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emospritelet · 3 years

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Heatstroke - chapter 24/24

Last time, Gold confronted Zelena over trying to frame Regina, and Lacey caught the whole show on tape. This is the final chapter! Happy endings FTW!

[AO3]

Lacey set down the camera on the shop counter, and raised an eyebrow at Gold.

“So,” she said. “What do you want to do?”

He inclined his head, lifting a hand and letting it fall.

“It appears you have a story to tell about Miss West,” he remarked. “I feel the choice is very much yours. Perhaps Mr Glass can be persuaded that running an exposé is in the public interest.”

Lacey hesitated.

“Yeah, I think he would,” she acknowledged. “It’s just - Mayor Mills doesn’t know, does she? About Zelena.”

“I don’t think so.”

“I think maybe we should tell her,” said Lacey. “Before it all comes out, I mean. That would be the decent thing to do, wouldn’t it?”

“It would,” he agreed, and let out a heavy sigh, his head rolling back. “Well, that’s unfortunate.”

“What is?”

He raised his head again, sending her a stern look.

“It appears I’ve discovered a conscience,” he said. “The rumour was I didn’t have one. I blame you for this outrage.”

Lacey giggled, and leaned in to kiss him.

“Does that mean you’ll come with me to break the news?” she asked, and he offered his arm.

“To the Mayor’s office,” he said. “I’m sure Regina will be just delighted to see us.”

“This can’t be true.” Regina was staring at Lacey’s phone, having watched the recording twice. “This - this is impossible!”

“This must be a hell of a shock,” said Lacey, and Regina shook her head.

“I always thought she disliked me, but Mal told me I was being paranoid,” she said. “All this time she was plotting to ruin my life because my mother abandoned her? The nerve of the woman!”

“I guess sibling rivalry’s tough to deal with,” said Lacey. “Makes me glad I’m an only child.”

“Well, she certainly has my mother’s ambition and vindictiveness,” said Regina, with a sigh. “I don’t suppose you know anything about the father?”

“I’m afraid not,” said Gold. “Did your mother ever hint that you had a half-sister?”

Regina shook her head.

“She never spoke about her youth,” she said. “Other than to tell me she had to fight for anything she could get and I should do the same.”

She handed the phone back to Lacey and frowned at Gold.

“Exactly how long have you known about this?” she demanded, and he smiled.

“I heard what you did,” he said.

“That wasn’t what I asked,” she said coldly. “I know you, Gold. Were you holding onto this information until it was of use to you?”

“You think I’m working against you?” he asked, in a mild tone.

“I think you never do anything that doesn’t benefit you.”

“Well, perhaps you don’t know me as well as you think,” he said. “Or perhaps we assess risks and benefits differently. Either way, you have Miss French to thank for the investigation of her past and this recording. I merely - encouraged a confession.”

“Quite the sleuthing team,” said Regina, in a dry tone. “Can we expect a new office in town? French Gold, Private Investigators?”

“I don’t mind investigating his privates,” said Lacey, and Gold shot her a very level look as Regina curled her lip.

“Thanks, I’m going to spend the rest of the evening trying and failing to get that image out of my head.”

“You’re welcome,” said Lacey cheerfully.

“The question for you,” said Gold, “is how are you going to handle this? Miss French has quite a scoop on her hands, but she wanted to bring it to you first before raising it with Mr Glass.”

Regina shot Lacey a grateful look before sitting back in her chair with a sigh.

“There’s supposed to be a debate,” she said. “The two of us up on stage. You think it’s her intention to reveal the whole sordid story in front of the whole town?”

“I don’t believe she wants the rest of the town to know,” said Gold. “If they did, then her whole campaign reeks of sour grapes. She’ll want to play on the image she’s created while she’s been here. However inaccurate it is.”

Regina growled under her breath.

“I can’t believe I’m having to go through this charade!” she snapped. “I’m supposed to stand there and - and debate her when she’s trying to frame me for corruption and destroy my life!”

“We don’t have any actual evidence that she’s tried to frame you,” said Lacey, and Regina nodded impatiently.

“I know, I know. Nothing court worthy on that tape, however much she hinted at it,” she said. “If it’s okay with you, I’d like to hand it over to the Sheriff, get him to look into it.”

“If you agree to an exclusive interview with me after the debate, sure,” said Lacey quickly, and almost blushed as Gold shot her an approving look. Regina drummed her fingers on the desk.

“She’s far too good for you, Gold,” she said abruptly. “I hope you know that.”

He smirked at that, winking at Lacey.

“Oh, I’m well aware.”

Gold was finding it hard to stop grinning like an idiot now that he and Lacey were dating, and even found himself unexpectedly granting rent extensions, much to the surprise of nervous tenants. He made dinner for her again later in the week, and she stayed the night, Darcy curled at their feet as they drifted into sleep. It was pleasant being nuzzled awake by a purring cat and finding Lacey in his arms. It was a feeling he could get used to.

They had eventually managed to finish the interview, most of which was carried out in bed, and he had found himself telling her things he had previously had no intention of revealing. He blamed that on Lacey; it was difficult to maintain his usual cool distance when she was wearing his discarded shirt and looking at him as though he was a particularly delicious snack. She kept her word about giving him the final say on the article, however, and upon reading her draft, he noted that she had kept some of the more personal details to herself. He only felt the need to redact a couple of minor points about his early life, but was happy to let the remainder stand as it was. If the rest of Storybrooke was surprised at the intimacy of the piece and his sudden desire to be open about his life - well, they could all go and fuck themselves, as far as he was concerned.

The only opinions he cared about were those of his family, and it wasn’t too long before Neal called. Gold sighed as he looked at the number flashing on his phone. They’re gonna tease me relentlessly about this. Emma especially.

Shaking his head and smirking to himself, he picked up.

“Dad, hi,” said Neal. “Thought you might have called to let us know how your big social occasion went. You’re not avoiding the issue, right?”

“Of course not,” said Gold. “Been a busy week, that’s all.”

“Uh-huh. Emma thought you’d say that.” Neal sounded amused. “She’s been dying to find out about the dance, so I said I’d call for an update.”

“Tell her she needs a better hobby than worrying about my social life,” said Gold dryly. “How’s Henry? I was wondering what to get for his birthday.”

“Nice attempt at deflection, but I’m not done with you,” said Neal. “Come on, how did it go?”

“Uh - it was fine,” said Gold.

“Did you ask Lacey to dance, like I said?”

“Yes.” Gold hesitated. “We’re - uh - sort of dating now.”

Neal whooped, making him grin.

“Way to go! See, I knew you could do it!”

“Yes, well.” Gold scratched the back of his neck, feeling awkward. “It’s early days, I suppose. Very early days, but it’s going well.”

“I am so happy for you, really. Wait until I tell Emma.”

“She’s gonna tease me, isn’t she?” said Gold dryly.

“No more than usual.”

“A lot, then.”

“Hey, her teasing comes from a place of love.”

“Hmm.” Gold was amused. “Well, you can tell her I love her too.”

“And you can tell Lacey we can’t wait to meet her,” said Neal, and Gold’s grin widened.

“I believe the feeling’s mutual,” he said.

“Good. How about in two weeks’ time?”

Gold smirked to himself.

“Excellent timing,” he said. “It’s the Mayoral debate and election.”

“I’m almost certain we can find something better to do than listen to some crusty old politicians.”

“I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised,” said Gold. “It could be an interesting night.”

The evening of the debate arrived more quickly than Lacey thought possible, and she was nervous about more than just reporting the evening’s events. Gold’s son and daughter-in-law were due any minute, and there was a tiny part of her that kept whispering that they wouldn’t approve, that they would wonder why the hell Gold, with his money and power and class, was dating the likes of her. Stressing over her coverage of the election was a welcome distraction from the unwelcome internal monologue, and she concentrated on getting her things together for the debate, checking the recording equipment on Gold’s kitchen table and fretting about the sound quality.

“You’ve already checked it three times,” he said. “It’s fine.”

“I’m supposed to be writing the front page article!” she snapped. “What happens if I fuck up and don’t get anything recorded? I’m gonna look like a total idiot and Sidney won’t trust me with anything more complex than the hot dog eating contest!”

“I can record everything on my phone, if you’re worried,” he said. “Besides, don’t you do shorthand?”

“Yeah, but—”

“You’ll be fine,” he said gently, and kissed her head. “I promise.”

The doorbell rang, and Lacey started, heart thumping.

“Relax, that’ll be Neal and Emma,” said Gold, heading for the door. Lacey frowned at his back.

“Relax, my arse,” she muttered, shoving the recording equipment into its bag.

There were voices from the hall, and a sudden burst of laughter, and she closed her eyes, willing herself to calm the hell down. Footsteps from the doorway made her look up, and she was greeted by a warm smile and an outstretched hand. Gold’s son had his eyes, and curling dark hair above a ready grin.

“I’m Neal,” he said. “Really pleased to meet you.”

“Lacey,” she said, shaking his hand. “Uh - likewise.”

She was reminded vividly of the fact that she had flashed him on their first encounter, and felt a blush start to rise in her cheeks. If Neal was thinking of it too, he was better at hiding it than she was. His wife was a pretty blonde, with a kind look in her eyes and a plump baby in her arms, who was glancing around curiously at everything.

“This is Emma,” added Neal, “and that’s Henry.”

“We’ve heard a lot about you,” said Emma, shooting Gold a teasing look.

“Well, I won’t ask if it was all good, because I’m willing to bet it wasn’t,” said Lacey, and they chuckled.

“Maybe not at first,” admitted Emma. “Don’t hold it against the old bastard, though.”

“Oh, believe me, the feeling was mutual,” said Lacey.

“I’m standing right here,” said Gold evenly.

Lacey caught Emma’s eye and returned her grin. She felt herself relax a little, and leaned over to kiss Gold’s cheek.

“We got there in the end,” she said. “Uh - how hungry are you guys? I didn’t even think about dinner.”

She shot Gold a look, hoping that he would suggest something, and he nodded.

“We’ll head to Granny’s after the debate,” said Gold. “I have no doubt that Lacey will be demonstrating her excellent skill as a journalist, and I’d hate for you to miss it.”

“No pressure then,” said Lacey, and he smiled.

“You’re writing the article for the Mirror front page,” he said. “You have an exclusive with the Mayor herself after the debate. Sidney Glass clearly believes you to be as capable as I do.”

“Yeah, because I got that interview with you,” she said. “I didn’t tell him we were naked when I got most of that info.”

Neal closed his eyes with a pained expression.

“Shows ingenuity if you ask me,” said Emma abruptly. “I can usually get a ton of stuff out of Neal when we’re naked. Must run in the family.”

It was Gold’s turn to look pained. Neal put his hands over his face with a heavy sigh, and Lacey and Emma chuckled. Lacey decided that she liked both Emma and Neal very much. She zipped her bag and nodded to Gold.

“Okay,” she said. “Wish me luck.”

The town hall was filled with residents, chatting amongst themselves and casting curious glances at the empty stage. Ruby was seated next to Leroy on the third row back, and she winked at Lacey as she and Gold took their own seats. Ruby had been delighted to hear that the two of them had started seeing one another, and had only made a salacious comment to Gold on one occasion. Maybe two.

“Big turnout,” said Neal, glancing around. “I had no idea the people in this town were so into politics.”

“Usually they don’t bother,” said Gold. “The Mayor getting some competition appears to have piqued their interest.”

As though his voice had summoned her, Regina walked onto the stage, chin held high, looking calm and competent in a sharp black suit. Zelena followed, in a green dress with a soft silk scarf around her neck and gold hoops in her ears. A green folder was tucked under her arm, her hair tied up, and Lacey thought she was going for the image of a respectable school teacher. A gleam in her eye spoiled the look.

Dr Hopper was moderating the debate, and Lacey quickly checked her recording equipment and opened her laptop, rattling off a few sentences about the tense atmosphere of the hall and the opening statements from each of the candidates. Zelena gave a speech about decency and traditional values, at which Regina seemed to be stopping herself from rolling her eyes with some difficulty. Regina spoke of her record on town planning, law and order—she shot Zelena a look at that point—and prosperity.

“Thank you, ladies,” said Dr Hopper, when she was done. “Now, perhaps we’ll go to some questions from the press before we deal with those the townsfolk have submitted.”

“I have a question for Miss West,” said Lacey, in a loud, clear voice, shoving her laptop at Gold as she got to her feet.

Zelena’s mouth twisted, her smile more of a grimace.

“Of course,” she said lightly. “It’s - uh - I’m sorry, I’ve forgotten your name.”

She waved a languid hand, and Lacey felt her mouth flatten.

“Lacey French, Storybrooke Mirror,” she said evenly, and Zelena let out a tinkling laugh.

“Of course, silly me,” she trilled. “How could I forget Storybrooke’s eager young reporter? Lending the local newspaper such an air of class in that - lovely - outfit.”

There was a muttering amongst the townsfolk, and Lacey distinctly heard Ruby say ‘What a bitch!’, but she smiled sweetly as though she hadn’t understood the insult.

“Yeah, I have a question about your motivation for running for Mayor,” she said. “You said yourself you’ve never been involved in politics, so what inspired you to make this move now?”

Zelena smiled widely.

“Well, as I said, I thought about where I could do the most good,” she said. “Storybrooke is a wonderful town, with many excellent qualities, but talking to its residents has made me realise that there’s a feeling that it may be lacking direction. I sense a need for a return to the basics of community. Neighbourliness. Family values. The traditions of small-town America that we all grew up with.”

“But you grew up in England,” said Lacey. “Wasn’t your father a diplomat? How do you know this view of America is either accurate or desirable?”

Zelena’s nostrils flared as she continued to smile brightly.

“Well,” she said. “Who’s been doing her homework?”

“Yeah, it’s just that people hear politicians mention tradition and family values, and all too often it’s a smoke-screen to hide racism and homophobia,” went on Lacey. “How would you address those concerns?”

Zelena spread her hands.

“I’d say look at my record,” she said. “Since I moved here I’ve made it clear that I’m happy to work with people of all backgrounds. It’s important that no one feels left out, and my initial conversations have led me to believe that there are concerns, and that some residents feel that their interests are not - fully appreciated - by the Mayor.”

“What kind of interests?” asked Lacey quickly, before Zelena could turn away, and her mouth twisted again as she tried to keep smiling.

“As I said, some feel that traditional family values are being lost in the push for modernity,” she said. “I’d like to reassure them that I stand for everything that Storybrooke represents. Decency. Morality.”

“Does that mean you think the Mayor is immoral?” asked Lacey, and Zelena pulled a face.

“I think there have been some questionable decisions at city hall under her watch, yes,” she said. “Does anyone really think that a seedy bar called Queens of Darkness is fitting for this town?”

“It’s a jazz club,” said Regina. “And there’ll be dance lessons each week. A perfectly respectable establishment, run by three accomplished businesswomen.”

Zelena let out that insincere laugh again, and Lacey sat down, retrieving her laptop from Gold and opening it up as Zelena addressed the room.

“Well, it’s not only the company the Mayor keeps,” she said. “We’ve all heard the rumours. Missing money, accounts not holding quite as much as people thought…”

“That’s an outrageous lie,” said Regina coldly. “Where’s your evidence, Miss West?”

Zelena smirked, as though she had been waiting for that very question. She held up the green folder, showing it to the room.

“I have the evidence right here,” she announced. “A brave employee of city hall managed to smuggle this out to me. Evidence that the Mayor has been embezzling town funds!”

There was a shocked intake of breath around the room. Lacey typed furiously.

“How dare you!” snapped Regina. “That’s a lie and you know it!”

“I believe this is my allotted time to speak!” Zelena snapped back. “I think the people of Storybrooke deserve to know exactly who you really are, don’t you? They should understand the choice before them!”

The doors at the end of the hall opened, and there was the sound of heavy boots on the floor. Zelena looked surprised, and then somewhat nervous, and a low-level muttering started up in the audience. Lacey glanced over her shoulder, watching as Sheriff Graham Humbert walked towards the stage with his deputy Dorothy Gale by his side. Regina appeared to be drumming her fingers on the lectern, and Lacey couldn’t work out whether it was anxiety or impatience.

“Miss West,” said Graham. “We’d like you to come with us, please.”

“Why?” demanded Zelena. “I’m a little busy winning this election, in case you hadn’t noticed.”

“It’s a matter of obstruction of justice,” said Graham. “If you could come to the station, please.”

Zelena opened and closed her mouth, a sudden flicker of fear in her eyes.

“What if I say no?”

“I’d prefer not to have to handcuff you,” said Graham.

“But we will if we have to,” added Dorothy, folding her arms.

“This is a conspiracy!” blurted Zelena, waving a finger at Regina. “Did the Mayor put you up to this? This is exactly the kind of corruption I’m talking about! The Sheriff being used as the Mayor’s enforcer!”

“Miss West…”

“Mayor Mills will do whatever it takes to silence me!” she went on. “She’s scared I’ve exposed her for what she is!”

“Miss West, I didn’t want to have to arrest you, but…”

“One hint of competition and she calls in her - her goon squad to crush it!”

“Oh, for God’s sake, I know you’re my sister!” said Regina loudly.

Silence fell, and Lacey hurriedly typed a few sentences, describing the shocked atmosphere of the town hall. Zelena was staring at Regina, eyes wide and nostrils flaring.

“I wasn’t going to mention it,” said Regina, curling her lip. “I wanted to give you a chance to be a decent person and deal with this in an honourable way. But since you’re determined to try to ruin my life for no good reason, then yes. I’m well aware we share the same mother, and frankly she’d be disappointed at this pathetic bid for attention.”

“How dare you—”

“I believe it’s my turn to speak,” interrupted Regina. “We’ve listened to enough of your rambling this evening. Since you’d been dropping hints about corruption in my office, I had Sheriff Humbert investigate. He told me earlier this evening that someone had been planting evidence to try to frame me. No doubt that’s what he wants to speak to you about.”

“This is—”

“The residents of Storybrooke know how seriously I take my duties as Mayor,” Regina went on, addressing the room as a whole now. “They know that I value their support and their trust. Of course I’d want any threat to that to be investigated. I’m just - I’m beyond disappointed that the threat comes from my half-sister.”

Her voice echoed around the silent room. Lacey was watching the townsfolk avidly, their eyes fixed on Regina as she spoke.

“I had no idea that my mother had had a daughter before me, no idea that I had another family member out there in the world,” she went on. “Her coming to Storybrooke should have been a time of joy and reunion. But instead of her reaching out to me, she tries to undermine me, to take away the most important job I have in this town.”

She looked down, shaking her head, and Gold leaned in close.

“I wonder how much of this is for the benefit of the voters and how much is genuine,” he murmured.

“Maybe fifty-fifty,” Lacey whispered back, and he nodded in agreement.

Regina raised her head, taking a deep breath, as though steeling herself for something unpleasant. Graham and Dorothy had edged towards the stage, Dorothy removing the cuffs from her belt.

“All I can do now,” said Regina, “is trust that justice will take its course.”

“You know nothing about justice!” shouted Zelena, as the Sheriff started reading her her rights. “You’ll pay for this! All of you!”

She was still yelling when Dorothy handcuffed her and marched her from the room. The sound of the doors closing was very loud in the silence that remained.

“Well,” said Regina, placing her hands on the lectern and looking around the room. “I think we can all agree that this was one of the more - eventful - political debates this town has seen.”

There was a ripple of nervous laughter, and she smiled.

“I truly hope that Miss West gets the help she so desperately needs,” she went on. “And when she has, I want her to know that she’s welcome to visit with Mallory and I. After all, we may not be able to choose our family, but that makes it all the more important to nurture the bonds we share with those around us.”

There were noises of agreement from the audience, and Gold leaned in close again.

“Ever the politician,” he murmured, and Lacey nodded.

“Storybrooke is like an extended family to me,” went on Regina, “and all families have their moments of conflict and frustration, but underneath that there is respect for one another, and a common set of values. I believe I have lived by those values for every year that I’ve served as your Mayor. I will always reach out to those in need and I will always act in the best interests of this town. Under my leadership, Storybrooke will continue to prosper. I guarantee it.”

There was applause, and a couple of cheers, and Regina nodded, looking extremely self-satisfied. She started taking questions, and Gold kissed Lacey’s cheek and whispered that he would see her in the diner when she was done. She watched him leave with his family, Emma balancing the baby on her hip and Neal pushing the stroller after them. Lacey turned back to listen to Regina field a question about the state of the town’s roads, bent her head to her laptop, and began typing up her article on the Mayoral debate.

She emailed the article over to Sidney before leaving for the diner, and walked back there with Ruby, who was chattering about the drama that had unfolded. Regina had been in her element when answering the remaining questions, and Lacey had felt a surge of satisfaction over her part in exposing a crime. Perhaps small town life offered the chance for rewarding work after all. She could see Gold and his family through the window, and his face lit up as she entered, making her stomach flip. Damn the man. I’m falling in love with him.

“Excellent job this evening,” he said, getting up to pull her chair out and kissing her cheek. “I got you a rum and coke, I hope that’s okay.”

“Perfect,” she said fervently, and took a slurp, relishing the taste on her tongue.

“How’d the Mayor look at the end of all that?” asked Emma, and Lacey pulled a face.

“The whole place gave her a round of applause, and she was looking about as satisfied as she could, I guess,” she said. “I still feel kind of sorry for her. Not every day you find out you have a half sister. Especially one that’s out to get you.”

“Well, it could have been a lot worse,” said Gold. “I very much doubt Miss West will present much of a challenge from a jail cell.”

Lacey nodded, taking another sip of her drink.

“Does this mean you and Regina are friends now?” she asked, and Gold smirked.

“Oh, I wouldn’t go that far,” he said. “What’s that term the kids use these days?”

“Frenemies?”

“That’s the one.”

“Kind of like we were,” she observed, and he laughed.

“Regina would fillet me with a letter opener if I even contemplated looking at her the way I look at you.”

“No, I don’t mean that,” she said. “I just meant - well, we kind of had that thing where we poked at each other to get a reaction, right?”

Gold looked as though he was trying very hard not to laugh, and she swatted his arm.

“Stop thinking about dirty stuff! You know what I mean!”

“I do,” he acknowledged. “And I, for one, am very glad that we - er - got the reaction we wanted.”

“You’re still thinking about dirty stuff, aren’t you?” said Emma shrewdly, and Gold shrugged.

“Maybe a little.”

They ate ribs, sticky with Granny’s special sauce, licking it from their fingers and washing it down with beer and wine and rum. By the time they got out into the cool night air, Lacey felt wonderfully tipsy, and regretted putting on her high heels earlier in the evening. At least there was no one else around to see if she fell on her arse, she supposed. Neal and Emma were walking ahead, pushing the stroller and talking quietly, and Lacey let out a sigh, slipping her arm through Gold’s for support, and resting her head on his shoulder.

“I ate too much,” she said, and Gold chuckled.

“We all ate too much.”

“You didn’t throw half of it over your lap, though.”

“No, I thought I’d leave that to you.”

“Stupid gravity,” muttered Lacey, and he laughed, squeezing her arm with his.

“Tired?” he asked.

“Yeah. Long day.”

“Maybe you should have an early night.”

She glanced up at him, and he was grinning at her, his eyes twinkling.

“How’s that gonna work?” she asked flatly. “Your family’s staying over. No way I’m letting you give me screaming orgasms while they’re in the room next door.”

“In that case I could sneak over to yours,” he suggested. “You could scream to your heart’s content.”

Lacey giggled, barging him affectionately with her shoulder.

“I think I love you, Mr Gold,” she said, and Gold stopped dead, turning to face her with a stunned look on his face.

“Really?”

Lacey turned to face him, taking his hand.

“Really,” she said. “I mean I’m kind of drunk, but that’s not why I’m saying it. I think I’ve sort of been in love with you for a while now. Is that okay?”

He was staring at her, wide-eyed, and a softness seemed to spill over his features, making his eyes gleam as he smiled.

“Well,” he said. “I think I love you, too, Miss French. Is that okay?”

“More than okay.”

He seemed to hesitate for a moment, then raised his chin.

“D’you want to move in?” he asked.

“Can I bring Darcy?”

“Of course.”

“Then you got a deal.”

He was grinning, and she found herself grinning back, her heart swelling with love for him.

“Let’s wait until after Neal and Emma go before I move in, though,” she said. “I think you said something about screaming orgasms?”

Gold’s grin turned wicked, and he bent his head to kiss her.

“I’ll be over later.”

She let his lips pull at hers, leaning in to feel the warmth of his body as his arms went around her, and let out a sigh of contentment. Yes. Life in a small town could be amazing.

#fic: heatstroke #golden lace fic #rumbelle fic #golden lace #rumbelle #my fic

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plainbrunettelbl · 4 years

Text

ABO (A) Katsuki Bakugo x (O) Reader Heated Blanket

Word count: 1175

Warnings: Grumpy Bakugo

Title: ABO (A) Katsuki Bakugo x (O) Reader Heated Blanket

Summary: Your Alpha is less than pleased when it comes to your new purchase.

(Gif not mine)

💥-At the start of winter, things were great for Bakugo. He would come home from his agency and his Omega would meet him at the door with a kiss and hug and they would beg him to cuddle with them since they were cold and wanted to be wrapped in their Alphas warmth.

💥-He would grudgingly agree after he took a shower and was all nice and clean to cuddle with his needy Omega. It was something he had come to expect. So when you went and got yourself a heated blanket he was fuming.

💥-Silently of course.

💥-He had walked through the door prepared to receive a hug and a kiss. Which he did get but the third thing was left out. Once you released him from your soft hug you smiled before walking away towards the living room.

💥-He thought it was a little odd but went on with his shower and expected to come back to you on the couch giving him puppy eyes to come cuddle with you. Nope. He walked in and was ignored for the TV.

💥-He noticed a new orange blanket wrapped around you but didn’t think anything of it. His Omega was always getting new blankets and pillows for their nest.

💥-He quietly huffed.

💥-He decided to hold out since maybe they needed some alone time or something. If you were in a bad mood then he would try and make it a little better. Angry boi made a big batch of hot chocolate for you.

💥-He let it warm on the stove as he walked to the living room.

💥-“Y/N, I made some hot chocolate for you.” He mentioned.

💥-Your eyes sparkled. “That sounds so good right now Suki! Can you bring me some? I am so comfortable right now.” You smiled.

💥-He had planned for you to go into the kitchen and ladle the chocolate goodness into a cup. He would move behind you for a quick hug. He was hoping it wouldn’t be enough for you and you would ask him to cuddle.

💥-That didn’t happen so he walked a little louder than necessary to the kitchen to fill you up a cup. He made one for himself and brought them both to the living room.

💥-He was hoping once you took a sip and saw that he was sitting on the couch with you that you would finally ask for some snuggles but you just drank the cup with a delighted sigh and focused on the TV drama you were watching.

💥-What’s wrong with his Omega? Did he do something wrong? Why weren’t they asking for cuddles? He took a whiff of the room to see if he could smell anything off with you but your content scent made that idea vanish.

💥-“Anything you want to tell me Y/N?” He asked trying not to sound obvious.

💥-You hummed, eyes still on the TV. “No, I don’t think so.”

💥-“Nothing at all?” He grumbled.

💥-“Oh! Guess what I got today? A heated blanket! It is even orange so it makes me think of you! I have been using it all day. It is so warm and comfortable.” You sighed happily nuzzling into the blanket more.

💥-He was warm and comfortable. He should be the one you were nuzzling into not some heated contraption! Unknown to him he let out a small growl. You had glanced over and saw the angry pout on his face.

💥-You being the devious Omega you were decided to prank him. He never asked for cuddles when you were asking for them all the time. It was time he asked for once.

💥-Honestly, you got the blanket because you felt like you were bothering him a bit with all the cuddling you were doing with him. You didn’t want to seem too needy so when you saw the blanket at the store today it seemed like a good idea.

💥-Bakugo clearly needed you cuddles more than he and you realized. You could smell his caramel scent take on a slight burning tone. You would only tease him a little bit before he went into full angry mode.

💥-“I think I might get one for the bed. A smaller one so that you don’t have to deal with the heat. I know you tend to run hot and overheat easily so I’ll buy one for a twin and enjoy it by myself.” Your tone held humor but he was too busy fuming to pay attention to the playful lift.

💥-His scowl deepened his hands balling up into fists.

💥-He could picture it now. You with you stupid heated blanket on one side of the bed all nice and happy and Bakugo on the other cold and alone. The Alpha in him was already roaring in outrage.

💥-How dare his Omega bring that cursed thing into the den! This was unacceptable. He needed his cuddle and he needed them now.

💥-“Omega.” He warned.

💥-Your Omega startled to attention at his deep voice. His Alpha clearly present. Maybe bringing one into the bed was overkill. You should have mentioned one in your nest instead.

💥-“Yes, Alpha?” You crooned already inching out of the warm blanket to seek his embrace.

💥-“I want it out of the house this second.” He stated as if it wasn’t the craziest thing you have ever heard.

💥-“What?” Your eyes widened. Sure you had expected him to dislike the blanket but to ban it from the den? It was almost laughable.

💥-“I want it gone. The only thing keeping you warm and content should be me.” He huffed, crossing his arms.

💥-You had already wriggled free and made to sit on his lap. Slightly crooning to calm him down a little. “Is that so?” You prodded.

💥-“Yes. I want it gone the very second.” He leaned into your neck to scent you. Enjoying your weight against him. He uncrossed his arms to bring them around your frame.

💥-“But I like it Alpha. It keeps me warm when you are not here.” You whined, running your hands across his chest.

💥-He paused for a second. He did tend to come home later than both he and you would like. The thought of you shivering when he was not here made him scowl even deeper.

💥-“Fine. You can keep it but when I am home it goes in the closet.” He grudgingly agreed.

💥-“Of course, Suki! Nothing beats cuddling with my grumpy Alpha.” You leaned up to give him a kiss on the cheek.

💥-“I’m not grumpy.” He scoffed.

💥-“Sure. You weren't pouting up a storm because I found a nice way to keep warm without you and your cuddles.” You teased.

💥-He huffed some more. Not disagreeing but not agreeing with you statement. He simply laid back onto the couch and plopped you on top of him. You had some cuddles to make up to him.

💥- “I see that thing on the bed I will blow it up.” He growled before kissing your forehead with a soft purr.

A pouty Bakugo is the cutest. Thank you to the lovely follower that suggested this prompt. I had a lot of fun writing it. 💕

Keep in mind that you can send me prompts and if I like them enough I will write them but writing should be fun and I don’t want to feel forced to write everything you nice fans send me. Thank you for understanding. 💗

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purple-goo-writes · 4 years

Text

Young and Beautiful Part 2

Taglist: @clumsy-owl-4178 @myazael @woe-is-me0 @midnightmode @t1dwarrior-of-earth @stainedglassm

@catthhay @dorkus-minimus @maskedpainter @waffleyunsure @marinettepotterandplagg @demonicbusiness @mystery-5-5

@justafanwarrior

I've seen the world, lit it up As my stage now Channeling angels in a new age now Hot summer days, rock and roll The way you play for me at your show And all the ways, I got to know Your pretty face and electric soul

Will you still love me When I'm no longer young and beautiful? Will you still love me When I've got nothing but my aching soul? I know you will, I know you will I know that you will Will you still love me when I'm no longer beautiful?

He didn’t see her again until three years later after he took in his first ward, Richard Grayson.

He didn’t know how she knew that he needed her support or how she was aware of his new ward, soon to be adopted son. All Bruce was aware of was of the fact that his shoulders finally released the tension he had not been aware that he was carrying when he came up from the Batcave after Dick’s first patrol and felt her familiar and welcoming calm aura. Even Richard noticed the distinct change in his guardian’s demeanor once they exited the Cave and entered the manor. And though the young Robin didn’t necessarily feel the new aura of calm permeating the Manor, he certainly does relax the moment he steps out of the Cave and feels the tension he had carried since his parent’s murder leave his own body.

It felt as if he was finally coming home and not just coming back to the house he inhabited with his guardian and the butler.

Bruce could only watch in awe as Marinette breaks through all of Dick’s walls and within a week he walks in on Marinette holding a crying 12 year old boy as he finally griefs for his parents. Not long after that Marinette joins them on patrol as PopinJay using the fixed Peacock Miraculous.

Her suit looked like an odd mix of leather and spandex, a deep dark blue with black accents with some dark green detailing here and there; black gloves with blue fingers, black boots with blue heels and a dark blue domino mask with green detailing that mimicked feathers. Attached to her waist was a partial skirt that mimicked peafowl tail feathers with an ombre effect- starting black before fading to dark blue then green at the tips. Her hair was put up in an elegant bun pinned in place by two golden peafowl quils and held in a holster around her waist were two steel fans tipped in gold that when spread resembled two beautiful yet deadly fans of peacock feathers.

“Why the Peacock?” Batman enquired with a raised eyebrow while Robin squealed happily as the preteen danced around PopinJay taking in her suit.

The masked woman snickered softly, her lips tugging into a small smirk, “I figured it would match well with your theme.”

Bruce should not have been surprised about how flawlessly she joins into their routine and patrols. Marinette had always been able to adapt to any situation easily after all. It was something that the Guardian was still trying to teach him how to do.

She would pop in randomly over the years that followed, always seeming to know when Bruce and Dick needed her the most. She was a part of their small family after all and Bruce’s oldest friend. It was why he did not protest when Marinette whisked Dick away to the Temple to train after he and Bruce have a fight again when Robin talks about heading out on his own and becoming his own hero, outside of the Young Justice. After all he was turning 18 soon and was outgrowing the Robin mantle.

“Just because he is growing up, doesn’t mean he no longer needs his father, Bruce.” Were Marinette’s parting words before she left with Dick for Tibet.

When they returned a year later, it was to a relieved, if sheepish, Bruce who had just returned from patrol with a very angry preteen in tow dressed in a new Robin suit. Instead of feeling threatened, Dick grinned, causing Bruce to sigh in relief, “So does this mean I have a little brother now?”

“How did you end up adopting this one, ma nuit noire?”

“He stole the wheels off the BatMobile.”

“Only you, Bruce, only you.”

A month later, Dick became Nightwing after a conversation with Superman when the young man asked the super if his culture ever had vigilantes after Dick moved to Bludhaven. With the alien’s permission, he took up the mantle of Nightwing and officially passed on the Robin mantle down to his younger brother, Jason. Bludhaven gained a vigilante and Jason gained a new confidence with his older brother’s approval, not that the angry teen would admit it.

PopinJay made return to Gotham to help train the new Robin. Bruce was surprised, though he shouldn’t have been, at how fast Jason took to Marinette. The former street kid would even slip and call her Ma now and then, especially when the peacock heroine was being extra motherly. That Bruce wasn’t surprised about as Dick would, and still did, call Marinette Mama Bird. He tried not to dwell on how much his heart warmed at the thought of Marinette as the boys’ mother figure. Especially not when he was currently dancing around Catwoman and their odd relationship or his thing with Talia Al Ghul, who he knew disliked PopinJay greatly. Though his relationship with Talia ended when she drug him.

It was after a routine patrol when PopinJay came sauntering back into the Batcave carrying a confused, if exited, little nine-year-old boy with dark hair and bright blue eyes dressed only in his pajamas and holding a camera. The dark blue haired woman was smiling motherly down at the little scamp in her arms as Tim babbled excitedly about meeting one of his favorite heroes and how he couldn’t believe that MDC was PopinJay.

“PopinJay, what is the meaning of this?” Bruce growled in confusion as he turned from the BatComputer to address his partner, who simply giggled at his attempt to intimidate her.

“Bruce, come meet your biggest fan.”

“PopinJay!”

“Oh, don’t be a stick in the mud. He already figured out our identities from Dick’s quadruple somersault.”

“He what? But, how?” This had Bruce intrigued as he stalked close to the woman, who was practically the mother of his sons, taking in the sight of little Tim, “He is the Drake heir...what is he doing out so late?” The fact that he was still in his pajamas without shoes on brought the father in Bruce to the forefront went without saying.

Jason watched all this with a sigh and grumbled, “I’ll go tell Alfred to get a room ready for him.” Looks like he would be sharing his Ma with another brother...He best tell Dick about Tim, Jason just knew their parents (Marinette was their Mom no matter how oblivious Bruce was to his feelings) would be adopting the boy.

And wouldn’t you know he was right, somehow not even three months later Tim was now Tim Drake-Wayne due to his parents being found neglectful in a hush-hush trail. Dick was ecstatic about having another little brother to dote on and even Jason was happy to have a little brother, having grown fond of Tim during all the times the youngest Drake stayed at the Manor or BatCave when his parents went out of town on one of their frequent business trips.

If Bruce wasn’t already thankful for Marinette’s presence in his life, he would have been after Jason ran off to track down his birth mother after finding out that Catherine was not his mom. He understood that Jason simply had questions he thought only his birth mom could answer, but it still broke Bruce’s heart that his middle son thought he would not help him find the woman. If it wasn’t for the multiple trackers he had placed on Jason, he would not have known that the young Robin was in Ethiopia of all places. Batman wouldn’t make it in time to save Robin, but he knew one person who could.

It was the only time his composure had came so close to breaking as he called Marinette and begged her to save their son. Batman arrived just as the building went up in flames and would have broken down if not for PopinJay informing over the comm that she had Jason and that they were at the Cave. Unfortunately, Jason was in critical condition and had slipped into a coma by the time Bruce made it back to the Manor. After a long talk, it was decided that Marinette would take him to the Temple to heal and recover. Tim would be taking over as Robin in his absence, though the 12 year old wished it was under different circumstances.

Marinette kept Bruce updated on his status using the communicator he had given her. He wasn’t ashamed to admit that he cried when she called him and informed him that Jason had woken up. Jason and Bruce had a long discussion when he was fully coherent, thankfully Jason understood why Bruce gave Tim the mantle and even asked him to inform Tim that he had his blessing to be Robin. This talk was also the first time one of his sons’ called him Dad.

“Dad, I don’t think I can be Robin anymore, anyway...I think it’s time I branched out.”

“Will you be using a Miraculous?”

“No, Ma asked, even said I would be a good fit for the Eagle, but I turned her down. I want to make my own way without fancy powers.”

“You know we will support any decision you make.”

It was two years after that that Jason fully recovered and returned to Gotham as the vigilante, Red Hood. Thankfully, Marinette talked him out of that outrageous helmet and helped him design his new costume, his suit he wore had a red hood attached to it and he wore a red metal face mask with a black domino mask. He still managed to keep the leather jacket though. Even if Bruce frowned at his use of guns, at least the rounds were mainly tranquilizers, the Bat was proud of his son.

Tim made an amazing Robin and detective. Though Bruce was suspicious when Marinette would disappear with Tim to train him in secret or take him to the Temple. But, it was Tim’s choice and if he choose to join the Order, Bruce would support him. Marinette loved their sons equally, but Bruce knew she was closer to Tim.

He was thankful for Marinette being there for him when Barbara joined the team as Batgirl. Even more thankful for when Stephanie joined and then Cassandra was adopted. He was not sure how to handle daughters and the girls having a positive female role model relieved him greatly. Even if he did get a few grey hairs now and then from some of their more interesting purchases.

Talia dropped Damian on Bruce when Tim was 16 and had just become co-CEO of Wayne Enterprises, after both his older brothers refused the position. (Dick was now a Cop in Bludhaven and Jason had taken over Security for the WE.) Bruce was still reeling from the shock of finding out he had a blood son and Talia just dumping the ten year old on him without so much of a by-your-leave. Bruce had finally put his past with Talia and Selina behind him and finally moved on when this happened. He was unsure how to process this new situation. Though after stopping Damian from killing/attacking Tim once again, he knew what he had to do.

He called Marinette.

Bruce isn’t sure what she did or said to his youngest son. But after whisking Damian away for a few months at the Temple, the child that came back was changed. Still the same arrogant cold ex-assassin, but he had started to open up to his family and follow his father’s code of honor. Though, things were still shaky between him and Tim, the older boys were all amused when Damian bluntly asked them why Father hadn’t proposed to Marinette, or Mère as he called her in French, yet.

“Because Dad is really, really oblivious to his own feelings.”

“He’s a fucking idiot.”

“Jaybird!”

“What? You know it’s true!”

“Little ears, Jay!”

Damian turned to his only intelligent sibling, and most dangerous outside of Cain, "Drake, I presume you have plans ready to set in motion?"

There was a reason he considered Drake his highest threat to his position as blood son. Ra's had stated time and time again that he wished to induct Tim into the fold, one way or another. Many times his grandfather had stated this when he found Damian's own performance lacking, making comments on how the young Detective would have done things. Drake had plans within plans, a mind like a steel trap mixed with a twisted maze and a tenacity most assassin's would envy. It was why Damian grudgingly respected the teen, even if he would rather bit his tongue off then admit it.

Tim gave his youngest sibling a rather maniacal grin, some of his Red Robin persona (A mantle he took up recently) shining through, "Oh do I."

Unfortunately, their plans to trick their parental figures into realizing their feelings would have to wait.

Because Darkseid came and Bruce was gone...

#brucinette #mominette #maribat #ml x dc #i swear to god tumblr #YOU BETTER POST THIS #YnB

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ladyhindsight · 2 years

Note

Is it true that Alec and Magnus start dating when Alec is 17 (and Magnus is like 400 years old)?

I read someone say that Alec turns 18 in a side story (which I have not read) and he and Magnus are already dating by then :/

I disliked this in Twilight when it was a hetero couple with a shorter age gap (17 and 107)

I dislike it even more, actually I hate it when it's a queer couple. Queer man (especially men of color) are already stereotyped as predatory and only interested in looks and in controlling their partner (hence why they pray on inexperienced young boys)

Teenagers read this shit ffs

Actually, I don't think that Alec being 18 would have made a difference for me. He'd still be a teenager.

It's ridiculous that irl when we see a man in his 30s or 40s date a 19yo, we think it's strange, but we are completely fine with an 18yo being in a relationship with a 400yo.

If Magnus looked his age, book stans would be disgusted. But Magnus' hot and quirky and dresses outrageously (as if that's not another stereotype) so people stan him smh

Immortal beings with incredible power: stay the hell away from teenagers.

Yepp. Alec has turned 18 in the main series by the time of City of Glass, but they have sort of begun dating. There’s a whole drama about it.

In a message I received about this topic few years back, I said:

Alec is seventeen when he meets Magnus, and Magnus flirts with him. Of course, people vary by their maturity even that age, but I have to admit it does come off as yucky to think that hundreds of years old warlock takes interest in an underage boy. I mean, I’m only in my twenties but I’m starting to have those reactions similar to that one Star Trek gif.

So it’s sort of legal by the time of CoG. Sort of.

It’s a fair thing to point out that Edward/Bella thing. Or any relationship having a Salvatore brother being the other half of the pair. But like you said, it’s YA (or fantasy in general), I don’t think our societal rules apply specifically to a relationship where the other one is immortal. After all, Magnus can’t get any younger than he is, and he will always be a certain amount older than Alec. Then aside from biological age, of course, there is the aspect of emotional and mental maturity which varies greatly no matter how old a person actually is.

To elaborate on this: Alec isn’t really mature during The Mortal Instruments. City of Fallen Angels and City of Lost Souls especially can attest to that. And he’s eighteen, he’s a teen boy still. So I’m not as much bothered by the age gap as much as the fact that Alec couldn’t have been, like, an adult?

Everyone certainly has their own feelings and approaches to the subject, but I don’t remember ever finding Magnus and Alec’s relationship uncomfortable because of their age status when I was younger. I don’t think I do even now. But as you mentioned, there is the objectification and over-sexualisation of characters, and I think that is what’s wrong with the whole deal.

I wrote that I wasn’t that bothered really, I read these books when I was a teen. But since this message, I am now four years older and bothered I aaam.

Alec’s inexperience, his hesitancy to come out, his fear of abandonment because of his sexuality—all of these already make him unequal to Magnus who already knows who he is and isn’t afraid to show it. Then there’s the fact that the power imbalance becomes very obvious when Alec is pressured to come out because Magnus is already in love and if Alec isn’t going to do anything to acknowledge their relationship publicly, he’s gonna scram. Like a week or two after they sort of start seeing each other.

Magnus hasn’t really aged mentally either with the years he’s lived. It’s easy to forget that he is actually really old because he behaves like this, and his appearance and persona are youthful.

Like now I think it is fine, like in The Dark Artifices. Alec is strong on his own. He is adult and has become more knowledgeable of the world, more responsible maybe. But reflecting back to The Mortal Instruments, the issues you pointed out about the predatory element and stereotyping do shine through.

#Alec Lightwood #Magnus Bane #Reply

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dogin8 · 3 years

Note

Hello dogin! With the red banquet being today, what has been your favorite dsmp event so far?

HEYO,

So I've got 3 things to talk about here because I'm not actually sure if 2 of them count as "events", so I added 1 definite event at the end just in case. So:

The Community House (Or to make it more of an event, The day before doomsday): THE EMOTIONS HERE WERE ABSOLUTELY AMAZING, Tommy and Techno turning up to hear Dream framing Tommy for the destruction of the community house, then when he appears and starts trying to convince everyone that he didn't and the murmurs of anger and disbelief from everyone until Techno appears to back him up and their anger suddenly changes, they're outraged at Tommy for teaming up with Techno. There were so many emotions and the emotions were LOUD, I loved it, Tommy was shouting, Dream was shouting, Techno was shouting, the crowd was shouting and most importantly: Tubbo was shouting, something that doesn't happen very often but when it DOES, it's amazing, Tubbo is insanely good at acting and he really shines when it comes to anger (due to the generally calm lighthearted nature of his character, the contrast certainly helps) This was also shown later when Tubbo confronted Quackity about wanting to execute Ranboo, absolutely amazing. ALSO: The line "THE DISCS WERE WORTH MORE THAN YOU EVER WERE!" and everyone going totally silent, The delivery was perfect the reactions from the other characters were perfect, EVERYTHING AHH!!

The 2nd "Event" that's more of a scene (The event being Nov 16th) Is Schlatt's death: WOW it hurt, Like I just wanna talk about how by reducing the Malevolent Powerful Dictator to a grovelling alcoholic mess, they stripped the characters and the audience of any of the satisfaction of victory, nobody got to kill Schlatt except for his own bad habits, unless 👀 (HC that Quackity poisoned Schlatt my beloved) Also it was a really good writing decision making the "victory" of beating Schlatt not feel like a victory at all, it not only left us wanting/expecting more out of the stream but also foreshadowed how there would be no victory after all "If I die this country is going down with me" and it did (Also I don't think I say this enough but regardless what you think of the cc, Schlatts acting is fucking insane (when he tries)). AND on top of that, it hit us with the emotional PUNCH of seeing that Schlatt, The asshole, the dictator, the evil tyrant, HAD EMOTIONS. This for me really was the first time when I saw them use the intricacies of their platform to the fullest in the writing, I'll explain this a bit further: Schlatt and Dream are the two biggest "POV-less" characters, and as such, we don't get nearly as much insight into their heads as we would with say Tommy, AND THEY USED THAT FACT TO IT'S EXTREME WITH SCHLATT. Schlatt is the asshole, he does malicious things on purpose and laughs about it, he doesn't show care for anyone around him and he is never vulnerable or open about his emotions, that is... he wasn't, not until the very end when it all came out at once, this terrifying transformation from the cold person we knew we could hate to... something afraid, something vulnerable, something... pitiful, and altogether human. "Don't kill me I'm scared of that/death"(can't remember which word), There's an amazing animatic of it (here). Also just how it highlighted that... he was alone, he pushed people away and then when it came down to it? he was entirely alone, Fundy who had stucked by his side the longest was the final straw, the amount of pain in his voice just saying "Fundy?" AHHH. "In my time of need everybody left" IS LITERALLY A LINE, Clear as day he is aknowledging that he had a "time of need" he needed people around him but his own actions pushed them away. Okay I could talk about this scene for hours and hours but I'll cut it short just for the answer (might make a standalone post abt it later tho)

Lastly the only actual Event, and a genuindly hot take, The event on the dream smp that I would consider my favourite so far: Doomsday

A lot of people have brought up incredibly valid reasons why they dislike Doomsday, but I can't help but love how it turned out. Two of the people on the server who spend the most time preparing for war (Dream and Techno) + the person who probably plays more minecraft than 90% of players and has never died on the server so has never lost his equipment (Phil) fighting agaainst a ragtag bunch of broken people, it was the epitome of An Unstoppable force, except in this analogy there was no immovable object. Not to mention the Tommy & Sapnap reconciliation (chaos twins supremacy) and how Sapnap actually got so insanely close to killing Techno right in the middle of doomsday, the man might be a himbo but he's also insanely good at PVP and I love him. ALSO MORE SHOUTING!!! Genuinely we got so many banger emotionally charged lines from multiple characters during doomsday and it was... amazing. "People, PEOPLE are above the government" "I AM A PERSON" "You are and so are WE!!!"

"DON'T SPEAK TO ME OF LOYALTY"

All lines that I absolutely love, regardless of whether or not they are even slightly true, Brilliant brilliant, BRILLIANT,

now I'm just gonna post this quickly without looking back over it too much because I've already accidentally deleted this answer once and I don't want to do it again

#dream smp #dsmp #dreamsmp #dream smp analysis #asks #malted jotson

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bangtancentricsblog · 3 years

Note

If ur taking requests how about something based off “you wanna kiss me so bad right now, don’t you” only if ur comfortable. Can be with anyone!

I can’t tell you how excited I was to see this, I literally lit up when I saw it, so thank you so much again! I’m sorry it took longer than I had planned I hope you enjoy it and don’t forget to come by again if you have any other requests💖

❍ pairing: jeon jungkook x reader

❍ fluster meter: idk maybe a 3.5 out of 5

❍ word count: 1.4 k

The furrow of your brow grows deeper the longer you stand on the opposite side of the club, the drink in your hand long forgotten. The bass of the song is heavy, not unpleasant but a little too much for you at this point. The night had started off fairly decent, your friends all eager to drink their problems away even convincing you to skip a relaxing night in for a night of actual fun, and for a while it had been fun. The club they’d chosen was a popular one, one that you usually avoided like the plague for the sheer fact that it was alway packed with lines rounding the corner just to get in. You just didn't like Echo like your friends did, and maybe that had more to do with a certain group of men, rather than popularity. To be perfectly clear it wasn't all of them more so the one you had the displeasure of having gone to high school with.

There really isn't a reason, at least none that you can think of for your dislike of Jeon Jungkook. He wasn't a jock and he wasn't a quiet outcast, he just was, if that made any sense. The thing was that Jungkook had spent an outrageous amount of time picking on you, at least that was what you had told yourself. Others had said he was courting you, a thought that had been preposterous considering that you two had never spoken and yet every valentine's there was chocolate on your desk, every birthday, every single holiday worth celebrating there was always a little something sitting on your desk a small neatly written note attached. There were no professions of love, just simple little things like, ‘happy valentines day <3” signed with JJK as if any other boy would be so bold to give you anything.

Jungkook was just weird like that, even weirder was that he’d kept it up throughout all four years of high school and by the end the whole school had somehow come to the conclusion that you two were in an arranged marriage set up by your parents before either of you could talk. Truth be told you were just as confused over his motives seeing as he’d been popular despite his social standing amongst the cliques. Girls and boys alike from all the cliques had a crush on him, and for some reason he’d set his sights on you. Shy, awkward, hot headed you. You were plain, and had taken a long time to grow comfortable in your body, so it only made sense that he was playing some cruel prank on you.

It’s enough to say that high school had not ended well when you had finally grown tired of waiting for him to drop the ball. So you had confronted him and even then he had just said he thought you were really pretty. You hadn’t believed him then and you didn't believe him any of the times after that. Strange enough you’d ended up at the same college and even working in the same building. You had flings since then of course none that stuck around long enough and from the way all the office girls flung themselves at him so had Jungkook it seemed. Though arbitrarily enough that hadn’t stopped him from flirting with you anyways. He’d stop by your cubicle complimenting your dress or hair, the glasses you had been forced to wear after messing up your eyesight.

Jungkook for all it was worth was very charming, not even just to you either. Most of the girls on your floor had talked him up, so much so it had warmed your heart a little. A little because at the end of the day you still didn't like him, even if he’d somehow made himself a constant presence in your life. So how exactly did you go from not caring about him to being absolutely, overwhelmingly jealous that some busty blonde was grinding on him while holding her close as he smirked at you teasingly almost cockily if you will. From here you can easily see Yoongi and Jimin, both somehow a striking shade of blonde amongst the sea of brunette. You’re sure the others are here somewhere drinking, dancing or fucking the night away as they did. Honestly you still aren’t too comfortable in your skin, not enough for the dress you wear, the hem is too short, the straps too thin, and a size too small that it sticks to your figure somewhat uncomfortably, but none of that matters as you down the shot of tequila.

Feeling emboldened by this game Jungkook refuses to forfeit, you make your way across the club. Squeezing past gyrating bodies, and couples comfortablely entangled in one another for such a public place, sauntering right up to Yoongi and Jimin who turn their gazes to you simultaneously. Jimin smiles playfully, a little too coquettish but one that sends heat swirling into the pit of your belly. Yoongi’s eyes are half lidded, dark gaze drinking in the sight of you, skin dewy from the heat of the club, looking every bit as inviting as ever. The corners of his lips tilt upwards in a smirk so sexy heating your cheeks under his approving gaze.

“Wanna dance?” you ask, with a quirk of your brow. Yoongi nods standing easily, taking your hand and leading you onto the dance floor just as the song changes. You’re no stranger to the dance floor, as you sway your hips to the beat, sighing as Yoongi’s hands come to rest on your hips, pulling you close till your ass is pressed to his hips. It’s been too long since you’ve let yourself go, easily letting him lead your movements, dare you say enjoying the way he pressed impossibly closer to you. Your eyes have long since fallen shut, allowing yourself to fall deeper into the rhythm he’s set, it’s almost trance like. You’ve long since drowned out the song only allowing yourself to feel the soft pressure of the body behind you, throwing you head back as they press particularly close as you grind back on them. A soft moan leaving you only catching the tail end of their own groan.

“You like that sweetheart?” Your eyes fly open, the music no longer muffled, ringing louder in your ears than before. The hands on your hips burn, not unpleasantly you realize, though you still move away from him quickly. Your gaze is quick to meet Jungkook’s as he smiles down at you, hands never leaving your waist pulling you into another dance, moving your arms to wrap around his neck. He’s a good dancer, easily slipping one muscular thigh between yours, you almost sigh dreamily.

“You wanna kiss me so bad right now, don’t you?” He whispers against your lips, and you can’t help but wonder when he got so close.

“And what if I do?” You ask, peaking at him from under your lashes. His gaze is dark, hungry even as he drinks you in. He’d be damned if he let this opportunity slip through his fingers.

“All you have to do is ask.” He smirks triumphantly when you sigh a breathy please, pressing your lips to his almost desperately. Jungkook’s knees buckle as you press your softness against him, groaning when you take his lip between your teeth, and continue to suck on his tongue. He’s quick to recover though easily pulling away from you and leading you off the dance floor, towards the back before he’s pressing you against a wall and kissing you again. This is his chance he thinks as his hands knead the plush of your thighs because as much as you claimed you hated him, he knew you didn’t. And although Jungkook thought you were pretty in high school you were downright beautiful now, and he still wanted just as much. He reckons he owes yoongi for his help too but that can wait.

“I can’t believe you agreed to dance with her.” Jimin laughs over the lip of his beer.

“It was worth the look on Jungkook’s face.” Yoongi hums, turning his gaze to the back corner across the club. Though dimly lit he can still make out Jungkook’s figure dwarfing your own, and even though he had no intent of entertaining you with your little show he can admit the absolute heaven it had been when you’d pressed your ass against him. Still he’d never make a move on Jungkook’s forever girl, not when he had his sights set on another.

#anon asks #emm answers #requested #an emm writes production #emms Jungkook drabbles #jungkook drabbles #Jungkook drabble asks #mine Jungkook drabbles #emm writes

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openheartthot · 4 years

Text

Sick Day

Pairing: Ethan Ramsey x f!MC (Camille Prescott)

Word Count: 1,635

Warnings: This might be hard to read if you’ve been having trouble with a certain pandemic ~ahem~ so be warned there is a virus involved here. Also like one curse word.

Summary: Ethan can’t stay away when Camille comes down with the flu.

Y’all were so sweet with my first story that I’m back with another one today. Thanks to everyone that read and enjoyed, it really means a lot! :)

***

His knock echoes in the empty hallway, and Ethan shifts uncomfortably. He can’t just stand outside her apartment all day. At some point, he’s going to have to accept that she’s not answering the door. Still, he can’t help himself from raising his fist to the door and rapping his knuckles against the wood once more.

The knock is a bit harder than he means for it to be, a sign of his desperation. He needs to see her, needs to know that she’s okay. Until he can see her with his own eyes, every minute that he’s left standing out in the hallway is torture.

Finally, as Ethan is reaching for his phone to call Sienna Trinh and demand her assistance, the door slowly swings open. He lets out a sigh of relief when he sees Camille standing in the doorway.

“Ethan?” Camille’s voice is raspy, and she wraps her arms around herself, shivering despite the oversized UPenn crew neck she’s wearing. Besides the sweatshirt, all she has on are a ridiculous pair of over-the-knee pink wool socks. As outrageous as the socks may be, Ethan’s mouth goes just a little bit dry at the sight of her bare thighs. “What are you doing here?” Camille asks, her confused tone wrenching Ethan’s attention away from her legs.

“Erm…I just thought I’d deliver these to you.” Ethan says, brusquely thrusting a thick stack of patient charts into her arms. The excuse sounds flimsy even as it leaves his mouth. “I heard you called in sick, so--”

“So you left Edenbrook to come give me my patient charts?” Camille interrupts, bemused. “You know we have digital copies of these, right?”

“Of course.” The silence between them stretches out for just long enough to become awkward. Ethan knows she’s waiting on a real explanation, and furthermore, he knows he owes her one. “I was…concerned. When Baz told me you wouldn’t be in, all I could think about was if you’d been hurt…or…” He swallows hard. “Why didn’t you call me?”

“Ethan,” Camille reaches out and takes his hand. Ethan notes the heat emanating from her skin. “It’s just a virus. And we still haven’t had a chance to talk over everything yet. The last thing I wanted to do was drag you away from work to take care of me.”

It’s true. They still haven’t spoken about the kiss outside of Ethan’s apartment, or the kiss at Mass Kenmore, for that matter. Ethan’s so buried in his thoughts that he almost doesn’t notice Camille swaying slightly, letting go of his hand to grip the door frame for balance.

He immediately steps closer, steadying her with a hand on her waist. The back of his other hand, he uses to press delicately against her forehead. He had been expecting fever, but he’s mildly alarmed by the heat radiating from her skin.

“Sorry,” Camille mumbles, leaning into him gratefully. “I’ve just been having some vertigo. Could be a symptom of--”

“The common cold. Or influenza. Type A has been going around this year.” Ethan interjects. “And don’t apologize for being sick.”

“I know what the flu is.” Camille says indignantly. “I should’ve known you’d try to one-up me when I’m on my deathbed.” she pouts, the congestion in her voice bolstering her self-pitying tone. Ethan’s lips twitch into a smile.

“You’re delirious. Can I take you to bed?” He instantly regrets his choice of words as Camille lets out a loud peal of laughter, which quickly tapers off into a coughing fit. “I meant, you need to lie down.” He glares at her, and she grins back.

“Fine, you’re right.” Camille turns, starting to pull away from him and take an unsteady step in the direction of her bedroom. She doesn’t get very far before Ethan tugs her back to him, cradling her face in his large hands.

“Let me take care of you.” he says, gently stroking her cheekbone. “Please.” Ethan knows her roommates are all working double shifts, and he can’t bear to leave her here alone. He’s certain his feelings are written all over his face because Camille’s eyes soften immediately.

Before she can say anything, Ethan leans down and scoops her up with ease. He carries her bridal-style into her bedroom and lays her down in her bed, trying very very hard not to think about what happened the first time he saw the inside of this room. Or the second time, for that matter. The sight of her bare ass is not something he’s likely to forget.

Once she’s safely tucked into her bed, Ethan moves for the door, bracing himself to take stock of her kitchen. Camille and her roommates don’t seem very domestic, but hopefully they’ll have enough ingredients for soup. Camille’s hand reaches out and closes around his wrist before he can reach the door.

“Stay.” Her eyes are slitted, her hand hot on his arm, but he can’t say no to her.

He kicks off his shoes and unknots his tie, sitting on the bed beside her. He hesitates for only a moment before drawing her towards him and wrapping an arm snugly around her waist. He runs one hand over her tousled blonde locks, and Camille lets out a little sigh, resting her head on his chest and closing her eyes.

The afternoon has bled into evening by the time Camille wakes up, and by then Ethan has relocated to the couch. He’s slowly combing through the stack of patient files he brought with him. He pulls off his glasses and looks up as Camille shuffles out of the bathroom. She’s obviously just gotten out of the shower, because her wet hair is tossed up in a messy bun, but she’s wearing the same outfit from before.

“I made soup.” Ethan offers, gesturing towards the kitchen. Camille rubs her eyes, and despite her bleary eyes and rumpled appearance, his heart melts at her shy smile.

“Thanks. You didn’t have to do that.” She reappears from the kitchen a few moments later, holding a bowl of soup in her hands. She takes a few steps closer to him, eyeing the chart in his hands. “Read it out loud.” she insists, settling onto the couch next to him and tucking her legs underneath her.

“This is the case we’re working on right now.” Ethan says. “It’s Gwyneth Monroe’s assistant, actually. She had her first seizure last week, and a physical exam revealed multiple muscular cysts. Gwyneth requested our team immediately.” Ethan fights hard not to roll his eyes. As much as he dislikes the obnoxious Pictagram influencer, her assistant does need medical attention.

Camille swallows a spoonful of soup, then taps the spoon against her lips. “Well, it’s gotta be Cysticercosis, right? Cysts caused by tapeworm eggs. If the larvae have traveled to her brain, that’d explain the seizures. Not to mention that it’s pretty obvious where the eggs came from.”

Ethan nods, marking down a few notes on the chart. “Exactly what I was thinking, Rookie. Good work. We can start her on anti-parasitics and anti-inflammatories first thing in the morning.”

Camille grimaces, setting her half-empty bowl of soup to the side. “All this talk of larvae and eggs kinda makes me lose my appetite.”

Ethan chuckles, and sets the stack of files down on the coffee table as well. “That’s probably enough work for tonight. You need to focus on getting better as soon as possible. Come here.” He opens his arms for her, and Camille gratefully shifts closer to him, letting him fold her into his comforting embrace. Holding her is so nice that he doesn’t even mind her wet hair dripping all over his shirt.

Ethan swings his legs onto the couch, stretching out so Camille can maneuver herself to lie on top of him. Ethan has to admit, those ridiculous socks certainly feel nice as Camille tangles her legs with his, settling on top of him so every part of her body is flush against his. He strokes the strip of skin just above the hem of her right sock, and smiles as he feels her smooth skin break out in goosebumps.

“Thank you for taking care of me today.” Camille whispers against his chest. “I know we still need to talk, but--”

“Shh.” Ethan commands softly, tilting her chin up so he can meet her eyes. “I’ll always take care of you.” A slight shiver runs through Camille’s body, and Ethan suddenly realizes how close he is to her. Without thinking, he closes the gap between them, pressing his lips to hers.

“Ethan!” Camille protests weakly, pulling back after a kiss that is entirely too short for Ethan’s liking. “You’ll get sick.” she scolds him.

Ethan grunts. “I don’t care.” He grips her chin in his fingers, returning her lips to his. Her warm fingers reach up to touch his face, skating over his beard as she kisses him back. Even with the dry heat of her fevered skin and the taste of cherry cough drops on her tongue, she’s still the best thing he’s ever tasted.

He thinks he could probably keep kissing her forever, but eventually she breaks away to cough, which for some reason he finds endearing rather than disgusting. He presses a soft kiss to her forehead, and she nestles her head into the crook of his neck, clearly intending to fall asleep again right there on top of him.

“I’ll take care of you,” Camille promises sleepily, “when you inevitably get sick from this.” And that’s when Ethan realizes that he really must be in over his head. Because if falling ill means he’ll get to spend another day curled up in bed with Camille, then he can’t think of a single thing he’d like to do more.

***

My taglist consisting of one lovely individual: @edgiestwinter

#open heart #oph #open heart fanfiction #ethan ramsey #ethan ramsey x mc #ethan x mc #playchoices

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weirdmarioenemies · 4 years

Photo

Name: Koopa Clown Car

Debut: Super Mario World

In today’s edition of “things from the Mario series that no one really questions because they’re used to it but are really quite weird when you think about it”... it’s the Clown Car!

If I asked you what our frightening demon king Bowser here would use as a method of transportation, would you answer “a flying propeller capsule with a clown’s face on it”? Probably yes, because it’s so iconic! But why! What is it, even?

It’s called a car, but I think we can confidently say that's not the case (especially when Bowser has an ACTUAL car!) The wiki says it resembles a helicopter, and I suppose that is the closest thing there is, but that’s nothing like any helicopter I know! The propeller should be at the top, for one!

And the clown face! Oh, the clown face! Without a clown’s icon red nose, mind you! Not just the one face, but a variety of expressions, with blinking eyes and all! Is this thing sentient, or rather, should I be concerned about that, when nearly all objects in the Mario world have faces? I dunno!

Do I sound outraged at all this? I’m really not! I actually quite like the Koopa Clown Car... it’s cute and silly! But Bowser sure looks awfully goofy sitting in there, all snug. Why, the only other thing that would be goofier, would be a hyper-realistic, muddy-textured Bowser in a Clown Car!

Yup, thanks Brawl. Remember when this was in The Subspace Emissary? That was weird!

But if Bowser looks silly using it, then surely it should go to someone else? A character, perhaps, who would fit the aesthetic of a funny flying machine that looks like a toy? Someone quite close to Bowser, even!

Ta-da! Enter the Junior Clown Car, Bowser Jr.’s new personal vehicle as of New Super Mario Bros. Wii! You can tell it’s different since the eyes are smaller, and it’s got more of a smirk than a grin. Besides it being completely adorable that he matches his dad, this little gadget quickly became a staple of Bowser Jr.’s character, appearing alongside him in nearly every game since!

Heck, this thing was so iconic, it even got him into Smash! I’ve seen people who violently dislike this, claiming that it's not “really Bowser Jr.”, or that he should use the paintbrush instead... And to that I say: phooey! They go together like bread and butter! It’s a lot more interesting for this spoiled little kid to pilot a childish mech equipped with all sorts of wacky gadgets! Not everything has to be a reference- sometimes things are just fun!

The fact is, Bowser Jr. had something of an identity crisis after Sunshine, where they weren’t quite sure what to do with him. And the Koopa Clown Car was fairly underutilized, too... But they came together, and something beautiful blossomed! Shouldn’t we celebrate that?

Look, it can even play tennis! With boxing gloves! How could you hate this? Do you hate fun? Do you hate folly? Do you hate joy and wonder, hm?

Of course, if you’re an avid Maker of Marios like myself, you likely associate the regular and Junior Clown Cars with Super Mario Maker, where they’re a brand spanking new object unlike anything else! They’re bouncy, you can put anything in there, and you can even ride them yourself! I don’t know why they did this! But it’s pretty great! Look at how HD this render is!

So was the Senior Clown Car (name pending) mostly retired after this? Quite the opposite, my inquisitive reader! It shows up in the very same game that introduced the JCC (acronym pending), in Bowser Jr.’s final boss fight! And here it is in New Super Mario Bros. 2, with all of the Koopalings trying to squeeze in there. How silly! Lemmy doesn't even get a seat!

So alls well that ends well, huh! This bizarre little orb of clownliness made its way into a series staple, and our lives are all better for it! Thank goodness clowns are unanimously loved by all, with no negative connotations in popular culture whatsoever! And thank goodness we’re still not done, because there’s MORE clown cars to talk about under the cut! This post is gonna kill me!

In a certain update for the aforementioned Mario Maker, the Clown Car gets a snazzy new paint job in the form of the Fire Koopa Clown Car (or the Fire Junior Clown Car, in this case)! It can spit out fireballs from its suspiciously puckered lips, letting you basically make shoot-em-up levels! Hot!

Speaking of Mario Maker, you can make the Clown Car do this face by playing as Link, and dropping a bomb while riding it. Uh... Great! Try it on your friends.

RemoCon Geta! Er... Clown. RemoCon Clown. In NSMBWii, Bowser Jr.’s second boss fight involves grabbing a Clown Car of your very own and duking it out in an electric arena! I LOVED this gimmick as a kid, and I’d replay the stage over and over just for this fight! So I guess Mario Maker kind of granted my wish, huh? On a different note, it’s very cute how “RemoCon” is a Japanese abbreviation for “Remote Controlled”. I think it’s more charming than just RC.

In Mario Kart DS, Bowser’s Hurricane kart has a Clown Car motif, but like, as an actual vehicle! Sorry it’s so low-poly. Mario Kart DS is just like that.

Prefer the more klassic kind of klown? The Koopa Clown from Mario Kart 7 onwards has you covered! Yeah, it’s called that, despite arguably being MORE of a car than the original! That’s actually the Clown Car’s original Japanese name!

Say, that’s an awful lot of Koopalings. Don’t they get their own cars too?

Indeedaroo! Since all the Koopalings exist as alternate costumes for Bowser Jr. in Smash, they all get their very own Clown Cars! But they look a little off, with those cold dead eyes... according to the game’s Palutena’s Guidance, these are a mass-produced kind of Junior Clown Car, which I just love! Bowser Jr. gets preferential treatment for being Bowser’s son, while the Koopalings were... disowned, I guess. Isn’t it fun when Smash makes up new lore like that?

I don’t want to post all those images individually, so enjoy that screenshot of all of them from the wiki. It’s a lot nicer. You can look it up if you REALLY want to!

And last but not least, it’s an actual clown car! Hey, at least it’s a real car this time!

Dang, that’s crazy. How do they all fit in there? Clowns are wild, man.

#mario #mario enemies #mario entities #depending on how sentient they are #clowns #epic clownage #mod f boy

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dismuch47 · 3 years

Text

STARTING POINT

Length: Longer than a drabble, but a one shot with no intention of continuing.

Marvel AU in which Vision (I’m calling him Paul) is the illegitimate child of Howard Stark. There are tensions between half-brothers, and this is the first time that they actually talk about something other than the strange family situation. And it happens to be about... a girl. I hope you enjoy.

This has been moved over from my deactivated blog, so no, this is not stolen if you recognize it.

“’Sup, nerd?” Tony let the door slam itself shut after flinging it open in a grand flourish. He flung his bag of dirty laundry on the mahogany dining table, let his leather jacket fall to the immaculately clean floor in a heap, and then trotted over to the kitchen fridge to excavate.

Paul shifted out of his cross-legged, curved shoulder posture (his studying posture) and sat up in a rigid manner. He placed his book on the cushion beside him, his lips in a thin line.

“Hilarious...considering your field of study in Quantum Mechanics and Theory, Anthony.” Paul called out for the other youth to hear. It wasn’t in his nature to give jabs to other people... but ever since Mr. Stark... or rather Paul’s biological father... had acknowledged the existence of a bastard son in England and the illegitimate child had been included into the multi-billionaire’s home at Mrs. Stark’s request... Paul had tried to rise to the challenge in order to “bond” with the golden son, Tony Stark. Apparently he only responded to sarcasm, rather than sincere attempts of friendship that Paul preferred.

Tony peeked his face from around the kitchen door, tilting the aviator sunglasses down from his face. “I study it, I don’t wear it. What is that, an argyle sweater vest?” His face disappeared once more as he grabbed one of his father’s choice beers from the fridge, closing the door shut with his hip.

“Mrs. Stark likes it...” Paul looked down placing a hand on the sweater vest. He didn’t dislike it... but he didn’t care for it. But anything was better then the second-hand clothing that was always too small for him back at the London shelter. And if it helped the mistress of this home approve of a bastard child more...

“Your mother will disapprove if she sees that rubbish on the dining table.” Paul warned his older half brother. He picked up his thick book and began reading again. “Why you insist on bringing that home when you can just-”

“Carmen. CARMEN will ‘disapprove’. I don’t think mother has done laundry or set a dinning table since her college days...” He slumped down in a white wing-backed chair across from the couch, separated by a glass coffee table. “Besides it’s all apart of the collegiate experience: announcing my arrival home with proof of my hard work and stank of my sheer brilliance.”

“Anthony, your father-”

“For the last time, it’s TONY.” He took off his sunglasses, his dark eyes like daggers at this blonde intruder of his home. He didn’t dislike Paul... he disliked how different Paul looked, sounded, and talked... forever reminding everyone in the household of his father’s infidelity. Of his mother’s pain... and tragic kindness for wanting this person to be part of the Stark family. The dark moment passed and Tony tossed his glasses carelessly to the glass table.

“...And dad can just deal with the mess.”

Paul’s blue eyes were cast downward, trying to resume his reading... recognizing the subtext of that wording, but Tony turned on the television to an outrageous volume, swallowed and sighed loudly over his beer.

“Tony-”

“Little brother, PLEASE.” Tony cut in. “Your bro is nursing a hangover at the moment.” He took another swig of beer. “Do you mind?”

There was no warmth in the word ‘brother’; it seemed more like a reminder that Paul was an outsider that Tony had to put up with. The lanky teenager began to slowly pack up his schoolwork, not feeling particularly welcome in the space...

Tony blinked darkly at the screen; images and colors barely managing to distract him from his mood... and guilt. He was mad at his father... not the accidental child resulting from unprotected sex. His brown eyes darted over to Paul, who was quietly collecting his things to leave.

“What are you reading?” Tony asked, monotone.

Paul blinked in surprise, then looked down at the book in his hand. “A Tale of Two Cities.”

Tony rolled his eyes. “This is why you are a nerd...”

“It is a school requirement.”

“Is it your first time reading it?” Tony raised a dark brow. “Or is it your 3rd or 4th time?”

Paul shut his mouth. It was his 5th. He couldn’t explain how it was that he was able to read so fast, or find a book so compelling upon a 5th or 6th reading. He traced his long fingers across the dog-eared pages.

“At the shelter, all I had was books. I...I like to revisit them...” He couldn’t meet the Stark’s brown eyes. “Like how Mrs. Stark likes to watch old movies over and over...she says they are ‘old friends’ that never change, but grow more enriching with each viewing.”

Tony looked down at the beer in his hand. That did sound like something his mother would say. He recalled her telling that to him. He also felt super awesome for reminding Paul about his life of poverty... which was still fresh. Tony turned off the tv.

“Fine. Books are the exception.” He finally looked over at Paul. “But you have GOT to get out of that gaming stuff if you ever want to get laid, Goggles.”

“Vision.”Paul corrected, a little too hastily. His hands held on to the book a little tighter. “It is live action role-play-”

“Oh my god, I can’t tell you how much I don’t care-”

“-And it is very therapeutic. It helps me get out the frustrations of being in a new home environment, learning American customs... feeling so different. According to Dr. Cho.” Paul defended, blossoming as he talked about this passion of his. “Vision is not just a character... he is an extension of my subconscious; trying to sort out and deal with my very average conflicts.”

“Yeah, that’s the ah...mutant...god... robot thing?” Tony asked, with a belch. Pretending to care was starting to give him a headache.

“Synthezoid.” Paul added.

“Right... with the magical jewel stone for... ultimate power?” Tony yawned

“Mind Stone.” Paul began realizing how stupid this all sounded. Tony had been present at the therapy session when Dr. Cho had explained how this experimental role play with peers might be good for Paul.

“Fascinating. I think I need to go whiz now.” Tony got up from his chair, setting the empty beer bottle, with out a coaster, on the glass table. “Well have fun with that sausage fest.”

“There are girls.” Paul blurted. “...A girl... there is one girl who does it too.”

Tony backed up, a bemused expression at Paul’s outburst. “I’m sure she’s a looker... geeking it up with the oily skinned, pimple-marked-”

“She is beautiful.” Paul’s tone took Tony aback; it sounded stoney firm and indisputable. And Tony couldn’t help but feel a tiny bit emasculated with his younger half brother now towering above him.

“Prove it.” Tony beckoned.

Paul narrowed his eyes down Tony Stark, feeling it trivial to prove his truth... as if his best friend was some prized stock animal to be appraised. Tony didn’t deserve to gaze upon real beauty... but Paul was a teenage boy. And he wanted to make this college tech jock drool.

He sat down, pulling out his phone and searching for a picture of her. Tony plopped down beside him and yanked the phone out of his younger half-brother’s hands. Paul protested, reaching with his long arms, but Tony was athletic and broad. He put Paul in a headlock after a brief struggle, and scrolled through the pictures on the flip phone.

Tony gave a sigh at all the larp pictures... they were in COSTUMES. “Is that face paint? Really, Vision??? Oh my god, you are going to die a virgin...” Then he came across a larper who was entirely too hot to be hanging out with such nerds. “Whoa... whoooaaaa. Is that her?” Tony showed the screen to Paul, who was still gasping for air before pulling out of Tony’s lessening grasp.

“...Yes...” Paul tried to push his hair back into place.

“Name?”

“Scarlet Witch-”

“Her real name, idiot.”

“Wanda. Wanda Maximoff.”

“Russian? Like Natasha... oh what’s her name. You know, she’s a senior this year...”

“Wanda is from Sokovia.”

“Same difference.” Tony shrugged.

“Actually-”

“Which means she probably has one of those dusky european accents.” Tony stood up, looking at more pictures. “Please tell me she has a dusky accent.”

“...Yes.”

“Oh god.” Tony looked at the screen for a beat. “You’re sure she’s only in high school?”

Paul firmly took his phone back.

“Fine... too young for me. And way out of your league.”

Paul looked down at the screen. He knew that was true, but it didn’t hurt less to hear someone say it. “She is just a friend. My only friend.” He held on to the phone for a beat, then closed it. He returned it to his pocket and picked up his book that he had discarded on the table. His shoulders sagged, and the words on the page were blurring together. Completely unreadable.

Tony damned himself when he saw the effect that his teasing had on Paul. The oh so sensitive, yet robotic Paul. “Okay. I’m taking this away.” He took the book out of his half-brother’s hands and sat on the glass table, directly across from the tall teen. “You’re tall, you have a pensively sweet British accent, and some girls like the peach-fuzz stubble look. You just need to stop slouching, and you’d be any girl’s dream boat.”

Paul looked up. “You have said that I’m oafish, awkward, and that my dialect is ‘annoying as hell’.”

“I lied. It’s hard to compete with. I cut you down to make myself feel bigger. Thank you Dr. Cho.” That didn’t seem to make Paul feel better; he seemed to slump even more in his seat, eyes downcast at the floor. “What... what is this? I basically called you pretty and you're being a pooper. What’s the problem?”

The blonde teen took a deep breath. “Steve Rogers.”

Tony blinked. “The star quarterback? The ruggedly handsome boy next door, class president, and so patriotic that he’s Captain America at all the Sunday Picnics? Sky-blue eyed, chiseled Adonis-bodied Steve Rogers? That Steve Rogers??”

Paul clenched his jaw and looked up at Tony.

“Oh man... good luck with that.” The Stark son gave Paul a sympathetic pat on the shoulder.

Paul leaned back into the sofa, feeling defeated. He looked up at the ornate crown molding on the ceiling. “She does not talk about him all the time... but she stares at him constantly. She wants to take our roleplaying sessions out by the football field just so he can see her in her costume. She has even invited him to one... and he came. She only stayed by my side because she was too nervous to be alone with him. He smiles at her and I just... I...”

“Wait... so they haven’t hooked up?”

“...I do not believe so.”

“Has he told her he even likes her?”

“Yes... well... he told the group that he likes us and what we do. He’s actually really nice and great in battle, which is an absolute annoyance...”

Tony rolled his eyes. “And have you told her? How you feel about her?”

Paul looked down at Tony. He opened his mouth but closed it. He looked away, trying to find anything else to focus on, but Tony drumming his fingers against the glass table drew his attention.

“If I told her how I felt... and she did not feel the same...”

“Well Vision,” Tony said standing up with a stretch. “Don’t you at least agree it’s a good starting point?” He made his way to the kitchen to throw away his empty bottle.

Paul sat, thinking about all the scenarios in which he could get rejected by Miss Maximoff. But there was one hopeful scenario in which she, in her usual tender way, is caught off-guard. Her eyes would warm and a broad smile would light him on fire inside...as it always did.

“Perhaps.”

#ScarletVision #WandaVision #Vision #Tony Stark #Wanda Maximoff #au #fanfiction #FOR THE FANDOM

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werezmastarbucks · 4 years

Text

coming back was a mistake

the reader bonds with kai over their shared dislike of mystic falls

kai parker x fem!reader

word count: 2494

warnings: language, the POV’s are changing

music: poa alpina by biosphere

This damn hole hasn’t changed a bit. The same old story: clean, tongue-licked glowing welcome sign. There we go. Then there will be this turn on the left... oh no, wait, bless, the road has been destroyed. The wooden white bridge connects this part of the highway with the town, and here we go. First houses, Livingstones used to live here, and their son was bullied by literally everyone at school, because he always had stupid haircuts. Word is, he’s dead. Welcome to Mystic Falls, the town where normal people can last up to one year.

Your house was still standing on the 19th November Street, cuddled by dry rose bushes. Apalling. All the other houses on the street have it together. The window sills are freshly painted and the porch is clean, the flowers are watered and cut, and then there’s this fucking outrage of a dwelling where the remains of your family reside.

You had to keep your act together but this town just infuriated you. You couldn’t understand why people would stay here when they could leave right after they’ve turned of age. What kept them? The charming crab-shaped park where everybody stored their dead bodies? The library on the main square where the entitled old lady has been residing for the last 500 years and telling you off for breathing? The blood-red clock tower dinging and donging every damn twenty minutes. No, wait, it must be the staggering fifteen streets. It must be the magic of running into your parents on the Market Street at ten am when you’re supposed to be at school. It’s the neighbors watch, the bored, jaded people’s desire to know everything about everybody. It must be all the supernatural jerks swarming here, killing everybody left and right, acting like their collective age is twenty years old. The fashion in this city has not changed since two thousand and thirteen, either. Nothing did.

The blood-red clock tower was still announcing the midnight hour through the dense hot air, the cars were still disgustingly clean like the citizens had nothing else to do except wash their cars all day long; Damon Salvatore still had the bitch expression on his face, fuming over the next this-just-in ghoul drama, pacing slowly in the living room of his ridiculous, always half-lit mansion with a glass of bourbon in his hand. Stefan was still miserable. Elena’s hair was still golden-black, smooth like a mirror, and you were still mortally tired of all this.

You could feel your negativity fill you up to your throat and eating on you as you drove up to the house and looked at it. The light was on, but nobody came out to meet you.

You were still coming once a year.

You sighed and turned off the engine, then left the car. It’s just a week. Then you can come back home and start pretending you don’t have Mystic Falls past again. The thought of going back home, running back like a rabbit, was what got you through every year.

You walked up the porch. The door wasn’t locked.

He liked this space here. The tenth row, seventeenth seat. He was like a cat, choosing the perfect spot. From here, he could see the clearing between the trees on the other side of the field, where a lady was walking her adorable huskie every evening at eight sharp. The dog was damn smart and the lady wasn’t. Kai had no idea how smart she actually was, she just didn’t look smart. The field below was empty now that it was summer and the eerie hollow feeling gave him a lot of kicks. The place that’s supposed to be full of people, literally made for big gatherings, the seats and all, empty, gave a special vibe. Looking around it, especially at the evening hour, when August was doing its best in the skies, was strangely nice. Nobody saw this side of Kai Parker when he was just sitting quietly, an expression of satisfaction on his face, on his chosen spot, and observed this quiet empty place like a little black king.

He saw somebody and went invisible in a second out of some instinct he couldn’t explain. It’s been some time since his presence caused an outcry of anguish among the party of people... a lot of time, actually. Nowadays, people would just roll their eyes. Don’t care. They’re the losers, living in this boring swamp, fidgeting with their pathetic drama every day. Kai didn’t know how they managed to tolerate themselves. And the hair! Everybody had this inexplicably perfect hair, glistening like they all wore wigs.

Oh my god.

What if they all wear wigs?!

Kai started giggling, thinking about that.

He was now looking at this girl in a crop top that matched the color of her skin. The girls do that, they wear the tops that match their skin which Kai finds very suggestive. Okay, you have all my attention.

Cruising around this unbearable place, he has familiarized with all the faces, and this one was new right away. She started running. You know how people usually jog, without a hurry, with the dumb light-hearted expressions on their faces, and the 90% of them always imagine they’re in some expensive automobile commercial. It helps them jof. This one ran. She did two tours around the field and stopped. Wrong, you’re supposed to walk or else your heart will burst. She stood, her hands on her thighs, her face up, and watched the sky. Kai had no idea why he was hiding from her, but he felt too comfortable now to manifest himself. She was listening to her music in her earphones and looking at the slowly drifting long clouds, and she looked like she was either pissed or very thirsty. Leaning a bit backwards, she just gave him the honors. The ribs were heaving, her stomach breathing for her. Her hand came up to her throat. Kai tried to picture her at the Mystic Grill, or on the main square; whether she looked similar to anybody he’s seen here; he looked at her hands and arms, the way she moved her jaw as if those pretty lilac clouds have done something to her and she was about to get even. She shook her head animalistically, getting rid of some thought. Girl, I know that. You’re trying to shake them all off through your ears, it doesn’t work. He felt for this pretty, collected lady who ran around the track like she was chasing somebody for a murder. Kai liked that kind of interaction the most; when he pretended they had connected. That they had a conversation. When nobody could argue with his illusion they had something in common.

He liked how she had her hair, a bit messy but feminine; the way she looked around dispassionately like she’s had enough of whatever shit she had going on. Like she seemed as if she was a separate entity. Her elbow pointed aside, with some kind of expectation.

Then she gave up. She put on a hoodie she’d thrown onto a first row seat and started walking up slowly. One, two three... four rows... Kai watched her curiously. He never doubted his magic. That’s right, not ever. You know.

But when she passed row nine he tilted his head. She came up to his row and started walking. Now, if she sits right on him, she will feel it. He will, too, and of course he won’t mind, but the girls usually freak out if they try to take a seat somewhere and there’s an invisible dude. Not that Kai had practiced it a lot. He just knew they didn’t like being stalked on. He didn’t really care. He doesn’t know her. If she’s a part of this town, screw her. She’s pretty up close, though, such a nice, frowning face, big eyes. She took the next seat to him and they almost rubbed shoulders. If she took off her earphones she would hear Kai breathe next to her. Instead, he was listening to slow ambient. It went well with the evening sky.

Together, they watched the huskie and the lady run around in the field behind the footbal field. Then she shivered a little in her hoodie. Kai wished he could read her mind when she started crying. When people don’t know they’re being watched, they cry in a very specific fashion. Kai was sure it wasn’t the huskie that upset her; it had something to do with her standing and watching the sky, rubbing her elbows with nervous fingers.

Or maybe she was unhappy with her running time, who gives a fuck.

You were watching this dude. The Grill did not appreciate him the way they should’ve. First of all, he was different breed. People come and go, but the type is always the same. This one was not the type. You had no idea who he was, but he was damn entertaining. Unapologetic singer. Stretching the notes like nobody was watching. Singing for the soul. He enjoyed himself the harder the more confused people looked, throwing awkward glances in his direction. His self esteem was on point as he expressed the ultimate artistic freedom through his bad singing, skipping the words masterfully and changing the melody on a whim. When the song was finally over, nobody clapped, and you felt that truly, he was the underrated artist, the local gem. Where Mystic Falls citizens cared for how others perceive them, he didn’t give a shit about it; while they side eyed their friends judging him silently, he was glowing with self-satisfaction. He was a bad singer, and a bad dancer; he chose an old song nobody knew, and did the finger guns at the DJ as he left the stage. A collective sigh of relief shuddered over the bar; you leaned over the counter, and the bartender nodded at you.

“Pass a cider to that guy. Tell him he saved my evening”.

Jerry was the name of the bartender. He was the new guy, because almost all bar people at the Grill were always human, which meant they died all the time. They all looked exactly the same though, and Jerry was no different from Evan, from seven years ago. Short dark hair, dimples, could star in American Pie. He smirked and nodded again.

The guy has just landed at the counter with a swing. He sighed happily as Jerry put the glass in front of him. You weren’t watching, because you didn’t feel like it; you made the sincere gesture of friendliness, no need to take it further. However, you should’ve known what would happen next. No good deed ever goes unpunished in this world.

You spotted him with the corner of your eye as he approached you, with the cider you ordered for him, and sat next to you.

“Well, that’s not too bad at all...” he started.

You turned to the guy - who looked rather like a boy who got stuck in his post-teenage phase - sharply.

“Please, don’t take it personal. It was not intended that way. It’s just a drink, so, drink it”.

For a second, he just watched you, as if challenging you for more talking. Then he shrugged.

“Somebody’s feeling antisociable today”.

And sipped a little from the glass.

“I usually take cocktails, the sweeter the better, just so you know”.

You sighed. A part of you knew you would regret it. But you still did it. Why? You looked in front of you, meeting your own miserable face in the reflection of the mirror wall behind the bar. The guy kept talking.

“I mean, it’s so nice to start acquiring the fan base, I guess, you can get a lot of things as a rock star. I’ve always wanted to be one”.

“You won’t be a rock star for your singing voice”, you noted.

Drinking alone at the Grill sometimes made you do weird stuff. But it was a tradition.

“Huh? You didn’t like it?”

“I enjoyed how much it confused everybody else”.

The guy expressed an ‘oof’ emotion.

“I’m sensing some xenophobia here. You hate this place, too?”

You didn’t answer. The guy sighed mockingly, as if he was pretending. He sounded like a hyperactive child, and in spite of your very self, you found him relatable.

“I say to myself every day”, he went on, in a slightly more serious voice, “Kai, today you’re leaving Mystic Falls. I’m not in the place where I can tolerate this boredom any more, you know? But this thing... keeps me here. I can’t wait to...”

You blinked and looked at him.

“Kai? Your name is Kai?”

“Uh, yeah”.

He clincked his glass on yours.

“Cheers”.

“What’s it short for?”

He didn’t look too proud saying,

“Malachai”.

You dropped your jaw.

“That is the coolest name I’ve ever heard. Malachai? Seriously?”

He lit up a little bit, straightening his back with praise.

“Yeah”.

“Dude, this is badass. Show me your ID!”

His dark eyes were laughing. You finally took a proper look of him. There was something foreign about him although he spoke very clear American English. It was a different kind of foreign: alien. Given it’s Mystic Falls, stagnating in its own revolving old routine, alien was good even if it was dangerous.

“You wanna see my ID?” he chuckled. He looked down on you with an adoring glint in his eye as though he was admiring something he saw. His reactions were inexplicable.

“Yeah, I wanna see how it’s spelt. Come on, Malachai, it’s so boring here. Show me”.

He sniffed through his nose.

“Okay”.

He had to stand up a little bit to take his ID from the back pocket of his jeans. You looked at it, visualizing his unusual name. Malachai Parker sounded fucking elite. He’s come a long way from Oregon, too. You wondered what he was doing here and was about to ask, but your glance got hooked on the year of birth.

“1972? You were born in...”

Frustration filled you slowly like lake water. Of course, the only interesting, good-looking character who’s fun enough, will be one of the messy freaks, here. You passed the card back to him.

“Are you one of them?”

Malachai didn’t look confused or insecure which further advanced your disappointment.

“What do you mean?” he asked with a grin, playing with you.

“I’m not having this tonight”.

You downed your glass, feeling earthly tired. Like the earth. The Earth, that’s billion of years old, like that.

You stood up to walk away.

“I’m not one of the vampires”, Kai chanted, turning on his seat.

You shrugged.

“Even worse”.

He watched you as you went, his eyes not leaving your back until you were out of the door. Then he realized he still didn’t have your name.

#kai parker #kai parker imagine #kai parker x reader #vampire diaries imagine #vampire diaries

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lockefanfic · 4 years

Text

Business Trip - Part 11: Anger

“Sit. The fuck. Down. And don’t. Fucking. Move.”

Seolhyun is hesitant at first, but she slowly moves toward one of the leather chairs, crossing her arms and rolling her eyes as she does so, although you could tell that she did so just to keep up her front. She clearly wasn’t betting on Momo calling her on her bluff.

“Sit and watch how a real girl fucks,” Momo says, every word a dagger, her eyes and glare boring holes into Seolhyun, who suddenly looked a lot less confident than she was when she walked into the room.

“You,” Momo says as she faces you, her eyes burning with intensity, “come here and fuck me.”

“Momo, I want you and Choa to speak to the convention organizers. Tell them we want to reschedule our presentation to Thursday afternoon. That will give us two days to come up with something to present.”

The two women still look shellshocked as you exit the convention auditorium and gather in the main hall, but they nonetheless give small nods of understanding.

“Mina, I want you to look into the legal ramifications of what they’ve done. Look into any possibility for patent infringement or intellectual property theft, and whether they’ve violated some law or regulation.”

The young woman is composed, as always, and gives you an affirmative nod. She clearly had antifreeze running through her veins, being the only one of your team that didn’t look outwardly furious, or shocked, or both.

“Seolhyun, speak to your people back in Seoul. I need to know how the hell they stole your tech from under our noses. Look for any evidence of an external hack or an internal database download or anything of that sort. Figure out how they did this without anyone in your goddamn company realizing it.”

Your last sentence carried a little more edge than you were intending, but you know the fierce look of anger on Seolhyun’s face is directly mostly at Tzuyu and Sana, and not at you.

“Those two will pay for this,” she says, her tone sharp.

“They will. But let’s do this right. I’ll get on the phone with head office back home and figure out what our next moves will be. Let’s all concentrate on getting these things done, then let’s take the rest of the day off to rest, recharge, and burn off our anger. I want everyone with a clear head when we meet tomorrow morning to tackle this.”

Choa, Mina, and Seolhyun all head off to take on the duties assigned to them, each with a mixture of lingering shock, determination, and anger painted on their respective faces. Following the stunt that Tzuyu and Sana had just pulled, you felt you needed to give them something constructive to focus on instead of letting themselves fall victim to anger or despair. Momo remains, and as the others leave, she draws you close into a hug. Your arms wrap around her frame, which suddenly felt very small against you.

“I’m both sad and angry,” she says softly.

“I know,” you say, unable to find more comforting words. You stroke the back of her head gently with your right hand, your left arm squeezing her tightly against you.

“Why would she do that to us?”

“I don’t know, Momo,” you say, speaking truthfully, “I don’t know…”

---

It is almost midnight when you finally return to your hotel room after several hours of phone calls, video calls, and face to face meetings with your team and the conference organizers. The understandably surprised and upset conference organizers eventually came around, however, and you were able to delay JYP Inc.’s presentation to Thursday, buying some time to find something to actually present.

JYP himself was understandably furious at the afternoon’s turn of events, but he was also supportive during your phone call with him, refraining from laying any blame at your team’s feet and instead ensuring that you had the full backing of the company and access to the entirety of its resources.

“Do whatever it takes to make sure they pay for this,” he said, his usually cheery voice possessing an edge that you’d not heard until then, “you have free reign to do as you see fit. I trust you. Make them regret ever thinking they could mess with JYP Inc.”

Confident that you had your boss’s full backing, you decided to call it a night and get as much sleep as possible before tackling the problem head on tomorrow.

You are staring out the window at the blinking, bright lights of Taiwan’s downtown district, seeking the solutions to your problem amidst the tall buildings of glass and steel, in much the same way that you did in Tokyo and Seoul. You’d always found something calming in watching a downtown skyline.

“You always get this look on your face,” Momo says softly as she approaches you at the window, “when you stare outside the window. It’s like you’re meditating with your eyes open.”

“I guess I am, in a way. It’s comforting to know that there are so many other people out there, each fighting their own battle, just like we are,” you reply, accepting the glass of whiskey Momo passes to you. She had raided the hotel room’s mini bar, outrageous markup prices be damned. You both needed a drink after today’s events.

Momo nods as she weighs your words over in her head, taking a sip of the strong whiskey as she does so. She lets out a hard breath, the way people do when the liquor hits the right spot.

“That’s good stuff,” she says, licking her lips and swirling the amber liquid around in her glass, staring intently at it as though the solutions to your company’s dilemna were to be found at the bottom.

You turn your gaze to her, and you are struck by the beauty of her soft features highlighted in the blue and red neon lights outside your window. She had spent some long hours trying to convince the convention organizers to completely revamp their schedule to accommodate your rescheduling request, and you were proud of her for managing to accomplish that difficult task.

You are about to give voice to your thoughts, but you are interrupted by your phone vibrating in your pocket. Given the day’s events you knew you had to check it, in case it was something urgent.

KimSeolhyun says: What are you doing?

You say: Resting in my hotel room. You?

KimSeolhyun says: I’m coming over. Be ready, I’m horny as fuck.

You say: Momo’s here.

KimSeolhyun says: Are you fucking?

You say: No lol.

KimSeolhyun says: Good. Then she can watch or leave, I don’t give a shit. Rough day. Need a fuck. Remember that deal we made. I’m on the way.

“Head office?” Momo asks.

“No,” you say, readying yourself for Momo’s reaction, “it’s Seolhyun.”

Momo rolls her eyes and lets out a snort that could only be understood as disapproval. She had not gotten over her dislike for Seolhyun over what happened in Seoul, and the awkwardness and tension between them was evident every time they were in the same room.

“I’ll turn her away,” you say, raising your phone to type a reply.

“No,” Momo interrupts, “you can have her. I’ll go find Choa and have a drink somewhere.”

“You’re not pissed?”

“I hate her guts, but even I have to admit she’s pretty goddamn hot. I’d fuck her if I had a dick. Or even if I didn’t. Either way, go have your fun.”

“What did I do to deserve you?” you ask with a smile, meaning every word.

“I dunno,” Momo says with a grin, “just make sure you tell me all about it afterward. I wanna know if she fucks as good as she looks.”

The young woman downs the rest of her whiskey in a single gulp.

“...and make sure you save some energy for me later.”

Momo winks before turning and grabbing her hoodie from a nearby chair, and again, you find yourself thankful to whatever gods may be that this woman was in your life.

She is only halfway to the door when there is a knock - Seolhyun certainly didn’t waste any time. Deciding it would be best if you answered it and not Momo, you walk past her and open the door.

Seolhyun is wearing a neutral look on her face, but it deepens into a look of annoyance when she realizes Momo is still there. The young woman walks nonchalantly into the room, taking off her black leather jacket and throwing it onto the leather couch. Momo gives Seolhyun a glare as she passes and moves towards the door.

“Maybe you should stick around,” Seolhyun says, her tone confrontational, “maybe you’ll learn something.”

You’d seen Momo angry before; you’d even seen her infuriated. But that was only in a work environment, often when something went wrong with a project or when the office printer had chosen that particular time to jam. But you had never seen a look of fury on her face the way you did at that moment.

The Japanese girl turns sharply and goes face to face with Seolhyun until their noses are inches apart. Seolhyun apparently wasn’t anticipating Momo to react the way she did, given the look of surprise and hesitation on her face. When Momo speaks, every syllable is laced with venom.

“Sit. The fuck. Down. And don’t. Fucking. Move.”

“You,” Momo says as she faces you, her eyes burning with intensity, “come here and fuck me.”

You down your whiskey in one gulp, leave the glass on the coffee table, and step towards Momo, but she meets you halfway, and before you know it your bodies are crashing together, arms wrapping around familiar torsos, your mouths meeting and tongues seeking their counterparts in that wonderful moment when lust takes over - but this lust is different; it is fueled not insignificantly by anger, frustration, and the desire to vent it all out through physical, sexual means.

For a moment you forget Seolhyun is there, sitting not even five feet away. But as Momo breaks your kiss to dive into your neck, your eyes open slightly, enough to see the blank expression on the young Korean woman’s face turn into one of intense concentration, her eyes enraptured and surprised by what was about to happen in front of her.

Momo, for her part, seems to have forgotten entirely that there is another woman in the room, moving quickly from your neck to your chest, taking advantage of the fact that you were wearing a button up shirt. Her slim fingers work quickly on its buttons, following the trail of steadily revealed skin with soft kisses down the front of your chest, until finally she is on her knees in front of you.

She works your belt, pants button and zipper quickly, hooking fingers into your boxers as soon as they are visible, dragging your pants and underwear down until they are at your knees. She turns, shoots the shocked Seolhyun a “watch this and learn” look, and dives into your crotch, her small pink tongue immediately finding the base of your quickly hardening cock and licking upward, slowly, until she reaches the tip.

Your shaft hardens quicker than you ever thought was possible. It had been a hard, difficult day, and the thought of fucking Momo in order to vent some of your frustration was more than enough to get you ready, but having Seolhyun there, seeing Momo put her in her place - it all formed a heady mix of intense pleasure.

Before you know it Momo has taken the entirety of your shaft into her mouth, your cock wrapped by her warm, wet cavern and the dextrous muscle of her tongue that is pressing against the underside of your shaft. As she withdraws your shaft, she swirls her tongue around the head; she had had many months to know what you wanted when it came to blowing you, and she knew full well that she was shooting spikes of intense pleasure up your spine with every lick and suck.

In your peripheral vision you catch movement from Seolhyun, and you turn your head to watch her squirming and moving her thighs, trying and failing to keep up the impression that she wasn’t at all intensely aroused by what was going on in front of her. But as Momo’s hand joins her mouth in pleasuring you, pumping up and down on the base of your shaft in tandem with her mouth, you let a soft gasp escape your lips - one that seems to impact Seolhyun as well, a brief look of pleasure washing over her beautiful face, her mouth opening ever so slightly, as though some small measure of the pleasure Momo was imposing on your body had carried over to her.

You involuntarily bring your left hand to Momo’s face, seeking to touch her, seeking any kind of physical contact with the young woman on her knees pleasuring you. You want to do the same with your right hand, want to bring both your hands to her head and rock your hips and fuck her face - but you know Momo wants to show off, wants to ensure Seolhyun sees how good she is. And so you leave your right arm where it is, ensuring the older Korean girl has a perfect view of your hard shaft as it plunges in and out of Momo’s mouth, slathered and glistening with her saliva.

“Fuck that’s good,” you say, the words spilling out of your mouth before you even realize your brain has formed them. Momo responds by letting your hard shaft pop out of her mouth, holding it against her lips, her pink tongue darting out to lick the underside of your head, taking delight in watching the pleasure twist your face as she stimulates what she knows is the most sensitive part of your cock.

The Japanese girl takes advantage of the fact that you are paralyzed by pleasure and stands up, bringing both her hands to your shoulders, pushing you down slightly onto the leather couch. You take a moment to rid yourself of your bothersome pants and boxers, and you do so quickly enough to ensure you don’t miss what you know is going to happen next; for her part, Momo waits patiently while you undress before she follows your lead.

Slowly, knowing two pairs of eyes were glued onto her body, she undoes the buttons of her grey blazer, sliding it down her shoulders until it falls into a pool of cloth at her feet. She is wearing grey shorts beneath it, but those don’t last long either, her fingers equally as adept at undoing her own clothes as they are at undoing yours. She is wearing a simple black bra and a black thong beneath - neither is overly scandalous, the thong even being relatively conservative as far as thongs go - but she is nonetheless ridiculously sexy, every inch and curve of her body radiating lust, and desire, and sex.

In a final gesture of seduction, she reaches behind her head with her right hand and undoes whatever ridiculous contraption is keeping her hair up - she had gotten a new haircut before leaving for Taiwan, and while a part of you missed the medium length brown hair she used to have, there is no denying that the short black hair that tumbles down to her neck only increases the raw lust she projects into the room. It amazed you to see what a simple haircut could do to a woman’s raw sexiness.

As if staring at her toned, perfectly proportioned curves were not enough, she takes it one step further, turning around so her back is facing you, before bending over and removing her thong - the full, round cheeks of her ass and the toned, creamy skin of her thighs on full display in front of you. As the black cotton drops you catch a glimpse of pink flesh between her legs, already glistening, already begging for penetration. She tosses the flimsy piece of underwear in your lap.

But Momo is in control here - she knows she is putting on a show, and she loves it - loves the fact that she has not one, but two people in the room wrapped around her finger, their eyes glued to her near naked body, enraptured by every movement she makes. And so when she reaches behind her and undoes her bra, she tosses it to land on Seolhyun’s lap.

You had forgotten, as was becoming worryingly common, that Seolhyun was even there, but as the bra lands in her lap you watch the final vestiges of resistance flee from her beautiful face. Her features contort in pleasure - not unlike the look she had when you fucked her in Seoul - as though the bra landing on her lap caused a spike of pleasure to shoot up her spine and into her brain. She had broken. She belonged, as you did, to Momo now.

Seolhyun reaches a hand to touch the bra in her lap - before her hand moves lower, to the hem of her short black dress, and underneath it. Her fingers draw the hem of her dress upward, revealing perfect, creamy skin, until her fingers graze the space between her legs. She doesn’t care anymore about maintaining her image, doesn’t care that Momo has established dominance - she needs to touch herself, the brazen display in front of her becoming too much for her to handle without seeking some sort of release for her own. Seolhyun bites her lip as her fingers work between her legs, and a wave of pleasure washes over her face, her eyes closing halfway before she forces them open again, doing her best to ensure she didn’t miss a moment of what was going on in front of her.

There was something perverse about it - something that turned you on to see. Some not insignificant part of you enjoyed seeing the haughty, confident, occasionally arrogant young woman being driven to submission by your girlfriend. And from the look of her face as she turns around to face you again, Momo feels the same way, a self-assured smirk on her lips.

The smirk is there only for a second, and it is replaced with a look of lust as the naked woman climbs into your lap, her mouth seeking and finding yours and engaging in a passionate kiss as her long legs place themselves around your waist. As your tongues duel, you feel her reach between your bodies to guide your shaft to her entrance, and you feel the hot wetness of her pussy against the head of your cock as she rubs it against her open lips, not penetrating - just lubricating your head, teasing herself with it.

Then Hirai Momo pushes her hips down, impaling herself onto your cock.

She starts slowly at first, relishing those first few thrusts into her body, savoring the feel of your hard shaft as it penetrates her body. You do the same, letting your eyes drift closed, allowing yourself to experience her body yet again, knowing you will never tire of it, never grow fatigued of being inside her. You both let a soft gasp escape your lips, Momo’s louder than yours as she gives voice to her lust.

She is grinding her hips now, establishing a steady pace, her body stretched out and lubricated enough to allow full penetration. She grinds in a circular motion, her hips starting further back on the downstroke and then pushing her body forward on the upstroke, so that your shaft is penetrating her in a back and forward motion as well as up and down - this was a woman who knew just how to pleasure you, knew just how to drive you crazy with her body.

Momo throws her head back as your shaft penetrates her deeper, and you tear your eyes open long enough to realize her wonderful breasts are pressed against your face, the warm skin misted with sweat as she exerts herself. You immediately press your mouth against her left breast, your tongue quickly finding her already hardened nipple, swirling it around the hard bud greedily, lustily, without any sort of thought for decorum or patience - there is only lust, only the need to devour her, devour more of this wonderful woman’s body.

There is a sharp gasp in the room, and it takes you a moment to realize it came from Seolhyun, not Momo. With Momo’s breast still in your mouth, you open your eyes just enough to glance over at her, and you realize that she is now fingering herself with abandon, her right hand moving frantically between her legs, her left hand grasping her right breast through her dress.

You smile wickedly, and you turn your head to ensure Seolhyun can watch as you tease Momo’s nipple, your tongue pressing against it and swirling around it in random patterns, and you know Seolhyun is imagining that you are doing the same to her.

All the while, Momo is still throwing herself onto your shaft, over and over, her head thrown back as she lets a long string of moans escape her lips. She is cradling your head in her hands, letting herself go, letting herself fully experience the pleasure radiating from between her legs and from her breast.

“Fuck… fuck… you’re so big, baby,” she moans.

“You’re… so tight, Momo. Fuck… you’re so tight.”

“You like… you like when I ride you like this? You like when I fuck myself on your cock?” Momo asks, and you realize that a part of her still wants to show off, is still aware of the Korean girl squirming in her seat not five feet away.

“Fuck yes.”

“Did you like… fucking my ass last week?”

At the mention of anal sex with Momo, a moan escapes a pair of female lips - Seolhyun’s.

“Yes… fuck… your ass was so tight, baby. Did you like when I cummed in your ass?”

“Yes! I love when you cum in me… no matter what hole… I love feeling your cum inside me,” Momo gasps, happy that you were playing along, the both of you teasing Seolhyun with your words just as much as you were with the erotic display you were putting on for her. Even as you have this conversation, your cock continues to piston in and out of Momo’s tight, slick pussy.

“Fuck… you’re so good, baby. So tight, so hot. Fuck… you’re the best.”

“Am I… the best… fuck… you’ve ever had?”

“Yes!” you answer, perhaps with more enthusiasm than you were anticipating. You had slept with your fair share of beautiful women, and one of the better ones was just a few feet away, fingering herself - but you knew, deep down, that it was true: Hirai Momo was the best of them all.

You watch as Momo turns her head so she is facing Seolhyun. Despite the pleasure washing over her beautiful face, Momo is coherent enough to smirk slightly, biting her lip as she watches Seolhyun finger herself, knowing in that moment that she had won their little battle.

“Good,” Momo says, turning to you again, “then fuck me like you mean it.”

You take that as your signal to finally exert yourself instead of merely being a (eagerly willing) participant in Momo’s little show, and to that end you reach both your hands down to grasp her round ass, grasping a cheek in each palm. When Momo reaches the top of her grind, and the head of your cock is all that remains in her, you slam her back down with your hands while you thrust up with your hips, driving your shaft harder and deeper into her body than she was able to do on her own.

Momo lets a shriek out, louder than any of her moans thus far, and it is followed up with another as you repeat the action with your next thrust. You are both truly fucking each other now, both your bodies working to throw yourselves against each other as hard as you possibly can.

“Fuck! Fuck that’s so good!” Momo exclaims, “You’re so big inside me, baby. You’re stretching me out… so deep!”

You grunt in reply, because that is all you can do, every other ounce of your being focused instead of driving yourself as deeply and as hard as you can inside her body.

Momo, as always, wants more - always wants to take it to the next level. And so it surprises you when she slams herself down on your shaft and then stays there for a moment, capturing your lips and mouth in a torrid kiss before removing herself from your cock. The moment of surprise lasts only a moment before you realize she is turning around so her back is facing you, climbing back onto your lap, spreading her legs until she is crouching above your erect, glistening shaft, her feet on the couch on either side of your thighs. Then, taking another moment to line up your cockhead with her pussy, she impales herself once more, this time in a reverse cowgirl position.

From this point of view Seolhyun has a clear view of your shaft as it plunges into Momo’s tight, drenched pussy, the Japanese girl’s legs spread wide, her entire body on display as you settle into the position and fuck her from behind in your sitting position. Momo braces herself against the back of the couch with her arms, leaning back against your chest - your arms, however, are free, and you reach quickly around her torso to grasp both her breasts, pinching her nipples before reaching your right hand down her tight, firm torso until you reach her clit, your middle finger finding and swirling around her sensitive nub.

Seolhyun lets out a sharp gasp at the display, and you look around Momo’s bouncing body to watch as the older girl spreads her legs, now fully giving into her need for release. She has pushed her white panties to the side, her finger working urgently amidst her wet folds, already one knuckle deep inside herself as she struggles to contain the pleasure she is creating.

Momo’s moans are increasing in volume, turning more into sharp gasps of wordless syllables as the pleasure builds steadily inside her young body. Her new position presses your cock against the sensitive front of her pussy, your hard shaft and the finger rubbing her clit bringing her to the brink.

“I’m… I’m gonna cum, baby! I’m gonna cum… I’m gonna cum so hard!”

“Fuck,” you hiss, sharply, as much out of need to vent your pleasure as it was a curse, as you wanted to prolong the pleasure, wanted to stay fucking this perfect woman for as long as possible as she continues to impale herself again and again on your cock.

“I’m… I’m cumming!”

Momo lets out what is almost a shout as an orgasm wracks her body, her body quivering and spasming as the pleasure courses throughout her veins, her voice becoming a chorus of moans and gasps of lust, pleasure, and finally, release. Her pussy clamps down hard on your shaft, and it takes a significant amount of effort on your part not to join her in bliss, wanting to prolong the experience as long as possible. The wetness of her juices escapes the tightness of her body, and seeps out freely around your shaft, drenching both of your crotches in slickness.

Momo takes a solid minute to wind down from her orgasm, and her still-trembling body collapses against yours until she is sitting limply in your lap, her back pressed against your chest. She finds the strength to turn her head to meet yours, and you kiss her deeply, pressing your mouths together as deeply as you can, your tongues finding and caressing each other. Your hands roam freely around her torso, squeezing a soft breast and enjoying the feel of her firm, flat stomach beneath your palm.

Momo is the first to break the kiss, and she leans her head back against your shoulder, panting heavily as the exertion finally hits her. Your cock is still impaled to the base inside her body, and you take the moment of inactivity to savor the feel of her warm, wet, still-pulsating pussy wrapped around your shaft. Without speaking a word, you watch as Momo lifts her head slightly to look at Seolhyun, her post-orgasm face flushed, the very picture of lust.

When she is ready, she bends forward and slips off your shaft, eliciting a short groan from you as you leave her tightly clasping body. You watch intently as every inch of your shaft leaves her body, taking pleasure in watching her tight pussy lips grasp your cock as though not wanting to let it go, a thick strand of her slick juices still connecting your bodies until it finally snaps when Momo stands.

On shaky legs, Momo saunters over to where Seolhyun is sitting, the older Korean girl now a mewling, dishevelled mess, a far cry from the haughty, confident woman she was just a few minutes before when she entered the hotel room. Momo is completely naked, her skin flushed, her crotch and thighs wet with juices, both yours and hers - but she exudes supreme confidence as she bends over so her mouth is just inches from Seolhyun’s ear.

“That’s how a real girl fucks. And if you ever talk shit to me again, I swear to god, not only will you never touch my boyfriend again - I’ll slap you all the way back to Seoul.”

Seolhyun has stopped fingering herself, but she lets out a sharp gasp of surprise as Momo reaches down with her own finger, tracing the Korean girl’s pussy with her fingertip.

“Now go use this pussy of yours and finish him off,” Momo says, her words equally aggressive and seductive, “Even a virgin should be able to make him cum.”

Seolhyun wastes no time - she is so needy for pleasure, so lust-drunk on the show you and Momo put on for her, that she immediately leaves her chair and makes her way to you. She takes a moment to bend and remove her drenched cotton panties before grasping the hem of her black dress and pulling it up around her waist. Then she sits in your lap, and a second later, she drives her pussy down onto your shaft.

Seolhyun is tight, wet, and hot. Her body, even still semi-clothed, is almost perfect in every way, and her face, perfectly sculpted and striking a perfect balance of cuteness and beauty and hotness, is contorted in pleasure as she rides you hard and fast. It only takes her half a minute to orgasm, so close is she to the brink - and a few seconds after that, you join her, your shaft pulsating as the pleasure finally overwhelms you and you send hot, warm semen shooting inside the welcoming depths of her wanton, willing body, filling Kim Seolhyun to the brink, until your juices and hers overflow out of her tightly grasping pussy lips to drip down your balls and onto the now-moist leather of the couch.

Any other man would be totally consumed with the moaning, gorgeous Seolhyun, still mid orgasm as she writhes on your lap - but your eyes, and your thoughts, are instead on Hirai Momo, watching as she dresses herself with sweatpants and a hoodie before leaving the hotel room, winking at you and smiling slyly as she closes the door behind her, even as her boyfriend empties thick, hot semen into another woman.

---

An hour has passed since Momo left, and since then you have Seolhyun again, the Korean girl feeling like she had something to prove as she rode you, her confidence having been taken down a peg by Momo. When you finally climax together when you fuck her from behind on the couch, you notice that her gaze was locked on the hotel room door, as though she were hoping Momo would come back in to watch you both.

Now she is sitting in the same seat she was earlier, this time with a glass of whiskey in her hand. She is stark naked, her skin still flushed with the afterglow of sex, and you find her long, toned limbs and creamy skin more than a little distracting as you follow suit and collapse on the couch.

“Goddamn that was good,” Seolhyun says, taking a short sip of her drink.

“I’d say,” you agree.

“As much as it pains me to say it… you’re the fucking luckiest guy on earth to be dating her.”

“I know,” you say without looking at Seolhyun, knowing that she was speaking the truth.

“Anyway… what are we going to do about Thursday?”

“I don’t know,” you answer, bringing a hand to your face to massage your brow, “we’re fucked. We need some way to prove that Sana was behind the theft of your company’s data. If we can prove that, we can claim intellectual data theft, and we’d fuck them over in court. Public opinion would turn pretty hard against them after an accusation like that.”

“I just want to know how she got all the data for our tech,” Seolhyun says, swirling her drink around, “I spoke to the techs back home and they said there wasn’t any evidence of an external hack. They looked through her activity on our local network, and they said it was pretty clean and there was nothing to indicate a large-scale transfer of data.”

You both take a moment in silence, wondering what to do next.

“It’s possible,” Seolhyun continues, her brows furrowed in thought, “that she got someone else to unknowingly download the data for her. Maybe by asking someone in the company to do it under the guise of project-related work.”

“Combing through every staff member’s network activity would take forever,” you say, upset that you were unable to add anything positive to the conversation.

“It’s also possible that she did it with some sort of hardwired device. Network hacking would attract too much attention and have a pretty big risk of being detected, tracked, or traced. It would be as simple as something she connected to someone’s personal device that could then transmit data to an external server.”

Personal… device…

You stand up immediately, your sudden movement shocking Seolhyun.

“What’s up?” she asks, genuinely confused.

“Get everyone together. I know how she stole our tech. And I can prove it.”

#kpop fanfic #kpop fanfiction #kpop smut #pov smut #smut #male reader #twice #twice momo #hirai momo #aoa #aoa seolhyun #seolhyun #momo #kim seolhyun

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halothenthehorns · 3 years

Text

TLTNL- A PECK OF OWLS

You guys don't understand how happy it makes me to see continued support for this!

HPHPHPHP

Harry still had a ton of questions, like the confirmation that Mrs. Figg was an Order member so what she could be doing hovering around him his whole life, and more details on this Mundungus and what he could be doing, and honestly a million other things about the Order, as well as the still problematic question of what on Earth those Dementors had been doing around there.

Yet when Harry hesitated in flipping to his chapter and looking at them hopefully, he knew full well they all knew what he was silently asking for, and none of them answered, he gave in and began his chapter. He was confident if they had any more idea than him they'd have said something, and he was right.

Harry asked what she meant, and Mrs. Figg burst out that he'd left to go buy some batch of cauldrons!

Sirius had to bite down on his tongue hard to stop himself asking what Mundungus had been doing there? What was the big deal if he had left? Figg was acting like that was the cause of the dementor attack, but that wasn't really making a lot of sense. However, it was still clear as day no one in here knew what was going on either, so they were hoping for a little more info and a lot less cat talk soon from this lady.

She'd told him not to do it, and look what happened! It was a good thing she'd had Mr. Tibbles watching Harry!

Harry blinked as a random memory resurfaced of that cat streaking away from the car, the very same one?

She reminded they couldn't just stand here all night though and barked at Harry to get a move on, reminding how much trouble this was going to cause, and shouting that she was going to kill him!

Harry tried to grasp this, trying to wrap his mind around his batty cat obsessed neighbor knowing of Dementors.

"You don't seem that surprised now," Remus pointed out at Harry's mostly annoyed face, he had a feeling he'd be seeing a lot of that for a while.

"I've been suspecting it since you guys mentioned her," he shrugged, "it just felt right."

He stammered out that she was a witch, but she corrected only a Squib. Which that Mundungus knew full well, and he'd still left Harry all alone.

"Why was I being followed?" The outrage finally burst out of him despite being unsurprised when they all looked as shocked as him at the news.

It was his mum though who nodded first and admitted, "honestly, I can see it though. We were groaning that Dumbledore sent you there unprotected, well maybe he does have the Order keeping an eye on you. At least now we know what that noise was, and there isn't even worse things around you."

Harry just looked at her in disbelief that she was considering this a good thing while he still scowled, "without telling me? I've been wasting away there for a month, and not one of them could have bothered passing me along a scrap of anything." He managed without much difficulty not to shoot a look at his godfather, he could already feel Sirius was just as unhappy about something as Harry and he assumed it was the same thing. Sirius wouldn't hide something like this from him.

Lily just leaned back into James shaking her head for an answer, she clearly couldn't say anything to Harry right now to make him even see this as slightly a good thing like she could, and none of the boys were helping as they looked as peeved as Harry at the idea he'd been followed without his knowledge, even by their side.

Harry understood that it must have been this Mundungus who'd Disapparated from his house earlier making that noise, which Mrs. Figg hastily agreed Mr. Tibbles had warned her of when that happened.

"Err," Harry began in confusion which temporarily derailed his anger as he recalled, "I remember Sirius could kind of sort of talk to Crookshanks while he was a dog, but..." he trailed off in confusion hoping someone would explain this.

"Well remember we said how highly intelligent kneazles were, and that Mrs. Figg breeds them for a living," Remus shrugged. "She's clearly kept her own litter and trained them to do her dirty work."

"I got that," Harry nodded, "but warned her?"

"Probably just gave the cat instructions come back with a twig or something and that means Harry's in trouble," James shrugged.

She finished with a groan of what Dumbledore was going to say of all this, before turning on Dudley, still on the ground, and snapping at his fat bottom to get a move on!

"It's nice to finally hear someone talk to Dudley like that other than Hagrid," Sirius nodded to himself.

Harry could do nothing but stare at her as he asked she knew Dumbledore?

She snapped back of course she did, everyone did, before telling Harry to get his butt in gear as well, they had to get back to the house. She'd be no use if the dementors came back, she'd never so much as Transfigured a teabag.

"Neither have I, now that I think about it," Sirius acknowledged, receiving a smack from Remus for that random input.

She stooped down, seized one of Dudley's massive arms in her wizened hands and tugged,

Lily blinked in surprise as it first registered how badly Dudley had reacted to this whole instance. Yes Muggles were heard to have a worst time of it around dementors, but Dudley seemed to have full blown passed out, what had he seen? That spoiled little boy who'd never been told no in his life, surely the memory of what Hagrid had done to him wouldn't be this bad. She didn't bring it up though, in fact honestly disregarding the matter as whatever it was she'd probably never get an answer for and she was far more concerned hearing about what happened to her own son.

while snapping at his useless rump to get up!

Remus nodded to what Sirius had said, that was like music to his ears hearing someone actually say the words to Dudley.

Dudley either would not, or could not move, remaining on the ground with his hands still over his mouth.

Harry just sighed he'd deal with it, bending down and heaving one of Dudley's arms over his shoulders.

"You'll break your back," James gaped at his son with certainty.

Harry merely shrugged, he was well used to physical labor and while Dudley was probably the heaviest thing he'd had to carry at the Dursleys, he hadn't been able to find it in himself to leave him there for the dementors.

It took all his effort to get Dudley to his feet, and his cousin was of no help as his eyes continued to roll uselessly in their sockets.

All Mrs. Figg did was shout at them to hurry up!

"She's just being no help," Lily murmured with concern, understanding Mrs. Figg was stressed and trying to get Harry to safety but continuing to yell at him wasn't doing any good.

Harry may as well have been hauling bricks as he got Dudley moving behind the spritely woman trotting ahead in carpet slippers, who still occasionally glanced back at the boys and kept snapping at Harry not to put his wand away. The Statute of Secrecy wasn't a concern now, there was going to be hell to pay anyway.

Harry suddenly shivered, he just knew Mrs. Figg was entirely right about that and something worse than dementors was fixing to loom over him because of tonight's events.

They might as well be hanged for a dragon as an egg.

Remus managed a small smile to himself, he always laughed whenever he heard wizards rephrasing muggle sayings, like this one was a favorite of his mother's who always said, 'we might as well be hanged for a sheep as a lamb,' when moving from one town to the next with her burden of a child after his oddities nearly got them caught again.

This had been exactly what Dumbledore had been afraid would happen, then she spotted someone far down the street, but muttered to herself it was just Mr. Prentice.

"I'd still consider that a bad thing," James muttered, "it would be odd for any muggle to see Harry's wand."

Lily smiled where James couldn't see, honestly thinking that muggle would find this whole scenario odd but Mrs. Figg was still right, he could write this off however he pleased, Harry needed to keep his protection up.

It wasn't easy to lug his cousin around while keeping his wand steady, but Dudley was refusing any independent movement, his feet dragging at his side the only help along.

Sirius scoffed in disgust. If Dudley managed to get Harry hurt while he tried to protect him, that boy was going to be in even more hot water than before, pity be damned.

Between gasping breaths, Harry demanded of his old babysitter why she'd never told him what she was?

"That's actually a fair point," James huffed, "not just this summer, but ever. Harry was miserable growing up, and no matter what you didn't tell her it was as obvious as could be."

Harry was looking down at the next sentence in answer to his dad's question with a rising sense of hurt blocking his throat off. He'd always trusted Dumbledore, couldn't remember a time where he'd really questioned his headmaster, and this was his reward? As everyone continued staring at him expectantly when no one had a good answer for James, Harry had to clear his throat hard around a block and got out.

She told it was because of Dumbledore's orders.

While the others all groaned and grumbled as that seemed to be a far to frequent thing, Remus rolled his eyes at them and said, "well at this point it's not surprising at least. He did say he wanted Harry to grow up away from that fame, what sense would it make to allow Figg to tell him anyways."

No one particularly appreciated the reminder, but they stopped gripping about the innocent old lady for now at least.

She did apologize for his miserable time at her place though, but if the Dursleys had thought he'd enjoyed it she couldn't have done her job of helping to look after him.

Lily still couldn't stop a nasty scowl for that, she still had reasons to dislike Mrs. Figg for this alone. Indulging in the Dursley's treatment of making Harry's life miserable when she should have been doing something to help her son! At the very least encouraged Harry to lie to the Dursleys when he went back while she was a friend to him!

She switched back to speaking of what Dumbledore was going to do when he heard, murmuring to herself of all the trouble this was going to cause and how he needed to know as soon as possible, but there was no way to tell him.

Harry offered she could use his owl.

"You'd need something faster than that," James disagreed with a sigh, his ire for Dumbledore not quite pushing out his usefulness with power right about now, Harry really could get in trouble with the Ministry for this magic until things were all said and done, and a calm voice like Dumbledore would be helpful. "I'd recommend Floo travel, but you haven't got any."

"An honest oversight on your part for another quick getaway," Sirius sighed, "but I suppose you could always hail The Knight Bus again."

"Still not fast enough unless you bribed them to bump you ahead of everyone," Remus reminded while Lily cleared her throat to cut them off.

She told that wasn't fast enough, he needed to know now, the Ministry already did.

Harry asked what the big deal even was, he'd only used magic to get rid of Dementors, surely they'd be more concerned finding out what they were doing around here.

"Well yes, after you explain why you had to use the magic," Lily reminded. "For now, all they're going to know is that you used that Charm, and they're going to try and make another note of it, something that you don't need in your life right now with how angry Fudge was last seen with you."

Harry gave an uneasy frown at his mother, he had a bad feeling not all was going to go as she said.

She began to explain to him that it was far more complicated than that, then broke off and screamed to the heavens she was going to kill that Mundungus Fletcher!

"And you have my blessing," Remus agreed wholeheartedly.

There was another crack same as before, and this time came with it the smell of stale tobacco, with someone pulling off an invisibility cloak revealing a squat man with unruly ginger hair and bloodshot eyes.

"Sounds like he hasn't changed much," Sirius rolled his eyes in contempt for the thief he'd once found an amusing friend. Sirius could still manage to be annoyed Harry had been followed by him, and still be angry Mundungus hadn't been doing his job right all at the same time.

He looked blearily from Figg to Harry, asking what had happened to them staying undercover?

"Well someone had to step in and make sure he was alright," Lily sneered while her eyes flickered to Remus and away sadly. She was honestly hoping that he might have taken up this job, at least if he or Sirius had been around Harry in Privet Drive they'd see more of what happened there and would have stepped in. Clearly not though, if this was Mundungus' regular job than that old codger wouldn't care a lick or even take notice of such things.

She shrieked what the problem was at him!

He just gaped at her as he repeated Dementors, here?

"No, in Merry Old London!" James grumbled, wanting to give Mundungus a good whack now himself.

She repeated yes here, while calling him a useless pile of bat droppings.

Sirius couldn't help cracking an honest grin though, speaking his mind as usual, "you know, despite my annoyance at her for Harry's sake, I can't help but decide I like the old broad. Anyone who can throw around these kinds of insults is good in my book."

"You should come around her place for cake some time then," Harry snorted.

"Nah, not if it still smells like cabbages," Sirius crinkled his nose in remembered disgust, "but she can certainly come around mine."

She began berating him verbally for what he'd been off doing when he should have been here to stop it. Mundungus tried to protest it had been a very good deal-

"A business deal is better to do than looking after my son?" Lily asked of no in here dangerously, but suddenly making all the boys realize Mundungus was lucky if Mrs. Figg was the only angry woman he had to deal with.

Mrs. Figg raised the arm from which her string bag dangled and whacked Mundungus around the face and neck with it;

Sirius felt a bark of laughter escape him, if he'd had any questions before they were gone now, he liked her.

judging by the clanking noise it made it was full of cat food.

Causing all of the boys to join in, even Harry came easily out of his foul mood to chuckle along at the mental imagery.

She began whacking him unrelenting as she told it was his job to go and tell this to Dumbledore, and why he hadn't been here to help, punctuating every word with another swing.

"Oh how I wish we could sit in on that conversation," James' shoulders kept shaking so hard he was making Lily twitch in his lap with her own laughter she was trying to suppress.

Mundungus was left a cowering mess away from her, promising it would be done as he vanished with another crack.

She swore she hoped Dumbledore killed that one!

"That would ruin my fun though," Sirius said in chipper enough tones, but it was still very clear he meant it. Lily wasn't the only one who was angry Harry's looking after wasn't being handled by someone who wasn't this old idiot who'd run off and leave Harry like that.

Then she beckoned to Harry to hurry up again, asking what he was waiting around for.

"He was enjoying the show of watching you beat up the guy," Remus pointed out like that was obvious.

"That would give anyone a pause," James agreed.

Harry didn't waste breath pointing out he could hardly keep moving much longer, Dudley was surely cracking his spine as he shuffled along.

Privet Drive came into view, Mrs. Figg still muttering to herself about what a catastrophe this was, and how it had been exactly their job to stop Harry doing magic at all costs.

"Just what would they have done if I'd gotten bored and really left myself?" Harry demanded.

"Been able to warn Dumbledore faster I suppose," Lily shrugged, as honestly she agreed with him, his being watched just didn't seem that useful if they were just supposed to be stopping him from using magic. She'd been thinking it was more to do with further protection in the Muggle area, but if that's all Dumbledore's endgame had been than it was an even worse idea than originally thought.

Harry managed to pant that Dumbledore had been having him followed all summer?

She agreed it was obvious, did he really think Dumbledore would let Harry Potter be on his own after last June?

"Well it sure bloody felt like it," Harry grumbled, still fare more annoyed by the whole instance than everyone else it seemed who'd moved on to being annoyed by this Mundungus. Harry did admit though there was something irksome about the man as well he was having trouble placing feelings on, which usually meant a memory not yet returned he shouldn't be prodding at.

She finally got him to the door, before telling him that someone would be in touch shortly.

"For once," Harry rolled his eyes, causing all of them to raise a brow at him. He seemed to have turned into a belligerent teen overnight, which almost would have been funny if it wasn't so depressing to watch. They still agreed with him, he had been left alone all summer, and if this was really the thing to kick him into the action where his friends were, it was really sad.

Harry asked what she was going to do, and she merely said go home, casting one more shaky look into the shadows.

"The poor dear," Lily couldn't help but worry. Harry's safety was far more important, but she still wished there were someone there to walk the woman home.

She then marched off despite Harry's protests that he wanted to know-

"Everything," he finished dejectedly as he could already see her in his mind's eye spinning away and trotting off up the street like he hadn't even spoken.

it was too late, she was already vanishing with her bag of cat food clanging away and carpet slippers flopping about.

"She sure is a sight," Sirius gave one last happy smile which would likely be the last for hours. Harry was back at the Dursleys place, and couple together his earlier commentary with those horrid people and how he was arriving at the door with Dudley, no one needed much intuition to know this wasn't going to go well.

Grumbling under his breath in disappointment it would have been nice to have a chat with anyone who was in contact with Dumbledore, he knew there was nothing for it as he turned to the door and rang the bell, finally tucking away his wand.

"Why would you ring the doorbell?" Remus asked while Lily whispered to James what that was. "You do by all technicalities live there, that's why you're bleeding there." The old bloodlust was already creeping back into his tone of imagining Vernon answering the door and attacking Harry at once. "Just march in there, dump Dudley on the couch and be done with your night."

Harry just shrugged as answer, he really couldn't find it in himself to explain he'd never entered that house without knocking first, it's not like he'd ever felt welcomed there, let alone ever been given a key if it had been locked. Then he remembered the last time he hadn't answered in his full thought process, and not wanting to do anything to have his dad so angry at him again, he told them that.

Again, no one hardly seemed pleased at his truth, but he was happy to see at least James smile at him for the effort it clearly took him to say that.

Petunia's shadow emerged with her voice already speaking of how she'd been getting worried, but she trailed off in fear when she saw her son's green face.

Harry took a look at his cousin, and realized what was about to happen a second before he did, only just managing to duck out of the way as Dudley vomited on the doorstep.

"Lovely," they all noted, while some irony warred with pity. Harry had vomited in this room from the stress of reliving his worst memories, now here he was watching Dudley do the same. If this had been any other person other than someone with their last name, they knew they would have been very concerned indeed for Dudley's circumstances. Now all they were really doing was picturing an amusing mental image of watching Petunia be forced to clean that up, though in all honesty it would probably be Harry instead.

She began screaming in concern at once, drawing Vernon's attention while both parents began fawning over their son to demand what was wrong, had he been drinking foreign tea?

Lily had to press her fingers firmly to her lips as she remembered that ridiculous lie Dudley had told his parents, though if that's what they ended up believing she really couldn't bring herself to care one way or another. Though it would further put some amusing spin in that the cure to this would be for Dudley to eat chocolate, something strictly against that diet he might still be on.

Then Vernon noticed he was covered in dirt, and asked if he'd been on the ground? Had he been mugged?

Remus cocked his head to the side as he tried to force himself to see this as a Muggle would, but even then he couldn't picture anyone stupid enough to be trying to rob such a wall like Dudley at any stage of his life.

Petunia began screeching the police needed to be phoned while both parents started shuffling Dudley towards the kitchen. Harry began trying to make his way to the stairs while no one noticed him.

"I might actually enjoy the rest of your summer if they go on some wild doxie chase," Sirius snorted, picturing Vernon trying to go after a dementor and vividly enjoying that imagery much more than he ever would have considered possible.

Dudley began trying to mouth some sort of explanation, and finally managed to force out the word, 'him.'

Harry's foot froze in place as he braced himself for the explosion.

James's mouth snapped open in outrage at once to know just what kind of explosion, but Harry was still reading on calmly, if subdued now like he was accepting his fate to the gallows. Least he wasn't tensed for a fight, yet.

Vernon shouted at the top of his lungs that moment for the boy to come in there!

Harry really wasn't screaming all that loud, but they all knew it wasn't meant to be kind either. Of course now that they thought about it, Dudley probably did think Harry had done all of that to him. Even now knowing the extent of what the Dursleys would presumably do to Harry in retaliation, they all still tensed in preparation for it to happen with mounting fear. Harry really shouldn't have put his wand away when he'd gotten to this house.

Forcing one foot in front of the other, Harry entered to find the three in a panicky mess, Vernon advancing on him at once as he demanded to know of Harry what he'd done to Dudley!

"Clearly nothing of lasting impact," Sirius muttered sourly, "otherwise he wouldn't still be walking."

"With the way he was talking to Harry right before this happened, he really should consider that a blessing," Remus agreed.

Harry said he'd done nothing, even knowing he wouldn't be believed.

"Then why do you bother?" Lily rolled her eyes in disgust.

"The conversation goes by faster if I pretend to follow along while Vernon makes up his own assumptions," Harry shrugged.

Petunia ignored him entirely, turning to her Diddy and asking what Harry had done. Had he used his thing?

"They really do make us all sound like some disease," Remus curled up his lip as she phrased it like that.

It seemed to take every last drop of Dudley's efforts to nod.

Harry still yelped he hadn't while Vernon came forward with a raised fist.

Harry watched in fascination as everyone around him flinched and paled all over again to what he found a fairly common sight. He still didn't think divulging Vernon's physical treatment of him had helped anything, the opposite as it seemed to make all their fears of the man ramp up to their highest degree, but he couldn't take it back now and seemed to decide the best way to soothe them was to read past the moment. He had every confidence at least Vernon wouldn't lay a hand on him now, hopefully he'd get that through to them eventually.

Before anymore could be done, an owl came flying in through the window, dropped a note at Harry's feet, and soared right back out.

"Considering that could have been from any number of people, I can't say I'm thrilled Harry's finally getting more mail," Remus rolled his eyes.

Vernon switched anger to bellowing rage about those pestilent birds!

"Hedwig better watch her little feathers," Lily muttered protectively, her hands still clasped tightly inside of James'.

Harry paid this no mind as he ripped open the official looking letter, finding it from the Ministry saying they had received intelligence,

"I wish," Sirius huffed under his breath.

of Harry's Patronus Charm. As this was not his first breach of the Decree, he was now expelled from Hogwarts.

Harry heard those around him screech so loudly, he was sure it ruptured an eardrum. He however just stared blankly down at the pages. He wanted to believe with everything he had that he would never have to leave Hogwarts before he had to, but there really was some great looming gap in the distance promising he would indeed be missing from his school for quite some time. It wasn't really because he'd been kicked out, right? Dumbledore would never let them keep him out, but Dumbledore wasn't -

"Harry!"

Harry shook himself hard, managing to push the pain back out of the forefront of his mind and offer up a weak smile to those around him. "Sorry, just really freaked me out is all, they wouldn't really expel me would they? You guys said it takes a few instances of these getting me even up to the Ministry and how rare it was, and this was only my second offense. Plus," he continued, switching from fear to anger as he pressed on, "they haven't even heard my side of it, how come they can just go and expel me whenever they feel like? Why-"

"Harry," Sirius repeated just a touch more calmly than his godson who was quickly driving himself into a frenzy. "I am positive everything's going to be fine, the Ministry doesn't even have the power to expel you from school so I don't even know what they're thinking with that. All they can do is fine you, warn you, and remind you not to use magic outside of school." When none of the color still returned to Harry's face, Sirius persisted in a forced more amused tone, "besides, if Dumbledore put up with us for all those years there's no way he'd have you leaving the place without a fight. As Headmaster, even if you are expelled, he can always chose to enroll you." He finished with a triumphant little smirk.

Harry managed a pleased enough smile for Sirius, though something in him lingered as he turned away, like maybe he should have left school for just this year, something to do with Sirius needing him far more or- he forced himself to cut off that time as his brain was beginning to feel cooked from too much thinking ahead.

Ministry representatives would be calling at his place shortly to destroy his wand.

Harry still couldn't stop his mouth sagging open in horror for that bit! There was no way he was losing his wand to anyone!

"But they can't do that," Lily fired up in protest. "They aren't allowed to do a thing to you until after the charges are proven, and you're allowed to give a reason of why you did the magic before it hits this level!"

Lily's rendition of the laws didn't seem to have gone in one bit of Harry's conscious, so she took a deep breath and tried something else instead.

"It's going to be fine love," Lily promised her shivering son at once. She hesitated, hating having to say so, but then promised, "it may not be the same, but honestly you can get another one." The suggestion felt cruel, like her cat had just died and someone told her to just replace him with another one right away, but the assurance that he could still have access to magical protection when he was let back into school had to be of some comfort.

For a few moments more Harry could do nothing but gape in shock at the realization his wand was still going to be broken, but his hand crept into his pocket now and closed tight around the phoenix core which gave him enough hope to continue on that hopefully this would never be a permanent fear.

He would have to make an official appearance at the Ministry at 9 a. m. on the twelfth of August.

"That's the only part of the bleeding letter that makes any sense," James rolled his eyes in disgust, though even that wasn't known to happen until after the third strike, this was all very extreme.

There was a sign off hoping for his health,

Sirius scoffed in annoyance at the pleasantries, no one would be doing very well by the end of that letter.

Then the bottom part of who had written it, the office, etc.

Harry reread the letter with mounting fear. He was expelled!

None of them could stand watching Harry be like this now, without a word of comfort any of them could offer. Even Sirius had claim to another home in the Potter's manor outside of Hogwarts, none of them could grasp how it must feel to only find one place on earth safe. He wouldn't even feel right at The Burrow anymore, watching everyone around him still being in school.

His brain was having trouble processing past that, but one thing did become more clear. He had to run, now. He could not let anyone destroy his wand.

"Not that I ever really consider leaving that place a bad idea," Remus shrugged, "but just where do you think you're going again?"

"Hadn't got that far," Harry sighed, some lingering hope trailing in him hoping he wouldn't have to, something would happen so he'd never have to go that far.

Without a word Harry turned as if to leave, but Vernon blocked his path at once, still demanding to know what had happened to his son!

It took a moment for Lily to realize she wasn't the only one trembling with fury at the way he continued to speak to their son, James still seemed likely at any given moment to resume his frenzied anger to get out of here and end Vernon's life if he kept treating Harry like this after he'd put his hands on their boy.

Harry ignored this and instead pulled his wand, promising he'd hex Vernon if he didn't move.

Vernon denied the threat, saying that madhouse of his school forbade it.

Harry told that madhouse had chucked him out!

Sirius shook his head sadly as he thought of all the insane things Harry had been up to lately, and how madhouse may actually apply to his old school in some terms with the way Harry's years went there.

He could do whatever he pleased now!

Before he could continue with the threat, there was a crack, and though Vernon ducked,

"If only," Harry sighed in honest disappointment, dispelling at once the hope that had lit everyone else Harry had actually cursed that buffoon.

for the third time that night Harry was searching for the source of a disturbance he had not made.

"Three times in one day really does have to be some kind of record," James shook his head at this.

It was another owl that had crashed into the window, and when Harry sprinted over to open it, the owl delivered the message to Harry which turned out to be a hastily scrawled note from Mr. Weasley promising Dumbledore had arrived to sort this out, not to leave the house, surrender his wand, or do more magic!

Harry paused after he'd finished with this, his head cocked to the side as he asked the others, "does that sound a little off to anyone else? Don't do more magic but don't surrender my wand, how am I supposed to do both?"

"Talk them down obviously," Sirius rolled his eyes, "offer them a cup of tea and have a nice chat before they destroy your link to magic, works like a charm."

Remus gave him an absent nudge while he honestly pondered the question. "My best solution would honestly be your original plan though, better to avoid the fight and make a run for it. Arthur's intentions are good, but you really don't have many options until this all cools down."

"Here's hoping I send him that next," Sirius sighed in agreement.

Harry hummed in silent concurrence and went back to reading instead of the internal struggle he felt kicking inside of him. At the point of his fifteen year old life, he honestly trusted Arthur more than Remus, maybe not Sirius, but as of now it was hard to decide whose advice he'd take more...

Harry stared hard at the words, that Dumbledore was fixing this. How much power did his headmaster have over the Ministry of Magic?

"Guess it depends on the branch you're talking about," Lily sighed. "He really does have a lot of influence even without the actual titles to back anything up, it honestly wouldn't surprise me if he could turn this whole thing around before the nights even up."

Harry did finally start breathing easier at that news, he had full confidence his mother was right about that at least.

Harry still didn't understand how he was supposed to not give up his wand while still not doing magic. He'd have to duel someone from the Ministry, possibly getting him thrown into Azkaban.

"You really love that extreme punishment don't you?" Sirius shivered in disgust. "Resisting arrest is a big offense I'll admit, but they won't haul you into Azkaban for that alone. They have a few holding places in the Ministry you'd be left in until your trial, and the chances of you getting off lessen by a ton if you fight, but you're never going near that place Harry."

"Same for you," Harry reminded at once as he couldn't help but relax back as he felt the truth of Sirius' words.

Sirius gave Harry a confident smile back while rolling his eyes at his friends own pleased looks.

Still it was a comfort that Dumbledore was working to fix this, he'd sorted out worse.

"Like what?" James snorted, "that you know of anyway."

"He came back after the Ministry kicked him out of Hogwarts," Harry reminded of his second year, "I guess this hardly felt like as big a deal as a student."

Lily shook her head fondly at Harry's logic, but didn't correct him if it would keep him from panicking.

Aloud Harry announced he'd changed his mind, he was staying, flopping into a chair across from Dudley to all of the astounded faces around him.

"They don't have the benefit of hearing your train of thought," Remus chuckled, "otherwise I'm sure anyone would have been confused by that."

Vernon demanded who all of these owls were from?

Harry answered in order,

Harry could feel the interruption coming of, again, why he bothered answering these ever rude people, but he could already feel his own mind's logic acknowledging what he was sure would pop up.

thinking to himself it was quieter to answer rather than continued yelling on Vernon's part, and he now needed to listen for those Ministry officials.

"Well I guess," James grumbled under his breath, though he'd still rather Vernon's throat just be removed, that would be quietest of all.

Vernon barked in surprise there was a Ministry of Magic? His kind of people in government! This actually made sense, no wonder the country was going to the dogs!

Lily's face puckered with dislike, but she honestly wasn't even that bothered, this was the least insulting thing he'd said about her life of late. James decided he'd ask later what his government had anything to do with canines, he didn't care enough right now.

Then Vernon switched back to Harry, demanding to know why he was expelled?

Harry began to explain he'd done magic, but Vernon cut him off with a roar of triumph he had done something to Dudley!

"It really is impossible for that ignoramus to hear more than one thing isn't it?" Remus rubbed at his temple at the mere thought of trying to speak to this man, rather than leaving him alone with James which was the worst punishment possible.

Harry again protested that wasn't his fault, but then Dudley forced out more words, the two parents silencing Harry at once.

Harry just sighed, he honestly had no idea why he even bothered, he'd never had a voice in that house, least of all when Dudley was speaking.

Dudley began to explain everything had gone dark, and he'd heard voices in his head.

That brought all the boys up short in surprise as it occurred to them for the first time, Sirius voicing, "wonder just what he heard?"

"The worst thing we know that happened to him was Hagrid giving him a tail," Lily remained with a careless shrug, "and as that shouldn't have really caused this, I can't think of anything."

Harry sat there mulling it over for a moment, and said without a trace of confidence, "I know I never ask Dudley so this is me guessing, but I like to think he's finally just getting some comeuppance and hearing all the kids he's always bullied."

"Why would that be a bad memory?" Remus scoffed, "he'd preen at the idea of all his victims."

"If the thought bothered him that much, he'd have stopped being what he was ages ago," James agreed.

Harry still tried to give his reason, "after he met someone who could take him on, Hagrid, I actually never saw him keep bullying people again though. Sure he still beat up kids, but it was always a quick blow to prove his point and then he'd leave his gang to finish. I don't know, maybe Hagrid giving Dudley a tail also forced him to grow a conscience."

"I don't really buy that," Sirius rolled his eyes, "but I don't really care either as it's about Dudley. So you think what you like pup, I'd rather hear about you not getting expelled."

Harry clearly wasn't convincing anyone else, so let the matter go.*

Vernon and Petunia exchanged a horrified look at this. Their least favorite thing in the world, outside of people besides them who misused their hosepipe privileges,

"I thought you said Vernon had told all that he was above doing such things," Remus rolled his eyes.

"I thought so to," Harry shrugged, before reminding them, "but I guess that one was above me, I didn't actually write these you know."

was people who heard voices. They obviously thought Dudley was losing his mind.

"Points for irony," Sirius chuckled maliciously. If that was the worst thing they could do to the Dursley's, he was positive he could manage that.

Petunia managed to ask Dudley what exactly he'd heard, but Dudley seemed too horrified to answer.

Harry stared at his cousin curiously as he wondered just what his spoiled cousin's worst memory would be?

"Whatever it was won't have any more of a lasting impact than that stupid tail," Lily muttered in disgust, honestly thinking the Dursleys were never going to get the retribution they deserved and it would never not fire her right back up.

Vernon whispered while asking his son why he'd fallen over, his tone that of speaking to the ill.

All five of them blinked at the oddity of that sentence, not one of them ever having thought of Vernon as a maternal person, and that was a genuinely human moment. Which only managed to make their loathing for him stay at a simmering level, managing this for Dudley and still able to act how he did towards Harry.

Dudley tried to explain the rest, but couldn't get out the part of how the dementors had made him feel, which Harry supplied.

Vernon rounded back on Harry, coming to the conclusion Harry had put some spell on his son to make him hear voices and be eternally miserable!

"That would be an interesting spell," Remus couldn't help a twisted little smile. "Someone should look into the properties of how to harness a dementor's powers and channel it into one."

"I'm sure if they did, we wouldn't even need those bloody beasts round Azkaban anymore," Lily agreed in honest curiosity, "the magic would keep them subdued if imbedded right." She had a few more ideas lingering in her head at the thought of this, but neither of them continued as despite Sirius examining his knuckles and blatantly ignoring them, no one could notice he was starting to lose color again at the topic, so Harry quickly moved on.

Harry was starting to lose his temper as he exploded he'd been trying to tell them, that wasn't him, it was the Dementors!

Vernon of course had no idea what that was, and Harry repeated the creature's name back slowly and clearly.

"I'm convinced that's the only way he can understand anything," James huffed.

He demanded what those were, and it was Petunia who answered they guarded the wizard prison Azkaban.

Harry couldn't help but pause there and just gaped down at the words, then looking up and around to see everyone else just as surprised.

Lily snapped out of it first, heated disgust bleeding into her tone, "why am I not surprised that of everything she would have heard me mention of my world, that's the thing she'll claim knowledge of after all these years. A place she was probably hoping I'd go at some point."

"Don't say that Lily Flower," James whispered behind her, trying to hid another violent shiver of his own. He couldn't even bare the idea of Sirius being in that place, his hands convulsed around his wife at the notion of the same fate befalling her.

Lily patted his hand absentmindedly while Harry collected himself enough to go on, though something of this explanation felt a little curved still. His mum wasn't entirely wrong of why Petunia knew this, but not entirely correct either.

It only took a second for the woman to realize what she'd said, than her hands flew to her mouth as if she'd just uttered a swear word.

Harry demanded to know how she knew that?

"I honestly forget sometimes you two are related," Harry sighed, even picturing the woman in his head she looked nothing like his mother.

"I wish we weren't now," Lily grumbled lowly.

Petunia hardly seemed aware she was answering him as she stated she'd heard that awful boy mentioning this years ago.

"What's this?" Harry asked curiously.

Lily sighed, casting a look at the Marauders, before admitting, "She's talking about Snape. She caught us one time talking about them."

She was expecting more than a few snide comments from the boys about her long ago friendship, but unbelievably none of them said a word, except for James, who simply said, "Thanks Lils, cause that was really confusing. I thought she meant me for a second, and the one time I met her, we didn't exactly have a conversation about this."

Lily all but beamed at her husband for showing any restraint and not making some crack about her childhood spent with him.

Harry snapped if she meant his parents, she could use their names.

"While you were only half right, she still wouldn't have bothered," Sirius uttered tersely, he hadn't forgotten the anger he'd felt when he'd learned Harry hadn't even known his own parents names because of these bleeding people, all the injustices they'd done to his pup would never leave his mind.

Vernon seemed speechless that his wife had offered this up to the conversation, and was now clearly struggling to find words.

None of them bothered to smother their mean laughter. It was nice to see Vernon struck dumb for even a moment, though they'd rather he'd just been struck, they'd take it.

He finally managed to ask his wife that these Dementywhatsits were real then?

She only nodded.

He then glanced from her to Dudley like he was expecting one of them to shout April Fool's at him.

"I wouldn't dream of it," Remus sneered, "this is the most I've heard him squirm this whole time, you won't find any of us putting a stop to it anytime soon."

No more could be said before another owl arrived through the again open window, and Vernon was temporarily saved from the conversation by stomping back to the window and closing it again.

"He does remember those can get into the house from other than windows, yes?" James scoffed of no one.

It was another letter from the Ministry, retracting all previous statements but the one stating when the hearing would be, until then he should consider himself in suspension from school.

"I don't understand," Lily ran her hand through her hair in utter frustration of having to say that. "Dumbledore should have gone up there and pointed the laws into whatever idiots faces approved of this in the first place and the whole thing should have been redacted. Why this continued farce of a hearing?"

Something of what Sirius had said in the last book lingered in Harry's mind, 'the whole show had been so everyone could see how much he hated the boy.' Harry somehow felt that wasn't too far off the mark for what was fixing to happen to him, but he didn't think using his godfather's quote would make the pain any less if he tried to offer up a suggestion for his future so instead chose to say nothing to his mother's rhetorical question.

Harry felt himself breathing easier at once, even if everything did hang on this hearing on the twelfth.

"At this point it's a bleeding miracle it wasn't set for Halloween," James grumbled under his breath, "then we know he'd get the book."

Vernon barked at Harry what this one was about? Did his lot have a death sentence?

Harry heard a few splutters of angered disgust around him, but at this point they couldn't really be surprised Vernon would wish for such a thing so Harry ignored them.

Harry just said what he'd read, and Vernon decided he wouldn't give up hope then.

James really couldn't seem to stop a snarl of outrage drowning out Harry's words for a moment, but he looked up at his dad in exasperation which did nothing to curb his mood but Harry still kept going.

Harry tried to leave for his room now, aching to write a letter to his friends or Sirius.

"I wonder if we even know," Sirius' face fell another few inches as some resentment of Arthur nagged at him. He was doing far more to help Harry than Sirius ever could, he was lucky if he'd even find out before the trial was said and done.

Vernon shouted at once Harry was to sit back down and tell what had happened to Dudley!

Harry lost his temper and shouted he'd been trying, while sparks flew out of his wand and all three flinched.

"As they should be," Sirius muttered pitifully, all this trouble and Harry hadn't even used a curse on his intended target, instead he was being punished for saving these useless lumps on his existence.

He recounted the whole event, finally, but Vernon still demanded what those Dementoids are?

Remus couldn't help snorting in a bit of amusement at Vernon calling them the wrong thing. Whether intentionally or he just hadn't grasped the name yet, both still showed his continued levels of idiotics, which were at their extream to begin with.

Harry briefly explained them, and their most powerful ability, to Kiss you.

Vernon's eyes nearly popped out of his head as he parroted that.

"He actually manages to make the term even worse," Sirius couldn't help but blanch as he leaned just a bit further into the couch.

Harry told that was what it was called when they went for a soul.

Petunia began screeching in fear as she clasped hold of his son, demanding to know if he still had his!

"Thanks to Harry," Lily sniffed, knowing no Dursley would ever do it, but Harry deserved to hear, "which by the way, you're owed a thanks for love. So I'll say it for them, it was right what you did for him no matter whether he deserved it or not, so thank you."

Harry just gave an absent shrug in answer. He hadn't exactly stood around and had a moral quandary over whether he should or not, he'd just reacted. His mum was right though, no one in that house was going to say this, and it still managed to touch him she'd considered giving it to him.

She seized Dudley by the shoulders and shook him, as though testing to see whether she could hear his soul rattling around inside.

James narrowed his eyes at nothing as he tried to picture something so stupid happening, but he was coming up short.

Harry just sighed of course he did, you could tell if he hadn't.

Sirius couldn't stop a violent convulsion as he forced every last bit of his mind not to think of that.

Vernon loudly stated it had been Dudley fighting them off, with the mad appearance of a man dragging the conversation back to a plane he could comprehend.

"Sorry we can't drag this down into single syllables only," Remus rolled his eyes.

Dudley had given them the ol' one-two.

"Now that would have been interesting to see," James snorted in disgust at the idea.

Harry rolled his eyes at the idea, telling that wasn't possible.

Vernon demanded why he was alright then?

Harry really did have to fight down the compulsion to stop himself giving a very sarcastic reply of, 'oh you're welcome by the way. If I get expelled from Hogwarts just remember what for!'

Harry started to say the charm he'd used, but another owl arrived just then down the chimney, leading Vernon to start ripping at his mustache in frustration, something he hadn't done in years.

"I'm just getting all kinds of flashbacks to your first year," Lily offered a crooked smile.

Harry ignored his continued rant about the birds as he took the new letter, and he was so convinced this one was from Dumbledore explaining everything, that for the first time in his life he was disappointed to see Sirius' handwriting.

"Now that hurt!" Sirius yelped at once, considering he'd just felt the exact opposite. He was jubilant he was even involved enough in this mess to be passing Harry any messages along.

Harry just grumbled inarticulately for a moment before commenting, "how are all these owls even getting to me so fast? Normal owl post isn't that fast, these are taking minutes."

"Well the Ministry has a way to speed owls along to their destination, they get special charms placed on them to fly them along faster than should be possible, though they never use it on the same bird twice as that could be lethal to them, and of course they have to fly back on their own to just become department memo owls after that." She realized she was getting off track and quickly retraced, "Arthur could be using the same of course, though I'm not sure how Sirius managed it," she finished with a curious look at him.

"I might have Floo'd it there," Sirius shrugged, "it did mention it fell out of the fireplace. Don't know how I know honestly, but that's all I got."

It was only two sentences. Arthur had passed along word of what happened to us, and don't leave the house.

"Us?" Remus asked hopefully while everyone else in confusion.

Harry ignored that and asked petulantly, "does everyone know what's going on besides me?"

"They just haven't gotten a chance yet Harry, everyone's scrambling around to find out what happened, then I'm sure someone will tell you what they've found." Lily said with absolute confidence. Whatever motives Dumbledore had before in keeping Harry out of the loop, surely they wouldn't still apply now that it was made perfectly clear Harry wasn't remotely safe by any means at that place.

Harry didn't look very convinced, but he seemed to believe enough he kept going.

Harry found this such an inadequate response to everything that had happened tonight that he turned the piece of parchment over, looking for the rest of the letter, but there was nothing else.

James normally would have snorted with laughter, as Sirius was far more known for sending paragraphs worth of letters full of everything he was thinking during his summer holidays. It only managed to sober James up all the more though that he hadn't once seen this of his Sirius again, this was more of this after Azkaban Sirius acting like Arthur when he'd agreed with Remus earlier, and it really freaked him out.

Now his temper was peaking. Wasn't anyone going to tell him well done for handling this on his own?

"I didn't realize you wanted acknowledgement for that," Remus mocked while beginning to raise his hands in applause, "let me fix-"

Harry blatantly ignored him while reading loudly, they knew full well that wasn't what he meant. He knew everyone knew he could handle a dementor, it was the other part that was rankling him.

Both Mr. Weasley and Sirius were acting as though he'd misbehaved, and were saving their tellings-off until they could ascertain how much damage had been done.

"Hey," Sirius pouted again, wondering why Harry was taking so many digs at him when he was just trying to help, "I'm doing no such thing."

"Sure felt that way to me," Harry huffed without looking up.

Vernon was still vocally abusing the delivery system, complaining about the peck of owls treating his home like a nesting ground.

Harry snapped back he couldn't stop the owls coming.

"I wouldn't want to either," Harry grumbled for himself.

Vernon turned attention back on Harry, asking how those Demenders had gone away then?

Harry told of the Patronus Charm he'd used to send them off.

Then Vernon asked why Dementoids had been here?!

"He's successfully managed to say that a different way three times now," Lily rolled her eyes, "he is clearly doing it on purpose."

Harry admitted he had no clue, which Vernon responded with snapping that it was somehow all the boy's fault.

"Well that we can't actually agree on," James groaned while letting his head fall against Lily's shoulder for agreeing with that man about something. Lily patted the wild hair with sympathy, a contemplative look on her face as she still wanted an answer to that as well. It really didn't seem in Voldemort's style to have done this, not after the show he'd made about being the one to kill Harry, surely he'd be sticking with that and sending creatures to do his bidding was above that rule, could make Voldemort look weak. A random attack then? More unlikely than Voldemort, but there weren't any other possibilities.

His uncle's had been a good question though, Harry truly had not a clue why those Dementors were here.

Lily quickly explained all that she'd just been thinking, and no one disagreed with her, none of it really made sense.

Vernon kept his attention by demanding these Demembers guarded some prison?

"I'm honestly curious now just how many times he can butcher that," Remus muttered absently.

It was now a strain for Harry to just agree to that, he wanted to escape to his dark room, to be alone to think.

"Harry, you're feeling alright now, yes?" Lily quickly asked in concern as he just kept mentioning how much his head hurt and if he needed a quiet moment-

"I'm fine," Harry quickly assured. "I certainly remember my head feeling like it was going to cave in any moment, but I promise if it was bothering me that much now you'd know."

Lily wasn't entirely sure of that, as he'd gotten well at smothering his pain in front of them to stop them worrying, but she also trusted that he would excuse himself if he really needed it.

Vernon then came to the assumption that they'd been coming to arrest Harry, with the triumphant air of a man reaching an unassailable conclusion.

"Those are the only conclusions he can come to, his own," James scoffed.

Harry was on the run from the law!

"I'm fairly confident when you're on the run, you don't hang around your own house," Sirius snorted in disbelief.

"Though it's some logic if you know Harry well," James reminded with an odd smirk at his friend.

Remus chuckled lightly while Harry was left wondering why he was feeling like he missed a joke, but he didn't bother to ask as he was almost done with this head splitting night.

Harry rolled his eyes that of course he wasn't, and that Voldemort must have sent them.

"I don't blame you for coming to that conclusion," Remus sighed, "it just doesn't make sense with his previous history with you. Plus, why now, after all those months alone, what could have changed?"

"Maybe we just didn't get to hear the switch, and something did change making Voldemort want Harry out of the way right now instead of doing it himself," Sirius said uneasily. "I'm not entirely ruling it out."

Harry said nothing for their argument, he could just feel the real answer hadn't even been theorized yet.

Harry took a moment to register how odd it was that despite the Dursley's flinching at such words as wizard and magic, they didn't so much as twitch at the name Voldemort.

"That is indeed an interesting flip of dynamics," Lily rolled her eyes, not finding it nearly interesting enough she wasn't still planning on disemboweling them.

Vernon's eyes narrowed as he thought back to where he'd heard that name, as the man who'd murdered Harry's parents.

"Because this is always a fun topic," James muttered under his breath, while Lily snuggled a bit more into his lap.

Vernon impatiently reminded that he was gone, without a trace of his tone suggesting this might be a sore topic for Harry to be discussing his parents murderer.

Remus could feel his jaw working furiously to hold back a retort to that while Sirius couldn't muster up quite the same restraint and voiced several colorful sentences under his breath, but both were working furiously to keep it that low in lieu of the shouting that would only make Lily, James, and Harry grow even more pale.

Harry merely answered he was back.

The oddity of the moment struck Harry again that he was sitting in this kitchen, speaking about Voldemort to the Dursleys.

"When you put it like that, it really does sound ridiculous," Lily agreed absently as she began twirling a bit of hair around a finger, her mind clearly not all in this topic anymore.

The arrival of the Dementors in Little Whinging seemed to have breached the great divide that had blocked the non-magical world of Privet Drive and his own.

"Almost makes me wish dementors had popped up sooner," Harry murmured to himself, anything other than that dull lifestyle he'd been forced to suffer through.

"While normally I can agree boredom is to be avoided at all costs," Sirius nodded, "I'd think you'd at least appreciate some of the quiet time considering last year."

"I'll take a dragon over Privet Drive," Harry reminded to Sirius' shivered disgust.

Harry's two lives had merged into one, and his head continued to throb more painfully than ever.

Despite Harry reading that in as bland a tone as he could to reinforce he wasn't feeling that now, much, he could still see Lily twitching in the corner of his eye and fighting the impulse to come check on him, so he infused his voice with a touch of warmth as he continued.

It was Petunia who spoke first, repeating he was back in a terrified whisper?

Harry looked curiously at her, and for the first time in his life appreciated the fact that she was Lily's sister though they looked nothing alike, she alone understood what this meant.

Lily was suddenly astonished at the well of hurt that was now trying to climb her throat. She'd never forgive Petunia for the way she'd treated Harry, but what her son had just witnessed in her sister's eyes was what Lily kept picturing of her old Tuny. It's why it hurt so much to envision this shrew treating her Hare Bare like this. She had to clear her throat hard to get rid of a sudden lump, and brushed Harry impatiently on when he tried to break off.

Vernon kept center stage as he demanded this Voldything was back?

"You know, I think I like that better than calling him Riddle," Remus snorted.

"I won't have it," Sirius sneered, "I won't be indulging anything Vernon comes up with."

He was sending Dismembers after Harry?

"He's actually getting farther away from the word every time," James arched a brow.

"That one may have been funny if they actually dismembered you," Sirius snorted.

Vernon's face settled then, and he barked at Harry to get out!

Harry blinked spastically down at the pages like he thought his glasses were playing tricks on him. He'd always hated it there and never been shy of saying so, but he'd also never considered the possibility of truly being kicked out like this.

"Honestly though, I think I'm impressed this has never happened before," James' face was turning an ugly red color as what had been said really registered. "He clearly despises you, why hasn't he done something before to get rid of you permanently?"

"Don't know," Harry shrugged, though he could tell it wasn't really meant as an actual question. "Not like I've ever asked him."

"I'm almost happy about this," Sirius groaned, "least now you'll never have to deal with them again. You can come do whatever I am without anyone really protesting, since clearly you won't be making an appearance at the Burrow anytime soon." He hadn't meant to sound so bitter while he'd said that, but the outrage that Dumbledore was trying to keep Harry there really was pushing his buttons, and now the irony was that wouldn't even be an option any longer, to which he was grateful for.

Harry just sat there in shock while Vernon suddenly began listing every single thing Harry had ever done to their life, including that flying Ford Anglia.

"I'm impressed he noticed what kind of car it was," Remus rolled his eyes at the odd detail.

Now some loony was after Harry! Vernon wasn't having it, he wouldn't let the boy put his family in danger like this, Harry was to get OUT!

Harry read that in an almost despondent way. He could actually see Vernon's logic, and while he'd never cared before this night about the Dursley's well being...he could see the point. Anyone around him was a danger if Voldemort realized that...

Harry stood rooted to the spot. The letters from the Ministry, Mr. Weasley and Sirius were all crushed in his left hand.

"I swear I got more mail in that one night than I did all summer," Harry rolled his eyes to dispel his train of thought. No need for anyone around him now to realize what he'd been thinking.

They'd all warned the same thing, not to leave the house!

Vernon clearly didn't care though, as he leaned right into Harry's face and hissed it again.

Harry shuffled uncomfortably at so many hateful glares in his direction even if they were aimed at the book, but after Vernon's attack earlier he couldn't blame them for their reactions, he just quickly read past it.

Vernon wished he'd never had to bother taking Harry in to begin with, he should have gone straight to an orphanage!

Lily honestly still questioned that. Why take in a child you had no love for? She'd honestly been pondering that question while she'd watched James have his meltdown, and she could come to no real conclusion. There was just no way you could raise an infant without love, the care it took to nurse them. Which meant that all this must have started when Harry would show his first signs of magic and their fear would begin, but how long had that taken? Long enough that they'd had him and had no more excuse to be rid of him? She still honestly wished Harry had been left at an orphanage rather than that cruel childhood he had dealt with at the hands of her extended family.

They'd been too damn soft on him, thought they could squash that freakish stuff out.

"So, ah, what exactly does that mean?" James asked hesitantly, not wanting to break a clearly open bit of honesty in his son when it came to these people.

Harry gave him a loaded look, then shrugged and said, "Suppose it just meant keep me as miserable as possible. I've now honestly told you the worst of it, if you really want me to sit around and in detail recount every time of it then we're going to be here all week. Like I could remember every stinking instance anyways."

That wasn't exactly comforting, neither the blunt honesty or the fact that this was so common place he'd lost count.

His tyrant was cut off by the arrival of another owl.

It too fell from the chimney, and circled the room near Petunia, who shrieked in fright and tried to cover her face.

James laughed softly under his breath as he imagined the bird attacking her, then rounding on Vernon. It wasn't the justice he wanted for what they'd done to his son over the years, but a few scratches wouldn't kill them either.

The owl dropped the red envelope on her head, turned, and flew straight back up the chimney.

"Err," everyone muttered in surprise. That was a Howler, and that bird wouldn't have dropped it in front of her if it was meant for Harry...

Harry had to give himself a kick before he could move on, everyone else was so stunned they hadn't even collected themselves yet.

Harry made to grab it away, but she'd already scoped it up and was watching it fearfully.

Harry just said she could try and hide it, but he'd hear it anyways, that was a Howler.

Vernon at once told his wife to drop that, it could be dangerous!

"A letter?" Remus demanded, coming around enough to continue laughing at these idiots. "He doesn't even know what that is, and he just assumes it's dangerous."

"Honestly though, that's safe when encountering anything magical," Harry shrugged back.

Petunia couldn't get over her shock enough to unfold it, still staring at the ink clear as day addressing it to her.

Harry still urged her to open it, and she still refused.

"Like that's ever stopped a Howler," Sirius snorted as he rubbed his ears in absent remembrance.

She had no choice in the matter though, as it burst into flames just as she dropped it, and the shouting voice that filled the kitchen was so loud it echoed unfamiliarly the words 'remember my last.'

"Who on earth..." but James' voice failed before he could get out the whole question.

"Who's last what?" Remus snatched the book away from Harry like he thought he was holding out on them.

"I, have no clue." Harry couldn't stop blinking, like that would make the surprise any less.

Lily broke first, and she flipped straight to anger. "Who the bloody hell is she in magical contact with to be receiving anything like that! She can not have spent any amount of time harassing you for doing the same when she's been doing this for any length of time!"

"You didn't see her face," Harry shook his head in bewilderment. "I promise, she has no more idea than we do who this is from."

"Is there some other Petunia out there with the exact same address," Remus raised a disbelieving brow, "because owl post does not get confused easily."

Harry kept staring at the letter a moment longer, but as the silence rang he forced himself to go on. There was just nothing to speculate, nothing at all to guess at. This was by far one of the randomest things they could have come across.

Everyone just sat there gaping at Petunia for what this could mean, but it was she who collected herself first, turning to her husband and telling him the boy would have to stay.

"She what!?" They were all entirely sure they'd heard that wrong. Petunia had no reason in the world to argue with Vernon, least of all about Harry. This clearly must have something to do with the letter she'd just received...which only made it all the more mind boggling! This was beyond frustrating to every one of them, they had yet to come across a problem they couldn't begin to speculate about because there were just no possible options!

Harry watched them all in a stumped and fuming silence, before sighing heavily and finishing.

Vernon tried to protest, but Petunia gave a list of reasons such as the neighbors would notice if he left for good.

"I'll buy that as soon as I do a Nimbus," Remus rolled his eyes.

Vernon was deflating like an old tire, still trying to say this was a bad idea, but Petunia ignored him now and snapped at Harry to get to his room.

"There's what we've been missing," Sirius rolled his eyes testily at the return of the Dursleys they knew and hated. He almost preferred the ones that were insulting dementors and talking about Snivellus.

Harry didn't move as he demanded who that Howler had been from?

"If she actually answered you, I might take back one of my death threats," James scowled at the book.

Petunia at once snapped at him not to ask questions.

Lily winced with renewed hate at the reminder of that hated ingrain she'd put into her son, that had taken him so long to open up to them or anyone.

Harry persisted, but she merely repeated herself until Vernon shouted at the top of his lungs for Harry to listen and get out!

"That's done," Harry sighed as he passed the book to Remus.

"I think I'm honestly relieved," he sighed as he stared down dauntingly at the next page. "That argument was turning circular, clearly they weren't going to answer you, but certainly credit for continued trying."

"I still can't believe we haven't got a clue what any of that was about," Sirius huffed, feeling ever more frustrated they'd just started this one and they already had a pile of questions with no answers in sight.

HPHPHPHP

*In answer, JK has said that Dudley heard the screams of all his victims hit him all at once and that's what changed him. I dismissed this in the characters as what he heard though because I'm not sure if that ever made sense, after all he'd have heard them screaming while he was bullying and surely just laughed it off. If the noise bothered him so much he would have simply found reasons long before now to stop bullying. However as I've never really come up with anything else I'm leaving it open ended for fan theories which I so love.

#The LIfe that Never LIved #Harry Potter #fanfiction #reading the books #The Marauders #Ootp #James Potter #jilly #Lily Potter #Remus Lupin #Sirius Black

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