#this au is really just an excuse to explore the 'what if' jay had a support system who sympathized with him but took none of his bullshit | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

jerkbitchidjitassbutt · 3 years

Text

It Was You (Part Five)

A/N: Jensen and Y/n are childhood best friends. When his agent informs him that his image could use some improvement for a role, will she help him? Or will her feelings get in the way?

Catch up here!

A holiday (Christmas centric) Jensen x Female!Reader Best Friends to Lovers series for @spnchristmasbingo. This chapter and others will fill the square of ‘fake dating’ and this one specifically checks ‘ugly Christmas sweaters’. Un-beta’d, so all mistakes are mine. Header created by me with images from Google. Chapter word count: 3909 (its a longer one, oops)

Series Warnings: cursing, angst-ish at times (if you squint), but mostly all the fluff. Chapter warnings: an original character is sort of mean.

I consider this an AU, as Jensen is single in this fic. This is completely a work of fiction, and I wouldn’t want his reality to be any different, this is purely for entertainment.

Since you arrived late in the afternoon, you and Jensen had little time to rest before the party began. You stowed your things in your respective rooms in Jared’s home across the hall from one another and found the ugly sweaters Gen had chosen for you.

Jensen tried to peak into your room to see yours, but you shot him a look before you closed the door. “Oh c’mon, Y/n! Let me see!”

“Nope! We get to share in each other’s humiliation together!”

You heard him grunt on the other side of the door before he stomped across the hall and shut his door.

Yours was a bright, Christmassy red with white reindeer and an intricate pattern and overall, kind of cute. She also left you a jingle bell bracelet and earrings, so you quickly changed into a pair of jeans, your sweater, and a pair of black ballet flats. Loosening your hair from the tie, you let it fall and fluffed it a bit and applied a small amount of make-up, before finishing the look with some red lipstick and a small amount of gloss to be festive.

When you opened the door, you were met with a very grumpy looking Jensen. He pouted and gestured to himself, causing you to throw your head back in laughter. His sweater had red sleeves and a collar but had black and white patches with various designs all over, including a poinsettia, a string of lights, and a snowman. He was also wearing dark-wash jeans but had put on his black boots beneath that accentuated his slightly bowed legs. You couldn’t help but melt at the sight – he looked absolutely adorable and his pouty expression reminded you of when you were kids, when you wouldn’t share your ice cream with him after he’d eaten all of his own.

Covering your mouth to quiet your giggling, he put his hands on his hips and gave you a bitch face but softened his features when you told him how cute he looked.

“C’mon though,” he wined. “You look adorable. Your sweater is at least bearable. I look ridiculous.”

Something made you reach out to him, sliding your arms around his trim waist as he wrapped his around you. His dimples reached his cheeks as he smiled at you, a bit flirtatiously.

“Hey,” you reassured. “I’m sure you’re going to be the hit of the party with that outfit. You look great.”

Jensen sighed a deep breath, content to feel your body in his arms, “As long as you think so, sweetheart, I’m happy.”

“I always do.”

You felt that urge again as he glanced at your lips, the fire in your belly hadn’t quelled since that morning. Jensen growled down at you as you bit your lip once more, the noise making your blood rush to all sorts of places. He raised his hand to cup your cheek before tangling it into your hair, his mouth mere inches from yours.

Jared called from out of view at the bottom of the stairs, making your heads snap in the general direction, “Hey, guys! You almost ready? We’ve got your drinks made.”

You could hear some distant chatter, meaning that people had started to arrive. You shared a frustrated smile with Jensen as he pulled his hand from your cheek, grazing it slightly before he let go. You gripped his hand tightly as you led him down the stairs, but he was now pouting for a different reason.

You were met with hugs and smiles as you bounded into the room, Jared and Gen mixing in with the crowd of old friends and new faces. You were introduced to everyone and mingled, straying away from Jensen only slightly. He was chatting with a mutual friend of Jared’s as you socialized with a few of the women from the neighborhood, but each of you kept stealing glances at one another every few moments. Everything had shifted, both suddenly and slowly all at once. Instead of the casual glimpses you’d throw in each other’s direction when you were at a party in the past, which were more of just silent conversations asking if you or he needed saving from the person you were talking to in that moment, the stares tonight were affectionate and heated. It felt like he couldn’t keep his eyes off of you and anytime you were within reach, he made some sort of excuse to have his hands on you. Whether it was casually placing his hand on the small of your back to lead you somewhere or brushing your hair from your shoulder, he was constantly touching you in some way. It was comforting and fraying your nerves all at once.

You made your way into the kitchen to freshen your drink and grab a few of the snacks that Gen had made. She always pulled out all the stops for her parties and tonight was no different. She’d made a gigantic charcuterie board that expanded across their entire kitchen island, full of a variety of meats, cheeses, crackers, sauces, fruits and veggies. You filled your dish and grabbed a napkin and your drink before making your way back out to the living area where everyone was gathered, saying hi to a few people that passed by you.

Setting your drink down beside you, you picked through your plate as you began talking with Gen’s college roommate about the random happenings in Austin when Jensen’s form caught your eye. He was talking to someone who had their back turned to you, but she looked familiar though you couldn’t quite place how until she turned to wave at someone, and you couldn’t help but roll your eyes. It was Melanie. She was one of those people who always showed up to Jared and Gen’s parties and that everyone knew, but no one really cared for. She was very open about the fact that she was trying to up her social status in town and was anxious to settle down with someone who could help her do so. She paid to get into all the right clubs and have all the right things, but the hunger and greed radiated from her. Granted, to each their own and you wouldn’t normally judge, but you knew why she was being so chummy with Jensen. You felt a pang of jealousy that he was being his usual, charming self with her, chuckling when she told him a joke. His eyes scanned the room before they landed on you and his smile lit up his features, but when Melanie placed her hand on his forearm his attention went back to her. She was trim and beautiful on the outside and you couldn’t help but feel a bit protective and bitter that she was trying to sink her claws into Jensen, and so a bit of doubt flowed through your mind that he would want someone like you.

Jensen internally groaned when Melanie started another conversation about her macrobiotic diet as her acrylic nails drummed against her glass, praying that she would take a breath so that he could excuse himself. He let his mind wander to Y/n for a moment, anxious to be done with this party so that he could be alone with her again. He needed to know what she was feeling about them… and couldn’t wait to find out. His attention shot back to Melanie when he heard her shrill giggle and she asked, “So, are you seeing anyone?”

He knew that look. She’d given him that look plenty of times before – she plastered on a coy smile, trying to seem sexy as she batted her eyes up at him.

“Well…” he began, but paused, which Melanie took as an opportunity to shoot her shot.

“If you’re not, we should go out sometime. I know this great little club downtown that—”

Jensen held his hand up to stop her gently, “I’m sorry to if I gave you that impression, Melanie, but I’m spoken for.” He said firmly, and he meant it. She wouldn’t be his type on any given day, but he also knew he didn’t want to see anyone else anymore. At least not until he explored things with Y/n.

Melanie seemed taken aback, and almost offended. She turned her nose up slightly and scoffed before jutting her chin in the direction where Y/n was sitting. “Well, have you told her? She’s going to be a bit disappointed when she finds out.”

Jensen felt anger rise in his chest, his features contorting into a deep scowl, more at the fact that Melanie even had the audacity to mention Y/n, “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Oh, come on, Jay.” Don’t call me that, his mind roared. “She’s been clinging to your heals for as long as I’ve known you.” You don’t know me, she does. “You two have been in the news lately and everyone’s always questioned how close the two of you were.” You have no idea. “It’s not like she fits in here, you know.” She said disapprovingly as she glared in your direction, making Jensen’s blood boil.

He cleared his throat loudly, making Melanie jerk to face him in surprise. When she looked at him, he had a fire in his eyes that made her swallow thickly, but he kept his voice calm as he spoke, “Honestly, Melanie? Who I am or am not seeing is frankly none of your business, nor is it anyone else’s. And Y/n?” he motioned to where you were still seated, “No one compares to her. She’s the most beautiful and caring person I’ve ever met. She’d give anyone the shirt off of her back and she deeply cares about other people, not about what they can do for her. You could learn a thing or two from her.” He barked, moving to step away from her. “She’s one of the only true friends I have in this world, and I’ll be damned if I hear her name out of your mouth again.” With that, he left her standing with her mouth agape and waves of emotion rolling off of him.

Jared eyed Jensen heading for his back patio, looking more pissed than he’d ever seen him. He caught Y/n’s worried eyes and gestured that he’d go, following him as he weaved through the crowd. He found Jensen gripping the railing, steam radiating from him as his knuckles turned white.

“Hey, man. You okay? What happened?” Jared called, noting the tension in his shoulders.

Jensen huffed, pointing over his shoulder in the direction of the party, “Melanie.”

“Yeah? What’d she say?”

“Just something about Y/n. It pissed me off.”

Jared crossed his arms, immediately becoming concerned. You were one of his closest friends as well, so he wasn’t about to stand idly by if Melanie was talking about you, “What the hell did she say?” he asked, his own anger growing.

“She was trying to ask me out. When I told her I was seeing someone, she made a smart-ass remark about Y/n, talking about how her and I are always together and that she didn’t fit in.”

“Are you kidding me?” Jared’s voice rose. “She belongs here more than anyone else! Especially Melanie. That bitch wouldn’t know shit about fitting in.”

“I know. She’s insane.”

Jared had already made up his mind to say something to Melanie, but his focus was on his best friend at the moment, “Try not to let it bother you, okay? I know you have your fears about what’s going on with Y/n, but her fitting in isn’t even a question.”

Jensen nodded, “Nah, it’s definitely not… and that’s not even what bothered me the most.”

“I know.” Jared empathized, “We always get defensive about people we love.”

Love. Jensen smiled a bit at the word, and Jared caught it. He clapped him on the shoulder, Jensen returning the sentiment, before Jared his way back inside and immediately seeking out Melanie. When he couldn’t find her, he assumed she’d left and he was more than happy to see her go. She wouldn’t be on the guest list of anything else he had a hand in any time soon.

Y/n ventured outside in search of Jensen, abandoning her glass in the kitchen. He was leaning his elbows against the railing with his shoulders slumped. He didn’t look as upset as he had before Jared came out, but she could tell he was still angry about something.

“Jay? You okay?”

He turned towards her, his green eyes shimmering in the dim light casting from inside. He actually looked sad, more so than angry. “Hey sweetheart, I’m fine.”

“What happened?”

“Nothing, really. Melanie’s just an ass.”

“Well, yeah… I could’ve told you that.” You laughed, making him smile a bit.

He pulled you to him, circling his arms around your shoulders as you rested your head on his chest. The gesture was welcome, but it worried you all the same. You ran your hands on his back, feeling him take a sigh of release and letting the tension melt from him. He rested his cheek on your head, inhaling that floral scent once again.

After a moment, you eyed him from your place under his arm, “You sure you’re alright? Is there anything I can do to help?” you asked.

Jensen smiled to himself again. That was one of the things he loved about you. It was a humble question, but it was very meaningful to him. You always tried to care for him in the simplest ways, even if it was just being there, and no one could comfort him the way you could.

“I’m fine, Y/n/n.”

You pursed your lips, but didn’t press, “Okay. Do you want to stay out here a bit longer? Or go back into the party?”

“We can head back in.” he said, pressing a kiss to your hairline. “Thanks, sweetheart.”

“Of course, honey. I’m always here if you need me, okay?”

“I know.”

He already knew it, but he’d never get tired of hearing it. He walked back into the party with his hand securely bound around your waist, not caring about the wandering eyes and looks. That was the point of the original arrangement anyway, right? To make people talk? These were people, and they were talking. Now, though, the arrangement didn’t matter. He was holding you because he wanted to, and he wanted everyone to know just who he was here with.

He steered you towards the kitchen and poured himself a whiskey, taking a long sip as you accepted a glass of champagne from someone that was passing them around to all the attendants.

Jared and Gen were standing together in their large living room as they called everyone’s attention, “Everyone!” Jared’s voice boomed over the noise and the soft carols playing in the background. He raised his glass of champagne in a toast, “We just wanted to thank you all for coming out tonight. We think of you all as family and couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate the holidays than with everyone here. Our lives are blessed, so thank you. Merry Christmas everyone, and happy holidays!” Gen acknowledged to everyone in the room as she smiled brightly, tucked beneath Jared’s arm.

You and Jensen were huddled beneath the doorframe that entered their kitchen, your back lightly pressed into his chest as you both sipped from your glasses.

“Uh oh!” A loud voice sounded behind you, causing a few people to look your way. “Looks like someone found the mistletoe!”

You searched the crowd, trying to find who the man was talking about, but found that everyone was looking at you. You and Jensen both glanced up at the same time to find you were standing beneath the small plant that had been tied to the mantel with a red ribbon.

You looked at him wide-eyed but remembered that the two of you had an arrangement to appear as a couple. He raised an eyebrow, and when you nodded up to him, a flirty smile graced his lips. His hands came to cradle your face, with yours coming to rest on his forearms as you peered up at him.

Before he could question himself, he laid a feather light kiss against your lips and your eyes fluttered closed. It was quick and enticing, making your nerves stand on end. When you moved to wrap your arms around him, he deepened the kiss, the cheers and clinking of glasses a dull whirl in his ears. Your heart was pounding furiously in your chest and your skin tingled and buzzed, lit aflame at the slightest touch. It felt like every fiber of your body had sparked to life as his fingers danced across your skin and his lips molded to yours, laying small but deep kisses against them. He pulled away but kept you in his embrace, leaning down to whisper in your ear, “We’ll continue this later.” He promised, his voice deep and smooth.

You smiled up at him as you laced your fingers with his that still rested against your cheek, “Yes, please.” You breathed.

Everyone around you had gone back to chatting or eating, ignoring the two people still standing beneath the mistletoe, except for Jared. He’d initially been worried when his old friend Cole had outed that the two of you were under the mistletoe, but now he was grinning from ear to ear, knowing that he just witnessed something special for his two best friends. When he met Jensen’s eyes over the crowd, he jerked his head to the side, signaling that the two of you should leave with a slight smirk.

Jensen shot him a wink and grabbed your hand, pulling you towards Jared’s front door and you gladly followed on unsteady feet, but still feeling as though you could float if needed.

“Hey, Jensen?” you heard a voice call.

It was Melanie again, and Jensen’s grip tightened on you as you shot her a glare.

She stayed a distance away with a guilty but remorseful expression, “I just wanted to apologize. I didn’t have any right to say what I said. I’m sorry.”

Jensen’s hold softened, and he gave her a curt nod, “Thanks.”

She gave a gentle smile and added, “You’re right. I could learn a bit from her.” Before she ducked behind the banister, making her way out of the house and to her car.

You looked to Jensen with a questioning gaze, but he shook his head and gave your hand another reassuring squeeze, “I’ll tell you later, okay? I don’t want to think about it right now.”

He pulled you around to the side of Jared’s house, where there was a large garden and strings of lights illuminating the area. Tugging you towards him, he rounded on you to back you against the brick. You weren’t entirely surprised when he caged you within his arms and leaned in to rest his forehead against yours.

“Y/n.” he breathed, “Is this okay?”

Not trusting your own voice, you nodded.

“Sweetheart, I told you I’d never do anything to ruin our friendship, but I’m afraid I might be about to.”

Even standing in his embrace, the words made a wave of fear course through you and Jensen saw it flash in your eyes. “You’re my best friend, Y/n/n. You’ve been there for me through everything and there’s no one I’d rather have by my side, and I hope what I’m about to say won’t change that.”

With a trembling voice, you asked, “What is it, Jay?”

He tangled his hands into your hair, holding the base of your neck in his palms, “I can’t think of you as just my best friend anymore. I tried. I can’t do it. You’re so much more, Y/n. So, so much more.”

You released a relieved breath, smiling with tears in your eyes as you took his face in your hands, feeling his scruff beneath them. He closed the distance between you even further, pressing his body into yours so that you could feel every ripple of strength and softness that his build provided. Slowly, torturously, he leaned down and gently grazed your lips with his.

Your eyes fluttered shut as you carefully kissed him in return. After a single touch, he pulled back, almost desperately asking for permission. His eyes shown with a mixture of affection and desire as he silently searched your features for any sign of hesitancy. When you nodded up at him, he pressed himself against you and kissed you with more need, his plump lips puzzling to yours with ease.

Jensen’s tongue ran across your lower lip, opening you to him as you gasped into his mouth, the warmth of him flooding your senses as you grasped his shirt in your fists. His hand traveled along the hem of your sweater, lifting it slightly to press his palm against the small of your back, creating chills as the heat sunk into your skin against the chill of the Texas December.

You stayed outside for a while, simply exploring each other in a way you’d never had, with bodies entwined and hands searching out every inch. When you heard people loudly making their way towards their cars and pulling from Jared’s driveway, you returned to the house hand in hand. Jared and Gen were cleaning up the kitchen but stopped when you came through the door. With reddened cheeks and huge grins, there was no denying what you two had been discovering in the depths of their backyard.

You began to help them clean up, you and Jensen hip to hip as you washed and dried the dishes, still beaming at one another.

“So, how’s the ‘fake dating’ thing going, you two?” Gen quipped.

Jensen winked at her, “It may have started as fake, but it’s real now. At least for me it is.”

“Me too... but you and I can talk about that more later.” you said giddily, adding the last part just for him.

Jared spoke up, apologizing for earlier, “I’m sorry about Cole and the, you know, mistletoe.” He said, pointing to the incriminating doorframe.

You laughed and patted his arm for reassurance as Jensen shrugged beside you, “It wasn’t exactly how I wanted our first kiss to happen, but I’m happy it did.” He said, his eyes bright and happy. You didn’t miss that he had thought about your first kiss before that, so you noted to ask him about it later.

The rest of the night was spent laughing and talking with your best friends before the two of you excused yourself to bed. You had a drive to Dallas tomorrow, and your parents were expecting you for lunch.

Jared and Gen each gave you both a hug goodnight and watched you retreat up the stairs, giving each other a high five when you were out of sight.

When you reached your door, Jensen shuffled nervously.

“Do you want to come in?” you asked shyly.

His chest visibly rose and fell as his eyes darkened, but a gentle chuckle left his lips, “Of course I do, Y/n… but I don’t want to move things too fast.”

You giggled, opening the door to your room, “We’re not, Jay. I’m just talking about a sleepover.” You winked, happy when his eyes lit up.

He grabbed his pajamas and changed before meeting you in your room, sighing as he tucked himself underneath the covers and pulling you by your hips to meet his. You fell asleep to the rhythm of his breath in your ear and the rise and fall of his chest against your back, feeling both of your hearts beat along with one another.

To be continued...

………………………………………………………………………………

Tags below (if your tag is strikethrough, it wouldn’t let me use it):

It was you

@440mxs-wife @beabutterfly987 @cookiechipdough @greenarrowhead @peaches007 @supernatural-love14 @traceyaudette @transparentparadiseglitterzombie @thevelvetseries @urmbecky

Forevers:

@acortez82 @adoptdontshoppets @akshi8278 @atc74 @blackcherrywhiskey @busybee612 @caitsymichelle13 @deansbabymomma @deansenwackles @deanssweetheart23 @deanwanddamons @deanwinchesterswitch @empyreanwritings @geeksareunique @gh0stgurl @heyitscam99 @hhiggs @jackburtonsays @janicho88 @jfrank1048 @jotink78 @maddiepants @mogaruke @mrswhozeewhatsis @nerdstackular @nerdysandwichqueen @okay-okay18 @our-jensen-ackles-love @prompt-and-circumstances @samsgirl93 @sandlee44 @sister-winchesters99 @snffbeebee @spnbaby-67 @supernatural3002 @titty-teetee @topthis808 @tardis-is-mine @torn-and-frayed @tranquility-or-chaos @weepingwillowphoenix @winchester-writes @wwaywardwinchester @xtina2191

Jensen Only

@mrsambroserollinsacklesmgk

141 notes · View notes

lala-ladybug · 3 years

Text

Healing Hands: Chapter 7

Little bit of a filler, but we’ve got some fun shenanigans in store! >:)

Jasonette Sword Art Online AU

Read here on AO3

Chapter 7: Guys bein’ dudes indeed

Tag list: @iloontjeboontje

First | Previous | Next

Marinette was up early again. She found herself some breakfast, then went to the stables. The Order had made it back late last night, so they didn’t have time to groom the horses. She entered the first stall and started to brush the first horse. The routine motion let her mind drift, and she thought back to the events of the past few weeks.

Marinette, Kagami, and Luka embarked on their daily ritual of collecting the morning paper from town. It was the day after they’d beaten the first boss, which they had reported anonymously. Marinette and Adrien had agreed that taking the credit would only serve to draw unwanted attention towards their group, which could put them and the rest of their friends in danger.

But it apparently had another unforeseen advantage. As Marinette paid for the newspaper that highlighted their victory, she heard comments from other players around her.

“Are you serious? Some party went rogue and beat the first dungeon on their own?”

“Selfish assholes, can’t believe they got all that loot to themselves.”

“Well I think it’s good that we’re making progress!”

“Yeah, if you ignore the fact that they didn’t tell us what it was like at all, so now we haven’t got a clue how to face the next one.”

She shook her head in disbelief and glanced at her companions, who looked similarly concerned. They hadn’t even considered that the other people might not want them to take up the battle alone. Or that last comment, that they were actually hurting the other players by not giving them the chance to fight too.

The three remained quiet until they returned to Chloe’s house, or the manor, as they’d taken to calling it. By then, Adrien and Chloe were awake, and followed without question as Marinette ushered the two to join her, Kagami, and Luka out by the well.

She told them what the people in town had said, Luka and Kagami jumping in with additional comments they’d heard from passersby, and they talked it over. Maybe it was worth fighting with other groups. It would certainly beat the first boss.

They decided to try working with others for the next dungeon, but to lead the battle so that the civilians would stay as safe as possible. There were already groups in town recruiting for it and people exploring the second level, so it couldn’t be too long before they found the next fight. They’d be ready this time, they thought.

Less than two weeks passed before they were ready to take on the second dungeon. The Order had spent the whole time training and leveling up. There was hardly a moment where they weren’t fighting monsters or sparring with each other. They became almost more adept with their new weapons than they were with their ones from the real world. Those days of miraculous encounters seemed a lifetime ago.

The Order made preparations with other groups of players, determining strategy and planning to play to each others’ strengths. All the parties assembled at the dungeon and set up to fight the boss.

All things considered, it could have gone much worse. The support teams kept all the fighters’ HP high, and they had whatever cover they needed whenever they needed it. The battle was significantly shorter with around forty players there. But when the other players got hit....

Marinette could still hear the screams of the civilians as they went down. The blood oozing from their wounds was so very lifelike, and there was no cure to sew them shut. Or bring them back if they fell.

Kagami and Adrien were focused on taking what would have been killing blows if the boss had struck anyone but them. Chloe and Marinette drew fire away from the other players, and Luka used his mace and shield to defend his fellow healers. But Marinette saw the pained look on his face at being separated from the rest. She relived the moment Kagami and Adrien went down while fighting the first boss in frequent nightmares, and she knew Luka did too. The two of them had shared a few too many late-night cups of tea while avoiding sleep.

They won the battle, but there were so many wounded, so many close calls. One look at her Order and she knew they felt as lost as she did. Was it worth it? The thought seemed to echo through each of their movements as they returned to the manor.

“Marinette?” Alya’s call shook her out of her daze. She looked down at her hands and saw that she’d finished brushing the last of the horses. Putting the brush away, she returned to the main space in the downstairs of their home.

Home. She supposed that’s what it was now, but it didn’t feel like it. The design of it was very cozy, there was no doubt about that. But she saw it as little more than a place to eat and sleep. There were far more important things she could be doing, sitting down to relax was out of the question.

“There you are,” Alya grinned from the kitchen. “Feels like I haven’t seen you in days!” She carried a simple charcuterie board into the living/dining area and placed it on the table. Nino, Adrien, Lila, Alix, Nathaniel, and Luka were already sitting in the various couches and chairs gathered around it.

“We were just about to have a snack and play some cards,” Alya said over her shoulder as she used a poker to encourage a small fire in the hearth. “You should join us, girl!”

Marinette’s gut response was to refuse, and she waved her hands and made excuses but Luka and Adrien got up and marched her over to sit next to them. “C’mon Buginette, you need this,” Adrien said quietly in her ear. Luka just gave her a meaningful look.

Over-protective mother hens.

She sighed and gave in. One afternoon of cards couldn’t hurt.

Nathaniel was on her other side. While Alya dealt out the cards, Marinette asked him, “How’s the garden coming along?”

His face lit up with a quiet joy. “It’s going great! I don’t know if the weather is going to change, but the onions are taking nicely!” She listened with a small smile on her face as he went on about the different crops he was planting in the garden. He’d really stepped up to grow the bulk of their food, and seemed to genuinely enjoy spending his days taking care of the plants.

She was glad that he could still talk freely to her, even in the game. They’d always been close and it was nice to see his artistic spirit was unbothered by... everything.

Adrien nudged her to play her turn, and she did so quickly. Across from her, Alix and Nino were laughing at something Lila had said, and Alya sat up proudly with a comment that made them laugh even harder.

On Adrien’s other side, Luka had his hands of cards facedown on his lap while he strummed a lute he’d bought the other day. The pleasant melody lifted her spirits and reminded her of happier times.

This is what she was fighting for, she realized. For Nathaniel to take pride in his art, for her dear friends to laugh, and for Luka to play his music. She blinked away the tears that rose in her eyes. This is what was worth fighting for.

Even if she couldn’t bring herself to sew, to create like she used to love doing. Here she just had to be Marinette the friend or Marinette the fighter. It was almost easier, having less to manage. And yet... she couldn’t feel that same joy for herself that she found so precious to her friends. Not until they were all home again. She couldn’t let herself.

* * *

Jason trudged into the base, pack digging into his shoulder with all the loot he’d recovered. He’d spent the past few days camping and level-grinding, which was apparently the correct term for it. He couldn’t even remember what Dick had said to set him off, but he needed to be on his own for a while. The woods were surprisingly peaceful, and he found the time spent by himself in nature to be refreshing.

“Hey.” Dick sounded pissed. The hell was his problem? Jason wasn’t even back long enough to do anything. Jason turned on his heel and raised his eyebrows. “What?”

Dick thrust a newspaper into his hands in response. He folded his arms, clearly expecting Jason to read it right then and there. Jason sighed loudly and slung his pack off. He turned his attention to the paper in his hand.

“Coalition of over forty players defeats second dungeon,” he read aloud. Shit.

“Just thought you should know,” Dick said in his I told you so voice. “When you went on your little adventure, you missed the next boss fight.”

Oh, now he remembered why he left! Because his “brother” is an asshole. “My little adventure was to get experience and level up,” he glared at Dick. “Which is still doing something more productive than just sitting on my fuckin’ hands.”

Dick’s nostrils flared. Good, he was itching for this conversation. “We are not doing nothing. We need more time to practice with the gameplay. Hell, Gar still tries to shift when we spar!” He threw up his hands in frustration. “We’re nowhere near ready yet, Jay.”

“You know, there’s more to this game than fuckin’ sparring.” Jason retorted.

Dicks brows shot up. “Oh, that’s rich coming from the guy who so desperately wants to get back to our lives that he runs off on his own.”

“I can’t stand being cooped up in this damn house all the time! Just because we’re stuck in this game doesn’t mean we have to stop living,” Jason shook his head. “We’ve already been in here for over a month, who’s to say how much longer it’ll be? We can’t just put our fuckin’ lives on hold the whole time.”

“Training to beat the game isn’t putting our lives on hold,” Dick rolled his eyes. “This place is a death trap in case you forgot. We need to train to get our lives back.”

This idiot just didn’t get it. “Oh sure, and in the meantime we can’t have any happiness or fun. Sounds pretty miserable to me.” He picked up his pack. “You can level up without training at all hours of the fuckin’ day, no matter what a certain black-haired, blue-eyed bastard says.”

Jason stormed out the door, bumping into Garfield on his way back outside. The kid stumbled backwards before pointing finger guns at him. “Nice alliteration!”

He ignored him and kept walking down the path that led into town.

“Hey, hey wait a minute!” Seriously kid? He heard that argument with Dick but still couldn’t take the fuckin’ hint.

Garfield caught up to him and said, “You know, for someone who was supposed to have a relaxing vacation, you sure look tense.”

“Fuckin’ excuse me?” Jason growled.

“Wh-what I mean is you’re probably looking for a way to burn off some steam!”

This was getting old. “Get to the point, kid.”

“On the third level, there’s a quest we can do to make our own guild!” Garfield bounced excitedly, keeping pace next to him. Well, a quest would certainly help get this new brotherly stress out of his system. “We want you to join us, pleeeeaaaase?”

“Hold up, who the hell is us?”

Garfield grinned at him. “Oh you know, just a couple of the guys.”

They’d reached a junction in the path that led to the main road. Waiting beneath the tree beside the signpost were Roy, Jaime, and Bart. The ex-speedster waved excitedly while Roy looked about as pleased to be here as Jason did. They got along swimmingly.

“Hey dudes, everyone cool if Jason joins us?” Garfield reached out to pat his back then hesitated as he thought better of it.

Jaime shrugged while Bart gave an enthusiastic thumbs up. Roy gave him a pitying look, like he’d been dragged into it too.

“Fine.” Jason muttered to no one in particular. “Are we heading out now?”

The other four got their things together. Jaime sent out party invites to everyone to better keep track of each other, which Roy and Jason reluctantly accepted. Garfield pulled up a pamphlet and started leafing through it. Jason spied the title, The Good Adventurer’s Guide to Guilds. Lovely.

“Alright,” Garfield snapped the papers shut and started walking down the path into town. “Let’s go to level three and get this bread!”

Roy narrowed his eyes. “The quest is to retrieve some bread?” He asked incredulously.

“Well, no but yes! But no. Man, we gotta teach you slang,” Bart slung an arm around Roy’s shoulders. The latter pushed him off and Jaime sped up his pace to plant himself as a buffer in between them as they walked.

Dumbasses.

The walk into town was easy, and they used the teleportation kiosk in the town square to get to the third level without a hitch.

The third level had some more interesting terrain than the plains of the first and second levels. Cliffs and quarries dotted the landscape in front of them. The main town itself was built onto a cliff, a gaping valley splayed out before them with minute details.

“Oh wow,” Garfield said. “This reminds me of that one town in France where--”

“Don’t care. Let’s move.” Roy cut him off and stalked down the winding road that would take them down into the valley. Jason smirked and followed suit.

Garfield made a face, then followed them along with the others. He pulled out his pamphlet again, then pointed them in the direction of the quest. Some quarry worker NPC wanted help collecting materials. If they got him everything on his list, he would apparently grant them the rights to start a guild? It made less and less sense as Gar read aloud from the paper.

They trekked on for a few hours, easily hacking apart the common monsters they came across. Between Jason and Roy, the others hardly had time to draw their weapons before the threats were gone.

“What’s better than this?” Garfield put an arm around Jason and Bart’s shoulders. Jaime grinned and put his arms around Bart and Roy. “Guys bein’ dudes!” He finished.

Roy, Bart, and Jason exchanged mystified glances. Roy and Jason had been out of the loop for roughly the same period of time, and Bart had told them before that not much of contemporary pop culture had survived into his future.

Guys bein’ dudes indeed.

Between the five of them, gathering the listed materials and getting them to the worker by sundown was easy. Well, it was easy for most of them.

“You look like a mess, ese!” Jaime exclaimed, seeing a very sticky and scratched-up Garfield. He groaned and replied, “Had to get tree sap. Trees fought back....”

Well, that served the little shrimp right, Jason thought to himself. He and Roy had been collecting gemstones, which could be mined out from the caves littered throughout the floor... or the infinitely more fun way of killing giant gemstone monsters. Take a wild fuckin’ guess which one they chose.

Jason was actually pretty content with the levels he’d gained from the quest. Not to mention getting his excess anger out from talking to Dick. It seemed like whenever he went to the house, there was always some type of disagreement between the two.

Damn. Maybe he should start saving for his own house.

His party currently stood in line at the guild registration office, also located on the third level. The setting sun cast a golden glow over the valley, highlighting the small clusters of houses dotting the countryside.

“Oh crap,” Garfield suddenly said. He danced nervously on his feet. “We did the whole quest, but I forgot the most important thing!”

Roy looked at him sharply. “What’s wrong?”

“We need a name for our guild!” Garfield wailed, clutching his hands to his head.

Seriously? Roy scoffed, “Why not just Justice League?”

Jaime rounded on him. “Are you nuts, ese? We can’t go around calling ourselves the Justice League. Secret identities and all that.”

Garfield paced in line, clearly thinking hard. “Hmm, justice. Juuuuustice. Just-ice. Just ice! Hey, we could do something with that!” He exclaimed.

Jason rolled his eyes. “Yeah that’s great,” he said, sarcasm dripping from his voice. “How about On the Rocks.”

Bart put a hand on his chin, looking thoughtful. “Well, we should add a little pizzazz to it, don’t you think?”

“I’ve got it! Rocky Road!” Garfield threw his hands in the air triumphantly. God this kid was excessive.

Jaime and Bart, after the former had explained it to him, voiced their approval. Roy and Jason looked at each other and silently commiserated over their unfortunate situation.

Rocky Road it was.

* * *

“Ugh, that was way harder than it needed to be.” Alya slumped over her battle axe.

Marinette giggled and offered her friend some water. “Well, a ton of other people are starting guilds too! So I guess there are limited resources for a while.”

Nino took the water from Alya after she’d finished with it. He drained it and looked heartbroken until Adrien handed him a new bottle.

The four of them had decided to team up and do the quest to establish a guild. Not everyone in the guild needed to attend the quest to establish one. So when Alya and Nino had approached Marinette and Adrien, asking if the original friend group could be the ones to do it, they couldn’t say no.

“Well, I just wish Marinette had told us about the quest sooner. Then we could have had an easier time!” Lila simpered, sweet as ever. Oh yeah, Lila had invited herself to come along too.

“Weren’t you also a beta tester?” Adrien frowned innocently.

Lila blinked, looking startled. “Oh yes! But you know about my memory issues. I really wish I could remember all these things to help us out,” she sighed dramatically. Typical.

“So!” Marinette decided to move that conversation right along. “We need a name for our guild. Got any ideas?”

Nino rubbed his arm. “Actually dudes, I’ve been thinking of a name for a while.”

“Oh? Let’s hear it!” Adrien smiled and nudged his best friend’s arm.

“Well, I was thinking we could be called Miracle Workers,” Nino began. Marinette traded a look of alarm with Adrien. “You know, because Alya and I used to be miraculous holders? And I thought it’d be kinda nice to honor Chat Noir, Ladybug, and the other heroes. We could use some of their strength right about now.” Oh, that was actually really sweet of him. Marinette offered Adrien a soft smile.

Alya looked at him fondly. Adrien, with a slight nod of approval from Marinette, gave him a side hug and said, “I think that’s a wonderful name.”

Lila tapped her chin. “I don’t know, workers seems a little odd to me. We’re more like leaders or executives.”

“Well, I think Miracle Workers is perfect, babe.” Alya leaned in to peck Nino on the cheek. “Let’s go with that.”

First | Previous | Next

#jasonette #sword art online au #virtual reality #maribat #maribat fic #batfam #batfam fic #yj #yj fic #young justice #young justice fic #healing hands

26 notes · View notes

autisticfangpyreclub · 4 years

Text

Gold stained hands, red stained teeth - chapter 1

I finally managed to start writing the vampire au i posted literally a year ago, quarantine does that to ya. Enjoy!

(@kyra-plays sorry it took so long for me to start writing this fic!)

“We’re here!”

Kai grunted as he was shaken awake by the car jostling to a halt. He sluggishly sat up in his seat and looked out the window. They were parked in front of a huge iron gate, overgrown with vines and moss. “This is the place?” he slurred, shaking his head to try and wake himself up.

“Yup,” Nya replied. She tossed a crumpled piece of paper onto his lap. “Check it out, I’m gonna go get our tickets.”

She hopped out of the car, and ran over to the ticket booth. Kai yawned, and clicked the light on in the car. The piece of paper had every spot on their haunted building tour written on it, along with a small blurb about each location. He skimmed through the names until he found where they were.

“Castle Garmadon…”

It had been built in the 14th century, allegedly by only two people. A woman and her husband, rumoured by the local townsfolk to both be vampires.

He could believe it when he saw what the castle looked like. It was ginormous, towering over the iron gates surrounding it. The castle sat atop a cliff that overlooked the town below, and it gave the entire countryside a dark and gothic vibe. It looked like something straight out of dracula.

“There you are!”

Kai jumped at the sudden hand on his shoulder, but relaxed when he saw it was only Jay. “Hey, when’d you get here?” Kai asked.

“Just now,” Jay said, gesturing at the blue van that was parked beside Nya’s car. “Zane’s trying to drag Cole out right now, he’s having a bit of a freak out.”

They both turned their heads to see Zane tugging Cole by the arm, trying to pull him off the car door. Cole lost his grip just as Zane gave a hard yank. Kai winced as they both fell backwards onto the concrete ground, that was still wet from the recent shower of rain. “What’s going on with them?”

“Oh, you don’t know?” Jay crossed his arms and leaned back against the iron gate. “I hear Cole’s got like, a really bad fear of vampires.”

Kai couldn’t stop himself from snorting. “Seriously? Why?”

Jay shrugged. “No clue, think he just watched too many horror movies as a little kid,” he raised an eyebrow and scanned the parking lot, “hey, where’s Nya?”

“Hey Jay!” Nya grinned as she ran over to them. “I got our tickets,” she handed a ticket to Jay, and then one to Kai, “apparently we’re the only visitors they’ve had in months, so we’ve got the whole place to ourselves to explore!”

“Awesome!” Jay pumped his fist in the air. “Free reign to touch anything we feel like!”

“I told you in the van Jay, we must respect this castle,” Zane chided, approaching them with a mopey looking Cole in tow. “Look with your eyes, not your hands.”

“Ugh, fine. You brought the go pro right?”

Zane sighed, then reached into his shoulder bag. He pulled out an awkwardly large camera, and strapped it over his forehead. “I don’t know why you insisted on this head mount.”

“Panoramic shots Zane, panoramic shots!” Jay shot back, “now lean down so I can adjust it.”

Kai chuckled to himself watching Jay attempt to jump to Zane’s level. His focus drifted towards Cole, who’s eyes were darting back and forth between the gate and the castle, while his hands clenched the sleeves of his jacket. He was rocking back and forth on the spot and muttering something ineligible to himself.

“You good Cole?” Kai asked him, reaching a hand out to grab his shoulder.

Cole flinched and snapped out of his nervous rambling. “What? Oh, I’m fine,” he waved his hand nonchalantly, “just… the castle is so big, it was making me a little, uh… unsettled, yeah, that’s all it is…”

Kai didn’t really believe that, but he didn’t want to hassle him. He just gave Cole a pat on the shoulder and left it at that. The five of them showed their tickets to the guard at the gate, and walked into the courtyard.

Those piercing red eyes had to be the creepiest thing about the paintings Cole was surrounded by. It was bad enough that the old castle looked like it was going to collapse any moment, or that it reeked of death and mold. Of course, of course it also had to be infested by vampires. Vampires who loved having their portraits painted, apparently.

“I think these ropes kinda ruin it for me,” Kai said while prodding at one of the velvet ropes that formed a barrier around the paintings. “The illusion of walking through a historical castle thing I mean.”

Cole turned around to glare at him. “Are you seriously not creeped out by all… this?”

Kai gave him a quizzical look. “I can’t really see anything creepy about it.” He walked over and slung his arm over Cole's shoulder. “It’s just an old building dude, nothing to be afraid of except like… maybe asbestos.”

“There is no asbestos in this castle Kai, the maintenance staff thoroughly check and upkeep the entire building twice a year,” Zane said. He was taking pictures of everything using the go pro Jay had thoroughly adjusted several times now. Jay himself was admiring the two giant swords affixed to the wall, along with Nya who was taking pictures with her phone.

Cole pushed Kai off him. “I’m not scared, I’m just saying it’s creepy. I mean, why do all these paintings have red eyes?”

“Because their vampires, duh!” Jay yelled over to them. Kai shot him a glare, and he looked away sheepishly. “I mean, that’s the most popular theory…”

Jay yelped as Nya shoved him in the shoulder. “There’s no such thing as vampires, stop trying to scare him Jay,” she said.

Jay winced and shuffled away from her while rubbing his shoulder. “I wasn’t! Just stating the facts!”

“I agree with Nya, there is simply no scientific evidence at all that backs up the existence of vampires, or any supernatural phenomena at all for that matter,” Zane said flatly. “No matter what conspiracy theorists say to try to defend their opinion, nothing can rationalize it,” he looked pointedly at Jay while speaking, who rolled his eyes.

“Yeah yeah, we get it science man,” Jay said, “in other words, Cole needs to stop being a baby.”

Cole sputtered. “Shut up! Can we just get this whole haunted building tour over with?” Cole sighed while shaking his head. “I can’t believe you guys forced me into this…”

“Excuse me? We all agreed to do this together!” Jay scoffed at him. He absentmindedly scratched at the peeling wallpaper, then frantically tried to hide a chunk he pulled off in his pocket before Zane could yell at him.

“That was before I found out one of the spots on the list was a vampire infested hellhole!” Cole spat at him.

Kai gave Cole a gentle pat on the back. “It’ll be alright man, if you get scared I’ll just let you hold my hand okay?”

Cole scowled. “I don’t need to…”

A loud creaking sound suddenly echoed through the building. Cole screamed and grasped onto Kai’s hoodie for dear life.

“Uhh…” Kai glanced over at Cole, who was cowering and hiding his face in Kai’s shoulder. “You good man?”

In a realization that nothing was coming to kill him, Cole pulled away from Kai like he’d been burned. Jay was laughing like a maniac in the background, and he even heard Zane chuckle softly. Nya just shook her head and walked past them.

“C'mon guys, we’ve only got about another hour and there’s still way more castle to see,” she said, pulling Jay by the arm who was still laughing so hard he was gasping for breath.

Cole felt his face heating up. He pulled his shirt over his face so that no one could see how red he was. Or how much he was still sweating. “Uh… Kai, I think I might just take you up on that offer…”

“Y’know, I hear the electric lights in this place have always been here, because the people who lived here were so old they had knowledge from the golden age about electricity that was lost to time,” Jay remarked, as they passed by a marble bust lit up by a light on the ceiling.

“That’s impossible, electric lighting was unheard of during the 15th century, and people barely lived past their thirties, much less thousands of years,” Zane replied.

“Unless they were vampires…” Jay hummed.

Cole shuddered, and squeezed Kai’s hand. As embarrassing as it was to be holding Kai’s hand like he was a little kid going through a haunted house, it was… comforting. Jay was being the absolute opposite of comforting, he was being a pain in the ass.

“Hey Cole, you cold?” Jay asked with a taunting grin. “You're shivering so much, it’s like you just saw a ghost!” He poked Cole on the cheek, and snickered when he let out a frightened squeak.

Cole grit his teeth, and grasped Kai’s hand tighter. Kai took notice of this, and pulled him in closer. “Shut it Jay, give it up already,” he snapped.

Jay stuck his tongue out and ran ahead of them. The castle was like a maze of hallways, staircases, and small rooms filled with nothing but aged looking statues and paintings. They hadn’t found anything like a kitchen or a bedroom yet, but they had walked through a faintly coppery smelling wine cellar.

“This place is less a house, and more an art museum,” Nya mused, gazing up at the idyllic painting of the night sky above her. “Oh hey, there’s a hole in the wall...”

She pulled out a book that was tucked inside the small crevice in the wall, and flipped it open to a random page. “How to grow the finest lavender… the most efficient way to cultivate your vegetables… slugs, snails, and other wretched fiends found in the garden,” she read aloud, being reminded of the decently kept flower patch they passed in the courtyard. “They must’ve really loved gardening…”

The hallway they were in now was long and narrow, with red carpeted floors and black stone walls covered in scratch marks. The carpet was stained and tattered, and the floorboards sounded like they were screaming when they were stepped on. The hole Nya had discovered wasn’t alone, many more littered the wall and even the floor, Jay having discovered one when he tripped and fell on his face.

“Odd…” Zane hummed, “this hallway seems much less cared for than the rest of the castle…”

“No kidding, this floor is gross…” Nya groaned, stepping over a particularly large dark stain. “And where are the windows? I actually haven’t seen a single one anywhere.”

Jay stopped in front of a painting of a raging ocean, and put a finger to his lips as if in thought. “Maybe… the ones who lived here didn’t want any sunlight getting in,” he said.

“Jay!” Nya yelled at him.

Cole shuddered, and hid his face in his hands. “Oh god, it all makes sense… red eyes, no windows, creepy castle… look, there’s even a glass full of blood in that painting!” he said and pointed towards the painting in question.

Most of the paintings of people in the castle were of the same person, and this one was no exception. He was young looking, and had blonde curls that hung over his eyes and just barely touched his shoulders. He had dark brown skin, and freckles that covered his entire face. He wore a black high collared cape that was fastened by a golden flower-shaped brooch. A green ribbon was tied around his neck. The most striking thing about the boy was his bright red eyes, but despite the unnerving colour they had a gentle look to them. He also did indeed have a glass filled with… something red in his grasp.

“It’s likely wine,” Zane said.

“Or blood!” Cole yelled back at him.

“Or… maybe it’s tomato juice?”

Zane and Cole both gave Kai a blank look. “Seriously? Tomato juice? This isn’t bunnicula we’re talking about Kai,” Cole said, “he’s a REAL vampire, not some kids cartoon.”

“Kai, tomato juice had not yet been invented at the time this painting was done, and Cole, I’m telling you vampires are most certainly not real, please calm yourself,” Zane said, irritation seeping into his tone.

“But why the red eyes then huh? Explain that!” Cole slapped a hand onto the painting, eliciting a gasp from Zane.

“Cole!” he yelled, “that painting is centuries old, it’s a priceless piece of history-“

“In my personal opinion,” Jay cut in, stepping in between them and leaning on the rope, “I think the whole legend is legit.”

Zane glared at him. “Jay, don’t start this again-“

“Seriously, this family lives in this huge mysterious spooky castle, no one ever sees them go out during the day, they barely interact with anyone, and then some guy with a silver sword-“

“Wait, why is the fact that it’s silver important?” Kai asked.

“Because vampires are weak to silver Kai, keep up!”

“I thought that was werewolves?”

“Well uh… uh… they're both weak to it alright?!” Jay stuttered, “anyways… he has a silver sword, and he kills the whole family, AND he cuts their heads off and sticks a wooden stake in all their hearts… why?”

“Because he was an asshole?” Nya helpfully supplied.

“Because they were vampires!” Cole yelled, “and they got what was coming to them, thank god…”

“Exactly,” Jay said.

Zane rubbed his temples, and let out a pained sigh. “You two make my brain hurt sometimes.”

“Hey, if you guys are done can we please just keep going?” Kai groaned. They ignored him, and only started arguing louder. He clapped his hands over his ears to block them out, and turned to Nya and nudged her. “Hey, you wanna just go on ahead?” he asked.

Her face scrunched up as she mulled it over. “I’m tempted but…” she glanced over at Zane who was physically restraining Jay from touching the painting, and shook her head. “Someone needs to keep them in check.”

“Fair enough… you mind if I…?”

“Go for it.”

Kai quietly snuck away from the scene of Jay loudly pointing out all the obvious vampire clues in the painting while in the clutches of Zane’s arms, and walked deeper into the mysterious darkness of the castle.

The many twisting and turning narrow hallways eventually led Kai to a small, dusty room. It was completely empty. “Aw man, dead end…”

He walked into the room anyways, his eyes drawn to the swirling flower patterns on the green walls, a contrast to the pure black walls of the hallway he came in from. The ceiling was also unusually low, not low enough that he had to duck, but low enough that he could feel his hair brush against it.

“Kai!”

Kai turned around to see Cole running towards him, Jay, Zane and Nya tailing behind him. He came to a screeching halt in front of the door, gasping for breath. “Kai, why the hell did you wander off?!”

“Because you were all held up arguing, I got bored. Wait, were you worried I got like, murdered or something?” Kai asked, raising an eyebrow.

Cole’s cheeks flushed. “No, you just get lost really easily, so I thought-“

“He was totally scared you got murdered, that’s why he was running,” Jay said, “hey, what’s going on in here?”

Jay pushed past a fuming Cole, and walked over to the back wall. “Huh, this is weird… ooh! I bet there’s a switch in here for a secret passage!”

He started pressing his hands into random spots on the wall, musing aloud to himself as he did it. “Not here… not there… guys, come in here and help me look for it!”

“Jay, that sounds dum- ow!” Cole banged his head against the low ceiling. He dropped to the floor, and tried to rub the swelling pain away. “Why is this entire castle built so bad?!” he groaned.

“Ah, the tough life of a mountain sized man,” Kai laughed.

Cole brushed the dust off his pants as he stood back up. “Well, better than being as short as Jay I guess.”

“I HEARD THAT!”

“Let’s just not spend too much time here alright? I’m starting to feel claustrophobic…” Cole said, trying to avoid touching the rotting wood on the doorframe as he shuffled out of the room.

Zane ducked his head as he entered. He gazed around curiously before joining Jay by the back wall. “I doubt there’s a secret passage, but there is something fascinating about this wall.”

“What is it?” Nya asked as she walked in, closing the door behind her. She laid a hand against the wall, but pulled away at the icy cold feeling against her palm. “Yeesh, must have been fun to live here during the winter. Not.”

“Yes, I noticed the temperature as well, but that’s not what I mean,” Zane pointed to a tiny spot on the wall. “Look at this.”

She leaned in to see what he was looking at, but all she could see were squiggly golden lines. “Uh… what exactly I am supposed to be looking at?”

“What’re we looking at?” Kai said as he leaned in over Nya’s shoulder.

“We’re looking at a line of writing in an ancient language, native to Ninjago, spoken by only a handful of people in modern times,” Zane replied, zooming the go pro in to get a better shot. “And lucky for us, I know this language… don’t take that ancient languages class Zane, they said, you’ll never have any use for it, they said-“

“So uh, what does it say?” Jay asked, having given up on searching for a secret passageway.

“Huh? Oh, right…” Zane wiped the dust away from the lettering, and cleared his throat. “It says, ‘reveal my sanctuary’, but then again, I could be-“

Almost as soon as the words had left his mouth, a bright green light began emitting from the wall. All four of them drew back in alarm, Kai tripping over himself and landing on the floor.

“Wha- Zane?! What’d you do?!” Jay yelled, backing up until he bumped against the doorframe.

Zane didn’t answer, his mouth agape as he stumbled back from the light. The door creaked open, and Cole popped his head in. “Hey, what’re you guys yelling about- WHAT THE FUCK?!”

The light suddenly vanished, and in its place was a golden door. The room was silent as they all stared at it. Jay coughed.

“So… who’s gonna go open it?” he asked, still keeping himself as far away from the door as possible.

“None of us!” Cole shouted. “Who knows what’s behind there?” He shakily crept back into the room, and hid behind Zane. “I mean, what if there’s dead bodies that have been rotting in there forever… or worse?”

Zane nodded, and gave Cole a gentle pat on the head. “I agree with Cole, I think it’d be best to ask a facility member about this.”

“And miss the chance to go somewhere we’re not supposed to be without anyone knowing?” said Kai, who without anyone noticing already had his hand on the doorknob.

“NO KAI DON’T-“

He ignored Cole, and slammed open the door. He flipped on the light switch, and was greeted with a colourful sight. This new room was very spacious, and anything but empty.

Shelves covered in glass figurines and ornate jewelry boxes lined the walls, and a giant display case bursting with dolls and plush toys stood against the far wall beside a cabinet filled with wine glasses and bottles. There was a half open wooden wardrobe with gold flowers painted on it, with many lacy and sparkling dresses and capes hanging inside. Green flowing drapes hung from the ceiling, framing a large portrait of the blonde haired boy with two others, a dark-haired solemn looking man, and a woman with red hair and a soft smile.

Kai’s mouth dropped as he stared at the beautiful decor in wonder. It was like being in the room of a disney princess. Well, aside from the coffin that was laying in the center of the room.

“Wait, what?” Kai did a double take. A… coffin. It honestly looked more like a bed with the drapes hanging over it, but it was undeniably a coffin the more he stared at it. “Woah…”

“What’s woah?” Jay peeked over his shoulder, then gasped sharply. “I can’t believe it! I was right! Hey Zane, come in here!”

All of them huddled around the coffin, except for Cole who stayed in the doorway. “Oh my god… is… that a-“

“Coffin? Yup,” Nya said, running a hand along the golden patterns on the coffin's lid. “This is so creepy…”

Cole felt like he was going to throw up. “This is so bad… this is so bad you guys- KAI!!”

Kai flinched and dropped the lid of the coffin. “What? I just wanted a peek.”

Zane’s eyes were wide with amazement. “This is incredible… we may be the first ones to discover this historical treasure… although I do agree that we shouldn’t open it,” he added, “not because of vampires, but because there is likely a decomposing body inside.”

“Gross…” Nya gagged, and stepped back to take a photo from a safer distance from the dead body.

“You seriously still don’t believe me?!” Jay shouted, while violently gesturing to the coffin. “This is all the proof you need!”

Zane narrowed his eyes and shook his head. “Hardly. This doesn’t indicate anything other than the fact that this room served as a crypt of some sort, probably for a beloved family member.”

“It’s obviously a vampires bedroom!” Jay retorted. “Probably the blonde guys, since the other two were a married couple so they’d have a two person coffin-“

Nya snorted. “A two person coffin? Those don’t exist.”

“Well I for one think it’s a great product pitch!”

Kai wandered behind the coffin and gazed up at the portrait. The family seemed to really love getting their picture painted. They’d probably lose their minds if they were around when cameras were invented.

He really couldn’t see anything scary about the family though. The blonde kid especially, he just looked like a normal teenager, who just happened to have red eyes. There were plenty of normal human beings who had red eyes.

“I’m just saying there’s no way you can prove that vampires aren’t real.”

“False, I can prove it quite easily with-“

“Guys, give it a rest!” Nya groaned in exasperation. “Look, why don’t we just open the coffin for a minute so we can find out once and for all which one of you is right.”

Zane and Jay looked at each other, then both nodded in agreement. “Sure, why not?” Jay shrugged.

“While I hate disturbing such a beautiful artifact, or any possible remains inside, if it can end this tiresome discussion I agree it is the best course of action,” Zane said.

“Great!” Kai cheered, throwing his arms up, “I’ll open it-“

“NO! NO NO NO ABSOLUTELY NOT!” Cole shrieked as he barreled into the room and blocked Kai’s path. “Do you all wanna have a vampire suck the blood from you like a human juice box? BECAUSE THIS IS HOW THAT HAPPENS!”

“Cole, chill! It’ll be fine! If there was a vampire inside there, don’t you think they would have tried to kill us by now?” Kai asked, gripping onto Cole’s shoulders to try and keep him steady.

Cole glanced down and bit his lip. “Well… it’s daytime, so they might be sleeping-“

“No offense Cole, but you just did a whole lot of screaming,” Nya pointed out. “I think they’d be awake by now.”

“That’s… true… okay, fine,” Cole relented, “you can open it, but before you do…”

He walked over to a small wooden footstool that was laying on its side, and broke a leg off it. Zane let out a strangled cry. “How many times do I have to tell you people, this castle is a piece of history that IS NOT TO BE DISTURBED!”

“This thing is going to protect us,” Cole said while swinging the wooden piece around like it was a sword, “from something far more dangerous if disturbed.”

Zane rolled his eyes and backed away to give Kai room to pry open the coffin. He slid the lid off, and shoved it onto the floor. A choked gasp came from his lips when he saw what lay inside. He stumbled backwards, and was just narrowly caught by Cole before he fell over.

Cole felt his entire body shaking as he looked from the coffin to the also shaking Kai in his arms. “What?! What is it?!”

“It’s… it’s a…”

Jay finished his sentence for him. “HOLY SHIT, it’s a guy!”

Cole dropped Kai ungracefully onto the floor. “WHAT?!” He gripped his makeshift wooden stake tighter as he peered into the coffin.

The boy from the paintings was lying inside the coffin. His hair was a tangled mess, and he had a wooden stake lodged in his chest, but it was definitely him.

The room was dead silent, until Jay loudly cleared his throat. “Well Cole, somebody beat you to it…”

Cole fell to his knees, his stake clattering onto the floor. “Oh god… oh my god… thank god he’s already dead-“ Cole was hyperventilating, “thank god, oh god-“

“Hey, you wanna say sorry for dropping me anytime soon?” Kai asked dryly from where he was still lying on the floor. “No? We too focused on the dead guy?”

“Kai, this is serious!” Nya snapped at him.

Zane also fell to his knees, but for a much different reason. His quivering hands carefully pulled the boy’s shirt up to check his injuries.

“This poor boy died recently…”, he whispered, “several fresh cuts and stab wounds… he’s so cold…”

“Don’t touch him!” Cole yelped.

Zane gave him an icy glare. “Cole, please, put aside your superstition for one moment and grasp the reality of this situation!”

“What’re those stains on his shirt?” Nya asked, pointing to the red and gold splotches on the white blouse he was wearing.

“The red I’m assuming is blood,” Zane replied, “but those gold spots… paint maybe? I’m not sure…” he gently brushed the boy’s hair out of his eyes, his heart aching when he saw the bruises covering his face. “Who could do something like this…”

Cole was about to say something before he received a nasty look from Nya, so he shut his mouth and clenched his fists instead.

Kai cautiously prodded at the stake lodged into the boy's chest. “Yikes, that looks like it hurt… hmm,” without thinking about it very much, Kai grabbed onto the stake and yanked it out of the body. Immediately a river of sparkling golden liquid poured out of the wound.

Cole fainted. Kai dropped the stake and grabbed onto him before he hit the floor. “Dude, snap out of it! Don’t bail on us yet!”

Cole’s eyes fluttered. “Vampire… stake… really bad…” he mumbled, drifting between being awake and being unconscious.

“He’s lost it,” Jay said flatly.

Kai lifted Cole down and laid him onto the floor, then looked down at him with a smirk. “By the way, that’s how you put someone gently onto the floor.”

“Shut up… I’m sorry…” was the last thing Cole said before completely passing out.

“Great, Cole’s blacked out, we just found a dead guy and Kai got his fingerprints on the murder weapon which means he’s totally going to be implicated…” Jay stopped mid rant and hummed thoughtfully to himself, “unless we don’t report this to the police-“

“Jay! How could you even suggest that?!” Zane yelled in shock, “he has a family!”

Jay sputtered, but then bowed his head in shame. “Your right, that was shitty thing to say… but… if he is a-“

“If the word vampire leaves your mouth at any time during the foreseeable future, I’m going to stab YOU with a wooden stake,” Nya said coldly, glaring daggers at Jay whilst already dialing 911 on her phone.

“Wait, just, hold it one minute,” Jay stuttered, “how are we supposed to explain this to the police? Hey we found a body in this old tourist attraction that barely gets any visitors anymore, actually according to the lady at the ticket booth we’re the only ones who have gone in here in like months! But there’s totally nothing suspicious about that guys, no way, haha, we’re just a bunch of innocent college students amiright? Oh god we are fu-“

“OW!”

“What is it now Kai?!”

Kai clutched his hand and hissed in pain. “I tried picking up the stake again, but I got a giant ass splinter! Look!”

He waved his hand in Jay’s face. “See? It’s huge! It’s like a whole twig is stuck in there!”

Jay batted his hand away. “Then pull it out, genius.”

Kai grimaced. “Uhhh… I’d rather not…”

Zane grabbed Kai’s uninjured hand and pulled him over to him. He sat Kai down on the rim of the coffin. “Sit still, I’ll pull it out.”

Sitting still was unfortunately not one of Kai’s strengths. He squirmed as Zane tried to pull the sliver of wood from his palm, accidentally kicking him in the knee when the pain flared up. “Ack! Sorry, it just… stings a lot- OW!”

“It hurts because you're moving around, please try not to kick me again… almost got it… got it!”

“AGGH!”

Kai quickly pulled his hand away as a drop of blood trickled down his palm. It dripped from his hand onto the boy's lips, slipping through the tiny part in his mouth.

And then the boy’s eyes opened.

Blood. Need blood. Thirsty. Thirsty, I’m so thirsty… need blood, blood, blood…

Lloyd gasped as air flooded back into his lungs, and his cheeks were filled with intense warmth. He breathed in slowly, and almost started crying at how good it felt to finally breathe again. He was alive. He was alive… but he was so thirsty.

Blood. Blood, I need blood now.

His stomach was aching with hunger. He felt like he was about to die again.

No, can’t die again. Blood, blood… I smell blood…

His vision was blurry from his burning hunger. Shadowy figures were leaning over him. He could hear them yelling at each other, he had no idea what they were saying. Their blood smelled delicious. He felt an urge to bite tingling in his jaw, in his fangs.

Blood, delicious blood…

His fangs… they were back. He remembered something from before dying. He could remember them pulling out his fangs… ripping out his treasured fangs, stealing them… as a prize from the hunt. They stuck silver blades into him when he struggled, blades that burned through his flesh and scraped against his bones. And then… and then they…

“Kid, can you hear us-“

He managed to use the little strength he had left to focus his vision, and was met with the sight of four humans looming over him. Lloyd screamed, and frantically tried to push himself away from them. “Leave me alone! Please!”

He tumbled out of his coffin, landing on the floor with a thud. His sharp nails scraped against the floorboards as he tried to get up and run away. It was no use. He fell back onto the floor in exhaustion, and curled up into a tight ball.

“Please, I’ll give you anything you want,” he sobbed, “just please stop hurting me!”

“None of us are going to hurt you kid, we promise,” he heard one of them say.

Lloyd nervously moved his arm aside to see who was speaking to him. The man who had spoken had tall pointed hair, and was dressed in a red… robe of some kind. He didn’t look like a hunter, but he also didn’t look like anyone Lloyd had ever seen. He took a shaky breath. “Who… who are you?”

The man kneeled down in front of him. “I’m Kai. You?”

Lloyd sniffled, and wiped away a tear from the corner of his eye. “Ll… Lloyd…”

“Hey Lloyd, nice to meet you. Here,” the man reached into his robe, and pulled out a small cloth. He handed it to Lloyd, who cautiously accepted it. Holding it in his hand, he realized it was a handkerchief. For him…

At that moment the dam behind his eyes burst, and the tears seemed to endlessly flow out of him. To be treated with such a simple kindness broke him after what he had endured. The overwhelming situation and the aching thirst still inside him was clouding his senses and leaving him vulnerable. Much too vulnerable.

Bite him… drink his blood…

“You poor thing,” another one of the humans, this one taller than all the others, crouched down beside Kai. “My name is Zane, what happened?”

“I… I… It was… they…” Lloyd could barely remember what happened. He didn’t want to remember what happened. All that he could recall was running, and feeling the agonizing sensation in his chest, and then darkness…

“Endless darkness…” he mumbled. It was still inside him. Gnawing away at him.

Blood, blood I need blood I need it NOW-

He hissed, startling the humans who lunged away from him. Lloyd slapped a hand over his mouth. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to-“

“Did you see that?!” the short human in the blue shirt cried out, “he has fangs!”

Oh god, now they knew. They must’ve thought he was human like them, but now they knew he wasn’t. They were going to hurt him, they were going to kill him, no… no, god please…

“Hey, hey hey it’s okay…”

Kai softly shushed him and wiped away a tear that had fallen down his cheek with the handkerchief. “Your safe now Lloyd, no one is going to hurt you anymore,” he soothed.

“You… you mean… you don’t hate me?” Lloyd asked, his voice barely above a whisper. “Even though I’m… a vampire?”

“Dude, I fucking knew it!” the short human shouted. “Take that Zane-“

“Jay, so not the time,” the only human who hadn’t spoken yet said. She had long black hair, and her sleeveless shirt showed off her built arm muscles. She out of all the humans was the most intimidating.

“Of course we don’t hate you dear,” Zane said, “but when you say vampire… do you really mean…?”

Bite someone now, drink their blood. Do it. Do it NOW.

“Stay with us kid, it’s going to be okay,” Kai placed a hand on Lloyd’s shoulder, but jerked away when Lloyd shuddered. “Sorry, I should’ve-“

He could barely even force himself to speak at this point. Kai’s hand was so warm, and his neck was so close…

BITE HIM DRINK HIS BLOOD DO IT NOW-

His thirst was only getting worse with each passing moment. Pushing away his intrusive thoughts was becoming excruciating, and it was showing on his face as sweat dripped down his temples.

“Please don’t come any closer,” Lloyd begged, covering his face with his hands. “I’m not safe to be around right now…”

Kai backed away, but his gentle expression didn’t waver. “We’re not going to leave you like this, your obviously hurt really bad.”

Bad was an understatement. The gouge in Lloyd’s chest had only partially healed, and blood was still oozing out of the wounds left by the silver knife. If he could get even the tiniest bit of blood…

Jay coughed. “Uh, Kai, if the six hundred year old vampire says he’s going to go crazy, then maybe we should-“

“SIX HUNDRED?!” Lloyd gasped, clutching his chest in shock. There was no way he had seriously been dead for that long. “Oh god… I’ve missed so many… oh god…”

“Uh, well… I mean I might’ve miscalculated the exact amo-“ Jay clamped his mouth shut as he shrunk under the glares from every other human in the room.

Six hundred years… but then that meant… that meant… they were dead. The ones who had done this to him were dead. It felt horrible, celebrating that someone was dead. But…

Kai seemed to catch onto what he was thinking. “The people who did this to you are long gone, lucky for them,” Kai clenched his fist into a tight ball, “because I would’ve made them feel ten times more pain…” he growled.

“And then I would’ve made them feel twenty times that, and ground their asses into the dirt,” the black-haired woman added, her eyes lit up with intensity.

“And I would’ve… uh,” Zane stumbled, “defended you the best I could, because no one should ever have to suffer such horrible abuse.”

Despite the pain, Lloyd could feel a warm sensation filling his chest. These people, whom he had only just met, were treating him with kindness he wasn’t accustomed to from those outside of his family. Perhaps… vampires weren’t as hated now, in this new time period. What a lovely time it must be.

Jay, who was still trying to avoid anyone else’s eyes, found himself staring at the glass cabinet behind the coffin. It was filled with bottles of ‘red wine’, a.k.a, probably blood. He pried it open, and took a bottle out. It was cold, and caked in layers of dust. “Hey uh, this isn’t… human blood, right Lloyd?”

Lloyd’s eyes locked onto the bottle in Jay’s hands. His pupils dilated. “Give me that… please.”

Jay gulped. “Uh, sure…” not wanting to get too close, he tentatively rolled the bottle over to Lloyd, who snatched it up faster than he could blink.

The cork was thrown heedlessly aside. The blood inside the bottle was ancient and spoiled, but Lloyd savoured every last drop. He only stopped once to take a gasp of air, chugging the sweet red elixir until the bottle was completely dry.

He sighed with relief as the ravenous voices in his head quieted. Almost immediately, his wounds began healing. The bruises on his skin disappeared, and the gouges and cuts in his flesh vanished without a trace. His full senses returned to him, his eyes grew sharper and his ears twitched as he took in every bit of sound around him.

Kai helped him to his feet. “I’m guessing you're feeling a bit better now?” he asked, taking in Lloyd’s now completely healthy looking appearance.

Lloyd grinned, fangs on full display. “I’m feeling wonderful now, thank you.”

“Woah!” Jay ran over and leaned in close to Lloyd’s face. “Those are so cool!”

“My… fangs? Really?”

Jay bounced up and down on the spot, barely able to contain his excitement. “Totally! Sorry about how I acted earlier, I was just surprised, but this is so awesome! You're a real vampire!”

“O-Oh…” Lloyd blushed, and looked down at his feet. “Thank you-“

“I have so many questions! Okay, one, do you burn in the sun, or is it just like irritating? Oh, and is the garlic thing real? No wait, when you turn into a bat where do your clothes go- hey!” Jay grunted as the dark-haired woman pushed him aside.

“Don’t mind him, he’s always like this about everything,” she said, “I’m Nya by the way, it’s nice to meet you.”

Jay ran over to Zane, and pulled a notebook and pencil out from his shoulder bag. He ducked under Nya’s arm and sat down on the rim of the coffin. “Okay, as I was saying-“

“Sunlight burns us, but we don’t burst into flames or anything, garlic makes my tongue swell up, and…” Lloyd pondered the last question for a moment, “y’know, I’ve never actually thought about that… I assumed they just disappeared… then reappeared.”

Jay paused his furious scribbling of notes. “What? But how does that work?”

Lloyd shrugged. “Don’t ask me! Wait, let me show you something…”

He stretched out his arm, and smiled as a green flicker of light danced across the palm of his hand. For a moment he had feared his powers hadn’t returned yet, but the sparkling flicker growing into an orb of bright light in his hand assured him otherwise.

Jay, as well as Nya, Zane and Kai watched, mesmerized. Lloyd shaped the orb into a diamond, then into a flower, and then in a burst of light dissolved it into a shower of tiny sparkles that floated through the air.

“This… doesn’t make any sense,” Zane said, gazing up at the ceiling that was now lit up with hundreds of star-like lights.

“Does it have to?” Nya replied, smiling as a light landed on her nose. She sneezed, and it drifted until it landed on her finger. “This is so beautiful…”

Lloyd spun around the room, letting out more bursts of sparkles each time the lights dimmed out. He abruptly came to a stop behind the coffin. “Why… is there a sleeping man here?”

They all looked at each other. “Shit, I forgot Cole was still passed out,” Kai said, rushing over to go shake Cole awake. “Cole! Wake up buddy!”

“Hnnngh… huh?” Cole blinked wearily. He sat up, and rubbed his eyes. “Whuhhappened?”

Kai swallowed stiffly. “Don’t freak out, but-“

Lloyd blew a tiny sparkle to Cole. “Greetings sleepy human!” he giggled.

Cole’s face turned pale as he caught sight of Lloyd’s fangs. ”Y… You… your a… vamp-“

“Yes, I am a vampire!”

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGHHHHHHH!!!”

#ninjago #lego ninjago #vampire au #lloyd garmadon #ninjago lloyd #ninjago jay #ninjago zane #ninjago nya #ninjago kai #ninjago cole #ninjago au

48 notes · View notes

puppypaw-wc · 4 years

Text

Mothpool AU Rambles - Po3

I made some Mothpool hypokits.

Quailwing (named after Mothwing and equivalent to Jay) is a dilute chocolate mackerel tabby tom with blind blue eyes (blue is inherited from Mothwing).

Russetleaf (named after Leafpool and equivalent to Holly) is a chocolate and red mackerel torbie she-cat with green eyes (green is inherited from Leafpool who carried the gene from her parents... she’s also a demigirl cuz I said so).

Lynxcloud (equivalent to Lionblaze) is a fluffy reddish-orange mackerel tabby tom with amber eyes (inherited from Leafpool).

I got the genetics from a genetic generator (I changed them a bit though...) so they should be accurate.

Excuse me as I rant about an AU idea I had-

So basically.

Leafpool (at the time Leafpaw) ends up getting really close to Mothwing while Squilf is out and about.

Mothwing feels comfortable telling her that she’s trans and just didn’t want to tell anyone outside of RiverClan, because she already knew she was by the time she was apprenticed so why would anyone care? Plus she didn’t want to get discriminated against even though at this rate the Clans are used to same sex couples (Firestar and Graystripe are a thing, Sandstorm’s also there) and trans cats (Firestar, Sandstorm, probably a lot of others)...

Anyways, most of TNP goes the same, but then Leafpool ends up having kits with Mothwing instead... Mothwing is surprised to hear this, but the two of them, Squirrelflight and Ferncloud (who Leafpool decides should nurse the kits... Mothwing has other thoughts though) go to have the kits away from the Clans.

The first born is a chocolate she-kit (you’ll see...). Before even seeing his eyes or anything Leafpool knows that she should be named Quailkit, so she is.

Next is a chocolate and red mackerel torbie she-kit. Mothwing names this one Russetkit, having heard of ShadowClan’s deputy and her friendship with her mother Sasha.

Lastly is a fluffy red she-kit (they trans boiiiiiiiiiiii). While Leafpool wants to name her Mothkit, Mothwing advises against it and Squirrelflight decides to name her Lynxkit.

When it comes time to go home though, Lynxkit has established a bond with Mothwing, who already wanted at least one of the kits to come to RiverClan. Leafpool bids her daughter and Mothwing farewell and brings Quailkit and Russetkit to ThunderClan.

Quailkit soon decides that he/him pronouns fit him better after getting to know his grandfather Firestar, and in RiverClan Lynxkit does the same upon getting to know Mothwing, who he has a close bond with, better.

The only cats who know the truth in RiverClan are Leopardstar, Willowpaw and Mothwing, while in ThunderClan many more know the truth - Squirrelflight, Brambleclaw (vaguely;he knows the Three aren’t his and Squilf’s kits but doesn’t know who they are), Firestar, Sandstorm and the nursery permaqueens.

The Three get apprenticed. Russetpaw is excited to be a medicine cat apprentice, while her brother Quailpaw is determined to become a warrior and overcome his disability. Meanwhile in RiverClan, Lynxpaw is excited to become a warrior, despite his crush on Willowpaw slowing his progress down a bit.

Now here, Quailpaw and Russetpaw don’t switch roles. While Russetpaw does still struggle with herb meanings and such, Leafpool gives her ways to remember them, through little rhymes or short songs. Quailpaw gets training in his dreams from Yellowfang, Spottedleaf and Cinderpelt (though Cinder’s presence is weaker due to her also being by Cinderpaw’s side as a guardian angel/imaginary friend to her, more on that later), learning how to hunt through both sight and smell.

Eventually Russetpaw goes to RiverClan to make sure everything’s okay, before getting stuck due to Twoleg doing... I don’t know what they were doing during Dark River. During her time in RiverClan she bonds with both Lynxpaw and Willowpaw, the latter of whom she was already close to due to medicine cat meetings.

Now, in the canon books, Lionpaw meets with Heatherpaw in the tunnels. Here, however, instead we have Quailpaw meeting with Minnowpaw... I’m not sure where. Perhaps they were exploring ThunderClan territory and accidentally overstepped the borders, Quailpaw falling into the tunnels and them LARPing there? Anyways, both want to be warriors despite both having short fuses. Unlike in the canon books where after saving the WindClan kits Lionpaw and Heatherpaw’s friendship fades away, Quailpaw and Minnowpaw keep being friends, talking at Gatherings and occasionally asking Russetpaw, Willowpaw, Leafpool or Mothwing to tell them something or give them something when they come over to help. The kits they save here are Sneezekit and Mallowkit.

And as in the canon books, Lynxpaw trains in the Dark Forest. Tigerstar mentoring him honestly makes sense to me - there’s probably been several leaders named Tigerstar who have been colored like him given Tigerheart. Anyways, Tigerstar tells him he just wants to help him hone in on his powers. Of course, he wants to, so he trains in the Dark Forest.

Oh, also Russetpaw does have a power! At first Quailpaw tells her about his power and she pretends to be the one with it. However, after a bit, Leafpool figures out the facade and confronts Quailpaw about it. Russetpaw’s power takes longer to manifest, but she does have it, and it’s getting cats to tell the truth, basically hypnotizing them. She uses it a bit before she runs away into the tunnels to get cats to confess to breaking the warrior code, but after the reveal she decides that maybe she shouldn’t do that and instead uses it to figure out who’s training in the Dark Forest.

Anyways, onto Outcast!

Due to Brook and Stormfur formerly taking refuge in RiverClan, Leopardstar decides that one of their cats should go to the mountains as well alongside Crowfeather, Breezepaw, Squirrelflight, Tawnypelt, Quailpaw, Russetpaw and Brambleclaw. Lynxpaw volunteers, and his mentor (Dawnflower, Minnowpaw’s mom) therefore goes as well. Mothwing considers going, but ultimately doesn’t, instead deciding to teach Lynxpaw some herbs due to not fully trusting Russetpaw’s herb skills. He becomes a bit interested in them, but not enough to become a meddie.

After watching Lynxpaw during the battle with the rogues, Quailpaw tells him and Russetpaw a prophecy.

There will be three, kin of a great leader’s kin, who hold the power of the stars in their paws. Look for the sharp-eyed quail. Listen out for the lynx’s roar. After both of these events have come and gone, peace will come on a gentle russet leaf.

Russetpaw is certain that she and Quailpaw are two of the cats in the prophecy, simply believing that Lynxpaw’s prefix being mentioned is just a coincidence due to the commonality of the prefix.

Lynxpaw doesn’t know what to think about it.

The prospect of being important excites Quailpaw. The cats who doubt him won’t any longer when they find out he’s a prophecy cat! Or at least, that’s what he hopes...

Eclipse goes about the same... aside from Lynxpaw not wanting to fight Quailpaw! He just became friends with him, and might be in the prophecy with him!

Sol tells Lynxpaw that he can explain the prophecy. Lynxpaw decides that he should tell Mothwing and Willowpaw about it, and firstly tells the latter of the two.

Willowpaw and him both agree that the great leader is likely Firestar, but could also be one of the original leaders, leaving Heatherpaw and Breezepaw as possible candidates. Lynxpaw tells her that Quailpaw told him the prophecy, and she says that they’re possible candidates too. He starts to have low self esteem after this, but Willowpaw comforts him and the two basically get together but they don’t realize cuz they’re dumbasses.

The two of them then go to tell Mothwing. At first she’s hesitant to believe them - she’s never really seen StarClan as much of a higher force then the living cats, they’re just dead cats, they’re as reckless and at times mouse-brained as they were when they were alive.

But she sees the glow in Lynxpaw’s eyes. It reminds her of what she loved about Leafpool. She sees Leafpool in the son she could never treat as her own. Believing Willowpaw to have received the prophecy (mouse-dung, we forgot to tell her that Quailpaw told me the prophecy), at the next Moonpool meeting she gives her her medicine cat name - Willowshine.

Due to how valiantly he fought in the battle, Lynxpaw is given his warrior name of Lynxcloud. Minnowpaw is given her warrior name at this time as well, as is Pebblepaw, with those two being named Minnowtail and Pebblefoot like in canon.

Quailpaw is also given his warrior name by Firestar, that being Quailwing after Mothwing.

Long Shadows is mostly the same except for one minor change, that being that Jay’s Wing is now named Quail’s Feather. Flamepaw, Dawnpaw and Tigerpaw help the Three fake an omen to get Blackstar to believe in StarClan again like in the canon books. The fire scene is also slightly different... but anyways, Russetpaw gets her full name of Russetleaf.

Now the fire scene... the whole reveal happens but afterwards Squilf reassures Russetleaf and Quailwing that she loves them as if they were her own kits, and that Brambleclaw does as well.

Quailwing takes a while to accept it, still being confused about his power... StarClan has given cats powers before, but for all he knows he’s just a kittypet or rogue or loner who was brought to the Clan at a young age. And how does Lynxcloud fit into this? Eventually though, he accepts it, deciding to try to help whoever the Three are with whatever the prophecy requires them to do.

Russetleaf, however, can’t accept it. She’s a disgrace to her Clan and has no right to be a medicine cat. She should’ve known she wasn’t in the prophecy, she doesn’t have a power at all... Cinderheart notices something’s wrong and talks to her about it, and they get together and she starts to feel better, even if she realizes that she’s breaking the code... she’s stopped caring anymore.

Eventually though, Russetleaf’s power appears and she’s confused. She accidentally uses it without realizing after Quailwing finds out that Leafpool’s their mother, in an attempt to figure out who their father/sire is. Also yes, I did shuffle events... partially cuz I forgot the order they happen in.

Russetleaf carried the blood red berries in her jaws as she entered camp. No one questioned her, though she saw a few cats giving her weird looks. I have to do this, she thought.

As she entered the medicine cat den, Leafpool looked up at her, fear in her eyes.

“Russetleaf, what are you-” Russetleaf cut her off.

“I know now,” she hissed, “Mother. I may not know who our father is, but-”

The medicine cat cut her off. The tortioseshell tabby noticed that her eyes looked... focused on something else, as if in a trance.

“While she’s not your father, per-say, Mothwing sired you, Quailwing and Lynxcloud,” her mother mewed, “now, may I please leave the den?”

Her eyes looked normal again halfway through her second sentence. Still confused, Russetleaf nodded, allowing Leafpool to exit the den.

What did I just do?

She experiments with her power, seeing who may’ve broken the warrior code. Mousewhisker (relationship with Minnowtail), Squirrelflight (hiding the truth), Brambleclaw (same as Squilf), heck, even Firestar (giving prey to RiverClan, giving Yellowfang prey and eating some of it before bringing it to the Clan, hiding Graystripe’s relationship with Silverstream, probably more)! ... all of them admit it.

She begins to feel... power-hungry. While the Dark Forest has been unable to recruit her due to her loyalty to ThunderClan, they are able to do one thing: will her to kill Ashfur. Leafpool had taught her some fighting techniques she’d learned from Cinderpelt and Mothwing, she knows a decent amount, and uses them to kill Ashfur. To keep her Clan safe.

This starts to weigh her down. She feels terrible. She broke the code... but she did it to keep her Clan safe! ... didn’t she?

She can’t keep it inside any longer. She tells everyone the truth at a Gathering. Mothwing and Leafpool are exposed. Firestar doesn’t want to make her give up her position, but Leafpool insists on it, scared of what Russetleaf could do. Leopardstar, who’s always been a code junkie even if she made two half-Clan cats deputy, made one of Tigerstar’s kits temporarily deputy even though she (I think) knew he was Firestar’s son, allowed one of Tigerstar’s kits who was formerly a rogue to be a medicine cat, relinquishes Mothwing’s position.

Lynxcloud says he wants to talk to his siblings, and they all go to the tunnels. Russetleaf needs to tell someone what she did... so she tells her brothers. And she runs in. And it seems as if she’s gone... dead...

But two young kits have potential.

#mothpool au #lionblaze #hollyleaf #jayfeather #lynxcloud #russetleaf #quailwing #mothwing #leafpool #mothpool #lots of cats #po3 au

15 notes · View notes

lerdm · 4 years

Text

More On The Tim/Diana AU

Okay, so since my post on rare ships, I did get a few messages about how I thought this would look like, so here is an outline of what that universe might look like.

Bruce is older now, like actually old, like 65-70ish. Alfred died a few years back and the way Bruce dealt with it drove Jason away for good. Dick is still Nightwing, although he’s also getting up there in years. His 40′s weren’t kind to him and he and Damian got into a huge fight at his 50th birthday party because Damian was almost certain that he was going to get himself killed. Damian doesn’t talk much with Bruce or Dick anymore either, which is a shame, because he’s the only one who Jason will speak to. Then there’s Tim.

He’s in his early thirties, he was the one who took over being Batman after Bruce retired, much to Damian’s chagrin. Diana being basically immortal and Clark not ageing quite the same as a human man, are still the pillars of the League. At first, Batman wasn’t quite the image that he was when Bruce was in the role, but he made a name for himself soon enough.

He’s been Batman for a few years now, and the other day, he noticed a grey hair. He held it in his hand and stared at it for a while in front of the large window that looked out on Earth in the Watchtower. Diana came up behind him and asked if he was okay.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just... getting old I guess.”

“Is that troubling you?” Diana asked.

“Yes, more than it probably should,” Tim answered completely honestly.

This took Diana off guard, although, it shouldn’t by now. She should be used to the idea that Tim wasn’t his father, he didn’t bottle things up, not anymore. He had grown emotionally. And Diana would be lying if she didn’t notice how he had grown physically.

“Is it something that’s bothering you?” Diana asked.

Tim smiled a little at her and she smiled back. “Not really, not right now. But I’ve seen what doing this does to someone’s body. Bruce can barely walk now and it kills him. I figure I should probably stop before it gets that far.” He paused. “I probably won’t. Maybe I’ll go the same route as Jason and Damian and use a Lazarus pit.”

Diana looked concerned at this, “Would you? Consider that?”

“No. I think I’d rather die naturally than hurt the people around me with... everything that comes with the Pit.”

“I know it’s not my place, but I am relieved to hear you say that.”

“Maybe it is your place. I mean... you’re my friend.”

Diana looked at the man in the eye, they were the same height.

“Just friends?”

A slow smiled crept onto Tim’s face, “I don’t presume to know what you’re feeling, but if you’re asking...”

“Which I am.”

“I don’t see any reason why we can’t... explore... this relationship. Beside perhaps your feelings for my father,” Tim said.

Diana shook her head a little. “You’re nothing like him.”

Tim grinned, “That’s more of a compliment than you know.”

“May I kiss you?” She asked.

“Of course,” Tim said.

<><> Years Later <><>

Tim was standing at the end of a long aisle. It wasn’t a big wedding, mostly family and friends from the superhero community. Tim’s best man was Conner Kent, Diana’s man of honour was Clark.

Bruce was sitting in the front and watched, his heart shattering, as Diana married his son.

There was a small reception outside the manor, where the wedding was taking place. Tim was chatting with some of the guests when something on the treeline caught his eye. He smiled and excused himself and walked over.

Jason was leaning against a tree, smoking. He looked the exact same as the snarky 19-year-old Tim had known what felt like a lifetime ago. Except for the hair, it was shock-white, and his eyes glowed in the dark slightly unnaturally.

“You know, you were invited,” Tim said.

“I know, but I didn’t want to make trouble for you,” Jason said. “Damian sends his best.”

Tim laughed, “No. He didn’t.”

Jason grinned, “No. He didn’t.” He took another drag. “Some things never change.”

“Yeah,” Tim agreed, giving Jason a look.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know. Don’t go all Bruce and give me a lecture.”

“I wasn’t going to.”

Jason rolled his eyes and reached into his jacket, pulling out an envelope. “Here, a wedding present.”

Tim looked inside and saw that it was packed with photographs. And not just any photos.

“Jason... how did you get these, I thought Bruce destroyed them after Alfred died,” Tim looked through them with tears welling in his eyes.

Jason smiled bittersweetly, “Alfred gave me all the old photo albums.”

“Thanks, Jay. I-” Tim looked up from a photo to see that Jason was gone. He chuckled slightly, put the envelope in his suit jacket, and went back to the party.

“Where’d you sneak off to?” Diana asked slightly teasingly, though there was a hint of real concern under it.

“Jason stopped by,” Tim said.

Diana smiled a little.

<><> Ten Years Later <><>

Funnily enough, Tim and Diana only had little girls. Tim had thought that the universe was going to mess with Diana by making them have only boys. Not that Tim was complaining. He loved those girls.

He and Diana left them with Conner when they were going out on League business that day. It was a hard fight. Diana was protecting Tim, who was trying to hack into the hidden files in their latest adversary’s computer. Unfortunately, a bomb was set off when the other members of the Justice League were battling the drones on the main level, and the building began to crash around them.

The next thing Diana knew, she was opening her eyes. She seemed to have landed in an air pocket. And then she remembered who else she had been with. “Batman?!” She called. She sat up and looked around until she saw a glint of light bouncing off something. But she couldn’t tell what it was. She reached out to touch it, and her hand came back sticky.

“Timothy?” She asked the darkness, her voice wavering in a way that it hadn’t in a long time.

She crawled over to where he was laying. No pulse to be found. She cradled his body against her chest and sobbed until Superman finally dug them out of the rubble.

<><> <><>

Telling her children that their father was gone was one of the hardest things she’d ever done.

All she could think about as she stood at the grave of Timothy Jackson Drake-Wayne, was how she was so lucky that she still had pieces of him in the world.

She smelt the smoke before she heard him speak.

“I could bring him back, if you’d like.”

She turned to look at Jason, ever the same man, frozen in time.

“He told me he didn’t want that,” Diana replied.

Jason just nodded, “Yeah, I figured.”

There was silence for a moment before Diana spoke her mind. “Why are you here?”

“I... just thought I’d come to tell you that I’m sorry. And that you and the kids were the things that made his life worth something to him, not Batman.”

Diana stared at Jason tearily. “Thank you.”

He nodded and was about to turn away when he remembered something else he had wanted to tell her. “And... Damian’s taken this hard. He, uh, I think he has people following your girls just to make sure nothing happens. I tried to call him off but- well, it’s Damian. I know they can handle themselves, he’s just worried.”

Diana wanted to be angry, and snap at him that she can protect her children on her own, but then she remembered that she wasn’t the only one who lost someone.

“Thank you,” she said softly.

Jason nodded once and then went back to his motorcycle, revving away.

14 notes · View notes

loverofthefiction · 6 years

Text

Let’s Get Out Of Here

Summary: In the world of the rich and noble, you meet Peter, a humble boy harboring a secret.

Noble!AU!Peter Parker x reader

Word Count: 1742

Warnings: bad writing, and um fluff?

Author’s Note: wow its been a while sorry. I got my writing mojo back for like a second because I went on a 12 hour road trip lmao. Pleas excuse how bad this is, i am very tired. Requests are still open btw. Anyway, enjoy!

“Y/N, stay still, child,” your mother scolded you as she passed the hairbrush through your hair for what seemed to be the thousandth time that day.

“I can’t help it, you’re ripping out my scalp,” you said through gritted teeth.

“Don’t be dramatic,” she sighed angrily. “You need to look perfect for this ball.”

“I don’t understand why I have to go,” you muttered under your breath, but she still heard you, resulting in a rough pull of your hair.

“You know very well why, Y/N. You’re at that age now and the sooner you find a husband, the better.”

It was the day that your mother had been preparing you for years; you had been woken up hours before you wanted to and shoved into a tight dress, heavy makeup, and high, stiff hair.

Being from a noble family was tough, especially since your parents were so strict and adamant that your future turns into the life of a housewife with multiple children like your mother and her mother before her and so on.

“Is the girl ready?” your father’s voice boomed through the corridor outside your room just as your mother took one last look at her.

“Ready as she’ll ever be. Hopefully, this will get her a husband with a nice estate…” she muttered the last part under her breath. You only rolled your eyes discreetly and followed them to the carriage that waited outside.

“Now remember, child, be respectful, and don’t eat any of the hors-d'oeuvres out, that’s unladylike,” your father spoke to you as you made your way down towards the large mansion where the ball would be held.

“Yes, father,” you replied, thinking about how you wouldn’t be able to eat anyway with the tightness of your corset.

The rest of the carriage ride was quiet, except for the rough turns of the wheels and the occasional neighing of the horses. Your hands fidgeted in your lap the whole time and questions ran wild in your head. What would these people be like? You had only met a fraction of your parents’ acquaintances and they weren’t the nicest of people.

“Sit up straight, Y/N, we’re here.” Your mother nudged you, breaking you away from your thoughts and forcing you to look at the large mansion outside. Well, large mansion was an understatement, it was more like a castle.

Your parents greeted the people outside, some of their faces seeming familiar. You did your best to not roll your eyes at the ones who seemed to be extra familiar to you as to introduce you to their sons.

“Y/N, this is William, he’s the son of Sir Jay and Lady Petra,” your mother introduced you and you bowed your head as you were told. They seemed snotty and uptight like every other person here. They completely disregarded you and kept the conversation with your mother, your father nowhere to be seen.

When you knew that they weren’t noticing what you were doing, you managed to sneak away.

There were far more people at this ball than you had thought, and the overwhelming feeling of getting out of there didn’t go away until you found a lone corridor.

Sighing in relief, you sat there for a few minutes, eventually feeling curious and wandering the place while admiring the portraits of random people on the walls.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t know anyone was in here,” a sweet voice said behind you. You turned around to see a boy around your age, with shaggy brown hair that had been slicked back and a stiff looking suit.

“No, it’s fine, I’m just glad I wasn’t the only one feeling overwhelmed by all those people,” you chuckled, holding out your hand. “I’m Y/N.”

“I’m Peter,” he shook your hand and stood next to you in front of a portrait of a curvy woman.

“So, how’d you get here? At this party?” you asked, trying to make conversation.

“I’m... an apprentice for Sir Stark. I’m really only here because he wanted me to know what it was like to socialize with highly educated people outside of him and others around him,” he explained.

“Sir Stark? Impressive. But let me guess, their dry personalities and high noses drained you of your energy,” you cocked an eyebrow and smirked as he laughed at your joke.

“How’d you know?”

“I was born into this, but it’s really not something I want to be in for all of eternity.”

“Most people would love to have been born into money.” He gave you a curious look as if he was trying to figure you out.

“Not me. I don’t want any part of this.” You shivered at the thought of getting married. “I’d rather travel the world, get as far away from my parents as possible,” You looked down at your dress, kicking your feet uncomfortably and starting to walk down the hall.

“Where would you go first?” He walked beside you, taking slow steps as to keep up with your pace.

“I don’t know, anywhere.” You glanced up at him. “What about you?”

“What about me?” he repeated.

“Why do you want to be in this mess of a world?”

“It’s what my parents would have wanted… I think,” he sighed. “But that now that I think about it, maybe I won’t be as happy as I thought I’d be.”

“That’s the spirit.” At this point, you had come to a door at the end of the long hallway. You looked over to him and raised an eyebrow as to ask if he wanted to explore the place with you.

He replied with opening the door for you.

Under the evening sun, there was a dimly lit and pathed path that strolled into the forest that surrounded the castle.

With a grin on your face, you picked up the front of your dress and hurried down the path.

“Come on, Peter! Let’s go on an adventure!”

You heard him laugh as he ran after you. He liked that you didn’t have a care in the world; it wasn’t something that he found in the snotty girls that Sir Stark introduced him to. You were special and he knew he wouldn’t find anyone like you.

“Do you think anyone will come looking for us?” you asked when you stopped at a river bank.

“Maybe, but who cares? This is the most fun I’ve had in a while,” he admitted.

“I’m glad to be of service.”

You sat for what seemed to be for hours, talking about anything and everything that came to mind. At some points, he remembered thinking about how he had never laughed harder in his life, and others about how he couldn’t remember anyone that understood him as well as you.

“We should be heading back,” you sighed, standing up and dusting off your dress.

“It’ll be dark soon.” He followed your slow lead, not picking up the slow pace you held. Neither of you wanted to head back, but at the same time, you knew that your parents were looking for you and that Peter had his own responsibilities to hold.

“Y/N?” he spoke up once you were near the mansion.

“Yes, Peter?”

“I… have to tell you something…”

“Of course, you can trust me.”

“I’m-”

“Peter!” a stern voice called.

He visually froze and you followed the voice to an authoritarian Tony Stark.

“Where have you been?” He was furious and didn’t seem to notice you standing nearby, which was fine by you.

“I was… taking a stroll with a friend.”

“Who’s this?” He finally gave you a glance but nothing more.

“I’m Y/N,” you spoke up.

“Where are your parents?”

“Inside…” You looked down sheepishly.

“Let’s get you home, and afterwards, I’m having a talk with you sir.”

You and Peter walked inside, following a steaming Stark. You didn’t dare to look at Peter; you were the one who had gotten him in trouble after all.

“Y/N?!” You heard your father’s voice boom through the hallway.

His face was red and your mother’s had the faintest hint of worry behind the anger she wore.

But they both lightened up as soon as they saw Sir Stark and Peter.

“Hi, father,” you muttered.

“S-sir Stark! Prince Peter!” Wait, what? “I am so sorry if my daughter caused you any trouble,. She will apologize right this second, won’t you, Y/N?”

“I’m sorry,” you said in shock. Your face met with Peter’s apologetic one. He wanted to speak but knew it wasn’t the time.

“She was no trouble, it was Prince Peter that was the bad influence. But he will learn before he becomes King,” Stark explained. “I expect you in my study in an hour, kid. Nice meeting you, Y/N.” Then he left with a curt nod at your parents.

“Y/N,” your father growled, not wanting to yell in front of the prince.

“Can I have a moment alone with Prince… Peter?” you interrupted him.

“Yes!” your mother responded before your father, seizing the moment. “Of course. We will be in the carriage!”

And with that, they left the both of you alone in the corrider.

“So… you’re the prince?”

“Yeah, that’s what I was trying to tell you before Sir Stark found us.”

“I’m sorry I got you in trouble.”

“Don’t be, I had fun.”

“Really?”

“Absolutely.”

“You realize my mother wanted me at this ball to find a husband, right?”

“You realize that the court wanted me at this ball for the same reason, right?”

“Finding a husband?”

“You know what I mean,” he laughed. “Sir Stark seemed to like you. He doesn’t just call anyone by their name.”

“Really?” You looked at him in wonder as he nodded. “My mother will be very glad to hear that.”

“Why don’t you come over for dinner some time? You know… to make your mother happy.”

“Are you sure that that’s the reason why, or because you actually want to see me again?”

“I had a great time, Y/N-” he stepped closer to you, staring right into your eyes- “I want to see you again.”

“That’s… great. Because I want to see you again, too.” You cleared your throat, trying to regain your cool.

“I have to go, but make sure to come by tomorrow.” He pecked your blushing cheek. “See you later, Lady Y/N.”

“See you later, Prince Peter.”

#peter parker x reader #peter x reader #peter parker fanfiction #peter parker headcanon #peter parker x you #peter parker #peter parker imagine #spiderman x reader #spiderman headcanon #spiderman fanfiction #spiderman x you #spiderman imagine #spiderman #marvel fanfiction

90 notes · View notes

prettywordsyouleft · 5 years

Text

The Sex Contract - Chapter 16

Genre: friends to lovers au / friends with benefits / mature content / romance / angst

Characters: Shim Changmin x Kaia Ashton (OC)

A/N: Due to the overwhelming request I have followed your encouragement to bring back one of my older stories. This was back in a time where OCs were everything and writing one chapter in each main’s point of view was the trend. I hope that even though I have edited this drastically, that you can appreciate this story comes from my older style of writing. I definitely still read this often and find it enjoyable so I hope you will too.

Prologue | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 - FINAL

Chapter 16 – Kaia’s POV.

“Kai, its morning time, wake up!”

Kaia rolled over in the bed and her eyes washed over Changmin. She had been awake for a much longer period than the Korean, though he was too tired to realise the expression on her face. She had to look away after a while, not because she was afraid of what he’d see, but because she didn’t want another flare-up of what she had been internalising all night long.

It was stupid really, Kaia hadn’t realised where it had changed and become complicated between her and Changmin. But it was different now and the nausea within her stomach started to attack with full force.

“Changmin, I don’t really feel up to your schedule today,” Kaia admitted. And it was the truth too.

He gazed down at her with concern, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. “Are you unwell?”

“Still a bit from yesterday. Don’t worry though I guess I’m not cut out for the lifestyle of a celebrity. I was thinking since I haven’t had much time to see Tokyo and you’re too busy that I might just go for a little wander today.”

“That would be a really neat idea,” he enthused, nodding his head. “I’m super busy all day long. Ever since the papers this morning were released I’ve pretty much got a jam-packed schedule. I wish I could come with you and enjoy the nice weather!”

She nodded. “I already submitted my article on Korea Star last night around the time of your date. There were photos up by that time too. It seemed like a good night.”

“If I had more time to tell you about it right now Kai, I would. But I have to get out of here early. Anyway, I’ll leave my credit card on the table, use it to buy something nice!”

“I don’t need it,” Kaia called out fruitlessly and listened to the front door shut shortly after. Pulling her knees up under her chin with a sigh, Kaia stared at the blanket until her eyes became unfocused.

Why was she starting to feel something for her best friend?

Around ten, Kaia finally pulled herself out of bed, padding into the kitchen for a glass of orange juice. As Changmin mentioned, she found his credit card sitting there with a small note beside it telling her there was no limit on how much she could spend and to have a great day. She picked it up and screwed the note into a little ball, half contemplating maxing the entire card just to get back at him. Kaia knew he hadn’t meant it, but after last night’s sex she felt like it was just a way to pay for her services. She had to push back the bile rising in her stomach at the mere thought.

Ignoring the card, and finishing off the juice, Kaia headed back into her room and got dressed, picking up her bag and the spare card-key before locking the house up. It was another nice autumn day in Tokyo, the weather just the right temperature to enjoy. She pulled out my map book and found where she was on it, looking for the closest interesting place to visit she had scribbled down on a list in bed. Finally, deciding on taking a train to Hibiya Park, Kaia headed in the direction of the closest underground station.

It was a highly confusing platform and even though she was used to Korean ones, because she lacked knowledge of the language, Kaia struggled to follow what English was around her. Eventually, she found a ticket seller and asked as best as she could, the man showing her where to board and what number she needed. She followed the directions and hopped off at the stop she had counted out along the way, stepping into a group of businessmen before heading up onto the street.

“Okay, now it’s to the right from this station,” Kaia said to herself in English, hurrying along the street towards the park she was excited for. The pictures she had seen earlier on her laptop were something she wanted to explore in person, and hoped to get some nice photos to send to her nature-loving Mother.

She stopped walking when she realised she had passed the same noodle shop before. Glancing around her, Kaia tried to find herself again on the map, but not knowing where she was made it that much harder. She looked for a person she could communicate with but after attempting to get the attention of a couple of busy pedestrians, she knew that she was in the wrong place to be asking for advice. Business people had very little time to waste on foreigners.

Kaia wandered forward and then grinned, spotting Hangul across the street. After nearly killing herself trying to dart between the traffic, she entered the Korean store, bowing at the keeper. He simply waved her off before she could even speak, and even though she used her second language over her native one, he wouldn’t have a bar of her. Frustrated, she stomped her foot in anger.

Glancing around again, she noticed a Korean girl sitting on a bench and hoped for better luck. “Excuse me, would you be able to point me in the direction of Hibiya Park?”

“Uh no,” she replied coolly and held up her phone. “And couldn’t you see I was busy?”

“Wow, the youth these days have no respect for their elders,” Kaia muttered under her breath before sighing heavily. “Why can’t anyone in this area stop and help a person out?!”

“Perhaps, if you asked the right people you’d get somewhere,” a voice answered, and she snapped her eyes to follow it, somewhat surprised that the English accent didn’t match his appearance. Kaia stared at the man curiously as he approached her. He smiled and shared a dimple. “Where are you trying to head?”

“You’re surprising,” She blurted out and colour invaded her cheeks, as his laughter reached Kaia’s ears.

“Not every day you expect an Asian to be British?”

She nodded weakly. “And how timely you are. I even speak Korean fluently and wasn’t getting anywhere.”

“How surprising,” he bit back in his native tongue, and she rolled her eyes at the Korean man, trying to decipher why he looked relatively familiar. “I’m Jay.”

“Kaia.”

“Well since I’m able to speak both English and Korean well, shall I help you?”

“I’m trying to find Hibiya Park. Do you know where it is?”

He nodded brightly. “Not here.”

“What?! The train steward told me to get off at the fourth stop and I did!”

“You’re easily frustrated,” he observed and pointed in the opposite direction. “You must have missed a stop because this would have possibly been your third stop from your original destination.”

“Great, just my luck in trying to take myself around a place I don’t speak the language of.”

Jay grinned. “Good thing I speak Japanese too.”

“You’re a man of many talents it seems,” Kaia said, grinning back and he nodded.

“Come on, I’ll show you to the park. Perhaps you’ll learn more about me on the way too.”

By the time they reached Hibiya Park, Kaia had forgotten all about her previous frustration with the day so far. Jay was refreshing to be around, his laughter infecting her with a good mood. She learnt he had lived in London for ten years before moving back to Korea to study and get a career. They had a lot in common, especially as they discussed their favourite English things they missed whilst living in Korea. Kaia had expected Jay to say farewell at the entrance but he had accompanied her for the entire afternoon. She was thrilled to have made such a good friend already, Jay making her feel completely at ease, despite only knowing him for half a day.

“So you know about me,” he asked as he balanced on the edge of a fountain that wasn’t working. He pointed down at her and grinned. “What about you. Why is Miss Kaia Ashton in a country she cannot speak the language of?”

“Because of my friend. He has a career that involves a lot of jet-setting,” she carefully worded and smiled. “He asked me to come along and work with his team. I’m a writer you see, and so it was VIP access really.”

“You have me really curious, what kind of job does your friend do?”

“He’s a singer,” Kaia answered and his face filled with several emotions. “And as you can imagine his schedule doesn’t have a lot of time for sight-seeing.”

“So you decided to come out alone?” Kaia nodded. “And how would you document your fun time out? Unless you planned to do heaps of selfies of course?”

“Pretty much was the plan.”

Jay jumped off his ledge and grabbed the camera out of her hand, quickly taking a shot. Kaia yelped and tried to grab it back, the man laughing as he snapped some more. He then turned the camera on himself and took some of himself. She rolled her eyes at his mischievous expression but stepped closer to him, Jay instantly getting as close he could and holding the camera up. They took a few random shots before laughing it off and finding a new spot to take photos at. Although she knew it was a common experience in Korea to take a bunch of photos with friends, apart from Sungra, this was her first time enjoying it.

“Should we get some lunch now?” Jay asked and Kaia nodded before looking at her watch.

“Dinner you mean, it’s almost four o clock.”

“But dinner leads to the night ending early,” he proclaimed and she raised an eyebrow at him. “Let’s eat dinner later, perhaps with my friends?”

“If you think they’ll enjoy my company?”

Jay grinned. “Course they will. We all share a lot in common with the experiences you’ve already had being in Korea so far.”

“Now I’m intrigued,” she told him, and he nodded enthusiastically.

“Good, that’s how I want you to be Kaia.”

Time slipped by quickly in Jay’s company and Kaia was already sitting in a trendy sushi shop waiting for his friends to turn up for dinner. The afternoon had finished effortlessly and rolled into the evening full of arcades and more laughter. It was the best fun she’d had in ages.

“They’re here,” Jay mentioned and Kaia looked in the direction he was pointing, as four Korean men approached. Each of them felt familiar and she wondered why.

Slapping her forehead lightly in realisation, Kaia shunted Jay beside her. He laughed and beckoned them over. After the introductions were done, she poked Jay in his arm and he let out another laugh.

“I was wondering if you’d recognise another singer if you crossed one.”

“Well it’s not every day I expect to be rescued by one in a random setting, Jaewon,” I said, emphasising on his full name. He seemed to find it humorous and Kaia had to admit she did too.

Meeting CODE V in Japan was definitely something she wanted to remember.

_________________

Part 17

[TVXQ Masterlist] | [Main Masterlist] | [Request Guidelines]

**Please note: The new character introduce in this part shows just how old this fiction is because CODE-V haven’t been very relevant since Jaewon’s scandal and his removal from the group. Naturally, this was written before that and I don’t have the energy to rewrite a new character in.

#shim changmin #changmin #tvxq #tvxq imagines #tvxq scenarios #tvxq fiction #tvxq fluff #tvxq romance #changmin imagines #changmin scenarios #changmin fiction #changmin fluff #changmin romance #kpop imagines #kpop scenarios #kpop fiction #kpop romance #pwyl; the sex contract #prettywordsyouleft writes

13 notes · View notes

ostrich-on-a-rampage-blog · 7 years

Note

if you're still taking prompts! (if not, just ignore this lol) “Somehow my gallery sculpture piece looks exactly like you how weird” AU with jackcrutchie :')

Happy birthday, Jay!! Hope you like this one, because it was a very fun prompt.

Jack felt his stomach drop down to his feet. No. No, no, no. This was not supposed to happen. He slowly made his way through the crowd, his eyes tracking the figure across the room. He hadn’t seen him, so Jack had at least a couple moments to weigh his options. Was it even feasible to move a ninety pound sculpture in the middle of a gallery? Suppose the visitors thought he was stealing it? Would security taze him first, ask questions later? He studied the crowd of visitors surrounding his sculpture, trying to determine how difficult it would be to convince them to allow him to move the sculpture into a back room. A couple of the elderly ladies, mauve and mustard hand bags clutched tightly in their gnarled hands, seemed to be the most imposing obstacles; their beady eyes alighted on Jack with suspicion.

Okay, so removing the sculpture wasn’t exactly an option. At least, not at the moment. Which, left Jack with only one other option. Remove the unexpected guest. Not that this would be any easier, Jack knew far too well. Jack’s attempts to persuade him to leave would only be met with suspicion and stubbornness. And Jack knew just how stubborn his best friend could be when he wanted to.

Steeling himself for what he assumed would be an argument, he crossed the gallery. His best friend was examining a still-life, his brow furrowed in concentration. Jack took a deep breath, and greeted, “Hey, Crutchie.”

“Jack!” Crutchie cried out, turning around. “This is amazing! Your first art gallery. I’m so proud of you.”

“It’s nothing,” Jack told him, before moving on to the purpose of the conversation. “So, uh, what are you doing here? I thought you were going to be spending the day with your aunt in Queens?”

“Yeah, I was,” Crutchie said. “But, then I figured I shouldn’t miss your first gallery! We rescheduled, so I’ll be out in Queens tomorrow, but I’ve got all of today to spend with you.”

Normally, Jack would be overjoyed at spending the entire day with his best friend. Especially, after he had realized the feelings he held for Crutchie extended past simple friendship. But, he couldn’t allow Crutchie to see the sculpture in the center of the room. That just… That wasn’t allowed. Not after the weeks and months and years that Jack had worked to hide his feelings from his best friend. And now Crutchie was here. In the gallery. “All day?” he asked, grinning as he realized that, perhaps, he could use this to his advantage.

Crutchie nodded. “I thought we could explore here a little bit, and then go get food. I don’t know, I’m up for anything.”

“Let’s go get food now. It’s,” he checked his phone, “already after ten. Do you want to grab pancakes at IHOP? My treat.”

“Now?” Crutchie asked, his brow furrowing a bit. “But, I haven’t even seen any of your stuff. I’ve only had time to look at a couple of these still-lifes, which, though interesting, aren’t nearly as amazing as anything you could create.” Crutchie nudged Jack playfully, but Jack just felt sick at the thought of Crutchie seeing any of his art.

“Um, yeah, but, I’m starving. Besides, you can see all of my stuff later. I’ll give you your own private tour,” Jack joked, desperately praying that Crutchie would agree to the suggestion.

“Come on, Jack. Let’s just look at the art. Besides, shouldn’t we be supportive of the other artists. Like, I know this…” Crutchie leaned forward, reading the name, “McCallister isn’t as great an artist as you, but doesn’t she deserve our attention as well?”

Jack rubbed at the back of his neck. “Well, yeah,” he agreed weakly. “But, I was just thinking–”

Crutchie interrupted him, “We have the rest of today. Let’s just explore a little bit and then I’d love pancakes.” Jack attempted a smile, following Crutchie as he moved on to the next picture. It was a dark landscape, various shades of gray and black and indigo painting complexities into the night sky. Muted browns and shadowed greens melted together, creating a soft, sandy desert scene. A pale moon spread silver ripples across the rocks and barrel cacti. “Is that Santa Fe?” Crutchie asked.

“Maybe,” Jack said. “It’s just a desert.”

“It’s amazing,” Crutchie breathed. “I can’t believe you can just paint like that.”

Jack shook his head. “It’s not that great,” he told his friend, swiping his hand across his jaw nervously. “There are a lot better paintings out there.”

“You’re just being modest,” Crutchie said. “This is great. This blows those still-lifes out of the water.” He examined the thin brush-strokes, the layering of paint with the air of a connoiseur. Crutchie leaned back before informing Jack, “Well, Kelly, you’ve outdone yourself. Monet, schmonet. You’re the next big thing!”

“Oh, come on,” Jack said, blushing at Crutchie’s praise. “It’s just a painting.”

“Yeah, but look at that shading! It honestly just looks like someone snapped a picture of the desert at night. It’s amazing.” Crutchie turned to Jack, his face beaming in a way that made Jack’s stomach jolt. He wanted Crutchie to look at him like that for the rest of his life. Jack shoved those thoughts, those dangerous feelings away. “You’re the best, Jack.”

Jack smiled. “I guess, I’ll just have to take your word on it.”

“You got anything else here, Mr. Van Gogh?”

“Um,” Jack started, not entirely willing to lie to his best friend. However, he wasn’t exactly eager for Crutchie to see the sculpture.

Crutchie interrupted Jack, preempting whatever lie seemed necessary in the moment. “Don’t tell me you spent all this time on this one painting? I mean, it’s fabulous, Jack, but I’ve also seen just how quickly you can knock out scenery like this.”

“Oh, I was… busy. So, that’s the only painting that I finished,” Jack explained.

“Busy?” Crutchie asked, quirking an eyebrow. “With what?” Something unreadable flashed across his face. “Or, with who, should I ask?”

Jack blushed. “It–it’s not like that. I was just… busy.” He knew the excuse was lame, insufficient; Jack could read the complete disbelief flashing across Crutchie’s brown eyes. But, in the suddenness of the question, Jack could not come up with anything better.

“Oh,” Crutchie said, his voice flat. “I see.”

“Look, Crutch, you know I’d tell you if there was someone. But, there isn’t. There really isn’t.”

“Okay,” Crutchie said, but Jack could tell that he didn’t completely believe Jack’s words. His eyes darted around the room, avoiding Jack’s gaze. Crutchie’s eyebrows rose. “Hey, have you seen the crowd over there?” he asked, gesturing to the crowd of people that seemed to linger around Jack’s sculpture. “Let’s go look at that.”

Jack grabbed Crutchie’s shoulder, gently pulling him to a stop. “I would really rather go get pancakes.”

Crutchie’s eyes sparked with something that Jack couldn’t decipher. “Fine,” Crutchie said, the word clipped. “You go get pancakes. I’m going to look around the gallery some more.” With that, he started off, in the direction of the sculpture that Jack had so desperately tried to keep him from seeing.

Groaning lowly, Jack followed Crutchie to the small throng of people. They pressed past a couple visitors and Jack tried once again. “Crutch, let’s just leave. I’m starving. It’s probably not even that great. Let’s just go.” He fell silent as they stopped at the base of the sculpture.

It wasn’t anything large or ornate. The alabaster sculpture portrayed a young man, cross-legged, smiling softly at a delicate butterfly that had landed on his extended finger. Detail had been etched carefully into the butterfly’s wings, but, to Jack, the true art was the man’s face. He had managed to catch the crooked smile perfectly, had carved a gentle light into the man’s eyes. The statue’s hair seemed to be captured in time, a breeze perpetually stirring the light strands. A small gold plaque at the base of the statue entitled it, Touched by an Angel. Jack was damn proud of the sculpture, considered it his best work yet. However, no amount of pride that surged, large and warm, within his chest could convince him that it was a good idea to show Crutchie the sculpture.

“That’s… me?” Crutchie asked, his voice soft with awe.

And, it was. The similarity was undeniable. Jack winced. Maybe he had done a little too well at the statue. “Um, surprise?” Jack tried, his voice soft, embarrassed.

“Jack,” Crutchie breathed.

Jack winced once more. “I’m sorry,” he muttered. “I shoulda…” But, he didn’t know how to finish that sentence. There were so many things he should have done differently, so many things he could have changed. He could feel Crutchie’s eyes on him, but couldn’t tell if the gaze was judgemental, happy, proud, disgusted. “I–I gotta go.” He pushed past different people, shoving his way out of the gallery. He needed air. He needed space. Jack couldn’t stand the crowd any longer.

He shut his eyes, as he exited the gallery, feeling the sun shine down on him. It burned, heat waves radiating around him. Jack stumbled backwards, bumping into the brick wall and sliding down to the sidewalk. He tore his fingers through his hair, breathing harshly. Jack had known that carving that sculpture was a bad idea, had spent far too many nights weighing the costs and benefits of a statue like that. Jack squeezed his eyes shut tightly. Oh, he had screwed up. He never should have–

“Jack?”

Jack jolted back in surprise, banging his head against the warm brick. He winced, equally pained by the brick and by Crutchie’s presence. “Hey, Crutch,” he muttered, careful to keep his voice devoid of all emotion.

“So,” Crutchie started, sitting down against the brick wall beside Jack. “That was… quite something.”

“I’m sorry.”

“What are you apologizing for?” Crutchie asked, turning to face Jack directly.

Jack blinked at Crutchie in surprise. Wasn’t it clear? “The–the statue.”

“Okay, yes, but why are you apologizing?”

“I–” Jack cut himself off. What was he supposed to say? I’m sorry that I’m helplessly in love with you. I’m sorry that you’re everything I’ve ever dreamed of. I’m sorry that I could never be enough for you. “I’m sorry that I didn’t ask your permission before I carved that.”

Crutchie’s eyes flashed with something–if Jack hadn’t known better, he would’ve pegged it as disappointment. “Oh, no worries about that,” Crutchie told him, waving the concern away. “I really don’t mind. It was… Jack, that’s the coolest thing I’ve ever seen. You made me…” he trailed off, worrying his lip. Crutchie snorted humorlessly. “You made me look… Never mind.”

“I didn’t think you would like it,” Jack told him, and it was only partly a lie. “That’s why I didn’t want you to see it.”

“Well, it’s… It’s amazing,” Crutchie said softly. “I still can’t completely wrap my head around the fact that you, that my best friend, made that.”

“Yeah, well,” Jack muttered, before standing up. “Anyway, do you still want to get pancakes? I wasn’t joking when I said I was hungry.”

Crutchie smiled. “That would be nice. By the way,” he added, as Jack helped him up, “I do recall a certain someone promising to pay for said pancakes.”

“Fine, fine. I’ll buy you pancakes. You happy?”

“Very,” Crutchie said cheerfully.

They started toward the IHOP, only a couple streets down. The sun didn’t seem to burn nearly as much as it had when Jack first left the art gallery, and Jack smiled at that. He and Crutchie settled into what resembled a comfortable silence, neither needing to say anything. It was almost… almost right. Except, there was something off, something that spoke of discomfort, tension. While Jack had initially labelled the silence as normal, each step towards IHOP deepened the tense unspoken thoughts between the friends. Jack kept glancing at Crutchie, trying to gauge how his best friend had actually felt about the sculpture, but Crutchie’s face remained deceptively emotionless.

“You know,” Jack started, as he held open the door for Crutchie at IHOP, “you can tell me whatever’s on your mind. I can tell you’re still thinking about… something.”

Crutchie opened his mouth, but a bouncy, far-too-excited IHOP employee interrupted them. “Just the two of you?” she asked, grinning.

Jack nodded, trying to catch Crutchie’s eye, but his best friend refused to make eye contact. No matter. Jack would figure out what was bothering him and then everything would be able to return to normal, return to the time before he had even carved the damn statue. Jack wouldn’t stop until everything was fine again.

The waitress seated them at a table beside a window, handing them each menus, and promising to return shortly. “So…” Jack started, hoping that Crutchie would talk to him.

“So…” Crutchie repeated, flipping his menu open. “I’m thinking I’m gonna get the Strawberry Banana Pancakes. What about you?”

“Um.” Jack focused on the menu, recognizing that Crutchie wasn’t quite ready to speak yet. That’s okay. Jack could wait until after they had gotten their food. “Oh, I’ll just probably get the blueberry pancakes. It’s a classic, y’know,” Jack joked, thinking back to the many times, senior year of high school, that he and Crutchie had gone to IHOP. It became a habit, a reflex, of theirs. Really good days, really bad days: Jack and Crutchie would go to IHOP and each get a stack of pancakes. They would talk, or not–and by the end of the meal, everything would have returned to normal.

Jack only prayed that that would be how this visit ended.

Crutchie smiled, but before he could reply, the waitress had returned to take their orders. Once she had disappeared, taking the menus with her, Crutchie began fiddling with his straw wrapper, twisting it between his fingers. Jack cleared his throat. “So, uh, you want to talk about whatever’s on your mind?”

“I’ve just… You carved a block of stone into me. That’s crazy!” Crutchie laughed softly, before frowning. “That’s crazy, Jack. And I don’t quite know what it means.”

“You’re my best friend,” Jack tried, but even he could tell that the words fell flat.

“Yeah,” Crutchie agreed, his lips twisting somewhat. “Yeah, I am, but you don’t have anything of Davey, and he’s your best friend, too. You…” Crutchie leaned back in his seat, studying the cars that drove past the IHOP outside the window. “You remember, back in high school?”

Jack blinked at the sudden change of topic. “Yeah, we used to come to IHOP, like this,” Jack said, unsure where Crutchie was going with this new direction.

“Well, yes, but I was thinking about your art back in high school. You would carry that sketchbook around. God, it was practically falling apart, pages half-torn out, charcoal or ink smudging together in some of the drawings. Remember?” Crutchie smiled, but the motion seemed almost bitter and Jack couldn’t, for the life of him, figure out why. “I remember, you would let me look through it, during lunch. We’d just be sitting in the choir room, usually in one of those practice rooms that always seemed to smell like tunafish sandwiches, and you’d be messing around on the piano and I’d be going through your sketchbook, or doing homework. That was when you were working on sketching people, so you had pages upon pages filled with our friends. And Katherine. She was always there. Every other page: her hair, her eyes, her nose. Her lips. You drew us all, but, Jack, you drew Katherine. I just… Jack, I need you to tell me the truth,” he said, the final request whispered almost desperately.

And, it wasn’t as if Jack could ever deny Crutchie, no matter the pain it would cause him. “Crutchie,” he said, gripping his hands together beneath the table. “I… It’s more than just you being my best friend. I–Crutchie, you have to understand. I like you. A lot. Have for,” Jack paused, huffing out a deep breath, still surprised that he was even telling Crutchie all of this, “a long, long time. You’re… Crutchie, you’re perfect. And, I just want you to see that. So, I created that sculpture. To show the world just how amazing, how perfect you are.”

Crutchie’s face flushed red. “Really?” he asked. “You actually think that? About me?”

Before Jack could confirm the truth of his words, the waitress reappeared, handing them their pancakes. He waited for her to walk away before he whispered, “I mean every word. I’m sorry. I just… Didn’t want you to know.”

“Why not?” Crutchie asked, his face still tinged pink, though it had calmed in the brief span of time it took the waitress to provide their food.

Jack shrugged uncomfortably. “I didn’t want to mess up our friendship or anything. I like you too much to just lose you like that.”

“Well, what if I said I like you, too?” Crutchie asked, the blush darkening slightly.

Jack’s eyes darted across Crutchie’s face, searching for the lie, searching for the joke. All he saw was the earnest light that always shone in Crutchie’s eyes. “Really?” Jack asked.

“Yeah. And I’ve liked you for forever. I just thought…” Crutchie trailed off, before stabbing at his pancakes. “Guess we probably just should’ve talked about this a long time ago.”

Jack watched Crutchie pick at his pancakes, his best friend not looking up to make eye contact. “Huh. Guess we should’ve,” he agreed.

Crutchie continued to focus on his pancakes. “So, um, what does this make us?” he asked, as the tips of his ears flushed bright red.

The blush made Crutchie even more endearing, if Jack had thought that possible, and his heart pounded uncomfortably in his chest. Jack smiled, aiming for easy-going. He feared that the smile flickered with nerves. Jack had always prided himself of how easily he could smile, could flirt, could use his good looks for his own advantage. But, Crutchie had destroyed all those defences, just by blushing, just by smiling nervously. “Well–well, I guess we could, um, be boyfriends?” Jack asked, wincing at the stutters. Never before, had he stuttered while flirting. Never before, had he truly flirted with Crutchie. This should be the exact same as when he had liked Katherine.

This was nothing like when he had liked Katherine.

“That would be nice,” Crutchie said, his head still ducked, eyes focused on the plate of pancakes. He laughed softly, shaking his head. Finally, Crutchie looked up at Jack. “That would be really nice.”

This time, the smile was completely natural, relieved. “Heh, that’s good.” Jack starting cutting into his pancakes with renewed vigor. Everything had turned out just fine. Maybe, the statue had actually been his best idea yet. He took a bite of his pancakes, unable to stop grinning, unable to keep his eyes off of Crutchie’s wide, lopsided smile–so familiar, and so new and invigorating, all at the same time.

“I just have one question,” Crutchie said.

“Yeah?” Jack asked, around the syrupy pancakes. “What’s that?”

“What’s up with the butterfly? I mean, it was beautiful, but I didn’t think you cared enough about a butterfly to actually claim its angelic nature.”

Jack choked on the pancake, quickly washing down the now-sodden, thickened lump with a couple gulps of water. “Um, the butterfly?” he squeaked out, his voice cracking on the second syllable. Crutchie just watched him expectantly, only slightly concerned about Jack. “Well, here’s the thing,” Jack explained, well aware of how his face was flushing, “the angel? The angel was supposed to be, um, you. The butterfly is the one that is, well, touched by an angel.”

“Oh,” Crutchie said softly. To Jack’s relief, his face reddened as well. Then, Crutchie smirked, the blush fading. “Oh,” he repeated, grinning cheekily, “but, you still have the audacity to take me on our first date to IHOP? I’m pretty sure this place isn’t,” Crutchie paused, rubbing his finger against invisible stains on the table, “celestial enough for an angel, wouldn’t you say?” He quirked an eyebrow in Jack’s direction.

Jack rolled his eyes, but smirked back at his best friend–no, his boyfriend. “Crutchie, everything you touch becomes a part of heaven,” he teased. “So, this IHOP is just as celestial, as you put it, as Le Bernardian or Masa.”

“Nice save, Jack.”

“Thank you,” Jack replied. And, as Crutchie laughed, as their hands met across the table, Jack decided that he would do whatever it took to keep that smile directed towards him.

It wasn’t every day that an angel fell in love with you.

#my fanfiction #newsies #i'm not entirely sure how i feel about that ending #tell me what you guys think!#jackcrutchie

118 notes · View notes

carbonjen · 7 years

Note

Hi! I just can't stop thinking about a jaydick dancer AU and was hoping you could write something for it!

So I’ve always liked the idea of a ballet dancer Dick Grayson and I think this was a fun way to explore that. Enjoy!

Pas de Deux

“Come on, Jason,” Roy said, waving the small pieces of paper in Jason’s face. “Kori cancelled and I know it would look super pathetic if I went by myself.”

“Would you?” Jason asked as he turned the page in his book despite not catching any words in the chapter he was reading. Roy had been too preoccupied with bothering him. “People go to shows like this alone all the time.”

“But I spent money on the tickets,” Roy whined.

Jason was about to retort but Roy threw himself over Jason, who lifted up his book with a frown. “You are five.”

Roy looked at him, “You’re the cultured one,” he said. “You should be all over this.”

“It’s the you part that I’m worried about,” Jason said as he set his book down on the coffee table, shoving Roy off of him in the process. “Do you remember when we watched the opera?”

“Yeah, but this one is going to be way more exciting,” Roy said.

Jason snatched the tickets out of Roy’s hand. “Roy, they use Swan Lake as a lullaby.” He didn’t hand the tickets back and Roy noticed that, a smirk growing on his face.

“You’re the best Jay,” he said as he kissed Jason’s cheek. Jason shoved him away and handed the tickets back.

“Yeah, and you’re buying me a drink if you fall asleep in the first act.”

Jason had seen the Nutcracker when he was a kid. The amateur production had been held at a small local theatre and half the cast had been kids from the neighborhood. It was enjoyable, but it didn’t compare at all to the Gotham National. The theater itself was all downtown Gotham extravagance, with shining surfaces and bright lights on the outside. The inside had plush carpets that absorbed sound as Gotham’s elite piled in.

It wasn’t opening night, but Bruce Wayne’s ward, Dick Grayson, was playing the male lead and his performance had been commended all across the state. How Roy had gotten tickets, Jason didn’t know, but the seats weren’t terrible and Jason had always been a fan of Tchaikovsky.

They sat down in the velvet seats of the theatre, Jason taking his seat next to Roy. He could see the empty balcony where Bruce Wayne sat whenever he came to one of the performances. Dick Grayson was the Gotham National’s best male dancer (which his lengthy blurb in the program bragged about) and Bruce Wayne provided half the funding for the place, so Bruce always had a reserved seat.

Jason flipped through the program, reading about the musical and the dancers while Roy chatted next to him and finally the lights went down.

When the music started and the dancers moved onto the stage, Jason could see why the ballet company in Gotham had garnered a reputation. All the dancers moved beautifully and everything complimented them from the sets to the makeup, even down to the makeup and the costumes. Jason couldn’t see a whole lot of it from where they were, but he could see how well synchronized the movements were and he watched it with awe.

He could see why Dick Grayson was receiving so much praise. He moved like water on stage and at times he looked even more graceful than his female counterparts. Jason could see his facial expressions, and his beauty, even from where he was sitting. Dick was more fit for the role of the swan than he was for the prince. Though the idea that Dick being called the Prince of Gotham and being cast as the prince was a joke that wasn’t lost on Jason.

Roy dozed off somewhere in the middle of the first act and Jason woke him up at intermission, excusing himself to go outside. Jason had quit smoking months ago, but he still missed the cool air in his lungs and the relaxation of controlled breathing. He moved through the crowd of smokers to the side of the theatre, leaning against the wall and closing his eyes as he breathed.

Jason wasn’t going to lie to himself, being in a theatre of Gotham’s elite wasn’t where he was the most comfortable. He’d never felt like suits fit him correctly and it felt like everyone knew where he came from and cared nothing for him all at once. Roy had come from a rich background so he didn’t always understand that Jason just needed to get away from it.

One of the side doors opened, Jason looking over when he heard it clang shut.

“I don’t care if she’s the daughter of Roger McIntosh, she was in my dressing room and she acted like she owned me because you gave her tickets to the show and her father is working a deal with you. I spend ages trying to get the message across to her that I don’t like her and then you ruin everything by sending her right back towards me.”

It was none other than Dick Grayson, still in costume, and holding a phone to his ear, with a frown on his face. In the darker light of the alley, he could see how much more extreme Dick’s makeup was, eyebrows accentuated, cheeks carved and highlighted, and a splash of icy blue near his eyes that matched some of the blue accents on his costume. He looked completely out of place but he was still breathtaking.

Jason must have stared for a moment too long because bright blue eyes settled on him, Dick Grayson looking him over before he bit out a quick “Gotta go, bye.” And ended the phone call.

The transformation from the person that had entered the alley to the Dick Grayson that was featured in tabloids and news stories was almost instant. Dick’s posture straightened, a charming smile took over his face and he stepped forward, all grace. It was impressive how instantaneous the change was, but it was so fake Jason hated it.

“Sorry about that,” Dick said. “Bruce and I were just having a little discussion. You know how it is with parents.” Dick smiled and did a little shrug that looked like something out of a 90′s sitcom.

“I don’t actually,” Jason replied. “But it’s none of my business. Your argument with your dad won’t leave this alley.”

“Ah,” Dick said, face falling slightly since his attempt at relating to Jason had failed. “Well, uh, thanks for being nice about it. Are you here for the ballet?”

“I am,” Jason confirmed. “And I’m sure you’ve heard it a million times, but your performance is incredible. I feel sorry for the girl playing Odette.”

Dick looked intrigued and he stepped into the alley and leaned against the wall next to Jason. “Why?” It wasn’t accusatory, Dick was all smiles but Jason could see the interest in his eyes.

“You’re way more graceful than she is,” Jason said. “She’s amazing, don’t get me wrong, but she doesn’t compare to your skill.”

“Now you’re just trying to flatter me,” Dick said.

“I’m really not,” Jason replied. “The press does enough of that.”

Someone poked out of the door Dick had come out of. “Dick, we’re back on in two, are you coming?”

Dick looked over his shoulder, “Yeah, I’ll be there in a sec!” He turned back to Jason. “You’re a very interesting person,” he paused.

“Jason, Jason Todd.”

“Jason Todd,” Dick said, the words sounding almost like they were exotic on Dick’s tongue. “There’s a bar we all go to after shows, Deloro’s. I’d be very interested in getting to know you better over a drink.”

“Well, considering my friend owes me a drink, I guess I have to accept,” Jason said. “First round will be on him. Then we can see if we make it to the second.”

“Dick, come on!”

“I think we will,” Dick said, and then he vanished back inside, Jason returning to the audience to watch Dick finish the show from the stage.

“I miss everything,” Roy said as they stepped into Deloro’s. It was a nice bar, something Jason expected for the downtown area of Gotham, but it wasn’t too over the top. The atmosphere was relaxed and there were plenty of booths and nooks that people could escape to if they wanted. There was a small crowd already there since it was a Friday night, but the bar still wasn’t too loud or overwhelming.

“I’m not the one that bought ballet tickets knowing I’d fall asleep half an hour into the show,” Jason said as he slid into a booth where he could see the door, Roy sliding in across from him.

Some of the members of the ballet company stepped into the bar a few minutes later and seeing Dick scan the bar and light up when he saw Jason may have fed Jason’s ego.

“You came,” Dick said when Jason joined him at the bartop. Dick was out of the heavy makeup, but there was still a small smudge of blue near his eyes. It complimented the natural shade and Jason wondered if it was intentional. Being this close to Dick made Jason realize just how pretty he was. His skin was smooth and golden and all his features fit well together. Even his tousled hair looked perfect.

“I did,” Jason replied. “And this is Roy, as I mentioned, the first round is on him.”

“Please tell me you didn’t fall asleep during the second act,” Dick said.

Roy flushed and turned to Jason. “You didn’t!”

“I told him drinks were on you and I thought he’d like to know why,” Jason said.

“It’s alright,” Dick said. “You can make it up to us by buying us all a round.”

Roy sighed and they all did shots of vodka, or Ballet Dancer’s Water as one of the dancers had joked.

Roy then bought his own drink, talking to some of the other dancers while Dick bought himself and Jason drinks.

“So,” Dick said as he sipped at his vodka tonic. “What did you think of the last half of the show.”

“Why do I feel like you’re asking me for a compliment,” Jason replied, he took a drink of his rum and coke.

“I don’t know,” Dick said. “Compliments always feel so much better when they come from handsome gentlemen.”

“I’m sure you meet plenty of handsome men that compliment you,” Jason replied.

“I do,” Dick said. “But there’s something mysterious about you.”

“Oh really,” Jason said, leaning in slightly.

“Yes,” Dick replied. “You don’t care who I am. Everyone else likes me because I’m Dick Grayson but you don’t seem to care.”

“How do you know I’m not lying,” Jason replied.

“When it comes down to it, I don’t,” Dick shrugged a shoulder. The air between them felt hot and Jason wanted nothing more than to feel Dick’s lips on his own right now.

“But,” Jason said, looking into Dick’s eyes.

“I have a feeling there’s something different about you,” Dick said. “And I want to get to know what it is outside this bar.”

“Is that an invitation?” Jason asked.

Dick leaned in close to his ear, lips brushing the shell of it and it took everything Jason had to not drag Dick into the nearest alley and have his way with him there.

“Yes,” Dick whispered. “It is.”

#jaydick #carbon writes #my writing #my fic #prompt fills #ballet au #Anon #anonymous

79 notes · View notes