#the way i nearly exploded when she came on screen in greys

[sillyfroggremlin]

amelia shephard my beloved

#help me km so normal about her #the way i nearly exploded when she came on screen in greys #amelia shepherd #shes so #gjdieitekdkdgkdggx #i love women 🫡

[poguesrforlife]

Young and Beautiful | Rudy Pankow - Part 4

I have to apologise... THIS TOOK ME WAY TOO LONG! I am truly so sorry and I hate how this came out and it feels like a stupid filler and ugh. I hope you guys still love it. Again can't thank you enough for all the support! Tagging all of you lovely people took nearly as long as writing this (just kidding) but you guys truly I Love you. In the next chapters be prepared for: angst and smut and a whole roller coaster of Rudy and Y/N.

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4

Trigger warning: swearing? pretty harmless otherwise

Word count: 2,074 words

Y/N just got the role of her lifetime, starring beside the cast of Outer Banks in the second season as JJ’s love interest. It’s a dream come true and gets even dreamier when she meets Rudy Pankow her alleged love interest. Lines start to blur between reality and film and Y/N is left wondering if taking a leap of faith is worth risking her career.

[GIF not mine credits to owner]

The salty scent of chicken stock filled the apartment as you stirred the wooden spoon through your concoction clockwise. All bright lights were shut off except the one above the stove, lulling the place in darkness. You could barely make out the two suffering figures on the couch.

“I think my head is going to explode,” Madelyne whined dramatically and snuggled deeper into her blanket which made you chuckle.

“Stop whining!” Madison whined right back and rubbed her temples, hugging a trash can close to her.

Both of your friends were currently nursing a really bad hangover and you had been assigned as their caretaker for today, as you were wondrously quite alright after your adventurous night out.

“You both are babies,” You pointed out and transferred the soup you had prepared to two bowls. 

With a tray loaded with hangover cures you made your way to the living room and the two invalids.

“What’s that?” Madelyn peeked up when the scent of the soup hit her. You could only laugh at her big brown hungry eyes.

“Pelmeni soup, a hangover cure from home. It’s basically broth with some special dumplings.” You handed her the bowl carefully and watched as she eagerly began eating.

Madison however was harder to convince.

“If I eat anything right now it will land on the carpet three seconds later,” She warned and hugged her trash can closer.

“Believe me, it’s gonna help,” You passed the bowl over to her suspicious face, “Just eat it. You need the electrolytes.”

“It’s that what the Gatorade is for?” Maddie inclined and tried reaching for the blue bottle without spilling the contents of her soup.

“Yeah,” You laughed and helped her reach the bottle.

Content silence ensued as you watched your friends eating without complaining once. When you thought they were satisfied for now you made your way back to the kitchen to check up on your phone. The butterflies in your stomach fluttered when you saw the messages on your screen.

Rudy: - Am I the only 1 who’s not turned into a whining baby last night? - 

Chase won’t stop complaining about his headache - 

Yesterday was definitely more fun… a lot more x - 

Do u have a hangover as well? I could take care of you, rather than Chase -

Miss u already <3 -

You couldn’t help but feel a little mad at yourself for having such a strong liver. You wished Rudy would take care of you right now, but instead you were stuck with tweedledum and tweedledee.

You: - I’m doing surprisingly fine after the tequila fiesta I had -

Though I am familiar with the whining concept… - 

Just made some hangover soup from home, if u wanna get some for Chase -

U know so u wouldn’t have to miss me anymore x -

You felt quite bold after sending that last message but you couldn’t help the longing all your body seemed to have for the blonde boy that had enthralled you last night.

A minute after the blue ticks appeared next to your message there was a knock on your door. 

The Maddies groaned from the living room at the loud noise and you hurried towards the source. 

A smiling Rudy was staring back at you as you swung the entrance door open.

“Wow, you are quick,” You breathed out surprised and stepped aside so he could come in.

“Had some good motivation,” He whispered and left a soft kiss on your cheek as he hugged you sideways. You could already feel the blood rushing to your head by the simple gesture. 

He gave you his signature Rudy smile as he saw your flushed cheeks but you only rolled your eyes and pushed him towards the kitchen.

“Who’s that?” Bailey screamed from the other room which made Rudy pivot in his step and make his way towards your invalids.

“G’day sunshines,” He greeted the two blanket burritos loudly. Without hesitation he flipped the lights on. Devastated groaning could be heard from the two girls.

“Oh my God, why did you invite him?” Madison whimpered and buried her head deeper into the blanket.

“He is literally the biggest pain in the ass,” Madelyn agreed and slurped on with her soup.

“Geez, I love you guys too,” Rudy fired back and let you pull him back into the separated kitchen.

“I feel sorry for you, Chase is not even half as bad as them and you have two,” He admitted and followed your body instinctively as you leaned against the counter. 

“We should pile all of them into one apartment,” You thought out loud and watched as he cornered you between his arms and the counter. His muscled arms on either side of you and the proximity of his body to yours drove your hormones crazy and you had to cross your arms to keep from touching him. 

“So we would have an apartment to ourselves?” His eyes rested on your lips as he spoke, not seeing how you rolled your eyes. But either way you couldn’t ignore the effect these words had on you.

“So we could take better care of them,” You finished your thought in a serious tone and unwound your arms to push him back a bit.

He was quick to catch your wrist however and pull you even closer towards him. “I can take real good care of you, too.”

Your breath caught in your throat, you didn’t miss the innuendo. Some part of you would have kissed him senseless right there if the girls weren’t in the room next door.

A whole other part however was nagging with self-doubt. 

You were scared to your bones to screw this up. Not only your friendship, or relationship or whatever this was, with Rudy, but also your very first shot at a break in the business.

What if you fell in love? And he didn’t? What if you couldn’t look at each other at some point? 

It was eating you alive to only think about all the risks you were taking at this. But a bigger part of you wanted him, needed him. Yesterday night only made the feeling worse.

“What’s going through your pretty head?” The blonde Adonis in front of you whispered. All your worries seemed to wash away as you locked eyes with him.

“Nothing,” You shook your head and nestled closer to him. Body to body, heart to heart and finally mouth to mouth.

He lowered his lips on yours gently, so different from last night, so sweet. You would never get tired of kissing him, of feeling the soft pillows of his lips move against yours. You broke away from him before it got too heated, remembering the two girls next door.

“So,” He breathed heavily, clearly shaken up by the little make-out session, as his hands went though his hair, “Should I get Chase?”

You laughed at his disheveled appearance, a little proud that you could make him behave like that with just a kiss. 

You nodded and left another kiss on him, slightly biting his bottom lip and dragging it out while staring at him. His lips chased after yours as his eyes widened. But you were quick to sneak out of his hold and towards the living room.

“Little tease,” He chastised you and smirked as he left the apartment. 

“Where did the little mischief maker go?” Madison inquired as she heard the door slam.

“Getting Chase,” You explained and plopped down on the edge of the couch to hand her the still full bottle of Gatorade.

“Is he hungover as well?” Madelyne inclined and you noticed immediately how she tried to fix her hair a bit and sat up straighter. You were more than convinced at this point that something was going on between them. 

You just nodded and waited for the two boys to come around again. Rather sooner than later a sleepy Chase with his grey beanie shuffled into your apartment, followed by Rudy.

“I heard there’s soup,” He muttered before he scooted closer to his on film lover and Maddie lifted her blanket to share it with the boy.

You just laughed but prepared him a bowl before joining the others.

“No soup for me?” Rudy asked offended and raised an eyebrow at you.

“You’re not sick, get yourself some.” You watched as he stood up reluctantly and heard a muttered ‘tough woman’ under his breath as he passed you on his way to the kitchen to fix himself some of the homemade food. 

The rest of the afternoon was filled with movies and more soup as you nursed your friends back to health. You made a point of sitting as far away from Rudy as possible. You knew you couldn’t trust yourself or him for the matter. If you wanted to keep this to yourself you needed to be careful. But the constant looks he sent your way every few minutes didn’t really help. Admittedly you couldn’t help staring at him as well.

How could you? His jawline was perfectly chiseled like an ancient greek sculptor had brought it into existence. His lips too plumb and rosy for their own good. And his eyes… you could drown in his deep ocean blue eyes. 

Madison cleared her throat slightly when she caught you staring and you immediately turned your head and blushed in embarrassment. So much for being careful. 

“You guys,” Madelyn suddenly stopped the Disney movie playing on the flat screen and sat up straighter. You were sure she had fallen asleep with Chase a long time ago after they had whispered underneath their blanket. You hadn’t paid them anymore attention, granting them some privacy and also because you were too busy staring at the blond haired man that had thrown your whole world upside down just a couple hours before.

“We need to tell you something,” Chase went on and you immediately knew where this was headed. 

“Oh I know where this is going!” Madison exclaimed and sat up straighter. You chuckled slightly at her eagerness but threw her a wink, signalling that you knew as well.

“No you don’t!” Madelyne argued but the arm Chase had thrown around her protectively didn’t really help her.

“You two are dating,” Rudy threw into the room unbothered and reached for the remote to un-pause the movie. You had to suppress a laugh at his carelessness and the looks on your two friends’ faces.

“Oh my God! That is brand new information!” You screamed sarcastically which earned you a couple laughs from your friends while Chase and Maddie still had quite shocked expressions on their faces.

“You knew?” Chase’s mouth hung open as he looked between you, only now realising how they screwed up.

“You weren’t really subtle about it to be honest,” You explained and let your eyes wander to their close proximity on the couch. 

“Well, cat’s outta the bag,” Maddie agreed with a shrug and cuddled closer into Chase, totally unbothered and without a care in the world what anybody else might think. You couldn’t help but be a bit jealous about it. 

“Why didn’t you tell us sooner?” Rudy inquired and you perked up. This you wanted to hear.

“I don’t know,” Chase admitted and looked into Madelyne’s eyes for her reassurance, “We just didn’t want to rush into things that might not be made to last. It was important for us to know where the two of us stand alone before getting anybody else involved.” 

You smiled as you saw the loving glances passed between the couple and you were more sure than ever, that this was pure love. They had taken a leap of faith and it had worked out in their favour. 

You couldn’t help yourself but search for Rudy during this moment. To your amazement he was already looking back at you. His sweet smile sent your way made you warm from your head to your toes. You knew you weren’t there with him yet, where Chase and Maddie were, but if you interpreted the gaze on his handsome face right, you had a feeling you could be there some day. But you would also take it slow. No more rushed unthoughtful acts of passion. You had to act rational about this if you wanted any chance of surviving his hurricane. You knew all too well how easy it was to drown in him and his ocean blue eyes. 

Tags: @lovelymaybankk @sspidermanss @1d5sosddl@arthiriticcricket @teamnick @lieswithoutfairytales @styles-xoxo@normatural @k-k0129 @mileven-reddie @perfektionsmakel @1-800-imagines @http-cherries @golden-eroda @outofstyles13 @jj-maybank-stan @fandom-phaser @hopelesswritingxd@teenwaywardasgardian @poguecollins @jjswhore @xpastel-kawaiix@styles-edward-harry @rollinsstuff @obx-baby @masintahin@floretsoleil @ivebeenthinkingboutu @fandomxreaders@ilikealotofpeople-younotsomuch @pookie-cleary @kiarascarreras@runway-to-my-aid @saturnspack @sunshinemadds@hucklebaefinn @baileythepenguin @spider6oy@whoreforouterbanks @diego-klaus-hargreeves @saltwatercowb0y @lavenderpope @prejudic3 @summer-clouds-and-long-days @lcil123 @swervavery @poguequeen @ellystone @outsider-at-hogwarts @cianawrites @harrysbbby @milamaybank @drewswannabegirl @jjaybank @merchantjj @lilpeekabooze @outerbongs @pankowstyle @family-buisnes @flowersinvegas @thefangirl05 @katrynec @ceruleanjj @o-b-x @justcallmesams @lightninglydia @this-is-bigger-than--us @thegeekyblondegirlwholovesstars @sweetdreamydreams @faded-blue @unfortunatekiwitrash @losers-club6 @usedtobeaj @btsxo-xo @figure-pogue​ @yejimeji @voidsxnsets @dudebroskiprn @giveme-gaskarth​ @cailin-lefantasy​ @obx-writings​ @otrbnks​ @barnesaddicted​ @thebendslikebendover​ @fxckingmaybank

(I hope I didn’t miss anyone! If you’re not on here but would like to be send me a quick message xx)

#rudy pankow #rudy pankow imagine #rudy pankow fanfiction #rudy pankow x reader #rudy pankow smut #Outer Banks #outer banks netflix #outer banks imagine #outer banks fanfiction #jj maybank smut #jj fanfic #jj fanfiction #JJ Imagine #jj maybank x reader #jj maybank fic #jj maybank imagine #jj maybank fanfiction #by poguesrforlife

[thetravelerwrites]

Henry (Amphiptere Naga) Lemon

Rating: Explicit Relationship: Female Human/Male Naga Additional Tags: Exophilia, Monster Boyfriend, Naga, Amphiptere, Best Friends to Lovers, Demisexual, Graysexual, Sex Worker, Cam Model, Mutual Pining Words: 6104

A gift from @oddacle​ to her friend/roommate! A woman moves back to her home town after an online friend offers her both a job and a place to stay. She accidentally learns an interesting secret about him that she tries, and fails, to hide. Please reblog and leave feedback! Art by @oddacle​!

The Traveler's Masterlist

You stretched at your desk and sighed. “Well, Henry, I should get to bed,” You said. “I’ve got a lot of packing to do tomorrow.”

“Dude, I can’t wait to see you in person finally!” He said over the headset. “I’m so excited you’re coming to work in the store.”

“Me too!” You said. “It’ll be nice to see you in person! And I can’t thank you enough for giving me a job and a place to stay. Working at the grocery store was crushing my soul.”

“I get that,” He told you. “I felt so out of place when I worked construction. I’m so glad I decided to save up to open the flower shop.”

“You and me both,” You said. “Flower arranging is something I love to do. I about fell out of my chair when you said you owned a shop.”

“Two more days and you’ll get to see it yourself,” He said with a laugh. “Go get some sleep. I’ll see you soon.”

“Night, Henry,” You said, smiling to yourself as you logged off. You had met Henry while gaming almost five years ago now, and he had been one of the best friends you’d ever had. At first you just played together, but after about a year, the two of you had exchanged phone numbers, and since then you texted each other constantly and called each other once a week. Despite that, you had never actually seen what he looked like. You didn’t mind; maybe he was body-shy. You could understand that.

When you finally quit the soul-suck of a job in the back of a grocery, he was quick to offer you a place in his shop, in your own home town, no less, as well as one of the apartments above the store. You’d been homesick since you moved away with your mom when you were younger, so the idea of going back had massive appeal. Combined with your dream job and working with your best friend, it was like everything you ever wanted was just falling into place.

That Saturday, you loaded every single thing you owned into a rental truck and headed to Santa Barbara, excited to start a new life and meet your best friend for the first time.

You pulled up to Henry’s Floral Arrangements later that evening just before sundown, driving nearly nine hours straight with only a few breaks for food, gas, and bathroom visits. You pulled out your phone and clicked Henry’s number.

“Hey, are you here?” He asked excitedly.

“Yep!” You said, stepping out of the truck. “I pulled up just now. Are you in the shop?”

“Yeah, I’m coming out! Be right there.” And he hung up.

You giggled at his enthusiasm and walked around the truck just as he came out of the shop, his face as excited as a brand new puppy with a brand new toy, and you stopped in your tracks.

He. Was. Beautiful.

He was a naga, but a rarer breed than average: an amphiptere. He had short, two pronged horns on his head and large wings on his back. His horns were teal, and the feathers of his wings were teal and ocean blue with black accents on the outside and grey on the inside, like the skin of his torso. His snake skin was teal and ocean blue as well, with giant black rings lining his back. His eyes were as golden as his nipple rings. He had lovely tattoos on his arms, neck, and back of waves and geometric shapes. He was lean and muscular, and had short black hair. He wore no clothing, so every inch of his glorious body was on full display.

You stood staring at him, unable to speak, as he slithered up to you. Oh god. This was not a possibility you had entertained. Living next to your best friend had sounded like a dream. But now… oh no, this was a disaster. How could you be attracted to him? You never felt attraction, not ever! Of all the times, of all the people, Henry had to be… this! This lovely specimen of a naga, and the best friend you’d ever had! What were you going to do?!

“You alright?” He asked, tilting his head and lowering himself down to look at your face.

You blinked and smiled breathlessly. “Yes! Yes, I’m great! It’s so nice to finally meet you!”

“You too!” He reached out for a hug and you walked into it. His skin was cool and smooth to the touch. He smelled like peonies. “Come in, come in, let me show you around!”

“What about unpacking?” You asked.

“Oh, leave that till tomorrow,” He said. “Let’s order a pizza and eat in the shop.”

You grinned. “That actually sounds amazing.”

“Come on!” He held out his hand and took yours and pulled you into the shop.

Oh, it was incredible. It had just crested into the middle of spring and the seasonal flowers were exploding all over the place. Color was everywhere. You closed your eyes and just breathed in the fragrances.

“Have I died?” You asked, your eyes still closed. “I’ve died, haven’t I?”

He laughed. “I hope not, you just got here.” He picked up his cell phone from the counter. “Pepperoni and pineapple on thin crust, right?”

“Yep!” You said, sitting at the counter, your eye catching on the decorative cherry blossom bonzai tree that you’d sent him for Christmas two years ago. You weren’t sure if he’d even like it, much less have kept it, but there it was, right next to the register where everyone could see it. It gave you a warm feeling in your chest.

He took you to the second floor, where there were two apartments, one on either side. You couldn’t help but notice one half of the stairs was covered with a ramp, likely to make it easier for Henry to get to the second story.

He led you to the apartment on the right and opened the door. It was a modest place but comfortable, and from the smell it seemed like it was recently deep cleaned and freshly painted in a pretty holly-green color with blush pink accents. There was a vase with all your favorite flowers spilling out of it on the kitchen table. It was mostly furnished with older but functional furniture, so you hadn’t needed to bring any heavy wardrobes or mattresses or anything, thankfully. Most of what you had in your old place was junk anyway.

“I love it,” You told Henry. “And I love the flowers.”

“I thought it would be a nice touch,” He said, holding his arm almost shyly. “I wanted you to feel comfortable.”

“I feel more comfortable here than I did in the two years I spent in my last place,” You said truthfully. “You know, we can leave the unpacking for tomorrow, but can we go down and get my rig and gear and hook it up while we wait for the pizza? It’s the only thing I have that I don’t want to leave in a truck overnight.”

“I get that,” He said.

The two of you managed to get your PC, laptop, gaming gear, and computer desk up the stairs in one trip. There was a flat screen TV on the wall of the living room to which you hooked up your PC. You ran a diagnostic as Henry heard the buzzer from the door and rushed down to get the pizza. Then the two of you spent an incredible evening eating pizza, watching comedies on Netflix, and solidifying the strength of your friendship.

You were comfortable, more so than you had ever been with anyone. Five years of talking to him was wonderful, but being close, seeing his smile, hearing his laugh and the way his eyes crinkled when he did was pure magic.

Magic that you didn’t want to ruin by being weird or creepy just because you suddenly felt attracted to him. Would he be weirded out by the fact that your brain turned into goo the moment you saw him? Would he think it was just because of his looks? You didn’t want that.

And you didn’t want to fuck up what was already an amazing relationship. Hell, meeting him in person and hanging out with him had already been a huge test of your friendship; working with him and living next to him would be an even greater one. You didn’t want to complicate it even further with an, in all likelihood, one-sided attraction.

By the time the pizza was gone and he headed back to his apartment for bed, you’d already decided to put the attraction or any notion of a relationship beyond friends out of your head.

But by God, he was beautiful.

You sort of jumped into the deep end when you started in the shop: prom season was just beginning, so you spent weeks making corsages and lapel pins. Henry thankfully spared you from having to deal with spoiled teenagers, entitled moms, and annoyed jocks dragged in by their girlfriends. Henry seemed well practiced at fielding angry customers who couldn’t make up their mind.

After work, the two of you often ate dinner together, either in his place or yours. Even though you were usually exhausted at the end of the day, you still played games together at least four times a week from your respective apartments, talking to each other over headsets even though you were probably only two walls and twenty feet apart. Sometimes you took your laptop to his apartment and played at the same desk.

It went on that way for months. It was amazing and you treasured every minute you got to spend with him. Despite putting the idea of dating him away in the back of your head, it was easy to pretend like it was just the two of you, together, against the world

After prom season ended, business slowed dramatically. You weren’t as tired in the evenings, so when you weren’t playing games with Henry, you did a little writing. You were too shy to let anyone read it, even Henry, but it still felt good to have a creative outlet.

One night, as you were writing, you heard Henry’s voice over your gaming headset on the desk. The two of you had quit playing over an hour ago, so you put it on to see if he needed anything.

“You alright, Henry? Are you back online?”

He didn’t respond, so you thought maybe you were just hearing things, but as you went to pull your headset off, you heard him say, “I’m glad to see you again. I’ve missed you.” The sound of his voice was distant, like he didn’t have his headset on.

Did he have company? His voice sounded silky and sultry, a tone you’d never heard before, and you wondered briefly if he had a girlfriend, or boyfriend. Or whatever. He’d never mentioned anything like that to you, but you weren’t his mom; he was allowed to have private things he didn’t share with other people. You did, after all.

Still, the idea that he was in a relationship cut a little deeper than you would have liked.

You heard another voice, but it was strangely robotic sounding, like it was coming through a speaker, and you couldn’t quite make out what the other person was saying. Whoever they were, they sounded male. Maybe he was in a long distance relationship?

“Mm, I love it when you talk to me like that,” Henry said, a sexy lilt in his voice. “Tell me what you’d like me to do. I could touch myself. Would you like that?”

You blushed and your heart began to race. You shouldn’t be listening to this, you knew that. It was private and none of your business. But… you couldn’t take the headset off. You wanted to hear this. You wanted him to talk to you that way. Maybe through this person, vicariously, you could have an intimate moment with him. It may be the only chance you ever got.

You heard him moan over the headset, and a sparkling heat filled your body. You bit your lip at the thrill you felt, but you were unable to move, like a deer in headlights. There was a dangerous quality to this, the idea of getting caught listening in terrified you.

You heard the person on the computer say something, but you couldn’t understand them.

Henry responded, “Of course I will. I know how much you like that… mmm, that feels so good.”

Henry’s moaning over the headset made you feel both exhilarated and astonished. You felt like you could listen to him moaned for hours.

Henry grunted sharply and repeatedly, then gasped for a minute before speaking again.

“That was wonderful,” Henry said. “It always is with you.” The other person said something you couldn’t understand, and Henry answered, “Oh, I’m afraid we don’t have time for that, darling. Our date is almost over. If you’d like to purchase a ten minute extension, you can donate an additional five hundred tokens, or you can schedule another date from any of the open slots on the main website. You know I’m always happy to spend time with you.”

You sat up in your seat, confused. Tokens? Website? What was he talking about?

There were more words you could hear, and Henry tutted. “Aww, are you sure?” He pouted. “Well, alright. I hope you won’t make me wait long, darling. See you soon.”

There was some tapping on his keyboard, and there was a power-down sound. Henry sighed and you could hear him slither out of his office, closing the door behind him.

You sat for a moment, trying to wrap your head around what you’d heard. Was he getting paid to jerk off for people? You opened a web browser and typed “amphiptere cam model” into the search engine.

You knew amphiptere nagas were rare, of course, so you weren’t surprised to only have found two results. You were surprised to find Henry’s face on one of the profiles, wearing beautiful make up and a sexy underbust corset with matching opera gloves. You clicked it, and realized he was both very expensive and highly sought after, considering all of his five weekly slots were already filled for the next two months.

Henry was a cam model. And he was apparently very good at it.

You put a hand to your forehead, stunned. What was happening right now? This was something you could never have anticipated. He was hot, of course, but he always seemed like a shy, down-to-earth kind of guy to you, even after meeting him. Who knew he had this in him? You weren’t judging, it was just surprising.

You didn’t manage to get much sleep that night, and when you did, you dreamt of being on the other end of that screen and woke in a sweat.

The next morning, you stood in the shower with your thoughts in a roil. Should you tell him you know? Would he be upset with you? Probably; listening in was a huge breach of both privacy and trust. Oh, god, what had you done? How were you supposed to act around him now? He’d know something was wrong; you could never hide your emotions well and he knew you better than anyone. Was it too late to live in a cave and cut ties with society altogether?

No, there was no internet in caves. Fuck.

You couldn’t avoid him forever; you were due downstairs for work. You could tell him that you were sick, but knowing him, he’d shut down the shop for the day to take care of you. He was so damn sweet.

No, You said, mentally slapping yourself. Don’t get distracted by his adorableness! This is a crisis!

You got out of the shower and started brushing out your hair, your stomach in knots. A knock at the door made you jump clean out of your towel. Throwing on your robe, you went to answer it. Henry was standing there with a bag and coffee, and his eyes widened when he saw your bathrobe.

“Oh, sorry, I just came to bring some breakfast. Felt like treating you a little.”

You swallowed a lump in your throat and smiled. “Thanks, this is awesome. I’ll get dressed and meet you down in the shop. You’re the best.”

He gave you a full, sharp-toothed grin and snaked his way downstairs, leaving you to grip the door to keep from falling to your knees. Did he have to be so kind? He was the worst!

You met him downstairs and tried to be normal through breakfast, but all you could think of was the way he moaned last night and tried to keep the blush off your face. Work wasn’t any better, you had all of ten customers that day, so you spent most of it talking to Henry and daydreaming about him calling you darling. It was all you could do to hold it together.

After closing the shop, he asked if you wanted to have dinner and a game at his place, but you declined, saying you were tired. He seemed concerned but didn’t press it, and you were able to escape upstairs.

You made yourself some tea to try and settle your nerves, stress-eating girl scout cookies straight from the box as you waited for the water to boil. Was it going to be like this forever? This was torture.

Another knock at the door startled you into dropping your cookies.

“Fuck!” You hissed at yourself as you bent to pick up a box. “Get your shit together!”

Henry was at the door. He had a bag from a deli.

“I brought you soup,” He said. “You seemed like you weren’t feeling well today. Is anything wrong?”

You felt incredibly guilty, staring at that bag for a solid minute, unable to talk.

“Hey,” He said, frowning and squinting into your eyes. “What’s up? Talk to me. What’s wrong?”

“I’m so sorry, Henry,” You said without thinking.

“Sorry?” He said. “For what? What happened?”

You were having a hard time articulating your thoughts. You hadn’t meant to say sorry, and once it slipped out, your mind blanked.

“Look, can I come in?” He asked plaintively. “Something is obviously wrong. I want to help.”

You scrubbed your face. “Okay.”

He followed you in and laid the soup on the table. “So… tell me. What’s going on?”

“I don’t even know how to say it,” You said, looking around helplessly. Your eyes fell on your headset. You picked it up and listened to it, and you could hear the fan from his office running. “Here,” You said, handing it to him. “Listen.”

He put the headset on, frowning with confusion.

“Do you hear anything?” You asked.

“I think that’s the fan, right?”

“Yeah, from your office,” You said.

He laughed as he took it off. “I’m an idiot, I must have forgot to disconnect last night after we were playing.”

“Right, it was active last night. All last night. I could hear you.”

His face went from confusion to blank shock, his mouth hanging open.

“...oh,” He said quietly. “Oh, god.”

“I’m so sorry,” You said. “I shouldn’t have listened. I should have taken it off and ignored it. I’m so, so sorry.”

There was a pause. “How long did you listen?”

“I think it was the whole thing. I heard you… finish.” You blushed just thinking about it.

“That was a thirty minute session,” He said, confusion back on his face. “Why did you listen so long?”

You looked away and bit your lip, unable to meet his eyes.

“Did you… enjoy it?” He asked. He sounded almost hopeful.

You couldn’t speak, but you nodded once.

“Really?” You heard a smile in his voice, and you managed to look up. He had a goofy, sappy grin on his face. “You don’t think it’s gross or anything like that?”

You shook your head. “No. I’m curious, though. Why do you do it?”

“I only do it during the off seasons,” He said. “The first year was really hard for the store and I almost lost the shop. I got into camming to make ends meet, but the money was so good I just continued to do it when business is really slow. I’ve been able to save a lot of money this way. I was even thinking of opening a second location, and I think at the end of this season, I’ll have enough.” He looked very shy. “You really don’t mind it?”

You shook your head fervently. “No, not at all.” You looked at his earnest face. He didn’t seem angry, and while you were relieved, you also felt inquisitive. “What’s it like? Does it feel weird?”

“It did at first,” He admitted. “But it’s normal now. It’s actually fun, especially getting ready and putting on the clothes and stuff. I don’t really get to wear that stuff out, so it’s the only time I get to feel… I don’t know, fancy.”

You smiled softly. “I think I get that.”

“Actually,” He said, rubbing his neck. “I was going to record a free promo to put up on the website tonight. Do you want to help me do my makeup? I sort of self-taught myself, but I can never get the eyeliner right.”

“Oh! Yeah, of course, sure!” You said. “I really liked that corset I saw you in.”

He narrowed his eyes at you and smirked. “Did you Google me?”

“I had to,” You said. “Wouldn’t you?”

He laughed. “I guess.” He took your hand and led you toward the door and his apartment. “Come on. I’ve always wanted to have someone help with this. I’m never sure which colors compliment my skin.”

“Wait, let me grab my makeup bag,” You said, running back to your bathroom, snatching it up, and returning. “Okay, let’s go.”

Helping a guy with his makeup counted as a date, right?

He took you to his bedroom, which you’d never been. There wasn’t any furniture, not even a bed. Instead there was a huge nest of fluffy pillows and soft blankets which took up most of the floor space. He had a large walk-in closet where there was a hidden vanity with fairy lights around the mirror. The hangers had various corsets, fishnet shirts, and gloves. There was another desk that seemed to be a large jewelry case.

“This must have cost a fortune,” You said, impressed. You wished you had the confidence to wear some of this.

“A small one,” He told you. “Sometimes in camming, you have to spend to make money. The customers like variety; it’s why I record a new free promo every week. I don’t want my patrons to get bored with me.”

“Who could ever get bored with you?” You blurted without thinking.

You blushed. He blushed.

“Uh… I don’t have any chairs,” He said. “But you can sit on my tail, if you like.”

“Are you sure?” You asked, looking at his tail as it made a hump for you to rest on. “Won’t I hurt you?”

“No, no, not at all,” He said. “Please. I want you to be comfortable.”

“Really, it’s okay, I’ll stand,” You said, unable to even imagine sitting on his beautiful tail. “Now, let’s see. We’ll wash your face first and then we’ll start on your make-up. What about a gold lip? That’ll make your eyes pop.”

“Ooh, that’s a good idea,” He said. “I just bought some new shades recently, and I think there’s a gold in there.”

Applying his makeup for him was a stressful experience. You were eye to eye with him, so close you could feel his breath on your skin. His lips were inches away from your own, and you were having trouble not dwelling on that fact. He was cold-blooded, and therefore generated no heat, but you wondered if he could feel yours at this distance, if he enjoyed it or was made uncomfortable by it.

You did also notice, though, that his tail had wrapped around the two of you twice. He let his arms dangle, but you noticed the muscles twitching a few times and asked yourself if you might be making him self-conscious. After all, you were the only person in his real life who knew about all this.

“Makeup done,” You said. “You look amazing. I wish I could pull off a look this daring.”

“I bet you could,” He said with a smile, looking at you fondly. “Now that I think about it, I’ve never seen you done up before. I’ll have to take you somewhere really nice so that I can see what that looks like.”

Again he blushed, even through the makeup, and pressed his lips together.

You didn’t answer that statement, trying not to read too much into it, and instead looked over at his vast array of cute garments. “How about that gold and blue underbust with the Victorian scrolling pattern? I think it would look good with your makeup.”

“Oh, yes, that’ll work nicely,” He said, grinning. “And that shrug with those gloves. I usually work a little bit of a striptease into these promos.”

You cleared your throat. “You… uh… you’ll have to let me go,” You said, gesturing at his tail.

“Oh!” He jumped and unspooled, so to speak. “Sorry. Have you ever laced a corset before?”

“Yeah, once or twice. I’ve had friends who’ve worn them before. Would you like help?”

“Yes, please,” He said. He lifted his arms to let you reach around him and position the corset, gingerly moving the feathers of his wings out of the way so that you didn’t crush them. “Thank you for this. I’ve never gotten finished so fast before. I should ask you to help all the time.”

“I wouldn’t mind,” You said, pulling the strings taut. “This was fun.”

“I’m glad you think so, too,” He said, looking over his shoulder. “If you don’t have any plans after I’m done filming and editing the video, would you like to come back over and help me take all of it off?”

You looked at him and blushed.

“I didn’t mean that in a dirty way,” He said hurriedly. “It’s just nice having someone who knows and I can talk to about it.”

“I get that,” You said as he pulled on the gloves. “Are you ready to record?”

“Yeah,” He said. “Thanks for helping.”

“Sure,” You told him. “I has happy to. I’ll let you get to it, then.”

He nodded and you saw yourself out.

When you got back to your apartment and sat down at your gaming desk, you sighed heavily, the thoughts of how good Henry looked revolving in your mind. You were both extremely attracted to him and a bit jealous that he looked better than you in all that stuff. It actually made you laugh a little bit.

“Welcome back,” You heard Henry say, and you looked down at the headset laying on your desk.

Oh jeez, he left his headset plugged in again. God you loved him, but he was such an idiot sometimes.

“I’m glad you could join me. I’m hoping your having a lovely day.” You heard the soft shhff of him taking off one of the gloves. “I always love seeing your face. I love the way your hands move. I love the smell of your shampoo when it mixes with your perfume. I love that soft little smile that you get when you arrange flowers across the shop from me.”

…what? What did he just say?

“I hope you’re listening. I’ve tried so hard to say this to you when we’re face to face, but I can never seem to find the words. This way, I can say what I want. This way, if you don’t hear me, then I haven’t risked our friendship, and if you do hear and don’t feel the same, you can ignore it, and nothing has to change. But… if you do feel the same… come back. Please. This show is for you and no one else. I’ll be waiting for you.” You heard the headset being pulled off and laid down on the desk.

You stood up and did the same. He couldn’t mean you, could he? There was no way. Stunned, you walked back toward your front door and opened it, looking across the hall at Henry’s door.

It was cracked open.

With your heart in your throat and breathing like you just ran a mile, you pushed it open and walked slowly toward his office, only to find it empty. The headset was laying on the desk and the camera was off. Looking down the hallway, you saw the light in his bedroom was on and the door was also cracked. Swallowing hard, you walked down to his room and opened the door.

He was laying there, curled up around himself, laying with his head on his arms, looking a little forlorn.

“Henry?” You asked.

He popped up immediately, his eyes widening. “You came.” He whispered. “You actually came!” Before you could respond, he rushed up and snatched you off the ground, hugging you tight. “Does this mean you want me, too? The way I want you, I mean.”

“I… yes,” You said. “I just didn’t want you to think it was because of… well… all this.”

“I don’t care about that, I’m just so happy,” He said, kissing your cheek. “I’ve been in love with you forever, even before we met in person. I was just scared that if you found out about my second job, you’d be disgusted. Knowing you don’t mind it gave me the courage to try and confess.”

“I’m glad you did,” You replied, hugging him tightly around the neck. “I’d never have been able to do it.”

He pulled back and looked at you. “Can I kiss you, please?”

You laughed at the absurdity, but you appreciated that he asked first. He was thoughtful like that. You nodded, and he didn’t waste time, pressing his lips to yours hard enough that you could feel the fangs behind them.

His kisses became hungry, and he gripped your clothes. “I… um… don’t want to assume,” He said breathlessly between kisses. “But… um…” He looked over at his bed-nest, and regarded you with a questioning look.

“It’s okay,” You replied. “I’ve wanted this for a long time, too.”

He snaked over to the nest and lay you down in it, unbuttoning your shirt.

“Should I take off the corset for you?” You asked him.

“I can leave it on, if you like,” he said seductively, kissing your neck and leaving a trail of sparkling gold lipstick on your skin.

“Would that be uncomfortable?” You asked.

“Not at all,” He replied, his kisses moving lower. “I want to look good for you.”

“I’m not a client, Henry,” You said. “You don’t have to work so hard to impress me. I’m already in love with you.”

“That’s good to hear,” He said, his lips against your breast. “But it’s not about wanting to impress you and I don’t see you as a client. I see you as the woman I want to be with. I should put more effort into my time with you than anyone else. I want you to know you’re special to me.”

“You’ve done more than enough to make me feel special,” You said. “I want to return the favor.”

Your hand went into his hair as his tongue swirled around your nipple, and the lower half of his tail moved up around your head. When you turned to look at it, you saw a swollen, puckering slit, normally hidden underneath him as he moved, that he now revealed to you. You pressed your finger along the line, and he moaned against your skin. One of his hands reached down into your pants, into your underwear, and touched you.

You gasped softly at his fingers tickling your slit, you doubled your efforts on his own, moving your head so that your tongue could reach it and licking a slow stripe upward. A strangled, broken grunt came from him.

He continued to undress you slowly and kiss your body, touching you and teasing. You writhed underneath him while sucking at the slit on his body, watching as a bright golden organ slowly peaked its way out, followed by another. You were startled at first, but it was fascinating to watch. You took one in your hand and sucked on the tip of the other, reveling in the sounds that he made.

His lips finally came back up to meet yours, the need in his body evident as he lined one of his cocks up to you, the other resting against your clit. He rose up to look at you.

“Still okay?”

You nodded. “It’s okay.”

He began to push himself inside you, kissing your forehead and cheek as he did so. You gripped his shoulders and held on as he fully seated himself, his second member resting between you. The slit was farther down on his tail, about halfway down, so the position was a little awkward at first, but the two of you pulled each other close and found a rhythm that suited you.

He lifted you up easily, his tail between your legs, undulating into and out of you, and all you could do was hang on for the ride. You moaned, held securely in his arms, his wings flaring out behind him, the light of his bedroom lamp filtering through the feathers like sunlight through clouds.

“I’m so close,” He gasped, picking you up as a flood gushed from the cock you had been riding, splashing against your leg and his tail, before he moved you onto the second one and kept going.

“That’s handy,” You said, also gasping.

“When this one is done, the other one will be ready again,” He said as you bounced on him.

“Oh, god,” You wheezed. “What have I gotten myself into?”

He laughed breathlessly and kissed you again, hitting harder and faster. You felt your own wave coming fast and you began to moan and whimper, not able to control the sounds you made.

Finally, you came, and the rush of ecstasy filled your mind. You lay your head on his shoulder as you dangled in his grasp bonelessly, his tail still moving inside you slowly.

After giving you a moment to recover, he sped up again, and you came again. It might have been hours before the two of you found a stopping point, or more precisely, and exhaustion point. He lay you down in the nest, corset and makeup still on, and the two of you slept in a sweaty pile.

The next morning, he woke up with the makeup smeared across his face and a serious case of bed-head. You laughed.

“What’s funny?” He asked sleepily, smiling at you from the coil of his tail.

“I think I should have taken you up on the offer to help you dress down,” You said. “Let’s get that taken care of.”

You helped him out of his corset and the two of you stepped into the bathroom, three-fourths of which was just the shower. Stepping into the shower, you soaped him down and washed his long body, and he did the same for you. The two of you couldn’t help kissing and giggling and cuddling the whole time.

He ordered in breakfast as you dashed across the hall to fetch some clothes. When you got back, you said, “You didn’t get to record your promo.”

“I can do it tonight,” He said. “Will you help me with it?”

“Of course,” You said. “I’ll be your manager or assistant or whatever you’d like to call me.”

“I’d like to call you my girlfriend, actually,” He said with a smile.

“I like the sound of that,” You replied, hugging him around the waist. “Partners in all things.”

“I like that, too. Speaking of which, I think I might be able to open that second location sooner than I thought.”

“Why’s that?”

“Well, if you live with me in my apartment, we can rent out your apartment, and the extra income will help. Two birds, one stone.”

You smiled. “Sounds good to me. As long as I’m with you.”

“Always.”

Since my work is no longer searchable, please do me a favor and reblog this story if you enjoyed it. Help me reach a wider audience! To help me continue creating, please consider buying me a Kofi, becoming a Patron, or donating directly to my PayPal!

Thanks for reading!

My Masterlist

The Exophilia Creator’s Masterlist

#Exophilia #Naga #Demisexual #Graysexual

[allcrncthing]

TITLE :: WHAT?

DESCRIPTION :: Flynn gets an unlikely visitor early one morning.

TIME PERIOD :: July, 2012

CHARACTER(S) :: Flynn Aspen, Nick Fury

WORD COUNT :: 1.7k

WARNINGS :: Swearing

NOTE :: This is part one of two in the DON’T RUIN HER mini-series!

It was seven in the morning when knuckles thumped against her apartment door. Flynn shuffled out of her room, rubbing her eyes as she went. God, I hope it’s not Mrs. Baust complaining again. Mrs. Baust was Flynn’s elderly neighbor located on her right. For whatever reason, she didn’t like the redhead; always complaining about stupid shit and trying to her the landlord to kick Flynn out.

She opened the door then nearly slammed it shut. Standing before her was Nick Fury, director of SHIELD. “Can I help you?”

With his one good eye, he looked her up and down. “You know why I’m here. Get important shit and meet me on the roof.”

“Mister, you must be confused.”

Fury scoffed. “Me? Confused? Hurry up and grab your shit, I’ll see you on the roof.” He closed the door for her, leaving a dumbfounded Flynn in his wake.

She pressed her forehead against the cool wood of the door. “How the hell did he find out?” She groaned, agitated. “Christ Flynn, he’s Nick Fury, he always finds out.”

Around three months ago Flynn found out she had powers. She gained them after a chunk of alien tech fell from the sky. Crazy, right? The tech--which was a good sized piece of metal if she was being honest--slammed into the back of her neck, embedding itself in her skin. Flynn could still feel it back there, sometimes rubbing her finger over the weird bump when she was nervous or bored. It must have been from a far-off society that thrived off radiation or something, because these new powers were seemingly radiation based. It was all still very new to Flynn, so she wasn’t 100% sure of anything regarding her abilities.

She trudged back to her room, shrugged off her lavender old lady nightgown, and stepped into bleach-stained grey sweatpants and an oversized I HEART NYC shirt. It was left over from her parents’ visit a while back. Hey, she wasn’t going to get all dolled up for a stranger who told her to “pack up her shit” at seven something in the morning.

Flynn grabbed a duffle bag and filled it with the basics; toiletries, a few pairs of clothes, and chargers for her devices. She hopped whatever Fury wanted with her was quick and easy. Trying to explain her disappearance at work would be a bitch.

Minutes later she appeared on the rooftop, seeing Fury standing off at the ledge, looking off into the distance. “Seen Fallen Soldier recently?”

Her blood ran cold.

Flynn licked her lips, “No.”

“Not after your skirmish in the alley?” He pressed, turning to face her.

Flynn shook her head.

Fallen Soldier was one of HYDRA’s goons. He was a fallen World War I soldier by the name of Dennis Van Dyke. According to what Flynn had read--which may or may not have been on the dark web. . .--HYDRA recently reanimated his once frozen corpse to snuff out anyone with powers. His supposed mission was to kill his target before dragging their body to a local HYDRA lab for testing.

It just so happened that he went after Flynn. Three nights ago while walking home from her shift at work, the corpse struck. He came at her with stinking, peeling flesh and the sharpest bayonet she had ever seen. While he moved at a slow pace, every time he made contact with Flynn she would get knocked over by his force. The fight was her first real power test-run. Flynn discovered she could fly and somehow create fireballs among other things. Going against Fallen Soldier was tiring. So much so she lit him on fire then proceeded to pass out on a nearby rooftop. Flynn was lucky he didn’t find her and kill her in her sleep.

Fury turned back around, facing the sun once more. From his coat pocket he drew a remote. In the sea of buttons he pressed a white one off to the left.

Hundreds of feet in the air floated the SHIELD Helicarrier. Flynn had never seen the beast of an air ship in person before. She only saw pictures of it from the battle in New York.

“Wow,” she breathed, nearly dropping the duffle bag.

“Welcome to your new home.” Fury said, watching as a ramp came down from the helicarrier’s underbelly.

Her brows immediately furred together. “My what?”

“New home! Can’t let you stay down here with that undead bastard looking high-and-low for you.”

Fury walked towards the ramp, taking quick strides. “Hurry up so we can get started on paperwork.”

She scampered after him like a puppy. “Why?”

“You’re just full of questions.”

“Oh no, how dare I question the man who told me to pack up my stuff and follow him.” Flynn groaned.

A look flashed over his face, like she did have a point. “I watched your fight with Fallen Soldier and I liked what I saw. Had to get to you before HYDRA.” Fury pressed another button, opening a door on the carrier’s side.

“Is this a temporary thing?”

“Temporary?” He howled. “Does Tony Stark shop at Walmart?”

“No. . .”

“Well, you have your answer.”

The inside of the helicarrier was bustling with life. Scientists in crisp white lab coats drifted around while armed security members marched from corridor to corridor, looking for any threats. Standing in the middle of that mess was Maria Hill.

The brunette had her arms crossed, eyes focused on Flynn. “How the hell did you get her onboard so quickly?”

Fury chuckled, “I have my ways, Hill.”

Maria rolled her eyes. “Welcome aboard, Aspen.” She held out a hand for a quick shake. “Come with me and I’ll take you for testing. It’s just to make sure your physical health is decent. If not, we have world-class doctors on board.”

“Don’t forget about that paperwork,” hollered Fury, walking away from the two women.

The ladies made eye contact. “The paperwork isn’t much, don’t worry. Most of it’s just new stuff the council requires.” Maria explained, easing Flynn’s mind just a little.

They walked down the hall, heading towards the lab wing.

Walking through the helicarrier was just mind boggling. Each part of the air ship held a certain meaning, and all of them served it well. She passed by a holding cell of lower-level, petty villains sitting inside. Many of which were whining about calling their lawyers. Another section was dedicated to the testing out of weapons. A tall ginger dressed in precautionary armor threw a small, onyx colored orb at a rubber dummy (akin to the ones found in dojos). Upon making contact with the dummy, the circle exploded, wrapping it in two thin but sturdy pieces of white rope. The tester let out an impressed noise and went to scribble something down on the clipboard next to her.

Now, they were in the lab wing. Each scientist aboard the helicarrier had their own designated lab, Maria explained. The one they were heading to belonged to their lead medical examiner, the one they sent all of the new recruits to, Doctor Sierra Warner.

Dr. Warner was a tall black woman with thick dreads dyed light brown almost blonde, pulled into a ponytail atop her head. She greeted the two with a smile, motioning for Flynn to take a seat on the examination table. “Welcome,” she said, voice as sweet as her smile.

“Thank you,” Flynn replied as she hopped onto the table.

“Fury’s newest recruit?” She inquired, eye flitting between Maria and Flynn.

Maria nodded, “Yup.”

The following minutes were taken up by basic tests; ones where Dr. Warner would check Flynn’s reflexes and her eyesight. Pretty standard stuff. Then she kind of went off track. “Fury showed me footage of your. . .fight with David Van Dyke--”

Flynn’s eyes nearly popped out of her head. He has footage of that? “How the hell did he get footage of that?”

Dr. Warner chuckled, “SHIELD has cameras all over New York.”

“God, you guys are like big brother.”

“I like to think we have flashier stuff here,” said Warner. “But as I was saying, Fury showed me your video and I thought it would be smart to use a dosimeter on you; just to check your radiation levels.”

“But why?”

The doctor shrugged, “I just have this gut feeling. Here at SHIELD we developed our own version. Instead of having you hold it, you’ll breathe into it like a breathalyzer. The results come back much faster and more accurately. For whatever reason.” Dr. Warner reached into a desk, and pulled out the SHIELD dosimeter, which did look a lot like a breathalyzer. “You can tell that I didn’t help in the development of this.”

“Who did?” Flynn inquired, grabbing the dosimeter. She brought the tube to her lips, sending a steady stream of air into the piece of tech.

“Dr. Celeste Flores-Rivero.” Warner replied, pulling the dosimeter from her mouth after it beeped, allowing her to know it was done processing the sample it had received. “Before she dropped off the map,” she muttered, observing the data displayed on the dosimeter’s digital screen.

“I’ll tell you later,” Maria whispered, giving Flynn’s shoulder a pat.

Dr. Warner chewed on her bottom lip, eyes flitting from Flynn to the dosimeter. “Flynn, I’ve never seen numbers like this before.” She rubbed at her chin, face full of uncertainty. “You’re as radioactive as Chernobyl. Hell, I didn’t even know that was possible.”

“Me?” She pressed the tip of her finger right in the middle of her chest. “Me? Flynn Aspen me?”

She nodded, “Yes.”

Flynn’s fingers went right to the back of her neck, feeling the foreign object just below her skin. “What will happen then?” God, I should’ve just stayed in my fucking room.

Dr. Warner wheeled her chair over to Flynn, resting two gloved hands on her knee caps. “We’ll figure something out. We’ve dealt with the Hulk, we can deal with some radiation. For the moment we’ll keep doing tests and then figure out what our next steps are. Some of the most brilliant minds are here, we’ll find a way to help you cope.”

She let out a heavy sigh, deflating a little bit. “Okay, yeah, that’ll work.”

#marvel oc #marvel original character #marvel #marvel x you #marvel x reader #marvel x oc #avengers original character #avengers x reader #avengers #avengers x you #avengers oc #avengers x oc #nick fury #maria hill #mcu #original characters #*/ ✧ development ✧ */ ✧ flynn aspen ✧

[alexandenigtscreations]

Chapters: 2/2 Fandom: The Penumbra Podcast Relationships: Peter Nureyev/Juno Steel Additional Tags: Season 3 Spoilers, Hurt/Comfort, Angst, cw blood, Man of Glass episode, Whump, self doubt, new relationships Summary:

What if Juno didn't have time to heal properly from the soul incident before he and Ransom went on their first mission in the Aurinko crime family?

[Chapter 1 Link Here]

It was that same breath that woke Nureyev some odd hours later.  Sharp puffs of over warm air tuning into a series of strangled wheezes.  He felt pressure over his chest, from where Juno was hugging him tight, eye scrunched closed and trembling.  

Heart in throat, Nureyev commanded the lights on, and sucked in his breath.  He didn’t have to check to know that Juno’s injuries had gotten worse.  

“Juno?” wriggling free enough to get a hand on the other’s shoulder, “Juno, love, you have to wake up for me.”  He gave him a gentil shake. “Juno!” His clammy skin had taken an unhealthy ashen quality and the fever displayed prominently on his cheeks.  Another shake elicited a pained whimper. Again, his arm was clamped around his middle as if trying to keep the pain at bay.  

Help, Nureyev needed to call for help.  He scanned about looking for his coms and spotted them at the other end of the room.  He disentangled himself from the injured man and the blankets, stumbling over to the device and squinting down at the screen.  It was hard to read without his glasses, but it wasn’t like he had many names programmed in. He only needed one number, just one!

There!  Vespa Ilkay’s information.  He called once, no response, twice-  Juno started to cough, wet and harsh.  He was struggling to get upright but seemed unable to support himself.  Confound it all, he mashed the button a third time and went to him.

“No, no, no Love, please don’t get up.”  He did his best to brace him while he coughed, trying to take the pressure off.  He used the moment to jam his glasses on his nose, double checking he was making the right call.

The fifth and sixth calles yielded no results.  A dark stain blotted through the grey material, seeping out and down more and more of Juno’s side.  There was too much blood.

He tried Buddy- still nothing-  He balled up an undershirt and pressed it to the wound, begging the flow to stem.  Juno cried out, scrabbling at his arms, his chest, trying to push him away.

“It’s just me Detective, it’s just me-” he took a moment to stroke back his hair to calm him.  Juno cursed under his breath, his voice absolutely wrecked.  

He could go and get Vespa, but leaving Juno would be an...issue.  The man had a history of not staying put. Juno had tried vacating the hospital Nureyev had taken him to to get his eye treated.  Heavily sedated and battered though he was, he had made a valiant effort.  

Glancing at the list again, Rita’s name came into focus.  He could call her, she knew Juno well- but had almost no connection to Buddy or Vespa, which left Jet.

He tried Vespa again, nothing.  Then Jet and there! He got him on the first try.

“Jet!”  

“Ransom-?” his voice was heavy with sleep, “It’s late- can’t this wait until-”

“This can not wait, Jet.  Juno’s hurt- he needs help.” he explained urgently, hoping that this man he hardly knew would provide aid.  

“Then you should call Vespa-”

“Yes, yes, I’ve already tried Vespa and Buddy, but they are not picking up!  Please Jet, there is so much blood. It won’t stop-” he could feel the sticky warmth under the hand applying pressure, the arm that Juno still had a grip on, though it was looser than before, weaker- he refused to consider the implications.  

Oh Juno- no. His teeth bit down on his lower lip as he tried to focus.  

There was the sound of movement on the other end, rustling of fabric and rattling of items Nureyev had no patience to place.  Contact having been made, all of his attention was now back on his lady. He tried to sooth him the way that he had done in the chamber- when the pain in Juno’s skull had grown so severe he’d be forced to hover between the waking world and whatever hellish stream his mind decided to depict.  

“I did not know he was hurt on the mission.” said Jet through the coms, Nueyev nearly jumped out of his skin, he forgot Siqualiak was on the other line.

“It seemed he reopened some old injuries.” Nureyev explained, “He didn’t share how he had acquired them, but he racked up quite the collection-” his hand drifted to Juno’s forehead, wiping away the cold sweat and carefully smoothing his hair.  Juno cracked open an unfocused eye, before screwing it shut again.  

Jet hummed, there was a sound of a buzzer and Buddy’s muffled voice.

“Please tell them to hurry.”

Jet repeated the message, adding “Vespa and Buddy are on their way.  Can Juno stand?”

“No.” said Nureyev.  “I’d try to get him there myself, but I don’t know how extensive his injuries are-”  There had been so many wounds- his mind came up with dozens of scenarios where Juno could have acquired such damage- His detective had a pension for getting in over his head.  

Then again, so did he.  

For a moment, it felt like this was an extension of his crushing debt, like interest accrued because he was too much a fool to not of avoided it in the first place-

There was a pang of loss thinking about that yawning gap of time they were apart.  Perhaps, if he’d been less of a coward and kept Juno close, refused to let him leave that night, he wouldn’t have been hurting like he was now-  That he would have been spared these injuries- That he could have protected him.  

And yet- he had grown so much since they’d last been together.  He wondered if it would have happened at all if they’d been together at the time-  There was a small, petty, part of him was jealous this transformation had happened without him.  

“And Jet- he’s in my quarters.” that may require some explaining, but he could deal with that latter.

Jet grunted “That is good to know.”

“Nu-Nureyev-” shuddered Juno, and Nureyev tuned the coms out almost completely.  

“What is it?”

“I- Imma not- feelin’ so hot-” he slurred, chest working overtime to supply enough breath, fingers tangled in the material over his stomach.  

Nureyev chuckled “Not feeling so hot?  My Detective, what cued you in?” Juno’s lips ticked up “Help is on the way.”

Not long after, the small party came streaming in.  Vespa’s hostile expression dropped into a softer sneer at the sight.  

“And what the hell happened to you Steel?”

Juno laughed, a strange delirious thing that set Nureyev further on edge if that were possible “You’re gonna have ta’ be m-more specific-”

“If you’re well enough to play games Steel then you’re-”

“Vespa, darling, save your banter for a time when he can appreciate it.  I fear he’s operating on conditioned response alone.”

Vespa shook her head once, then twice before slipping closer; kneeling down to take his pulse and get a few scans from a handheld instrument.  There was something in the way that the scowl melted off her face that made Nureyev’s blood run cold.

“What’s-” his voice broke, he cleared it and tried again “What’s wrong?”

“His vitals are all screwy for starters.  Siqualiak, help me get him into the stretcher.  Ransom, keep pressure on that wound, I’ll take a look when we get to the medical ward.”

They all assumed their positions, Nureyev lightly chastising Juno for fighting the lift, though he was alarmed at how ashen he’d gotten after the move.

He chewed on the inside of his lip as they brought him to the medical ward, the stench of antiseptic preceding the room before the doors swished open.  

“Gonna need some room!” Vespa snapped clearing a path around the hover gerny.  Buddy and Jet made room, but not Nureyev. He still had his hand clamped over the wound, the other running soothing streaks through Juno’s curls.  “That includes you thief.”

“And leave a lady in distress?  How could I possibly-”

“You know what? Just- can it! Keep applying pressure while I get set up.”

Nureyev sighed and nodded.  Realizing she probably wasn’t looking he added an “Understood.” He could at least do this much.  

Juno’s glassy eye landed on his face.  “W-what’s going on-Nnn-” he squeezed his eye shut and started over “Ransom-”

“Just you’re morning check-up Detective.”  he tried for his usual airy tone. “You’re lucky our good doctor could see you so early.”

Vespa made a noise of disgust from the wash station, before moving on to placing her tools on a tray.

“ohhh, god-” Juno groaned.  “It’s-too early for this-” his breath hitched, and he grasped at Nureyev’s wrist again, but it was heartbreakingly feeble.  “H-hurts-”

“Too early?” Vespa scoffed “Moreon it was almost too late!” then to Nureyev, “Keep the pressure on.”

Nureyev nodded, desperately trying to file away the phrase ‘too late’ before it could do damage.  Juno needed him now, he hadn’t the time to indulge foolish hypothetical fears. Instead, he focused on stroking his thumb over the lady’s cheek bone, hoping to sap some of the tension from his features.  

In a smooth, practiced motion, Vespa sliced through Juno’s shirt and layers of bandages. The goar soaked layers shrinking away from her shears till she was down to the skin.  She handed Nureyev a large piece of gauze with instructions to place it over the wound after she cleared the material away.  

He tried to ignore the way Juno curled around his fist when he reapplied his weight.  Tried to ignore the stuttering gasps by covering them with sweet nothings and gentle assurances.

It was Vespa cursing that dragged Nureyev back to Juno’s condition.  Laying exposed under the harsh lights of the medical bay, he could see the fresh blottings of purple and black discoloration Juno’s skin.  Clear evidence of internal bleeding.

His lady had been bleeding out on the inside and Nureyev had almost let him.  

“God dammit!  I’m your doctor, you got a problem, see me ASAP!” Vespa exploded shooting Nureyev a look he was sure could be classified as a dangerous radical.  

“That-that wasn’t there last night-” he swallowed past the lump in his throat.

“Last night?  He’s been bleeding out since last night and you didn’t think to call me?”

Nureyev bit back his retort.  There was nothing he could say that wouldn’t make the situation worse.  The fact of the matter was Vespa was right, and he said as much.

She seemed to deflate a little, her shout dropping more to a gruff growl as she said “Next time, come to me, got it?”

Next time- Perish the thought.

“Understood.”  

Shortly after that, Vespa cast him out.  Leaving him trembling and weak on the wrong side of a door that held Juno Steel.  

He pressed his back against the wall, trying to regain control of his breath.  In through the nose, out through the mouth, in through the nose, out through the mouth, in through the nose-  but the words ‘Too late’ continued to bounce around his skull, refusing to be confined.

Juno had done it again.  Risk his life, at the very least his health, for the possibility of doing some good.  This time it was a step towards the cure mother prime. A noble venture to be sure but- for some reason, the fact it was a noble pursuit hurt so much more.

Nureyev had admired the moral outrage that played on his face at Zolitovna’s soiree, invoking the familiar electric spark of their first meeting.  But now- it scared him. It had the possibility of being Juno’s making or his undoing. We are not legends -

One thing Nureyev had retained from their little chat was that Juno seemed to have regretted leaving almost as much as Nureyev had-  If Nureyev had gotten his second chance with Juno, he wanted to, had to take it. In truth, he’d been doomed the moment Juno had been accepted onto the team.  

Too late-

He refused to accept that.  The universe couldn’t be that cruel.  

“How is he Pete?”

Nureyev nearly jumped out of his skin.

“Captain!”

“I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“No I just-” he cleared his throat, desperately trying and failing to pull on the facade of Peter Ransom “Apologies Captain.  I was surprised. Juno-” his voice broke and he tried again “Juno is in surgery.”    

“Surgery.  I didn’t know he was hurt.”

Relevant information surfaced through the muddy waters of his brain “Old injuries were aggravated.  Seems the detective got into some trouble before joining the crew.” guilt leaded his chest, restricting his lungs “I should have brought him straight to Vespa.  I should have known-” he made to run his hands through his hair and paused at the sight of red.  

Blood, Juno’s blood on his hands- again.  Why did this always seem to happen? Sure, Juno’s scars were part of his charm but, he shouldn't’ have to bear so many-  “Oh my, what a mess.”

“Pete-” he startled again which only made Buddy’s voice go all the softer “Why don’t you sit down.” she graciously offered the chair next to her.  Somewhere in the back of his mind he registered that the chairs had not been there earlier, which meant she must have brought them from the kitchen.  

Nureyev complied, because of course he did.  One simply did not say no to Buddy Auranko. He padded over on unsteady legs and perched at the edge of the seat.

Buddy gave him an appraising look “I take it Juno is more than a reference to you.”  

“Pardon?”

“Juno.  You two seem to have grown closer in the few hours since the heist.  Quite different from your earlier antics.”

“Oh, I-” He cast around for an answer, something that would satisfy Buddy.  The evening's events still had him reeling. “It’s- complicated. Suffice to say, we left on questionable terms.  It’s what we were discussing last night-”

“I see.”

They lapsed into an uneasy silence.  Buddy didn’t push and he was grateful for that.  He felt as though she could filay him open and lay all his secrets bare if she desired too.  It was unsettling, to say the least. He would have to watch himself around her.  

It was hard to not think about why it was taking Vespa so long to patch up Juno.  By all accounts, Vespa was skilled in medicine. Her specialty was reserved for the field, but that should make her all the more brutally efficient.  Nureyev’s hands were still trembling- traitorous things. He clenched his fists so that the nails dug into his palms and the lichtenberg scars stood out against his wrists.  

Buddy gave his shoulder a squeeze.  “My word Pete, you’re freezing. Why don’t you go get cleaned up and we’ll see what we can do to get you warm.”

Fear shot through him at the thought of leaving, he didn’t have a chance to file it away.  What if something happened to Juno when he was gone? What if he needed something? What if Juno woke up, alone or- What if it had been too late and Juno left all over again?  A protest sprang from his lips before he could stop it.  

Buddy’s face was painfully understanding, despite his outburst.  “I’ll stay right here until you return.”

Again, one simply did not say no to Buddy Auranko-  So he made his leave, bare feet numb against the metal floor.  Then he remembered his coms and the name he didn’t call.  

“Captain,” he said “Rita, has anyone informed her about-” his hands fluttered through the air “the situation?”

“Jet has already taken care of that darling.”

He nodded, that was- good.  

Buddy had been right to ask him to wash up, he was covered in blood and Juno with his delicate sensibilities, would not take kindly to the sight.  Once alone, he tried to close off his mind and focus on the task at hand. Bussing his thoughts with as many details as he could absorb. After showering and trading sleepwear for more formal attire he was marginally more presentable, more able to wield the mask of Peter Ransom.  

Buddy was still there, her coms playing mood music as she thumbed through its contents.  She greeted him with a nod when he returned.

The rest of the time passed in a blur.  At some point, a mug of coffee was pressed into his hands, a blanket draped over his shoulders.  He’d flashed someone a smile of thanks, but couldn’t remember who-

When at long last Vespa emerged from the medbay, she greeted them with a “The moron’s awake, kind a.” She shot Nureyev a look “If you have to, you can see him.  But he’s pretty messed up, so don’t be surprised if he passes out again.”

Nureyev took the words like a stun shot to the chest.  

Juno was awake.

He offered Vespa some sort of pleasantry before rushing into the room.

Sure enough, Juno was awake and looking about bleary eyed with deep lines of exhaustion carved into his face.  But he was awake and alive and in front of Nureyev. By the stars, he missed that face.  

It was the most wonderful thing that he could have hoped for.  

“Hello Juno.” Nureyev smiled taking his place next to the detective.  “I think it’s time you and I have a little chat.”

#tpp #the penumbra podcast #Juno Steel #Peter Nureyev #Jupeter #Juno Nureyev #whump #h/c #hurt comfort #tw blood #tw injury #tw hospital #love how it was cannon that Nureyev and Juno made up quickly #just #that does my heart glad #this fic took forever because while I had it all written #out #I did not have it typed up #and apparently that's hard XD #on to other fics! :D #AlexandeNight #my writing #etc

[vintagerry]

Help?

Authors note: I know it’s been a really long time since I released anything but here we are! The hyped up virgin!harry fic! A huge thank you to @sweetcreatureinthedark for all the help in editing and making this fic what it is now! I love you 💕💕

featuring: smut, blowjob, cursing obviously, I think that’s it??

Harry wasn’t exactly popular in high school. He was the quiet one who would simply get his work done and go home so he could play music or write poems. His social life wasn’t all that intense until a bubbly girl with a bright smile bounced into his chemistry class.

Ever since that day the beautiful girl loaned him a pencil, Harry was whipped.

Barely a month after their first meeting, Harry and Y/N became attached at the hip, spending every lunch period, spare and after school time together. After the first month of being best friends, Y/N got tired of waiting for the sweet curly-haired boy to ask her out, so she had to make a move on her own. During study hall one day, Harry had been waiting for Y/N in the back of the library, only to see her bounce inside with bright red lipstick and excitement in her words. “Harold!” she sang as she sat beside him, leaning over and smiling wider than before. ���I have something for you, close your eyes, m’kay?” Harry raised an eyebrow suspiciously but simply let her do what she needed to do.

His eyes closed softly and without a delay, her lips were on his. The feeling was very new, Harry hadn’t kissed anyone before. Her lips were so soft, he had no idea how to react.

Harry tried to move against her but it was kind of awkward and messy. Y/N giggled shyly and moved away. “Sorry! I had to," she paused, feeling his reaction before continuing to ramble. "I felt like we were there, but we’re not, I guess." Y/N rocked on her heels anxiously, "I’m sorry! Don't let me make this weird.”

Harry listened to her babble, trying to calm her down, reaching for her arm with a soothing yet nervous tone. “It’s not that. No, um, I actually," Harry paused, trying to figure out how to word this confession, "I quite enjoyed that. I just didn’t, I’ve never -"

“You’ve never been kissed?” Y/N cut him off with a louder exclamation than she meant to.

“Little louder, petal, don’t think the history wing heard you,” Harry blushed, gently tugging her hand to move him closer to her, his cheeks flushed as he looked away from her and around the room.

Throughout the afternoon of studying, Harry’s fingers kept travelling up to his lips, tracing where they had met hers. As the days passed, Harry found himself daydreaming about the way her lips felt against his, how he would kill to feel that all the time. Meanwhile, Y/N found herself remembering fondly how adorable Harry looked with her red lipstick smudged across his lips and a deep blush in his cheeks, how cute he would look with a collection of her lipsticks smeared upon his lips and chin.

The relationship between Harry and Y/N wasn’t much different after the incident in the library, though the two were increasingly affectionate in public settings, which was new. Instead of walking alongside each other with arms almost touching, Y/N would sneak their hands together, her fingers laced through his, prompting a blush to take over Harry’s cheeks and nose. 'Movie Night Fridays' was the first promise Harry and Y/N had made to each other that alluded to something more than friends. Casually sitting around her bedroom after the first time he had gone to her house to work on a chemistry project, he mentioned that his weekends were always too boring. Taking his hint, Y/N proposed that they'd watch an awful 'chick flick' (although Harry found that term quite demeaning) and then fall asleep eating cheap pizza and an arrangement of their favorite snacks. That first week after the kiss, 'Movie Night Friday' was seemingly better than any other. On occasion, YN would cuddle herself into Harry's side, claiming that she was a bit too cold and he was warm.

Now, a week and a kiss later, YN was tucked right into Harry's side, and his heart was beating unusually fast. Her lips were so inviting to him, he just wanted to taste them again. Harry wasn’t paying much attention to the horrid movie playing ahead, instead, he spent his time just looking at how Y/N’s eyelashes fluttered when she blinked, at how her nose crinkled at corny jokes from the main characters on screen. Harry had abandoned his attention to the movie, opting instead to admire the beautiful girl attached to his hip. There was something about the way she appeared when she was interested in a movie, eyebrows drawn together in a focused manner, her expertly painted nude lips pulled between her teeth as an exciting scene unfolded in front of her.

YN also used the dark room to her advantage, especially on the occasion that Harry turned away. Her eyes danced across his soft features, the lips that she had felt against hers in the library, the nose that she often tapped with her finger to tease him, the eyelashes that she openly envied. All of the beautiful things about him seemed to stand out even more in the state she was in. YN was trying, she really was, but every time she saw Harry’s tongue dart out to wet his flushed lips, her heart skipped a beat.

She couldn’t take it anymore, she decided. Making some sort of move felt like her best option to have her lips on his. “Ba-," she quips, a pet name almost slipped out as she spoke to get his attention. "Harry?” Upon hearing his name, Harry turned his head to face YN, smiling at the delicate expression she had on her face.

“Yeah?” he replied softly, not expecting what would come next.

As if in slow motion, Y/N brought her hands up to cup his soft jaw and pressed her lips to his. The kiss was different than the one they shared in the library. The two simply absorbed one another’s breaths. Harry reluctantly broke the kiss and looked at YN below him, her lips slick and swollen, her eyes glossed over.

“What was that for?” he asked sheepishly, she simply giggled and pressed a soft peck to his lips once more.

“May I?” she asked softly, gesturing to straddle his lap. He nodded nervously, pulling her up onto his thighs.

“You’re pretty," Harry let out a whispered compliment, using the hand that wasn’t resting extremely softly on her waist to hesitantly coax her into another kiss.

“You’re pretty, too, Harry,” YN whispered against his lips, slowly disconnecting and eyeing over his face. Much to his displeasure, she could feel him begin stirring in his sweats, the grey material contrasting against her skin. He could be felt against her inner thigh, causing a smile to break onto her attempt at a sultry expression. Her confidence shocked him and his inexperience, unsure of how to speak to her in such a sensual way. “I liked the kiss, too," YN whispered before nibbling on his ear. "Maybe just as much as you."

Harry could barely hold himself together, his boner aching against the soft material of his pants while his heart almost exploded out of his sweaty chest. "You did?"

"Could help you with it, if you want."

“Help? You wanna," Harry gulps, trying to maintain his composure, "help me? As in...” His words came out in whimpers, almost involuntary in their sound. This was the closest anyone had ever been to him and he wasn’t exactly sure how to handle it.

“Have a few things we could do, if you’re okay with it. I want to,” Y/N spoke, her confidence increasing quicker as Harry’s shaft nudged against her thigh.

“Do you mean?" Harry tilts his head suggestively, his hands were clammy against her skin. "I’ve never done that or much of anything. You were my first kiss and, um, I -," Harry babbled typically, only to be cut off by her thumb against his lips.

“I can just," YN sighs, unsure of how to word what she is implying, "help you out? Doesn't have to be sex, right now.” Her lips pressed to his neck and the skin behind his ear, coaxing a whimper from his swollen lips. “I was thinking if you’re up for it, I could go down on you." Her mouth immediately stopped moving on his skin and her eyes met his, trying to gauge his reaction. "I don’t have to if you’re uncomfortable though.” Y/N was trying so hard to be careful and attentive, but she really just wanted his cock in her mouth. She hadn’t seen him naked before, feeling him against her was making her mind travel to the dirtiest of places, and she was impressed.

Harry nearly choked on air hearing those words. She wanted to put him in her mouth? She wanted to suck him off? This couldn’t be happening. “Oh no, if you want to I’d love," Harry stops himself, already probably sounding too eager. "I mean, you can if you want to. I can just leave, actually, and um, we can forget about this. You shouldn’t feel pressured just because I’m -." Harry cut himself off with a high pitched moan he didn’t know he could make as he felt Y/N’s hand press against his clothed hard-on. “Or, or you can! I mean,” he breathed, his babbles masked by how much heavier he was breathing, more than he thought was possible.

Y/N slowly moved down his body, sinking to her knees in front of him. “Did you want me to take off my shirt? That’s something I’ve heard of and I don’t know,” Harry questioned, fumbling with the hem of his soft tee.

“You do whatever feels right, I can take off mine if you’d like. It's, y'know, something to look at?” Y/N offered, taking one of his clammy hands in hers.

Harry shook his head. “You don’t have to. Don’t take that as me not wanting to see your boobs, because, God, I’m sure they’re fantastic, I just," he mutters, trying to hold his voice deeper than a high-pitched whimper. "We’ve only kissed, and you’re about to blow me. I'm so, fuck.”

Harry finished his anxious sentence with a moan as Y/N nudged his hips up and pulled his sweats and boxers down, releasing his cock from the cotton confines.

Y/N’s mouth watered at the sight of him. He was even bigger than she had thought, than she had felt, and it was pretty. His head was a shimmering deep red colour just begging to be touched, leaking from the stimulation of her hand on him. “Okay, baby, I’m gonna go slow for you," she whispered reassuringly before kissing his inner thigh softly.

Being cautious so she didn’t scare him away, y/n pressed a feather-light kiss onto his tip before leaving the same down the underside of his shaft. “Just breathe baby, I’m gonna make you feel good.” Harry shuddered at the feeling mixed with the sultry tone of his best friend’s voice. A collection of high pitched whimpers and deep groans escaped Harry’s lips as he felt the warmth of y/n’s mouth on him.

As soon as she wrapped her lips around the leaky head and hollowed her cheeks slightly, Harry was about to burst. “Fuck! I’m gonna- I’m sorry but I’m definitely not gonna last!” There was a whine behind his words as he gripped the couch beside him, close to letting go. “It’s okay baby, I know.” Y/n reassured him between sucks. She began bobbing her head slowly and Harry was a goner.

“Fuck! I’m- I’m cumming!“ He moaned out as his seed spilled into Y/n’s mouth. She moaned softly around him as he came, swallowing all of him. “Was that good for you?” Y/n asked him, a small hint of sarcasm behind her words. “Yes. Yes! Fuck yes it was.” Harry answered eagerly, still catching his breath.

After he calmed down, Harry pulled his pants back up slowly, wincing at the feeling of fabric against his still sensitive shaft. “Uhm...best friends don’t do that kind of stuff...right?” He questioned, hoping he could get some kind of answer. He really liked y/n, always had, and she obviously liked him a little bit, right? She was just on her knees for him, she HAS to like him. “I’m still your best friend, Harry. But, we can be more if you want?” Y/n responded to him, stroking her thumb over his cheek. “More? Like...you and I could be-?” He cut himself off, not sure what word y/n would classify them as. “Dating, Harold. I can be your girlfriend.” She giggled at his nerves, kissing him softly once more.

“Holy shit! I have a girlfriend!” Harry chuckled in disbelief and kissed his girlfriend again.

#Harry styles smut #Harry styles fluff #friends to lovers #virgin!harry #Harry styles imagine #one shot #tobefalling works

[primroseprime2019]

Darkness Rising- Part One

The sun's rays pierced through the clouds. On the road, a red Dodge Challenger drove down the road. "So there I am on the lookout when out of nowhere, these highlight beams light up my rearview," the red Autobot said, "and then it hits me. I'm illegally parked!"

"Another parking ticket?" A blue and pink Kawasaki Ninja 250R asked in a knowing tone as she drove down the road. "Better. The boot," the red bot said.

"Big metal tire clamp impossible to remove," the motorcycle said.

"Bingo! So the local police do their thing, and I let 'em get all the way down the back," the red bot said, "that's when I kick off my new shiny shoe and bang!" "New York's finest soil themselves," the motorcycle said, amusement in her voice.

"You know me Arcee," the bot said, "you mess with Cliffjumper-" "And you get the horns," Arcee said, earning a laugh from her partner, "not sure how that complies with Autobot rule number one: keep a low profile."

"What can I say? Patrolling out here in Dullsville gets lonesome," Cliffjumper said, "almost makes me miss the Decepticons." "Like Jasper Nevada's a party? We're alone wherever we travel on this rock Cliff," Arcee said.

Cliffjumper's GPS navigation system started going off. The screen changed from the road route to a sonar picture of the area he was in. "I'm getting a signal," he said.

"Need backup?" Arcee asked, alert. "Do I ever need backup?" Cliffjumper said before going off-road. At the highest speed, Cliffjumper sped towards the location. When he arrived, he skidded to a stop at the edge of a ditch. There were big and small dark blue energon crystals sticking out of the bottom of the ditch.

"I just found a whole lot of energon!" Cliffjumper said. A shadow suddenly loomed over the Autobot and the energon. Cliffjumper transformed into his bipedal form and looked up to see a large ship. "Decepticons," he said.

The Decepticon warship- or the Nemesis, as most called it- loomed over the energon. A gun-like blaster unfolded on the side and fired at Cliffjumper. The blast exploded at Cliffjumper's pedes, the force of the explosion sending Cliffjumper flying into the ditch. The Autobot warrior got on one knee as he looked up to see a few Decepticon troops flying out of the ship and landing near the edge of the ditch.

"Arcee... about that backup," Cliffjumper said, "fair warning boys. I'm gonna put a few dings in ya." He transformed into his vehicle form and drove up the wall of the ditch before he flew off it, transformed into his bipedal form and began to fight the Vehicons.

◊◊◊◊

"Arcee to Optimus! The 'Cons are back. Cliff might be neck deep in scrap," Arcee reported to her leader, Optimus Prime. "Understood," the Prime replied, "Ratchet, do you have Cliffumper's coordinates?"

"I'm locked onto his signal Optimus," Ratchet said as he drove through a snow-covered area, "but our teams are scattered across time zones."

"Arcee, Bulkhead, Bumblebee, Firestorm, Primrose, rendezvous back to base and prepare to ground bridge," Optimus ordered.

◊◊◊◊

Cliffjumper was having a rather hard time fighting the troops. The odds weren't in his favor now as the Decepticon troops punched him hard. One punched him hard enough to send him flying back into the ditch and the punch sent one of Cliffjumper's horns flying off.

Cliffjumper got to his pedes. "You want the horns," he said, unlocking his blasters, "you got 'em." With that said, he began to shoot at the Decepticons, taking one of them out before the others started to fire back at the red Autobot. Cliffjumper dodged the shots before the energon exploded, the force of the explosion sending Cliffjumper flying into the wall.

As the smoke drifted into the air, two Vehicons dragged Cliffjumper to the warship.

A silver and dark grey Seeker stood in the command center. "The energon," he said bitterly, "it's worthless to me now." He turned to see the Vehicons dragging in a nearly burnt and beaten Cliffjumper.

"Scream... been a while," Cliffjumper coughed, "so... where's your master?"

"Nevermind him!" Starscream snapped, "I am my own master." With that, the Seeker slammed his digits into the left side of Cliffjumper's chestplates. "Any last questions?" The Seeker growled.

Cliffjumper let out a weak groan and when Starscream pulled his claws out, the Autobot fell to the floor limp.

Starscream stepped back, "clean that up."

◊◊◊◊

Once the Decepticon warship flew away, a ground bridge opened. Firestorm, Bulkhead, Arcee, Bumblebee, Primrose and Ratchet jumped out, their weapons out. Optimus came out last, his blasters out.

"An untapped energon deposit," Optimus said. "What's left of it," Bulkhead said.

"The first Decepticon activity we've seen in three years," Ratchet said. "That we know of," Firestorm huffed.

"If the Decepticons are scouting for energon, they may be preparing for his return," Optimus said gravely.

Primrose, Arcee and Bumblebee bounded down the wall of the ditch and to the bottom. Primrose looked around before she froze as she saw something.

Arcee followed her gaze and widened her optics. It was Cliffjumper's horn. She scooped it up into her servos, "no." Optimus walked up beside her before he looked to Ratchet, "Ratchet, can you track his position?"

Ratchet opened a mineature computer in his wrists. "No... Cliffjumper's signal... just went offline," he said gravely. Firestorm widened his optics.

"No," Primrose whimpered, "no." Arcee wrapped her arms around the young Prime, feeling despair in her spark.

◊◊◊◊

Starscream stood in the command center. A slender Decepticon Seeker with black and purple colors and a visor silently walked up to the other Seeker.

"Soundwave," Starscream said, "what is it?" "Like Jasper Nevada's a party? We're alone wherever we travel on this rock, Cliff," Soundwave recorded the conversation between Arcee and Cliffjumper before the red Autobot's death.

"Ah, the one called Arcee," Starscream said with a smirk, "why slay one Autobot when we still have the advantage of surprise?"

◊◊◊◊

"We must not allow our anger over the loss of Cliffjumper to impair our judgement," Optimus said as he and his teammates stood on the roof of the silo, "as of today, only we seven Autobots remain on this Earth. We owe it to ourselves, to the memory of Cybertron, to any Autobots in any galaxy seeking safe harbor, to humankind."

Primrose knelt down and placed a rose next to Cliffjumper's horn. "And we owe it to the memory of our fallen comrade to survive," Optimus said and he looked to Arcee, "Arcee."

"If Cliff's gone, standing around here sulking won't bring him back. So unless anyone minds, think I'll get back to protecting humankind," Arcee said bitterly as she walked away before she transformed into her vehicle form and drove away.

"Optimus, helping humans will only result in more tragedy," Ratchet said. "Your opinion is noted," Optimus said with a nod.

◊◊◊◊

In the busy part of Jasper, Nevada, a sixteen year old boy was working at a local fast food restaurant called KO Drive-In.

He had raven black hair and deep blue eyes. "Welcome to KO Drive-In where every patty's a knockout," the boy said in a bored tone, "may I take your order?"

"Uh, two super combos, extra fries," the customer said. "Okay, dos numeros twos," the boy said as he prepared the order, "anything else?"

"Yeah," the customer said, "some advice. How do I get an awesome job like yours?" Then the sixteen year old boy heard laughter in the background and his eyes narrowed.

"So that's two we're-not-as-funny-as-we-think-we-are combos with a side of bite me," Jack sniped.

The customer laughed before he realized what Jack had said, "what you say?"

"5.59, sir," Jack said, "at the window." When he said that, he turned away as the customer drove up, grabbed the bags and drove off, laughing.

"H-hey! You have to pay for that!" Jack said. However the customer didn't get far as a fourteen year old girl stood in the way. She had midnight black hair, light brown eyes and she didn't look happy.

"I suggest you pay my friend- even though I don't do violence, would you rather have your precious car vandalized?" The girl asked with a smirk.

The customer quickly backed his car up and paid Jack before he drove away. Jack gave the girl a thankful look, "thanks Paige."

"No problem Jack," Paige said with a soft smile, "you coming outside yet?"

Jack laughed softly and he nodded.

Arcee drove down the road, almost getting lost in her thoughts. She hadn't meant to leave her teammates behind.

Cliffjumper's death was really hard on her. First it was Tailgate, now it was Cliffjumper. Something caught her attention and she shifted her side mirror and saw two Vehicons driving after her.

"Twins," she said to herself before she sped up and drove over to the restaurant. She drove into a spot and watched as the two Vehicons drove past.

"Take five Sadie," she said once the hologram of the motorcyclist disappeared and she turned off her engine.

After a few moments, Jack walked out of the restaurant and his phone started to ring. He took it out of his back pocket and answered it. "Hi Mom," he said, "I just got off. No, I'm not going to the dance. Experience says I should never cut a rug; unless it's stolen carpet."

Paige smiled at Jack as she walked up beside him. She saw the motorcycle and went over to it.

"Be careful? Seriously? This is Jasper," Jack said with an amused smile. He paused in mid-step when he saw the motorcycle. "I love you," he said dreamily before he realized he was still on the phone, "uh, yeah, Mom. Love you too. Gotta run." He hung up and he hurried over to the motorcycle.

"Hello, beautiful," he said, "where have you been all my life?" Paige chuckled slightly as she looked the motorcycle over curiously. She squatted down in front of the motorcycle and gazed at it's headlights.

Something felt strange about this motorcycle. She didn't know what it was but she could almost feel it's presence surrounding hers. She could feel it's emotions.

She looked up at Jack as the sixteen year old mounted the motorcycle. "It may take a few KO paychecks but I am gonna own a ride like you someday," he said.

"Are you talking to your motorcycle?" He and Paige looked to see two girls laughing.

"U-uh, to my motorcycle? N-no," Jack stuttered, "but- to you, I am." He pressed his palm to his forehead in embarrassment, 'lame.'

"Smooth Darby. Smooth," Paige said with a slight smirk, earning a light glare from Jack. "So how's things, Sierra?" He asked the girl, "take you for a spin sometime?"

"C'mon, smooth operator," Arcee whispered as she kept her side mirror on the two arriving Vehicons, "wrap it up." Paige looked at Arcee for a moment before she sat behind Jack and placed her hand on his shoulder.

"You know my name?" Sierra asked. "We're in home room together," Jack said, "I'm Jack. Jack Darby." Lights shone in the teenagers' direction.

"Scrap," Arcee hissed. The two Decepticons drove towards the group. Sierra and her friend ran away. Arcee started her engine and drove towards the Vehicons. Jack shouted in fear. Paige shut her eyes tightly in fear and shock as Arcee sped past the Vehicons and she drove out onto the road.

"Do not let go," Arcee said to Jack and Paige. "Who said that!?" Jack shouted, freaked out.

"Commander Starscream, target sighted, acocmpan by two human youths," one of the troops said. "Destroy them all!" Starscream ordered.

When Arcee had Jack and Paige safe in an alleyway, she finally stopped and let the two off. "What are you?" Jack asked, stepping back.

"I don't exist," Arcee hissed, "tell anyone about me and I will hunt you down."

Paige widened her eyes slightly before she ran away with Jack quickly following. Arcee drove out of the alleyway and the Vehicons drove after her.

One of them turned down the alleyway. "Scrap!" Arcee said. In the process, she jumped over the oncoming vehicon before turning the corner. In the alley, Jack and Paige were running. Jack grabbed Paige's hand so she could keep up.

"We don't even know her!" Jack shouted at the Decepticon that was chasing them. "What do you want with us!?" Paige shouted.

Arcee drove past the Decepticon and up beside Jack and Paige, "hop on!" Once the two did just that, Arcee sped ahead of the two Vehicons.

Once Arcee was on a highway, the Decepticons followed in pursuit and started to shoot at the Autobot femme.

"Why are those guys shooting at us!?" Jack asked nervously. "There's no us, kid," Arcee said firmly, "and there are no guys."

Bumblebee joined them on the highway and rammed into the Decepticons. After skidding around the highway a little bit, Bumblebee regained control and immediately went to follow Arcee.

"Friend of yours?" Paige asked curiously. "Family," Arcee corrected.

◊◊◊◊

Under the bridge in Jasper, Nevada, a young boy was racing a toy car around by himself. As he had fun with his remote control car, his phone rang, which he immediately answered.

"Hey Mama," he said, "racing right up the street. Okay. Just five more minutes?" He hung up and started to drive his toy car around.

Arcee drove over the bridge and landed a few yards away from Raf who dropped his remote in surprise. "Whoa," he said.

"You have no idea," Jack sighed. Raf walked over to Jack and Paige. Paige got off of Arcee's vehicle form and let out a breath of relief.

The sound of revving engine caught the kids' attention as the two Decepticons drove over to them. Paige widened her eyes slightly and she pulled Raf close protectively.

Arcee transformed into her bipedal form. Jack, Paige and Raf hurried to the side.

"This ends here, Cons," Arcee said and she charged at the two Vehicons. That's when the fight started.

"Wh-what are they?" Raf asked. "Talking cars that turn into robots," Jack said, "or the other way around."

Arcee punched one of the Vehicons multiple times, "this. Is. For. Cliff!" Her punches didn't seem to phase the Vehicon as he looked at her.

She stepped back before she started to dodge the Vehicon's blaster shots by doing backflips. There was one she couldn't dodge as one of the shots hit her right in the abdomen, sending her skidding back across the ground.

The Vehicons walked towards her only to stop when Bumblebee jumped down and attacked the two. He punched the closest Vehicon next to him before he kicked the other away. He walked forward until there was a loud crunch under his pede, causing him to pause in surprise. Looking down, he lifted his pede and saw Raf's crushed toy car.

"Sorry about that," he said, looking to the kids. "No problem. Really," Raf said.

Suddenly Bumblebee was shot, the force of the shot sending him flying back and landing on the ground. He pushed himself up only for one of the Vehicons to slam their pede on the back of his helm. The scout turned towards them and they aimed their blasters at him.

"No!" Paige shouted. "Leave him alone!" Raf shouted angrily. Bumblebee and the vehicons turned towards them.

"Please?" Raf squeaked. "Bad call," Jack said. One of the Vehicons walked towards the three. "Go! Go!" Paige exclaimed and she quickly ushered Raf to run ahead with her and Jack quickly following.

The three climbed into a storm drain and continued to run as the Vehicon reached towards them. Suddenly the Vehicon was pulled away from the storm drain. Bumblebee peeked into the storm drain. "You kids alright?" "Thank you," Paige and Raf said in unison.

"No problem," the scout said before he quickly left to help Arcee.

"Don't look back," Jack said. "What did we just see?" Raf asked. "No idea and I'm not sure I wanna find out," Jack said.

The fight between the Decepticons, Bumblebee and Arcee continued. One of the Vehicons punched Bumblebee hard, sending him flying back next to Arcee who quickly knelt down to help the scout.

The Decepticons walked towards the two Autobots only to stop when a green Lamborghini LM002 drove towards Arcee and Bumblebee. He transformed into his bipedal form, standing beside his comrades, "who's ready to rumble?"

The Vehicons looked at each other before they transformed into their vehicle forms and drove away.

Bumblebee bent forward, placing his servos on his knees in exhaustion. Arcee looked to Bulkhead, "what took you?"

"Traffic," Bulkhead said with a shrug.

◊◊◊◊

At the base, Arcee was explaining the events to Optimus. "And the Cons would've been scrap metal if I wasn't distracted by the human," she said.

"Human?" The Prime repeated. "Two boys and one girl," Bumblebee said.

"I guess the other one caught us in action? I don't know. Was a little busy at the time," Arcee said, crossing her arms over her chestplates.

"If the Decepticons are targeting us, anyone perceived as our ally will be at great risk," Optimus said. "Well this will be interesting," Firestorm said, leaning against the wall.

◊◊◊◊

At the school, Jack walked down the stairs and he looked towards Raf and Paige who waved at him. Jack hurried over to the two, "guys, hey. Look, let's just forget this ever happened okay? Keep this between us?"

"I honestly doubt that'll happen," Paige said and a honk caught her and Raf's attention. "Jack," Raf said happily.

"Oh not again," Jack groaned as Bumblebee drove up beside them and opened his door.

"You two, get inside," he said. "It wants us to get in," Jack said.

"No. Just me and Paige," Raf said. "How do you know that?" Jack asked, surprised.

"He said so," Paige said. "What!?" Jack gasped. "Yours is over there," Raf said, gesturing to Arcee who was parked on the other side of the street.

"Yeah, I really don't think-" "How's it going?" Raf asked as he and Paige climbed into Bumblebee's venicle form.

"Wh-hey! Stop!" Jack protested but Bumblebee was already driving down the road. The sixteen year old boy frowned before he sent a glare towards Arcee and walked away.

A fifteen year old girl sat on the stair, drawing a sketch of Arcee. "Coolest bike ever," she said. Her phone rang and she picked it up. "Host parents? Ignore," she said with a huff as she closed her phone and continued her drawing.

When she looked up, Arcee was gone. She groaned in disappointment before she saw the motorcycle drive down the road. She quickly got up and ran to follow it.

In an alleyway, Arcee drove up and stopped in front of Jack. "Relax. I just want to talk to you," she said.

"Don't you mean you and your new friend?" Jack asked. "Kid, there's a lot you don't understand," Arcee said, making Sadie disappear.

"I get it, I get it," Jack said quickly, stepping back, "the first rule about robot fight club is you don't talk about robot fight club." He turned and started walking away and much to his dismay, Arcee began to follow him.

"What you need to understand is that I don't want any crazy, talking robots following me around trying to get me killed!" Jack snapped. Arcee transformed into her bipedal form, kneeling down, "look. Jack, is it? Your personal safety is exactly why Optimus Prime requested your presence."

"O-Optimus who?" Jack asked, confused. "You may be in danger because you are one of the few- one of the only who have ever seen us," Arcee said.

"Dude, what're you waiting for?" They both looked to see Miko standing next to the corner, looking excited. "Go with!" She said.

"Scrap," Arcee sighed.

◊◊◊◊

Arcee and Bumblebee drove down the road. Miko was cheering loudly in Jack's ear, much to his and Arcee's annoyance.

"And why exactly are we bringing her?" Jack asked. "Rules," Arcee said. The two Autobots drove down the road and sped past the stop sign.

"Whoa!" Jack yelled in surprise and fear. A rock slab slid down and the two Autobots drove into the base. They drove down a tunnel and into a large room.

"Whoa," Jack and Miko gasped. "Cool," Raf said. "Amazing," Paige said.

Bumblebee stopped and Raf and Paige stepped out of his vehicle form, allowing him to transform. "I thought there were three," Ratchet said.

"Haven't you heard? Humans multiply," Arcee said sarcastically. Paige looked at Arcee then at Firestorm and Primrose.

"I'm Raf," Raf said to Miko. "I'm Miko," she said as she ran up to Bulkhead, "who're you?"

"Bulkhead," Bulkhead said nervously. "Are you a car? I bet you're a truck- a monster truck! Do you like heavy metal? How much do you weigh? Ever use a wrecking ball as a punching bag?" Miko asked eagerly.

Primrose chuckled softly. "So if you guys aren't robots, who made you?" Raf asked. Ratchet scoffed, "puh-lease."

Paige couldn't help but frown and she tensed up when there were heavy, rumbling footsteps. She turned to see Optimus Prime walking over to them.

"We are Autonomous Robotic Organisms from the planet Cybertron. Also known as Autobots," he said. "Why are you here?" Jack asked.

"To protect your planet from the Decepticons," Primrose said as she walked up beside Optimus.

"The jokers who tried to bump us off last night," Arcee clarified. "Okay... why are they here?" Jack asked.

Optimus knelt down so he could be a comforting sight to the humans, "a fair question, Jack. In part, they are here because our planet is uninhabitable; ravaged by centuries of civil war."

"Why were you fighting a war?" Raf asked. "Foremost, over the control of their world's supply of Energon, the lifeblood of all Autobots and Decepticons alike. The combat was fierce and endured for centuries," Optimus said, "In the begining I fought alongside one who I considered a brother. But in war, ideals can be corrupted. And it was thus that Megatron lost his way."

"Is there gonna be a quiz?" Miko sighed and she grunted as Paige lightly elbowed her in the arm.

"So what does Megatron or any of this have to do with us?" Jack asked.

"Megatron has not been seen or heard from in some time," Optimus said, "but if his return is imminent, as I fear, it could be catastrophic."

◊◊◊◊

"Those transmissions are aminating from deep space. I would hate to waste the Energon," Starscream sighed, "unless you are absolutely certain." Soundwave nodded his helm in confirmation. Echo looked at her brother then at Starscream.

"Then lock on transmission coordinates and activate the space bridge," Starscream said.

◊◊◊◊

In the darkness of deep space, a space bridge opened up. In mere seconds, a silver and purple jet flew out of the space bridge and transformed into his bipedal form.

"DECEPTICONS! I have returned," Megatron said with a triumphant grin.

#fanfiction #transformers prime #self insert #my ocs #the girl among the gods

[sunriserose1023]

Merry & Married {1}

SUMMARY: It’s been almost a year since the most humiliating moment of your life. You’ve done your best to move on—by literally moving across the country, starting a new job, and you’re finally starting to feel settled. That, of course, is when your bubblehead cousin sends you the invitation to her wedding—which is exactly one year to the day that you were left at the altar. You have to go, but you don’t have to go alone. Enter Bucky Barnes, the best friend you’ve ever had. You fill him in, and of course he agrees to go home with you. What are friends for? Never mind the fact that he’s desperately in love with you. And if you hadn’t sworn off men forever, you might just find him … attractive. So there you are, surrounded by love, bridesmaid dresses, champagne, and no less than one hundred sprigs of mistletoe. What could possibly go wrong? WORD COUNT: 3294 WARNINGS FOR THE SERIES: Emotional angst, presumably unrequited love, friends to lovers, fluff, happily ever after AUTHOR’S NOTE: Here’s my entry for the @heamarvel​ Hallmark event! This story is based off this prompt:  “Character A has to go to their cousin’s holiday wedding that’s taking place a year to the day they were left at the altar. Unable to face going alone, they con Character B into going ‘just as friends.’“

Masterlist

The computer screen explodes into a shower of white rose petals that slowly drift down as the wedding march blares through the speakers. The petals materialize into an envelope, which opens to reveal a pristine wedding invitation with glowing gold script.  

“With the blessing of their families, Ian Boothby and Darcy Lewis  Request the honor of your presence  At their wedding ceremony, December 23, 2019”

Bucky clicked the mouse to restart the whole invitation, jumping when the music started, then nodded. 

“Impressive.” “Mm-hmm.”

He looked away from the screen, seeing you pace back and forth in front of the section of windows in your office. He narrowed his eyes, resting back in your chair, steepling his fingers together over his stomach.

“Are we mad about this?”

You looked to him, shaking your head. 

“I’m not mad.” “You’re not?”

You shook your head again, blinking once. 

“I am pissed off.”

Bucky’s eyes widened as your lips curled into a snarl before you started pacing some more. 

“This is so like Darcy. She’s doing this because—“

You pressed your lips together, slamming one hand into the wall. Bucky jumped up, walking to you, digging your fingers out of the wall. 

“Easy. Don’t break the sheetrock, Killer.”

You couldn’t help the smile, sighing as Bucky turned you to face him. He gave a shake of his head. 

“What’s so bad about this? You hate weddings?”

You swallowed, shaking your head, casting your eyes down to Bucky’s shoes as you spoke softly. 

“I love weddings.” “Then why are you so mad about this one? Who’s Darcy?”

You studied the frayed end of one of his shoelaces. 

“My cousin.” “She a bitch?”

You gave a quiet laugh. 

“No, she … well, she’s not the brightest crayon in the box. She’s sweet, and really smart, just … not that gifted with common sense.”

Bucky slowly nodded. 

“So what’s the deal?”

You swallowed again, exhaling a slow breath. 

“I never told you the reason I moved here.” “So it wasn’t just to upstage Natasha at every turn?”

You had a soft smile on your face when you lifted your head to look out the window, at the gray New York City day. Snow was in the forecast, and you still hadn’t gotten used to the chill in the air. Or the way it got dark around four P.M.

“Y/N?”

You blinked, moving one hand to touch the cool window while Bucky took your other hand. You just stood there, looking out the window until his soft voice spoke again. 

“What is it?”

You took in a breath, letting it out again. 

“The day Darcy is getting married?”

Bucky nodded as you looked to him, a sad smile on your face. 

“That’s my wedding day.”

Bucky’s eyebrows furrowed and you cleared your throat before you spoke again. 

“I moved here in January after … after I was left at the altar.” “I’m sorry, what?”

You nodded and Bucky stared at you with wide blue eyes. He shook his head, ushering you to the little couch in your office. You sat, and he sat beside you, turning to face you, stormy blue-grey eyes still wide in shock. 

“Whole story. Now. Go.”

You smiled at him, giving a shaky exhale. 

“I’d always wanted a wedding at Christmas. The red and green and the snow … of course, you don’t get much snow in Louisiana, but sometimes.”

You shrugged and Bucky nodded before you went on. 

“Peter and I … we dated for three years before he proposed. He did it perfectly, exactly a year before, so I’d have enough time to plan.”

You looked down at your hands, at your bare ring fingers. 

“I had everything like I wanted. My bridesmaids had deep, dark emerald green dresses. The flowers were red and white roses. The dress … god, I loved my dress.”

You shook your head as you slid your tongue between your dry lips. 

“I should have known something was up. I should have seen it. But I was … I was so preoccupied with having everything perfect. The baker told me two days before the wedding that there wouldn’t be strawberry filling in the cupcakes and I very nearly had a nervous breakdown.”

You gave a nervous giggle, moving a hand to your hair, just to give yourself something to focus on other than the pain these memories were bringing up. 

“The rehearsal dinner went off without a hitch. Peter was quiet, keeping to himself, talking to his best man while I was flitting from here to there to check the arch and the favors and the Polaroid cameras on every table.”

You shook your head, closing your eyes. Bucky moved a hand to gently rub your back and you gave a quiet whine. You shook your head again, standing up and starting to pace again. Bucky didn’t say a word, just watched as you started slow, picking up speed as you spoke. 

“The morning went off without a hitch. Everyone was on time to get their hair and makeup done. We had mimosas and doughnuts and laughed and danced and I felt like a princess. My best friend and my mom helped me put the dress on, and I felt more beautiful than I ever had. I held my bouquet of roses and looped my arm through my uncle’s and I waited impatiently to become Mrs. Peter Quill.”

You came to a screeching halt as the words you’d just said echoed through your brain. You gave a sharp exhale, shaking your head.

Ever since you left your hometown, you’d tried so hard not to think of Peter. You’d pushed him so far out of your mind, deliberately not allowing yourself to think of what all you’d lost when he’d walked away from you. 

All of that came rushing back, and you blew out another breath at the renewed pain in your heart. 

“Y/N?”

You shook your head, holding up a shaky hand. Bucky moved to the edge of the couch, and you exhaled again. You swallowed, straightening your shoulders. 

“When I took his hand, it was cold. Sweaty. Shaking. I thought he was just nervous, because you get nervous when you’re about to pledge your life to someone, you know?”

You gave a nervous giggle, licking your lips again. 

“The preacher started talking, and I don’t even know what he said. I was staring at Peter, and … he wouldn’t look at me. I kept squeezing his hand and he … he just shook his head.”

You took in a breath, raising your chin and letting it fall. 

“The preacher asked if there was anyone who had any objection as to whether or not we should be married. ‘Speak now or forever hold your peace.’ And I guess Peter couldn’t.”

You shook your head, turning back to Bucky, tears sparkling in your eyes. Bucky stared at you as your mind slipped back, to you standing in a white dress in front of all of your family and most of the people you’d known for your entire life. People you went to school with, people you attended church with, girls you’d played tee-ball with as a child. 

Your friends and cousins stood beside you in their dresses, Natasha looking absolutely gorgeous in the emerald gown that seemed to set her fiery hair even more aflame. 

Peter looked so handsome in his suit, but the bow tie at the base of his throat was slightly askew, and your hands itching to straighten it. You gave a shake of your head when his blue eyes finally met yours, and the look in those eyes made your heart drop. He mouthed two words to you, words that lit a panic in your heart while simultaneously making you want to lay down and die. 

I’m sorry.

Peter gave your hand a squeeze, letting it go as he stepped forward, in front of the preacher, forcing you to take a step back. 

“Ladies and gentlemen, I …”

Peter shook his head, looking down before raising his head again, glancing back at you. 

“I’m so sorry.”

Hushed whispers began rising from the crowd as Peter shook his head again. 

“I shouldn’t have let it get this far. I can’t follow through with this wedding.”

The whispers began growing louder, or maybe that was the roar of your own blood in your ears. You felt pain when Natasha’s nails dug into your hand, and you looked over, seeing her standing beside you, her flowers on the ground. One of her hands was entwined with yours, the other hand on your elbow, holding you steady. You looked to her with wide eyes, your face pale, and she gave a shake of her head, murmuring under her breath. 

“Stand strong. Don’t fall to pieces now. Not here.”

You nodded to her, gripping her hand tightly. You looked into the audience, meeting the eyes of your mother, who was staring back at you with love and worry in her eyes. Peter shook his head again, looking over his shoulder back at you. 

“I never wanted to hurt you. You’re wonderful, but I … I can’t marry you. I’m sorry, Y/N.”

Peter shook his head once more, then stepped off of the stage, walking down the aisle by himself. You watched him go, the whispers of the crowd growing to a buzzing that crowded your ears until no other sound could get through. Your bridesmaids gathered around you while the groomsmen left in the direction Peter had gone, and Natasha forced you to put one foot in front of the other until you were away from the crowd, away from everyone but her. 

And that’s when you collapsed.

“Y/N.”

You blinked, once and then a few more times. You found Bucky standing in front of you and you blinked some more. He shook his head and you spoke softly, smoothing your hands over the lapels of his suit jacket. 

“He’d written me a note that one of his groomsmen gave Nat. Peter said loved me, but he wasn’t in love with me, and he couldn’t spend the rest of his life trying to make himself love someone. He knew he’d grow to resent me and we’d be unhappy and it’s better to break it off before kids get involved, you know?”

You lifted your head to see Bucky staring down at you, and you smiled. 

“I’m a great person, apparently. Just not great enough to be married to.”

You started to step away when Bucky wrapped his arms around you. You put your face in his shoulder, digging your nails into his back. 

“Y/N, I … I can’t even imagine. I’m so sorry.”

You clung to Bucky, missing the way he closed his eyes and rested his head atop yours, breathing in the scent of your shampoo. 

“What can I do?”

You shook your head, moving to rest your cheek against his shoulder as you sighed. 

“Nothing. I thought I was over this.” “This doesn’t sound like something you just easily get over.”

You sighed again, stepping out of his embrace and crossing your arms over your chest. Bucky swiped his tongue over his lips and shook his head. 

“That Peter sounds like an absolute cunt.”

You gave a gasping laugh, shaking your head. 

“Bucky!” “I’m not sorry.”

You laughed again. 

“I hate that word.” “Nothing else fits.”

You pursed your lips, then nodded. 

“You’re right, though.”

Bucky eagerly nodded and you sighed again. 

“It’s over. I don’t even have the ring anymore.” “What did you do with it?”

You smiled. 

“I wish I could say something poetic, like that it sank to the very blackest depths of the Mississippi River, but I just couldn’t bring myself to throw it. It facilitated my move here.”

Bucky nodded and you sighed, glancing down at your bare ring finger again. 

“It was such a pretty ring.” “Did he try to get it back?”

You exhaled, then looked to him. 

“I haven’t spoken to him since the day he left me.”

Bucky lifted a hand to his chest and you rolled your eyes, reaching out and shoving his shoulder. 

“Don’t be so melodramatic.” “It’s such a Lifetime movie situation, I swear.” “Except for the fact that I’ll never love again. Why set myself up for failure a second time?”

The phone rang, so you missed the way Bucky blinked rapidly, watching you as you walked back to your desk. You leaned over and grabbed the phone, using your last name as a greeting. 

“Tell me you didn’t open this monstrosity of an email.”

You giggled, covering the receiver as you whispered to Bucky. 

“Nat got an email, too.” “Speaker!”

You pushed the button to channel the call through the speakers, and Bucky shut the door to your office. 

“Buck’s here too, Nat.” “Did you make him watch it?” “Twice.”

Nat groaned, and you just knew she was slipping her heels off under her desk. 

“I love Darcy to pieces, don’t get me wrong, but she is real fuckin’ clueless sometimes.”

You laughed as you sat in your chair, grabbing up a few files and settling them. 

“It’s fine. I’m fine.” “You sure? I know it’s—“ “Fine, Natasha. I am fine.”

The line was quiet for a moment, with Bucky looking from the phone to you, back to the phone. 

“You’re not going, are you?”

You stopped shuffling papers and Bucky’s eyes widened.

“Seriously?”

You looked to him, your own eyes wide. 

“Why in God’s name would I go? Did you miss the whole story about how this wedding is exactly one year from the single most humiliating moment of my entire life?” “But you have to go.” “I don’t have to do anything, Natasha. Except pay taxes and die, I guess.” “Darcy will shit herself if you skip her wedding.”

Bucky made a face and you shook your head. 

“She won’t even miss me.” “The hell she won’t! Mom’s there and she said all Darcy has been talking about is the week leading up to the wedding.”

You lifted your eyes from your desk, staring at nothing. 

“She didn’t.”

Natasha’s low, sultry laugh came through the speakers. 

“Someone didn’t read the fine print, did they?”

You scrambled to pull up your email, both you and Bucky jumping when the wedding march screamed through the computer. You shook your head, then noticed the email was two parts long. 

“Goddamn it.”

Natasha laughed again and you started to read the note Darcy had written. 

Y/N—

I’m getting married! Can you believe it’s finally happening? I can’t wait to be Ian’s wife, but I can’t do it without you there. You’ll be a bridesmaid, won’t you? My favorite cousin just has to stand beside me on my Big Day. Don’t worry about a dress or any of that. Nana’s helping me get it all together. I know you and Nat have work, but surely you’ve built up some time off, right? Ian doesn’t have much family, so we thought, why not have our whole family come down for a big reunion-type thing, culminating in our wedding! Doesn’t that just sound like all kinds of fun?! Seriously, Y/N. Say you’ll come. We all miss you around here and what better reason to come home than a wedding? I love you, cousin. Can’t wait to see you! 

XOXO,  Darcy

You shook your head, resting it in your hands, your palms pressing against the headache threatening right behind your eyes. 

“So … should I get the flights together?” “Nat, what am I going to do?”

She sighed. 

“Head back so we can show everyone what a kickass boss bitch you’ve become?”

You snorted, lifting your head and leaning back in your chair. 

“Did she ask you to be a bridesmaid too?” “Yep. And Carol and Hope. Her old college roommate is going to be her maid of honor. Crap, what was her name?” “Jane?” “Yeah, that’s the one.”

You tapped your fingers on your desk. 

“So Darcy wants me to come home for a week of fun for the whole family—literally—and be in her wedding exactly one year to the day of my own. And not only that, but I get to be in the actual wedding party, so just in case I think I’m okay, let’s put me back on stage in front of everyone in a pretty dress and see if I don’t pass out from PTSD or something.”

You could hear Natasha rolling her eyes. 

“You got left at the altar, bitch, not left for dead in some backwoods cabin with a machete-wielding psycho.” “Don’t tempt me with a good time.”

Bucky snorted, and you narrowed your eyes at him, but smiled. 

“It’s not as bad as you’re making it out to be. We can get shitfaced at the open bar and no one will bat an eye. Hell, they’ll probably be expecting it from you.”

You tilted your head. 

“You’ve got a point.” “Plus someone’s got to have slutty bridesmaid sex and it might as well be you.”

You barked out a laugh, shaking your head. 

“Might I remind you, Bucky’s listening.” “I don’t give a fuck. Hell, he can come, too. Everyone should experience the hodge-podge of our family at least once in a lifetime.”

You shook your head, going still and tilting your head when Bucky smiled. He looked down at his feet, then back up, a soft smile on his lips when he met your eyes. 

“What?” “Come with me.”

Bucky’s eyebrows raised as Nat coughed on the phone. 

“Excuse me?”

You shook your head. 

“Nat’s right. Our family’s batshit insane, but they’re fun. We always have a good time.” “We put the ‘fun’ in dysfunctional.”

Bucky shook his head and you reached across the desk, laying your hand on top of his, both of you jumping and laughing softly when the shock wore off. 

“Sorry.” “Don’t be.” “I know it’s Christmas and all, but you should come.” “I don’t know, this sounds like a family thing.” “All the more reason you should come!”

You stood up, walking around your desk to sit on the edge of it. Bucky sprawled in the chair, looking up at you. You opened your mouth, then closed it as Natasha spoke. 

“We have a metric fuckton of family members. Cousins galore. The one thing guaranteed to keep everyone from constantly staring at poor, pitiful Y/N is fresh meat.”

You rolled your eyes, then met Bucky’s. 

“Seriously. They love new people. You’ll like my mom more than you like me. You'll adore Nana. And I know they’ll all fuss over you.”

Bucky swallowed. 

“I …” “Come on, Buck. I need you there. The one thing guaranteed to get me through this is—“ “The open bar.”

You closed your eyes, shaking your head at Natasha, smiling at him as you took his hands. 

“Is my best friend.”

Bucky stared into your eyes, as you mouthed ‘please.’ He opened his mouth, closing it again and nodding. Your eyes widened as you gave his hands a squeeze. 

“Seriously?”

Bucky nodded again. 

“Yeah, I can’t let you go alone. That would be like throwing you to the sharks and I’m not a hundred percent sure you can swim.”

You rolled your eyes, but stood up. Bucky stood as well, and you stared up at him. 

“You’re really going to come with me?”

Bucky smiled, saying the words even though they felt thick in his mouth. 

“What are friends for?”

You squealed and threw your arms around him, and he closed his eyes as he hugged you back, opening them when he heard Natasha’s quiet, knowing laugh through the speakers.

TAGS: @star-spangled-man-with-a-plan​, @walkingchemicalfire​, @eileenalone​, @mrsalh32611​, @alexxcorona113​, @ivoryhazlewood​, @imweirdandobsessed, @chaoticfanatic​, @rhapsody-in-flannel​, @hidden-behind-the-fourth-wall​

#merry & married #heamarvel #mhea hallmark 2019 #marvel au #mcu au #mcu #marvel reader insert #bucky barnes x reader #female reader

[captainjimothycarter]

How about Steve and Peggy meeting alternate versions of themselves?

Listen, I don’t know where I am going with this.

Modern-day Steggy, where Peggy is a Shield Agent and Steve, is Cap meet Cap Peggy and skinny Steve.

--

“Steve. Steve. Steve!” 

The last Peggy wanted to do was wake her boyfriend up, but she was afraid she had no choice. The guy didn’t get enough sleep as it was between these countless Shield missions alone, not to mention the Avenges, but right now she wasn’t taking a risk. She watched as his eyes instantly popped open, knowing he was holding his breath. Listening. Waiting.

Looking to her for the next move.

“Somethings wrong.” He still stared at her in the darkness of their room, only lit up by the annoying corner the curtain didn’t reach so the streetlamp filtered through. “There was...I can’t explain it, a surge of energy or something.”

If Steve thought it was funny, he didn’t say so. Instead, he slowly sat up in the bed and scrubbed at his face. He still looked down at her, eyes searching her features. No, Peggy wouldn’t joke about this and she looked understandably worried. Her brow was ruffled, lips pursed. Her hand was just inches from her gun.  

She wouldn’t have woken him up if she thought she could handle it. Meaning, she didn’t’ think she could or she was that worried.

“Okay,” he whispered right back, giving a nod of his head. “Okay, we’ll go look. Let me get dressed and get the shield.”

It was three in the morning but time and night meant nothing for Brooklyn. There were fewer people on the street and some neighborhoods were quieter than others. They drove with the lights off down neighborhoods, Steve following Peggy’s direction. Every so often he’d stop to look over at her or ask if she still felt that surge here. 

Twice they got turned around thanks to construction and he could see Peggy getting frustrating. Time at war had taught him to be careful with his words.

“Maybe…” he said carefully, earning a hard look from Peggy. Steve sighed, looking at the clock. It was nearing five-thirty, dawn would be here soon. “Maybe we should head to HQ? See if something was there?”

“Fine, but I’m heading straight to my office to look at the CCTV cameras from the night.” She sounded grumpy, but Steve understood. She didn’t like to be wrong. “Can you stop by security? Ask if they’ve seen anything. Davis trusts you more than me.”

“Because I haven’t threatened to put him through a window, for good reason.” Steve shrugged as he turned their jeep around and headed straight towards HQ. His hand laid in Peggy’s on the drive over. “I believe you.”

“Of course you do. You’re my partner, you have to believe in me.”

Steve laughed at that one, causing Peggy to roll her eyes. “You know what I mean, Pegs. If something is wrong, we’ll find it. Give it another hour, we’ll see what the cameras say, if we can’t find anything, then we’ll ask Tony.”

--

Steve, I need you to come to my office. Now. PC

That was never a good text. Steve tried to ignore the anxiety in him as he grabbed at the shield from his back and bolted down the hall, ignoring Davis’ questionable looks. He took the stairs rather than the elevator, blowing past a small blonde figure as he entered the office.

He nearly ran into Peggy.

Or Peggys. There were two of them.

His Peggy. And...A Peggy in...a Captain America uniform? There were clearly differenced between their uniforms, hers had a tie and his, well didn’t. Not that he was wearing it.

She had a hard look on her face as she addressed him. His eyes falling to his Peggy.

“Uh, anyone wants to explain? Pegs, why am I staring at another one of you? Did Nat poison me again?” 

“I almost wish,” Peggy sighed, pinching her nose. “I don’t know. I came into my office and found her here… How the hell she got here…”

“I’m not HYDRA,” Cap Peggy said with a roll of her eyes.

“Oh good, because neither of us was thinking that,” Steve snorted, still not dropping his shield. “Because a sure identical look of Agent Carter in a uniform mimicking mine defiantly couldn’t be HYDRA.”

“She’s not,” a voice from the doorway said, one sending a chill down his spine.

Steve almost didn’t want to look, yet he did. He could hear his Peggy’s gasp.

There he stood, well a younger version of him...well...one...smaller… Much smaller. Is that how he really looked? Did he really have that cowlick on his head? Were his eyes really that soft color of a blue? And the way his shoulders sagged because he knew the pain of his back hurting…

It was him, from before, before the serum but...older…Not by much, a few years but still. He, sure enough, wore the uniform of an aviator from the 40s’.

“I don’t…” Steve, his Steve, him, opened and closed his mouth and looked to his partner behind the desk, where she still stood still. “Understand this. That’s...me…”

“I know,” Peggy said carefully, catching Stevie - the smaller Steve - cross the room with a heavy limp and watched Cap Peggy turn her full attention to him.

Even though they all knew it wasn’t full, if she was Peggy, she had eyes on the back of her head.

“I read the files, Steve. I-I saw Erksine’s reviews. I know what you looked like.” She was being gentle, soft, trying to create a balm for both of them that they didn’t know what the hell to do with. “I think...we need to talk. All of us.”

“Fine,” the 40s pair easily said.

Everyone sat, the desk between them, Steve choosing to stand behind his partner and grip her shoulder tightly. Peggy rubbed at her brow again and sighed. “Okay, I think we just need to come to an understanding here on what the hell is going on. We’re Steve Rogers and Peggy Carter, but so are you?”

The other pair exchanged a look. “Yes. Except I didn’t get the serum and Peggy did,” Stevie mused with a shrug of his shoulders. “I was almost killed by a rouge HYDRA agent that killed Erksine. Peggy got the serum to keep it safe from others. Howard had me chosen for...special aviator projects instead.”

“If you’re Captain America,” Cap Peggy mused, nodding to Steve. “How’d you end up here? In this...future?”

“Plane crash,” Steve replied simply, squeezing Peggy’s shoulder. 

“With the tesseract?”

Steve blinked before shaking his head. “It fell into the ocean. It was later recovered by Howard Stark but I… Hang on, does that mean…”

Cap Peggy nodded, a hand laid over the familiar bulge in her pouch. “First, you..” She turned to her mirrored self. “How do I know you two aren’t HYDRA?”

It was a good question - back and forth game here. One Peggy was tired of and wanted to get down to business. She wasn’t too sure of time travel but she knew that two versions of yourself couldn’t be good.

“Michael Carter confessed to me he was gay and never told a soul. A few years later, he was killed after an argument between us meant we hadn’t spoken in weeks,” Agent Carter said tightly, reaching up to touch Steve’s hand. “I joined SHIELD as a level one agent and worked my way up to here - co-director with my own office. I was there when Steve Rogers - this Steve was found in the ice and tended to him.”

“I crashed my plane after a fight with Schmidt,” Steve continued, looking at himself and then Cap Peggy. “The tesseract dropped. I was frozen in ice for over 70 years, kept alive by the serum. Bucky-”

“Becky.”

“Bucky died as a result of falling off of the train. I found the Howling Commandos. Do I need to go on?”

“It’s Becky,” she huffed. “Or...the version I know is. It - no it sounds familiar. Even...Becky.” She shared a look with Stevie and reached over to take his hand. “Except I have the tesseract, except...there’s a problem.”

They could trust them, she decided. They had to.

Taking the familiar object from her pouch and laying it delicately on the table between them, everyone was caught in awe by the blue glow that started to sputter into turning a shade of grey.

“Like it’s dead,” Steve breathed, shaking his head. “I don’t pretend to understand that thing beyond the misery it causes. None of us do.”

“Talk us through your last few moments,” Agent Carter mused, pulling her eyes away from the cube. 

“We were following as Rogers’ story went - plane crash. Steve...Steve was with me, foolishly, and...our plane was going down. We had no choice, we…” Her throat tightened and Steve nodded, he knew the pain of talking about it. “Next thing I know, that-that thing...exploded in a flash of blue light and we found ourselves crashing into Brooklyn River.”

“Why can things never be simple?” Agent Carter sighed, turning to her screen and starting to type on the keyboard.

Steve swallowed, giving a firm nod. From one soldier to another, he knew the pain of talking about this death...it hurt. To a degree, not many would understand. Sure enough on Peggy’s screen was the familiar Valkryie crashing into Brooklyn River, yet with no soul around to see it, no waves disturbed, even as the pair climbed onto the embankment.

“So what now?” Stevie asked, breaking the silence in the room.

“Now?” Steve looked down at Peggy who looked as confused as he was. “We get you two set up in a private quarter around here so you can eat and rest. Then we’ll decide from there. In the meantime, I know a guy who might be able to help with the cube.”

Cap Peggy worried her bottom lip, looking from the cube, to those around her, before back at Stevie who nodded. “We have no choice,” he said. “We have to trust ‘em.” 

“Alright,” she sighed, pushing the thing forward. “I’m overdue for a nap anyway.”

#Steggy #stevepeggy #Steggy Prompt #Nonny Prompt #Alt AU #Alt Selves #Cap Peggy #Skinny Steve

[jafndaegur]

Sesskag Week 2020 | Day 3: Thriller

Angels of Death

Sesskag

a/n: y'all already know I’ve been wanting to write this one since last year. NOW FINALLY I had a reason to lol

TW: slight gore and violence

When the white noise died and the dizziness abated, Sesshomaru sat up with a hand to his temple. Fingers sifted through short and neat cropped hair and bleary eyes opened, an empty windowed room unfolded before him. Aside from the chair he was in and the eerily unnatural moon behind the window, he was alone. A bump against his back told him a long container separated his back from the support of the chair. And a stale jumper and trousers told him he hadn’t changed clothes in a while.

Disgust twisted along his face as he stared at the unnatural moon. 

How long had he been here? Why was he here?  He needed answers. Tugging the container from his back, he realized it was large and long, like a cartography case on steroids. But upon opening it, he realized it was a protector for a sword. The iron glimmered faintly and in a flash the name “Tenseiga” appeared in his head before it flitted away. 

Hn. So a sword of healing and an unsavory room, of course. 

He took a few delicate sniffs to try and see if he could garner anything but regrettably the room only smelled of harsh cleaners. Someone knew he would try to scent things out. 

Standing up, Sesshomaru left the room without a second glance, hurrying down the open corridor. It felt as though the moon behind him burned holes into the base of his head. The pulse in his throat quickened. He swallowed.

The corridor stretched long, and it felt as though he’d been speeding through for ages.

Finally a room opened to his right and further down the hall he could see traces of a grating. He slipped into the room first, intent to see if there was anything to help him. To his disappointment, all he found was a large box, a blank sheet of paper in the box, and a screen. The little screen flashed once he entered the room and prompted a single question.

What are you?

-Angel

-Sacrifice

He snorted. Most certainly he was no angel, but how dare the only other option be “sacrifice”. Shameless. He picked “angel”.

The box whirred and groaned, making a loud clattering before it stopped. Popping out at the top was the piece of paper which was no longer blank.  It had a small arrow towards the front and what seemed like a series of lines underneath. Sesshomaru frowned and plucked the piece of paper between his claws. He held onto it and left the room heading towards the grating.

The grating was actually a large gate and behind it was an open elevator lift. At the center of the gate was a small slit that looked large enough for the paper in his hand. Slipping the sheet through, there was a mechanical buzz and the paper was swallowed.

The corridor shook and the gates creaked open. A loud voice blared from all around him. “Floor Seven, access granted. The Sacrafice will be entering Floor Six—Angel is notified.”

His brow twitched, hadn’t he picked “angel”?

A green arrow appeared on the left wall and the elevator pinged as if telling him to hurry up. Sesshomaru stepped in and closed the gate behind him. There was three buttons in the elevator. Large and red “6”, “7”, and “8”. He pressed the six.

A hum and a jolt later, and Sesshomaru felt the lift head upward. He frowned and wondered if he would need to find another paper box for another elevator since this one would be useless once he reached the next floor.

The elevator landed and the doors opened.

Sesshomaru’s brows twitched and his throat and neck heated with the sudden urge to vomit.

The overwhelming smell of gore that hung in the new area pressed heavily against him like a wall. The corridor in front of him was dark, and yet the smell of carcass painted a path for him clearer than any light. He opened this floors gate and stepped through. With a crash, the elevator doors slammed shut behind him, this time there was no paper insert but he noted a button. His frown deepened.

Tracking the rancid smells, Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes when he came upon a fairly mutilated body. There were several slash marks, as if it’d been cut open with a blade. And yet several arrows protruded from it like an oversized pincushion as well. An abandoned bag of potato chips had been left by the body. 

Sorting through the smells, he guessed the body had been there for a week if not a little more than that—it was so saturated because of the hall’s stagnant air that it was hard to tell exactly. The greasy smell of the crisps didn’t help either.

He traveled further into the hall, noting with a heightened alarm at how quiet it was. Like the moon in his room, the quiet was fake. Something was luring him. 

He drew the sword in the blink of a second as white fluttered in front of his face. Feathers fluttered. He slashed. There was a frantic tweet and he set his sword down only to realize it was a pigeon. He knew for a fact that his sword hit the bird and yet even as it hobbled along the floor, it was by no injury of his. The bird had a broken wing.

New fact: his sword could not cut. 

He stared down at the frightened creature on the floor. It peeped and hopped along, and mindlessly he followed. There was the smallest nagging of guilt and he wondered whether or not he should try and put the bird out of its misery or brace its wing. He reached out.

The bird exploded in front of him in a flurry of grey fluff and wings.

Sesshomaru barked out, skidding back as a blade sliced through the air. He roared angrily only to be cut off by a volley of arrows speeding at him. Just barely cutting off their path with a sweep of his sword, he was grateful Tenseiga at least could deflect an attack.

Insatiable laughing bounced off the walls and echoed through the air as his assailant swiped her crossbow through the air. One eye burned blue and the other a dull brown. Her skin was wrapped from head to toe in bandages and yet she still flaunted a school girl’s green and white uniform. She smiled from ear to ear, her face drawn in ecstatic craze.

“Found you~” she chirped, lunging forward and swinging her crossbow like a pickaxe.

He leapt backward, matching each offensive move of hers with a planned defensive. His nose told him that she was human. And yet she moved with a speed that nearly matched his. Every swipe, every shot of arrows, it was all followed and prefaced by her damn insufferable laughing. The sound grated through his ears as it reverberated over and over without cease. Grimacing, Sesshomaru figured it would be better to fall back and regain his brings than trying to push through her idiotic barrage.

Side-stepping the blade on her crossbow, he raced back towards the elevator, hand slamming the arrow button on the wall. There was a ping but the doors remained snuggly closed.

Damn.

“Why’re you leaving? We just barely got to meet!” He smelled her approach as she shrieked down the corridor.

He pushed the damn button again and it gave a sweet innocent ping again.

Growling, Sesshomaru clawed his hands between the elevator lift doors and pried them. They groaned and creaked but budged.

Singing arrows struck at the doors, bouncing off the metal and onto the floor. He snarled and pulled the doors open enough to slip through. They slammed shut behind him as the sound of the girl’s blade crashed into the metal. 

Her yelling and howling shook the metal container.

Sesshomaru wiped at his cheek where one of the bolts had managed to nick him. The blood was tepid and stuck to his fingers. How dare she. 

He pushed the last button in the elevator. The “8”. The pyscho-school girl was on six, and he had come from seven. He sighed and wondered if there would be a way out further down instead of up. The lift chimed and the doors opened.

This floor was instantly different from his or the girl’s. The corridor was lined with linoleum and its light poured generously from LED overhangs. He took a sniff. Like his floor however, any and all scents had been bleached clean. Lips twisted downward but he took in the sights again. There were rooms on both the left and right sides of the hall as well as at the end. Maybe that would be another elevator shift.

Taking a breath, he pulled open the iron grating and stepped through. The doors behind him slammed shut and the shift whirred as if the lift was moving. Sesshomaru’s gaze flicked to the left and right, noting with a hint of chagrin that there was no button to summon the elevator back. 

He was trapped on this floor.

His footsteps echoed along the linoleum and he peered into each room. Most of them looked like offices. A big desk, a bookshelf, and two chairs—one behind the desk and the other in front. Four of the rooms had this set up.

“Ah, Sesshomaru, you made it for our session.”

Senses screamed, and Sesshomaru spun around with a flash of his sword.

A doctor stood in front of him. The man had long wavy hair and sharp red eyes. His hands were innocently stuffed in his lab coat’s pockets. A smile.

“Sesshomaru, what’s with the toy?” The man shook his head at the sword and walked into the nearest office. “C'mon.”

Sesshomaru stood in the doorway angrily glaring at the newcomer.

The man lifted his brow. “Do you not remember me? It’s me, Dr. Onigumo—your therapist.”

Not to his surprise, the doctor’s name was one of the many things voided in his memory. Not that it would be mattered. He trusted this man about as far as he could throw him. Although given that he could pry open the elevator doors just with his own strength, maybe Sesshomaru could throw the man further than he would’ve wanted.

“There was a killer, on the sixth floor,” Sesshomaru stated.

“Ah yes, one of the many tenants here in the building,” Dr. Onigumo waved his hand dismissively. “We house souls who’ve lost their way and their minds, and try to rehabilitate them into angelic citizens.”

“She had a weapon,” Sesshomaru egged on. 

“So do you,” the doctor pointed out.

Well…that was fair…

“I’m leaving.”

“But don’t you need to know how to find your way out in order to go?”

Sesshomaru lifted his brow. 

Dr. Onigumo leaned forward in his chair. “As an employee of this facility, I can come and go as I wish. There’s an elevator at the end of the hall.”

So he had been correct about a second lift.

“Follow me, I’ll take you there.” The doctor stood, hands in his pockets again, and gently shoved passed back into the hallway.

A few paces back Sesshomaru followed. “Is this a psych-ward?”

“Not at all,” Dr. Onigumo chimed. “We prefer the term rehabilitation center. Except we allow it at our patients own pace…as you could see, number 6 is quite slow at change.”

Hn.

“Oh Sesshomaru, by the way,” wariness crept in as the doctor’s voice lowered. “How’s the arm?”

Sesshomaru hummed.

“Demon strength is always so admirable. And the arms, particularly for you, carry so much of it.”

…demon? Something in his memory twinged.

Dr. Onigumo turned around and smiled, his once red eyes now glittered blue—pupils shining a bright vermillion. “Won’t you give me a hand?”

Sesshomaru poised his sword.

Tentacles spurred from the doctor’s back and surged for him. Sesshomaru could see the elevator grating behind the man. He dodged the assault, rolling along the ground and snapping at his assailant. More tentacles emerged, the doctor bubbled grotesquely as if he were made of tar. Tenseiga couldn’t even deflect the tentacles, it bounced off their scaled forms uselessly. Sesshomaru cursed and—

Laughter shrieked through air and suddenly, Dr. Onigumo’s limbs fell to the floor with heavy splats. The school girl from earlier zoomed passed Sesshomaru and swung her bladed crossbow. 

“You!” Dr. Onigumo yelled before he stopped. Hand flew to his throat where an arrow beautiful speared it. The tentacled man fell to the ground in a heap.

“Well that’s that,” the girl clapped her hands together before spinning on her toes and approaching Sesshomaru. In the blink of an eye, her crossbow was digging into the underside of his jaw. Her eyes watched him with bizarre fascination. She licked her lips and watch him eagerly.

He cocked his brow.

“Oh come on! Not even a wince? You were so concerned earlier.” The bolt and blade dug deeper into his skin.

Sesshomaru curled his lip and snarled, fangs flashing.

She gave an impressed “ooh”.

“Do you know how to leave this floor?” He demanded.

“I might.” By now she was starting to look disinterested. The bow slipped down a bit. “Not even a ‘please don’t kill me’?”

“Show me how to leave.” Something had struck a nerve after the therapist, if that’s what he really was, had mentioned the word demon.

“What do I get out of it?”

“What do you want?”

The insanity returned to her gaze and her smile gleamed brightly. “Well to kill you of course!”

Interesting and simple. Sesshomaru offered a cruel smile. “My name is Sesshomaru.”

Giggling, the girl lowered her crossbow with a nonchalant spin. “Kagome Higurashi. I’ll be the one to kill you, m'kay? So don’t die along the way~”

Sesshomaru sheathed his sword back into the cartography tube, and followed her to the new elevator shaft.

#sesskag #sesskagweek2020 #skw2020d3 #sesshomaru x kagome #sesshomaru #kagome higurashi #had fun writing this #enjoy #au: satsuriku no tenshi

[shinsoukokuvalentine]

Animal

(Today’s fic is a Beastars au! If you’ve never heard of Beastars, think Zootopia with higher stakes despite being set in a high school. Five books of the manga are out in English and the anime’s coming to Netflix this month, if you’re curious.

I’m really proud of this one, so let me know what you think!)

318/365: Animal

-

Akutagawa Ryuunosuke: Rex Rabbit

At first, Ryuunosuke’s sure it’s fear.

Fear causes his ears to perk straight up when the new student steps in front of the class. Fear causes his nose to twitch, his eyes to grow.

“Class, this is our new student,” the teacher says as the tiger writes his name on the board. “He just moved here. Let’s give him a warm welcome.”

The tiger has unusual white fur. He’s large, as all tigers are, but oddly lanky. When he turns and faces the class, his eyes almost seem to glow with a strange mix of lavender and gold.

“I’m…” he begins to say, but he mumbles, not opening his mouth much. He looks down at the floor and shuffles his feet, countenance completely missing a predator’s usual confidence.

The teacher shoots him a stern look.

“Speak up, please,” he says sharply. The tiger tenses, golden eyes wide, but finally, he opens his lips.

Fear causes Ryuu’s rabbit heart to hammer against his ribs at the sight of the tiger’s teeth.

“I’m Nakajima Atsushi!” He says, enormous fangs glistening in his mouth. He adds, bowing sharply, “It’s a pleasure to meet you all!”

“Welcome, Nakajima-san,” everyone calls back. Everyone except Ryuu, who has frozen to his chair.

-

Nakajima Atsushi: White Tiger

“You’re Akutagawa-san, right?”

Ryuu practically jumps out of his seat as Atsushi speaks. He whips his head up, staring at the tiger, who blinks innocently as if unaware of the intimidation exuded by his mere presence.

“The one who runs the literature club?” Atsushi says, still mumbling, lips practically closed. He seems almost shy, eyes darting around, tail swiping across the floor.

Ryuu’s sure it’s a farce.

“Yes,” he mutters, narrowing his eyes, wishing he could climb on his desk to stand taller than his feline classmate, but also knowing that would make him look even more ridiculous. So he simply stands. “How did you know about that?”

Atsushi turns, eyes sweeping over the emptying classroom. “He told me,” he says, pointing at a red fox a few rows over, who leans back in his chair so far that only two of its legs still sit on the floor.

The fox’s large ears twitch, and he looks in their direction.

“You’re always saying we need more members,” Chuuya points out. Ryuu wants to wring his neck.

-

Nakahara Chuuya - Red Fox

“Who goes to a new school and the first thing they want to join is the literature club?”

Ryuu shrugs, eyes fixed to his phone screen as he chews on his straw.

“He didn’t,” Chuuya points out, sitting down at the lunch table, drawing Ryuu’s grey eyes to him. Michizou falls silent.

“How do you know?” asks Higuchi. Chuuya rolls his eyes.

“‘Cause the guy is as subtle as a sledgehammer,” he scoffs. “He saw me talking to Ryuunosuke-kun after first period, came up to me after second period, and asked if he was in any type of club.”

Ryuu nearly chokes on his straw and successfully drops his phone in his salad.

“WHAT?!” Higuchi roars.

The lunchroom falls silent for a split second, staring at the wolf, and her muzzle ignites in a fierce red blush as she lowers herself back into her seat.

“Are you saying he joined the club just for Ryuunosuke-kun?” Michizou says skeptically after curious eyes turn away and Higuchi scrambles to wipe the dressing off of Ryuu’s phone. “What’s so interesting about him?”

Ryuu shoots the lizard a glare, silencing him.

“Maybe he likes you,” Chuuya wonders.

“No.”

All eyes at the table turn to Ryuu, whose hands twist in his lap, who turns to stare at the table, whose shoulders tense and square up.

“He wants to eat me.”

For a moment, no one says anything. The silence feels palpable.

“D-don’t joke about that!” Higuchi finally stammers. Ryuu looks at her from the corner of his narrowed eyes.

“I wasn’t joking.”

No one at that table finishes their lunch.

-

Higuchi - Gray Wolf

Understandably, when they begin that day’s club meeting, Higuchi won’t let Atsushi anywhere near Ryuu. Ryuu in no way minds.

Even so, he still can’t focus, only staring at the tiger as the other club members debate the day’s reading and writing assignments.

“You’re unusually quiet, Akutagawa-kun,” Ranpo points out all of a sudden, beak clacking. “Is something on your mind?”

All eyes turn to him, and Ryuu suddenly feels even smaller than normal.

“I…” he begins, eyes darting around until they fixate on Atsushi.

“Do you want me to get you a cup of water?” The tiger asks. Ryuu manages to shake his head.

“N… N-no,” he finally says. “I-i’m fine. We’re still talking about Rashoumon, right?”

Higuchi frowns.

“We stopped discussing that over ten minutes ago,” she says. “Nakajima-kun was just telling us how he likes to write short stories.”

Ryuu’s nose twitches. He hadn’t even noticed the tiger begin to speak.

“Alright,” he mutters, ears facing completely forward, putting all his effort into focusing.

No amount of effort can stop his heart from racing when Atsushi smiles, and his fangs gleam white as alabaster.

-

Tachihara Michizou - Monitor Lizard

Ryuu practically runs as soon as the club’s adjourned. He clutches his books tight to his chest, staring at the ground, mind on white fur and honey-lavender eyes.

And teeth. Long, knife-like, bone-crushing teeth.

He’s too focused. Even with his ears, he hears the warning a second too late.

And he’s pushed to the ground. Dirt flies into his face, his books fall out of his arms, and a heavy weight lands on top of him.

“That… That was close.”

Ryuu freezes. Slowly, afraid to look at him, he turns his eyes to the tiger that holds him to the ground.

Atsushi smiles sheepishly, fangs inches from Ryuu’s neck.

“If that baseball had hit you, you would’ve been out cold,” he says. “Sorry my first instinct was to-”

Ryuu lets out a cry he didn’t know he was capable of.

A high-pitched, primitive rabbit’s scream bursts from his mouth. He swipes his claws across the tiger’s nose, causing him to rear back, freeing Ryuu, who grabs his books and scrambles to his feet.

He runs and doesn’t look back.

-

Edogawa Ranpo - Magpie

Safe in his dorm, Ryuu shakes. He clutches his pillow to his chest, eyes wide, and he shakes.

He’s never felt fear like this before. Not from Higuchi, not from Chuuya, not from any of the other predators in the school. It’s not like Atsushi is the biggest, or the fiercest, or even the most intimidating.

So why him? Why does every look he sends Ryuu’s way cause his heart to try and escape from his chest? Why do his fangs send chills down his spine? Why can he see only him whenever he enters a room, even when they’re surrounded by other animals?

A knock hits the door, and Ryuu’s ears perk up.

“Akutagawa-san?”

The rabbit freezes. It’s him, in the prey dorms. He tracked him here, or asked where he went. He’s been searching for him.

“You… You left your notebook in the schoolyard.”

Ryuu’s careful not to make a sound. Still, he leans forward on his bed, looking to the door, watching the shadows of Atsushi’s feet.

“Look, I… I’m sorry about earlier.”

Slowly, perhaps only through morbid curiosity, Ryuu steps onto the floor. His furred feet make no noise at all.

“I acted without thinking, and… I’m sure there were better ways to keep that ball from hitting you other than tackling you to the ground.”

Ryuu can hear his heartbeat. It’s as fast as his; they’re almost beating in sync.

“I must’ve really scared you,” Atsushi whispers, and Ryuu stops in his tracks when his voice cracks.

“I know I’m scary,” he sighs. “That’s why I don’t open my mouth much. You noticed that, right? Everyone does. They think it’s weird that I don’t want to show my fangs.”

Ryuu steps to the door. He places his hands on it, his ear against it.

“But I don’t want to scare anyone, you know? Especially not someone I-!”

He stops, cutting himself off. His heart skips a beat as he takes a few deep breaths.

“... I’m sorry,” he says again after a moment. “For scaring you.”

Ryuu opens the door. Nose still scraped but no longer bleeding, Atsushi’s ears perk up slightly. And realization hits Ryuu like a thousand oceans crashing into him, washing over him, drowning him.

“I’m not scared of you.”

Atsushi’s jaw drops open. Without saying another word, Ryuu takes his notebook out of his outstretched hands and begins to step back inside his room.

But after composing himself, Atsushi manages to speak once again.

“... I’m glad,” he smiles, those same fangs stirring up those same feelings in Ryuu’s core.

Except now he knows how to label them.

So he simply nods, closing the door, listening to Atsushi’s footsteps fade down the hallway, sliding against the wall, heart feeling as if it’s going to explode.

It had never been fear, after all.

#shin soukoku #sskk #atsuaku #akuatsu

[chiseler]

Eve Arden: She Knew All the Answers

“When men get around me, they get allergic to wedding rings,” says Eve Arden’s Ida in Mildred Pierce (1945), a film that won Arden her only Academy Award nomination. Ida is a good egg, a steady, loyal friend to Joan Crawford’s Mildred. “You know, big sister type,” she says, in that inimitably sardonic, wised-up, swooping voice of hers, as she pours herself a stiff drink. “Good old Ida, you can talk it over with her man to man,” she says, of those men who treat her as if she isn’t a woman. Ida says that men are “stinkers” and “heels,” but she doesn’t sound all that mad about it. There isn’t a trace of self-pity in her tone, either. Arden never asks for sympathy. In fact, she never asks for anything. Some things seem to confuse, or bemuse, her on screen, but she was usually just playing that for laughs.

Born Eunice Quedens in 1908 in Mill Valley, California, she was a child of divorce raised mainly by her mother, who encouraged her to drop out of high school and go on the stage. She toured with a stock company and made her film debut in Song of Love (1929), a creaky musical where she played a romantic rival to the heroine. She went back to the stage, only making a brief, uncredited appearance in the Joan Crawford vehicle Dancing Lady (1933) as a blond actress who gets fired when she objects to her treatment in rehearsal. She speaks in a thick Southern accent but then drops it: ���I told you that Southern accent would sound phony!” she tells her agent in her own voice. There could be no such artifice for her. Even when she later did Russian and French accents on screen, they were burlesque routines and not meant to be taken seriously.

Statuesque at 5 foot 8 inches, she joined the Ziegfeld Follies in 1934 and was encouraged to change her name. Spotting a perfume bottle in her dressing room with the name Evening in Paris and a cosmetics bottle labeled Elizabeth Arden, she came up with her new name: Eve Arden.  There were a few more years on stage before she returned to the movies in 1937 to play a girl called Eve in Gregory La Cava’s Stage Door. If that movie makes a religion of wisecracking, then Arden is its high priestess, lounging around the Footlights Club for out-of-work actresses with a white cat named Henry draped around her shoulders like a stole.

Eve has lines under her eyes and looks a little tired; she always seems to be reclining. She’s mainly an audience for the other girls, waiting out their carbonated and inventive complaining until the moment when she can add her own topper and make the whole place explode with laughter. “There’s no such thing as a fifty dollar bill,” she insists, and of all the girls she gives Katharine Hepburn’s society dilettante the hardest time. “Is it against the rules of the house to discuss the classics?” asks Hepburn, to which Arden replies, “No-o-o, go right ahead…I won’t take my sleeping pill tonight.”

I’ve seen Stage Door countless times, and so I know what Arden will say and when she will say it and how, but when I try to re-create some of her line readings by saying them out loud, I am unable to get them right. I think it’s because she weights every single word heavily as her reading goes playfully up and down the vocal scale but her overall delivery is still somehow airy, both throbbing with thick sarcasm and strangely light. “Olga wants peace, peace at any price!” cries one of the girls, to which Arden sharply cracks, “Well, you can’t have peace without a war.” That “war” comes out as “wa-a-er,” as if she likes to pick one word to spread her thickest sarcasm over.

When Hepburn asks her what she’s done in the theater, Arden says, “Everything but burst out of a pie at a Rotarian banquet,” a weird line, but one that Arden plays against with her facial expression. She seems to be signaling that Eve has done things like that, but she’s too tired now for chorus girl hanky-panky with jerky businessmen. “Never heard of him,” she says, when Hamlet gets mentioned. “Oh certainly you must have heard of Hamlet,” says a dim Southern girl, to which Arden replies, “Well, I meet so many people,” in a “nice,” polite, nearly ghostly fashion. It’s a profound kind of wisecrack in the very original way that Arden delivers it. She was capable of hitting a pure note of comic exhaustion, like a faded memory of a past life that does not touch her anymore.

Arden never signed to one studio for long, and she made a surprising number of poverty row and independent productions in the 1940s and early ‘50s. She wrestled with Groucho Marx in At the Circus (1939), meeting his aggression with her own, but she often found herself dead last in the cast list. In a bit in Raoul Walsh’s Manpower (1941), the 33-year-old Arden says to pal Marlene Dietrich, “I’m 25, look 35 and feel 50,” and this pitiless line got at something essential about Arden, because there isn’t much difference between her at age 30 or 50 or 70. Her type stays the same no matter what her age, a woman who is past it all and unimpressed and just making the best of things.

Weary of typecasting as sarcastic secretaries and good sports, Arden returned to the stage for a bit but soon went back to support glamour girls like Rita Hayworth in Cover Girl (1944) and Ava Gardner in One Touch of Venus (1948), which is really a film about Arden and her deepening existential dilemma as she looks at gorgeous Ava and looks at herself and wonders, “Why am I me, and why is she that?” Arden flirted with prettiness whenever she opened her blue eyes wide, but she usually did this only for parody purposes. She seems uncomfortable as a promiscuous actress in The Voice of the Turtle(1947), as if she knew that her natural role on screen was to patiently listen to the Joan Crawford’s of this world and gently mock their emotional grandiloquence from the sidelines.

After years of playing support, Arden finally won a star vehicle of her own, first on radio and then on television, as schoolteacher Connie Brooks in Our Miss Brooks, which ran through most of the 1950s. Arden was consistently, tirelessly inventive in that long-running series, mastering the art and timing of situation comedy and providing a template for later players. In the twenty or so minutes of each Our Miss Brooks episode, Arden generally manages to get at least three to four laughs. The writing for that show was usually good or at least serviceable, and if it was ever a little less than that, Arden would still find her laughs in between the lines with little looks and reactions of distaste, disgust or dismayed confusion. She could get a laugh just by smoothing down her skirt, or wincing slightly.

She returned to the screen in Otto Preminger’s Anatomy of a Murder (1959), wearing some grey in her hair as James Stewart’s loyal, kindly and largely unpaid secretary, a woman who will pour some more coffee for you in the middle of the night. It might do to say that Arden’s film characters are stoic or resigned, but that’s not quite it. There’s something else about them, something unclear but suggestive. There’s something even a little mysterious and unplaceable about Eve Arden on screen, as if she isn’t giving too much of herself away for us. She does her job, like her characters do, and we get to enjoy the sound of her helplessly skeptical voice, which enlivened many movies less classic than Stage Door, Mildred Pierce and Anatomy of a Murder, but we don’t ever really get the real her and how she actually feels. She and her characters have retreated somewhere private where they cannot be reached. Maybe that’s why she had such a long career, because audiences always wanted more of her.

She appeared on television a lot as an older woman, dryly reacting to the wacky Kaye Ballard in another series, The Mothers-In-Law, and matching her sour comic timing with Bea Arthur in an episode of Maude. She was still at school as the principal in Grease ( 1978), as if Connie Brooks had climbed up the ladder but still had to put up with inane students and low-level jokes. One of her last credits was as the Wicked Stepmother in Cinderella for Shelley Duvall’s Faerie Tale Theatre series in 1985. Rather satisfyingly, the 77-year-old Arden is asked to gloat over treating the pretty young Jennifer Beals “like dirt” because she and her daughters have not been as well-favored by dissembling nature.

Arden married twice, the second time happily to actor Brooks West, and she raised four children, three of whom were adopted. After her death in 1990, her long-time publicist and manager Glenn Rose said, “She kept being cast as this sarcastic, acid-tongued lady with the quick retort and put-down. In real life, Eve would have never put anyone down. She wasn’t that kind of person.“

by Dan Callahan

#Dan Callahan #Evre Arden #The Chiseler

[starr-fall-knight-rise]

Humans are Weird “Slang”

Ok guys, this really, really hurt me to write, but by request, I have done it. Just a reminder before we begin that if some of these words appear to be used wrong, just remember that this around to 3000 or 4000s so language would have changed a lot during this time, and most subcultures meshed with each other at one time or another creating this sort of thing.  So I probably did what I did quite intentionally.

They ghosted into the city at 500 miles per hour. Sunny had her face pressed against the window looking up towards the sky in awe at the ethereal city of white arches and colorful flying cars rising in hundreds of multilevel platforms thousands of feet into the sky. The forest rolled directly up to the outskirts of the city, a city that reached upwards into the sky rather than sprawling outwards like cities had done in the distant past. Captain Vir leaned back in his seat eyes half closed as the rocket maglev rolled up towards the city. The captain said that maglevs used to be nearly as loud as jet engines, but sound dampening technology along the side of the rails had reduced the sound to almost nothing.

And the people, the humans were so odd compared to the Captain and the humans and Sunny had known.  They were outrageously dressed brightly colored. Their hair was died, their skin was died, some of them wore massive clothing that billowed outward feet while others were barely wearing anything at all. A woman walked past as the train was beginning to slow, and, standing next to them, Sunny took sight of an intricate tattoo of a dragon winding up and down her arm in repeated arcs and spirals.

Outside the train windows a tunnel sucked them into darkness lines of lights rolling past the windows. They slowed, and came to the stop.

Please watch your step as you exit the train.

Captain Vir stood up and made his way off of the train with Sunny and Krill following behind him onto the underground platform of dark stone and thick, squat pillars. Bright holographic kiosks lit up the station with blue purple and warm red light. Lines of people walked up and down the terminal passing their wrists under microchip scanners.

They passed through a set of scanners, and Sunny watched in shock as an alien face stared at her from behind the security desk. A humanoid face but of metal and plastic. They moved from there stepping forward, and onto a purple symbol on the ground. Sunny nearly had a heart attack as they were pushed into the air rising up through tunnels in the ground and out into the blinding sunlight and the white city.

A massive holograph bust into light above them.

Welcome to Los Angeles the city of angels. The hologram burst apart and into a set of massive wings which flapped once and then exploded once again sending pixels out across the sky like a daytime firework. The pixels reformed themselves into a large screen a massive add for two people. The new fashion trend from Apple. The clothing was in grey white and black short sleeved, high collared, shirts that hung long about the knees. The look was very clean and organic, the humans depicted were the best of their species. Feed your fashion with Apple.

A few of the humans passing them turned to look on in curiosity at the strange alien visitors, an occurrence that wasn’t particularly common yet. They looked up at sunny, some with interest, some with worry, and others with….. with something that made Sunny rather uncomfortable.  She sped up to catch the captain as he stepped onto a light rail, which send them rocketing across the city on a pocket of blue light. They landed at a central terminal, and the captain motioned them to follow passing through hundreds of tall and imposing shops before ducking into a tight alley. The bright white lights of the soaring city broke down as they made they tunneled their way into the city’s bones. The stark white walls of the soaring buildings and skywalks broke down into thick beams and burbling pipes: veins and innards creeping their way through the bones.

They slipped through another doorway and down a set of metals stairs into darkness. Even in the light of day, this part of the city was dark. They took another turn and cut outwards into another alley. The sound of voices spilled over them as they stepped into the city, and a dark marketplace. Sunny stepped a little closer to the captain eyes passing over the booths bathed in deep red lighting. From behind their stalls eyes peered out at her in interest. The one thing all these humans had in common….. well…. They weren’t totally human. Robotic legs, robotic arms, robotic eyes.

They called at the captain as he passed in words that Sunny didn’t understand. The Captain paused and pulled up his pant leg, flashing the dark metal of his prosthetic leg as the men who went silent and waved him on.

“Captain.” Krill wondered quietly, “Where are we going?”

The man gave him a nonchalant wave as they passed down another line of booths. Prosthetic legs and arms hung from hooks on every side next to glass cases of various, shiny robotic upgrades, “I have a guy who owes me a favor. Thought if we were going to stay in the city that we might as well stay with friends.” He took another corner walking them onto a wider, more inviting thoroughfare. Bright neon lights blinked above them. Music thrummed form the dark cavernous openings beneath the lights. Inside lights throbbed and beat.

The captain stopped before one of the doors, “Alright guys….. now Rocket is a friend of mine, but the guys he runs with are pretty weird. They’re called slangers, so don’t feel bad if you can’t understand them.”

“What’s a slanger?” Krill wondered.

“You’ll see.” The Captain grinned, before turning around, shoving open the door and stepping inside. Music thrummed and throbbed outwards

*I've been to the year 3000, not much has changed, but they lived underwater*

“C’mon dude y’an’t smak on these beats when they still rel’. Sunny turned her head thinking that her translator had just had a stroke. And when she looked, she was sure that her eyes had gone into stroke as well. This particular human had bright turquoise hair, numerous metal rods through his face, wore only a vest, and a set of massively flared jeans. The man next to him was nothing if not more ridiculous with odd white hair, ruffled collar, and enormous pants with buckled shoes to match.

“Tis you doth not know the truest meaning of art. Shakespeare would be caught weeping at this terrible violation of the ears.” Down to her side Sunny watched Krill as he shook his head fiddling with the translation mechanism as all the humans turned to look at them. Distant lights flashed in the other room with the beat of the song. A large mirrored ball hung in the air. The dress code was non-existent.

The captain ignored the eyes and raised his voice over the crowd, “Yo, Rocket where you posted! said you’d be here if I came slidin’!”

The actual hell was that supposed to mean?

While they were waiting for a reply, one of the human females from the right lifted her head, half shaved half long, one half died black the other purple, “Sweet bod dawg, totally tubular you dig, pred.” Sunny looked around not sure who the human was speaking to.

“Are you talking to me?” Sunny wondered.

The girl tilted her head again, “Yeah, who else?”

Sunny shuffled her feet on the floor pointing to the UV translator, “I…. don’t understand.”

The human rolled their eyes, “Peeps discriminating against the script…..” She paused, “You look cool, kid, you and your Et friend.” She said motioning down to krill who looked 110% confused.

“Erm, thanks....” The girl settled back into her seat and closed her eyes. Krill and Sunny exchanged a look as the blue lights flashed ad flickered over them. It didn’t take long before a short-dark human slipped from the crowd. He was wearing soemthing that resembled a suit, but it was powder blue and came with a matching hat, and an odd cut. He grinned wide as he saw Vir standing there.

“Bro! Looking tight in the 2000s duds didn’t think the burbs were so lit.” The two of them embraced, “How you hanging, got jarred when I caught that you’re still kicking it with the flyboys.”

“Yeah, I uh…..” The Captain sighed and gave up, “I got promoted, have my own ship and everything.”

Sunny leaned down to Krill, “What is he saying?”

“Absolutely no idea, I’m not entirely sure they’re speaking human. Most of those words aren’t even words, and when they are words, they aren’t used in context”

“Radical, just gotta nab a squeeze eh.” He elbowed the captain in the ribs, but the man went white.

“I don’t know about that.” The captain said hesitantly nervously rubbing his arm as the man walked them further into the place passing the room with all the flashing lights. The mirrored ball sent pinpricks of light across the room. The floor flashed with multiple colored squares.

“Still getting’ G-locked around chicks.” The guy wondered thoughtfully passing through a curtain of beads.

“G-locked?” The captain wondered, “Can’t say I’ve heard that one. I’m assuming it doesn’t mean what it’s supposed to mean.”

“Coined it for you. Means to be a chicken around chicks.” He threw an arm around the captain’s shoulders, “You just gotta keep it liquid bro or you’re fixin’ to get juiced. Just be chill keep it basic, you know unless she’s really high octave than even I’d be freaked. You snipe.”

The captain closed his eyes and rubbed the back of his head, “Damn, Rocket. I can barely understand you these days, but staying “liquid” Isn’t so easy.”

A loud clatter broke through their conversation from across the room, “GET LOCKED you candy-ass Bieber, keep your crotch rot over there.” And suddenly there was a sudden burst of limbs and fists, and a group of other humans ran to break up the fight. Rocket stood with his hands on hips as the fight was broken up motioning one of the humans towards the door

“What was that all about?” The Captain wondered.

“Well Steevie can be a real creeper, been tweaking, and you know I’m chill with the fam blazin’ but getting iced is bad mojo. Got himself wrapped up with a hit last week and then nearly got trunked when the candy man didn’t get his doe. And Candy man been kicking it with the Ice-Queen. Steevie’s shit ain’t cool for my rep. Tryna keep it clean.”

The Captain snorted, and quickly stopped throwing an arm in front of Sunny.

“YEET!” A spray of objects went flying past them, and a group of humans followed dressed surprisingly similar to the Captain, who sunny was beginning to learn, dressed in a rather outdated style.

They stepped from one room and into a back room. The music was just a soft thudding now. Rocket took a seat at his desk throwing his feet up onto the desk.

“So, to what do I owe this slide, you here to throw shade or you need bailed out.”

“We were actually looking for a place to crash.” The captain said motioning to Sunny and Krill who stood by the door looking confused. Sunny could see that Krill was close to blowing a fuse. He looked at Sunny gesticulating angrily with one of his arms. He clearly didn’t understand why the human would talk in a way SPECIFICALLY designed to be confusing. Sunny kind of understood the sentiment.

“Tight, sweet crew got yourself an Et and a Pred.” He leaned in a little bit close, “You’re not into a bit of that Pred tail, are you, Spine?”

The captain just looked at the man, “The F*** kind of question is that?”

Rocket just leaned back in his chair, “Cool your jets, ace you playin’ like I’m giving you the third degree. Just asking, no shame in whatever you’re sweet on.”

The captain rolled his eyes ignoring the question, “Rocket this is Krill, he’s my ships chief medical officer, and one Vrul surgical staff, and this is Sunny, my primary weapons specialist.”

“Sup fam, any squad of Adam’s is a crew of mine.”

Krill crossed his arms, and sunny rubbed the back of her head, “Thanks…. I think….. do you mind me asking why you all, talk funny?”

“Well sheila-“

“In English, please.”

The man sat back in his seat with a raised eyebrow, “A’ait, have it your way. I will lower myself to the common tongue to converse with you. We.” He motioned to himself and the club around him, “Are Slangers, schooled in the specific are and complete use of slang words in communication. Slang if you do not know is a very informal way of speaking where words are used in different contexts and are usually specific to a certain type of group. This type of language evolves very rapidly, and is difficult to keep up with.” He patted himself on the chest, “I have coined a few terms myself in the past. Including and not limited to G- lock, Locked, and Spine, however all forms and uses of slang words are accepted here. We have specialists in 1900s 2000s 3000s and so on.”

The captain turned to Krill and Sunny, “You see, humans have this thing called counter-culture, where a specific group of people do things contrary to popular culture because maybe they feel like they don’t fit in. Humans need groups, so it works out pretty well for everyone. Rocket is sort of a leading figure in counter culture these days, and some of it has sort of bled over into mainstream popularity. Like the army TOD tattoo.”

“The what?” Krill wondered

The captain pulled down the front of his shirt where a small dark tattoo sat just above his heart. The tattoo changed every few moments counting through earth time, “It’s a bio power tattoo the army started using in place of dog tags. The ink takes a bit of excess power from the body and uses it to work. When the body dies, the time stops giving you an accurate time of death.”

Rocket was nodding, “I think we hittin’ the same octave yarrn’t crashing in a hood where you could get trunked or jacked. Honest, some pads can be real jank ‘round here. I tell yah, one of my crew got clowned taking the tube back from burbs.”

Sunny just stood there confused. She was 100% sure they weren’t hittin’ the same octave, whatever that meant.

As they were lead off to a quieter side room, Krill tugged on the captain’s pants, “Captain, what’s a clown?”

The man looked at them and shrugged, “Some kind of demon that wears face paint…. I think.”

 Thank you @ma-tsu-the-male-goddess and @taliaxlatia for helping me come up with the futuristic slang words. You have hurt my soul very deeply :)

#humans are weird #humans are space orcs #humans are space oddities #humans are space australians #earth is space australia

[imagineredwood]

***Damn near 4 AM over here but it’s up 😂***

Warnings: None

Pairing: Camila x EZ

Word count: 3.7K

Camila huffed and ran the back of her hand over her forehead, brushing away the hair and sweat that was there, a slight ache in her lower back as she stood. She smiled proudly down at her garden, dirty hands resting by her side. Chucks of soil tumbled off her fingers as she continued to look over the garden, everything now finally planted and situated after three days. She wasn’t nearly done with her garden, still so much to be grown, but planting the seeds and small trees of what she ate were her main goal. The size of the backyard had spoken to her as soon as she had seen it and immediately, she’d wanted to get started as soon as possible with growing her own produce. As a child, her Abuela always grown her own vegetables and fruits amongst other plants, and Camila had always been right there alongside her, helping her with the process. Sure, it was bonding time between the two of them, but to Camila, it was much more than that. Gardening with Abuela Magdalena taught her patience, taught her how showering something in love could make it grow and bloom, just like people. Her Abuela had always said that love, dedication, and support could heal even the most withered flower and while it took a little more work, it could do the same for a human. 

That was where Camila’s loving nature came from. She treated everyone she met with the same gentleness and warmth as she had treated the sunflowers in her Abuela’s garden. She could be a little rough around the edges sometimes, with an over forgiving attitude that had led to her kindness being taken advantage of more times than she would like to count, and a rage that exploded when she’d finally had enough. She was complicated and layered, much like the onions she used to fish out of the damp soil but she tried her best to be the best that she could be and sitting in a garden with the fresh scent of rosemary and rainwater always helped her reflect so she could do that. 

Dusting her hands off and giving herself a nod of approval, she ran a dirt-covered finger over the smooth green skin of the tiny tomato on the tree she had just planted and made her way back inside of the house for a shower before heading into town. 

“There isn’t all that much experience needed, we just like people who are friendly, knowledgeable about different genres especially the newer ones. It’s not a library, though we do try to provide some similar services when needed. An old man like me isn’t very computer or tech savvy so it’s good to have young folks like yourself here who can help them out. Plus, you say you enjoy kids. You meet all of those so it seems to me that you’ll be a great fit.” 

Camila smiled as the older gentleman spoke, walking with her slowly through the bookstore, after having gotten the story and history of her new workplace. It had started as your everyday run of the mill bookstore way back when Mr. Salvatore had first moved into town. It was the only bookstore in town until everything started expanding. Lately, they had started to see their patrons dwindling and Mr. Salvatore’s daughter Sandra had come up with the idea to buy the unit next to the bookstore and expand as well, adding a café and more technology into the mix. She was a tall, box blonde in her thirties with a bright and warm aura and an eye for decor. She’d said they needed to take a more modern approach, Mr. Salvatore had agreed and business had been booming ever since, now needing to hire some more employees to keep up with the demand. Camila had seen the ad for hiring in the local newspaper and decided to give it a shot. She loved to read, a good couple of boxes full to the brim with books back in the home that she had yet to buy a shelf for. The job seemed like the perfect one for her and so she’d figured she would try her luck.

Coming to stand back at the check-in and cash register desk at the front, he hobbled over behind the counter and tucked his thumbs into his worn leather suspenders, smiling as he looked at her.

“So, when can you start?” 

Camila laughed softly and shrugged. 

“Whenever you need me to, really. It’s not like I have any plans. I’d like to get back to work. I can start tomorrow if you’d like.”

At that, the man smiled again, holding his right hand out for her to shake. 

“Well then young lady, I guess I’ll be seeing you tomorrow.” 

Camila took his wrinkled hand in her own and shook it gently once before he placed his other atop hers, holding them in his. 

“It’ll be good to have a new, nice face around here.”  

Turning, he reached over and picked up a small white binder that all the new employees got with a list of what aisles held what genres, a current calendar with the next three months of events and other tips to make memorization of the bookstore easier. She took the binder from his hands, looking through it quickly before tossing him one last smile. 

“Thank you, Mr. Salvatore. I’ll meet you and Sandra here tomorrow.”

Camila hummed to herself quietly as she pulled the new books from the cardboard box and stocked them up along the cherry stained wooden shelf. Though it wasn’t overwhelmingly exciting, it was one of the most relaxing jobs she’d ever had. She’d been able to memorize most of the cheat sheet that Mr. Salvatore had given her which made things much easier when it came to both stocking and helping any customers. The environment was quiet, cozy and laid back, not to mention the place smelled of fresh baked pastries and coffee from the café that was in the front of the store. As if that wasn’t enough, Mr. Salvatore had it that all employees could have coffee and a pastry for free on their breaks and could take home from the bunch that were left over and to be thrown away at the end of the day. Both he and his daughter had been nothing but the sweetest to her and after speaking to the other employees over lunch, she found that being nice was just a part of who they were. Every employee, no matter if they’d worked there for 1 week or 5 years, could vouch for the father-daughter duo and how they were the best employers anyone could wish for. 

Camila finished stocking the new books on the ‘New Releases’ self and was in the process of pulling apart the empty box when Sandra walked up, smile as bright as ever. 

“Hey, honey. Can you do me a favor?”

Camila nodded and Sandra pulled out a folded paper from the pocket of her jeans. 

“Can you pick these books out for me when you get a chance? It doesn’t have to be now but have them done by closing time, please. Dad usually does this but he forgot today was Tuesday and he made an appointment with his cardiologist so we have to get that done. Just put the books together in a bag leave them on the shelf behind the front desk. Someone named Ezekiel will be by to pick them up later on. Don’t charge him. We have a little thing going where he just kinda rents them and brings them back when he’s done.”

Camila acknowledged her and held the list in her hand, unfolding it to look it over. 

“I just finished stocking the last of the new releases so I can do it now, make sure I don’t forget.” 

Sandra smiled and reached over to place a hand on Camila’s shoulder, giving it a soft squeeze. 

“Thank you so much, sweetheart. I’m glad you’ve joined us here. I’ve already had 3 customers tell us how helpful you’ve been. Keep up the good work kiddo.”

To Sandra, it might’ve just been her everyday employee encouragement, but Camila couldn’t help but blush and beam at the woman’s words, always having been a sucker for praise. It made her ears get hot and instilled a burst of energy as it always did and she nodded quickly. 

“Thank you, Sandra. I’ll get it done right now.” “No problem. We’ll see you tomorrow.” 

Camila continued to look over the list as they went separate ways, seeing that all the books were in a variety of genres. There were books of poetry and fiction, Sci-Fi and nature, horror and spirituality. There was a mix and Camila couldn’t help but wonder who would be picking them up. She tried to picture them in her head as she went around and pulled the books. Her imagination is what had drawn her to reading as a child in the first place and by the time she had collected the books from the list, she hadn’t been able to conjure up what she expected the person would look like. It was hard to get a feel with how sporadic the books were and how none of them seemed to have anything in common or similar to the next one. 

Soon enough, she’d collected all of the books and had bagged them up, taking them up the front where Sandra had told her. She went back to the main center of the bookstore and looked around, everything seeming to have emptied out by now. She had volunteered to close up and was consequently that last employee in the store apart from the two baristas that were wiping down the espresso machines. There was one patron left in the café, a high school student no more than 16 that had been there since earlier this afternoon. He wore a grey hoodie and bags under his eyes, his hair messy and greasy and she could tell he was exhausted as his eyes continued to gaze at the laptop screen in front of him. She walked over and placed her hand down onto the tabletop, rapping her nails against it softly, getting his attention. He looked up at her and she smiled softly, pointing over at the clock. 

“It’s getting close to closing time. Just wanted to let you know so you have time to save everything and get packed up. Do you need help with anything?” 

The kid cursed quietly and shook his head in frustration. 

“Shit, sorry. I lost track of time. I’m just trying to get this presentation done for school and my brain is fried. I can’t come up with anything else and I still have 6 slides left.” 

Camila took a seat next to the kid and pointed at his screen. 

“Do you mind?” “Nah, go ahead.”

He turned the screen towards her and she looked over the PowerPoint, a slight grin coming to her face as she saw what the topic was. 

“Ya know, I may or may not have done a project myself on the Collapse of the Roman Empire when I was in high school. When is this due?”

“Two days from now. I put it off and it snuck up on me. That’s why I skipped school today. Don’t tell anyone please!” 

Camila laughed as his voice took a worried edge at the end after he had outed himself. She was about to respond when the bell dinged as the door opened. She looked over as a man walked in and went straight to the front desk, waiting patiently. She couldn’t see his face but what she could see was the leather and the patch he wore. No one had mentioned that there was an MC in town. Pointing down at the table, she turned back to the kid and leaned in. 

“I’ll tell you what. I think I still have that paper saved somewhere on my computer. I’ll bring it with me tomorrow and I’ll help you out to finish those last couple of slides. After school! Don’t skip.” 

The boy’s eyes widened some before a grin slowly made its way onto his face, nodding feverishly. 

“OK! I won’t skip, I promise. I’ll be here after school at 2.”

Camila nodded herself and pushed his backpack towards him before standing. 

“Go home. And get some good sleep.” 

She turned back towards the front desk and set into a brisk walk, not wanting to make the man wait any longer. As she came around, he locked eyes with her and gave a warm smile. Reciprocating, she faced him, hands planted flat on the countertop. 

“Hi. You must be Ezekiel?” “Yeah, that’s me.” 

Camila turned and grabbed the bag off of the shelf, holding it out for him. 

“Here you go. Everything’s in there for you.” “Thank you. Is everything ok with Mr. Salvatore?” 

Camila nodded, seeing the concern in his eyes.

“Yeah, he’s ok. He just had a doctor’s appointment. Sandra said he forgot it was Tuesday otherwise he would’ve been here to see you.” 

Ezekiel smiled softly and looked down into the bag before looking back up into her eyes.

“Yeah, I like to read but I don’t really have room to keep a bunch of books so I just rent them from him and give them back.”

“Yeah, Sandra was telling me.” 

There was a moment of silence as they looked at each other. Just as Ezekiel opened his mouth to speak again, the student from earlier came up to the counter, butting in. 

“Hey, thanks again. I really appreciate it.” “Oh, you’re welcome…” “Ethan.” “Ethan. I’m Camila. I’ll see you tomorrow. Make sure you bring all your stuff and we’ll get that project finished up ok?”

The kid smiled and nodded as he situated his backpack on his shoulder. 

“Yes, ma’am.” 

He waved as he left and she returned it, EZ smiling to himself at the interaction as he looked back at her.

“Are you a teacher?”

Camila shook her head with a smile, watching out the window as the kid got onto his bike.  

“No, just helping out. I like kids, even the older ones. He’s got a project due and he’s having trouble wrapping it up.” 

Ezekiel nodded once more, smiling at her as he did. 

“Yeah, I remember those days. Good old procrastination.”

The two of them shared a laugh and were once again surrounded by silence. Their smiles slowly faded from their faces and yet they still stayed looking at each other for a second more before they quickly looked away, EZ looking down at his books and Camila suddenly finding the glitter in her nail polish to be very interesting. It was awkward and they both began to talk at the exact same time to break the silence. 

“Well, it was nice meeting you.” “Nice to meet you.” 

EZ shook his head as she threw hers back, both of their laughs filling the emptiness of the bookstore. Camila spoke alone this time.

“Sorry for being kinda awkward. I just moved here and it’s a lot of new people and places and new everything. Just trying to get my footing.” 

EZ nodded in agreement with her statement but also to himself. Though he wasn’t new in town, he was getting back into the swing of things after having been locked up. He was also meeting new people and seeing new places, trying to get his footing himself. A lot had changed since he’d gone to jail and he could understand where she was coming from, though he wasn’t exactly ready to admit all of that to her. She was sweet, both carefree and awkward at the same time, and he thought she was beautiful. After being inside, he was willing to admit that he was off his game and more than a little rusty when it came to women. He was sure if Angel could see him, he’d be laughing his ass off at his little brother. With everything going on in his life at the moment, finding a girl and getting into a relationship was the last thing on his mind. He couldn’t deny the attraction he felt towards her, both physically and personally but the fewer people he brought into the mess that he had created with the DEA and the club, the better. 

Slapping his hand onto the counter softly, he pulled away shooting her another smile as he headed towards the door. 

“Well, I’ll see you around Camila. Thanks for the books.” 

With a grin and a wave, she said goodbye and watched as he walked out, putting away his bag before climbing onto his bike. She winced slightly as he started it up and the rumble engulfed the street. She looked back around the shop, the baristas having already gone home and everything situated, ready for her to lock up. She went to the front door and locked it, turning over the closed sign before heading to the back, into the breakroom to grab her things. Purse in hand, she walked to the rear of the store, going out the back door and locking that one up too. Looking down at her watch, she read the time. It was only four thirty and Felipe’s shop didn’t close until five. She’d promised that she wouldn’t make a habit of being late and she was a woman of her word. 

Unlocking her car, she climbed in and pulled out her card before tossing her purse into the passenger seat and starting up the car. She pulled out of the back lot and went around the complex, driving down the main street and parking further up the block where the carniceria was. She walked up to the door and pushed it open, smiling as she saw Felipe standing behind the counter. Walking in further and turning, she found Ezekiel sitting on one of the chairs also looking over at her.  The two of them looked at each other for a good couple of seconds, not really knowing what to say. Camila settled for trying to make a joke. 

“I swear I’m not stalking you.” 

EZ chuckled as Felipe looked between them. 

“You two know each other?”

They both shook their heads at the same time, EZ stepping in to explain.

“She just started working at the Salvatore bookstore. I bumped into her earlier. I was there to pick up some books.”

Felipe closed his eyes and nodded once in understanding before looking back at Camila with a smile which she returned as she walked up to the counter. 

“Hola Señor.” “Hola nena.” “I need 6 chicken breasts por favor.”

Felipe began to pull her meats out and continued to speak to her as EZ watched. 

“So, you’re working at the bookstore?”

“Yeah. I started today. It’s not bad. I like it. Plus it's close, good hours.” “Are you all moved in?” “Gracias a Dios, yes. I still have a couple of small boxes left to unpack but they’re full of little stuff. The house itself is all done though.” 

Now it was EZ’s turn to repeat Felipe’s question from earlier.

“Do you two know each other?” 

Camila turned to face EZ as Felipe continued to pack up her chicken, a small smile on her face. 

“Not really. I mean we’ve met before. I came here a couple of days ago to buy some meat and we started talking then.”

Camila trailed off before pointing between EZ and Felipe. 

“So, I guess it’s my turn to ask. Do you two know each other?” 

Both men shared a laugh and Camila furrowed her brows slightly, not really understanding what was so funny. 

“Yeah, you could say that.”

She looked over at Felipe and he pulled off his gloves, turning around to grab a framed picture off of the wall behind him and hand it over to her. Her eyes looked over the sweet little boy in the picture, the smile still identical, and she turned to look at EZ, who sat with one leg crossed over the other, a proud look on his face as he spoke.

“That’s my pops.” 

Camila looked back and forth between the two of them, searching their faces in awe of how she hadn’t realized before. 

“Well shit.”  

The three of them shared a laugh and she handed the photo back to Felipe, EZ coming to stand as Felipe put it back and finished packaging her chicken. He placed the bag on top of the counter and gave her the total. Felipe observed quietly as his son eyed the girl as she paid. His eyes broke away from her for a moment and then caught those of his fathers, watching him watch her. Even a grown man now, he still blushed and looked down bashfully as his father rolled his eyes but still smiled. The machine printed out her receipt and she grabbed it along with her bag, looking back up at Felipe. 

“Thank you Señor.” “You can call me Felipe.” 

Camila nodded as she turned and began heading towards the door. 

“Gracias Felipe.” 

She turned her head slightly and looked at EZ, waving with her empty hand. 

“Bye Ezekiel.” “Bye.” 

Camila walked out of the store and made her way to her car, both Reyes men watching her as she did. EZ looked back over as Felipe began disinfecting the counters and scale, walking up to the counter. 

“That’s the girl you were talking about?”

Felipe nodded, tossing the wipes into the trash as he walked out from behind the counter and towards EZ, who was still looking out the window at Camila. He returned his gaze to his father with a lazy smile as he felt his dad grab his shoulder. He expected him to tease him, poke fun at how engrossed in her he was. His smile quickly faltered though as he saw the look his father wore. 

“What’s up, pop?” 

The older man sighed deeply, tossing his head towards the back room. 

“Lock up the front and flip the sign. We gotta talk about KJ.”

#Felipe Reyes #ez reyes #ezekiel reyes #imagines #Mayans MC #mayans fx #el destino #mayans imagine

[phaedrecameron]

House of Fraser - Chpt 12 -Leòdhas

“My wife! Where is she, you Scottish bastard?!”  Randall roared.

Jamie put a hand on John’s shoulder as he pushed past him to stand before Randall. “Were you recently married? I dinna ken you had a wife.”

Randall stood straighter. “Fraser, if you think you can take what’s mine, you’ve severely miscalculated.”

“If yer referring to Claire, it seems yer the one who’s miscalculated.” Jamie uncurled his fists, he needed to keep his cool. Being arrested for assault would only delay his finding Claire. “Dr. Beauchamp canceled her order earlier in the week. Said the wedding was called off. Why would she be here?”

Randall looked from Jamie to John and back to Jamie. “So she isn’t with you?”  He reached into his pocket for his mobile and began furiously tapping on the screen. “I should be thankful the press won’t think she left me for the bloody dressmaker.” Randall sighed heavily and jammed the mobile back in his pocket. “This is your fault, Fraser, feeding into her weaknesses!”

Jamie stepped closer, “Claire’s plenty strong, but ye wouldn’t know that because ye dinna know the first thing about her. Ye canna make her happy. Let her be.”

Randall’s face turned red with anger. “We’re getting married! She’s mine. It was only an argument!”  His voice shrill with agitation. “You’ve just confused her.” Randall slammed a piece of paper on John’s desk.

Without taking his eyes off Randall, Jamie reached for the paper.

“She was very adamant that there would be no wedding,” John added with a perfectly straight face. “Given that you have been left at the proverbial alter, we’ll need assurances from both parties before we resume work on the dress. Maybe you’ll have another notion of where Claire went – I mean other than to Jamie, of course.” John smiled politely.

Jamie glanced at John. He made a quick mental note to increase Grey’s Christmas bonus and to never play poker against the man.

Jamie’s eyes dropped to the paper in his hand. He immediately recognized it as a torn page from one his sketchbooks. It was a quick pencil sketch of a woman in a backless dress. The woman had a mole on her upper left shoulder blade and her face was turned in profile. The drawing was rough, but it was  unmistakably Claire. Jamie had decided against the design and discarded the page.

“Do you deny you gave that to her?” Randall hit the page as he pointed to it.

Jamie searched his memory. He’d completed the sketch in his flat. Claire must have taken it from the shred bin in his guest bedroom the night she stayed over.

Jamie felt a surge of adrenaline course through his body, his muscles coiling and retracting with a primal urge to explode in violence. “How did ye get this?” His voice as dangerous and sharp as a guillotine.

Randall stepped back. Jamie advanced. Randall attempted to hold his ground but nervously looked to Grey; as if imploring a ringmaster to control his beast. Grey’s icy gaze confirmed he’d gladly watch Fraser tear him limb from limb.  Jamie moved his arm. Randall flinched, “I took it from her flat!” Randall’s breathing was fast. Jamie’s eyes narrowed in silent command for him to continue. “The night of the gala..she..she broke up with me – talking nonsense about me not knowing her! She was simply nervous. That’s how she is – too much passion – it leads her astray.  She’d turned off her phone and I couldn’t reach her. The next day, I used my spare key to enter her flat.”

Jamie scoffed in disbelief as he yanked Randall by the wrist. “This is merely a sketch. Why did ye think she came to me?”

Randall remained silent. Jamie squeezed.

Randall’s face contorted in pain, “because I also found an oversized rugby shirt in a suitcase on her bed! Unhand me, you barbarian!”

Jamie ignored his protests, “what’s that to do with me?”

“Because she came home and I confronted her.”

Jamie released Randall’s wrist and grabbed him two-handed by the shirt. He brought Randall within an inch of his face. “Ye’ve got three seconds to collect yerself and then ye’ll be tellin’ me everythin’ that happened.”

“She…she…” Randall began to stammer.

Jamie stepped back to give Randall his three seconds. Randall took but one.

“She said the shirt was yours – told me how she stayed with you when she got too involved with a patient. Said I didn’t understand her and I needed someone else. She advanced her leave time and was going away to the Canary Islands until after the new year. Told me to leave. And I left!”

“Yet yer here?”  Jamie folder his arms.

“Claire’s a horrible liar and I’d seen her suitcase. She wasn’t going anywhere warm. I..I stayed outside her flat to…well… I fell asleep in my car and she must have left.”

Jamie picked up Randall’s overcoat that had fallen to the ground. “I’ll find Claire – see that she’s safe. She’s no longer yer concern.” Randall took the coat from Jamie’s hand. “If ye come near her again, without her express permission, ye’ll have no time to collect yerself.”

Randall forced his arms through the sleeves. “I’ll sue you! I won’t pay for the dress!”

“I dinna want yer money, I’ve gotten everythin’ I need from ye already.”

********

Jamie’s fingers tapped the doorframe of the fifth floor entry way to the pediatric oncology wing of Claire’s hospital. He carefully scanned the medical personnel until he spotted a female nurse in her early sixties. She was near a window, presumably on break. He crossed himself and asked for divine assistance and forgiveness.

“Hello, lass,” Jamie said in greeting to the nurse. She looked up from her mobile, her annoyance dissipating as she registered his broad smile and even broader shoulders.

Jamie deepened his voice and leaned in conspiratorially, “I know yer off duty, but would ye mind helping me out?” The woman looked around and slowly returned Jamie’s smile. “Och, are those yer children?” Jamie motioned to the lock screen of the nurse’s mobile. “Bonny. Such a blessin’.”

Her smile turned into a full blown grin. “Those are my grandchildren.”

Jamie shook his head. “Grandchildren? Yer lying, ye canna be old enough for those.”

She continued to smile and shyly touched her neck. “How can I help?”

***********

“Damn ye, woman!” Jamie cursed as he sped off in the rental car he’d picked up an hour earlier from the airport in Stornoway.  Nurse Thomas, who happened to have a Scottish great grandmother, had graciously contacted the scheduling coordinator and obtained Claire’s emergency contact number while on her advanced holiday. Jamie called and discovered the number belonged to a small bed and breakfast on Eilean Leòdhas.

Only the woman he loved would flee to the Western Isles in the dead of winter. He’d booked the first flight out. Once he arrived at the B&B, his fluency in Gaelic had convinced the owner to divulge Claire had went to the Standing Stones at Calanais.

The tires of Jamie’s Audi screeched to a stop in the car park of the archeological site. His heart raced as he looked out at the large prehistoric monoliths. It was early afternoon, but given the time of year, the light was already fading.  He took one final deep breath and sprinted to the stones.  He circled once and didn’t see Claire. His heart hiccuped an irregular beat. The wind whistled through the stones and an eerie dampness settled in Jamie’s bones.

“Claire!” He yelled.

He ran once more around the stones and still did not see her. A chill coated his skin and the stones vibrated in warning. “Claaairre!”

He looked to his left, to a spot he’d searched not five seconds before, and there she was but 10 meters from him.

She was bundled in a fuzzy knit hat, scarf, and mittens. She gripped her puffy jacket closer to her chest as she stood transfixed by a large stone.

“Sorcha!”

She’d heard him, but she looked the opposite direction.

Claire heard a voice, but looked and saw nothing.  She shook her head and opened the tourist pamphlet she’d taken from the visitor centre. She quickly dropped it when she heard the voice again.  This time  she recognized it. It was Jamie. She looked amongst the stones and still saw nothing. The wind picked up and the stones seemed to buzz and hum with its force. She stepped closer to a large stone and felt as though ice water had been poured directly into her spinal column. She shivered and heard Jamie’s voice again. She frantically turned around and when she looked back he was within arms reach.

“Ah!”  Claire jumped back. “You’re real?”

“Aye! Christ, I’ve been looking for ye! I got yer letter.”

Claire stared, still unconvinced he was real. “Why are you here?”

“For us,” he said simply. She saw relief wash over his face. “Ye called off yer wedding.”

“Yes…I did pay for the dress though…”

Jamie snorted, “I’m no here about the dress. Claire, lass, stop backing away from me.” He outstretched his arm, “here, come to me, come.”

She watched as his fingers beckoned her forward. She hesitated for only a moment before placing her hand in his. He pulled her toward him and she closed her eyes in anticipation of his warmth, but she felt none. She quickly pulled back and realized he was dressed in nothing more than a thin wool shirt.  She brought her mittened hands to his face. His lips were slightly blue and his teeth gently clattered as he tried to smile.  

“Jamie!” She grabbed his arm and pulled him into the visitor centre’s café.

“Sit!” She ordered as they reached the first available table. She removed her mittens and wrapped her scarf around his neck. “ How did you find me? Where are your clothes? What are you doing here?!”

Jamie opened his mouth, but then closed it. He simply smiled and closed his eyes while she continued to chastise him for nearly freezing to death. He opened his eyes when he felt both her hands cup his cheeks.

Claire peered into his face. His eyes were bright, but there were dark circles under his eyes as though he hadn’t slept for a week. She moved her hands to his jaw and felt the growth of his beard. She pulled back and saw how gaunt and pronounced his cheekbones had become. Given his level of fitness, he probably couldn’t tolerate more than a few hours without food.

His hand reached up and touched the side of her neck and jaw. Her eyes closed and she turned into his touch. His thumb traced her lips.  “Bòidheach. Tha gaol agam ort.”

Claire’s eyes opened and she looked back to him. She thought to make a joke about his use of Gaelic, but when she saw his eyes she stayed silent.  Claire noticed a female cashier staring at them, a knowing smile on the woman’s face. Claire cleared her throat and turned get him something to eat. She felt his hand on her wrist, his  eyes wide with worry.  “You need food, I’ll be right back.” She placed her hand over his. “I’ll come back, I promise.”

He nodded and he released her.

She returned, sat and placed a small meat pie and a steaming cup of tea before him. Jamie laid his hand flat on the table for Claire to take. She pushed the pie toward him, “eat first.” He swallowed the pie in three large bites, his eyes never leaving her. She pointed to the tea. He began to gulp it. “Careful! You’ll burn your mouth.” He slowed and took a small sip. He sat the cup down and laid his hand flat again.

Her lips compressed and she ignored his hand. “How did you find me?”

So she meant to resume her questions. Stubborn. “Threats of violence, shameless flirting and Gaelic.” Jamie kept his hand on the table and smiled.

Her brows knitted and her bottom lip poked out. Jamie couldn’t wait to suck on it.

She glanced to his hand and then back to his face. “Where are your clothes?”

“I forgot them in the car. Though, I didn’t bring much. I was rushin; afraid ye’d go through the stones and I’d have to watch yet another man try to take ye to wife.”

Her brows went to her hairline. She leaned forward and narrowed her eyes. She felt his forehead. He couldn’t actually be hypothermic? Was he delirious?

She sat back, still ignoring his hand. Jamie patiently waited for her final question.

“What did you mean, you came for ‘us’?”

She watched the long column of his muscular neck move under her scarf as he swallowed. “I’m no longer wi Geneva. I came to ask if ye’ll have me?”

#house of fraser #outlander fanfiction #oulander modern au #thekingparrot #outlander prompts

[canyouhearthelight]

The Miys, Ch. 30

Oh my gosh, thirty chapters.  This feels super unreal, to be honest.

Thank you to everyone who has stuck it out this long, especially in the last 10 chapters or so, when I have tried to make something resembling a plot.  I really hope I haven’t been a disappointment, and I hope to have many chapters to go until I reach the end of this story.

Content warnings for graphic descriptions of violence. Also, please don’t kill me after you read this chapter?

“Oh my god, she’s awake.”

“Shhh! You’re going to make her panic. Soph? Soph.”

“Can she hear us?”

“Gods, I hope so.”

 I groaned as I woke up, not particularly caring who I disturbed. I remembered the absolute strangest dreams from the night before: people worried I couldn’t hear them, myself being unable to respond.  My head was pounding, which didn’t make sense to my groggy mind – the Vicodin had worked its way out of my system over twenty-four hour previously. The migraines should have stopped. They had stopped, I vaguely remembered. Why did my head hurt so much now?

Something tickled my nose, and pain exploded in my face as three, four, five sneezes erupted.  The pain led to me leaning over the bed – bed? – as I vomited, cursing internally at my sinuses.  As I grabbed my face and firmly pushed on it in an attempt to mitigate the pain, I felt something moving against my back.

“Sophie? Sophie! Noah, she’s awake!” Clumsy hands tried to steady me.

“For fuck’s sake, stop screaming,” I moaned, fighting the hands off. “Of course, I’m awake. I went to bed, I’m awake now. What the hell is going on?”

“What the – You don’t remember, do you?” the voice asked.

“Remember what, Conor? What the – Conor!?” I whipped my head around, wide eyed, and sent the room into dizzying motion. “Ughhh. Why are you here? Why is the room spinning?” Abruptly, I rolled over again to dump whatever was left behind in my stomach on the floor.

When I finally turned back to facing the ceiling, hesitant hand patted my gently. “Stop, love. Just, please stop rolling over. It’s making you sick,” Conor begged in a pleading voice, close to crying. “Your… your skull is fractured. You weren’t supposed to wake up so soon, Noah said it wasn’t good for you, but we thought you wouldn’t wake up at all and – “ the sobs that he had been holding back came forth, full force. “Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, I thought you were gone. I am so sorry, I’m so sorry. Please – “

“Conor,” I stopped him carefully, trying to avoid making my head worse despite the profound confusion I was going through. “What are you talking about? I went to bed, on a futon, on the floor of a cargo bay on Level One.  How did my skull get fractured?”

Conor – how was he even here? – took several deep breaths before speaking. “What do you remember?” he asked carefully. “Noah is recording, so please tell me as much as you can.”

“I was on Level One because of the sensor damage. We were trying to find enough resources to repair all the navigational sensors.  Uh… they were damaged? Like, on purpose, because the replacements were destroyed as well.  Either way, there weren’t enough materials to fabricate replacements for all the sensors, so we dropped out of FTL and the entire Council and all Administrators were called to Level One,” I tried to report matter-of-factly, my head still foggy. “We… jury-rigged screens and controls for two pilots to maneuver the Ark to the nearest system, where drone pilots used makeshift VR to gather materials. About three days in, my sister realized the food and drink were being drugged with Vicodin.  She’s really allergic – it doesn’t put her in anaphylactic shock or anything, but it does make her feel like her blood’s on fire. After that, Miys tested everything brought to Level One. Xiomara Kalloe, Grey Hodenson, and I think Pranav Ranganathan? – were handling the investigation off Level One, probably because of the suspicion that someone up there was involved.  About a week after we were all called to Level One, I went to sleep and woke up here.”

“Sophia, that was nearly a week ago,” I heard Simon’s oddly comforting voice coming from the ceiling.  I never thought I would be so glad to hear him.  “You are in medical right now, on Level Twelve. I’m sorry but… you were attacked.”

“There’s no way,” I denied, trying to shake my head despite Conor’s hands bracing me to prevent it.  “I went to sleep, Simon.  I would remember being assaulted.”

“Sophie,” the man next to me begged mournfully. “There are multiple eyewitness accounts.  Apparently, you woke up, went to take a shower, and you were attacked then.  Noah had to reconstruct the entire front of your face and most of your teeth.  Please, you gotta stop moving, stop touching your face.  You’re really hurt…”

“He’s right, Sophia.  It’s almost as bad as the first time you woke up here.  The Miys had to pull bone splinters out of your ocular cavities, and clone one of your eyes.  We still aren’t sure about the other one, either,” Simon chimed in.

My eyes widened as I heard Conor sniff, obviously holding back tears. “That… that can’t be right,” I argued, scared and confused.  “Wouldn’t I remember that?”

“Sophia, you took on a lot of head trauma,” Simon’s voice told me, more upset than I ever recalled hearing. “Amnesia is expected in situations like this. We’re really lucky that… the person responsible was caught in the act.”

“Who?” I asked, starting to panic. “Who would do that? How?  I don’t understand.”

To my alarm, Conor pulled away and turned, sobbing uncontrollably. When I tried to sit up, the room spun again and I could vaguely hear a door opening, heavy steps hurrying to my side to replace him.  Moments later, I was gently pushed back to the bed and restrained by six familiar arms.  I could still hear Conor sobbing, though, which upset me more than anything else I had been told. “Where’s my sister?” I asked loudly. “Noah, where is she? And Arantxa? Derek? Are they okay!?” I tried to scream.

“Do not make me sedate you, Wisdom. Derek is in the next room over,” the voice explained, comforting even though it was clearly angry. It was the only thing that made them so formal. “He was in the group that encountered your attacker and – he did not handle it well, let us say.  He was not injured, but the backlash of the event caused significant psychological trauma, for which he is being treated. However, he should be okay, especially knowing that you are awake. I am informing him of that currently.”  One of their fine hands stroked my hair in a very human gesture of comfort.

“And my sister?” I croaked, trying not to assume the worst.  I just wanted things to start making sense.

“Also healthy, although I would not venture to say she is okay,” they reassured me. “She did not come upon your assault herself, or else I fear she would be in a much worse condition.  As it stands, any damage to her is caused by throwing herself at the barrier between her and your attacker, followed by any uninjured appendage once that failed. She currently refuses medical treatment and is wearing out her vocal chords in lieu of retribution on your assailant.  Since her injuries are minor abrasions and bruising so far, I am allowing her refusal of treatment.”

A weight lifted off my chest. “Rants?” I whispered. To my horror, Conor’s sobs not only escalated at that question, but he left the room. “She’s my best friend, Noah. Please tell me she’s okay. Please!” I begged.

“Wisdom,” they said, softly, before pausing.  “Please allow me to explain what occurred before I answer that inquiry?” Reluctantly, I agreed, knowing that Noah always had a reason for delaying an answer.  “Six days ago, you woke up and went to the hygiene facilities on Level One to bathe. From what we can tell, as you were finishing, you were approached from behind by your assailant. They drove your cranium, face first, into the hull around the faucet several times in an attempt to either severely injure you or possibly terminate your life.  Several persons entered the hygiene area off-schedule, including Xiomara Kalloe, Grey Hodenson, Derek Otafor, and Maverick Okima, interrupting the assault and catching the person responsible in the act. This potentially prevented your death.”

“Noah, what does any of this have to do with Arantxa?”

After a prolonged pause, Miys increased their restraint slightly. “Wisdom. Arantxa Bidarte is the person caught in the act of assaulting you.”

I tried to shake my head, only succeeding in pressing opposite sides of my face against Noah’s hands. “There’s no way, they saw something wrong.”

An administrator on Level One was responsible for putting the medicine in everything, a voice in the back of my head reminded me.

“She would never do this,” I argued with myself as much as with Noah. Someone with access to multiple areas on the Ark had to set this up – hadn’t Tyche told me that my assistant and later best friend filled in wherever she was needed? the traitorous part of my mind insisted.

“Arantxa is like a second sister to me, she wouldn’t – ” Conor was entirely too upset after my waking up.  

“Everyone is in shock, Sophia,” Simon tried to comfort me.  “You must have struggled – she had gouges in her arms from where you clawed at her, and the DNA was under your fingernails.  Her hand was so tangled in your hair that we had to shave the back of your head just to bring you to medical, although I was pretty sure Xiomara would rather cut - your attacker’s - hand off rather than cut your hair. Derek managed to do some pretty substantial damage to her before he could be sedated.”

“You drugged Derek!?” I shrieked. “How could you!? You know how terrified he is of medication!”

“If you do not calm yourself, Wisdom, I will be forced to sedate you,” Noah scolded me sternly.  “You should not even be awake right now as it is, but there was no other way to convince your packmates that you are not dead. Clearly, you were breathing, so how they could think you died – “

“We’ve been over this,” Simon interrupted. “Humans can be dead in all but vital signs.  It’s called ‘brain death’, and while we are still breathing and our heart beats, we never wake up from it.  The body lives, but the person inside is dead… it’s just a husk.” Miys just buzzed grumpily. “Sophia, I’ve recorded just enough video and audio to show that you are alive and conscious, and sent it to your sister and the Council.  Tyche is on her way to medical, but I am bribing her to get medical treatment before she can see you.”

“You. Drugged. Derek,” I growled.

“He was going to kill Arantxa before we could determine everything that has happened.  As much as I won’t say she doesn’t deserve it, the Council needs to know as much as possible in regard to the sabotage to the ship,” Simon argued back, unimpressed. “He’s in the next room over, probably heard you shouting at me, so that’s good.  He isn’t being punished, we just have him in a therapeutic suite so he can recover from everything that’s happened.  He’s allowed any visitors he wishes to see, and Mac is already being spoiled rotten. Derek did ask for your purple blanket, though.  Tyche gave permission for him to borrow it.”

“It’s fuzzy, like baby kittens,” I smiled softly, calming down. “We both like it because of that.”  It may have seemed like a weird thing for him to ask for, but he always used that blanket to wrap up when he was in my quarters.  The familiarity, along with having something of mine, was probably helping him through the uncertainty that I would ever wake up.  That blanket, along with Mac, was a kind of touchstone for us both.

As soon as I started to calm down, my head started to get fuzzy again. Trying to fight through it, I looked in the general direction of the Miys. “Is Conor okay?” I asked softly.

If it had a nose, I suspect it would have snorted at me.  It still managed to convey a sense of exasperation at the question. “Wisdom, you nearly died. Again. And all you have done since you woke up is ask about your packmates.  Your sense of self-preservation is entirely broken, I suspect.”

“You aren’t fooling me, O Great Hippo-Spider,” I murmured. “It’s good to know you were worried about me, too.  But you’ve literally put me back together once before, I trust you to take care of my injuries.  I’ll just rest better knowing how the rest of my packmates, since you insist on using that term, are doing.”

A short blast of noise came from it, what I usually took to be a sigh. “Human Conor is distraught, on many levels, and there is little I can do to assist him, unfortunately.  He displays deep, romantic feelings for Administrator Bidarte, and feels betrayal and despair at her actions.  However, he also has been radiating anger towards her for injuring you, and a profound amount of concern for your well-being.  He advised your sister that he could not face the former administrator, so offered to stay here with you while Tyche has been exercising her – frankly impressive – anger upon the barrier between herself and you assailant. Now please, rest, Wisdom,” this time the instruction was soft.

“But Tyche’s coming,” I muttered.

“And she will still be here if you are asleep.  You need to heal, and that is best done when you are not awake to move around and aggravate your injuries.  I really have no wish to sedate you – you do not enjoy it any more than Derek does.”

“Fine,” I surrendered, eyes already falling closed.  Now that the adrenaline was wearing off, I realized how exhausted and in pain I really was.  “Hurts,” I pouted, too tired to be embarrassed.

“I will administer something for the pain. Not Vicodin,” it promised, heading off the request I was about to make.

“Kay.”

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#the miys #humans are weird #humans are space orcs #original fiction #science fiction #earth is space australia #aliens #apocalypse