harry potter fanfiction #fred weasley #harry potter #george weasley #draco malfoy x reader #draco malfoy masterlist #draco malfoy fluff #draco malfoy smut #tom riddle #blaise zanbini #pansy parkinson #ron weasley #hp fanfic

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0606-hyuck · 3 years

Text

a letter to my lover | park jisung

♡ dear y/n, i’m writing you this letter in the hopes that it gets to you well. our relationship has been tumultuous, that’s for sure, and i thought it was high time i wrote you a letter detailing all the times you said "i love you" that are important to me.

genre: jisung x reader, fluff, supernatural!jisung, werewolf!jisung

warnings: mentions of vomiting (not in an e.d sense), mentions of breaking bones and transformation

word count: 2.5K

tagging: the lovely @roses-of-the-moon ♡ @mora134340

Dear Y/N~

The first time you said “I love you”, I vomited on you.

God, I can’t explain how hard I cringed while writing that. Every time I think back to that first time, my body just wants to turn inwards on itself. The first time you said it, we were both participating in an anti-bullying course at our middle school. I remember our teacher, Miss Son, had the whole class pair off with someone they’d never talked to before and tell the other person they were loved and appreciated. Everyone was quick to pair off, and as one of the quietest kids in class, I was naturally without a partner. You noticed me from the other side of the classroom and, probably wanting to be paired with me rather than that weird girl who bit people, you made your way over and we became partners for the exercise. Miss Son made us face each other, hold hands, stare into each other’s eyes, and say something nice. You offered to go first, and I didn’t know what shallow back-handed compliment you were going to say about me, but I could guess some of the more popular options. “I love that you’re so quiet and observant, Jisung.” “I love how you don’t care what other people think of you!” And my personal favourite, “you’re actually not as weird as I thought you were!”

So, when you straight up said, “I love you, Jisung,” I was so surprised and embarrassed that my lunch decided to make an appearance. Why would you say you loved me? You barely even knew me! I could feel a blush heating up my cheeks and my hands became so sweaty and I knew you were waiting for me to reply but all I could focus on were the butterflies in my stomach that were churning my half digested chicken sandwich, and I opened my mouth to reply and suddenly my lunch was all over your t-shirt. I remember the disgusted cry you let out which caused all our classmates to turn around and see you covered in my vomit, and when I realised that I’d not only embarrassed myself but you as well, the water-works started. While everyone else was laughing and pointing at us, and I had horribly warm tears streaking down my face, you managed to pull the both of us up and march us to the bathroom without a second glance back. You handed me a bunch of paper towels and sat me on the toilet seat to calm down, while you tried your best to wash your clothes.

I remember how hard I tried to apologise to you, my misery and embarrassment causing me to choke up multiple times, but you wouldn’t let me. You said, and I quote, “shit happens”, ordered me to give you my jumper while you removed your ruined t-shirt, and that was that. The top was thrown in the bin, my tears wiped from my eyes, and you took us back to the classroom. Miss Son was, understandably, worried for both us and your clothes, but you told her not to worry, and for the next hour you stayed by my side and any time someone tried to tease me about what happened, you glared at them until they backed away.

I thought you were so cool and cold-hearted at the time, but I would quickly realise you were anything but.

The second time you said “I love you”, I was already telling you all my secrets.

After the incident, which we both refer to as the “Chicken Sandwich Crisis”, we became friends. Middle school can be rough for anyone, and especially hard for people like me who were labelled “weird” and “friendless”. But you didn’t care about any of that. I noticed you started hanging out with me on the playground more, and when we had to pair up in class you were usually the first (and only) to offer to be my partner. Soon, it became natural. No longer was it just, “oh, it’s Jisung,” it was, “oh, there’s Jisung and Y/N.” Your friends teased you for associating with a weirdo like me, but when I asked you why you kept picking me over your friends you simply said, “they’re not my friends any more.”

It was almost a year after the Chicken Sandwich Crisis that I asked you about it again. I wanted to know why you had said “I love you” rather than literally anything else you could have said at that moment. So I did. I thought you might be angry, or at the very least embarrassed, that I was bringing up the whole vomiting incident, but you just laughed. Super loudly, by the way. Like, literally right in my face and it took you a whole three minutes to calm down again, Y/N. You said you’d never let me live that moment down, and in that instant I was once again reminded how embarrassing it actually was. Anyway, you explained that although you didn’t know me, you also had no reason to hate me, and the best way to tell someone they are loved is to straight up tell them. You then countered that, yes, your phrasing had been a little strange at the time, but we were both eleven and you didn’t mean anything by it.

I was glad I’d asked you, because in the year we’d become friends I’d realised something crucial about you. You were someone who wore your heart on your sleeve (and your emotions plain for anyone to see). You didn’t see the point in trying to hide your feelings or twist your words to mean something else. If you were happy, everyone knew about it. One look at the gigantic smile on your face and genuine laugh that started making my heart skip a beat and anyone knew you were happy. The frown, piercing glare, and occasional rolled eyes meant you were unhappy. If someone was bothering you, you told them. If something I did made you really happy, you let me know so I could do it again. I come from a family who are almost physically unable to lie, but I'd never met someone as honest as you.

So, I didn’t think twice when I told you about that family of mine - about who I was. When I told you I was actually a werewolf, you laughed your head off. Then, when you realised I was serious, the genuine curiosity radiating from you let me know you believed me, and then you told me so. I’d never told anyone that I was not human before, but it felt so right to tell you, my best friend. I was worried you wouldn’t accept me, but I also knew that would never be a possible outcome. After I told you, nothing much really changed. You treated me the way you had before, although you asked me a lot of questions about my family and my species. It was nice talking to someone about myself and knowing I could spill all my secrets and they would be totally and 100% safe with you.

A year later, I realised I had another secret I hadn’t told you. I was utterly and madly in love with you. As we had gotten to know each other over the past two years, we spent almost all of our spare time together and I had fallen for your charm, kindness, and your honesty. You had accepted me when no one else would, even before you knew what I was, and that was the best feeling in the world. I think, Y/N, I had known I was in love with you for awhile. Or at least I knew it wasn’t natural to get so nervous to be alone around my best friend, for my heart to try to jump out of my chest when you wrapped me in a hug, and for me to get butterflies every single time you shot your bright smile my way.

In our friendship, you were usually the one who had to convince me to do things, to go out of my comfort zone, but now I knew this was something I’d have to take the lead on. I was so nervous to tell you I loved you that I blurted it out one day when I was over at your house, determined to just get it out there and wait for your reaction. I remember throwing a hand over my mouth when I realised that was not the romantic gesture I had imagined, and burying my head into your bed sheets only to be pulled back up and kissed sweetly on the cheek. Although I had totally embarrassed myself in front of you again, you found it cute how nervous I was and from that day on we were dating.

The third time you said “I love you”, I was introducing you to my parents.

And my nine siblings.

Okay, so it wasn’t actually the first time you’d met my family. By this point you and I had been dating like, what, seven years? I’d introduced you to my parents almost immediately after we had started dating, after I admitted I was a werewolf, and you became a regular around at my house. Our Sundays were spent having dinner with my family, where you just loved to joke with my parents how you should have known I wasn’t human, what with my lanky limbs and perpetual clumsiness. For a few days each month you and I would go with my older brothers and sister on a hike through the forest and mountainside that our community was developed near, and share funny and heartfelt stories around the campfire we’d built. In a short space of time, you had integrated yourself well and truly into my family circle.

This wasn’t just a regular dinner this time, though. We were both in our early twenties, and you’d just made the biggest decision of your life. You were going to become a werewolf, just like me. Ever since I’d told you my secret, we’d entertained the idea of being together forever. Obviously, you were human and I was immortal, so the only way we could live together was if I gave up my immortality, or you became like me. Werewolves are notoriously pack-focused animals, so there was no way my family was going to allow me to become human, but you were willing to give up your mortal life for me. For us.

My mother had agreed to turn you, and in order to be able to do so she would have to be in her wolf form on the night of a full moon. My mother was chosen to do the turning because she was the one who was most likely to be in control when she changed. I would have done it myself, but I don’t think I would have been able to restrain myself once I had changed forms and picked up your scent.

That night, you told me you loved me twice. Once was while my family were all still in our human forms - you gave me a long kiss and told me that no matter what happened you loved me. The second time was after the thick clouds dispersed to reveal the moon, in all of her full glory, and after the sound of mine and my family’s bones breaking and shifting resounded through the clearing we were in as we all transformed. I wasn’t able to be close to you as the turning process would be painful for you and my family were worried I might try and interrupt it. And although it was the first time you’d ever seen me in my true form, you’d called out that you loved me as my mother bared her fangs and stalked towards you.

The last time you said “I love you”, we were watching a terrible 80s film.

Y/N, it was so terrible. So, so bad. A movie about a giant alien coming to earth and then having to attend public high school, while also trying not to fall in love with an undercover cop with daddy issues? I have no idea why you thought it would be a good movie, Y/N. But one of the positives was when you got bored of the movie, you turned to face me and started kissing my cheek and telling me how much you loved me. That was kind of cool.

If you’d asked little eleven year old Jisung where he thought he’d be in ten years, he definitely wouldn’t have said “cuddling on the couch in my home I share with my werewolf soulmate”, I can tell you that much! But he would definitely be happy with how things turned out.

I never told you this, Y/N, but I was so terrified when you were being turned. My mother had never turned anyone before, and the way you screamed when she sank her teeth into your neck is something that will, unfortunately, stick with me forever. My father was the only one of us who had witnessed a turning before, and, according to him, you weren’t reacting the way you should have. When my mother withdrew from you, your body went so pale and limp I automatically thought I’d lost you.

Usually a human would start the transformation right away, but it was hours before we noticed any change in you at all. The first transformation for anyone, natural werewolf or not, is painful and traumatic, and it was so hard for me to sit back helplessly and watch you go through that. The moment you recovered enough to walk around and get used to your new body made it all worth it. As the youngest sibling out of ten children, I never expected a time where I would have to show someone all the ins and outs of being a werewolf, but it was a role I relished in.

Y/N, you are one of the most beautiful people I have ever seen. Your werewolf form is even more powerful and raw than I imagined it would be, and it always astounds me how, despite everything you’ve given up for me, you still remain the kind, strong-willed, honest person I fell in love with. Getting to watch you grow from a cute little eleven year old into the wonderful adult you are now is an experience I will forever be grateful for. There’s nothing I want to do more in my life than to grow old together with you. And because of your sacrifice, that’s what is going to happen.

And to think we wouldn’t be here without the Chicken Sandwich Crisis!

Lots and lots of love,

Jisung ♡ :)

#neowritingsnet #cznnet #nct-writers #dreamwritersnet #nct #nct dream #nct dream jisung #jisung nct dream #jisung nct #jisung #park jisung #jisung x reader #jisung imagine #jisung scenario #supernatural nct

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sintreaties · 3 years

Text

So I finally decided to watch the KKG movie. As it lasted two hours and I really struggle to keep my attention focused for so long, while watching it I just wrote down whatever reaction I had. You can find the result (and a lot of major spoilers) under the cut.

Overall I'd give this movie a 5/10. I wouldn't rewatch it in its entirety, but I would certainly go back to rewatch some clips. Bgm was nice. Give it a try if you like the live-action and you just want to relax for a couple of hours.

Kirari telling Sayaka to shut up 🙄🥰

NOT THE WHITE DR MARTENS

Kirari literally snatched Arukibi’s wig

Why does Kirari’s actress speak so softly

Yumeko’s criminally cringe

Why is there more crack than in stripperbami

“We can live a normal school life here,” Arukibi says, while walking through the fog of a fucking medieval fair

Election, but make it trashy

I would also love to be an actress like Kirari’s because she passes 4/5 of her time in the dark and she could be making the worse faces, you still wouldn't see it

Itsuki saves the day

Midari read her speech off a beat menstrual pad

If yumeko won against Manyuda, why does she still have the pet tag

If you dislike Saotome in general, I doubt this movie will help

“Kirari’s a monster. Only a monster could defeat her, not a hero. If we defeat her, we’re still monsters and we will still hurt someone because of gambling.” Murasame deserved better

KIWATARI AND SAOTOME LMFAO enemies to friends

KIWATARI REGURGITATED a Watch???

Suzui, just 🙈, you can do better than this

KIWATARI THREW HANDS

Kiwatari and Saotome have such a wonderful synergy

SUZUI jfc

Yumeko lied to her own partner <33

Sayaka getting closer to the mic: “It’s a gamburu” the crowd: 😍😍😜🤪😘🤪🤪🥰

They did not give Ririka a voice modifier, so she speaks as if she was inside a washing machine

MURASAME BEAT KIRARI?? AND HIS SISTER STILL KILLED HERSELF???

Arukibi is the nice kid who forced herself to work on a group project with the only kid that nobody else wanted to work with

THEY’RE TRYING TO KILL INUHACHI IN THE SAME MANNER THEY KILLED JESUS CHRIST— HER LUNGS ARE MEANT TO COLLAPSE UNDER HER OWN WEIGHT I SHFISKAL78&fybj

Sayaka best dealer

Mary is such an antihero that she’s not out of place with Kiwatari, and that should tell you a lot

Sayaka could easily peg Suzui — Another win for bottom Kirari

“A few words from out president” Kirari proceeds to mumble some shit that not only makes no fucking sense, but is also inaudble. The rest of the room applaudes out of politeness cause they just didn’t hear a fuck

Love that kirari and ririka are always together

I’m halfway through, the fact that this movie lasts two hours is mind-boggling

Sumeragi, you’re a first year student. It’s okay to lose sometimes.

Yumeko suzui FINGER GUN someone make fanart of it please — or buy me a graphic tablet, I’ll do it myself

Yumeko teaching “moderation is important in having success” is the most wholesome I’m ever seen Yumeko — and also the most laughable

Why do mary and kiwatari have cheerleeders choirs

They’re suspecting Kirari of trying to kill Inuachi like Jesus and that’s so fucking funny somehow

Murasame is a third year student. The fact that he seems to have a special connection with both of the twins AND runa is interesting

Saotome telling Kiwatari to go throw hands with Kirari 💀

Murasame can count the cards — which means that he would not be welcome in most Las Vegas casinos

Sayaka gestures so much that she could pass for an italian

KIWATARI AND SAOTOME SILENTLY SCREAMING AT EACH OTHER

If they’re going to win because suzui’s so idiotic Murasame can’t keep up I’m gonna lose it

Suzui has the power of making me physically violent by appearing on screen for less than twenty seconds

Arukibi is so terrible she fucks up long before her time

WHY DOES SAYAKA KEEP GESTURING TO HERSELF LMFAO

Kirari just being pretty💁🏼‍♀️

Yumeko’s reading is so over the top that if Arukibi was just a bit smarter and denied it no one would doubt her word — Arukibi are you okay, what is this face, what is this laugh, what

ARUKIBI CREAMS HERSELF AT THE TABLE OVER KIRARI and Kirari is just like 😑

Arukibi has mommy issues

Arukibi has mental issues in general

Arukibi are we okay

Planning an intervention for Arukibi

Arukibi has the guts to say some viscid shit about Kirari to Sayaka and Sayaka just clicks her tongue lmfao

Calling an exorcist for Arukibi

Arukibi scaring Suzui is life

Midari is planning to take over the village through Very Violent means

Kiwatari and Mary are still the best non-romantic couple

Why is there fog at the village if it’s just the old school building😩

Ikishima is physically prevented from committing murder by her own people and that’s the only reason why the village is spared

KIWATARI AND MAR— ONLY MARY BECAUSE SHE SENT HIM INTO A COMA

?????????

What

Reminder that matches are meant to be won, not lost

???? What

Screaming — Thank god for Sayaka

Kirari has two moods and nothing more 😊😑

What

UNO

FUCK

When does this movie end

Why is kirari already leaving lmfao😭

Can we not do that cartoonish thing with the eyes please

W h a t

Bromance between Mary and Kiwatari yes please😭😩

The only Ikishima I like is Live Action Movie Ikishima — probably because she has three scenes top

Sayaka clicking her tongue 🥰🥰

??? What

😩 I’m so tired

KIWATARI AND MARY BEING IDIOTS MY BELOVED

Kirari smiling 🥰🥰

#kakegurui #kakegurui spoilers #kkg spoilers #kakeguuri 1st movie #sintreatiesspeaks

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waynewifey · 3 years

Text

Fading away. —

Pairing: Jason Grace x Roman!DaughterofPluto!Reader

Sumary: after moths of over working, a colapse makes you get into a coma and reflect on your feelings.

Warnings: coma, angst, Pluto as a caring dad, fluff at the end.

Words: +-3k.

A/N: This is my first Percy Jackson Franchise fanfiction, so take it easy on me. This is also my biggest and favourite one. I hope you like this! My requests are always open.

(Y/N) (L/N) had a good reason to hate Jason Grace. How could she not? Jason was so annoying, self centred, selfish, stubborn and worse of all? He dated Piper McLean. Piper was great, (Y/N) knew that and they seemed happy together. But, still, he chose Piper, not (Y/N), his girlfriend back at Camp Jupiter, who he totally forgot about. How come Percy remembered Annabeth but Jason wouldn't remember (Y/N)? And when he recovered his memory, he chose Piper. But she also loved him still, and seeing him hurt like a bullet going straight through her heart. She decided to spend a year at Half-Blood Camp to stay with her half-brother Nico Di Angelo when Gaea were defeated. She thought she could manage to see him almost every day, but she couldn't. So she started doing anything to get her mind occupied. Going on meaningless quests, travelling to New York randomly, volunteering for literally any service in the camp and barely sleeping — because sleeping meant dreams.

"It doesn't have to be like that, (Y/N)." Her brother gave her another shot of Nectar. The sunlight that entered Hades' cabin was leaving slowly as they talked, (Y/N) leaned on her bed watching her fingertips become solid again.

"I'll learn how to do it right and I promise I won't push myself too much, but I can't stop practicing." She avoided eye contact with Nico, feeling ashamed of herself. After all, she was supposed to be the one taking care of him, since she was older. She came back from a "quest" for her father, that was staying a weekend on the Underworld. She started using Shadow Travel to get there. The problem? She had no idea how hard it was, and she almost died every time. He sighted.

"I'm not talking about Shadow Travel. You should talk to Jason and sort this out. You're almost killing yourself everyday doing the craziest stuff just to keep your mind off him. He already broke up with Piper, what's stopping you now? I'm your brother and it pains me to see you suffering, I won't just sit and watch while you literally desapear." He got up and walked to the door. The (h/c) girl forced a smile so he believed she was fine. Nico left the cabin.

After hours reflecting and thinking, she heard the trumpets that announced the convocation to a game of Capture the Flag. Since she was feeling better, she changed her clothes and walked outside. The teams were: cabins 1, 4, 5, 9, 12, 14, 18, 21, 23, 27, 28, 29 vs. cabins 2, 6, 7, 10, 11, 13, 15, 16, 20, 24, 25, 26. They started the game. (Y/N) had to protect the boundary with a kid from Hipnos' cabin while a group attacked the opponent's flag and another protected their territory and their flag. Everything was going as planned, she hadn't seen anyone yet. Out of the sudden, she saw a blond guy running in their direction with a sword. Oh hell no, Jason Grace wouldn't attack her like that. But he did.

"What the hell?!" She screamed, reacting to the blade flying in her direction. Her teammate was asleep. She defended herself with her own sword and counterattacked. He invested against her leg, trying to make her fall. Her instincts took place, she jumped, attacked again and they started a meaningless battle. Jason looked the same as always. He was almost the same Jason that used to take her on cute dates in New Rome. But he fought like a greek. And that was when it hit her, he changed. The mixture of love and hate made her loose her senses for a bit, giving Jason the lead. He focused on her leg but hesitated to hit it, giving her time to get back on the fight. She knocked him to the floor, her foot on his chest and her blade on his neck, when she heard footsteps approaching quickly. Of course. It was a trap. She turned around and saw a son of Hebe holding her team's flag running, followed by two daughters of Hephaestus. She grabbed a knife from her belt and threw it to his leg, hitting exactly where she wanted. She then grabbed Jason's blade and Shadow Travelled. For a moment everything was fine, while she drowned into darkness, but then she couldn't get out. She saw her father's face mixed in the dark. He raised his hand and touched her face, than she was back at the forest. Realising not even a second had gone through, she attacked the — injured — boy and the two gigantic girls at the same time. She wasn't really expecting to defeat them, just trying to win some time so, hopefully, someone would come help her. The boy dropped the flag and got a small sword. The two girls had hammers... oh. The three of them attacked at the same time and she protected herself with Jason's sword, which flew away. She was out of hopes when a figure appeared beside her and started fighting them.

"What are you doing here?! You're not supposed to help me, we're enemies, remember?" She said, fighting Hebe's son.

"I guess you're welcome then." Jason replied smiling, fighting the hammers-girls. (Y/N) sighted in annoyance. Seconds later, her teammates came running from the enemies' territory with a flag and the three-people group surrendered. Everyone started screaming and celebrating. (Y/N)'s head hurt with the noise and she looked to her brother, feeling numb.

"Hey, can we talk?" Jason said, getting in front of her with a big smile. He was proud of himself for helping her? Of course he was. He was going to take all the credit for her team's win. The anger rose inside of her burning everything. She furrowed her eyebrows and with the last energy that remained in her body, she tried to Shadow Travel for the perhaps hundredth time that day.

She fell into the darkness while feeling her body desapear quickly. Her heart was very accelerated but then it stopped. She saw herself at the barks of Lete's river. I'm dead., she thought. The desperation started taking over. She remembered the face of all her friends. Her siblings, Hazel and Nico. Her mother. Her best friend Reyna. Camp Jupiter. New Rome. The Lar Vitellius. Lares? Lares! Maybe she could go back as a ghost! She would at least see her friends again.

"Didn't expect to see you this soon." A voice said with humor. She turned around, as always enlighten by her father's presence. But his face was sad. Not the everyday-sad-Pluto, but the my-daughter-just-died-sad-Pluto.

"Am I d-... dead?" The anxiety forbid her from crying in front of her father. The one she never knew and once she did, she didn't want to disappoint him.

"Yes and no. You see, my darling, there are things more powerful then death. Right now, your physical being is exhausted from travelling through darkness and light — which I told you not to, but we'll talk about this later, you have a decision to make. You're body is surrendering to Death out of hopelessness. But your soul, on the other hand, still fights for the heart beating in your chest. And your conscious, the controller of both body and soul, has to decide which one of them you'll support right now. As Lord of the Death that's all I can say to you. But as your father, I would like to say that we have a room for you in the castle, if you'd like that. And also, I feel obligated to show you what is happening on Earth." When he finished his words, an image formed in the air, sort of an Iris message, but no one saw them. (Y/N) saw herself laying on the grass, surrounded by some campers, Nico and Jason.

She was watching them from above. Jason put two fingers on her neck, trying to feel her pulse. She — the one in the Underworld — gasped as the blond boy whispered 'nothing'. She glanced at her father, who had a pained expression as he stared at Nico freaking out. Her brother had his hands on her chest and was murmuring something in greek. Then, he opened his eyes, filled with tears of desperation, and glanced at Jason, who didn't look any better. She wanted to scream and go back to up there, but her voice wouldn't come out of her throat.

"Half of her is already gone." Nico struggled to say. Everyone around gasped. "I can't Shadow Travel with her, it- it would k-kill the other half..."

"Let's take her to the Infirmary. Everything's gonna be fine. She'll be okay." Will Solace had appeared in the crowd and kneed down to take (Y/N) in the arms, being helped by the other two. As they walked, (Y/N) held herself in her arms, sobbing. She didn't want to die, not like that. The image faded away and Pluto hugged her. He never did that before. She left out all her emotions through the cry. Her father caressed her back and gently kissed the top of her head.

"Now you see, my child, what those on Earth are going through. You have a family up there. And if you'd ask me, Jason Grace is a good person, even being a son of my brother. You have a choice, so make it wisely." Pluto said, not backing away from the hug. She nodded and he immediately knew what her choice was. "You know I'd love to have you here with me, but I'd love even more to see you happy. Don't be reckless. And listen to your brother. You don't have to worry to come see me, I'll make sure to visit you during your recovery." As he said that, a white door appeared out of nowhere. "Here's your carpool." The girl started to walk to the door, when she heard Pluto say: "(Y/N) I lo-... Good luck." She smiled to him and went through into the door. It felt like eons in the nothingness. She felt so much pain all over her body. Then she gained conscience. She didn't knew how long it had passed. She also couldn't open her eyes or say anything, but she knew she was laying down something comfortable, a bed, perhaps. But she could hear perfectly well.

"... and I'm so sorry you had to die for me to gain the courage to say this. Please come back to us... Come back to me. Nico barely leaves this room and nor do I, Will had to force him to go eat. It's not the same without you, (Y/N/N), it really isn't." Jason's words gave her the urge to cry, but she couldn't. It was like her body had shutdown completely. She felt his warm hands on her cold ones and after that, a door was opened. Footsteps. Only one person. Jason didn't move. Someone sat down next to them.

"Dad- I mean, Hades said she will be okay." It was Nico's voice. He sounded extremely tired.

"Didn't he say that last month?" Grace was annoyed, but he didn't stop holding her hand.

"I know, I wish I could do more... I'm... I'm sorry Jason." The blond sighted.

"I should be the one to be saying that. I know there's nothing else to do. I'm sorry for putting the blame on you. It's just- if we've talked before, nothing of this would have happened. If only I was brave enough..." (Y/N) felt weak and her consciousness was back at nothing again. When she heard something again, it looked like a lot of time had passed by, but she wasn't sure at all. Jason's voice was happy as he told her his plans to the future.

"I realised you would like to work with me training the legion. You're obviously skilled and the payment is quite good. And I've heard they are planning to build a village here as well, but I don't know if you-..." Every time she tried to stay conscious, she felt weaker. 'Rest', her father's voice said inside of her head, so she let herself.

Some time...? A long time...? She didn't knew. But the next time she heard, she was way stronger. She waited until then, so she could stay longer and try to understand her emotions. She heard almost an entire day. Her friends entered and left cabin 13 — she found out that she was there. Some of them talked "to" her, some just sat there in silence. When alone, Nico talked a lot about Will Solace. (Y/N) smiled mentally. Then Jason entered. She could already recognise the sound he made walking. He sat beside her bed and held her hand, as usual.

"Hello, princess. You look better." She reunited all the strength she had storage and sent it all to her right hand. She softly squeezed Jason's hand, for a small portion of second, trying to say 'hi'. She felt exhausted. He gasped.

"She just squeezed my hand!" He screamed, laughing. Nico jumped out of his bed, laughing as well. They both stared at her, waiting for more. "You're there, right? I knew you were! It's been long months, but you're getting better. Don't work too hard. We'll see each other soon, don't worry." He kissed her forehead. After that, it was easy for her to let go and dive into her sleep again.

She was slowly getting better. She noticed her comas were smaller now, and she got stronger every time. She started communicating by squeezing people's hand. One time for 'yes' and two times for 'no'. But it still was exhausting. She met with her father a couple times through dreams, but it never lasted long. She was sick of it. She wanted to jump out of the bed and run through all the camp. She was alone with Jason, as he talked about the last time he went to Camp Jupiter, telling every change. She slowly forced herself to open her eyes. It wasn't for too long, just enough for her to see the big smile he had while talking, her favourite blond hair and how he gesticulated while speaking. By that time, her feelings were completely lined. She declined her childishness and stubbornness to accept the fact that she obviously loved him. Her lips were able to form a small smile. He hadn't noticed her yet. I can do this, she thought.

"J." She whispered for the first time in five months. Her eyes were already closed again. He gasped.

"Did you just say J? That's me! I'm here, i'm right here, love. Can you hear me?" She squeezed his hand one time. Yes. He chortled. "You're so strong. I miss you so much." He started softly crying. She squeezed his hand two times. No. Don't cry, she wanted to say. "Alright, 's fine, 's fine. Gods, you're coming back. I bet Aphrodite is watching us closely." He chuckled but suddenly stopped. "I forgot we haven't talked about that yet, i'm sorry. I don't wanna be intrusive, you know. It's just, by what Nico has told me, well, you still liked me." She squeezed two times. "That's... that's great, love. But don't worry about that just yet. You should take some rest now, my love."

Five days. She had woken up every single one of them, but only listening. No squeezes, no talking, no looking. Just storing strength. She knew she was close to fully waking up. She was already able to keep track of the days. It was a Sunday, the day she received the most visits. It should be morning, because she only heard Nico's snorting. She slowly opened her eyes. The same place. Different clothes. She wondered who had changed them. Perhaps Will did. She systematically moved her arms, pushing herself to sit. Her back was laying at wall. She took a deep breath. It was going fine. She wanted to wake Nico up, but she decided to wait to see if she would be able to actually stay awake. About an hour later, Nico woke up by himself. He yawned and turned to her bed. She looked at him with a big smile. He jumped out of bed.

"Holy shit, (Y/N)! You're up! How- Wait! I need to- Wait! Don't fall asleep, I'll be right back!" She blinked slowly to sign 'ok'. He was back moments running later with a bunch of teenagers in pyjamas. They all froze at the door, staring at her. Hazel, Frank, Annabeth, Percy, Jason and even Piper. Hazel was the first one to wake up from the trance. She ran to her sister and hugged (Y/N).

"Ouch." She managed to say, reacting to the tight hug that made her head hurt.

"Right, sorry! I forgot. Wait, you speak!" Hazel answered and laughed. All of the others joined in, amazed by her friend, and started talking, telling everything she had missed. (Y/N) couldn't speed properly, only a few words like 'hi', 'ow', 'miss' and 'food'. Later that day, Will came to check on her. He said everything looked just fine, but that she should rest.

"Hey." Zeus' son said, once they were alone.

"Hi."

"Gods, it's so good to finally hear you again. I've talked to myself for a long time." They giggled softly. (Y/N) wasn't showing any signs of it, but that day had been extremely tiring. Her entire body hurt but she couldn't give up just yet.

"I... heard." She whispered. "A bit." Her eyes tried to close but she opened them wide, fighting her own nature. Jason noticed that.

"Hey, no need to over do it.” He brushed her cheek with his thumb.

"Sleep... here." She begged, placing her hand beside her. He froze for a moment, embarrassed. And then, with a rubor across his face, he sat on the bed beside her. She laid her head on his chest and quickly fell asleep.

“Go to sleep, love. We have all the time in the world.”

#percy jackon and the olympians #percy jackson #fluff imagine #percy jackson imagines #percy jackson fanfiction #jason grace #jason grace x reader #jasonissocutehelp #nico di angelo #nico di angelo x reader #daughter of hades #pls send requests

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boop-le-snoot · 3 years

Text

PARTY FAVOURS I CHAPTER 28

First time reader click here

TWs/SUMMARY: Hulk interaction Hulk interaction Hulk interaction. Plot is thickening. Feelings. Operation Baby Thief! A wild Coulson appears. Lokireader besties <3 There's just a lot going on.

Bruce hulked out within minutes of my confession.

As I stood in the middle of the common room, partially hidden behind Loki and scrunching the fabric of my hoodie, I had no choice but to observe the reactions of various Avengers to the fact someone might have... Predictably, Sam, Tony and Stephen looked like kicked puppies. I trusted Loki to handle that part. Steve, Bucky and Natasha had murder on their mind and Thor, Pietro just stared at me, aghast.

I noticed the tinge of green before anybody else, perhaps, because I'd been used to automatically seek comfort from Bruce. My interactions with Hulk, however brief and few and in-between, were positive. As much as they could be with a someone's alter-ego that possessed the emotional intelligence of a twelve year old. So I could safely say that what startled me was the noise of Bruce transforming and not the Hulk himself.

The Hulk growled, zeroing in on me - I remembered of Loki, who stood frozen, and their mutual disregard. The decision was prompt - I stepped out from behind the Asgardian, waving shyly at the large green creature. He was LARGE. Like, I could comfortably sit on one of his shoulders.

"Hey, Hulk. I'm alright, don't worry big guy," I took unhurried steps towards the agitated creature. He seemed to be satisfied with my statement, giving me another once over and growling quietly in the back of his throat. An idea struck me: "Wanna get out of here? The gym has more space, we can sit and talk there."

The stares I was getting were downright incredulous. Here I was, an average human being, fearlessly making my way over to the destruction machine that was the Hulk. I knew he wouldn't hurt me - on purpose.

"No," He growled. "We find bad man. Then Hulk smash." The green creature raised, I had to admit, valid points.

"It's going to be pretty boring though. We have to sort through the security footage, then probably traffic cams, then hold Steve back from going in there in Terminator mode..." I listed off all the logical steps of the investigation until I reached the Hulk. My neck was going to get a crick in it from tilting it so I could see his face. "I'd rather..." I didn't get to finish my sentence as I was suddenly picked up. One large hand gently cradled me to Hulk's chest, akin to a kitten, the other hand landing right under my butt.

I heard a collective exhale from the team, acutely aware of the way they were eyeing me and Hulk.

"Boring," The green creature agreed. His face briefly contorted in what I perceived to be an intense thought process. "Necessary." The word had to come from Bruce; it slipped out with difficulty off the Hulk's tongue, stiff.

"Not you too, big guy," I giggled-slash-groaned, giving a playful slap to the hand wrapped around me. "Fine. Let's get this over with." I looked around in search of a spot for Hulk to park his butt somewhere. The ceiling was barely tall enough for him to comfortably stand.

I needn't have worried as he simply sat down cross-legged right where he stood, still holding me to his chest. "Now," He announced, looking expectantly at Tony.

The engineer chuckled, shaking his head in disbelief. "Yeah, you're right, big guy. Let's find this sonuvabitch." Tense snorts and sounds of agreement filled the room, drowning out the noise of Tony tapping on his keyboard and communicating with Friday.

I poked Hulk in one green, large finger. "Maybe I could sit on your shoulder?"

He nodded, letting me crawl all over his green, hard chest and arms to sit on the large expanse of his left shoulder. It was comfortable as far as shoulders go; inwardly, I squeed like a mad woman. I was friends with the Hulk and I was sitting on his shoulder! Lost in my fangirling, I absentmindedly began messing with his dark hair, only noticing it when satisfied rumbling started coming from his chest. The Hulk was... Purring?

"Puny Banner upset," Hulk declared shortly after the team found the man who drugged me and started tracking his movements. It wasn't someone who'd been invited to the party, which meant there was a serious security breach - it was all hands on deck kind of situation.

"Yeah, I can understand that. I'm pretty upset too, the hangover I got was terrible, I threw up in Loki's apartment," I said, frowning. "And my boys are going to mope now," I rolled my eyes.

"Banner says he will talk with them," Hulk replied, placing hand over my legs. "Hulk will help Banner."

I couldn't help it, I snorted. "Gonna smash some common sense into them?" He grinned at me, too mischievous for someone who was described to be a mindless destruction machine. "I think they're beyond that."

"I can hear you two talking shit about me and I do not appreciate it," Tony piped up suddenly, shooting us a hurt look. To be fair, his shoulders looked considerably less tense and the cloud over his face had dissipated by a little bit. Me and Hulk managed to erase at least some of the guilt away. I think. Stephen, however, still remained frowning and closed-off.

"You're stupid, Tony." Hulk answered, sounding a little bit smug. I gaped at the exchange together with Natasha and Steve. It seemed like Hulk's sense of... Humor was a novelty.

"Hey, don't pick on my dumbass white boys," I chastised the green... Man, side-eyeing him. "Only I can pick on them. If someone else does it, I'mma throw hands if I have to."

"Puny," Hulk replied petulantly, poking me with a finger, making me sway in my spot. I rolled my eyes fondly, settling in to mess with his hair again for the sake of having something to do with my hands. The brief exchange helped to get my overactive brain off the case but the tranquility didn't last very long.

Natasha and Bucky left to interrogate the guards responsible for the security breach, Loki shooting me an apologetic look and following the two. I smiled back, knowing the Asgardian wasn't fully comfortable being around the Hulk due to his previous experiences with the big guy.

"Wait, hold on. That guy. I know that guy." As an array of faces appeared on the large screen, a familiar pair of mismatched eyes stared at me from it. Hulk tensed under me and the team turned towards me expectantly as I shrunk slightly under their combined gaze. "The one with anisocoria - with the weird eyes. He works at a coffee shop near my school, actually he only started working recently, few months ago. He tried to flirt with me but Peter said he felt weird about the guy so I stopped going to that café." I explained the situation as eloquently as I could, seeing Clint's eyes widen at my story.

"Are you sure?" Stephen Strange raised an eyebrow. "Because that man is a mercenary that we have been looking for months."

I felt my heart skip a beat. "A what now?" My ears were ringing. Hulk growled quietly under me, evidently sensing my distress.

"A hired man," Clint typed on his phone rapidly. "Mostly sells not-so-harmless trinkets on the black market. Hydra, AIM, you name it. Anything for the highest bidder." Clint muttered. "I'm calling Peter, maybe he can tell us something more. This is an Avengers level threat." The Hawk's jaw was firm and his face was hard.

"Already on it," Tony looked shaken. I understood him - someone like that had invaded his tower, his home. Hell, I myself felt like someone had spit right in my soul. It was my home, too, to some extent.

"Let me down please, Tony needs a hug," I whispered to the Hulk, who begrudgingly did as I requested. I padded over to Tony, wrapping myself around him, burying my face in the crook of his neck. He always was my comfort; expensive cologne and motor oil filled my senses as my arms clutched at his chest from behind. I didn't expect reprocitation - Tony wasn't the one for emotional vulnerability.

"He could have gotten you," He whispered, almost inaudibly, fingers shaking where they typed rapid-fire commands.

"Bold of you to assume I would have gone down without a fight," I answered as calmly as I could. "He is either dumb, or reckless or has nothing to lose. Planning a coup in the middle of your tower..."

"Or he's showing us that he can just do that," Clint supplied unhelpfully. "The guard who let him in just has been found dead and his family is missing. Natasha texted, she's calling in SHIELD. This is now Operation Baby Thief."

I couldn't help the snort that escaped my lips. "Baby Thief, really?"

"Nobody's stealing Princess," Tony barked, finally turning his head and pressing a sloppy kiss to my cheek. "Not if I have to do anything with it."

"I will make sure the pathetic mortal scum never walks," Thor finally piped up, voice low. In the distance, the harsh noise of thunder and pouring rain echoed through the city.

I frowned but withdrew from Tony, finally feeling well enough to do something. My hands itched to help and as appealing as snuggling with Hulk appeared, my brain had gone straight into overdrive. "Should we take a blood sample to find out what he dosed me with? It's not Roofies, and the hangover is too shitty for it to be anything like Ecstasy." I mused out loud, pacing in the small space between the Hulk and the nearest wall.

"That is a sensible idea," Doctor Strange piped up, giving me an appreciative look. "We'll wait for Romanoff," One angry look at his own scarred, shaking hands, Stephen went back to the book he was reading. He needed a hug, too, I decided.

"Puny Banner will do it," Hulk suddenly announced, reaching out for me.

I obliged, giving the green giant a hug. "Maybe we can go play in Central Park once it's warmer, whatcha think?" I looked up at him, brain just so full of different things. Ideas bounced off one another like ping pong balls.

The Hulk grinned and... Well, I didn't see the transformation, my eyes shut themselves as soon as I felt the flesh under my palms begin to shrink and expand. It wasn't that I was afraid, rather, the feeling was so bizarre that my racing brain had to automatically shut down in fears of being overstimulated.

"Hi," Bruce supplied meekly, an adorable blush staining his cheeks. I didn't resist the urge to kiss and hold him close, and we stood there with him holding up his pants with one hand and clutching my hoodie with the other until Tony cleared his throat.

"You good, Brucie-bear?" The engineer gave a distracted smile towards us, not taking his eyes off the keyboard.

"Yes, Tones," The scientist replied easily, adding with a frown: "I'm glad me and Hulk finally agree on something." With that, he departed in the search of normal pants and the tools needed to acquire my blood sample.

I gave it without much fuss, waving to Bucky, Natasha and Loki that had returned with a middle-aged, balding man in tow. The shared look of amusement between Steve and Bucky and the man's starry-eyed look towards the Captain let me deduce it was one Agent Coulson, the very same man Tony couldn't stop telling stories about, the one with the Captain America trading cards.

So, mayhaps, me taking place in Stephen's lap while Bruce filled up three whole vials full of my blood wasn't exactly the smartest way to go about it. Tony found it amusing, Steve was shaking his head in fond annoyance and Stephen himself struggled to maintain his indifference, yet, the blush betrayed him.

"Agent, what brings you to our humble abode?" Tony snorted, seeing the man raise an eyebrow at the display of affection.

"Operation Baby Thief," Coulson replied with a sigh. "I see the Baby is secure. Keep it that way." Oh, the man was cheeky. I liked him already.

"The Baby has a Tony, a Sorcerer Supreme and a Hulk," I retorted haughtily. "And a functional brain. Fuck that guy."

"Indeed," Coulson snorted. "Tell me, what do you know about the Hamptons incident?"

I blanched, immediately tensing. Bruce withdrew the needle and pressed a bandage over the wound, running gentle fingers over my arm. Everybody must've noticed my surprise, turning to me with their faces full of expectation. Stephen's touch was calming, slightly trembling at the nape of my neck.

"Not much, to be honest. I was about thirteen when it happened and my mother tried to hide it from me," I chewed on my lip, looking away. "What I managed to find out is that there was a robbery that resulted in two deaths, my father being one of the suspects because he was high as hell on coke and he was found sleeping in the same room as the open gun safe," I recalled the memories of mother angrily screaming at dad, calling her law firm colleagues late at night. "I don't need a law degree to know the evidence was flimsy. Dad got a drug charge, his buddies got the same and both the killer and the gun were never found." I exhaled loudly, tapping my foot on the floor, supressing the need to pace.

Coulson nodded, opening a thin manila folder and producing an image of a small, wooden box with carvings that looked like runes on it. "Have you seen this object?"

I felt my blood run cold, my vision swam. "Yes," I swallowed dryly. "That's my end-of-the-world box. I buried it in my grandparents' backyard two years ago."

"End of the world?" Coulson asked, alarmed. "Did you open it?"

"No," I shook my head negative. "I found it in my room at one point and every time I looked at it, it felt... Wrong. Like it was a glitch in a computer game. I couldn't sleep, so I stuck it in my closet and that gave me terrible nightmares and sleep paralysis. I took it with me when I went to visit Gramps and buried it three feet deep under the cherry tree." My hands were shaking once again; I had forgotten about the box but my body remembered the primal, untameable terror that I experienced in it's proximity. At fourteen years old, I just thought I had an overactive imagination or something, too many horror movies, hormonal storms.

"That is a magical artifact," Stephen's voice was quiet and concerned. "A very dangerous, destructive at that. How long were you in it's presence?"

"About nine months, give or take."

"And you didn't open it once, not even a little bit?" Tony had caught on the trend, almost a hysterical edge to his voice.

"No, and I think I know why," I looked to the side. "I saw Wanda on the TV, and, like, magic was confirmed to be real, so I guess I was sure whatever is in there, it wasn't good. During that time, my parents told me I was sleepwalking but I can't remember any of it. I might have wanted to get that box to someone of your... Specialty," I briefly messed with the sleeve of Stephen's shirt, exhaling loudly when his hand grasped mine and held it with care. "I think that box messed with my head... Because I swear that I had no recollection of it until you brought it up," I realized suddenly, my eyes shooting up in blind panic. What else have I forgotten?!

"That is astonishing," Loki's baritone exclaimed. "Nine months is a long time to resist the pull of such a strong artifact." My best friend stated with a great deal of respect.

People in the room started talking all at once. Stephen and Tony declared I needed to get checked out by a professional - Tony meaning s doctor and Stephen meaning a healer of the magical kind; Bruce scooted over and pulled my frozen body in a solid hug; Steve and Bucky planned out to get the box from my grandparents' house, debating whether to take Loki or Thor with them; the SHIELD part of the team discussing the intel and further plans to catch the rogue mercenary.

The door opened quietly.

"Hi everybody, hello Mr. Stark," Peter was disheveled, his ratty backpack in one hand and an enormous sandwich in another. "Got here as fast as I could. What's up?"

THE TAG LIST IS NOW OPEN! @another-stark-sub @mostly-marvel-musings @vozit @littlegasps @pilloclock @shereadsinquiet @downeyreads @hermione-grangers-wife @individualistfem @sleep-i-ness @capbrie @lillsxd @agustdowney @dee-vn @justanotherblonde23 @fanngirl19 @persephonehemingway @softie-socks @schemefrenzy @letsby @cutenessloading @romeo-the-cactus @jelly-fishy-babie @mikariell95

#party favours #bun writes #tony stark x y/n #tony stark x reader #tony stark x you #bruce banner x reader #bruce banner x y/n #bruce banner x you #stephen strange x y/n #stephen strange x you #stephen strange x reader

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flameo-firelord-hotman · 3 years

Text

Part 3

Pairing: Zuko x Fem!Reader

Genre: angst

Warnings: panic attack

Words: 1.5k

Summary: to everyone she knew, [y/n] was a peasant, destined to be a servant just like her parents. To Zuko, however, she was his best friend. After losing his agni kai and being exiled, [y/n] was devastated. She thought she would never see him again. Three years later, she almost wished he never came back.

A/N: wasn’t quite sure how to write this part, and I’m not sure how I feel about it...but I’m just gonna post it anyway :)

Part 2 <- Part 3 -> Part 4

Series | Masterlist

This dark, dusty hallway seems to never end. It feels like I've been wandering for hours, yet it feels like no time has passed. It feels familiar, like a fragment of a memory, yet it feels fabricated. It feels like a lot of things, but I feel…nothing. It's so surreal, yet so natural.

I watch myself from above. My body is floating, light as a feather. Am I spirit? No. How do I know? I don't. But I can see myself right there, standing on the floor next to my friend. I think it's him. His face is a blur, but I can see just enough to be sure.

We're talking. Nothing being said makes sense, yet it all makes sense. He's getting closer to me. Now I feel something, an urge, a whim. He's leaning in, closer and closer, and…

[Y/n]’s eyes fluttered open. She was curled up under the covers of one of the guest room beds. It must have been late morning, because the sun was peaking brightly between the curtains.

For a second, everything was okay. Then, she frowned upon realizing what just happened. Kissing Zuko, what a dream. Really, it could never be a reality. Last night, when they got to the beach, him and Mai made up and got back together. They even kissed right in front of [y/n]. It hurt to watch.

Fortunately for her, they were returning home today. [Y/n] could forget about this trip and go back to living her normal, boring life, something she never thought she would miss. As she packed her bag, she once again thought of that moment from last night. The memory was burned into her brain. No matter how hard she tried to push it away, it kept coming back. And every time, she wondered if what she saw was real. She sure wished it was.

Even if he really did, he could’ve been acting in the heat of the moment. He probably would’ve regretted it afterward. Yeah...why would he kiss his best friend? And a commoner at that? And while he clearly still has feelings for Mai? That would be ridiculous.

[One week later]

Knock, knock, knock.

[Y/n] propped herself up on her elbows and wiped her groggy eyes. It wasn’t unusual to have visitors—her family and neighbors often did favors for each other—but it was rather early in the day for one.

“Just a second!” [Y/n] called out. She tossed the covers aside, quickly threw on a robe and put her hair up in a messy bun.

Damn, I was really hoping to sleep in today. I hope it’s not someone important.

She opened the door.

“Hello, [y/n]!” A teenaged boy in a regal tunic with a scar on his face stood before her. He smiled brightly and waved his hand. [Y/n] felt her heart skip a beat.

“Oh! Um, hi, Zuko,” she replied.

“I hope you don’t mind me stopping by,” Zuko chirped, “I thought we could hang out today, if you want. Your mom told me you have the day off.”

He wants to spend time with me? Just us? [Y/n] was delighted by the opportunity. Then, reality set in: Zuko was still dating Mai and only saw her as a friend. She couldn’t hold his hand, she couldn’t cuddle with him, she couldn’t kiss him, she couldn’t be with him the way she wanted. Clearly, [y/n] hadn't gotten over her crush. If she was going to continue being his friend, she would need to do so. She needed to give herself space.

“Um, I'd like to," [y/n] said slowly, "but...I don’t feel well today.” She placed a hand on her stomach to feign illness. The fact that she had just rolled out of bed helped her cause.

Zuko’s cheerful face morphed to one of sadness. “Oh, no. I’m sorry. Is there anything you need? I could bring you medicine or food.”

[Y/n] shook her head. “No, thanks. I have everything I need.”

“How about I brew you some tea?”

“Er, no, it’s fine. I just need rest.” She scratched the back of her neck nervously.

“Okay. Well, I hope you feel better,” Zuko said earnestly.

“Thanks. Maybe another time,” [y/n] said.

“Yeah.” He trailed off, nodding slowly as he backed away from her apartment. They said their goodbyes and waved to each other. [Y/n] closed the door and leaned against it. She dropped her head into her hands. Already, she regretted her decision. She wanted nothing more than to be with Zuko, even though she knew it would cause her heart to ache.

Why do I have to have a crush on him? Why can't I go back to liking him as a friend? I don't want these feelings. I just want our friendship, I just want what we had three years ago. I don't even know if I can be his friend anymore. It's ruining us. I just lied to him too. It was a stupid lie, but still, what kind of friend does that? Why couldn't I just say no? I’m so pathetic.

A few days had passed since then. Zuko didn't reach out to [y/n], and she didn't reach out to him. Once again, she was back to her day-to-day routine of things…somewhat. There was one day when all the residents on the main land had to be evacuated. [Y/n]'s mother said it was because Firelord Ozai was preparing for an attack during an eclipse, which would weaken our people.

When they returned, they saw the damage. The city's harbor had taken a serious beating, but the palace appeared to be okay. [Y/n]'s parents were quite relieved to know that they wouldn't have any extra work for themselves.

The day after they returned, [y/n] walked into the kitchen to eat breakfast. She saw a messenger hawk sitting on her window sill. Had Zuko finally reached out to her? She hesitantly untied the letter from the bird's leg and read it.

To: [Y/n] Summons Notice to Appear Your presence is required by his majesty Firelord Ozai immediately. Failure to appear in one (1) week will result in criminal charges against you and your family. From: Chief Advisor Xin

A bolt of fear struck [y/n]'s body. She froze. She backtracked the past several days and weeks, trying to think of what she could’ve done to warrant a summons. Nothing came to mind. Then, she wondered if her parents were involved in something treacherous. She couldn’t imagine them doing such a thing...perhaps they were being wrongly accused of a crime. Perhaps she was being wrongly accused of a crime. Her mind jumped to conclusions as rapidly as her heart was beating.

Finally, [y/n] broke free of her paralysis and fumbled for her things. She hastily headed to the palace. Breakfast could definitely wait. On the way, over and over, she begged and prayed to the spirits for her and her family’s safety.

At the palace, [y/n] approached the guards at the gate and presented the summons with shaky hands. They nodded, and one of them escorted her to the throne room. The guard slipped inside to announce her presence to Firelord Ozai. Meanwhile, she waited outside for permission to enter.

This would be her first time being in the presence of the Firelord, let alone talking to him. She was terrified to say the least. [Y/n]’s mom told her all kinds of stories about how scary he was. From the paintings she had seen before, his looks alone were intimidating. Her heart raced faster with every second she waited. Sweat coated her forehead and palms.

The guard returned, making [y/n] nearly jump out of her skin. He gestured for her to enter. And so she did.

The first thing [y/n] noticed was how warm the throne room was. It was massive and wide open with tall, ornate pillars outlining an aisle running down the middle. Straight ahead was the throne, where Firelord Ozai sat surrounded by large, hot, dancing flames. He wore a severe expression, looking just like he did in all those paintings. On his left sat a girl: Princess Azula. The seat on his right was empty.

Where’s Zuko? [Y/n] wondered, but only for a fraction of a second. That didn’t matter right now. She gulped nervously and approached the throne.

“F-Firelord Ozai. Princess Azula,” she shakily dropped to her knees and bowed. She had never felt so small before. “I received your message and came as soon as I could.”

“Why don’t I take this one, father?” [Y/n] gingerly peaked up to see Ozai quietly nodding to Azula. The princess rose from her seat and walked to [y/n]. [Y/n] slowly straightened up.

“Don’t be scared, [y/n]. We just want to ask you a few questions.” Azula patronized her.

“Have you seen or spoken to Zuko recently?” Azula inquired, pacing back and forth. Her heels clacked against the marble floor.

“Yes.”

“When?”

“A few days ago.”

She stopped and turned on her heels to further interrogate [y/n]. “What did you two talk about?”

[Y/n] nervously explained what happened when Zuko stopped by the other day. Azula sighed dramatically and pinched her nose.

After a long, suspenseful silence, [y/n] daringly asked, “Princess Azula...do you mind if I ask what this is about?”

Azula glanced at her with the side of her eye. "Well, since you asked, my dear brother, Zuko…he's been missing the since the attack."

Taglist (open!): @aangsupremacy @kaylove12 @celestialentitiesss

#zuko x reader #zuko #atla #zuko imagine #y’all I had this in my drafts as ‘part 4’ and didn’t notice until tonight #like right before I posted it #ffh writes

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sillyrabbit81 · 3 years

Text

Her Heavy Cross

Summary: Three years after tragedy hits, Lana she decides to start dating again. She meets Will through a dating app and they begin an online romance. After months of constant requests, Lana relents and agrees to meet and go on an irl date with Will. But is Will who he says he is? Lana is quickly pulled into an intense relationship forcing her to confront her tragic past. Will Lana face it or will she close her heart forever?

Pairing: OMC x OFC

Word Count: approx 2.7k

Warnings: swearing, angst, drunk, motion of death

Authors Note: The story started as a Henry Cavill fanfiction but I changed it to be an original character, but shades of Henry are still there. Hope you enjoy the story and thanks for reading.

Part 2 Part 4

Part 3

In less than ten minutes, we had pulled up to Liam's house. Liam paid for the taxi too. I kind of argued this time, but he pointed out he asked me to his house. I didn't get too stubborn about it.

Liam was living in a four-story terrace house, recently renovated by the looks of it. It was painted white with black wrought iron lacework, and it was beautiful. The front door and windows were painted black. It appeared to be the twin of the house that shared its wall.

We entered through the dining room, and I realised it was actually the two houses renovated together. The inside was modern with original heritage touches. The floors were light timber, and the walls were white. The ceilings had plaster and cornice so beautifully ornate that restoration must have taken ages. The room had an imposing black marble fireplace and a deep brown, almost black wooden dining table set on a grey shag rug in the room's centre. A huge abstract painting of bright pinks, greens and grey hung on the wall.

"Wow, this must have cost a mint!" I quickly covered my mouth. "I'm sorry, that was rude of me."

"It's ok. I was pleasantly surprised by the house too. The studio got the house for me I...." Liam was interrupted by a massive dog bounding into the room.

Liam got down and roughhoused with the dog for a bit. Wow, he was a monster! I'd seen a picture of Cole before that "Will" had sent me, but I wasn't quite prepared for how big he was. He was almost completely black with some brown above his eyes and ears. His paws were brown too, and his belly was grey. He wasn't any particular breed, apparently a rescue dog. I thought of my bull terrier cross cattle dog at home. This dog would eat him for breakfast, and Perrin wasn't small.

Cole's pink tongue lolled, and he panted as Liam moved from side to side. Cole imitated Liam's actions jumping about. He barked a couple of times as he got excited by the play. The noise reverberated through the quiet house.

"Shhh, Cole, people are sleeping." Liam softly admonished. Then his voice became stern. "Sit," he ordered before patting him. Liam looked at me and said, "Lana, this is Cole. Cole, Lana."

"Hi, Cole. You're much bigger in person." I could hear the slight tremor in my voice. Liam must have sensed I was nervous and came over to stand near me. Cole padded over and sniffed at me. Gingerly, I put my hand by my side and let him approach me. Cole nuzzled my hand, and I gave him a pat on the side of his neck. I let out a sigh of relief.

"I was worried he wouldn't like me. I love dogs but always get nervous around new ones." Liam put his head to the side, asking a silent question. "I had a dingo go me one time, and I've never really gotten over it." I squatted down and gave Cole more pats. "I think this guy is ok, though."

"Yeah, he's a good boy. How is Perrin, by the way?"

"He's ok." I sighed, "he's just old. The poor little guy can't get onto my bed anymore and sleeps in my lounge room now. I kinda miss it, but I have slept a bit better."

Liam gave Cole some more pats and told him to go sit. "Come on. I'll make you a tea or coffee if you'd like." I agreed a coffee would be perfect right now. I needed something to sober me up.

I sat at the kitchen bench while Liam made coffees. Cole sat by my stool, and I patted his head while watching Liam. Liam had kicked off his shoes and was walking around in his bare feet. It was amazing to see him so much more relaxed here than while we were out. He really did appear to enjoy being at home.

As Liam made our coffee, he moved with a grace that surprised me. His movements seemed economical and rigid but hinted at the power beneath them. He seemed coiled and ready to explode at any moment. It was like he was dancing the pasodoble, his body moving to an invisible beat. Images of Strictly Ballroom came into my mind, and I found myself humming Love is in the Air. I was drunker than I thought.

When Liam was done, he led me over to his large L shaped lounge, and I sat. Liam flopped down next to me, casually laying back and popped his feet up on the coffee table. Cole sat on a mat that was clearly his.

I sipped my coffee, not knowing what else to do. Suddenly the quiet between Liam and I felt awkward.

Liam and I spoke at the same time, "What.." "So..."

We both laughed. Liam indicated I should proceed. "Well, I was going to ask what brought you out to Sydney, for real, not the Will answer."

"A new project. I'm going to be filming a television show." Liam proceeded to tell me about his project, working with some people from Netflix on a fantasy/sci-fi series adaptation. He was so animated when telling me that it was obvious that he loved his job.

It would be his first television series and was to be more romance heavy than anything he had done in years. Liam explained that he is filming here because the story was written and developed in Australia. "If it works out, I'll probably be based out of Australia for the next few years. I'll go home to England for a few months during breaks, maybe do some small film roles. It's hard with Cole, though, because every trip into Australia means 10 days quarantine for him."

"Oh yeah, and you don't want a Pistol and Boo situation." Liam looked confused, and I explained about Amber Heard and Johnny Depp smuggling their dogs into Australia.

"I thought you said you don't follow celebrity gossip."

"I don't, but that was big news, hilarious really. It was on every bit of media in Australia, and then they had to make this cringe video apology. I almost felt bad for them." Then I yawned, suddenly all the alcohol had lost its buzz, and I was just tired. "The coffee doesn't seem to be doing its job. What time is it?"

Liam looked at his watch, "11.30."

"Yeah, it's late. I should get home. I don't want to turn into a pumpkin." I cringed. Fuck.

"You don't have to go. You could stay here." I raised my eyebrows. "I do have more than one bed if that's what you want." Liam leaned over to me and placed a hand on my cheek, rubbing his thumb against my skin.

I looked at my nearly empty coffee mug. I swirled the dregs around the bottom as if it were tea leaves, and they would tell me what to do. "I don't want to go home yet, but I don't want to go too fast, either."

"That's ok."

I didn't move. I wanted to stay. Ten years ago, I would have stayed, but Andy's face flashed into my thoughts. I knew it was ridiculous. Andy had been gone for over three years now. But every time I even contemplated being with someone, I couldn't stop thinking about him.

Liam was waiting for an answer, but I didn't know what to tell him. 'It's not you, it's me' is such a tired cliche, but sometimes it's true.

"Lana, it's ok. If you want to go home, that's absolutely fine. I'll even call you an Uber."

I felt my eyes sting, and I looked away from Liam. My bloody traitorous tear ducts giving me away. I shouldn't have drunk so much. Alcohol always makes me emotional.

"Fuck." I swore under my breath. I angrily wiped at my eyes, thankful I had used waterproof mascara. My eyeliner was a different story, though, and black streaked my fingers. I asked Liam where his bathroom was, and I got up, only half listening to his directions. I found it quickly. It was only through the doorway into a little enclave with a powder room, stairs and a lift. What kind of bloody house has a lift?

I closed the door and sat on the toilet seat. I knew enough not to try to stop the tears, so I just let them go. Bloody hell, Andy. Why did he fucking have to leave me? Why the fuck did you have to fucking die. Goddammit. Why do I do this to myself? Why do I do this to Andy? I wanted to scream, to punch something, to throw something. I needed another cigarette. Fuck you, Andy. Fuck you. Fuck me. Fuck Liam.

As I always did when I thought of Andy, I remembered the last time I saw him. His sweet face looked down at me as he kissed me goodbye. His deep brown hair fell like a curtain around us, hiding our kiss from the world. Cheekily I had slipped my tongue into his mouth, and he had groaned as he pulled away. He told me to save it for when he got back and would be as quick as he could be. I had thanked him for filling in for me. He winked and said to thank him later. Then he left.

When I was able to, I started to take deep breaths. In through my nose, out through my mouth. I could feel the tightness in my chest slowly ease. Breathing became more comfortable, and the tears stopped. I looked at my hands, and I was able to release the fists I was making. My nails hadn't broken the skin this time, but small red crescents remained etched into my palms.

I waited a few minutes longer to make sure the moment had passed. It wasn't Andy's fault he died, and I knew that. It's also not my fault that I wanted someone to love again. Sleeping with someone other than Andy felt like crossing the Rubicon, no going back.

The fact was there is no going back, no Andy to go back to, even if I wanted. In my head, it still felt like a betrayal. But it wasn't. And Liam wasn't just anybody. He was a guy I had spent weeks talking to, getting to know, and although he looks different, he is still acting as I had expected. I saw a potential future here. Did I really want to let my past ruin it?

I cleared my throat and stood up, preparing myself to see the horror that looked back at me. Ugh, it wasn't great. My eyeliner had given me panda eyes, and the tears had created streaks down my cheeks.

Getting a tissue and blew my nose, and decided there was nothing else for it, I washed my makeup off my face. I avoided washing my eye makeup off though, that was a mess I just didn't have the products for, so I just wiped under my eyes and cleaned it up. I binned my tissues, washed my hands, took a few more deep breaths and prepared myself to face Liam.

I opened the door and walked straight into something solid that made me bounce back into the bathroom like a tennis ball. Hands caught me before I hit the floor, and I found myself in Liam's arms.

"I'm sorry, did I hurt you?" He asked.

"No," I was flustered again. I spent all that time calming down to just be in a state two seconds later. "I just didn't expect you to be outside the door. Jesus, you're like a brick shit house."

Liam didn't laugh. "I was worried about you."

"I'm fine," I lied.

Liam didn't look convinced. He let me go and ran a hand through his hair. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not right now."

Liam nodded. "I'll get you that Uber." He pulled his phone out.

That's it then. All in all, it wasn't the worst date I'd been on since Andy died. Actually, it was probably the best. Liam, at least, was a guy I was attracted to and didn't appear to be a man child. He seemed to like me, even when I cried over another man. Although I doubt Liam knew that's why I was crying. I had told him I was married before and he had died, but that was only once and a long time ago, and we hadn't discussed it again.

The tears had done their job, and a calmness came over me now. I had said goodbye to Andy, and I was ready to take that last step to move on. That was why I started to date again; to open my heart, I was ready.

I put my hand on Liam's wrist, "if you still want me to, I'd like to stay."

"Are you sure? I probably shouldn't have asked in the first place. I let my other head think for me." Though I laughed at his candid admission, Liam's face was serious. "I'm not joking. I want you, and I didn't think about how you must be feeling. The whole fake profile thing must still be weighing on your mind. And all of the other problems that go along with being with me. You should have more time to think about it."

And my dead husband, let's not forget that. I didn't say that out loud, thank God. "I will have time to think about it. But right now, I want..." Shit. I've gone shy again. Just fucking tell him you want him too! "I mean, can't we just have a bit of a cuddle and a snog?"

Liam's lips twitched as he tried to suppress a smile, "a cuddle and a snog?"

I nodded.

Smiling, Liam put his phone back in his pocket. "I think I can arrange that."

Without further warning, Liam grabbed my wrists in one hand and pinned them to the wall above my head. His other hand snaked around my waist, holding me to him, his hips rolling into mine. His eyes were fierce and focused on mine. I closed my eyes, the sensations too much, and my breath quickened.

I heard Liam say through gritted teeth, "It's taken everything I had not to do this to you since I saw you at the bar. I wanted to take you then and there." His voice seemed to ease, the words coming easier for him. "You don't know how much I've wanted to touch you. To know you are real." Then he whispered, "and you are. Real. You're as beautiful tonight as you were in your pictures."

I opened my eyes and found Liam staring at me, and his intensity was nearly frightening. He pulled me tighter against himself, his fingertips digging into me while he crushed me against his body. I felt his hardness against my hip, and I couldn't stop myself from rubbing against it. This time Liam closed his eyes, and I felt the rush of blood to my centre.

Liam opened his eyes, desire naked on his face, "Kiss me," he said.

I met his soft and warm lips. I felt Liam's groan rumble in his vast chest, and kissing him again, my lips scraped against his whiskers. Liam kissed me back now. His tongue pushed past my lips, and found mine. His tongue playfully danced in my mouth. Liam's hand left my arse and started to feel my hips, my waist and then my breasts. He cupped them and gently squeezed. My breath caught as his hand skimmed past my nipple. His palm created friction against the lace of my bra, and tingles radiated through my body.

His lips left mine and went to my neck. He kissed and sucked at me, moving down to the top of my breasts. I heard him take a deep breath into my chest as his cheeks rubbed against my skin. His kisses became harder against my chest and moved back up to my neck, his teeth nipping at me as he went. Even though he had me captured, I wriggled against him, my hips moved uncontrollably, my breath uneven and weak.

Liam pulled away, still firmly gripping one of my hands. "Come with me." Liam led me to the lift.

"Where are we going?"

"To my bedroom." I pulled against him, forcing him to stop. "Sweetheart, I promise I won't fuck you until you ask."

My legs turned to jelly. I wanted to fall to my knees and beg despite my reservations. I nodded and followed Liam into the lift.

Part 4

#original character #original fiction #romantic story

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wu-sisyphus-gang · 3 years

Text

Motion Sickness Chapter 56

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Peach led the way towards the bunker. It looked mostly the same as the one built near Mistral. Dented in places from the Grimm, a sign that there was nobody home. Merlot wasn't here at least at first inspection.

The front entrance was just sitting open, though. It wasn't torn into like I would have done. It seemed from an open fuse box that somebody had wired their way inside.

They had to know about electronics much more than I did to do something like that. And it wasn't likely that Merlot would have to wire his way into his own facilities. Unlikely but not impossible. Especially if he hadn't visited in a while.

A harsh wind howled around us. It was quickly whipping up into a blizzard. I pulled my pipe out and smoked it. I struggled to get my lighter to work and I sniffled against the cold.

"This is it. But it wasn't open the last time I was here," Peach said. "Well not here here but near enough to see it."

"Stay here Peach. Be on your guard," I returned. "I'm not sure what we'll find inside. Merlot is rather famous for his experiments on the Grimm."

"On the Grimm? Why?"

"Why indeed. I suspect that he likes it but I haven't had the chance to talk to him about it. Maybe that changes today."

I rather doubted it but it was always possible that he was really here. Somebody had wired that door open.

Neo took a step forward and together we walked into the laboratory. Some Grimm had made their way inside and we collapsed on them easily. I pulled my shorter longsword and Neo used her stiletto. I cut down a creeper and paced my way over a hexagonal tiled floor. The lights were on unlike the last place we'd been to so I didn't need to use my soul to cast light on the place.

A Beowulf came upon me and I easily sliced it and it disintegrated into ash and the usual Grimm goo. My heavy boot falls rang out against the tile. Even Neo's heels disturbed the sound of the place with little clacks. It was as somber as a crypt inside.

I stomped on a Creeper. I easily crushed the small monster under my heavy boot. They'd gotten inside and had started to tear the place up a little. Some of the glass tubes were broken and frayed wires sparked.

I felt a warning in my soul. My sixth sense called out to me.

"Someone is here. Or was here very recently," I murmured to Neo. There were giant tubes and inside them were Creepers. They were frozen in a strange blue fluid. It wasn't glowing from within like the experiments in Mistral had been, however.

It was incredibly macabre, even these monsters in the tubes rather than the malformed 'human' Grimm of Mistral. The chamber we were currently in was tall and triangular. But it went on past these white and blue suspension pods and deeper inside. Large electrical lights were on above us. They must be dust run, this far from civilization.

The laboratory had to be totally independent of the rest of Atlas and Solitas.

A creeper oozed from the blue liquid from one of the recently broken pods. It was blue instead of white but only in places. The transformation was splotchy and incomplete unlike the green ones we'd run into near Mistral.

It let out a groaning noise and crawled toward me and I put my sword down through it and into the hexagonal tiles. The ground sparked beneath where I sliced it up after the Grimm dissolved into goo and died.

A voice was coming from further in. A low male voice from the baritone of it.

"Come on. Let's see who's up ahead."

As I walked I sliced apart the tubes we came across with Creepers in them. They disgusted me. Perhaps I saw a bit of the experiment that had created me in these. It made my blood boil with hatred. Not just for the Grimm and their ilk but also for Merlot. And for whoever was making noise up ahead.

It also, and I realized that it probably wasn't healthy, made me hate myself.

I didn't like me. That had been true before I learned the kind of monster I really was. I wasn't my biggest fan. I hated what I had to do to get by.

Even before I killed Ren and Nora I hadn't been fond of me. I'd gotten what I deserved more often than I had bad luck. I was disgusted with myself. At Beacon, I hated my weakness. I think that was when it really started.

When Ruby loved me I couldn't believe it. How could she? How dare she, an angel like her, love a monster like me. How could she do that to me? It was, in a self detrimental way, incredibly cruel of her to care about me so. Even before I knew what I was I had been like that. I loathed myself and it fucking showed sometimes.

But then again smoking wasn't healthy and I was doing that. I was also hell bent on this path of revenge. Had been bent on revenge for a long time now, between Cinder and Merlot. I probably just figured something else would kill me long before smoking did. My lifestyle plus the enemies I had made ensured that I was probably going to die young. Salem sort of sealed that deal for me, too, by being an immortal goddess.

My self hatred was there. It was present even in the things that I loved and in the relationships I formed with the people who loved me.

Then I started killing people. I became good at it too. I hated me for that even more than ever. I hated hiding it from Ruby when I killed Eminence and her Seifer.

Now that I knew that I had been right to hate me all along though… now that I knew I really truly was a monster… Now that I was doomed to die fighting with a goddess in my brain after she made me kill my team I just had all the more reason to hate myself.

If before I didn't like me, then of late I despised myself.

I tortured people now. I hurt them because I could and they… they couldn't stop me. I'd chosen blood and violence and when Wutai burned I'd thought about finishing the job just because I could and they couldn't stop me.

I wanted to kill Raven Branwen. She'd never done anything to me personally. Except through Vernal she'd never done me wrong but I wanted her dead all the same. Still, I wanted her dead. She'd only narrowly escaped me and I hungred for her blood as much as I did any of the others just because I could. I knew it was wrong.

I wanted to destroy Cinder Fall. I wanted to eviscerate her for all that she had done. For what she did to me personally when she took Pyrrha from me. Whatever could have been, whatever had been supposed to be, it was no more because of her. She took that from me. I was robbed.

Her minions like Emerald and Mercury would have to go too. That went without saying but they weren't at the top of my list of people to nix. If I ran across them and they got got, so be it. But I wasn't hunting them like I was the others.

Tyrian I had killed for so much as looking at Ruby wrong. The wounds he'd left on my body was meaningless beside what he had wanted to do to her. He tried to take her from me and bring her to Mother. He had to die for that. He did die for that, whether he himself knew that before the end was irrelevant.

Ren and Nora wouldn't want this for me. Pyrrha wouldn't have wanted this for me. She wouldn't have wanted me to seek my revenge against Cinder either but damn it, I wanted that too.

I'd chosen blood over friendship in my heart a long, long time ago. Especially relative to how old I was. One year old and I was committed to revenge.

Ruby's love had been too much for my Grimm blackened heart to bear. In my depths I wanted the boot and the sword. I wanted it.

Mother needed to go too. I wasn't sure how yet. I wasn't sure when but she'd suffer by my hand. As much as she was capable of suffering. However much that was she would experience it. I was going to cut her into pieces.

She had her fingers in my brain. It made me want to slam my head into the wall over and over. There was nothing I could do about it. Her claws were in me. Nothing could keep me safe from her. I was born doomed to go through this.

My cursed father Merlot who even now I hunted would also know my spirit. He would know what it meant to bring a monster into this world. He would know what he had truly wrought. How dare he? How could he?

It was all their fault and I hated them as much as I hated myself. I was a sword. I was meant for this vendetta. My power which allowed me to grow stronger with each beat of my hatred would allow me to strike them down.

We grew closer to the voice. A low aristocratic murmur. It was distant in this place and echoing beside our footfalls. We would be upon the source at any moment.

I suspected it wasn't Merlot but it could be. It could be… and then I'd give him to Neo. Or worse or something, anything worse. I'd split his limbs. I'd tear his eyes from his skull. I'd-I'd… I was working myself up into a tizzy.

I exhaled lowly and slowed my beating heart. It wouldn't do me any good to get jumpy. I breathed in and out, nice and deep as we crept up on our target.

This hall contained suspended Beowulfs now. I continued to spear them. I refused to be cornered by these monsters should the worst come to pass. Whatever purpose my father had intended the blue fluid to have on them was rendered utterly meaningless. Just as I would one day rend his heart.

I moved around a corner, and out a blast door. I came out into a huge open room sword and shield at the ready. I gazed up over a series of computers up at a man in a deep navy blue suit trimmed in yellow. He was speaking into a scroll and abruptly stopped at my presence.

He tapped a few buttons on one of the computers and a shimmering barrier appeared between us. Sealing me and Neo into the cavernous room and himself in the smaller control room.

"And who are you?" His voice boomed into speakers that surrounded me.

"Are you Merlot?" I demanded.

He laughed. "No, I'm not mad Merlot. Now what's your name?"

"I'm Jaune Arc," I announced.

"You… you're Merlot's creation. You're Salem's son!"

I glowered through the barrier at him. "I gave you my name. What's yours?"

"You have… you have the relic of knowledge! I thought your sisters would reclaim it."

"You know my sisters?" I demanded.

"My boy," he drawled. "I created your sisters. In my own laboratory. I suppose if Merlot is your 'father' then I am your 'step-father.'"

I stared at him. "Your name."

"I don't see the point in giving my name to a failure . In fact, I don't see much point in continuing this conversation. I will be taking that relic, however."

"Not from in there, you're not." I glared and turned my semblance on. "Come fight me."

"Oh," he mocked with a lazy yawn. "Shiny." He started tapping away at one of the control panels before him.

"Neo, do you think you can teleport in there and shut this barrier down."

She looked at it and shook her head.

I guess there needed to be a little bit of open space for her to move through and that shimmering barrier allowed her none. Some semblances had rules like that. Like mine had plenty of laws. Mine was even defined by its rules.

A gate began to open up in the floor in a spiraling fashion. I hadn't really taken stock of it but it was earth beneath my boots rather than the hard hexagonal tiles that made up the rest of the facility.

From the pit a giant Deathstalker emerged. It was slightly splotched blue like so many of my wretched father's other wretched specimens in this place.

It was enormous, at least as big as the one in initiation, if not a little bigger. It lowered its brightly colored stinger at me and I raised my shield and sword. It slammed it's stinger forward but I met it with the cold hard strength only my semblance could provide. I didn't budge. Back in initiation I'd been pushed back by that Deathstalker's claws but I was so much unbelievably stronger now than then.

I slashed out from behind my shield at the stinger where it met the rest of the white, blue, and black tail.

It screeched at me as I bit deep into its vulnerable flesh and it pulled back. It came at me with its claws but Neo and I vanished with our speed. She backflipped over it, picking at it's exposed eyes as I slid at it hard and sliced at its mouth.

"Neo cut the tail!" She landed next to me and I saw her nod. The tail was now hanging by a twist of flesh and little else. It was vulnerable there. I doubted we'd hammer the stinger into its own head, probably kill it some other way.

I dashed forward and I met its claws. I held it steady while Neo flipped over it and cut its tail off. It screeched again and the Deathstalker reared back.

I cut at its claws where they met dark flesh and the blueish pincers retreated from me. It then charged me and slammed my body against one of the grey walls. I pushed back against it with a heavy boot.

The tail came around and smashed me in the chest, knocking me to the ground. I picked myself back up and met the pincers again with my shield. I slashed around it, trying for the eyes and mouth but it must have seen that trick before because it held me far away with the pincers.

Like an oversized lobster. I tried again to take off one of the pincers. I bit deep into the black flesh between blue and white flesh and it flailed pressing against me.

Neo flipped into place again and stabbed it in one of its eyes. It roared with rage, the mouth parts frothed with spittle and I felt nothing but disgust for it.

This thing was just reminding me of better times with my friends. Not that I had anything against Neo, in fact I probably had the least against Neo out of anybody alive on the planet. She just wasn't a good replacement for my teammates and friends. She just didn't do it for me like Pyrrha, Ren, or Nora could. You know? It was nothing personal. I'm sure she felt the same way about me and Roman.

I dived and brought my sword down two handed against the claw and took the tip off through the armor. The tail came whipping around and I jumped and hovered in the middle of the air and Cross-Slashed its face and tail.

It writhed to get away from my combo and it screamed in agony as I took its tail off and left deep gouges in its carapace near its face.

There wasn't that much room for it to escape me from. I was guessing things in here with it were more locked in with it and less having it locked in with them. I was turning its usual situation on its head.

I stabbed down through an eye as I fell and it writhed and tried to shake me off. I twisted Crocea Mors and shattered its shell around where Crocea Mors was buried.

It cried and began to dissolve into dust and goo.

I walked up to the barrier that guy was on the other side of and banged on it four times. Gong. Gong. Gong. Gong. I began to recharge my semblance.

"Little pit, little pig, let me in." He began to back away from his control panel. I stood and charged for a long time. I got my hands on my semblance again and swung at the barrier as hard as I could, burning my semblance with it in a wild attack.

The barrier failed for a moment and lights on his side of the barrier blared.

"I'll huff and I'll puff." I menaced from outside. "What's it going to be Mr. Man."

He ran away, the enormous coward. I couldn't believe it. He was just leaving us locked in here. I charged up my semblance and rattled the barrier until it broke. I banged at it over and over again and then I Cross-Slashed it after putting my sword together with the shield and getting the broadsword. But whoever the man with the mustache was, he escaped.

I swore and I screamed and I slashed up some of the computers in my rage before I had the sense to calm down and remember I might want to look through them.

Then I marched down the passageway after the mustached man. It eventually led out a back entrance to the laboratory. I sighed. He was stone cold gone. Along with any chance I had of learning about my sisters.

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-WG

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