Dude if we’re going with oblivious Aquagirl and smitten Robin imagine Slade kidnapping the two for whatever reason and locking them in a cell together

He is then forced to watch as Robin simps so hard and Aquagirl remains completely oblivious

First of all, I AM SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG

but here you go!!!

Masterlist

Pairings: Robin!Dick Grayson x Aquagirl

WC: 1163

“Ughhhhhh” you groan. You open your eyes to a concrete wall. Waking up from unconsciousness in an unfamiliar place; talk about deja vu (see here). Ok then, time to get up and-

You tugged at your arms, but they didn’t budge. Your wrists were tied behind your back. Fucking great. Maybe I have something in my belt I can use, you thought, reaching around for anything you could grab. You felt something warm near your hand, and you recoiled at the touch. You peak your head over your shoulder to find Robin, slumped over, his wrists tied to yours.

Oh this is just fantastic, you rolled your eyes. Of course of all people you get kidnapped with, it's your best friend (and crush) the Boy Wonder. But there’s no time for blushing, you need to figure out why you're here and how to get out.

You gently tug at your bonds to shake Robin awake. You feel him tense up, and mumble as he comes to.

“What? Where-” he says, taking in his surroundings.

“Morning sleepyhead,” you say sarcastically. “I think we’ve been captured.”

“How’d we even get here?” Robin asks, shaking off the sleep. “We were patrolling, and there was these robots, and they shot out some gas-”

“And now you're here.” a voice echoed in the room. You look up and find a speaker and a small screen perch in the corner of the ceiling. The screen flickered to life and a familiar looking villain appeared on the screen.

“Slade,” Robin growled.

“It seems the two of you have finally woken up.” Slade continued. “You two will serve greatly as bait for the rest of your teammates.”

“Bait? What's your plan Slade?” you yelled, struggling at your confines.

“You see, I have these new robots; not only are they stronger than before, but they have a new feature: knockout gas. You couple were the perfect people to test them on, and as you can tell, they worked.” He explained. “Your location is right next to a warehouse full of them, so after the other Titans are defeated, I’ll deal with the two of you.”

Hello??? What the fuck??? You thought as Robin yelled at the screen.

“You won’t get away with this!”

The screen blipped to black and a silence fell over the two of you.

“We’re gonna die” you say.

“No we’re not!!!”

“Ok fine, we’re not gonna die. But how do we get out of this place?” you ask, still aware of the fact that you’re tied together in what looks like a fully sealed room.

“Well, I don’t have my belt so I can't cut us free, so maybe we should try to stand up and see if there's an opening anywhere.” He said.

“How are we supposed to do that??” you ask.

“Well, if we push our backs together, we should be able to use the force to push ourselves up.”

“Ok boy wonder, this better not be some weird yoga thing Batman taught you.” you said, shifting so your backs were pressed up against each other.

To spare the details, it was incredibly awkward. First, Robin's cape was in the way so you made him throw it over his shoulder so your backs could touch. Second, He pushed too hard and you two fell over, which became so much worse to try and get back up. Third, you were literally pressing your back against the Robin. You could hear his breathing. His hand accidentally brushed the small of your back. His own back was warm when pressed up against yours. (and he’ll never tell you this but he was thankful that you were faced away from each other because you couldn’t see him blushing furiously.)

Finally, you were both standing up, despite still being tied together.

“Now if only we had something to untie ourselves with-” Robin began, but you remembered something.

“OH MY GOD I FORGOT!” you said, bending your leg so that your foot was near your hand. You reached into your rubbery water shoes and pulled out a switchblade.

“What- Why did you-” Robin was about to ask but you cut him off again.

“I’ve always kept it in here, just for emergencies. And obviously, it helped.” you said smugly, already cutting at your bonds.

You finally free yourself and the two of you face each other. He seemed really red, and why is he sweating a bit? Is he out of breath from trying to stand up?

“Hey Robin, you alright?” you asked.

“Uh- yeah everything’s fine AG- why wouldn’t it be? Everything’s dandy!” he said, stuttering his words together. Dandy? Who tf uses dandy?

“Ok, whatever you say” you respond, a hint of skepticism in your voice. The last of the rope falls to the ground. You crack your knuckles, staring at one of the walls. Now that you had your hands free, you could easily make a hole in the wall with your hydrokinesis.

“Now let’s get out of he-” you began but a loud BOOM fills your ears. You cover yourself as one of the walls explodes, sending dust and concrete flying. You look up and realize that not only did Cyborg blast a hole in the wall, but you were wrapped in Robin’s arms, an extremely cheesy way to protect you. You both step away from each other, profusely blushing. Beast Boy pokes his head into the hole.

“Hey guys we’re here to- uhhhh did we walk in on something?” he asks, staring at the two of you. You step forward, towards the bright blue sky.

“No, you really didn’t.” you reassured him with a grin. “What’s the situation out here?”

One robot-fighting montage later, you were back at the tower, exhausted by the whole day.

“So you're telling us that Slade captured the two of you using his robots, trapped you together in a room, and then tried to kill us so he could kill you later?” Raven asked, sitting on the couch with the other Titans as you and Robin stand in front of them, debriefing what happened.

You shrugged. “Well, when you put it that way it sounds much more depressing than it really was.”

“Oh yeah? Did you guys kiss or something?” Beast Boy waggled his eyes at you. You laugh it off, but you couldn’t help but notice Robin blushing. You try to wave off Beast Boy’s comment before they actually start assuming things.

“When I said it wasn’t that depressing that's not what I meant,” you rolled your eyes, smiling. Robin was not good at keeping his cool.

“Y-yeah we didn’t do anything like that not like we wanted to or- we were very focused on getting out-” He stuttered barely stringing the line of words together. You both stood awkwardly now.

“Well,” you began. “I’m gonna hit the showers now… see you guys later…” You say, walking stiffly towards the hall.

He’s so weird, you thought. But at least he's cute.

Yeah that's it feel free to request more prompts and stuf!!!!

Perks of an insomnia-driven night.

Draco Malfoy x ravenclaw!reader

a/n: hi hello, this is my first draco malfoy au and I hope you get to enjoy it as much as I wrote it <3

contains: fluff, tension, cussing, insomnia, room of requirement, Draco's rings, and strangers to friends with benefits.

summary: due to another insomnia-driven night, you strolled and suddenly bumped into a particular Slytherin. He gave you a gift you would cherish forever.

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A loud buzz from outside startled you as you curled up on your bed, pulling the blanket up to your torso to suppress the chilly weather. You couldn't keep count on how many times you've tried to close your eyes and think as if you went into a free fall in hopes of getting yourself adrift. But no. You've closed your eyes, opened it again, flat it again but it didn't help at all. You were widely awake despite the fact you hadn't eaten any chocolate at all.

You heaved a sigh before deciding to leave your bed and go on for a short walk on the dimly lit hallways. Perhaps the calmness and stillness of it would soothe you. You pushed the duvet away from your nearly naked body and slipped your slippers onto your feet. Standing up, you went over to the bathroom, did some basic hygiene before twisting the doorknob and leaving your dormitory in a swift.

God, even the Ravenclaw common room didn't look fancy anymore.

It usually does every morning to dawn. But every midnight and pass midnight? It looks like as though someone was murdered and students ought to stay hidden in their dorms.

As your quiet and soft trudges echoed the walls, only a few line of torches lighting your way, you exited the Ravenclaw common room and was now and finally outside. The hallways were now bigger and neverending, as if you had set foot into a deja Vu. A few floorboards you step creaked and so the snoring portraits on every corner and side of the wall yawns and went back to sleep.

You maintained a good slow and calm pace until you forgot to pick up your wand from your room. There was no going back now because it was a long way back. Now you had to squint your eyes so that it adjusted from the pitch black darkness.

Loud cawing from crows scare you sometimes so goosebumps prickled your skin. The only thing you could see was the dots of glitter from the sky and the shadows the oak trees casted on the ground. The shadow was formed strangely and it looks distorted so you held a deep breath, reminding myself that there was nothing to be bothered of. And that everyone was sleeping just fine.

As you walked silently, your head elbow-deep in thoughts, you didn't know you were now staring at a wall so called the Room of Requirement. The walls was approximately fifteen feet, bizarre patterns across it.

"Well, there's nothing else to go, so. . ." Your mind spoke and you closed your eyes, thinking of a plausible reason to get yourself inside. After a few seconds, you heard three faint clicks until the wall molded into a tall door. You glanced sideways before entering the room slowly.

You were met by the darkness once again, but this time it felt comforting. You walked and walked, taking in the unblemished and grubby furnitures hidden beyond the tall door. There were stacks and mounds of unused things that you felt suddenly guilty. As you roamed around without a route, a movement beside you caught you off guard and it piqued your interest. Is someone else here?

"hello?" You started, your brows furrowing as you followed the movement.

As far from your expectations, the anonymous person replied and it was a manly, cold voice. "What are you doing up in the middle of the night? Aren't you supposed to be asleep?"

A shiver came across your spine. You shyly said, "aren't you supposed to be too?" You saw his shadow lurch and you took the chance to step forward.

He said, "doesn't matter why I'm here. This is my usual spot." His voice was a bit taunting and bragging.

"Well, you're hiding in the shadows so... And you're not supposed to hide if you claim this as your spot." You sternly said, keeping your gaze fixated on his moving shadow.

"I'm not hiding. Have you come to the realization that it's the dead of the night?" He sternly said.

"Yes, but— I think we should come over to the light so I can see you." You plead but you doubt he would actually do it.

"See me? Pathetic."

You sighed. "What? How about let's do it together? I'm really in the mood for some company right now."

The man was hesitant at first but he considered it. As much as he was irritated by someone invading his territory, he kind of wanted a company too. There was a strong exhale across you as he said. "Fine."

You gave an upturned smile, stepping into a small ray of light seeping through a window. The moonshine cradled your face as well as his. He stood tall and with poise in front of you with a neutral glare, looking down as if his eyes belittle you. "Better princess?"

You couldn't help but stare at his eyes. Wait- he was standing in front of you so he blocked the moonshine and you could only see his silhouette. You grabbed his sleeve and ushered him to a better angle. When you gently pushed his back on a partition, you finally got to look at his golden blue eyes, and the bits of freckles that stretched to his nose and cheekbones. His face was sculpted beautifully and even his nose shaped like a button. He was lithe and pristine. And you began to coil into a pit of fire.

"You're- Draco Malfoy?" Your voice shook.

"that's me." He smirked and it only made my headspace ablaze. "And you are?"

You were too busy admiring his features but your mind eventually rebounded. "I- Y/n- Y/n Y/l/n!"

He kept on smiling. "Oh, you!" He began to finally acknowledge your ghostly presence before. "You're the one I shared potions with on fifth year eh? The one where we got perfect scores?"

"Yeah, that's me."

"Right. The only reason we got perfect grades for it was because of my skills actually. Don't forget that." He playfully said, beaming a wink at you which got your cheeks turning slightly crimson.

"Ha ha, very funny. I still helped though." You avowed.

"Mhm. But I did most of the dirty work and you just stood there, watching." He laughed and I chuckled. Fun times.

"Fine. Have it your way. I did watch instead of help. Happy?" You jeered but you couldn't help but glance at the collection of rings on his bony fingers. You went still for a moment and decided to ask the unthinkable. "Malfoy?"

"Yes?"

"You- you have nice rings. It looks good on you." You faltered in the slightest but remained a tepid look. "Silver matches you to be honest."

"Silver?" His eyebrows rose and his voice was unbelievably sexy. "I get that a lot."

You keep on staring, checking out the patterns designed on the small ringed jewelry such as serpents and cursive letters. You didn't realize you were smiling until his fingers convulsed. "Y/n?"

You look back into his stormy eyes with embarrassment. "Oh I- I'm sorry, I was just-"

"It's obvious you really like them, don't you?"

"Well, I mean it's pretty but-"

"Would you want one?" His question was out of the blue so you nearly jolted.

Your eyes widen in full extent, the feeling of affection was set into extreme levels that you feel like you're about to explode. "Oh er- that's good thank you, but-"

"It's pretty I get it. And you seem to admire it as much as I do so ..." He paused, removing one of the glinting rings from his ring finger and held it into his palm. "Here, you can have it for me."

Your cheeks were flaming and it was intolerable. He was platonic and you never expected it from him. You sucked in a deep inhale, tongue-tied. "Oh my god, Malfoy, this was so unnecessary-"

"It's alright. Besides, I think that hand of yours need some color." He smiled tenderly, handing you the ring. His height was towering and it only made things worse for you to handle because of how the air thickens and the atmosphere suddenly getting hot.

"I d-don't know what to say." You stutter. "But thank you. Thank you so much, wow."

You got ahold of the metallic ring, inserting it on your ring finger but it didn't fit. It was expected of course. So you tried putting it on your middle finger but it was loose still. As you were about to put it on your thumb, his cold hands gripped your wrist making you halt mid-process.

"What is it-"

"Here let me help you out."

God, he was also wearing a silver glinting necklace. Now that is fucking sexy!

Draco unclasped his own necklace, putting either ends of it into the ring until it hang perfectly. When it was perfectly adjusted just how he wanted it to, he offered it to you without double thinking, a genuine grin sprawled on his handsomely face.

You were still deeply honored yet it felt... Wrong. "Draco- I really appreciate this but- it's yours and we barely even talk-"

"I don't care about that." He flawlessly said. "You remind me of someone I deeply love and... I guess this is my way of being grateful we met at this untimely night." He scoffed and you're a bit sure you saw a hint of blush on his face.

"Really?" You didn't bother asking who that person was since he probably wasn't in the mood to tell you. You were flattered by his words as you accepted his offer.

"Yes. Now take this, and wear it. I want to see your hands with my rings, Y/n." He flirtatiously spoke, giving you another wink.

You rolled your eyes at his ridiculous act. As you were about to out it, he stopped you once more and this time you were a bit provoked. "What is it again?"

He shrugged, and now the blush hidden in his handsome features was now displayed. It was cute seeing his pale, porcelain skin yo be tainted with a tinge of scarlet. He took the necklace into his hands and made strong and seducing type of eye contact. You nearly tripped at his look right now as he said. "Let's make this scene a bit... Romantic. And by that..." He clasped the necklace on your neck, his fingers ghosting your skin ever-so-slightly. "I get to do this to you."

You shudder, not just because of the cold weather, but because of his cold touch. It was so nice against your skin that you wanted him to do it again. You smiled and bit your lip to restrain any embarrassing words. "Draco, you're being too sweet-"

"Am I? People always like the idea of making me sound rude. It feels good I get to prove it to you that that is a lie." His hands sat ok your shoulder, the pad of his thumb caressing you pulse point between your neck and shoulder.

"I understand that. When people wanted to make you sound like a villain when truly your just trying to be genuine and basic?"

Draco grinned. "Yeah, Y/n. Something like that."

You contemplated for a moment, the tension between you building up because of how close your lips had been. It was merely an inch apart, your noses almost touching that you suddenly want to feel the saccharine taste of his lips and the soft texture pressed against yours. Maybe it would be the cure to your insomnia-driven nights. Maybe it would ease and alleviate you.

"You're pretty, you know?"

You were taken a back. You stared at his eyes still and didn't even realize his hands had dropped down to your elbows, pulling it closer to him, informing you that he wants your hands to lean on his chest—to feel how ragged his breathing had gotten just by her presence. You flinched a little and smiled.

"Oh?" Was the only word to roll out of your tongue.

"Mhm." Draco was lost in his own void, his concentration had dropped from your eyes and down to your gaped lips. "So pretty..."

Fuck...

You couldn't bear the growing impatience anymore and you knew to yourself that you had to do something about it. Something to help soften his heavy breathing. He looked tired and worn out. Fragile and about to burst. You had to do something about it quick before he breaks.

Shit!

And so you lifted your heel to match his height and pecked a kiss on the corner of his mouth. For a moment Draco closed his eyes to memorize the way both your lips linked—he was awestruck. He smelled good. So good that you wanted to give another go but was frustrated enough that he didn't slam you against the wall and leave you breathless from his aggressive kisses so you just stood there and watched him remember the unsolicited peck you just gave him.

"Y/n-"

"Can I kiss you?" You abruptly said without hesitation. "Again? And this time... Better?"

Shit..

He nodded in the slightest of movement before lowering his head and both your lips met anew. There were fireworks and butterflies erupting in your stomach and all you could feel was how graceful and subtle his tongue shifted against yours and it was pure bliss. And this time, it was rougher than you thought.

a/n: AHHH! i hope you liked this one, and also PART TWO IS COMING SOON! sorry, I left y'all in a cliffhanger ;))

"I always knew you were mine, Angel."

Ryomen Sukuna x Fem! Reader.

➽───────────────❥

Sypnosis: You've been raising your and someone else's child. Ever since a accidental one night stand, you got a little tipsy one night, and had someone else's kid 9 months later.. But, when you enroll your kid in soccer practice.. You and the coach have a strange connection..

Warnings: Mentions of pregnancy, and breeding. NSFW (slightly), Pet names, such as "Bunny' or "Angel". "Sir" kink. Dom! Sukuna. (Slightly) Pre-named kid! And Dad-mentions. Size-kink. Car-session.

CW: All the characters are at the correct age to intervene or comply with the storyline!

Word count: 2.1k words!

➽───────────────❥

You were driving Yuto to soccer practice, looking back in the review mirror at him. "Don't worry munch! You'll do so well!" You tried cheering him on. You knew he was nervous, you could see it in his face. But you were always distracted by your kid's looks. He had bright hazel-pink hair, with your eye color, and shape. And the cutest little nose that looks just like yours. Topping it off with a cute little dimple on his left cheek. He looked back your eyes in the review mirror, and sighed.

"Mom.. What if I mess up? I don't know how to play soccer!" He whined into his hands, kicking the seat slightly. "Munch. That's why you're going to practice! I'm sure there are other kids there who don't know how to play! Nobody's born and becomes a soccer prodigy!" You tried lighting his mood again.

"Well, all my friends had a dad to teach them things, why don't I?" He asked, with his hands tugging at the seat-belt. You tried dodging the question, asking him short questions instead. But he wanted an answer, so there you were. "Well.. Munch, I Don't really know where your dad is." You gulped, hoping he wouldn't continue. You really wanted to tell him the truth, but you couldn't just lay it on the table, and say- "Sweetie, I have No clue where your dad is. We haven't talked at all, and We barely talked when we met. Well.. not with words, to be nice."

"Makes sense! Onodera's dad travels a lot too!" He smiled, with his dimple-cuteness activating. You smiled at him, finally pulling up to the gym. You always questioned why this place was so big when you came here as a child. It was a sky-blue, with silver and yellow Pillars. You thought that the Pillar colors represented something, but there wasn't a mascot. Not if you count the Peeling paint on the side making the deformed shape of a cresent. You softly grabbed Yuto's hand, asking him if he tied his cleets, or if he needed to pee.

"I'm fine, Mom. But I won't be if you keep making me nervous." He muttered slightly. You run your hands through his hair. Still leading him to the gym room doors. You see a slightly tall figure, with Hair that reminds you of snow. The figure had on a very slick red jacket, with words that read,

"Nekoma high graduate!" On it. It looked pretty worn out, with a rip on the bottom of the sleeve, And a cat with spots on it. He seemed so proud of it, doing some weird motion with his arms. He greeted you with a smile, tugging at the cloth over his eyesight. "Well.. How do you do, Madomoiselle?" He attempted, biting his lip slightly. You laughed nervously, and greeted him with a goofy-smile. "Hello there.. Mr Satoru?" You peeped at his colorful nametag before smiling back at him. "This is my little munch, Yuto!" You cheered slightly, giving Yuto a little nudge.

"Hey there, kiddo! You're the spitting image of your hot mom." Gojo smiled, giving him a little push. "You'll do great out there. Now go- I have to get your mom to sign me some papers. And maybe her number-"

You cut Gojo off, with a kiss to Yuto's forehead, and a few extra cheers. You smile at the sight of Yuto's feet scuffing the floors with his shadow, and tell him you'll be in there right after. Gojo looked at you, them gave a big smile. "Miss, you have the eyes of a woman that's trying to cope. What's the issue? If you don't mind me asking."

You sighed, reading the paper Gojo handed you. It metioned something about a new coach, and how they'll be games every other day. You signed your name, and replied.. "Well, Yuto is starting to ask more and more about his dad lately, and his dad isn't really.. Y'know-"

"Hm,, Sounds like someone got a little saucy, yeah?" Gojo joked, bumping your elbow with his arm. You gave him a smile, and muttered an insult that made him laugh. He grabbed the paper, and smiled. "Well, Ms Y/n! Even though I don't see your number on this paper, I'll accept it."

"I'm sure I'll see you again, Mr Satoru." You smiled. "But- It won't involve my digits in your hotline, Mister." Gojo laughed, and gave you another smile. "Fair, Fair. But I'll always be here for the party, purrrrincess~" He made a pun, motioning to the cat on his jacket. You gave him an "Mmhm." and laughed a little.

You walk into the gymnasium practice room, seeing Yuto talking to a very tall man. The man was very slender, with slight broad shoulders. His figure was dream-made, with long, gentle bu slightly big looking arms, and very long legs that moved up to his sized torso, and shaped face. Tracing to his hazel-pink hair, with a messy hairstyle. "Christ- What does this man do for a living to be looking like a full course?" You thought to yourself, trying not to stare. You sat yourself on the bleachers, looking at how Yuto looking kicking the ball straight into the goal, avoiding all the blocks and built-up tension of his teamates. You laughed to yourself. "All that talk about not being good, and look at you go. Kicking that thing with no mercy." You felt a presence on the side of you, as you looked over.

The man had sat bedside you, looking at the sight you were only just gazing on seconds ago. "Good evening, Miss." He said holding out his hand.

Why so formal? It's just soccer. "Good evening, sir! How do you do?" You asked, taking Gojo's line. Sukuna chuckled a little, and gave you a little smile. "That's that idiot Satoru's line, isn't it?" He asked, shaking his head jokingly. You laughed, making his eyes widen slightly. He had noticed your familar laugh, wondering where he heard it from. He shook the lingering thoughts in his head, and tried to break the sem-comfortable silence. "Is that your boy?"

You shifted your vision back to Yuto on the field. "Yeah, he's mine." You replied. Sukuna admired your features, your hair that blew from the air circulation, your eyes that sparkled in any angle the light shone in.. His eyes moved their way to your legs.. then your waist, which he wanted to touch, then your chest- Which he paused on. He fastly took his eyes off of you, blushing.

You look over at him, and ask if he's okay, because you see that his cheeks are a little red. "Yes, Yes. I'm fine.. Just a little hot." He responded. You got up, telling him you were going to get ice. He pulled you back down gently, and gave you "It's okay's". He wanted you to stay, so he could admire you some more. He had felt this before.. Like Deja Vu. He knew he'd seen you up close like this somewhere, but it felt closer. Sukuna was tempted to ask "Have me met somewhere before?" But didn't want to sound strange.

You smile, as he told you not to worry, and slipped off his coat. You still worried for him a bit, feeling his face to make sure it wasn't too hot. He flinched at the feel of your touch.. He swore he felt your soft hands on him once. And he finally came to ask. "Miss.. Y/n, do we know eachother?" He asked, adjusting his glasses.

You didn't know whether you did or not. You did know that his cologne scent was so mesmerizing, yet familar. You had smelled it somewhere.. And it was really comforting. "I'm not sure, Sir." He gave you a smile, showing a dimple on his left cheek, that looked just like Yuto's. "Call me crazy, but.. You look like my Little Yuto over there, Sir." Sukuna cleared his throat, and looked away. "You think? I think we look similar aswell."

You both realized the sense. With Sukuna's looks.. And your Genes, you both were inmates. Partners. Maybe.. Lovers. You refused to believe that your 6 year old kid's dad was his new soccer coach. "If you don't mind me asking.. How long has it been since you've engaged in those.. Activites Ms?" He asked you, trying not to be weird.

"Well, since I got fucked, and pregnant? Maybe a few years." You wanted to say. "Well, It's been a few years. Since 7 years ago?" You gave him an answer. "It wasn't really.. A official thing."

"Maybe we can make it official, Angel? I already know who you are." Sukuna asked himself, rotating his fingers. "I understand. My last encounter was also about 7 years ago."

"My next will be soon.. Angel~" He smirked to himself. "There's always a right time for everything." He smiled, patting your shoulder. "Maybe we can talk after practice?" He said, walking off. You took off your serious face, and started flushing. The scent of his cologne made you a little aroused, which you found strange. You wanted to smell it more and more, until you couldn't anymore.

Practice was finally over, and you went over to collect Yuto, who was talking to another boy. Yuto looked back at you, and gave a flustered smile, before returning to the boy. You always knew Yuto had some type of affection for boys. So you'd let him have that friendship. You went to go give him his tennis shoes, when Sukuna pulled you aside.

"Gojo will take care of the kids. Please, wait for me at the door." He told you, patting your shoulder. You listened, walking to the door. You saw Gojo doing some silly walk leading the kids outside, Yuto's new friend waved at you. And you waved back, winking at Yuto. You felt a hand on your shoulder, and you jumped.

"Don't worry, It's only me, Angel." Sukuna calmly said.

Angel. Angel. Angel. Angel. It finally hit you. That name that you were called so long ago. The name you were obsessed with that one night of your life. The name you had written down in your book. "Who are you? Sukuna?" You asked, backing away slowly.

"..Hm, I'd perfer If you'd call me Sir like you were." He smiled, tucking your hair behind your ear. "Go on.. Your baby daddy is waiting, Angel." He teased, loosening his tie.

"You can't just- This is wrong. I haven't seen you in years, and you want to just come on me like this?" You said, trying to push him away.

"No Angel, I'm trying to make up for it.. You know how lonely It's been for 7 years? Without the sweet, small little Angel that I love?" Sukuna asked, thumbing your lips. "Then if you love me, why'd you leave me laying in a inn? Not even an explanation. And you missed 7 whole years of your child's life." You shot back.

"Well, there's the rest of it to make up for lost time, No?" He whispered in your ear, nibbling it slightly. You flushed, and your breathing got heavy by the scent of his cologne coming back to you. "We're in a gym, Suku- Sir.." You whispered, getting nervous by the second.

In the car, wasn't maybe the right choice. You had forgotten how big Sukuna was. He was huge. You didn't think you could take him at all. "Don't be scared, I'll go slow. Get loose Angel, we're making up for lost time." Sukuna whispered in your ear, touching your bare waist. "Now won't you be a good little angel, and spread those legs for me?"

A Royal Problem Epilogue

Here it is! The last chapter!!!

Enjoy!!

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As the years passed, Subcon started to slowly thrive as a living village again. Houses were back up, and some people or birds have been living in the newly developed town. The snow leading to the manor has melted and flowers and grass have started to grow. However, due to their past with the manor, Snatcher and Vanessa decided it was best not to live in the manor. Instead living in a new home, which was Snatcher’s tree now made to be more livelier and bigger for the two of them to live.

As for the manor, it turned into the home for Mu. Hat Kid decided to park her ship next to the manor and turned it into her own house, but she did travel with it when her planet needed her. Though as the years went on, Hat Kid started to come to Subcon less and less; she had missions to do, a boyfriend, who she soon married, and started to have a family of her own.

It has now been 15 years and Snatcher and Vanessa went over to the manor to see Mu before she left on her own journey. “Hello.” Snatcher spoke up. Mu paused in packing and smiled to see Snatcher and Vanessa outside her door.

Mu looked different the past 15 years, her hair was shorter, she still kept her mustache and wore a red dress with gold and purple patterns on it.

“Hey.” Mu replied.

Snatcher and Vanessa came in, and the two were wearing the capes Mu gave them during their visit to Mafia Town. “Could we come in?” Snatcher asked. Mu nodded and the two ghosts came in to see a backpack filled with important stuff for her journey. “You seemed prepared.” He chuckled.

Mu chuckled back. “Yeah.” She replied. The mustached lady looked down as she rubbed her arm.

“Are you okay?” Vanessa asked.

The mustached lady looked up at the ghost, giving them a tearful smile before giving them a hug. “Thank you! For everything.” She tearfully said.

Snatcher and Vanessa were surprised and hugged the young lady back. “Mu, you and Hat did so much for us.” Vanessa started. “We should be thanking you for helping us rebuild Subcon.”

“And, for taking care of us during the whole Time Piece thing.” Snatcher added.

Mu chuckled as she let go of the ghost, and wiped the tears from her face. “Gosh,” She sniffled. “I shouldn’t be crying over this.” Snatcher and Vanessa chuckled over it. Once Mu wiped the tears off her face she smiled and grabbed her bag ready to go on her journey.

“You're not going to leave without saying goodbye to me. Aren’t ya Mu?” A voice asked. Mu, Vanessa and Snatcher looked up and saw it was Hat Kid, well, Hat Adult standing outside of the room.

Hat Adult wore a purple wool blazer with gold buttons and replaced her cape with a yellow scarf. She wore a more fancy purple hat rather than her purple top hat she always wore, and like Mu’s her hair was much shorter and tied into a ponytail.

Mu giggled and ran to her best friend giving her a hug. “You know I wasn’t.” Mu replied. The two girls shared a laugh as the two hugged each other for a while.

“What about us, Auntie Mu?” A young girl, Hat Adult’s daughter asked.

Mu let go of the hug and saw two young kids next to Hat Kid. The girl looked to be 5 years old and had long black hair, styled almost like Hat Adult’s when she was a child. Had Hat Adult’s bright blue eyes and wore a purple blouse with a dark purple skirt, neon yellow socks and black boots.

The other child was a 3-year old boy, who surprisingly looked like Snatcher when he was a Prince, only his hair was the same color as Hat Adult’s, had his mother’s blue eyes, and wore a red T-shirt with a star on it, brown shorts, and brown boots like his mother wore when she was a child.

During those 15 years, Hat Adult found love and got married and had two children. Her daughter was named Nessie, and her son was named Luka.

Mu giggled and hugged the two kids tight, which made them giggle. “You know I wouldn’t forget you two, kiddos.” She told them. Mu let go of the two kiddos and grabbed her bag ready to go on her trip. “Take good care of your mom, Snatcher and Vanessa, okay?”

“Promise!” Nessie replied with a beaming smile. Mu smiled and ruffled the young girl’s head. “Hey!” She laughed.

Mu smirked, before chuckling herself. She then kneeled down to Luka, who looked nervous, and gave him a warm smile. “You’ll come back. Wight?” Luka asked, scared he wouldn’t see his favorite auntie again.

Mu ruffled his head gently. “I promise I will. In fact I’ll get you guys gifts when I’ll be back.” She promised. Hat Adult’s two kid’s eyes widen in amazement knowing they’ll be getting gifts soon.

Hat Adult looked at her best friend. “Just don’t go overboard like you did for Nessie’s birthday.” She begged.

“I won’t.” Mu told her, though the wink she gave to the kids was enough to tell them she’ll be giving them a ton of gifts, but not too much. The kids giggled, as Hat Adult rolled her eyes knowing Mu hasn’t changed even as an adult. Mu gave a soft chuckle before grabbing her bag and, giving one more look at her friends before leaving the manor to go on her trip.

Once she was gone, the Adult was able to sigh and look at her ghostly BFF’s. “I hope she doesn’t put herself into trouble like before.”

Snatcher and Vanessa laughed, agreeing with her. “Relax, kiddo.” Snatcher replied, still calling Hat that nickname even though she’s no longer a kid. “She’s grown up just enough that she’ll never fall back on her old habits.”

Hat Adult gave another sigh and smiled knowing Snatcher was right. Soon Hat Adult heard a beep coming from her phone. She answered, “hello?” She then smiled hearing who it was on the other end. “Hi Bow!” No one could hear what Bow was telling Hat on the other end of the phone, but seeing Hat’s disappointed expression knew that it wasn’t good. “Right now? Okay.” Then she hung up and was silent for a bit.

Snatcher and Vanessa looked at one another before looking at Hat Adult. Before they could ask what’s wrong. Hat Adult spoke up. “It looks like I’ll be traveling myself.”

“What?!” Nessie shouted. “Why?” She asked, sounding disappointed at her mother.

“My best friend Bow, another aunt of yours, has gotten into some trouble on the planet herself with her student.” She explained. Hat Adult then chuckled, “it’s a bit of deja vu if you ask me.”

Snatcher chuckled seeing that a friend of Hat got themselves into the same situation as her as a kid. “Well, good luck kiddo.” He told her.

“Thanks.” Hat Adult replied. She then saw her daughter, mad and disappointed that her mother was leaving on a trip. “Oh Nessie, I’m sorry. I promise I’ll be back as soon as possible.” She promised, but Nessie wasn’t having any of it. Then with her signature smug on her face, she told her daughter something that would cheer her daughter up. “You know, Snatcher and Vanessa will take care of you and your brother.”

Nessie, Vanessa and Snatcher’s eyes widened when Hat Adult said those words. “Really!?” Nessie asked, a smile appearing on her face.

“Really?” Vanessa and Snatcher repeated, knowing Hat Adult was dropping this on them out of the blue.

Hat Adult nodded. “Really.” She told her. “Plus I won’t be long like Mu, it will be just a few weeks.”

“If your mother decides not to put herself in danger again.” Snatcher whispered to Hat Adult’s kids, which made them giggle.

“Snatcher! I know mommy went on many adventures, and that was brave and kicked a-” Nessie was cut off when Snatcher covered her mouth not wanting her to say a bad word in front of her mother. Hat Adult replied with a glare towards Snatcher knowing it was him or Mu who taught her daughter to speak that fowl language. Snatcher gave a nervous chuckle, which earned him an eye roll from Vanessa and Hat Adult.

Hat Adult then felt her son hug her leg tightly and heard him let out a sniffle. “Mommy, could I come with you?” Luka asked, his eyes being big as saucers as tears flowed like waterfalls.

Hat Adult sighed as she picked up her son, “Sorry Luka, remember when you and your sister are 9-years old you can go on journeys with me.” She told him. Luka sniffled and started to cry as he hugged his mother tight. Hat Adult soothed her son as she rubbed his back, hoping to calm him down. Luka cried, and showed no signs of stopping.

Vanessa went over to the two and got close to Luka. The young boy paused his crying as he watched Vanessa use her ice powers and made Luka a small snow figure just for him. Wiping away the tears from his eyes he held onto the small ice figure, which calmed him down.

“I promise I’d make you an ice figure like I made for Nessie.” Vanessa told him. Luka slowly started to smile, and looked at his mother. Hat Adult nodded and slowly put her son down.

Nessie put a hand on her little brother’s shoulder, and Hat Adult faced Nessie again. “Take care of your little brother, okay?”

“I will.” Nessie replied. Hat Adult smiled and hugged her daughter.

“Promise me you two can keep them safe?” Hat Adult begged as she looked up at Snatcher and Vanessa.

Snatcher gave a soft smile, and put his hands on Hat Adult’s shoulders. “Kiddo, you took care of us,” He started, “and we took care of you and Mu. We can handle taking care of your kids.”

Hat Adult smiled and hugged Snatcher and Vanessa tight. “Thank you.” She replied. “I know in your care, they’ll be okay.” Snatcher and Vanessa let go of Hat Adult as she stepped away from her kids and friends. “Well, see ya! And good luck!”

With that, Hat Adult teleported to her ship and went off.

Thank you guys so much for this journey of A Royal Problem!!

If you guys are going to stick around for the alternate endings, that’s great!! I’ll be seeing you again soon once I get it up. If you guys aren’t that’s fine too, I’m just glad you guys enjoyed ARP!!!

I’ll be now shifting focus to Eclipse, Ebb and Flow, and Cat-Tastrophe for the time being. However, I got tons of ideas for more AHIT fanfics coming your way! One being a bit “magical” and the other an “new adventure”! So stay tuned for that!

Hope everyone has a wonderful day ^^

26, 58 and 61 for ethan x mc please? like angst in the beginning but fluff in the end. thanks!! i love your fanfics btw i read it like 100 times and i can’t seem to get over it.

Aww thanks anon ☺️ and thank you for the ask ❤️❤️

You can find the prompt list here.

#26-“Are you angry…?”

#58-“Where have you been?!” 

#61-“I’m sorry…I shouldn’t have done that, you can look after yourself…I shouldn’t have…I’m sorry.” this prompt is in the form of a text message 

Author's note: okay anon I know you wanted a fluffy ending BUT, I decided to write it as a continuation to Hard for me i.e the prompt in which people demanded asked for a part 2

So forgive me for the ending

Word count: 1.2K

Warning: none, it's just angsty as hell

Cry for me

The next one week was painful. 

Ethan's confession in the lift had left Leah in a flux of emotions. On one hand she was joyous that he returned her feelings and that he was all in.

But on the other hand she felt gut wrenching guilt which slowly started eating away at her sanity. She was in a relationship with Bryce. She had a freaking boyfriend but that still didn't stop her from pining for Ethan.

She was so lost in her thoughts half the times, zoning in and out of conversations. Bryce could see something bothering her so he slowly formulating a plan to cheer her up.

"Hey Princess?" Bryce asked as they drove to the hospital.

Leah snapped her head towards Bryce. "Yeah?"

“Are you angry…? Did I do something wrong?"

"Of course not, queen B!" I am angry with myself and the world.

"I just... Can't see you so down and lost. You know you can talk to me, right?"

I don't think I can talk about how I am completely and utterly in love with my boss and the fact that he returns the sentiments.

"Yap I know. It's just been a stressful week, y'know?"

"What if we have a movie night today?  We can eat junk food and laugh on trashy movies?" Bryce spoke up as they got out of the car.

"That's exactly the thing I need. Thank you Bryce." Leah smiled at him and wrapped her arm around his waist, giving him a side hug.

Bryce gave her a breathtaking smile and wrapped his arms around her. "Anything for you Leah."

As they stood there, with their arms around each other in the parking lot, Leah failed to notice a pair of stormy blue eyes burning into her back.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------- After changing into her scrubs and grabbing a coffee from the coffee cart, Leah made her way towards Ethan's office. June and Baz were sitting and drinking coffee, pouring over the charts while Ethan wrote on the whiteboard.

"Good morning team." Leah greeted them with a smile.

"Good morning, Leah!"

"Good morning, Dr. Garcia."

"You are late. Where have you been?"

Leah's eyes snapped to the clock above the whiteboard.

8:00 am.

"I was getting the charts. And I am not late. We start the meeting at 8am." Leah said as she placed her laptop and coffee on the table.

"Dr. Garcia, this is not your 9 to 5 corporate job where you enter and leave at a given time. You are a doctor and time should cease to exist because our patient's life is in the palm of our hands. Every minute you spend wasting time, that much is cut from our patient's life. Have you forgotten your Hippocrates oath?"

Leah wanted to answer back, but she bit her tongue. NOT worth it Leah, calm down. 

So clenching her jaw and swallowing down the humiliation, she responded in a curt voice. "Yes Doctor."

"Tardiness in not acceptable. Is that clear?" 

Baz interrupted, trying to diffuse the situation. "Ethan she wasn't even that lat-"

Cutting Baz off, his icy eyes bored into her angry hazel ones. "Dr. Garcia, am I clear?"

"Crystal." Leah spoke up, glaring at Ethan.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------- And that's how the entire day continued. When working the case they were like a well oiled machine but outside in the hallways, they would glare at each other as if they wanted to kill each other.

The tension between Ethan was so thick that you could cut it with a knife. They butted heads throughout the duration of the shift that even the staff noticed.

Leah felt like a ticking time bomb, threatening to explode. Anger, frustration and pain is a very dangerous cocktail together, and now she had all of them whirling inside her like a tornado.

I'm gonna fucking confront him. That son of a bitch has it coming. Leah thought to herself, her teeth grinding.

So when she saw Ethan head towards the stairwell, she followed him.

"Dr. Ramsey, wait up."

"If it isn't patient related, don't bother me."

Leah rushed after him and grabbed him by his elbow with incredible strength, causing him to stop and turn towards her.

"What has gotten over you Ethan?"

"I don't know what you are talking about." He crossed his arms and stood there, towering over her.

"You are a smart guy. Acting dumb doesn't suit you. Now, let's try again, what has happened that has made you so pissed with me?"

"Rookie, I'm not mad at you."

"Yes you are!! You said Rookie in B flat and that only happens when I have royally pissed you off. And last time I checked I haven't done anything wrong-"

"What you did wrong, was crash into my life. What you did wrong, was try to cheer me up on a bad day. What you did wrong, was comfort me in my pain. What you did wrong was have faith in me when I was in doubt. What you did wrong, was make me fall for you."

Leah's jaw dropped. What sort of backhanded compliment was that? Clearing her throat and squashing the butterflies in her stomach, she spoke. "Ethan you can't say things like this to me."

"Why not? It's the truth. I like you way too much for my liking." He said in a low voice.

Leah threw her hands in the air. "Because, I am in a freaking relationship! You had your chance and you blew it. Don't Gove me mixed feelings now."

"I-"

"No now you will listen. You pushed me away. You said that you wanted space. You wanted my professional development. You wanted things to go back to normal. This is the new normal, okay? Accept it."

For a first time in a very long time, he looked helpless and guilty. "I was so wrong sunshine..."

Leah stuffed her hands in her coat and looked down at her lavender converse. She was at a complete loss of words. If things would have been easier she would have kissed him and hugged the sadness out of him.

But life is complicated. And everything has a price.

"So that's it huh? So..." Gulping Ethan continued, "You are over me?"

Silence.

Her brain was screaming at her to say yes and to move on from the angsty and painful chapter of her life. But she could not get herself to say it.

"If things were not as fucked up as they were... Do you think we would be a thing?"

Sighing she patted his arm. "I think you are smart enough to figure that out."

Leah side stepped him and climbed down the steps and opened the door of the stairwell to find Bryce standing there, a deer caught in the headlight expression on his face.

Leah greeted him, curiosity laced in her voice. "H..hey?" 

Bryce immediately turned and started walking away fast.

"Bryce wait up."

This is some deja vu.

Bryce stopped and turned towards her, pain shining in his eyes. "Is it true?"

"What?"

"That you have feelings for Dr. Ramsey."

Shit shit shit. An alarm went on in her brain which caused her to freeze up.

"I-" Leah started but she was interrupted.

"I heard everything."

Leah took a deep breath. Cat’s out of the bag. No point denying it. "Please don't jump to conclusions. I-" her pager beeped, signalling that a VIP patient had arrived and she sighed.

"I need to go now. I will talk to you tonight. Please don't do anything rash. I beg you."

Without saying a word, Bryce shrugged and walked away.

Why is does it feel like the two important men of my life walked away from me in a span of 2 minutes?

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

It was nine in the night and Leah was finally done with her rounds. Wearing her jeans and jumper, she tied her hair long black locks into a messy bun and stared at her reflection in the mirror.

Letting out a breath, she gave herself a pep talk. Okay Leah... You have to make a decision. You are not Hannah Montana. You can't have the best of both worl-

Her phone pinged, interrupting her. She picked it up to see that it was a text from Ethan. 

Letting out a sigh, she picked up her messenger bag and walked out of the hospital, only one thing running in her head.

Who do I listen to? My head thats telling me that Ethan will hurt me again and that Bryce is better? Or my heart which tells me that Ethan is my one shot at true love?

It was painful to write this 

Also the last part got 88 notes so lets get this to 90 notes so that I have motivation to write part 3 heheheheh 

what do you think will happen in the next part?

ALSO GIVE ME SUGGESTIONS FOR WHAT I SHOULD NAME THIS SERIES

I love you guys 

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Sweet As Honey 14

Harry may be hurt with y/n, but that doesn't mean he doesn't know what's best for her, and it doesn't mean he won't take care of her. Which is why he made her take a break from everything. He knows she's hard-working and always eager to please, but after that weekend back in his hometown, he knew they both needed some time for just them. Now that she's starting her second trimester she's been more tired and the now visible baby in her belly is starting to bother her with cravings.

Cravings that have him spreading cinnamon butter on honey rolls at midnight, and sprinkling extra cheese on her omelette in the morning, and frying excessive amounts of chicken for dinner. It's a bit annoying, but it's also his baby he's feeding. The tiny, helpless little baby that's just getting a taste for life, that's relying on him for care and love and protection. And careless or not, that's his wife that he's taking care of. The beautiful strong woman that's creating life in her tummy, that's growing the big family he's wanted ever since he fell in love with her.

But that doesn't mean he's not annoyed when he's woken up by her wiggling out of bed, and he rolls onto his back, blinking the fuzziness away and watching her quietly leave their bedroom. He knows exactly where she's going and what she's getting, because he always knows when it comes to her.

He groans, frustrated that his brain and body are telling him to just go back to sleep, but his heart is telling him to follow her, to follow his baby. Sleepy scowl on his face, Harry leaves the room, silently trailing her into the kitchen where he finds exactly how he knew he would.

She's sat on the countertop, leaning back against the cabinets in the corner where the two tops meet, legs stretched out by the sink with a bag of puffy Hot Cheetos in her lap. Her eyes are droopy and pink, and she lazily digs around in the bag for a chip.

Her gaze moves to him when she finally notices his presence, lips quirking up sleepily. He fishes out a glass and fills it with water, placing it on the counter next to her because it's only a matter of time before the chips get too hot.

"Deja Vu, huh?" She mururms quietly as he leans back against the cabinet. His arms cross over his chest, head bobbing sluggishly. He looks around the kitchen, at the freshly washed baby bottles and the stack of dirty bibs on the floor in front of the laundry room. He thinks back to when it was just them here, resting in these exact same spots with the same chips in her hands. The only difference now, is the tiny human sleeping upstairs.

"S'almost exactly the same." Harry agrees, looking over at her growing belly. It's not actually visible under her baggy shirt, but he knows it's there. Ever since he noticed it a few days ago, it's pretty much all he can see.

"Yeah, almost."

Her tone has Harry's head snapping towards her, eyebrows pinching together. She sounds almost bitter that they're in this spot again. And if she's not bitter, she's at least upset by it.

"Why'd ya say it like tha'?" Harry demands gruffly. Y/n lifts her water up, red fingerprints sticking to the glass like a messy toddler. She frowns, setting down the glass and lazily wiping the her mouth with the back of her hand.

"Like what?" She scoffs, "like how I'm feeling?"

His skin prickles, veins getting hot with either annoyance or anger, and he wishes he had just gone back to sleep. He doesn't want to fight with her but it seems like she's pushing his buttons on purpose.

"Like you wish we weren't here." Harry mutters, nose flaring angrily. He squeezes his eyes shut, focusing on the black behind his eyelids to try and calm down.

"I didn't mean it like that," she sighs, "I meant it like it's not the same. It's not even close to the same. If this were like last time, you wouldn't be looking at me like you want to hit me."

Her words make him tense, anger freezing and molding into a numbing panic. Hit her? He would never even think of hitting her?

"Don't look like tha'," Harry says, sounding more defeated than he thought he would. "could never look at you like tha' because I'd never want to do tha' to you."

Y/n closes up the chips, reaching over her head to put them back in the cabinet. She wipes her hands off on the dishtowel next to her.

"Well something's different," she dumps the rest of her water in the sink. "and I don't know what I did to make it change, but I hate it."

Harry watches her through sad eyes as she slips off the counter. She looks sad too, he thinks, as she tip-toes to press a kiss to his cheek, and he reaches out to grab her hand and bring her back to him but he's too late, and she slips out of reach and up the steps.

~

After staying at home for days on end, Harry thought it might be nice to go out again, even if it's to go to Anne and Gemma's apartment. He, however, is not feeling particularly nice.

"The apartment looks wonderful!"

Anne practically melts at y/n's compliment, hand coming to rest on her chest as she blushes.

"It's nothing compared to your home, but we really like it." Anne says kindly, and Harry rolls his eyes. After living with them for months, Anne is suddenly all about kind small talk.

Y/n follows Anne out of the living room and around a wall into what Harry assumes is the kitchen. He doesn't follow, instead carrying Arlo over to the couch and flopping down onto the springy cushions. Arlo sits back on Harry's thighs, sock clad toes hooking around his back, and his head swivels around with big eyes as he takes in the unfamiliar place.

"S'not bad, huh?" Harry whispers, unbuttoning Arlo's coat and slipping it off his shoulders. Arlo let's him wiggle his arms free, and then he's smacking his palms down into his Harry's thighs.

“Daddy,” Arlo murmurs, turning his gaze to Harry. Harry manages to slip off his jacket too, keeping his eyes on Arlo. The last thing he needs is Arlo taking a tumble off his lap.

"Let's go eat dinner bug." Harry groans, rising from the couch and carrying Arlo into the dining room and kitchen. Gemma smiles at him in hello, and Harry just nods. He sits next to y/n, Arlo sat in his lap again and his wife places a plate of chicken, mashed potatoes, and extra peas in front of him.

"Share with your son." She says, kissing the top of his head. It's uncomfortable when everyone sits down, Harry trying to just focus on feeding Arlo small bites of potatoes, but he can feel Anne and Gemma staring at him. He's reminded of that first dinner they had together, when he was avoiding gazes and y/n was really the only one talking. It makes his stomach twist.

"Thank you for dinner!" Y/n says politely, helping Gemma stack dirty dishes. "It was wonderful!"

"Of course!" Anne says bashfully. "It was the least we could do after all the meals you fed us."

Harry bites back a frustrated growl, adjusting Arlo's little socks to look busy. He feels y/n elbow him, undoubtedly telling him to thank them. He knows he shouldn't say it, knows it's petty and stupid, but he says it anyway. Even if he knows it'll make y/n mad.

"Thanks for getting out of my house."

He's met with silence, and he stands back up, carrying Arlo to the living room where he can be alone with his baby.

~

They're barely two feet from Arlo's room, the door cracked in case he wakes up, when she hounds on him.

"You really shouldn't have treated them that way Harry."

Harry tugs his tee-shirt over his head, rolling his eyes at how cross she sounds. Of course she's still choosing their side, of course they've begun to take someone else away from him. He throws his shirt towards the closet, falling onto the edge of the bed.

"Can treat 'em however I want." He grunts, pulling off his shoes and angrily tossing those towards the closet too. They hit the wall with a bang.

"If you want to fix this with them you have to stop being so closed off and intimidating!"

He huffs, watching her storm into the closet and hears begin digging around for pajamas. He stands up and wiggles his pants off.

"Maybe I don't want to fix things anymore!" Harry hisses loudly, trying to be conscious of Arlo sleeping one door down.

"Are you kidding me?" She chuckles bitterly, the sound muffled by the walls but still enough to make his stomach twist. He hates fighting with her, really fucking hates it, and no matter how hard he tried not to do it, she still drug him in.

"You want to go back to the way things were before? You want the nightmares and panic attacks and trauma to stay?"

Harry snatches the shorts he threw on the bed this morning, tugging them on aggressively. "I want to stop getting my bloody hopes up! Thought we could fix things, thought that we could maybe be normal but they can't stop hiding things from me!"

Y/n scoffs bitterly, stepping out of the closet in her pajamas. She tugs her hair up into a bun. "Hiding things?"

"Yes hiding things! You don't hide something like a bloody house burning down from your son!"

"And you don't hide not wanting to have kids from your wife!"

Harry stops abruptly, eyebrows knitting even closer together. He takes in her heaving chest and blazing eyes, and even though he knows he's probably on the verge of crying, all he can focus on is the fact that she's turning everything around on him. She's bringing up things that don't even matter.

"What the fuck are you talking about?"

"You hide things too Harry!" She exclaims, and her fingers work on pulling down her bun even though she just tied it up. "It happened in the past but it was important and you didn't tell me! You can't treat them like this when you do the same thing!"

It's irrational. He knows it, and he knows his anger is misplaced right now but she's standing in front of him and pushing him. "I can treat them however the fuck I want to and I can hide whatever the fuck I want to!"

Silence. Absolute silence takes over the room, save from his harsh breathes and y/n sniffling. She doesn't even respond, doesn't get a chance to because Arlo's begun wailing from his room. Before he can even think of going to get the baby he just woke up, she's slipping out of the room.

Harry's heart pounds in his chest, throbbing in his ears and he's already dreading the headache he'll have in about ten minutes. He falls back onto the bed, running a hand through his hair and taking a few deep breaths. Arlo's crying has ceased and he can't even hear y/n upstairs. Assuming she's taken him to the living room for a feeding, Harry pushes himself off the bed and out of the room.

The living room TV is on, and he finds y/n on the couch with Arlo tucked into her neck, snoring. His irritation bubbles again, wishing he'd been fast enough to snag Arlo so he could be the one getting relaxing cuddles.

"You're sleeping down here then?" He asks, monotonously.

She sinks further into the couch. "Obviously."

He huffs. "And ya get both both babies now, huh?"

"It's fair, since apparently I'm the only one that wants them."

He closes his eyes, taking a few deep breaths. "Fine." He spits through clenched teeth, stomping back upstairs and into the empty bedroom. He tugs down the blankets on the bed and climbs in. And when y/n doesn't come up for the night, he just hugs her pillow to his chest, hating that it feels like their falling back into old habits.

~

Harry comes back his run, sweaty and sad, brain replaying his fight with y/n. No matter how much he extended his run, or how loud he blasted his music, he couldn't turn off his brain. And it made him even more irritated, enough so that he's ready to scream at her again when he enters the house.

But he doesn't get a chance before she's storming in front of him, purse on her shoulder and car keys in her hand.

"Car, now!"

He opens his mouth, argument on the tip of his tongue until he sees the stormy look in her eyes and the clench of her jaw. He ignores the fact that he probably smells and that his shirt is sticking to his body, and follows her to the car like a kicked puppy.

Y/n is silent as she drives, knuckles white on the steering wheel. Harry nervously plucks at his sticky shirt, blasting the vents at himself to try and cool down.

"Where's Arlo?" He asks timidly, afraid to set her off. He knows when to not upset her, no matter how much he may want to.

"Mom's." She says shortly.

The rest of the car ride is silent, and Harry tries not to fiddle too much as she basically ignores his presence. He doesn't speak up until he realizes where they're going.

"Don't need to be here-"

"Shut up and go inside." She interrupts, yanking the keys out of the ignition and climbing out of the car. Harry follows, head hanging low all the way to the receptionist's desk.

"Dr. Wells please."

She must have set up an appointment, because they're not even seated for five minutes before they're escorted into a familiar office. Y/n sits on the couch, huffing in irritation when Harry just stands and stares at her. He doesn't know why she's brought him here, or why she thinks he needs to be back.

"Please sit down Harry?"

"No," he crosses his arms over his chest, "don't want to. Don't need to."

He's not sure where Dr. Wells is, but he's glad he's not here to witness the way y/n crumbles in on herself, sniffling harshly. She buries her face in her hands, and his bones rattle with each rack of sobbing that shakes her.

"W-wha'?" Harry gasps, tripping over his own feet as he stumbles onto the couch next to her. He reaches for her arm, wanting to see her face and hold her, but she jumps up and steps away from him.

"Why does this have to be about you?" She wails, wiping at her splotchy cheeks. Harry sits dumbfounded on the couch, mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water.

"Did you ever think that this was for me? That I need to tell you how I'm feeling?"

She looks at him through wet eyes, bottom lip trembling. Her arms hug her belly protectively, and that's enough to have Harry welling up with his own tears. He never wants to make her feel like she has to protect herself from him.

"Baby," he pushes himself off the couch, cautiously tip-toeing closer. "baby ya can talk to me. Please-just-what's wrong?"

"I want you back." She whimpers, swiping under her red eyes again. Confusion twists his features, but he still manages to wrap his arms around her torso and bring her to his chest.

"M'here. Always been right here."

She shakes her head against his chest, hiccuping. "You're doing it again. Where you don't talk to me and you're upset all the time and it feels like you don't care about us anymore!"

Her honesty pushes out another flood of shaking and sobbing, and Harry squeezes her tighter. Tears sting his eyes, blurring his vision and he squeezes his eyes shut in agony. Her cries seem to echo painfully in his chest.

Clearing his throat, Harry presses his lips close to her ear to respond. “Of course I care about you! Care about you more than anything, you a-and Arlo and the baby are my everything.”

Y/n nuzzles her nose between his pecks, and he strokes his fingers through her hair to get her to calm down. When words fail him,he’s always had his actions. 

“Why didn’t you tell me you don’t want kids?”

He almost chuckles. “Didn’t, baby, I didn’t want kids. Back when I was living in a house with an unstable mother and an abusive twat, and Gemma and I were fucked, I didn’t want kids,” he pulls back just enough to look down at her, “because I couldn’t see myself giving them the life they deserved. I was hurt, and stupid, and selfish, and I didn’t want another fucked up family.”

His trembling fingers wipe her cheeks, and it’s like bricks are lifted off his chest when he sees the sadness in her eyes instead of the cold, closed-off gleam she had earlier. 

“What made you change your mind?”

His lips curl up tenderly. ‘You darling. Ya loved me, taught me to love, gave me dreams and hopes. Knew from the day I fell in love with ya that I was going to give you the prettiest babies ever,”

A smile stretches her lips, and she blinks bashfully. “We do make pretty babies.”

He giggles, pecking the soft skin between her eyebrows.”We do. Can’t wait to see what our new one looks like. If they get their mumma’s nose and my smile.”

She hums. laying her head in his chest again. “Maybe they’ll look just like Arlo, and everyone will think they’re twins.”

“Maybe,” he agrees, ‘but no matter who they look like, they’re going the mean the world to me, just like you and Arlo.”   

She tilts her head up, chin tucked into his chest. “I know we do,but I just...”

He rubs her shoulder soothingly. “Just what?”

“I don’t want you to shut down on me again,” she says quietly, “you’ve accomplished so much, and I’m so proud of you. I don’t want you to be closed off again.”

He nods, shushing her softly when her bottom lip trembles again. “I know, I know. M’sorry,you’re right. It’s been hard since Gemma and Anne showed up, and then going back home, but m’gonna start being honest okay?”

She nods, pressing a sweet kiss into his jaw. “M’always on your side Harry,” she promises, “always going to support you and help you, but I can’t if you don’t tell me what you’re feeling.”

He nods, swallowing thickly. "Just didn't want to fight with ya, hate fighting with ya."

"I'd rather fight with you than feel like this, and I know you hate feeling like this too."

A trembling laugh leaves his lips, and she peppers a couple kisses to the side of his face. "Guess I just forgot, fell back into old ways."

Y/n nods, her hands snaking up to thread her fingers through the curls at the back of his neck. He eyes flutter shut, feeling her nails scratch his scalp. His shoulders slump under her touch, head burrowing into her neck and he focuses on the way their chests touch when he breathes in. Faintly, he hears the door to the room open, but he ignores it and so does she.

"I just can't believe they didn't tell me," he finally whispers, sullen at the reminder of his childhood home, and Anne and Gemma not telling him. He understands that it's hard to talk about, that Anne is really traumatized from the whole thing, but that was his home and his right to know.

"I think maybe they just didn't know how or when."

"Maybe when I told them I was taking you for a walk around the whole bloody town," he says bitterly, "as if I wouldn't want to go back."

Y/n hums, and he realizes she's begun to sway them back and forth soothingly. His lips quirk up, fingers tightening on her waist. "I'm not going to try to defend them or explain why, because this is their problem to fix. But I'll be there when you're ready to go to them and talk."

"Why were you so mad when I didn't want to talk to them?"

"Because I'm tired Harry, and I know your tired of this too. And I was being insensitive, but I just wanted to get that over with. I want our home to go back to normal."

Harry smacks kisses to her neck, squeezing her even tighter until he can feel her small bump against his stomach and it makes his heart flutter.

"It will darling, and it's going to stay that way."

~

Despite the bubbling and churning excitement in the pit of his belly, Harry feels lighter than he has in months. Arlo's feet dig into his thighs, plump belly pressed against his and eyes burning into Harry's. He's not sure what about his eyes have got Arlo so attentive, but he doesn't question it. He holds Arlo's thighs tightly, lips twitching as Arlo runs his tiny fingers through the beard Harry's got growing out. It's just long enough to no longer be prickly, instead soft little tuffs that Arlo's begun to enjoy playing with.

"Is daddy's beard your new toy, bub?" Y/n giggles, nudging Harry's foot with her own. Arlo coos, not tearing his eyes away from Harry. Almost a year since he first looked into those eyes, and they still leave him breathless.

"Styles?"

Harry stands up, shifting Arlo into his right arm and and taking y/n's hand in his left. They're lead back by a nurse, and Harry tries not to giggle while Arlo continues to play with beard. Y/n weight and height is taken down, then they're lead to an exam room where she's instructed to change. Harry settles into the chair next to the bed, sitting Arlo in his lap while his wife changes.

"Mumma," Arlo calls, swiveling his head to look at y/n. Harry gasps, placing a hand over his little eyes.

"Don't look at mumma while she's naked!"

His playful tone makes Arlo giggle, little hand reaching up to pull away his hand. Y/n snorts, putting on her paper gown. The doctor comes in, greetings Harry and Arlo with a wiggle of her fingers before going over routine questions with y/n. Harry snuggles Arlo into his chest, pressing kisses to the top of his head. He remembers doing this for Arlo, sitting in this chair and waiting to see if he was having a baby girl or boy. He remembers clutching y/n's hand with all his might because he was so nervous.

The ultrasound equipment is rolled out, and Harry immediately moves to the edge of the seat, eager to see his baby. Y/n reaches for his hand, and he happily takes it, squeezing her fingers when the jelly is spread on her tummy and the wand is placed on the underside of it. The steady thumping of two heartbeats fills the room, Arlo cooing gently at the noise and looking at y/n with curious eyes. He wasn't here the first time they heard the baby's heartbeat, but seeing him so interested is enough to make Harry's eyes sting with happy tears.

"There's your baby," the doctor cheers softly, adjusting the screen so Harry and y/n can get a good look at the human growing in y/n. Her hand squeezes the life out of his, and the doctor twists a knob that has the picture zooming in.

"Alright Styles family, are we ready to know the sex?"

"Yeah!" Harry blurts, cheeks reddening at the waver in his voice. His heart thumps loudly, biting his lip as y/n agrees too. Arlo squeezes Harry's arm in both his hands and Harry takes that as a yes too.

"Well, it looks like your healthy little one is once again, a baby boy!"

Black Butterflies and Deja Vu

Can also read on AO3 or FFN. Hope everyone enjoys!

Adrien sighed for the umpteenth time, gazing at a picture of Ladybug on his monitor. She was amazing, he couldn’t help it. Her dark blue-black hair tightly held with those bright red ribbons, her piercing bluebell gaze, that righteous determination...she was just incredible.  

Adrien had spent a rather long amount of time surfing the web. He’d wanted to find some of his favourite pictures of Ladybug. Not that there ever could be a picture of Ladybug that he would dislike, but there were some which were precious memories. Moments that he remembered so clearly of her, smiling or laughing at a pun he’d made. Those were some of the memories he cherished and looking at the pictures from then brought back all those warm and fuzzy feelings.

“Are you going to do anything else?” Plagg asked irritably. He flew right in front of Adrien, eating Camembert, as usual, making Adrien wince at the smell of the pungent cheese.

“What else is there to do?” He asked mildly. He’d already finished his lessons and homework, as well as piano practice. There was nothing else that demanded his attention.

“Eat cheese, of course!” Plagg told him happily, making Adrien both roll his eyes and smile fondly at his kwami. 

“I think I’ll leave that to you, Plagg.” Adrien went back to staring at his monitor. Idly, he wondered if he knew the girl behind the mask or if he would ever get the chance to truly know her without any secrets getting in the way.

There was so much he wanted to tell her. So much that sometimes he didn’t even know where he would begin if given the chance. He paced the room for a little bit, wishing he could escape and be with the people he cared about.

“You alright, kid?” Plagg asked, putting his cheese down. Adrien couldn’t help but smile at his kwami. He didn’t know where he would be without him. 

“Just thinking,” Adrien shrugged. 

Plagg made a sound of disapproval. “You know thinking never helped anyone.” Adrien laughed, as he fell backwards on his bed.

“I want to tell her,” he sighed, staring up at the ceiling, lost in his thoughts.

Plagg zoomed in and out of the corner of his eye before popping right above him. “Tell who what?”

“Tell Ladybug how I feel of course!” Adrien knew she didn’t feel the same way for him, it was clear in the way she brushed him off or thought his flirting was just a joke. And then, of course, there was the matter of that other boy. The one she had a crush on.

Adrien’s face fell at the thought. Jealously, he wondered what Ladybug would want to tell that boy and how she would confess her feelings to whoever he was.

He consoled himself by thinking that she hadn’t told that boy yet, which also meant they weren’t together yet. Whatever, it was the boy’s loss. Adrien on the other hand, would never stop trying to woo his Lady and one day, he hoped at least, she would be able to move on and consider him as an option.

“I just wish she knew how much I care for her,” Adrien shrugged. He could never articulate his feelings properly in front of her. It was as if his brain stopped functioning in her presence.

He shook his head as he reached for his phone, automatically searching up more Ladybug pictures. Her bright smile filled his screen and he gave another sigh, more lovesick this time than anything else. 

“I want to see her.”

“Well, you might just get your wish,” Plagg hummed as he hovered over Adrien’s open monitor. There the news channel was broadcasting an akuma attack near the Louvre. “Then again, your pining isn’t all that bad with cheese,” Plagg was musing.

“No time!” Adrien said eyes lit with excitement. “Plagg, Claws Out!” Transformed, Adrien slipped out of the large windows, eager to meet his Lady.

As Adrien raced along the rooftops, trying to get to the Louvre in record time, he heard a sweet voice call out to him. He turned to see Ladybug swinging in next to him.

“Not often we meet up on the way to battle,” she teased.

“But what a pleasure it is, milady. Any idea what the akuma is?”

“I wasn’t paying attention to the news broadcast. I just ran out as soon as I heard the word akuma,” Ladybug shrugged sheepishly.

He let out a laugh. “We’re two peas in a pod, Bugaboo.” She rolled her eyes at him but didn’t say anything so Adrien beamed as he kept moving forward.

“Look!” Ladybug pointed downwards, once they’d gotten close enough. “Just what is happening down there?”

It was a weird-looking akuma, a rectangular-shaped person with pole-like arms and legs and their body was littered with buttons. It was shooting beams of light out of the screen above their face. Ladybug and Adrien glanced at each other in confusion. “What is that?” Adrien whispered in bafflement.

Ladybug leant forward, trying to take a closer look. “It’s familiar somehow?” They looked at each other, months of battling together had made it easy for them to understand each other’s signals. 

“I am the Ticketmaster!” The akuma was roaring. “I will turn everyone into tickets!” Each time a light beam hit someone, that person was transformed into a marble statue of a ticket. 

Adrien nodded at Ladybug before jumping into the fray. “Looks like you’re more ticket off than anything else!”

The Ticketmaster turned around, surprisingly fast for someone with such a bulky, uncomfortable frame. He tried shooting his light beams at Adrien, but he quickly jumped out of the way. 

Ladybug’s yoyo came tying itself around one of the Ticketmaster’s hands. He gave a vicious tug, causing Ladybug to topple to the floor. Adrien retaliated by jumping on top of him and trying to hit him with his baton. “Would you wait for a ticket?”

The Ticketmaster dodged. “Give me your miraculous!” He cried as he continued shooting them with light beams. 

Adrien scoffed as he continued trying to attack. He didn’t see anything on the Ticketmaster which could be the akumatized object. While he attacked, the Ticketmaster ignored him, his focus on targeting Ladybug.

“Chat Noir!” Ladybug called out to him. He risked a quick look at her where she pointed upwards. Guess it was time to regroup and come up with a plan. Kicking Ticketmaster in his middle, making him wobble and stop attacking long enough to regain his balance, Adrien extended his baton to join Ladybug on a nearby roof.

“Well, m’Lady? What are we to do about him? Did you see what the akumatized object was?”

She seemed deep in thought. Slowly she spoke, “I think the akuma is in one of his buttons.”

“His buttons?” Adrien repeated flatly. “Which one?”

“The big green one, right next to the screen,” Ladybug winced.

“How do you know that?” Adrien exclaimed.

“A hunch?” Ladybug shrugged. “I’m not sure but he keeps fiddling with the button. It’s either that or the screen itself.”

“Well, how are we supposed to get close enough to get at it?” He asked her, brows furrowed. “He’s rather quick to attack, I’m afraid.”

Ladybug gave him a determined nod before calling out for a Lucky Charm. Down fell a sponge.

Adrien gave it a disbelieving look. “That’s helpful,” he snarked. She gave him a look in return while her brows furrowed in concentration. 

“Got it!” She exclaimed after a moment, a bright grin on her face. For just a second, Chat couldn’t breathe. She was dazzling when she was so sure of her success. Especially with the sun falling on her, just so, giving her a golden effect. 

He wanted to say something, tell her how amazing she was, but he couldn’t find the words. Besides, Ladybug was too busy, as she instructed him to go attack and wait for her cue, right before she stole his belt.

He yelped as his ‘tail’ was ripped away. “I need this,” she said in apology before swinging away so she could put her plan into action. 

He called out but she didn’t turn back. “Be nice if you would explain for once,” he grumbled before launching himself at the akuma once again.

“Hello again!” Adrien greeted cheerfully, making the Ticketmaster snarl. “I know, I’m tired too but haven’t you heard? There’s no rest for the ticket!” He dodged another light beam, as he tried hitting Ticketmaster with his baton. 

“I think I might become a master at this soon!” He glanced around, what was Ladybug waiting for. As he leapt to avoid yet another beam, Ladybug called out.

“Ticketmaster!” She was standing near him. As Ticketmaster came near her, Ladybug only dodged the occasion beams, letting him come closer, right until he was standing in between a wall of cars.

“Chat Noir!” She called out, signalling for him to bring the Ticketmaster towards her. Adrien lured the Ticketmaster with more puns as the akuma grew angrier and angrier. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Ladybug climb the car wall until she was hanging upside down from it like a spider.

Adrien didn’t know what she was planning but he knew that he trusted her. Ticketmaster was cackling, as Adrien spun the Ticketmaster around so his back was to the wall and pretended to fall.

Quick as can be, Ladybug tied the sponge around the Ticketmaster’s face and Adrien summoned his Cataclysm. Her yoyo had bound his hands and unable to see, he was unable to shoot his light beams. 

With a single touch of his cataclysm, the button broke and the akuma flew out. Ladybug easily purified it and cast her miraculous cure. “Pound it!” She exclaimed happily as Adrien tapped his fist against hers.

The young man who had been akumatized looked up at them. “Ladybug? Chat Noir?” He stared up at them in confusion before seeming to realize what had happened. He groaned as Adrien helped him up.

“You alright?” Ladybug asked the man, a worried expression on her face. 

He nodded. “Had a bad day and it caught up with me I suppose. Tiring when people try to sneak in without a ticket. Sorry for...well, attacking you both.”

They waved the man off and helped him get back to work. The beeps of their miraculous reminded both heroes that it was time to leave. Before Ladybug could leave, Adrien called out to her.

She turned to face him, curiosity brimming in her eyes. He paused for a moment before blurting out what he wanted to say. “Ladybug, will you come to Rooftop 3 tonight?” They had specific rooftops they liked spending time on, while they watched the city.

Ladybug watched him for a moment as she hesitated. “Please, Ladybug?” She sighed as she relented, promising him she would be there. The decision to ask her had been impulsive but he was ecstatic she had agreed to come. Quickly waving Ladybug goodbye, he used his baton to propel him back home.

Adrien took a deep breath as he surveyed his handiwork. Soft blanket to sit on and plenty of food. Nothing that was overtly romantic and would make Ladybug uncomfortable. He glanced at the sky where the last vestiges of the sun were about to fade before looking at the clock in his baton. Where was she?

As if the thought had summoned her, that was when Ladybug made her entrance.

“Hey, Kitty,” She greeted him.

“M’Lady,” he gave her a sweeping bow in welcome. She looked hesitant as she stepped forward and took in his preparations. She blinked in surprise at what she found, her shoulders relaxing and a smile spreading across her face.

“Do you like it?” Adrien asked, a tinge of hope in his voice. “It’s been such a difficult time lately, especially for you as the Guardian, I thought it would be nice to just relax together. As friends!” He was quick to add.

 Ladybug gave him a soft look before stepping closer to him. “It’s wonderful,” she told him, as she laid a hand on his face and softly pecked his other cheek.

Her lips were soft but he was unable to enjoy the feeling of Ladybug kissing him. The swift motion through which she kissed his cheek was oddly reminiscent. It reminded him of sunsets, and friends and heroes. 

“Marinette,” he softly whispered as Ladybug pulled away from him, his mind a million years away.

“What?!” Ladybug shrieked in alarm. Quickly, he raised his eyes to meet hers, worried an akuma had found them. 

“Marinette? Who-who’s Marinette?” Ladybug blurted out, face pale and eyes wide.

Adrien stared at her in disbelief. How did Ladybug forget Marinette? As Chat Noir, she was the one who introduced her to him!

“Marinette is…” before Adrien could remind Ladybug about Marinette, the wonderfully, sweet girl he was lucky to be friends with, Ladybug frantically shook her head,

“You’re wrong! You don’t know what you’re talking about!”

Adrien felt a frown grow on his face, wondering if he’d spoken his thoughts on Marinette aloud. Then he frowned deeper, realizing if he had spoken aloud that meant Ladybug seemed to dislike Marinette. It was the only possible explanation.  “Of course I do! I have proof!” 

Would someone who wasn’t a complete angel give Adrien her lucky charm? Or be so helpful with akumas? Marinette had practically been a pro as Multimouse. He was just sad they couldn’t bring her onto the team more often. No, he didn’t think there was anything not sweet about Marinette at all. 

“Proof?” Ladybug squeaked, her face pale. 

Adrien crossed his arms across his chest. “Yes, proof! Nothing you do or say will change my mind about this!”

Ladybug looked utterly terrified, as she took in deep breaths trying to calm herself down.

“Ladybug?” Adrien questioned gently, realizing that however wonderful he thought Marinette was, the possibility that Ladybug may have had a misunderstanding with her somehow. He, himself, had had such a misunderstanding when he’d first met Marinette. He’d simply have to clear the air. He’d just decided that when Ladybug stifled a scream. He paused letting her calm down before questioning her.

“How did you know I’m Marinette? Where’d you get this proof from?” Ladybug questioned, her voice quiet as a whisper but deadly serious.

Adrien felt his jaw drop. It felt like all the pieces of the puzzle were finally coming together and arranging themselves in front of him. 

“I….huh?” That was all Adrien could say, feeling himself at a loss for words.

“Chat Noir! You said you had proof! What is it?” Ladybug was demanding furiously, clearly terrified she had been too lax in protecting her secret identity. However, Adrien was far too busy trying to put his world back in order, to reassure her.

Dumbly, Adrien raised his hand to point at her. “Marinette?” His voice came out strangled.

“What?” Ladybug hissed, as she leaned in, eyes wide. “Tell me!”

“You’re Marinette,” Adrien whispered again, feeling like he was unable to breathe. He hadn’t seen this coming. Why hadn’t he seen this coming?

Ladybug looked at him weirdly. “Why are you acting so surprised? You’re the one who said...oh. Oh no!” Ladybug trailed off in horror. “Y-you did know I was Marinette, right?” She stuttered out slowly, a small sprinkle of hope in her voice.

Silently, he shook his head still trying to take everything in as he slowly slumped to the ground. Ladybug...no Marinette buried her face in her hands as she let out a soft scream.  

“Why did you say my name then?” Marinette demanded once she’d calmed down, her hands on her hips.

“I got nostalgic! I’m sorry, I didn’t know!”

“Nostalgic for what?”

“Well…” Adrien scratched his cheek awkwardly, “From when you kissed me on the cheek, it reminded me of when you did it to me as Marinette.”

Marinette only seemed to grow more confused. “What are you talking about? I haven’t done that with anyone except…” slowly Marinette raised a trembling finger to point at him, her eyes wide and mouth agape. She swallowed hard before softly whispering “Adrien?”

If he hadn’t been standing next to her, he never would have heard her. As it was, all Adrien could do was give her a sheepish grin as she fell down to sit next to him.

“You’re Adrien?” Ladybug asked, breathlessly.

Adrien let out a small chuckle. “That hard to believe m’Lady?” He joked before wincing as he remembered. She wasn’t just his Lady, no she was Marinette. He was so lost in his thoughts, he didn’t realize Ladybug was still speaking until she put a hand on his shoulder.

 “I’m glad it’s you, Adrien,” she declared, her gaze warm and fierce.  

He stared at her, finally seeing the Marinette he knew appear from behind Ladybug’s mask. Of course, the two most amazing girls he knew could only be one person. Adrien shouldn’t have bothered guessing otherwise. 

“I’m really glad it’s you too, Marinette.” She smiled at him, a little hesitantly. He could tell what she was thinking, as he rubbed the back of his neck. They had never expected to find out about each other’s identities this way. Where were they supposed to go from here?

Marinette seemed to sway between one decision and another before she finally made up her mind. 

“Let’s enjoy this wonderful picnic you put together,” she suggested. Adrien looked at her inquisitively, making her shrug. “We can deal with everything else later. I’d rather have a moment to enjoy this, don’t you?”

Adrien wanted to nod and enjoy the moment but his feelings got the better of him. “I love you,” he blurted out. Marinette froze as she slowly turned to look at him. He put a clawed hand over her gloved one. “I always knew I would love the girl beneath the mask, but now I really know for sure.” He gave her a soft, bittersweet smile.

“I know you’re in love with someone else, I just had to tell you.” Slowly, Adrien pulled away from Marinette but before he could get very far, she put her hands on his face and yanked him forwards.

Adrien’s eyes widened in surprise as Marinette crashed his lips onto hers. He was so surprised, he couldn’t process what was happening until it ended. All he could do was gape at her uselessly.

“You. You’re the boy I’ve been in love with,” Marinette told him breathlessly, as she anxiously waited for his reaction. Adrien blinked slowly before raising his hand to point at himself.

“Me?” Marinette nodded quickly. “Me?” He said again, unable to comprehend it. 

“Yes, you.” 

“You’ve been rejecting me for….me?” That made Marinette groan and hide her face in her hands, snapping Adrien out of his shock. Within moments, a big grin had overtaken his face as he tugged Marinette’s hands away from her face. 

She gazed up at him, her long, dark lashes making her pretty bluebell eyes glitter. Slowly, hesitantly, he leaned in, to properly kiss her this time. It was only a sweet, chaste peck but Adrien could hear the fireworks going off and the ladybugs in his stomach were fluttering.

He pulled away, only to rest his forehead on hers. “We were so blind,” he whispered softly.

“What does this mean?” Marinette questioned slowly, gesturing between them.

“Ladybug. Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Will you do me the honour of being my girlfriend?” Adrien asked cheekily, though inwardly his heart had leapt into his throat as he waited for her reply.

She threw her head back and laughed. Adrien was terrified for a moment before she cupped his face gently. “Of course I will, you silly kitty. I love you too, Adrien.”

Adrien beamed at her, as he felt his heart swell. He didn’t remember the last time he had been this happy.

“Now, you put so much effort into this picnic. Let’s not let it go to waste, hmm?” Marinette tilted her head to look at him. She was so cute, all Adrien wanted to do was cuddle her and never let go.

He watched as Marinette began to blush, a deep, bright red. “I-It’s a bit s-soon for cuddling but we could, maybe h-hold hands?”

Adrien blinked as he realized he had spoken out loud. His moment of surprise had Marinette reeling backwards as she frantically waved her hands. “Of course we don’t have to, it was just a suggestion, silly me!” She was saying as she tried to divert his attention.

Quickly, before she could panic too much, Adrien grabbed her hand with his own. “I’d love to hold hands,” he told her, as he fought to keep the silly smile off his face.

Marinette blushed lightly, as she let him lace her fingers with his. “O-okay,” she whispered, her gaze on their hands. “L-let’s eat,” she suggested.

Adrien smiled and leaned his head against her shoulder. “Yeah, alright.”

They sat there, enjoying each other’s company even as the moon rose and the stars twinkled in the night sky. The entire time they sat there, they didn’t let go of each other once.

They didn’t know what had compelled them to sit at the same table together, maybe the fact there was only one table available had been the deciding factor, but surely there was something else there. There had to be. At least, for Kalon there was. Maybe his companion, read: a person he’d just met, had just sat down because they’d come in at the same time and he didn’t feel like standing in a crowded room. Who knows? However, Kalon couldn’t stop feeling as if he had done this before. As if this has happened before, maybe not in a coffee shop scenario, but here, at this place, and maybe, with this person too. A strong sense of deja vu.

He’d sneak glances at the man sitting across from him, catching how his eyes would skim over the delicate pages of the book he’d brought in with him, noting the way his brow furrowed, possibly at moments he couldn’t understand what was going on, or when the plot seemed to get thrown out the window and something new was introduced. From the amount of times he’d looked at the stranger, he could confidently say he’d memorized the others' features at this point, and the urge to say something to him, anything at all, had grown at least tenfold. He wanted to give in to the urge, strike a conversation, but he didn’t know how, he didn’t want to disturb the man, take his focus away from a seemingly interesting book, and he himself didn’t really know how to interact with other people, so instead he just opted to sit there silently and sip his drink, a question now stuck in the forefront of his mind. Have we met before?

On the opposite end of the table, Nikos head had been filled with the same thoughts as the boy sat across from him. Though he’d walked in with the intention of getting a drink and reading his book, this stranger had managed to occupy every inch of his mind, and the urge to ask his name had been increasing steadily. Unbeknownst to the other, Nikos had been reading the same pages over, unable to concentrate on the words, or the story in general. Oh well, it had been a bit boring anyway. He’d placed his book in front of him, hoping he could use that to form a ruse of which he was reading and not sneaking glances at the peculiar boy in front of him.

Maybe they’d had a history with each other. Maybe they’d known each other before, one day, maybe in the past. Questions and scenarios filled his head. Who was this boy? Why did this situation seem familiar? Had they met before? He didn’t know how to voice it, didn’t know how to voice his thoughts, but he wanted to know this boy more. Releasing a deep sigh he closed his book and set it down on the table. Well, he tried to set it on the table, perhaps he’d miscalculated just how big the table was, for when he’d let go of the object, it fell straight to the floor. He reached down to grab it, and it seemed the other boy had as well, for instead of grabbing the book, he’d touched the others’ hand instead. All it took was a touch, that single touch, and it was as if a floodgate had opened. A floodgate full of memories.

“Pardon me, but I don’t think you should be in here.”

“Please, it’s a library. I highly doubt it’s anyone's business what I’m doing here.”

“It becomes someone’s business when you venture into the restricted section.”

“Ah, excuse me sir, it’s just, I lost something and I couldn’t find it so I came here.”

“It’s quite alright but what are you looking for?”

“Where I asked for your opinion.”

“Sharp tongue.”

“Thank you, Mr. Know It All.”

Neither had noticed, but it was as if they’d been frozen in time. The moment they’d touched hands, they’d unconsciously turned their heads and locked eyes with each other, the touch being a surprise neither had expected.

“You’re back! Hello Captain Obvious.”

“It’s you! Why are you back in the restricted section?”

“Ya know, I still can’t find where I asked for your opinion.”

“You shouldn’t talk to me like that.”

“Who do you think you are? Prince Drystan? Oh my lucky stars, you’re Prince Drystan!”

“Why are you so surprised?”

“I mean I knew I was talking to a stuck up, good for nothing, useless life on this planet we call Earth, I just hadn’t realized I was talking to a royal one. How does it feel to wake up everyday and know you’ve done nothing but waste your existence on this planet?”

“Are you insulting me?”

“Honey I wasn’t insulting you, I was describing you.”

They played as if they were scenes from a movie. One after the other, each falling into place where they should be. Kind of like a jigsaw puzzle.

“Ya know, I never caught your name.”

“I never threw it.”

“We’ll, I’m Drystan, it’s a pleasure to meet you…”

“Ah, how cute. Does the baby think I’ll tell him my name if he trails off his sentence?”

“Sorry, I just happened to get distracted for a brief moment.”

“Distracted by what?”

“The beauty of which encapsulates your entire being, which leaves me breathless and questioning if you know just how dashing you are.”

“… My name is Kaito.”

Maybe that had been the moment, they’d realized they were meant to be something. That they had something more than what tied them to the ground, something that tied them to each other. Something greater than the force on Earth.

“Read to me Drystan.”

“Why don’t you grab a book and read next to me?”

“I would, but I think I like the sound of the words flowing from your lips much more than I like the look of the words on the page.”

It hurt to witness it. To be put on a back burner as your past played out in your present. To relive the good days, meant to accept the bad as well, and boy, did Kalon have bad days, but perhaps it had been worth it. If only to see that face once more.

“NO! Not like that!"

“How else am I supposed to do it!”

“Hold the brush in a firm grip, but gently swoop through the horse's mane. Like this your highness.” He stepped forward and put the older boy’s hand into his own, guiding him in what to do. The prince’s eyes lit up in understanding as he finally grasped what the other was telling him to do. Once they finished, the prince picked the other up off the ground placing a chaste kiss to his temple as he spun them both around. The smaller boy released a small cry of surprise at the sudden action before lightly hitting the other in an attempt to get him to put him down, succeeding after another minute or two.

“You know we are in public, you can’t do stuff like that.”

“Sorry Kaito.”

“It’s fine Drystan, but we have to be more careful. What if someone was around?”

“So what?”

“You know what would happen.”

A tear slipped past Kalon’s eye, dropping down his face as the memories played in his head. Memories of a time he’d forgotten, a love he’d lost.

“It shouldn’t matter. That law is stupid, it shouldn’t even exist.” Of course, Kalon knew Drystan’s views. He knew the older boy would get angry at the mere mention, the reminder that they shouldn’t even be together in the first place. Same sex relationships were prohibited within the kingdom. Anyone caught to have broken that law were to be hung on the stake and burned in front of their lover.

“But it still exists, you know that as well as I do. It’s dangerous for us especially, a prince, and a lowly stable boy. What would the people think of that?”

Nikos clenched his fists, upset for a past long gone. So many had been lost, so many innocent people. All because of a stupid law.

“Let’s run away.”

“What?”

“Run away with me.”

In all honesty, running away didn’t sound half bad, but that wouldn’t prevent the inevitable. It was doomed from the start.

“You know, there’s a word for this.”

“A word for-”

“The word is ‘ikigai’. It’s a concept, translated to mean ‘a reason for being’, a reason to get up in the morning, a passion, purpose, reason, something that makes you find joy in the act of living. Something you would live for, or someone.”

“Kaito-“

“I used to think that the entire spiel was a bunch of lies spun together. I hated hearing about it, hated doing the practices, and listening to the lectures, I hated living. Until the day I met you. You gave me something to look forward to, something to live for. You are my ikigai Drystan.”

“As you are mine Kaito.”

Sometimes in a relationship, the words ‘I love you’ don’t need to be said. Sometimes they aren’t enough to encapsulate what you feel, and sometimes they don’t feel right to say. Other times you can say them in a different way, you don’t just need to say the words ‘I love you’ to let someone know, you show them in what you do, and what you say.

“This is not goodbye.”

“Drystan.”

��No, they don’t get to do this. They don’t get to determine our destiny.”

“Drystan, we’re dying. It’s already been done, we can’t reverse it. We can’t go back in time to stop it. We are dying.”

“Then we’ll be reborn. We’ll be reborn, and I will find you.”

“Drystan-“

“We’ll start over in our next life, and the life after that, and the one that comes after that one. No matter what I’ll come back to you. We will get our happily ever after, and plenty more after that. This doesn’t end today, our story does not end today. That, I promise you Kaito.”

“You have a way with words Mr. Know It All.”

What felt like hours, had really only taken a few seconds in reality, but those few seconds were all they needed to recognize the person across from them. Those few seconds, were enough for them to look at each other with all the emotions they hadn’t gotten the chance to portray the last time, for in those few seconds, they had relived an entire lifetime, and found each other once again, this time being awarded the chance to do it all again, but this time they would be able to see it through. Shakily, Nikos reached a hand across the table, and wiped a tear from Kalon’s face. A relieved smile painted on both of their faces.

“I’m Nikos, Nikos Drazhan.” He laughed out.

“Kalon Ukiyo.” His voice cracked as he hesitantly laughed too, but that was the moment, the moment they realized it would be okay. They would be okay. For they’d found each other once again, could hold each other again, and do what they couldn’t before. They could start over, have a life together.

“Well Kalon, could I fancy you out on a date?”

“I’d say we could start right now.”

“I'd like that.”

Hey hey hEY

Chapter 7: That Meeting I Got Threatened Over  Datura P.O.V

I was kinda; pissed. I mean, my only real friend possibly being poisoned by myself? Wack. Being threatened to go to a stupid meeting, by my mortal enemy, no less? Having to go to the meeting in a traumatic place for me? How wonderful! I had just split up from Ahiru and Regenold. I started to make my way through the school, familiar with my surroundings. With a strong sense of deja vu and that something horrible was about to happen, I made my way through with this dreadful feeling in the pit of my stomach.

I made it to the theatre room, where the meeting was to be held, shivers crawling down my spine, like little spiders. The theatre room was just your typical post-apocalyptic theatre, there were cracks in the wall and vines growing out of them. I had no idea why the hell I was even here, but the Engineer insisted on me coming, she even threatened Germ.

Wait... Did she poison Germ? I was snapped from my thoughts as someone entered the room.

There was this person who looked like that stereotypical theatre kid. This was the Actor. He was great at impersonating others, heck, he could even pretend to be the president. This ability was one that helped us bring the world to its knees. He tended to wear a mask that was somewhat similar to the mask worn by the phantom of the opera. Most of the time, he is hanging around the Lead Conductor. Speaking of her, she followed the Actor into the room. She had her pale, orange hair tied in a low bun, with some netting surrounding said bun. She wore a black Victorian dress that had some transparent sashes draped around the skirt. In addition, she wore glasses, white stockings, and black shoes. To top it off, she wore a small Victorian top hat that bore the same sashes as her skirt. Overall, she looks like a Victorian-era doll. 

So in all, they are theatre kids. Though I can’t complain because basically all of Class 09 are just reject theatre kids (like myself). To be honest, she and the Actor are both so dramatic, and they both hang around each other all the time, I may have started shipping them, but that’s beside the point. 

Next to come in were the Photojournalist and the Artist. The Photojournalist wasn’t that extraordinary. She had blonde hair and pale skin. She wore a blue, wool-blend coat along with some blue jeans. She wore plain grey sneakers and had her camera slung over her shoulder. In one of her pockets were a notepad and pen. When we were ending the world, she took over media coverage, controlling what everyone knows.

The Artist has black hair that was tied into dreads and dark brown skin. He wore a plain old red, long-sleeved shirt and blue jeans that were covered in paint. However, He also wore goggles and a belt full of paint bottles. At his side was what to be a missile launcher but instead of missiles, they were colored pencils. At least he appreciates nature, so I respect him and his art. 

Many others were missing but I just assumed that they were too busy terrorizing people to come to the meeting. Go figure. All of them started to gather around together on the stage of the theatre, and with me still on the fence about this, but I remembered Germ, and I decided I wanted answers, so I went up onto the stage as well. 

“Hello Datura!” the Engineer said with joy.

The Artist chipped in, “It’s good to see you once again.”

The others didn’t respond, the Actor and Lead Conductor just stared at me while the Photojournalist was scribbling something down in that little notebook of hers. I turned back to the Engineer, who had that little smirk on her face as she always does. I glared at the Engineer, thinking of how Germ is suffering right now, and that she is most likely the one who caused it. 

“You poisoned her didn’t you?” I asked.

“Oh?” said the Engineer, “Someone isn’t feeling too well? I didn’t think you were the type to mix up lethal plants with non-lethal ones.”

“Don’t play dumb with me!”

The Engineer let out a little chuckle, “Well, let’s say if I did, I only did to ensure you came to this little meeting here.”

“Well, what is the purpose of this ‘little meeting’ anyway?” I asked. 

“I said in our last little get-together that the other 09’s wanted your help with something.”

“And what is that?” I questioned.

“I will tell you in detail about that, but before we get into that, I saw your 2 little friends going into your old greenhouse, and I know what they are after. They want to acquire an antidote that you can make out of a plant there.”

“How did you-”

“I have eyes and ears everywhere, did you really think I wouldn’t know about that one way or another?” The Engineer said with a smirk on her face.

“I swear if you do anything to them-”

“Oh don’t worry, I won’t lift a finger against either of them, because that job is going to already be taken care of by someone else.”

“Who?!” I exclaimed.

“Oh, that’s going to be a little surprise, but you’ll find out soon enough after seeing their lifeless bodies. But this can be averted, and I might even let them go away, maybe even without injury. And all you need to do is listen to the proposal.”

I was angry and I wanted to strangle the life out of her already and enjoy making her beg for mercy, but to save them and get the antidote for Germ, I guess I’ll just listen to them for now. 

"So Datura, you obviously know of how we took over and kinda ruined the planet." Said the Engineer.

"Get to the point." I snapped.

"Well not just me, but you and all the other 09's have seen the rapid growth of plant life everywhere. And I have analyzed and studied this, and I have learned that this plant life is caused all due to you."

"Wait, ME?" I questioned.

"Yes, there's no way plants could have overgrown and grown all over Earth. It should have taken decades to occur, yet it happened in such a short amount of time, it's really quite astounding actually."

I was thinking about this, and the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. I remember when all of this happened I did feel something weird surge inside of me, like a burst of energy almost. But I thought it was only due to the new powers I got, but welp, I guess not. 

“I guess that makes sense,” I said, beginning to accept that the increase in plants on Earth was because of me, “but why are you telling me this? What is it that you want me to do?” 

I saw how the Engineer looked at me, like the way she would look at any of her other machines ready to have them do whatever she wants. 

“What we want you to do,” she said, her voice getting low and menacing, “is help us find some survivors so we can end their suffering if you know what I mean” she finished with a sadistic grin on her face. 

“I know you’ll say yes cause if you don’t … well I guess you know what happens.” she said, “Well now you can go help your friends if they aren’t already dead yet” 

Just then, there was a huge explosion that sounded very close by. Everyone seemed confused and they went to go check, leaving me behind. I was worried about Ahiru and Regenold, so I decided to go follow them but just as I was about to leave Ahiru came bursting through the door. 

“There you are,” he said relieved, “there is no time to explain…” he looked down the hall, his face suddenly turning white. He cursed and then suddenly turned towards me. “Sorry about this,” he said moving quickly towards me, “but there is no other option so please don’t kill me” he finished suddenly picking me up.

“What are you doing?!” I asked as he started to run out of the room, “put me down or I’ll poison you!” 

“Please don’t. The other 09’s are coming after us and I'm the faster runner so you would end up just slowing me down so I'm carrying you. Now shut up so I can concentrate on getting away.”

By the way he was carrying me I was able to see behind us and I saw the other 09’s right behind.

“Wait where is Regenold?” I said realizing he wasn’t with us.

“Oh, don’t worry about him,” he said reassuringly as we took a turn, “He is on his way back to the base with the seeds.” 

We took another turn and suddenly we were outside the school. Fortunately, we were able to lose a few of the 09’s but there was still the Actor and Engineer still behind us. 

“Damnit,” Ahiru said, aware of their presence, “I can’t lead them to the base so hold on we are going to take a little detour.” 

“Can’t you put me down already?”

“Nope. If I do they’ll catch up”

Ahiru headed straight into a forest and somehow was able to manage to lose the last of the 09’s. He put me down and almost collapsed from how exhausted he was. After he caught his breath, we made our way back to the base. I still had my doubts that we all made it back but Regenold was already there sitting on the couch with the seeds. He handed them over with a smile on his face, proud that he got them. With the seeds, I started to make the antidote to cure Germ.

“Oh hey, that reminds me,” I said turning to Regenold and Ahiru who had just laid down on the couch, “What happened to you guys?”

Ahiru rolled his eyes and Regenold grinned, “Well, it’s a bit of a long story, but I guess I could tell you.”

O. Doremi fanfic - The apprentice of wizard Kotake

Season 1 - Episode 1

Pov Kotake ON Hello my beautiful readers, because whoever is reading this probably likes my ship with Doremi (or at least doesn’t hate me!). My name is Tetsuya Kotake and I am 8 years old. I will not talk about how I look because I’m sure that everyone here already knows me quite well. I’m not that vain. Lets continue... Unlike the version of me in Ojamajo Doremi, I am living with my cousin Kimitaka. His parents live in a different country and have left my family with this devil that only bothers me with me and with my parents who do not make another life than work. Let's talk about me... I have two dreams: First, I’d love to be a soccer player, and second, I want to win Dojimi's love. The second one seems impossible. What do I have to do to make Doremi love me? It is impossible!! She always looks for the cool guys! “Hey, lovebird! Speed it up! Don’t talk to yourself!” I’m not talking to myself! I am talking with my readers! I left my room and looked at Kimitaka who was looking at me angrily. “Stop dreaming about that crazy Harukaze and give me my food!” “The food is in the fridge! And don't insult her! Only I can do that! I go to the kitchen to get something to eat. Do you want me to take you to the kindergarten?” “Of course not! What will my friends think if they look at me with you?” “I think in reality you are thinking about what Pop will think if she sees you with your big cousin.” I commented with a mocking smile as I put his food in front of him. His face has been red ever since I told him that. Revenge! “I do not care about what a fool thinks!” Kimitaka yelled with his face all red. “Yeah yeah ... Kimitaka ... It's just us, the readers and the author of this fic... You can tell the truth!” “You're so weird …” By now, he’s gone to completely ignoring me. After eating I left school. Like always I stalked my Dojimi, the love of my life. (...) Ah look at her watching ... Igarashi............ Then the fans are surprised that my other me of the novels makes her wait for my love ... I hate that Igarashi! Who does he think he is?! He has everything! Is it reasonable to wish that you were somebody who you hate? "Good morning!" “Masaru! You scared me!” Masaru Yada has been my best friend since kindergarten. He is very quiet, maybe even antisocial, but has a good heart. But you already knew that, didn't you? “Again stalking Harukaze?” he gawked at me, ”When are you going to tell her your feelings?" “When you tell Fujiwara how you feel.” Ahh~ha! Look at his face! He stopped talking. “Alright, you win!” He conceded, “But you’d better say how you feel quickly, Kotake. You know how the author feels about your relationship with Harukaze.” “She can be so cruel though!” I complained,” Do you remember what happened last time?” The school’s bell ended our talk. Like always in class I watched as Doremi acted like the clumsy idiot that she was for another few minutes. She had some weird obsession with magic. I didn't care about having magic, but do you know what I would do if I become a wizard? I would make Doremi love me and make myself the best soccer player in the world! When I stopped daydreaming, I realized that I’d gone a little further than I intended. I was in an unknown place. I felt like I’d seen the store somewhere before though. What a strange Deja Vu. "Store Flat 4" That’s a weird name. Is this real? What can I buy here? Apartments with 4 rooms? : v (Flat = apartments for those who do not know). Since I had nothing to do, I entered the store, but it was quite dusty, and I found myself coughing quite a bit. “Finally a customer! Welcome!” Four boys appeared in front of me: One who looks like Segawa Onpu,(Note of the author: It is Kotake who is narrating so it is normal that he makes some jokes about Akatsuki. Akatsuki will make some jokes about Kotake too, so there’s no need to be angry, Akatsuki fans), another boy with orange eyes and hair, a third boy with blond hair and blue eyes, even lighter than mine, and another blue-green one. Everybody was quite strangely dressed. “What are you looking for?” “Uh?” I looked at a table that had some odd emerald necklaces. I stepped up to it. “That's a magic necklace, you can wish what you want with them!” Magic? There’s no doubt that Dojimi will like this ... “Is it really magic? Surely you’re kidding!” I inquired with an arched eyebrow. “Do you want to try one?” The orange-haired boy asked as he tossed me a necklace. “I would.” I caught the necklace and closed my eyes. “Wait!” The purple haired boy interrupted me, ”You can not change feelings of people or heal wounds, and trying to wish for a massive desire, such as becoming incredibly famous, probably wouldn’t work.” “Then I don't want it,” I put the necklace back in its place, placed my hands in my pockets and started walking toward the exit. “WAIT!” All four boys kneeled at my feet “DON’T GO! PLEASE, SEE IF THERE’S SOMETHING YOU’LL PURCHASE! YOU’VE ONLY JUST COME!” “But I'm not interested in magic,” I replied frankly, ”and those things won't help me at all.” “Surely you can find something here that suits you!” The blond boy spoke to me, “You have the style of a boy who enjoys sports! Try this! It will help you with sports!” He gave me a rather strange amulet which looked almost like a soccer ball. Even Dojimi could make something that looked better than that. “Ehm ... No thanks,” I walked towards the door, ”I'm leaving!” “Wait! Please buy something!” They pleaded less emphatically than last time. They almost seemed hopeless. It was pathetic. Such weirdos. ”Ask for whatever you want!” The guy with purple hair said as he approached me with a crazy look, “We can give it to you!” he continued, “What do you want? Sweets? A soccer ball? A PSP?” “I want a statue of my crush!” I figured that giving them an impossible order would be enough to make them give up. “Okay!” “AKATSUKI N…” the boys tried to stop him, but before my very eyes, a statue of Doremi appeared. According to the mirror across the room, my face looked like an overripe tomato. Crimson, and just a little bit deflated. “HOW DO YOU KNOW THAT I LOVE HER?! WAIT... AND HOW HAS THIS APPEARED HERE?!” I've looked at them, a little scared, but also a little curious. “Magic amulets, huh?” I've stared at that Akatsuki. I was frightened, and I knew it, but I kept up my strong front. “Y-You are…” I pointed my finger at him, “A witch!” “I AM A WIZARD NOT A WITCH!” he shouted carelessly. “OK! OK! A wizard it is t…” that boy's body started to shine as he became an abnormal purple creature. “What the heck!” I exclaimed,” See you later!” I grabbed the statue and ran for the door. “DON'T LET THAT IDIOT GO!” Hearing what Akatsuki said, the blonde guy grabbed me. “AAAAAAH!!! I DIDN’T DO ANYTHING!!! LEAVE ME ALONE!!!” With magic, they put me in a chair. Akatsuki was sitting on the table with a very annoyed expression. “Let me go! Take my money if you need to!” I exclaimed. “I don’t want your money!” He shouted, “Look what you've done to me!” “I didn't do anything! I just said that you’re a wi…” One of his friends covered my mouth. “Humans can not know that wizards exist! It’s forbidden!” I gaped at him in confusion, ”I became this ugly creature because you called me a wizard!” Finally the other idiot let go of my mouth. “So you're like this because of me? What do I have to do to make you normal again?” “You have to become my apprentice!” “Eh? I don't want to work in a store! I am a kid!” “It’s so that I can make you into a wizard and you can cure me!” he claimed. “EEEEEEEEEH!? ME, A WIZARD?!” My eyes have shine like stars. With magic I could make all of my dreams come true!!! Be a soccer player! Make the SOS trio and Reika Tamaki disappear! And ask… “Don’t make that face,” he interrupted my wishful thinking, ”The rules of the magic necklace are the same for any magic!” “What?! Could I at least make money appear?” “Yes…” Oh well something is something! “But before you transform, tell me your name.” another one told me. “Tetsuya Kotake.” “I am Akatsuki, my ginger colleague is Fujio, the blond is Leon, and the last one is Tooru. We all came from the wizard world so that we can earn money to buy back land that was taken from us by the witches.” “What!?” I asked,” I don’t understand why you don’t live together?” “No way!” he answered, “Witches and wizards have always been enemies! Or at least for as long as I’ve known…” “OK OK! What do I have to do to use magic?” I spoke very quickly because my parents hate when I get home at night, and I had just seen the clock. Late. “Fujio go get the box, and you, follow me Kotake-kun…” He took me out back to a garden. I looked at the garden while Fujio put the box on the table. “This box has something in it called a tap. You’ll use that to transform into a Wizard Apprentice.” It was a small, circular, white object. Around its circumference were eight small buttons. In the center was a much larger button. The central button reminded me of a soccer ball in its design. “You have to press the biggest button.” Leon instructed me, “This tap is like an instrument so each small button is a musical note Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti Do.” “For your Magical poron you have to press Do-Mi-So and high Do.” The orange-haired boy told me. I pressed the button and quickly put on the blue shirt that appeared before me. “The best future soccer player in the world is here!” I posed like a superhero. “What did you say?” Everyone has looked at me confusedly. “All magical boys and girls have a magic words!” I pressed the buttons that Fujio told me. A black magic wand shot out of the tap (which was connected to the uniform.) “That’s a poron! You can do magic with that. You just have to make your wish out loud!” I think the orange one was the brains of their group. “OK!” I moved my wand and pointed it at the ground, “I want a soccer ball now!!!” A blue light erupted from the tip of the poron, and a soccer ball appeared where I pointed. But it didn’t take long for the ball to disappear. “Your wishes won’t last long for now. Once you pass the nine exams and become a full wizard they will!” Fujio reminded me. “How boring!! I want to go home!! But first how do I fly?” “You're a wizard apprentice ... You don't fly idiot!” Akatsuki answered, “And you have to listen to me! I am your master now! You can't do many magic or you will run out of magical spheres!” “Ok... Can I go now?” “No! You have to listen to me!” I looked at him as he spoke. “Ok you can go! Leave your window open I'll see you tonight!” “I like girls…” “IT'S NOTHING WHAT YOU ARE THINKING IDIOT!!!” He yelled at me with his face all red. I'm going to give you magical spheres!" “Can you take the statue of Dojimi too?” “What if I don't take it?” “You'll stay like this forever!” I returned to normal with a smile. “I hate you…” Tooru caught Akatsuki before he hit me. I left the store smiling. In this dimension, nobody can hate me! End of Chapter 1! Next chapter: Being Masaru for a day! Written by: Me Translated by: Me and Meridia

RotTMNT/Baron Jitsu fanfiction: Dating… With Children - Chapter Seven

(Also on AO3 if you want to leave a comment or kudos)

Plot:  Benjamin Draxum hardly considered himself a man of high social standing. Not because he was uncouth or unworthy of it, mind you, but simply because he didn’t have much of a social life. Hard to have one when he usually spent his days at work, cooped up in a lab for so long that he often had his lunches in there, and his nights at home reading or doing research for more personal projects. But perhaps meeting handsome semi-retired movie star - as well as his four young sons - could change all that…

((Soooo, I know I said this chapter would have a bit more drama, but as I was writing that chapter, I realized that this idea was better as a lead-in to the next, slightly more dramatic idea. So, you're getting this chapter first, hope you guys don't mind! Anyway, enjoy the action and fluff! ^v^))

They say no news is good news, and for the most part Draxum could see some truth to that. It wasn't as if he had wished for something to have gone wrong, like their lab’s computers completely crashing or one of his intern’s screwing up. But at the same time, there also hadn't been any major breakthroughs, not even small discoveries in their research and tests that could lead down a rabbit hole of possibilities.

No, instead it had just been another average day at work. Just like the day before, and the day before that… And the several days before that…

Draxum sighed, rubbing his eyes. He only had a couple hours left in the shift, and he knew exactly what he was going to do afterwards. It was a part of his routine that he had been somewhat denying himself, thanks to all the extra time he had been spending either at the Jitsu house or at his own apartment. And, while he certainly didn't regret the time spent with his boyfriend, he was still looking forward to a couple good rounds…

Suddenly, he felt his phone vibrate for a second in his pocket. “Speak of the devil,” he mumbled with a smirk, taking the phone out. Sure enough, it was a text from Lou.

“Hey, babe. Whatchu up to? Hope work is going well.” Draxum wasn't quite sure when Lou had started calling him that (though it certainly flustered him a bit the first time he noticed), but while he usually wasn't one for pet names, he supposed he didn't mind this one too much.

“Work is work. Going to stop by the ring after,” he texted back.

It only took a few seconds for Lou to reply. “Oof, that bad of a day?”

“No, just haven't done it in a while. Figured it'd be a good way to clear my head somewhat, instead of feeling like a rat on a wheel.”

“Fair enough, hope u have fun!”

Draxum stared at the reply, thinking about it for a moment before typing, “Would you want to come with?” He waited, and then-

“Really, you don't mind?”

“If I did, I wouldn't have asked.”

“Haha, ok! Let me call my babysitter to see if he’s available, otherwise yeah, I'd love to!” A few minutes later, Lou sent another text - a simple thumbs up emoji - and Draxum replied with what time he'd be picking him up.

A quick stop at home after work to change and grab his gym bag, and then it was straight to the Jitsu house. Thankfully traffic was on his side for the most part, making him only a couple minutes late. He walked briskly up the colorful sidewalk - it looked like the boys had tried to play some sort of space themed hopscotch game - and knocked twice. The door opened, and-

“Well hello there~!”

Draxum blinked, stepping back slightly. He had been expecting Lou or one of the boys to answer the door, but instead he was greeted by a stout man with bushy blond hair and an even bushier mustache and a smile that just seemed much too happy and friendly to be natural. “...Hello. I-”

The short man suddenly grabbed his hand, shaking it firmly. “You must be Lou’s new beau! Oh it's just so great to meet you! And I can just tell already that you two must be the sweetest thing and probably look so CUTE together!”

“...If you say so,” Draxum said slowly, allowing the man to hold onto his hand for only a few seconds before yanking it away. Figuring that he wouldn't just want to stand and wait in the doorway, the overtly happy man stood aside, allowing Draxum to come in. He noticed all four boys - and… Was that a dog? What in the world, where had that come from? - in the living room, contently sitting on either the loveseat or the beanbags as they all watched TV together.

“Oh, hey Dr. Draxum!” Donnie noticed, waving. The Labrador puppy that was sitting near him also gave a quick greeting, barking loudly before settling back down. The mustached man just giggled at the pup, wagging a finger at it.

“Er, hello boys,” the scientist nodded, giving them a halfhearted wave, “Where is your-?”

“Hey, you.” Draxum turned and saw Lou coming down the stairs, dressed in a v-neck tank top and long gym pants, with his yellow-tinted sunglasses once again being opted out for darker ones. His hair was also missing its usual pompadour-like style, his bangs instead being tied back in a top knot. The leaner man’s smile almost immediately helped put Draxum a bit more at ease, even if he still wasn't too sure of their ‘guest’.

“Have a fun date, Pop!” Raph told him as his father gave him and his brothers goodbye-and-be-good hugs.

“I'm sure we will,” Lou smiled. Once he was done with his boys, he turned to the blond. “We’ll try not to stay out too late. I would imagine that-”

“Oh no, take your time!” The stout man insisted, “I'm in no rush! And you know how I just love looking after your boys, Lou, it's no trouble at all! Now you two go on and have a great time, okay?

Lou chuckled. “Alright, if you insist. Thanks again, Todd.” They quickly shook hands, with the smaller man once again insisting that he was happy to help. Finally looking back at Draxum now, he led his date out the door while his babysitter waved them off. And as soon as the door closed, Draxum broke his silence.

“Okay… Who was that guy?”

“Who, Todd?” Lou asked, “Uh, he's my babysitter? Kinda thought that was obvious, but-”

“So, you just found this guy and thought, ‘yeah, he seems normal enough to trust with my children’, huh?”

Lou laughed as they walked. “Okay okay, I know Todd seems a bit weird-” Even he could admit to being a bit overwhelmed by the guy’s friendliness and enthusiastic niceties the first time they met- “But he's also just a nice guy! And a good babysitter too, the boys have a fun time with him. ...Though, that maaaay be because he always brings over one of his puppies whenever he sits - he runs a puppy rescue that's on the outskirts of the city.”

“Ah,” Draxum nodded, opening his driver’s side door, “Well, that's one way to give them a pet without actually giving them a pet.”

“I know, right! That's what I thought too!” He paused as he got in the car. “Though, Mikey still tries to ask me for a cat sometimes…”

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

Since it was for amateurs only, the gym wasn't too fancy, all things considered. It was a little on the small side, and the youngest equipment there was still at least ten years old. Even his tiny home gym in his apartment was technically more modern. Still, the structure was sound and the roof never leaked, more than half the lockers there still locked and - the thing that always kept people like him coming back - there was still a well-kept, MMA regulation ring right in the center of it all. The perfect place for people to spar, as well as the home of amateur league bragging-rights-only championships every other month.

Draxum could still remember his first few times stepping into this old gym. He'd never been interested in team sports in his youth, but once he had found this place on one random walk around town, suddenly the strength and strategy behind mixed martial arts seemed pretty appealing. It kept him in shape at least, and even after three graduation ceremonies and earning a doctorate, he still found himself coming to the old gym to let off some steam about as often as he did as a teenager.

Lou seemed fairly impressed with it as well, immediately taking interest in the ring. The only other people there were a trainer and his hopeful eventual-champion, and since they were currently busy with the heavy bags in the corner, the ring was completely free.

“So,” Lou asked, stretching his arms as he glanced over his shoulder at his date, “Should we just get down to it then?”

Draxum smirked back at him. “Eager, aren't we?”

The ex-star shrugged. “What can I say, I like a good fight… Think you can give it to me?”

“I'd say I've got a pretty good chance.” Draxum walked over to him, close enough to let his natural height tower over Lou slightly. “Even when up against the great Lou Jitsu.”

Lou grinned. “Well then, let's see what you've got, Doc~”

“...This is ridiculously cheesy and over the top, even for us.”

“Oh don't act like you don't love it.”

All flirting aside, the two of them did take some time to stretch after climbing into the ring, with Draxum making sure to face away from his date, not wanting to risk staring or be caught staring. (Unbeknownst to him, Lou was doing the exact same thing. After all, Draxum was wearing a faded blue-grey tee and black shorts. Lou had never seen Draxum in shorts before, and he had no idea why. The man certainly had the legs for them.)

As they then turned back around to face each other and got into a starting position, the doctor couldn't help but feel a sense of deja vu, recalling the last time they ‘fought’. Of course, this time would be without the music, which meant it would naturally be more fight-like than dance-like, and there probably wouldn't be nearly as much fancy footwork. Still, he could feel excitement bubbling up in his chest, and allowed a small smile to stay on his face as they began the ‘round’.

Lou started things off, rushing in with a punch so fast that Draxum just barely managed to block it. “Ah, I was wondering if you'd actually take this seriously,” he said as he dodged another blow.

“Hey,” Lou chuckled, “Gotta keep you on your toes somehow!” He definitely had an advantage on speed, side-stepping and bouncing on his feet with ease as he hardly gave Draxum any room.

Of course, Draxum had his advantages too. He still had his height on Lou, as well as his physical strength. Once he saw an opening, he didn't hesitate to throw a punch. “Whoa!” Lou cries out, ducking down to avoid it before popping back up. “Nice one!” His date quickly raised his arms, ready to block.

Smirking, Draxum continued to throw hit after hit, keeping an eye on his openings and making sure to throw a fake out or two in there, just to keep things from getting to predictable.

Of course, Lou had his surprises as well. Turning one particular dodge into a sort of somersault, he gave himself some extra space. Once he was back on his feet, he tried a kick that was so fast and sudden, Draxum actually gasped as he moved away, thankfully only getting lightly kicked in the shoulder. The other amateurs he sometimes sparred with couldn't get their feet up nearly that high! “Too much?” He heard Lou ask.

“Hardly,” Draxum retorted, taking only the briefest of moments to regain his footing before rushing his date. Lou had been so focused on getting a possible tide-turning move in that he failed to also keep in mind his surroundings.

Not wanting to get pinned to the fence behind him, Lou dove out of the way, once again getting back to his feet in record time and trying another kick, this time aimed at Draxum’s back. But his boyfriend had speed of his own, it would seem. Draxum was able to catch the kick as he turned, taking the chance to shove Lou away.

Lou cried out a bit as he stumbled, though managed to keep from completely falling over. Standing back up to his full height, he was all smiles as he stared down his smirking opponent. “Alright, you’re asking for it!”

For the next two to three minutes, it was nothing but punches, blocks and dodges, with the two of them switching off between attacking and defending so quickly that if their fight had been an official match instead of just a spar, it could've been anyone’s round. Then again, if it had been an official match, Lou would've pulled out all the stops and shown off every trick he had while Draxum certainly would've been hitting a lot harder with quite a few more face shots, with either one of them being able to end the fight quickly.

But really, what was the fun in that?

For now, they just enjoyed the push and pull of the spar, observing each other’s strategies and clever moves while also admiring the other’s strength and athleticism. It was enjoyable, there was no denying that, but things were starting to slow down some. So, as Draxum caught his last punch, Lou allowed his body to stop. He smiled at his opponent, tilting his head slightly as he stared into Draxum’s eyes, not once trying to pull his hand away. “So… Wanna call it a draw?”

“Hmph.” Draxum lowered his arm, but didn't let go of his boyfriend’s hand. Only changing the position of his own hand, so it could feel like he was actually holding it rather than catching it. “Normally I wouldn't, but I think I can make an exception.” He rubbed the back of Lou’s hand with his thumb, taking a half step forward. “Good fight though. Shame it had to end.”

“Funny,” Lou said as he began tilting his head up now, “I was just about to say the same thing…” Still, there were certainly worse ways for a great spar to end than with a draw and a kiss...

Always seeming to have a few crumpled dollar bills and dull quarters sitting in the bottom of his locker, Draxum took the responsibility of keeping them hydrated and headed out to the old pop machine in the alley behind the gym. It took a couple tries for the finicky machine to accept his money, but Draxum was stubborn, and eventually this determination was rewarded with two bottles of water.

Unfortunately, once he stepped back inside, his mood quickly soured. The gym was a bit busier now, and while most of the people there were doing their own thing and minding their own business- “-Come on, you can't expect anyone here to believe that you are anything more than some washed up pretty boy from Hollywood!”

“Well, if you want to get technical, I'm actually from Tokyo,” Lou replied, arms crossed lazily, “Though I do appreciate the pretty comment, even if you are not really my type.”

The Chinese man who had recognized him (though definitely wasn't a fan) just sneered at the comeback. “Yeah, say all the one-liners you want, but that doesn't change the fact that you're not a real fighter!”

“And what makes you say that?” Draxum said suddenly, now directly behind the two of them, “After all, Hun, if you're going to be stupid enough to insult someone with enough skill in one hand to outclass you, then you'd better at least have some so-called evidence to back it up.”

Looking over his shoulder, Hun smirked. “Didn't think you were the fanboy type, Draxum. What, you think your ‘star’ can't handle a bit of trash talk? Can't handle someone who knows how to actually fight and not just swing a ladder around a set or toss around opponents who aren't even trying? Yeah, sounds like a real champion to me!”

Draxum narrowed his eyes, glaring down at him now. Of all the acquaintances and opponents he'd met at this gym, Hun was both the most cocky and the most annoying. Covered in tacky tattoos and always bragging about his ‘skills’, and despite only winning about two-thirds of the time, he still gloated incessantly about his victories to his cronies when they were there to back him up. The only good thing that came from running into him was usually beating him and shutting the mouth of his for a good while. ...But now, he could think of one better…

Draxum gave Lou a look and Lou didn't have to think about it, nodding back and giving his boyfriend a look of his own. Oh yeah, I've got this. “Well, if you are so confident, then why don't we have a friendly spar?” Lou asked, “Since we’re, you know, next to a fighting ring and all. You don't mind, right Ben?”

“Nope,” Draxum answered, “Don't mind at all.”

Hun grinned, cracking his knuckles. “Alright, Hollywood, let's do it. I for one can't wait to tell everyone how I beat the oh-so-great Lou Jitsu!”

“Oh I'm sure it will be an enjoyable tale,” Lou told him, not even looking at him now as he headed towards the ring’s entrance. Hun huffed, and started towards the other entrance. As for Draxum, he just found a good spot to watch from, and waited for the show to begin.

Lou took off his sunglasses in order to have completely clear vision, his face rarely serious. Hun smirked again, not at all intimidated. As far as he was concerned, this spar would be his, no sweat! “Here in the ring, you can't use fancy moves and convenient props as a crutch,” he taunted, “It's all skill!”

“I prefer to think of those things as ‘style points’, but hey, I can do basic.” Lou took one last deep breath before shifting into a starting position, completely prepared for whatever his opponent had to throw at him. “Ready when you are.”

Hun’s face shifted into a scowl, and he rushed towards Lou with a punch. Lou hopped back, dodging it easily. Another punch, another dodge. Hun tried a kick, and Lou simply ducked, sidestepping out of the way.

A small crowd was starting to gather outside of the ring. “See, I TOLD you that was Lou Jitsu!” “Whoa, you still think he can kick ass?” “Hun’s got this, Jitsu’s barely even fighting!” “Are you kidding me, Jitsu’s a pro! He's gonna wipe the floor with Hun once he gets going!”

Draxum watched in silence, eyes totally focused on his boyfriend. He could see the concentration in Lou’s face as he continued to duck and dodge, each move calculated as they darted around the ring. He wasn't trying to tire Hun out, he was just waiting for the perfect moment to go on the attack…

One more punch was thrown, aimed directly at Lou’s face - and this time, Lou blocked. His arms up now, he shifted into a punch so quickly that it made Hun flinch. He put his own arms to block, but the punch never came. Not from that direction, at least. The first one had been a fakeout, and it had done its job well, allowing the second punch to have a clear shot at Hun’s midsection

The crowd gasped and cheered. Hun grunted at the attack, but managed to stand tall. A respectable feat, but now he was out of step. Now it would be time for him to play defense. Lou began throwing hit after hit, hard and fast enough that even the ones Hun managed to block still caused a bit of pain. The occasional fakeout was enough to keep Hun from regaining an edge, and for the second time tonight, Lou was able to surprise his opponent with a well aimed kick to the shoulder.

As this all went on, Draxum could only stare, eyes wide. He didn't cheer along with the others. He couldn't even smile. All he could do was watch his date with amazement as he fought. It had been one thing to watch an extreme version of his fighting style in his movies, or have a playful spar-dance with him, but this was the real deal. No quips, no smirks or taunts, nothing but raw skill and strength. He could also see just how muscular Lou still was at this angle, despite being so lean and his abs, while not being completely gone, not nearly as tight as they used to be.

Each movement of his arms was a natural extension that was as easy as breathing and as powerful as a cobra strike. His stance was firm and as solid as a skyscraper, yet his feet almost never stopped moving. His eyes were sharp, always looking for the next opening and always trying to think two moves ahead. This was the mind and body of a true champion.

Simply put: To the others watching the fight, it was amazing. To Draxum, it was incredible.

With the two of them quickly running out of space - they were nearly up to the fence now - and the clear fatigue beginning to appear in Hun’s face, Lou decided it was time to officially end it. Huh threw one last punch, desperate enough that there was little technique in it. Lou caught it with ease, and with his other hand, he punched Hun right in the nose, sending him to the floor. He’d held back quite a bit, not being annoyed with Hun enough to seriously hurt him (or risk getting sued by him), but the man’s nose was sure to be bleeding for quite a while.

“Good fight,” Lou said simply, offering a hand.

Hun slapped it away, and stood up on his own, swaying only slightly. Even with one hand holding his nose, he managed to sneer at the ex-movie star. “So you proved that you can fight. Good for you. Just don't expect it next time, you got that?” With that, Hun stomped off, shoving past anyone who tried to talk to him outside of the ring.

But despite the harsh words, Lou just shrugged and headed towards Draxum, a smile already returning to his face. “Hey!” He waved, “So, I think I did pretty good in there.”

“Yes,” Draxum nodded, his voice slightly stiff, “You… Did well in there. Very well.” He inwardly scoffed at himself. That was only a mere fraction of the reaction he had to Lou’s fight, of the praise he wanted to give, though the rest would have to wait. “But I think we should head out to the car now.”

“Huh?” Lou raised an eyebrow. “You want to leave?” Did he get turned off by Lou showing off, or-?”

“I'm saying…” Draxum tried again, his cheeks a bit red now, “That we should go out to the car.”

Lou stared at him for a couple seconds before it finally hit him. “Oh. ... OHHHH.” He grinned. “Why, Benjamin~”

“Shut up,” Draxum hissed, his face burning now as he grabbed Lou’s wrist and dragged him towards the exit, with his date just barely managing to hold back his amused and excited laughter.

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

“One roast beef, and one burger. Enjoy, you two!” Lou nodded, silently assuring that they would.

The two of them had decided to stop somewhere for a bite before heading back to Lou’s place, and as luck would have it, the diner they’d had brunch at a few weeks prior was on the way there. Even better was that the diner was pretty deserted for a weekday evening, which meant other than a couple whispering waitresses, there was no one to really bother them.

The ex-action star smiled as he picked up his burger. “Heh, nothing like a couple good spars and a great makeout session to get you hung- Ow!” The kick under the table wasn't very hard, but Lou still gave a pout. “What was that for?”

“It's just not really the type of thing to say in public, is all,” Draxum grumbled, blushing slightly again. He took a moment to brush some hair out of his face, his hair tie currently lost somewhere under the seats of his car. “Especially not for us. We’re not exactly teenagers, after all.”

Lou scoffed. “So what? We can still have our fun, can't we? Not too old for that. And it's not like there's too many people around to hear. ...Though, if they did, they would probably call us lucky, and I would say the same.” Draxum just rolled his eyes while Lou chuckled, finally taking a bite of his burger.

The couple ate in silence for a bit before Lou spoke up again. “I had fun tonight,” he told Draxum, his tone much more sincere now, “Thanks for letting me tag along.”

Draxum smiled back at him, swallowing his own bite of roast beef and mashed potatoes. “If you had that much fun, then I’ll remember to invite you along next time.”

“Yeah. It really wasn't that bad of a place.” Lou dipped a couple fries in his ketchup, looking a bit thoughtful now. “Maybe I could even take the boys there. Once they're older, of course.” Can't exactly have fights out in the backyard, after all. ...Well, you could, but it'd probably lead to a visit from the cops.

Draxum looked curiously at him. “Oh, so you are teaching them your fighting style?”

“Eh, sort of.” Lou gave a small laugh, shaking his head. “From the first time they saw one of my movies, they have been begging me to teach them. Perhaps they were a bit young for those films, and certainly too young to begin intense training. Not that something like that was going to stop them. I lost count how many times I caught them trying to spar with each other - and usually hurting each other or themselves accidentally in the process. Once I even caught Raph with a ladder.”

Catching Draxum’s look of concern, Lou quickly clarified. “It was one of those little kitchen ladders. More like a stepstool, actually. Still, it scared me enough to send both him and his brothers that were cheering him on to their rooms. Afterwards, I sat them down and we had a long talk, leading to the compromise that I would begin to teach them when each of them turned ten.” He then sighed slightly. “Still, you know how insistent kids can be. So, in the meantime, I'm teaching them tai chi as well as the very basics.”

“Ah, I see,” Draxum nodded, “That seems fair.”

“Yeah, and it's actually been working out well. Tai chi actually makes for a very effective cool down exercise when any of them get into a fight with one of their brothers or have a meltdown over something. Plus, just learning different moves and techniques is just fun for them, no matter how simple they are.” Lou smiled to himself. With how enthusiastic they were at such a young age, not yet being bored or frustrated enough to quit, there was a good chance for martial arts to remain a long term part of their family.

His date smiled back at him. “Perhaps they'll grow up to be like their father, then,” Draxum commented.

“Heh, not exactly like me, hopefully,” Lou replied, “But yeah, maybe. It's like they say, you pass down who you were in life as well as what you knew during it. I just hope I'm passing down all good things.”

“I'm sure you are,” Draxum assured him, “Can't think of many bad things about you…” He stretched out his foot once again, this time gently brushing past Lou’s ankle rather than kicking it. Lou said nothing, wanting to use his mouth to take another bite of his burger instead, but returned the touch with his own foot.

Traffic slowed outside the window by their table, bright lights flashing by only occasionally. Some old 60s melody came up on the diner radio, further adding to the homey feel of the room. Once he was finished eating - for such a skinny guy, he could not only eat quite a bit but also eat it quickly - Lou rested the back of his hand against his drink, the water droplets from the glass of pop cooling the spots where light bruises were already starting to form. Switching his fork to his other hand, Draxum gently took Lou’s for the third time that night, lightly massaging it. And just like twice before, Lou didn't dare pull away.

Indeed, playful spars and showing cocky jerks who’s boss was pretty fun. But as it turned out, simply sitting at an old diner table, holding your date’s hand and just being able to peacefully exist with them was just as nice.

"...Would you like to join in on one of our tai chi sessions?" Lou asked suddenly, "We usually do it early weekend mornings, so I can understand if you would want to sleep in, but..."

Draxum personally didn't know much about tai chi, yet it didn't seem to matter. "Count me in," he answered, and the two didn't hesitate to seal the agreement with another kiss.

I'm admittedly not a huge fan of TMNT 2012 - though if any of you like it, it's fine, glad you could find more enjoyment in it than I could - but I thought including Hun from that incarnation could be a fun little easter egg, plus he seemed to fit better than just a random no-name character. And of course, gotta have some Todd! Heh ^v^ Anyway, please leave a kudos and a comment if you can, I'd love to know what you guys think of this chapter and story as a whole, and i'll see you all next time!

Brothers In Arms: Pt. 1

Words: 1833

(Part 2)

Rick looks at TC. Something in his gut is telling him to check in on Thomas.  He pulls out his cell phone and dials the man's phone number. He listens to it ring once before going straight to voicemail. Not again. He waves at TC to grab the man's attention. As TC heads his way, Rick dials Juliet's number. "This is Juliet Higgins."

"Higgy, it's Rick. Hey, is Magnum there?"

"No, I haven't seen him since he left last night."

"If you do see him, call me please?" "Of course, is everything alright?" Concern drips in her voice.

"Not sure. Thanks." He hangs up and looks at TC.

"Yo, everything alright?" The taller man asks his friend.

"I don't think so. My gut is saying we need to find Tommy. But he hasn't been to the Nest since he left last night."

"Where would Magnum have gone?"

 The boat rocks back and forth, and while that would normally calm him down, it drives the fear deeper into Magnum's heart. The tape on his mouth is sticky, and he can taste the blood in his mouth from when the man in the green shirt punched him for being mouthy. The ties on his wrists aren't quite cutting off his blood circulation, but he's definitely not getting out of them any time soon. His tan Hawaiian shirt is stuck to his skin from the blood that is dried on it. The one thing that does bring Magnum some relief is the fact that his feet aren't tied together. He wonders, not for the first time since they've started this trip, where these three men are taking him. Finally, the boat begins to slow down. He looks around and realizes there isn't any land in sight. One of the men walks down to the lower deck and starts lowering the ladder into the water. Thankfully, it isn't the man who punched Magnum earlier. However, it does bring a sense of deja-vu, and Magnum wonders what he was brought along on this little trip for.

 TC's phone rings. "Katsumoto?" He questions in lieu of a greeting.

"TC. Glad I caught you. Hey, have you seen Magnum recently?"

"No, but Rick and I have been trying to track him down all morning. Why?" TC suddenly gets a terrible feeling.

"His car is currently being processed by CSU." "What?"

"A patrol car was driving down Kapaa Quarry Road, and they found his vehicle on the side of the road, door wide open. When they stopped to see what was going on, there was blood in the vehicle."

Shit. "Okay. What do you want us to do?"

"Make a list of Magnum's enemies. We need to figure who could've done this."

"Yeah, but like we said last time he went missing, he's a private investigator. He makes a lot of enemies. But... Do you find it strange that, so far, the only difference between this time and last, is who found the car?"

"Yeah. But we will follow every lead we get. Okay? Don't be like Magnum. HPD has this covered."

TC nods before remembering Katsumoto couldn't see him, "Alright." As he hangs up, TC looks over at Rick. Fear for his brother rages in his eyes. "A patrol car found TM's car earlier. CSU is processing."

"Okay. So, Katsumoto wants us to create a list of his enemies?"

"Rick." TC calls the man's name to gain his attention. Rick spins around to look at the taller man. "There was blood in the car."

 Juliet watches from her desk as Rick and TC pull onto the estate in the direction of the guesthouse. Curiosity rings through her. She wonders why they are here, at Magnum's residence, when they called earlier looking for him. She glances around for Zeus and Apollo and spots them lying at the door, ears perked from hearing TC's van rumbling in the driveway.

"Come along, lads." She calls to the canines, who jump up and trot to her side. Juliet heads for the men who, on any other day, would be visiting their brother, but seem to have a different agenda on their mind today. She watches TC and Rick both dig out their cell phones from their pockets.

"Hello, gents. Fancy seeing you here." She raises an eyebrow in question.

"Higgy!" Rick greets. "We're just here to visit Magnum." Jules watches the silent man behind Rick minutely flinch. If she hadn't been looking for it, she would've completely missed it.

"Oh. But you called earlier, and he still isn't back. Is there something else going on?" She knows Rick is lying to her but wants to see if he'll confess.

"That's a bummer, man." Rick turns to TC. "Should we wait for him?"

"You know what? I think we should." TC joins in the game.

"You didn't answer the question, gentlemen." It's a game Juliet no longer wants to play.

"What question was that? I didn't hear a question." Rick states, face drawn. "Is there something going on?" Juliet knows her annoyance is on her face. She's never had to hide her true feelings for these boys so far, and she wasn't about to start.

Rick relents. "Katsumoto called TC a bit ago. The Ferrari was found out on Kapaa Quarry Road. HPD found blood inside." His voice was grim delivering the news and the fear between the three for their injured friend was nearly palpable.

"What can I do to assist?"

A look passed between the two men that Higgins didn't want to even try to decipher before TC answered. "You can help us create a list of enemies. Again." His last word passed as a sigh. For being a PI, and former military, their friend sure did get into a lot of binds.

"Of course." She released the dogs to wander the property before joining the men in their trip to the guesthouse.

 Magnum swims, handcuffed to the man in the green shirt, hoping for a chance to attempt what, so far, has been impossible.

Green shirt yanks on the link connecting them, "Hurry up."

"I'm going, but these ribs are killer." Magnum can't help but sass.

"Maybe Mr. SEAL should've thought about that before mouthing off earlier." Black shirt speaks up from behind Magnum. Thomas nearly stops at the mention of his last occupation. Only his training keeps him from physically displaying the shock.

"Woah... He actually speaks." Magnum figures they won't do anything while in the water, especially with him handcuffed to one.

"Get moving." The one up front, Buzz Cut, calls. And this finally shuts Magnum up, because the tone offers no argument. As much as he wants to stop and tread for a moment, Magnum kicks one foot then another, through the twinge in his ribs. The saltwater definitely doesn't help the pain from the cuts.

 A few hours later, the three have a list that was quite long. Rick volunteers to call Katsumoto with the list and for any other information.  

Ring. Ring.

"This is Detective Katsumoto."

"Detective, this is Rick Wright. I have that list for you about Magnum's case."

"As much as I appreciate that, I am no longer leading detective on that case."

"Okay. Who is?" Rick's curiosity is piqued.

"Five-O. As soon as they got wind of it. It was snatched off my desk onto theirs."

"Thanks Katsumoto."

The line goes dead and Higgins questions, "Why would Five-O want this case? It's not high-profile or political."

A look of comprehension passes over TC's face. "Is Commander McGarrett still in charge of the taskforce?" "I believe so, why?" "Oh boy." Rick drags the words out. "Commander McGarrett and Magnum are good friends. Suffice to say, they saved each other's asses a few times."

TC shoots Rick a humorous look, "A few times?"

"Okay.... a lot. Even Nuzo got a kick out of how many times they've rescued each other. Both are troublemakers beyond belief." TC makes a sound of agreement.

"Okay. So McGarrett finds out Magnum's in trouble and wants to help?" "Let's just say McGarrett feels he owes Magnum a few favors. And Magnum insists he doesn't." Rick leans over to TC, "I'm not even sure who owes who at this point."

"I think they're about even." TC murmurs back. Juliet raises her eyebrows in shock.

 Steve looks at his partner. "Steve. I love you brother, but why did we just grab a case? Not to be heartless, but it just seems like a kidnapping. HPD deals with this all time. "

"Look at the name, man." "A P.I. named Thomas Magnum. I'm still failing to make the connection."

"He was a SEAL."

"And this is some sort of brotherhood thing? Sorry brother, there needs to be more explanation." Danny reads the rest of the case information. "I was going to, but you interrupted. He is a friend. We saved each other's asses more times than I could count."

"Gotcha. What else do we know?" Out of respect for the missing man's sacrifice, Danno jumps into detective mode.

"His friends are creating a list of enemies..."

"Which he is bound to have a long one, seeing that he's a private investigator."

"Yeah. He's also the security consultant for Robin Masters."

"The Robin Masters? As in White Knight?"

"Yeah, that's him." Steve was almost surprised at Danno's knowledge of the famous author.

"Okay. So, we know he was taken, probably by force, based on the blood. What about ransom calls? And why not take the car?" Danny fires off the questions as he thinks of them.

 Rick's phone rings as Juliet finally sits on Magnum's couch. He puts it on speaker after answering. "Hello?"

"Rick Wright, this is Steve McGarrett with Five-O. I am currently standing at the gate with my partner, Danny Williams. Would you mind letting us in so we can chat?"

"McGarrett, it's good to hear from you... Maybe not under these specific circumstances, but we're glad you made it out, man." TC speaks up.

"Of course, we'll let you in." Rick gives the two men the code for the gate and then waits in anxious silence for them to enter Magnum's residence.

Knock, knock. "It's McGarrett." Steve calls out as he and Danny enter the home, not wanting to surprise the two former soldiers inside. "Rick, TC. Man, you guys are looking good."

"Just out of curiosity," TC smirked, "what is it with SEALs retiring into law enforcement?" McGarrett laughs in response.

"They don't know how not to be insane." Danny turns to his partner with a raised eyebrow, as if daring Steve to find a valid argument. Steve holds his hands up in surrender.

"I can't argue that one." TC agrees.

"You have that list for us?" Steve finally directs the conversation. Rick nods and looks at Higgins.

"Here it is." She hands it to Steve, and her thoughts turn to Magnum. She wonders if he's okay, and if he's trying to find a way to get back to them.

 The End (for now?)

If you would like another part to this story, please let me know.: Thanks to all my followers!

Team Foster-Keefe One Shot: I Can’t Let You Go

A/N: So, hello tumblr. Have your first taste of some of my fanfiction writing. There are more one shots that I’ve written before this one, but I won’t post them until later. I don’t usually write one shots like this one, so it was pretty abnormal for me, and hopefully you all don’t hate me by the end of this. Okay, anyway, this contains spoilers from Lodestar, so if you haven’t read that yet, the do. not. read. on. Enjoy!

Air.

The only thing Sophie needs right now is air.

The walls seem to be closing in, there’s still dust falling from what used to be a ceiling, and Sophie is pretty sure she’s covered in blood, sand, and dirt. She needs air, she needs to clear her lungs of the dirtiness of the oxygen around her, clear her head from the horrible thoughts flying around, and yet all she sees is the darkness in front of her.

She’s completely alone, completely cut off from the outside where Edaline is, and she doesn’t remember hearing from Keefe after she had frantically transmitted to him when she figured out what was going on.

Lumenaria is completely in ruins.

She only feels the faintest sense of deja vu, but she can’t stop running in order to figure out why. Maybe she’s running in circles, the entire building was designed to confuse people. She doesn’t even care, because she knows that there are still people in there. She hadn’t seen Mr. Forkle or Oralie with the refugees. And who knows where Keefe could be. She can’t think of any sort of reason why Keefe wouldn’t have left the cave he was hiding in if he knew that people were in danger. She wants to think that he would at least have come looking for her with the refugees…

Right now, she can’t think about who could and couldn’t be in this building. She just needs to find someone at all. Needs to know that whoever is stuck in here will get out. Needs to know that everything is okay.

And then suddenly it clicks. She’s a genetically enhanced telepath who can track thoughts to their exact locations. So, she crouches down and places two fingers on her right temple, face contorting in concentration as she reaches her mind out like a blanket, trying to feel for something. Anything.

She’s just about to give out to the strain when she feels the slightest flicker of a frantic thought, just a trickle of warmth as her heart beat speeds up, and suddenly she’s not in charge of her limbs anymore. She’s running, running, running at full speed, dodging fallen support beams and shattered marble and crystal and glass, going so fast she must be levitating now. She’s moving things along the way with her telekinesis, instinctively knowing exactly what do, as if she’d done it before already. She just needs to find this person.

She reaches her consciousness out again, feeling more than one flicker of life this time, and it’s getting closer, just above her. She can feel the cold chill of fear settle into her bones, the blood drain from her face as she’s about to levitate onto the floor above, so she calls out random names of people she knew were at the summit.

“Hello?” she hears a frail voice call out, and suddenly her breathing is erratic, her chest heaving with the relief of finding them, and the fear of what she could see. But she has never been prepared to see what is in front of her right now.

“No.” That’s all that comes out of Sophie’s mouth before she’s running, falling on her knees, and already feeling her entire body heave from the force of her sobs this time.

“You really shouldn’t have come looking for us,” the familiar voice says, though gruff and clearly full of pain and strain, and she finally looks down into his face, not totally ready to accept the fact that who she saw was really him. But looking into those eyes, she can’t deny it for much longer.

“Keefe…,” she cries out, reaching for his hand and holding on so tight she can’t even feel her own hand anymore. She looks up to the frail voice from before, Oralie, who’s hand is pressing on Keefe’s torso, shiny and red, and Sophie is suddenly overcome with the pungent and choking smell of iron. She doesn’t know if she’s still sobbing, or if she’s gagging.

“It’s okay, Sophie. Believe me, I gave as hard as I got,” he rasps out, turning his head the slightest bit to the left, and Sophie follows her gaze in that direction until her eyes fall upon a lump in the corner, covered with what looks like a curtain, and it’s terrifyingly body shaped.

“It’s Brant. He came after me, keeping good on his promise,” Oralie choked out through her own rattling sobs, albeit much more controlled than Sophie’s.

“The sword…” Sophie suddenly looks back down to Keefe’s torso, and sees the blood that won’t stop, the fabric tied tight around the wound, and it all kicks in at the same time.

“Yes. He came after me, but Keefe found us while he was looking for you…,” Oralie trails off, staring back at Brant’s lifeless body. “A beam fell on him, crushing his skull. Brain matter everywhere.” She looks away from Sophie, her eyes going dark and distant as she seems to relive the memory.

“Yeah, it was pretty gruesome. Definitely not something you’d have wanted to see,” Keefe gets out between weak breaths, but Sophie’s more focused on the blood trailing from the corner of his mouth. She shakes her head, placing a hand on his cheek and wiping the blood away from his mouth with her thumb, gently and carefully, as if she could somehow hurt him even more.

“Keefe…”

“I’ll be okay, but listen to me right now,” he says weakly, coughing in a way that looks like it’s so painful, Sophie can feel it in her chest. She meets his eyes again, and they’re the same eyes she looks into everyday. No flicker of pain. “You need to fight this war, and you need to win it. I promise that I will be with you through every part of it, do you hear me? I’m never leaving your side.” Sophie’s tears only start coming again, hot and fast, and they burn her eyes.

“There has to be time to get you to the physician, I can carry you, and Elwin can fix this, or-”

“Sophie, there isn’t time. Forkle has already started finding his way out of here to find a refugee group to alert them about what’s happened,” Keefe tells her, but she keeps shaking her head hard.

“You’re just giving up? I just got you back,” she has to ask, a sob cutting through the end of her sentence in the form of a hiccup.

“I’m not giving up, just waiting for the right time. It’s amazing how long you can stall something if you really put your mind to it,” Keefe says, never taking his eyes off of Sophie’s. “Sophie, thanks for coming to find me, but you can’t save me this time. All I can ask for is what you’ve already given me. The gift of goodbye.” He rattles out another breath, each one sounding more painful than the last, and there’s nothing Sophie can do.

“I’m sorry I can’t save you,” she sobs, wiping away more of the blood falling from the corner of his mouth. She can see some of his own tears, washing away lines of dust on his cheeks.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t save myself. I’ll always love you, Sophie Foster,” he says before closing his eyes, breathing more slowly, and Sophie looks from him to Oralie, who’s already starting to lift her hands from his wound. Sophie closes her eyes tight, squeezing out more hot tears, and when she opens them, she sees the tears drop onto his shoulder.

“I’ll always love you, too, Keefe,” she shakily gets out, hoping that he’s conscious enough to hear it. And right after the last words leave her mouth, falling off of her tongue, she can see his chest fall still.

And then she’s screaming. Breathing so hard she can’t focus on her surroundings, but she’s fairly sure she’s being strangled by something that’s too soft to be dangerous. Struggling, she kicks and thrashes, trying to focus on where she is and what’s going on, and wondering what the hell just happened. The only thing she can make out is the large, brooding figure at the foot of her bed, and the light pouring in from the open door in the corner of the room, and that’s when it hits her: she’s in her bedroom.

That horrible scene had come from her own twisted mind, she’d dreamt the whole thing. She’s crying, screaming, still thrashing, and she can’t answer any of the questions being asked to her. All she can do is kick the strangling blankets off of her and scramble to her desk, entire body shaking and coated in cold sweat as she grabs for her imparter.

“Show me Keefe,” she says shakily, probably loudly judging by the concerned look on who she can now identify as Sandor. She waits, breathing heavily, trying to calm down her nerves and get rid of the cold chill in her bones as the gadget rings. The only thing going through her mind right now is that it was a dream, and Keefe Keefe Keefe, because he has to be okay. But she has to see that.

“Sophie? What’s going on?” she hears, and the breath of relief she inhales is so loud that she’s pretty sure it was a gasp.

“Oh my god. Keefe, oh my god,” is all she can get out before she’s crouching down on her flower petal carpet, pulling her knees up to her chest and burying her face between them, leaning against the bed. She doesn’t even know if Keefe can see her with how dark her room is, but she knows he can definitely hear her and her loud sobs. She’s surprised she hasn’t woken up Grady and Edaline.

“Hey, what’s wrong? What happened?” he’s asking, and she can hear him clap, turning on a light. She doesn’t have the strength to raise her head to look at him now, scared that when she does she’ll see the horrifying image from her nightmare. It doesn’t matter anyway, because it’s all she can see when she closes her eyes, too.

“Can you come over? Please?” she chokes out, trying to dry her eyes on the fabric of her pyjama pants.

“Of course, I’ll be right there,” he says, sounding concerned. Sophie silently tries to control her hiccup-like sobs as he ends the call, telling her that he’s already on his way. She can’t stop her chest from heaving until she finally hears footsteps coming up the stairs, and she whips her head around to stare at the doorway, ready for a fresh set of tears when she finally sees him frantically walk into the room, turning the lights on and seeing her on the ground. He shares a look with Sandor before going to kneel right in front of her, and she immediately holds onto his hand so tight she can’t feel her fingers anymore. She can hear him asking what’s wrong and what happened over and over again, but all she can do is look from his clean torso to his unbloodied mouth to his eyes, proving that she had dreamed it all up. Her subconscious mixed up her own tragedies and cooked up a completely new and terrifying one.

Before she can even make sense of what’s happening, she’s throwing herself onto Keefe, wrapping her arms tightly over his shoulders and burying her face into his neck, a new round of tears coming. It has to be at least her tenth, including those within the dream.

“Hey,” he starts, wrapping his arms around her waist and shushing her in a soothing way. “I’m right here. I’m right here, I promise.” His voice is low and steady, nothing like the rattly sentences she’d heard from the dream. “Come on, let’s stand up now,” he says, and Sophie only half understands what he’s saying, just following his lead when he leans back a little bit and starts standing up, helping her get back onto the bed.

“I’m so sorry, I just-” she starts, starting to feel dizzy. Keefe sits down next to her, taking her hand and holding on tightly, staying silent and letting her finish. “It was a dream, and I just had to make sure you were okay.”

“I’m perfectly okay. What happened in the dream?” he asks, looking at her with so much concern that she almost feels bad for worrying him. She tries to get her crying under control and is left with only sniffles before she tries to sum up the horrors her brain showed her.

“Lumenaria. I- it was, uh, it was you, instead of Forkle,” she stutters out, still sniffling, with a few hiccups here and there. She can hear the stuffiness in her voice, and she can still feel herself trembling, even when Keefe wraps his arms around her shoulders, holding her close as she leans on him for support.

“Oh, Sophie, I’m so sorry,” he says, and she just can’t shake the cold emptiness she can feel in her chest. She can still feel the fear in her bones when she first looked at him in the dream, feel her heart being ripped in half as he told her he loved her, and she just hides her face in his shoulder, feeling bad for ruining his shirt with her new tears.

“It was just horrible. It was, it was like my brain just, merged two tragedies into one,” she gets out between sniffles. She knows her legs and hands are still shaking, making her feel so much colder than she really is. For all she knows, she could have a fever right now, but she just feels so… empty. And cold.

“Lay down, Sophie,” he says, and she silently obeys, hesitantly prying herself away from him and laying down, letting her head fall on the pillow. She can feel that Keefe is still holding onto her hand as he lays down to the right of her, and he uses his other arm to wrap around her, pulling her closer. She leans her head on his chest, barely even blinking for fear of seeing the horrifying images again. Sophie’s left arm is slung across her chest, and partly on Keefe’s, holding his right hand as she feels where his wound was in the dream. There’s nothing abnormal about it, and Keefe just seems to know what she’s doing, because he stays silent.

“Do you hear my heartbeat?” he asks, waiting for her to nod slowly. She’s just staring into space at this point, still barely blinking. She’s probably broken a record for longest time not blinking at this point. “Just focus on that. Focus on my heartbeat,” he says, soothingly rubbing his hand up and down her arm, calming her spiked nerves. She’s not feeling as cold anymore, and the emptiness in her chest is starting to fill back up as she listens to his heartbeat, just like he told her to. It’s steady, strong, and it fills the silence, reminding her that he’s still here. She tries to sync up her breathing to the beat of his heart, needing something to steady her lungs.

“How are you feeling?” he asks, dragging Sophie back to reality. She turns her head to look at him, reassuring herself that he’s full of life, and she sits up straighter on her own, probably looking more worn out than he does at this point. And all she can think of now are those last words he spoke in the dream.

“Keefe, do you love me?” she asks, strangely calm. But after that dream, she’s not sure she can be scared about anything the way she was scared when it felt so real. She just has to know.

“Do I… love you?” he asks, looking surprised. But she meets his eyes, so much more vibrant than they were in the dream. She nods. He’s still holding her hand, his other still on her arm, and there’s a strange calmness on his face. Maybe he’s tired.

“In the dream, you told me you loved me. I just… I need to know,” she says. It’s so hard to explain to him without explaining the horrible gruesomeness that came with it, and it’s surprisingly a lot more nerve wracking to explain someone’s own death to their face. Even if it was fake.

“Yeah, I love you,” he tells her softly, sitting up more with her. She can’t help but place her hand on his cheek, wiping her thumb at the corner of his mouth, completely absent of blood, his face void of any pain, and she thinks about how she really thought she’d had to let him go without him knowing how she really feels. So, she leans down, feeling the warmth start to find its way back to the cold parts of her body, and the frightened parts of her starting to mend back up, the shaking finally stopping, and she calmly places her lips on his, just wondering what it feels like.

“I almost had to let you go without ever doing that,” she says, her eyes filling with new tears. Whether these tears are from grief, fear, or relief, she doesn’t know. All she knows is that she’s tired, and she finally feels at peace for the first time that night. Keefe smiles at her, small but reassuring, and she leans back down, resting against his chest again.

“You don’t have to let me go, I’ll stay right here, okay? You’re not going to lose me.” His voice is so steady, so sure, so strong that she believes it, and she nods, finally feeling okay enough to close her eyes. This time, she doesn’t see the image from her dream, but the image of Keefe just now, smiling at her and reminding her that he’s still here.

“Keefe?” she asks softly, still listening to his heartbeat.

“Yeah, Sophie?” he answers, his hand trailing to the back of her head, soothingly combing through her hair.

“I love you, too,” she tells him, eyes still closed, picturing more pleasant things to think about than the dream. If she could have them, she’d ask for Calla’s reveriebells, but having Keefe right with her might be better. And before she can even hear his reply, she’s already asleep, in dreamless, timeless, and painless oblivion.

Don’t Forget to Decorate

Part Three in the Week Before (a.k.a. The Last Day)

The auditorium was completely empty. Morri set a tub of lights down and smiled. 

“Well... Let’s do this!” he said enthusiastically. He turned to his “crew” of Rocky, Alan, PJ, Angela, and Michelle. “We have a lot to do, and not a lot of time to do it. We have to do the ceiling first, then we’ll do the tables and other decorations. Questions?”

“Do we need more help?” Alan asked.

Morri frowned. “I... Probably... I don’t...”

“I’ll call Buddy, he can bring the others,” PJ cut in.

“Not Keith! Or Will. We can’t have both here,” Morri exclaimed. “They explicitly told me that they can’t see each other for a week before the wedding.”

“That’s kinda stupid,” PJ muttered. “I’m still calling Buddy.”

Morri waved him off and dug around in the light box. He produced a string of Christmas tree lights. “I’m thinking of handing these from the ceiling and then covering them with cloth.”

“What cloth,” Rocky asked flatly.

Morri looked around. None of the boxes brought in said “cloth” and there was only a box of plates in the car. “Shit, they’re not here!”

PJ walked back over. “Hey, Morri... Do you need anything that Buddy can pick up for you?”

“Yes! Can he swing by my house and get a box labeled ‘cloth’? It has the ceiling decorations in it,” Morri explained hurried. “It should be right inside the door.”

“Does he have a key?” PJ asked. “Or is there a spare hidden somewhere?”

“Garden gnome,” Morri shouted as he ran across the auditorium.

PJ nodded. “It’s somewhere near the garden gnome,” he told Buddy.

“Oh, great. I hate gnomes. Whatever, I’ll be over soon. I’m picking up some other stuff, plus George and Jon. I have no clue where Keith is right now and Will’s staying home,” Buddy replied. “See you soon.”

Morri stood on top of the ladder and was fiddling with the lights. Rocky glanced up from the table he was setting up and smiled. His smile faded as he saw the ladder wobble. 

Morri stepped back and slipped off the ladder with a scream. He fell before someone caught him.

“You okay?” Rocky asked hurriedly.

Morri looked at him and smiled. “I’m fine. Are you?”

Rocky nodded and helped Morri stand up. “I told you to be careful.”

“I was trying to be! I just...slipped. I--”

“Hey!” Buddy exclaimed as he burst in through the door. “I brought back up!”

George playfully cuffed Buddy’s ear. “We’re not back up, you dolt.”

Jon set down the box of cloth. “Here’s uh... Your box.”

Morri ran over. “Thank you! I’ll get these up right away!” He opened the box and pulled out strips of fabric in all of the colors of the rainbow, plus two black strips. “The dark ones are iridescent. They’ll shimmer in the right light.”

“What’s with the rainbow?” George asked skeptically.

“Ask Keith, that was his idea.”

“And the other stuff?”

Morri smiled. “It matches Will’s suit. He made an offhand comment about how it’d look cool if the decorations somehow tied in with him, not just Keith. I found the fabric at the store.”

“What are we doing with these exactly?” Jon asked.

“See those Christmas lights? These go over them. Let’s start with the red one and move our way around. We have to leave space for the iridescent ones, remember!” Morri ordered.

Rocky watched as everyone worked on the ceiling decorations. He turned back to the flowers and arranged them in the vases.

“Do you need help?” Buddy asked him suddenly. Rocky startled and looked up. “With the flowers? I am a florist...”

Rocky smiled weakly. “That’d be nice... Could you do Will’s boutonniere and Keith’s...flowers? I’m not as good with arrangements people wear...”

Buddy sat down and smiled. “Of course!” He set about his task with Rocky worked on his.

Suddenly, the lights turned off. Everyone looked around in shock.

“Al, why are the lights off?” Angela asked her husband.

“I’m not...sure,” Alan muttered quietly.

A phone flashlight lit up the center of the room. “Aha!” Morri exclaimed. “Prepare to be amazed!” He fiddled around with something and then the light strings all flashed on. The glow of the lights shone through the fabric strips, creating a small illusion of a rainbow. Morri scampered down the ladder and over to Rocky. “Isn’t it amazing?”

Rocky smiled. “It’s beautiful.” He flinched a little when Buddy put a flower in his hair. Morri laughed and hugged him.

“God, I love you,” he mumbled. Rocky stood frozen for a moment before hugging Morri back.

“I...love you, too.”

Morri smiled and pushed Rocky away. “We still have a lot of work to do.” He kissed Rocky’s cheek and rushed off to do something else.

The lights came back on and Buddy strolled over to Rocky. “So...” he purred.

“The flowers need to be kept cool overnight,” Rocky said, averting the questioning Buddy.

“What’s up with you two?” Buddy persisted.

“Do you really care?” Rocky asked bitterly.

“I kind of do...”

“I... I slept around a lot and he couldn’t take it. Don’t blame him.” Rocky picked up a box of vases. “He’s forgiven me, but I haven’t.”

Buddy picked up the other box. “So it’s over then?”

“It’s been over.”

“Ooh, I have a chance,” Buddy muttered under his breath.

Rocky stumbled a little. “With whom?! I thought you were married!”

Buddy flushed. “Elsie and I are having a bit of a split right now. And by a bit, she filed for divorce two weeks ago. I signed the papers before coming here.”

“Oh, Buddy... I’m sorry,” Rocky sighed. “I’d put a reassuring hand on your shoulder, but I have flowers.”

Buddy chuckled. “Thanks for...listening. I haven’t really told the others.”

“You trust me then?”

“I do, yeah. I appreciate it.” Buddy set the flowers down. “I was joking, by the way.”

Rocky laughed nervously. “Yeah, definitely picked up on that...”

“Let’s just get these flowers in the fridge, alright?”

“Yeah... Alright...”

Jon ran into the kitchen. “You two! How many arrangements did you make?”

“About twenty to thirty?” Rocky replied.

Jon slumped onto the wall. “Thank God. We have thirty tables. Do you have extra flowers, just in case?”

“Lots of extras,” Buddy answered.

“Alright. That’s all.” Jon started to leave when he doubled back. “Come check out the place! Morri turned the lights off again! It looks amazing!”

The auditorium did look amazing. The glow of the lights through the fabric danced with the small strings of jewels Morri hung up over the head table.

He turned to look at Rocky. “Well?”

Rocky stood in awe. “I wish it was for us...”

“Someday...” Morri whispered.

“Keith said he was on his way over,” George said.

“Oh! Don’t let him!” Morri fussed. “This is between us here!”

George nodded. “I’ll tell him.”

Morri nodded and surveyed the room. He tensed up a little when he felt a pair of arms wrap around him. He laughed softly. “Hello, Rocky...”

“Mm, I’m getting deja vu,” Rocky chuckled. “This really is beautiful. You did well.”

Morri turned around and faced Rocky. He blinked once before kissing him.

From the kitchen, Buddy smiled. “They really have to get their shit together...”

PJ and Michelle started setting out roasters for the wedding reception. “Reminds me of our wedding!” PJ quipped.

“Yeah, except we didn’t make the food or serve the drinks at our own wedding!” Michelle chided.

Buddy laughed. “God, Friday is going to be amazing!

Author note: WEDDING IS FRIDAY, ARE YOU GAYS GUYS EXCITED OR WHAT

@spadescribbles and @forever-stuck-in-the-void wanted to read the story so far and iz long .w.’ anyone can read it really but no taking it

The beginning of the previous end.

Raising the ‘knife’ in ‘their’ trembling hands just as the door burst open and the ‘actors’ tried to prevent this murder from once again occurring, ‘they’ plunged it into their victim once again. The curtains are drawn as the BAD END was once again reached. This is how this cruel world..no, the story works. A story of a murder that has a culprit which can never be found without the last missing piece. What is this piece? A key? A page? The lead role in this madness of a story? They do not know. Who is this ‘they’? Why, it is the actors in this story of madness who have notes and pieces to find this culprit but are missing one key piece that has not been found. Or has it? Maybe this new stage that has been set will finally bring forth the killer, the one who keeps this madness from ending, or will it continue to go on for an eternity? Too much time has been wasted here now, the stage is set, the actors are in place, the lead role is arriving, the killer has not shown their blood thirst yet, all that is left is to open the curtains to this story of death and confusion. This story's name? Midnights hands. Maybe it is a clue? Or is it a red herring? Once the curtain is open..just maybe...it will be seen for its truth and it’s lies.

Chapter 1, Opening Act.

    The door of the old manor creaked open as the lead role opens it, a letter in her hand as she walks inside the warmth filled main room. Her eyes wandered the large room lit by a chandelier and candles, velvet couches were placed around a table with a vase of red roses with petals of scarlet and a vase of shining ruby that had a small wooden sign placed in front of them for guests. She took silent steps towards the wooden sign, picking it up and feeling the smooth glazed wood on her fingers as she read what had been put into the wood,

’Welcome dear guest, the lady of the house and the guests are in the ballroom awaiting you to come join us for this party to celebrate the grand unveiling of this manor. -sincerely the butler.’

    The lead role, no, Jayne..places the wooden sign back onto the wooden table with the same glaze as the sign had. She gives another look around the room, her eyes stopping on a tall mirror that was broken. A few quick steps and she found herself in front of it, placing a hand on a shard that was barely hanging on from the central point of where the impact that had hit the glass had been struck. She breathes a sign, having hoped to see how she looked for this important occasion, even without a mirror she could tell her face showed her exhaustion from having to drive for more than seven hours to reach this party. A quick turn on her shoes heel and she was off towards the ballrooms grand red oak doors, light poured through the half open doors into the main room and the sound of laughter and glasses clinking together was heard. Jayne pushes the door open slowly, her eyes widening at the sight of the grand room that was filled to the brim with such warmth and happiness that felt contagious. A smile crosses her face as she took large strides into the room to greet the people of this manor, there were only six of them but their parties made it feel as if a hundred people were here.

A quick few steps to her left and she was in front of the lady of the manor, her long ruby red hair was down to her waist with its long natural curls with a rose pin to keep it out of her face and a dress that was like the end of a sunset going from a crimson red to a deep navy blue with white speckles in the spots to represent the night and constellations as well. The dress ended at her knees and puffed out  with soft white lace at the edges that were patterned with roses, she had tights on that were a lovely lapis blue with some black heels that popped out with the blue bows on the toes.Jayne felt her heart skip a beat at the sight of the lady who smiled softly at her,”Hello Jayne, you look dashing in your suit.” She said as she looked Jayne up and down. Jayne felt her cheeks become warm,”T-Thank you lady Melody.” She stuttered out, her suit was a deep navy with black pants, her white button up had a scarlet red tie with a rose brooch to add a bit of flair to her outfit since it was mainly black and blue.  Melody let out a soft chuckle hearing Jayne stutter,”My fiance is off getting the wine from the cellar so maybe we can have a quick dance?” She offered her hand to Jayne who nods and takes her hand, the two walk to where a few of the people were dancing and begin to dance themselves with Jayne being the lead. They danced in the classic ways as they would do in the 1900’s before getting tired of it and dancing how they usually do, laughing and smiling like they did when they were children dancing out in the rain before they would return inside with runny noses and bad colds the next day.

They danced and danced till they were too exhausted to move anymore and left the dance floor laughing and smiling, that was quickly stopped when Melodys fiance arrived however. Jackson, Melodys jerk fiance according to Jayne,  was scowling at Jayne seeing her holding Melodys hand,”Would you please unhand my future wife.” he hissed at her through grit teeth. Jayne simply squeezed Melodys hand as she glares at him,” Both of you stop glaring at each other this instant!” Melody snapped at them both with a harsh tone in her voice. The two looked away from each other ,mumbling an apology as Melody scowled at them both for behaving in such a childish way. Jayne reluctantly let go of Melody’s hand and left to go eat something while her stomach growled enough to keep her from looking back at Jackson and Melody. In a few more quick steps she reached the cloth covered tables piled high with plates of food from appetizers to desserts. Her eyes drifted up the pyramid of sandwiches that ranged from meat lover to vegetarian, to the tray of meats from humble bacon to full blown ribs that were still piping hot, down to the platter that had scrambled eggs, fried eggs, hard boiled eggs, deviled eggs and vegetables from stirfry to just cleaned up and ready to eat raw.

Stomach growling louder she piled her plate with two bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwiches along with some corn and some vegetable stir fry. While collecting the food she bumped into one of the twins. The twin smiles at her,”Jayne! I haven’t seen you since Halloween!” The twin excitedly said as they placed their plate down and hugged Jayne being mindful of her her plate. Jayne hugged back,”It’s good to see you too Felix, how is Julian?” she asked as she ruffled his hair. Felix pushes her hand away and fixes his hair with his fingers,”D-Don’t mess up my hair it took me ages to get ready. And Julian is upstairs sleeping, we got here early and ate a lot of cake and danced then he fell asleep and i stayed down here and..” He gasps once he runs out of breath,”Okay, okay I get it Felix don’t pass out on me.” She replies giving him a pat on the head.

Felix nods and picks up his plate that was piled high with roughly one of everything on the tables, including the drinks oddly enough. “Careful you don’t drop that all over the carpet in the living room or the asshole of the house will throw a fit.” She gives him a wink, Felix giggles and nods as he leaves the ballroom. Jayne smiles to herself as she walks to the tables to the right side of the ballroom to eat her food in peace. As time passed the others joined her with plates piled with the wonderful food that was being served. She made a glance at Melody who was talking with her fiance about something, she sighed as she ate the last part of her sandwich before getting up to go to the bathroom. Taking quick steps away from the table and out of the ballroom she made her way down the hall to the bathroom, she felt and odd sense of...deja vu. Shaking her head she walked to the bathrooms, her eyes drifted to the broken mirror and a frown crossed her face. ‘Wouldn’t someone have fixed that by now? She wondered to herself, a tap on her shoulder from a cold hand made her jump and spin around to face the maid Angel.

She sighed in relief while clutching her chest, her heart was racing as she watched Angel sign a quick apology,”It’s okay Angel, I didn’t hear you come in I was kinda lost in my thoughts.” She said as the Angel nods, her soft silver hair was tied in a low ponytail as per usual, and her bangs were a bit of a mess as well. Jayne gently reaches out and fixes the others bangs for her,”There we go, that better?” She asks and Angel nods while signing a thank you before putting back on her cloth gloves to take down the broken mirror. Jayne shakes her head quietly to herself before going to the bathroom, by the time she had finished Angel was gone and so was the broken mirror. Turning the sink on she washed her hands with soap and dried them with the nearby towel and leaves the bathroom, so far the night was filled with joy and plenty of laughs and warmth. Well..that was before the lights suddenly went out leaving the entire building in a pitch black darkness. There were shouts from somewhere as people stumbled around trying to find where they are, the set stage was now ready for the true beginning of this story to begin.

Chapter 2 act one: What happened?

    Stumbling about and managing to find the lights, the flip for the ballrooms light was returned and nearly blinded the few people in the room who covered their eyes with their hands allowing the light to slowly slip in through their fingers to become adjusted to it. A quick look around by the people revealed the room was in just a bit of disarray with two tables on their sides, chairs had been bumped into and pushed around and some plates had smashed on the floor from being dropped or knocked down. Jayne and Felix stumbled into the ballroom with a half awake Julien not too far behind them, the group looked around the room in fright and worry before each letting out a sigh of relief seeing everyone was okay. Melody rushes over to the three,”Are you alright? Wheres Jackson, Angel, and Chris?” she hastily asks, paling seeing the twins shake their heads,”I saw Angel in the bathroom but when I got out she was gone.” Jayne quickly says and gently grabs Melodys shaking hands,”We’ll find them, don’t worry.” She calmly and gently squeezes the others hands who swallows hard and nods. The small group head out of the ballroom and searched the manor from top to the very bottom. Their hearts pounding every time they open a door or look down the long stretching halls, the air felt heavy and suffocating and it felt colder and colder the longer they searched the large manor. The grand clock in the main room ticked away, ticking louder and louder with every passing second before it chimed, but it was not heard as the sight before the group was discovered.

Chapter 2, act two: The murder

    Back propped up against the large clock that chimed away, sat there with a large shard of glass in the neck with head slumped forward looking down at the legs and blood soaked shirt and sleeves was Jackson. There was silence before Melody let out a blood curdling scream of horror and fell to her knees sobbing and shaking while the others could only stare in horror. Time dragged on and on as Melody cried and Jackson was sat there, dead. At some point, no one was truly sure when exactly, but she stopped crying and got up,”W-Who did this?” she choked out as the others remain quiet, they didn’t know who did this or why at all. Chris and Angel run over, their eyes widening at the sight of the body. Angel looks away from the body shaking as Chris tries to comfort her.

    It seems this murder was found a bit later than last time? I wonder if this version of the story will truly be the GOOD END...or will the killer lead them astray again? Ah, so many ways this story could go wrong and end up as a BAD END or never end. I shall quiet back down now, I’m sure the cast is getting impatient to find the killer once more...I do hope all is according to the script..

The cast was in a disarray as they glance at each other in fear and confusion on what to do next, the lead role grips her chest, she hated him yes but to murder him..who would do that? She shakes her head and clears her throat,”Before we start pointing fingers, we need to find out where everyone was before and after the blackout.” She says, making sure to keep the fear out of her voice as she speaks. Everyone gave a hesitant nod or an okay once Jayne finished speaking,

”I was in the bathroom, then I left in the hallway when it went dark. When the lights came back I was near the ballroom with the twins.” She says.

“I stayed in the ballroom with Jackson before he left to go grab more wine from the cellar. After the blackout I was still in the ballroom, I just stayed where I was out of fear until the lights came back on.” Melody replies with a croaky voice.

“I was in the living room eating my plate of food. And Julian was upstairs sleeping. I Finished and gave my plate to Chris while I walked to go see Julian. When the blackout happened I grabbed his hand and we tried to make our way to the ballroom before we bumped into Jayne.” Felix tells his part, and Julian joins in at the end.

“I was cooking in the kitchen, and then I was helping Angel clean glass up in the bathroom and putting up the new mirror before the blackout, after wards we ran here due to hearing lady Melody crying.” Chris gives his part as Angel nods to confirm it is true.

With the placements now known, they break off into small parties to search for anything that could be a clue as to who the culprit is. The twins go upstairs, the maid and butler take the basement and cellar, while Jayne and Melody split up to check around the first floor.

MC has a Stalker (RFA +trio)

MC has a stalker (and obsessed one who is willing to hurt her),  How will they react?

YOOSUNG

The moment you called him crying about the stalker, he grabbed his coat and immediately ran to your house.

The moment he reached your apartment, he saw a man slamming their fists at your door.

Yoosung could feel his body heat up with anger.

He slammed his feet as he ran towards the guy

Letting his body took over, he punched the guy in his face

 The guy, taken aback, fell to the ground

Yoosung grabbed the guy's collar, his violet eyes glinting in rage

“Come near her ever again, I swear to god, I will kill you" Yoosung hissed

"I love her!!" the guy yelled

The guy screamed as he punched Yoosung in his face

Next thing you know, the two fought on the ground

Yoosung straddle the guy as he slammed his fist into the guy's stomach and face

 "I love her too and I'm not letting you have her"

Yoosung slammed the guy on the floor making him passed out

Shuffling on his feet, Yoosung knocked on your door softly

"MC? it's me, Yoosung" he spoke softly

"Yoo...sung?"

The door clicked and you immediately throw your arms around him

Yoosung winced at the force especially with his new wounds

"Yoosung why are you bleeding?"

 You touched his face and he simply smiled

"OH MY GOD YOOSUNG THE GUY!"

you jumped at the passed out boy on the floor

Yoosung rubbed your back gently as he glowered at guy

"Come on MC, let's go to the police and stay with me tonight okay?"

ZEN

He was worried when he found out that you had a stalker

You assured him that you had put a restraining order so he won't have to worried

But he was

Especially when he dreamt how the stalker came to your workplace after your shift ends and tried dragging you away into his car

Zen woke up in cold sweat from his sleep

It was 10PM (he had a long day and fell asleep the moment he got home that evening)

Immediately, he dialed your number and you picked up within 3 rings

"MC, where are you?" he huffed

"I just ended my shift, I'm packing up now, why?"

"Stay there, I'm on my way. Don't go out from the building until I arrive!"

"Zen-"

Zen hanged up and ran out of his house

Taking his bike, he went as fast as he could, thankful that there wasn't any traffic this late night

The moment he saw you, he was relieved how you were okay, walking out from the building when you spotted him from the window

However, a guy came running behind her and put her on a choke hold, dragging her away

 "URGH ZEN!" you screamed

Zen's blood boiled at the sight

The guy was opening the door and tried to push HIS MC in

He threw his bike in front of the car, jumping off before slamming his fist right on his face

A loud crack was heard and Zen took the moment to drag you behind him

He slammed the guy against the car, cracking the window before throwing the guy aside

Zen truly felt like his high school days as his adrealine pumped into his blood

Zen slammed his heel on the guy's back when he tried to flee

Zen took out his belt and tied the guy's hands behind his back

He grabbed a fistful of the guy's hair before throwing him into the car

Slamming the car door, Zen huffed as he brushed his bangs back

"Zen"

You came behind him wrapped your arms around his waist

“Thank you... i don't know how you knew but"

You trembled as you sobbed into his back

Zen turned around and wrapped his arms around you

"A knight should always protect their princess right?"

He kissed your forehead before taking out his phone

 "Let's call the police and put this shit in jail"

JAEHEE

The moment she found out you had a stalker

She had made you stay with her until he was caught

There was a bodyguard sent by Jumin guarding the house 24/7

One night, you were watching TV with Jaehee

When suddenly, you heard a crash from one of the bedroom

Almost immediately, the bodyguard ran towards the room

You trembled as Jaehee rubbed your back

"You're okay MC, You're not alone"

Suddenly you both heard a loud curse and your stalker came running with a knife

 "YOU SHOULD DIE"

You screamed and Jaehee slammed the lamp toward's the guy's head

 The bodyguard came running with a bloody shoulder and he tackled the stalker down

 the stalker accidentally let his knife go at the imoact

Jaehee kicked away the knife before backing you up against the wall

She immediately picked up the phone and began calling the police

The bodyguard managed to knocked the stalker out before cuffing him up

"I'm sorry for letting him escape me, miss"

"You saved us thank you and thank you Jaehee!"

You wrapped your arms around Jaehee, tears flowing from your eyes

Jaehee hugged you as she ended the call

"You're safe MC, oh god it's over"

JUMIN

The moment you said 'stalker'

 You were escorted with a line of guards to his penthouse

"Jumin... Isn't this... a bit... too much? It is one guy..."

 "An obsessed stalker is not a sane person MC and he tried to harm you, you can never be too careful

 "I supposed..."

"Now, rest up MC, take any bedroom of your choice"

"Can I take yours?"

"I recommend that most, I feel assured if you are close to me"

 You slightly blushed, chuckling, you walked into his guest room

Jumin had arranged for the stalker to get a restraining order

 He did everything in his power so the guy would stay miles away from you

Jumin made sure the stalker was taken in the police

Not enough proof? He threw his money at them

The stalker was locked up less than a week

707

 Boi, he knew even before you realized and told him about it

This hacker watched over you from the CCTV at the apartment and workplace

He’s a stalker himself

Takes a stalker to know one

And he ain’t happy

Especially when the stalker tried to break into your house one night

 this is the second break in since his brother, he needs to tell Jumin to get bulletproof glass

He saw how the stalker stayed across the street linger than usual and he knew something was up

He knew these kind of patterns too well

Seven dialled up your number and talked like usual

 “Hello~ It’s 707! MC, remember robocat?”

“Hey sev, yeah whats up?”

“Close your curtains and lock yourself in the bathroom with robocat please. Aim your little night towards the door and I’m on my way”

“Seven… what’s going on? you’re scaring me”

 “Don’t be scared! 707 is on duty! Don’t hang up and do what I say pleasee~”

and you did as he said

You heard how he started his engine and drove over there, his voice calming you down

Suddenly, a loud crash was heard and you gasped

“Se-Seven… is that you? please tell me it’s you”

“Shh… did you activate robocat?”

 “yes…”

“I just arrived at your building, hold on okay?”

“okay-”

you gasped as the door knob rattle

“MC… I know you’re in there… open the door MC” a voice spoke out

your eyes teared up as the guy knocked on the door

So calmly and it scared you

“Seven…” you croaked

“I’m here baby- And you’re dead Mr.stalker”

you heard Seven’s voice from outside

There was a rumble outside, curses, glass breaking and things knocking down

Then there was silence… and the knob rattled

“MC? God seven is here to answer your prayers”

 Letting out an a relieve sigh with a low chuckle, you slammed the door open and throw yourself against seven

“You’re safe MC, I’ll make sure he won’t come into your sight again”

V

V had landed himself in the hospital again

Your stalker had attempted to hurt you with a knife and V took the blow

 the stalker was taken away and it feels like deja vu all over again

“Why do you keep getting stabbed V?”

“I won’t forgive myself if you got hurt instead”

“You’re such an idiot”

“I know I am”

Saeran

Saeran make sure you were never alone

It sounds very clingy and annoying

But lil cinnabun won’t let you out of his sight with the stalker on loose

But then that day came, the stalker knew Saeran won’t follow you to the bathroom

after breaking in, the bathroom was where he had wait for you

The moment you stepped in the bathroom, you screamed for your dear life

 “MC! Are you-”

Saeran ran to you, when he saw you pressed against the wall the guy coming towards you

Saeran’s Ray mode turned Unknown mode

 “do you really have a death wish?” he chuckled

Saeran walked towards him so calmly that the stalker took a step back from you

“Breaking in and trying to hurt my lover? congratulations, today is your death day”

Saeran throw the guy into the bathroom

“Babe, why don’t you go watch some movie okay? I’ll be riiightt back”

Saeran grinned before locking himself in the bathroom with the stalker

“Sae-”

you winced when you heard a scream

“TV. now. baby”

And you did as he said

You hugged yourself to keep yourself from trembling, not knowing what to do

 A few minutes later, Saeran walked into the living room with changed clothes

“Saeran! are you okay?”

 He kissed your forehead and hugged you to his chest

“I am when I’m with you”

“ the guy-”

 “shhh… nothing you should worry about”

Vanderwood

The first time the stalker got within a metre range near you

The dude got tazed

Bitch you thought yo home boy would leave you weapon-less?

 “That’s my lover y'all. Taze em baby. Go max”