#sorry i have one (1) brain cell and it told me to post this

[goblin-phannie]

#queen charlotte #bridgerton #netflix #queen charlotte: a bridgerton story #sorry i have one (1) brain cell and it told me to post this #rambles #shut up annie #bridgerton spoilers #queen charlotte spoilers #lady danbury #agatha danbury #viscountess bridgerton #violet bridgerton #pls let this be funny to other people and not just me 🙏🙏 #mine #qcabs #qcabs spoilers

[simpforfic]

The Tiger and The Tamer P3

Sorry for not posting much everyone, my brain got overwhelmed with some personal shit but here it is for part 3. Hope you all will like it. oh, a side note on the last part: I said Horangi is 163, but I found out he was 188, so I will change that. TW: Violence, blood, a bit of possessive Horangi Word count: 1,359 Part 1 <- Part 2 <- Masterlist <-

The dragon hybrid let out a snarl at Horangi, Horangi didn’t seem faced by the growl but retaliated with a low and deep growl. He was the first to launch at the dragon hybrid, landing a flurry of punches on the other hybrid's scale-covered arm. The dragon hybrid let out a loud pant before hitting twice as hard at Horangi with his fire breath. Opening his mouth to launch a giant fireball at Horangi.

Horangi got pushed back as the smoke from the fire slowly disappeared to reveal Horangi unharmed by the fire. I watch these 2 punches, drop kicks and even try to bite the other. Writing down what skills he has improved and which needs more training, I can't help but admire how handsome he looks as he fights, sweat slowly dripping down his hair and skin. The doctor beside me seemed unimpressed by the combat happening in front of us behind the tempered glass.

 

Then, he stood still for a moment. I can tell that they were talking before but something felt off, I can see from his expression. I can’t really see his expression but from his body language I could guess that he is tense, my guess was right when I heard him roar. My eyes tried to help my brain make sense of what was going on as Horangi turned into his tiger form, Golden eyes gleaming with anger. Whatever the dragon hybrid said royally pissed Horangi.

"Didn't know he could do that, but I admit he looks less intimidating than before." I gave the doctor a confused side glance as his eyes never left the scene in front of us. My attention was quickly grabbed by the sound of pure pain. My eyes widened as I saw Horangi trying to kill the subject by stabbing his horn right at the chest. 

The doctor quickly clicked on the mic and ordered Horangi, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING, DON'T KILL HIM YOU IDIOT." Horangi turned his head, letting a roar at the doctor he tried to continue but only to be shocked by his collar. Falling limp onto his side as the dragon hybrid crawled away from Horangi holding his stab wound. I called guards to quickly escort Horangi back to his cell and bring the other hybrid to the medical wing. 

As Horangi was carried back in a stretcher to his cell, my eyes filled with worry as my brain tried to figure out why he randomly tried to kill the dragon. Usually, he just knocks them out, he sees other subjects as his friends so this is an odd occurrence. "What the FUCK, WHY DID HORANGI TRY TO KILL SUBJECT 78?!" 

"Sir calm down, I don't know either, usually he only knocks them out." 

"You told me he would be a good sparring partner for newer subjects." My nose scrunched up and eyebrows knit in annoyance, "Look I will try to find a reasoning from Horangi and I will tell you later." The doctor gave me a scoff before speeding walking towards the medical wing.

I finally reached Horangi's cell, opening to reveal him already awake and now randomly in his human form, probably changed into it before I arrived. His eyes glinted with drowsiness as he turned into his tiger form. I clicked on the mic to ask him the question, "Horangi what happened, why did you try to kill him?" He didn't answer for a while as the tension in the air rose like steam. 

"I would rather not tell." he growled, I gave him a nod and let go of the mic button. I quickly scurried towards the file Dr Valentin gave me, I opened it with worry and fear coursing through my blood. I checked the list of warning signs. 

"Aggression towards others, more open or closed than usual, stalking behaviour.." I started to cross out the ones that Horangi had shown but right now the only one he has shown is aggression. I let out a sigh, I have to keep an eye out for any more. "Heyy Dr Y/N wanna go to the cafeteria to take a break with me??" I nearly jumped up but quickly realised it was just Dr Choon-Hee again. "Yeah sure I gotta do something first." She gave a thumbs up as the metal door closed. I grabbed a walkie talkie that was on its stand in the shelf and called for my assistant to come and watch Horangi.

I turned to Horangi after setting the walkie talkie down, "Okay, Dr glacial will take over and she will guide you to the gym in 10 mins have a good break.." with that I left the observation room and on the way to the cafeteria.

Horangi's pov

During the fight

I gave the dragon hybrid a strong kick on the leg which caused him to fall, I can tell by the way he fights he just came here. God I wish I could fight konig or Alejandro. They both give me a better fight than this. I continued punching him and blocking his attacks, turning my head to see Y/N watching me with almost pure admiration, I suppressed a smirk as I sparred.

The dragon also looked at Y/N and turned to me. "What a pity, putting a dragon against a mere tiger." He spat with a shit eating grin, I stood up straight. Staring at him, “What the fuck did you just say?” . He let out a snicker, “What can’t hear me? No wonder you are just a pathetic hybrid.” My eye twitched in anger as he said that, did he just call me a pathetic fuck. Oh OH CALL ME WEAK THEN I WILL SHOW YOU, I let out a roar before transforming into my tiger form. 

I pounced at his head first so my horn could stab him right at the chest, I could feel the warm blood of the dragon hybrid streaming down from the top of my head and down to my chin. I was about to bite or scratch him with my claws but I got snapped out of my bloodlust by the other doctor’s scream. I glared at the doctor with no mercy, but as I was about to continue my work then I felt like my muscles were forced to stop working by the electricity from the shock collar. I collapsed with a loud thud and everything turned black but not before I gave one last glare at the dragon hybrid.

After the fight

I woke up with a hiss as i tried to lift up my arm to wipe my eye, my muscles hurt like fuck. Looking around for a while, I realised that I am now in my human form. I naturally jolted a bit as I heard the metal door opening, I looked over at Dr Y/N with tired eyes as I turned into my tiger form to conserve energy.

 “Horangi what happened, why did you try to kill him?” “I'd rather not tell.” it was total bullshit but it’s better than admitting the real reason. As she turned around to leave to do something, my eyes couldn't stop itself from wandering up and down her stature but then my eyes finally found a target. I stared at her for a good 20 seconds, I felt something in me like I needed her to be here. In this cell with me where I can be close to her but I again yell at myself, why am I starting to get these feelings from. Look I admit she is pretty hot but why do I feel like I have Be with her something isn’t right. I felt the tiger me yearn to taste her but I kept pushing it away. I know it’s not normal lust but it's something more Primal..

I watched her leave with Dr. Choon-hee, and I felt jealousy striking my mind. I stared at Dr. Choon-hee as if I wanted to rip her into shreds, I felt some primal instinct to just Mark Dr y/n. Is it me or my tiger thinking now? 

#cod fanfic #horangi #horangi x reader #slow burn #eventual smut #cod x reader #call of duty #cod mw2 #call of duty mw2

[peachywise]

Lessons in Honesty Part 5

steve harrington x reader

Chapter 5: Enjoy the Silence

– other chapters: part 1 ⋆ part 2 ⋆ part 3 ⋆ part 4 ⋆ part 5 ⋆ part 6 ⋆ part 7 ⋆ part 8

– series synopsis: Being Robin Buckley’s younger sibling had always been uneventful, up until she got herself tangled with Steve Harrington. And really, you were happy for her. She deserved friends. What was bothersome was when he got let in on small secrets like your infatuation with Eddie Munson, and decided to take it into his own hands to try and get him to pay attention to you-- by pretending to be your boyfriend.

– notes: hello!! this is my favourite chapter so far. i got giddy writing it. shameless in my love of the tending to one another’s wound trope. this is all. please enjoy!

p.s. enjoy the silence is not an eighties song but the title fit too well for the chapter okay let me enjoy depeche mode in peace

p.p.s. i have literally tried posting this twice before only for it not to show up in the tags and if it happens again then i will hurl myself off a cliff 

read here or on ao3

_____________________________

People often say how silence can be defeating. But at this moment, with Steve beside you in the driver's seat, you thought a better way to describe the silence is by how utterly restraining it was.  

You couldn't move. Not because you were paralyzed by discomfort, but because you felt like there was a rubber band circling the both of you, and if it was disrupted, it would snap and break something irreparably. You'd waited to see if Steve would be the one to break the silence, but he'd been driving for ten minutes and hadn't even turned on the stereo.

Either the rubber band was going to snap first, or your mentality would crack under the weight of awkwardness and overthinking.

"You can listen to Wham! if you want."

Looks like your mentality was the weaker of the two.

"What?" Steve asked. Your comment knocked a brick from the mental wall behind which he had put himself. Steve turned to look at you for a brief second before suddenly turning his attention back to the road. You wondered if he had been on autopilot and just became self-aware that he had been driving this whole time.

"You know, the band," you continued. Sometimes it felt like your brain cells were small clowns packing themselves into a tiny vehicle, only to launch themselves out of your mouth and into an ocean, suffering a painful and stupid death. "I didn't actually know if you listened to them or not when I said you looked like you were dressed for their concert. Sorry if I offended you. I mean, they're not my favourite band, but if you like them, then I'll shut up, and you can play your music no problem. Then again, just cause you look like you listen to them doesn't mean you do. You could listen to Madonna for all I—"

"Buckley," Steve cut you off.

"Yeah?"

"Just turn on the radio."

"Okay."

You didn't.

And it was back to silence.

Five more minutes passed before Steve pulled into the driveway of your house and turned off the ignition. Thirty seconds passed in silence without either of you moving a muscle. And then, finally, Steve spoke.

"I'm sorry."

Steve wasn't looking at you as he said it. He leaned back against his seat as he stared at your dad's car in front of the garage. You, however, couldn't move your eyes away from him. Confusion overtook your features at his apology.

"For what?" You asked, twisting your body slightly in your seat to face him more fully.

He shifted in his seat, moving his hand up to run over his jaw. His frustration was apparent. "I shouldn't have left you alone in a place like that. I wasn't thinking." He murmured past his hand. You noticed it was red and starting to crack from where he had hit the man.

Was that really what had him so torn up? For leaving you alone? "You had no way to know someone would come up to me. And I dealt with it, Steve. I told him to leave the same as you would have. Besides, you were what, forty feet away? I don't really consider that leaving me alone."

"But you got hurt because of it," Steve spoke more resoundly, finally turning his face towards you and dropping his hand.

As if to emphasize his statement, your head throbbed with a dull pain. With how focused you were on the tension in the car, it was like you had forgotten all about it.

"I fell backward. It was more an accident because the table was there." The guy had grabbed you, sure, but the force of you pulling back caused the events that followed to happen. Not that you were acquitting that asshole of anything. It was his fault. He shouldn't have laid his hands on you in the first place. But Steve shouldn't hold guilt or anger about the fact he hadn't been standing beside you. If the guy had a few more drinks in him, he probably would have come up to you if Steve was there regardless. The same thing was bound to happen.

"I've fallen before. Had cuts and bruises. When I was seven, I even stood on top of monkey bars and fell off and broke my arm. Now that we're friends, are you going to take responsibility every time I'm injured, and you're not there? Because I'm not letting you take on the role of bodyguard too. Fake boyfriend is enough."

Steve looked at you for a quiet beat, the wheels in his head turning as he processed everything you said. Hopefully, your attempt at lightening up the conversation at the end would make everything a little less serious because you weren't sure how long you could keep hold of this metaphorical breath before you passed out. Thankfully, it seemed like something had resonated with him. There was still a tightness in the way he clenched his jaw, but he gave a slight nod of the head, looking down at his lap.

"I'm still sorry it happened," he offered, finally sounding less wound up.

"I'm sure that creep is too. That was one hell of a punch. I think you broke his nose," you gave a slight smile.

An unamused breathy laugh left him as he turned back to look at you. "Yeah, well, what are friends and fake boyfriends for, right?"

Ah, so he had picked up on that little bit of terminology you had used. Part of you thought he might have missed it with all that brooding.

Your small smile turned into a full-fledged grin. "Exactly. Next time you need someone punched, I'll go up to bat. Maybe I'll throw in the added bonus of insulting them too."

Steve laughed at that one. "Alright, alright. I think we should make sure you don't have a concussion before launching yourself into another fight," he added. "Do you want to run inside and get the first aid kit so I can check the back of your head out here? I don't want you to twist around trying to get at it and end up slamming your head into something else."

Good point. Still, it was dark outside and cramped in the car. There was a far easier solution to this. "Or you could just come inside and look at it. You said The Hideout was bound to give me an infection, but I don't think your car is much better."

"I keep my car clean, okay?" He argued petulantly. "And I don't think you want your parents waking up. I thought you didn't want them to know about what happened."

That got a snort out of you. "Please, they won't wake up for anything. My dad uses a CPAP machine, and my mom wears earplugs. Once, the fire alarm was going off cause Robin burnt some eggs in the morning, and they had no idea."

"And Robin?" Steve countered.

"We'll just use the bathroom in the basement. She won't hear a thing." Looking at the windows, you saw that all the lights were off, including in her room. Robin also had the Buckley gene of sleeping like the dead. There'd be no issue.

Seeing Steve's silent hesitancy, you rolled your eyes and unbuckled your seatbelt. "Look, I'm good either way. Either check it in the house or don't. I'm sure splashing water on it will do the trick, right?" You smiled, already climbing out of the car.

You heard Steve mutter something under his breath, but whatever it was didn't really matter. He was out of the car and trailing behind you a short second after.

******************************

If you had a diary, this scene would make for the weirdest entry to date.

Hi, diary. It's me again. You know, the outcast whose only friends like to play an intense game of make-believe every week to escape the reality of mundane life? Well, you'll never guess what happened. I went to a metal concert where some drunk guy tried to get handsy with me, and I cracked my skull open. Now Steve Harrington, ex-basketball heartthrob turned older sister's best friend, is currently poking at the hole in my head while I'm straddling a toilet seat. Life is so crazy, huh?

Maybe you should look into investing in one. Though, you weren't sure if you really wished for any of this to be recorded.

"Ow," you mumbled, twisting to look over your shoulder as the wet cloth grazed the minor cut on your head once more. Steve pushed your face back by the cheek, admonishing you with a repeated, "I told you to stop trying to look. It's not physically possible."

You mimicked his words back to him with a lower-pitched annoying sound.

When the washcloth hit the cut again, you were sure that one was actually on purpose.

"Well, you no longer have dried blood caked in your hair, and the cut is just a minor one. You should be okay," Steve commented, setting the cloth on the counter before moving over to wash his hands.

"So glad to hear I'm going to live," you amusedly said as Steve dried off his hands. He grabbed the small ointment tube in the available first-aid kit and unscrewed the cap, dotting some of the medication on the tip of his finger. He used his other hand to gently move your head back to stare at the wall so he could access the wound. His touch was so light you barely felt him apply the medicine.

"Alright, you're good to go," he said in a muffled tone. The way his fingers slipped through your hair as he moved his hand away had goosebumps rising to the back of your neck. He probably didn't even mean to do it, but the ghost of that touch lingered as you rose to stand up. Steve cleaned off the excess ointment from his hands. Your eyes lingered on his movements, noticing how the irritated red on his knuckles had worsened as time passed. It was going to bruise. And while the split in his lip and small cut on his knuckle didn't exactly scream severe, you figured it was best to return the favour. You didn't miss that minor wince he gave when he'd wiped his hand dry on the towel.

"Your turn," you said, lifting yourself up to sit on the bathroom counter before rummaging through the kit for some hydrogen peroxide and something to wrap his hand with.

Steve gave a resolute, "I'm fine," as he crossed his arms.

Peering up at him with a raised brow, you reached forward to cup his jaw in your hand. The sudden widening of his eyes at your action quickly changed to one experiencing a sudden sting when you gently ran a thumb over the cut on his lip. "Don't lie to me, Hero. Amuse me just this once," you said as you dropped your hand back down to your lap. Steve gave you an overly-cautious look.

His shoulders dropped some of their tension when he finally relented with a muttered, "whatever, just… get it over with."

"Trust me. I'm a better doctor than I am a patient," you grinned, taking off the cap from the hydrogen peroxide bottle. You grabbed his hurt hand and held it over the sink.

"That's not saying much. You're a terrible patient," he retorted, but his admonishment quickly became an expression of pain once you poured the solution over the cut knuckle. "Ow," he bit out, trying to yank his hand back. You squeezed it tighter and looked up at him with a slight shake of your head. "Who's the terrible patient now," you muttered.

Bringing his hand closer to your lips, you softly blew cold air on the stinging skin, mentally noting the feel of his hand in yours. His hand was soft. That was unexpected. It wasn't without calluses— you couldn't hazard a guess from what— but mostly, you noticed how warm it was. Holding his hand wasn't exactly… an uncomfortable experience. You almost wish it were.

When you finally released your grip, you momentarily glanced up at him. He was looking at you with an indiscernible expression. Partly calm, partly confused, wholly serious. You started to feel like there was restricted breath in the small space between you and him.

"How often do you go around punching people, anyway?" You spoke, trying to break out of the silence as you grabbed the previous ointment he had used on your head.

"What do you mean?" Steve asked, pulling his hand back and taking a minor step out of your space.

"I heard you punched Jonathan Byers when you and Nancy first started dating. Something about thinking she was cheating, and a certain theatre sign that read Nancy 'The Slut' Wheeler."

"Oh." Steve gave a simple reply, "Yeah. Not my proudest moment." He shuffled his weight once from foot to foot. It was clearly a challenging subject. I mean, why wouldn't it be? And to bring it up now probably wasn't one of your brightest ideas. But you felt the need to understand him better. After tonight's events, it became clear Steve had this intense urge to protect people. You'd already seen it plenty of times with the young kids. But now you were beginning to truly see through this exterior he had to what was at his core—deep caring, Kindness. It was woven into the state of his entire being.

"I'll drop the subject if you want," you offered, giving him an out as you took back his hand and began putting the ointment on the split skin. "I'm just curious as to what all that was really about." It didn't seem like him, not that you would tell him that. No need to let him in on how much you had begun to take note of his character.

There was a pinch to Steve's eyebrows as he thought about what to say. "I was upset. That was really it. I thought I had seen something but didn't understand it. I didn't talk to Nance about it at all. I just… reacted." When you were finished, you wiped your hand free of the ointment, moving now to grab some bandage wrap to twine around his hand. "I regret it. I still don't get how Nancy took me back after all that, but I'm thankful for it. I had a lot to make up for. She helped me learn a lot of things. I grew up because of her. I'll always be grateful for that. It's still hard to move past all the immature shit I once did, though."

Finishing wrapping his hand, you tucked the tail end of the bandage underneath the wrap. His meaning made sense. We all do dumb stuff. But the one good thing about mistakes is our ability to learn from them. Doesn't make the actions okay or easy to grapple with. But if mistakes can help us grow, to learn, then at least they give them some semblance of meaning and purpose.

"I can see why you'd want to win her back," you softly stated, realizing you still had a hold of his hand before letting it go. Steve gripped the edge of the counter, half caging your body in. "Not sure if I consider fake dating to be out of the realm of 'immature shit,' but at least it's something we're doing together. You can't take all the blame that way."

Steve's face transformed into that odd look you couldn't figure out again. It took him a second to even say anything more. "Yeah. Yeah, I guess you're right," he weakly smiled as the words tumbled out of him.

He must really be scared the plan wasn't going to work. Not that he needed Nancy to continue to be a good person. He was that all on his own. But he did deserve happiness.

"For what it's worth, I think you owe yourself a little more credit for who you are now," you smiled, remembering him saying something similar when you told him how Eddie helped you out of your social isolation. Grabbing a clean face cloth, you ran it under the tap and put the smallest amount of soap on top. Cleaning his lip with peroxide probably isn't the wisest idea.

"Dustin and the others respect you because it's easy to look up to someone like you. You're a safe presence," you murmured, not used to being so open with people. You couldn't exactly look him in the eye, so instead, you focused your attention entirely on cleaning the area of his split lip. "Hell, my sister loves you. And you're friends with her and support her, knowing exactly who she is. She wouldn't stick around you if you weren't someone worth being around."

You weren't sure if Steve wasn't saying anything because you had been cleaning his lip or if he just didn't have anything to reply to. Putting the cloth aside, you dotted some more of the Polysporin to your finger and gently dabbed it on the cut.

"My point is, Nancy may have helped, but you're the one who chose to be better. It was always there in you. You're a kind person, Steve Harrington. I think people are better with you in their life than without."  

The sudden movement of his hand encircling your wrist and stopping you had your gaze flying up to his in surprise. "You really think that's true?" his voice was quieter, lower. It was the first time you noticed how the pitch of his voice was almost melodious.

You got the feeling he was asking you if you thought your life was better with him in it than without. And the only thing you could respond with was the instinctual truth.

"I do."

And the silence like a rubber band was back, his eyes intent on yours, his hand sliding down from your wrist to take hold of your hand.

You felt like all your thoughts shut off all in one moment. You weren't sure what was happening, but you made no move to end it. You no longer felt restrained by this bubble but comforted despite the nervous buzz across your arms.

Steve moved closer to the counter, lips opening to say something more.

And then the rubber band snapped anyway.

"Are you talking to yourself, you weirdo—" Robin's voice cut into the small space you two created. Steve quickly launched himself back, stumbling but catching himself as he cleared his throat, running a hand through his hair as he looked everywhere except at you or Robin.

Your hand was dropped back onto your lap, and in your surprise, you jerked back away from Steve. Unfortunately, that meant smacking your sore head against the mirror and letting out a less quiet, painful, "Jesus Christ!"

Robin's own body had gone into a state of static shock. Her movements paused in the doorway as her eyes moved from you to Steve, then back to you again.

"Uh… What the hell are you two doing?"

Robin pinched the bridge of her nose between two fingers and took what you hoped was meant to be a calming breath. Once that was done, Robin stepped forward and ushered you to move off your seated position on the counter. You did, and she rested a hand on your shoulder. "You, go to bed," she ordered, practically shoving you out the door. You turned to look back at them both as Robin stared Steve down and said, "and you and I are going to have a little talk before you go."

"Oh, Robin, hey!" Steve lifted his hand in greeting as if trying to be casual would help this situation seem less suspicious than it looked. Robin gave Steve one of her signature looks, aiming to make someone two sizes smaller. It worked. "They got into a bar fight and hit their head," Steve spilled out, pointing in your direction like someone identifying a criminal in a lineup.

"Hey, it wasn't a bar fight!" You gasped, pointing back to him as you whipped your head toward your sister. "And Steve's the one who punched a guy!"

You caught the nervous look on his face before Robin practically kicked the door closed.

________

tag list: @rexorangecouny @simonsbluee @felicityofbakerstreet @heytherejulietx @ohashley101 @youngflower @katsukiswrld @ramona-thorns @theblairwaldorf2 @fezco-mylove @hxrgreeves @jbcalway @heizenka @edenstarkk @greekktragedy @trishiepo0 @nonpoppin @bimboshaggy 

#steve harrington #steve harrington x reader #steve harrington imagine #joe keery #eddie munson #steve harrington fanfic #steve harrington fanfiction #st #stranger things #st fanfic #st fanfiction #stranger things fanfiction #st imagine #stranger things imagine

[sortofanobsession]

To Cry for the Moon Part 7 (Moon Knight x Female Eternal!Reader)

Author's Note: The next couple chapters will be mainly the Eternals with mentions to Moon Knight. So if you are here for the guys, please hang in there, they will be back. I am not a mythology expert, and things get changed for these stories obviously. I'm trying my best. Also I'll try to update every day or two. I can't guarantee they will be everyday. So if you want to be tagged let me know, replies are the easiest but any way works. Minor DNI

The story idea by @jupitersmoon167 (the original post I saw is here!) Also realized I should probably add content warnings, so I did and tagged them. If you think I missed a warning please send me an ask. I try to tw tag even the tiniest thing so no one has to suffer if I can help it.

Y/N = Your Name. Y/N/N = Your Nickname. Reader pronouns She/Her. Story is 3rd person POV. Italics are the reflected alter talking.

Tag Requests are Open just message me.

Tagged: @rosaren2498, @yuugenmomo, @faefanatic, @urlocallsimp, @assassinsasha23, @queenariesofnarnia, @rmoonstoner, @crypticruler

Primary Pairing: Steven Grant x Eternal!Reader, Marc Spector x Eternal!Reader, Khonshu x Ma'at!Reader (It’ll make sense eventually)

Content Warning: Death, fear, depression

Word Count: 1k+

WIP Series Masterlist

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10

Part 7: The World Keeps Turning

Y/N didn't really listen or help Sersi explain to Dane that they have powers because they are Eternals from the planet Olympia and have been on Earth for over 7,000 years, fighting Deviants. Until 5 centuries ago. He learned more about Sersi and Ikaris but the main thing was that Dane accepted her explanation and reasoning far better than Marc had. Y/N didn't miss the sad look they both gave her. 

"He'll come around, probably just the shock of it all," Dane tells her.

"You handled it alright, and you don't have a centuries-old Egyptian god in your brain. Moon Knight does. They even know about some of my powers. I told them when they told me about their personalities, though they conveniently left out Khonshu. It was Truth for Truth. The full story wasn't my story to tell. Doing so might have raised questions about Sersi and Sprite. That wouldn't be fair to them or you, but I guess that doesn't matter." She sighs. "I'm glad you don't hate us. I hate to do this but can I ask you a favor? Can you watch Noob and maybe feed Bas until we get back? I would ask Steven, but even if he would talk to me, I don't think Marc would let him."

"Of course," he nods.

"Thanks, Dane, I owe you one."

"You guys saved my life and a lot of other people, the least I can do is pet sit."

"Least you can do is nothing, but I appreciate it. I know you'll be kind to them. Sorry, I can't make you a giraffe either, but I can say if you ever need anything." She takes the feather keychain off her keys and holds it in her hands, imbuing it with a tiny fraction of her powers before handing it to him. "If something really bad happens. Hold it to your heart and I will hear it. We may not have cell signal, but as long as I’m on this planet it’ll work. It works for Osiris and he’s in the underworld, it should work for you."

"Osiris? Like the Egyptian god of the Dead? He has a direct line to you? Does your family?" 

"Osiris does, my family doesn't. Sadly, I cannot feel the Eternals like I can humans. I think Arishem thinks that would be a distraction. But humans, like you, I can hear. And you, you have a good heart Dane, that's why we know we can trust you with all of this. I don't even need my scales to know your heart balances. Sersi wouldn't be with you if it didn't. Take care of yourself." 

She moves to join Sprite while Sersi says her own goodbye.

Y/N was physically sore and absolutely exhausted on the flight to the States. The only thing giving her comfort was being surrounded by so many human hearts. She reached out just a bit with her powers to feel them. She focuses on one of a child, a young girl, that seems to be enjoying a show on a tablet. An innocent and pure heart full of joy. It reminds her that humans were worth fighting for. That little girl had so much life ahead of her. As upset and sad as Y/N might be, knowing innocence and good still existed even after so many years without the Eternals' assistance was comforting. It was a constant that she could always rely on.

"You okay?" Sersi asks, drawing her attention back. 

Y/N nods. "I'm fine."

"You should try and sleep," Sersi tells her. "You fought harder than most of us and took most of the hits."

"I'm not that fragile," Y/N assures her.

"No, but we have no idea when we might get the chance to again. Might as well embrace it while we can."

"Point taken," Y/N admits and as she usually does, she takes Sersi's advice.

As they left the airport and headed to their rental car, she pulled out her phone and calls Steven. He doesn't answer. She leaves a voicemail.

“Hey, just landed in the States. We’re headed to Ajak’s place, I’ll call you when we get to her house.”

When Ajak fails to greet them, something instantly feels off. Y/N reaches out but feels nothing. No humans for miles and no apparent threats. What they do find shakes them all. Ajak is dead. Her body was cold, drained of power. Y/N couldn't breathe for a moment. It is too much. They've never lost anyone before. Ajak always healed them. She kept them alive even through the most brutal of battles. Ajak was gone. Their leader was gone. They were on their own. Y/N could feel her hands start to shake. The ache in her knee returned. They were on their own against Deviants stronger than ever and they lost their healer. Ajak had kept them alive and safe for millennia. Now, what were they supposed to do?

Ikaris admits to being the last one to see her. To say that Ajak sent him to London to check on them. But the Deviant must have gotten her before he actually made it to London because as Sprite points out the Deviant healed like Ajak. They now had an enemy that could take their powers. None of them were safe in a fight if that was true. They are all shocked when Sersi tells them the sphere Ajak used to speak with Arishem went to her. That she spoke to Arishem. Ajak chose Sersi to replace her. Not Ikaris, which was surprising. He had always been more of a leader than most of them. He was devoted to the mission Arishem gave them.

Y/N put a hand on Ajak's cold chest. 

"May we meet again in the next life," Y/N says, hoping that no matter what afterlife awaited Eternals they would hopefully be together someday. 

They agreed to gather the rest of the team starting with Kingo.

Ancient Egypt, the beginning of the age of gods.

Y/N places a set of scales before the Ennead in the Chamber of the Gods. 

"Phastos says these scales will allow you to better judge a person's heart, even when I am not here. We formed them using my powers." She takes the large feather that the people had given her long ago because of her wings that she often included in her outfit out of appreciation and holds it tight between her hands, calling on the majority of her power and channeling it into the feather. It made her lightheaded as her hands and the feather began to glow. She wills a fraction of her own heart and powers into it. When she pulls her powers back the feather continues to have a sort of ethereal glow. "This feather," she holds it out to the small cluster of gods before her. "The feather of truth," she deems it. "I've put everything I know, everything I use to aid in judgment, into this feather. Weigh a person's heart against this feather and you will know their true nature, their heart. If it balances, they have a good heart, they deserve to see paradise."

"And they shall see the field of reeds," Osiris assures her.

"And if they don't balance?" Horus asks.

"If the feather rises, and the heart stays weighted down, they have failed. Their heart has shown their true nature, that their heart is filled with malice and should be justly condemned. If the scales move back and forth that means there is conflict in the person's heart. They are not inherently good or bad. They should be given a chance to process this, to look deep within themselves and if they can balance then they have made peace with their conflict. If they can't, they shall face proper justice."

"Justice shall be swift," Osiris adds. 

"You can judge both living and the dead to ensure justice and truth remain standard as time goes on and the kingdom grows. As long as I live, the feather of truth will hold the standards I have deemed fair and just. It is part of me. You have my judgment as long as the smallest spark of my power remains. We are bound, we are one." 

Modern Egyptian Underworld

"They've never done this before." Anubis, Taweret, and Osiris watch the scales shift without anything being weighed against the feather. 

"Keep watch," Osiris commands them. "We will see what Ma'at has to say."

South Dakota, USA

Y/N tries again to call Steven and Marc. 

“Hey, um, so we got to Ajak’s. She…got attacked by a deviant and is…Anyway, we’re flying back out again, probably going to find Kingo. Let me know if you get this, we’re in the middle of nowhere in South Dakota, so I wouldn’t be surprised if I’m not getting any service.”

As she puts her phone away. She is shocked to see the path to the temple open before her. 

"Sprite!" She calls the younger Eternal.

"Is that what I think it is?" Sprite says as she eyes the long open tunnel. "Tell Sersi I will meet you in Mumbai." Sprite nods.

Modern Egypt: Temple of the Gods

"Osiris," Y/N greets the glowing eyes of the avatar before her. 

"Ma'at," he greets her. "I am sure you are curious why I summoned you."

She sighs, "I have an idea about that and I will share what I know, you only ever have to ask."

"Your scales shifted while not in use. The others are concerned."

"I…I have concerning news for you, Osiris. The deviants have returned, they are stronger, faster and I'm afraid I can no longer guarantee that we, that I, will survive."

"What do you mean?" He asks. "How have you come to this conclusion?"

"One attacked us in London. Ikaris, Sersi, Sprite, and I were unable to kill it. Ikaris and I could only drive it back. The concerning thing is that it healed itself, Osiris. We went to consult Ajak and she was dead. The monster had stolen her powers and in doing so became stronger and harder to fight. In 7,000 years no Eternal has died. I'm afraid the shock may have momentarily shifted and shaken my beliefs. But the scales should be steady now. We are going to gather the rest of the Eternals and return to our mission, losing our healer will not deter us. We shall do our best to remove this threat to humanity. My only request is that should anything happen and my feather fade. Please tell Khonshu that I have failed. He will know why."

"That can be done. We will be observing," Osiris tells her. "Call upon us if you have a need. Isis would be devastated if we lost you, little feather. Your heart beats here. It shall remain protected." 

Mumbai, India

Y/N steps out into the busy streets of the city. She reaches out to feel the hearts around her. Now she had to wait for the rest of the team to get there. She takes out her phone and calls Steven.

"Osiris called me to the temple, my powers wavered after finding Ajak. I filled him in on what was happening. With Ajak gone we…Osiris will let Khonshu know if anything truly bad happens, he told me he would. I'm in India now. I got here before the others because of the temple path. I'll let you know more soon. I really do miss you both."

Before putting her phone away she sent a text to Sersi letting her know that she was in India.

#To Cry for the Moon fic #eternals!reader #marc spector x eternals!reader #marc spector x y/n #marc spector x female!reader #marc spector x reader #steven grant x y/n #steven grant x female!reader #steven grant x reader #female!reader #tw: death #eternals x reader

[stayarmytinyzenmoa-l]

STOP EVERYTHING WDYM SHE USED TO CRUSH ON YANG

OH PLEASE same though if someone disappears I'm planning their funeral

I'M SOBBING I LOVE MY NCTHREE

SEONGHWA SENDING FLOWERS sorry yang i'm team ynsh now

poor yangyang akhdbjfnk

oh ewwwww stalker much?

SUNGHOONNNNNNN

oh my god o h m y g o d

why is he so scared of that's that's very...

oh- oh i'm going to sob team ynyy here we come again

~

OH NO YEONJUN I LOVE YOU BUT KEEP YOUR MOUTH S H U T

oh nvm okay collab

i say yangyang names y/n's contacts thing 1 and thing 2

~

nah if ncthree were on one team you'd have yangyang and y/n arguing with each other about not doing well and then mark literally acing everything and going ":D" while yn and yangyang just stand there staring at him

DEFEATED MALE LEAVES I'M WHEEZING

~

SKEEBALLLLL

YES HE'S LEGALLY ALLOWED TO FLOOR SOMEONE

the unstoppable besties on land but stoppable in the air and ocean

we love a man who is competent and can drive basically anything

~

HELP ME NCTHREE'S BEEN A BAD INFLUENCE TO MARK ADKFJN but yes johnny is daddy material

side note the 🥵 is the first thing that came to mind when i read that akbdfn

JIHYUN BEING THE MOM ADHKBJFN

johnny the daddy of nct 🫡

~

thanks for making me sob my team ynyy heart has been solidified

MANIFEST IT

he's at the ateez dorms i call it

I KNEW IT

yeonjun istg

...oh my that was-

~

okay shaving in your room's a big no-no

the colour combination i-

jeno i- i would be lying if i said i didn't laugh though adkbjfn

OH RIPPPP

"the one they call johnny"

oH

ohohohoh the plot thickens

DEAD LIFTS i literally feel dead after I'm done with them

OH MY GOD XIAO DEJUN

...you've got to be joking delusional fans are the WORST

god forbid jeno stands a bit closer to yn to prevent her from dying

OH WAIT THAT REMINDS ME OF THE SMALL YN'S BROTHERS POSTS AHHHHH

~

NOT THE CURSED POKEMON

no but how do people sexualise someone spotting someone else that's so-

~

HELP I JUST REALISED HOW ONG THIS GOT I'M SO SORRY ADHFJN

wE ARE BACKKKK

Also girl this is Season 1 content except homegirl got over it pretty quickly I mean you would too if you saw the shit she saw him do

LMFAOOOO

THREE IS THE STRONGEST NUMBER

Your rollercoaster of YNSH and YNYY is so fun to read (YNSH is obv up high while YNYY is down low cuz you know those two are going to hell)

From possible man to nobody's man for real

Funny you should say that

SUNGHOON

Lowk I would be too if I, a vaguely fresh idol, was told to hand a paper to an idol with a load of wack-ass rumors going on about her and everyone she was associated with i'd be hella nervous

WE BACK IN HELLLLL

~

Yeonjun will return in S3

We love collab stages!

STOP IT WOULD BE AHAHAHA alternatively Dumb and Dumber

~

Normally Mark has the brain cell but when they're together that brain cell gets confiscated so now all three of them are working off of vibes

HE KNEW HE COULDN'T WIN IT WASN'T EVEN WORTH THE SCREEN TIME

~

I'm such a BOSS at skeeball ngl like undefeated amongst the cousins

All those years of mario kart led up to this

*insert Eren pointing across the sea gif here*

The Kun-cult is a side plot I'm planning rn

~

Doyoung like "I knew I shouldn't have let my son hang out with those ruffians"

ME TOO LMFAO I SHOULD'VE PUT IT MISSED FREAKING OPPORTUNITY

That's MOMMY to you!

Not the job he asked for but the one only he could do

~

Oh now we stuck in hell I can't wait to drop the alternate

Jaemin probably fully knew Mars was at the ATEEZ dorm because he may or may not have been in the same situation Jisung was in before

HE MISSED HIS DAD'S SIDE

Ehehehehehe

~

and y'all wonder why (Y/N) moved on fast

Bro picked it up, smelled it, and put it on

RENJUN REALLY SOLD HIM OUT LMFAOOOOO

The only people Mars actually cares about is ANiMA let's be honest here he literally manipulated Jisung into letting him out

The plot is very thick

Ngl I can't even lift the bar on it's on

He held his hand up for a high five after that but no one noticed so he just clapped his hands together

Poor YN, fame isn't all she thought it was

*YN getting crushed while benching* *Jeno putting his hands up and walking away to avoid the scandal*

YESSSSS Lowk I've been running through them again to make sure everything's in line before S3 comes out

~

WHEN MEG SENT IT I HAD TO ADD IT

people who don't know gym etiquette that's who

~

IT'S OKAY I LOVE IT THANK U ROSE

#asks #rose 🌱 #prominence #prominence s2 #prominence spoilers #prominence s2 spoilers #spoilers

[hamatosami]

Prisoner-

Chapter 1

Notes: Still trying to figure everything out, but I wanted a new space to write smaller things and hopefully reach a new audience.

For those who follow me on quotev, I’ll shortly be posting my edited version of Eternal Flame on here as well for everyone to enjoy!

Here’s my first little story💙

(ALL OF MY STORIES ARE 18+ MAY OR MAY NOT CONTAIN SEXUAL CONTENT, LANGUAGE, VIOLENCE, GORE, DARK THEMES)

Please read responsibly 🫶🏼

I opened my eyes and all could see was… well… nothing. Before my brain could even fathom what happened, I felt my head thump hard against my skull.

“Fuccckkkkkk” I moaned. My throat was incredibly sore and dry. Lips chapped beyond repair. It hurt to stretch my mouth open. I knew just from that, that it had been days since I’ve had any water…

It was dark… so fucking dark.

I tried to piece together what had happened, like an old drunken memory, but slowly the pieces began to fit together.

I was on a mission. A mission to find out further what the foot was up to. A new drug flooded the city and it was taking lives by the second. After spending months tracking down the dealers, the common denominator lead me right back to foot head quarters.

Surprise surprise. They were only responsible for nearly ALL of the cities jacked up crimes.

Some might call it being a vigilante. I call it my nighttime hobby away from my 9-5 office job.

After years of studying martial arts and a few bad relationships, I needed something to keep me busy and keep me out of trouble….

Ironically enough I ended up in deep trouble.

And by trouble I mean being held as a prisoner by the foot.

This was the first time they ever caught me. I knew it would happen at some point or another. But not like this.

Part of me liked the thrill. I was fearless of a lot. It was always a dark problem I never delt with.

I pulled on my restraints trying to figure out where they were hooked.

My arms burned like hell. They must have held me here for a few days.

My head fell hard against the cold hard concrete. I was sore everywhere. I really took a beating.

My breath was heavy… where ever I was it was cold. My lungs stung and I was barely clothed. I only had on a black tank and jeans. They managed to take away my boots and jacket.

I heard a rustling to my right. There was no way I wasn’t alone.

“Who’s there.” I sounded weaker than I wanted to.

My eyes slowly adjusted to see a figure.

I’m sorry.

A very LARGE figure chained up to my right. Maybe like 6 foot tall. He was chained against the wall as I was.

My body slightly jumped when he opened his eyes.

Are… are his eyes… glowing?!

A remarkable blue, the color of blue topaz unlike any color I’ve seen before. As human like as they were, the way they glowed amung the darkness was supernatural.

“Hello?” I said again to no answer. But his gaze continued to cut me like a knife. It was almost threatening.

He was shackled up the same as I was. Clearly we were on the same team in some way or another. As terrifying as his gaze was, everything in my gut told me I was safe. As odd as that sounds. I looked up to the singular window with bars high above us.

“We’re in a basement.” I said to myself.

That meant the only way out was up.

I already began formulating ideas to get out. Slightly enjoying the puzzle in my head.

The figures eyes followed mine. He then shook his head and huffed.

I looked at him again… if I was going to make it out, whoever my cell mate was would have to be the one to help me out.

“What?” I questioned again. In slight annoyance that he wouldn’t speak. But that’s just the demanding part of my personality.

“You really think you can get through those titanium bars?” His voice struck me like a thunder bolt. Smooth as hell, but it held so much authority.

I didn’t take his sarcasm well.

“We’ll do you have any better ideas?” I began yanking on the restraints.

His eyes being the only thing I could see, clearly shifted from stern to worrysome. He let out another huff and I heard him shift from one side to the next.

Maybe he wasn’t my best choice in an allie.

He shifted to where the moonlight casted through the window. And his skin was… green

Green skin?! I had to be dreaming. I followed my eyes down his body to only see three fingers and toes. And a giant ass shell?!

Then it clicked.

Oh it fucking clicked big time.

I heard rumors for months about turtle vigilantes that roamed the city. I just never believed it was true.

I spent months trying to track them down. And after so many losses and no real leads I gave up and tossed the idea as a made up fairy tail.

I know earlier I said that not much phased me… buutttt being locked in a cell with a big ole turtle might do it.

My eyes trailed back up to see his eyes reflecting into mine.

“Turtle… mutant…” I stuttered. “Ninja.”

A slight boyish chuckle escaped his breath, making me feel somewhat at ease of the situation.

“We’ll when you put it like that it sounds ridiculous.” He huffed.

“I’ve heard stories… about you saving the city.”

He slightly smiled.

“So you’re a fan.” He said amused. “Most people just scream.”

I ignored his comment.

“How did you end up down here?” I questioned.

“Same way you did. Wrong place at the wrong time.” He looked at me fiercely. “What were you doing snooping at the headquarters anyways?”

I paused. I almost felt like I was getting scolded.

“Comatose. I’ve been trying to take the foot down from it for months.”

He snuffed hard. Like a father who was disappointed at their kid.

“Those things aren’t for you to worry about. That’s how you get killed.”

A devilish laugh escapes my mouth.

“There’s not much Im afraid of.” I said turning my head towards the turtle again. His eyes were as serious as stone.

“I saw them hurt you…” he said plainly.

I remembered distinctly getting a beat down from some Japanese chick. She was good I’ll give her that. It definitely motivated for me to practice my fighting skills more.

“It happens sometimes.” I sighed. “its the sacrifice I make to help the city. Even if it means I die. I don’t have anything to live for anymore.”

He didnt continue the conversation, but instead changed it.

“Leonardo.” He cleared his throat. “But call me Leo.”

Leonardo.

It had a nice ring to it. It was a cute name.

“Y/N” I introduced. “Sorry it’s not under better circumstances.”

He smiled.

“My team should be working on getting me out of here. We just have to hold tight until they do.” He reassured. He took a long painful sigh. “I’m glad you’re awake Y/N.”

Thank you so much for reading!!! Should I make a part 2???

Like and comment for more content:)

Sincerely, Sami 💙💙💙

#tmnt donnie #tmnt mikey #tmnt 2018 #rise of the tmnt #tmnt 2k12 #tmnt leo 2003 #tmnt 2012 #fandom #fanfic #leonardo #bayverse leo #teenage mutant ninja turtles bayverse #teenage dirtbag

[leafwyrm]

Every single odd number has an “e” in it.

#tagging for later

[minimel-fics]

Second Chances - Part 2

Coco Cruz X Reader

Coco had tried to step back into the father roll once before but was turned away, feelings are revealed when he gets invited to a Little League baseball game.

Um I haven’t posted since… July?? I escaped my writers block long enough to bring this short part to your screens.

@naenae479 once asked for a second part of this so here it is!

Part 1

Masterlist

x x x

“But mom-“ Johnny whined as he watched his friends and teammates gather on the baseball field.

“Nope, no buts, you know the rule - eat your apple slices and put on sunscreen then you can join your friends." The six year old begrudgingly munched on the sliced fruit as the cold lotion was slathered onto his cheeks and down his nose, his nostrils wrinkling with the smell. Your hands lifted from his face as he finished the last piece of his snack, he was quick to snatch his glove off the bench and ran down to the field before you could protest. You sat on the bench with a sigh, tucking everything into Johnny's game bag to fill the silence. Your father used to accompany you to every one of Johnny's games until recently when his new line of employment meant less time available away from work which was part of the reason you had called Coco the week before with an invite to Johnny's game. The breakfast reunion with Coco had been on your mind for the past few months, your brain getting hung up over the possibilities for your son that you had been so quick to dismiss. Growing up without a father in your own life had been hard, only meeting yours when you had reached adulthood - Johnny didn't deserve to go through life with the same pain and disappointment you had.

“Hey,"

You were so in your own little world as you watched the coach herd together the teams that the sudden appearance of Coco standing at the bottom of the bleachers had caused you to jump. You patted the empty spot to your left, inviting the biker to sit with you for the game.

"Thanks for coming, Coco, Johnny is going to lose his mind when he realizes you’re here.”

“Thanks for letting me come."

“I'm sorry that it took so long for me to call you-“

"I understand.” Coco’s sharp eyes were easy to find his son among the other kids on the field, he was so much bigger now than he had been when he last saw him but it was still like looking into a mirror at a younger version of himself. "I didn't just leave Johnny behind when I left,” his eyes were full of regret as they locked with yours for the shortest moment, you had to quickly focus your gaze back on the field as your throat grew thick with emotion, “Shit, Y/N, I'm fucking sorry."

“You know at first I thought you were dead, you'd kissed me goodbye in the morning with the promise to make it home in time for Johnny's birthday party but then you weren't and it just kept getting later and later…” You brought your knees up to your chest and rested your head on them in an attempt to make yourself look smaller, you couldn't believe you were having this discussion right now but both of you knew it was the only way to more forward and move on. “I called my dad to see if he knew anything about what might have went down in Santo Padre but he told me the last time he spoke to Bishop everything was fine so I waited but you never came home and you ignored all of my calls. Then one day I was at the grocery store and there you were across the street- very much alive and that's when I finally accepted that you weren't just on a run out of town and had no cell reception, you had left us.”

It wasn't very often that Coco was speechless, he usually had his own words of wisdom to offer those in need but the pain that weighed down your words was making his chest hurt. He rested his arm across your shoulder as he moved closer to you, the light brush of his fingers on your arm as he pulled your body to lean into his own caused you to let out a calm, composing breath. No more words were exchanged as the players got into their rightful positions on the field.

"Mom, did you see me hit that ball? It went so far! I won us the game!” Johnny was bouncing with energy as he greeted you at the gate where you always waited for him at the end of a game.

“Johnny, you know that you aren't supposed to be keeping score,” you gently ran your fingers through his hair as you sent him a pointed look, “there are no winners.”

“Come on, mom, just this once! I wish Abuelo was here, he’d let me call it a win.”

Coco smirked as he listened to his son plead with his mother, he had no doubt that Marcus would whisper words of encouragement behind your back after every win.

“Your Abuelo told me that each win is celebrated with pizza,” Coco tentatively stepped forward from where he was lurking in the background, his nerves and fears of the boy shunning him plaguing his mind as the game drew to a close, “you still like pepperoni?”

“Dad!” You were surprised that Johnny immediately recognized his father when the last time he had seen him he had been so young, but the smile that stretched his cheeks and the light in his eyes as Coco knelt down to accept his enthusiastic embrace warmed your heart.

“Even with his new occupation El Padrino will always be a Mayan, huh?”

x x x

Join a taglist here.

All Mayans: @mijop @bellisperennis0 @chibsytelford @beeroses @un-poetryy @rosieposie0624 @partypoison00 @mrsstevenbuchananstark @mayansxlover @shanty-lol

Coco Taglist: @pearlkitten33

#mayans mc #mayans mc fic #mayans #mayans mc x reader #coco cruz #richard cabral #johnny cruz

[cinnaminsvga]

🌷 social media au where y/n posts an advertisement looking for a new place to stay that is closer to campus, causing seven upperclassmen to make it their mission to recruit her into their dormitories 🌷

A/N: THIS TOOK FOREVER AND I KINDA RUSHED IT AT THE END BUT HOPEFULLY IT MAKES SENSE?? anyway, yoongi didn’t do anything stupid (depending on your definition of stupid) so no need to worry about him being cringey,,, i spared you all from the secondhand embarrassment but i won’t be so kind next time!! anyway... enjoy || W.C. 3.8K

prev // part 11 // next masterlist here.

By the time Seokjin’s phone begins to ring, Yoongi can already feel the dread settle deep inside his bones. The familiar coil of anxiety tightens around his throat like a vice, and Yoongi has to remember how to breathe to keep himself from fainting like a corseted Victorian lady. 

“Well, that must be her!” Seokjin chimes, promptly declining your call without a glance. Yoongi catches a glimpse of your contact photo anyway: it’s an unflattering angle of you from below your neck, giving the illusion of a multitude of chins. If it were any other time, Yoongi might have smiled like a lovesick fool. 

“Don’t you dare let her in here,” Yoongi seethes. He tries to sound menacing, but the effect is severely diminished by how badly his voice cracks. He tugs at Seokjin by the sleeve, but the older man refuses to budge. “Hyung, I’m serious. I know what you’re trying to do.”

“Are you done live-tweeting your confusion now? Finally got the memo? I always knew you were a smart boy,” Seokjin laughs, patting Yoongi on the shoulder with his tomato sauce-covered tongs. “Since we’re on the same page now, why don’t you change clothes while I finish cooking? I know your entire wardrobe is composed of the free t-shirts you got from job fairs, but it would do well to wear a clean, unstained shirt.”

Yoongi swipes at him, hissing like the catboy that he is. “You’re the one who wiped shit on me, asshole. And yes, I figured out what you are trying to do. You think you’re so slick, but I know that you’re just trying to embarrass me in front of Y/N!”

Seokjin shrugs. “It isn’t like I’m trying to be slick. I embarrass you all the time. Besides, I’m setting you up on a date with the love of your life! You should be thanking me, if I’m being honest.”

Yoongi stammers, his jaw dropping in shock. “Love of my–?”

Seokjin waves his tongs in his face, silencing him. “Oh, hush. Don’t even try to hide it, Yoongi. I figured out that you like Y/N. Your weird behavior finally makes sense! After years of you avoiding her, I always thought you were just bad at forming human connections, but turns out you’ve got a gigantic heart boner for my best friend!”

“Please don’t phrase it like that,” Yoongi groans, smashing his head against his kitchen counter. He hopes a few brain cells might have died, just so he can stop processing the words coming out of Seokjin’s mouth. “Actually, just please stop talking.”

Seokjin snorts in exasperation as if Yoongi was the dramatic one between them. “Point is, this is a favor that I’ve chosen to grant you from the goodness of my heart! As I said, I’m giving you the love life you deserve! So stop whining and get moving before Y/N gets up here.”

“There isn’t any goodness nor a heart inside of you. And more importantly, when was the last time you did anything for free, you capitalist bastard!”

Seokjin clicks his tongue, shaking his head. “That’s where you’re wrong, Yoongi-chi. You’ve already paid me for my services by offering me front row seats to watch you lose your fucking mind. And that, my friend, is priceless.”

“Aha! So you do admit that this is all just a ploy to humiliate me!” Yoongi shouts. He grabs a knife from his scabbard, pointing it threateningly at Seokjin. He doesn’t even flinch, instead gently guiding Yoongi by the wrist over to the chopping board where he had placed some garlic cloves beforehand. Without prompting, Yoongi’s hand begins to move, his culinary instincts taking over.

“Yes and no,” Seokjin admits as he grabs Yoongi’s cast iron pan from the top shelf (which he has never gotten to use since he bought it, ever since Seokjin had borrowed it once and placed it too high for him to retrieve.) “I’m honestly trying to help you out here, my dude. Besides, even if shit hits the fan, Y/N isn’t gonna think any less of you. She’s too much of an idiot to resent anyone.”

“Speaking from experience?” Yoongi huffs, eyeing him with intense vitriol. “Can’t say I understand how she’s gone this long without killing you.” The next time the two of them are alone together in the wilderness, he can’t promise that his hands won’t find their way around Seokjin’s throat, and it won’t be sexy.

“Hmm. Yeah, definitely,” he says, nodding absentmindedly. As he begins to season the steak, he hands the cast iron pan to Yoongi. “Start preheating this. We need it to be smoking hot before we can place the steak on there.”

“I know how to cook a steak, fucker. And who said you’re allowed to serve my Wagyu steak? I was saving that for a special occasion!”

Seokjin looks up from his ministrations long enough to raise a brow at him. “So going on your first ever date with Y/N isn’t considered a special occasion?”

Yoongi falters, eyes widening. “N-no, that’s not what I mean!” he defends hotly, but he quickly snaps out of it. “Wait, no! This is not a date! Not when both parties did not agree to any of this!”

Seokjin pauses from his cooking to place a perfectly manicured hand on his hip. “I mean, Y/N agreed to it, so are you going to reject her? Huh? Too good for her and my spaghetti?”

Yoongi scoffs, rolling his eyes. “No, she did not agree to this. She doesn’t even know you’re forcing her to eat lunch with me.”

“How can you say that with such certainty?” Seokjin challenges, puffing his cheeks. “You don’t even know what I told her!”

Except I do know what you said, Yoongi thinks darkly to himself. And more importantly, I know what she thinks you were implying. He is pretty sure that the words “crush on him during high school” have seared themselves underneath his eyelids forevermore.

But instead, he says, “Yeah, well. If what you told her is as vague as what you told me, I have a pretty good hunch that this is going to blow up into a huge misunderstanding.”

Like the absolute menace that he is, all Seokjin does is shrug nonchalantly. “Suppose you are right… Who cares? It’s not like the two of you are strangers, so I’m sure this is going to go great!”

“What the fuck? She is a stranger! I’ve literally only spoken two words to her in the past four years!” Yoongi seethes, his temple throbbing from an oncoming migraine. 

Seokjin ignores him, as per his want. “Grab that plate, will you? I gotta plate the pasta before Y/N starts calling again to let her into the building,” he says, nudging the tongs into Yoongi’s hands. Yoongi squawks, quickly turning the stove off to keep the food from burning. 

Seokjin tears off his (read: Yoongi’s) apron off, wiping his hands on his jeans with a quick smile. “Great! While you finish up here, I’ll distract Y/N for a bit in my room before I lead her in here, alright? You better hurry unless you want to keep her waiting!”

“Oh, like how you kept her waiting downstairs for the past–” Yoongi checks his wall clock, “–seven minutes?”

Seokjin cackles madly, rushing out the door. “Well, that’s where you and I differ, Yoongi-chi! I give no shits about how Y/N thinks about me, so good luck!” After sending Yoongi three flying kisses for good measure, Seokjin slams the door shut, leaving Yoongi to simmer in his bad life choices.

The worst choice that he’s ever made? Being friends with one (1) Kim Seokjin.

“God, just end me,” Yoongi mutters, placing his $80 steak on his pan. It sizzles deliciously, much like how his (nonexistent) love life is about to get burnt to a crisp.

x x x x x

“Took you long enough.” You watch as Seokjin taunts you with a funny little dance by the lobby of his dormitory, the building receptionist not even batting an eye at his eccentricity. That’s the sad side effect of living in close proximity with Seokjin: you start getting desensitized to most things, not even flinching at the sight of a man without a functioning central nervous system.

Seokjin slides his card to open the door, finally allowing you entry. “Sorry. Got busy preparing your lunch! Which by the way, you should be thanking me for.”

“The moment I thank you for anything is the day that you slip on your own cum and die,” you grouse, nudging past him to get on the elevator first. You punch the button for the 5th floor before rapidly trying to close the elevator door on him. Unfortunately, Seokjin makes it in time before his ass gets clamped by the two steel doors.

“Thinking about my cum? Oh my, Y/N… I know you’ve had a dry spell for too long, but I didn’t think you’d be that desperate for some of my butter,” Seokjin says, leaning closely to wink at you.

Against your will, your cheeks brighten furiously, weakly pushing Seokjin away from you. “You wish. At least I don’t spend my spare time loitering outside the campus gym to ogle all the sweaty hot people.”

“And the invitation to join me still stands by the way!” Seokjin singsongs, leaping out of the elevator once you reach his floor. You walk side by side until you reach his room, but you catch him shooting a furtive glance at his next-door neighbor.

“Is Yoongi joining us for lunch?” you ask, failing to keep your curiosity from showing in your voice. If Yoongi does end up joining you for lunch (which has never happened in the past four years, convincing you that he must have a personal grudge against you), then at least it can confirm to you straight away that whatever this “date” is just another prank by Seokjin. You don’t know if you should be disappointed or grateful if it is just a joke.

Seokjin beams in response, a mischievous twinkle in his eye. “You know what? He is going to join us, actually!” 

He had been in the midst of unlocking his dorm when he changes direction, leading you to Yoongi’s door instead. He rifles through his other keys, and you notice one of them looks similar to his own house key, except with a Hello Kitty sticker on it. He pulls that key out and promptly unlocks Yoongi’s door without missing a beat.

What kind of weirdo must Yoongi be to give Seokjin a spare key to his dorm? You’d rather shit out a cactus than let Seokjin have free entry to your home whenever he pleases.

You hesitate by Yoongi’s door, feeling nervous all of a sudden. “Um, Seokjin? Are you sure it’s okay for me to–?”

“HONEY I’M HOOOOME!” Seokjin’s loud guffaw cuts you off before you can finish your question. He bursts through the door and leaves you by the hallway, and you watch as he nearly tackles Yoongi to the ground.

Yoongi, despite looking like he’s half the size of Seokjin on a good day, manages to keep upright despite how his back is now bent parallel to the floor. “Get off me!” he yells, roughly pushing Seokjin off of him. 

Seokjin tumbles to the floor, but the shit-eating grin on his face hardly wavers. He points at you by the doorway, a cheeky grin on his lips. “Look, Yoongi-chi! I brought a guest!”

Yoongi spares you half a glance before returning his attention to whatever he was cooking. “I suppose you did.”

Okay, this date is definitely a joke. Why the hell did you even think for a second that Seokjin might have been into you?

“Um,” you stutter nervously. You grind your heel into the carpet self-consciously, your gaze downcast. “Hello, Yoongi. Sorry for the intrusion, by the way…”

“It’s fine,” Yoongi replies, albeit a little curtly. He clears his throat, his face still tilted away from you so you can’t tell if he’s genuinely annoyed or not. 

You point a glare at Seokjin, who looks shamelessly pleased with himself. After taking a deep breath, you take your first steps into Yoongi’s home before gently closing the door.

As you look around at your new surroundings, you notice that his home is a lot cleaner than you would have expected, though you’re not exactly sure what you should have expected in the first place. It’s minimalist, but not in a barren type of way; it’s seems like Yoongi is fond of simple designs more than anything. It’s certainly a nice change of pace compared to Seokjin’s abomination of a room, with his vaguely yellow-stained bedsheets. 

The smell of freshly cooked pasta and meat being grilled catches your senses immediately. You watch as Yoongi flips over a hefty piece of steak, the aroma causing your mouth to salivate instantly. 

“I… What is… Huh?” you start, not knowing what to ask. You catch Seokjin snickering quietly to himself, but promptly shuts up when you mime punching him in the dick.

“It’ll be finished in a second. Why don’t you sit down?” Yoongi announces quietly, his gaze still fixed away from you. Confused but left with no other choice, you tentatively make your way to his couch, unable to relax as your spine remains ramrod straight and your jaw stays clenched. 

You hear Seokjin shuffling behind you until he eventually makes his way to sit with you, plopping onto the couch as if it were his home. “Ah… I’m soooo hungry. Smells good, doesn’t it?” he asks you, his brow wiggling too much to be considered normal. Either that, or he was having a stroke.

“Yeah, it does,” you say, greatly uncomfortable. You peek at Yoongi once more, who is still dutifully attending to the steak. Making sure he isn’t looking, you twist Seokjin by the nipple, causing the elder to let out a high-pitched squeal. To an outsider, it might have almost sounded like he was being pleasured. 

“Ouch! What the fuck was that for?” Seokjin whines, rubbing his tenderized nipples. 

“You know what that was for,” you hiss, keeping your volume low. “What the hell are we doing here? Why are you making Yoongi cook for us?!”

“For us? It’s for you!” Seokjin snaps back. “Didn’t you say you would only come over if you got fed? Well, this is how you get fed!”

“I was under the assumption that you would be feeding me, not him!” you seethe. You check back on Yoongi, who still hasn’t looked your way once. “The poor boy… No wonder he doesn’t like me! He must think I’m as bad as you!”

Seokjin snorts. “Of course he likes you! This whole lunch date wouldn’t have even fucking happened if he wasn’t assdeep in lo–”

“Lunch is finished,” Yoongi interrupts loudly, his spatula rattling loudly against his pan. The sudden noise makes you jump away from Seokjin, who appears vaguely triumphant. 

“T-thanks,” you stutter, standing up and resisting the random urge to shake his hand. Everything about this situation is so tense and awkward that it feels like you’re being filmed for a prank Youtube video or something. Knowing Seokjin, the odds of that happening are great. 

“That’s my cue to leave then! Bye! You guys have fun!” Seokjin says, jumping to his feet. 

You vaguely hear Yoongi gasp quietly when you launch yourself at Seokjin, just narrowly keeping from escaping. “Oh no, you don’t! Who said you could leave? You’re not going anywhere!”

But like the slippery snake that he is, Seokjin manages to wriggle out of your arms and hop over Yoongi’s coffee table to get to the door. “Too bad! I have classes to get to, so I gotta blast! Use this time to get to know each other or whatever it is that kids do these days,” he says, winking salaciously. With one final sputter of (evil) laughter, Seokjin makes his exit, leaving you and Yoongi to fester in some good ol’ fashioned discomforting silence.

“Um,” you say, just as Yoongi opens his mouth to say something too.

“No, you go first–”

“You go ahead–”

The two of you pause mid-sentence, staring at each other. You grin sheepishly at him, motioning for him to speak first. 

He returns your smile half-heartedly. “So, um… I just wanted to say I’m sorry for letting Seokjin rope you into this. I tried stopping him, but… You know how he is.”

You laugh, sounding a little crazed even to your own ears. That’s the longest sentence you’ve ever heard him speak! 

“Yeah, believe me… I am intimately aware of how he is. Sometimes I wish I wasn’t,” you joke. 

Amazingly, your little quip makes his smile widen, his cheeks puffing up imperceptibly. “Glad we can agree that Seokjin has the amazing ability to ruin people’s lives. It’s almost welcoming to find solidarity in a shared experience.”

“Shared experience? Try shared trauma. That dude is a walking serotonin sucker,” you say dryly. 

You don’t think what you said was remotely funny enough to warrant a laugh, but it causes Yoongi to let out a loud snort regardless. But the amusement on his face is short-lived, his cheeks going red in embarrassment. He slaps a hand to his mouth, breaking eye contact once more. “Oh fuck, that was so unflattering,” he groans, clearly mortified.

His blush, multiplied by his shy demeanor, makes you want to coo at him, but you doubt he’d take that too kindly. So instead, you change the subject to save him. “So, uhh… The food? You don’t have to give me any, by the way. I wouldn’t want you to waste your lunch on me or anything.”

Yoongi snaps out of his previous embarrassment, returning to the more familiar stoic expression you’ve come to associate with Yoongi. “No, that’s fine. Seokjin–er, rather… I made enough for two people, so it would be a waste if you didn’t eat at least some of it. But I don’t care either way if you want it or not.”

For two people? you wonder. So Yoongi had known Seokjin wasn’t going to join for lunch?

“Oh, if it’s fine with you…” you trail off, meekly making your way towards him. The spaghetti and steak look absolutely delicious, though you don’t need to tell him that when your stomach speaks for you. “Oh shit, that’s so embarrassing,” you say, your cheeks heating up this time.

Yoongi chuckles, shaking his head. “Haven’t eaten breakfast yet, I assume? That’s pretty stupid if you ask me. Don’t you have class until 5? How the hell would you have survived until then?”

You choke in surprise. Where did all that sass suddenly come from? “Excuse me? I’m not stupid! I would’ve been fine with a sandwich from the cafeteria if you must know!” you say indignantly. You’re too busy being offended that you don’t fully comprehend his words, failing to notice how he had known you had class until 5 in the first place.

“Sure, whatever you say.” Rolling his eyes, Yoongi starts shifting through his cupboards and pulling out a pink tupperware. He begins to load them with food, nearly overflowing the containers with how much he tries to stuff in them.

“H-hey! What are you doing?”

“Packing your lunch. You have class in a bit, yeah? It’s almost 11:50 and it takes around 15 minutes to get to the main campus. You won’t have time to eat here and make it in time,” he says, pointing you with a look. “Wait. Did you have coffee this morning?”

“Yeah? So?” you ask, defensive. “Are you gonna call me stupid again for not having caffeine or something?”

“No,” he grunts. “If you’re caffeinated, then that means it should only take you 7 minutes to get to class.”

“That doesn’t even make sense!” you exclaim, but you can’t help letting out an incredulous laugh. “Wow. You’re kinda weird, did you know that?”

“You barely even know me, so how would you know?” he retorts. He finishes placing food into the tupperware and promptly clicks the lid in place. He offers it to you, smirking slightly.

You huff, but your ire is all for show. You aren’t actually annoyed by him–he’s just… different from what you expected. A little shy, a little rough around the edges… but you can tell he isn’t a bad guy. You understand why Seokjin loves to torment him; he seems like a fun person to tease. 

“That can be amended,” you respond, taking the tupperware from him. Your fingers graze the backs of his hand by accident, causing him to quickly retract his hand as though he’d been burned. You nearly drop the container in surprise, but luckily your reflexes save your precious food just in time. 

“Sorry. About… you know.” Yoongi gesticulates wildly, his gaze darting anywhere but at you. 

You smile secretly to yourself, amused. Ah. He’s like a human seesaw. Blushy one second and grumpy the next. “No worries, Yoongi. I’ll be sure to return this container soon, so don’t you worry.”

Yoongi shrugs. “Keep it if you want. I don’t care either way.”

Says the guy who has an entire cupboard full of color coordinating food containers. “Roger that, Yoongi.”

Yoongi walks you out the door, pausing outside the hallway with you. “Do you…” he hesitates, swallowing loudly enough for you to hear. “Do you… want me to walk you out?”

His sudden offer almost makes you want to laugh, but you have a feeling he wouldn’t find it amusing at all. Instead, you just shake your head with a smile. “Don’t worry. I won’t get lost. I think I remember where the door is.”

He pouts, his lips jutting out cutely. “Yeah, well. I was just trying to be nice, but you do you.”

You giggle lightly, patting him on the shoulder. “Don’t worry. You were more than nice,” you say, winking for added effect. It does more than you thought it would, causing Yoongi’s cheeks to bloom once more.

With one last wave, you make your way out of the dormitory, your heart a little lighter than before. 

“Huh. That was weird.” You glance at the pink little tupperware in your hands, its warmth keeping your hands safe from the winter chill. As you walk to class, your thoughts are filled with nothing but a shy boy with soft hands and even softer cheeks. Maybe Tuesday isn’t going to be so bad after all.

#btsghostie #bts social media au #bts smau #bts texts #bts fake texts #bts x reader #bts smut #bts fluff #bts #bts scenarios #bts imagines #jungkook x reader #taehyung x reader #jimin x reader #yoongi x reader #namjoon x reader #hoseok x reader #seokjin x reader

[uswntxfootball]

i get a little bit stressed out (when i think about you) (jill roord x arsenal!reader)

how were you supposed to ask her out when just thinking about her made you nervous?

word count: 3342 ish

rated: F for flirtation sugar daddy

title- nervous by shawn mendes

——

your eyes followed her even when you didn’t mean for them to.

there was just something about the way she carried herself… you really just couldn’t get enough of it and-

“hello? y/n?”

you really really really had it bad. it really didn’t help that she was talking adamantly about something to viv, the other dutch forward having a relatively hard time keeping up with the taller girl.

its only when daan claps in your face that you turn and look at her.

“sorry what?”

daan face palms before saying:

“you know if you stare any harder you’re going to strain your eyes.”

you blush a little.

“i’m not staring….i’m-”

daan’s pointed look shuts you up.

you blush harder and look down at your cleats, adamantly avoiding the midfielder’s gaze.

her tone softens a little when she sees you.

“you really should just ask her out y/n. its been like two years.”

you scoff a little.

“it has not been two years what are you-“

daan cuts you off with a matter-of-fact tone:

“she joined the team in 2019 buddy.”

“yeah but that doesn’t mea-“

“and exactly how many words have you exchanged with her?”

you think before saying with an air of false confidence:

“like a lo-“

“not counting on the field.”

you sigh and hang your head in defeat before whispering:

“like two.”

the dutch midfielder hums and asks again:

“mhmm now what was that?”

you roll your eyes and say it a little louder, still with that air of defeat:

“like two words.”

daan patted your shoulder encouragingly before the whistle blew, indicating the end of break, and training picked up once again.

~~

jill was talking about you during the break, actually.

to viv across the field from you.

the dutch forward had slowly realized that you were different around her, that you didn’t speak as much, and actually that you avoided her at all costs.

this she found out because there were instances, such as during team dinners, where if there was an open seat next to her, you didn’t take it, opting to stand or sit on the floor as far away from her as possible.

or that whenever she sat down next to you you shot up out of your seat almost instantly.

or that when you saw her coming down the hall you immediately turned and walked the way you came from.

or- you get the point.

she couldn’t tell if you hated her, because frankly that’s what it looked like.

so that’s what she was speaking to viv about.

and to lisa about.

and really anyone who would really listen.

of course, everyone knew your predicament, as you weren’t exactly subtle in your staring and stuttering.

they all assured jill that you didn’t hate her, that maybe you were just shy, something jill had a hard time believing since she watched you hold confident eye contact and conversations with literally everyone else but her.

if you were someone else maybe she would care less.

but you weren’t.

see, this is only how you acted off the field.

but on the field, you were a completely different person.

you had a confident, almost authoritative tone when you spoke, one that made everyone stop and listen, and was something that ultimately landed you the role of captain for every team you’ve ever played for, with arsenal being no exception.

you spoke to her that way too, and it was really the only time you made eye contact with her and spoke to her.

granted it was more like you giving orders and directions, but same difference really.

it was also something jill found really really hot.

so safe to say she cared about what you thought of her.

jill eventually decided that if you weren’t going to talk to her first, she’d do it instead.

and so began her quest, getting y/n y/ln to talk to her and hopefully become her friend.

~~

you noticed the change in jill immediately.

it seemed as though the dutch forward was tailing you every chance she got.

every corner you took she seemed to appear right in front of you, every time you glanced at her it seemed as if her eyes were already on you.

it got so bad that you tried even harder to avoid her.

for instance,

one day before training you were out on the pitch shooting from midfield and muttering game analysis under your breath when you heard a familiar, heavy dutch accent making its way through the halls.

you panicked and-

daan found you ten minutes later inside a trashcan.

needless to say you had a pretty hard time trying to explain the smell and stains on your jersey to joe later that day.

in your defense because the field was so empty, that was the only plausible option in your mind.

as time went on, it really didn’t get any better.

there was another day during training where you turned to catch a glimpse of jill only to see her eyes already on you, and you turned back so abruptly that you knocked down the entire weight rack in front of you.

jill giggled, and the rest of your teammates were rolling their eyes and collectively face palming at your stupidity.

it all came to a climax when you were on the bus to your first match of the year, and jill plopped down in the seat right by you.

your eyes widened and cheeks flushed immediately, and you trained your eyes on the seat in front of you, not daring to turn and look at the girl beside you.

“hey how are you?”

you gulped and slowly looked up at her, and you cursed internally.

she was just so unfairly attractive.

the slightly shy smile and arched eyebrow was a combination you swear only she could pull off and-

“i’m doing okay, how are you?” you managed to force out.

at least you didn’t stutter.

jill gave you a lopsided smile that made your heart skip a beat, and went on talking.

she knew you weren’t much of a talker around her, and subsequently filled up all the gaps with her rambling, something that you both appreciated and hated, as it really didn’t help the queasy feeling in your stomach.

when the bus pulled to a halt you felt like you were going to puke, and shot up out of your seat wanting to run off before you freak out, only to remember that you were in the inside seat.

jill moved slightly without hesitation, something you were more than thankful for.

she whispers a little dejectedly when you get off:

“are you sure she doesn’t hate me?”

lisa gives her a sympathetic look and smile.

“she doesn’t jill.”

“but she just-“

“trust us, she doesn’t.”

jill nods a little apprehensively, and gets up and grabs her stuff, making her way off the bus along with everyone else.

~~

during the game, jill was so distracted that she almost ran in the wrong direction.

“jill! press! now go!”

you were yelling at her from midfield, glancing all over the place as you watched every player’s movement and stance.

jill almost stumbled upon hearing your voice.

you note that she’s acting weirdly, and bring it up during a quick break while the ref is assessing a potential foul.

you catch her arm when she walks by you, an action that catches her entirely by surprise.

“hey you alright? your head is all over the place.”

jill swallows a little bit before smiling weakly and replying:

“yeah yeah i’ll be okay.”

“alright well get your head in it, you’re really talented and we really need you right now.”

you give her arm a reassuring squeeze and move to take the free kick which had just been given.

jill still stood there a little dumbfounded, its only when you snap loudly and point in the direction of the box that she remembers there’s a game going on and moves into position.

all in all, arsenal wins with an emphatic victory of 5-1.

after your duties as captain were fulfilled and you gave your post game talk, you quickly fell back into your off field self.

~~

now why was the previous bus interaction the climax?

simply put, it had been the last straw for a lot of your teammates, who were now fed up with your idiotic gay panic, and decided to do something about it.

you should’ve known something was weird when you get a text from viv reading:

“URGENT- team meeting in 15 min at me & lisa’s apartment”

you furrowed your brows in confusion.

you were the team captain and the one who called team meetings, so what was up?

also it was saturday night, couldn’t it wait?

you texted kim, the vice captain, and pretty much the only responsible adult on the team, to double check.

she replied with:

“yes- joe told us about it.”

you furrow your eyebrows again because you took your job of captain seriously and you honestly didn’t remember joe mentioning an impromptu meeting on saturday night at viv’s house.

but you made your way there just in case anyways.

when you make your way inside you glance suspiciously around the apartment and only get more confused when you see less than half the team there.

the only people there besides viv and lisa were daan and beth, caitlin and lia, leah and jordan, and katie.

by this point you should’ve known.

you open your mouth to speak but you’re cut off when daan shoves you down into a chair.

“sit.”

you shoot back up and fight her back a little bit before asking:

“guys guys guys what is going on?”

leah calmly looked at you and said:

“sit down and we’ll tell you.”

and so you begrudgingly take a seat.

lisa starts.

“alright so collectively as a group, we decided that watching you deal with jill is making us all lose brain cells.”

the group in front of you nods adamantly in agreement.

“and so we’re here to help you. to teach you how to flirt.”

you cross your arms and snort a little.

“and how are you going to do that exactly?”

“well-“

beth piped in here.

“we’re going to employ katie and have her flirt with you and teach you for the next week or so.”

you shake your head.

“katie? no i would rather go on my own thank you very-“

katie cuts in here with an offended look.

“what do you mean no?! i’m obviously the best here and-“

the room quickly broke into a loud cacophony of sound, as they began debating about katie’s comment.

its only when lisa yells for silence that everyone quiets again.

“wait how many people are in on this?” you ask suddenly.

“the whole team with the exception of jill,” leah replies offhandedly.

your eyes nearly bugged out of your head when you heard this.

“is it really that bad?”

lia snorts.

“can birds fly?”

you let out a sigh.

“fine.”

you turn to katie and very adamantly say:

“but don’t you dare make it weird.”

katie holds her hands up in surrender.

~~

and so it began, your “training” as they called it.

katie, surprisingly was pretty good at what she did.

she did unfortunately call herself your flirtation sugar daddy, but that really made you uncomfortable so you avoided those terms at all costs.

so day after day, katie stuck by you and flirted with you 24/7, with occasional performance evaluations from lisa and caitlin, all who approved thus far.

on the downside, jill, who had been kept out of the loop from everything, saw this as you being interested in katie.

she wanted to tell you that katie had a girlfriend, but didn’t really know how to start that conversation without making it weird.

she couldn’t just go up to you and say, “hey i’ve been watching you flirt with katie for the last few days and just so you know she’s taken.”

so she just stood by and watched.

she did ask viv about it one day though.

“does y/n know katie has a girlfriend?”

to which viv replied:

“yup.”

“so why is she flirting with her?”

“its just for fun.”

“it doesn’t look like its for fun to me.”

viv turns and looks at her dutch teammate.

“are you jealous?”

jill almost sputters out her answer.

“wh-what no of course not! why would i be jealous?!”

viv turns to hide her smile.

“sure jill. whatever you say.”

two weeks went by, and katie was delighted by your performance.

next saturday, the ten of you met up at viv and lisa’s apartment again.

“alright so you might be asking why we’ve gathered you here today!” lisa proclaimed with a very poor attempt at victorian english.

“we’re gathered here today to-“

“oh just get on with it,” viv butts in.

lisa turns to her with a glare.

“all right all right,” viv relents.

“we’re going to assess y/n’s flirtation capabilities.”

you quirk an eyebrow.

“how are you going to do that exactly?”

“ooh we didn’t actually think that far. we’re going to ask you questions?”

“what like ask me to finish the line? like ooh girl are you from tennesse cuz you’re the only ten i see?”

lia cringes a little at that line.

“what ever you do, don’t say that.”

“mhm yeah wasn’t going t-.”

leah cuts in.

“alright the point is. just be yourself y/n. you exude confidence on the field so just bring it out when you talk to her. that’s all”

the others all nod in agreement.

“that’s it really. you can do it y/n, we all believe in you.”

“thanks guys i really appreciate it.”

“wait but i can still be your flirtation sugar da-ow! you didn’t have to all hit me!”

~~

the next day at training you were shoved and funneled in jill’s direction by almost half the team.

a particularly hard shove from daan had you slamming directly into jill.

the dutch forward turned and grabbed your waist in lightning fast speed to steady you.

your arms immediately fell to rest on hers, and you took a shallow breath in when you saw her concerned look.

“are you alright?”

“yeah i am thanks to you…”

well here goes nothing.

“…though i have to say if this is what it takes to get you to hold me i’ll gladly fall for you again.”

jill’s face was worth the burning on your cheeks.

“w-what?”

you had to admit, jill’s stutter only made her cuter.

you just gave her a wink and reluctantly pulled her arms off you.

“come on jill, we have a training session to get to.”

you gave her a final wave before you made your way out of the locker room.

jill still stood there, shocked and a little confused.

viv rolled her eyes.

“come on jill.”

and when jill didn’t move, viv just grabbed her arm and dragged her out of the room.

later during training almost the exact same thing happens.

except this time it was more jill’s fault than yours.

she wasn’t watching where she was going and ran right into you.

your hands found their way immediately on her waist.

“is this how we’re going to meet and talk from now on?”

jill blushed and mumbled a “sorry.”

you grinned.

“don’t be, i’m kind of enjoying it, though…”

you stopped to fake pondering something.

“…i don’t know what we should do now that we’ve both fallen for each other.”

you finished your sentence with another wink, essentially rendering jill speechless.

and so, this became a trend.

you would flirt with jill, and the dutch girl would essentially just freeze up and stare at you in shock.

you thought it was cute.

jill thought it was mortifying.

she complained to viv later on.

“i can’t even flirt back what is happening to me?”

viv just gave her a reassuring pat on the back.

“that’s what we call gay panic my friend.”

jill groaned and buried her face further into her hands.

~~

“what’s a pretty lady like you doing all by yourself?”

you ask, plopping down in the empty bus seat beside her.

jill blushes and looks down at the seat in front of her.

she could barely see your playful grin out of the corner of her eye and it was enough to kick the butterflies in her stomach to a higher gear.

you had a little deja vu during the bus ride, except that in the previous predicament the roles were switched.

jill somehow managed to hold it together for the remainder of the bus ride.

it was on the pitch when jill really couldn’t take it anymore.

you didn’t even do anything, except fulfill your captain duties.

you were standing on the sideline, watching a scrimmage between lia’s team and kim’s team.

joe had asked you to sit out and assess every player’s strengths and basically coach them.

and coach them you did.

“caitlin! daan’s open on your left! and malin! cover daan better so she’s not wide open!”

you looked down to scribble notes in your note pad, and when you looked up you saw jill staring at you on the field.

“jill! focus!”

her gaze snapped back onto the game.

before the second round, you gave a bunch of pointers to both teams.

“okay so you guys are doing pretty well, just make sure to keep up your back line, don’t make it sloppy.”

and to the other:

“alright so pass accuracy is something you need to work on, because half of your passes are being intercepted at the moment which probably isn’t something you want.”

after a few minutes the teams took their places back onto the pitch and you began scribbling down a few more notes.

a pair of cleats makes their way before you, and you look up.

“what’s wr-“

jill leans down and kisses you.

you drop your notepad in surprise.

she pulls back quickly and searches your face for any sign of disgust or repulsion, and finding none, she leans in again.

this time, you met her halfway.

it was electric and a little needy, really everything you wanted a first kiss to be.

you briefly heard the cheers and clapping of your teammates, too caught up in the moment to care about anything else.

jill’s hands fell to your waist and yours rested on her cheeks.

you pulled back after what seemed like an eternity, but in reality was only a couple of seconds.

“so i guess i don’t have to fall for you to hold me like that again,” you whisper.

jill giggles.

“definitely not.”

you’re silent for a few seconds, but jill beats you and breaks it first.

“you know, i thought you liked katie.”

your eyes widen in surprise, and your face quickly contorts into disgust.

“oh god no way.”

“oh that’s good.”

you ask her a little teasingly:

“why, were you jealous?”

jill scoffs a little.

“shut up.”

you arch your brow a little in challenge.

“make me then.”

jill’s eyes flash back onto your face dangerously but before she can do anything you give her a little shove back.

“now go back to your scrimmage, we’ve had them wait long enough.”

she rolls her eyes and turns back towards the pitch, and towards a hoard of your giddy teammates.

“flirtation sugar daddy for the wi-ow!”

your perfectly struck ball hits katie square in the chest and your glare cuts eliminates any objections.

still you hear her mutter:

“still if anyone needs any help with flirting i’ll be free to-“

“katie!”

“sorry sorry i’ll stop.”

#jill roord #jill roord x reader #jill roord imagine #arsenal wfc x reader #arsenal wfc imagine #nedwnt x reader #nedwnt imagine #uswnt imagine #uswnt x reader #woso imagines #woso imagine

[oh-boy-me]

I just read both the australia and museum post and the chaos levels are top tier, but like imagine the chaos that ensues if lord diavolo discovers about amusment parks and immediately just buys tickets to disneyland. Lucifer is basically the dad trying not to loose his children(lord diavolo included). Lord diavolo wanting to ride a loopy rollercoaster and just having the time of his life! (Also I highkey see diavolo ordering lucifer to make a disneyland in devildom tbh) Also mouse ear headbands!

This..... this took forever

Hey there anon!  Sorry it took literally a year to answer this!  If you’re still into Obey Me, I hope this was a pleasant surprise.

Also for the first time ever a scenario post is being put under the cut for length purposes.  This scenario is 2.6k words Jesus

Please note that the last time I went to Disney was in 2015, so anything that’s newer than that is taken from the extensive reading of Disney advice blogs I read in preparation for this post.  Anything older than that is likely from experience.

Also, I tried my best to keep this spoiler free for the attractions that can be affected by it.

--

So the Devildom DOES have the concept of amusement parks.  I slept on this ask for so long that we’ve learned about Devil’s Coast.  It seems to be more akin to a smaller-scale theme park, though.  Small-ish.  I’m used to NYC idk what constitutes as small.

Something like Disney World is on such a larger scale!!  When Diavolo heard about that, he knew they had to go.

They are going to Disney World in Orlando because it’s the only one I’ve been to.

Lucifer is REALLY getting tired of these field trips, but there would be no weird animals, and there would be no sobering lessons on global extinction events at a family-friendly amusement park.  He.  He can handle this.

Solomon has actually been banned from all Walt Disney theme parks.  We’re talking blacklist-level banned.  He’s barred from ever entering any Disney park ever again.  However, this was back in 1976, so this must be, like, his son or something, right?  There’s no way this is the same guy.  Thought the security guard who let him in.

What did Solomon do to get banned?  When asked, he only gave a curious hum.  “Yeah, I wonder.”

The place is split into four parks, so they’ll spend one day in each.

Barbatos continued to flex his power as the only one in the group with a brain cell, being sure to get them all fast passes.  He even set time back just for the passes while they were booking the rides they wanted to cut the lines for, so if they don’t get used he’s going to be very snippy.

Also for convenience sake this is taking place in an AU where everything is the same but COVID doesn’t exist to shut down some rides and attractions.

Day 1: Hollywood Studios

MC and Simeon basically have to coerce Lucifer into letting everyone run free instead of making them all line up with a walking rope all day.  He relents on the condition that everyone checks in periodically so he can at least know they haven’t killed anyone.

Nobody will check in except for maybe Beelzebub and those at Purgatory Hall.

Levi immediately gathered his fellow Star Wars fans (which basically meant calling over Mammon Belphie and Asmo and then pulling in two unsuspecting people suddenly given the title of “Star Wars fan”), and made a beeline for Galaxy’s Edge.  There’s a LOT to do there and damn it if he wasn’t going to hit all of it.

First up for their group is the interactive Millennium Falcon Smuggler’s Run.  They fail the mission.  Levi’s pretty pissed, but everyone agrees that it was fun nonetheless.  They really felt like they were doing a mission in the Falcon!  Plus, the gameplay element was totally up the alley of most of this group.  Simeon does feel a little nauseous from Luke’s jerky steering, though.

Did you know that Diavolo loves Toy Story?  He does.  He’s very much enjoying the Slinky roller coaster with Barbatos.

Barbatos would rather be spending time at the shows and performances, but oh no god forbid we don’t get an autograph from Doc McStuffins.  Lucifer please come find him and save him.

Lucifer somehow wandered into the Frozen Sing-Along Celebration.  He wants out.  Barbatos please come find him and save him.

In general, Lucifer isn’t a fan of these sorts of places, so honestly he’s just hiding from the others and waiting for today to be over.  Barbatos told him that there are parks that don’t revolve around rides and characters, and he’s holding out for those.

Luckily for them Diavolo wants to do LITERALLY everything, and that does include the shows, so Barbatos and Lucifer can have at least some fun today

Levi, Asmo, and Beel are about to start their relay for getting character autographs when Satan shows up out of nowhere and starts dragging everyone over to the Tower of Terror.  Solomon bars all attempts to flee on a certain Avatar of Greed’s side.

The line to the Tower is so long, and honestly?  Satan feels like the ride didn’t live up to the literal hour they waited to get on.  Like yeah it was fun, but way too short.

He voices those thoughts, and Levi, who Satan knows is afraid of heights, is pretty fucking livid and drags him to Rock n Rollercoaster as revenge.  Satan hates roller coasters.

As for the others, Asmo and Luke have a lot of fun on the thrill rides.  Mammon and Simeon do not.  Beel is a little spooked by them but still manages to have fun, while Belphie and Solomon think they’re alright.

Eventually, Simeon gets too sick to move, and they assign him to Luke.  They say it’s because he’s too short to ride some of the rides (even though he’s literally not, screw you guys.)

Barbatos messes with time a lil bit so they can enjoy the Fantasmic Show and Fireworks to wrap the day up.

Levi is very jealous of Diavolo’s Doc McStuffins autograph.  Somehow Asmo has Buzz Lightyear’s number.

Day 2: Animal Kingdom

Satan is vibrating

He literally instantly sprints to the Kilimanjaro Safari.  And good for him; that’s something best done while the sun isn’t high up.  The whole gang actually agrees to check that one out, and while Satan isn’t thrilled to be within 50 feet of Lucifer, he’s glad Simeon is there because he remembers how his presence lured animals out in Australia.

Simeon also finds himself pulled along the trails by Satan and parents watch in horror as a gorilla gives him a friendly pat on the back.

If you didn’t know, Animal Kingdom is divided into the two continents of Asia and Africa, as well as the secret eighth continent Avatar (2009).  Diavolo heard great things about the Flight of Passage ride, but he totally forgot to tell Barbatos about it, so they’re stuck on a three hour wait line now.

Levi takes Luke on the Everest roller coaster because Simeon saw it in the distance and looked like he was about to cry.  Levi wouldn’t shut up about how the yeti effect needs to be fixed and Solomon had to explain that the effect literally couldn’t support itself.

Simeon, having escaped a roller coaster for the first and only time on this trip, grabs lunch with Lucifer and Solomon and they enjoy the Lion King performance together.  Solomon’s the only one of them who’s seen the movie, but the others still found it fun.  Solomon keeps making up random plot points that don’t exist, though.  Remember when Simba was captured by pirates?

Mammon found the Bugs Life show very scary.  Normally Asmo would laugh at him, but he’s afraid of any bug he’s never seen before and at least Mammon was afraid of the things that were supposed to get you.  They agree that bugs are still not their friends.

Satan has many things to say about the Dinosaur ride and most of them aren’t good.  Belphie thought it was pretty ok, though.  Lucifer can’t believe there was a sobering lesson on a global extinction event at this family-friendly amusement park.

Diavolo is still in line.  Barbatos abandons him.  He accompanies Luke to the kiddie fossil thing and actually finds it more tolerable.  Oh yeah that’s the other secret ninth continent, Dinoland.

Beel and Belphie spend most of the day together at the various petting zoos.  Belphie comes back knowing more than he ever wanted to about conservation.  He thought Rafiki’s Planet Watch was going to be about watching other planets, not this one!

Asmo gets very interested in the costumes of the performers, as well as the parrots in the bird show.  He could probably make some really colorful designs with those as inspiration.

Nearby, Mammon runs into Kevin and squawks in surprise.  The zoo staff spend the next two hours trying to find the bird that escaped.

Diavolo says the ride was worth it, don’t worry.

Honestly this park has a lot of stuff that wouldn’t translate well to a funny scenario post so this part might be a little short compared to the others.  I can only talk about a zoo for so long.

Anyone remember the Honey I Shrunk the Kids 4D show?  Apparently it closed in 2016 to make room for more Star Wars stuff.

Anyway, at the center of it all there’s the Tree of Life, which is really pretty all day.  Lucifer is thrilled to have a decently obvious meet-up place, too.  They get to catch the brief awakening show at night.

They’re very bummed to learn the Rivers of Light show isn’t happening anymore, so Levi pulls it up on his phone so they can watch it in spirit.

Then Satan learns about the Wilderness Explorers badges and the others spend the rest of the time preventing too much collateral damage over the fact that nobody told him.

Day 3: Epcot

Finally, Lucifer thinks.  Boo, Luke thinks.

Beel didn’t expect this park to be that interesting to him (he’s much more into the wonder and immersion of Hollywood Studios and Magic Kingdom), but then he learned about the restaurants.  China, Norway, France, Mexico, Germany, Morocco, Italy, Japan, Canada--Canada?  Huh.  Canada.  There’s so many different restaurants from so many cuisines to try, and yeah he knows that it’s definitely not the same as going to the place and it’s overpriced (sorry Lucifer), but it’s all right there.  He makes certain to take MC on a deluxe Epcot restaurant tour.

Oh yeah MC.  That’s the first time we’ve heard from them in a while.  They’re doing whatever you want them to I guess.

Levi buys so much from the Japanese gift shops that he has to go back to the hotel for a bit to drop his bags off.

Satan and Diavolo aren’t much better, but their stashes are more varied.

Also, Diavolo found Mouse Gear, and bought everyone a pair of ears.  Lucifer says that everyone has to keep them on because it’s what Lord Diavolo wants, but he is by far the most upset about them.  Mammon snaps a picture and Lucifer throws his DDD into the lake.

Asmo and Belphie decide they’re gonna take it easy this day, and they nab Solomon and Barbatos for some exhibition hopping.

Luke finds Mission Space and please father no Simeon thought he was safe he thought he was safe here no please

Aside from that, though, Luke honestly finds this part of the park boring.  He’d have been more interested in these attractions elsewhere, but as a kid he’s in Disney for roller coasters and Mickey Mouse.

Simeon is very grateful that Luke doesn’t have much that he wants to do, because it means that he can enjoy the Gran Fiesta and Living with the Land boat rides and have a single moment where he doesn’t feel like he’s about to be sick.  He’s not even afraid of the rides; he just gets motion sick easily.

Asmo makes sure to see the Chinese acrobat show, and Mammon catches that with the show-hopping gang since there isn’t much he wants to do here either.

Epcot has alcohol and Solomon hasn’t been able to drink in ages so he really wants to spend some time doing that with MC.  No demons allowed, thank you very much.  He doesn’t hold his liquor as well as he’d like you to believe, but he just gets really talkative when drunk so it’s ok.

Epcot is a nice day to take a breather and Lucifer and Barbatos definitely needed a breather before tomorrow.

Day 4: Magic Kingdom

This is the day Diavolo has been waiting for.  The crème de la crop, the best park for kids and kids in a future king of the Devildom’s body.

Also I feel like now is a good time to mention that this probably isn’t a reasonable order of events because I don’t remember the map layout of these places idk Disney city planning

This time.  This time, Levi, Asmo and Beel are gonna get those autographs, dammit.  Levi doesn’t even know who half of these characters are but hell if he’s not getting their autograph.

Mammon actually really loves the mascots too, but he’s embarrassed about it so he’ll only try to get one if he can use the guise of MC wanting one.  MC, please help him out

Belphie isn’t big on rides, but he does have a soft spot for the more retro ones like Dumbo and Seven Dwarves.  And like I said before, Beel loves Magic Kingdom for its wonder.  So Belphie is perfectly happy being led (read: piggybacked) around by Beel today, because their favorite attractions match up pretty well here.

Actually, Beel’s favorite Disney movie is Lilo and Stitch, but.  RIP Stitch’s Great Escape ride 2004-2018

Diavolo and Lucifer take a moment to enjoy the Carousel of Progress, and they reflect on how much the Human World is always changing and how much about it they still don’t know.  It really does make them think, like.  Grandma found the VR games at Christmas!  The Devildom doesn’t have grandmas!

Mammon is terrified of the Haunted Mansion ride, and Satan has literally never felt so much schadenfreude in his life.

Mammon’s afraid of most rides to be fair, but he likes water rides, so Levi eventually takes pity on him and they go on Splash Mountain together more than once.

The Peter Pan ride broke down

Luke wanted to go on Space Mountain and Simeon was the only one around, so.  RIP Simeon ????-2021

Diavolo was That Guy.  If you know, you know.

Beel accidentally spun the teacups way too fast.  Not even Solomon got out of that one unscathed.

Following that, Solomon manages to drag Barbatos onto the Jungle Cruise while Lucifer is busy.  What is Lucifer busy with?  Riding the Buzz Lightyear shooting ride over and over until he hits every single target and gets a perfect score at a Disney ride, something that is normal to want and possible to achieve.  Anyway, Barbatos finds it really charming and Solomon finds it a nice break that he didn’t know he needed.

While looking for a food place that sells water for a reasonable price, a kid runs up to Asmo asking for a picture and autograph.  He’s kind of confused, but goes along with it to make the kid happy.

Turns out, Asmo’s so naturally charming that they mistook him for a prince.  Other groups see that family and follow suit.  Mammon eventually catches wind of it and shows up to charge a fee.  The parents are pretty sure Disney doesn’t charge fees like that, but their kids really want a pic with Asmo so they hand over the two bucks.  (“Oh it’s so low” come on Mammon’s not a dick to children.)

And that’s the story of how Mammon and Asmo ended up in Disney Jail.  You’re very much not allowed to pretend to be a cast member and then charge money for it.  Lucifer has to bail them out as their “guardian,” and as punishment they aren’t allowed to opt out of It’s a Small World.

Small World isn’t that bad imho, and those like Diavolo, Satan, Simeon, and Levi would like it a lot.  But Lucifer has been playing parent all day, Belphie does not like the noise, and Solomon has literally been on this ride at least fifty times.  Very mixed feelings on this one, but it feels fitting to end with that and a fireworks show.

All in all though this wasn’t the worst trip Lucifer’s been on (cue everyone applauding for some reason).

Barbatos by far had the least fun of them all because for four days he was stuck in a park where the mascot is a fucking rodent and he wasn’t allowed to annihilate Mickey Mouse where he stood

“Disneyland Devildom when” “Lord Diavolo, no”

Masterlist

#obey me #obey me headcanons #obey me lucifer #obey me mammon #obey me leviathan #obey me satan #obey me asmodeus #obey me beelzebub #obey me belphegor #obey me diavolo #obey me barbatos #obey me luke #obey me simeon #obey me solomon #my favorite park is def epcot and my favorite ride is def splash mountain #also my sister helped me out by reminding me about animal kingdom but most of her photos were of random birds

[whimsicallyenchantedrose]

Dead Man’s Cell Phone--Prologue

Summary: When Emma Swan starts getting phone calls and texts from an unfamiliar number, she decides to check it out--only to discover the number belongs to a Killian Jones, who was killed in a robbery gone wrong six months ago.  With some help from a medium, Merlin Emrys, Emma hopes to find out why a dead guy is contacting her--and why she feels such a strong pull to someone she has never met before.

Rating: K+

Other Chapters: 1 2 ​3 4 Epilogue

Welcome to my entry for the Captain Swan Supernatural Summer! A big thank you to @cssns, the ladies on the Discord!  Thank you also to @eastwesthomeisbest, my artist and my beta @veryverynotgood!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Killian Jones took a deep breath, noting the salty tang of the sea breeze.  The scent brought him comfort, a balm to his wounded soul.  Some of his most treasured memories involved holidays to the sea with his mum.  He remembered something his mum said to him on one such holiday ages and ages ago when he was naught but a tiny lad of four or five.

“You feel things so deeply, Killian,” she’d said, stroking his hair.  “When you love, you love with your entire being.  It’s a beautiful thing, and those you love are lucky indeed, but be careful.  There will be heartache in your future, and when you lose someone you love, I fear it will hit you harder than most.”

He’d learned the truth of her statement less than a year later when she had succumbed to a fast moving, particularly virulent form of cancer.  He’d been inconsolable for weeks, unable to understand why his mum had left him.

But life had gone on, and like many children, he’d proven to be resilient, turning to his older brother, his hero, Liam for help and support.  He thanked the gods every day that Liam had never left him--either willingly like his deadbeat father or through death like his mother.

Love was rather rare in Killian’s life.  He’d taken his mother’s words to heart, only giving his heart when he felt it was in safe keeping.

That was, until he met Milah.

She was beautiful, vibrant, full of life--and unfortunately quite married.  Liam had warned him against getting involved with a woman who wasn’t free to give him her heart, but Killian was snared before he even fully understood what was happening.  He had fallen hard and he had fallen fast, and he found he was helpless to resist the gorgeous woman who had captured his heart.

They were happy for a few months, so happy that they’d begun discussing forever.  Milah had sworn she’d leave her husband, that she wanted to be with him.  Killian had begun shopping for rings.

And then, as suddenly as it began, it all went to hell.  She’d come to meet him one night looking as grave and uncomfortable as he’d ever seen her.  

“Killian, I do love you,” she said, “but what we discussed in the past, I think we’ve always known they’re pipe dreams.  Robert’s my husband, the father of my son.  We were meant to be.  I’m sorry, but I have to end this now.  Robert got a new job across the country, and we both think it’s the perfect opportunity for us to make a go at this, to start fresh.  I’m sorry, but this is goodbye.”

It hit him hard, so hard it felt like there was a physical weight on his chest.  How did one pick up the pieces of their heart when it had been shattered into a fine powder?  Liam had tried to be supportive, he really had, but Killian had known it was always on the tip of his tongue to tell Killian “I told you so.”

After a couple months of misery, Killian decided he’d had enough.  He needed a change, even if it was no more than a few weeks’ vacation.  And so he’d packed up and taken the first flight he could arrange from his home in England to the States.  He’d rented a car and simply begun driving, deciding not to stop until he found somewhere that might offer him peace.

He found it in the small, quaintly named seaside town of Storybrooke, Maine.  There was such a magical feel about this berg.  It was a place he could perhaps run into that peace he’d been sadly lacking since…

Killian stopped abruptly as he collided with something, someone in front of him.  He heard a swift, harsh, feminine curse, and looked up to find himself face to face with the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen - riotous blonde curls pulled up into a high ponytail, green eyes, currently narrowed in anger, a red leather jacket over a white tank top. Her jeans were so tight to her slim figure they looked painted on.

For a long moment, Killian could do nothing but stare, open-mouthed at the vision before him, so gobsmacked he could barely remember his own name.

The woman growled in frustration as she looked down at the grocery bag she’d dropped upon impact.  “Seriously?” she asked.  “You’re just gonna stand there like an idiot?”

Killian shook his head as he came back to himself, his cheeks reddening at his rudeness.  “My apologies, love,” he said, stooping down to gather up the spilled contents of her bag.  “It appears I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going.”

“You think?” she retorted with a roll of her eyes.  

For a moment the two worked together while Killian desperately wracked his addled brain for something--anything--to say that might allow him to remain in this woman’s presence longer, but he was coming up blank.

“Well….thanks for your help,” she said finally, when the groceries were back in their bag.

“Thanks for letting me help,” he replied rather lamely.

“Yeah, well maybe next time you might pay a little more attention and avoid this kind of situation altogether,” she suggested as she pushed past him and quickly disappeared from his sight.

She might have disappeared from his sight, but she most assuredly did not disappear from his mind.  Thoughts of the beautiful blonde followed him through the streets of Storybrooke as he made his way closer and closer to the beach.

So consumed was he with his chance encounter that he didn’t even realize he’d wandered into a seedy part of town until he heard the sounds around him.

The sounds of an altercation.

Killian looked up to see several big, burly men brutally beating a man with black hair and blue eyes.  The man fought valiantly, but it was at least six to one.  He didn’t stand a chance.  Killian fished his cell phone from his pocket, intending to call the authorities, get some help, but he knew the victim before him didn’t have time to wait for police to arrive.

Killian had to intervene.

He charged into the fray, pulling first one, and then another ruffian from the man being beaten, but his efforts seemed to have no effect on the attackers.

No effect, that is, save to divert some of their wrath toward him.  Killian grunted as the first blow landed on the side of his head, and he dropped his phone to the ground.  He fought back with everything in him, pleased to note he’d gotten in a fair few punches of his own, but it soon became obvious that he was hopelessly outmanned.

Sometimes retreat was one’s only option.

Killian turned, hoping to find help for himself and for the other victim, but he’d only made it a few steps when he felt a sharp pain to the back of his head...and then everything went black.

 Notes:

--Hi there and welcome to my story for the 2021 CSSNS!  This story was kind of inspired by an experience I had.  Most of the time if I get a phone call from a number I don’t recognize, I just let it go to voicemail, figuring if they really want to talk to me, they’ll leave a message (and if they’re a telemarketer...they won’t).  One day I got a message from an unknown number, and they did leave a message.  The message was basically nothing but dead air.  For some reason, I decided to try to find out who the number belonged to, and I came to find out the number belonged to someone who had died six months ago.  Now logically, that probably means someone else has the dead guy’s cell phone now, but it brought up the possibility of a new story.  What if Emma got a phone call from Killian Jones, who she finds out died several months ago...and it isn’t a mistake?  Thus this story was born.

--This story has 4 chapters plus this prologue and epilogue, and the good thing is that it’s already completely written.  This means I can set (and stick to) a posting schedule!  I plan to update this story every Wednesday and Sunday until it’s finished.

--Up next:  Emma gets a strange phone call from an unknown number.  What she finds out about it leads her on a journey that will completely change her life.

                                                                                       Next Chapter-->

#cssns #captain swan supernatural summer #cssns21 #my fanfiction #cs ghost story au #dead man's cell phone

[purrincess-chat]

Marinette Dupain-Cheng’s Spite Playlist: Remix CH21

We’ve done it! We’re caught up to AO3! As such, I will be taking the next month off from posting to get AO3 updated and take a short break. I will resume posting on AO3 first, then tumblr right after starting on July 2, 2021! Can’t wait for you all to see the rest of this story! I have a lot of changes coming.

Previous    First    Next      AO3

------------------------------

Chapter 21: Miss Americana & the Heartbreak Prince

The next morning, Adrien’s stomach churned on the way to school. Chloe sat beside him adjusting her makeup while Gorilla was stopped at a red light. Everyone would know about their interview now. He expected backlash, but not like this. Pulling out his phone, he opened the article again.

Ladybug’s #1 Fan Deletes Blog After Scathing Final Video

“It’s like I don’t even know who she is anymore. I thought she was this amazing, genuine person, but in reality, she doesn’t care about any of us,” Alya said in the clip.

“Sources speculate this video was posted in response to the interview Ladybug did prior yesterday afternoon with the daughter of Paris’s own Mayor Bourgeois and the son of famous fashion mogul, Gabriel Agreste. In the interview, Ladybug denounced clout-chasers using her name to get attention, stating that such actions are “dangerous” and “need to stop.” The blogger behind the popular Ladyblog seemed to find fault with these comments and was akumatized shortly after the interview. It seems that bad blood has brewed between the blogger and the heroine even after the day was saved. The Ladyblogger posted one final video lashing out at the superheroine before deleting her blog altogether.”

“Ugh, stop reading that. Who cares?” Chloe groaned, swiping Adrien’s phone from his hands. “That brat doesn’t have brain cells if she believes a nobody like Lila over a superhero.”

“Alya devoted a lot of time to that blog, and she really looked up to Ladybug. She’s probably crushed right now,” Adrien said.

Chloe rolled her eyes and pulled out her lip gloss. “So let her be. She did this to herself by siding with that wannabe. If any of these losers have a brain, then Lila’s going to be finished today. I’ll be shocked if she’s even here.”

“Uh, I think we have other things to worry about.” Adrien pointed to the crowd waiting at the bottom of the stairs as their car rolled up to the curb. Their classmates had formed a wall between them and the inside of the school like a group of knights defending their queen. Lila was waiting safely inside, no doubt. She never liked getting her hands dirty unless she had to.

“You don’t think she’ll get away with this and make everyone hate us, do you?” Adrien asked.

“Everyone already hates me, Adrikins. I have nothing to lose.” Chloe snapped her compact shut and dropped it into her purse. “But it looks like we’ll have to finish the job ourselves. I’m going to need a spa day after working so hard.”

A pit tangled in Adrien’s stomach as they climbed from the car, the angry expressions of their classmates sending a chill up his spine. When they’d done the interview, Adrien expected everyone to be mad at Lila, not him. How did she weasel her way out of this one?

“Oh, look who decided to show up,” Alya said, crossing her arms over her chest. “Where’s your bff Ladybug?”

“She’s got better things to do than worry about you losers,” Chloe said without missing a beat, completely undeterred by the mob in front of them. “Now, move, you’re blocking the stairs.”

“Ya know, I’ve always known you were evil, but this is really low, even for you.” Alya shook her head.

“Yeah! Tricking Ladybug is way uncool, Chloe,” Nino said.

“Yeah!” Several classmates echoed their agreement.

“Ladybug spoke the honest truth. All I did was ask the questions.” Chloe examined her nails.

“Stop pretending to be innocent. I overheard you and Adrien plotting to trick Ladybug into saying incriminating things about Lila, so don’t even lie to us.” Alya shot Adrien a glare that cut through his chest like a knife. “And what do you have to say for yourself? Teaming up with the wicked witch. We all thought you denounced Chloe’s actions, but I guess the silver spoon doesn’t fall far from the table.”

“Ugh, she’s delusional. Come on, Adrikins.” Chloe tugged his arm, but he remained rooted in place.

“No, she’s right. Chloe and I did conspire to trick Ladybug into admitting she and Lila were never friends,” Adrien said, and Chloe shot him a warning glare. “But that’s not actually what happened.”

“Really? So you two didn’t do a live interview where Ladybug said she doesn’t have any non-superhero friends?” Alya quirked a brow.

“Chloe and I originally planned to trick Ladybug, yes, but I didn’t feel right about it, so before the interview, I told Ladybug the truth. She went into that interviewing knowing what we were going to ask her, and she agreed,” Adrien said.

“What?” Chloe gasped.

“What Ladybug said was her choice. Lila’s lies have gotten out of hand, and she knows that better than anyone,” Adrien said.

“Why should we believe you?” Nathaniel grunted. “You teamed up with Chloe, so obviously you’re not the innocent sunshine boy everyone thinks you are.”

“Yeah, Chloe’s the worst!” Sabrina shouted, and Chloe’s gaze locked on her.

“How dare you! You’re not allowed to side with those losers. Get over here!” Chloe demanded, but Alya draped an arm around Sabrina’s shoulders.

“She’s done putting up with your crud, Chloe. We all are,” Alya said. “Lila hasn’t done anything to deserve all the hate from you or Marinette or Ladybug or anybody!”

“So, you losers are really going to believe some random girl who walked in off the street and started telling all of these amazing stories without evidence to back them up over a superhero?” Chloe cocked a hip. “You’re all more pathetic than I thought.”

“You’re the pathetic one! You two and Marinette have been plotting against Lila for weeks, haven’t you?” Alya shot back.

“Whoa, Marinette has nothing to do with any of this,” Adrien said. “This was all me and Chloe.”

“I heard you two talking. You said you were doing it for Marinette, or did I hear you incorrectly?” Alya challenged.

Adrien sighed. “No, we did say that, and I did do it for Marinette.”

“Ha!”

“But not because she told me to.” Adrien took a deep breath and turned to his classmates. “All of you, don’t you miss Marinette? Rose, don’t you miss when she would bring you extra fabric for your scrapbook projects? And Nathaniel, don’t you miss when she’d offer suggestions for your comic books?”

When they remained quiet, he continued, “Marinette left this school feeling hurt and empty. She felt like all of her friends turned their backs on her for a new girl. She poured her heart and soul into everything she did here, and Lila drove her away. Marinette knew the truth, so Lila threatened to take everything away from her. And she did which is why I teamed up with Chloe to stop her. Marinette doesn’t deserve to be treated like that. Not after everything she’s done.”

Everyone was quiet. Even Alya’s resolve seemed shaken, but she squared her shoulders.

“I can’t believe you when you’re standing next to her.” She nodded at Chloe.

Kim pursed his lips, shoving his hands into his pockets. “I dunno, it doesn’t make sense. Marinette would never do something like that. Adrien can be protective of people he cares about, but that doesn’t make him a bad guy.”

“Yeah, Marinette is like the nicest person in the world. She’d never go against someone without a reason, especially if it involves teaming up with Chloe,” Alix agreed.

“And Marinette was always looking out for everyone before Lila showed up,” Ivan said.

They moved to stand beside Adrien, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

“Well, I’m not siding with Chloe, even if Marinette was nice to me sometimes.” Nathaniel crossed his arms over his chest.

“Yeah, I’m done being your bff. You’ll have to get someone else to do your homework from now on,” Sabrina said with a humph.

Myléne flicked her gaze between the forming groups, curling her shoulders. “Sorry, but they’re right. Chloe is always being mean. I don’t really think Marinette is involved, but this seems very typical for Chloe.”

Max tapped his chin with one finger. “It’s true that this type of behavior is very typical of Chloe, but senseless cruelty is atypical of Adrien. However, acting in defense of a dear friend is a trait Adrien and Marinette have demonstrated on numerous occasions, and Lila’s stories can be outlandish at times. Then there’s the issue of the interview with Ladybu-”

“Oh, just pick a side!” Chloe groaned.

“I-” Max glanced between his friends. “I am choosing to abstain from taking sides until I have further evidence. Both Lila and Marinette are my friends.”

“Ugh, whatever. What about you two?” Chloe turned to Juleka and Rose.

Juleka mumbled something no one understood but moved to stand by Alix. Rose cupped a hand over her mouth, shifting between Alya and Adrien.

“Rose?” Adrien prompted.

Her shoulders curled, and she squeezed her eyes shut. “I don’t want to pick! I don’t want anyone to fight anymore.” She covered her face with a whimper, and Nino placed a hand on her shoulder.

“It’s gonna be alright,” he said.

“Nino?” Adrien asked hopefully, but his best bud lowered his head, red cap covering his eyes.

“Sorry, bro. I know you and Chloe have always been tight, but that doesn’t mean she and I have to be,” Nino said, taking a purposeful step toward Alya.

“Well, looks like more people are on my side than yours.” Chloe gloated.

“Hold up,” Alix said. “No one on this side picked you. We just believe Marinette is innocent, and Adrien was acting to protect her.”

“Yeah, you’re still the worst. We’re on Marinette’s team,” Ivan added. Chloe scowled but didn’t argue further.

A cold anger burned behind Alya’s eyes, the hurt she was feeling bubbling just beneath the surface. Adrien shivered. This wasn’t what he wanted when they did the interview. He wanted everyone to be free from Lila’s influence, especially Alya, but Lila’s hooks were in too deep. He never should have let things get this bad. If he’d acted sooner, then Marinette never would have left. Their classmates would be free, and no one would have to feel torn.

When the bell rang, their classmates dispersed, filing into the school one-by-one. Chloe fell into step beside Adrien.

“Now what?” he asked.

“I don’t know. I need time to forget about the fact that I’m Team Marinette.” Chloe shuddered.

“We’ve got enough people who at least believe Marinette is innocent, but we can’t get too cocky. That’s not the same thing as believing Lila is guilty,” Adrien said.

“We’ll figure something out. We just need time and a little precision,” Chloe said.

Adrien gulped, gripping the strap on his bag tighter. For their sake, he hoped they thought of something soon.

♪♫♪ Learn to Let Go ♪♫♪

“Take a deep breath in,” Macy said.

Marinette sat cross-legged on a bright blue yoga mat. Sunlight streaming in from the skylights warmed Marinette’s bare shoulders while soothing music played softly in the background. After the past few days, Marinette’s anxiety was at an all-time high, so a meditation session was in order. She followed Macy’s instructions, but it did little to relax her.

“Now, breathe out all of that negative energy. Let it all leave your body,” Macy continued. “Think of all the things in your life that make you happy and push out the things that don’t.”

Marinette took another breath, but the events of the last two days flashed vividly in her mind. The interview, Ladyblogger, the hurt look in Alya’s eyes when Ladybug captured her akuma, the video… Marinette breathed out.

Alya deleted the Ladyblog. Lila had done the impossible and turned Ladybug’s biggest fan into one of her biggest detractors. Granted, Ladybug might have helped by replacing Rena Rouge, but what was Marinette supposed to do? Working with Alya wasn’t an option after everything—it would have been too painful. Even still, Marinette would be lying if she said watching Alya lose faith in Ladybug didn’t rip another hole in her chest. Despite ending their friendship, Marinette still wished Alya the best, even if she was running with Lila.

“You’re not letting go of the negative energy,” Macy said.

Marinette blinked her eyes open and sighed, letting her posture fall. “Sorry, it’s been a rough few days.”

Macy turned to face Marinette with a smile. “Why don’t we talk about it instead? Maybe it will help if you get it all off your chest.”

“Maybe…” Marinette picked at a loose thread on her pants. She shifted to face Macy, chest tight. “It’s just…my old school. When I left, I didn’t want to look back, but it feels like no matter what I do, I can’t leave it behind.”

“Well, you had a lot of friends at your old school, right? It’s not easy to walk away from people you care about,” Macy said. “Especially when you know someone is using them.”

“I guess.” Marinette hugged her knees to her chest. “I thought I’d been gone long enough to not care anymore, but when Alya got akumatized, I just felt so sad.”

“Of course, you did! She was your best friend.” Macy pulled the tea table closer and prepared a cup. “It’s not easy to see someone you love in that much pain. You’re not a robot, Marinette. It’s okay to care.”

Macy pushed a cup toward her, but when she made no move to accept it, Macy changed the subject. “What about Adrien? Have you heard from him?”

Marinette flicked her gaze to her phone and shook her head. “No. Not since yesterday. I think he’s avoiding me.”

“Why do you say that?”

“I dunno.” Marinette shrugged. “He’s been texting me all the time lately, but now all of a sudden, he just stopped.”

“Boys are flaky like that sometimes. Give him time. I’m sure he’ll come around,” Macy assured her.

“I know, and I know it’s probably because of the interview he did with Ladybug.” Marinette sighed. “He probably thinks I’m mad at him.”

“How do you know?” Macy asked.

Marinette shifted to tuck her legs under the table and pulled her cup closer. She stared at her reflection in the tea and shrugged. “Because I thought the same thing when I changed schools behind his back. I thought he’d be disappointed.”

“Was he?” Macy asked.

“No, but I didn’t know that until he talked to me.” Marinette took a long sip. “I just feel bad that he did all of that for me. He shouldn’t have to deal with my problems.”

Macy surveyed her with a frown. “That’s something I’ve noticed about you, ya know,” she said thoughtfully. “You’re quick to shoulder everyone’s burdens when you think they need help, but you never expect anyone to do it for you.”

“I just want to be there for my friends, that’s all.” Marinette deflected as if it were no big deal, but Macy shot her a chiding look.

“Marinette, that’s very noble and sweet, but the same is true for you, ya know,” Macy said. “Everyone else’s burdens aren’t yours to bear. You’re going to break your back carrying so much weight around.” When Marinette remained quiet, Macy sighed. “Well, then I guess I have no choice.”

“What do you mean?” Marinette blinked up at her.

“If you’re running head-first into everyone’s problems, then I’m coming too,” Macy said. “I’m not going to let you do it all alone, and I don’t think Martin and Eliott will either. Adrien certainly isn’t.”

“But-”

“Marinette!” Macy threw her head back with a groan. “What I’m trying to say is… Your friends have your back, okay? So don’t worry about anything. We’re right behind you all the way.”

Macy’s smile was soft and genuine, and Marinette shivered, the fear and uncertainty floating to the surface. She leaned against Macy’s chest as fresh tears streamed down her cheeks, and her friend patted her hair, whispering encouragement while Marinette sobbed. The dull ache that had plagued her all month lightened as each tear carried away her pain.

Macy didn’t let go until her whimpers quieted, and when Marinette sat up, the weight on her shoulders felt lighter. She took a deep breath and exhaled all of her worry just like Macy said. Even if she didn’t have her old friends anymore, she had new ones, and she had to admit—they were pretty hard to beat.

♪♫♪ Daylight ♪♫♪

Adrien faced his mother’s statue in the garden with a sigh. Things were messier now than they had been a few days ago, and he didn’t know what to do anymore. No matter what they threw at Lila, she always managed to wiggle out of it. Would they ever be rid of Lila Rossi? At least some of their classmates still believed in Marinette. She’d be happy to hear that she didn’t lose everyone at Francoise-Dupont.

He flicked his gaze down to his phone with a sigh. They hadn’t spoken since before the interview. Adrien couldn’t bring himself to after everything that happened with Alya. She was bound to know the truth now—that he’d teamed up with Chloe to stop Lila, despite how she’d refused. How much more pain had he caused her by trying to fix her problems? He was afraid to know. He’d betrayed her wishes, but hopefully she’d understand that his heart was in the right place. She was all his heart ever talked about these days. Avoiding her was agony, and his heart ached every time he looked at his phone.

“I don’t know what to do, Mom,” he murmured. He shifted to press his back to the statue, resting his cheek against her lap. “No matter how hard I try, it’s never enough. Sometimes I wish you were still here to tell me everything will be alright.”

He closed his eyes, listening to the birds chirping and the hum of the city beyond the walls. When had life gotten so complicated? He longed for freedom for so long, but he never imagined what it would cost. The pain he would endure. But he’d take this pain over isolation. He never wanted to be locked up again. One day he’d be free from his father’s control, then he and Marinette could be together whenever they wanted. One day…

“Adrien?”

He sat up, cheek sore from resting against the stone. When had he fallen asleep? Red and black spots filled his vision, awakening his heart with a jolt.

“Ladybug?” He blinked, rubbing his eyes as if expecting her to be a dream.

“Sorry, I was just passing overhead, and I saw you sitting down here. I didn’t mean to intrude,” she said.

“No, no, it’s fine,” he insisted. “Stay. I could use the company.”

“That makes two of us,” she said, taking a seat beside him with a sigh. “We really made a mess of things.”

“Yeah…” Adrien rested his chin on his fist. “I don’t know how she gets away with it every time.”

Ladybug leaned her head back with a sigh. “Lila is crafty. She targeted Alya specifically because she knew she’d be her most powerful ally.”

“I just feel so bad. I was hoping we could finally make everyone see the truth, but it looks like we just made things worse. Marinette was right, I shouldn’t have gotten involved,” he said, “but I couldn’t help it. Not after everything Lila has done to her.”

“You really care about this girl, don’t you?” Ladybug smiled.

His cheeks warmed, and he rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, more than anything. But I feel like all I ever do is cause her trouble. She’s probably furious with me.”

“I wouldn’t say that,” Ladybug said. “From what I know of her, a gesture like that would mean the world to her, and I’ll bet she’s not as angry as you think.”

“How can you be sure?”

“Because you wouldn’t go out of your way to help her if you didn’t share a special bond. You’re probably just as important to her as she is to you,” Ladybug said. “Talk to her. I think it will make you both feel better.”

Adrien pulled up his messages, thumb hovering over her name. Ladybug was right. The longer he avoided her, the longer they’d both feel this pain. Marinette would understand. He loved her, and he believed that she loved him too. Everything would be alright in the end so long as they had each other.

“Thanks, Ladybug,” he murmured.

“I’ll leave you alone now.” She palmed her yoyo but hesitated, turning over her shoulder. “That girl is really lucky to have someone like you watching over her.”

With a flick of her wrist, she tossed her yoyo and shot off into the rooftops. Adrien drummed his fingers on his thigh, then stood up and headed into the house. Gorilla was playing a game on his tablet in the foyer when Adrien found him.

“There’s somewhere I need to go.”

♪♫♪ Death of a Bachelor ♪♫♪

Marinette hummed to herself while waiting for the kettle to boil. She stole glances at her phone, but it stayed quiet. Maybe he was just trying to figure out what to say. He was bound to call sooner or later.

When the doorbell rang, her heart jumped up to her throat. She raced to the front door, hoping her clumsy footsteps didn’t betray her eagerness. Taking a composing breath, she opened the door.

His head was low, one hand shoved in his pocket, and he looked up at her through timid eyelashes. He opened his mouth, but no words came out, his fear written all over his face. Marinette smiled, gesturing him inside, but he remained rooted in place.

“Marinette, I-”

“I know,” she said.

“You’re not mad?” he asked.

“Adrien,” Marinette sighed, giving him a gentle, scolding look. She wrapped her arms around his neck. “You are the sweetest boy I know. How could I ever be mad at you?”

Adrien stood stiffly in silence before his shoulders began to shake. He gripped fistfuls of her shirt, wetting her shoulder and nuzzling into her neck. Marinette held him, letting all of his worry wash between them like rain flowing down a roof. When clouds grew too heavy, they unloaded their burdens on everyone below, so Marinette stood under Adrien and let him rain.

“I’m sorry!” he cried. “I’m so sorry!”

“It’s okay. I forgive you,” Marinette whispered, trailing her fingers through his soft hair. “I forgive you, Adrien.”

His sobs quieted, and he sat up, rubbing a hand across his red nose. The kettle on the stove screeched, and Marinette gestured him in again.

“Come on. I’ll make us some tea,” she said.

Adrien sat at the table, combing his fingers through his hair. She passed him a cup with a smile and took a seat beside him.

“I take it things didn’t go as planned with the interview?” Marinette asked.

“Not exactly,” Adrien grunted as if that were an understatement and took a sip. “Alya and some others still believe Lila is innocent, but there are a lot of us who think you are too.”

“Adrien.”

“I know. I shouldn’t have gotten involved.” He swirled his finger around the rim of the cup. “But I couldn’t just sit by and do nothing. You mean the world to me, Marinette.”

Marinette’s heart fluttered, and she took a sip to hide her blush. The chamomile wasn’t strong enough to calm her nerves when he said things like that to her. If she wasn’t careful, she was going to pass out.

Setting her cup down, she cupped his cheek, tilting his chin to face her. “Thank you for looking out for me. It’s really sweet, but you don’t have to solve all of my problems. Sometimes it’s okay to just let things go.”

“Yeah…” Adrien sighed.

“Promise me you won’t get involved anymore. Lila will dig her own grave eventually. It’s better if we just let it go and move on,” Marinette said.

Adrien leaned into her touch, pressing a soft kiss to her palm.

“I promise,” he murmured.

Her pulse quickened when those gorgeous green eyes softened on her. The air hung heavy around them, warming her skin from her cheeks to the very fingertips touching his skin. Goosebumps tickled the tiny hairs of her arms, Adrien’s magnetic pull drawing her in.

Marinette slipped her fingers behind his neck and tugged ever-so-gently. Adrien leaned forward, eyelids hooding. His lips parted, warm breath swirling against her own. Marinette closed her eyes, tilting her head to finally give respite to the tension that had been building between them for weeks.

But relief never came.

Her father threw open the front door, and the sparks between them crackled. They jolted away from each other, clumsily grasping for their cups as her dad waltzed in with a fresh loaf of bread. He read the tension between them, and undoubtedly, noticed their rosy cheeks.

“Am I interrupting something?” His eyes narrowed.

“No, Papa!”

“No, sir. No way.” Adrien took a long sip and cleared his throat.

“Are you sure? I was just bringing up some fresh bread to go with dinner. I can leave if you two are-”

“Papa!” Marinette growled.

“Actually, I should get going. My father will want me home soon.” Adrien stood up. “Thanks for the tea.”

“Yeah, no biggie,” Marinette insisted.

Adrien hesitated, flicking a quick glance at her dad, then lifting her hand to his lips. “I’ll see you soon, okay?”

“Okay.”

He pressed a soft kiss to her knuckles before fleeing out the front door. Marinette sat back, letting out a ragged breath.

“I ruined a moment, didn’t I?” Her dad winced.

Marinette offered him a smile, jumping up to place a kiss on his cheek. “It’s not the first time.”

“Is everything alright?” Marinette’s mother came through the door. “I passed Adrien on the stairs, he was redder than the strawberries on the cake we baked for Manon’s birthday.”

“I interrupted a moment,” her dad confessed.

“They were having a moment?” her mom gasped excitedly.

“Maman!” Marinette groaned.

“My little girl’s growing up so fast. She’s already got her first boyfriend. Before we know it, they’ll be bringing their kids over for Sunday brunch.” Her dad rubbed the tears forming in his eyes.

Marinette covered her face, willing this all to be a dream, but alas, she couldn’t fly away.

“Do you think Adrien would ever take an interest in baking?” her dad asked, and Marinette let out a moan.

“I’m going to my room. Call me when dinner’s ready,” she said.

“Next time Adrien comes over, we promise not to interrupt!” her mom called as she made her way up the stairs.

“That’s enough!”

“Should we invite him to dinner?” her dad asked.

“Good night!”

Marinette slammed her trap door shut and flopped against it with a sigh. She’d almost kissed Adrien—again! And after confessing how important they were to each other. Did this mean they were dating? Neither of them said the l-word, but maybe sometime soon…

She covered her face and giggled. Her boyfriend Adrien. She could get used to that.

#mdcspr #mdcsp #marinette dupain-cheng's spite playlist #marinette dupain-cheng's spite playlist remix #my writing

[strawwritesfic]

Bruce Banner x Female!Civilian!Reader: Oh My Dear [Ch. 25]

Summary: For [F Name] [L Name], Manhattan was nothing but a hellhole. She got out and wasn’t ever coming back. When a set of cut-rate superheroes tears the city apart, however, her grandmother sucks her back into that familiar life of loneliness and angry customers. Even worse, one of those superheroes has decided to use [Name] in another crazy plan to “help” his best friend. Unfortunately for everyone involved, Tony’s plan just might work-if only for a few months.

Challenge:  “#1 AVENGERS ULTIMATE CHALLENGE!!!!“ by DancingBubbles on Lunaescence Archives.

Ratings/Warnings/Tags: T (foul language; sexual references; manipulative friends who won’t take no for an answer; dead parents; difficult relationships with family members; some language that might border on verbal abuse from a family member; angst; contrived coincidences; a generally unresearched depiction of paraplegia; set post-Avengers (2012) and pre-Age of Ultron; Tony & Bruce friendship)

Pairings: Bruce Banner/Female!Reader; Tony Stark/Pepper Potts; Past!Bruce Banner/Betty Ross

Tag List: @imaginesfire​

Master List

Chapter 25: Beautiful Things

Why had SHIELD let you go?

That was the question that kept popping up inside your head, interrupting your conversations and distracting you even with the haze of fatigue still clinging to your brain. One minute, you were dully handing a customer their bags; the next, Director Fury’s voice echoed through your mind:

“Dr. Banner said we were to release you immediately. Now, Miss [L Name], what kind of a monster would do that?”

The resulting scowl always had the customer looking highly offended, and you couldn’t be bothered to shout after them to explain yourself.  What did it matter if they thought you rude? You pushed away your frustration as they left. It couldn’t be Bruce that got you off, not after that little exchange in your prison cell. “'It’s been nice, [Name]‘”? What the hell did that even mean? But you were expected to believe he just went and asked for them to let you out?

“Move your ass, [Name]. If you’re just going to stand aimlessly in the doorway, you can leave. You’re not supposed to be here anyway.”

“And you are?” you asked.

It was difficult to keep the heat in your voice, but evidently Mr. Banner noticed it anyway, since he gave you the stink eye as he passed. You just rolled your eyes in return and huffed off to make sure Preston hadn’t lit anything on fire.

Because, of course, you were back at the Stand. After making return to Manhattan the day before, you’d been unable to stomach the idea of going back to the apartment. Obviously Stark Tower was out. Nana’s grocery store was the only other place you had a key to, so you’d crashed in the back office. Maybe you could have caught a flight out of the city, but something else Fury had said bothered you enough not to try that route: “Might want to stick around. After all, Dr. Banner didn’t tell me where he’s going. Perhaps you’re headed in the same direction. Wouldn’t want him to eat you or anything.”

“Shut up! You’re as bad as Tony Stark,” you grumbled.

“Uh…I wasn’t talking?” After you blinked a few times, you realized that Preston was blinking back at you, looking utterly confused by your behavior. “And I bet Tony Stark wouldn’t be caught dead hanging out in a place like this, so that insult is pretty lame, [Name].”

“Whatever. Just–Just keep stocking.”

“I was. What did they do to you during that interrogation yesterday?”

“I wasn’t interrogated!”

As though things weren’t bad enough before Nana told all her friends you were some sort of criminal again. With a final toss of your hands into the air, you whirled about and walked briskly up to the counter. You caught only a flash of Hailey’s nervous eyes before she ducked away and wandered off in the direction of the broom and dustpan. A couple of customers moved through the line in front of you, and then at last you had some semblance of peace.

“[Name], I’m really sorry.”

Your fingers smashed into register buttons so hard that they hurt. The resulting clang of the drawer shooting out seemed to echo through the store. Seeing as how every square foot of tile had been crammed with people last time you checked, your head slowly rose to look around. Every single person had frozen. Had your anger really been that impressive? You choked away an apology before you could speak it. No one was looking at you anyway. All eyes were trained toward the man stepping through the door. The bells tied to the handle jingled quite unnecessarily, but still he paused to look around.

“You have got to be kidding me,” you muttered.

Hailey was the first to break the silence. She tossed the broom into a nearby corner; the heels of her shoes clacked as she made her way to him. Without missing a beat, she thrust out a hand and the sparkling smile that had earned the Stand several customers flashed onto her face.

“Mr. Stark! What an honor to have you here! Is there anything I can do to help you?” she said.

“Um…” Tony squinted for a long moment at Hailey’s hand, then looked back up at her face. “Yeah, I need to talk to [F Name] [L Name]. She wouldn’t happen to be around, would she?”

“Oh!” Apparently Tony’s neglecting to shake her hand or even introduce himself didn’t deter Hailey a bit. In fact, her smile only widened as she pointed toward you, no matter how hard and fast you shook your head. “Yes, she’s right over there! Let me know if you need anything else.”

And she was gone. Before Hailey even disappeared around a shelf, Tony’s gaze was on you. You took a step to the side as if to run, but found Preston blocking your way. He, too, was staring straight at Tony.

“I guess you were right about earlier,” he said completely sincerely. “Was I making out with too many women back there?”

“Now is really not the time, Preston.”

“Why not? It’s not as though he wants to talk to–”

“Hey, are you busy?” Tony interrupted. You cut your eyes in Preston’s direction, only to see his mouth pop into an “o.” With a huff, you turned in Tony’s direction, hands already on your hips.

“Yeah,” you answered. “A little.” Before Tony could do a better job of cornering you, you attempted to shove past Preston. Unfortunately, the boy had frozen completely to gape slack-jawed at Tony Stark. You gave him an impatient shove. “Preston, move.”

But Preston didn’t move. Instead, he shook his head as though to clear it and then straightened up for the first time since your introduction to him. “Mr. Stark? I am a huge fan. Your work with artificial intelligence is so inspiring. I’ve been working on a little something and I wondered if–”

“Yeah, sure, kid.” Without taking his eyes off of you, Tony withdrew a business card from his pocket and shoved it into Preston’s hand. Preston responded with only a shaky inhale of admiration. He still didn’t move. He just stood there, looking at the card with wide, shining eyes. “Look, [Name]. I just want to talk.”

“There’s nothing for us to talk about.”

Tony’s eyebrows shot straight up. The noise in the store began to climb again with the murmurs and whispers of the observers. “Uh, yeah. There is. I know Fury let you go last night but–”

“Are you going to lock me up now, Mr. Stark?”

“What?” His brow furrowed. With your eyes glued to Preston’s awestruck expression, you barely caught the shift. “No. I just want to talk.”

“Well, I can’t talk right now.” You gestured widely at the crowd, which somehow took this as a signal to resume shopping. “I’m busy.”

“You’re standing behind a counter.”

“To sell things! I have to make a living.”

“Is that all that’s keeping you?” At last you turned your head toward Tony. The glare you leveled at him did absolutely nothing. He appeared more serious than usual, but that didn’t mean much. Without waiting for you to answer with a definite no, he spun around and clapped until the rest of the customers fell quiet and still again. “Hey! Store is closed. Everybody needs to leave.”

“Wha–No!” you shouted. “The store doesn’t close until five!”

Everyone in the building seemed transfixed. A few eyes shifted from you to Tony, as if unsure of which person to listen to.

“How can you stay open when you don’t have anything to sell?” You didn’t have time to demand what he meant by that. Tony made shooing motions toward the door and lifted his voice. “I just bought the entire place out. All those grapefruits? They’re mine. Everything is mine. The store is closed for the day. Yes, thank you! Have a nice evening!”

By the time he finished, all the people that didn’t work there had left. Tony flipped the sign on the door to closed while you, Mr. Banner, Preston, and Hailey watched, wide-eyed and mute. You couldn’t tell if the weight in your chest was from anger or from fear, but either way, you couldn’t run off with Preston in your way. All you could do was scowl as Tony neared again.

“What?” he asked once he reached you. “I just did you a massive favor. Nana wants my support, right? Well, that was pretty supportive. Shouldn’t that help you, too?”

“I don’t want your help. You’ve done enough damage,” you said.

“I know.” You just shook your head, pushed Preston out of your way, and made for the back storage area. Like always, though, Tony couldn’t let it go. You didn’t hear him chasing after you, but he spoke again before you left the room. “And I’m sorry.”

That caught you off guard. After a moment’s hesitation, you spun to face him again. “What?”

He remained right where you had left him and made no attempt to close the distance. After a moment of silence, Tony sighed. “I’m sorry,” he said again. “I screwed everything up. That’s why I’m here.”

The apology definitely threw you off, but you weren’t in the mood to be reasonable. Scared and tired were not a good combination, especially when Tony Stark was thrown into the mix. You bristled. “What makes you think I want an apology? Especially since you’re still screwing things up. My grandma is going to kill me when I get home and she finds out the store got closed because you wanted everyone gone!”

“What, do you think I was lying about buying all this stuff?”

Tony closed the distance between himself and you sedately–so sedately that you had half a mind to just race past him and out into the street. But something about Tony Stark, the Tony Stark, apologizing had you riveted to the spot. You found yourself incapable of moving, even as he reached you and held out a folded check. When you made no move to take it from him, Tony’s eyes flicked between the check and your eyes.

“It’s blank,“ he said. "Fill it out for whatever all of the stuff in here is worth.”

Of the many, many things you did not want to do that at moment, taking money from Tony Stark was pretty high on the list. You looked up and about yourself to see Preston, Mr. Banner, and Hailey all watching nervously from various points in the store. Already you had made enough of a scene. Arguing about payment would only make more of one and get you in trouble with Nana once she found out. You looked away as you snatched the paper from between Tony’s fingers. The quivering of your muscles made it difficult to concentrate enough to speak, but you managed nonetheless.

“Why?”

“Like I said, I just want to talk.”

“Why don’t you just tell my grandmother I did something awful and make me talk to you again?”

“Because this isn’t a game anymore.” At these words, you looked up. For once, Tony looked absolutely serious. His thumb drummed on the fabric outside his pocket for a moment before he took a last step closer to you. As if suddenly aware that several other employees (and family friends) were watching the exchange, he lowered his voice to say,

“Bruce is leaving.”

It felt as though a fist connected with your stomach, but you couldn’t exactly put your finger on why. “So?” you asked stonily.

“So do something. Please.”

“What do you expect me to do about it?”

“Talk to him.”

“Why should I?”

“Because he won’t listen to me.”

“Maybe you should have thought about that before you decided to set us up!” You crumpled the check into your fist and took a deep breath. No losing your head. “Was it just some kind of sick joke, you deciding to make me go out with the man that killed my grandfather?”

“Bruce didn’t kill him.”

You crossed your arms over your chest and lifted your eyebrows. For once, that seemed to intimidate Tony, since he took a step back and lifted his hands, palms toward you, to his shoulders.

“I have seen the tapes, Mr. Stark,” you said coldly. “I know what I saw.”

“I’m not saying you or your grandmother or any of those people they interviewed are wrong!” said Tony, and his voice returned to its normal volume, onlookers be damned. “But you don’t understand–”

“No. I don’t. And I don’t want to.”

Tony inhaled sharply. Maybe it was all the years of being CEO of his company, but it was pretty clear that he wasn’t used to taking that kind of lip from people, unless, perhaps, they were Pepper. Still, he kept his voice level and calm, and even almost pleading when he spoke again.

“I didn’t know about your grandfather when I set you two up. Bruce didn’t know about your grandfather when I set you two up. Even not knowing, he didn’t want to go out with you because he was afraid of this happening. He kept telling me no. The only reason he kept showing up for dates was because I forced him to. And then I found out and I didn’t tell him because I knew it would hurt him and I let things get too far. This is all…” He gave a hard swallow, but didn’t break eye contact. “This is all my fault.”

“That doesn’t get my grandmother off my back,” you retorted. “It doesn’t get me back to Washington, either. And it sure as hell doesn’t bring my grandfather back to life!”

“But it can give Bruce a life!” Tony shouted. You felt a blush climbing up your neck, but you could hardly bring yourself to care about the rest of the people in the room. If having an argument with Tony Stark was the only way to get him to leave, then so be it. “You’re the first person outside of the team that I’ve seen Bruce actually connect with. And like. He doesn’t allow himself to get close to people because this is what always happens. And maybe he’ll leave even if you talk to him, but I can guarantee that if you don’t he’ll never forgive himself for what he did and it will haunt him for the rest of his life.”

“So just because you bought out the store and because a murderer will feel bad for killing someone, I need to go forgive him?”

“Bruce isn’t a murderer!” Tony snapped, and you saw a flash of anger in his eyes that had you taken aback. “All I know is…my best friend is leaving. And it’s because of something I did. I’m not saying that you have to stay in a relationship with him or ever speak to him again, but please, [Name], I am begging you: Don’t make him leave.”

“Because I want to let him stay here so he can kill more people.” You whirled back around and marched toward the back exit. “Our talk is finished. Goodbye, Mr. Stark.”

“He’s not going to hurt anyone else!” Tony shouted after you. You paused again, though you didn’t turn around that time. “Something that Bruce doesn’t see about himself is that even when he’s angry, even when he’s the Hulk, he doesn’t hurt people he cares about! Not me, not Pepper, not you! Frank [L Name]’s death was tragic, and Bruce is going to feel bad about it whether or not someone forgives him for it–but he isn’t going to hurt anyone unless they’re hurting someone else!”

Ice flooded your veins as a steady stream of images flowed into your mind: You racing down the hallways of Stark Towers; Bruce apologizing before he turned suddenly green; Bruce grabbing the suit nearest you and tearing it to shreds; Bruce not doing anything to prevent you from smacking him with that stool; Bruce gently preventing you from slapping him. Bruce telling SHIELD to let you go, even though he knew you hated him.

The sudden lump in your throat prevented you from replying. You didn’t want to hear anymore. You didn’t want to talk anymore. You grabbed the back door’s handle, wrenched it open, and threw yourself outside and onto the cement steps.

No one came after you. A few other nearby store owners passed you to throw garbage out, but either you were invisible or they simply didn’t care that you were crying. You rubbed your wrists against your eyes, but that did nothing to stem your tears. After a few minutes, you decided to just give in and sat there, sobbing.

“Sh–Shit.”

Why was Bruce still even in Manhattan? Didn’t he want to get out of there? A part of you wanted desperately to think that he’d asked Tony to come talk to you, but unfortunately, even that part of you knew Bruce by then. If he found out about Tony’s visit, he’d probably be extremely upset.

Upset enough to Hulk out.

You scowled and drew your knees into your face. That reminder was enough to get you to stop crying. Anger didn’t exactly replace your sadness, though. Mostly you just felt hollow. You wondered momentarily if you should go back inside, but the thought of facing Hailey or Preston or Mr. Banner was abhorrent, and besides that, Tony might have still be there.

About five minutes later, the door behind you opened with a shriek of rust. You stiffened and hastily wiped the remains of tears off your cheeks. “Go away, Tony! I don’t want to talk about this anymore.”

“That’s no way to talk to the person that interrupted their work to come check on you.”

It was Mr. Banner. He frowned down at you for nearly half a minute, then settled down on the steps beside you. You had nothing to say to him, and so you didn’t, but Mr. Banner didn’t wait around for you to get the conversation going.

“So you broke up with Dr. Banner.”

“I don’t want to talk to you either,” you answered. “You’re with those SHIELD people and whatever I say will get back to them. I’ll get rounded up again. I’m done with that shit. Just go back inside and finish getting Mr. Stark’s groceries ready.”

“Excuse you.” The familiar peevish tint returned to Mr. Banner’s voice in full. “If you’ll remember correctly, you are not supposed to be here. Meanwhile, I am, since Doris asked me to run things for a bit. So I’m the boss now, and you will listen to me. We need to talk.”

“I said–”

“Funnily enough, I’m not deaf. I just don’t give a damn what you said. I am not ‘with those SHIELD people.’ I was, but I am not anymore. And for once you need to shut that smart trap of yours because what I have to say is important.”

It obviously wasn’t worth the effort it would take you to get out of the conversation. You glowered at Mr. Banner in silence. He waited for several long minutes before deciding that you were doing as he said and speaking again:

“You need to be nicer to Dr. Banner.”

“What?”

“I told you to shut up once. I’m not doing it again,” said Mr. Banner. “Mr. Stark is right about him. He deserves to be treated better by the entire country, if you ask me. And if you liked him as much as you looked like you did when he was in and out all the time, then he definitely deserves better from you.”

“Why? No one has told me anything except that he’s some big hero, and heroes don’t kill people.”

“Do you think he likes doing that?” Mr. Banner demanded. You didn’t answer. “You said earlier that you couldn’t trust me because I was in SHIELD. Fine. I’ll tell you why I was in SHIELD. I worked underneath Dr. Banner before he obtained his abilities. The military hired him to make more soldiers like Captain America, and the soft-hearted fool decided to try the process out on himself before shipping it out. If he hadn’t done that, we’d have hundreds of Hulks running about the country. But does anyone care? No! The government has a shoot to kill order out on him, and the public treats him like a bomb three seconds from detonating. Dr. Banner hasn’t done a damn thing to deserve that, but he keeps coming back to help–that’s what makes him a hero.”

“So you got discharged from both organizations for helping create that thing.”

“No! I got discharged from the military because I was never really a part of it. I got discharged from SHIELD for destroying the records of where Dr. Banner went. They wanted him in a cage, too, once upon a time, and no one was particularly pleased that I helped him escape.”

“If he had been in a cage, he couldn’t have killed those people during the attack!”

“You’re telling me that Tony Stark hasn’t killed a few people with that armor of his? That all of those casualties he caused before that change of heart don’t count? Are you telling me that Captain American didn’t cause a few casualties back in World War II? It’s war, [Name]. People die, and it’s sad. But it’s also unavoidable.”

“Then tell me how I’m supposed to go back and tell him I forgive him. He’s just going to attack people again. I can’t just–stay with him, knowing he killed Papa.”

Mr. Banner did not reply immediately. He just watched you. The sounds of honking cars and cooing pigeons filled the air. Then, his gaze softened considerably. He placed his hand on your shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze.

“Your grandmother already lets Frank’s death control her life. Don’t you make the same mistakes. Make your own.”

What that meant, you hadn’t the faintest idea. Mr. Banner gave you no time to ask or work it out. As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he stood with a clap and made for the door.

“Go on back to the apartment, [Name]. Sulk off the clock,” he said.

He disappeared. You stared dully after him and weren’t sure how long it was before you got to your feet and began to trudge home. You were so distracted by what Mr. Banner said that you didn’t have much wherewithal to worry about Nana’s reaction to you coming home. At least the luggage problem was already solved, since your suitcase was still back in the store.

By the time you got home, dread gnawed at your stomach. There were so many things to dread, though, that you didn’t bother trying to work out exactly what was wrong. You just pushed the door open and stepped inside, wondering if you could take a nap before you finally left the city. The lecture you expected from Nana would probably prevent that, but a woman could dream.

“[Name]!”

You looked away from your shoes and up to see Nana sitting at the end of the hallway. Your hand seized around the knob you had not yet released, and the pounding in your chest screamed “Run! Run away!” On top of everything else happening, you didn’t need another shouting match with your grandmother. But before you could even turn around, she came to a stop in front of you and clutched your hands.

“You’re all right!”

“Nana, not right–Wait.” You blinked. Her eyes were full of tears, but one of her hands was petting the top of one of yours. “What?”

“You’re okay!” Her voice broke, leaving you even more bewildered than before. Unthinkingly, you allowed her to pull you down the hallway and into the kitchen. Once you arrived, she didn’t let you go; you sat with her holding your hand, watching her lips tremble. “I thought you weren’t ever going to come home. Those men took you away and Mr. Banner was so worried!”

“I–but–” The days you were having were not exactly helping you think straight. You screwed up your eyes before continuing, “You don’t think they arrested me because I’m a criminal?”

“No! Of course not. They clearly didn’t have any reason to take you, and Mr. Banner was telling me that you might not come home! I thought–I thought they were going to take you somewhere and I’d never see you again.”

“But…” Your hand curled in her grasp and you distinctly heard a sniffle. “Nana, you said you didn’t want to see me ever again.”

“I know. And I’m sorry. [Name], I–I haven’t been treating you right. It killed me to think that I might never get to apologize to you.”

“Apologize for what?”

For a moment, the kitchen fell silent. The only sound came from a clock on the wall by the table. But the pause was not, as you first thought, Nana trying to think of something that didn’t really deserve an apology. No, she had to stop as several sobs wracked her frail body. In response, you flipped your hand over and squeezed hers. That seemed to give her enough strength to carry on.

“I was awful to you about everyone dying. It wasn’t your fault. I just–I just saw everyone being sad for you losing your parents, and no one seemed to care that I lost a son and a daughter-in-law. And then your grandfather died, and that wasn’t your fault. It wasn’t his fault that he sent you that money either. If I hadn’t chased you off, he wouldn’t have had to.”

“Nana,” you said, and felt a fresh surge of tears. Your chest untwisted, too, and the venom you’d been spraying for so many months seemed to surge out with your crying. Maybe all you had wanted was her to notice and to say something, because you continued quite sincerely, “You don’t have to…”

“Yes,” she said firmly, and smiled, though she, too, was crying. “I do. You came all the way out here to take care of an old woman that treated you terribly, and I never said thank you. I just kept asking for more. I was scared of you leaving again, and I was scared that the last testament of my marriage to Frank, the store, was going to get shut down. I didn’t let you live.”

“I was scared, too, Nana,” you said after another pause. “I was scared of getting stuck here, and that you didn’t love me.”

“I’ve always loved you, [Name]. I just was too busy mourning to let you know.”

Though both of you were still sobbing and snorting, you bent and hugged her. Nana reached one trembling arm up and patted your back.

“I’ve let Frank’s death ruin so many things. Please come home, [Name]. I promise that we’ll do better. I won’t comment on your friendships or your dating, and we’ll work out something with the store. Bill says that you can’t be expected to do it all, and–and he’s right. I’ve made so many mistakes. Please let me correct them.”

And then it hit you: what everyone was trying to say about Bruce. No, not even. What everyone was trying to say about you. You’d fallen in love with a man that made you smile and that let you cry, but because of one thing that, really, he had nothing to do with, you were going to make him suffer. You stood straight up so suddenly that it startled away Nana’s crying.

”[Name]?”

“Nana, I’ve got to go.” Without waiting for a response, you rocketed back into the hallway and toward the door. Nana barreled after you, despite the difficulty of maneuvering around the corner in her wheelchair. She looked so horror struck that you had to make yourself stop before you ran out. “I’ll be back,” you said. “I promise.”

Then you were outside and running faster that you ever had in your entire life. Pedestrians screamed insults after you for pushing them aside, but you didn’t care. You could barely hear over the sound of the wind in your ears and the tirade you were giving yourself in your head anyway. If Bruce left, you’d never be able to find him again. Even if Tony knew where he was, he wouldn’t tell you. And then you’d never get to apologize for all the stupid, horrible, cruel things you had done in the past few days.

Running the distance between your apartment and Stark Tower for the second time in two days wasn’t easy. You didn’t have time to admire the streets or the bay as you rushed past. You didn’t think for a minute about how nice it was to be out and about instead of trapped inside somewhere. You just rushed as fast as you could until you got to the street Stark Tower was situated on–only to see one of Tony’s cars trundling away from the curb.

“Hey!” you shouted from twenty feet away. “Stop!”

Your lungs burned as you forced yourself to go faster, forced your arms into the air so you could wave. You knew that Bruce probably wouldn’t stop the car; you wouldn’t have if the situation had been reversed, and you’d done about the same to him at SHIELD headquarters the day before. But you couldn’t get yourself to give up. You pelted down the sidewalk at such a speed that most of the people milling about dove to get out of your way instead of waiting around to get shoved. You made it just in time to screech to a halt next to the black-tinted back windows of the vehicle.

“Hey!” you screamed. You could go no further. The air remaining in your lungs felt as though it were made of fire. For a long, terrifying moment, the engine continued purring as though the car was going to dive into the nearby traffic at any moment. Then it stopped. You held your breath and a second or so later, the car door opened and out popped Bruce. You could have collapsed with relief.

“[Name]?” he asked incredulously as he stepped out onto the sidewalk next to you. “What are you–Why are you here?”

Doubled over panting as you were, it was difficult to see Bruce’s expression. You were not, however, in the position to ask him to wait for you to catch your breath. He quite obviously wanted out of there quickly. To keep him from leaving, you grabbed his shoulders while you continued gasping for air. Bruce stiffened but did not otherwise attempt to extricate himself. He only waited politely until you were able to look up at him normally.

When you did, he didn’t exactly look pleased to see you. You yourself hadn’t the faintest idea of where to begin. The awkward silence grew until Bruce pursed his lips together and then asked:

“Why?”

“Why…what?”

“Why are you touching me?” he said with a slow look at both of your fists wrapped around the fabric of his shirt. “When you know–when you know…”

You winced, but took your hands off of Bruce. “Should I stop?” you asked. “Tony says…Tony says you don’t hurt people on purpose.

“That depends on your definition of 'on purpose.'”

Of course, Bruce was going to be difficult. You scowled and crossed your arms over your chest. “Do you like hurting people?”

“No. Of course not. I–” He glanced at the handle of the car door; you tensed waiting for him to throw himself back in and get Happy to drive him away. Much to your surprise, Bruce looked back at you instead. “I’m sorry about your grandfather. I didn’t mean to kill him, or hurt you, or your grandmother. And I shouldn’t have–”

“Stop apologizing!” Bruce’s lips scrunched up. He looked almost humorously confused. You took another great, shuddering gasp of air before speaking again. “I am the one that should be apologizing. I shouldn’t have tried to–to hurt you with that stool. Or anything at all. I didn’t know. I didn’t know that you could control it or that it was you! I didn’t know that you and my grandpa…”

“I didn’t know either,” Bruce said. After a moment of hesitation he added, “Don’t worry about the stool. It–It happens. I deserve it.”

“No, you don’t!”

“I’ve hurt people.”

“When? Have you hurt anyone since that attack a year ago?”

“It was going to happen eventually. To you or Tony or Pepper.”

“If you thought that,” you said quietly, “why were you even sticking around to begin with?”

Your sudden calm seemed to calm Bruce, too. He looked at his hands, then said, “I wanted to be here. I wanted the roof over my head, and I wanted to be friends with Tony and Pepper.” He took a deep breath to continue, but stopped to bite his lip. “I wanted you.”

“You meant it, then? That you loved me?”

Bruce gave a slow nod, and your heart picked up pace. You weren’t sure why. That had been two days ago and you’d been awful ever since. After all, just the day before you had told him you had loved and didn’t anymore.

“But I would have hurt you anyway. Eventually. Somehow. You’d break because you’re breakable and I’m not. Not even when I want to be.”

“But…you didn’t hurt me. Not even when I tried to hurt you.”

“Tony has this theory that the Hulk–that I don’t hurt people I care about even when I’m angry.”

“You care about me?” You saw Bruce’s chest lift as he took an enormous breath. He nodded. You pressed a hand to your mouth, then whispered, “I’m the monster here. Bruce–you should stay. I’ll work something out with Nana and leave. I don’t want you to leave your friends.”

“No, I need to leave. Manhattan is too populated, and I don’t want you to be worried about me Hulking out.”

“But you’re not going to! Not unless someone needs you to.”

“But your grandmother needs you.”

“Tony wants you to stay.”

“Tony wants a lot of things. I’ve completely ruined your life, so I’ll get out of it.”

“Bruce!” you snapped, and thought you might have seen an almost smile. “If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t be here, and I was really mad about that. But–But Nana and I made up, or at least we’re trying to! And we wouldn’t have if I hadn’t come back! And Mr. Banner is an ass, but he cares about me. I wouldn’t have anything if you hadn’t–done what you did.”

“Are you actually saying thank you for me killing someone in your family?”

“No! I just–you deserve better. And I have done nothing but horrible things.”

“[Name], I can’t ask you to let me stay here.”

The sounds of the people touring Stark Tower reached their zenith as you stared at Bruce and he stared back. Several times, his eyes flicked back toward the car. With him so close, though, you couldn’t bear to let him just drive off. “Why don’t we both stay then?” you said desperately, and blushed at the stupidity of the suggestion. Still, once it was out there, you had to finish it. “And try again?”

A very slow smile spread across Bruce’s face. “I don’t know if my skull could handle that.”

Even though Bruce was joking, you felt a flare of guilt at that. You scuffed a toe across the sidewalk and then took a step closer to him. “What if I promise not to try bludgeoning you to death ever again? I’ll work on handling my temper.”

It took Bruce too long to respond. He wet his lips and looked up at the sky and fiddled with his hands. At long last, however, he nodded. “I could help with that.”

“Really?” you asked.

Bruce nodded. “Really.”

“Thank you!” And you closed the remaining gap and wrapped your arms around Bruce. Not even a second later, he returned the hug. You broke away with a sniffle and said, “I’m really sorry about all the horrible things I said and did. I know you probably don’t want to date anymore, but–”

Bruce silenced you by pressing his lips to your forehead. “Let’s both just agree we did some things we regret and move on. I think we both need to learn to do that. Deal?”

As Bruce took your hand and looked down at you, you smiled. “Deal.”

#fan fic #straw writes #reader insert #second person pov #challenge fic #oh my dear #avengers #marvel #mcu #bruce banner #hulk #bruce banner x reader #bruce banner x you #bruce banner x y/n #hulk x reader #hulk x you #hulk x y/n #avengers x reader #avengers x you #avengers x y/n #marvel x reader #marvel x you #marvel x y/n #mcu x reader #mcu x you #mcu x y/n

[wannajointhecrabcult]

Masks and Music

(Part 1)

Part 2

I didn't think that my last post would've gotten ANY notes at all, so imagine my surprise when I find out that people actually liked it. After that suprise I thought why not and make another one so here we go! This is a Miraculous/Batfam crossover.

Imagine that Damian gets sent to Paris because the fam doesn't want him to become an emotionally constipated sad boi like Bruce and think that a change in scenery would help.

They don't know about the whole Hawkmoth situation because SOMEONE from the justice league decided that the while thing was a prank DESPITE that it was an ENTIRE CITY calling instead of a single person.

Like, aren't you guys supposed to be the world's greatest heros or something?

Who hired you?

Damian being the grumpy lil kid that he is holds a grudge and decides to not accept any calls or video chats from his family or tell them about Hawkmoth because that's what you get when you send someone across the world against their will.

(and because of plot convenience shhh)

Anyways, Damian goes to school as instantly adds Lila onto his mental list of people he needs to get rid of.

I mean, seriously, he's only been is the room for what, 15 seconds and he's already getting a migraine?

Great. Juusssttt great.

He sits in the back of the class with what seems to be the only person with brain cells in this room.

The dark haired girl just looks over and sees the disgust at Lila written all over his face and gives him a silent empathetic nod.

'This is unfortunately normal here.' she tries to convey through the small action.

He just nods back to show his understanding before turning around to observe the others.

In a few minutes Ms. Bustier walks in the room and asks him to introduce himself to the class.

It looks like the teacher never told the class that they were getting a new student because they all have to do double takes when they realize that there's a new face in the room.

He gives them the bare basics, telling them that his name is Damian Grayson, he's from America, and that he doesn't want any of them to talk to him before sitting down.

Clearly the teacher wanted him to say more or scold him for being so rude but a glare shut her up.

Later during a break period Lila tries to flirt with him and brags all about how she's met so many different celebrities and her achievements.

He tells her off and tries to move away but her nails are digging into his arms as she tries to convince him that he should stay away from Marinette.

Before he can maim her, the dark haired girl comes out from behind him and starts spraying Lila down like an unruly cat with some sort of strong smelling liquid from a spray bottle.

Lila screeches and stomps away.

When he turns to his hero the girl explains.

"It's a mixture of shredded lemon, expired maple syrup, vinegar, and pomegranate juice. I call it People Repellant but Thot Begone works too. Oh, and I'm Marinette by the way."

He eyes her hand before shaking it.

"Damian, though I assume you already know that. Can I get some of that by the way? I know a couple insufferable annoyances that would benefit from a spray down.

Marinette just blinks for a second before she bursts out laughing and that was the start of a great friendship.

Together they:

Make fun of Lila in the back of class.

Help eachother with homework (they only cheat off eachother when they REALLY need help)

Prank Lila in odd ways (Hey, just because she found hundreds of furbies hidden around her house that turn on one by one in the middle of the night effectively scaring the crap out of her when she's trying to sleep doesn't mean that it's their fault. She had it coming.)

Break a couple laws (shhhhhhh. Those toy stores don't need those furbies anyways).

Dare eachother over stupid things (they still insist that the cereal incident was caused by the other).

And overall become closer as friends.

They bring out the overdramatic chaotic gremlin child in eachother.

One time when Damian goes over to Marinette's place to work on a project he finds her singing a Disney song to herself on her balcony.

This isn't the first time they've caught eachother singing.

One time Marinette caught Damian in the art room at school humming one of the many annoyingly cheesy and catchy songs that Dick likes to listen to.

Despite him explaining the embarrassing situation to her she still teased him for weeks after.

He'll never get to live it down.

Damian shakes his head to get rid of the flashback when a devious smirk spreads across his face as a revenge plan comes to mind.

After carefully placing his stuff on the floor he sneakily makes his way across the space until he's right behind her.

That's when he joins in.

Screaming at the top of his lungs at first, effectively giving her a mini heart attack before eventually quieting down to a normal singing volume.

She glares at him, annoyed by his loud and obnoxious entrance before she starts singing again.

They eventually end up full Disney movie dramatically performing around her balcony with dance moves and over dramatic acting.

Is it bad that actual birds and other animals are appearing and joining in?

Damian totally kept one of the pigeons.

He named it Dolores.

(He later trained Dolores to attack Rossi on sight.)

When they're finished they end up on the floor out of breath.

They stay like that for a few minutes before Damian sits up.

"That. That was fun. I don't think I've actually ever sang before."

Marinette jolts up in suprise and turns to face him.

"Really? I never would've guessed. You have a really nice singing voice."

He would deny till his dying breath that he blushed when she said that but he covers it up with a smirk.

"Well I guess that's just because yours is so terrible in comparison."

He squawks when she jabs a finger in his side.

"Pshh. As if. Besides, my singing skills can't be worse then your gaming skills." She challenges with a cheeky smile.

"ExCuSe mE?!"

And that's how they spend the rest of the day playing video games, leaving the unfinished project to be completed on a later day.

Good thing it isn't due until 2 weeks time.

After a couple of hours playing video games, creating many possible Lila murder plans, eating pastries, and joking around, it's time for him to leave.

As Damian left for his place he got a feeling that something big was gonna happen.

Marinette also got the feeling but they both ignored it.

Little did they know, someone just happened to walk by and starstruck by the amazing singing they recorded the performance before posting it on the internet.

Imagine the duo's suprise when they wake up the next day to find themselves trending on the internet.

Luckily the video quality was pretty trash so their faces weren't identifiable but the audio was loud and clear.

The world was talking about the cute couple singing to their hearts desire on a balcony. If that's not cliche and adorable then the world doesn't know what is.

The assumption about their relationship status left them looking like tomatos but that didn't stop them from wonder why they didn't notice a creep recording them.

Damn Disney songs and their unnatural ability to distract people.

Of course Lila took advantage of the rising popularity of the video and talked about how she taught the two people in the video how to sing and gave them tips.

The two just walked past the idiot squad and sat down in their seats, making a mental note to come up with a prank later, when the akuma alarms came on.

They fall into their normal routine of Marinette running out to find a place to transform as Damian covers for her.

Oops did I forget to mention that Damian found out her identity because she crashed through his window in the middle of the night still transformed and asked him what's the answer to question 24 in their science homework because she just defeated an akuma by herself and was running on 20 minutes of sleep?

My bad.

Anyways it turns out today was the day Marinette had officially had enough of Chat's bullcrap.

It was gonna be a normal akuma situation.

Ladybug trying to fight the poor butterfly victim while chat noir either doesn't show up, tries to do everything on his own to impress her and ruins the whole plan, or just watches and complains about how she needs to get over her denial and date him BUT

This time he decided to actively try to push her in the akuma's way therefore putting her in SO MUCH MORE DANGER than she was already in.

Now she had to dodge out of the akuma's way AND CHAT'S!

WhAt ThE fUdGe?!?!

You think possibly killing Ladybug and trying to force her to beg for you to save her is gonna make her like you?!?

Just how hard did you hit your head when Gabriel dropped you on the floor when you were 2?

After the akuma was eventually defeated Ladybug told Chat to meet her on an abandoned rooftop that night because they needed to talk.

Chat being the oblivious person that he is (I swear I don't actually hate chat noir, this is for the plot I'm sorry) thought that it was for a love confession and became overly smug before leaving.

Making sure that he isn't following her, Marinette meets up with Damian at his place (school's over because of the attack) and asks him to help.

Later that day when the two miraculous holders meet up Ladybug distracts the Catboy by flirting with him while Damian uses his ninja skills for something other than sneaking up on her and giving Marinette mini heart attacks.

From behind he quickly hits a pressure point causing the other boy to fall unconscious.

Using her ALMIGHTY GUARDIAN OF THE MIRACULOUS powers, Ladybug takes Adrien's ring away and places a spell on him that makes it so he will never be able to use another miraculous ever again.

After they take Adrien home Marinette gives Damian the ring and Night Prowler is born.

He promises to do everything in his power to make sure that Selina and his family doesn't find out for the sake of his pride.

We'll see how that goes.

Night Prowler first officially appeared during an akuma named 'Break Dancer'.

Ironically, she was a ballerina that had to drop out of the finals in a competition because she broke her right leg the day before the show.

She could turn civilians into back up dancers and forced them to perform against their will.

They also worked as minions who would attack the duo for her while she stayed a safe distance away.

It was pretty obvious that the akumatized item was the music box held inside the bag that Break Dancer had slung around her shoulders but the real question was how could they get to it without becoming attacked by the backup dancer or becoming one of them.

Luckily (eheheh), a car with an open window playing music just happened to pass by before driving off.

Before it drove off, the music coming from the car was loud enough to play over the music box which caused some of the minions to become free again and run off.

Ladybug called her lucky charm and a Bobby pin landed in her hand.

As she looked around she noticed a store a couple blocks away that had a couple radios.

Unfortunately, the store was locked and closed.

Fortunately, she knew how to pick locks and a Bobby pin did come from her lucky charm soooo......

Who is she to deny literal gods.

They break into the store and grab a radio, and a speaker and rush over to where the akuma was causing chaos.

They turn on the radio, connect the speaker and turn the volume on as loud as it can go before flipping through the stations for a good song.

If they're gonna fight with music in the background they're gonna be picky about it and wont settle for anything other than epic.

While fighting they eventually get swept up in the music and end up singing along.

It's nothing less than full on majestic.

When the fight is over and the akuma is purified they find out that someone recorded it and posted it on the internet as well.

Now everyone knows that the beloved hero of Paris and her new partner were the two people singing on that balcony.

Ummmmm.....

Good thing that the video quality was trash right?

If it weren't for that their identities would've been busted the moment they started singing in hero form.

Luckily there aren't many people other than Damian that know what Marinette's singing voice sounds like so they're okay.

Well.... They WERE okay,

Until a certain rockstar and his agent came across the two videos and put two and two together.

So now King Sting (bee!jagged) and Peridot (turtle!penny) have joined the team.

Poor Penny, now she has to deal with two gremlin children and a some sort of bizarre man-child.

The next akuma confused the group quite a bit.

He didn't really do anything but sit on a rooftop waiting for the miracle team to show up.

They were all suspicious of him at first but when they did reveal themselves to him he explained his situation.

He was akumatized because his favorite rock band broke up but he didn't really want to take their miraculouses away.

He just asked if they could perform another song for him and he would give his akumatized item to them.

They all sorta looked at eachother and collectively went 'screw it why not' and sang another song.

If they were great before, they are absolutely AMAZING now.

Well that's what happens when you add a famous rockstar to a team of singing superheros I guess.

The akuma was blown away and true to his word handed over the rolled up picture in his pocket and was purified despite of Hawkmoth's nagging.

Haha screw you Hawky.

This time the ordeal was recorded by a news station and the 'hand over the akuma in exchange for a song' thing became a trend.

There were still normal akuma's that didn't follow follow it but those were far flung between.

It seems like Hawkmoth was getting annoyed by this so there started being less akuma attacks over the months.

Because of this some people were actively trying to get upset to attract one of the purple butterflies.

They traded one good thing for another I guess.

To stop that from happening the group started performing in public as superheros during concerts and festivals.

Because of this they became quite well known outside of Paris as well.

Is it ironic that more people know them as a band rather than a superhero team now?

When Marinette learned that they could change what their superhero costumes looked like if they put enough will into it she squealed.

Marinette designs superhero performance costumes for them whenever they have a festival to play at.

Whenever asked about their outfits they always reply with MDC.

Marinette's business gets really popular after that.

And since no one knows who MDC really is, she doesn't have to worry about the whole "Oh no me and my family are gonna be in danger!" thing

It's a win win!

Overtime they basically become a second (or third for some people) family to eachother.

Damian becomes more 'kid like' and open to others,

Marinette becomes more confident and overall happier,

Jagged gets to hang out with his awesome niece and her 'maybe more than just a friend',

And Penny gets a new outlet for stress and has so many more crazy stories to tell people.

One day while she's in the living room on the sofa watching 'The AristoCats' Damian just barges into the room and dramatically flops over onto of her.

He just lays there with his head in her lap and the rest of his body sprawled on the couch.

After everything that has happened this is normal for them now.

Without asking any questions or talking at all they just watch the movie together with the occasional remark or quip between them.

Around half way through the movie Jagged kicks down the door, effectively scaring the crap out of the two teens, while Penny follows behind him with an apologetic look on her face.

At first Jagged was yelling about something having to do with'Fang' and 'Dragon' and 'Miraculous' but after taking in the domestic atmosphere of the room he just sits down on the floor and joins in on watching the movie.

Penny, shaking her head in both amusement and exasperation, sits down on another chair and does the same.

While combing through Damian's hair with her fingers Marinette looks around the room.

'My life can't get any more complicated, can it?'

Oh boy, she just jinxed it.

This is just an idea I've had bouncing around in my head for awhile and I couldn't resist the urge to write it out. I AM planning on making a part 2 so if you like this keep an eye out for that. I'm by no means a fast writer though so it will take a while. But then again not many people will probably read this soo.... Yeah.

#maribat #maridami #miraculous x dc #daminette #Miraculous crossover #damian x marinette #i still cant believe that people actually liked my last post omg #people are so supportive in this fandom #masks and music