#the amount of times he was surprised that there was no bluff check is incredible

[byunsboyz]

My Answer (Is You)

Exo Fanfiction

Byun Baekhyun x Reader

Wordcount: 4k

Genre: fluff (teeny tiny amount of implied smut)

Wedding AU

____________________________________________________________

“How many puns should I write into these vows?” You overhear Baekhyun asking himself.

You’ve just walked through the door. It’s the late evening and you’ve just arrived home from work after a short stop at the grocery store. 

Walking in on your fiance still trying to write his vows for your wedding that’s in less than a month 

He’s scratching the top of his head as he hunches over the laptop screen in front of him. Sitting at the small dining table in the corner of your kitchen, his back facing away from you. 

You close the door behind you gently and walk up behind him.

“So you think proclaiming your love for me is a joke, huh?” you whisper menacingly in his ear, trying to hold back your urge to laugh.

Baekhyun jumps out of his seat in surprise. 

“WHY ARE YOU CREEPING UP ON ME” he gasps, dramatically holding his chest and slamming his laptop shut in an attempt to hide the blank word document that you already saw over his shoulder moments ago.

You ignore his dramatics and set the groceries weighing down your arms on the counter. 

“You know something Baek-” you huff as you start to unpack the food into the fridge and cupboards.

You’re about to say something petty, feeling frustrated and tired from a particularly stressful day at work. 

The brief thought that Baekhyun isn’t taking your wedding seriously appears in your mind before you cut it off with a shake of your head.

At the same time, you feel a pair of strong hands slipping around your waist, pulling you closely as the warmth of Baekhyun’s lips presses softly behind your ear.

You instantly relax. Leaning against him as you let out all feelings of tension in a single breath.

“Hey” he whispers, his lips still resting on the back of your neck. 

“Why don’t you go take a nice relaxing shower? I’ll finish putting this stuff away and get dinner started.”

He’s rocking you gently side to side. 

“We can put them away together” you hum, turning in his arms and reaching upwards to cup his face.

You pull him into a soft kiss, feeling the corners of his lips pull back into a smile against your mouth. 

His hand trails up your back to the nape of your neck, his other still wrapped around your waist as he pushes your back into the counter. Pressing himself into you as he deepens the kiss. 

You pull back from his devil lips before he has a chance to put you under his spell. “The groceries babe.”

You giggle as he pouts back at you. 

Baekhyun’s is definitely the more clingy one in your relationship. 

You smack him on the butt playfully as you release yourself from his embrace. “Let’s get cracking, I’m starving!”. 

You work in unison. Baekhyun unpacking the frozen and chilled stuff away while you organise the cupboard items. 

“Leave some of that, I’ll do the top shelf” he singsongs smugly. 

“Says the man who is literally two inches taller”. You mutter under your breath.

“What did you say?!”

You ignore him, stretching up on your tiptoes to place some cans of soup up onto the top shelf. 

“Oh yeah, thank god I’ve got you and your giant ass,” you add sarcastically.

You hear him huff as he closes the fridge and steps beside you, snatching the bag of pasta out of your hands in protest. 

As he opens back up the cupboard, the soup you'd just placed starts to wobble threateningly.

Your eyes widen as the can topples off the shelf. Everything happening in slow motion as Baekhyun’s mouth falls open in shock.

“OOOF!”

The can bounces off the top of his head.

You clasp your hands over your mouth. Half in shock, half to stifle the laughter building up in the back of your throat.

He turns his head to look at you and when you make eye contact you lose it,  bursting into a fit of giggles.

“Are you okay?!” You ask gasping for air, reaching up to check his head.

He smacks your hand away “DID YOU DO THAT ON PURPOSE!” he accuses, rubbing the top of his head while looking mildly distressed.

You have tears coming out of your eyes at this point and all you can manage is a shake of your head as you try and compose yourself. 

Baekhyun is staring at you with eyes full of betrayal, his arms crossed defensively over his chest and a giant pout present on his lips.

You catch your breath and wipe a tear from your cheek. 

“Babe, you really think I would set the can of soup up there just for it to fall on you?” 

His face softens a fraction but then you snort. “It’s a waste of soup!”

“Well it’s not like you don’t already have a history of throwing things at me!” he sniffs, holding his head and refusing to meet your eye in quiet protest. 

You start feeling a little guilty. He would have laughed at you but when he’s standing there all cute and whiney you can’t help but feel a little sorry for him. 

You reach out and take his free hand in yours.

“Well if I didn’t throw that book at your head, we wouldn’t be getting married” you offer sheepishly, trying to suck up a little as you wrap your arms around his waist.

He looks down at you feigning innocence, a mischievous glint in his eye.

“Are you gonna kiss it better?” he asks, rubbing the wrong side of his head.

You raise your eyebrow in response as he tests your patience, but you decide to allow him this victory and tilt your chin up to offer him your lips.

He flashes you a goofy smile and kisses you softly.

“Well, it might have been partially my fault”.

“The soup or the book?”

“Both”

You met Baekhyun in college, after being assigned as project partners while taking the same sociology class. 

It was the first time you’d crossed paths but you were painfully aware of him. He was the loud type, always offering his opinion without the teacher asking it. Anything to draw a laugh out of the rest of the class.

You decided to give him the benefit of the doubt, opting to not judge the book by its cover. He could have been a genius for all you knew. 

He proved you wrong, but not on the genius assumption. More so for expecting him to cooperate at all.

You had broken off into your assigned pairs and were meant to spend the rest of the class working on ideas for a presentation relating to mass media and its influence on the younger generation.

Baekhyun seemed to have other ideas and asked you a bunch of nonsense questions as you sat opposite him trying to refocus him to the task at hand.

You felt incredibly frustrated as you stared down at the empty page of bullet points in your notebook.

“I have a fantastic idea!” he called out, getting your hopes up.

Then he let rip the loudest fart you’d ever heard.

You could only look up in disbelief as he sat there laughing unashamedly.

“Wow, you could’ve waited for class to finish?” he tried to imply as he pinched his nose at you.

You felt mortified. When the rest of the class joined in with his laugher you saw red and launched your notebook straight at his head.

Then you were both promptly marched to the headmaster's office.

You had never gotten detention before and vowed to never speak to Byun Baekhyun ever again.

You sat in the small detention room for the rest of the day, feeling absolutely ashamed of your outburst. Wondered if you should apologise to the boy sitting behind you.

It was just the two of you in the room, the teacher had just left to get some coffee and warned you to remain in silence.

“I’m sorry” you had started. “I don’t know what came over me-”.

Your voice waved and eyes stung as tears threatened to fall.

“Oh no please don’t say that” came the voice behind you.

“I was acting like an idiot, I don’t even know what made me think that it was a good idea”.

You turned around at his words. Surprised that he had apologised.

“I thought it would, you know, break down the barriers” He shook his head “but it was childish. I just wanted to see you laughing with me for once”.

You had felt confused at his words. 

“W-what, why?” you stammered in total disbelief.

“I…Uh, I guess I always thought you were cute and you’re always so nice to everybody else and I just wanted you to like me?” 

You remember the way Baekhyun’s cheeks had flushed red, and that yours matched.

“You could have just tried being yourself” you hadn’t realised at the time, but Baekhyun later told you that what you said that day sparked a more genuine side of him. 

No longer feeling the need to act like the class clown.

Most of the time.

“How is your head?” you’d asked.

And as if a director had yelled ‘action!’ he held his head with both hands and sharply sucked in a breath.

“Ahhhhh, well I haven’t looked properly yet but I swear I felt a bump earlier” he winced.

You called his bluff and feigned concern as you stood up to and walked over.

“Oh my goodness, you poor thing” you cooed, as you tried to hold back all traces of sarcasm from your voice.

Baekhyun looked up at you with wide eyes as you placed your own hands on his head. 

“Wha-what are you doing?” he stuttered out, looking surprised.

“Does it hurt here?” you poked the spot on his forehead that you hit with your index finger. 

He shook his head.

“What about here?” you offered as you poked another random spot on his forehead, that time with more force.

“AH!” he cried out as he grabbed hold of your hand to make you stop. 

“You’re not even hurt you big dramatic baby” 

You shouted at him, while you’d felt acutely aware that you had been essentially holding hands.

“Well my feelings were hurt” he’d defended as you pulled your hands from his grip and slumped back into your chair with your arms crossed.

“This is all your fault Byun Baekhyun!” you sighed loudly. “But, I guess chucking my notebook at you wasn’t very nice of me…so I’m sorry”.

Just as you uttered those words, you heard someone clear their throat.

You turned your head to find the headmaster stood in the doorway. 

“I see you’ve worked this out between yourselves, so I guess I won’t ever be seeing you outside my office again?”.

You both nodded your heads frantically and he dismissed you.

You shot quickly out of the classroom, school had already ended so you walked towards the exit when you heard your name being called.

It could have only been Baekhyun, so you stopped and waited for him to catch up to you.

“So, are we friends now?” he had asked shamelessly as he fell into step with you. A wide shit-eating grin plastered across his face as he looked at you hopefully.

What can you say, he had you at the first puppy dog look.

“Sure, we’re project partners after all” you smiled at him before you turned to head in the direction of your street. But he reached out to stop you.

“What if I asked you to come and get some ice cream with me instead of going straight home” He rubbed the back of his neck, a habit that you would learn he only had when he was extremely nervous. “My treat?

You knew at that moment that you were going to be a sucker for the real Baekhyun. 

“I’d love to”. You smiled up at him as he gestured for you to lead the way.

“Yeah let’s go, it’ll be a da-“ he starts before stopping mid-sentence.

“Huh?”

“Nothing!”

The rest was history. You started dating, moved in together after you graduated and got engaged two years ago.

He had proposed in the most Baekhyun way possible. 

Baekhyun had gotten all your friends and family to hold up a letter, and hid each picture around your apartment as a scavenger hunt on your birthday. 

He was your first love and you’re future. 

“Since we unpacked the groceries together, maybe we should shower together...” Baekhyun purrs into your ear, pulling you from your thoughts. 

You hum thoughtfully as you leave him standing in the kitchen, heading towards the shower. 

He starts to follow you until you look back at him over your shoulder.

“You won’t be sharing anything with me until you’ve finished your vows Byun Baekhyun!”

You hear him groan in defeat as you shut the bathroom door.  

***

Three weeks later you’re sat at your wedding reception. The ceremony was beautiful and emotional, Baekhyun managing to avoid the puns in his vows.

“Let's be dumb together, make bad choices...eat the wrong things, take the wrong turns, and then let's tell great stories. The same ones over and over, forever and ever until no one can stand us but each other”

He sniffed, squeezing your hands tightly, all while staring at you like you were the only other person in existence. 

You couldn’t stop your tears of joy as you nodded furiously, smiling so hard that your face still aches even now. 

There was only one small incident.

“I can’t find them!” Chanyeol panicked, (meaning your wedding rings) as he frantically patted down his trousers.

You and Baekhyun stood awkwardly and the room was deafeningly quiet.

“Check your pockets.” Kyungsoo, one of Baekhyun’s other groomsmen had whispered

“I already did.” Chanyeol snapped back. 

Baekhyun started to whisper reassuringly that you didn’t even need rings. 

“Nothing will stop me from marrying you today” 

“Check your inner pockets.” Kyungsoo hissed, as you and Baekhyun became more and more anxious.

“They’re not – oh, son of a bitch!”

You think the entire room groaned in relief. 

His ears turned red in embarrassment as he sheepishly passed them along to you and Baekhyun.

Later in the evening, everyone sits at their tables enjoying dessert.

You decided to go with a traditional three-course sit-down meal. 

Currently regretting your decision to not change out of your wedding dress for the reception, but damn you felt sexy in your lace backless mermaid gown.

Baekhyun’s jaw practically fell to the floor when you’d walked down the aisle.

One of the servers approaches your table with a huge smile, “Could I get you anything else?”

In unison, you and Baekhyun reply “More of the ice cream cak-”.

You both burst into laughter.

“Wow, can I marry you again?” he gushes.

You press your lips to his cheek and whisper in his ear.

“I’d marry you every day if you didn’t mind us going bankrupt.” you tease.

Baekhyun snorts, followed by the sound of someone clearing their throat.

You forgot the server was standing there. 

“Apologies for the interruption, I just wanted to confirm that you both wanted more of the cake”.

You nod, blushing slightly. “Two more servings of cake for me and my husband please!”

Baekhyun gushes in excitement at your use of his new title. 

When the waiter steps away you continue where you left off. Baekhyun is already leaning towards you and offers you his free hand, you grin and high five him. 

“Excellent decision making Mrs Byun” he grins, moving in to steal another kiss. 

“You guys are giving me toothache” complains your brother Sehun. 

You look over to see him shaking his head with a grimace. 

“You brat, this is my wedding!”.

You tickle the side of his ribs playfully, forcing him to crack a smile.

“You’ve got yourself a keeper” You overhear Junmyeon, Baekhyun's co-worker slur. 

You look over just as he affectionately throws his arm around Baekhyun’s shoulder, looking like he’s about to tear up, his cheeks tinged pink from the effects of the open bar. 

“Eh hem!”

Chanyeol stands up and taps at his glass trying to gain everyone’s attention.

Not seeming to realise how hard he’s tapping until the glass loudly shatters everywhere.

“OH SHIT!”

With everyone’s attention caught, Chanyeol sheepishly wipes the spilt champagne off his trousers. 

“Well that certainly BROKE the silence” he stammers nervously, trying to laugh it off.

Junmyeon laughs hysterically while Sehun pretends to gag.

Chanyeol kicks off the speeches for the evening, talking about how he first met Baekhyun in grade school, becoming best friends over their love of yu-gi-oh and ferrets and giving a short recap of all the pranks they’d pulled together.

You notice Baekhyun sinking in his chair as Chanyeol reveals how he had wanted to be a Ballerina when he was little.

You gasp for air, laughing at the image of your husband wearing a tutu.

Instant payback comes in the form of your maid of honour recalling the time you got super drunk during your first year of college and tried to fight the cardboard cut out of your favourite boy band member in the middle of a shopping centre.

She didn’t even spare you and leave out the part where you proceeded to sob when his head snapped off.

“The mall even made her pay for the standee and she brought him home!” 

You hide your face in your hands as Baekhyun vibrates with laughter next to you.

“He lived in our dorm until we graduated! But alas, he was no match for Byun Baekhyun!”

You shoot her a death glare as she finishes up her speech, your guests laughing happily around you.

After the speeches are finished, the DJ announces that it’s time for you and Baekhyun to have your first dance.

The lights around the edge of the room dim as the dance floor lights up. You and Baekhyun stand, walking hand in hand to take your places at the centre of the room. 

Everyone else forms a circle around the edges of the dance floor, phones and cameras out at the ready. 

Baekhyun places one arm around your waist and holds out the other. 

You, in turn, place your hand atop his and the other gently on his shoulder, just like you had been practising the last couple of months.

The lighting of the dancefloor shines around him, highlighting every beautiful angle on your husband’s face. You feel giddy over the knowledge that you get to kiss his beautiful lips for the rest of your life. 

The soft piano of Sam Kim’s ‘Would You Believe’ slowly fills the room as you start to dance, floating under Baekhyun's hold as he leads you around the room. 

It all feels so effortless, just like your love. 

You wrap your arms around Baekhyun, pressing your body tightly against him as he steals kisses from your lips. Your friends and family clapping and cheering. 

The DJ offers for the rest of the room to join you on the dance floor, but everyone blurs in comparison to the man holding you. 

You aren’t sure how long you’ve been slow dancing with Baekhyun, your head resting comfortably on his shoulder and his face buried in the crook of your shoulder and neck. 

“The moment I first saw you,

I was so attracted to you,

I didn’t weigh out my thoughts and just talked”

You shiver as Baekhyun sings softly in your ear. His voice, low and melodic.

“The answer is you…

My answer is you,

I showed you my everything,

You are my everything...

Because I was so sure”.

You inhale sharply as his hand slips lower to rest on the curve of your back, just above your ass as he continues to serenade you.

“Hey” you whisper, kissing just below his ear. “Wanna sneak away?” 

Baekhyun gazes down at you, a devilish glint in the amber hues of his eyes. 

“I thought you’d never ask” he grins, pulling you into a heated kiss.

“Get a room!” 

You think Jongdae shouts out from somewhere behind you, you both laugh and break your kiss to look over at your group of friends. 

It looks like they’re playing some type of drinking game over at one of the tables. Chanyeol is already passed out, slumped over the table. 

Baekhyun takes your hand and leads you out of the room before anyone else can catch you slipping away from the party.

It was getting late anyway and you have a flight to catch to the Maldives in the morning.

You were staying in the venue overnight, a beautiful manor house in the countryside. 

You knew a lot of the guests were also staying, so you could catch them at breakfast before your airport taxi arrives.

When you arrive at your room Baekhyun suddenly scoops you up in your arms making you squeal.

“What are you doing” you giggle. 

“I’m carrying you over the threshold!” 

“Uh what about the room key?” you snort. “Ah, shit...it’s in my pocket”.

You reach your arm down behind you, feeling for his pocket. “Wow is that a big key or are you just happy to see me” you gasp. 

You make it into the room, Baekhyun placing you back onto your feet and unzipping your dress all in one swift movement. 

“What the-” He cuts you off as he presses himself against you, mouth hungrily catching your lips as he walks you backwards and lays you gently on the bed.  

He steps back to loosen his tie and clicks a button on a tiny remote that you didn’t even notice him pick up.

R’n’B music begins to pulse from the speakers as he saunters back over to the bed. 

No sleep tonight We makin' love until the sun shines down on us No sleep tonight We makin' love until the sun (yeah)

“What are you doing?” you snort.

Baekhyun bites his lip and waggles his brow as he presses you softly into the mattress. Running his hands down the smooth silk of your lingerie. 

“I’m seducing you, Mrs Byun”. 

You exhale happily, shuddering under his touch. 

“I’m all yours”.

#baekhyun #byun baekhyun #baekhyun x reader #baekhyun fanfic #baekhyun fanfiction #baekhyun imagine #baekhyun drabble #baekhyun oneshot #exo fanfic #exo fanfiction #exo imagine #exo drabble #baekhyun fluff #exo fluff #baekhyun au #exo au #fluff #wedding au #baekatitagain

[gold-and-rubies]

In It For The Long Haul - Chapter 1

Okay, here’s chapter one. It’s under the cut. It’s in the (third person) perspective of my sole survivor, Claudia. Warnings include strong language, graphic violence, and puking/dry heaving. If anyone needs me to add another warning tag, or has advice on it, please let me know. Also this is the first fic I’ve ever committed to. I wrote this back in March, so if the quality is different than what you’re used to, that’s why.

In less than twenty-four hours Claudia Flynn had experienced more death than most would in their entire lives. The world she had known had been destroyed by atomic fire. She had lost her friends and family at the flip of a switch, or perhaps the press of a button. Then those who had made it into the vault with her had lost their lives to a malfunction, except for one family, a couple and their infant son. The child had been kidnapped and the father was fatally shot in the process. The mother did not fare much better. She had died within her first few hours in the wasteland. The poor woman did not even get a chance to save her baby. Claudia had promised her that she would find her baby, not just for Nora’s sake, but also for her own. She needed a reason to push on after losing so much.

Her new acquaintances had given her another reason to press on. The people who Nora died trying to help needed more than to be saved. They had needed a home, and Claudia was not going to leave them hanging. Claudia led them to Sanctuary, and helped them get settled there. With help from the handyman Sturges and Nora’s old Mister Handy bot, Codsworth, she started to make the place livable again. After a week though, being in her old home started getting to her. It was a stark reminder of everything she had lost. A truth she was not ready to face. Noticing how antsy she was getting, Preston Garvey asked her if she was up for doing Minuteman duties instead. Claudia had accepted the offer appreciatively. Preston had sent her to help a farm that had asked help from the Minutemen. Claudia felt a little guilty for not diving head first into the kidnapping, but she also felt like if she went in unprepared she was good as dead. So, instead she was going to take out another raider gang.

Worry prickled at her. Sure she had surprisingly good aim and knew basic self defence, but she had been anything but a fighter before the war. She had not been part of the military or even law enforcement, much less a gang or the mafia. Her father had done a great job at teaching her how to hunt and shoot at the practice range, sure. People, though, people were different.

Dogmeat bounded ahead of her on the cracked pavement. She had found him at the Red Rocket truck stop between Sanctuary and Concord. He was a remarkably healthy German Shepherd given he was living in a radioactive wasteland. Claudia was incredibly thankful for him. He offered comfort without questions, which she needed right now. The settlers had been respectful in their questions, but she was still in shock. She had not and did not want to come to terms with what had happened. What she had lost.

Instead she focused on the task at hand. That is how she always coped with things. She would throw herself into whatever work she had. Schoolwork, her job, her music. The only difference for this is it involved violence.

Soon enough she arrived at the farm she was sent to help.

“Hello?” She called.

A woman with a shotgun walked out of the tiny wooden shack, pointing it at Claudia. “What do you want? We don’t need anymore trouble,” she demanded from the crooked steps.

“Relax,” Claudia said as she raised her hands to seem less threatening, “I was sent by the Minutemen. You asked for help?”

“Really? We didn’t really think you people still existed, especially after Quincy,” she said.

“We’re rebuilding the Minutemen,” she replied.

“Hey, you won’t hear any complaints from us. Things have gotten worse since the Minutemen fell to pieces,” she said.

“So, what do you need help with?” she asked as she lowered her arms back down.

“There’s a raider gang that won’t leave us alone, and we’re just farmers so we can’t stand up to guys like that,” she explained, “but we do know where they are. They’re stationed in the old Corvega Assembly Plant.” She pointed to the factory in the distance.

“Alright, I’ll go take care of them for you,” she said.

Just as she started making her way down the hill, the woman called to her. “Before you go take some advice. Try to stay clear out of Lexington. The place is filled with ghouls.” That was the second time someone had mentioned ghouls, and she didn’t know what they were. She wasn’t sure she wanted to know.

It was noon by the time she got to the old factory. Her back was glued to the western wall as she came up with a plan. Around the corner there were about three raiders, one of which was carrying what seemed to be a pool cue. That would be no issue given it was a surprise attack. The issue, however, was the turret. There was no way she could get to it to disable it without becoming Swiss Cheese, even if she could in the first place. She pulled a grenade from her pack, and wondered if she could throw it far enough.

Better than nothing, she thought to herself, With any luck I’ll get those bastards up top too.

For once in her life she did have luck. It left the turret nothing more than a smoking pile of shrapnel. Various body parts of the raiders were strewn about. Her stomach churned slightly. She had never been the type to get queasy with blood and injuries, but this was something else entirely, and more importantly she had caused it. She tried to push those thoughts aside as she shot the third. There was no more law enforcement. No more prison. The only way to get them to stop was killing them, and no one else was going to do it. Although she was unsure if she would ever be able to truly come to terms with this, she pushed on regardless.

Once inside she followed Dogmeat through the maze of rooms. At first she had been worried as to how she would even get out alive. Then they demonstrated their lack of intelligence, and that they made up for it with an abundance of cockiness. How they had survived so long, she did not know.

The duo did not have much trouble until they had to face off against the gang's leader. He was in a room with conveyor belts and nearly finished Corvegas, which offered better cover than wall corners. At least four other raiders paced the large room. More turrets sat atop a room connected to a cat walk. Spilled gasoline, oxygen tanks, and various other combustibles littered the place, and since she wanted to get out alive grenades were out of the question.

She did not have enough time to come up with a plan, as she was almost immediately spotted. A woman with a knife charged her. She shot her twice in the chest before she got too close for comfort. Dogmeat expertly pounced on another raider, tearing him to shreds. Claudia took down another, rather stupid one, who tried to out distance her pistol with a shotgun. She ducked behind a pillar when there were only two left. Dogmeat followed her actions and found cover for himself. She vaguely wondered how he had learned to fight.

“YOU’RE FUCKIN’ DEAD MEAT BITCH!” One of them roared.

Claudia peeked from behind her cover, and shot him in the head. She winced at the sight.

“YOU’LL PAY FOR THAT!” the last one raged.

She took a breath, steeling her nerves. With a surprising amount of speed she took down the remaining raider. She released the breath with a sigh.

As she lowered her gun she debated with herself as to whether to loot the bodies or not. She shuddered at the thought. She had taken the raiders down, because ultimately it was the right thing. Taking their belongings was pushing the boundaries for her. Eventually she buried those feelings to be dealt with later, along with everything else from the past week.

They really do use bottle caps for money, she thought as she searched the bodies. Even though she did not take Preston for the type to do so, she had thought the caps he gave her had been a joke.

She added that to the ever growing list of things to adapt to. She was thankful she was a quick learner.

By the time she got back to Tenpines Bluff it was mid afternoon. The walk back had been uneventful allowing for her adrenaline to die back down. Her body ached and stung, but the looks on the farmers’ faces were worth it.

“You’re… you’re back… and alive.” the woman from before said, “How did it go?” There was hopefulness in her voice.

“I took care of them. All of them. They won’t be bothering you anymore,” she said with a soft smile.

Pure joy erupted on their faces.

“Thank you so much! You have no idea what you’ve done for us!” the man said. He looked like he was close to tears.

“You’re welcome,” she said.

“I know it isn’t much, but… we want you to have this,” the woman said, handing Claudia a small leather pouch full of caps.

“That isn’t necessary.”

“We insist! And we were talking, and we agreed that if you pulled through for us, we’d support the Minutemen. Things’ll only get better if we’re together.” Claudia smiled, “Thank you. If you ever need help, you can depend on us.”

***

Claudia returned to Sanctuary just before sunset. She shivered as a cold wind blew past her. She checked the temperature on her Pip-Boy. It read 56 degrees Fahrenheit. Another shiver ripped through her. Having only moved to Boston over the summer before the bombs, she was unaccustomed to it being this cold this early in the year. Fall in the Central Valley had been kinder to her. Although she did prefer the New England summer.

Dogmeat left her side to go say hello to the new residents, as she set down her pack in her reclaimed house. Although talking to Preston about her success was important, properly taking care of her injuries was more so.

She stripped off her mismatched armor, jacket, and jeans. Her left bicep and right upper thigh had both been grazed by bullets. Thankfully both injuries were not particularly serious. Both had done just enough damage to draw blood, but she was worried about infection. Rifling through her mediocre med-kit she dressed her wounds to the best of her ability. She chided herself for not asking for help with her arm as it was difficult to do one handed. When she was done she put on a different jacket and pair of jeans. Both were just as dirty as the ones from before, but they had less holes in them.

Preston was standing in front of the bridge staring at the darkening sky when she found him. He turned when he heard her approaching.

“So, how’d it go?” he asked.

“Took care of the raiders in Corvega, and the people at Tenpines Bluff have decided to support us.”

His face lit up. “That’s great news.”

“Figured you’d be happy about that.”

“Oh, before I forget. I wanted to give you this. It’s a flare gun,” he explained as he handed it to her.

“Thanks, Preston. In a place like this? I’m sure it’ll be put to good use.”

“I know it’s not much right now, but once we have more allied settlements you’ll have help whenever you need it.”

An awkward silence fell between them. Preston shifted, turning his gaze back to the sky before asking, “I haven’t told how I became the last Minuteman, have I?”

“Didn’t want to push you,” she replied, pushing her hands into her jacket pockets.

“Have you heard about the Quincy Massacre?” he hesitantly asked.

“No. The people at Tenpines mentioned something about Quincy, but I didn’t know what they were talking about. Why, what happened?”

He was quiet for a moment before he spoke, a pained look coming across his face.

“A mercenary group called the Gunners attacked Quincy, and the people there asked for help. My group was the only one that showed.” she could hear him struggling to keep his voice steady, “We were able to hold them off initially, but it wasn’t enough. We asked for reinforcements, but we never even heard from anyone. The Gunners took Quincy, and killed Colonel Hollis, so I was in charge of the survivors. We didn’t find a safe place to settle. Until now.”

Claudia soaked in the words before she said anything. When she spoke her words were careful, “I think the Minutemen can make a comeback. They can be the good guys again. As long as you don’t give up.”

“I’m not about to give up,” he said, finally turning to look at her, “that’s why I’m talking to you. I… I can’t rebuild the Minutemen, but… I think you can.” His words caught her off guard. She was more than willing to join the cause, but leading them was a completely different story.

“I don’t know if I’m the right person for that, Preston,” she said hesitantly, why can’t you?”

“I can get my men through a fight, hold a location against all odds, but I can’t lead like that. Besides you helped us in Concord, and have continued to help us even though there was nothing in it for you. You helped the people at Tenpines even though you have your own problems to deal with. Selflessness like that has been in short supply around here, and that’s what we need.” She took a deep breath and looked across the river. She mulled over the offer in her head. She wanted to do it, she did, but she was worried about how young she was. Before the bombs no one would have ever even thought to give someone her age this kind of offer.

“But I have no experience with this,” she tried to argue.

“No leader does their first time,”

“I’m only twenty-two. Don’t you think that’s too young to do this?”

Preston apparently did not care. He insisted, “I’ll help you along the way. I know I’m asking a lot, but the Minutemen need someone like you.”

She did not answer for a moment. His words shooed away her apprehension. He was giving her the chance to do something truly good, and she did not want to turn it down. As long as she had help…

“Alright. I’ll do it.”

A look of disbelief crossed his face, “Really?”

“Yeah,” she nodded, her voice full of determination.

He smiled, “I’ll be right behind you the whole way… General.”

“General?”

“The leader of the Minutemen has always held the rank of General. Our last leader was General Becker. He died back in ‘82. The one good thing about being the last Minuteman is no one is going to argue with me putting you in charge.”

“So, what rank does that make you?”

“Well… the second highest rank is major, but I guess now it depends on what you say?”

“Major it is then.”

He smiled. This was probably the most Claudia had seen him smile in the week she had known him.

“So, what now General Flynn?”

“Well Major Garvey, I say we rest tonight, and decide our next action in the morning.”

“Good plan ma’am.”

Coupled with the physical exhaustion from the events of the day, and the goodness she did. That night she got the best sleep she had since waking up in the wasteland.

***

Almost feel bad for these little guys. Almost, she thought, nudging a dead mole rat with her toe.

There was not a cloud in the sky, as the sun shone brightly. A brisk breeze threw around debris and dead plant matter. The air was cool against her face. It was the perfect weather for outdoors work. She had cleared the drive-in theatre just outside of Concord in order to create a new settlement. Preston had taken on the duty of helping a farm down south with some raiders. Even though she was in charge of him, he had insisted she do an easier task today if she insisted on doing Minutemen duties. Especially after he saw how drained she was from Corvega.

It ended up taking Claudia and Sturges longer to haul all of the stuff they needed down to the drive-in than it did to clear it in the first place. After a few hours of working on the radio they decided to take a break. They sipped on purified water, courtesy of Codsworth, in the shade of the shack against the hill. Claudia took this as an opportunity to sate her curiosity.

“Hey, Sturges, can I ask you a question?”

“Sure,” he said.

“What’s a ghoul? I keep hearing people talk about them, but I have no idea what they are,” she admitted.

“Well,” he explained, “they’re just irradiated people. But there are different kinds. Some ghouls are like you an’ me. The only difference is they look different and live longer, assumin’ they don’t get hurt. Then there are ferals. Those are the ones you keep hearin’ about. The radiation rotted their brains, makin’ them go insane.”

“So these “ferals,” are basically zombies?” she asked.

“Basically.”

“If the others are like us, then why are they called the same thing? They sound pretty different to me.”

“‘Cause people don’t like ‘em. People don’t seem to understand the difference. No matter how drastic. I don’t understand it honestly.”

“Glad to know humanity hasn’t changed,” she said sarcastically.

“And it goes farther than just names. The only large settlement I know of that allows ‘em to live there is Goodneighbor. Which is a damn shame. ‘Specially since livin’ in there is only half a set better than gettin’ gnawed on by radroaches.”

Sadly, she understood why they were not allowed to live in nice places. It was prejudice. Even though she hated it, humanity had always been prejudiced. After all that’s what led to the internment camps.

“What’s so bad about Goodneighbor?”

“Ain’t nothin’ there but chems and mercenaries. People there will most likely wind up dead to one or the other if they stay too long.”

She wrinkled her nose, “Lovely.”

“Still beats gettin’ torn to shreds by raiders. If only a little bit.”

“So, only go to this place in the case of an absolute emergency?”

“Pretty much,” he shrugged.

She hoped that it would not come to that if he was not exaggerating.

***

Preston returned just before the residents of Sanctuary started to head to bed the next day. He looked a little worse for wear, but pleased. All that really mattered was that he was alive, and not seriously injured of course.

“General,” he said in greeting.

“Hey, Preston. You know you don’t have to call me that, right?” Claudia asked.

He merely shrugged in response, “I have news for you.”

“I hope it’s good news.”

“It is.” he smiled, “The people at Oberland Station have decided to join us. This means we’re large enough to start having communication problems, but that’s a good thing.”

“How is that a good thing?” she asked, frowning. In her experience poor communication just led to disaster.

“It gives us a damn good reason to take back The Castle, the old Minutemen HQ. It’s well fortified, centrally located, and best of all, it has a strong radio tower that can broadcast all over the Commonwealth,” he explained.

“Oh. Yeah that sounds like a good thing.”

“So are we gonna do it?”

“Do you think we can get enough people to attack it?”

“I have to talk to some people, but yeah. Especially since it wasn’t raiders or gunners that took it.”

“Who took it then?” she asked.

“I’m not sure how true it is, but apparently a sea monster attacked. My guess is mirelurks.”

“What’s a mirelurk?” she asked. She felt a little embarrassed having to constantly ask what everything. She felt like a little kid. She was thankful that she had wound up with such an understanding group.

“I think you would have called them… crabs?”

She burst out laughing, “They lost a ‘well fortified’ place to a bunch of crabs?”

“It was before my time, so I have no idea… so are we going to do this?”

“Yeah, let’s do this, but we should wait until tomorrow morning. You need to rest, and I want to have as much energy as possible for this. That’s an order,” she joked.

“You won’t regret this ma’am!” he said turning towards the house he had claimed.

***

The next morning Preston was nowhere to be found. When she could not find him she sought out Sturges.

“Have you seen Preston anywhere?”she asked.

“He left about an hour ago. Said you guys were gonna take back The Castle. Why?” Her jaw dropped. He had already left. She felt stupid for not telling him to wait for her. She could not blame him for leaving as soon as possible. She had seen the excitement hidden beneath his professionalism.

Now she was going to have to deal with the repercussions for her lack of communication.

“I have no idea where I’m going.” she sighed, “Preston never pointed it out on any map.”

“I have kind of an idea of where it is, if that’s any help,” he offered.

After he showed her the area where it was located he said, “Unless you want to stop by Diamond City on the way, I suggest you stay out of the main city. Can be real dangerous at times.”

“Thanks, Sturges.”

Before she started heading out she filled her pack to the brim with extra clothes, water, food, medical supplies, caps, and everything else she thought she would need. The trip to The Castle was going to be a long one, and she did not want to take any chances. She strapped her shotgun she had gotten thanks to the raiders to her back, and placed a combat knife in a makeshift sheath at her hip. Pistol in hand she started to make her way out of Sanctuary.

She thought about bringing Dogmeat with her for a moment, but ultimately decided against it. She did not want to wear him out, and without her and Preston there someone needed to guard the place. The day was cooler than the ones before it, almost too cold. Clouds were on the horizon, signaling a storm. Claudia wondered if the rain would be radioactive like the rivers were.

As she headed southwest towards the Charles river she saw various wild animals in the distance from a pack of wild mongrels to a two-headed deer. They never got too close for comfort though, making for an uneventful journey. Until she got to Cambridge.

When Sturges had told her to stay out of the city she thought he had meant Boston itself. She was wrong. After a few minutes of making her way between crumbling buildings she was greeted by an irate group of raiders. Luckily for Claudia they were too high to actually do anything, so she was able to take them out with ease. That should have, however, been taken as a sign of things to come.

The mid afternoon sun added only a small amount of warmth as she made her way towards the river. When she got close enough to see the river she heard gruff, manly voices that did not sound quite human. They sounded like a stereotypical voice of an ogre or something similar. She did not realize how close that comparison was until she saw the source of the voices.

They came from her left, down the street that intersected the one she was walking along. They walked like men and had similar muscle structure, but they very obviously were not. The biggest indicator was their green skin, and their sheer size did not help matters.

She froze, unsure what to do. She had no idea what they were, and if they were dangerous, and if they were, how dangerous. She was starting to think she should just ask for a list of things that could kill her other than disease or radiation.

She decided it was probably for the best to just sneak past them and conserve ammo. After all she was meeting Preston to take down some mutated crabs. Luck was not in her favor this time, however, because they heard her next step crunch loudly against the broken pavement.

“A HUMAN!” one roared.

“LET’S KILL IT!” shouted another.

She took off down the street like a rocket. They did not seem to mind chasing down their prey. She forgot Sturges’s warning and dashed across the bridge that spanned the river. She ducked into the city hoping to lose them. They were fast and seemed to be incredibly strong, but she hoped they were not agile or clever.

After what felt like an eternity of chasing her through the maze of buildings, she was able to lose them by hiding in a hole in a wall. She took shallow breaths trying to remain as quiet as possible as they passed. She prayed that they did not find her in her hiding spot. She had a feeling she was as good as dead if they did.

Once she was sure they were gone a broken sob escaped her. The reality of her situation slammed into her like a truck. The world she had known was gone. Her family and friends were gone. The people who would hold her, and tell her that everything would be alright were gone. The world she had known had died, and this terrible world plagued by radiation, raiders, mutated creatures, and who knows what else had taken its place. As her cries escalated it got to the point where she fell out of the hole and threw up. The horror of this new world got to her.

After a while she straightened up and wiped her face clean. She had lost much, yes, but she would be damned if she gave up so soon. She took a few deep breaths, and then started to make her way through the city.

She cursed herself for running into there with such reckless abandon. She had not spent much time exploring Boston before the bombs, and the destruction did not help matters. The map and compass only served to confuse her.

Just as she was about to give up, and try and find another hole to bunker down in for the night, she saw an odd, blue glow reflecting off the old metal of a building that seemed to have been inhabited recently. As she turned towards the source, she realized it was the familiar coldness of neon. Then she spotted the sign. “Goodneighbor” it read.

I think this counts as an emergency, she thought as she walked through the door of the makeshift wall.

She quickly opened the door, and stepped inside. Resting against the door with her back to it she took in the tiny town. She had been to Scollay Square once before the war, and toured The Old State House. She marveled at the condition of the old building for a moment. She was brought back down into the harsh reality when a dirty, roughed up man approached her.

“Hey! You new to Goodneighbor? Can’t go walking around without insurance,” he said as he took a drag off of his cigarette.

“Insurance?” she asked. Her voice came out smaller than she intended. In another life she would have kicked herself, but at this point she was far too overwhelmed to care.

“Yeah, insurance. The kind where you give me everything in your pockets, and there won’t be any ‘accidents.’ Big, bloody ‘accidents’,” he sneered.

Before she react a man with the graveliest voice she had ever heard interjected. He strode up to the man accosting her, and said, “Woah, woah, woah. Time out. Someone steps through the gate the first time, they’re a guest. You lay off that extortion crap.”

“What’d you care? She ain’t one of us.”

“No love for your mayor, Finn? I said let her go,” the mayor said. From where she was standing, she could see there was something wrong with his eyes and skin and… did he not have a nose?

“You’re soft, Hancock. You keep letting outsiders walk all over us, one day there’ll be a new mayor.”

“Come on, man. This is me we’re talking about. Let me tell you something,” Hancock said, taking a step closer to the man. He placed a hand on the man’s shoulder in a friendly way, and then, to Claudia’s horror, proceeded to stab him in the gut. She watched in shock as he stared down at the now dead body.

“Now why’d you have to go, and say that, huh? Breaking my heart over here. You alright sister?” he asked as he turned to her. He took a step closer to her.

She felt her mouth gape open as she looked at him. His skin was burned, and falling off in patches. She was right when she thought he did not have a nose. He had just two holes where it should have been. Both the irises and the scleras of his eyes were black. It took her brain a moment to process what she was seeing. He must be a ghoul. She shut her mouth when she realized her expression must have looked rude, but it was hard not to stare. It looked so painful to be like that.

She blinked dumbly a few times before answering, “You… you killed him.”

“Got a good pair of eyes on ya. I think you’ll fit in here,” he drawled, “but don’t let this incident taint your view of our community. Goodneighbor’s of the people the people, for the people. Everyone’s welcome. You feel me?”

She was having a hard time paying attention. It was too much to take in at once. She let out a shaky breath, “I, uh, yeah. Yeah.”

“Good. Just remember who’s in charge, and don’t be afraid to stop by for whatever you need,” he said, before he started to walk away.

Her brain hung that last part. What she needed was someone who could help her get to the Castle. A body guide or…

“Wait,” she called. He turned to face her. The skin above his eyebrow was molded in a way that must have been his way of raising an eyebrow.

She took a deep breath, “Do you know of any guns for hire?”

He smiled at her, “I know just the guy.”

#fallout #fallout 4 #fo4 #fanfiction #fanfic #sole survivor #claudia flynn #violence warning #language warning #preston garvey #fallout sturges #maccready x sole survivor #my first fanfic #puking warning

[theofficialstereklibrary]

Any updates to the BAMF!Stiles? Your recs are perf.

BAMF!Stiles could use an update! Just a reminder tho, I don’t read everything that’s listed in these updates, read at your own risk ;) - Jeep

Triton by Staleinskii (22,148 | 7/? | E)

Scott McCall’s best friend. That’s what Stiles had been known as his entire high school career. As his best friend grew popular on the lacrosse team, Stiles was always just the plus one at every event, hiding in the shadows to avoid becoming victim to Jackson Whittemore and company’s abuse.

One day at the bluff everything changes, though, as Stiles is thrown off the edge of a cliff by the lacrosse team and into the frightening waters below. As the light fades from his eyes, Stiles is sure he is going to die, but a mysterious trident on the ocean floor is the last thing Stiles sees before blacking out. Days later, and Stiles experiences supernatural abilities unlike anything he’s ever seen. With the realization of his newfound powers, Stiles can finally make a name for himself: thus is born Triton.

This Is Me by HappyJuicyfruit (28,930 | 1/1 | G)

Stiles gripped to Derek’s shirt, attempting to stay on his feet as he was manhandled. He whipped his head around, trying to spot whatever had Derek on the defense. He froze when his eyes landed on two tall, greenish, figures standing right in front of them.

“No need to growl, dog. We are not here to harm you.” One of them said. Her… his…? Their voice sounded like music, echoing in the trees. They were both dressed in long silky robes, and they had the posture of royalty.

“What do you want?” Derek growled. The two Fae glanced at him, then turned their eyes on Stiles. Stiles felt his own eyes widen in surprise. “Answer me, nymphs! What do you want?”

Stiles snapped out of his surprise to smack Derek on the arm. “They’re Fae, Derek, not ‘nymphs.’”

Never Break the Chain by whosyourmaster (31,096 | 3/? | E)

Nine years ago Stiles left Beacon Hills and planned to never come back. All that was left for him there was a broken heart and a threat over his head that would take away everything else.

Life is unstable though and now he has to come back to this hell hole to bury a fallen brother.

He has changed though, grown up and matured. He can handle this little weeklong visit; go to the funeral, spend time with his dad, check up on any potential work in the area, avoid Derek, the pack and… Derek’s wife?

Whatever, he will handle this with all the grace he has learned in the last decade than disappear into the night. He hopes.

Find Me by smallbeans (29,676 | 4/? | NR)

When they find Stiles’ jeep burnt to a crisp with an unidentifiable body inside, Stiles Stilinski is deemed dead. Over the years of grief and heartache, the pack grow and heal, forming unbreakable bonds.

Five years after the accident, Stiles comes back, but he isn’t quite Stiles anymore.

Animals Of Circumstance by Rollyzen (20,380 | 6/? | NR)

Mieczyslaw ‘Stiles’ Stilinski is a top tier assassin in his family’s crime syndicate. Wielding both incredible skill and magic, everyone knows Mieczyslaw is not someone to be taken lightly. An assignment in Beacon Hills leaves him with lots of questions and copious amounts of irritation. No one told him he would be having to dodge dogs for this mission. Honestly, HQ can go fuck themselves.

#ask #ratherberaidingkick3 #tag update #bamf!stiles

[stardust-and-blades]

Shatter: part 2

This comes in two parts since I couldn’t condense it in one damn post like a hEATHEN

Part 1

Summary: Keith and Lance are set up on a mission to gather supplies within a small town. It was meant to be an easy errand, one they have done before. But the situation turns dire when Keith ends up getting bit and doesn’t tell the team. Nor Lance.

-----------

When Keith was awakened, an hour had passed and Lance was gone. Curious as to where he went, Keith lifted himself on his elbows, set to find him and the rest of the team when he was hit by a bout of nausea and a sharp pain on his side. He clasped a hand over the bite, collapsing back in place and trying to push the sickness down. Shove back in the dark corner it came from. 

But it pursued, much like the zombie who bit him. It came it waves, clashing and swirling until he was dizzy with sickness. His vision spun, the room’s colors combining all at once and his sense of reality shifting upside down. He fell off the bed, landing hard on his bite. He ignored it, clawing for the small trash can at the foot of the bed, his knees shaking and his chest heaving to expel the little food he ate the day before. Even when he was dry heaving did the nausea continue, solace in ridding himself of the toxins never arriving. 

By the time Lance returned from his trip to the kitchen--a tray filled with powdered eggs, fruit, and water--Keith was still on the floor, his head laying on the cool wood of the bed and the trash can close to him. Lance, seeing his face far paler than usual and shivers running down his body, put the tray on the dresser and knelt in front of Keith.

“Jesus, Keith. You look horrible.”

“Thanks.” Keith croaked out.

Lance placed the back of his hand against his forehead, grimacing as he retracted it. “You are burning up.” He grabbed the blanket they were using and wrapped it around Keith’s shoulders. Keith felt hot. But also cold. It was strange, it almost being like a bad case of the flu. Keith wanted to stand up. To proclaim he was fine, yet his body remained unresponsive, the fatigue hitting him at every chance he made to move his limbs. 

“There must have been something in the water...” Lance mumbled, frowning. “I wouldn’t be surprised if there was e-coli or some other parasite in there.”

Lance trailed off, a thought coming to him. It darkened his eyes, his aid slowing as he calculated the contents of the water. Keith did not need to ask. Did not need to hear, because he could read Lance like a book. And i he wasn’t careful, Lance would figure out Keith’s secret in no time.

He couldn’t allow that. He had to be strong. Be a warrior. Be ready for later, even if it hurts.

“The water didn’t have the virus.” Keith said, tired but confident. “If it did, we all would be infected by now. We bathed in it. Used it as a survival tactic when we weren’t in towns or homes. It’s probably just a stomach flu.”

“I don’t know...the food bank was pretty old. The corners looked as if moss was growing in from the constant moisture.”

Keith shrugged. “Then maybe it is e-coli. Either way, it’s treatable. We did score a slew of medication.” Keith said, smiling weakly to ease Lance’s nerves. “I’ll be fine. You worry too much.”

Lance searched his face. Analyzed him for flukes in his story, ready to call his bluff. But as his search came up dry, he sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Only because you’re reckless. I’ll go get some medication from Hunk. He should know which one could help.” He tightened the blankets around Keith for emphasis. His eyes screaming for Keith to stay. “You, mister, need to get back in bed.”

“I’m fine--” He again tried to stand up, but only toppled over, his legs jelly beneath him. Lance caught him, laying him on the creaky mattress and tucking the annoyed boy in. 

“You are obviously not fine. Stay here. I’ll be back in a jiffy.” 

He turned to leave.

“Wait--Lance?”

He stopped, hand on the edge of the doorway and an eyebrow curved upwards, a question mark above his head. “Yeah?”

Keith rested against the pillow, watching Lance. Taking in his pulsing light. His sky blue eyes. The little scar he got on his eyebrow from when they first met, Keith almost chopping his head off thinking he was a zombie by how quiet he was. Keith would laugh at the memory if they weren’t burning at the edges. Flittering away with his time, the hourglass he thought to last at least two years dramatically shortening. His vision began to waver once more, but he took a breath and gave the best lovestruck, sweet, adoring gaze. Something he wanted to leave Lance with. The last image of him. Not as a dying comrade, but as the lover he spent the best of times with.

“I love you.”

Lance was stunned into silence, never seeing such a look from Keith before. Not this intense. Lance wondered why it made him both giddy and sad, as if there was an unspoken secret between them. A kiss with far too much feeling. A glimmer of nostalgia mixed with loss. Lance couldn’t pinpoint it. Even when his heart melted and froze at the same time.

Lance shook the thoughts away and, as if controlled by another source, walked over and kissed the top of his burning head, not caring for the sweat and noise of surprise.

“Love you too, Keith. Get some rest.”

Then, he was gone.

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

Lance eventually came back with Hunk, the two checking Keith again and giving him some medication. Keith took it, hiding the pills under his tongue and burying them underneath the mattress when they left. They would make him more tired than usual, and he needed to have energy for tonight. 

For tonight, he and Shiro would be gone, a note for the others to find. To tell them Shiro would be back.

And he will.

Just not with Keith.

In the meantime, Keith spent as much time as he could with the others. Pidge stopped by to play pokemon with on her nintendo 3DS, the young girl figuring out how to charge it up and use it like in the past. Hunk brought food, but also suggested Keith come down to the living room for a fun game of charades. It was difficult, but he managed to make his way down the stairs, his violent shivers covered by the heavy blanket.

Lance remained by his side, holding his clammy hand as Pidge and Hunk acted out whatever they were trying to convey, the others shouting guesses and groaning in defeat when Pidge thought of a ridiculous one that only she would know. Hunk was a little easier, though only because Pidge continued to stunt the players. Keith himself worked to contribute, stating his interpretations and proclaiming them cheaters when they withheld points. The day was filled with laughs, curiosity, and fun. Feelings they hadn’t been able to achieve since the outbreak. Since Pidge lost her brother and father. When Hunk was separated from his family during the quarantines, him and Lance victims of families being torn apart. 

As for Shiro, he kept a brave face like Keith. Continued the fatherly figure and told them when to quiet down and when it was time for bed, always on guard for zombies, yet allowing himself some joy by the chuckles ravaging his chest as Lance made a silly impression of Pidge. 

By nightfall, they all had passed out in the living room, refusing to go to bed until their love for charades and board games died down. Hunk was sprawled out on the couch, limbs draping over each edge. Pidge was curled in on herself on the floor, her glasses lopsided on her face as she drooled on the carpet. 

And Lance, sweet Lance, was resting his head atop Keith’s, snuggled up to him like he did when they slept next to each other.

“Are you ready?” Shiro asked quietly. Keith didn’t need to ask if he was alright. His knuckles white from his harsh grip on the gun strapped to him and the shine in his eyes spoke volumes.

Keith nodded, carefully removing himself from Lance, leaving behind the blanket. Leaving what he worked so hard to preserve, his soul screaming for him to stay. To die here, surrounded by friends. Yes, he would turn. But Shiro would kill him in time. He wanted to stay. He wanted to stay goddamnit--

“Lets go.” Keith said, his movements sloth-like as he reached behind a dresser for a bag. It held some items he would like to be buried with. Not including the knife, since he left it by Lance, a horrible gift to give. But one that would serve a purpose. Do what Keith wasn’t able to do.

They left the house. Their goal was to make it to a quiet field in the back woods where the gunshot would not be heard. if he were to die, he would die a human. As long as his humanity remains intact, regardless of his arms and legs decaying, if he could keep ahold of his human side Shiro would be able to take him out easily.

The whole time they walked, though, his movements slowed. His legs creaked with an incredible amount of difficulty, his breathing labored. He kept a hand on his side, pushing down to relieve the growing pain spiking across his abdomen. God, it hurts. His vision split in two, and Keith swore the river up ahead disappeared. 

Keith leaned against a tree, sweat coating him from head to toe. He checked the bite again, sure enough it engulfed in a disgusting, rotted green and puss yellow, the veins popping out with infection from his side to his chest. 

“Shiro...” Keith said, struggling with words. “I can’t...I can’t go any farther. My legs. My body. It--”

“Shhh,” Shiro cooed, rubbing his back in comforting circles. He was just as scared as Keith, but had to be the big brother. The example. The strong one. His chest shuddered; an iron chain squeezing his heart enough to produce an extra layer of shine in his eyes. He wanted to protect Keith. Take way what he was feeling. But all he could do was bend down in front of Keith, back to him and arm extending for him to take. 

“Your body is shutting down. Climb on my back, we aren’t far enough.”

“Are you sure?”

He nodded, eyes kept forward. “Yes.”

Keith was hesitant, but seeing his legs wouldn’t lift him past a couple of inches, he wrapped his arms around Shiro’s throat. There was a struggle, Keith’s strength severely depleted. Shiro hiked one arm around to capture his leg and leaned farther forward, allowing all of Keith’s weight to fall on him. 

He didn’t mind. Keith didn’t weigh much to him. In any other circumstance, Keith would grate on how he felt like a toddler. Now Shiro only wished he would so much as talk, the boy’s skin ice and his breathing ragged.

“Thank you.” He mumbled, closing his eyes. He felt so tired. 

“Mmmhm...”

They continued on their trek, the crisp leaves beneath Shiro’s soles being the only sound in the sleeping forest. Among the carnage, the forest was serene. safe.

“Hey, Shiro?” Keith whispered, Shiro only able to hear is too soft voice because he was next to his ear.

“Yeah?”

“Do you think Lance will blame himself?”

Shiro stopped, glancing at him. “What?”

Keith covered his face with Shiro’s neck, hiding from the surprised lilt. “You heard me.”

Shiro took a second to mull it over, his steps resuming at a slower pace. They knew the answer. But Shiro didn’t want to say it.

“I think he will mourn.”

Keith dug his nails into his wrist.

“I was a fool to fall in love.” He said, his fire crackling to life. “I shouldn’t have kissed him when we were surrounded. I shouldn’t have held him close to me when he had nightmares. I shouldn’t have let him come close to me, touching my soul. I should have let him hate me. If he did that, he wouldn’t mourn.”

Shiro shook his head.

“I think you’re wrong, Keith.”

“How?” His voice broke, a vase tipped over and water spilling out. “How could I be wrong? I’m leaving him, Shiro. I’m breaking his heart. When he wakes up, all he is going to have left of me is the stupid knife. We live in a dying world, and here I am slamming down the last nail on the coffin where our hope was. It hurts to think about him hating me, but it would have been a better option. Hatred breeds survival. A safety net over the heart.” Blood seeped from his nails. “To lose someone you hate is easier than losing someone you love.”

“Is it, though?” Shiro questioned. “Say you and Lance never fell in love. Say you let him despise you with every fiber of your being. You let him call you names. You let him isolate you. You let him leave you behind in the school we were trapped in. Allow him to do every despicable thing your brain can think of. But while you may believe you would have spared him pain, that route would have caused a worse turn of events.”

“How?”

Shiro, for once after leaving the house, looked at Keith with tender eyes. “He would have lost his humanity. Through you, I believe he learned to love being alive. There is me, Hunk, and Pidge, but you were the one to unlock his affection for the days we have remaining. He may hurt after this. But at least he will be able to feel. To be human. To let hatred consume you, you might as well be one of the undead.”

“I’m not so sure he would agree...”

“You know Lance. Which would he rather have? Hatred in his heart, or love?”

Keith did not say anything, being an answer enough. They arrived at their destination Shiro carefully unlatching Keith’s arms. Keith crawled to the tree, Shiro offering his help but the boy ignoring him. As he leaned against it, he seem to deflate; his eyes fluttering closed and his chest rising at an unnatural slow pace. He shivered, a remaining leaf withering away from the approaching snow. 

He was exhausted. All his energy has been sapped, despite not doing much. Shiro should be the one tired, yet here Keith is, struggling to breathe. It was like a cloth had been cast over his lungs, plugging in every crevice. in invisible tar suffocating him. 

Though Shiro knew his fate, he still put a blanket over Keith. He wiped the sweat from his brow, checked his wound, and shook off his jacket for Keith to rest his head on. It was a vain effort to ignore the inevitable, but he still tried being the big brother he swore to be. 

“You don’t need to do that...” Keith said, hollow and soft.

“You looked uncomfortable.”

He was delaying the inevitable. Keith was blunt, but didn’t think he’d have to be this blunt.

“Shiro, I’m going to die. Please don’t sacrifice more than you already had.”

And there it was. The realization the walk and the small discussion being their last settling in. his skin blanched. His eyes averted to the gun, his shoulders hunched and quivering. He denied the reality of the situation, and he would continue until he lifted the pistol to the middle of Keith’s brows. 

He thought he could do it. Could give Keith one last gift by him not allowing him to turn. But his hands wouldn’t move. There was dust in his eyes, Shiro vigorously wiping them away though they grew in size. This was the straw that broke the camel’s back. He couldn’t kill him. Couldn’t stare at those dark, heavy eyes and clean their slate to a matte black, the vibrancy sucked out. He couldn’t do it. 

Something touched his shoulder. Keith was grabbing the gun, nudging Shiro lightly.

“Go. I can do it myself.” He said. “I have enough energy.”

“But--”

Keith held up a hand. “Like I said, you sacrificed enough. It was stupid of me to ask you to take up the responsibility. You’ve done well in taking care of us, now I should give back to you.”

He gave him a last, weak smile. 

“Go. Thank you for everything, Shiro.”

Keith began to cry, hard and shook to the core. He fought against the tremble in his throat, it aching from the pull to reel in his bottled up emotions. Before, he kept them to himself. Silent. Just short of a trembling sigh, an expert in locking away the darkness behind iron doors. 

But in his last moments, he wanted to be as human as possible. Even if that meant crying.

“Tell everyone thank you. And that I loved them. You and the others were the best family I could have gained.”

“Keith, no. I can stay. You don’t have to be alone--”

“GO!” He roared, clutching the weapon closer. “Don’t make this any harder than it is. Please...just go.”

“Why must you insist on being alone so much when you hate it?”

Keith jumped, the voice not belonging to Shiro. The two whipped their heads around, three figures emerging from the trees. On the left was a man with a bandana, brown irises filled. On the left was a girl with large round glasses, her vision clouded by specks of water.

And in the middle was a taller man, tear tracks carved deep into his cheeks, a thin, crumbled note in his palm.

“Lance...?” Keith felt like he was punched in the gut. “Hunk? Pidge? What are you doing here?”

“I can’t sleep well without you near me, remember?” Lance said, unsteady. “I woke up, and suddenly you and Shiro were gone. We thought there were zombies you were fighting, but it turns out...turns out...” He dug the heel of his palm into his eyes. “Goddamnit, Keith. Why didn’t you tell us? Tell me.”

Keith didn’t say anything. Couldn’t look at either of them. To think he was sneaky. He should have known he couldn’t hide the bags under his eyes and the glaring signs of the disease.

“Keith, please say something.” 

He bowed his head lower. “You shouldn’t have come.”

“Shouldn’t have come?” Lance said, dangerously low. “Shouldn’t have come? Oh yeah because that is a great fucking idea when the people who love you would have woken up in the morning wondering where you were. Because it is a fantastic idea for us to stumble upon an emotionally wrecked Shiro. Because it is a wonderful idea for him to lead me to your corpse without having the chance to say goodbye or to have one last kiss or to at least say ‘I love you’--!”

Lance’s voice grew with each sentence, bordering on screaming. But he really wasn’t angry. No, he was bleeding. Keith has a physical wound, but Lance’s chest was drenched in red, tears of blood drenching the soil in a dark crimson. Spreading to the others, encircling around Shiro and Keith, the two respectively hurting with him.

Keith too bled out, wishing to staunch the wound. To take it away, say it was all a sick joke. 

Life is not kind.

“I’m sorry,” was all Keith could say. “I’m so sorry.”

“We want to be there for you, Keith,” Hunk said. “We are your friends. We understand why you did it, but not informing us is equivalent to the time Shiro went missing with Matt. We were stressed. Worried sick. We couldn’t fathom anything else but finding you. With keeping us in the loop, at least we could have closure.”

Pidge stepped closer. Her calm, cool facade had broken, the adult side of her stripped away for who she really was. An innocent child thrust into an apocalypse.

“I remember Matt shoving me in a closet,” She said, hushed. “I remember the groans and moans of the undead. I remember the decaying children chasing after me in the school, Matt noticing I was unable to shake them off. I remember him telling me he would be back, his dopey, stupid smile being the last thing I saw between the cracks of the closet, the loud crackle of a pot and spoon echoing down the hallway. It grew faint. So faint, it became one with silence. And that silence was the only remnant of my brother, never reuniting. Never seeing the family blonde hair in a messy ponytail.”

She sniffed, her armor relinquishing its stability, cracks formed and bursted out to reveal a small girl begging for her family back.

“You’re an idiot if you think by you disappearing you would relieve us of such despair. Either way, you’re gone. Either way, we lose someone we love. The least--the leas you could have done is hugged me close and said goodbye like the brother you are to me! Give me the chance to do what I couldn’t with Matt. Stop trying to protect us and let us love you, you fucking dumbass!” 

She ran into his arms, the gun casted aside for him to catch her. She held onto him for dear life, crying into his neck. “I don’t care if you turn right now, let me have this. Please let me have this...”

Keith never thought the brains--the steel in their team would be crying over him. For her to be reduced to a puddle of tears, despite being known for her high end mental shields and knack for staying logical even in the most stressful, time crunched situations. Keith forgot how scared she was.

Keith forgot about the love they all held for him.

He held her close, and soon the others joined, surrounding Keith in enough love, his heart was full. his two best friends, his brother, and the love of his life were there. Yes, he was dying. But he still thanked the universe for allowing him the short window of true living. One he hadn’t fully embraced until now, death knocking on his door to remind him of what he had. 

He will be leaving them behind. But they will be fine as long as they had the few blessed minutes together.

“I love you all.” He said. “Thank you for reminding me what it means to be alive.”

“Please don’t go,” Lance begged. “Please, we can fix this.”

“Lance...” Hunk said, sympathetic, but realistically speaking. “We can’t...his bite isn’t on a part of his body we can remove.”

“Where is it?”

Keith shut his eyes, reminded of his wound pulsing with infection. “It’s...It’s on my side. My waist.”

“We can search for a cure--”

“Lance, we don’t have enough time.” Hunk reasoned, hating the fact he cannot state the opposite. “Keith is already at a stage where he can’t move. The most we have is thirty minutes before--”

Just then, Shiro threw a hand out, silencing Hunk. The four of them directed their gaze to him, confused.

“Guys,” Shiro said, a warning in his tone. “Listen.”

They did. The color drained from their face.

The grass was shifting. The forest was no longer vacated, several packs of humanoid figures out in the distance, the moonlight providing a glimmer of what was coming. 

The hanging jaws. The exposed, decaying teeth. The wretched stench of decomposed flesh. The stringy, loose hair, eyes clouded with disease and the desire to feed overwhelming.

They were no longer alone.

Keith, leaving no time to hesitate, firmly pushed them off him. “You need to leave, now. That much means there is a horde nearing. Get in the truck and drive off, it should have enough gas for the next town over. “

Pidge opened her mouth, ready to fight him on the matter. But she realized why exactly they were crying. Why they were there, and her eyes immediately went to his bite. Keith lifted her face to meet his, not wanting her to focus so much on his injury. 

He smiled, a brother looking down on his sister. “Don’t make Matt’s sacrifice be in vain. You’re smart. Get these guys to a safe place for me.”

Her eyes still glistened, but a new brand of determination took over. “Right. Hunk, Get our supplies set when we book it to the house. Shiro?”

“Yeah?”

She took one last look at Keith, her squeezing her wrist and processing what he was saying through his expression.

“Grab Lance.”

Lance shoved himself away from them, not liking what it meant.

“W--Hell no! I’m not leaving without Keith!”

“Lance, we don’t have time for this.”

“The fuck we do. We can’t just leave him for dead.”

“Lance--”

“NO!” He screamed. “What kind of people are we if we leave him here? What kind friends are we if we run away? They will tear him apart. He can’t so much as stand up, there is no way he is going to be able to fight them off like he used to. The least we can do is bring him with us and take him somewhere safe. Have our last moments in a safe environment. Whether it is at the house or a couple blocks down, I don’t care, but we are not leaving him to them.”

“Lance,” Keith said, stopping his tirade. It was hard, but Keith dragged himself in front of his love. The words on his tongue was poison, the ache shockwave down his throat, constricting it into the familiar sensation he had the day he was bitten. He fought the rope around his neck, swallowing as he stared deep into the blue gems he came to adore with a fiery passion. 

He cupped Lance’s face in his palms, requesting his attention. He wiped the bubbling drops from his eyes, the flow increasing as Lance read what Keith desired to convey.

“Keith, don’t. Please don’t.” He gripped Keith’s wrists hard enough they should hurt, but Keith had gradually lost his sense of pain in his nerves. He was fighting down sleep; fighting the shut down in his veins. He had to get this out. Get Lance out. If he fought anymore with the others, it could be too late for them and himself. He would be damned before he witnessed their demise because of him.

“Lance, listen to me, please.” Keith quietly said. “You need to listen to Pidge and leave now. They won’t devour me. I’m one of them n--”

“No you’re not!”

“Yes I am.” He stated, hard and to the point. “I am infected. I am in the last stage before being completely consumed by the virus. There is nothing you can do. You can’t find a cure in thirty minutes, and you can’t lug me around to find a safe place for me to die, because you wont make it. You are my skilled sharpshooter, but you’re not a miracle worker.”

Right there is where it finally hit the both of them. Slapped them hard in the face, Keith’s voice choking up and Lance’s loud crying reduced to a silent suffering. Keith wished he could go with them in confidence. But he could not. He had a job to do, and the job did not involve them.

But oh how he wanted to savor the last few seconds he had with his beloved, making everything he say count to the very last period.

Though Lance fought it, Keith kept his eye contact, gently settling his extremely hot forehead to Lance’s cool one. 

“My beloved Lance,” He started. “You are strong. You are smart, sweet, and so, so, so strong. I would give anything to have one last night with you in our bed. One last hunt with you, one last meal. But time is not on our side. I will cherish the moments we had together while we could, whether it was when we were stuck in a garage for two days because of a horde, or we were hand in hand along a beaten path in the middle of a field, soaking in the sun and summer air. You made me smile when I thought I wouldn’t be able to. You brightened my life when there was nothing but black and white. You were--are--my shining beacon. Now I need you to be that beacon for the team. I need you to guide them out of the darkness you did with me. I’m sorry I can’t stay. I’m so fucking sorry.”

“Keith, please...”

“Remember what I taught you. Go with your gut, it is what kept us alive so far. Find your family. Find the remnants of the CDC and search for a cure. Promise me that. Promise me.”

A sob escaped Lance, his hands forcefully removed from Keith’s wrists and something being pushed into his palms.

He looked down. It was Keith’s blade.

“I can’t...I can’t take this.”

“You can, and you will.

“Please...” Lance continued to beg, whether it was towards Keith or to the heavens, he cared not. Whoever was listening, don’t rip them apart. They found each other. They finally found a piece of hope in all this destruction. Revived the part of Lance that was confident and sly, resisting to be in a comatose state of thinking like he was after the outbreak. 

He woke up. But now it was like he was being forced to go back to sleep again, cracks lining his mind.

Gingerly, Keith lifted Lance’s head up and kissed him. He was soft; light, a feather gliding atop Lance’s lips. The last piece of a bird flying away, a single strand of life leaving a sliver of what once was in its wake. 

And Lance kissed back, knowing it would be his last. Sensing the separation, the pull as the doomed lovers are split apart. 

He didn’t think he could cry harder, but he did, his heart shattering.

Keith forced himself away, and with one last tear-stained look, he smiled and whispered “I love you.” 

His eyes were sunken in. His skin an ash grey. His hair limp, and his veins popping out, his lips being the only sign of living by its small rose color.

Next thing Lance was processing is his entire body being flung towards Shiro, the boy weak but enough strength to attempt to send Lance to safety. Yet, as Shiro caught him, Lance gripped Keith’s hand, shaking his head.

“No. No I promised I wouldn’t let go.” Lance said. “I won’t let go.”

Keith gave him a squeeze and pulled away.

“Keith, don’t do this!” Lance couldn’t hold on. The boy in front of him his literally slipping through his fingers. He clawed to stay connected. To hold the warmth which kept him sane. But as Shiro inched farther away, as Keith remained sitting against the tree, his lids blinking in slow motion and his hand limp, Lance was unable to achieve the impossible. 

Their fingers brushed one another, and then...

Then he was gone.

The last image he saw was Keith clasping the gun at his side, the undead surrounding him in a trapped circle. The enemy moving in, Lance screaming his throat raw and fighting against Shiro, none of his efforts slowing the one armed man.

By the time they arrived at the house, a gun shot was heard in the distance.

As the gun shot reverberated throughout the forest, it was followed by a whimper and a howl. 

A howl so deafening, the team was sure his soul was stripped away from him.

The glass shards of his heart reduced to ash, and his memories a torture device, the events of the night on repeat.

He was shattered. 

#shania writes #klance #keith kogane #lance mcclain #VLD #voltron #zombie apocalypse au #shatter #this is way too fucking long maybe i should make this an AO3 #shitty writing but i wanted it dONE

[cobaltarchivist]

Sarcasm, Genre Savyness, and a Maxed Out Bluff Stat

I heard the chaos before I saw it. I was visiting Germany for a bit of studying abroad and happened to be in the wrong place when it started. Yelling and screaming coming from the grand building I was in front of. Yelling and screaming from what could very easily be assumed to be a fairly high-brow event usually meant that something, or someone, was actively encouraging it. I began to make my way towards the entrance to try and glimpse what was going on when a massive crowd surged through it. I was shoved to the side of the entrance as bodies poured out. I grabbed onto one of the pillars ringing the entrance and climbed up onto the base so I wouldn’t be trampled.

Eventually, the crowds began to thin, but as I was about to get down a tall man with sleek, black hair, a rich green suit, and a cane with a glowing blue stone embedded into the tip strode out. I decided that a quiet decent would be better. This guy was obviously the source of the problem, but what the problem was, I had no idea. I snuck quietly around him, hoping to get the jump on him and knock him to the ground. Then his suit and cane began to shimmer and change. More gold was added to his suit, a horned helmet, also gold appeared on his head, and the cane elongated into a spear, still with the stone set into its head.

Glow stick of destiny? Check.

The crowd in front of him suddenly began to quiet and still themselves. Then the man in front of me slammed the butt of the spear into the ground and shouted: “KNEEL!”

Egomaniacal windbag? Double check.

He began the classic windbag speech. I didn’t really care to listen. Instead, I acted without thinking and swiped the spear from his hands in a moment of laxness. He looked around in confusion for a few moments, then turned to face me, pointing the spear at him. One look at his face and I knew that I was dead. The only thing I could do at this point was postpone my demise. So I postponed away.

“Nice stick. Mind if I borrow it?”

“Did... you... just...?”

“Yes, I did just. However I am fairly certain that everyone here is fairly well acquainted with the fact that I Stole your glow stick of destiny, can we move on from that?” The surprise that had entered the “man” before me quickly left. Crap.

“You dull creature, did you really think you could use a power you know nothing about against me?” Crap, he was right. No other choice than to use those years of customer service to my advantage. I grinned and prepared to bluff my way to hell and back.

“Hey, I do a lot of things without having any clue how they work. Lots of people do. In fact, quite a few politicians have made careers out of it.”

There were a few chuckles from the crowd. That was good, I needed any sort of moral support I could get at this point. Then I looked back at the guy I was bluffing. His calm demeanor hadn’t changed. My mind was struck with a sudden revelation. There was no way this guy was human. Crap, what was I doing? I was going to try and avoid death at the hands of an ultra-powerful being by using snark and obscene amounts of bluffing? Was I NUTS!?

“You act in jest, yet you have no idea what powers are at play.” Crap. He hadn’t even been fazed. I was dead. I was so dead. I had one last gambit I could try, but if it didn’t work I was dead.

“You’re Loki, aren’t you?” Wow. That actually worked. I could tell from his face that I had hit the nail on the head, “Brother of Thor?”

“How did you...?”

“The accent moron,” Why did I say that, “Thor’s crashing into New Mexico was all over the news, and they were kind enough to include several audio clips of him speaking. That combined with the grandiose getup, the fact that everyone can obviously understand you even though I’m pretty sure not all of them speak English, as well as the illusions. Those were all the clues I needed.” He scoffed and the confusion left again. The mantra of ‘I am so dead’ began playing through my head at light speed.

“So you figured out my identity. Congratulations. Your short, meaningless existence has been brightened by a speck of success. However, you seem to have encountered a problem. You are attempting to threaten me using a weapon you cannot hope to wield.” crapcrapcrap, “Return it to me and I may consider not ending that existence prematurely.”

“You assume quite a bit for someone who knows so little.” WHAT WAS I DOING!?

He grinned “Oh?”

“Yeah. It’s a magic spear of doom, right? Probably shoots lasers or something similar from the tip. It almost certainly has some other powers as well that are more useful outside of battle, and based on the personality you have shown I would guess those would be related to mind control.” Wow, either I was really lucky or all that time wiki trawling was finally paying off, “The lasers are probably fired with just a bit of focus right?” Wow, another nail in the board, “Did I miss anything?”

Loki’s mouth open and shut several times. Then it stayed shut and his face began to redden. He started stalking towards me, murder in his eyes. My facade must have begun to crack because a murderous grin spread across his face. However, a metallic clang quickly turned his forward motion into downward motion, causing him to faceplant into the cobbled street. Behind the maniac was standing someone who anyone would recognize even if they had been living under a rock for their entire lives. A man my father idolized, Captain America.

“Nice job son. You alright after that?”

“No.” I promptly collapsed

The next hour passed in a haze. I was interrogated, separated from the pointy stick with incredible powers, and given a bit to drink from some paramedics. I think Iron Man showed up at one point, but I was barely still conscious and couldn’t register anything more than the fact that I was still alive. Clarity began to return as I was loaded into a jet with Captain America, Iron Man, and Loki, wrapped in obscene amounts of bonds. The bonds only made me feel slightly better. The ride mostly passed in silence, but after a few minutes, Loki spoke.

“You’re just a regular human. You had no Idea how to use my staff. You played me.”

My next comment probably turned that nailed up board into the lid of a coffin, but at this point, I didn’t really care anymore.

“Like the cheap kazoo you are.”

#marvel #story #snark #fanfic #bluff

[bigherosixfeels]

Big Roommates REVIEW

SPOILERS BELOW

Well, the US is still waiting for new episodes of the show to come out. A new programming strategy is causing the delay, but the UK are getting these new episodes. It's frustrating, but I do hope this strategy ends up being good for the network.

For those wondering, yes, I do plan on reviewing each episode of the show. I like being able to talk about what happened and voicing some opinions at the end. So let's do this!

The episode begins in the school cafeteria with Fred and Gogo looking at mystery loaf which not only looks disgusting, but it also moves like Jell-O and I'm concerned as to why this is being served at the school. Although, according to Baymax, it won't cause any permanent damage to eat it which is reassuring enough to Fred until he tastes cilantro. 

Meanwhile, Honey Lemon is reloading her chem purse at the table which is worrisome to Hiro, but fun for her since she gets to be around both her best friends and chemistry. Wasabi then rushes to the table in relief to see that Honey Lemon is alive. Apparently she had tried to make instant ice after her roommate made lemonade and she froze up her entire apartment (including her roommate). How...how did Regina get to...nevermind. 

The gang is discussing where Honey Lemon could live for the time being. Fred mentions that Gogo has her own place, but Gogo shoots back mentioning his mansion. It would work out, but his parents insist on doing in-depth three year background checks for overnight guests. Honestly, given how rich they are, I don't blame them for taking precautions like that. Gogo tries to explain to Honey that she wouldn't like her place due to it being in a sketchy neighborhood, but Honey being the optimistic person that she is doesn't think it'll be that bad. Gogo then caves and agrees to letting her stay at her place. Honey is continuing to show her optimism and there's a discussion of whether or not the glass is half-full or half-empty. Wasn't there a Tumblr post explaining how that works? If liquid is added, it's half-full. If liquid is taken out it's half-empty. Something like that?

Everyone is happy to help Honey Lemon move in. Wasabi notes that there's a lot of jaywalkers in the neighborhood. Honey is happy to meet new faces and bedazzle a biker's motorcycle. The biker, who is properly introduced as Felony Carl, loves the glitter because it shows how comfortable he is with his masculinity. It's official. Felony Carl is amazing. 

We're then introduced to Dibbs, a guy that walks proud, but is a terrible thief. He does manage to get a hold of an elderly lady's purse for about a second before instant karma literally hits him in the face and the purse gets back into her possession. He then spots Honey Lemon's chem purse out in the open. Rather than an easy snag, the purse ends up on a taxi and he jumps on the cab and falls off the car before making a run. 

It's now night time and we're at an abandoned warehouse. Wait. Is this the same warehouse from the movie? If so, that's a great callback! Anyway, Dibbs talks to a rat about his (probably only) successful attempt at stealing. He doesn't understand that this isn't a normal purse, but his attempts to open it are cut short due to a couple people coming in. 

We're reintroduced to Alistair Krei and his assistant! I was wondering when we'd be seeing him again. The reasoning for them being in the warehouse is that he's hiding something. A supposed "better version" of Hiro's neurotransmitter. Basically if you wear it, you can control anything linked to it with your mind. The only reason this version is better to him is because it's just different enough so he can't get sued. Congratulations, Krei. You're losing brownie points with me. 

Overhearing that it'll be worth billions, Dibbs successfully steals it for himself. Unfortunately for him, the chem purse gets stuck and chemicals are released onto Dibbs, covering his entire body. He's now what is considered to be a monster. 

It's now the next morning in Gogo's (and now Honey Lemon's) apartment. Honey is settling into the apartment, opening a box that releases an incredible amount of butterflies. They must be so happy to be free. The girls have rather different daily activities. Gogo punching a punching bag interferes with Honey's focus to meditate. Honey adding cute stickers to the fridge and everything inside it irks Gogo. Gogo accidentally destroys some of Honey's flowers. Honey's snoring causes Gogo to not get any sleep. The iconic Oh My God They Were Roommates™ vine is on loop in my head. 

Later on, the gang (minus Fred) are at the cafe and Honey is asking if anyone has seen her chem purse. Gogo immediately believes it was stolen, but Honey doesn't think that's the case. Due to the lack of sleep, Gogo is exhausted and lulled to sleep by Baymax's calm music. The relaxing moment is broken by Fred who excitedly bursts through the door. He's ecstatic over the fact that there's a monster in the city. Nobody else believes this (despite the news report) because monsters aren't real. Of course, Fred won't let the matter drop unless the others check it out. Hiro decides to join Fred on this monster hunt. Meanwhile, the others are headed for Gogo and Honey Lemon's apartment. Baymax proceeds to pick up a sleeping Gogo and cradle her in his arms which is the most wholesome content I think we've gotten so far. Seriously, that was adorable! 

Hiro and Fred are investigating for any clues that a monster has been around. Hiro steps in some chemical goop. Fred gets a sample on his finger and sniffs it up his nose. Ew. Then he (why did he do this) took it out the other nostril and put it on Hiro's face. WHY. Fred then proceeds to sing a song about how he was right about the monster which doesn't amuse Hiro in the slightest. The sound of screams has both of them jumping into actions (well, Fred is still singing, but you get the point). 

Back at the apartment, Gogo has awoken from her nap and there has been no luck with finding Honey's purse. Gogo keeps explaining how is was probably (and it was) stolen, but Honey doesn't want to accept her negative views. The girls begin the argue; Gogo stating it's hard to respect someone who's happy all the time and Honey stating it's hard to understand why she's always so serious and cool. They storm off, but screaming from outside catches everyone's attention. 

The monster is confidently walking in the street and Big Hero 6 is officially in action for the episode! Baymax scans him, stating what we already know, but he does have fragments of Honey's purse within the goop. Honey feels concerned for him, but the mention of a purse has him nervous. His attempt to flee is quickly cut short on two occasions. While he clearly doesn't have the hang of his new abilities, the team doesn't have an easy time against him. 

Hiro and Fred join the fight. Fred comes up with the name Globby for our villain, which doesn't settle well with him. He asks the cliche "Can things get any worse?" and is immediately hit by a bus.

Taking Globby down is on pause for the time being and Honey is upset knowing that she should have been more careful with her stuff. She apologizes numerous times, even after Gogo points out she's doing so too much. Our usual bubbly, cheerful character has hit a rough patch. 

Back inside the apartment, Wasabi is trying to remove goop from his suit while he, Gogo and Fred watch the news. Fred considers naming Globby his legacy. Meanwhile, Hiro is finishing up making Honey a new chem purse, but this doesn't please her. Gogo takes note of her friends’ somber mood and attempts to cheer her up. What she says doesn't get through to Honey and Baymax tries to help with a hug. That also doesn't work and Honey is ready to "face the darkness of reality". 

The gang watches as Honey begins to create a compound that will un-stick the goop from Globby. Honey mentions that her beaker is half-empty, but Gogo argues that it's half-full. The discussion from earlier in the episode has reversed on the characters, leaving them all surprised. 

We cut to Globby at a restaurant with Felony Carl. He mentions that he's having a hard time with his now mutated body (he grabbed a cat instead of a spoon). Felony Carl takes note of the headband that Globby admits he doesn't know how to use it, but seeing a photo of Krei sparks a new idea for him. 

We get a quick shot of Krei Tech (rebuilt and everything!). And what is Krei up to now? Getting a statue of himself made. Of course. During the process of getting his sculpture finished, Globby breaks through the window and takes the statue before realizing his mistake and kidnapping Krei himself. 

Meanwhile, Honey is continuing to make an un-sticky ball. Her negative attitude has yet to fade and Baymax suggests that a pleasant image may help. As he says this, some of Honey's butterflies flutter around Baymax. Gogo considers that a sign, but Honey doesn't want to see it that way. 

Wasabi gets everyone's attention to watch the news which is about what happened to Krei earlier. I'm really glad that we're hearing his assistant talk and getting a feel for her personality. She seems nice and a little funny too. 

Globby has Krei stuck to him as he climbs to the top of a building. He refuses to let him go until he explains how the headband works. Krei tries to get the neurotransmitter back while Bluff Dunder covers the current situation on live TV. Krei explains that all Globby has to do is think for it to work naturally. 

Big Hero 6 comes to his rescue and immediately jumps into action. Bluff Dunder continues his constant updates. Honey offers Globby the chem ball that will help un-stick him. Globby is visibly stressed because all he wants to do is concentrate on thinking. He knows he's been making some bad choices lately and Baymax suggests positive reinforcement. The group looks to Honey who is unsure if she should, but Gogo assures her that her upbeat attitude takes getting used to, but it's good for her. These words finally get through to Honey and the girls share a quick hug before Honey starts to help Globby. Globby doesn't want to accept what she has to say at first because no one has ever believed in him. However, hearing that he can dedicate himself to making the best out of his situation and that he's special because no one else has his abilities inspires him. 

Despite accepting himself as he is, Krei wants his prototype back and his attempt to un-stick Globby almost costs him his life when he slips off the building. Globby manages to use his new abilities to save Krei, earning an awkward thanks from him. Globby thinks all the thanks goes to Honey since she believes in him. He announces that his days of being a purse thief are over, which pleases Honey until he states what he'll be doing now. He's determined to be a super villain, making a sticky escape. The episode ends with him smacking himself into a window. 

Overall, I thought this was a pretty enjoyable episode. There was humor, heart and an interesting origin story for our new super villain. 

I really liked the character development that we got for Honey Lemon. I'm glad that we got to see a side of her that wasn't her usual self. Her negative attitude is a complete 180 for her. I enjoyed that Gogo continuously tried to help her feel better until it actually worked. Despite the differences that they had prior to Honey being sad, Gogo put that aside and was later on able to get through to her. Just...ugh that was amazing. 

Globby is an interesting character. He's pretty comical throughout the episode, so he doesn't strike me to be a major threat for the time being. Of course, I'm sure we'll be seeing him again (If the description for Failure Mode is correct, we'll be seeing him pretty soon too.) I imagine once he learns to get a better hang of his abilities, he'll be more of a challenge. As I said earlier, I like that Globby got a little origin story of how he became Globby and it'll be cool to see him again. I'm glad that there's a good reason for the chemical compound being attached to him.

Speaking of the neurotransmitter, it was nice to see Krei again. I've always been indifferent to his character since the movie and I'm still indifferent now. He's still as money hungry as he was when we were first introduced to him so I'm not entirely surprised he's still like that. I have to admit that I'm disappointed to see that he has created a "better version" of Hiro's neurotransmitter. He wasn't able to accept Hiro's rejected offer and knowing that he's pretty much copied it continues to show his arrogance. I don't feel bad that Globby stole his prototype. Still, I can always appreciate seeing a familiar face and if he ends up building Tadashi Hamada Hall (I really hope that happens in the show), he may earn those brownie points back. 

I loved our side characters from this episode! Felony Carl was such a highlight to this episode. He may be a one-off character (or we might see him again who knows), but he's so great. I'm also glad that we finally heard Krei's assistant talk. I'm sure we'll see more of her because we'll be seeing more of Krei. 

I'm really liking the humor in the show too. There's always just the right amount of it and each joke is played out well. Wasabi had some funny lines. I liked Honey Lemon's "It's time to face the darkness of reality" line. I got a kick out of the scene where Globby took Krei's statue before realizing he didn't take Krei himself and came back to get him. Bluff Dunder was pretty funny during the last scene too. 

I also I liked when some goop got on Baymax and Wasabi said, "Nobody does that to Baymax and gets away with it!" Lines like that are small things that I'm happy to hear. 

I'm still not over Baymax cradling Gogo while she slept. That was so pure and adorable and I loved it very much. 

The style of the show continues to grow on me more and more witch each episode. I love the character designs for the new characters and I think Krei and his assistant look pretty good. The animation flow isn't bothering me either. Every once in awhile, the lip syncing is just a tad bit awkward, but it's easy to look past (for me anyway). The scenery looks so good! This style honestly brings San Fransokyo to life. 

On a scale of one to ten...I'd rate Big Roommates an 8!

#my reviews #this was a really nice episode! #big hero 6: the series #bh6: the series #big hero 6 series spoilers #bh6 series spoilers #spoilers #big hero 6 #bh6 #hiro #baymax #honey lemon #gogo #wasabi #fred #alistair krei #krei #globby #bluff dunder #felony carl #big roommates

[amercsmemoirs]

The Handful and The Healer

Chapter 1: The Fateful Encounter 

AO3

Anders checked the time. 5:03am. Time to check on his newest patient. His ID said Damien Amell, and he was rushed in with alcohol poisoning. Anders pumped his stomach and got him an IV and, after some pain killers, went to sleep. Anders hadn't had much time to talk to him, but on a Wednesday night, there weren't that many people who needed emergency care.

Anders picked up the clipboard on the end of Damien's bed and examined his sleeping patient. Damien's face scrunched and he groaned. He blinked, and his eyes opened and - wow. Grey eyes. Anders had never met anyone with grey eyes; the few born with it typically develop some pigment as a toddler.

Anders was snapped from his train of thought when Damien started coughing. Anders looked over and Damien was sitting upright, hand at his throat.

"Side effect of the stomach pumping, unfortunately," Anders explained. "It's going to be a little hard for you to talk for a while."

"Heh, no kidding," Damien said. His voice was raspy and hoarse, and it probably hurt to even say that, but he still had a weak smile.

"How are you feeling? One word answers are fine," Anders added quickly.

"Hm. Better than yesterday," Damien croaked. "You sure did look surprised when you saw me wake up, doc. Was I that bad?"

"No - And you can call me Anders. You’re just awake earlier than I expected you’d be."

Damien’s face broke out in a grin.

"Heh, thanks. This isn’t my first rodeo, you know.” Then he coughed.

At that, Anders chuckled. His patient was resilient, he’ll give him that much.

"So, was last night a special occasion?" Anders asked.

Damien's head tilted in confusion. Anders's brows furrowed. Maybe he should rephrase the question?

"You know... the binge drinking?" Anders motioned to the hospital bed Damien was laying in.

Damien looked down at the bed and then realization struck.

"Oh! Hah, no, just a regular Wednesday night," Damien answered with a grin. "What, are you new here?"

Anders was completely baffled. How was he the one getting such a I-can't-believe-you-didn't-know-this look from someone binge drinking on a Wednesday night?

"I, uh ... I just transferred here last week from Fereldan. So yeah, I guess you can say I'm new."

Damien's face broke out in a grin. "Welcome to Kirkwall! You seem like a handsome, capable doctor. Why do you work at the smallest hospital in Low Town?"

Anders blinked. Was his patient ... hitting on him?

Damien's toothy grin really made Anders noticed his well-defined cheekbones, and his white teeth really shone next to his dark skin. Huh.

"Oh you know, the old story of med school debts, constant failure, and avoiding the problem. Kirkwall's Lowtown seemed a good place to start over."

Damien's expression darkened as he nodded solemnly. Like he understood where Anders was coming from.

"Where did you go to medical school?"

"Oh! Uh, I didn't. My older brother - he just graduated a few years ago."

"Does he work here?" Anders hadn't seen anyone who looked anything like Damien, but it's possible they just worked opposite shifts.

"Oh, no, he's one of those fancy doctors at that Amell Hospital in High Town," Damien responded casually. But also like he was surprised Anders didn't know that, either. "He's - oh, he's here."

Anders turned around and saw a tall man with shoulder length dreads making a beeline straight towards them. And he was tall. 6'4'' maybe? He probably towered over everyone. Broad shouldered, muscular - he was a doctor? That's insane -

Damien grunted as he threw his legs over the edge of his bed.

"Hey, you shouldn't be moving yet -"

"Damien!"

The man reached them and man, was he tall. And big. And looked incredibly haggard. Bags under his eyes, premature wrinkles. When was the last time this man slept?

The tired looking man pushed up the sleeves of his button up shirt as he pushed past Anders to examine his brother.

"Hey Zeke," Damien said as 'Zeke' turned his face back and forth.

"What's your temperature?," he asked, forgoing a greeting.

"Haven't had the chance to ask." Damien looked a little amused.

"Blood pressure? Last night's blood-alcohol content?"

"I'm pretty sure a doctor would know better than I would. Just ask Anders."

"Damien, please. At least call him 'Doctor'," 'Zeke' said, exasperated.

"Actually, I'm an EMT," Anders interrupted, finally finding his voice.

At that Zeke finally turned to him. It just dawned on him that he probably didn't even see him when he rushed to his brother. He looked him up and down, as if he was suddenly judging him.

"Hello Zeke," Anders began nervously. Damien's eyebrows raised. "I'm Anders. He doesn't have to call me 'doctor'," he added, hand stretched out. "Just my top notch, friendly bedside manner."

"He doesn't have to call you 'doctor'," Zeke agreed, rather coldly. "You aren't one. And it's Ezekiel."

Ouch. Anders lowered his hand.

"Hey, Zeke take it easy - " Damien hopped off the bed - well, less of a hop and more of a plop. He was almost as tall as his brother! And they both were taller than he was. Anders was already almost 6’ -

"We're leaving, Damien.”

As Ezekiel strided past Anders, Anders thought of saying a goodbye - but then thought better of it when he caught a glimpse of Ezekiel’s glower. Damien took two steps after Ezekiel and stopped in front of Anders.

“Yeah … He doesn’t really like it when people call him ‘Zeke’. Sibling privilege, unfair, I know,” Damien mused, patting Anders’s shoulder. This close, Anders could see small, silver lines on his face, marking old scars.

Then Damien winked. “Don’t worry, Anders, you’ll be seeing plenty of me. So you’ll be able to get to know Ezekiel better too! Works out for everyone.”

“Hah. Not too often, I hope?” Anders asked. He wouldn’t mind seeing those grey eyes outside the hospital.

Damien gasped, rather dramatically, and gripped his chest. “Anders! Don’t tell me you’re already tired of me!”

Anders laughed, but before he could get a response out, Ezekiel called for his brother from down the hallway. Damien said his goodbyes and followed his brother out of the hospital. The pair got stares from nurses, doctors, patients - literally everyone they passed on the way out. Ezekiel was cold, but he very clearly dropped everything as soon as he’d heard about his brother. And his brother, Damien … obviously a wild card. Anders felt like Damien walked away knowing more about him than the other way around. But, as extreme as he seemed, he still felt warm and friendly. What an interesting pair.

*~*~

A few hours later, Anders was finishing up his paperwork for the day in the hospital lab. He usually tried to stay out of the lab, but it was usually quieter there than anywhere else. And only doctors had offices. His eyes glanced over his patient list and his eyes caught the name Damien Amell. Why did ‘Amell’ sound so familiar?

“Hey, Bethany,” Anders started. Bethany Hawke was a new intern, fresh out of med school, aspiring to be a doctor. Apparently, she’d shown promise, as Chief of Medicine Orsino had pointed her out to Anders several times since he’s been at the hospital. Anders had to admit, Bethany was quick witted, completed all of her paperwork on time, and had excellent bedside manners. He hadn’t heard a single negative thing about her, and she’d been at this hospital for a few months now.

“Yeah, Anders?” Bethany’s voice rang up from the other side of the desk, behind a stack of papers. The lab wasn’t huge; relatively small for the amount of work they had to get done there, but they had as much equipment as they could fit there. Bethany learned to work around it all pretty quickly, and became pretty adept at stacking what she needed very high.

“What do you know about the ‘Amell’ family?”

“Amell?” She popped her head out from behind the stack and looked over at him. Her dark brown curls bounced as she got up and walked over to him.

“They’re my cousins,” she stated plainly.

“What?” Anders scanned her hazel eyes, trying to see if she was bluffing - but no, people as good as Bethany didn’t bluff.

“Yeah, my mom’s sister and her kids. Ezekiel, Damien, and Claire. Ooh, who did you meet?” She peeked over his shoulder at his paperwork.

“Damien Amell,” Anders answered for her. “And Ezekiel came to pick him up.”

“Oh you met Damien and Zeke!” Bethany exclaimed. Apparently, ‘Zeke’ was okay for siblings and cousins. Anders wondered if Damien knew. “Yeah, Damien is here a lot. It’s pretty much the only way to get Zeke to leave the hospital.”

“What hospital? Damien told me he was a doctor, but I don’t remember which one.”

“Are you kidding?” Bethany looked him up and down, an incredulous tone in her voice. Why did everyone in this family do that to him? “Ezekiel is the chief physician at the Amell Hospital. It’s the biggest and oldest hospital in Kirkwall.”

Now that was something Anders should have known. Maker, the Amell Hospital was huge. And cutthroat. Anders would be lucky to even get an interview. And yet, he did not envy Ezekiel. Even being born into the family, maybe even especially, getting the Chief of Medicine position was not going to be easy. And he still dropped everything to pick up his brother on the other side of town?

“That’s crazy,” Anders started, barely able to wrap his head around this new information. “Why is Damien so … out of control if he’s the son of the Revka Amell? How is he in and out of a rival hospital on a regular basis? Why is Ezekiel risking his position at the most prestigious hospital in the Free Marches to pick up his brother from a hospital? And why aren’t you working at your cousin’s hospital?”

Bethany laughed, her brown skin wrinkling at her eyes. Even her laugh was light and airy.

“Well, Damien has already established with Auntie Rev that he’s not going to be a doctor, and she’s already publicly disowned him. And I would barely call this place a ‘rival hospital.’ Ezekiel spends almost every day of the week in the hospital, doing Auntie Rev’s bidding so he can take over the hospital. So he can spare a day or two to spend with family. And me, I just like helping people. Amell Hospital doctors are a little too … ‘out for themselves’ for me. Except for Zeke, of course,” she added.

That gave Anders pause. That family was so complex, with so many different pieces to the puzzle. Oh, Maker. What had Anders learned?

“Why all the questions, hm? Interested in one of them?” Bethany teased. And she didn’t even sound malicious.

“Huh?” The question caught him off guard. Interested? In whom, exactly?

“Honestly, nearly everyone here wants to get Zeke, somehow.” Bethany seemed to shudder at the thought. “Don’t feel bad about it, but you’d have a long line of doctors and nurses to get through to get to him.” Another laugh.

“No, I’m not interested in Ezekiel, I was just - curious. There’s so much more going on than I’d thought.”

None of that was a lie, really. He just didn’t feel like it was the whole truth for some reason. Not that it mattered; the work he had was more important that this dysfunctional family.

“That’s fair. They are a bit of a mess.” She grinned a little sheepishly. “Well, I’m gonna finish my lab work, unless you had more questions about my cousins?”

Anders chuckled. “No, no. Sorry for taking up so much of your time.”

“No worries!”

She returned to her side of the desk and disappeared behind the stack of papers. He decided to return to his paperwork, as well. Damien Amell. Huh. Well, he’d rather not gonna worry about it right now. If he runs into him again, he’ll consider giving the Amells a second thought.

*~*~

Anders had about a week of normal, adrenaline rushing EMT work before Damien showed up again.

Over the weekend, the work picked up of course; bar fights, car accidents, self-repair mishaps. Nothing out of the ordinary for Kirkwall. He’d spent a few days recuperating at home with his new kitten, Ser-Pounce-A-Lot, and tending to the herb garden he’d set up in his kitchen. He was renting a small apartment in Lowtown, the most reasonable space he could think of given his workplace and his salary, and there wasn’t much room for greenery. However, modern inventions had created things like hanging pot racks and window sills, so Anders made do with what he had.

Then, Thursday night around 7:50pm, Anders was paged to go down to the ER to patch up a street market brawl patient. Apparently, the patient was jumped by four other men, all of whom were in surgery or getting stitches, but they just needed a few wounds sewed up. In hindsight, Anders felt like he really shouldn’t have been as surprised as he was to see Damien in the hospital bed. And to see that he was chatting with an elven nurse he seemed to know really well.

“You really didn’t need to involve yourself, you know,” she was saying as she wiped the blood off his face.

Damien winced. “They were giving Isabela a hard time! And they were drunk at like, 5 in the afternoon!”

The nurse - Anders recognized her as Velanna Ilshae - shook her head. “It was seven in the evening -” Damien protested. “And Isabela can handle herself. You and Carver got too involved.”

Damien looked fake appalled. “And what kind of gentleman would I be if I allowed a lady to be verbally accosted on my watch?”

Velanna stared at him for a few seconds and then smacked his nose.

“Hey!” Damien rubbed his nose and turned to see Anders at his bed. “Anders!” Damien grinned at him, then winced - Anders could tell that probably wasn’t the best idea. There were cuts on his cheeks, near his jawline - likely from multiple rings - and bruises up and down his arms. Whoever he’d fought against had to have been shorter than him. But realistically, who wasn’t? Anders wouldn’t be surprised if he had a fractured rib, honestly.

“Hello again, Damien.” Anders couldn’t help but smile just a little.

“Anders, please talk to Nurse Ilshae about her bedside manners. She just assaulted a bedridden patient!”

Velanna and Anders made eye contact and her expression completely gave off the idea that she would not care about what he had to say about that. Better to leave it alone.

“I can take it from here, Velanna,” he said instead.

She nodded and put the gauze down. Damien waved goodbye as she went to check on another patient.

“So is this a typical Thursday night?” Anders asked as he settled in Velanna’s spot. Those cuts were going to need cleaning and stitches.

“Hah!” Damien laughed, quite cheerfully actually, and then winced again. “Ow! Uh, no. While I do like to keep things interesting, this was more of a night out with friends after work.”

“That’s not very reassuring.” Anders finished cleaning Damien’s face and picked up the butterfly stitches.

Ander would have to get up close and personal to fix up Damien’s face. Time to put that top notch bedside manner to work.

“So, I met your cousin Bethany last week. Well, I’d met her before but I didn’t know she was your cousin. Your families are pretty well established here.”

Damien nodded instead of responding. He was either not good with needles or he knew the routine when someone is sticking his face back together. Probably both.

As Anders finished, he saw Damien’s hand reach up towards his face. Anders suddenly understood how Velanna got comfortable with smacking him.

“Don’t touch.”

Damien’s hand lowered quickly and Anders moved to stitch up the other side.

“But, you wouldn’t know how well established you and Bethany are just by looking at you. You’re both incredibly humble.”

Damien stifled a chuckle. Anders finished the other cheek and wiped the remaining blood off his patients face.

“So, where do you work?”

“The Bone Pit Construction Company,” Damien responded with a grin.

“The - The old mining facility?”

“Hah, yeah, crazy name right? Apparently, it decided to go into construction,” Damien explained. “The owner just didn’t feel like changing the name, I guess?”

“Huh. Well, I’m not too confident about you working in a construction zone with your injuries. I can write you a doctor’s note to get out of work for a few days.”

Damien shook his head. “No, don’t worry about it. I own the place, so I pretty much just bark orders.”

“Aren’t you a little young to own a construction company?”

Anders knew from his ID that he was only 24. Two years younger than Anders and yet so much taller.

“You’re telling me. But, you do a few favors for the owner, clean up some messes, uncover a few murder mysteries, and suddenly they just want nothing to do with the place. So it’s mine now, I guess.” Damien shrugged, then grabbed his side.

That didn’t sound right to Anders, but he didn’t know enough business ownership laws to argue.

“Sure. Alright take a deep breath for me.”

Anders put his stethoscope on and listened to Damien’s breathing. Nothing sounded out of the ordinary, though his heart rate was a little faster than normal.

“Are you feeling alright?” Anders asked.

“Yeah? I mean, relatively speaking. Could be better, could be worse.”

Damien sounded pretty calm.

“It’s just, your heartbeat is a little fast.”

“Oh! Uh, really? That’s, uh, strange, I feel fine. Hey, why were you using a needle earlier? You’re an EMT right? I thought they couldn’t do anything that breaks the skin.”

Was he changing the subject? Anders really didn’t know him well enough to tell if this was him being embarrassed or nervous or if he was just like that.

“Don’t tell me I make you nervous, Damien,” Anders teased. “This is a small hospital and since all of our doctors are taking care of their patients or the men you beat up, I can bend the rules a little.”

“Hm, you should have seen Carver,” Damien said. “He got away without a scratch. He’s Bethany’s twin, by the way.” Anders’s brows shot up. “Yeah, I figured you didn’t know.” Damien grinned yet again.

“Are there any other family members I should know about?” Anders couldn’t keep the exasperation out of his voice, but Maker, did Damien have a lot of relatives.

Damien laughed heartily - and then groaned in pain. Yeah, probably a bruised rib. “Uh, let’s see - Zeke, me, and Claire. And Bethany and Carver have two older sisters, Amber and Alexis. But uh, yeah, that’s it, I’m pretty sure. Do you not have siblings?”

Anders was taken aback by the question. It wasn’t out of line or anything, but Damien’s voice suddenly carried interest and concern. It was unexpected.

“No, I’m, uh, an only child. My parents passed away about a year ago. It’s actually why I was gone for a while.”

“Oh - And I kept making jokes. Sorry - well, sorry for your loss.”

Damien’s voice dropped a little and he looked so concerned and why was Anders even telling him this?

“Don’t worry about it. We weren’t that close. They weren’t too fond of me after I dropped out of med school.”

There was also the whole, preferred-sleeping-with-men thing, but Anders didn’t feel compelled to share that with this near stranger. But then Damien nodded like he understood.

“Yeah that’ll make someone’s parents disown them if they aren’t too careful.”

“Speaking from experience?” Anders asked.

“No, not uh, mine. Zeke went through a lot with Revka.”

“Revka.” Not “mom.”

“Well, I do not envy Ezekiel’s position.” Anders picked up Damien’s patient clipboard and started writing. “You seem fine, other than needing stitches, and your rib is likely just bruised. Nothing’s been punctured or broken, but you should still get some anti-inflammatory medication and keep your side iced for a few days. You should be fine. Also, here’s a doctor’s note anyway,” Anders added, handing him the paper. “You know, just in case you’d like to take a few days from your highly exciting lifestyle.”

Damien chuckled. “Thanks, Anders. I’ll definitely consider that.”

“So is your brother picking you up? I figured he’d show by now.”

If Anders didn’t know any better, he would have sworn Damien’s face fell for the briefest moment.

“Who knows. Maybe they told him it was just a fist fight and I wasn’t dying this time,” he responded casually.

“That would make sense -”

“Nevermind, there he is.”

Damien motioned behind Anders and there was Ezekiel, striding down the hallway to them. Again, Ezekiel pushed past Anders to get to Damien. Anders was convinced he was invisible or something.

“Hey, Zeke.” Damien wore a sheepish grin. “What took so long? We were scared you’d forgotten about me.”

Ezekiel frowned but didn’t dignify that with a response.

“Are you alright?” The older brother was eyeing the stitches on his brother’s cheeks. Maker, Anders didn’t want to know what he’d say if Ezekiel learned he did it and not a certified doctor.

“Yeah I’m fine. Carver is too,” Damien added.

Ezekiel’s teeth clenched. “Carver was with you? Is he here - Is he hurt?”

“No, no, bro, relax. Carver didn’t get a scratch on him. He dropped me off at the hospital and then took Isabela home.” Damien placed his hands on his brothers shoulders in an attempt to calm him down. It looked like that worked.

“Isabela was there too? What, did someone ‘verbally accost’ her again?”

Damien laughed and grabbed his side. “Aaah. Ow. Yeah. Those men are also here, if you were interested in knowing that.”

Ezekiel paused for a second. He seemed to be considering if he cared? Maybe? “I wasn’t. Who did your stitches?”

Damien pointed behind Ezekiel at Anders. “Anders the EMT.” Damien grinned.

Ezekiel turned and looked at Anders for the first time. Yeah, he was definitely invisible to this giant. Ezekiel looked almost the same as last week; bags under his eyes like he hadn’t had a good night’s rest in years, a few lines on his face, and - sunken cheeks? Was he getting enough to eat? The clothes were different, at least. White, purple, and grey plaid button up with black slacks.

“Anders.”

“Hello, Ezekiel.” Anders didn’t want to risk saying more than that after last week’s interaction.

Ezekiel and Damien exchanged a meaningful look and then Ezekiel sighed and turned back to Anders.

“The stitches look - good. Like they won’t get infected.”

Damien groaned loudly and Anders held back a laugh. He had to assume that was Ezekiel’s version of a compliment.

“Uh, thank you. I do my best with what we have. It’s not Amell quality resources, but we get by.” Anders smiled.

Ezekiel frowned and Damien grimaced and - Did Anders say something wrong?

“Right. We should get going, Damien.”  

Ezekiel walked by Anders down the hallway.

Damien got off the bed with that same grimace and stood next to Anders.

“You weren’t wrong, but you shouldn’t have said it. Zeke’s actually convinced Revka to donate supplies to Kirkwall’s hospitals twice a year. So some of this stuff is Amell quality.”

Anders could have kicked himself. Of course that sounded bitter.

“Can you tell him -”

“You’re sorry you said something so hurtful in your ignorance and hope to make it up to him?”

Anders suppressed a frown. “The first bit is more accurate.”

“Heh, alright. I can pass that along. Take care, Anders.”

Damien patted Anders’s shoulder and caught up with his brother, saying something about grabbing dinner before going home.

Just like last time, heads turned as they made their way out the building. Anders was impressed, just like last time, but he was starting to understand why. Sure, Ezekiel was definitely a catch, but Damien had his own charms. He was quick witted and funny and could take a punch, apparently. Actually, a great deal of pain, as many times he’s been in the hospital.

Anders called a nurse to clean what was left of Damien’s blood and moved on to the next patient.

*~*~

Anders strode through the hallway to the break room as quickly as he could. Doctors and nurses flitted about, rushing from one room to another, administering flu shots and changing bandages. It was a Tuesday afternoon and there were a lot of people in the ER with flu symptoms. Some just had stab wounds (this was Lowtown) but more than the usual were sick. He’d already been working since 10am and it was already 3pm. And he was starving. If he could just make it to the break room he’d be in the clear -

“Anders!”

Maker’s balls.

Anders stopped and turned to see Velanna flagging him down.

“Hey, I need you to take over a patient in the clinic for me.”

“Why, Velanna?”

“Because it’s time for my shift to be over.” Velanna crossed her arms, daring him to challenge her.

“Velanna, I’ve been here since 10 and I haven’t eaten -”

“Anders, I’ve been here since last night and I was called in to help with the sudden wave of sick people and I had to cancel a date with a handsome man to stay here.”

Anders glared at her and her superior smirk and gave up. It wasn’t his first full shift without eating and probably wouldn’t be his last.

“Fine. Whatever.”

“Thank you so much, Anders,” Velanna said sarcastically. She patted his arm once as they passed each other. He groaned in response and headed to the clinic.

----

Anders grabbed the clipboard in front of the door and knocked. This patient was diagnosed with a bruised rib and needed a follow up, but they weren’t sick, at least. He heard a voice confirm his entry and opened the door.

“Hey Anders!”

Anders looked up at the cheerful voice and there was Damien, leaning back on his elbows in the bed. His red shirt was torn just above his bicep and was tucked into his black jeans. Damien sat up as Anders crossed the room to him.

“Of course it’s you.” Anders sighed.

“Oh - yeah, sorry, it’s just me,” Damien responded despondently. “Didn’t really mean to bug you again -”

“No, no. No. Sorry Damien,” Anders cut him off. “I’m glad to see you - especially since it’s not in the ER.”

“Yeah, just a follow up, doc.” Damien seemed to be proud of that.

“I’m just really tired and starving and Velanna fed me some story about having to cancel a date with some guy and I just realized it was all a ploy to get me here -”

“She told you she cancelled a date with a guy?” Damien asked, incredulous. “She has a girlfriend, Anders. They hang out with Bethany and Claire sometimes. I’ve even seen them go on double dates with Carver and Merrill. Her name is Sigrun, I think?”

Anders pinched the bridge of nose in frustration. Velanna lied to get him in room with Damien. Why?

“Right. Of course. Just to mess with me I’m sure.”

“No! No, that’s not why - uh, look Anders I don’t wanna impose but -”

“Yes, right, your ribcage. Let me check you out.” Anders approached Damien and poked Damien’s ribcage and he jumped a little, but no groaning, no wincing.

“Your ribs are okay?”

Damien nodded and Anders examined his face - thin, dark lines replaced the red ones from a week ago. Damien’s arms weren’t bruised anymore either.

“You’re all healed up. This is literally the first time I’ve seen you uninjured. Why are you here then?”

“Right, yeah, hang on.”

Anders took a step back as Damien got off the bed and picked up a bag from the floor. He pulled out a small container of pasta, a smaller container filled with - maybe meat? - and a third full of red sauce.

Damien couldn’t be doing what Anders thought he was doing…. Could he?

“I don’t want you to feel like this is a bribe, or anything - I just made dinner last night and I figured you would need something to eat or whatever. I wanted to give this to you whether or not you said yes - Also I wasn’t sure if you ate meat? And I didn’t want to assume, so there’s vegetarian red sauce and some chicken -”

Damien went on and on with increasing nervousness and Anders just couldn’t wrap his head around this. Damien asked Velanna to get Anders into the clinic so Damien could bring him food and - what else?

“Damien, Damien,” Anders interrupted him. Damien stopped talking almost immediately. “What are you trying to say?”

“That, uh, this is your lunch that I made whether or not you say ‘yes.’ I mean - if you want it.” Damien extended the containers to Anders.

“Okay. Thank you, Damien,” Anders started, as he took the containers. “Say yes to what?”

“I was hoping that, maybe on your next off day or something, maybe you and I can … you know … go out to dinner? Or, like, lunch or a movie or something.”

Anders blinked. He went through all of this to ask him out?

“And if you don’t want to it’s fine! I’ll leave and you won’t have to see me again.” Damien paused. “Well, you will see me again, ‘cause I’m here a lot, but not like, in a ‘potentially romantic’ situation -”

“Damien. You’re rambling.” Anders couldn’t hold back a grin. When was the last time he was asked out on a date? Couldn’t even remember the last time he asked someone else. Maker, was he being courted? He suddenly felt nervous.

“Mhm.” Damien stopped talking again.

“I’d be glad to go on a date with you. One thing though; it’ll just be you and me, right? No family members?”

Damien’s eyebrows shot up in surprise and then he laughed. “Yeah, yeah. Just you and me. No family.”

“Then I’ll let you know when I’m free.” Anders smiled up at Damien and might have even thought he was blushing. Maker, he was too old to blush.

“That’s - Awesome! Great! Can’t wait!” Damien leaned in towards Anders, like he was going for a hug but then decided not to. “I’ll, uh see you around!”

Damien grabbed the bag and his jacket and bounded out the door. Anders looked over the stack of containers he’d gotten. How could anyone be so sweet?

And then he realized he didn’t have Damien’s number. So sweet and so impulsive. Anders supposed he could get Damien’s number from Velanna or Bethany -

Then he saw black writing on the largest container:

My brother’s number: (xxx) xxx-xxxx -Ezekiel

#dragon age 2 #anders #anders x m!warden #male amell #Damien Amell #Ezekiel Amell #Velanna #Bethany Hawke #this is like 16 pages #i wrote it in two days #i think my writing is better when i get it all out at once?? #and i dont overthink things??? #anyway i guess #this is officially my #Hot Mess AU #i saw a list and scrolled through it and didnt actually read it #but i glimpsed at this #and Damien is a hot mess(TM) #so here we are #anyway ......................... #enjoy

[0n-y0ur-left]

HEY ALL - this is kind of terribad but I finally busted through my epic writer’s block, and give you the follow-up wedding ficlet started from this prompt (I don’t want to go to my ex’s wedding alone).

In the weeks leading up to the wedding, Steve was infinitely glad that he’d finally gotten up the nerve to ask Bucky to come as his ‘date’ - not only because of the relief he felt when he’d been able to check off the plus one box on his RSVP and save face, but because it turned out that planning an international trip in such a short amount of time (even one that had been planned as meticulously as Peggy Carter could) was ridiculously stressful work.  Steve wasn’t sure he’d have gotten through all of it with his sanity intact, if not for Bucky’s help.

As it was, they had their flights scheduled and were both able to get a few extra days off of work to allow themselves time to do independent sightseeing around the city.  Initially they’d had trouble figuring out how to fill said days without being completely pathetic tourists, but luckily Steve had been able to find time for drinks with Peggy one evening after work, who was so thrilled to hear that he was FINALLY owning up to his feelings about Bucky (the way she’d gushed when Steve had admitted the identity of his date had been all kinds of uncomfortable, considering how subtle he thought his feelings for his friend were) that she was all-too-happy to give them an itinerary of things to do together.  Steve tried his best to ignore how many times she mentioned Angie during the list… not because he had any problems with his ex’s fiance, of course, but because he didn’t want to psyche himself out too much when it came to riding the London Eye with Bucky.  

Just because Peggy said it made for a great date afternoon, didn’t mean that they couldn’t enjoy the hell out of it as friends.

As the date drew closer, Steve was half-afraid that he should suggest they spend time acting as a couple, to make the whole facade more natural when they were put on the spot; as it was they were spending so much time together anyway, making plans and just hanging out as they always had (and on one regrettable night, practicing dance moves at Bucky’s insistence) that it hardly seemed necessary.  God knew that they were together just as often as any other busy, employed Millennial couple were, and they’d known each other for so long that it wasn’t as if someone would be able to quiz them and call their bluff on the act.  Plus, weren’t people supposed to date their best friends, anyway?  If anything, Steve figured that Bucky was the best he could ask for in a pretend date, outside of maybe Peggy herself.

He was getting really good at ignoring the voice that reminded him how much he wished it wasn’t pretend, too.

Before he knew it, the week of the wedding had arrived, and found the two of them waiting outside the gate for their flight, listening to podcasts on their phones as they passed the time.  They’d been ridiculously early to arrive at the airport - but having never flown internationally before Steve had wanted to give plenty of time to get through security and find their gate, and being an incredible friend, Bucky had put up with him.  Thankfully their luggage and passports had been approved without issue, which left Steve with a solid hour to worry about their bags being lost or embarrassing himself at the wedding, or the trip turning into a disaster, or their suits not showing up at their hotel as ordered…

He didn’t even realize how much he’d worked himself up until a solid, warm arm had snaked its way around his shoulders and pulled him into a sideways hug.  Steve blinked in surprise, feeling the tension ease out of his muscles as he turned his head towards Bucky - who went right on reading the battered paperback in his free hand, as if nothing had happened.  As if it were perfectly normal for him to just hold Steve until he calmed down.

Honestly, it wasn’t that uncommon; Bucky had been a tactile guy for as long as Steve had known him.  But something about the way he left his arm around Steve’s thin shoulders, and the gentle way that his thumb moved back and forth, mindlessly over the point of Steve’s shoulder, somehow felt different.  And while it kept him from completely freaking out before their boarding announcement was finally made, it also scared the hell out of him, for entirely different reasons.

Thankfully, the flight had gone without problems, and landed them in London exactly as planned, with all of their luggage intact.  Even better, they’d been able to get a ride from Heathrow relatively easily, and arrived at their hotel to find the suits that they’d ordered and had fitted in New York already waiting for them.  It almost made Steve nervous all over again; he worried about just how far he’d be able to press his luck before it ran out.  

His question was answered as soon as they’d opened the door to their room.  It made sense, given the fact that they’d told Peggy they were coming to her wedding as a couple, that the room she’d book for them in the wedding party’s block of hotel suites would be one with a single king bed in it, but that didn’t make the idea of sleeping with his best friend for an entire week any less daunting.

Bucky, of course, found it hilarious.  

“I mean, we did ask for it, didn’t we?”  He chuckled, already turning and making his way past Steve back to the tiny sitting room they’d walked through.  “It’s no big deal, I’m sure the couch pulls out…”

“No,” Steve responded immediately, surprising them both when he caught Bucky by the elbow.  For as hard as his heart was pounding in his chest, his voice sounded remarkably certain.  “No, that’s stupid.  The bed’s huge, there’s no reason we can’t just share it.”

“It’s not a big deal -” Bucky countered.

“I know,” Steve interrupted, jutting his chin out in warning.  “It’ll be like old times, right?  Which side d’ya want?”

There was a moment where something weird flashed across Bucky’s face, but it passed so quickly that Steve decided to pretend like he hadn’t noticed it, and instead started setting his luggage up the way he wanted in the closet on the opposite side of the room.

For as uncomfortable as that initial sleeping discussion was, the rest of the week went surprisingly well.  They met up with Ang and Peggy for dinner at an incredible restaurant overlooking Hyde Park on their second night in the city, and spent the rest of their time sightseeing - touring palaces and the Tower of London, wandering through the National Gallery of art and even catching a play at a smaller theatre just outside of the West End.  It was so easy and comfortable, wandering around the city with Bucky, taking in the incredible sights and comparing and contrasting them to all of the similar experiences they’d shared in New York over the years.  Buck, for his part, seemed to be enjoying it just as much as Steve - his excitement was so infectious that even the selfies that he swore on getting of the two of them together at each of their stops didn’t even annoy Steve, despite how much he usually hated having his picture taken.

The way they looked didn’t even occur to him until an older couple on the London Eye offered to take their picture, after having inevitably heard Bucky bemoaning how hard it was to get a shot of the two of them that really captured the view.  “A couple as handsome as yourselves deserves a full-body shot, anyway,” she said with shrewd smile, beaming as she made her way back to her husband while Steve and Bucky gaped at her like idiots.

It wasn’t until the champagne got passed around at the very top that Steve realized that they’d booked a couples’ trip on the famous wheel.  He tried his best to hide his embarrassment in his champagne fluke, and told himself for the rest of the ride that they were obviously getting good practice.  It helped him ignore all of the kissing couples around them and how badly he wanted Bucky to suggest that they give into peer pressure.  (Unfortunately, Buck was suddenly way too busy taking photos of the view and uploading selfies to instagram.  Steve convinced himself it was for the better - with the wedding being the next night, it wouldn’t do well to make things weird, now)

The day of the wedding broke sunny and bright, hardly what Steve had expected when Peggy had decided on a winter wedding in London.  All the same, he couldn’t help feeling happy for her - she and Angie both deserved as much, and Steve was beyond glad that he could be there for their big day.  Even if it meant waking up in a warm, sunkissed room with his best friend wrapped around him like an octopus.

Luckily, Steve was able to get out of Bucky’s hold before he woke up, and they were able to spend their morning getting ready without the additional awkwardness between them.  Everything was going great, Steve thought - his suit fit him well, his cowlick actually cooperated when he gelled his hair into place, and it looked as though they’d be ready with more than enough time to catch the first shuttle from the hotel to the church.  And then Bucky walked out of the bathroom, and Steve forgot how to breathe.

They’d never been able to match their schedules up well-enough to have gone suit shopping together in New York, so Steve had just told Bucky his planned colors and figured no one would exactly be expecting them to match, anyway.  Steve’s suit was a slate grey, with a pearl shirt and navy blue silk tie that the sales clerk who’d helped him that day swore brought out his eyes.  Bucky’s suit was at least a shade darker, and the same color as his shirt and tie.  The ensemble might have been too dark and monotone, if Bucky didn’t still have the jacket open, revealing the bright blue silk lining inside.  Between the way he’d slicked his hair back and the dark colors and cut of the suit, it made his cheekbones and jaw look even sharper than normal, and his shoulders impossibly broader.

The only coherent thought that Steve had as he looked at him was that this was a BAD. IDEA.

(the rest of his panicked mind completely blocked out the shell-shocked look that Bucky’d had when he caught a glimpse of Steve, too)

“You look good,” Bucky croaked, breaking the awkward silence an eternity later.  

“Yeah,” Steve muttered stupidly, “Yeah, you do, too.  We should prolly go.”

And just like that they were back to acting normal.  The ride to the church was short, and once they arrived they both were kept busy with catching up with other friends in attendance and introducing themselves to the family members that they didn’t recognize.  The service was small enough that it wasn’t long before they were seated for the wedding party, and the brides finally made their way down the aisle.  Angie was gorgeous, looking like an angel in floaty white tulle with her blonde hair piled on her head.  Peggy, of course, was equally beautiful in a form-fitting vintage dress, with her usual curls and matte red lipstick.  

They both cried when they saw one another, and looked so blissfully happy that Steve couldn’t quite help but tear up as well - mostly out of happiness.  It wasn’t so much that he wanted to take Angie’s place… he knew that she was better for Peggy, that the two of them were well-suited as friends.  But at the same time, he couldn’t help but wish that someone would look at him the way they looked at one another when they took hands in front of the alter.

The fact that Bucky looked a little misty when he pressed his shoulder against Steve’s helped, weirdly enough.

That gentle touch remained throughout the service, keeping Steve grounded as the women said their vows and kissed, and then the church practically erupted with joy as they spilled out into the reception hall.  

The ceremony being over helped, as did the food and the booze and the relaxed atmosphere of all of the party goers.  Steve was able to give the happy couple a hug and his congratulations, then stammer his thanks as they both oohed and ahhed over how well his suit fit and how good Bucky looked and how adorable their instagram had been over the week, a theme that seemed to carry through the night.  Once the dinner plates had been cleared and toasts had been made, and Peggy and Angie had their first dance as a couple, the music picked up - and Bucky left Steve’s side for the first time all week.

Steve did his best not to mope, instead watching with a smile as he sipped his drink and watched Bucky charm Sharon, and then both Peggy and Angie and half of the other ladies present with a dance.  Steve couldn’t begrudge him for it; Buck always had been the life of a party, and it wasn’t like Steve could blame women for wanting to dance with him.

He lost track of time, and had no idea how many songs passed before someone was dropping into the chair next to him.  Bucky grinned before taking a long drink from the glass of water he’d left behind, while Steve tried not to get too interested in the stray curl of hair that had escaped his gel and flopped over onto his forehead.

“So,” Bucky finally said once his glass was empty, leaning in and speaking up over the bass of the pop song that was blaring from the dance floor.  “Am I getting that dance tonight, Rogers?  We do have appearances to keep up.”

Between his hair and the devilish little smile Bucky gave him, and the liquid courage that Steve had built up throughout the course of the night, he surprised even himself by rising out of his chair and holding his hand out to Bucky.  “We came all this way, I suppose I owe you something,” he answered, his smile and tone completely negating the peevish words.

Bucky was out of his chair like a shot, and practically dragged Steve to the dance floor, as if he was afraid that he’d end up changing his mind.  Of course, as soon as they found a spot, the song changed, fading from the frantic beat of the dance song to a soft, melancholy piano intro.

“Er,” Bucky started, color rising on his cheeks as he looked down at Steve questioningly.

Steve caught Peggy giving him a huge smile, spinning Angie so that she could give him a ridiculous double thumbs up, and realized that he could hardly chicken out now.  He stepped in closer to Bucky, taking hold of his left hand and sliding his right around the small of his back, until they were pressed gently against one another.  “You’re not gonna punk out on me, are ya?”  Steve asked, resting his face against the lapel of Bucky’s jacket, so that he’d miss the look on his face if Bucky decided to turn him down, now.

Wise men say, the singer’s voice began.

“Nah,” Bucky responded quietly, wrapping his own arm around Steve’s back and beginning to sway to the music.   “Not a chance I’m blowin’ this one.”

The latter was said softly enough that Steve barely heard it over the words Only fools rush in.

But I can’t help falling in love with you.

Steve tried his best to relax as the song went on, to focus on avoiding Bucky’s toes and trying his best not to look like an idiot, but it was hard to pay attention to much other than the heat radiating off of Bucky’s chest, or the careful, perfect way that they swayed back and forth to the ridiculously cliche music.  Steve never lifted his face off of Bucky’s jacket, terrified of what his friend would see on his face if he dared to look at him: because it was true.  The past week, the months of planning leading up to it, the years of friendship when they’d both undoubtedly been the most important person in each other’s lives… how could he not have fallen for Bucky Barnes?  If he was honest with himself, Steve knew that he’d probably been in love with Bucky since before he’d ever really known what love was.

And now here he was, surrounded by happy people and love and romance, and pretending like he was dating the love of his life.  Because Steve was a fucking idiot.

Like a river flows surely to the sea

Darling so it goes, some things are meant to be

Steve almost cut their dance off, realizing that he was reaching his limit for punishment (a threshold he’d honestly never thought he’d reach), but when he looked up at Bucky he found himself so shocked that he was unable to do anything but continue swaying to the music.  Because Bucky was staring down at him with a look Steve had never saw before - a look that was so open and raw and, dare he hope, lovesick, that he couldn’t step away from it.  

A look that perfectly captured everything that Steve was feeling.

Take my hand, take my whole life too

Oh for I can’t help falling in love with you

“Stevie?” Bucky whispered, his voice barely a rasp over the music and yet still the only thing that Steve could hear.  He didn’t say anything else, but then he didn’t need to.  Steve knew all too well what he was asking, and he was more than happy to comply.

He surged up on his toes at the same time that Bucky ducked his head, pressing their mouths together in a chaste but fierce kiss.  Steve had no idea how long they stayed locked together like that, but he didn’t care, either.  When their lips finally parted he pulled Bucky back to him, stealing a couple of quick pecks as Bucky huffed in surprise but returned all the same.

They were both flushed when they looked at each other again, panting slightly from the rush and length of the kiss.  After a few seconds of stunned silence, Steve felt a grin split across his face that was so wide it hurt - Bucky was grinning like a dopey idiot right back at him.  

At some point the song changed, but neither of them particularly paid attention: they just continued swaying together on their own corner of the dance floor, making out in their own obliviously happy little bubble.

Across the dance floor the brides exchanged a high five as they giggled at their once-hopeless friends, ecstatic that their plan had worked, before taking a cue from the boys and sharing a snog of their own.

#stucky #cartinelli #stucky au #steve x bucky #ficlet #prompt fill #continuation #IT'S SO FLUFFY GUYS #fake relationship #enough pining to fill a forrest #Jay tries to fic

[disastervaxildan]

my favorite thing about griffin as a dm is that he taught himself how to write and produce original music for taz but refused to learn the 5e ability checks

#the amount of times he was surprised that there was no bluff check is incredible #the duality of man #taz #the adventure zone