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too-much-tma-stuff · 10 months

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As Weak as You are Strong

Part 2 of Mutually Assured Disaster, as usual this isn’t edited so if you see any errors let me know!

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Training Danny did not go the way that Hood had expected it too. First off it started way sooner then he had expected or wanted, he had wanted Danny to rest and fully heal before they started anything, maybe settle in fully to Gotham. But by the end of the first week he had realized that keeping the boy still was a fucking impossible task, he was so fucking restless! Jason attempted it for another four days before realizing that he had to give Danny something controlled and safe to do before sitting still drove him crazy and he did something stupid.

The easiest way to do that just then was to start training Danny, he was able to put it off a few more days by telling Danny he wouldn’t start training until he was signed up for school because the teen didn’t want to go back to school. But it was only a couple days before he seemed to decide that even school would be better then nothing.

Danny accepted being given a new identity, Danny Nightingale and let Hood forge paperwork to have legal guardianship and then enroll him in a decent school. Though he wouldn’t be starting till next semester to give him a chance to settle in to his new home. Jason wasn’t entirely sure when he’d decided Danny belonged with him, but he had, and was looking into bigger apartments for him and his new ward. After all it was official now.

“Okay the first step will be for you to show me what you can do to get a baseline, so we’ll go to gym I usually use after breakfast,” Jason finally said one morning as pulled a bottle of milk out of the fridge. Usually he cooked breakfast for them but it was a bad idea to eat to heavily before a work out, he’d take Danny out for lunch afterwards instead.

He heard Danny pause from where he was digging around in the cupboard grumbling about how healthy Jason’s cereal options were, as if he wasn’t the one who’d already eaten the box of sugary shit Tim had left here. The silence went on for too long and Jason scowled, turning to put the milk down on the counter and stare ad Danny hard.

“What’s the issue Wisp?” Jason asked sounding more annoyed then he actually was.

“Well, it’s just, I’m really strong and I have, like, a lot of powers? A Lot, I don’t even remember all of them half the time! I think it might be better of we leave town for me to show you? Like, if you want to see my most powerful ability that’s my Ghostly Wail, which is a pretty powerful sonic thing I don’t have great control of and I’m worried if I tried to do it inside I might bring down the building.” Danny rambled as casually as he could while he went back to digging for cereal and brought them over to the table.

Jason blinked as he processed that and then nodded slowly. “Okay, we haven’t talked about this much, what powers do you have?”

“Well, the sonic scream I mentioned, super strength, flight, intangibility, I can make and control ice, I have enhanced senses, I can shock people though that’s a hands on attack… Oh, I can sort of hypnotize people, I can possess people as well but I don’t like doing it… I can shape shift a bit though I’m not very good at it yet.” Danny said, counting them out on his fingers and looking a bit unsure as if he might have forgotten some.

“Damn Spooks what Can’t you do?” Jason asked, making light of how genuinely shocking Danny’s power level was.

“I think eventually I’ll learn how to shoot lasers.. Oh! I forgot my ecto beams! I can shoot ecto from my hands with some force, it’s corrosive to humans. And I can’t duplicate yet, the one older member of my species I met could so I assume I’ll learn eventually? I’m not really in a rush to learn though, I already kind of scare myself,” Danny admitted, looking away and rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.

“Alright, can you show me everything accept the wail inside?” Jason asked tapping his fingers absently against the table, before Danny shoved the box of cereal across the table to him and he remembered they were supposed to be eating.

“I think so, as long as I’m careful. But if I break anything you’re paying for it,” Danny joked around a mouthful of cereal, pointing his spoon at Jason.

“Don’t talk with your mouth full,” Jason said automatically, forcing himself to power through the realization he was fucking parenting this kid. “If I have to pay for anything you’re grounded.”

“You can’t ground me, you’re not my dad,” Danny shot back with an exaggerated pout, at least his mouth wasn’t full this time.

“So you’re not living under my roof, eating all my food, and asking me to train you?” Jason asked, raising his eyebrows, Danny stayed silent, pouting and poking at his cereal, steering the last few bits around the bowl. “If you have so little control of your power that you would break something you might seriously hurt a human in the field even if they don’t deserve it, and we don’t want that so if you break anything you’ll be grounded and it’ll be longer before you get into the field. Until we’re both confident in your control,” Jason explained firmly, he watched Danny consider that then deflate and nod.

“Fine,” He mumbled, drinking his cereal milk and bringing his bowl to the sink, washing it quickly.

Jason let it go, he knew Danny didn’t want to hurt anyone, he was a good kid, he was just disappointed. It wasn’t like he hadn’t had a shit attitude when he was Danny’s age as well. Jason finished his breakfast quickly, cleaning up before he grabbed the keys to his bike. “Alright let’s get to the gym, I already made sure it would be kept empty for the morning, so no one will see what we do.” He had been going to this place for ages and no one had found out he was Red Hood after all, in Gotham businesses that catered to vigilantes and rogues were deeply valued.

Danny nodded and grabbed the helmet Jason had bought for him in the first couple days. He left the apartment and went down the stairs ahead of Jason as he locked up. Danny bounded down, jumping a flight of stairs at the time and waiting on the landing for Jason to catch up before leaping down the next one. Jason didn’t understand why he was doing but he had learned gravity didn’t affect Danny the same way as most people did so jumping that way wouldn’t hurt the kid. And if it made him happy Jason didn’t give a shit, he just hurried to keep up.

Danny sat on the back of Jason’s bike, making him think about how he should really look into getting a sidecar or something, even though Danny seemed to enjoy riding on the back. Actually, it was the first time Jason was genuinely considering switching to a car for regular use, that would be safer right? And what if Danny wanted to have a friend over once he started school? Jason couldn’t bring both Danny And a friend home like this. Ya, he should definitely get a car.

God fucking damn it, he was a dad.

They reached the gym no problem and Jason lead the way this time, Danny hanging back just a little, clearly nervous. Jason marched on ahead, leading by example that there was nothing to be afraid of, and Danny hurried to keep up. There were a few people there still there so Jason whistled loudly and reminded the room at large the gym was privately booked out for the next couple hours and it was time to clear out. There was some grumbling but everyone went, it wasn’t exactly the first time this had happened.

“Okay the first thing is a test of strength, help me move all this shit out of the way,” Jason said, he was joking really but Danny didn’t seem to notice. He nodded firmly and went and grabbed one of the pieces of exercise equipment, lifting it and all the weights attached with no trouble at all. Jason had to pause to process that, watching as Danny moved it off to the side. “How much exactly can you lift?”

“I don’t know, I lifted a bus once and it wasn’t to hard,” Danny told Jason casually, as if that was fucking normal! Jason really had his work cut out for him with this kid. He sighed at Danny and then went to grab some targets since Danny had mentioned some sort of blast.

“Alright now that we have a clear patch show me what else you can do,” Jason said once he’d set up the targets. Danny nodded with a determined set to his jaw and in a flash of light that made Jason blink Danny had changed, his hair turning white and his eyes a green that would have made Jason’s stomach turn if he wasn’t already half used to Danny’s eyes flashing that colour randomly.

Over the next hour he watched as Danny blasted the targets with green beams that seemed to melt through what they hit and then eat through the rest, shock, freeze, and fight. When Jason told him to hit a punching bag as hard as he could Danny fucking broke it! The chain snapped and the bag flew across the room.

“I’m so sorry!” Danny yelped as soon as he realized what he’d done, before Jason had fully processed it. “You told me to hit as hard as I could! I should have known to hold back a bit but-“ Danny cut off on his justifications, ducking his head and biting his lip.

Jason took a deep breath, watching the sand that spilled from the split in the punching bag and trying not to think about what that force could do to a human body. “It’s alright, I did say to hit it as hard as you could. Now I need to see if you can punch just hard enough to drop a person without hurting them badly,” he said, ushering Danny over to a bag that wasn’t broken. He wanted to spar with Danny but he needed to make sure it wasn’t overly dangerous to his health first.

“I can do it in my human form,” Danny offered, eager to be helpful. “I have some access to my powers when I am but they’re much weaker when I am so it might be safer.”

“Safer for others but what about for you? You’re more vulnerable when you’re in your human form right?” Jason demanded and Danny winced, nodding reluctantly. “Alright then we’re going to work on you being able to control and restrain your strength in this form. You should be able to do that anyway, pulling a punch takes just as much strength as following it through and the control is even more impressive.”

“This is going to take forever,” Danny groaned.

“Well then we’d better get started then shouldn’t we?” Jason said, repressing his smile in case Danny thought he was making fun of him.

Danny groaned dramatically again, wallowing but only for a moment before the determined set to his jaw returned and he nodded. “Good, do you think you can spar with me without throwing me into a wall?” Jason joked, Danny wouldn’t want to hurt Jason so it really was the best way to help him practice.

Danny barked a startled laugh and grinned. “Oh ya! Don’t worry I’ll go easy on you~” Danny teased making Jason laugh in return, the kid really liked to banter.

“Don’t hold back to much, I’m plenty strong,” Jason shot back as he lead the way to the mat. “After this though I’m taking you to the shooting range. A gun with rubber bullets will be a good way for you to have a ranged attack without shooting fucking acid, and it’s a lot gentler then you can hit. The last thing we need is for you to get worked up or spooked in the field and really hurting someone by accident.”

“Turns out I’m not a gun, I’m much, much worse,” Danny joked and Jason rolled his eyes at the movie reference.

He dropped into a fighting stance once he reached the mat. “I’m on the attack now, I just want you to show me how well you can dodge and block Without using your powers.” Once he had Danny’s confirmation and the younger man was in his stance Jason lunged without a count in.

Danny wasn’t bad for someone who didn’t have any actual training, he was quick and his reflexes were good but he was clearly used to relying more heavily on his powers and took a couple pretty hard hits. Just as importantly though he took those hits, stumbled, recovered, and kept going. They could never avoid every hit, being able to keep going in spite of it was a crucial skill in this line of work.

Jason pushed it until he could see Danny starting to get frustrated so Jason had a good measure of both his abilities and his capacity and then backed off. “Alright we need to work on that, and your patience,” Jason said as he left the mat for a moment to grab their water bottles.

“Why?” Danny asked, maybe a little petulantly, he was eager to get out on patrol and he had always been able to rely on his powers before. Still Jason chose to answer the question in good faith.

“What if your attacked as a civilian and need to hide your powers? What if some day you’re up against something who Can actually hurt and hit you? They obviously exist given how you found me. What if some day you lose your abilities?” Jason pointed out. “Your life is the most important thing so if you have to use them so be it but we need to make sure you can handle yourself decently without them.” He handed Danny his water bottle and they both drank while Danny processed and valiantly attempted not to sulk, he was still a teenager after all and a bit immature.

“As for your patience, you don’t have anger issues like mine but if you lost your temper you could do a lot more damage.” Jason noted the way that made Danny flinch, he’s ask about that later.

“Alright now your turn to attack, show me how you fight without those powers of yours. You can turn back now if you want to, though I think you should patrol in this form so you should learn to control your strength like this. It’ll help keep your identity secret too. Though if the people in this city haven’t figured out who Nightwing is their obviously fucking idiots,” Jason told Danny as he put down his bottle and returned to the mat.

“I don’t have a lot of practice fighting humans, just other ghosts, so until I get a better feel for that I think I’d rather spar as a human as well. I mean, I’m still strong like this,” the same flash of white light around Danny and he once again had black hair and blue eyes. “But not as strong so it’ll be a good way to ease into it right?”

“Sure that makes sense, come on,” Jason said beckoning for Danny to come at him. Which he did, sloppily. He was fast, but he was untrained, his strikes were wide and telegraphed, Jason dodged and grabbed Danny’s arm, flipping him and putting his back on the ground before letting him up. Danny stood up again, looking a little more wary this time, he took a moment to consider Jason before attacking again, his attacks a little more considered and precise, but still pretty damn obvious.

Jason blocked and dodged mostly, letting Danny land at least one hit to see how hard it would be, he pulled it pretty well actually, it might leave a bit of a bruise but it didn’t even knock Jason over. Jason took Danny’s moment of triumph for landing a hit as an opening to put Danny on the ground again with a chuckle, he had to keep the kid humble after all right? He offered Danny his hand to help the boy up giving him a warm smile.

“Alright, not bad but there’s a lot you could learn. I think we’ve got a good baseline of what your capable of, and I’ll start training you in MMA and other fighting styles tomorrow, and shooting lessons this afternoon. First lunch, what do you want to eat?”

#jason todd #danny phantom #danny fenton #dc x dp #Danny never learned to fight like a human #humans are very squishy #op danny phantom #red hood #This is not my best work but I still think it's funny #fanfiction #unedited

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laurasimonsdaughter · 1 year

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There were always casualties during this kind of ritual. That was to be expected. One of his colleagues was currently screaming incomprehensibly in the background, but he was sure Xosha had it covered for now and HR would deal with it afterwards, they’d be alright. He really couldn’t afford to take his eyes off the circle of protective sigils on the floor right now. Just like he couldn’t afford to make the same mistake as Mason, so he took care not to look up into the endless gaze of the being currently trapped in his circle.

F̸̦͚͕͒́́͗̍̌͛͂͂̀̐̚A̷͚̳̰̠̠̤̼̗̹̜̟̞̐̈̌̐͗̀C̷̮̱̦̍͊̒̌͂̒̀̂͘̚͜E̴̢̢̛̩͖̗͉̬̼̝͖̐̒̆̾̐͘͘ ̴̧̻̺̬̤̥̖̮̠̓̂̀̉̋͛͝M̷͈̺͉̝͉̺̆̀͋̽̈́̽̕͝ͅE̴͚̟̞͍̩͚̠͉̒̐ ̴̧̨͔̫̳̿̍͛̇̄̀̉̈́̅̐̾͜M̵̧͖̹̜̱̟͈̙̱̳͚̙͐̓̇͆̓̚͠O̴̜̗͕̖͕̠̤̓̄ͅR̴̢̥̺̫̉͗̍̓̌T̶̫͙̈̇A̶̧͓̤̟̯̹̟͎̭͇̫͉͒̌̅L̵̡̢̡̧̜̠̲̹̞̯͕͖͗̕

“Yes, I realise it’s bad manners, but considering what you did to my associate you’ll forgive me for not making eye contact, Your Eldritchness.”

The bone chilling howl that followed made him very grateful for the latest update to his ear protection.

“I understand your frustration, I really do.”

T̴̨̡̧̗̖͍̰̘͇͍̤̻̒̒͆̌͒̿͝͠Ŏ̸̢̖̜͈͔̬͖̲͖͎͋͑́́̊͜͜ ̶̫͇͚̻̯͍͌̈́̄̆̚B̵͔̞̠͙̼͒̀̉̽͑E̸̝̙͕̔̂̐̐͌̌̄͌͘̚ ̸̢̖͕̺̣̲͓̹͉̍̈́̿͘͠S̸̨̜̟̦̞̖͇̺̺̱̮͌̈́̒̀͝ͅǗ̸͖́̇̈́́͘M̴͚̝͕̪̐̾̋͗͠M̶̡̹̳͍͔̯͙̯͕̼͎͇̓Ö̵̧̙̝͔̳͈̞̱͕̪̲͌̎̓̓͝N̶̨̢̠̫̘͙̮͌̄̈́͒̓̐̊̎̕̚Ȩ̸̳̖͍̫͍̩̖̼̦̳̈́̊͗̅̓̋̽̀̾͒͒͝Ḏ̷̡̢̢̺̩̼̣̆͐͠ͅ ̵̡̮͚͈͖̺̖̅͊̀̏̈́̃̈̌ͅL̵͈̂͐Į̵̨̣͋̈́̎͒̎̋́̐̆͝ͅK̷̠̦̳͖̼̾̚̚Ȅ̸̩̯̀̊̈́̂̐̚ ̵̨̙̙͔̳̫͉̳͍̗̝͛̾͆́̿̀̈́́͆͋͜Ą̴̡̩̲͖̪͕̒̈́́̓̈́̋ͅ ̵̛̙͍͈͖̺̻̩̄̐̌͊̿̉͝C̸̢̨͈̼̻̘̥̝̓͜O̴͉̘̭̬̙̯̐̋͂ͅM̴̡̗̱͇̫̳̤͎̈́̈́̅͛͊̌͌͒̕͝M̶̨͓̣͖̱̏̒͐͐O̴͙̹͔̮͔̘̾́͋̉̿͆͆̋̆̔̅N̴̘̟̓͒̍̈́̈́̆̆͊͝ ̸̫̦͙̟̜͙̱̀D̸̡̖͓̬̙͍̏̀̈́͗͝ͅE̶̲̹̰̹̘͉͂͗͜M̷͍̯̬͍̬̈O̸͔͈̜̬̻̺̟͙͙̣̼̳̿N̴̩̟̼̩͊̽̉

“While I absolutely do not want to dismiss the discomfort and inconvenience this must have caused you, I would like to point out that we did not summon you to this realm, we merely made sure that the rift you tore into our reality ended up here instead of where you intended to go.”

Predictably, this remark was not appreciated.

When the ground had stopped shaking, he resumed brightly: “Couldn’t be helped, I’m afraid. This has been your third crossing and you know what they say: three is a pattern.”

Ŗ̷̣̗̖̞̠͛̓͆̆̓͜E̷̼͇̽̈́̿̊̚͝L̸͖̤̯̘͂̏̌̅͒̚͝Ę̶̧̛̱̙̣̲̖͙̮̈́͊͌̂͐̌͐̉Å̶̠̈́̈́̎͌͊̂͛̉͝͝Š̴̠̯̖͖̣̄̒̑͑̾̂̚̕͜Ȩ̸̲͙̜̪̜͗̒̎̎̄͌̕ ̴̛͙̦̂̓͛̒̑͊̇̈́͐̄M̴̡͙̜͚̲̥͊͊̇͛̓͋̌͋E̶̛̗̞̖̦̬̪̗̞̒͗͒̉ͅ

“I think you know I cannot do that, Your Eldritchness, since you do seem particularly insistent on coming over here and in your current form, if you’ll forgive me the expression, you do an absolutely disastrous amount of damage to our general existence. ”

The screeching resumed and he had to lower his voice to a whisper to reach the creature at all. “However— If it’s a stay in the human world you want, we can help you with that.”

The silence that suddenly took over was almost more painful than the sound it replaced.

w̷̡̦̺̹͈̥̗͔̭̉̉̕͜ͅe̸̛͇̓̅̏̏̊͌̍̏?̵̡̢̢̞͈̙̼̜͇̯͙͑́͌̈́̆͒̀̋

Oh thank goodness, that sounded almost like a reasonable speaking voice. “My associates and I, from the Eldritch Relocation Initiative,” he replied cheerfully. “We can walk you through the process of creating a suitably stable human appearance, get you the necessary paperwork for a residence on earth, and can even find you some charming mortal accommodation to house you, if you wish. You will be assigned a personal case worker to help you with any problems you may encounter. On the condition, of course, that you stop subjecting my fellow creatures to unspeakable horror and tearing at the fabric our of reality.”

The past couple years he had become quite good at gauging whether his offer was being considered with curiosity or contempt. Even without any conventional facial features to read. The current doubtful jittering vibrating at the edge of his hearing definitely sounded intrigued. So much the better. It always broke his heart when they had to go through the whole banishment procedure. Mason had also stopped screaming by now, which was a decided improvement.

“Perhaps you’d like to tell me what drew you to our little corner of time and space in the first place?” he invited. “I’m sure that whatever it is you are interested in, you’ll be able to enjoy it much more from a human perspective, as it were. Really immerse yourself, you know?”

There was something deeply, profoundly confusing about receiving a form of communication that was beyond language, words, or sounds, and yet have it appear decidedly shy and embarrassed.

.̷̡̦̗͙͈̺̻͚͍̦͍̆͊͒̒͂́̑̔̚͘͜.̴̛̫̫̫̣̝̪̤͆̃.̷̪̗̠̤̯̫̰͈̥̩͖̺̿̓̏̽̾̽͗͛̍͠y̸̨̭̻͈̠͐͒̽̈́͗̕ơ̸̛̭̮̬̜̮̱͕̜̩̽̅̎́̓̊͂̀̍͜ų̸̨̛̟̫̳͔̻̬̹͇̘͊́͗̀̄̓͗ ̴̨̞̪̬̪̗͍͚͛̈́͌̋̈́͑̃̃͘͘h̶̖̉̑͛̋͌̕͝͠a̵̭͓͍̮̘̬̹̺̩̮͎̓ͅv̸̤̬̯̯̊̀̀̈́̓̍̋̀͝ȩ̶̻̙̫̙̯͌̀̈̈́͗.̴̪̺̊̀͛̌̑͑͜.̷̮̞̠̼̥̮̗̫͚̈́̅͊́͒̕.̶̛̪̳̪̣͙̥͉̞͙̳̱̎̈̔̏̅̓̄͛̽͐͝ḇ̶̢̰̞̗̠̠̝̄̿͒͜͜ͅö̶̧͖̩̰́͑̐́̅̉͂̚͝͝͝͝ã̴̢̨̧͎̩̼͖̬͐͗̀̀͘t̸̬̄̈́̋͝s̴̛̜̮̖͚̞͍͈̓̐́̈͌̄̑͠?̵̧̫͙́

His smile broadened. “We most certainly do have boats, yes. It did say in your file that all your previous sightings have taken place at sea. So, you’re interested in boats! Excellent choice of hobby. A marvel of human invention, if I do say so myself. And you’ll be please to know that there are many humans just as interested in them as you are, and they’ll be more than happy to teach you all about them!”

The lights in the reinforced basement, which had previously barely been able to stay lit, stopped flickering.

ȧ̶̮̼͈̯̝͕̉͗n̴̨͈̗̪͑d̷̢̢̗͉̗̗̜̭̝̒̀̊̀̽̀͐̂̉͜͠͝.̵̛̭̺̠̪̇̂̀͌͌̐͝.̷̨̙͔̬̥̣͙͔̈́̿͆͗̄͐͠ͅ.̷̢̣͕͓͋͑̓̈̐̑̇͜s̷̼͕̳̻̚ͅą̵̢͍̪͔̠̼̼̜̝͆̐̎̀͊́i̸̯̥͚̫̘͐͐́̑͌̑͆̅́͐͝͝ļ̴̺̦̻͈̱̦̜̝͎̤̿̑̒́̀̃̈̅̏̂̈́̈͜ ̷̧̡̳̘͙̤̞̻̭͉͂̈́̀̿i̶̢̨͉͍̲͚̱̼͌ͅǹ̴̢͛ ̸̡͕͎̩͓͠ḯ̶̡̨̨̱̟͙̥͎̙̘̠̒̈́̈̈́͜t̶͉͙̭̬̟̦͖̳͗̾̂̀̀̈̃͠?̴͍͇̣̳͇̤̺̬̬̬́͘ͅ

“Well, if you would be willing to adjust your shape, size, and general destructibility, I would say that the least we could do is take you for a boat ride!”

The overhead lights gave one last concerning buzz, and then the writhing, broiling contradiction trapped within the circle brightened, darkened, and then steadily started shrinking, until what was left was almost of a height with the two ERI negotiators currently still available. They both smiled brightly. This was going to be a lot less paperwork than the one who was obsessed with the entire city of Copenhagen.

#urban fantasy professionals #eldritch horror #except not at all because it's me #laura drabbles #zalgo text

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buckyownsmylife · 2 years

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Don’t hurt yourself - bodyguard!Aaron Hotchner smut

The one where Hotch’s responsible for your safety

Word count: 2k

Warnings: smut, boss-employee relationship, angsty vibes, a whole lot of feels, dirty talk, one darker thought, kind of breeding kink?

Y/N’s P.O.V.

“Are you ready to leave?” I winced at the cold and detached tone from my bodyguard. This isn’t how he usually talked to me. Sure, he was nothing but cold and stoic when we first met and he started working for me, but it’d been over a year now. I believed we were friends now.

Of course, it was hard to believe that when he didn’t even so much as glance in my direction as he guided me outside of the building, protecting me from the crowds of screaming fans that I’d been so eager to please when I first arrived for this interview.

If only I’d known it would make him this angry.

The drive back to my house was silent, and I hated it. I hated it because it reminded me of those early days when I was still so unsure of him, unsure of how he felt about me. I was sure that he despised me. And my eager-to-please personality just couldn’t stand it.

Now that I knew that he liked me, his silence meant something even worse: his disappointment and anger. And I hated the thought of him being even discontented by my behaviour.

“Are you really going to ignore me forever?” The question escaped me before I could process it, making him stop in his tracks as he prepared himself to storm into my house and hide in his own designated wing. But I didn’t regret it once it was out. I much preferred to have him looking at me with fire in his eyes than pretending I didn’t exist at all.

“Isn’t this what you wanted? I mean, you ignored me earlier today, when I asked you not to go out into that crowd. Why shouldn’t I give you the same treatment?” I shifted uncomfortably, not wanting to deal with the realization that he was right, that I had disrespected him.

“I’m sorry.” It felt pathetic, especially since I couldn’t raise my eyes to meet his, but it was all I had, and if anything, it was honest. But when he scoffed, I knew it wouldn’t be enough, and I started to panic as I pondered what else I could do to make him forgive me.

“I don’t want you to be sorry, I want you to listen to me. Why can’t you?” I didn’t know what to answer, but he didn’t seem to need it. He was on a roll now, and I knew it wasn’t the right time, but I found myself getting tongue-tied by the way the veins of his neck jumped out now that he was releasing his anger on me.

“This is my job,” he continued. “I’m supposed to keep you safe. I can’t do that if you don’t listen to what I ask you to do. Do you know what could have happened while you were out there, in a crowd of overexcited, uncoordinated people?”

“Yes.”

“Then why did you do it anyway?” He let himself fall on my couch, jaw still clenched, irritation perfectly clear in each and every one of his movements. And so I took a seat next to him, trying to figure out what I could possibly say to hopefully make this better, but I decided to start by putting a comforting hand on his thigh.

His eyes immediately followed my movement, and he stared at where I touched him for a while before raising his gaze to meet mine again. Anger had been somewhat replaced by hurt, and another sentiment I couldn’t quite identify.

“I don’t want to have to deal with your death. I can’t even bear the thought of that happening.” It was fear, I realized. Fear of losing me. And that feeling was so real, so heavy, so suffocating, that it had my own heart constricting, and I squeezed his thigh so he’d know I felt it too.

“It would be a lot of paperwork,” I tried to lighten the mood, but I knew he heard the unshed tears in my tone. They weren’t tears of fear, but of guilt. I hated that the bravest man I knew was scared, and I hated that I was the cause of it.

“Don’t even joke about that.” There was so much emotion behind his words that he had me raising my gaze to meet his, and what I saw there this time made me lose my breath. “I can’t lose you. And I don’t mean that as in I don’t want to be responsible for your death, but as in I can’t live without you.”

And suddenly I knew. He didn’t have to tell me - he was begging me not to ask him to say it, in fact. I could see that. But I knew. I knew him so well, I didn’t know how I didn’t see it before.

Maybe because I’d been so busy trying to hide my own love for him, I ignored his. It was easier that way, after all. Because it was obvious - the second we knew what the other felt, we would never be able to pretend it wasn’t there anymore.

“Kiss me,” I pleaded, and his eyes widened like he wasn’t expecting it. “Kiss me. Right now.” His eyes dropped to my lips as his opened up like he was actually tempted but just couldn’t find it in himself to do it. I’d leaned over his body now, practically on his lap, when his hands went around my torso to hold me over my lower back.

“I don’t want to kiss you,” he said, making me pout. And still, his eyes never left my lips while he licked his. “I want to knock some sense into you. Can’t be rewarding this kind of behaviour.”

His words thrilled me, sending a jolt of excitement through my body that had me actually throwing my leg on the other side of his lap so I could straddle him properly. His breath was coming out of his mouth now, his gaze undecided between my mouth or my eyes.

“Punish me in other ways,” I pleaded. He looked transfixed by what I was saying. “Make me cum until I cry. Make it hurt. Have me begging you to stop. I want to feel you for days.” He was breathing heavier now, his chest heaving with the effort to keep inhaling and exhaling because of my words.

Hotch’s P.O.V.

“Please, put me in my place.” Her words were like honey, spilling out sweet and tempting from her beautiful lips that were just inches from mine now. I wanted to reach out and touch them. I wanted to reach out and lick them, taste her words as she said them against my mouth. “I’ll be good then. I promise.”

There was only so much a man could take.

“Once I’m done with you...” I warned her, wrapping her nape with my hand and pulling her even closer. “... you won’t be able to walk.” And then I finally kissed her.

It was hungrier than I ever intended our first kiss to be, but she had made me desperate. Her sweetness only added to my need for more. Our lips danced together in a way I’d only dreamed of, and when I had to let us part to breathe, her question took away the last of my control.

“Promise?”

I carried her to her bedroom blindly, relishing in the weight of her in my arms, the feeling of her legs wrapped around my body as I managed to kiss her again the entire way there. Once she was back on her own feet, our clothes were sent flying across the room, her smaller hands trembling in excitement when she reached out to undo the buttons of my shirt.

“God, you’re beautiful,” I commented, cradling her face once her body was completely exposed to me. It prompted her to throw her arms around my neck and pull me down for another kiss, but it still wasn’t enough. I wanted more of her - I wanted all of her.

“Lay down,” I ordered. “You’re not going to succeed in making me forget this is supposed to be a punishment.” The haze of lust in her eyes betrayed just how aroused she was at the idea of suffering in my hands. “Spread that glistening little pussy for me, baby.”

Slowly, because she knew I was not a patient man, she opened her legs to show me just how wet she already was with the little we’d done that evening, her hands squeezing her own breasts as she stared up at me, throat dry and chest heaving with desire for her.

She awakened something dark in me, something I never thought I’d be able to explore. Now that she was here, ready and willing and exposed, I wasn’t sure I’d ever be able to just tuck it away again.

Making sure that she was watching me, I leaned over her already wet cunt and spit on it, unwilling to make this situation hurtful to her in any way, but also incapable of actually taking my time to prepare her thoroughly.

“Are you sure you really want this?” I asked, eyes connected to hers as I smeared my spit over her hole, watching her clench around nothing at the ghost of my digit. This was the last chance to back down, and although I wasn’t sure if I would actually be able to pull away if she changed her mind, I knew I needed to hear the answer.

“Yes, oh, God, Aaron, please!” The words were replaced with me pushing into her, groaning at the tightness that welcomed me hungrily. She whined out loud and I froze halfway in, scared I’d hurt her somehow, but at the lack of movement her limbs wrapped around me, her legs pushing my ass in an effort to get me to bottom out inside of her.

Her satisfied moan had me chuckling, even though I was over the moon myself. Old habits die hard, I guess, and I just had to tease her, “Oh, does that feel good?” All she could do was nod, but that was alright. We were both ready for me to start truly fucking her, and at the feeling of me almost pulling out to slam myself in again, she cried out, hands clawing at my back, hopefully leaving indentations.

“You like that, princess?” I’d only ever used the pet name before to mock her, and although there was definitely some sense of jest in my tone, there was still sweetness, wonder, infatuation. She nodded once more, mouth having fallen open after I entered her, leading me to kiss the corner of her lips instead of devouring her in the way I wished to do.

“This is what I’m gonna do every time you disobey me from now on,” I warned, changing the pace to make it harder, almost bruising even. I wanted her to be on the edge between pain and bliss, and I wanted her to forever remember who it was that brought her there.

“You think I don’t hear your moans when you lay on this bed at night and touch yourself?” Her gasp denounced her surprise, and she hid her face in the crook of my neck, holding me tighter.

“You think I don’t close my eyes and imagine it’s me making you moan, giving you pleasure?” That got her to stop hiding, gaze raising to meet mine, and I smiled, brushing the hair off her face as I took it between my hands.

“We won’t have to do that anymore, darling.” Kissing her deeply, I swallowed all of her moans before they could escape her, loving to be this connected to the woman who had stolen my heart.

“You know why?” I pulled away to catch my breath, watching her glossy eyes as she shook her head, unable to speak. “Because you’re mine now, all mine.”

Voicing my deepest desire rekindled my need, making me fuck her harder, spearing her over and over against the bed. I wanted to see the marks of our lovemaking later, the imprints of my nails, the bites all over her skin.

The thought of admiring them in the morning only spurred me on.

“Tell me you need me,” I incited, forehead glued to hers, desperate to hear the words from her own lips. “Tell me you’ll never disobey me again, never put yourself at risk dumbly.”

My voice was thick as I spoke, betraying the emotion I didn’t care to hide anymore. She smiled, hugging me to her and whispered, “worth it,” and how could I be mad?

“Again,” she ordered, and with another powerful thrust, I brought us to a release that was both blinding and revealing of some sentiments I’d struggled way too hard to keep in.

Heavy kissing followed said release. I didn’t want to catch my breath, I wanted to drown in her and this moment, forget about everything else for a while.

“I want you to be the mother of my children.” There it was, the words unspoken I couldn’t take back anymore. And instead of letting the moment fill with regret, I just got out of the bed and went to grab her a glass of water, hoping she’d forget all about it the moment I was back.

“Let’s do it.”

#my fics #aaron hotchner #aaron hotchner smut #smut #aaron hotchner reader #aaron hotchner reader insert #aaron hotchner reader inserts #aaron hotchner x reader #aaron hotchner fanfiction #aaron hotchner fic #aaron hotchner fics

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alexgalaxyboo · 1 year

Note

Nothing is stopping me except I was being polite and only sending asks to those who responded or liked that post… so grabby hands. Gimme the soapghost and 141 headcanons.

Listen I usually just churn out fifteen different aus a day but! Since you ask so nicely I can deffo get you some general hcs :'D

First of all I KNOW, how popular blonde Ghost is and that his hair is literally like.. dirty blonde in game. But he's a ginger to me okay.

Also to me he's just a Samuel Roukin and Tom Hardy lovechild. Because I'm allergic to making decisions.

I'm a firm believer that Soap is a living fucking furnace (my man's the sun figuratively AND literally).

Which also means: Soap would rather die than put a shirt on to sleep.

Soap fell first, Ghost fell harder.

It's not so much that he "fell first" though, as it is he realised what his feelings meant a little more early on. Ghost was definitely in denial and trying to be professional for longer.

But once he did he was neck deep already, there was no more denying it at that point.

There probably wasn't a big confession. They just grew closer and kept spending time together on and off missions.

It's mainly for the funsies but I really like to think that their "first kiss" was like after some big stressful mission as they meet up again, Ghost was already waiting there (let's say he was smoking or whatever so it makes sense his mask was down?) and Soap runs to him enthusiastically like "We did it Lt! We're the best!" and gets carried away as he claps his shoulder and pulls him in for a hug and also kisses him instead.

I think that it'd be really funny but also kind of make sense that it.. it wasn't some big romantic moment and there weren't many words and stuff.

After all, what more was there to say really? They were probably spending all of their time together anyway—you practically could've said they were dating already if you didn't know.

Soap hesitates for a moment before realising what he's done and immediately goes to apologise but Ghost doesn't seem to respond, just sitting there processing for a moment before it all dawns on him and he says, fuck it and pulls him in for another kiss to shut his blabbering ass up.

They probably don't really say anything until they're back on base and Ghost finds himself heading for Soap's room as soon as they're done with necessary immediate paperwork or whatever.

They decide to not like.. explicitly state anything to the team because it's not all too clear to themselves either. They all know that they're incredibly close and have a Thing going on so..

Also I think Ghost would be kind of awkward with pda and while Soap would scream his love from the rooftops for every living thing to hear he's respectful of that y'know?

Gaz pulls Soap aside at some point probably (because they're also #besties and gossip and talk mad shit about everyone on base and that's also a hill I'm dying on 😌💅) and asks him about what exactly went on with Ghost and he gives him a bare rundown.

He's really happy for them but also owes Price free drinks now next time they go out because OBVIOUSLY there were bets going on.

I'm gonna stop myself from rambling here but! If you want more always free to ask lol <3

#mailex #empresscirque #john soap mactavish #simon ghost riley #ghoap #ghostsoap #ghost x soap #soapghost #soap x ghost #codmw2 #call of duty #cod headcanons #ghostsoap headcanons

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mayhem24-7forever · 2 years

Text

World War Mitchell - Time Is Running Out Part Two

Jake “Hangman” Seresin x Mitchell!Reader Oneshot

~ Part One ~

After her father Maverick finds out about her and Jake's relationship, things spin out of control and it may be up to Jake to fix it

Author’s Note: Firstly, I don’t want minors reading any of my fics, even if they are SFW so this one is especially off limits! I deserve a safe place to express myself so please respect my boundaries. Sorry this took so long! I have one more part planned but it’s probably going to be a while before i can get it done so sorry about that! Thank you to @blue-aconite for beta reading. Dividers by @jbarneswilson

Content Warnings: angst with a happy ending, hurt/comfort, family in-fighting, forbidden love, discussions of/references to death/loss, fluff, smut, stripteasing, motorboating (low key), suggestive comments/jokes, oral sex (male receiving), p in v sex

Maverick had never wanted to be the type of officer to actually have an office on base, in fact he had spent the last thirty-odd years of his career trying to ensure it. But after such a successful mission taking out the uranium processing plant, even Ice himself couldn’t have stopped them from promoting him to Rear Admiral, and unfortunately he was no longer around to even try. The pay was better and he had been able to cut a pretty good deal with Cyclone allowing him to continue flying but it did come with more responsibility. Cyclone had put him directly in charge of the group of aviators who had been called back to Top Gun, the higher ups deciding to make them a permanent team after the success of the uranium plant bombing. Now, Rear Admiral Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell was in charge of an elite squadron of the best pilots in the Navy, overseeing them as they were given the kind of top-secret and dangerous missions that he would have killed to fly when he was younger. He knew he was getting older because now when he looked at the briefing files for the missions, it wasn't excitement or jealousy that he felt, it was pure concern for the team he had come to see as a family. Or had come to see most of them as a family.

Lieutenant Jake ‘Hangman’ Seresin was the one and only exception, although it was only recently that he had fallen from the graces of Mav’s found family, due to the notable fact that he had been secretly dating Mav’s daughter Y/N for a month. This was a fact that had come to light a week ago when Bradley ‘Rooster’ Bradshaw had caught the pair at the Hard Deck at three in the morning doing god knows what. After tearing him a new one and screaming at him for so long that Warlock had to intervene, he had decided to make Hangman’s life at work a living hell. Thus began the endless parade of useless, menial, demeaning, and exhaustive assignments.

First, he had Hangman scrub the squadron’s jets until they shined. Next was making him move a large pile of sandbags from one side of a hanger to another before ‘randomly’ deciding that he liked them back in their original spot. Then deep cleaning the mess hall and the kitchens, the bathrooms, the locker rooms. Again and again, Mav came up with increasingly ridiculous punishments that kept Hangman too busy to even consider going off base to see Y/N. The cherry on top of it all was that whenever he passed Hangman, he ordered him to do twenty pushups, no matter what task he was in the middle of or how many times in a row Mav decided to walk by. Overall, Mav was pretty pleased with himself and was in a very good mood as he sat in his office looking over some paperwork when the door burst open. He dropped his papers and looked up, ready to yell at whoever had barged in without knocking when he was met with the enraged face of his daughter. His civilian daughter who was not supposed to be on base.

“Y/N, what the hell are you doing he-” he began but she cut him off, slamming the door behind her as she stormed to his desk.

“No! What the hell are you doing? Seriously!” she yelled angrily. “Making Jake alphabetize your files was bad enough but making him snake the shower drains in the locker rooms? Twice? And the pushups? That’s ridiculous! The extra work assignments have to stop, you’ve made your point.”

Mav took a deep breath before answering in the most professional and official capacity he could manage. “The work I’m giving Lieutenant Seresin is integral to keeping this base running.”

“You’re making him hand scrub an entire hanger’s floor… it’s fucking concrete!” she screamed. “It’s fucking ridiculous bullshit and you know it! At this point I wouldn’t be surprised if you ordered him to mop up the rain on the tarmac!”

“That’s not a bad idea…” Mav muttered.

“Ugh! You’ve been keeping him so busy I haven’t seen him in a week!” she spat.

“Maybe you two should have thought of that before you went sneaking around my back and lying to me for a month.” he replied, leaning forwards to smack his desk for emphasis. “A month, Y/N.”

“Did you really think that I burned my neck with a curling iron that many times in a row?” she asked incredulously. “You of all people should know what a hickey looks like, you’ve probably given them to every woman within a five mile radius of every base you’ve ever been stationed at.”

“That is a low blow and you know it.” Mav shot back. “But yes, I really thought they were burns because I believed what my daughter told me and had no reason to think that she would ever lie to me!”

“This has gone on long enough, call Jake in here right now.” she demanded.

“No.” Mav replied firmly. “I have work to do and so does he.”

“Fine!” she said before plopping down in the chair across the desk from him and crossing her arms. “I’m not leaving this chair until you call him in here so the three of us can talk about this like mature adults.”

“Then why aren’t you acting like a mature adult?” he questioned.

“Because you aren’t and I never give in first.” she replied.

Mav stared at his daughter, both waiting for the other to even blink, and he was the first to give in with a heavy sigh.

“How did you even get in here?” he asked and she smirked, clearly proud of herself, which was never a good look to see on a Mitchell.

“I bothered Cyclone at the Hard Deck until he gave me permission to come on base.” she answered and Mav sighed again as he put his head in his hands.

“God, sometimes you are too much like me.” he muttered, deeply regretting every single time he had ever had sex without protection.

“Call him in here or this office is becoming my permanent residence and I promise you I will not be a good roommate.” she said firmly.

“Oh for fucks sake!” Mav said, throwing up his hands. “Fine!”

He reached over and snatched the phone off the hook, punching the numbers in angrily. He held it to his ear and met his daughter’s intense gaze, waiting for the line to stop ringing.

“Warrant Officer Coleman, Hanger 5.” said a voice at the other end of the line.

“Hondo, it’s Mav. Send Hangman to my office…” he said before pausing for a moment and adding “and Rooster. Tell them to hurry.”

His daughter’s face scrunched in confusion and suspicion and he smirked as he thanked Hondo and hung up the phone.

“Why Brad too?” she asked.

“I’m not gonna be outnumbered on this, I need back-up.” he replied and she rolled her eyes. “Two against two is a fair argument.”

Sinking down into her chair further and keeping her arms crossed, she lifted up her legs and planted them on top of her father’s desk, knocking over his name plate and a mug full of pens (which was coincidentally a “World’s #1 Dad!” mug she had gotten him for father’s day when she was ten). Mav sighed and began picking the pens back up, putting all the desk items near her feet onto a further part of the desk so she wouldn’t knock them over too. After the area around her feet had been cleared, he went right back to his paperwork, occasionally making notes with a red pen as he pointedly ignored his daughter’s presence.

As they waited for Bradley and Jake to arrive, her mind wandered to the latter and how sweet and understanding he had been in the last week. When they were first discovered, he called her immediately after Mav was done screaming at him to warn her that Mav would likely be heading for her next. Even after being berated for more than an hour straight and humiliated in front of his entire team, the first thing on his mind was her. He waited in his car across the street from her house until Mav left and then headed inside to hold her as she cried. It was rare for her and her father to fight, but the few times that it did happen, it was always very intense and usually left one or both of them in tears. As he entered the house, he found her crumpled on the floor of the living room sobbing and swept her into his arms, carrying her to bed.

He had held her all night long, assuring her that he wasn’t going anywhere and that he was going to do whatever it took to win Mav over. It had taken a long time but she was finally able to fall asleep in his arms, exhausted from sobbing. He had to leave early in the morning to make it to base in time for morning revelry but he left her with a kiss on her forehead and a love note on her nightstand. From the second he arrived on base, he had been given task after exhausting task by an angry Mav and yet through it all, he texted her as much as possible. He was kept so busy that he had no time to come over but he called her every night before bed. He never complained or had an attitude or blamed her for her father’s actions, he was always sweet and reassured that nothing was going to chase him away from her.

After a week of it, she had had enough and resolved to take things into her own hands since her dad didn’t seem to be letting up on Jake at all. She cornered Cyclone at the Hard Deck and pestered him until he granted her a pass to visit the base, the Admiral escorting her to Mav’s office before hightailing it out of there. Now that she was seated in his office, she was actually quite proud of herself. A knock at the door roused her from her thoughts and she put her feet down and spun around in the chair as Mav called for them to enter.

First came Bradley, looking rather pleased with himself but she jumped up and pushed him aside to see Jake enter. He looked exhausted and sweaty, his flight suit scuffed and dirty with the arms rolled up as he had just come from scrubbing the floor of the hanger. Despite looking like he was dead tired, he smiled when he saw her and she threw her arms around him, hugging her boyfriend for the first time in a week.

“Baby?” he asked quietly into her ear as his arms wrapped around her, pulling her closer. “What are you doing here? How did you get on base?”

“It’s a long story but I’m going to fix this.” she replied before pulling backwards to look up at him.

With one hand on his cheek, she pushed aside a strand of blonde hair and she tried not to cry as she looked into his green eyes, dark bags below them from long hours of manual labor.

“Alright, that’s enough.” Mav said as he pulled them apart angrily. “You wanted to talk? So talk.”

“I’m not a child, I’m a grown adult and I can make my own decisions about who to date. And using your power as an Admiral to punish Jake for this is an abuse of power and absolutely ridiculous.” she scolded her father and both Bradley and Jake shifted uncomfortably in the tension.

“I think-” Bradley began but she cut him off.

“Shut up Bradley.” she said with barely a glance in his direction as she kept her angry glare trained on her dad. “The adults are talking, I’ll let you know when you can open your pornstached mouth.”

“...okay.” he replied quietly, accepting his fate.

“Dad, I don’t know what your problem with Jake is but you’re gonna get over it and end this now.” she demanded.

“No! You’re gonna end this. I don’t care about how ‘fun’ this little fling was but it’s over now.” Mav ordered firmly and her jaw hit the floor in shock and outrage.

“You think you can tell me who I can and can’t date?” she snarled.

“Yes! I can! Because you’re my daughter and Seresin is one of my pilots and you both lied to me.” he spat back.

“Maybe we lied because we knew that this is how you’d react!” she countered, throwing up her hands. “What the fuck is your problem with Jake anyways?”

“My problem with Lieutenant Seresin is that he’s a pilot!” he yelled and she took a step back in surprise as he turned to Jake to speak normally. “Look, Jake, it’s not that I don’t like you, I do. You’re a damn good pilot and I will be forever grateful that you saved Rooster and I but I can’t have you hurting my daughter. I won’t allow it.”

“Sir, with respect, I love your daughter. I love her in the way that I used to think I only loved flying.” Jake said quietly but firmly. “I could never hurt her because I’d be hurting myself. I swear to you I’ll never hurt her.”

“You can’t make that promise. All it takes is one accident during training or a mission gone bad and you will have torn her apart in a way that only grief can do.” Mav said before glancing at Bradley, fleetingly but tellingly. “I’ve seen it before and I will not hold another woman I love as she cries over the coffin of her husband. I won’t. I just won’t.”

The silence was thick, the weight of it hanging in the air over their heads. Y/N stared at her father in disbelief, stunned speechless. She had been expecting him to say something about not approving of Jake because of his reputation or his past personality or to object to her dating someone who worked under him. She had not expected her father to bring up Gooses’ death as the reason why he was so upset. Gooses’ passing had been rough on Carole, Bradley and Mav and she knew her dad still carried survivor’s guilt for the accident regardless of the Navy having cleared him of any wrongdoing.

“You’d rather me be miserable to avoid the off chance I’ll lose him instead of letting me be happy with him for however long I get with him?” she asked, tears welling in her eyes. “You want me to choose between him and you? Is that it?”

“No, sweetheart, that’s not-” Mav began but she cut him off.

“Well, I make my own choices and I- I choose Jake...” was all she could manage to say, voice cracking as the tears flooded from her eyes and she ran from the room, too overwhelmed to stay in the office and finish the conversation.

Bradley shifted his weight nervously as Maverick stared at the door in shock, neither knowing what to do. But Jake did. Without hesitation, he stepped forwards and unpinned the golden wings from his flight suit, dropping them into Mav’s hand, who could only stare down at them for a moment before looking up at Jake in utter disbelief.

“I told you that I love her, sir, and that I'd do anything to get you to approve of us. I wasn’t lying and if the only way you’ll approve of us is for me not to be a pilot anymore, then the choice is obvious.” Jake said earnestly.

“Jake…” Bradley said quietly but Jake continued over him.

“I used to think that flying was the love of my life. But then I met your daughter, sir. If being with her means turning in my wings, then I'll never fly again. I choose her." Jake said without a hint of hesitation or regret in his words before saluting his commanding officer. "It's been an honor, sir."

And with that, Jake Seresin excused himself from the office and followed after his girlfriend down the hall, leaving Maverick and Bradley standing there speechless. It didn’t take him long to find her, the door to the empty classroom she decided to hide in left slightly ajar. As he stepped up to the door, he could hear her sobbing and his heart suddenly felt a hundred pounds heavier. He pushed the door open and stepped into the room gazing around until he found her curled up in a ball against the far wall with her head in her hands.

“Baby?” he asked quietly and her head snapped up to reveal her tear-stained face and watery eyes as she looked at him.

Always one to minimize her own emotions, she immediately began to wipe away her tears and began apologizing. Jake crossed the room and kneeled before her, putting his hands on her cheeks as he looked at her with a loving expression.

“Don’t ever apologize for crying.” he said, his thumb wiping away her tears as he pressed a light kiss to her forehead. “I never want you to hide your feelings from me because you think it’ll upset me.”

She nodded and looked up at him with a quivering lip before surging forwards to throw her arms around his neck and bury her head in his neck as she let go of the tears she had been holding back.

“That’s it baby, let it all out.” he said as he stroked her hair comfortantingly, his other hand pressed flat on her back to hold her as close to him as he could. “It’s okay, I’m here. I’ve got you, sweetheart.”

He held her there for a few minutes, comforting her until her sobs quieted and her breathing evened. She pulled back in his arms and gazed up at him.

“I got tears all over your flight suit.” she said with a sniffle.

“Well, these things happen when you enter the battlefield of ‘World War Mitchell’.” he joked, trying to lighten the mood and was rewarded with a small laugh she couldn’t contain. “Besides, I’m not gonna need it anymore so you can cry on it as much as you want.”

Her brows furrowed in confusion before her eyes landed on the empty space where his wings had been and she gasped, clasping a hand to her mouth as she looked back up at him in disbelief.

“Baby, I told you I would do anything to get your dad to approve of us and I meant it.” he said, his green eyes gazing down at her smiling.

“But Jake… you love flying-” she began to argue but he cut her off.

“Not nearly as much as I love you.” he told her, pushing a strand of hair back behind her ear. “I don’t want you to have to choose between me and your father. I never want you to regret your choice or resent either of us for the absence of the other. This way, everyone is happy.”

“What if you regret this? What if you resent me for grounding you?” she asked.

“I could never regret this choice, not if it means a life with you.” he replied. “No matter what, I’m not going anywhere. If you’re worried about me eventually missing flying too much, then we still have options. I mean technically I’m not grounded from non-military flight, I think your father would be fine with me flying cargo planes or passenger jet liners. Or we could get a little prop plane like your dad has in his hanger.”

“Leave it to you to find a loophole in an ultimatum.” she said with a laugh before pressing her lips against his.

Someone at the doorway cleared their throat and the couple pulled apart to turn towards the door, where they found Bradley and Maverick standing.

“I don’t think prop planes or passenger jet liners will be necessary, Lieutenant.” Mav said as Jake helped her stand to face her father and best friend. “And I think I owe you both an apology.”

The couple looked at him curiously as he stepped forwards before handing Jake his wings back, who looked up at him in confusion.

“Sir, I-” he began but Maverick held up a hand to cut him off.

“It took a lot to give up something you love this much and turning in your wings for my daughter’s sake told me everything I need to know about the two of you. I’m sorry that I misjudged you.” Mav said earnestly before turning to look at his daughter. “Sweetheart, I never thought I’d be a dad, I just never thought it was in the cards for me. But then you came into my life, my precious surprise, I had to try and figure out how to do this whole parenting thing without any preparation. I’ve made a lot of mistakes as a dad, and not trusting your decision about this is definitely one of them. I’m so sorry that I tried to control your life and that I made you feel like you had to choose between us. So… I trust your decision, even though it terrifies me as a father, if this is what you want then I support it and I give you my blessing.”

Y/N began to cry once more and launched herself into her father’s arms.

“Thank you, dad.” she said quietly into his ear. “I love you.”

“I love you too, sweetheart.” he replied, holding his daughter in his arms as if he was going to lose her forever if he let go, needing all his strength to let her pull away.

They turned to find Brad and Jake just standing and staring at each other tensely until Brad held out a hand as an olive branch and Jake took it to end the staredown.

“Never thought I’d see the day where you chose to give up your wings, especially not for a girl but I suppose if anyone is worthy of turning in wings, it’s Y/N. You’d better treat her right.” Brad said lightly before leaning in to add “But if you hurt her, I will shove you out of a plane without a parachute.”

“Brad…” Y/N warned and Brad put his hands up in surrender.

“Alright, alright, alright.” he said as she shook her head.

“I’m sorry I told you to shut up.” she said quietly.

“And?” Bradley asked, waiting for her to say exactly what he wanted to hear and she squinted through her eyelids at him in annoyance.

“And… I’m sorry I called your mustache a ‘pornstache’.” she added reluctantly.

“I forgive you.” Bradley said as he pulled her into a bone-crushing hug like he had done since they were kids.

She rolled her eyes as he let her go and she turned to her boyfriend.

“Jake, can you take me home? I don’t think I can drive right now.” she asked, cheeks still wet and eyes still watery from her previous tears.

Jake opened his mouth to respond that he was still on duty but Mav spoke first.

“Go on, take my daughter home Lieutenant, that’s an order… and you’re dismissed for the rest of the day, get some rest.” Mav said and Y/N hugged her father gratefully before saying goodbye to him and Bradley, letting Jake lead her by the hand out to her car.

Jake drove them to her house, one hand on the steering wheel and the other refusing to let go of her hand and resting in her lap. It wasn’t until he stepped through the door of her house that he finally registered just how exhausted he was from the week of manual labor and the ridiculous amount of pushups, practically collapsing onto her couch. Y/N giggled as she saw he hadn’t even bothered to take off his boots.

“Jake, wouldn’t you be more comfortable in the bed or with your shoes off or getting out of the dirty flight suit?” she asked, amused although a small part of her felt guilty for being the reason he was that tired.

“Too much work… Sleepy time, babe.” Jake groaned, laying his head back and closing his eyes, intending to fall asleep right there when he felt a tug on his boots.

Y/N unlaced his boots and pulled them off his feet before standing in front of him and unzipping his flight suit as far as she could with him seated.

“Damn babe, you that eager to see me naked?” he asked with a smirk and she shook her head.

“Would you just help me get this off so you don't get sweat and oil and a million other gross things on my couch?” she said, somewhat exasperated at his cockiness even when he was dead tired.

“Alright, alright!” he replied, shimmying the rest of his flight suit off, his undershirt quickly joining it on the floor, leaving him in only his boxers.

He watched as a mischievous grin grew on her face and she sunk down onto her knees in front of him, gently nudging his legs apart so she could kneel between them.

“Baby, what are you doing?” Jake asked as her hands inched up his thighs towards his boxers.

“Thanking my boyfriend for being so good to me this week and smoothing things over today.” she replied as she reached the hem of his boxers, pulling them down just enough to free his cock, which was slowly rising at her touch.

“Baby, you don’t have to-” he began but she cut him off by taking him in her hand to make him groan.

“I don’t have to but I want to. I’ve been without you for a week, baby, I’m dying to get my hands on you.” she said as she moved her hand slowly up and down his length. “So just lay back and let me say thank you.”

“Oh fuck…” Jake groaned, throwing his head back as she took him into her mouth, swirling her tongue around his cock.

She hummed happily at his reaction, the vibrations only increasing his pleasure. Jake’s hand weaved into her hair with a light grip as she bobbed up and down his length, sucking and licking in the ways she knew he loved. It wasn’t too long before he was spilling his load down her throat, her wide eyes looking up at him encouragingly as he came. He was breathing heavily as he came down from his high and she pulled away from his cock, a dribble of spit and cum leaking out of her grinning mouth. She stood up, wiping his cum from her mouth, surprised when he grabbed her ass and pulled her towards him so her breasts were in his face.

“Jake!” she exclaimed, trying to pull back as his arms kept her in place, his head resting right in between her breasts. “At least move to the bed instead of the couch.”

“Why would I move when I have two perfect pillows right here?” he replied and she couldn’t help but laugh as she pulled away and put her hands on her hips, Jake whining at the loss of his cushions.

“Would it convince you to go to bed if I took some of my clothes off?” she teased, unbuttoning her jeans and beginning to shimmy them down her legs slowly.

“Fuck…” Jake muttered, throwing his head back at the sight of his favorite pair of panties.

“I see you noticed my choice of underwear…” she said smugly as she fiddled with the hem of her t-shirt. “Don’t you want to know if I’m wearing your favorite bra too?”

“Yes!” Jake said breathlessly, licking his lips as he eyed the section of skin she was revealing as she slowly pulled the fabric upwards, his cock beginning to rise even so soon after cumming.

“Then you’ll have to come to bed.” she said, her movements suddenly ending just before they revealed her bra, winking at him as she disappeared down the hall towards the bedroom, her shirt being flung behind her from around the corner.

Exhaustion was forgotten as his lust took over, scrambling off the couch at top speed, racing down the hallway, and flinging the bedroom door open to find a sight that had his half-hard cock turn as hard as a rock. His girlfriend was lying on the bed suggestively, her lingerie now on full display as she smiled and crooked a finger at him. He practically dived onto the bed and on top of her, hands rushing to remove her breasts from the confines of the bra.

“I thought you liked seeing me in this bra?” she asked cheekily as he pulled it off of her and tossed it onto the floor halfway across the room.

“I do.” he said with a wicked grin as he yanked her panties off and threw them to join the bra, miraculously not ripping them in his haste, savoring her surprised gasp. “They’re my favorite pair to see you in but also my favorite to see on the floor.”

She laughed and began yanking at his boxers, throwing them behind her so carelessly that they would later find them hanging from the doorknob of the bathroom. Jake was surprised when she rolled over to straddle his waist, pushing him down into the mattress with a hand on his chest.

“My poor boyfriend, so tired from all that extra work this week.” she cooed, leaning down to pepper kisses on his neck and the side of his face. “Just lay back and let me do the work, baby.”

“Baby, you don’t have-” he began when he was cut off by the feeling of her lining his cock up with her cunt and sinking down slowly to the hilt. “Fuuuuuuck…”

“That’s it baby.” she said, half a moan as she got used to the familiar and delicious stretch of her walls around him. He tried to put his hands on her waist but she tsked and wiggled a finger before removing them and bringing them up to her breasts. “I’m in control on the pace, just let me take care of you.”

“I fucking love you.” Jake groaned as he palmed the flesh of her breasts and she smiled as she leaned down to kiss him sweetly on the lips.

“I love you too baby.” she replied with a wink before straightening to sit up and begin bouncing herself up and down on his dick.

The only things that could be heard in the room was the slick slapping of their bodies together and their grunts and moans. They were both so worked up from a week’s worth of unwanted chastity away from each other that they were quickly approaching their climaxes. Jake slipped one hand down to rub her clit as the other played with the peak of one of her breasts. The steady rhythm she had set began to falter as she felt herself clamping down on his cock, her orgasm triggering his as they rode through it together. She leaned down to give him one last kiss in between heavy breaths before pulling herself off of him and collapsing onto the bed beside him. His arms immediately pulled her to him him as they panted, her nuzzling into his side and resting her head on his chest.

“If that’s what a week of hard work gets me, then I’m asking for extra assignments every fucking day.” he said and she giggled.

“Don’t get ahead of yourself, I can’t go that long without sex again.” she told him and he nodded in agreement. “I think it’s time for an afternoon nap.”

“I agree.” Jake said, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “And when I wake up all rested and re-energized, I’m gonna show you just all the things I’ve been thinking about doing with you all week.”

She hummed in content agreement before whispering “I love you, Jake.”

“I love you too, Y/N.” he replied and the two drifted off to sleep in utter bliss.

#jake hangman seresin #jake hangman seresin x reader #jake hangman seresin x y/n #jake hangman seresin x you #hangman x reader #hangman x you #hangman x y/n #jake seresin #jake seresin fic #jake seresin x reader #jake seresin x y/n #hangman #hangman fanfiction #hangman fic #top gun fic #top gun maverick #top gun maverick fic

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deanstead · 2 years

Text

Pieces (7): Feelings are strange

Chapter 7: Feelings are strange

Chapter Summary: Y/N worries when Jay stops responding to her messages. Meanwhile, a ruckus in the waiting room attracts Y/N’s attention.

Word Count: 1,879

Warnings: allusions to verbal abuse, threatening behavior

A/N: Things are... moving. Kind of. I hope you like this update! All the comments have really got me more excited to show you more chapters! Remember to stop by and let me know what you guys think!!!

SERIES MASTERLIST || JAY HALSTEAD MASTERLIST

Previous Chapter || Next Chapter

You’d taken Chloe to school yourself the next day to talk to them and find out why Caleb was able to take her out of school and found out that even though you’d filled out the paperwork, they hadn’t processed it. It had taken a whole lot of effort not to scream at everyone in the room. Instead, you’d insisted on seeing the list of approved adults for Chloe just so you could rest easy that she wasn’t going to disappear right under your nose again.

So you’d definitely felt better for the rest of the day, your mind wandering back to what Jay had said to you the night before.

You’d always thought that when the day came again when someone, anyone, asked you out on a date again, you’d say no with absolutely no hesitation. That’s what you’d told yourself the day Caleb had walked out on you and Chloe. You’d never trust someone else with yours or Chloe’s happiness, ever again.

But that was before Jay Halstead.

You wanted to be mad at him, really. You wanted to be mad at him for crashing headfirst into your life, for wavering your determination to not let anyone too close, for making you feel like you mattered again. But you couldn’t even be mad at him.

You glanced at your phone.

You’d sent him a text to say that the two of you should talk but he hadn’t responded, so you stuffed your phone back into your pocket where it belonged. But now that you were anticipating a response, it felt like a boulder that you were carrying around all day, you literally had to fight the urge to check it every few minutes.

When he hadn’t responded by the next day, your initial annoyance had slowly shifted into worry. It wasn’t like Jay to not respond like this. At first, you’d thought he might have been annoyed that he hadn’t gotten a response from you, after all a guy like Jay Halstead probably didn’t face rejection much, or at all. But now, you weren’t so sure.

“Hey, Will.” You headed up to him where he was getting coffee.

You hesitated, now.

Will frowned. “What’s up? Everything okay?”

You nodded. “Is Jay okay?”

Will’s eyebrow rose. “Yeah, as far as I know. Why? Did you hear something?”

You shook your head. “I just... I haven’t heard from him. He usually doesn’t do that, so I was just wondering…”

“Oh, crap. I was supposed to tell you yesterday but I forgot.” Will said. “He came by my place in the morning to pass me some stuff and he told me to let you know he’s going under, probably for a few days, so he’d be uncontactable. I’m sorry, Y/N.”

“Under?” You asked.

Will nodded. “Yeah, they do some undercover work sometimes. When they have to.” Will paused. “He can’t have his personal phone with him when he does. He’ll show up in a couple of days.”

You nodded, a little absentmindedly. “Yeah, thanks.”

"Please don't tell him I forgot to tell you. He will literally kill me." When that didn't elicit much of a response from you, Will paused. “Everything okay?”

You smiled and nodded. “Yeah, just needed to finish a conversation.”

Will studied you for a bit before he nodded again. “You know if you need anything…”

You smiled. “Yeah, I know. Thanks.”

By the end of the week, you still hadn’t heard from Jay.

But everytime you felt your mind go there, you yanked yourself back, wondering when this had begun. When had you begun to rely on someone again, when you’d told yourself again and again that you couldn’t go back down that road.

The worst part was that you had no idea how this had all happened and why it was Jay that gave you this sense of stability, this sense of security. And now that you found yourself here, you had no freaking clue what to do, but you had to figure it out before you spoke to him again.

The only good thing about a crazy day in the ED was that you didn’t have time to dwell on these little things floating through your mind. You’d come out into the waiting room to help Connor update his patient’s wife when a commotion near Leah’s counter caught your attention.

“I’ve been waiting for over an hour!” You heard his fist bang on the table. “And I want to know why I’m still waiting!”

You took a deep breath, wanting nothing more but to head inside. But there was no way a guy like that was going to let you leave peacefully.

Before you’d even taken so much as another breath, he’d caught sight of your white coat and pointed at you.

“You! Lady! You’re a doctor. You see me.”

Maggie raised her eyebrows at you and you’d turned around to look at him, controlling your expression as best as you could.

“Sir, we have to see patients based on their conditions. If you wait a while longer, we’ll try to move things along.” You kept your voice patient, before you tried to turn to go back into the ED.

“Lady! I demand to see a doctor now!”

You felt your irritation rise. You had a four year old that behaved better than this.

You moved towards Leah, peering at his registration sheet and you nodded at her, noting his non-emergent symptoms.

“Sir, as we have told you many times, we have to see patients based on the urgency of their condition. Please wait your turn.” Your voice was stern now. He moved forward as if to confront you again but eyed Earl keeping a watching eye by the corner, as you stepped backwards.

You glanced at Leah who nodded, before you turned and headed back into the ED.

You glanced at the clock as you pulled on your jacket in place of the white coat you’d been in all day.

“We’re going for drinks, can your babysitter do another few hours?” Will asked, as he closed his locker and pointed to Connor.

You gave him a smile. “Not today, she can’t work late. Sorry.”

Connor shook his head. “Come on, we can’t compete with a kid for her mom. We’ll do a kid-friendly one sometime.”

You laughed and nodded, grabbing your bag.

“Have fun guys!”

You headed out towards your car. It was already late, the streets felt a little darker than usual so you looked up at the sky for a moment before you continued walking. You’d been a little late at the start of shift thanks to Chloe's school, so you’d had to park your car a little further from the entrance.

You were about two cars away when you felt someone tug roughly at your arm.

Spinning around, you frowned at the man who was holding your arm so tightly it was starting to hurt. It took you a moment before you placed him again - the man screaming at Leah in the waiting room earlier today. The man you’d told to wait when he’d yelled at you demanding you see him then and there for a flu.

You glanced down at your arm, attempting to pull it backwards out of his grasp but he was way stronger than you were.

You could still see the anger flash in his eyes even in the dark as he stepped forward and you stepped backwards. He pushed you roughly before your back hit the hard wall of the external hospital wall. “What do you want?” It took you some effort to keep your voice steady.

“You’re really rude.” He commented, not really answering your question. “If there’s one thing I know, it’s that rude women need to be taught a lesson.”

You could feel your heartbeat quicken as you tried again to tug your arm out of his grasp with barely any success.

He raised his other arm now and even as you tried hard not to, you flinched as you saw his palm come swinging down at you.

And then, nothing.

You opened your eyes again and there he was. You felt the rush of something that felt suspiciously magical, before your brain and mouth connected. “Jay.”

Jay didn’t turn to look at you, almost like he hadn’t heard you. He’d caught the guy’s arm midair and you were sure if he’d been even a second later you’d have already felt the impact.

"Step the hell back.” Jay growled, speaking each word slowly.

It was the first time you’d heard this much anger in his voice. You don’t think you’d even heard it that few times he’d spoken to Caleb. This was different.

“What’s it to you?” The man didn’t look like he wanted to back down.

Jay didn’t respond, merely glancing down at the badge attached to his waist. “I won't say it again. Walk away.” Jay looked pointedly at his other hand.

The guy wrenched his arm out of Jay’s grasp as he let go of your arm. Jay shifted, standing in front of you now. “If I see you anywhere near her again…”

The guy seemed like he was weighing his options but instead turned to leave.

Jay turned towards you now. “You okay?”

You took a deep breath. “Yeah, I think so.”

Jay exhaled.

“Great self-control there, Jay.” You said with a smile. “I’m not sure Will could have kept his cool.”

Jay smiled. “Oh, you have no idea the effort it took. If he’d actually hit you…” He paused. “I might have beaten the crap out of him.”

“ Oh Detective Halstead, you wouldn’t.” You teased gently, smiling as you watched the hard look in his eyes slowly give way to the gentle green eyes you knew so well.

Jay glanced down the street to make sure he was really gone. “Sorry I haven’t been in touch.”

You shook your head. “Will told me. Everything okay with you?”

Jay nodded. “Yeah, I…”

He was interrupted as his phone rang and you nodded at him as he answered it. You watched his frown deepen.

“I’ll be right there.” He said as he hung up. “Y/N, I’m sorry, I…”

You shook your head, smiling.

“You gonna be okay?” He asked. “Should I call Will?”

You laughed. “I’ll get home okay. Thanks for… I’m glad you were here when you were. Thank you.”

Jay nodded, squeezing your wrist a little. “I gotta…”

You nodded. “Be safe.”

Jay smiled and jogged towards his truck which was parked a little way away. Jay turned just as he was getting into his truck for one last look.

You raised your hand and waved, as he smiled and waved back before driving off.

You watched a little while longer as he drove away before you hurried to your car and sped off, taking two detours just in case before you got home. Truth be told, you were hoping you’d have the opportunity to talk and you had been this close to actually inviting him over. So you weren’t sure whether it was a good or bad thing he’d been called away.

The only thing certain tonight was one thing - the fluttering feeling in the pit of your stomach and the race of your heart.

THANK YOU FOR READING!! PLEASE TELL ME WHAT YOU THOUGHT OF THIS!!

If you want to support me, buy me a coffee!

#jay halstead #jay halstead x reader #resa.fics #resa.piecesfic #chicago pd #chicago med #will halstead #jay halstead series #jay halstead fanfic #jay halstead imagine #jay halstead x you #jay halstead x y/n

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larabiatasstuff · 10 months

Note

Hey bestie! I have a CK Terry Silver request for you, and it's a rather steamy one...😏 Please could you write a scenario where you have a bad boyfriend who doesn't appreciate you, and at the same time you happen to be best friends with your work colleague Terry. He knows that your boyfriend isnt good for you, and when he discovers that he dumped you for someone else, Terry comforts you when he invites you to his place to feel better. After a while, one thing leads to another and you and Terry end up having s#x...BUT...your now ex boyfriend calls your phone as Terry's doing you, and Terry picks up the phone and tells him exactly what he's doing. And telling him that you are now finaly getting what you need, and making you scream in the process, something that the ex never could! 😃 please take all the time you need bestie, I love you 💚💚💚

Oh Bestie I absolutely love your request 😏 How could I not write that for you? 🙏

"You know you could put a little more effort in your looks. Any other girlfriend would try to look as beautiful as they could for their man but you... You're not even trying Y/N." I was standing in front of the full body mirror in our bedroom, getting ready for work when Mark entered the room criticizing me." Mark I'm teaching karate to kids, my style is more than appropriate for that. " he snorted and waved it off" Yeah whatever, I'm going out with the boys. Don't wait for me. "with that he left without even looking at me. I looked into the mirror, he was right I wasn't a beauty queem, I loved wearing comfy clothes and I rarely wore make up but that was me. I shook my head, put up my sports bag and made my way to the dojo where Terry was already waiting for me. "Hey Y/N, wow you look lovely today." he wasn't just my coworker he was also my best friend and he always knew how to make me smile. "Awww thank you Terry, that's really nice of you. I'm getting changed quickly." with that I got into the locker room. "You look lovely today" I smiled to myself at his words, Terry was such a kind person. We taught the afternoon class together today, the students loved it and I must say that I had a lot of fun too. Terry and I were sitting in the office filling out the paperwork when suddenly my phone buzzed. It was a message from Matt, I opened it and my heart burst into thousands of pieces. He sent me a picture of him with a very beautiful woman on his lap with the message "Sorry hun, but I really needed an upgrade. It's nothing personal."

#thomas ian griffith #sensei targaryen #terry silver #cobra kai #terry silver x reader

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whats-rambled-rambled · 2 years

Text

Posterity - part 3

Neil x gn!Reader

Chapter 3: Confidant

(see chapter 2, 1)

summary: one of the teams gets caught in an ambush, and you have to deal with the aftermath

warnings: swearing, angst, mentions of death and grief

author’s note: would you look at that, it took me 3 chapters to get to proper angst! I think nobody is surprised at this point. But that seemed like such a vital part of the Reader’s job to cover, and it had to be done at one point or another.

✨hurt/comfort✨

3,8k words

The song for this chapter is Blakey - Confidant

Your feedback warms my heart and keeps me going, I’m so grateful to have you all around.

Enjoy! And as always - let me know what you think?

--------

taglist: @hollandorks @neilsgirl91 @thecraziestcrayon @sunnyitwillbe @eravanaaaah @blue-aconite @mcrmarvelloki

-----

“Posterity, this is Jenkins. We’re fucked. I repeat - we’re fucked.”

“Understood, sending the Cavalry to your location –”

“NO! Don’t....we’re already dead. Just tell the others about the ambush. This place is rigged and crawling with antags.”

“Copy. Help is on the way, Agent, sit tight. Are you hurt? ”

“Walked straight into this… ah shit. Yeah, got hit pretty bad.”

“Hold on just a little while longer.”

“No need, Operator. T’was pleasure, guys. Come here you motherfu-...”

“Agent…?”

“...”

Come in, Agent.”

“...”

“Agent Jenkins, are you there?”

“...”

“...goddamnit.”

—

The office was quiet. Empty. It was better that way, you couldn’t imagine going through this part of the job with an audience of any kind.

Of course, it was not the first time it had happened. Sometimes, there wasn’t much you could do, and even having the full medical team dispatched with the backup was not enough to save everyone.

You sighed, opening another file.

Most operators went through it at some point in their careers. Multiple points, most likely.

Everyone coped with it in their own way. Some people took a day off. Some went straight to the nearest bar as soon as they clocked out. You? You always asked for another shift, to be the one to process the paperwork. It seemed only fair.

The first time someone died on your call… it had been rough. As in throwing up in the bathroom and sobbing for a solid quarter rough. That was how your boss had found you, then took you to his office and talked you through it, enough to calm you down so you hadn’t quit on him right there and then.

You couldn’t say it’d gotten easier. Could it ever? You’d built walls to protect yourself. You’d learned to keep your distance. You’d focused on the things you were still able to do. On the bigger picture. But even then, when you were left alone in the office with the fallen agents looking at you from your screen, there was an ache in your chest, making you struggle to take a deeper breath.

Another timeline. Not too complicated - must have belonged to a rookie.

That was another kind of pain. Every one of those people had their whole future ahead of them, but those wide-eyed newlings always had so much light in them.

It was a rare thing to see it shining bright in someone after a few years spent in the field.

You glanced at your phone.

It was persistently silent.

You hadn’t heard from Neil, aside from the calls during business hours. The requests kept on coming with the usual cheeky politeness, and you were glad nothing had changed after that party.

One little thing had, however.

You caught yourself missing his voice when you hadn’t heard from him for too long.

Even more reasons to be grateful that he respected your boundaries, right?

Everything was in order. You closed the loop, added all the needed annotations, and changed the status of the operative to KIA.

Next file.

You read the name on the screen and your palms got sweaty. You chewed on your lip, trying to level your shallow breath. The shots rang in your ears again. And that scream, the last cry of a man going out with guns blazing. Hellbent on taking down with him as many antagonists as possible.

Of course, you remembered his first call. How he stuttered nervously, cursing every other word, and then solemnly apologized for it. The confidence gained over the next months reflected in his record as he’d earned a leadership position in his own squad. He made sure to mention it during his next call, and you couldn’t help but feel a little proud.

“T’was pleasure, guys.”

You wiped a trembling hand through your face and exhaled slowly. The gnawing in your chest was becoming unbearable.

Maybe that was why, against your better judgment, you grabbed your phone.

The reason kicked back in the second you heard the line ringing, but as you were about to hang up, you heard a sleepy voice:

“Are you really calling or am I still dreaming?”

You cringed and rewarded your stupidity with a hearty facepalm. What the hell were you doing?

“Oh god, I woke you–- I’m sorry, I don’t even know what time it is.” A wave of embarrassment tangled both your thoughts and your tongue. “It-it’s nothing, go back to sleep.”

“No, no, no, it’s okay. Just something new.” Neil grunted lightly. “What’s going on?”

You drew a deep breath, then let it out with a barely audible shudder.

“This kind of day, huh?” His sad chuckle made the tip of your nose tingle, even more so when you heard the softness in his voice as he urged you gently, “Talk to me. What happened?”

“You heard about Malmö?” you asked, hoping you wouldn’t be the one to deliver the news.

“Yeah, I spoke to Ives a couple hours ago. Six of ours down?”

You swallowed with effort.

“It’s eight now.”

“Jesus,” he sighed breathlessly.

“I was on a call with a guy from that team.” You frowned at yourself. He deserved more than a nameless mention. “With Jenkins.” Better. Shifting in your seat, you continued, pushing out one strained word after another. “Now I have paperwork to process and I’m closing all the loops– wait, you know about the loops?”

“May have an idea, but tell me more.”

“The numbers you give us when you log in, right? Imagine them put onto a giant timeline.” You glanced at your screen, at Jenkins’ one already loaded up. “That’s how we keep an eye on you, we can check if the time loop you entered has closed properly, or if you are still in the middle of one. It’s more complicated, but also not as much?” A nervous laugh escaped your lips when you realized you were rambling, as you always did when it came to aspects of the job you were quite fascinated with. “It would be easier to show you. I think you’d appreciate the design, it’s pretty neat.”

“Sounds like it.”

There was a hint of a smile hiding in Neil’s tone, and it was enough to give you the strength to carry on into the more difficult part.

“Anyway, aside from the calls, requests, and routine checks on agents with long inactivity in the system, I’m also responsible for updating the files. When something happens…,” - you forced another deep breath in - “that means double-checking the loops and a lot of time spent looking at their timelines. Seeing their journeys, from the very start… It’s never easy.”

Neil hummed sympathetically. “I can imagine. I’m sorry.”

“Yeah. It hurts, even if I only knew them as voices in my headphones.” You sighed, dropping your gaze again. “It’s hard not to get attached to people.”

“Oh.”

The sudden realization in the expression curled a corner of your mouth into a sad smirk. “You know where I’m going with this, huh?”

“Possibly.” He weighed his words. “That’s why you keep us at arm's length?”

You scoffed softly. “That’s why I try.”

“And not calling us by our names? Part of it, too?” he said and the curious notes in his tone suggested he’d been sitting on this thought for a while. “It’s not the protocol, I checked.”

You shook your head, not so surprised he’d picked on that, too. He was perceptive, he had to be in his profession.

“It’s not, you’re right.”

“Hm.”

“Doesn’t make sense to you?” you asked with quiet resignation. You wouldn’t blame him if it didn’t. Although you weren’t sure if you had it in you to defend yourself. Not today. Not against him.

Fortunately, you didn’t have to.

“No, I understand why you do it, but…” He hesitated, and you cut in:

“But you don’t approve.”

He smacked his tongue and stifled a sigh. “That’s not it.”

Suddenly, you realized he was holding back an opinion, mindful not to overstep.

“What is it then?” To soothe his apprehension, you let a shade of smile into your voice “Make your case.”

“Thank you, your honor,” said Neil, tongue-in-cheek. Then, it was his turn to take a deeper breath, as if he was grounding himself, preparing to share something more personal. “I know how it feels to lose someone you care about. The emptiness that comes with it. Almost physical pain that follows.” He faltered, lost in a memory for a short while, then continued more softly, “It’s scary. Hence the need to protect yourself from it. Especially with the certain danger written into our job. I understand. Only, at the same time… the world can be a shitty place, and having people around, those who get the metaphorical it...who get you.. not only makes life easier. It makes it all that better.”

You sighed and propped the forehead on your knuckles, blankly staring down.

“I know.”

A short, knowing hum. “But it’s not enough to outweigh the possible pain, because what if it ends?”

You tightened the grip on your phone as the lump in your throat grew bigger.

“Exactly.”

“It doesn’t take all those things away from you. What’s happened’s happened. And it’s yours, forever. All you got to experience together, all those little moments you shared, the emotions that warmed you whenever you needed. They stay. Even if the person is no longer with you.”

A tear plopped on the desk and you wiped it with your sleeve, then squeezed your eyes shut, swallowing with effort.

Meanwhile, Neil continued, and every quiet sentence carried immense compassion and warmth. “I know it hurts. Life’s short, but that’s also what makes it all worth it. You deserve to be happy.” He paused for a bit, then added, “That can also mean playing it safe.” He chuckled lightly. “The choice is yours. And I rest my case.”

The last remark made you laugh, but the sound came out with a sob. “Damn, I’m sorry,” you sniffled, wiping your eyes with the back of your hand. “I hear you, yeah.”

“Are you okay?”

There was nothing but concern on the other end of the line, and your heart clenched painfully.

“I am. Hit close to home, that’s all.” You frowned and sighed, a little embarrassed. “I like the way you look at it.”

You really did. Although, you weren’t quite sure you would be able to rewire yourself like that. Even if you really wanted to.

“Just give it a thought, okay? Nothing more.”

That you could do. “I will, I promise,” you said, lips curling in a gentle smile. “Thank you for this. And for letting me vent.”

“Of course. Anytime.” There was this light in his words again, and you knew he really meant it. “Are you going home soon?”

Looking back at your screen, you quickly went over the tasks on your to-do list. “I have two operatives left to…debrief. Gonna take a while.” You heard a stifled grunt as if Neil was stretching and was trying not to let it show, and it made you remember the start of your conversation. And made you very self-conscious because of it. “I’m sorry, I’m keeping you awake, go back to bed.”

“I am in bed,” he said, all smug about it. “And I don’t mind.”

The image in your head, complimented by the ever so slight switch in his tone, suddenly made you flustered. Heat crept up your cheeks as you cleared your throat.

“I’d love to keep chatting then, but I should really get back to work.” Saying it aloud brought back the heaviness to your shoulders. However, there was enough calmness inside you now, as if some of the load had dissolved once you’d shared it, and you were ready to face the task again.

“It was great to hear your voice.”

You wanted to point out that it hadn’t been that long since your last talk, but that was not what he had in mind. The implication resonated deeply, and you could only say, “Yours too.”

The silence that fell was loaded, but not for too long. Neil was first to break the spell, audibly cracking up at something.

“What is it?”

“I’m sorry, I was waiting for you to call me agent again.”

Oh. You snickered, shaking your head.

“It got stuck in my throat, believe it or not.”

“We could stick to darling if you'd like."

A grin brightened your face as you scoffed in disbelief. "You think it's less personal than a name?"

"I think it can be whatever we need it to be.” You could almost picture him shrugging lightly, with those playful sparks shining in his eyes. "All words are made up, anyway."

“Sure,” you snorted, unable to find a counter to that.

“No pressure. I’m happy you called.”

“Me too,” you sighed softly, the warmth slowly spreading through your chest. “Thanks again and good night…darling.”

“Blimey.” No teasing. No mocking. Pure amusement. And something else, you couldn’t quite figure out yet. “Take care, darling. Good night.”

It wasn’t one if you looked at it as a whole.

The one part that was, however, was enough to carry you through the rest of it. Through the paperwork, and through saying goodbye to the agents.

Because for the first time in years, you allowed yourself to grieve.

Over the people. Over the things that had been. Over the ones that could have been.

And over those that would never be.

—

That extra shift meant entering another day in some sort of zombie mode.

The exhaustion from the lack of sleep amplified the emotional fatigue, putting you in a nice, numb state, and letting you sail through the first few hours of work without too much damage. It wasn’t zen, no, not with that hollow feeling still present inside. But you knew it would pass, eventually, and being able to jump back into routine activities would only help with that.

The team knew the drill. Business as usual.

One call. A couple of reports. A bit of research. Five answered messages. Another call.

Time went by, and soon you were off on a break, grabbing a quick lunch in a canteen.

The elevator opened with a quiet ping, and you went into the corridor leading to the office, already juggling through the possible solutions to one of the pending requests in your mind. Then, you noticed a figure in a familiar dark navy overcoat and you stopped, any thought process ceasing instantly as well.

Perhaps it was easy to forget you were actually working together, like– physically, occasionally in the same building, even.

All because meeting any operative on your floor was highly improbable.

And it bordered on the security breach.

That was definitely why your heart was beating so fast all of the sudden. No other reason.

Neil was standing right next to your door, a reusable cup in one hand, a phone in the other, looking as if was battling with himself over something.

“Are you lost, darling?” you asked, squinting suspiciously, incapable of hiding a smile already dangling in a corner of your mouth.

He found your gaze, bewildered, but quickly schooled his features and grinned at you.

“Not anymore,” he said and slid the phone into his pocket as you made your way to him. There was a fleeting moment of hesitation when both of you wondered what was the greeting protocol in the current state of affairs, but it took the smallest cue from him and you walked straight into his arms.

The hug was tight. Warm. Bringing back the memories. Overriding reason.

That was why you had to pull away, even though you wanted nothing more but to lose yourself in his embrace for a while longer.

Neil seemed a little more tired than the last time you’d seen him. Messy hair was his default, apparently, as well as a five o’clock shadow, but the faint dark circles under his eyes were something new, and you pondered if that was the lack of sleep caused by your late-night conversation, or the strain of his own duties taking a toll on him. What didn’t change, however, was the light shining in the blue irises, and a playful smile dancing on his lips, bound to prompt one of your own.

“What are you doing here?”

“They called us in for some drills, so I was around.” His fingers glided down your forearm, almost making your breath hitch. A shade of concern clouded his expression and he searched your face, then added quietly, “I wanted to check if you’re okay. How are you feeling?”

You blinked a few times, slightly shaking your head to dismiss his worries sooner than you were able to collect your thoughts.

“I’m fine. Or better, at least.” Choking out a small laugh, you met the blue eyes again, boring into you attentively, consistently, not mindful of the blonde strands falling into them. “I’ll be alright,” you said softly. Of course you were gonna be alright. Things happened, over and over again, and if you hadn’t been able to handle it, you wouldn’t have been cut out for the job. And you were. As you held his gaze, you sent him a reassuring smile, pouring all your confidence into it. “Thank you for checking on me, though. I appreciate it.”

Neil gave you a small nod, visibly relieved. “Don’t mention it.” He moved his tongue across his lips, then nibbled on the bottom one, glancing over your shoulder into the corridor as the elevator rumbled, fortunately moving past your floor. “I don’t wanna keep you any longer. Besides,“ - a roguish smile curved his mouth - “I might not have a hall pass.”

But before you could lecture him on security measures, Neil took your hand and put the cup in it, sneaking something resembling a folded piece of paper into your grasp.

“What is this?”

“A little pick-me-up,” he said and shrugged, then tilted his head. “Fruity, on the sour side, right?” You gaped at him, utterly perplexed, and he snickered at the shock painted across your face. “No vodka this time, sadly.” He sighed, then patted your arm. “Have a nice day, darling.”

You managed to choke out - “Yeah, you too,” - tightening hold on the cup while he marched towards the elevator, unwilling to take his chances for much longer.

Smart move, and yet, there was a pang near your heart as you watched him walk away.

You were really that tired, huh?

With a hand on the doorknob, you glanced at him one last time. Just as Neil looked over his shoulder.

He met your eyes and smiled softly.

Goddamnit.

You chewed on your lip, desperate to stop the flush threatening to creep up your face, then took a deep breath and entered the office.

The door clicked behind you and as you went to your desk, Alex watched you like a hawk.

“Thirsty?” they asked casually, but with a mocking gimmer clearly visible in their dark eyes.

There was no way in hell they’d heard anything. Yet, your heart pounded heavily, as if you’d been caught on something inappropriate.

You arched a brow and sent them a shrug.

“Heating season, you know how it is.”

“Uh-huh.”

You fell on your chair and took a sip from the cup.

Tea. With raspberry juice, orange slices, ginger, and cloves. Sweet, but not overbearingly, with a touch of spice, definitely leaning into its sour notes. Hot and comforting. Homely.

You closed your eyes and allowed the warmth to spread through you.

A pick-me-up, indeed.

What about that paper tucked in your palm, though?

You unfolded it and your confused frown only deepened.

An envelope. An empty one, to be precise.

As you checked the other side and read a single word written on it, a loud snort escaped you, and you hid your face in your palms, trying to muffle a hysterical laugh rising in your throat.

Strings.

—-

The end of your shift couldn’t come fast enough. Your fingers were itching, and it took some intense reasoning from your brain not to call him immediately after leaving the building.

For the second time in 24 hours? Come on, that wouldn’t be wise. On so many levels.

On the other hand, it would’ve been rude not to thank him for that tea. And you couldn’t exactly do that during his next request call, could you?

Why not? It was doable.

Without raising suspicion? Alex had already been smirking at you after your little giggling fit.

Asking for trouble, nothing more.

Maybe it was. Definitely it was. And yet–

Back and forth, all the way home. The inner dispute ended with the conclusion that you were tired, and you needed rest, first and foremost, because the emotions running loose like that were not helping anyone.

The Universe solved your headache itself, and just as you crossed your apartment's threshold, your phone buzzed with a message.

//Was it balanced to your liking?//

It was easier to call him back since you were in the middle of taking off your outdoor clothes.

Neil picked up straight away.

“It was perfect, thank you,” you said right on the beat. ” Why, you made it yourself?”

“That’s classified, I’m afraid.”

You scoffed at a sly grin tainting his tone. “Understood. No strings attached though, huh?”

“I knew you’d get it,” he hummed with satisfaction, then hesitated and sighed, finally landing on a more serious note. “I’ve been thinking about our last talk. When I said no pressure, I meant it.” A bated chuckle sneaked between the words, now soft and warm and ringing with care that made your heart squeeze with fondness. “We don’t have to dance. Or do whatever else you’re not comfortable with, for that matter. But I’m here if you need anything. Anytime. Simple as that.”

“It means a lot, really.” You couldn’t find words to express how much it did. It was overwhelming, but at the same time calming; swirling a lot of different emotions inside you that you didn’t know how to process. It had to wait, however, because you had an offer to reciprocate. “Same goes to you, darling. I’m always a phone call away.”

“I’ll remember that. Thank you.”

Suddenly, there was that inkling again, and you needed to ask.

“Hey, are you okay?”

“Me?” That clearly caught him off-guard. “Yeah, why?”

“I don’t know, you seemed a bit tired today.” Probably wasn’t the nicest thing to say, and as you realized that, you winced slightly. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to--”

“No, it’s alright,” he said, the initial puzzlement already wearing off. “I’m okay. Permanently jet-lagged, but okay.” He let out a small laugh. “Thanks for asking. Was it the habit kicking in?”

“Maybe.” Or maybe you just cared, more than you’d like to admit. “Go get some rest.”

“You too, darling. Talk to you soon?”

You smiled hearing the hopeful notes in the question.

“Naturally.”

That was it. That was the word.

Because everything came just like that with him.

And everything felt like that when it came to him.

Even more so.

It felt undeniably right.

(next chapter ->)

#neil tenet #neil tenet x reader #neil tenet fanfiction #neil tenet imagine #neil tenet x you #tenet fanfiction #robert pattinson #posterity

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pbandjesse · 4 months

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Today was a really nice day. It was full of activities. And my feet hurt and I'm really glad I'm in bed now.

I slept alright last night. But when I woke up at 8 I did not want to get up. I did not want to do anything. I heard James in the kitchen mixing their cookies. I just laid quietly and it was good.

I slowly would wake up and felt pretty good when I did. I checked my email and saw some from the title company so I texted James to come ask them what we needed to do. They came and told me that they were filling out the forms and I would have to do some parts once I was up. Sounds good. I went and got dressed.

There was not much I needed to fill out. Is this your first home? Address, etc etc. It is very exciting process but it is an incredible amount of forms and pieces of paperwork and all that kind of thing.

We had a lot of tasks to do today. No rush but the plan was to leave at 10. I would finish getting ready and James made me an egg salad toasted sandwich. And I worked on my knitting. I'm very close to being finished that. But the work continues.

We left here and headed to Hampden today go to the bank to make a wire transfer for the deposit. This was scary because while we have been working at this for a little while now (realistically I know our search has been very short compared to some people's journey) but this is the first time we have actually paid any money. And neither of us have ever sent a word transfer before so it was scary!! But the man who helped us was so lovely.

He is also working towards buying a (much more expensive) house and him, and the other two people who worked there congratulated us when we were finished.

We did have to call the title company to confirm the details and James got a money order and a word transfer confused and got a little flustered but we got it all sorted and it honestly didn't take long.

I had an appointment with away at 11. But we still had time to go to the wine source and pick out fancy snacks. Originally we were getting them for each other. Then we decided we would get them for ourselves and just give them to each other. We each got a few things and we will wrap them up for each other. It was silly but it was also just nice being with my husband and buying fancy snacks.

We went to awah and it was really nice to see everyone. They had a gift for me: a candle, some cookies, and a gift card for Amazon. So sweet. We chatted about my class and what's up and the possible house and all the excitement. On top of it being the week before Christmas! Wild. A house for Christmas???

While we were out the air quality test was happening at the house. And we confirmed the home inspection tomorrow. Which means we get to go see the house. I am going to bring a tape measure so I can have a better idea of the layout and not just from memory. I will also try to get pictures and videos.

We left there and decided to go to Pepe's for lunch. You know?? Pepe's?? Fun for the whole family??? This means nothing but me and James were laughing stupidly hard about this bit and I don't want to forget how much we were laughing and having fun.

We enjoyed our lunch at the diner. And then headed home. I texted with my dad about money and saving and the budget I came up with. We will actually have some move wiggle room in our budget which is pretty sweet.

I did a lot of knitting and sewing. James wrapped gifts. It was a really nice afternoon.

I would knit and sew until 5. And at 5 I got dressed in my Kristian the American girl doll outfit. Did my hair. Got all cute.

And then it was time to go to the BMI party!

And it was such a lovely party. I had so much fun talking to everyone and telling stories. Margaret caught us in the car before we left and she grabbed a ride with us there (her husband would come later and took her home). And I just had so much fun catching up and telling stories. Me, Gaby, her friend and Adam were screaming about conspiracy theories and I got to introduce them to the concept of the hollow earth which is one of my favorite. It is legit the silliest one.

Dinner and talking was fun. There were s'mores but the little fires they had were causing so much smoke that we were very afraid the sprinklers were going to go off. Had to open all the garage doors. But I was just running around and having a great time.

I loved seeing Meril and we took pictures. Everyone thought my phone clicked was so cool and a few people borrowed it. And I promised to get a link so other people can buy their own because. I even showed Stanley's wife on her phone so they could do it themselves. She would return it when they were done and I promised James would help Stanley get one too.

The voting for best desserts was fun and the raffles were really exciting. Jessica's daughter, Sofia, was able to be awake for the party this year (she was very new last year) and we became best friends. We were holding hands and jumping. Me, her, her dad, and Jessica all held hands and jumped a whole bunch and it was very silly. I held her for a little and we spun and we were very best friends now obviously. Jessica kept saying how much she liked me and I'm like. Incredible. I love little baby Sofia.

After lots more pictures and getting to tell people about the house, James was helping to clean up and then we were heading out. Almost last ones out.

I drove us home because James had a few beers. We listened to music to loud and danced in the car and it was very silly and very fun. And when we got back here I put on another song and we danced at each other. The mood was just. Fantastic.

I grabbed a shower. Sweetp bit me on the back of my leg??? Ouch! But now we are all just cuddled up in bed. And I am ready to sleep.

I don't have to drive out to camp tomorrow. We are volunteering to wrap gifts for the Y's angel tree. And then it is time to go to the home inspection!! Ah!

I really hope it goes well. There are some things that may be wrong that are fixable but the things I don't know like the electrical or the plumbing or the roof are the concerns for me. I did get a price for home insurance and because the house has a flat roof there might be a concern about insuring it. So I went on a long search about what we would do if it needs fixing. I just want to make sure we can handle whatever it is. I will not get us in a place we can't survive. And right now we have a budget for fixes but they have to be within reason. But I know a lot and I trust myself to make the right call. Can't be wishy washy on this one.

I am going to go to sleep now. I hope you all sleep great and having a good night. Until next time!!

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vinbee631 · 8 months

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10 - Intermission: How Would You Like a Friendly Competition? (Let’s Take On the Song)

Prodigal Sons and Daughters Alike

“Remus!” The art student in question jumped out of his skin as his twin burst into his room one afternoon. “Jesus, who died?! Or, is it good news? I can tell from just- screaming.”

(The school van in question later in the fic, they're good for wheelchair transport, but riding in the ones they convert to hold 14 students for field trips is my personal hell)

Chapter title from Me Against the Music - LP Version by Madonna and Britney Spears, the better version to me :) Also, cw, they do play laser tag, so like- gun violence? But for high schoolers? Nobody gets hurt but it's a pretty in depth description if that bothers you

“Remus!” The art student in question jumped out of his skin as his twin burst into his room one afternoon. “Jesus, who died?! Or, is it good news? I can tell from just- screaming.”

“Quit teasing, this is important!” Roman declared, hopping on Remus’ bed and crossing his legs.

“Sure, just make yourself comfortable, I guess,” he joked, “but go on. What is it that you’re dragging me into this time?”

“You say as if you don’t regularly drag me into shit all the time. You dragged me into this school,” he pointed out helpfully.

“Alright, I get it, just cut to the chase! I’m invested now,” Remus urged with a smile.

“Okay, okay! Soo, I found another poster, and it’s even better than the hike one! There are these, like, mini field trips they’re gonna start doing tomorrow, and they go to all kinds of cool places! I was gonna invite the others, too, but I wanted to bring it up to you first!”

“Uh, yeah sure!” Remus agreed instantly with a smile that didn’t quite reach is eyes. “We inviting Virgil, too?”

Roman started, starting at his brother as he processed the statement. Something was… off about him. And he could tell exactly what, and who, it was related to.

“You know what? No, we’re not doing this. The others can go as a group of three, or four if they wanna open that can of worms, but this is gonna be a sibling day. You’re so- keyed up over this Virgil situation, and I am not going to watch as you wear yourself to the ground! We’re taking a break, and we’re doing it twin style!”

“And you’ve just… decided this for me? Bet, I guess, where are we going?” Remus chuckled, though Roman was relieved to see some of the tension leak out of his shoulders and frown lines.

And then, he grinned brightly, tugging his flustered twin out the door. “Well, we gotta sign up first! That’s what I was trying to tell you! There are a couple of different places, and initially, I was gonna get everyone’s opinions but starting with you, but now we can just decide together, c’mon!”

Remus hopped along behind him, haphazardly tugging on his shoes and slamming the door shut behind him. “Jeez, okay, okay! I’m coming, slow down!”

Roman laughed, racing down the hall with his brother in tow. They skidded to a stop in the lobby, where a small group of freshmen they didn’t know were gathered around a clipboard.

“So, there are different clipboards for different grade levels, so we might have to wait a bit, but…” Roman paused, craning his neck to read the announcement, “We can choose from a trip to a little shopping center in Gainesville… an- I think that says laser tag? And a ‘nature hike’ at the one nature center that we drove past on the way here. But, I mean, we kinda already did that.”

Remus perked up. “I dunno about you, but if we don’t do the laser tag, I might lose it,” he decided. Roman quickly nodded in agreement and they rushed to fill out the paperwork they needed.

“At least we don’t have to convince Mom and Pops this time,” Roman huffed, making his brother laugh.

“Exactly! All we have to worry about is having fun! Oh, and me kicking your ass at laser tag.”

Roman huffed. “Says you! I believe it will be me doing the ass-kicking here!”

The whole walk back to their dorms, the boys bickered halfheartedly about supposed asses being kicked, but Roman wasn’t all too worried about that anyway, when his brother was smiling bigger than he’d seen in days.

…

Remus was happy he loved his classes so much, otherwise the waiting for them to be over would have been torturous.

The field trips here didn’t work the same way as in other schools. The laser tag trip wouldn’t get them out of class. Instead, it gave them something to do in the afternoon.

It didn’t make waiting for it particularly easy, but Remus did appreciate that he didn’t have to miss out on the best class schedule he ever had to hang out with his brother.

That was, arguably, the best part, having some (somewhat) private time to bond with his brother. Roman was the reason he’d been brave enough to come to this crazy place, anyway, and they’d barely had time to hang out alone since they got there!

And then, of course, the whole Virgil thing had been happening, so Remus had been a bit too distracted to think about quality time with Roman.

Now, there was nothing stopping him from that time! He wiggled excitedly at the thought as the bell rang for the end of his last class.

He met up with Roman less than a minute after the bell at the front of the school. There were a few other kids coming, but Remus didn’t recognize any of them and Roman was too excited about brother bonding time to worry about any of them.

The twins easily recognized the school van they were giong to be taking on this trip, considering it was shockingly similar to public school vans. It briefly made Remus wonder where you could even buy one of these things, not that he wanted one. They were the kind of ugly only a school transporation vehicle could be.

He hadn’t noticed, but while he was lost in thought, they had started moving, and Roman had started talking. He tried to zone back into the conversation, but being zoned out in the first place tended to open up his mind to wandering- very far away… and now he was thinking about Virgil.

It probably wasn’t fair to be upset with him, and Remus wasn’t really. He was simply… frustrated about the hoops he had to jump through to talk to him. Virgil was excruciatingly closed off, and if only Remus knew why. That would certainly help him figure out a better way to ease him into communicating.

But that was also kind of exhausting, and he had plenty of other things he should be putting that energy into instead. It was totally worth it to put energy into caring about his friends! But when that energy wasn’t being reciprocated, it was going to get to a point where this wasn’t a healthy exhange.

Remus really didn’t want to give up on him, but it was starting to look like he might have to eventually.

He zoned back in to see Roman leaned very into his personal space, making eye contact to try and break him out of his brain. His twin smiled when Remus met that gaze.

“So, you’ve obviously still got something on your mind,” Roman stated, leaning back to sit next to him once more, “and you’re gonna talk about it. Right now, preferably.”

“I… yeah. I’m still stuck on the Virgil thing, I guess. Like… I’m not upset about it, but I… I’m just confused. Being shy is one thing, and not liking me as a person is another, but we’ve barely talked! And he wouldn’t even tell me he was uncomfortable until I’d already done something wrong! I just… really don’t get him, y’know? And I want to get him, in a healthy way, but I can’t!”

Roman frowned, shifting a bit closer to him. “Well, it might not be a bad time to talk to Dr. Picani about it. You don’t even have to tell him it’s Virgil, but I mean, from what I’ve heard, he gives pretty good advice, maybe even better than mine!”

Remus didn’t fall for the bait of the tease, but he did smile a little. “I- yeah, maybe I will. It’s something to consider, at least. I just wish it was… easier. Being a teenager with emotional problems is hard enough, and when they involve another person, it’s just… ugh, anyway, thanks, Ro. I’ll think about it.”

“Anytime, Re. And yeah, I get it. Just… don’t wear yourself out worrying about someone else, and honestly? I think it’s gonna work out, anyway.” Roman smiled at his brother as they got comfortable for the rest of the ride home. Maybe he couldn’t help his brother fix all his problems, but he could certainly be there for him everytime.

And then, their fond moment was swiftly interrupted by their excitement of reaching their destination.

The boys practically dragged each other out of the back of the van abomanation, only stopping to pay attention to when they had to leave and where they were supposed to meet their chaperone at the end of the day.

And then, they, along with the rest of the group of course, were off.

They were allowed to play five rounds if they wanted, and they could take breaks in between for snacks, or to check out some of the games nearby as the laser tag place doubled as an arcade.

The twins weren’t really focused on those parts at the moment. They were focused on the fastest way possible to decimate each other in a little friendly competition.

It took a minute to get suited up, and to request being on different teams, and then they had to wait for a full room of other players, which took another five minutes. Then, finally, they were released into the dim space, obstacles speckled with glow-in-the-dark paint flecks and tainted with a distinctly ‘arcade-y smell.

The countdown ended, and they were off.

Remus glanced at the infrared camera in his corner, watching another person on his go sprinting past. No sign of Roman yet, so he turned past one of the odd foam towers and turned to the edge of the space, trying to map out the area in his head.

Roman had started in the opposite corner. If he was strategizing like he normally did, he was most likely searching for other people that were easier to snipe than his brother, to get himself on the leaderboard before finding his actual target.

He broke out of his momentary brainstorm to jump past another opposing team member, zapping the back of their vest in the process.

One point, Remus.

A glance up at the scoreboard confirmed he needed to be faster than that, though. He zipped past someone crawling on the floor, jumping over them and scoring another point along the way.

There was a set of kids standing back to back. Remus used two hits in the same spot where their vests touched.

He was up to four points, Roman was only at three.

Where was he?

Remus turned, flattening himself against a wall and listening to the room. He’d almost done a full lap already, and no Roman? Almost like, his twin was circling at the same time-

*ZAP*

“Oh, you motherfucker!” Remus laughed, squinting at the bright red light pulsing from beneath him on his vest. He had been followed the whole time!

He shot out in the dark when the red pulsing finally faded, managing to hit someone running past a gap in two obstacles, but not Roman.

Sensing his twin had made himself scarce for the time being, he took another lap, darting around, and accidentally running into a wall to avoid running into a stranger.

Roman had six points, and so did he.

They were halfway through the round already, only five minutes left to get his brother back. He just needed to find him first.

It was risky, but he took a chance with one of the raised platforms, climbing up and laying on his stomach at first. He took a breath, then jumped up to see who he could find Two…four… five people, he ducked back down. No Roman, but at least he hadn’t been hit.

He jumped down and took another, much more cautious lap.

And there it was, a glint of white in the corner of his eye. He feigned the other direction, and when Roman’s vest popped out, he turned around and shot him right in the chest.

…Yeah, if this wasn’t laser tag, that would have been kind of grim.

He shot away from the pusling red with a gleeful laugh, despite the attention it was probably going to attract. He was one point ahead, but he was tied with his brother in spirit.

Three minutes left.

They ended up circling each other, lasers ringing out and point totals ticking up as the time ticked down. With thirty seconds left, Remus was a point ahead. But that wasn’t enough.

Roman was on his tail, he could feel his eyes. He crouched low to the floor and listened.

Dumb idea.

Being crouched slowed down his escape, and when his brother pounced, turning a corner and firing his laser, Remus’ only option was to flatten to the ground and try to roll away.

His vest turned red as he lay prone, and the lights turned on

“ROUND OVER. CONGRATULATIONS, TEAM RED.”

Remus groaned, keeping his face pressed to the floor to avoid Roman’s gaze. His twin laughed, offering a hand to help him stand.

“I almost found you, and we tied, anyway!” He complained, jumping up and walking in step with his giggling brother. “Yeah, but ya didn’t, and my team won! Close though, wanna go again?”

“Uh, of course, I wanna go again, I have to win back my honor!”

Roman laughed again, and Remus found that, despite the little disappointment he had and how he was slightly out of breath from running around, he was still able to laugh along.

#sanders sides fanfiction #tss storytime 2023 #cw gun mention #cw gun violence #kinda???#it's laser tag ok #let the twins have fun for once #remus sanders #roman sanders #cw cursing

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credince--writes · 1 year

Text

Reflection, Resistance

MORALITY

AO3

Jason Todd x Fem!OC(Camile Ford)

A/N:

Hello everyone! Coming in with a new chapter of Morality and i am SO happy to be writing on it again. This chapter is kind of going to be marking where I feel like is the 'reset' point. My style of writing has changed a LOT, plot is going to be the same but I just felt like doing a lot of reflection before I start moving back onto plot again just to give everyone a little bit of buffer space.

It was innocent.

It was meak.

It was pure-

At least the thought of the intentions being so.

The thought of her standing in the world, was as if it was destiny in a way.

To be a good little girl, always follow instructions and make sure that it was done well.

Make sure she was pretty while doing it.

Maybe it was her mother that taught her it, to be good and follow orders as she’d shrink back as a child listening to the verbal altercations. Scamper up the stairs into her room and close the door in that manner she’d practiced so many times to make sure it shut silently.

So that she’d give no reason for their attention to be diverted to her.

Maybe it was genetic, to be a fucking doormat.

It seemed like every woman she had known was like one, would roll over and take it after swallowing her pride and accepting it to just be that way.

God forbid they rise up, and actually do something about it.

Strive for a better fucking life.

It was this horrible catch-22.

This demon suppressed inside of her, at the threat of being held down by chains and the insane amount of fear crippling her personality.

She had watched the men, all of her life.

She knew, down to the fiber of her being what the flick of their hand caused their wife to immediately dismiss the conversation and shut her trap meant. The silent but always-understood language in the world of violence.

Didn’t mean it had to be physical, no.

The violence of stripping a woman of her value- the soft parts of her soul she would expose in love so easily accessible and taken.

But maybe that silly little part of Camile thought that she could be strong.

Like a man.

To stand up for what is right- even though she knew deep down a man wouldn’t do that without some overlying promise. Praise. Acceptance. Maybe to make some pussy more accessibly lured into his bed.

So when she first realized the inconsistencies. The poorly photoshopped receipts- the outright lies on paperwork and the showboating presentations where you knew his watch was fake. There was no way it could be real with his salary- but everything was a game of presentation and if he just slicked back his hair with enough grease he could convince the room to allow him to manage twenty-five million dollars worth of assets to throw at something to see if it makes anything of their ‘play money’.

Maybe she just didn’t realize that money needed to be cleaned.

That it needed to be processed in different ways to make it look less suspicious.

That the man who owned this company didn’t actually own this company.

And maybe she knew better.

Or maybe she didn’t.

Maybe she wanted to feel as if she had power in the room as if she really amounted to something and could stand over a man in a position of power and stare him down and really make him know what it felt like to be weak.

The kind of weak she felt every day in that God-forsaken office. The kind of weak where she would peel the skin off of her lips with her teeth, the familiar taste of blood seeping out and onto her tongue as she bit down to pull off more.

Or maybe it was an ego.

They say your daughter is most like her father.

Maybe that is why men are always so adamant to push them down. Suppress any flame that flickers inside of them because they know just how much of a monster she could be if allowed to run freely.

So men would try to do anything to snuff if out.

Make a pretty little housewife.

One that would make a fine little assistant or secretary.

“Never train your downfall. No offense dear, but you don’t exactly scream the type to be gunning for someone’s position. It makes you perfect for this transition. Someone quiet and willing to do the work assigned without the gusto to steal the rug from under them- if that makes much sense. It’s a compliment under all of those layers.”

Never train your downfall.

But she would sit, as if she were a child pressing her cheek up against the cold glass and staring up into he night sky in hopes that the clouds would thin just enough for her to be able to see the stars. She would fantasize about that moment when she would be able to prove herself- show off just what a monster she could be.

But she couldn’t.

She wouldn’t.

There was a line you needed to draw to be human.

To know what was right and wrong and to know how to keep the two sorted. To not cause harm to others in the ways that came so easy to a man. Their morals are being shifted like a flag in the wind of their crusade. Where she stood, staring down at the events of her life and trying to understand where exactly she should put the line if they were constantly stepping over it without any regard as to where it was placed. How they could so easily excel in their lives and careers because the concept of the cruelty they exuded onto another behind them didn’t pay them any mind.

The switch.

Just how easy it was for her to accept Broadstock for something- anything other than a wolf in sheep's clothing the first day she met him. Never coming to think of the circumstances that led him to be placed in Malory's position. Anything met with resistance was immediately removed and then replaced with something easily malleable for whoever was plotting from above. How she accepted him and trotted along his side like a fucking puppy excited to have a fresh face and thinking that it was on the up.

But it was not just the cruelty- she could take it. She was used to it. She could recognize his attempts to strip her down as if she were not equal to him. And the knew the steps he would take to continue- even if the mere sound of him raising his voice caused that pit in the bottom of her gut to fill with dread she would stand and take it to prove that she could. Just because she could stand and finally muster the courage- or gather the stupidity to snap back at him. As if she were a dog finally cornered to her limit she would lash back out, even it if meant it would result in beatings.

The fragility of her personality was highlighted in the fact that hot, angry tears would spill over her cheeks any time a man would yell at her. As if they should be granted the right- the pleasure to cause her to cry? And why? Only because she had been conditioned her whole life to roll over, beg and plead for forgiveness if she had done something that her master had not liked?

Maybe it was her fault. If she had only been smarter about the situation around her.

“I appreciate your attention to detail, but this really isn’t necessary.” Broadstock lets out a light chuckle, reaching across the table and grabbing the notepad.

“I don’t understand.”

If only she had said, “Oh, of course. I understand! How foolish of me I’m just blowing this out of proportion.”

Then it would be all ok, would it not?

If she had just turned a blind eye to it and continued to work.

The second she broke that facade of the perfectly obedient dog for him his personality shifted just as fast. Understanding that her resistance was not purely out of innocence.

“Well you obviously are pretty stupid, you haven’t been understanding much.” He quips.

The way his lips had curled up into that evil snarl. The way the glint in his eyes changed and how he so softly set his pen back down on the desk.

“I am telling you to do your job.”

But what was her job? As a woman, would it be to become the perfect, obedient little wife for someone to enjoy and tote around as if she were a trophy? Or would it be to become the perfectly placed land block approving fraudulent paperwork she knew she was signing off on that if it were criminally investigated she would take the fall on, because, in theory, he had never looked at the documents?

That was her job.

It was like a perfectly executed dance- everyone put into their places to follow their set of movements, moving and exchanging but some never interacting with each other but still having an impact on the outcome of its performance.

But how could she? Morally? Professionally? At this point, she had already killed one career in doing the right thing. Standing up against what was seemingly the exact same thing happening all over again in front of her and she couldn’t do anything to stop it. What would be the point in taking a stand and throwing herself like a lamb to the slaughter if there wouldn’t even be anyone to watch in protest? Even her standing up against him, alone in his office was enough to make the bottoms of her feet feel like they were lead.

Make her feel like she was a little girl all over again being scolded for not wearing the right color tights with her skirt- doing something wrong once again that would make her parents look bad. How dare she do this? How dare she act this way while she carried this family name? Did she not know who she represented? As if the preaching being crammed down her throat in that shitty little church with the too-big gravel parking lot that accumulated all of the holes would be any indicator of how much they ignored what should’ve been important. How could she watch them listen to what they were ‘supposed’ to be doing as the righteous and holy people they tried to convenience everyone they were while they simultaneously threw it out, poured it down the drain, and swallowed it allowing the burning liquid to roll down their throats and into their stomach.

Maybe it all melted down to that.

The feeling of the alcohol in her system blurs out the fear she would be eaten alive. She would no longer be that horrified shell of a girl- the one who was so softly-spoken and well-behaved. Oh, how they always complimented her behavior as a child. So mature for her age. That flask hidden away inside that drawer in her desk at work, where she’d crumble down onto her knees with the door slammed behind her where she’d open up that little metal trinket and suck the contents of it out and down her throat. Knowing that if she could just feel the buzz in her brain, that light fuzzy feeling when she started to get too scared that it would all be ok.

Manufactured bravery.

Because she knew she was not brave.

She was not a brave girl.

She was scared.

She was gentle.

She was not cut out for man's work.

A man's job would be to disregard the morals one would carry- cross any line that needed to be crossed to reach that goal.

But a woman? Oh, she was already too used to jumping through hoops and dragging her fingers across walls while she navigated the complicated world in hopes of not angering anyone or stepping on any toes.

But it came with its own terror. To not be afraid of those lines anymore when the alcohol clouded her judgment. Those walls that she found herself stretching her hand out to so many times were no longer there- as if the playing field had been leveled when her mind was silenced. The thousands of voices screaming their rules- criticizing her actions were silenced when the comforting buzz fogged her mind.

And it scared her even more because then she thought she would never be able to be brave without it-

That it would be her crutch.

And she’d fall into the claws she had seen so many other people fall victim too. How they would grip around their throats and tug them down. The poison becomes the crutch to everything- as if it were their insulin. But they had it to begin with- the alcohol flooding their system with some kind of synthetic so it no longer believed that it needed to produce anymore. That it was obviously was in a surplus and as the posion kept flooding into their system to try and reach that same level of confidence. The warm and fuzzy feeling pulsing through their blood and into their brain makes them feel like a happy, confident, strong person again.

But what if she had never had the confidence to begin with?

That is what she would use to justify it.

Her mother said that it would start like this.

That you’d have a reason to need it.

And if you would justify it- that means its claws were already too deep inside you, and that it was too late for you.

She’d argue it too, with herself, when it proved time and time again to be her crutch on the days she would get home after the hard days, the days it was the only thing filling the void of her sorrow and regrets.

But then there were the days when it became too much.

The anger.

Anger isn’t becoming on a woman. It isn’t a flattering emotion to walk into a room with. But you can only put so much deep down inside, locking it away and shoving it down any time it unearths in those hot, angry tears that seep out.

And it comes out in rebellion, no matter how small it may start.

“I am not signing off on this paperwork.”

“Then fine, I will find a new assistant who will do what they are told.”

Camile's eyes narrowed.

“Your paperwork is sloppy too, you know.” She states.

“What was that?”

“Your paperwork is sloppy too.”

She didn’t know where the words came from.

It was as if she were a teenager again, the hormonal spite raising up in her throat when she finally felt as if she had some ground to stand upon and call out the wrongdoings that had been passed down from generation to generation and were just lolled over. The words leaving her mouth before she could understand what she said-

And there it was.

The flicker.

The look in Broadstocks eyes was because he wasn't expecting her to bite back. He wasn’t expecting much at all from her really. Just expecting her to agree with him as he bared his fangs and made himself known as the wolf he was. Expecting the little sheep she was to wail in fright and accept her fate.

It was so small, she almost didn’t see it.

But it was as if she saw a glint of an oasis so far away she would never reach it. The water glimmered in the harsh sunlight pounding down on her from every direction. Where she knew that she’d have to summon all of the strength buried deep down even into her soul to reach there.

But blinking, only to realise it was a mirage and her hope to be gone.

But she’d think of that mirage. When she lay in bed, staring up in at the ceiling thinking of all of the different scenarios that could’ve happened if she had just had the confidence to stand up for herself and actually say something- do something and be someone.

But as soon as she would see the oasis she would crumple down to her knees, exhausted from the travel.

All to stand and watch the complacency strip her of the confidence she had thought she mustered.

Malory sighed. “I’m sorry sweetheart.”

It wasn’t good enough.

He was supposed to be the one in charge- and to see him sitting in silence- complacency to his words stung.

Camile's breath was shaking as she calmed herself down, quietly sniffling. “I’ve never been a pretty crier.” Camile lets out a small laugh, wiping her eyes. “What happened to basic ethics? I mean you can’t expect me to criminally involve myself with signing off on this garbage!” She exclaims.

“I don’t expect you to.” He sighs. “I wish this turned out differently. I thought it was going to be better.” He stood up, turned out, and looked out the window.

“You know when I first got into this office, this office gave me a sense of hope. I felt like this room was going to be the laboratory of great things.”

“Has it not?” She asks.

“It was. At first. But now it has become something else.”

Camile looks at him, as he quirks his head over to look at her.

“It’s become a tomb. And it’s going to be yours too.”

Her shoulders stiffened. “Then how do I stop it.”

He let out a breathy chuckle. “Do what I did.”

“What did you do, Malory?”

“You need to get rid of any of those ‘ethics’ you thought you should have to be a good person. It will only get you hurt in the end.”

Ethics.

To be a good person?

But she wanted to be a good person.

She wanted to be the one that extended help to those in need. She wanted to be the one to nurture those weaker than herself. To discard the morals and the ethics of who she was would be to disregard herself as a person. To rid herself of the humanity that made her better- in her own eyes than them.

But it was a burden.

A chain.

A chain that was tethered around her neck and tied to the ground.

But how could she consider herself good?

She was complacent.

She was allowing this all to happen.

Maybe they were right- that all of the goodness dies in you when you come to Gotham. Anything that makes you human is stripped from you in this fucking city.

That you can’t come here and expect to be the same, because the air that this place makes you breathe is different. It changes you. It makes you the monster that you try not to think of yourself- or it makes you the prey.

“Ah, yes thank you for coming! Come, come!” He waves for Camile to come forward and take a seat in front of his desk. “I hope the ride over was good?”

Camile gave him a light smile, “Of course, thank you for having a driver pick me up.”

Roman nodded. “So I hope that folder isn’t full of confetti… correct?”

Camile let out a small laugh. “No, I can assure you that these were the documents that you requested.” She set the folder down on his desk, pushing it forward to him.

It was as if she was standing in front of a demon, sliding paper working unknowingly over to him.

Roman leaned forward and grabbed the folder, sliding it to the side of his desk before putting his body weight down on his hand and leaning forward, obviously staring at Camile's face while he spoke.

“So how are you liking working with Broadstock?” He questions.

“Broadstock is a very efficient man when he puts his mind to something,” Camile states, trying to rid her tone of any distaste she had for the man.

“That’s good to hear, couldn’t help but notice our financial document approval has been quiet slow lately. Would you happen to know anything about that?” His eyes meet hers.

“Just being thorough. It is what makes us the best to work with.” Camile tries to give him a smile, hoping he would break his sight from her.

His face was like stone, frozen in almost a pout as he stared at her trying to drink the emotions from her face, and in a blink of an eye, he completely changed. Smiling again he let out a chuckle as he brought a hand up close to Camile’s cheek.

“You know Camile, you have gorgeous skin…”

And he spoke to her in a way only a man could’ve. The kind of way that immediately stepped over any lines just because he could. The kind of man that would request financial documents and then toss them into the fireplace right after because he didn’t really need them, no. He just wanted to see her face. Just wanted to lightly graze his fingers across the soft skin that adorned that timid- no, that gentle face of hers as she so complacently protected Broadstock even though he had done nothing but cause her pain.

Because that was her job.

But the fear. The anxiety that she would feel as her heart pounded in her chest that made her feel like she was skating around on a thin sheet of ice and could feel it cracking under her. That she knew if she moved the wrong way the ice would give way underneath. That in reality- she had no idea how to control the way her body moved on the ice- she was living on a whim. The ice would break out from underneath her at any given time and she would have no say in the matter. She would only sit on top of it and act as if she had some knowledge in the matter and think that she had control of the situation because that was what mattered.

The false sense of security that layered a warm blanket over her shivering anxieties.

That when her heart was pounding against her chest the auditorium of her mind would also be silent.

That she’d be standing on a stage, staring out into the crowd finally being able to hold of the mic and say exactly what her mind conjured up- deep from the depths she had tried to lock away.

“Fine.” Camile said, sweeping the thumb drives into her hands and placing them in a basket. “I’m leaving for the day.” She stands up and walks out her door.

“Why are you leaving?” Broadstock calls after her. “It’s only 5:45!” He raises his voice.

“My shift ends at 5!” Camile yells back, walking into the elevator.

That she’d be able to fight back- within her fight or flight response. As if the adrenaline pumping in her veins was enough to numb the feeling of fear and allow her to pretend that none of the strange things in her life had happened. That Roman’s comments didn’t make her feel like she wanted to crawl out of her skin- drag her nails across her flesh so they would scar so that she wouldn’t be so pretty anymore.

That when it rained, it poured.

Because one, after the other things kept spiraling.

Because if she had told herself a year ago that a masked vigilante would’ve seen her as someone important enough to know something?

She would’ve laughed.

But now?

She wanted to cry, grip the cold ceramic of her sink and sob. Begging to God to wonder what she had done to deserve all of this? Why couldn’t her life just be normal?

“I don’t even know what you're talking about! Why are you in my house!” She raises her voice, and the Red Hood grabs her head and pushes a finger up to her lips. “You wouldn’t want the neighbors to hear us having our little talk, would you?” She shakes her head no, and he lets go of her head.

“You met with him today. The Black Mask. Come on sweetheart you haven’t gone many places today.” The man explains, and you pause.

“Mister Sionis?” She responds back, and he claps his hands sarcastically.

“Oh! So she does know.”

“...What did you call him a second ago?”

“The Black Mask, do you watch any news, at all?” He questions.

“...No… It’s too depressing.” She answers. “Am I going to be in trouble for talking to you?” She asks.

“Not if you don’t have anything to hide.” He retorts.

To hide?

No.

But she couldn’t help but feel something in her click.

She wanted to know.

As sick as it was- the concept of the man interrogating her because she was important enough- strong enough to know something evil? Be involved in something that stepped over so many lines, that she was able to dance with fire.

And it made her think-

Of the masks.

Could she not make herself a mask? Could she not create herself a persona, as if she were nothing akin to something like him?

So she laughed.

“Everyone has something to hide, big man. How about we start with you?”

She had practice. She really did.

She was a young woman now- blossoming and becoming her own person. The strain in the back of her throat as she held that dead expression on her face as she stared into the face of her father as he screamed at her.

To show emotion in this situation would be not the close your door quietly enough. It would be to give the can of gas a match. He can’t react to your reactions if you have none. What would the pleasure be of stripping down the confidence and bravery of the little girl he was so afraid of growing up into a monster that could ruin his life- ruin his reputation? There is no pleasure when there is no response.

Do deprive the fire of its fuel.

“You aren't fooling me with this ‘I'm not scared’ gimmick you’ve been trying to pull.” He leans in. “Your heart is trying to beat out of your chest and I can just smell the fear radiating off of you.”

“Yea? What's it smell like then, red boy?”

She wanted him to say sour. Like a rotting corpse- like how she felt on the inside. As if she were decomposing acting as if she had any ounce of control when she really didn’t.

“It smells sweet on you, but on all the other men I get the pleasure to visit it is sour, and rancid.”

And it stirred something in her.

She entered the office building, hands shaking. She could feel her stomach churning with the nerves of the day, she felt like a failure. The room was caving in around her. The burning feeling of anxiety filled her middle. Making her way across the office building and walked into her office, eyes laying a daring glance at her desk. She blinked a few times and shook her head, opening her office door and looking around the floor. Her eyes made contact with the restroom door and she quickly made her way to it. Slamming and locking the door behind her. She made her way to the sink where she gripped the sides and stared into the mirror.

“You’re weak.” Camile spit at herself.

“You can’t be weak anymore.”

“Pick up the fucking pieces Camile, this is your last chance.” She gripped her nose, leaning her head back and looking at the ceiling.

“Just be the bitch. Be mean. They don’t care about you- stop caring about them- stop being so fucking weak!” She slapped her hand on the mirror in front of her, staring at herself in the reflection.

“You have to grab the room by the balls, Camile.” Tina explained. “You think you can just sway your ass into a room and expect to be gain their respect? These men are dogs. They have the mental capacity of dogs, that's why they are so easy to control. They keep an eye on a bone, but become so clouded in their own ego and thinking with their dick. That's why they put women in charge, Camile. Get your shit together and learn how to step up, or you will be stepped on.” Tina finished. “Now leave.”

“I’m not going to be weak anymore.”

"I want to be in charge." She stated. "I'm sick of this being pushed around and not knowing whats going on. I want to be in charge of something, I want to be the one making the commands."

“You need to get rid of any of those ‘ethics’ you thought you should have to be a good person. It will only get you hurt in the end.”

She could be a good person and walk that line. She would play the game- even if she was made of porcelain and cracked along the way. She would be able to take the pressure- she would be able to prove herself and prove that she can and will take what she really wants if she put her mind to it.

Would she not be able to wear her mask and create her own persona just as Red had? To harden her exterior in a way that she could build herself in the vision that they tried so hard to destroy all her youth?

Camile's chest puffed up. "I don't exactly see why you care. We don't know each other, all you are is some asshole who keeps breaking into my house and demanding information.

"Yes. That's how interrogations work."

"Well, I am a woman of business. Give me something I'd like to know and I'll get you anything you'd like."

She could have morals, and walk the line.

“I can’t say I was expecting a call.” Red states.

“Would it be business if I didn’t get my end of the deal?”

“I suppose not.”

“I need you to work your magic for me, big boy.”

And she would build it up, slowly. Brick by brick every night that she went home and hse would coach to herself in the mirror as if she were creating an entirely new human. But she wasn’t. She was just looking back into herself, digging through the mountains of memories and emotions and remembering every action- every combatant they would have against her and her own actions, and how she could turn it against them.

Why would such a pretty, innocent face ever work in a way to make the clients angry?

She had been doing her job in the fucking useless market that Real Estate was. And she had been walking the line better than she had even known she could. Using her sweet voice to talk to the property owners, the old woman who owned the shop. The desperate son of a cripples factory owner. Shere she would have Sammy behind her holding a checkbook and asking them to name a price.

Any price.

And she would buy up their property and make their problems go away in the best way that was possible.

With cash.

And she built her portfolio, playing the game as the gentle woman with a firm attitude that would get what she wanted as she purchased property. Calling out the blatant issues that they weren’t expecting her to say. Demanding pennies on the dollar for properties and slowly buying some fo the worst areas of Gotham.

And when the properties had a problem?

She would make them go away.

Not by herself, of course. She was a good person. She was the good person in this scenario, not allowing Red to fall into too much debt to her, and cleaning out the city slowly as she acquired properties to the massively building acquisition portfolio she was building- and impressing upon the clients during the meetings.

Standing in front of the projection of the wall explaining the acquisitions moving at such a fast rate that they were over a year ahead of schedule, and why would that be?

Maybe it was because of his soft, gentle voice.

Maybe it was because the men would stare at her ass while she left and watched the way her lips moved as she spoke. Maybe it was even a day they could see her breasts perked up in her blouse.

The exterior interactions built her confidence, providing her with the equipment to build the walls up, creating a facade that was stronger than any relationship she had seen in her life. And she was succeeding in it too. Keeping her morals, staying good.

Being a good person.

Choking down copious amounts of alcohol every night because of the tension in her heart- the pattering of it against her chest because she knew when she was in the threshold of her home she could allow it to fall. That she was crumbling under the pressure of the weight she built onto her shoulders.

And it made a bitter, vile substance seep off of her.

When she had first felt it, she had been disgusted in herself. Wondering where she had gone wrong-

But as she stared at the venom that dripped out of her pores she realised what it could be used to do, and dare she say she’d scrape the venom off of anywhere she could find and store it for later.

Would that be crossing the line?

“I wasn’t aware this was going to be a formal meeting, Mister Malory,” Camile spoke, breaking the silence of the moment.

“It's not a formal meeting Camile, sit down,” Malory spoke, motioning for her to sit down next to him.

She made her way across the room and sat down. Making eye contact with Broadstock at the end he shot her back a wicked grin.

“Hello Miss Camile, we did have to organize an emergency meeting in reference to one of our accounts, so sorry the meeting couldn’t have been better arranged,” Broadstock spoke to her, with a false tinge of concern in his voice.

It would be like the pepper spray she kept attached to her key chain, the dinky little plastic the weak attempt to protect herself if need be. And she’d clutch it in her hand as she walked alone in the dark.

“Hmm.” Camile responded back. Looking at the two other men, holding her eye contact as evenly as possible between the two other men in the room. “And what exactly is the issue here?”

Even if she cowered internally. She would hold it close.

Broadstock stood up and slammed his hand down on the table, as the disfigured man folded his hands on the table watching the interaction unfold in front of him. “Thanks to the stunts you’ve been pulling with incorrect numbers, we have had three investors pull the carpet from under us in the last twenty-four hours.” He snaps.

“How is that my fault?” Camile quirked an eyebrow, watching Broadstocks confidence quickly falter.

“Because of you! Because of what you said at the meeting!”

“That… the numbers I used were wrong? The same ones that have been vetted with our third party accounting group when yours are under contest for falsehoods?”

“You know what you did! Your actions spoke for you!” Broadstock yelled.

And that was when she let the venom- as weak as it was let loose.

“No, you had investors pull because they realized that if you were giving faulty numbers to your management team, you are hiding things from the investors. Just like the ROI. And you know what that makes me think Broadstock?” Camile questions, standing up from her seat and elevating her position in the room.

“I think you’re trying to hide your negligent mismanagement and embezzlement, and I'm sure any half-witted accountant could find evidence of the theory.” She looked at Malory. “And you. You’re retired. Go home, see your wife. You shouldn’t have to mediate him throwing a tantrum.”

“I’m going home.” She finishes.

And she saw it.

Her first glimpse.

Her first true glimpse.

If even only for a moment- for she could not turn and relish in the feeling of the man's fear dancing around in his eyes.

Malory nodded. “Have a good night, Camile. I think this meeting has resolved itself to the original goal.” He stood, and so did the man with the blood-red tie. And for the first time in the whole meeting, he spoke.

“Really, Broadstock? Forging documents?” He laughed. “We are going to need to discuss these concerns with upper management.” Broadstocks eyes bulged, and he began to beg and plead for him to reconsider- he would never hurt the company.

And she wallowed in it as if it were the oasis in the desert. Even if it were only a drop.

But as the night would age on, the bottle in her hand would grow heavy.

She would understand his words.

“You are in over your head.” He cuts her off. “And I don’t necessarily want to see your brains getting sprayed off the pavement.”

“I think that could be arranged, but you-” he points at her. “Need to watch your neck. You don’t know what fire you're playing with.”

And she would start to crumble in under the weight of herself. And she’d end up out there, with the hard compressed dirt surrounding the chain, the circumference of the dogs life. It didn’t leave that circle. There it got food from passersby, and a shitty little dog house to sleep in. The dog would run in circles for the rest of its life, never feeling real grass. And she would become that dog- running feral until it was caught because it was too cocky. It thought it was fast enough, strong enough.

And it would stare up to the stars at night dreaming of freedom.

Suddenly the collar gave way, slipping over the dog's head relieving it of the collar wrapped around its neck, sending it falling towards the ground. After it landed, it scuttled away, running towards the fence gate, running out into the street and into an alleyway.

“Ha! Yes! Run!” Camile yelled after it. “Run away!”

“Oh…” She sighed happily, bringing up her bloodied arm to rest it on her shoulder, resting her forehead against his chest plate. “Freedom.”

“What?” He questioned hysterically. “You are fuckin’ bleeding everywhere, you fought a street dog!”

“I freed it.” She corrected.

Freedom.

She’d need power to acquire it.

#Jason todd x reader #Jason todd x oc #jason todd #Jason todd fanfic #Batman fanfiction #Red hood x reader #red hood fanfic

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chaotic-tired-cat · 6 months

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trick or treat!!!

Happy Halloween, Anon!!!

The closest I have to a Halloween special is a series of snippets I kind of wandered into writing, but they seem pretty fitting! These are from World Walker: Aftershocks, which is really a bunch of scenes made to figure out where the characters are going to end up.

This involves no World Walker or canon bnha spoilers, and is very sparsely edited. DimensionTravel!Izuku hunts ghosts with this background character below the cut, inspired by Buzzfeed Unsolved, YUTS, and Game Changer. Interviewer OCs are named Ran, Myuki, Kaito, and Tatsuya. Cryptid's PR guy is named Dai.

Tw: ghosts and related topics.

Cryptid ducks under the doorway.

Ran visibly falters.

Cryptid's agency did all of the communication with them, supposedly because Cryptid himself is a workaholic who handles emergencies not just here, but also wherever else he disappears to. He also has a tendency to choose interviews near emergencies that unfold in a predictable future for him and a horrible surprise for everyone else, so apparently it's safer for everyone involved if he makes his own patrol schedule for the agency to work around. Dai from PR was lovely to talk to. They have no complaints.

But Dai from PR neglected to mention exactly what Cryptid is like in person. Cameras glitch out occasionally and secondhand accounts grow either poetic or lack detail, so they had no real warning about this. Tatsuya is abruptly aware that the fanart is perhaps more accurate than photos of this hero, which would be funny if he were able to breathe right now.

Cryptid looks horrifying.

Unseen wind stirs green hair. His dark costume highlights the fact that his shadow pulls an echo of stars up from the floorboards, and the sharp teeth of his smile that forces his mouth open slightly. When he looks at them, a galaxy rests in his eyes.

He steps forward. There is something distinctly unnatural in the way those joints move.

Ran audibly inhales through her teeth.

The next step is better, then the next. Cryptid's back straightens and his mouth closes into something more human. The stars and eerie presence are packaged away, folded up and tucked into the hero like a coat left at the door. It makes being affected by an unfelt wind and possessing odd-bright eyes feel like any other quirk.

"Hello," Cryptid says kindly, stopping a fair distance away, which is greatly appreciated. He tucks his hands behind his back, posture unthreatening. "Are you Ran?"

"Yeah," she gulps. "Um. Your agency said we should do an interactive interview with you?"

"Dai has been very accommodating," Cryptid agrees serenely. "And the void stops screaming at me when it thinks I'm busy."

"Oh?" Ran asks, voice pitched just a touch higher than normal, but she's too good an interviewer to let that leading statement go. "What do you mean?"

"There's a version of me trying to swallow the sky in another universe, and the void wants me to watch." Cryptid gestures, shoulders now hunched to communicate lack of threat. "But moving around will help convince it that I'm busy, so I really do appreciate you all changing so much of your schedule to make this work."

"It's no problem," Ran says. Ironclad control returns, one of the reasons she was chosen for this activity. "I have a list of pre-interview topics here. Anything else you want to talk about or avoid can be added to the paperwork, and we will be including your agency in the editing process whenever your quirk is discussed."

Tatsuya continues unpacking equipment as Cryptid irons out their details.

They have two guests on the game show today. Both heroes were on their list of candidates, but after hearing Cryptid's situation, an idea was pitched. Adding in Exorcism: the Ghost Hero to this was a stroke of genius. It'll make an amazing special.

Onemu Shinya waits by the car, discussing things with her own interview team of Miyuki and Kaito.

Six people, two of which are heroes. Three, gods help them, are thrill-seekers. Tatsuya was the only person in the office who saw bargaining power for what it was when the crew was short one member. They are paying him a lot to film and make snarky commentary behind the camera. Life is good.

Neither of the heroes know what the schedule holds.

Then again, they probably know it'll be odd. Burnt Honest Tea sits halfway between a game show and news organization due to hiring more actors and comedians than journalists. Everyone here has some kind of past in the entertainment district. The employee-owned business model is a wreck. They do comedy. Humor. A little gossip, when it's lighthearted and everyone involved is fine with it getting aired, but that’s a rare one. Celebrity guests are more likely to get dumped in a room full of puppies than interviewed from an armchair.

They figured out a while ago that since heroes have licenses for public quirk use, they could hire a bunch of weirdos to conduct interviews in the most extreme places possible. This is legally and logistically a nightmare. Crucially, it also sells really well because nobody else is willing to make a whole business around that model.

It takes a while for set-up to finish, and the heroes are brought to the front of the eerie brick building. It likely has been abandoned for longer than anyone here has been alive.

Probably.

Their two guests are odd enough that Tatsuya cant help but suspect otherwise. He suggested the question during one of the meetings and got shot down, though.

The two heroes wait patiently by the door as set up finishes.

Cameras and mics checked, lights on, introductions finished, and ground rules reiterated.

Filming starts.

“So what are we doing?” Exorcist asks, and Tatsuya winces preemptively. She has to suspect they’re going-

"Ghost hunting," Ran says.

Exorcism closes her eyes, and Cryptid nods thoughtfully before sticking his entire arm into a circle of blazing starlight. He pulls out a pair of gloves, and tugs off his own, revealing what looks like tattoos underneath.

Exorcism sighs, eyes still closed. "You can punch ghosts now, can't you?"

"I can punch ghosts," Cryptid agrees sagely as he puts on the new gloves, then holds up a cautious hand. "...Will it launch your soul out of your body if you touch these?"

Exorcism high-fives him.

"Guess not."

Tatsuya just knows today is going to be great.

"Hello," Cryptid says to the hallway, exactly as he greeted Ran earlier. It makes the underlying message clearer - don't be scared, I will not harm you, I know I am frightening and promise not to move too fast or speak too loudly. "I don't have any dominion over life and death, but we can speak if you'd like."

"You're very kind," Exorcism tells him with a pat to the back, then stomps past him into the hallway with Kaito and Miyuki on her heels. "Hey, ghosts! If you got a problem, now's the time to speak up!"

Unearthly screeching fills the building.

"Get their ass," Cryptid says, completely straight-faced. A door slams down the hall, and Kaito screams. Cryptid looks more alarmed at the scream than the haunted door.

"Hey, friend!" Exorcism yells in the same instant. "Ooh, you've got vibes. Where's that shirt from? It's cute."

"So," Cryptid says as he turns to Ran and Tatsuya, "shall we?"

"This was such a mistake," Tatsuya says. Ran shoots him a look that disagrees, and he zooms in on it just to be petty.

Exorcism considers the door, then turns to the empty space to her left with a raised eyebrow. She's gone a little translucent.

"Sure," she tells the patch of air. Then, "this is your local service announcement; big noise incoming."

"Go for it," Cryptid says distractedly as he pokes at a ratty, bug-infested curtain. It blocks off a corner of secrets Tatsuya has zero interest in. He is, unfortunately, the only person to feel this way. Ran gestures at him. It's a loving one. The kind that implies she will kill him in his sleep if he misses whatever bullshit their local Wikipedia-classified cryptid is about to pull.

It's fine. He's not in charge of filming Exorcism.

That hero is busy counting down her big noise out loud. It's very appreciated. Tatsuya has plenty of time to brace, so the abrupt crash of wooden planks is almost comfortable. He gives it a three-count before glancing back.

Exorcism tosses aside a piece of the door she just kicked in. She turns around to scan them all for injuries, with only a glance into the whole new room of horrors she just uncorked for their miserable little field trip. Then again, she's a hero known to get information from ghosts. This is her home turf.

Tatsuya flinches when Kaito lurches back from the broken doorway, face ashen.

Exorcism pauses.

She leans back, peering inside for a second assessment of whatever she unleashed.

"Hm," she says, fully awake for the very first time. Tatsuya's stomach flips upside-down.

"What's up?" Cryptid asks over from where he's placing a line of ginger candies under the most cursed piece of furniture to ever exist. Tatsuya isn't the faintest bit religious, superstitious, or even faintly curious about these kinds of things, but even he knows that broken chair has some seriously bad vibes. If they set an apple on it, that fruit would definitely rot in seconds. It is extremely unnerving. Ran hovers over Cryptid's shoulder as the hero happily arranges some kind of offering, torn between her own curiosity and nausea.

"This isn't mine to deal with," Exorcism says, brushing a hand over the wall. The shadows under her hand glitch out in real-time and is honestly the weirdest thing Tatsuya has seen in his life.

He holds his camera steady and exchanges a look with Kaito. Miyuki wanders over to serenely hold up what looks to be a Geiger counter. The little box ticks in a slow but uneven little pattern until she presses it to the wall.

The ticking turns slightly chime-like, then stops.

Tatsuya is fairly sure this isn't supposed to happen, but his science knowledge levels out at baking soda and vinegar. Miyuki, who has the kind of brain that saw her through engineering at Waseda until she decided it didn't spark joy, looks personally affronted.

"Ah," Cryptid says, hesitantly approaching. "Yeah, that'd be me. Thanks for catching it."

Tatsuya is very nervous about how Cryptid seems to be using Exorcism as a meat shield against the wall, until he notices that Cryptid isn't actually avoiding the wall at all.

Miyuki, with her massive brainpower, picks up on the source of his nerves as well. It's probably easier for her, since she seems to be the epicenter.

She looks at the dead silent box she is currently pressing into the wall.

The wall shivers hypnotically.

"Don't," Cryptid murmurs. It's unclear who he's talking to. "I did not make a deal with you to punch ghosts so you could-"

Exorcist swipes the box from Miyuki and tosses it to Cryptid, who yelps, fumbles, and catches it. The freshly returned ticking halts the second he has both hands on it. Instead, there's just one, constant, note.

Like a dial tone.

Cryptid stares at it in betrayal.

"Uh, so-" Ran clears her throat. "Are you doin' alright, buddy?"

"I am feeling very grateful for those NDAs," is all Cryptid says. "Um. Anyway. This is normal?"

He doesn't sound very sure.

"Kid," Exorcism sighs.

"It's completely expected," Cryptid hisses at her desperately.

"I'm drinking buddies with Eraser," Exorcism says, and Cryptid seems to deflate.

"Okay, so it might be normal but I honestly stopped trying to track what my quirk changes about me when I was so much shorter than this." Cryptid sighs, dial-tone box now clutched to his chest. It seems to be making the screaming note almost musical in an unearthly way. The realization of how that noise is shaping into an echo of a heartbeat raises hair on the back of Tatsuya's neck.

"That's messed up," Kaito tells him gently. "Aren't heroes supposed to be really good at using their quirks?"

Cryptid snorts. "That is a very long discussion nobody here except maybe Exorcism would enjoy having. Let's just say my quirk is the ability to skydive through an Old God, but testing limits weakens the barrier between my existence and its control?"

Exorcism pats him on the shoulder, and something like understanding seems to pass between them.

Something breaks in the room behind Tatsuya.

Every single member of their unfortunate little filming party is in this room, along with both their heroes.

"Let's go meet the neighbors," Exorcism decides, and leader her two adrenaline junkies away. It leaves Tatsuya in this room with his local cryptid and bad influence. Ran, despite getting them all into this mess of an interview, jumps slightly when Exorcism yells, "hey, friend!" loud enough to be heard through the wall.

Cryptid seems more interested in the fact that his cursed little offering has disappeared from the chair. Ran huddles after him.

"You are so weird," Tatsuya tells the hero gently.

"Yeah, well." Cryptid shrugs and pats Ran's white knuckles, which are currently clenched in his costume jacket. "Unknowable things aren't bad. Humans fear them, because a problem without definition is a problem that can't be controlled."

The way he says it separates them into two groups - humans, and whatever he is - which inspires the same curiosity Tatsuya feels when looking down from a cliff or skyscraper window. He can appreciate the danger mere inches away. He also wants to toss a paper plane at it.

"That's not how any of this works," Exorcism says through a yawn as she steps back through the broken-down door. The onmyouji pauses, noticing Ran breathing through her adrenaline. "Sorry, are you okay? Yes? Okay, just let us know."

"Maybe this was a bad idea," Cryptid murmurs as he pats the interviewer's shoulder. "We can go-"

"No," Ran interrupts in a wheeze. "I am having the time of my life. Let's keep rolling."

"Adrenaline junkie," Kaito says from the doorway, despite being sheet-white and grinning like a lunatic.

Cryptid and Exorcism exchange a look.

"You'll tell us the moment any of you want out," Cryptid says to the four of them. It's not a request so much as an order. "We're not going any further until I know everyone is completely fine with this."

A chorus or agreement rises, and Exorcism yawns.

"You were saying something," Ran says, once again showing that she's the only one here actually trained to host anything. "About how Cryptid is wrong about the nature of unknown things?"

Exorcism pauses, visibly trying to recall. "I was. Yeah. Basically, we fear what we don't understand for a very good reason."

"Doesn't mean you can't make a home out of it," Cryptid says.

"Are you not human?" Tatsuya asks, because it feels like they skipped over that little comment implying he isn't.

"In the way you're asking? Yeah. I was born human, I register to call-response quirk users, and I am capable of passing DNA tests in the right circumstances. In the way that matters-" Cryptid shrugs. "No. I'm a loophole."

Delightful.

That explains nothing.

"Could you explain what a loophole means in this context?" Ran asks. Miyuki smiles at her in a way that says, I could kiss you for keeping us on topic right now.

Blood runs down the wall.

"Huh," Cryptid says, completely unbothered by the many people now clinging to him. "That is one way to decorate. A bit too much red for me, personally, but it would look great in a children's hospital."

"Oh my God," Kaito garbles.

Exorcism muffles a yawn and pats him on the shoulder. "You okay?"

"Yeah," Kaito creaks. Cryptid takes their elbows and leads them to a very dusty chair, where he starts talking them through a breathing exercise. It works, and Tatsuya keeps his camera on the very haunted painting everyone seems to be ignoring.

"It's good that we brought heroes," Miyuki says serenely.

Cryptid pauses as he tries to figure out what to say to that, which gives Exorcism time to be distracted by the blood dripping down a wall from inside the picture frame. Tatsuya turns his camera just in time to catch her place both hands on the wet red wood, lean in, and lick that nasty, dust-clumped, haunted blood. She makes a face at what he guesses is the flavor, then walks right out the door.

Her team follows, hopefully to ask her what in the world she was just thinking. Ran watches them leave from the door. This is great until it leaves him with Cryptid and a bleeding painting.

"Oh, that's funny," Cryptid says under his breath. He claws open a section of thin air through the painting. Tatsuya's camera glitches at the bright-dark void, but Cryptid casually leans out to inspect something on the other side. Plastic crinkles. He tugs something out, stuffs it in his pocket, and pats something that sounds like fabric.

The air to his left starts bleeding.

Just.

The air.

Dripping red.

It falls to the ground since there's nothing for the liquid to cling to, leaving Tatsuya very freaked out by the spontaneous puddle of red on the floor.

"UH," Tatsuya says, then has to shove at Ran before she can poke it.

Cryptid laughs a little, in a quiet way that's oddly reassuring. Nobody laughs like that when they're panicked. "We're very safe. That one wasn't a ghost."

This is not helpful news. Well, it is helpful in that it's good content, but Tatsuya is beginning to wonder if he's really being paid enough to witness this.

"So, what are you doing?" Ran asks. Cryptid clicks his tongue at whatever he's seeing, then moves a bit to the side so Ran can sidle up next to him and also lean out. She turns a little green but bravely stays put.

"Spring cleaning," Cryptid says. "It's really rude to litter in the void, but sometimes this happens anyway. So I'll just-"

He moves as if wiping something outside the portal, and the patch of spontaneous blood dumps a full bucket onto this already haunted floor.

Ran reaches back blindly, and Tatsuya reluctantly takes her place. Cryptid, blessedly, does not notice Ran trying to get Tatsuya and his camera to the portal. He shuts it the second she's out. Tatsuya can't help but feel a little relieved at being spared the burden of witnessing whatever Ran saw.

He likes not knowing, sometimes.

Ran fixes this by turning to him with very wide eyes and saying, "there was, I Kid you not, a wall of fabric, and so many stars. He found blood on the fabric and shoved it in, and it was like it wanted? To go?"

"Do you need to sit down?" Cryptid asks her gently.

"I saw the void, and it had so much shit in it," Ran tells Tatsuya and his camera. Cryptid very gently takes one of the hands she's gesturing with and pats it to catch her attention.

"It is very big," Cryptid agrees serenely. Ran frantically points at the painting, which has stopped dripping.

"Big," she repeats. "Big is small compared to whatever that was."

Tatsuya nervously shifts.

"It is also an ecosystem," Cryptid continues, slow and calm. "What you saw is no different than a forest, or the ocean. It is a perfectly natural part of the way things work, just a part you weren't aware of."

"There was nothing natural about that," Ran hisses.

"Pigeons make milk," Cryptid says, which- what? The unexpected announcement has Ran startling right out of her existential crisis. "There are species of jellyfish so rare they've only been caught on camera once. There's a river in England that looks like a brook from the top, but is so narrow and deep that putting a foot in would suck you right down. Many strange things exist in the world that you have not discovered yet. This does not make them wrong, or bad. It does also not invalidate your experience with them if anyone chooses to believe what you have experienced does not exist. Okay?"

Ran stares at him.

Cryptid meets her eyes steadily. "You are right about what you saw, no matter what people may try to tell you. And you are not alone in your knowledge of it. Everything is working as it should."

Ran keeps staring at him, until Cryptid slowly opens one arm in an offer. He lets the interviewer choose how close she gets, then stands there with an arm draped over Ran's shoulders like it's the most natural thing in the world.

A spider skitters across the ceiling.

"We are going to stand here and breathe for a little bit," Cryptid says easily. He glances at Tatsuya. "How are you holding up?"

"You've seen someone go mad from this," Tatsuya realizes. His mouth puts it into words before he can stop the conclusion from lying dead as a ghost in the stifling air between them.

"Not yet," Cryptid says. He glances at Ran, then up at the dust and cobwebs.

Not yet.

There is subtext in those two words.

Tatsuya finds his heart speeding up.

The reason these interviews are safe and worth doing is that they are conducted with trained rescue specialists. The danger is chosen specifically to be something these heroes can handle in their sleep.

The danger is not supposed to come from the hero-

"Can you smell that?" Cryptid asks, cutting through Tatsuya's gasping panic.

What-

He inhales, finds he's breathing too quickly, and forces his lungs to cooperate. Two deep breaths later, he glares at Cryptid.

"Any iron?" The hero asks. "Deep breaths, long and slow. There you go, just like that. Can you smell iron?"

"You bastard," Tatsuya wheezes.

"I'm very manipulative, yes," Cryptid says serenely.

"No iron," Ran creaks.

"Fake blood," Cryptid says. He shrugs the shoulder Ran hasn't claimed at Tatsuya's disbelief and adds, "someone pranked your show. Not with whatever Onemu is doing - the void loves her too much to interfere in that. But it did allow someone to set up that painting specifically to fuck with me."

What.

"Why did I agree to this?" Tatsuya asks under his breath.

"Because you had a formative experience at thirteen where you realized surrounding yourself with extroverts and people who thrive in odd situations brings you more happiness than any desk job," Cryptid explains. Tatsuya fumbles with his very expensive equipment. "Also, I suspect you're being paid a fair amount, but really it's the same as Kaito. Y'all really should compare wages."

"We're keeping you," Ran decides from where she's pressing her hands into her face.

Cryptid grins at the ceiling, which Ran misses entirely. His smile is too wide, too sharp, and stars bleed from his shadow. "Good luck. I am not made to be contained."

Mundane cheer takes its place by the time Ran shakes her head and steps away.

Tatsuya was holding the camera, though.

Izuku waits on the building roof.

"When did you figure out it was me?"

Not needing to turn around to identify the speaker, Izuku just heaves a sigh. The empty bag of fake blood crinkles from his belt pouch. "Nobody else would."

Cloud makes a disgruntled noise.

"And that last thud upstairs was very good, but when you swear into the Null about hitting your elbow on a brick wall, I can hear it."

Cloud frowns.

"I thought you hated ghosts?" Izuku asks, and gets a strange look for the question. As if Cloud hasn't put string ghost traps on top of several versions of the cafe.

"There was nothing supernatural about that place. Guess they were ghosting you."

"Then who was Exorcism talking with?"

"She wasn't talking to-" Cloud loses about two shades of color and backs up a bit. "Right. Cool. I'm gonna- uh. Go cleanse myself in a temple or something-"

"Did you not know?!"

"No," Cloud hisses back, hair bristling slightly like a cat. "I don't mess with ghosts. They get hungry and-" he breaks off, gesturing. "I don't know shit about exorcism, but that is very much not something I want to mess with!"

"I've seen you pickpocket an HPSC president," Izuku says, mildly offended and not sure why.

#anon #trick or treat ask game #world walker #world walker: aftershocks #fic snippet #its long but i don't mind posting the whole thing #oc names are ripped from friends and a name generator

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