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mickyschumacher · 9 months

Note

hi! I love the way you write and I’d love to see some Daniel Ricciardo or Oscar Piastri content!! Older brother’s best friend and something including model!reader or figureskater!reader. I also cannot begin to describe how much I love your Taylor song based fics. I was hooked on Style and Dress, thank you, have a wonderful day :)

𝐈 𝐂𝐀𝐍 𝐒𝐄𝐄 𝐘𝐎𝐔 .ೃ࿐

𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐘: you don't have much in common with oscar piastri other than three things: you're both rare talents, you know each other through your older brother, and that, unknowingly, you both really like each other.

𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒: older brother's best friend trope! (although not heavily enforced), suggestive but nothing crude, poor ice skating knowledge, mentions of the spa track, crashing and DNFing, reader likes to blame things on alcohol, lily (oscar's current gf) is his ex (oops), slight diss of tsitp, jealousy!!!, scene of harassment and a creepy man, a physical altercation in which oscar gets physically hurt, attending the wounded scene! (sobbing rn), a cute and horribly cheesy, fluffy ending!

𝐏𝐀𝐈𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆: oscar piastri x figureskater!fem!reader, arthur leclerc x reader

𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐃 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐓: 5k+ (um srry hehe)

𝐀/𝐍: i wanted to this was oscar but since he's kinda young, i did a one year age gap bc the territory of 'the older brother's best friend' for piastri is alarming to say the least. i also assumed it was a female reader due to my other works, hope that and this whole piece is okay!!

𝐏.𝐒: if you couldn't tell, it's loosely based off of taylor swift's 'i can see you' bc i ended up losing track lmao. sorry for taking FOREVER but coming back from holiday, going straight back into uni, and having writer's block is the worst combo 🤧 as usual, poorly proof read!

𝐌𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓

⋆ •°. 。 .°• ⋆

In a world of billions, quite strangely yet only logically, there were many talented people across the globe. But very few were be a World Champion let alone the opportunity. You were part of this few. The Youngest World Champion in figure skating in history, a two-time World Champion and the 2022 Olympic winner.

You were a living legacy in your town.

Of course, you couldn't do it without the support of the people you loved. Your parents attended all your competitions. In fact, your father was the one who had brought you to the ice when you were three. And your brother, no matter how much of a menace he was, he was your number one fan. Despite all the things he had to do, he was always there for you.

Your brother was one of those Australian boys who had turned their passion for dirt biking into a career for motorcross racing.

Naturally, he had found a friend who was also very interested in racing. However, instead he loved driving a open wheel single-seater formula racing car at crazy speeds. That friend was Oscar Piastri. A childhood best friend of your brother's and a sort of acquaintance slash family friend of yours.

It worried you two see some of the most important people in your lives risk death almost every day but you enjoyed watching them do something they loved.

You could see it in their eyes when they raced. It was the same passion you had for the ice. The slivers of ice that occasionally touched your skin thrilled you was the same excitement that coursed through the two Aussies when they felt their engines rev.

It was odd. You could've sworn a few days ago, you were all kids playing in the backyard of your house; your brother riding his toy bike while Oscar raced him on foot and you commentated in Oscar's favour to piss your brother off. And now all three of you were leading your careers: you were a competitive figure skater, your brother was slamming the MXGP and Oscar was one of the best rookies introduced to F1 in a while.

Where time had gone... you could not even begin to wonder. Heck, once upon a time you were staring down Oscar in the school hallways because for some reason you could only talk to him outside of school. And now... well, it was complicated to say the least.

You had always liked Oscar. It was difficult not to. He was always around you. The boyish charm, the small smiles, the puppy brown eyes, his offers to help you with your homework, you visiting him when he raced... everything had built up inside you. It was festering.

But that's how you liked it. You didn't want to cross any lines. As heart-racing and flustering as your crush on him was, you could not bear the idea of telling someone who was brotherly to you that you liked him.

It was repulsing.

And as far as his dating history could went, Oscar didn't like you. Oscar wasn't a player but he definitely didn't like being single from what you could tell.

To be honest, considering you didn't see him that much due both of your schedules, nothing between the both of you would've ever happened if you're annual family holiday hadn't happened.

Your family and the Piastri's took time out at least once a year to relax together. And this year, your brother and Oscar's breaks overlapped, and you had persuaded your coach for two weeks off. That was all the both of your parents needed before booking a trip to Greece. Everyone wanted to go when they were younger and now they could finally go.

Two weeks... not much could happen. At least so you thought.

The moment you saw Oscar in Greece, your heart thumped against your chest like it had never before and you knew you were screwed. It was ridiculous. How after all the time did you still like this stupid driver? He was the root cause of your lonely love life. Which for most figure skaters was not a big deal... you had prospect lovers falling left and right. Especially the guys in pair skating. But no... you were head over heels for Oscar out of all people.

With the firm boundaries you had made, you ventured to not make a big deal about what you were feeling and pushed it to the side. But the thing about pushing things away, they have a funny way of coming back up.

━━━━━━━━━━━

On the first night of your much needed vacation, you had found one of the most popular restaurants in Santorini while endlessly browsing through social media and decided to get everyone out of the lovely AirBnB you had rented. Upon arriving, your parents and Oscar's were cooped up on one side of the dining table, leaving the 'kids', as your mother calls you three, on the other.

You released a sigh of content, feeling the crisp breeze dance past your skin in the warm summer evening air while your sip of assyrtiko (Greek white wine) slipped past your throat far too easily. Thank God you had chosen an outdoor restaurant tonight. Every time you were on holiday, you couldn't be more grateful to get away from all the stress. If you could live like this every day, with the warm breezy evenings and the amazing architecture, you would.

"So," your mother started, her voice hitting your direction. You flickered your gaze over to her, raising a brow. "How are my kids' love lives? Are you getting down?" She waggled her eyebrows behind her glasses.

A wave of heat pricked your skin at your mother's words. "Mom!" You hissed out in disbelief while your father and Oscar's parents chuckled.

"What? You guys never tell me anything anymore! I used to be the holder of all your secrets and now... now I am an old woman!" Your mother cried, wiping an invisible tear off of her cheek.

You and your brother blankly looked at her and then towards each other. To say your mother was a character was an understatement. She enjoyed her theatrics far too much for anyone's liking, more specifically you're liking.

Oscar grinned, reaching out his hand to hover over hers. "You could never be an old woman. Always young in my heart."

Your brother snorted at Oscar's cheesiness. After you and your brother, Oscar was your mother's son and Oscar was a suck-up. He liked being in the good books, especially that of your mother's.

"Of course," Your mother chuckled softly, patting Oscar's hand gently. She sucked in a sharp breath. "What happen to you and Lily? I heard you two broke up? I thought you liked her a lot?"

You could see Oscar tense at the mention of his ex, your own body rigid. It wasn't a surprise to you but you actually hated hearing about Oscar's love life. Unrequited feelings were already a bitch and you didn't need to make it any worse.

Oscar cleared his throat, a small smiling tugging at his lips. "I thought I did too..." He trailed off, falling into his own trance momentarily. Suddenly his eyes flickered around his surroundings before they landed on you. "I guess I just saw something I else I liked a lot more."

A slight shiver crept down your spine and your heart travelled towards your ears. You pressed your lips tightly together, furrowing your brows.

What the fuck?

You snapped your eyes away, firmly placing them on your empty plate that suddenly held your entire world. Oscar had never ever looked at you like that. Any time you looked into those puppy browns, they were usually some mix between happy, anger, annoyance, sadness, humour, and the God forbidden 'I-see-you-as-my-sister' type love.

But this... this was something else entirely. The softness of his gaze, his words, the timing of it all; a perfect execution of sorts... it was a first.

Maybe you had taken one too many sips of the wine. It was the only reasonable explanation behind your obvious hallucination.

Sooner or later, the sun would set, a main reason behind your picking of the restaurant. The parents and your brother were at the front of the house, arguing about who paid for tonight's dinner. You were more than happy to wait it out on the balcony and revel in the last few rays of light, eyes closed and the breeze dancing across your skin.

"Well don't you look happy," Oscar voice stated, nearing you.

You opened your eyes, slightly turning your head to the side only to look back a few second later. Oscar and sunsets... you enjoyed that combo far too much for your liking.

"That's because I am. Sometimes being off the ice is refreshing," You told him, taking in a breath of the fresh evening air.

Out of your peripheral vision you could see Oscar tilt his head, eyes raking over you with a small grin tugging at his lips. You ignored the pace of your heart as he nodded at your remark, settling in next you with his hands on the balcony bar, a mere inch away from your own.

"I hear that," Oscar sighed, looking out at the horizon.

You forced yourself to look over at him, trying to read his mind after hearing the burdened sigh he released. "Oscar... I hope you know you're doing well in F1 right now. You're doing pretty good compared to Lando's rookie year."

Oscar smiled gently. You knew him far too well. "I know. I just... I feel like everyone's expecting so much more of me. Podiums... race wins... like everything else I've done. And then Spa came along."

You winced at the mention of the track. Oscar had collided with Carlos on the very first lap. Carlos said Oscar was too optimistic about making that turn and Oscar said that he didn't even know what Carlos doing; that the Spaniard turned as if he wasn't even on the track. Nevertheless, the collision resulted in both of them DNFing.

You snorted. "Spa is a shit track," You dismissed Oscar's current pessimism with a wave of your hand.

Oscar chuckled at your crudeness. He couldn't disagree with you. Spa was one of those tracks which felt auspicious to any driver. The one where you hoped you at least passed the finishing line. It didn't matter what your position was... as long as you passed it, you were okay.

"Guys come on! We've finished paying," Your brother called out.

The both of you turned around. Oscar pushed himself off of the bar, heading towards your brother. "Who won this one?" He asked in amusement, hands gliding past his waist. Ever so gently, in his walk, he teetered towards you, letting his hand brush past your own, sending a tingle down both of you.

You gulped at the racing feeling, immediately pulling your hand closer to yourself. This hairs of your body stood straight and your fingers felt numb. Heck, you felt numb.

Damn, you thought, this is some crazy good wine.

━━━━━━━━━━━

The thing about your inclination to blame everything on the alcohol you consumed was that it only actually worked if you consumed alcohol. You were lucky if you could extend to the remaining bits by a day with the claims of a hangover.

But right now, you were sober as hell.

An unfortunate event, to say the least.

"Y/N, wake up," Oscar's voice pounded against your blanketed, muffled ears.

"Ugh, no" You groaned, cocooning yourself into your blanket and pressing your head further into your pillow, savouring the warmth.

You always had such early mornings when you trained, waking up at ungodly hours only to workout before heading to the rink. Being on the ice was the only thing you loved. Your fans were sweet but everything else after that, the press, the workouts, the food, sucked. So you cherished the late summer morning in Santorini. And no person, let alone a boy who announced his F1 team to you by saying "I'm driving for a papaya", was going to ruin this for you.

Oscar put his hands on his hips, eyeing you with a twitch in his eye. "But breakfast is ready. I cooked!"

You laughed into your sheets lightly. "Oh boy, that's even worse!"

Oscar looked at your peeking head and humoured eyes blankly. "That," he started to say as he began to literally pull you out of your bed by your arms, "is very very rude thing to say to the chef."

"Oscar, no! Let go!" You begged, hands flailing to attach themselves to anything. Falling on the hard cold floor was not the ideal morning for you.

At least not alone.

You jutted out your leg, nudging Oscar's to the side, making him stumble over his steps. As he quickly realised he was losing balance, he threw his body under yours, creating a soft landing for you as you both fell to the floor.

You were laughing too hard to realise Oscar's one hand had even moved to your waist and the other to your head, as if it was to protect you from getting hurt.

"Oh my God! You should've seen your face! It was like–" You turned to mimic his expression but you couldn't find the words. All the air around you had been seized, your throat was dry and you were breathless.

When had Oscar's face become so close to yours?

You couldn't remember the last time you were this close to him. Probably as a child. He was cute back then as well. But growing up changed the both of you. The most apparent reminder of how old you were was the tiny short hairs from his chin that he always tried to shave off. His eyes were still as brown as ever, less big because he grew into his face. And his lips... they were kissable.

His face was also littered with freckles here and there. You didn't even realise your finger had shot out to play connect the dots with them until you could feel his faint warm breath from how close you were.

Your eyes trailed up his face to find his gaze firmly planted on yours. Suddenly you could feel where his hands were and your skin burned at his touch. The current heatwave in Europe had left you in some thin pyjamas. You didn't regret it last night but you definitely regretted wearing them right now.

Hypnotised, you found yourself leaning in naturally. Oscar's head also nudged forward. Your lips were barely a centimetre away from each other. You could hear your name slip out of Oscar's lips as the faintest whisper. Like it was a struggle to say your name because he couldn't think.

His woody and amber scent engulfed you and for a second, you couldn't think.

Not until you could hear your brother scream both of your names from the kitchen, demanding you to come to breakfast.

You blinked, falling out of your trance as quickly as you fell in.

Oscar felt you jerk in his arms suddenly, pushing yourself out of his hold and attempting to stand up. "Y/N, I–"

No. God, no.

You weren't ruining a friendship over this.

You could pretend. Yes. Pretend. You can't see him.

"We're coming!" You yelled back, feeling your cheeks redden with embarrassment and annoyance; both vexing feeling for yourself.

God, what a day to be sober.

━━━━━━━━━━━

Honestly how this holiday had gone from zero to a hundred was beyond you.

Pretending like nothing had happened in your room was harder than you thought. Not when Oscar looked at you with these burdened eyes and like he had something to say to you, right on the tip of his tongue.

You considered avoiding him. But doing so on a family trip was easier said than done. Besides, it would've been pretty obvious to everyone else and knowing your family, they would've made a big deal out of nothing. Because that's what it was: nothing.

But alas, you have a brother. And normally, he's stupid and self-obsessed to the point it bordered on unhealthy. But as your brother, it seemed he had some sort of sixth sense for these sorts of things. Something about the older sibling being superior or whatever lies he convinced himself with.

"Why are you being weird with Oscar? Your brother asked you while you ate some ice cream and caught up with the new season of 'The Summer I Turned Pretty'. At first, you couldn't fathom watching a character called 'Belly' out of all things but somehow you got hooked.

You paused the scoop of ice cream you put in your mouth, letting it slowly melt away as you stared hard at your nuisance of a brother. "I have literally no idea what you're talking about."

"Ha, nice try. You're supposed to use 'literally' when you deny it the second time," Your brother smiled at you smugly.

You pressed your lips together, feeling your teeth slightly grind against your spoon. You couldn't decide whether you wanted to smack the shit of your brother with a spoon or bury him in a six-foot deep hole.

"Come on, lil sis, you can talk to me. Everyone's out of the house right now," He partially jested while being entirely serious.

Burying him in a hole it was.

"I have nothing to say to you," You stated, eyes reverting back to your show.

Your brother narrowed his eyes, grabbing the remote to pause the episode. Ignoring your exclaim of annoyance, he sat down next to you and took your ice cream and spoon away from you to dig into the pint for himself.

You shuddered in disgust. You were not having that flavour for a while.

He pointed your spoon at you. "I know you think I'm stupid, which I may be, but I'm not entirely an idiot. What happened with you and Oscar? You were all happy buddies a few days ago. Now he looks like a lost puppy and you look like you saw Pennywise in the hallway."

You bit down on your lip to prevent yourself from laughing. You couldn't actually let him know he was funny.

"Did he do something to you? Y/N, if he did something wrong to you I swear to God... just tell me and I will end him."

Your eyes widened at the sudden change of the conversation. Sitting up, you waved your hands in urgent dismissal. "No! Oh my God, nothing like that! Holy shit."

Your brother let a relieved exhale fall from his mouth before furrowing his brows. "Then what happened? Is it your stupid crush on him?"

"I–what?" You asked dumbfounded, looking at your brother incredulously.

"Your crush? Like the one you've had since you first laid eyes on him. You know everyone knows right? It's kinda obvious. Well, everyone but Oscar," your brother said nonchalantly.

You blinked blankly at him. "Before I throw myself off of a cliff, I can give you the generous choice of how you die? Personally I'm thinking asphyxiation, arson, or murder."

Your brother gulped, slowly putting away the ice cream. "Okay, first off stop watching Criminal Minds so much. Second of all, you don't need to feel embarrassed. All of us have been secretly rooting for you. Especially mom and Oscar's mom. You should've seen how happy they got when I told them Oscar and Lily broke up. It was seriously creepy."

You sighed, falling onto the couch. "It doesn't matter how creepy it was. We almost kissed! And then you called for us. Any later, I would've ruined our friendship. What's the point anyways? He doesn't like me. I'm gonna die in the friendzone," You dramatically sobbed out.

"Well you can start by not turning the other direction when you see him. Poor guy looks like you killed his dog. Do you think a guy who's dog was killed has any guts to speak to their murderer? And that's beside the fact that he may like his murderer."

Where was that shovel again?

"You know what you need to do? Do something that makes him talk to you. I got it! I could set you up with Arthur! He's in Santorini too! Oscar would hate it."

"Oh my God... do you want me to die?" You asked, slightly horrified at the look of pure joy on your brother's face .

Your brother grinned. "Of course, I do. Would I be your brother if I didn't?"

━━━━━━━━━━━

For as long as he could remember, Oscar was a peaceful guy. He didn't really get angry quickly. He was usually calm and usually could think before he acted.

But all those characteristics were thrown out the window, well into the air of the music festival everyone decided to attend, when he saw you walk into the event with Arthur Leclerc. His former teammate out of all people.

"Is that Arthur? Why is he here?" Oscar asked your brother.

"Hmm?" Your brother turned around, pretending to squint at the two of you briefly before catching your piercing gaze. "Oh yeah... that is him. He told me he was in Greece. Guess he found Y/N first. Makes sense I guess."

Oscar looked at your brother dubiously. "I... what does that even mean?"

"I don't know why but I always got the feeling he liked Y/N," your brother shrugged.

Oscar blinked. "You're taking the fucking piss..." He huffed in disbelief.

"What? Oh? Here they come."

Truth be told, Arthur was more than happy to oblige with your brother's game. He hadn't seen Oscar in a while because they were in different championships now. Getting the opportunity to play with him a bit was a hard offer to turn down.

"Ozzie!" Arthur cheered, bringing him into a hug.

Oscar raised a brow at you. That pet name originated from you when the three of you decided to become superheroes for a day and you decided to name eight-year-old Oscar, 'Ozzie the Mozzie' after he got bitten by one. No one else on Earth called him that but you.

"I was telling Arty here about that mozzie that bit you and he really liked Ozzie the Mozzie," You chuckled softly.

Arty...

God give him strength because Oscar wasn't sure how much longer he could bear this.

To be honest, you weren't much of a music festival type of person. It was always crowded, hot, and filled with some sort of drugs even if you couldn't see it.

But aside from that, you enjoyed the serenity it could bring; the indie music that was well on it's way to becoming pop; the calming breeze; the warming sun.

Well you would enjoy it more if a certain Aussie wasn't staring daggers to the side of your head–Arthur's head.

You felt a tap on your shoulder and you turned around to see a stranger. A somewhat attractively creepy stranger but a stranger nonetheless. You raised your brows and gave a small smile. "Yes?"

"I know you don't know me but I just saw you from over there and I wanted to say you're really pretty!"

You blinked, feeling the three boys around you stiffen at the compliment. You nodded slowly, putting on a grateful smile. "Oh, thank you so much," You responded, laughing awkwardly.

A moment of awkward silence settled in the air as the guy still remained in front of you.

"So... I was wondering if I get could get your number?" The guy asked with an odd glint in his eyes.

The alarms were ringing in your head and an uncomfortable shiver went down your spine. "Uh, I'm sorry. I... I don't really want to. But thanks for your offer," You politely declined.

"Oh come on. I called you pretty... that's gotta be worth your number. Come on."

Oh.

Honestly, you were speechless. Your number which for him was the leeway into your intimate life was worth a compliment.

"Yeah, I don't think so," You quipped sharply, gritting your teeth.

"Come on, baby girl. Let me show you a fun time." The guy stepped forward, his hand reaching towards your body.

You froze at his words. You wanted to move but you couldn't.

Out of the corner of your eye, you could see Oscar, Arthur, and your brother step in front of you.

"Mate, fuck off. She doesn't want you," Oscar pushed the guy away from you.

Your brother snorted. "I don't think anyone wants him."

The guy sneered, making you wince. He raised his hands in a feigned defence, beginning to turn away from you. Thank God. "Fine. I didn't want a girl like you anyways. All these guys around you... a whore."

Arthur and you, as the pacifists you were, watched in silent horror as your brother poked his tongue in his cheek and Oscar's head quickly whipped towards the guy.

"Oscar..." You warned meekly as Arthur tried to get your brother's attention.

The last thing any of you needed was famed athletes on the front page of ESPN, cited as the cause of a brawl.

"What did you say?" Oscar raised a brow, ignoring your pleas and walking towards the guy. His tone was dark and the total opposite of what he normally sounded like. He was raged.

"The truth," The guy chuckled. "I said she's a whore. Why? What are you gonna do about it, little boy?"

Yeah see, the guy most definitely had a couple of inches on Oscar and you brother. You weren't really keen on seeing them get pummelled to the ground.

Oscar said nothing in response but raised his fist, slamming it into the side of the guy's jaw.

Oh for fuck's sake.

As if the guy had lightening reflexes, the guy quickly pulled his head back up and got a hold of Oscar, getting into a cycle of punches.

Your heart dropped at the sight. Your brother, thank God, and Arthur quickly realised that Oscar wasn't winning anything here, stepping in to push the two men apart. A small crowd began to gather, some thankfully aiding in trying to stop whatever was going on.

Arthur pulled Oscar away and towards you. You held Oscar against you, clutching him tightly as your heart raced in your ears. Somewhere in the muffled sounds you could hear your brother.

"We're going home. Now."

━━━━━━━━━━━

Your brother and Arthur had decided to go explain the situation the both of your parents who were out having lunch because you couldn't blame all those bruises and dry blood on Oscar's face by saying he fell. This left you to clean up Oscar to reduce the risk of your parents having a heart attack.

You clenched your jaw, holding the first aid kid and a wet cloth to your side as you walked towards the seated racing driver who had found a lot of interest in the floor all of a sudden while icing his face.

"I can't believe you," You mumbled in annoyance, taking a seat next to him. You gently grabbed his chin, putting side the ice bag, trying to decide on where to start cleaning but you could only wince at his face. His bottom lip and his brow was slightly torn, the side of his jaw and the top of his cheek had started to bruise, and his nose was a blood fest.

All the pain Oscar felt began to disappear as he felt your hands gently graze past his skin, scouting all the damage that had occurred. He looked at your pained eyes and internally sighed. He hated seeing you in pain. "He was disrespecting you. I wasn't going to just let it go."

You rolled your eyes, slowly wiping away the dry blood. "He was like six foot two, Oscar. You're like five foot. He could've ki... he could've really hurt you," You jested before your voice fell into a bare whisper.

Oscar's heart clenched as you went back on your words, watching you grab some antiseptic with shaky hands. He grabbed your hands, holding them with his own and softly looked into your eyes. "But he didn't. I'm fine. See?" He smiled widely before wincing at the pain shooting through his face.

You snorted. "As if."

"Hey, you're talking to a guy who crashes at most craziest speeds. Bet that guy can't do that," Oscar shrugged nonchalantly.

You narrowed your eyes. "If you weren't already hurt, I would've smacked the shit out of you right now. Just so you know."

Oscar grinned at you. "Ah, there's the ever kind Y/N I love."

You rolled your eyes before processing what he had just said. As friends. Friendly love. Right. You shook your head out of your trance, removing your hands from his and returning back to the stupid first aid kit next to you.

Oscar mended his brows together. "Hey," he tapped your thigh, "you heard what I said right?"

"Hmm? Oh, yeah," You said idly, opening the tube of antiseptic cream.

"What? I..." Oscar sighed, taking the cream out of your hands before pulling you closer to him. His hands held your face, looking you dead in the eye. "I said I love you, Y/N. You know... the type where you look at someone and all you know is that you can't breathe without them? The one in your books?"

Your mouth felt dry. You blinked blankly. Your hands felt clammy. You chuckled nervously. "Pfft, what? You don't love me. You mean as a friend, right? I think you need some medicine. Maybe there's some in this kit." Your eyes darted down, frantically looking around the box as your heart thudded against your chest.

"Hey, hey," Oscar called, using his hand to turn your chin towards him. "I don't. I mean, I do love you as a friend, but no. I love love you."

"Well... what about about Lily?"

"As I said... I realised I loved someone else more," Oscar told you, letting his confession sink into your mind. "You know... if your idiot brother didn't call us that day, I definitely would've kissed you."

Oh.

Well.

That was something.

This was real. You weren't dreaming. You hadn't died. Oscar, your childhood best friend and your brother's best friend, was confessing to you.

"Huh... well, if it's any consolation, I probably would've kissed you too," You retorted, trying to keep your quirking lips at bay before you began smiling for too much for anyone's liking.

"Probably? That kinda sucks. Are you sure you wouldn't have definitely kissed me?" Oscar grinned, grabbing your waist and seating you down on his lap.

"Hmm... I mean maybe. This current environment is nowhere near as enticing as my bedroom. I mean what is sexier than me waking up, am I right?" You joked, trying to cover up the fact that you were dying at the proximity between you two.

Oscar pushed a lock of your hair behind your ear, letting his fingers trail down your cheek, holding your jaw while his thumb grazed your lips. "Well, I can think of a few other things."

You silently watched as Oscar leaned in and pressed his lips against yours. His lips were softer than you could ever imagine.

You blinked, taking a mere second to register what was going on. Oscar Piastri was kissing you. Holy shit, Oscar Piastri was kissing you!

You kissed him back, feeling his hand wrap around the back of your neck and the other holding you steady against him. Your skin burned at his touch, feeling his fingers snake past the hem of your shirt and rest on your hot skin.

Oddly enough, despite your heat, goosebumps sprawled across every inch of your skin as his tongue darted out, exploring your own, giving you access to his mouth.

You could've sworn you were walking on fire. One more step and you could've combusted. Your thighs clenched at the moan that slipped from Oscar's mouth as your teeth tugged on his bottom lip, your hands roaming around his chest and his arms.

Oscar's hand wrapped around your hair, enjoying the softness he had wanted touch ever since he realised he had feelings for you. His pants felt tight as he felt your hand brush against his bare torso. Fuck. You were going to do him in. He fell back further into the couch, holding you tighter against him.

The desire you had was blinding you. Your other hand fell to his cheek, forgetting about his injuries till Oscar murmured an "ouch".

You retracted your hands, pulling back from his lips, a move Oscar clearly didn't enjoy as his eyes followed your lips. "Shit!" You exclaimed, "the antiseptic! Sorry!"

Oscar paused in his trance, realising what you were talking about. He smiled softly, lips widening even further when he saw your swollen lips and flushed cheeks.

You carefully applied the cream to his brow before moving to his lips. "The diagnosis for you Mr Piastri is no more kissing for you," You grinned.

Oscar looked at you dumbfounded. "I–what? For how long?"

"Mmm... a week?"

"A week?" Oscar repeated in exasperation. "There is no way I can last that long. Not after this. Besides I'm pretty sure kissing actually helps you heal faster."

Your skin warmed further at his confession. You cleared your throat and held his hands. "I am confident that is not scientifically true."

Oscar narrowed his eyes, lips quirking in amusement. "You need to read better medical journals, doc."

You tilted your head to the side, leaning in further. "I think I have an alternative."

"Yeah?" Oscar's eyes danced across your face, smiling softly. "What is it?"

"It's less practical, more theoretical. Confessional, if you will," You shrugged, letting your forehead rest against his.

Oscar shut his eyes, enjoying the warmth of you. "Oh really? Don't let me stop you."

"I love you, Oscar. I've loved you since we were little heroes running around in the backyard."

Oscar opened his eyes, hands wrapping around your waist. He smiled widely at you. "Are you sure you said a week?"

You rolled your eyes, hitting his chest playfully. "I'm sure."

#mickyschumacher #f1 x reader #f1 x you #f1 imagine #f1 fanfic #formula 1 #oscar piastri #oscar piastri x reader #oscar piastri x you #oscar piastri fanfic #oscar piastri fluff #oscar piastri imagine

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mrskokushibo · 6 months

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Warnings: Explicit sexual content, mention of BDSM. Strictly 18+. MDNI. SMUT. NSFW.

A/N: This little drabble is inspired by the Upper Moon Car H/Cs by @flametrashira , fic discussions with my dear @koku-shibou , and the character of Bruce Wayne from The Dark Knight.

MASTERLIST

Billionaire Kokushibo who meets you at an art gallery opening party. After your eyes meet, he can’t take them off you and neither can you take yours off him. The instant attraction draws you both to work the room toward each other while politely mingling with the other attendees.

Billionaire Kokushibo who finally gets close to you at the bar and chats you up with a polite ‘Would you like a drink?’ From then on it is just you and him, moving from small talk to flirting as the evening continues.

Billionaire Kokushibo who convinces you to leave early and go for drinks at his place. Your inhibitions are as blown away because despite wanting to take it slow and be a good girl, waiting with one-on-one time until the second date, your pussy has already determined the outcome of the evening for you. Yes, you are wet. Very wet. Because who are you fooling here, he is beyond ridiculously hot.

Billionaire Kokushibo who leads you outside of the venue and lends you his suit jacket while you wait for the concierge to bring his car. He has chivalry engrained in him and would never let a lady freeze. When the car arrives, you almost squirt. It is your favourite black Bugatti W16 Mistral. He opens the door for you and lets you in and then quickly walks around the sexy vehicle and jumps into the driver’s seat.

Billionaire Kokushibo who revs the engine a little extra just to show off. He drives fast and smooth, you can tell he has advanced racing skills. He doesn’t speak much while he drives, doesn’t touch you, or makes any indecent comments, but you can see in the corner of your eye that he has a small fleeting smile on his lips every time he casts a quick glance your way.

Billionaire Kokushibo who arrives at his modernist mansion in the most expensive part of town and gets welcomed by his butler. They exchange a few words and the butler takes care of the car while Kokushibo leads you into the house and into the minimalistic but luxurious living space with a view of the city. Politely, he directs you to the comfortable lounge sofa and asks about your drink preferences. He gets the drinks and sits down opposite of you in an armchair.

Billionaire Kokushibo who, after getting your next drink, sits down next to you and initiates a kiss. He is a great kisser and smells intoxicating of purple lilies and white musk. His hands caress you just enough to make shivers run down your spine in arousal and your pussy throb beyond control.

Billionaire Kokushibo who undresses you slowly as if he was unwrapping an expensive Ming vase that he just purchased from an auction at Christie’s. He kisses you down your neckline and goes straight for your breasts. While kissing you he is taking off his crispy white shirt that was already slightly unbuttoned showing off a glimpse of his trimmed, perfectly toned chest.

Billionaire Kokushibo who now unbuckles his belt and the two of you finalise your mutual undressing. He stops for a moment to have a good look at you and you can’t help but drool internally at the sight of the magnificent muscular apparition that is Kokushibo. His perfect cock draws most of your attention as it is large and girthy and leaks everywhere.

Billionaire Kokushibo who takes you on the sofa. He is gentle at first, making you come only by using his mouth, but once he enters you, his pace increases in speed and intensity. The elegant space is filled with lewd sounds of skin slapping skin and the loud squelching of your wet pussy being pounded relentlessly by this utterly hot male. Soon enough he is cumming inside you eliciting a deep, quiet growl to accompany his release.

Billionaire Kokushibo who leads you to his bedroom where you spend the rest of the night fucking each other’s brains out until you are both covered with sweat and cum, needing to shower several times in-between sex. You fuck in the shower, too, by the way.

Billionaire Kokushibo who is very embarrassed in the morning as he needs to ask his butler to change his bedding. The two of you made an indescribable mess. And this will not be the last time that happens.

Billionaire Kokushibo who buys you a penthouse in the city so that you can walk to your work as a store manager. He lets you design the place but takes the initiative to have your bedroom soundproofed so that the two of you can be as loud as you want to be. He also orders to have a sex room and adjacent specialised wardrobe built for you two, where you can store all the sexy lingerie you already own and will purchase, as well as sex toys and other gear.

Billionaire Kokushibo who is into BDSM and the sex room is made purposely for that. Both of you are switches so that the games you play are hot. To say the least. You love being tied up in Shibari and used like a slut when it is his turn to be the Dom. He goes hard as steel when you gently put the collar around his neck when it is your turn to be the Dom. He leaks all over and squeals when you peg him.

Billionaire Kokushibo who buys you lavish gifts and orders catering from Michelin-star restaurants when you decide to stay in for a longer sex sesh. He knows the value of a good woman and will spoil you beyond belief. He buys you a matching Bugatti W16 Mistral so that you can think of him when you need to go for a drive to visit your friends.

Billionaire Kokushibo who asks you to marry him when on a holiday in Paris. He books the Eifel Tower just for you two and proposes on top of it. Afterward, you go out for a lavish dinner and spend the rest of the night fucking at the Suite Imperiale of the famous Hotel Ritz and indulging in the most expensive champagne the hotel has to offer. Yes, you don't just drink it, you bathe in the champagne as well, and, of course, have sex in the bath.

Masterlist

Image: Marsiankaa on Pinterest

Tagging 💜: @horror4themasses @doumadono @muzansfangs @crescentmoontsuki

Banner by @cafekitsune

Pictures in title: Pinterest and Bugatti Motors.

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leclercinstagram · 7 months

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family day

• pairings ( charles leclerc x wife!reader)

• summary ( y/n and her husband Charles are taking their two kids go karting )

• details ( soft, cute )

enjoy ♡

Y/N had been looking forward to a fun family outing for weeks, and today was the day they were all headed to the go-kart track. Her husband, Charles, and their two kids, Lily and Max, were buzzing with excitement as they piled into the car.

The sun was shining, and the sky was a brilliant shade of blue as they drove to the go-kart facility. Y/N couldn't help but smile as she watched Lily and Max chatter endlessly about who would be the fastest on the track. Charles, always the competitive one, playfully teased them both, promising he would show them how it's done.

Once they arrived at the go-kart track, they could hear the revving of engines and the laughter of other families. The kids practically leaped out of the car, eager to get in their own go-karts. The attendants at the track helped them into their helmets and gave them a brief safety talk.

As Y/N watched her family zip around the track, she couldn't help but feel a sense of contentment. The kids, with their faces hidden behind helmets, looked like little racers, their eyes shining with exhilaration. Charles was indeed living up to his promise, racing ahead, but Lily and Max weren't far behind, determined to catch up.

They raced around the track for several rounds, and each time they finished, they would eagerly discuss their strategies and brag about their best turns. Y/N couldn't help but join in the friendly competition. She, too, donned a helmet and hopped into her own go-kart. The kids cheered as their mom joined the race, and soon, they were all engaged in a thrilling family competition.

As the sun began to set, they reluctantly parked their go-karts and removed their helmets. They had worked up an appetite, so they decided to grab dinner at a nearby restaurant. They relished in recounting their adventures on the track, laughing at the close calls and sharing stories of who had the fastest lap times.

The day at the go-kart track had brought their family closer together. Y/N cherished the joy of seeing her husband and kids having so much fun, and she couldn't wait for the next family adventure. As they drove home, exhausted but happy, they all agreed that it had been one of the best days they had ever spent together.

#charles leclerc #formula one #f1 #f1 x female reader #f1 x reader #charles leclerc imagine #x yn #yn #charles leclerc x reader #charles leclerc x you

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bluastro-yellow · 6 months

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You - "What's that thing you're holding?" (Point at her toy.) Little Lily - "It's Lamby! He's my friend. Sort of, like..." She holds the fuzzy beast up to demonstrate. Little Lily - Lamby is a stuffed lamb that, admittedly, has seen better days. One of the eye-buttons is missing and the fur is tattered in several parts.

You - "Oh, okay. Well, pleased to meet you, Lamby." Little Lily - "Lamby usually doesn't like strangers, but you're also fuzzy like Lamby."

You - "Lamby looks soft." Little Lily - "Yes. Very soft." Suddenly she pushes the stuffed animal toward your face. You - "I don't deserve it. I'm scum." Kim Kitsuragi - "Press your damn cheek against Lamby, okay?" The lieutenant sounds authoritative -- and surprisingly gruff. You - Press your cheek against Lamby. Little Lily - "Isn't he soft?" She's right, Lamby is very soft. She rubs the white fur against your cheek, then returns the lamb into her lap, cuddling it.

You - "Lamby looks like he's falling apart." Little Lily - "Yessss, Lamby has lived a long life." She waves the lamb around in the air. "Lamby was a... re.. a rev..." She stumbles on her words. You - "Revanchist/Revacholian/Remote Viewer/Revisionist/Rebel?" Little Lily - "Noo-noooo, that's not it." She frowns, looking at her tattered toy. "You know what you are, Lamby." Kim Kitsuragi - "I think she means 'revolutionary'." Little Lily - "Yessss," she yelps happily! "Lamby was a re-luz-ion...ry."

Lily and Lamby

#I think they're hinting at something with this lol #she's Lily. like the Insulidian Lily. the May Bells #...girl child revoution?#*pats my brain* c'mon sport you can do it #anyways it's also cute #Harry's fuzzy like Lamby...#disco elysium #eggs&spoons #disco elysium spoilers

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princyvish · 14 days

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This is an au I had for quite some time. Brother angst!! Yay!!

More info (and me probably rambling abt Baron Omatsuri stuff. I wonder what my favourite OP movie is) under the cut:

SO! The idea is, there's a war that occurs between a Rev Army and Strawhat alliance and the Marines, and in the end, Luffy dies and his crew suffers as well, and most of the Revs die as well. Koala, Karasu, Dragon... There more, yes, but honestly I don't know the names of half of them. But those three have the biggest roles aside from ASL being there.

Sabo survives the war, and ends up seeking the Lily Carnation in desperation to see his family again. Plus side is, he gets to see Ace too!! Yay!!

But that isn't Ace. Or Luffy. Koala, Karasu, and Dragon aren't real either.

I haven't thought about how Sabo would get people to the island to feed the Lily Carnation and stuff but I literally only thought of the angst stuff so far :]

#sorry I like tragic asl it's one of my favourite things to make things for (it hurts me as well I'm not heartless :[)#asl brothers #ASL Baron Omatsuri au #portgas d ace #one piece ace #ace one piece #revolutionary sabo #sabo one piece #one piece sabo #monkey d luffy #one piece luffy #luffy one piece #baron omatsuri and the secret island #one piece #one piece au #AudrinArt

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chromatic-lamina · 11 months

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Oda packing the punches: Chapter 1086 spoilers

Okay, I'm not doing a long one like last week, but heaps to take in, and I adore the idea of all of the notorious, prestigious and sought after stowaways on the ships leaving the Marie Geoise shores.

The ones from the new world must do so with World Government (Marine) assistances, right?

And Tajine Kingdom (Bonney stowed away on their ship) and St. Aegis kingdom (Walpol and Vivi stowed away on theirs) were World Government member nations, and both rebelled. I wonder why.

My main reason for being here, though is:

this!!!!!! 👆

Look at our bow-legged bird, even in seraphim form. Crocodile's beauty is as glassy-eyed (sad-eyed, dead-eyed?) as Boa Hancock's and Mihawk's, and Moria's looking pretty good too.

So, the seraphim are being employed to basically destroy their makers (the original Hancock, Mihawk, etc.—not that we've seen a Mihawk/S-Mihawk fight yet). There has to be a Trafalgar Law one. Oda wouldn't pass up the opportunity, I think. Although, if it will convolute the story, that one might be left to us fan-fiction writers.

Lots of other stuff. Massive catch up, lore drops. The destruction of Lulusia seems to parallel Marshall Island Atoll nuclear tests or Maralinga in the centre of Australia, or so many others, and more linearly (time-wise) the U.S. government's nuclear testing in New Mexico before the ultimate bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Robin has apparently told the revs:

that the ancient weapons exist (as Ivankov lets us know above).

And more parallels here with the Einstein / Vegapunk thing, and what their research can be harnessed for, or what they might directly contribute to without and possibly with knowing the consequences.

Iva suspects that the attack has nothing to do with Vegapunk (although maybe I misread the panel—it seemed that Imu thought it was Vegapunk's work, but Imu might've been referring to the seraphim).

Iva suspects that Imu is

Imu of House Nerona (one of the original founders of the Celestial Dragons / Word Government / Mary Geoise), so, from the void century and granted eternal youth through the ope ope no mi, although the fruit is not mentioned by name. Whether the revs' don't know it's granted from a fruit, or whether they're playing coy, is not apparent. It seems the former.

As a founder, they (Imu) could possibly have knowledge of the ancient weapons.

So, as an aside, considering the original granter of the eternal fruit would have died as per their fruit's power (Lili?) then there must be more people around with eternal youth too, right?, because others would have consumed the fruit, and 800 years is a long time.

Anyway, briefly onto Lili; if she had the ope ope no mi, she could've shambled the poneglyphs the world over as a very awakened form of the fruit, and maybe granting Imu eternal youth is what caused her death. I don't think that's my idea. I probably read it somewhere, but I can't recall where.

For the above, I love that Robin's dropping massive intel into the Revolutionary Army's lap.

Seems that Sabo will be a D. too, from this statement below 👇 . I'd prefer he wasn't, but, whatever!

Sabo is definitely surrounded by them! And that 'checkered fate' line is used a lot. I know there are a few translations on it.

Lastly, and it's not only the last (like, for instance, Walpol won't tell Vivi about her Father, CPO are running around with pictures of Vivi and Sabo to folks in Mary Geoise, Sterry (Sabo's brother) doing a Sanji when sighting Vivi's picture, and Big News Morgans filling the reader in on how he managed to pick up Walpol and Vivi (we suppose)): BUT possibly one of the biggest pieces of news is:

that Saint Donquixote Mosgard will be executed due to protecting Shirahoshi 👆 , thereby running parallels with Homing, except that Mosgard was effective with his compassion, but will also pay with his life, as did Donquixote Rosinante (and his father). And

The person tasked with the execution is the former king of God Valley, and I know there's a lot of Rocks D. Xebec info about God Valley that's basically all over my head at present (will read up on it later, or read someone else's meta).

But as importantly, or maybe more importantly, is this guy's name: Saint Figarland Garling. Shanks, was stated by the Gorosei in Film Red (although I missed this section, or forgot it) as coming from the Figarland family (he was discovered in a box that the Roger Pirates stole during the God Valley Incident).

Ahahahah. I love all the influences though: Good Donquixotes, and then Donquixote Doflamingo. Entitled Figarlands, and then good Shanks, or maybe not... (I believe he's good, but Oda always turns the tables on me, and everything's grey, even when characters have positive aspects).

So, yeah—there's a ton of stuff. Go have a read or wait for the official, but the scans gave the elders their names, so I'll just drop that too, and a translators' note that was interesting:

Read below for their processes in naming:

Okay as said, I didn't cover everything, but ALSO, look at this gorgeous cover (Oda can't be ignorant that it's pride month)

I love the little frog. It's a reader's request: Chopper and a kitty crossing the reflection of a rainbow they see in a puddle. Cute! The reflections look great too.

Also, don't forget this guy:

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multishipperofgaydeadwizards · 4 months

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something about dark romance bartylily and eveline in a non-magic setting...

i can for sure see evan and barty stalking lily and emmeline but while barty is subtle as he grows closer to lily, evan does not care at all and he wants emmeline to see him everywhere

barty is hacking into systems to figure out lily's schedule so he can coincidentally bump into her

evan will just followe emmeline around on his motorbike (revving the engine just for fun)

a little darker but in a fun way, i think

vsjdbeidbroen omg yes.

barty trying not to scare lily off and evan not giving a shit bc emmeline can't escape him

barty who tries to find out everything he can about her. who goes through all her socials, all her friends' socials, and all her family's socials

evan who knows where emmeline lives, her school way, her favorite places to hang out. who only really goes there so that he can see her

#hsiebeienk #love it #marauders #marauders era #marauders fandom #barty crouch jr #evan rosier #lily evans #emmeline vance #eveline #bartylily #killerlily #killerflower #flowerkiller #evan x emmeline #wow... you're bad at parking

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whatstruthgottodowithit · 1 month

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The Dating Game [Part One]

Fandom: Harry Potter [Marauders Era]

Pairing: Sirius Black x Original Female Character, James Potter x Original Female Character, James Potter x Lily Evans

Characters: James Potter, Sirius Black, Lily Evans, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, Dorcas Meadow, Original Female Character, Marlene McKinnon, Mary MacDonald, Sabrina Lovegood

Rating: Mature

Word Count: 3991

Summary: James and Sabrina decide to play the dating game.

Tags/Warnings: Fake Dating, Fake Couple, Kissing, Jealousy, Quidditch, Arguing, Angst, Fluff, MASTERLISTS // TAG LIST Notes: Sabrina face claim Sabrina Carpenter <3

PART ONE // PART TWO // PART THREE

Sabrina was trying to focus on her charms essay, it was due in less than an hour but she’d fallen asleep in the common room last night and failed to finish which left forced to do it over breakfast, one hand furiously working her quill whilst the other helped her nibble on a piece of perfectly browned toast. The only problem was the noise. After months of being stuck inside the castle the sun had finally started shining which had revved up the excitement amongst the students who had arrived down at breakfast to find glorious rays streaming in through the high windows. To her right the marauders [a nickname of their own choosing] were discussing how they, mainly James and Sirius, could get in a couple of hours of quidditch practice after lessons if the weather conditions held up. To her left the girls [Marlene, Mary, Lily and Dorcas] were going over how Gary Nelson had invited Marlene to Hogsmeade this weekend and how she was debating whether to go considering they’d had an uneasy romantic history.

Sabrina was trying to tune them out the best that she could. It was easier to do when she stationed herself in the middle of both groups and next to Remus who wasn’t really participating in the quidditch talk and instead reading his book whilst trying to shovel cornflakes into his mouth though his focus was so intense it was proving a struggle. Still there was a lot of noise around her which made it hard to focus and even harder for her to be able to distinguish her name from the chatter which is why she didn’t notice Gabriel Prewett was standing on the opposite side of the table waiting to catch her attention which came as Remus nudged her with his elbow.

‘Hey,’ he said, offering her a small smile when she finally looked up.

‘Hey Gabriel,’ Sabrina said, covering her mouth as she swallowed down a piece of toast, ‘everything alright?’

‘Yeah just got those potion notes I borrowed from you,’ he said, placing a couple pieces of parchment on the cluttered table in front of her.

‘Aw thanks,’ she said, ‘hope they helped.’

‘They did, really concise,’ Gabriel said with a smile. Sabrina liked Gabriel. They didn’t hang out a lot given that she mostly spent time with her house mates but they had a few lessons together and they had found themselves often in the library going over the same things and therefore ended up revising together. But other than that they weren’t the chit-chatting type which was why she was surprised when he lingered clearing his throat awkwardly as he said, ‘I was going to give you them back tomorrow but I didn’t know if you’d be headed to the village or not.’

‘I am but there was no rush,’ Sabrina said.

‘In that case maybe we could go to the three broomsticks? Go over that care of magical creatures essay, I’m a bit lost truth be told,’ Gabriel said. Sabrina sighed.

‘I don’t think I’ll have time,’ she replied, ‘Flitwicks moved choir practice so I was only nipping down there for some new quills.’

‘Oh,’ Gabriel said crestfallen, ‘okay, no bother. Another time?’

‘Sure,’ Sabrina said with a smile, grabbing her notes and putting them in her bag. Gabriel watched her duck under the table to reach, her ponytail bobbing just over the table line, and feeling embarrassed he muttered goodbye and headed back to the Hufflepuff table.

Sabrina’s bag was chalked full of papers and textbooks but she found a nook for her notes and tucked them in neatly before reemerging from under the table ready to carry on tackling her essay. However as she settled back in she found the girls' conversation had halted and they were now watching her agog.

‘What?’ Sabrina asked self-consciously.

‘Did I just hear right?’ Mary asked, her dark brown eyes wide.

‘What?’ Sabrina asked again.

‘Did you just turn down a date with Gabriel Prewett?’ Marlene replied from beside her. Sabrina looked at her and scoffed, ‘it wasn’t a date.’

‘That’s a date if ever I’ve heard one,’ Mary protested. Sabrina felt her cheeks warm up, turning her skin to the colour of a grapefruit rather than the fetching coral blush she’d dusted across her cheeks this morning. Had it been a date? She liked Gabriel. He was nice, sweet even, and very handsome but she didn’t like him, like that. Did he like her like that? Had he been hinting throughout their study sessions and she’d been too oblivious to notice.

‘He just wants help with his care of magical creatures essay,’ she said indignantly.

‘In the pub,’ Sirius reasoned from across the table, making her groan internally. It was one thing for the girls to interrogate her but for the boys to join in was so much worse.

‘Yeah Sirius is right,’ Dorcas continued, ‘no boy suggests a study session in the pub!’

‘Why did you say no?’ James said, adding on to Sabrina’s despair. All eyes were on her now, scrutinising every move she made.

‘It wasn’t a date!’ Sabrina whined.

‘Do you not fancy him?’ Mary asked.

‘He’s the fittest lad in our year,’ Marlene added.

‘That hurts,’ James quipped, earning a grin from his friends.

‘Oh shut up Potter,’ Lily said, rolling her eyes. Sabrina shrank back, knowing that once these two got into it the conversation would soon be dominated by their squabbling and would maybe give her a chance to flee. Her bag was under the desk but if she did make a break for it Remus would probably bring it for her, the only one not joining in with this lunacy.

As predicted James was refusing to look anywhere but at Lily who was staring back at him not willing to back down as he said, ‘are you saying you’d go out with him if he asked Evans?’

‘Maybe,’ Lily challenged, smirking as James’ face fell for a second, ‘besides this isn’t about me this is about Sabs.’

‘Can you just drop it! Gabes is just a friend,’ Sabrina said.

‘Oh Gabe is it now?’ James teased, making her blush deepen.

‘Oh Merlin,’ Sabrina said. The conversation lulled and Sabrina heaved an internal sigh of relief hoping that they’d just let it go but it was unfortunately not to be as across from her Sirius, who’d been watching her closely sniffed and said, ‘nah Bri’s right.’

‘I am?’ she asked, watching him closely, her eyes narrowed.

‘Yeah,’ he shrugged, ‘besides not everyones ready for that stuff.’

‘Yeah,’ Sabrina started before she noticed his choice of words, her face falling into a frown as she looked at him and said, ‘what’s that supposed to mean?’

‘Nothing but well, you’ve turned down every date you’ve been offered this year,’ Sirius shrugged. Sabrina’s mouth fell open, confusion plaguing her as it did everyone else who appeared to be trying to recall when and who had been asking her out. Was Sirius right? Had she been asked out and turned them down? She didn’t even know at this point though she did notice the looks of sheepish pity on her friends faces as his words started to cloud their judgment.

‘I have, I do not,’ was all she could make come out of her mouth as a reply.

‘Yes you do,’ Sirius said firmly.

‘No one’s asked me out,’ Sabrina refuted.

‘Bollocks,’ Sirius snorted, ‘I’ve seen at least three lads try and you’ve rebuked every one of them. That doesn’t even include Gabe.’

‘Ooh who?’ Dorcas asked eagerly, ignoring the way Sirius sneered Gabriel’s nickname.

‘Blake Jones, Frank Longbottom, Yousif Shafique,’ Sirius rhymed them off so quickly Sabrina was scrambling to recall having interactions with these boys let alone being asked out. How did he recall them if she couldn’t? Surely he was winding her up.

‘What’s wrong with them?’ Mary asked.

‘Yeah Frank’s lovely,’ Lily agreed.

'As lovely as me Evans,' James quipped, earning a roll of the eyes from Lily.

‘I never said there was anything wrong with any of them!’ Sabrina said exasperatedly, glaring at Sirius as she added, ‘they haven’t asked me out!’

‘Yes they have,’ Sirius said firmly.

‘Why don’t you want to go out with them?’ Lily probed curiously.

‘You go out with them if you’re so bothered,’ Sabrina snapped, not taking her eyes off of Sirius, scowling at him.

‘No thanks,’ Lily said, scowling herself after being snapped at. When no one spoke Sabrina felt her irritation rev and said, ‘hang on why doesn’t Lily get stick for that!’

‘Wouldn’t want Potter to combust would we,’ Sirius quipped, earning a dig in the ribs from James though he kept his eyes on Sabrina, leaning forward until his elbows were resting on the mahogany so he could ask, ‘so go on, what is it?’

‘None of your business that’s what,’ Sabrina snapped, ‘any of you.’

‘Oooh,’ came several replies, only infuriating her further.

‘Oh piss off,’ she snapped and with that she grabbed her bag from under the table and stood up, swinging it over her shoulder which made Lily have to duck in order not to be clunked in the head. Remus sighed, ‘Sabs sit down.’

‘No,’ Sabrina said, clambering over the back of the bench. She could see Remus was watching her worriedly which made her feel bad for a second, after all had elected not to participate in this haranguing of her character but still she needed to get out of there.

‘Where are you going?’ James asked, watching her just as worriedly. Of course he was the first to see the error of his tormenting. He was always like this when he and Sirius got going. It had been the thing that had initially put her off being friends with them before her friendship with Remus had made her see that they weren’t that bad. But Sirius, oh he was never one to realise when he was going too far. Even when he knew he was being an outright dick if there was a sniff of him being right he’d carry on no matter what the damage.

That was why he was looking at her, challenging him to prove him wrong with evidence that she hadn’t refuted these boys even though she still couldn’t recall it enough to prove him right or wrong. And so she grumbled, ‘somewhere where people don’t try and marry me off every five minutes.’

✵✵✵

Even with the balmy spring day outside the castle wasn’t exactly warm, well not in the areas that weren’t lit by firelight which unfortunately for Sabrina meant the girls second floor bathroom. It wasn’t the optimal study area; the sinks and toilets were grimy from being forgotten most of the time and Moaning Myrtle had talked her ear off about a cruel third year boy who’d called her various unsavoury names for accidentally getting in his way. But it was empty and more importantly out of the way of all her friends. She hadn’t spoken to them throughout any lessons and had scrounged her lunch and dinner from the kitchens rather than join them in the hall. Not to mention there was a slight nook in the wall which if she laid her cloak out made it slightly more comfortable to sit and study.

Her studying however was suspended when she heard the door open. She remained stock still, clutching the care of magical creatures essay she’d decided to get a jump on, wondering if she didn’t make a noise whoever it was would use the loo and get out. That was not the case though as from behind the sinks a flop of messy hair followed by the tentative smile of James Potter. Sabrina sighed and dropped her gaze back to her homework. She shouldn’t have been surprised he managed to find her, not once she remembered that damned map.

‘Hey,’ James said tentatively, moving closer towards her and leaning back on the sinks, ‘you okay?’

‘Fine,’ Sabrina said curtly.

‘He didn’t mean it you know. You know what he’s like when he gets an idea in his head,’ James said. It was true that James Potter was always the first to realise when he and his friends had gone too far. It was also true that he was his friends', more accurately Sirius Black’s, greatest defender. Sabrina sighed, finally looking up at him as she replied, ‘yeah but I don’t know where he gets off acting like I’m,’ she paused, she thought about what Sirius had made her seem like but she didn’t feel like saying the words ‘pathetic’ or ‘stuck up’ because they hurt far too much so instead she navigated away from what she was like and continued, ‘well he has girls fawning over him day in and day out and no one bats an eye! And I don’t care what he says, boys don’t hang around me like that.’

‘They do,’ James said, startling himself at how quickly it rolled off his tongue. Sabrina too was surprised, her face becoming shocked before she managed to compose herself and say, ‘no they don’t!’

‘They really do Sabs,’ James said, somewhat apologetically, like it didn’t feel right to call her out even if he was right, ‘Pads was right. You’ve been asked out at least three times this year and you’ve always said no.’

‘They weren’t. No one’s asked. I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ Sabrina muttered, looking down at her papers. James sighed and took a seat in the nook beside her, trying to ignore how awkward her scrunched up cloak felt nestled under his thigh. He figured now was not the time to talk about his comfort. They were quiet now, James watching her though her blonde locks fell like curtain and blocked most of her face from view.

He didn’t know how she hadn’t figured it out yet. She was one of the prettiest girls in their year. Soft golden locks, complimenting sun kissed skin and bright blue eyes. She was like a doll, pretty and perfect, and completely oblivious to how boys saw her. Mary knew what allure she had. Marlene was pretty but one of the boys. Dorcas hopped from boy to boy with no qualms about what people thought of her. Lily was, well, Lily was all he thought about and to him the prettiest girl ever but he couldn’t deny Sabrina had something, even if she hadn’t realised it yet which he couldn’t believe was true.

After a moment he murmured, ‘you really didn’t notice?’

‘I guess not,’ Sabrina lied. Of course she knew boys liked her. She wasn’t completely oblivious to what she looked like; she just hadn’t wanted to pay them any attention. Not the ones that liked her anyway.

‘Do you just not want to date anyone?’ James asked.

‘Of course I do!’ she protested, looking at him.

‘Then why not?’ he said. His glasses had slid down the end of his nose and his brow was furrowed trying to figure out why she had such an aversion to what seemed to dominate every conversation he and his friends had these days. Sabrina closed her eyes and sighed as she saw it finally dawn on him, ‘you like someone don’t you?’

‘James,’ she sighed.

‘Oh go on, you do don’t you?’ James said, earning a small smile which made everything seem more clear and not just because he’d pushed his glasses into place, ‘who is it?’

‘Let’s just say if I have been asked out I haven’t noticed because I was probably distracted at the time,’ she explained.

Again James’ brow furrowed as he tried to deduct her logic and suddenly it was like the stars aligning. How he hadn’t realised it before he didn’t know. Probably too focused on Lily to notice how her eyes flitted to Sirius any time a boy approached, trying to gauge his reaction, ‘it’s Pads innit?’

‘He kind of eclipses the attention of any boy who looks my way,’ she admitted bashfully.

‘Since when?’ James probed, wondering how long he’d been in the dark.

‘I don’t know,’ she shrugged, ‘start of this year? I guess he just seems different, acts differently somehow.’

‘Why not ask him out?’ James asked, unaccustomed to how someone could keep their feelings in for so long.

‘Like I said he has a million girls hanging off him,’ she grumbled.

‘Yeah and he’s been busy watching who's asking you out.

It had been an odd thing to start liking Sirius. At first she had firmly been in Lily’s camp – that the marauders were nothing but a nuisance. And then she and Remus had been paired together, their names next to each other in the register and well he was lovely. That had made her curious because how could someone as patient and nice be friends with such arrogant oiks? After spending more time with them she realised they weren’t all that bad. Arrogant, sure. Loud and bolshie, absolutely. Slightly snobbish, perhaps. But they were also sweet, funny, kind and caring. They looked after their friends, were fiercely loyal and well a whole lot of fun.

When she had returned after the summer she hadn’t expected her feelings towards them to change and for the other boys they hadn’t. Except she started to get this funny feeling in her stomach when Sirius looked at her. He seemed to be more caring, funnier, brighter. It was only when she’d seen him flirting with Lavinia Porthrop she had realised why it felt like that. She liked him and sure enough everything had soon become him. He dominated her thoughts, when they talked it was him she kept glancing at, and when boys approached her she was watching him, wondering if he’d feel irked like she had. She didn’t think he had but James’ words sparked hope inside her. Hope she had to snuff out because Sirius was well, Sirius. He wasn’t coy. He didn’t shy away from his feelings like she did, if he liked her he would have told her.

‘You’re just saying that,’ she said, feeling her stomach knot.

‘No I’m not,’ James said, nudging her thigh so she’d look up at him. She smiled at him sadly.

‘If he liked me he’d just ask me out,’ she countered, her logic sound and reasoned.

‘I don’t know,’ James replied, ‘he’s different when it comes to people he cares about. The girls know what he’s like and they’re not really bothered but we’ve been friends forever. That means something to him, to all of us, he wouldn’t be willing to throw it away in case he fucked it up. And especially if he wasn’t sure if you were ready or not.’

‘Can you blame me?’ she sighed, ‘it’s not exactly easy to navigate is it?’

‘No, no I guess you’re right,’ James sighed, as she put her head on his shoulder.

‘The dating game is awful,’ Sabrina murmured. James breathed a laugh.

‘Try being in love with a girl who won’t give you the time of day.’

‘That’s the problem!’ Sabrina cried, lifting her head and jumping up from the nook until she was looking at him and looking at him, ‘Lily’s bloody nuts about you and it’s no easier to navigate!’

‘Sure she is,’ James said, rolling his eyes.

‘She is,’ Sabrina said firmly, still slightly irked at her friends and their teasing to restrain herself from spilling something she was sure was true, ‘that’s the problem! She just loves teasing you and making you work for it. Honestly I don’t know how you put up with it.’

‘I really like her,’ James mumbled sadly as the energy left her, forcing her to nestle in back beside him as she grumbled, ‘yeah and I like him. I just wish it wasn’t so bloody complicated.’

‘I get what you mean. Why can't you just say you like someone and see where it goes y’know,’ James agreed.

‘Too busy playing daft games or dancing around the subject,’ Sabrina huffed.

They were quiet for a moment, the pair of them staring at the grubby old sinks opposite as they thought about everything. She hated it being so complicated. She hated that she was too nervous to just tell Sirius she liked him if anything she still wasn’t convinced he’d like her back. Maybe he did and James was right, he was just nervous to ruin their friendship. It was hard to tell because he wasn’t as obvious as James was or Lily for that matter. But to be honest she was grateful for that because it was one thing holding your feelings in and it was another flaunting them at every given moment of the day and not acting on them. She glanced at James, finding him staring glumly at his shoes and was overcome with pity. Thinking of Sirius she felt pity for herself.

To be honest she just wished it was out in the open. Cards on the table so they could all move on. She knew that wasn’t going to happen though; James was an open book and that was still getting him nowhere.

‘Maybe you ought to play it their way,’ a voice inside her head whispered, ‘play the game.’

‘What if we played them too?’ she asked, causing his hazel gaze to fall on her.

‘What do you mean?’ he asked, pushing his glasses up from the end of his nose.

‘What if we messed with them?’ she asked. The idea made nerves flutter in her stomach.

‘How?’ James asked, narrowing his eyes.

‘Well Lily only keeps you hanging on because she thinks you’re gonna hang on forever,’ she said.

‘Right,’ he said dubiously.

‘And you say Pads likes me,’ she said.

‘He does,’ James said, sitting up a tad straighter, his interest piqued.

‘But he won’t tell me or maybe he would if he saw I was open to dating,’ she said, ‘or that a relationship between friends could work.’

‘What are you on about?’ James said, still lost.

‘Me and you start dating,’ Sabrina said firmly, shocked to see James’ eyes widen in surprise. The marauders were some of the least flappable she’d ever met and yet he was staring at her as if she had three heads, an expression she tried to rectify as she said, ‘think about it. If they want us, as theorised, they’d be bothered by it, right?’

‘Right,’ James said unsurely. Trust Sabrina to come up with a logical, measured test. She should’ve been a Ravenclaw but luncacy and bravery of the idea lended itself to Gryffindor and more accurately, the marauders.

‘Maybe enough to admit how they really feel,’ she said, ‘and if not we give it a couple of weeks and pretend the romance fizzled out, tell them it wasn’t for us but we’re still pals.’

‘You think they’d fall for it?’ James asked sceptically.

‘Worth a shot,’ she shrugged, ‘besides you could always think of it as a prank.’

‘You hate being involved in pranks,’ James countered, raising an eyebrow.

‘Because they’re pointless but this has a purpose, you might even bag Lily,’ she said, a radiant smile dancing across her face. James allowed that to tug at his heart strings. She had a point. He wa2s sure Lily liked him, he could feel it, but what would it take for her to admit that? Maybe this was the way. And Sabrina was right, if they had a couple of weeks with no luck they’d know for sure and could both move on with their lives, not to mention people would probably treat their failed relationship as just one of the casualties of the Hogwarts social scene. James nibbled on the inside of his lip nervously, wondering what to say. Sabrina merely whispered, ‘so, you in?’

‘Go on then,’ James smiled.

Sirius Black Tags

@caitlin1996 @imthebadguyyy

#my writing #sirius black #sirius black fic #james potter #james potter fic #marauders #marauders fic #marauders era #sirius black x ofc #james potter x ofc #james potter x lily evans #the dating game

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ashknife · 7 months

Text

Blossom

This is for the @inklings-challenge. I didn't have the benefit of running this through my writing group for critique and editing, so it is exceptionally rough. It's done, but it needs work. Something to do when I graduate in May. :) If you have suggestions or criticism to make, I would greatly appreciate it.

>/-u:bl0$$0m >/-p:*************** User authenticated. Welcome, bl0$$0m. TaurOS 7.2.9 rev.2 update available. See UPDATE -README for details. bl0$$0m>/-jack a2.82.71.89.82.fe -in/quiet Initializing peripherals. VineTech Helm Visor XG51 detected. VineTech Glide Gloves XG51 detected. VineTech Chest Mount Expansion XG51 detected. Please wait...... 9.8 PB allocated. Entering TaurNet...... Welcome, user bl0$$0m.

Visuals initializing.

A small room appears in her sight. It is covered in vines and foliage. A square fountain in the middle, covered in lily pads, provides water to this lush little garden.

Audio initializing.

The sound of trickling water gently pelts her ears. A breeze whooshes above, rustling the plants and calling attention to the windchimes above.

Sensories initializing.

She feels the cool breath of the wind caress her skin. The sun filtering in from above counters with its warmth. The dichotomy is pleasing. The scent of the plants fills her nostrils. She almost sneezes; she is thankful she doesn’t. The mess would have been a pain to clean up.

Controls initialized. Happy exploring.

She moves her body around the garden. Walking around is almost like walking around the dark room she is really seated in. It’s close enough to be disconcerting. No matter how many times she’s done this, she has to take a few minutes to reorient herself to the virtual environment. She performs a few stretches and exercises while she’s at it. There will be a lot of activity today.

“Hey, get your bearings yet?” Spencer’s disembodied voice crackled slightly.

“Almost. You’re breaking up a little,” Blossom replied.

“Can’t help it. There’s a massive storm outside. Let me know when you’re ready. Red is on standby,” Spencer said.

“Yo,” Redjack said. “I see you’re in one of the VineTech gardens.”

“It came with the gear,” she said.

“Did you get the XG51 set? Nice!” Spencer said.

“That’s right, boys. Only quality goods for this girl,” she said.

“That pocket garden is nice. If we weren’t already linked, I’d never know it was there. Is it true? Can you link that room anywhere?” Redjack said. Blossom smiled a little. Even she enjoyed the new car smell.

“I tried putting it just outside the library subbasement. I guess we’ll see, won’t we?” Blossom said.

“Which door?”

“A-51.”

“Ok, I’m watching. On your mark, Blossom.”

“Security is light down there, but be on your guard,” Spencer said.

“Got it,” she replied. “3…2…1…”

She opened the door out into a large, dusty lobby. Dust kicked up from the floor in a visible wave emanating from the opening portal.

“Oh, wow. I think you’re the first to disturb the air here in a long time,” Redjack commented.

“You said light security, Spence. Do you think it’s still around?” Blossom asked.

“Sensors don’t need to physically patrol an area to scan it. Some gremlins can remain inert for decades before being activated,” Spencer replied.

“Don’t let my guard down,” she said.

“Exactly. People have died from less,” Spencer said.

Blossom carefully stepped into the lobby. To her left was a large set of stairs leading up to the ground floor. A couple of dim rays from the cyberworld above pierced through, illuminating parts of a utilitarian directory in front of a big desk. Circulation, Preservation, and Housekeeping were to the right.

“This desk looks like a reception area for the basement offices,” Blossom said. “I can see some of the directory. Preservation is to my right. Is that where the archives are?”

“Not necessarily, but it’s a good place to start,” Spencer said.

“Not to alarm, but going off of Spence’s point earlier, there are a couple of inert gremlins under the desk. I’m prepping some weapon data just in case. What would you like?” Redjack said.

“The usual,” she said.

“On it,” he replied.

“Any sentries close by?” Spencer said.

“Three blocks down,” Redjack said.

“I’ll look. You’re clear to walk to that point,” Spencer said.

“Got it,” Blossom said. She advanced down the dark hallway with short, purposeful steps. She looked side-to-side with as much caution. Though the hallways were mostly bare, that did not mean they were empty. More than once, she was ambushed by cleverly camouflaged data gremlins, dangerous anomalies residing in the depths of cyberspace. They are pockets of corrupted data left down here for months, decades, or even centuries. Having been overlooked for so long and thus no programs to handle garbage collection, the corruptions evolved into some sort of animalistic state with a monstrous appearance. The depths of cyberspace are home to dangers such as this. It takes professional hackers like Blossom and her crew to brave and survive those depths to retrieve lost data. Hacker is one of the most respected professions on Taurus Rho.

Blossom crept to the end of the hall, where a pair of steel doors painted the same cream as the walls blocked her path. If Spencer was right, the sentries would be on the other side of the doors, so she relaxed a bit and took in her surroundings. She had seen the upper floors of this library before with rows of heavy wooden shelves with numerous imaginative posters begging patrons to read, read, read. There was colorful carpet to complement the colorful walls and numerous streamers hanging from the ceiling. It felt open, lively, and inviting. It was hard to believe that these lower levels were part of the same building. The offices, technical processing, and archives lived down here, so the design was far more utilitarian. Perhaps if she had a chance, she would peek into an office. Surely the librarians who worked here had lively desks.

“Hard to believe that this was a lively place twenty years ago, huh?” Redjack said.

“The first digital library,” she said.

“It had a good run, but now there are five bigger ones above and plans for even more. It didn’t take long for people to forget it,” he said.

“Red, how deep do you think cyberspace is?”

“Well, Nighthawk claimed to have been ten kilometers below, and that was when this library was in its final days. That makes that now, what, twelve?”

“How deep was that depot? The deepest we made?”

“Five.”

“I remember the cliffside there. I could see down a long ways.”

“I imagine it could be twenty, thirty, or more deep. Humanity has been on Taurus Rho for several centuries, and technology keeps expanding.”

“We can make it deeper, I bet. Deeper than even the great Nighthawk.”

“Yeah. One step at a time, anyway. What’s the word, Spencer? You’ve been quiet for a while.”

“Yeah, sorry, I’m confused. These scanners are VineTech,” Spencer said.

“VineTech? But, they’re a startup. They haven’t been around for even five years,” Blossom said.

“Weapon inbound,” Redjack interrupted.

A somewhat ornate spear materialized in front of Blossom, who took it, twirled around, and struck at a pair of gremlins in one fluid motion. The spearhead connected to the skull of the vaguely humanoid anomaly. It hissed and quivered violently before collapsing to the ground. Its buddy lunged at Blossom. She sidestepped the attack and jabbed the spear into its side, where it collapsed in a strange pile.

“Executing garbage collection,” Spencer said.

A dim light briefly engulfed the gremlin corpses. The corrupted data dispersed, leaving behind a couple of scraps of paper. Blossom picked them up and looked at them.

“This scrap is part of an old newspaper,” she said, crumpling it and tossing it behind her. “But this one, it appears to be an encrypted note. I’m uploading it to you, Spence.”

The other scrap disappeared from her hand in a small shower of white sparkles.

“Got it. So, those sentries are recent products from VineTech. Stealth Series 1 Beta. They’re supposed to be hard to detect.”

“Someone doesn’t want us down here,” Blossom said.

“It’s a good bet that someone knows we’re here. Should we abort?” Spencer said.

“Can you move that room?” Redjack asked.

“Yes, I can,” Blossom said. “Tried it the other day around my space.”

“The client gave us a detailed description of the record they want from the archives. If she hurried, she can get to it and then hop through a side door back into her safe space,” Redjack said.

“That’s risky,” Spencer said.

“I get the feeling there won’t be another chance,” Blossom said.

“If someone laid that trap for us, then there’s little use for stealth. I’ll scan the area for the target. You should see it on your HUD soon, Blossom,” Spencer said.

“Activating systems. Let’s make some noise,” Redjacked yelled.

The dark hallways lit up almost brighter than day. Blossom grunted as she brought her arm over her eyes. As her eyes adjusted, she saw a red targeting reticle appear down behind the doors.

“Archives are next to preservation, as you guessed. Run!” Spencer said.

Menus darted across Blossom’s vision as she selected a slew of commands to augment her abilities. Her destination was only a couple hundred meters down; she would be fine expending a large amount of data to get there quickly, especially if she had to run for her life. As if to confirm that, the sounds of machinery and crashing echoed from above the lobby stairs.

Blossom cursed as her spear glowed an eerie green color. With a practiced slash, she cut down the doors in front of her. She jumped past them and sprinted down the hall. Within seconds, she reached a set of doors leading into Preservation. She kicked the doors in to see a large room with shelves of boxes, chemicals, and plastic sleeving. Down the hall where she came from, she could see an Enforcer, a humanoid-shaped program designed by the military to help police the public areas of cyberspace.

“Blossom…” Spencer started.

“I know!” Weaving her spear around, she burst through Preservation, cutting through the tables and shelves before slicing down another set of doors. This led to a small warehouse with mostly empty shelves. There were several gremlins, all of whom were agitated by the sudden change in environment. In the middle of that was the target record. Hearing the crashing behind her, Blossom leaped forward, over the gremlins and shelves, and landed two aisles away from the record. The Enforcer exploded through what was left of those doors and charged forward, but the gremlins found it more interesting than Blossom.

“Precious seconds bought. There’s a door down the aisle where the record is found. Grab it and go!” Spencer said.

More menu options floated in front of Blossom as she ran to the correct aisle and rushed to the record. It appeared to be an old journal of some kind. She pocketed it and ran for the door. Light flickered behind it, and it opened to her private garden. The sound of struggle between the Enforcer and the gremlins quieted down. She was out of time. With a final burst of speed, she leaped for the door and slammed it behind her. The door bulged with a fist-like shape. Furiously, she entered commands. Soon, the bulge returned to normal as her garden transported her to somewhere safe. She pulled the journal out.

“The memoirs of Jackson A. Miller is ours,” she said.

Both men exhaled.

“Good job, Blossom,” Redjack said.

“Another narrow escape, thanks to your upgrades,” Spencer said. “Guess I should do the same, yeah? I’ll meet you at the normal place.”

“Sure thing.”

A pair of wired, sleek gloves pulled a similarly styled helmet off. The young woman gasped for fresh air and then sat there while her pulse and breathing slowly returned to normal. Every close call unnerved her. If the Enforcer had gotten a hold of her like it did those gremlins…well, this room would have been quite the mess for someone to clean up.

She stood up, slid the chest mount off, and hung the pieces of the XG51 into their sanitation station. She ambled to the bathroom and looked at the mirror. Her undershirt was drenched with sweat, and her black hair was also drenched and matted. She ran her fingers down her dried face and stared at her brown eyes for a few moments. She sniffed and wrinkled her nose.

“This is going to be the death of you, Laura,” she told her reflection.

A shower and some fresh clothes later, Laura stepped out of her apartment into the city streets. As much as she didn’t care for the inner parts of Prime City, she was glad for the opportunity to get out and distance herself from the virtual reality suit. The storm Spencer complained about had just passed over this part of the city, so there was a little freshness in the air. Her dark grey beanie, scarf, coat, slacks, and boots blended with the overcast sky, the city buildings, and many of her fellow pedestrians. She trotted to keep pace with the crowd, warily watching while keeping her face down. A pair of earbuds quietly played music from children’s show Duck the Rabbit; they were also a type of hearing aid. They saved her more than a few times from nosy reporters and angry strangers.

A quarter-hour stroll through the city streets brought her to a little cafe, La Fleur Petit. An eccentric old lady crazy about fungus ran the place, which was enough to scare off most people who weren’t regulars. It was a cozy spot that served a delicious cup of coffee and a large, warm waffle. Laura could smell the waffles the entire walk down. She opened the door and stepped in.

A wrinkled raisin of a woman sat at the register hunched over in a somewhat comatose pose. It wasn’t clear if she was contemplating the mysteries of the universe or was asleep. An eye peeked to see who it was, and then she burst into life.

“Oh, you can’t hide from me, sweetie! I know which blossom those eyes belong to,” she said.

“Good evening, Madame Sophie,” Laura said. Sophie grabbed Laura’s cool hand and stared seriously into her eyes.

“Still so formal after all these years. One day, young lady. One day, you will call me Grandma or Toots or something.” She cackled. Laura couldn’t help but smile as the old lady dragged her to her normal table. There was a guest waiting for her, as expected.

“Waffle and coffee?” Sophie asked.

“Yes, please.”

“I’ll return shortly.”

Laura sat at the table and faced her guest, who was dressed similarly. They sat in silence until Sophie returned with fresh coffee in mushroom-shaped mugs. She sat a mug in front of Laura and another in front of the guest.

“Your orders will be ready in a few. Relax and enjoy!” She bowed and walked back to the counter, singing an old tune using mushroom names as lyrics. Laura’s guest lifted his mug.

“The fields are white unto harvest,” he said.

“But the laborers are few,” she said, lifting her mug. They loosened their scarves and savored a sip.

“Sophie makes good coffee. I wonder where she sources it,” the man said.

“See? Like that, dearie!” Sophie called from the counter. Laura laughed.

“I don’t know, but she’s earned a few secrets,” she said.

“Do you have the journal?” he said.

“Here.” Laura produced a small drive and handed it over. He looked it over and placed it in a pouch.

“That was a close call. Did that punch get in your garden?”

“About two feet, I think. It…I…do you know something, Spence? I think we were targeted.” Spencer nodded.

“Here’s a copy of that note.” He pulled out a folded scrap of paper. “Decrypted,” he added.

Laura took and unfolded it.

Flowers wither. -M

She looked up.

“I don’t know who we angered, but somehow we did,” Spencer said.

“Any ideas? Past clients? Jobs?” she asked.

“I think it might actually have been this job. Jackson A. Miller was an old general, someone the deposed General Blackheart looked up to. Our client was really good at hiding his information, but I still managed to dig up some info. A librarian who was personal friends with the same Mason Blackheart, Apollo DeGreen. Seems he might be doing a favor for his old buddy.”

“General Blackheart was deposed seven years ago and disappeared soon after. Wouldn’t this be someone acting on an old grudge?”

“Maybe, but then they seemed to know who you are. That they sent an Enforcer after you meant they were someone high up. Very few people get to command those. I just don’t know who M is.”

He stared intently at her. She stared back. Sophie arrived with plates of waffles and sausage.

“Oh, Sophie, I could eat this every day,” Spencer said.

“How nice of you to say, but you already get my best discount,” Sophie replied as she placed the food down for her guests. “Let me know if you need anything else.”

Laura stared for a bit longer, and then she looked at the scrap again. Something caught her eye. There was a tiny bit of writing underneath the note.

“Hey, there’s an address here,” she said, handing the note back.

“You’re right,” he said, his eyes narrowing. “You know something.”

“Yeah, but I can’t crack. Not yet. Trust me a little longer,” she said, taking in a bite of waffle. If only she could hold that warm, fluffy moment forever.

“You were almost killed,” he said, holding his first bite in.

“I…yeah. That unnerved me, but I have to face the danger. We need to go to that address.”

“This is clearly a trap.”

“I know.”

“But you want to go?”

“I have to. It’s…important.”

“The ever-nebulous quest of yours?”

“Yeah.”

“I don’t think I could take it if you were silenced.”

“You say that every time.”

“And I mean it every time. You’re a person, too. Red and I care about you. We’re a great team. We could keep this going for years to come.”

“Spence…”

“I know better than to try to talk you out of this, but if this goes south, we’re gonna have to lay low for a while.” Laura sighed.

“Thank you, Spence. Just trust me a little longer, and then you’ll learn all you want.”

“You’re a hard nut to crack, Blossom.”

“I have to be. Look, she made these look like shiitake.”

They ate and chatted for a while longer before leaving.

The door to Laura’s apartment opened quietly. She stepped in and closed the door just as carefully. She stepped into the kitchen and stripped the gear off of her head, placing them on the table. She inhaled sharply and brought her fist down on the table, jolting everything on it. She screamed in frustration.

She knew who M was. M was the Matriarch, the name her aunt used in cyberspace. Her real name was Anastasia Plumer. She was the governing regent of Sector Prime, one of the most populous sectors on the planet. She obtained the position by exposing the corruption of the previous regent and that of his advisors. Evidence of that corruption extended to her father, General Mason Blackheart. The general embezzled funds for his family and used his position to cover for a number of Laura’s missteps, including a failed attempt to sexually assault her own cousin, Lance Plumer. In an act of goodwill, Anastasia pardoned their crimes when General Blackheart stepped down in the face of his charges.

Charges that Laura knew were completely fabricated. Anastasia and Lance had powerful and skilled friends. All it took was a little sample of Laura’s DNA that she unwittingly provided. From that, they could recreate nearly every detail about her, including her voice and mannerisms. It was groundbreaking technology, the kind that Taurus Rho was known for. The people behind this brought that technology to market under the name VineTech.

Anastasia was calling Laura out, and Laura had no choice but to follow along. It was the only way she could get close enough to find something, anything, to exonerate herself and her father. She was right: this might really be the death of her.

“Let me get this straight: we’re infiltrating an address left behind by someone who tried to kill you?” Redjack asked.

“Yes,” Spencer and Blossom answered.

“You know, I need to find my way to Prime City so I can smack you both upside the head,” Redjack said.

“It’s been a while since the last time,” Blossom said.

“It has, and if this mission goes to pot, it won’t be happening ever again,” Redjack said.

“Don’t be all glum, Red. If this mission goes well, Blossom said she would spill the beans,” Spencer said.

“Wait, really? Like, we can finally know your name and all that?” Redjack said.

“Yeah. I have a feeling we’ll find something big here,” Blossom said.

“If you make it. I mean, given what we know, they could be going after me and Spence when this is over.”

“If this is our end, then let it be something noteworthy. I mean, we are trying to be greater than Nighthawk, right?” Spencer said.

“Now or never,” Blossom said.

“Right,” Redjack said. “I see you attached your garden to that address. I can have a weapon placed right outside for you. You’ll need it: the place is crawling with gremlins.”

“The place looks like an abandoned vacation home that sunk into the depths. Records of who it once belonged to seem to have been corrupted. Maybe one of those gremlins has them,” Spencer said.

“I can block some doors and funnel the gremlins down a corridor. That should help you dispatch them,” Redjack said.

“Alright. Reserve some data for a hasty retreat,” Blossom said. “I’d rather this not be the end if I can help it.”

“Already on it,” Redjack said.

“Okay, on my mark,” Blossom said. “3…2…1…”

Blossom burst through the door, grabbing the spear dropped next to it. One thrust, two, and then three inflicted fatal wounds on as many gremlins.

“Starting garbage collection,” Spencer said.

“Funneling enemies. They should be coming out of the door to the left,” Redjack said.

“How many?” Blossom asked.

“About thirty.”

Blossom sighed, inhaled deeply, and slammed the butt of the spear on the ground.

“Bring it!” she said, readying the spear for the first to come out.

Come out they did. As the door burst open, two gremlins popped out. Meanwhile, the doorway appeared to shrink down to a third of its size, forcing further gremlins to have to squeeze through.

“That should hold for a while. Take them out,” Redjack said.

Blossom stabbed the two in front of her, and then she charged at the doorway, running through another. She stood in front of it, stabbing at each one trying to get through to her. With Spencer clearing the corrupted data, there was plenty of room for the remaining gremlins to make their way to Blossom. By the time the last fell, she yawned with boredom.

“I expected more,” she said.

“Don’t let your guard down, lady,” Spencer said. He grunted. “Nothing useful. They were all made of bits and bobs. I think they were all made recently.”

“What are we looking for, anyway?” Redjack asked.

“I don’t know, exactly. Evidence of some kind,” Blossom said.

“You’re risking your life for something vague?”

“This time, yes. I don’t know what I’m looking for, but I’ll know what it is when I find it.”

“Okaaay…” Redjack said. “Well, you are in the den of a mansion. Your garden is attached to a door that goes outside. The door to the left of that, where you just killed gremlins, leads further into the mansion. On the opposite side, you should see some double doors that lead out into a courtyard. There is a bridge that goes over a pond to an island that houses a small tower. I don’t know about you, but I think I would have fun at this place. You, aside from the monster infestation.”

Blossom gasped. She knew this place.

“The tower. It’s got to be in the tower.”

“How do you know?” Spencer said.

“I just…I just do. Are there any enemies out there?”

“None that I see,” Redjack said. There just seem to be a couple of spotlights. How odd.”

“Huh…yeah, they’re just spotlights. Nothing out of the ordinary there,” Spencer said.

The ground shook. A guttural scream echoed through the mansion.

“That…oh, that one is huge. And he’s above you,” Redjack said.

“I don’t like this, Blossom. You’re being pushed there. You know there is trap of some kind somewhere,” Spencer said.

“I’ll deal,” she said, approaching the courtyard doors. They were large enough to allow a small vehicle in. A plank of wood resting on metal braces barred the door from opening. Blossom lifted the plank and set it aside. She then twisted the second brace from the right, revealing a small hole inside the door. She retrieved a key, which she inserted into the keyhole. There was a loud click, and then the doors swung open.

“Huh…” Spencer said.

“I couldn’t see that. Where exactly are we?” Redjack said.

“It’s–” Blossom started. Another heavy scream cut her off.

“Tell us later. Go!” Redjack said.

Blossom ran out into the courtyard. It was a simple grassy yard with a large pond in the middle. In the middle of the pond stood a small tower rising about three stories. A rough path of large stones connected the door to a wooden bridge that crossed the pond. The stone path continued on the island to the tower.

Blossom made it halfway to the bridge when a large, dark mass poured itself out of the courtyard door like a thick oil. Once out, it wriggled violently until it could form a pair of arms, a pair of eyes, and a pair of eyes. The gremlin was easily the size of an elephant, and its core was darker than any night sky Blossom had ever seen.

Blossom bolted to the bridge just as the gremlin chased after her. The ground under the gremlin suddenly gave way as if it was as viscous as the creature.

“Thanks, Red,” Blossom said as she stepped on the bridge. Just a few more steps, and she would be on the island, and then the tower, and then whatever was held in it.

Then the spotlights lit up.

Blossom cried out as she did her best to shield her eyes from their glare.

“Don’t tell me…” Spencer said.

“Oh. Oh, no!” Redjack said. “There’s no way!”

Blossom was not the only one who cried out. The gremlin screeched in pain. It scrambled like a panicked bug back to the mansion.

“We’re too high up to see any of these,” Spencer said. “How is this possible?”

There were four spotlights, each attached to the fence around the courtyard. Their intense light focused on Blossom. Wherever she blindly stumbled, they followed her. The large beams grew brighter and more focused. A thin beam of the whitest light shot from each spotlight and hit Blossom’s head. She seized up, held up only by her twitching muscles and the lights which bore into her.

“I’m going in,” Spencer said.

“Are you nuts?! We’ve never dealt with the Lights of Truth!” Redjack said.

“If I know my lore, they’ll only be focused on her. If I don’t, well, it was worth a shot. We can’t jack her out until she’s free of them, which means one of us has to pull her out.”

Redjack cursed.

“I knew you’d understand,” Spencer said.

The lights intensified, drilling into Blossom’s mind. Her body contorted in awful angles, and her cries sounded inhuman. Streams of silver poured out of her head. There were hundreds of them, and they threatened to corrupt the space around them and form gremlins. However, in the light, they instead stabilized and turned into windows showing pictures, objects, scenes, and even ideas and feelings.

“There’s a ton of data coming through. You’ll have to jack in on my mark,” Redjack said.

“Got it,” Spencer replied. “What’s going on?”

“It’s…her. Everything about her. Everything.”

“What? That’s it?”

“I don’t think you understand, Spence. You should see this.”

“Okay.”

“Opportunity’s coming. 3…2…1…”

A shower of light by the courtyard door heralded Spencer’s entrance. The lights around him were nearly too much to take in, but they were not nearly as intense as they were on the bridge. Silver streams continued to wrest themselves out of Blossom’s mind, turning in to data streams. Scenes of school, trips, military parades, family, especially…

“General Mason Blackheart?” Spencer said. The deposed general factored into several memories.

“Blossom is…Laura Blackheart? Have we been working with the general’s daughter this whole time?” Redjack said.

“This was the regent’s vacation home! Red, where is all this data going?”

Redjack gasped and cursed. “It’s going somewhere in downtown Prime. I can’t contain any of this! Get her out!”

Spencer approached the bridge. The heat of the lights was unbearable, but that was nothing compared to Laura’s writhing body. It contorted just the right way for him to reach his arms in and hook them around her shoulders. He pulled her as close as her body and the attached lights would allow.

“Got a boost for me?” Spencer said.

“I’ll try, buddy,” Redjack said. “Here goes…”

Spencer yanked. Redjack’s boost was more than he expected, for he flew back into the mansion with Laura in tow. It was enough to disconnect her from the lights, which immediately powered down. She quivered in exhaustion and gasped for breath.

“Throw her in the garden. I'll jack her out,” Redjack said.

Spencer dragged Laura to the door hosting her private garden. He was unable to enter it, so he gathered her into his arms like he was carrying a large sack.

“I’m sorry, but I hope this will be less painful than what you just went through,” he said.

He swung her twice before letting go a third time. She flew a few feet into the garden, landing hard on the ivy-covered ground. Spencer winced.

“I’m so sorry, Blossom,” he said, closing the door.

Laura screamed as she yanked the XG51 off. She clawed at her head, which felt like it had been drilled into hundreds of times. She stumbled out of her chair, choking out sobs, clutching her chest, and using the wall to hold herself up. Eventually, she made it to the bathroom, where she allowed herself to trip down to the toilet. She vomited into it. When nothing more could come out, she collapsed on the floor. She tried to wrap the rug around her. She pulled the towels off the drying rack to wrap around her, and then she tried to reach for the clean ones shelved above the rack. Eventually, she stopped reaching and cried herself to sleep.

“Welcome! Oh! Oh…” Sophie hurried around the counter and grabbed Laura’s hands. It had been two days since her mind was invaded. She existed on the bathroom floor for most of that, but something within willed her to get up, clean up, and take the stroll to La Fleur Petit. She wore two layers of clothing under her coat and wrapped her scarf extra tight. The wet, red rings around her eyes made her look threatening. She tried to say something to Sophie.

“Shh, hush now. Come, your friends are waiting. I will make something special for you.”

Waiting? She didn’t tell anyone she would be there. Yet, there were two men dressed like her. Of course. Who else could it have been? They were already enjoying their coffee in mushroom-shaped mugs. A fresh mug was waiting for her. Sophie helped her sit, and she was off into the kitchen.

“The fields are ripe to harvest,” Spencer said.

“But…the laborers…” Laura answered, choking up. She breathed in slowly and collected herself.

“Are few,” she finished. She loosened her scarf a little, trying to have just enough room to drink her coffee and nothing more. The two men removed their scarves completely, loosened their coats, took off their caps, and relaxed. Spencer leaned forward.

“So, we, uh, saw everything,” he said. Laura nodded cautiously.

“To be honest, I thought all this effort to be secretive and hidden was a novel schtick, You know, an edgy kind of roleplay that was sort of our trademark thing. I mean, why do we need to hide? We’re hackers. We do the dangerous work of finding things in the deep so that nobody else has to, right? But, now I understand. I know why we needed to be secretive. Why you were always so hidden. You had to be,” Spencer said.

“The regent was after you,” Redjack continued. “She tried to mine, well, you. She learned about Spence and I.”

‘I put you danger. We have to lay low. I shouldn’t have…” Laura said.

“Yeah, we’re in danger. Or would have been,” Redjack said. He pushed a folded piece of paper to her. Laura took and unfolded it. She looked up. On the note was an image of a hawk’s head.

“Apparently Nighthawk is still in business, and he took enough shine to us to divert most of the data heading to the lady regent,” Spencer said.

Tears fell as a great weight lifted from Laura’s shoulders.

“I…I’m so grateful!” she blurted. Spencer stood up.

“For better or for worse, the time for secrets is behind us. My name is James Smith. My grandfather, Spencer O’Toole, was a hacker and someone I admired greatly.” He held out his hand. Redjack stood and offered his hand, as well.

“I, well, there’s nothing meaningful to Redjack. My name is Jack Redman. I just thought it sounded cool. Computers are sort of my dig, you know?”

Laura stood and took her scarf off.

“Laura Blackheart. I’m pleased to meet you both.” She shook each of their hands, and they sat back down.

“Oh, finally! You’re practically family now!” Sophie snuck up to the table with three steaming bowls, placing them before each person.

“Sophie, we didn’t order any soup,” Spencer said.

“Don’t worry! Today’s meal is on the house. The soup is my special recipe: a broth made from several different mushrooms! It’s the perfect remedy for cold, troubling days. I’ll be back later with your meals.” Sophie scooted off.

“That was generous of her,” Redjack said, lifting the bowl to his face. Spencer and Laura did the same.

“Cheers,” they said, and drank. The soup filled Laura with an otherworldly warmth, a feeling of calm in the midst of a raging storm. The earthy, peppery mushrooms felt oddly of home. There was joy, and longing, and peace.

Laura opened her eyes, suddenly aware she had almost drifted asleep. Spencer and Redjack, by the look on their faces, had similar reactions.

“What a masterpiece,” Spencer finally said. Silently, they sipped their soups until their bowls were empty. As if on cue, Sophie returned to collect their bowls and place out their entrees: a massive feast of eggs, bacon, and sausage piled on top of her mushroom-shaped waffles.

“I don’t know what you’ve suffered, but I’ll be dead before I let anyone walk over my children like that. Next time it happens, you point ol’ Sophie at ‘em. I’ll tan their hides so hard, they’ll wish I actually knocked them into next month.” Sophie walked back to the kitchen muttering other unsavory things she wanted to do. The three sat there for a moment, and then they erupted in laughter before digging in.

“We need to go back,” Laura said.

“I know you just got drilled in the head, but seriously?” Spencer said.

“Yes. Seriously. Aunt Anastasia baited a trap, but I never found the bait,” Laura said.

“The Lights of Truth are ancient traps. I can see how a rich and powerful person like the regent managed to get some moved to her old vacation home without destroying half of cyberspace, but there isn’t much known about them. I don’t know any way to disable them,” Redjack said.

“But Nighthawk does,” Laura said.

“Oh, right. He did claim to have a way to get through them. But we have no way to contact him,” Spencer said.

“If we caught his attention before, maybe we can catch it again,” Laura said.

“What if we don’t?” Redjack asked.

“Then we look for a way around. They activated when I got part way across the bridge. What if we went under it, or over the island, or through the ground? The tower, it’s important. She had that built for her kids and us cousins. It’s a big playhouse,” she answered.

“Well, those are possibilities,” Redjack conceded.

“What if the bait turns out to be a ruse?” Spencer asked.

“Well, I guess we lay low and learn from our mistakes,” Laura said.

“I think I heard something about Omega Phi looking for something like us hackers. Ever thought about moving off-world?” Redjack said.

“Let’s consider that after we deal with the task at hand,” Spencer said.

Laura stared at an empty mug.

“Grandma, can I have some more coffee?” she called out.

Sophie burst through the kitchen door with a full carafe of coffee and the widest grin.

“You make this old woman so happy, dear!”

A few days had passed before Blossom stepped back into the mansion’s den. It seemed whatever damage occurred during his last visit was repaired.

“Auntie is pretty diligent at maintaining her abandoned property,” she observed.

“That’s a bad sign,” Spencer said.

“Let’s go through with it, anyway. We may get lucky,” she said.

“Just in case, I have a program ready to jack you out in case the lights target you again. It’s going to hurt, but not like what you endured,” Redjack said.

“Okay. Let’s do this,” she said, stepping towards the courtyard doors. She immediately stopped and drew a sharp breath.

“Whoa! Who is that?” Redjack said. Although difficult to see in the dim lighting, there was a man standing in front of the courtyard doors. His dark raiment melded well with the shadows, but the helmet on his head was shaped like a hawk.

“Is that…?” Spencer started.

“Laura,” the man said sternly. Her knees gave out, and she fell on them. Her lips quivered and tears formed.

“That was reckless, the other day. I taught you better,” the man continued.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean…I had to…”

“How can you possibly surpass the great Nighthawk with such rookie mistakes?” he demanded.

“I never thought I would get to meet Nighthawk, and now he’s scolding us. I don’t think anything can surprise me anymore,” Redjack said.

“Anastasia isn’t satisfied. She wants us gone. I didn’t think I would have another opportunity!” Blossom pleaded to Nighthawk.

“Sometimes patience requires decades. You can’t expose anything if you lose control and get yourself killed for it,” Nighthawk countered. “And your teammates! Did you not think of them? Didn’t you ignore their warnings?”

Blossom punched the ground in frustration. Nighthawk walked to her.

“Get up,” he said. “Get up. Eyes up and forward. Face me.”

Blossom obeyed, standing to her feet and facing Nighthawk with eyes filled with defiance. Nighthawk grabbed her chin and chuckled softly.

“You’re as stubborn as ever. I’ve missed you, daughter.”

“Nighthawk is…” Spencer said. The sound of his headset hitting a wall replaced the rest of his statement.

“Tell me this is the last surprise we have to deal with. We can’t handle anymore,” Redjack said. Blossom could almost hear his facepalm.

“Where have you been?” Laura said.

“I’m sorry. I had to disappear, like you,” Nighthawk said. He cupped his hands around her head, and then he pulled her into an embrace.

“I missed you,” she said, hugging him back.

She could feel him pull his mask off. There was a shake, and then she felt something like a warm, fuzzy blanket cover her. She pulled back to see a cloak covering her. Her father fastened the clasp at her neck and pulled the hood over her head. He waved a hand, revealing a mirror. In the reflection stood an older version of the father she knew. He leaned on a cane, and his hair and beard were grayer, but age could not erase the pride and intention in which he carried himself. Laura then noticed the ears on the hood and the little duck bill. She laughed, facepalmed, and sang.

“Duck, Duck the Bunny is his name

Helping the children is his game!”

General Blackheart walked around his daughter and tidied the wrinkles and debris off of the cloak. He joined in the song with his gruff, baritone voice.

“When evil rears its ugly head,

Duck will fly in and make it dead.

He saves the world as you can see

Duck is right here for you and me!”

“That was an awful show,” General Blackheart said.

“Yeah, but it kind of stuck,” Laura said.

General Blackheart looked Laura over once more, and then he sighed.

“I’m old and harsh. You suffered greatly from those lights. I hope you can forgive an old man for fearing for his little girl,” he said.

“I’m twenty-seven, Dad.”

“I’m almost 70. You will always be little to me. Now, we have some business to take care of, don’t we?”

Ruffled noises come from Spencer’s headset, followed by a long breath.

“General, do you plan on funding a long vacation for all of us when this is done?” he asked.

“I’ll do that and more if you succeed. How would you folks like to work with the great Nighthawk? I’ll teach you things you never thought possible,” General Blackheart replied.

“I’m ears,” Redjack said.

“You’re really helping us?” Laura said.

“Of course. I can’t have Anastasia harming my little blossom again,”

“What’s the plan?” Spencer said.

“Blossom is going to walk across the bridge and take whatever artifact is in the tower,” Nighthawk said as he pulled on a new hood.

“We tried that last time, and it didn’t work,” Redjack said.

“True, but last time you didn’t have all the necessary tools,” Nighthawk said.

“This cloak,” Blossom said.

“Right. I devised cloaks like this specifically to get past the Lights of Truth. They were a government experiment designed to mine the thoughts of the populace. As you’ve seen, they have painful results, and they were the refined, production versions,” Nighthawk said.

“So, you learned about them while you were actually General,” Spencer said.

“Right. That sort of clearance turned around and made me a legend, though you are the only ones outside my team to know this. Having the archived schematics of old, powerful weapons helped us to devise countermeasures,” Nighthawk said.

“Not to alarm anyone, but that giant gremlin is still there. How has he not seen us yet?” Redjack said.

“Let’s just say I know a few ways to obtain control of my space. I will upload some of those to you,” Nighthawk said. “The rest I cannot give you without causing you trouble.”

“What will the cloak do?” Spencer asked.

“It will reflect the light back to the source, causing it to mine itself. It won’t be destroyed, but it will be kept busy in a recursive loop for several minutes. Unfortunately, they will not be available to keep our friend upstairs at bay. That’s where I come in. I need you gentlemen to back me up while I keep him busy. With a little luck, we can take it out and recover a bit of treasure for ourselves,” Nighthawk said.

“What’s in the tower?” Blossom asked.

“I don’t know, but it will be on you to recover whatever is up there. I imagine Anastasia will have something else planned for you,” Nighthawk said. He placed a hand on her shoulder.

“I saw some of the memories drilled out of you. There was one in particular that caught my attention,” he said. A window appeared, showing a garden in Prime City.

“Wait a minute. Isn’t this where Laura supposedly assaults the regent’s son?” Spencer said.

“Look,” Nighthawk said.

A younger Laura walked down the starlit garden path. She wore a simple dress with golden feathers adorning her shoulders. Walking next to her was her cousin, Lance Plumer, who wore the ceremonial uniform of a colonel of the Prime Sector army. Earlier that day, new officers graduated from officer school, and Lance was one of the top graduates. The party that night was in their honor. Laura naturally attended the party, being the daughter of General Mason. It had been years since she and Lance saw each other, so this party was an excellent opportunity to catch up.

They ambled through the spacious garden for what seemed like hours before they stopped in a secluded corner. The journey was well-remembered. The words and sounds, however, were muffled. Laura barely remembered them. That is, until a certain point. Lance brought his hand up to Laura’s face.

“You really blossomed into a beautiful woman, Laura,” he said.

“Oh, stop it,” she laughed. “I’m still the same kid you ran around with.”

“Maybe we can do something more,” he said. His hand lowered, but before he got anywhere, she grabbed a hold of it. He thrust his other arm at her face, which she dodged and then bit. He yanked that arm back while she held on to the other, spinning under it and using the momentum to flip him onto the ground. She spat in his face and stormed off.

Nighthawk brought up a different window. “This is footage from the security camera,” he said.

The same scene played out, but from a perspective about ten feet away. When Laura stormed off, Lance produced a couple of vials from his coat and collected Laura’s spittle.

“That was much easier than I thought,” he said as he got up. He dusted himself off, looked around, and walked away.

“That…that…” Blossom started.

“It’s hard to know what was and wasn’t fabricated,” Nighthawk said. “So, I just wanted you to know, if this doesn’t work out, and we get separated again, know that I know the truth and have always believed it to be, even when we were being played.”

“If I hadn’t spat on him!” Blossom stormed to the courtyard door.

“Operation start, boys,” Nighthawk said.

Soon, the door swung open, and Blossom stomped her way to the bridge and over it. The spotlights lit up, again blinding her. However, she hid under her cloak while her sight recovered. The cloak lit up, producing a reflective barrier in the shape of Duck the Bunny. With a loud quack, the lights were reflected back to the spotlights. The spotlights shook violently and flickered as they tried to mine the minds that weren’t there.

“You know, she’s going to kill you for that,” Spencer said.

“Won’t be the first time. It’s a father’s job to embarrass his children,” Nighthawk said.

“Bogey is active. Look alive!” Redjack said.

Blossom huddled under her cloak while the sting dissipated from her eyes. When her vision recovered, she resumed her tirade to the island, and then up the path. She planted her foot squarely on the tower door, knocking it over. She climbed the steps as Nighthawk evaded the gremlin outside. The second floor contained four beds. Beside each was a bedstand equipped with a lamp, a few books, and a small shelf of toys. She crossed the room and ascended the next set of stairs. At the top of the stairs was a final door. She stopped for a moment, took a few deep breaths, and composed herself. And then, she knocked.

“Come in,” Anastasia answered.

Blossom stepped in. The room inside was much larger than it should have been. There was a fire roaring in the fireplace across from the door. A tea kettle sat over it. A rug lay in front of the fireplace. To either side of the rug were a pair of comfy chairs. A table with teacups and cookies sat in between them. Anastasia Plumer sat in the one on the right.

“Have a seat,” the regent said.

Blossom sat in the other chair. Anastasia pulled the teapot from the fire, filled the teacups, and placed the pot back on the fire. Blossom took her cup and sipped on it. Chamomile.

“Snickerdoodles?” she asked.

“Yes,” her aunt replied. Blossom took one and nibbled on it silently for a few moments.

“Why haven’t you killed me?”

“I still can.”

“But you haven’t.”

“I can’t.”

The fire crackled loudly.

“Regent DeSpain was a crooked man. I don’t regret exposing him. Removing him from power, and those who profited with him, was necessary for the health of the sector,” Anastasia said.

“What did that have to do with me and father?”

“As his daughter, you should understand how much he values loyalty and duty. If his leader was in danger, no matter how much he actually despised the man, Mason would still take bullets for him.”

“This all was a form of protection?”

“Would you prefer prison and execution?”

“Why did you have Lance…do…argh!”

“Laura, I could never apologize enough for what he did. I instructed him to recover some form of DNA from you. He chose how to do it. The smear campaign was badly handled.”

“You don’t say!” Blossom shot up, ready to throw a punch.

“The Lance on TV is also fabricated. Did you know that?”

“What?”

“The real Lance is doing time in Barghest. That is the penalty for sexual assault, isn’t it?”

“I…didn’t…” She deflated back into her chair. They sat in silence for a while longer.

“You have to expose my crimes,” Anastasia finally said.

“I don’t understand,” Blossom said.

“Mason is fully discredited, but he can live on as Nighthawk. In fact, I think in some ways he prefers it.” At that moment, the large gremlin crawled passed their windows. Shortly after, Nighthawk flew past with some kind of energy weapon in hand, cackling like madman.

“Point.”

“You also have an interest in bringing me down, and it is easy to disprove the false evidence implicating your ‘crimes.’ I brought down Regent DeSpain in the name of justice, and I still believe in that enough to know that I need to step down and leave the regency to someone capable of ruling with clean hands.”

Laura sighed.

“I just wanted my life back,” she said.

“I’m sorry. The old flower has long since withered, but you have already blossomed into a new one. Do this, and you can at least be free to pursue it with your team.”

“What will happen to you?” Laura asked.

“I will probably end up in a cell next to Lance. Either that or I can make my escape to Omega Phi. I hear they need hackers.”

An ear-piercing squeal came from outside.

“Ha ha! We have vanquished the beast!” Nightwing cried out.

“Well, there’s the key to unlock the evidence. Here’s the rest,” Anastasia said. She produced a small lockbox and handed it to Blossom.

“You are not merely the daughter of Mason Blackheart. You are Laura Blackheart, the Blossom of the Depths. My traps have harmed you, but you have lived and learned from them. Now, let us finish staining our family name so that we can reconcile and find peace.”

Anastasia got up, curtsied, and exited in a shower of sparkles. The room phased out and was replaced with a smaller, empty room covered in dust.

“Blossom! Blossom! Are you there?” Spencer called out. Redjack and Nightwing were busy chanting cheers and victory fanfares.

“I’m here. I have it. I have what we came for,” she said.

Over the next few years, the Prime Sector underwent several rounds of political upheaval until the government reformed around a new regent. Careful checks and balances were installed to ensure the validity of the government. Although Laura Blackheart was exonerated of her crimes in the public eye, she remained below the radar. Some believe they can see her entering a hole-in-the-wall cafe, but they are never sure if it’s actually her. Even her clients are not quite sure. The Blossom of the Depths guards her secrets well.

#inklingschallenge #team lewis #clothe the naked

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