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kit-and-wolfe · 2 months

Text

Neon Requiem - Band Rivals Hobie x Guitarist! Reader

Based on @rexlroze and @the-kr8tor 's original ideas that just started to eat my brain.

NOTE: I don't write Hobie/Miguel--in fact--I don't write fanfiction at all. As the fandom's resident Chaos Goblin Queen!Spider-Mom writing characters half my age is a bit of a stretch for me. This has not been proofread/edited for foreign language used. All repetitive info, boring shit, and grammatical mistakes are 100% my own and brought to you by the letters ASD and the numbers 5 (as in year-old-child with aforementioned ASD) and 3 (as in hours of sleep that I get each night).

Also, written like a screenplay, so I could turn this into a proper comic coming up. Also also, get you a person who looks at you like Hobie looks at R.

ACT 1 SCENE 1 - FLASHBACK - EXT. CITY STREETS - NIGHT In a gritty, neon-lit alleyway, Young teen R is busy wheat-pasting posters for her band's upcoming gig. The posters feature a cybernetic skull (looking suspiciously like Spider-Man 2099 mask) with glowing eyes, the band's name "2099" emblazoned beneath it. As she works, Hobie appears from the shadows, a spray can in hand. He's tagging a nearby wall with a stylized anarchy symbol.

HOBIE (noticing R) Oi, what've we got 'ere? Another lost soul in the concrete jungle?

R (startled, then regaining composure) Hardly lost, mon ami. Just spreading the word about the revolution. Hobie steps closer, examining her posters.

HOBIE "2099," eh? Sounds like a proper cyberpunk outfit. You lot singing about the end of the world or sommat?

R (grinning) More like the rebirth of a new one, through science and technology. It is the brain-child of mon ami, his idea for a band... but he sings like...a cat in heat yowling from inside a Cookie Monster costume. Fun concept though. I'm going to take lead vocals.

HOBIE (intrigued) That sounds painful... but color me impressed, love... You can sing? Right? Not every day you meet a bird with brains, talent, and beauty. R rolls her eyes, but there is a hint of a blush on her cheeks, but before she can respond, the sound of police sirens fills the air.

HOBIE (grabbing R's hand) Bollocks, your dystopian future has arrived! They run through the winding alleyways, adrenaline pumping, until they finally come to a stop in a secluded courtyard.

READER (catching her breath) Merde, that was close!

HOBIE (grinning) Stick with me, love, and you'll never be bored. As they lean against the wall, laughing and trying to catch their breath, a spark of connection flickers between them.

READER (realizing) Wait, I never got your name.

HOBIE (extending his hand) Most just call me Dirty Punk, or Punk for short. He jokes, self-deprecating, he doesn’t want to tell her his name yet, it feels really personal now, like it's just Hobart, it's not that cool. It’s definitely not cool enough to tell her.

READER Punk, eh? Really? Fine, then call me R. Yeah, Punk, I can sing...

SCENE 2 - PRESENT DAY - EXT. CITY STREETS - NIGHT

In a gritty, neon-lit alleyway, READER, a French metal chick with ever-changing hair color, is struggling to wheat-paste a large poster featuring her band "NEON REQUIEM" on a high, hard-to-reach wall.

Suddenly, SPIDER PUNK (aka HOBIE BROWN), a British punk rocker and vigilante, appears hanging upside down on a web behind her.

SPIDER PUNK Need a hand, love?

Reader spins around, eyes wide with fear and surprise.

READER (stammering) Spider-Man! Je suis désolée, It… yeah.. it's exactly what it looks like.

SPIDER PUNK (waving his hand dismissively) Nah, don't sweat it, mate. I'm all for stickin' it to the man. 'Sides, that's a wicked poster you got there.

Reader relaxes, a smile spreading across her face.

READER (relieved) Merci! I thought I was busted for sure.

SPIDER PUNK (flips down from the web and lands on his feet, like a cat) Not on my watch, love. 'Ere, let me give you a boost.

Spider Punk gently wraps an arm around Reader's waist and shoots a web to the top of the wall. They ascend together, Reader grinning as they reach the perfect spot to place the poster.

As they work together to smooth out the poster, Spider Punk notices the band details: Reader, Miguel, and Gabriel. Guitar, Bass, and Drums. Miguel is handsome, long-haired, massive band-mate. Miguel back up vocals and bass he is the epitome of a metal-head.

SPIDER PUNK (chuckling at Miguel's serious metal-head expression) This bloke looks like he could use a laugh.

With a mischievous grin beneath his mask, Spider Punk uses his web shooter to draw a silly mustache on Miguel's serious face.

READER (giggling) Oh, il va être furieux! But it's too funny! My poor brother.

SPIDER PUNK (admiring their handiwork) There, now that's a proper work of art.

As they descend back to the ground, Reader turns to Spider Punk, her eyes sparkling with amusement and gratitude.

READER (sincerely) Merci beaucoup, Spider-Man. You really saved my ass tonight. You should come cheer us on at Battle of the Bands.

SPIDER PUNK (bowing dramatically) All in a night's work for your friendly neighborhood Spider Punk, love. I might be there, afterall, the Spider Punks are playing-band like that is my namesake, innit?

With a wink beneath his mask, Spider Punk shoots a web and swings off into the night, leaving Reader grinning and shaking her head in amazement.

SCENE 3 - INT. BAR - NIGHT

Later after dropping by her hostel room to change and wash up from paste, READER, aka, R is at a bar when she spots the only open spot at the bar. It's next to a 20-something nursing a pint. SPIDER PUNK, aka HOBIE BROWN aka PUNK, a British punk guitarist in his mid-20s, sits at the bar, nursing a pint. His lean, wiry frame is clad in a torn Sex Pistols shirt and tight jeans, held up by a studded belt slung low on his hips. Fishnet gloves adorn his hands, their black polished nails chipped from endless hours of guitar playing. Piercings glint in the dim light, catching the eye and hinting at his rebellious nature. He's in his civvy digs, a signature blend of 1980s anarcho-punk style that makes him look like the second-coming of Jean-Michel Basquiat, all raw talent and unfiltered edge. Lost in thought, an achingly familiar voice, something from a buried memory, suddenly catches his attention. It can't be...

READER, [loosely based on Gwen Stacy's Black Cat] a French metal chick with ever-changing hair color, also in their mid-20s and equally skilled with a guitar, orders a drink next to him. Her effortlessly cool vibe is a result of her world travels. She is now in her full stage persona costume with all the eyeliner and leather that comes along with it.The two don't recognize each other at first.

READER (to the bartender, in a French accent) Un Jack Daniel's, s'il vous plaît.

Hobie glances at Reader, a flicker of recognition in his eyes... doesn't he know her? Battle of the Bands? Must be it, mate.

HOBIE (in a thick British accent) Blimey, that's a proper choice, innit? You 'ere for the battle of the bands, love?

READER (surprised) Oui, how did you know?

HOBIE (smirking) Just a... sense...Call it a punk's intuition, darling. I'm in the mix too, y'know.

MIGUEL O'HARA, Reader's handsome, *built* Hispanic bandmate, approaches. At 6'7" and 310lbs of pure muscle, he cuts an imposing figure. His younger brother GABRIEL, a softer, sweeter version of Miguel, follows close behind.

MIGUEL (Finds Reader and is by her side instantly, voice dripping with sarcasm and derision) R, you snuck out on practice...just to drink in this hellhole? Is that Jack? No puedo mas... Carnalita...This shit is bad for you.

READER (smiles to her bandmate, she has just arrived but she is hiding her wheat-pasting activities from the stern older band-mate) You worry too much, Miggy, mon ami. We've been practicing all week.

MIGUEL (softens) Gabri and I could have come out with you. You shouldn't go out in an unknown city alone. It's not safe for you, carnala.

HOBIE (puffs a bit, all charm, recognizing Miguel from the poster, he puts it together that R is the same girl from earlier. Hoping to impress this 'brother' of the cute girl, he offers Miguel his hand. Miguel looks him over and is unimpressed, he does not take Hobie's hand) Keeping the lady safe, mate. You can trust me. I'm one of the Spider-Punks.

GABRIEL (shoulders his brother to the side and takes Hobie's hand, gushing) We've heard of you guys, the local punk rock band, yeah? Your drummer is... gahh...Ah-Mazing! You think we could meet?

Someone's got a crush on Gwen Stacy.

MIGUEL (scoffing, stepping closer to R) You call that punk noise "rock"? Metal is where the real skill lies...Real talent is in the complexity, the technical skill. Metal pushes boundaries, takes you to new places. Punk's just three chords and an attitude.

HOBIE (visible shift in attitude, he eyes Miguel's massive frame) Never skip leg day, eh bruv?

R stifles a laugh as Miguel's face reddens with anger. Gabriel looks nervously between his brother and Hobie.

READER (trying to defuse the tension) Allez, let's save the competition for the stage, d'accord?

HOBIE (smirking, he stands, not as tall as Miguel, but nearly so) Tell you what, mate. Let's settle this on stage. We'll let the crowd decide who's got the real chops.

MIGUEL (grinning fiercely, are those...fangs?) You're on, punk. Prepare to be schooled.

READER (interjecting, her eyes sparkling with amusement) Ah, mais non, Miggy. There's art in simplicity too. Punk, metal, it's all about the energy, the message, non? Who is your drummer, she sounds enchanting.

GABRIEL (nodding) She is, she's go this...energy. Pero, R's right, Miguel.

There is a not so subtle look that passes between the brothers, an undertone of: DON'T RUIN THIS FOR ME MANO from Gabri, Miguel nearly rolls his eyes.

Music's music. Let's just focus on putting on a good show and maybe we can learn something from their band, eh?

HOBIE (winking at Reader) Aye, love. Can't wait to teach your wall of meat here a thing or two. Let's give 'em a show they won't forget...later?

READER (brightly, oblivious to the brothers' feelings) Later!

As Hobie saunters off, Miguel glares after him, his fists clenched. Gabriel places a calming hand on his brother's arm.

GABRIEL (softly) Easy, hermano. He's not worth it.

As Hobie leaves the bar, Reader shoots Miguel a disapproving look.

READER (oblivious to the brothers' feelings) Was that really necessary?

MIGUEL (shrugging) Just giving him a taste of what's to come. We're going to blow them away, R.

GABRIEL (sighing) I hope this doesn't get out of hand, their drummer is way better...I wanted to meet her.

READER (shrugs, trying to ease the tension) You will, I'll be yoru wingman, yeah? Gabri. You got this. And mano, Miguel... nothing wrong with being confident, but..just...save that aggro energy out on the stage. Come on, we're going to kick some ass!

MIGUEL (glaring at Hobie's retreating back) Don't tempt me. Let's go, carnalita, time for practice.

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palant1r · 1 year

Note

why don’t you like the shinigami light theory

OKAY SO

For me, for something to be a good theory as opposed to a fun headcanon or AU, it has to fit two stipulations. First, it must make the events of canon make more sense. Second, it must enhance the thematic resonance of those events. Basically, a good theory answers questions the source material asks, and does so in a way that's satisfying and makes the source material Hit.

A good example of a good theory is Matsuda's chapter 108 theory that Near wrote Mikami's name in the notebook. It makes Near seem a lot less stupid and resolves a few plot holes in the finale, plus it offers a satisfying dimension to Near's character.

Shinigami Light is a fun AU. It's a fun headcanon. It's a fun new way to explore characters, and I've read a few fics that I find pretty good with that premise. But it is NOT a good theory.

First of all, it makes the story make less sense, not more sense. If Light becomes a shinigami, why don't we ever see anything from him again, especially considering we have stories after post-canon? Does it really make sense for light yagami to suddenly gain absolute power and be like "nah im just gonna let the world go back to how it was before kira?" I don't think it does. Also, we're told in canon that all humans go to nothingness after they die. I guess Mu could be the shinigami realm? But there sure are things there. Doesn't seem very nothingness to me. There is also just like. No canon suggested mechanism by which a human could become a shinigami. Obviously not all humans become shinigami, or else there would be billions of them. Can the shinigami king make humans into shinigami? I doubt he'd make Light into a shinigami — considering he interferes with the plan to sell the death note to Literal Donald Trump, I don't think he'd endorse light's particular brand of chaos by giving Light way more power. I guess you could argue that shinigami have to be born somehow since they can die — but I honestly think it makes more sense to say that there used to be far more shinigami and they're dying out.

Second of all, it completely ruins the ending. Like, COMPLETELY. In the manga, the warehouse scene turns Light's character on its head. We are shown that he's always known there's nothing after death, and he's desperately afraid to die. We're shown that, in the end, he was a human like everyone else. His crime was not a grand blasphemy or an overturning of the natural order. He was just a murderer who led those close to him to their deaths — a stupid, senseless, human crime. And that's what makes the ending so satisfying and sad. We're left like Matsuda — gazing with both contempt and pity at a man who used the corpses of ten thousand evildoers to run from his own terribly mundane fear and guilt. But if Light ascends to godhood, what are we even left with? A world for him to look down to from above. Light's vindication. It's the kind of ending that would appear in Light's own childish delusion, a kind of "when I'm dead, they'll all see." It's an ending where Light gets exactly what he wants BECAUSE of his actions with the death note. And I find that ending completely and utterly boring. It doesn't just ruin the ending — there are a lot of lines sprinkled in about the distinction between human and shinigami, and how Ryuk thinks Light is a fine shinigami simply because of the death he deals. That's interesting, and I think the significance of that blurred line gets neutered if Light actually becomes a shinigami.

So, yeah. I'm fine with it as a headcanon. But to me, the shinigami light theory isn't compatible with the best parts of death note. It makes the source material's strengths irrelevant and its weaknesses exacerbated. Do not like this theory.

#death note

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bardic-inspo · 1 month

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Writer Interview

Tagged by the wonderful @electricshoebox 💜💜💜 Thank you, friendo!!

Tagging forward @vixstarria, @littlejuicebox, @ravnloft if you'd like to do this, too. No worries if not! 💜

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

16 (and counting!)

2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

351,099

3. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Red Heart indicates smut included somewhere in the fic (or will be included in future chapters)❤️

All are Fallout 4 fics except the last two, which are Baldur's Gate 3.

Bring the Gasoline (MacCready x Sole Survivor Longfic❤️)

No Rest for the Wicked (MacCready x Deacon X Sole OT3)

We Never Go Anywhere Nice (MacCready x Deacon x Sole OT3)

Worried Sick (MacCready x Deacon x Sole OT3)

Midnight Chimes (Astarion x Cursed!Tav longfic❤️)

Honorable Mention: Blood in the Mortar (Ascended Astarion x Vampire Bride Tav❤️❤️❤️)

4. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Yes! I'm sometimes (very) fashionably late in doing so. But it's really important to me for a number of reasons. I don't ever want anyone who takes the time to read/comment to feel like I take that for granted (I absolutely don't). It is so incredibly motivating to know there's someone out there enjoying what I'm writing. I want any/all commenters to know I just appreciate them so much.

I've also stumbled into friendships through commenting back and forth on fics before, which was wonderful and unexpected and just opened a new dimension of fandom/community for me. Compliments are wonderful, but I mostly share my writing because I want to feel connected to that sense of community and enjoy that mutual love of whatever universe sprouted the fics in the first place. Responding back to comments makes me feel more in tune with all of that.

5. What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

I tend to follow a "more hurt more comfort" motto, so most of the angst I write is followed up by comfort (or at least, a comforting note at the end).

I'm gonna say Warm Bodies. It's an angsty Fallout 4 smut fic featuring Deacon x MacCready x Sole Survivor in an established (somewhat domestic) OT3. A close call with death rattles them and they have emotional sex about it. Although there's a lot of comfort with the angst, the ending note is slightly melancholy. It implies that either a) a pretty significant lifestyle change is in order for all of them, which goes against the grain of their characters or b) they'll have more close calls until, one day, it's really too close, and they lose each other for good.

6. What’s the fic you’ve written with the happiest ending?

I almost always go for a happy/hopeful ending. It's hard to pick one, but it's probably gotta be one my fluffy domestic MacCready x Deacon x SoSu oneshots, Hungry Hearts. Ends with a big happy family moment.

7. Do you write crossovers?

Not yet, at least. I did once thoroughly outline and started drafting an AU that was basically the plot of Casino Royale with Deacon as Bond and MacCready as Vesper and other Fallout universe characters (like Mr. House) inserted in. I don't see myself going back to finish that one at this point.

8. Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Nah. I think I'm too small fry for that in terms of my audience size/reach and that's just fine with me. I'm cool tending this cozy little campfire over here.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Yeah! I mostly enjoy writing smut with a ton of feelings/history to it, (Warm Bodies is a super emotional comfort sex OT3 fic; Blood in the Mortar is an evil power couple with an established dynamic relishing in some power play and spicy use of their telepathic bond). But I've also dabbled in some kink exploration in Follow Suit, which plays a little bit with dom/sub dynamics and very light bondage.

I'm really looking forward to writing upcoming smut scenes for Midnight Chimes. Astarion's relationship with sex is such a huge part of his arc, and I'm looking forward to writing the smut scenes in a way that shows his own individual progression with that, and also how his relationship with Naomi deepens/changes over time.

10. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not to my knowledge.

11. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Also not to my knowledge.

12. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Nope! I am so feast or famine with my writing process/preferences, I don't think I would make a great writing partner at this point. Maybe someday!

13. What’s your all-time favorite ship?

Ahh that's tough. It's really going to be, whichever is at the forefront of my mind at the moment. Currently, that's Astarion x Tav (especially my own Tav, who I'm doing a lot OC work/development for). But MacCready x Sole (Natasha) feel like, nostalgic, warm and fuzzy friends to me. I think my heart will always get soft when I think of them together (and with Deacon!).

Really, any ships I used to be more fixated on are just dormant and still have a space in my head/heart.

14. What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?

I could very well come full circle and feel the pull to deep dive into Fallout again (especially if the TV show turns out to be good, or if they release a new single-player game in the series), but the only further Fallout 4 fic I see myself finishing at this point is Bring the Gasoline (most likely by hermit drafting the rest of it and waiting to share further until I'm done). I think the amount of ideas I had, unfortunately, outmatched my motivation/hyperfixation on that universe. I had a lot of ideas for fics showing the actual OT3 relationship "negotiation" that I've had vivid daydreams about, and lots of wild notes for, but I don't have plans to pick up again at this point.

15. What are your writing strengths?

I get a lot of positive feedback on my action scenes. Also a lot of feedback that my writing is really vivid/visceral/immersive. I think I'm good at putting the reader in the character's shoes/in the heat of a moment, and wrapping them into the character's thoughts/feelings right off the bat. I also feel like character work, generally, is a strong suit of mine (character voice, mannerisms, individuality).

Something that has been really touching to hear is how well people respond to my OCs. I've done a lot of work to make unique/compelling/flawed original characters that readers can get invested in. I am still absolutely floored by some of comments I've gotten re: Natasha (my Sole Survivor). And although Naomi (Tav) is a newer character in my arsenal, I've gotten to play with some alternate (evil) versions of her, and folks seem to be intrigued by both.

16. What are your writing weaknesses?

Echoing Riss on the crutch words and phrases. I do have some editing steps I use to try to mitigate this. In the past, I've also had a bad habit of transposing/mingling words from different fantasy universes (mirelurk vs. mudcrab; Storm Coast vs. Sword Coast) without even realizing I'm doing it. I'm hyperconscious about that, now.

I also struggle to be concise. I made a commitment to work more on this this year, and in doing so, am trying to strike a balance with it. Ideally, if I have a lot of words, there should be a certain density of ideas/information being shared. So, if a fic gets long because it's packing a lot of punch that way, I don't want to cut it off unless it's too much to share at once. If it's long just because I'm being wordy, well, maybe that comes down to self-confidence, and me needing to let my words stand on their own without so much hedging/propping up.

17. What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

I've experimented with this (and now cringe about it in retrospect), but hey, I think it takes some trial and error to figure out what works. My general preference is to write the lines in the language being used for the bulk of the fic, but then add a phrase like "X character said in Elvish" after. I think the less the writer knows of the other language themselves, the more they should err away from writing a lot in it. I think short phrases or single words in a different language can also be to great effect (as long as they're properly researched/understood).

18. What was the first fandom you wrote for?

Warrior Cats as a kid loose on the internet 😺

19. What’s a fandom/ship you haven’t written for yet but want to?

I want to write some Shadowheart/Karlach smut! I'm a little intimidated as I've yet to add F/F to my smut fic punch card, and I wanna get a free sub but I think they have so much angsty sweet potential and I already have a little outline for it!

20. What’s your favorite fic you’ve written?

Bring the Gasoline will always be my baby. It's my first real fic, and the thing that got me through a lot of ups and downs. I poured so much of myself into it.

But for now, I have to go with Blood in the Mortar. I just had an absolute blast writing it. It gave me confidence back in a way I really needed. It made me feel like I'd grown in skills I'd been working on for a while (particularly with writing dialogue and smut, and character work in general). I got to write villains, really for the first time, and was surprised I had so much fun with it. It was the perfect blend of challenge and getting back into my element, and writing/sharing it felt really uplifting. Felt like letting my hair down, hehe.

#megh fights the page #my writing #writing memes #fallout fanficition #bg3 fanfiction

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that-weird-skeleton-bastard · 7 months

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More psychonauts incorrect quotes?

Ford: You have any sunscreen? Milla: You can't get a sunburn from a bonfire— Ford: It's for my marshmallow ya dummy.

*****

Raz: I’m genuinely surprised you haven’t gotten arrested, let alone gotten a felony yet. Ford: Nat 20 Charisma. Raz: That is NOT how that works-

*****

Lili: I’ve only ever said ‘I love you’ to two people in my entire life: Raz and a guy in a dark club who I mistook for Raz.

*****

Ford: How would you like to live forever? bobby: I'd hate it. Shut the fuck up.

*****

Raz: Oh my Sasha . Ford: Don't you mean 'oh my god'? Raz: You worship your god, I'll worship mine.

*****

Lili: Astrology is fun because i can pretend that all of my behaviors are just a result of being a Gemini and not symptoms of mental illness. bobby: Being a Gemini is a mental illness. That’s not hate it’s just a fact.

*****

*Sasha and Ford are texting* Sasha : Who are you? Someone changed the names in my phone. Ford: What did they change my name to? Sasha : Chosen One. Ford: Don’t change it back. Sasha : BUT WHO ARE YOU?!?! Ford: I’m the chosen one.

*****

Ford: A stake to the heart won't kill a vampire if their tits are big enough. Raz: Yeah, you just catch it. Milla: Nah nah nah, deflects it. Stake? Just bounces right off. Done. Back to doing hot girl shit. Sasha : Then I just use a spear instead. Ford: You are trying so hard to kill a vampire with big bazongas, and for what? Why would you do that to the ecosystem?

*****

Ford: So I have made the decision to trust you. Raz: A horrible decision, really.

*****

bobby: Yeah, I don’t like people. Milla: Oh, well now that’s not fair bobby. Have you met all of them? bobby: I’ve met enough of them. People. What a bunch of bastards!

*****

*Raz sneezes* Lili: Raz, are you sick? Here, let me wrap you in a blanket and hand-feed you some warm soup while singing you a lullaby! *Ford sneezes* Lili: Oh my god. Shut the hell up.

*****

Raz, looking at the squad: Okay, so I need to become a therapist faster.

*****

Sasha : What do we say when life disappoints us? Raz: Called it! Sasha : No.

*****

Lili: Why are you like this?? Sasha : I used too much "No More Tears" shampoo as a kid and I haven't felt a single emotion since.

*****

Sasha : Hello all, it is I, your favorite person. Raz: Actually, Lili is my favourite. Sasha : Okay then, it is I, that bitch.

*****

Milla, teaching Raz to drive: Okay Raz, what does a green light mean? Raz: Go! Milla: A red light? Raz: Stop! Milla: And what about a yellow light? Raz: If you floor it, you can make it! Milla: …No—

*****

Raz: The only thing I'm guilty of is being adorable... ...and also assault with a deadly weapon.

*****

Sasha : Today at 7 am, Raz poured a Monster energy drink in their coffee, said "I'm going to die" and drank the whole thing. Ford: I watched Raz brew their coffee with Monster instead of water. Three cups in two hours. I think they ascended into the astral realm. Sasha : The survivability of the human race never fails to amaze me.

*****

Lili: I'm very scary. Ford: You're about as scary as a wet kitten. Lili: Wet kittens are cute, at least I've got that going for me. Ford: And small. Lili: Lili: ...Yeah, yeah. I guess.

*****

Milla: What’s wrong? You look 10 seconds away from ripping someone’s throat out. Lili: Fucking Raz and Ford were trying to invoke one of the minor gods again last night. I didn't get an ounce of sleep, thanks to their bloody chanting.

*****

Sasha : Helpful grammar tip: “farther” is for physical distance, “further” is for methaphorical distance, and “father” is for emotional distance.

*****

Ford: *gets a text* Oh! It’s Raz. Milla, excitedly: Did they get me the stuff? Ford: Yeah, they say they got you the clown costume, the power drill, and 12 gallons of blood. Milla: Wow! Where’d they find 12 gallons of fake blood? Ford: You wanted fake blood? Milla: Ford: I’ll go call Raz.

*****

Ford: Do you think different paints have different tastes? Raz: They do. Sasha: ...Why did you say that with such certainty?

*****

bobby: Anyone d- Raz: Depressed? Ford: Drained? Sasha : Dumb? Lili: Disliked? bobby: -done with their work... what is wrong with you people...

*****

Lili: BEHOLD, the field in which I grow my fucks! Lay thine eyes upon it, and thou shalt see that it is barren!

#psychonauts #psychonauts incorrect quotes

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melancholypancakes · 1 year

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https://youtu.be/6iVy5s2DB4o

*Sylvie & Goddess! Y/N teleport together*

Sylvie: Back again, I see.

*Sylvie looks at Goddess! Y/N smugly*

Sylvie: I don't know if you realize this, but every time you reset "time" pun intended.

Sylvie: I'll be pulled back with you waiting to ulter history.

* A very pissed off Goddess! Y/N*

Goddess! Y/N: You know you're really wrecking the timeline!

Sylvie: No, I'm not.

Goddess! Y/N: Yes, you are!

Sylvie: You're just saying that to make me feel bad. So I stop wrecking the timeline.

*Goddess! Y/N eyes widen and twitches in Sylvie stupidity*

Goddess! Y/N: Okay, I have dealt with some dense magical idiots.

Goddess! Y/N: But what exactly is you're purpose if you don't think you’re screwing up time as we know it?!

Sylvie: Ho, I was worried you wouldn't asked me about my tragic backstory.

Goddess! Y/N: I don't need justification of why you're such a piece of crap!

Sylvie: Well, along time ago, when I was very young.

Sylvie: I was kidnap by the TVA after they erased my timeline and been running arcoss the multiverse ever since.

Sylvie: then I meet this handsome male variant of me Loki.

Sylvie: we hated each other, became friends and fell in love until one day we betrayed each other.

*Goddess! Y/N weirded out and disgusted*

Goddess! Y/N: Is that it?

Sylvie: Wait, no I didn't tell it right.

Goddess! Y/N: Did you two not know how to trust each other like normal people and just be...I don't know siblings?

Sylvie: This is gonna sound really weird but let me get it out there.

Goddess! Y/N: Okay, go.

Sylvie: Okay, Loki the male variant of myself betrayed me by not being on my side to kill He who remains that starts a war of Kangs.

Sylvie: Wanted to keep the timeline in order, which which got upset because I was upset that another variant could end up like me being kidnapped from their timeline.

* Goddess! Y/N just tired of bullshit and confused by lore*

*Goddess! Y/N then has an epiphany*

Goddess! Y/N: Wait, did you say Loki?

Sylvie: Yeah, Loki with butt cheeks as round as the moon and just as far out of my grasp.

Goddess! Y/N: Yeah, I went to school with him.

Sylvie: No, you didn't.

Goddess! Y/N: Yeah, I did. He was in my class, he got herpes.

Goddess! Y/N: He was like a solid 7/10 before that.

Sylvie: 7/10?!

Sylvie: But he must've- but what about his-

Goddess! Y/N: This imagination might be....a little out there.

*Sylvie disappointed*

Sylvie: Huh, well there goes my motivation

Goddess! Y/N: Yeah, so anyway. I'm the God of Time.

Goddess! Y/N: And I can keep doing this for eternity.

Goddess! Y/n: But I figure you got...

*Goddess! Y/N calculates*

Goddess! Y/N: Forty years.

Sylvie: Not if I ascend to God hood as well.

Goddess! Y/N: Nah, I'm just keep pulling you back here.

Goddess! Y/N: You know. I can reintroduce you to Loki.

Goddess! Y/N: I mean, he still has herpes but he's taking medicine for it.

*Sylvie re-thinks her life choices*

Sylvie: You know, that's okay I guess I did romanticize a bit.

Sylvie: But we haven't kept in touch so it would be a bit awkward now.

Sylvie: Maybe it's time to let go of Loki and you and I can just be friends!

*Sylvie pleads*

*Pissed off Goddess! Y/N still/annoyed*

Goddess! Y/N: Well, let's review.

Goddess! Y/N: You started a cult, stole my wand, you tried to brainwashed me, you broke into my....tree castle and tried to destroy time itself.

*Sylvie chuckles nervously*

Sylvie: Well, when you put it that way it sounds pretty bad.

Sylvie: But my childhood was stolen from me- well with my lover betraying me and him betraying me and all.

Sylvie: So, I think you can excuse my motivations.

Goddess! Y/N: No, no. I can't let this go.

Goddess! Y/N: Sylvie Lafeydóttir. I princess Y/N, by the power vested in me by Godhood do hereby sentence you to six consecutive life sentences as friends to the Avengers.

*Sylvie is confused what Goddess! Y/N just said*

Sylvie: Huh...

Sylvie: When you put that way it almost sounds like some kind of punishment.

Goddess! Y/N: Yeah. Wednesday is Monopoly night.

Goddess! Y/N: I suggest you bring a lot of scotch and a garbage bag.

#mcu #mcu loki #sylvie loki #sylvie x y/n #sylvie x Goddess! y/n #goddess!reader #goddess! y/n #goddess! y/n should be a canon marvel character #funny reference #YouTube #mental advance series #mlp #sylvie x reader #sylvie x loki #Avengers

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shkika · 1 year

Note

Having trouble with thinking of something to ask hrmm

What part of the rw lore do you find most interesting? Like..what are your thoughts on it? any twists you've thought up or any detail/s you just wanna rant abt?

The rainworld lore is painfully a lot and painfully little at the same time, like why are the pearls focused on garbage worms and what is noise milking oh my goddd

moon isnt lore on her own but her pearl readings are a massive source of it. so if i had to say my favorite thing would be iterators and the relationship they had with their colonies. the fact they can vary and the fact iterators have different opinions of their parents!! (one iterator talked abt havjng to sit through dark political times awkwardly like 🧍🤷 at some points. thats funny)

ahem I looove it a lot!! for example the way moon worded her existence is sad. the way she speaks about them is sad. like in short “ancients must not try very hard so we do that for them. at least i did” <- smth along the lines

she sounds bitter she dislikes them with a hidden passion even when she has 5 braincells left. Not to mention she calls them parasites with bad takes (sheesh). something people dont really ?? recognize enough or at all imo is that moon almost retired (ancients moving away from her city) and she was happy about it. Until it didnt work out and some stayed and she was pissed again.

now pebbles speaks with softness (as much as he has it in him) he liked them! he liked their art! their music! he liked witnessing their stupid arguments even when they were in his name (he found the citadel he shaded funny for being so angry)

he found a lot of things they did stupid but he also was impressed in other aspects! he liked them a lot to the point the last item that he keeps for comfort and keeps him together as a whole is a hymn of theirs. even when abandoned, he finds comfort in the company they used to bring him!!! how sad!!

Another part of the lore. Hm cycles.

I have no idea how they work. Youd believe at first that when you die. You get reborn. Pain!!! never escaping!!

But that cant be the case it has sooo many plotholes if thats the case.

1 artificers kids died! straight up GONE. theyre dead!! thats why shes so insane you cant tell me theyre just lost somewhere and also pups cant ascend (me when i reach spiritual enlightenment at 10). theyre straight up gone.

2. imagine u defeat the scav kind and he comes back an hour later.. nah. thjngs DIE

3 why did the ancients go crazy over killing themselves then idk!

4 suns was basically crying about how they dont know what theyll do if spearmaster dies. yeah no respawning then.

So then the cycle is being reborn into smth new. great. how does karma play in this. how do you raise it. time? do you have your old memories after u go into a new cycle?? i dont know!! no scug has ever been plagued with dreams of being smth else before. !!! how do you confirm its a thing!! idk!! how do you know you are in a samsara! i wish we got ancients talking about it. in pearls or smth.

i havent ascended with saint yet. (reached karma 10 and bonked the siblings) but i doubt they answer all of my questions

random kiki rw lore fact- did you know that the rot area - (riv gameplay) there is a room in it thats just called terror!!! it upsets me greatly. the place is so different because the rot literally eats his walls. it fucks me up sometimes even if it seems obvious

#its 1am sorry im so incomprehensible!!!!#my brainrot is very bad WOOO #this is long i can talk for BOOK length amount of words #abt the lore of this game #very good.#also moon #moon is my favorite lore but i decided to be tame #tysm for the question!#ask #pinkavtomation

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purrincess-chat · 2 years

Text

Under the Moth’s Wing (Not-so-Enemies AU) CH5: Gamer

We’ve finally reached the end of the Friendship arc! This will be the last chapter for a while. I plan to release this story in 5 chapter arcs, so when I have completed the next arc, I will be back with more! I’m aiming for September, but we will see. I make no promises. The next arc is the Villain arc >;) Enjoy!

Read on AO3

Chapter 5

“Hey, dude!” Adrien and Nino exchanged their secret handshake at the base of the school steps the next morning.

“Morning, Adrien.” Rose waved as she and Juleka passed.

“Sup, Agreste.” Alix tipped her hat.

“Uh, hey.” Adrien gave a half-wave, looking to Nino with raised brows. “I thought everyone was gonna hate me after yesterday.”

“Nah, dude. You stood up for them. They’re all chill with you now.” Nino draped an arm over his shoulders as they followed their classmates up the stairs.

A smile curled on Adrien’s lips. “Really?”

“Well, almost everyone.” Nino nodded to Marinette and Alya who passed without so much as acknowledging them.

“I’m starting to think they’ll never like me.” Adrien sighed but shook it off just as quickly. “Oh well. I can’t please everyone. At least I’m making more friends, and I have to admit, I did have a little fun at my party.”

“Glad I didn’t totally ruin your bday,” Nino said. “You really weren’t kidding about your pops. I should have listened to you.”

“It’s okay. I’m just happy to have a friend that wants to celebrate my birthday,” Adrien said.

“Adrikins!”

He and Nino groaned as Chloe skipped over to them and latched onto Adrien’s neck. Tilting his head to avoid her kisses, he gently squirmed from her grasp.

“Hey, Chlo.” He winced.

“Did you get my present yesterday?” Chloe fluttered her eyelashes and puckered her lips.

Adrien suppressed a shudder. The large gold-framed portrait of Chloe had gone immediately into his closet, where no one would ever have to look at it again.

“No, it must have gotten lost in the mail with all of the akuma stuff yesterday,” he said.

Chloe stomped her foot. “Ugh, I can’t believe you ruined Adrikins birthday and my perfect gift, bubblebrain!”

“Something tells me I did Adrien a favor.” Nino smirked when Adrien grunted to conceal a laugh.

“Whatever. You’re ridiculous. Utterly ridiculous!” Chloe stormed off with a humph.

Adrien took a step to follow after her, but Nino grabbed his arm and tugged him toward the stairs.

“Come on, dude. They’re having tryouts for the Ultimate Mecha Strike tournament in the library. Anyone who tries out gets to miss first period.”

“Wow, are you really good at Ultimate Mecha Strike?”

“Nah, I mostly just play for fun, but I’ll take any excuse to get out of Mme. Mendeleiev’s class,” Nino said. “Besides, everyone knows Max is going to be one of the finalists. The tryouts are mostly just to see who’s gonna be his partner.”

“Can anyone try out?” Adrien asked as they ascended the stairs to the library.

“Yeah, you just play a round with Max. There’s no way anyone’s gonna beat him, so whoever has the highest score at the end will be his partner.” Nino pushed open the door and gestured him in.

Max was in the middle of a match with Kim when they entered, but the round would be over soon from the looks of it. Marinette and Alya were chatting with the other girls from their class in the corner, while Nathaniel and Ivan were teasing Kim for getting his butt kicked. When their game ended, Max pushed his glasses up with a smirk.

“You’ve improved since last time, but not enough to beat me.” Max extended a hand that Kim shook with a grumble.

“Okay, anyone else interested in trying out for the competition?” M. Damocles asked while scribbling Kim’s score on the clipboard.

“I will!” Adrien raised his hand.

Their classmates turned to look as he paced over and took the controller from Kim.

“Are you familiar with Ultimate Mecha Strike, Adrien?” Max quirked a brow when he sat down.

He shrugged. “Probably a little too familiar. I spent a lot of time cooped up at home before now, so I had plenty of time to play video games.”

“Then best of luck.”

He and Max shook hands and selected their characters. Adrien had never considered whether or not he was good at video games. It was hard to gage when he only ever played by himself. He didn’t expect to make the competition and doubted his father would let him compete even if he did. Still, it seemed way more fun to play games with other people, so he’d take any opportunity he could get to make new friends.

Their classmates gathered around to watch, even Marinette and Alya. Max started the round strong, wasting no time before charging in. Adrien blocked his initial shot, leading a counter of his own. Fighting games were a lot like fencing matches. Taking initiative didn’t always guarantee a point — it was all a matter of timing. Even still, Max was good, but to everyone’s surprise, Adrien was better.

“No way!” Alya gasped when Adrien landed the final blow.

Everyone’s mouths hung agape when “winner” flashed over Adrien’s character. He was good at video games after all. All those lonely summers spent locked inside of his room actually amounted to something.

“Dude, you won!” Nino shoved his shoulder with a wide grin.

“Unbelievable. Max lost. Twice.” Kim blinked.

“Twice?” Adrien’s eyebrows furrowed.

Max set down the controller, hands clenched into tight fists at his side. He took a deep breath and held out a begrudging hand to Adrien. “Congratulations, Adrien. You won fair and square. It looks like you will be taking my place in the competition.”

“Whoa, who else beat you?” Nino asked.

“I did.”

A chill shot up Adrien’s spine at Marinette’s voice. She glared down at him, arms crossed, hip cocked.

“Will anyone else be trying out?” M. Damocles asked. When no one in the room moved, he crossed Max’s name off the clipboard and clicked his pen. “Then it’s settled. The two students that will represent Francoise-Dupont in the competition are Marinette Dupain-Cheng and Adrien Agreste.”

“That’s sick, dude!” Nino held out a fist for Adrien to bump but lowered it when Max stood up abruptly.

“Max-” Marinette started, but he held up a hand.

“I’m fine.” He moved swiftly for the door, pausing with his hand on the wood. Turning over his shoulder, he flashed Adrien and Marinette a smile. “Congratulations. I know you two will represent the school well. Now, if you all don’t mind. I’d like a little privacy.”

Marinette shot Adrien a glare as Max disappeared out the door. Had he done something wrong by trying out? Nino said anyone could, yet the tense atmosphere made Adrien feel like he shouldn’t have.

“The competition is next Saturday. You two should practice together to ensure our school is well represented.” M. Damocles instructed.

Great. Just what Adrien needed — alone time with the girl that hated him.

Marinette must have been thinking the same thing because she turned to M. Damocles and asked, “Could we practice here at the school?”

The principal shook his head. “Sorry, but the school closes at 4PM. You two will have to get together and practice on your own time.”

“But-”

“Best of luck to both of you. Now, off to class.” With that, he tucked the clipboard under his arm and herded everyone out of the library.

Marinette stalked down the stairs without saying a word to him, and Adrien jogged to catch up with her.

“So,” he said, stopping short when she flicked those cold blue eyes to him. “Um, M. Damocles said we should practice together after school?”

It came out like a question, but he didn’t know what else to say to the girl that absolutely hated his guts that he was now stuck in a reluctant partnership with for the next two weeks. When she remained quiet, Adrien swallowed the lump in his throat.

“Is it alright if I come over to your house this afternoon?” he asked. “I’d offer my place, but my father is kind of strict about who can come over, hence the whole Bubbler thing yesterday.”

Not to mention their evil butterfly cave hiding just behind the walls.

“Fine,” Marinette said. “We’ll practice at my house.”

“Oh, great.” Adrien flashed her a smile that she didn’t even come close to returning. “So, I’ll see you this afternoon?”

Marinette picked up the pace to catch up with Alya, leaving Adrien behind. He took that as a yes. He slowed down to meet up with Nino again and shoved his hands in his pockets.

“I’m starting to think I shouldn’t have tried out after all,” he said.

“Don’t let Marinette get to you. You were totally awesome, bro. It’s like Max said, you won that competition fair and square.” Nino assured him.

“Do you think he’ll be okay? He seemed pretty upset.” Adrien curled his shoulders.

“Nah, Max is like a cyborg. He’ll probably just throw himself back into a training grind to beat you next time,” Nino said. “If I were you, I’d be more worried about spending one-on-one time with Marinette.”

Adrien sighed. “What should I do? She totally hates me.”

“I dunno, bro, but good luck.” Nino patted his shoulder.

“Thanks, I guess.” Adrien pursed his lips as they entered the science lab.

He locked eyes with Marinette, who glared until he looked away and found his seat. Whatever happened that afternoon, Adrien just hoped he made it out alive.

***

The bakery smelled of fresh bread and chocolate when Adrien entered after school, stirring his stomach into a growl. Lunch was hours ago, and the pastries all looked delicious. A small woman with dark hair like Marinette’s smiled at him from behind the counter.

“Can I get you anything?” she asked.

If it were up to his stomach, he would have bought one of everything, but he didn’t want to explain to Nathalie why he’d blown his whole allowance for the week on sweets.

“Uh, actually I’m here to see Marinette. Do you know where she is?”

The large man in the back froze, midway through piping filling into a macaron, and turned to him with narrowed eyes.

“We’re in the same class, and there’s this Ultimate Mecha Strike tournament coming up, and we kind of got paired up today.” Adrien quickly explained.

The man relaxed, twisting the two cookie halves together and setting the piping bag on the table.

“She mentioned the competition this morning. She was really excited about it,” the woman said.

“You must be Mme. Dupain-Cheng, then?” Adrien asked.

“That’s right, and this is my husband.” She gestured to the large man as he approached and put an arm around her.

“So, you’re pretty good at Ultimate Mecha Strike?” M. Dupain-Cheng quirked a brow.

Despite his overbearing stature, something in his face seemed friendly, a little twinkle in his eye that made Adrien feel more at ease. Were these really Marinette’s parents? They were so nice.

“Uh, yeah, I guess.” Adrien shrugged.

“Well, Marinette learned everything she knows from the best of the best.” M. Dupain-Cheng flexed a bicep larger than Adrien’s head. “She and I play all the time. I could give you some dad-style tips if you want.”

“Have you eaten anything? We just took some croissants out of the oven if you’re hungry.” Mme. Dupain-Cheng offered him a plate.

“Thanks.” He accepted one with a smile. The croissant was warm, the smell of yeast and butter making his mouth water.

“Wait, aren’t you the son of that fashion designer?” M. Dupain-Cheng asked, returning to his post filling macarons. “Agreste, right?”

“Yeah, I model for my father’s company sometimes to help out.” Adrien couldn’t resist, he took a healthy bite, the flakey layers melting in his mouth. He’d never tasted a croissant this good. Marinette got to eat these all the time? How could anyone be grumpy when they ate such delicious food every day?

“What a hardworking young man. No wonder you got partnered with Marinette,” Mme. Dupain-Cheng said. She plated a few more cookies and croissants and beckoned him to follow. “I’ll walk you upstairs to our apartment. You two can have these as a snack.”

“Thank you.” Adrien shoved the rest of the croissant in his mouth and trailed behind her through the back door and up the stairs.

Their apartment was small and cozy. Horizontal pencil lines striped the door frame with various dates and measurements. Family photos peppered the walls, pictures of a young Marinette in pink overalls with bows in her hair beaming toothlessly back at him. Was this the same girl that refused to even look at him at school?

Adrien stopped short just past the entry way, for standing at the base of the staircase, arms crossed and lips ever-so-slightly pursed, was Marinette. Her eyes brushed over him like he were simply part of the wall, sending a shudder down his spine.

“Hi, honey.” Mme. Dupain-Cheng kissed her cheek. “You didn’t tell us you had a friend coming over.”

“We’re not really friends.” Marinette shot Adrien a side glance as if to really drive that point home. “We just scored the highest in the tryouts.”

“I thought you said Max was going to win?” Mme. Dupain-Cheng said, setting the plate of treats on the coffee table in the living room.

“I thought he was going to,” Marinette said through gritted teeth.

Adrien wasn’t hungry for croissants anymore, no matter how delicious they tasted. His throat closed into a hard lump, his palms growing hot and clammy.

“Well, you must be really good at Ultimate Mecha Strike to beat Max, Adrien.” Mme. Dupain-Cheng flashed him a kind smile, a direct contrast to the cutting glares her daughter was giving him.

“Uh, yeah. I guess.” He shrugged.

“So humble.” Mme. Dupain-Cheng giggled. “Would you like some tea?”

“Mom, we need to practice,” Marinette said with a hint of a groan in her voice.

“Oh, alright. I’ll leave you two to your game.” She shot her daughter a chiding look. “Make yourself at home, and let me know if you need anything, dear.”

Don’t leave me with her! Adrien almost blurted as Mme. Dupain-Cheng headed for the door, but as it closed behind her, Adrien’s spine pricked with unease.

He jumped when Marinette retrieved the remote from the couch and clicked on the TV. She said nothing while setting up the game until she noticed him standing by the stairs.

“What are you doing?” Her eyebrows furrowed.

“Oh, I was just- are we practicing now, or-”

“Yeah, sit.” She pointed to a spot on the couch and picked up a controller. “Here. You’re player 2.”

“Okay.” Adrien took the controller and sat down stiffly.

Marinette flopped on the opposite side, leaving a purposeful space between them, and blew a sigh through her lips. Adrien stole glances at her throughout the first round, but she kept her eyes trained on the screen, which was probably why she scored more points than him.

“Wow, you’re really good,” he said after the round.

“Yeah, that’s why I’m a finalist.” She rolled her eyes.

Adrien pursed his lips as the next round started, committing all of his focus to the game just like her. Even with all of his attention on the match, Marinette still scored way higher than him and carried most of the round. She almost didn’t need him to win. Despite the animosity brewing between them, Adrien had to admit, he was impressed.

“So,” Adrien drawled after a few games, finding the silence unbearable. “Your dad mentioned that the two of you play games together a lot.”

“Yeah.”

“Do you like video games?” he asked.

Her eyes narrowed, and she gestured to the results screen where her high score flashed. “Obviously.”

“That’s cool.” He nodded. “What else do you like to do?”

“We should probably focus on practicing instead of talking,” she said.

“Oh, right.” Adrien lowered his gaze as she started another game. “Your parents were really nice to me, but you don’t like me very much, do you?” When Marinette remained quiet, he continued, “Is this because of the gum thing? I swear it was all Chloe’s doing. I didn’t know she acted like that, and I was trying to take it off when-”

“It’s not about the gum thing.” Marinette turned to him, blue eyes blazing. “I just don’t want to be friends with someone who hangs out with the girl that bullies me.”

“I’m sorry,” Adrien said reflexively. He bit his lip. “Is it really that bad? How Chloe treats you?”

“Why do you care?” Marinette leaned back against the couch with a grunt.

“Because I…” Adrien swallowed the lump in his throat, but before he could continue, Marinette’s mother burst through the front door again with a cheerful smile.

“Who wants to try the new quiche I baked? You can tell me what you think of it.” Mme. Cheng held up a pan, the scent of meat and cheese wafting as she passed.

“Maybe we could take a short break?” Adrien suggested.

Marinette stood up, tossing her controller onto the couch. “Yeah, a break sounds nice.”

They took their quiche to-go — Marinette’s suggestion — and headed for the park across the street. They walked together, eating in silence for a few minutes. Despite how delicious Mme. Dupain-Cheng’s quiche was, Adrien found it hard to enjoy when Marinette would barely look at him, let alone speak two words to him.

Children ran past them playing games, and Marinette watched them go with a pensive frown.

“When we were kids, Chloe put gum in my hair. It was the first mean thing she ever did to me. I wore my hair in a ponytail to school, but she decided that ponytails were her thing, then she put gum in my hair, so we’d have to cut it out. My hair was too short to put in a ponytail after that,” she said.

“Oh, I didn’t-”

“Another time, I wore a brand new dress to school. My grandma gave it to me as a gift from her travels, and everyone was complimenting me. Chloe spilled paint on it during art class.” She hugged her arms to her chest. “One time she glued me to a chair — they ended up having to cut my clothes to get me out. Then another day she pushed me off the swing set and broke my arm. She claimed it was an accident, but I knew it wasn’t.”

She turned to him, shoulders curled, eyes hooded, and for the first time since they met she wasn’t cold or harsh — she was tiny and vulnerable. Scarred from years of torment at the hands of someone Adrien used to hold dear.

“I’m really sorry. I’ve known Chloe for a long time, but I had no idea she acted like that.” He pursed his lips. “I-”

Screams echoed from the other side of the park, the creak of heavy metal groaning up the street. A large black robot rounded the corner of Marinette’s bakery, the pyramid at the top rotating around. The green eye in the center trained on them, the dull glow growing brighter.

“Watch out!” Adrien tackled Marinette out of the way of a blast, narrowly dodging the beam.

He took the brunt of the fall, rolling over Marinette and cradling her head against the impact. He met her blue eyes, merely inches from his own, but her hand quickly obscured his vision as she shoved him off.

“We should split up.” She took off before Adrien could protest.

“You’re welcome.” He rolled his eyes.

Adrien dodged another blast, annoyance flaring. His father hadn’t warned him of another akuma! Seriously, would it kill him to send a text?

Darting up the street, Adrien peeked over his shoulder frequently to dodge blasts. The mech suit was familiar, but he couldn’t quite place it. He ducked behind an ad stand as the robot rounded the corner after him. Adrien blinked, surveying the poster inside — an advertisement for the upcoming Ultimate Mecha Strike tournament — and his blood ran cold. In the center of the poster stood a black robot just like the one chasing him. The same black robot Max used during the tryouts.

The ad stand disappeared in a flash of light, and Adrien raced between parked cars into the street. If that robot really was Max, it wasn’t hard to guess why he had it out for Adrien. How could his father make an akuma knowing it wanted to hurt him? Was he really relying on making that wish so much that he’d sacrifice Adrien to get it? He wouldn’t. Right?

Adrien skidded to a stop at the end of the street where abandoned cars made it impossible to get through. He turned to face the robot, bracing as the eye began to glow, but right before the blast came, Ladybug’s yoyo wrapped around his waist and yanked him to safety. Her strong arms caught him easily, knocking the breath from Adrien’s lungs as they dashed across the rooftops. She cleared the gap between buildings in a single bound, setting him down gently on the pool deck of the Grand Paris. His cheeks flushed, and he smoothed his windblown hair.

“Um, thanks, Ladybug.” He cleared his throat.

“You should be safe here. Rumor has it you’re pretty good friends with the owner’s daughter.” Ladybug palmed her yoyo and moved for the ledge.

“Wait!” Adrien caught her wrist. “I think the akuma is my classmate. I knocked him out of a competition he really wanted to be in, and I think it upset him.”

“All the more reason for you to stay here where it’s safe.” Ladybug pulled her arm from his grasp.

“But if this is my fault, I want to fix it,” he said. “Please, take me with you.”

“No, it’s too dangerous.” She shook her head.

“Please.”

Ladybug sighed, looking him up and down. “You’re going to come anyway, even if I leave you here, aren’t you?”

“I want to set things right. Let me help you, please.” Adrien pressed his palms together.

Ladybug pursed her lips and nodded. “Okay. But only because I might need your help again.”

She wrapped an arm around his waist and tossed her yoyo, pulling them off with a tug of the string. Adrien clung tightly to her as they swung between buildings, not just out of fear of falling. The scent of her perfume was intoxicating, and Adrien could have smelled her all day.

He squeezed his eyes shut to clear his head. There wasn’t time to think about that right now. Max needed to be saved, so he’d have to flirt later. He could just make out Max’s robot at their peak above the buildings, but Ladybug stayed a safe distance away.

“Looks like he’s headed for the stadium,” she said.

Adrien eyed his house as they swung over it, biting back a frown. His father would want him to sabotage Ladybug, but their mission would have to wait. If Adrien really hurt Max’s feelings, he wanted to set things right. Besides, maybe this would teach his father to send a text before making the next akuma that had it out for Adrien.

They touched down at the stadium at the same time as Max’s robot, and Ladybug took a defensive stance in front of Adrien, spinning her yoyo.

“That’s enough, Max. This isn’t going to solve your problem, so give up your akuma and let me bring back all of those people,” she called.

“Why would I want to give up this?” He cackled. “Gamer has access to powers Max could only dream of! No one will ever beat me again.”

“Max, I’m sorry! I didn’t know how important this competition was to you. If you want, I’ll forfeit my spot for you,” Adrien said.

“Winning by forfeit is still losing! The only way to redeem myself is by crushing you!” Gamer raised a giant foot.

Ladybug scooped Adrien up and leapt out of the way, pursing her lips when they landed.

“You want revenge on this boy, right?” She gestured to Adrien. “I think I know the perfect way, but we’re going to need to even the playing field.”

“What do you propose, Ladybug?” Gamer asked.

“Yeah, Ladybug, what exactly are you proposing?” Adrien quirked a brow.

“Do you trust me?” Ladybug met his gaze, those brilliant blue eyes blazing with confidence. God she was beautiful.

“Of course.” He nodded.

She turned back to Gamer and strapped her yoyo to her waist. “I propose a duel. If we win, you give up your akuma. If you win, I’ll let you have Adrien and my Miraculous.”

Gamer’s robot crossed its arms. The eye in the center glowed green again, but this time it shot a beam to the center of the field where a glowing red orb appeared.

“Very well. I accept,” Gamer said.

Adrien followed Ladybug to center field. She touched her palm to the orb, stepping back as it transformed into a giant ladybug mech to rival Gamer. Ladybug picked him up again, leaping to the top of the suit where a round hole opened in the shoulders. They jumped down into the main control center for the robot where two chairs waited.

“Whoa!” Adrien grinned, hopping into what appeared to be the steering. “I’ll drive.”

“Absolutely not, you man the guns.” Ladybug ordered.

“Look, I beat Max once already, and I can do it again.” Adrien pressed buttons and adjusted the thrust.

Ladybug sat in the weapons control seat with a grumble as their robot took awkward hobbling steps. Gamer charged forward, sending their mech flying across the field with a single punch, and Adrien and Ladybug toppled over each other as their suit rolled to the ground.

“Never mind, you can drive.” Adrien rubbed the sore spot on the back of his head with a wince.

Ladybug climbed into the control seat, righting their robot as Adrien crawled over to the guns. Her steering was much more controlled than his, as if she needed any more qualities for Adrien to admire.

“Round two, Gamer!”

They took turns exchanging shots, Adrien launching their projectiles on Ladybug’s signals.

“Wow, you’re pretty good at this,” Adrien said.

“You’re not the only one with hobbies.” Ladybug pushed the thrusters forward, rearing back into a punch that sent Gamer’s pyramid head flying across the field while his mech scrambled to keep up.

“Wait, you play Ultimate Mecha Strike?” Adrien spun his chair around.

“Duh, now focus!” Ladybug snapped as Gamer charged back in. “Forcefield!”

She really was his dream girl.

“On it!” Adrien pressed the buttons just in time to summon their shield before Gamer’s missiles landed.

Gamer jumped into the air, one of its spindly arms morphing into a drill as it crashed back down. Ladybug brandished their defenses, but Gamer’s attack was too powerful to resist for long. The drill broke through their shield, driving them back. Red lights flashed on Adrien’s screen, showing the damage to their wrist.

“He’s too strong! How are we going to defeat him?” Adrien turned to Ladybug who pursed her lips.

“With a little luck.” She grabbed her yoyo and summoned her Lucky Charm. The last resort.

“Is that-”

“Spray paint?” Ladybug turned the can over in her hands. She glanced around their suit and out the window at Gamer, drumming her fingers. “I’ve got an idea, but I need you to cover me.”

“Wait, where are you going?” Adrien called as she climbed out.

He jumped up to take the controls, managing to block a strike from Gamer. He locked hands with Gamer’s mech, planting the feet into a secure stance while Ladybug swung across the gap. Tapping the screen, he zoomed in as she landed on Gamer’s shoulders, using the spray paint to cover Gamer’s eyepiece. She hooked her yoyo around the tip of the pyramid and hung from the top. When Gamer poked his head out of the window, she snatched his glasses and snapped them in half, revealing the black butterfly inside.

Adrien leaned against his fist with a smile as she captured the akuma and used her Miraculous Ladybug to repair the city. Magical ladybugs swarmed around him, and with a blink, he was safely on the ground.

Black clouds washed over Max as he sat up, blinking in confusion. “Wha- Where am I?”

“Nice work, m’ladybug.” Adrien bowed.

Ladybug’s earrings beeped, and she unhooked her yoyo from her waist.

“Thanks for your help again,” she said.

Adrien shrugged. “I couldn’t leave Max like that. It’s clear that the competition was really important to him.”

Ladybug looked him up and down with a smile, then tossed her yoyo toward the roof. As she shot off, Adrien approached Max and offered him a hand.

“Adrien?” He titled his head to the side but accepted the help to his feet. “What happened?”

“You were akumatized by Hawkmoth.” Adrien lowered his gaze to his shoes. “It was my fault. I didn’t realize that the competition was so important to you. I only tried out because it seemed fun, but you worked really hard for it.”

Max adjusted his glasses and shifted his weight. “You beat me fair and square, Adrien. You earned your spot on the team. I shouldn’t have been such a sore loser.”

“Max, you weren’t-”

“It’s okay.” Max turned to him, holding up reassuring hands. “Really, I’m fine. I know you’ll represent the school well in the tournament. Besides, now I have a new goal to work toward. Next time we face off in Ultimate Mecha Strike, don’t expect to beat me so easily.”

He extended a fist, and Adrien bumped it with his own, his lips curling into a smile.

“If it’s not asking too much, could I come over and practice with you? I think it would work out better than practicing with Marinette,” Adrien said. “And maybe we can give each other tips.”

“I’d like that. I can even show you the game I’ve been developing,” Max said.

He lead the way out of the stadium, regaling Adrien with his game ideas. As it turned out, Max was way smarter about games than Adrien could ever dream to be. Even if Adrien managed to beat him during the tryout, Max deserved a spot in the competition, so the next day, Adrien forfeited his place with M. Damocles. It was for the best. Marinette and Max would make a much better team, and she didn’t totally hate Max’s guts. Adrien was starting to accept that they’d never be friends, and that was okay. If he’d learned anything going to his new school, it was that not everyone was meant to get along. Chloe and Marinette were proof of that.

Thunder grumbled overhead as Adrien made his way across the courtyard toward the locker room. Good thing Nathalie sent him with an umbrella. He retrieved his books from his locker and set out toward the front doors as the first droplets dripped on the concrete. By the time he made it to the porch, the downpour had begun, hissing through the air in sheets.

A flash of pink shifted in the corner of his eye. Marinette shied away from him when he turned around, shrinking under the overhang to avoid getting wet. Her blue eyes refused to meet his, so he opened his umbrella with a sigh. Despite knowing that she’d never like him, Adrien’s stomach still twinged with guilt. The rift between them was caused by a misunderstanding in the beginning, and although he wouldn’t be getting rid of Chloe any time soon, part of him still hoped there was a way to cross the gap between him and Marinette.

Clutching the handle of his umbrella, he squared his shoulders and turned to her.

“I’ve never had friends before,” he said. “Growing up, my father insisted I stay home all the time. I wasn’t allowed outside, and the only reason I got to hang out with Chloe is because our parents were old friends. She’s all I’ve ever had.” His shoulders slumped. “In my life, you take whatever you can get. That’s why I was so happy when Nino wanted to throw me a party because my own father didn’t even celebrate my birthday.”

Marinette glanced up at him, those blue eyes wide and uncertain.

He lowered his gaze to his shoes, kicking at the wet pavement. “I just want a normal life. I want to go to school and make friends, like everyone else… But you probably don’t care about all of that.” He wiped a tear from his eye before it spilled over. “I pulled out of the competition. You and Max will make a great team. I promise not to bother you anymore.”

He held out his umbrella, an offering of peace and a promise. Thunder clapped overhead, and Marinette jumped, long eyelashes fluttering with each blink. She reached hesitantly for his umbrella, the brush of her hand soft against his own as it passed between them.

His bodyguard rolled up to the curb, and bracing himself, he stepped out into the rain. The droplets were cold on his skin, but the tightness in his chest had finally loosened its grip. He still wasn’t good at the whole friend thing, and maybe he never would be. But that was fine too. It made him grateful for the few friends he did have.

Bright blue wrapping paper greeted him when he opened his locker the next day, and he quirked a curious brow as he peeled away the ribbon. Inside was a blue, hand-knit scarf and a note written on pink paper.

I’m sorry for the way I’ve acted lately. I was judging you for the person I thought you were rather than the person you are. Happy late Birthday! I stayed up all night making this.

Love,

-Marinette

Adrien ran his fingers over the soft yarn, a smile curling on his lips. Maybe he was getting better at this whole friend thing after all. Looping the scarf around his neck, he burrowed down into its warmth and took a deep breath. It had taken longer than he originally thought, but things were starting to look up for him. The life he always wanted was finally at his fingertips, and Adrien was already reaching.

#miraculous ladybug #ladrien #adrinette #adrien agreste #ladybug #marinette dupain-cheng #enemies au #my writing #under the moth's wing #not so enemies au #simply ladrien au

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ultracaramela · 3 years

Note

Top 10 favorite characters in tgcf

OMG OMG MY FIRST ASK 🥺

also can you believe it, it wasnt too long ago that you shared the tgcf carrd to me and now i’m in this too deep???? Thank you for that again btw (´▽`ʃ♡ƪ)

It’s 6am from where I am but every time is a perfect time to talk about TGCF. Here we go!

1. Xie Lian

I could write a sonata with how much I love this boy. He’s not perfect and that’s what amazing about him, all the misfortunes, torture and disasters that happened to him should’ve turned him into a calamity but he’s just that GOOD and his character now is a perfect mix of all the goodness of the world and a little dash of attitude, enough for him not to take bullshit from anyone (like he gonna risk his life for you but also not shy to smack qi rong around you know?) GAAHHH I LOVE HIM

2. Hua Cheng

HAVE YOU SEEN THE DUDE? Nah jk because even if he looks like rags, his complete devotion to XL (i’m in love with mxtx because of how she wrote HC), is an absolute fairytale. Despite his overprotectiveness he doesnt lose his absolute respect for XL’s decisions, he just cold sweats as he watches him make the most dangerous decisions humanly possible (SWALLOW A SWORD? REALLY???), its pure love, he is pure love

3. Yushi Huang

SHE’S JUST A POWER CHARACTER!!! She was introduced the latter part of the book but the moment she appeared and everything clicked together, like how she helped XL with Yong ‘an and how she keeps saving the whole circus that is the upper court and the princess who slit her throat???? PURE BADASSERY. I love how she’s so subtle yet so essential especially how even Jun Wu wasn’t able to do anything to her

4. Mu Qing

he’s got that attitude that would make you hate him but he’s just emotionally constipated, it can be seen in the novel how he truly cares for both FX and XL and that’s endearing for me (i wanna be your f-f-friend! 😞 ) also I’m a sucker for pretty boys??? Mu Qing's design in the manhua is *chef’s kiss*

5. Feng Xin

Because he’s the perfect sidekick, he’s loyal and he’s gonna laugh at your stupid jokes and most importantly, he’s got his principles straight, when he promises he come through and he knows his duties and i love that about him

6. Quan Yizhen

this fluffy child deserves all the love!!! he’s been misunderstood before he even ascended and he didn’t even do anything wrong!!! It’s way he seeks out his shixiong despite rejection and the subtle admiration he has for XL (yes everything abt my fave characters is how they are to XL) He’s just a pure child I wanna protecc

7. He Xuan

yeah he killed Shi Wudu but meh kinda deserved? If one goes through the things he did, isnt it understandable, besides its not as if he’s like White Clothed Calamity, killing off and traumatizing centuries of people, he was just getting his revenge, plus I’m loving that he seems to be the closest thing HC has to a friend (HE PUNCHED HIM TO THE GROUND I CANT WITH THEM T_T)

8. Pei Ming

I talked about him in my previous post, about him ending the novel with the most improved image and how he is a misogynistic son of a btch BUT he is honest and genuine and even HC acknowledges that he isn’t a shady man. Also one of Hualian’s earliest supporters

9. Shi Qingxuan

i mean duh??? purest boy ever, I feel like he’s the one that made XL experience true friendship yk? like FengQing are more like retainers, HC is a devoted believer, SQX is a mutual friendship like, he does things for XL (who can forget how he defended XL’s purity infront of the whole upper court?? he failed but still!) XL does things for him and them together is just the best friendship ever???

10. Ruoye/ E-Ming

they’re characters right?? Idk why I picked them over other characters but I find them adorable when they show emotions to their owners, like ruoye nuzzling XL or with e-ming rebelling against HC, trembling with excitement at the sight of XL, they’re amazing little weapons uwu

*look at lil ruoye dancing like a snake 😭

There you have it! I wasnt asked for the reason but I went ahead and rambled because that’s me as a person also because I’m in LOVE with MXTX for creating an amazing set of characters, making them all out to have flaws and grave mistakes yet incredibly loveable at the same time. IT WAS SO HARD TO CHOOSE!! 😭

Anyway, I enjoyed answering this ask so thank youuu ❤️

#tgcf #xie lian #hua cheng #hualian #tgcf spoilers #tian guan ci fu #had way too much fun answering this #heaven official’s blessing #mxtx #pei ming #yushi huang #ruoye #fengqing #feng xin #mu qing #shi qingxuan #he xuan

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anna-justice · 3 years

Text

come back (be here)

part one of upstead: but make it taylor swift

summary: I guess you're in New York today, I don't wanna need you this way (or: hailey is in new york and jay misses her more than you could ever imagine). read on ao3

…

and this is when the feeling sinks in, I don't wanna miss you like this,

come back...be here,

come back...be here

I guess you're in New York today, I don't wanna need you this way,

come back...be here,

come back...be here

taxi cabs and busy streets,

that never bring you back to me,

I can't help but wish you took me with you

this is falling in love in the cruelest way,

this is falling for you and you are worlds away,

in New York, be here

~ come back...be here by taylor swift

…

day one

It had been 12 hours since Jay dropped her off at the airport, 12 hours since she gave him a teary smile and jumped out of the cab, 12 hours since he watched her disappear behind the glass doors, and it felt like it had been forever.

He walked in the district with a new darkness looming over his head, he felt like a storm cloud was following him around. It had only been 12 hours, but he already felt like the life had been sucked out of him. He loved his job, he loved his team, but there was something missing and he couldn’t shake it. He wasn’t sure he would until she was sitting in front of him again.

As he climbed the stairs to the bullpen - ignoring the knowing look from his desk sergeant - he gave the room a once over. It was like he was taken back in time. The familiar feeling of dread settling in his stomach as he ascended the stairs alone, it had been many years since he felt a similar sense of loneliness.

Erin was an afterthought now, but in that moment he felt like a child again. The same dumb kid who lied and slept with his “informants,” who always took it too far and leaped before he even thought to look. He hadn’t been that person in a long time, not since Hailey. He still leaped but now he had someone who took the jump with him and she always made sure that he looked first. There was part of him that was scared with her gone, he would have no one to keep him from falling off the deep end.

“Earth to Halstead.” He heard and then was startled by a hand waving in front of his face. He picked his head up out of his hands and laid back into his chair, feigning a stretch. “You good man? You look like death.” It was Kevin, who had a tiny smirk on his face.

Jay nodded, chuckling nervously. “Yeah, uh, just didn’t sleep well.”

Kim stifled a laugh across the room, Vanessa gave him a knowing look and Adam shook his head, leaning on his desk. “Yeah, okay…” He waltzed across the room to Jay and Kevin, motioning to Hailey’s empty desk, “She have an okay flight?” He asked, knowing that Jay knew.

It caught him off guard, he wasn’t lying about not sleeping well, but he didn’t say that it was because he stayed up all night waiting for Hailey to say that she made it safely to her hotel. He nodded, “Yeah, she landed at like 3:00 this morning, said the room they put her up in was nice.”

“Good,” Kevin said, nudging Jay’s shoulder. “Glad they are taking care of our girl.” The words made Jay crack a smile, the first one since he had bid Hailey goodbye the night before.

He glanced at the empty desk again, picking up his phone and snapping a picture of it. He clicked on his partner’s contact info and drafted a text.

Jay: My pens miss you.

It was short, and could be taken as sweet, but it was still enough to make his heart beat a little faster as he hit send. The nerves started to set in immediately after he flipped his phone over. Everyone in the room knew that Hailey would reach across their computer screens to steal a pen or pencil whenever she needed, hers were lost as soon as she got them: whether they had fallen from behind her ear or were dropped on the floor. She never had one, but Jay found himself worried that she would think it was a little weird that he had noticed all those things too.

His phone buzzed against the fake wood not long after, and he turned it over a little faster than he would like to admit.

Hailey: I miss them too, you buy the good kind.

A grin across his face as soon as he read it, and he coughed out a subtle laugh. For a second - only a second - he let himself pretend they weren’t talking about pens, but they were.

Jay: Have a good day :)

Her response came almost immediately.

Hailey: You too Jay :)

He leaned back in seat, sighing. It wasn’t the same as watching her from across their desks or clearing a scene together, or even just hearing her voice. But, it was the first day, he needed to pace himself. There would be plenty of time to miss her, and for now, this was enough.

day two

Jay poured himself another cup of coffee, he hadn’t been able to focus all day. He was telling everyone else that he had a headache, but he knew it was from Hailey’s words still ringing in his head.

“I miss the wind, and you.”

It was literally all he could think about since their conversation early that morning as they both walked into work - unfortunately - 800 miles apart. He would admit, it was much better than his lonely walk into the district the day before, it was almost like she was with him, but not close enough.

He took a big sip of his coffee, pinching the bridge of his nose (okay, so maybe he really did have a headache). The bullpen was buzzing, everyone else seemingly unaffected by his partner’s absence. He made his way back towards his desk, dodging Kevin, who scored against Adam in their game of trashketball (their favorite pass times on slow days).

“You wanna play the winner?” Kevin asked, stepping back for Adam to make a free throw (Kim called a foul).

Jay shook his head, “Nah man, I’m good.” He stood over her desk, staring down at the stack of files that were left there. She was gone in such a hurry that she didn’t even get the chance to clean it off. He picked up the one on top, pretending to read it.

“Hey,” He heard from behind him. He flinched, spinning to face the brunette behind him. “You good?” Vanessa asked.

Jay sighed, “Uh, yeah, just looking at Hailey’s paperwork. It needs to be filed.” He threw the folder back down and leaned against it. “I just hope it’s done.” He joked weakly.

Vanessa looked down at the pile and smirked at him, laying a hand over the top. “I’m sure it is, it’s not like Hailey to leave unfinished business.” Jay didn’t dare raise his gaze to look at her, he knew there was shock written all over his face. Not that he should be surprised, it wasn��t like Vanessa to beat around the bush.

Maybe he was reading into things, but he was almost 100% sure they weren’t talking about paperwork. He laughed it off, “Yeah, she always finishes before me and then proof reads mine. She doesn’t trust me to do it right.”

The brunette shook her head, chuckling with him. She shrugged, “Or maybe it’s just an excuse to spend time with you.” With that she waltzed into the break room, throwing a wink over her shoulder at a stunned Jay.

He wasn’t one to talk about his feelings (or really even acknowledge them) and the thought of being as open as Vanessa had just been was making him want to vomit. It was so easy for her to throw that at him - that Hailey likes spending time with him - why was it so hard for him to say it? It’s not like he didn’t know, she did too, they were each other’s favorite people. It had just ever been said so directly.

His feet carried him faster than his brain could catch up and he followed Vanessa, closing the door behind him. “What Jay?” She asked, without even turning around.

Jay took a breath, he hadn’t really thought about what to say here, but he needed something. It had only been two days, but he was going crazy. He missed her like crazy. “You are being cryptic.”

“Actually,” Vanessa said, turning to face him. “I’m being the opposite of cryptic.”

Jay shook his head, “Really? I don’t think so. I just feel like I’m reading into what you are saying or that you are implying something-”

“I’m gonna stop you right there, before you completely eat your own foot.” She smiled softly, “I’m not implying or saying anything Jay. I’m just saying that it’s okay to miss her and it’s okay to worry about her, she’s your partner. You’ve got to have her back.” She winked at him and headed for the door, “Just, don’t be afraid to tell her that. Tell her what you are feeling.”

After she left the room, Jay let out a sigh. He muttered under his breath, “And she says she’s not being cryptic.” But, even if Vanessa was talking in riddles, she was right. He pulled out his phone and clicked on her name.

Jay: Just so you know, I miss you too. A lot.

The typing bubble appeared on the screen seconds later.

Hailey: Me too. A lot.

day three

The third day was Tuesday, which was the day that he and Hailey normally had off, just not from each other. They would meet at her place at eight and go to the gym together then grab breakfast, then from there it was a toss up depending on each of their days. However, almost every time they ended up at the shooting range. Today was no different.

Jay left his apartment 10 minutes later than normal, arriving at their gym alone at 8:15. It was weird walking in alone. Sure, he went to workout plenty without her, but never on a Tuesday, never at that time of day and never at that gym. There was one right around the corner from his apartment, but Hailey was weird about working out in front of people and she felt more comfortable on her own, so he just got another membership. He never really thought anything of it.

Not until now, walking into Hailey’s gym alone felt wrong. But, what felt worse was that it hadn’t even accrued to him to just go to his own. No, Tuesday’s were different, and he liked them. He just wasn’t sure if he liked them without her.

He walked in, ran several miles on the treadmill and had moved to the weight station when a random girl approached him. He continued his reps as he noticed her making her way towards him. “Hey macho,” She said, smiling brightly, “You mind spotting me?”

Jay looked around him - he was kind of in the middle of something - but he didn’t really mind. So, he shrugged and set his weight down before following her.

She laid down on the bench and positioned herself under the metal bar, signaling to Jay to help her lift it off. She lowered it slowly, taking a breath before pushing it back up, “So,” She huffed, “Where’s your girlfriend?”

Jay’s eyebrows laced together, “I don’t have a girlfriend.” He said matter of factly.

“Then who is that blonde girl you are always here with?” She asked, starting to struggle at pushing the bar back up.

Jay realized two things. One: this girl had been watching him for a bit and decided to make a move when his “girlfriend” wasn’t around. That’s off putting. And two: she thought Hailey was his girlfriend, and that made him smile. “That’s my partner, I’m a cop. Detective really.”

He caught the bar with ease as she lost steam, watching her cautiously as she sat up. “Good to know.” She grabbed her water bottle from beside the bench and gave him a smirk, “Thank you.” Jay gave her a short nod before retreating back to his bench, he was ready to be done and get out of there.

About 30 minutes later, Jay walked into the locker room to grab his bag from his locker, when he got there, there was a note taped to the door.

If that really isn’t your girlfriend, give me a call ;)

~ Maddie (xxx-xxx-xxxx)

Jay peeled it off and shook his head before grabbing his grab, tossing it in the trash as he left the room. He made his way to his truck, figuring he had time to shower at home before heading to the shooting range. He and Hailey hadn’t been in a few weeks, and he was due for recertification (honestly, he didn’t even know why they bothered, he got a perfect score everytime).

About an hour later he was on his way there, and the familiar drive felt strange coming from a different place. If he was being honest, everything felt strange.

When he pulled in the parking lot, he parked in his normal spot and jumped out. It was almost never busy at 10 on a Tuesday. He looked up and took in the sign out front The Old Chicago Range, he pulled his phone out of his pocket and snapped a picture, sending it to Hailey.

Jay: Be jealous :)

As he pulled the door open, he met familiar faces. That was their favorite thing about this place. He would admit, maybe a shooting range isn’t exactly the kind of family business you would want to pass down, but it had worked for the owners. The same four men had been working there for the past three years, and long before Hailey and Jay started going there. The place was relatively small, but they were always in great company. It was owned by 2 brothers and their cousins, whose fathers had passed it to them. All of them were ex-military or retired CPD officers, so Jay felt right at home.

“Jay!” One of the brothers, Robbie, said from behind the counter. He jumped out of his seat and rounded it to shake Jay’s hand.

Jay took it, squeezing it firmly, the way they were both taught. “Hey Rob, good to see you.”

The older man headed back towards the computer, “Same as always?” He asked.

He almost said yes, but then he realized Hailey wasn’t getting their guns out of the truck. “No, uh, just me today.”

Robbie looked up, it seemed a little dramatic, but they had never come without each other before. “Oh, is everything alright?”

Jay quickly jumped in, “Yeah, Hailey is just on assignment in New York, she’ll be back soon.” As soon as the words left his mouth he regretted saying them. Would she be back soon?

“Well good,” Robbie said. “You wanna go try out the new glock?”

“Hell yeah.”

Jay followed Robbie through the narrow hallway and to the back where the actual indoor range was, feeling his phone buzz in his pocket.

Hailey: Don’t worry, I am

Hailey: Are you taking your side partner to our place??

Jay chuckled to himself, trying to control his heartbeat. Our place. Their place. He liked the thought of that, a lot.

Jay: No, never

Hailey: Good

Hailey: Don’t have too much fun without me

Jay: Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to send you a picture of my perfect score

Hailey: Yeah ok whatever

They made it to the window and Jay was about to put his phone away when it buzzed again.

Hailey: Text me when you’re done

Jay: I will

He smiled bigger, ignoring Robbie’s and now his brother Tim’s sideways glances. He picked up the headphones and secured them, taking the gun in his hand and watched the marker slide back to the other end of the room. Jay raised the gun and fired the first shot, picturing what he always did.

When he was in Ranger training and long after, they were taught to kill with no remorse. That was their job: to take out the enemy to save the masses. But, Jay had never been good at taking a life, innocent or not. They had trained them to have no emotional attachment, they were going after combattants, terrorists, truly horrible people in the eyes of all soldiers, but it didn’t matter. Jay had a big heart, even if he didn’t show it, so he came up with his own way to cope.

Maybe it was unhealthy, but every time he had to shoot his gun overseas, he would imagine that his mom’s life was at risk, that she was the one in danger, not him or anyone else. And that made it easier, in the moment, at least. Somewhere along the way, he stopped imagining his mom and he started imagining Hailey. She was something that he would protect at all costs, no questions asked.

When he finished, the marker slid forward so he could see, and much to his surprise, he scored a 99. Something that hadn’t happened since before Erin left, he was stunned. Jay didn’t care about the score, but something deep in his chest was making him squirm. Was he really this much of a mess without her?

When he got back to his truck a little while later, he pulled out his phone, texting his partner.

Jay: You missed out, the new glock they got in is a beauty

Hailey: I’ll have to try it when I get back

Jay took a deep breath, she’s coming back, she’s coming back, she’s coming back. Even she knows that, why couldn’t he get that through his head.

Jay: For sure

Hailey: So, no score gloating?

Jay: Not today, I got a 99

Hailey: WHAT

Hailey: That’s never happened

Jay: Yeah, I know

Jay: Something was missing.

day four

Jay poured over the set of photos and stacks of reports for the third or fourth time, he didn’t find anything, but there was no way he wasn’t missing something. He needed another set of eyes, he needed Hailey’s eyes.

It was just him and Trudy left, not that Trudy ever really went home when Mouch was on shift, everyone else had taken their frustration over the case in stride and gone home, but Jay couldn’t let it go.

They were stuck on a string of robberies involving department stores, with multiple casualties, some of them kids. They just couldn’t find the connection between the stores. They were scattered all across the district, sold different things and nothing specific was ever stolen. And the crew, they were ruthless, they didn’t care who got hurt, if they were in the way, they were taken out.

Jay heard the sound of footsteps on the stairs, perking up in his seat. It was Trudy with a white takeout box in her hand. “Serge.” Jay said, smiling, “Have I told you lately that you’re my favorite person in the world?”

“Haha,” Trudy laughed, giving him a faked stink eye. “No you have not, but it’s a good thing Upton’s not here to hear you say that.” She joked.

She watched Jay’s face fall immediately, “Good thing.” He said with a forced smile.

Trudy sat the box down on his desk and perched herself on Hailey’s empty one across from him. “You miss her don’t you?” She asked, a small smirk playing on her lips.

Jay sighed, leaning back in his chair. “Of course I do.” He said, the words tumbling out of his mouth with ease. Trudy’s smirk grew and Jay just shrugged, “She’s my partner.”

Trudy stood, taking in the man that she had watched grow so much. She couldn’t explain the amount of pride she felt when she thought of the men and women in intelligence. She and Mouch didn’t get the chance to have their own children, so she always saw Hank’s unit as her own little family. She was proud of Jay especially, he had turned into an incredible cop and an even better man. She rested a hand on his shoulder, “Yeah, I know.” She sighed, “Go home soon okay? Get some sleep.”

“Yes ma’am,” He said, squeezing her hand. As Trudy headed for the stairs, Jay watched her go. He wasn’t sure when it happened, but Trudy became someone that he could really count on. And she was the closest thing he had to a mom, and he really needed his mom right now. “Hey Trudy.” He called and she spun around.

“Yeah,” She said.

Jay shook his head a bit, his voice coming out quiet, “She’s coming back right?”

Trudy was taken aback by Jay’s forwardness, and she wished she had an answer for him, but she didn’t. The feds had a way of holding on to good people, and Hailey was the best. But for all their sakes, especially his, she hoped Hailey would come home, despite the fancy suits, despite the better pay and the sleek and shiny offices, she hoped she would choose Chicago. But she couldn’t really say that to Jay. “She better, she owes me a bottle of Tequila.”

That got Jay to laugh a bit, looking down at his desk as he smiled, remembering the bet that Hailey lost one day when they were all Tailgating a few months before, she had yet to pay up. “Yeah, she does. Thanks Serge.”

“Anytime,” Trudy said, “Goodnight Chuckles.” She joked, and then she was gone.

Jay set the box to the side, no longer feeling like eating. His stomach was in knots. He returned to his previous position, pouring over the files once again. He couldn’t figure out what he was missing.

He caught sight of his phone on his desk, making a split second decision and calling his partner. She answered on the third ring. “Hello?”

“Hey,” He said, just enjoying hearing her voice for a moment. He snapped out of it, “How’s working with the feds?” Is it wrong that a small part of him wanted her to say that she hated it.

“Good.” She said quickly. “Different, but good.” Jay heard a door click over the line. “Actually, you have great timing. I was getting off the elevator when you called me.”

Jay glanced at the clock on his monitor, it read 12:04. “Damn, that’s late.”

“Yeah, anyway. What’s up?” She asked. Suddenly, Jay felt bad asking her for help, she had just finished her day and she probably needed sleep. “Jay?”

“Oh, uh, I was just gonna ask for your opinion on a case, but you need sleep. I’ll let you-”

“No.” Hailey said, cutting him off. “I’m wired, I won’t be able to sleep, it’s been a crazy night. What do you need?”

Great. A crazy night. They were probably doing a big raid or something else with their big budget and fancy tech stuff. And Hailey was probably really good at it. “I just can’t find the connection between the stores in this string of robberies. People are dying, we’re running out of time.”

“Do you have the digital files?” She asked.

“Yeah.”

“Alright, send them to me. I’ll call you back.”

Jay did what he was told and not even five minutes later, she called him back. But this time, it was a facetime notification. Jay cautiously slid it open, immediately taking in Hailey’s appearance. She had her phone propped up facing her as she sat on a bed in a pair of shorts and a t-shirt with her computer in lap. “Hey.” Jay said, propping his up on his monitor.

“Hey.” She said back, smiling her big, bright, Hailey smile that he didn’t realize he missed so much. It had only been four days, he really needed to pull it together. They stared at each other for a moment, before Hailey visibly tensed. “So, run me through the facts.”

So he did, he talked her through the case while she looked through photos and reports. Jay was hoping that he would think of something as he explained it all, but he didn’t.

After a few minutes or silence, Hailey spoke up, “Did you check the security companies?”

“Yeah, they all use different ones.” He said.

“Ok,” Hailey said, “Wait, check and see if there is some sort of backing. Like a mother company or something.”

Jay typed for a while before shouting, “Bingo!” He smiled at her through the phone, “Hailey, you got it. They are all financed partially by Graham Consolidated, a big tech company.”

“Perfect, so what do you think? Personal vendetta against the CEO/Company and they are coming after it’s partners? Maybe it’s Graham’s way of completely taking over the smaller companies?” Hailey said, throwing out ideas.

Jay shrugged, a smile still on his face. “I don’t know, but now I have a place to start. Thank you.”

“Of course, anytime.” She said. There was a beat. “I really miss you guys, I wasn’t kidding when I said it’s different here.”

“We - he should have said I - miss you too.” He couldn't help himself, “Different, as in bad?”

Hailey shrugged, trying to find the words, “I don’t know, it’s just more structured. More rules potentially break, but -” She stopped for a second, taking him in and deciding if she really wanted to tell him this. She didn’t want him to look at her any differently. “- maybe that was the point, I guess it need it.”

She needed it? How could he compete with that? Maybe she was reconsidering her decision, it had only been four days. Jay smiled weakly, “Well, they are lucky to have you.” He said, genuinely.

“Thanks.” She said softly, looking a little disappointed. Had she wanted him to tell her that she better come home? Does she want him to tell her he couldn’t live without her? No way, he couldn’t. A job with the FBI is a big deal, and Hailey was definitely on the path of being offered one. He couldn't get in the way of that.

Jay took a breath, “I should go. I’ve got lots to do.” He said, forcing a smile.

“Yeah, ok.” Hailey said, “Goodnight Jay, go home soon.”

“Goodnight Hailey.” Come home soon.

day five

“Contrary to popular belief Jay, your body is not bulletproof.” Will said, pressing the bandage flush against his brother's arm.

Jay rolled his eyes, sighing, “It barely grazed me, there won’t even be a scar…”

Will huffed, standing straighter and glaring at his brother, he looked at Kim who was standing in the corner of the room. “Hey Kim, when was the last time Jay got shot?”

Kim feigned inquiry, tapping her chin with her finger. “Oh, I don’t know, not even six months ago?” She said, a bit too aggressively.

“You guys are being dramatic. I’m fine.” Jay insisted.

“Jay!” Will snapped, “You have gotten shot twice in the past six months. Three times in two years! That’s not normal!” He was obviously frustrated, running his hand through his hair. He didn’t understand what Jay didn’t get, they were all each other had. “You’re not bulletproof, you’re like a damn bullet magnet.”

Jay held up his hands, “Ok, now you’re being ridiculous -” He was cut off by his phone buzzing on the bed next to him, he picked it up glaring at his brother and temporary partner. The ID ready Hailey Upton. “Which one of you told?” He snapped. Will and Kim both held their hand up in surrender before backing out of the room to give Jay some privacy, neither of them had spilled the beans. Jay sighed, hitting the green button and answering. “Hey.”

He was expecting her to scream at him, to be angry, but instead, “Thank God you’re okay.” She sighed out, Jay was taken aback.

“Yeah Hailey, I’m okay.”

He heard her soft sniffles over the line. Had she been crying? He felt a pang of guilt in his chest at the thought. “I just got back to the office and I had a text from Adam that just said “Jay got shot” and he wasn’t answering and all I could think about was last time, and -” She stopped herself, taking a deep breath. “It doesn’t matter, I-I was just worried.”

“I’m fine, I promise.” Jay said calmly, sensing her panic even 800 miles away.

“Okay,” She said, sounding defeated. “What happened?”

Jay shrugged, immediately regretting it. He would never admit it out loud, but his arm was really sore. “It was a run of the mill shoot out, I just jumped out of the way too slow. It just grazed my arm, there was barely any blood.” That was a lie, there was a lot of blood. He had to change his clothes, they were pretty much ruined.

He wasn’t sure what he was trying to do by omitting how bad it could have been, maybe he was protecting her, but he couldn’t bear her blaming herself for this. He knew he would. If he was stuck in New York and Hailey got hurt in Chicago without him there to back, he would blame himself too. “Which arm?” She asked quickly.

“Left.” He sighed out, hoping that maybe she would ignore it.

“Jay!” She shouted, “You aren’t even done with PT for your left shoulder!”

“Hailey.” He said, only slightly mocking her, “The bad guys don’t have a copy of my line of duty injuries report.”

He heard her stifle a laugh and he smiled to himself. Bingo. He knew she wasn’t really mad at him, she was just worried. He would have reacted the exact same way. “Okay, fair enough. But, seriously, you have to be more careful.” There was a beat, “I don’t know what I would do without you.”

Jay literally felt his heart stop in his chest. He didn’t know what he would do without her either, and this was the closest he ever wanted to be to finding out. “Hailey, you won’t have to find out. I’m not going anywhere.”

Hailey sighed audibly, “You can’t promise me that.”

“No, but I can sure as hell try.” He joked.

That earned a laugh from her, causing a small smile to grace his face. “Yeah, you better.” They sat there in silence for a while, finding comfort in only the assurance of the other one's presence. “Don’t scare me like that again.”

“I won’t Hailes.” Jay couldn’t put his finger on it, but something about this felt different than the last time. He thought back to the day he was released, what his phone had interrupted. It seemed kind of ironic how they were having all of their important conversations that way now. The words were different, but the rest was the same. The pain in her voice, the fear, it made everything all too real. It terrified him, because maybe - just maybe - she needed him just as much as he needed her.

Maybe there was a chance for them after all.

day six

By the next night, Jay was so exhausted that he was sure he would fall asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow. His arm was still sore and he had slept terribly the night before. The shooting, however minor it was, had done a number on him. Nightmares of Hailey being shot plagued his mind all night long.

He had just turned out his light when his phone buzzed on the bedside table, he silently prayed that they hadn’t caught a case. When he flipped it over, he saw it wasn’t from his boss, but from his partner.

Hailey: Facetime?

Jay was a little embarrassed by how fast he clicked the call button, all his tiredness being thrown out the window, but he would be a fool to waste her forwardness. She picked up on the first ring. “Eager aren’t we?”

Jay was going something clever back, but he was startled by how beautiful she looked in the shitty hotel lighting. He reached over and switched his lamp on, pretending not to notice the shocked look on Hailey’s face when she realized he was shirtless. However, her gaze didn’t shift away. “See something you like, Upton?”

Hailey smirked, taking his jab in stride, “What if I say yes?”

Jay smiled big. Was she flirting with him? “Then I would tell you that I see something I like too.”

Hailey blushed and Jay’s grin grew three sizes, he wanted to make that happen again, and again, and again. “Good to know.” Her expression softened when she noticed the bandage on his left arm, “How’s your arm?”

Jay shrugged, “Sore, but fine.” She didn’t look convinced. “Hailey, look at me.” She lifted her gaze from her lap, to his eyes on the screen. “I’m okay.”

She nodded, “Good.”

“Is everything okay?” He asked, not that he didn’t enjoy it, but he was a little confused on why she had asked him to facetime out of the blue.��

She nodded again, “Yeah actually, everything’s great...I just miss you.”

“I miss you too Hailes.” He wasn’t exactly sure when he started calling her that, but he liked it a lot. It felt special, like a step forward. “Have you heard anything about coming home?” He knew it was a loaded question, but he was practicing self preservation. If she was changing her mind and staying, he needed time to prepare, no matter how unlikely it was.

Hailey shrugged, “I don’t know, at least a few more weeks. The girl whose spot I’m in is deep undercover, so we don’t exactly have a timeline.”

“Okay.”

“I hope it’s soon though, if that counts for anything.” She said quietly.

“It does,” Jay said, letting out a breath. “A lot actually.”

“I need to come home, I don’t know how much more of this wheat thin style pizza I can take.”

Jay laughed out loud, “Oh I get it, you don’t miss me, you just miss deep dish.”

“Finally, it took you long enough.” She said, joking with him. Jay pressed a hand to his chest, feigning being offended. Hailey grinned, rolling over on her side and resting her phone against the pillow next to her. “Shut up, you know I miss you.”

Jay smiled softly, giving her a small nod of understanding. He did know she missed him, and he missed her like crazy too. He looked into her bright blue eyes, “I wish you took me with you.” He said.

He could tell he caught her off guard, the shocked expression on her face said it all, and he almost regretted saying it, but not quite. He meant it with his whole heart. “Me too.” She said finally. “OA’s great, but...but he’s not you Jay.” She shook her head, smiling softly to herself. “There’s no one else like you.”

Jay’s heart was pounding in his chest at her words, he was half convinced he was dreaming. “Well that’s good, there’s only enough room for one partner in your life, and I intend on keeping the spot.”

“You better,” She said, staring at him shamelessly. “I don’t want anyone else.”

“I don’t want anyone else either.” In any way, he thought.

“Come to New York.” She said quickly, a nervous expression crossing her face for a split second as he watched her realize what she just said.

Jay cocked an eyebrow, “What?” He breathed out.

“Come to New York.” She said again, this time with more confidence.

“Are you sure?” He asked, and it felt like the simple question meant so much more. Are you sure this is what you want? Are you sure you want me there? Are you sure that you want me too?

Hailey nodded, “Yes. Buy the ticket Jay.” She said, “Be here.”

“Okay.”

day seven

Jay felt like his heart was going to jump out of his chest as he walked to baggage claim.

The last 12 hours had been quite the whirlwind. He had texted Voight immediately after he hung up with Hailey asking for the next day off. Thankfully he had said yes, and Jay booked the next flight that wasn’t full. It left O’Hare at 12:15 the next day.

He couldn’t believe what he was doing, flying to New York to see Hailey. It had only been a week and he was buying an overpriced plane ticket? He really did have it bad.

It wasn’t lost on him how familiar the situation was, losing a partner, a friend, someone he loved to the city, to the FBI even. He knew the feeling well, but his walk through the crowded terminal proved to him just how much things had changed. He never bought a ticket to see Erin, not after a week, not after a month, never. The thought never really even crossed his mind. She was gone and that was that, time to move on. But not with Hailey.

Hailey was different, the thought moving on, the thought of forgetting her ripped through him like a knife. He wasn’t sure he’d survive without her. And even though it had only been seven days, he was ecstatic to see her. He missed watching her blonde ponytail swing as she walked, he missed her telling him his handwriting sucked, he missed never having any pens, he missed her laugh, her voice, her smile (well that he had seen, but it’s not the same). He missed everything about her.

His flight landed around three, and he was meeting Hailey at her hotel. She had told the front desk to leave him a key to let himself in, and that she would be there as soon as she could. She couldn’t exactly ask for time off when she had only been there a few days.

Jay had decided on the plan that he was going to tell her how he felt, he owed it to himself to put himself out there again, and he couldn’t pretend that she was just his partner anymore. They both knew that they were more than that. However, when he made that decision, he thought he was going to have hours to decide what he was going to say. Not the 30 seconds it was going to take to walk over to the petite blonde woman holding a sign that read Jay Halstead.

He was taken aback, letting his mouth fall open as he stifled a laugh. She had surprised him. He was barely ten feet away when Hailey abandoned her sign and ran to wrap her arms around him. The closest that had been to each other since he had tackled her down in the surveillance van, almost a year before. “Hi Jay.” She said, her voice loud and clear without the static in between them.

“Hi Hailes.” He said, hugging her tightly to him. Definitely something he could get used to.

Eventually - and much to his dismay - she took a step back, nervously pushing a stray piece of hair behind her ear. “How was your flight?” She asked.

“Good, went by fast.” Not true, it was painfully slow, the anticipation was too much. “Thanks for picking me up.” He said.

“Of course. What are partners for?” She joked, rocking back and forth on her heels.

Jay laughed, “I don’t think Kim would ever pick me up from the airport.”

Hailey shrugged, smirking, “I guess it’s a good thing that she’s only your temporary partner then. I’m obviously the better one.”

“Yeah, you are.” Jay tried not to show his disappointment on his face, but he was really starting to hate the word partner. It was just a constant reminder that that was all he was, her partner. He wasn’t sure what he was expecting, he wasn’t someone to daydream about passionate first kisses in airports or running down a terminal to greet someone, but for some reason he thought that now was their moment. Maybe he was wrong.

Jay watched at Hailey’s face mirroring his own, realizing he was thinking the same thing she was. Won’t he just say it already. But she knew him better than that, she knew that he was too stuck in his own head to ever say what he was really feeling. He could never find the words to describe it, and that had been what was different all week. The 800 miles between them gave him an edge, something to use to keep her at an arm's length but still let her in. He was the most open he had ever been about his feelings with her this past week, and she wasn’t ready for that to be over. She never wanted it to stop.

So, she did the only thing she could. “Jay,” She said quietly, taking a step forward. “You have to know that it’s been a long time since I’ve seen you as just my partner.”

It took him a moment to process what she said, but once he did, he swept down and pulled her into his arms, pressing his lips to hers. Her hand cupped his neck as he gently held her up, a hand snaking around her waist. There they were, having a passionate first kiss in the middle of baggage claim, no doubt scandalizing everyone around them, but they didn’t care. All that mattered was each other.

Hailey pulled away breathless, resting her forehead against his. “I missed you so much.” She said quietly, wiping the stray tear that had fallen off her cheek. She was feeling a little overwhelmed by her emotions.

Jay smiled, leaning down to kiss her once again. “I missed you too, so much.” He pecked her cheek, making her smile. “I never want to miss you like that again, especially now.” She eyed her suggestively.

Hailey laughed against his chest, “Just a few more weeks.”

“It’s not fair,” He said quietly, running his thumb over her cheek, “That I have to leave tomorrow, after this.”

“Well,” Hailey said, intertwining their hands, “That's tomorrow's problem.”

“I like the way you think.” He said.

Hailey reached up, kissing him gently, “Then let’s get out of here.”

The two of them walked out of JFK hand in hand, hailing a taxi and climbing in together. The action was foreign, and so was the city, it wasn’t what either of them wanted. But being there together, even if it was just for a day, it felt like home.

…

A/N: Oh My Gosh I have been working on this fic for SO LONG and I am so so so happy to have finally finished it. If you haven’t guessed, my new series will be writing Upstead (and possibly other OC couples) as T'S songs because some of them for SO FREAKING WELL! Come back...be here is a bonus track off of red that I found a few weeks after 8x03 aired, and this fic has been a WIP since then, you don’t understand how excited I am to write these! Thank you SO MUCH for reading! Hope you enjoyed <3

taglist: @anniesardors @joy-meathiel @stephanie708 @carissalizz @snowwhite013 @imjustwritingg @benharmonsupremacy @angelsjedi @onechicago-upsteadrhekker

#jay halstead #hailey upton #upstead #upstead but make it taylor swift #upstead fic #kim burgess #vanessa rojas #kevin atwater #trudy platt #adam ruzek #will halstead

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lune-hime · 3 years

Text

We All Fall Down (Chocobros x f!Reader)

For those times when clumsiness gets the best of us.

↞Noctis↠

“Noctis, how did the two of you get up there?” Regis inquired, already mentally preparing himself for the absurd situation the prince was about to relay. Seeing his son and his fiancee dangling from one of the Citadel’s many spires was not what the King had pictured his Tuesday afternoon would look like.

“Y/N and I bet each other that the other wouldn’t be able to get from the throne room to the training room blindfolded.” Noctis stated as if it was a normal activity that young people did in their free time. The disappointed, but not surprised, look on Regis’ face made Noctis hesitant to continue.

“Y/N might have fallen a couple stories off a balcony before I warped to catch her.” Noctis grimaced and gave a cautionary look down to his father.

“But I’m okay!” You chimed in as cheerful as ever. Throwing the King an enthusiastic wave caused Noctis’ grip on the spire to falter. Both you and the prince screeched in fear, your holds tightening around one another.

“Do you need help getting down?” Regis offered, cringing slightly when Nocts’ arm began to quiver.

“No.” The Prince spat with a childish pout. It was like a toddler arguing with his overworked father. It would have been an endearing interaction to observe if you were not hanging precariously from the side of a building.

Regis deadpanned before shaking his head and smiling.

“Get down quickly, then. I was going to treat the two of you to ice cream.” He nagged playfully, turning on his heels. He didn’t get more than five steps before a resounding crash sounded on the walkway behind him. Turning his head, he was met with entangled limbs and pained groans.

The laughter that boomed from the King’s dignified frame shocked the two who were recovering from their fall. You and Noctis exchanged wide eyes before bursting into laughter yourselves. When you caught up to Regis, he placed an arm around each of you as you walked back into the Citadel, the sunlight warm on your backs.

If you thought you had escaped the dad lecture about how to navigate a castle safely, you would be wrong.

↞Prompto↠

Letting a bunch of Crown City High School sophomores loose on a chocobo ranch screamed chaos from the beginning. After the scheduled tour of the facilities and getting an in depth lecture on the intricate process of chocobo breeding, the children were set free to roam about the premises. For the more fearless students, free and lets say, too casual chocobo lessons were open. Too casual meaning unsupervised while the handler took a smoke break.

Naturally, you and Prompto were the most willing participants out of your friend group.

“I think I’m getting the hang of it!” You shouted to the blonde boy leaning excitedly on the arena’s fence as you trotted around the dirt pen.

“Yeah, you look great-Y/N!” Prompto didn’t have time to finish his compliment before he was vaulting over the fence towards your crumpled form. The chocobo had thrown you from its back so quickly that he didn’t have time to process the situation until you had already flopped ungracefully on the ground.

Placing his hands on your shoulders, he frantically turned you over to check for a concussion. The wind had been knocked out of you but other than that you looked unharmed. You sat there dazed for a few moments propped against his embrace before giggles bubbled from your chest.

“I wanna go again!” You exclaimed happily, seemingly unphased that your head had just fallen short of the bird’s powerful kick.

“How about we go visit the babies, huh?” He gently coaxed, eyeing the annoyed bird. It ruffled its plumage and squawked angrily as the two of you waddled out of the pen and towards the petting barn. All the while he couldn’t stop thinking how simultaneously alarming and cute your reaction was.

↞Ignis↠

“Stay awake, dear.” Ignis hummed in a low tone. The tour of the newly developed shopping complex had commenced once again and your group was now on the move towards the food court. Your head lazily dropped from where it rested on Ignis’ shoulder, snapping you back into reality.

“Huh? I was just resting my eyes.” You bluffed, briskly slapping your cheeks to bring some alertness into your veins. Ignis shook his head slightly as your group came to another stop.

“Why did you bring me on this again?” You stifled a yawn as one of the businessmen threw you a dirty look through his monocle. Hiding your tiredness with a cough you smiled awkwardly until he returned his gaze to the tour guide.

“It was you who insisted on coming, I told you to sleep in this morning.” Ignis whispered cheekily. The two of you were representing the Citadel in this group of stuffy conglomerates scouting for new business ventures. You decided to come, the nosy person you were, despite your exceptional exhaustion. Being a college student and a member of the Crownsguard was not recommended if you wanted to get a decent amount of sleep and graduate at the same time.

“Couldn’t bear spending an hour without me, hmm?” Ignis slyly poked you in the side, an amused smile on his lips. Huffing, you nudged him back playfully. Ignis was about to retaliate when the monocle man cleared his throat rather aggressively. It seemed you were disturbing his learning environment.

“And now we will make our way to the next floor.” The guide announced, his crisp tone filling the open space of the vacant mall.

Ignis ascended onto the escalator first, allowing you to rest your head on his back. You could care less if you got a makeup stain on his freshly pressed suit vest, any second you got to stare at the inside of your eyelids felt like pure bliss.

You had not anticipated for the ride to be so short and you didn’t have time to adjust to the absence of your headrest when he stepped off the escalator. Flailing like a fish, your face almost said hello to the tile when a strong grip on your waist held you up and pushed you, albeit clumsily, off the moving steps.

Regaining your composure you automatically thanked Ignis for catching your fall. Only, Ignis was in front of you and there was a hand still on your stomach. Slowly craning your neck back to see your savior, you saw yourself in the reflection of a polished golden monocle. An undignified squeak left your mouth as you jumped out of the man’s arms.

The man with the monocle scowled at you and clicked his tongue under his bristly peppered mustache. Heat rose to your cheeks and you sputtered a small thank you as he gruffly brushed past Ignis to rejoin the rest of the tour.

Ignis bit his lip to stifle his impending laughter. He needed to stay professional after all. He held out his arm to you, which you graciously took, and hid your face behind his sleeve until the embarrassment had washed itself from your cheeks.

↞Gladiolus↠

“And then Cindy almost punched the guy in the mouth because he was getting a little to handsy but I managed to thro-WHOA.” Your rambling was cut short by your ankle twisting haphazardly as you padded down the sunbaked steps of Lestallum’s main street. The steaming hot styrofoam of the Cup Noodles in your hand consequently went flying out of your grasp as you scrambled to collect your floundering form.

Expecting to see the horrendous sight of your freshly brewed noodles splattered on the pavement like the scene of a murder, you were pleasantly surprised when it was intact in Gladio’s hand.

“You okay?” He asked, placing the noodles on the stairs. He crouched down to look at your ankle. You nodded, giving it a few rolls. “Yeah, I’m good. What about your hand? Did it get burned?” You prodded, gently bringing his hand that held your cup noodles to your eye level.

“Nah it’s fine. My hand just smells like ramen now.” He chuckled.

“Now it's beefy, just like you.” You smiled cheekily, snatching your noodles from his grasp in a fluid movement. You skipped down the remaining stairs, leaving him to smile fondly before quickly catching up and squeezing your side, your combined giggles meshing with the subtle buzzing of the power-plant.

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sirthisisa-wendys · 3 years

Text

The Enforcers: Part 3 (Geto Suguru x Fem!Reader)

synopsis: some truths are revealed; others are harder to conceal.

wc: 1.4k

tw: none

masterlist

Dinner is rowdy with all of the Kitsune and their Leviathan partners walking over to you and Suguru and asking about the mission.

“I heard the condition of the crawl space was horrible,” Yuji mentions while shoveling a spoonful of sweet potatoes in his mouth. “How many kids were there?”

“Five,” Geto answers, setting his fork down on his plate. “But if y/n hadn't seen them while she was down on the ground, who knows where they would be right now.”

“Is your hand healing okay?” Maki wonders, and you hold up your bandaged hand, mouth full of rice.

“Geto bandaged it up, so it should be healed in no time.”

“I heard your next mission would be out of the city,” Nobara announces, sitting next to Megumi and raising her brow at the two of you. “And I also heard you’re still petitioning to be reassigned.”

“Not true,” you respond, much to everyone's surprise. “Not anymore.”

With this, you stand up and get rid of your tray before walking out of the cafeteria. Geto follows you out into the hallway, and you keep walking even as he speaks.

“You’ve changed your mind?”

“Yes,” you murmur, opening your door carefully, and you add, “But don’t think too much of it.”

“Hey, some teams are going out tonight. Want to come?”

“Where are you going?” you wonder, sitting on your bed and grabbing a book from the nightstand.

“Premonition. It’s a club downtown.” You knew about the club; it’s only frequented by the most elite people in society. And those elite people now consider you “one of them”. It’s a chance to bond with my fellow teammates, you think. But it could also land me in some trouble if I overdo it. “If you don’t want to, you don’t have to. I just thought since we made a huge victory with the--”

“Sounds like fun,” you blurt, much to Geto’s surprise. His eyebrows lower - like he’s forcing himself not to react - and he nods his head.

“Okay; be ready by eight o’clock.”

_____________________________________________________________

As you approach the scene, you notice that the line into the club is incredibly long. Potential patrons stand waiting, chatting, eagerly eyeing the bouncer at the doors for some sign, some signal that they are - in fact - part of the in-crowd that made their way inside the wooden doors. Despite all of the others ahead of you, you and your peers are ghosted to the front of the line quickly, aided by some secret that passes through the crowd: “They’re VIPs here.”

Perhaps it’s the tattoos on the Leviathans present or the way the other Kitsune straighten themselves to their full height, but you quickly come to an understanding that to fit in, you would have to be the ideal Kitsune and pretend that you’re better than everyone in the room. Because you could see right through their acts. Well, at least the eyes of the men in the crowd tell you that you’re some kind of mind-reader as they rove up and down your body. Part of you wants to recoil, to go back to your room and pick up your unfinished novel. But the other part of you wants to relish in their gaze. The attention is enough to make you smirk in pleasure, but the unthinkable happens as you walk into the dark club.

Geto stretches his arm out to wrap around your waist as you follow the others around the tables, weaving deftly around the patrons and protected by your Leviathan from their gazes. You look over to Suguru, finally taking in his black collared shirt - which is rolled up to his elbows and showing off his defined arm muscles - and the way his eyes shift among the crowd, examining each person in a split second.

“Right here,” he murmurs, extending his hand so you can ascend the three stairs to the roped-off section where your peers have gathered.

“To start off the night,” Yuji begins. “I’m buying a round for everyone to toast Geto and y/n for their success!” Yuji orders one round of a drink you don’t recognize, and when Maki pats you on the shoulder, you smile sheepishly.

“Really, it wasn’t--”

“It was an incredible show of teamwork,” Geto interrupts, smiling over at you before leaning into you to whisper, “Take the toasts now. They’re few and far between when you get higher up.” You plaster on a fake smile and accept the shots when they come, tilting it back and swallowing the blue glowing liquid. Geto takes your cup and replaces it with another, urging you wordlessly to take a second shot. You do so, not intending on ruining anyone’s good mood.

As soon as the blue liquid slides down your throat and burns a path down your trachea, you cough a little, shaking your head to clear it of the sensation.

“It only takes two,” Maki murmurs to you and you feel the world shift almost instantly. You’re not drunk. That would settle in later. No, you could see the world for what it really is: colors and lights. Various colors swim in your vision and dance across the floor; reds and blues glancing off the lights and making a show of their own. Yuji’s hair seems to partake in the mirage, the pink strands dancing and losing shape before reforming into perfectly normal tufts of hair then repeating the movements.

“Is it supposed to be like this?” you ask no one in particular, and Geto exhales, leaning back on the plush couch with a small smile on his face.

“Yeah.”

Then you can hear the music, the music. Everything is synchronized, everything makes sense, and you want to sit in the VIP booth and just watch the lights and listen to the music without ever having to get up. Your zoned-out expression seems to catch Nobara’s attention, and she laughs, waving her hand in front of your face. “Don’t tell me she’s gone dumb!”

“Nah, it’s her first time,” Suguru murmurs, leaning forward. “I bet her parents never let her drink a single drop of Diamond Match.” You shake your head at his assumption, remembering the locked liquor cabinet and the futile attempts to break into it as a child. Maki takes your upper arm and pulls you close, whispering:

“Undiluted, Diamond Match can make you tell anyone your deepest, darkest secrets. But when mixed with juices or concentrate, it just takes the edge off of the world for a little while.” You nod, open-mouthed, then turn back to the light and color show in front of the roped-off section. You don’t realize how long you’ve been staring at the array until Geto clears his throat and leans forward, brushing his fingers against your hip.

“Maybe we should go dance. It’s been quite a few songs, and you haven’t moved a muscle.” Without hesitating, you get up, taking him on the offer. It wasn’t entirely rote or mechanized, but you did want to get a chance to move your body while you still could. Before you die, something dark whispers inside of you, but you brush it aside as Geto slides in front of you, blocking you from the rest of the crowd as you two dance side to side.

“This is my jam,” you mumble, your tongue thick in your mouth.

“It’s just the instrumental from--” You cut Suguru off with a hand to his mouth.

“This is my jam.” He laughs at you underneath your palm, then nods.

“This is your jam.” You two lose yourselves in the music; hands and feet moving of their own volition before his hands find your hips and bring you closer to him. His massive figure towers over you, you realize now that you’re in his grip. But you don’t care; not really. “Ever thought about just letting loose once in a while?” he breathes, but you shake your head.

“There’s always shit to do. My father and mother never took breaks. Not even to properly raise me with a secure attachment style.” You wonder how you can so easily say these words to a man you don’t know (and one you don’t really like) when he nods, pressing his lips together.

“I understand how you feel.”

“What about your parents?”

“Didn’t have any.” You frown but choose to dig deeper anyway.

“So, you were a foster kid?” Suguru nods, his black hair shifting as he looks up and eyes around the room once before he returns your gaze. “How was that?”

“Awful.” You grimace, noting the dark turn the conversation is taking.

“But you made it out!”

“Is being a Leviathan really ‘making it out'?” he asks, stopping his movements and looking at you sternly. “Or is it the same misery, but with a paycheck?”

_____________________________________________________________

TAGLIST: @wack0-genius

#geto x reader #geto suguru #jujutsu kaisen getou #jjk geto #getou x reader #getou suguru #jujutsu kaisen

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