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#divergent fic
feckyeswriting · 7 months
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Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Divergent Series - Veronica Roth, Divergent (Movies) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Eric/Tris Prior Characters: Eric (Divergent), Tris Prior Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Vampire, Drugged Eric (Divergent), Whumptober 2023 Series: Part 5 of Fecky's Whumptober Oneshots (2023) Summary:
New fledgling vampires take a little bit to adjust to undeath, however Eric has a rougher time than most.
A/N:
The prompts for Day 5 were not vibing with me, so I went for an alt prompt today. Also this is heavily inspired by a giftfic that Symbiotic gave me back in 2021 - check it out in the Related Work section!
Alt prompt 6: drugging
Downed Fledgling
All highs come with a crash. Eric knew that conceptually and from experience. There had been a rather enlightening experience after passing Initiation. Those who had passed and moved onto one of the more specialized training courses were drugged at random to have the first hand understanding of what being under the influence was like. There had been, of course, a typical Dauntless twist of the drugging being completely without warning, often outside of the standard training day regimen. Eric had suffered through his lunch getting dosed with ketamine and ended the day with only sporadic memories of the experience.
Sprinting through the city now with the after effects of Peter’s blood in his system was not dissimilar. It seemed like buildings would jump into view before wiping away with only the slowly growing sensation of exhaustion providing a baseline for timing. Tris’ bobbing figure was a fixture in each moment, slipping away between slow blinks before snapping back to Eric’s elbow.
“Hey, fledge,” she said. The words seemed further away than the ageless girl gripping his forearm. “Stay with me. Just a little further, okay?”
“I’m fine,” Eric insisted. He could run a whole marathon at this point, if only the ground would stop tilting five degrees off kilter. Every time he tipped to adjust, it shifted a little further. His palms itched from his skin skittering across to heal the scrapes he kept accumulating. 
Tris’s laughter trailed through the air after them. Because they were moving again just like Eric had said he could. They needed to keep moving, sharks in the water heading to find the schooling fish. 
The building they arrived at was like any other in Chicago. Crumbling on the edges but shored up to keep the actual structure functional at the expense of maintaining the previous aesthetic design. Eric half expected a gothic, picturesque manor from the few films left on the Chicago databanks that got shown yearly when the weather changed. 
Maybe that was also the delirium speaking. He wasn’t surprised by the dull, concrete facade. It was durable, reliable. Just a bit plain enough to not stand out without being horrendously dull. 
“Thank you for the design critique. We strive to meet our fledgling’s expectations for style,” Tris drawled. Oh. Eric had been saying that last bit aloud. He clamped his mouth shut and found his mouth dry. Maybe he had been saying quite a lot more than just the last thoughts. 
He went down quickly. One moment he was insisting that everything was fine and the next he was face first in the dirt. Time stretched on in a funny fashion, and Eric considered that perhaps he was dying for real. 
The turning could have failed. Peter’s blood might have been contaminated. Hell, maybe he was just that weak that his body was rejecting the chance to live again. His thoughts ran rampant through his mind as feverish visions captivated him. Peter’s lifeless corpse mocking him. A strangely clinical room with IV drips filled with crimson fluids. A blonde girl who repeated his name endlessly. 
Eric rolled onto his side to retch harshly. There was a bucket here, telling him this was not the first time he’d gone through these motions. Was this what insanity felt like? 
“Goddamned Erudite lab rats,” Tris grumbled on Eric’s other side. “Doesn’t matter how many times they see it’s useless, they’re gonna dose everyone up with anti-turn. Morons.”
Eric remained focused on the lifesaving bucket next to him that kept him grounded to whatever life was for him now. Eventually his stomach ceased ceasing and he could roll back onto his back. When he was flat on the pillows, Tris’ hand moved to gently brush his hair back into order. Then she rested the back of it against his forehead.
“Can vampires have fevers?” Eric asked. He certainly felt less delirious than he had originally, but that didn’t mean this wasn’t just another hallucination. Idly he wondered if everything since the ravine was fake. He was bleeding out and dying, wasn’t he, rather than beginning his undeath as a vampire spawn? 
She laughed. The sound was beautiful, like a fount of broken glass sparkling in the light. “Not typically, no. The anti-turn is triggering one, though, and your system doesn’t know what to do with it. It’ll pass. It’s just going to put a damper on my plans to bring you with me to the Factionless’s lair.”
Eric pushed himself up on one weak elbow. The Factionless first, then Jeanine. Tris had said before they were going to take out his old master. That was how he was going to earn his rebirth. He had to go. “Don’t leave me behind,” he panted. If he had to kill himself all over again in order to gain his atonement, then Eric would do just that. 
Tris moved her hand to his shoulder, effortlessly pushing him back onto the bed. “Relax,” her perfect, lovely voice commanded him. He felt his muscles relax, even when he wanted to retch again. “Soon, Eric. We’re just going to delay a little, that’s all. We’re stronger together. I’m not going to let them take my fledgling away from me.” 
Whether the relief was from his sire’s command or from the knowledge that he still could redeem himself, Eric wouldn’t be able to tell. He clung to Tris’ every word regardless, closing his eyes when she said he could rest. She would watch over him until the anti-turn burned its way through his system. 
Then they would hunt.
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asirensrage · 2 years
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A Study in Intimacy - 4/?
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Title: A Study in Intimacy Rating: M Pairing: Eric x Amelia (OC) Fandom: Divergent Warnings: threats, violence, obsession (that gets tempered), murder…I’ll add more when I think of them.
Summary: An AU to The Art of Seclusion. Eric makes a different choice at his Choosing Ceremony. It changes everything.
Find it on FF.Net and Ao3
taglist: @raith-way @arrthurpendragon @zeleniafic @jvstjewels @veetlegeuse @chickensarentcheap @booty-boggins @residentdormouse @delicateblackrose @stanshollaand @cantfighthemoonknight @wordspin-shares @chrissymunson
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coffeecatcraze · 3 months
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The fact that Vaggie knew it was a HORRIBLE idea for her to go to Heaven because there were so many things that could go wrong and so many bad memories there, but her girlfriend needed her and she couldn't say no to her cute face; the fact that the headstrong, optimistic, determined, powerful Princess of Hell knew she couldn't handle taking this huge step alone and the only one person she could imagine being by her side in that critical moment was Vaggie.
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The fact that even when she felt so hurt, heartbroken, and betrayed and tried for a second to deny it, Charlie never stopped loving Vaggie, still referred to her as her girlfriend, and had full faith that she was completely succeeding in her task (getting detailed sensitive information from a weapons-dealing Overlord) while Charlie herself was struggling and failing with her own.
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The fact that even with Charlie so upset that she intentionally threw a painful commentbat her (a comment with a subtle double meaning, though Charlie herself was definitely NOT thinking clearly enough to realize that implication and only meant to make a jab at the secret-keeping), Vaggie still wanted so desperately to protect Charlie out of love that she regrew angelic wings despite having been in Hell for years.
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The fact that one gesture from Charlie told Vaggie everything she wanted to say to her, and that mutual understanding was so complete that she didn't hesitate to run to her knowing she would be accepted because her girlfriend still loved her and forgave her.
The support, love, and intimate understanding these two share even when things are hard and painful is so beautiful. They've been together for years; they've been through so much; and it's wonderful to have that respected and portrayed canonically instead of dipping into that easy, fan-craved trope of dramatically heavy relationship angst. I'm glad they left that angst itch to be scratched by fanworks instead, because these ladies aren't that type.
They are powerful; they are determined; they balance and complete each other; and most importantly, they are so head-over-heels and experienced in their love for each other that it took one day for Charlie to deeply consider everything and fully reconcile with Vaggie, who never doubted her even for a second. Their relationship isn't just established; it's stable, and I love to see that for a wlw couple. <3
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ghost-bxrd · 6 months
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Prompt
Jason’s return to Gotham as the crime lord Red Hood is significantly hampered when he saves two kids from being trafficked and suddenly finds himself nagging the two to eat their vegetables and do homework on time and, dear lord, your names are Freeman and… Batson? Yeah that’s it, Jason is not waiting this one out until they’re both suddenly dressed in traffic light colors and swinging around the city with an overgrown furry.
Freddy and Billy are a bit confused by the flash adoption via menacing Gotham guy, but it certainly helps that he’s not threatening to send them into the system and that he cooks them meals every day . And also “Billy, I think he might be the new vigilante! That is so cool!” “… do you mean the new crime lord?” “Same thing! Isn’t the helmet awesome!?”
Batman and Robin are… not sure what to make of the new crime lord that, on one hand, keeps antagonizing them to no end, and on the other hand was recently spotted at a meeting with his lieutenants where two masked kids burst into the room to scream about the kitchen being on fire and pointing at each other yelling “It’s all his fault!”
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without-honors · 18 days
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Merthur Idea (so feel free to ignore if you don’t wanna read all of this)
Can you imagine if like, in one of the MANY magical shenanigans Merlin gets into and thinks he has to go off and die for Arthur, Lancelot tells Arthur what Merlin plans to do?
Like say it’s some canon-divergent AU and Merlin is going to go off and fight some big bad or try and trade his life for Arthur. He says his goodbyes to everyone in the castle: Gaius, Gwen, Morgana, Gwaine, Arthur. He hopes Gaius gets the letter he wrote to his mother
And when Merlin says bye to Lancelot, Lance knows something is wrong. Knows Merlin’s keeping something from him and is worried immediately. It isn’t until Lancelot speaks to Arthur that he puts it together.
Arthur tells Lancelot about Merlin seeming weird to him too. Seeming too sincere, too nice before leaving to Ealdor for his ailing mother. Lancelot knows Hunith isn’t sick and realizes: Merlin’s gone on a stupid, idiotic journey to lay down his life.
Lancelot doesn’t tell Arthur of Merlin’s magic but does tell him that Merlin doesn’t intend on returning and is in fact planning to die so ofc our favorite Pendragon gathers all his knights and goes after Merlin.
As they’re traveling, Arthur is so upset by the last conversation he had with Merlin bc that moron actually planned to die and didn’t bother to tell him? Didn’t bother to let Arthur say goodbye and talk him out of this fool’s quest?
While on the journey, Arthur learns that this isn’t the first time Merlin’s done something stupid like this and wonders what else Lancelot knows that Merlin is keeping from him.
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nibbelraz · 2 months
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Post-Canon Shang Qinghua thinking he's done with all the systems bullshit but marrying Mobei reawakened it to add more missions and plot but now it involves them both
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I need a fic where Arthur knows magic isn’t inherently evil but doesn’t know about Merlin’s magic.
So he sees his new manservant being terrified of anything magical and tries to convince Merlin that magic can be good.
Meanwhile, Merlin thinks that Arthur knows about him so he’s trying to subtly convince Arthur that he should stop bringing it up.
Morgana just cackling in the background.
And it goes on until Ealdor when Arthur is like: “why the hell are you so anti magic if you have it?!”
And Merlin is so confused: “you didn’t know? But you kept trying to reassure me that you weren’t afraid of me.”
And Hunnith is watching all this unfold like: “ah yes, soulmates. Two sides of the same coin but if the coin is anything like their brain cells, it isn’t worth much.”
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ellecdc · 3 months
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Come Back, Be Here (finale)
Sirius Black x fem!reader - First Wizarding War Order of the Phoenix - 5.7k
p1 // p2 // p3 // p4 // p5 // p6 // p7 // p8
CW: mentions of past abuse/torture, amnesia, hurt/comfort, fluff, use of Y/N
A/N: Holy. Friggen. Crap. WHAT A RIDE! Thank you all so much for enjoying this story with me - it has truly felt like the most niche book club and I have had so much fun chatting with you all. Feel free to send in requests for these lovely characters in the CBBH universe - I'd love to continue playing with them! xx
Lily and James Potter returned to 12 Grimmauld place on the 3rd of November – Sirius’ birthday. There were long hugs, a lot of tears and soft dinner conversation, but there would be no gifts or raucous celebrating. 
Regulus Black was arrested at Malfoy Manor as a marked Death Eater, but with the backing of James, Sirius and Dumbledore, the Ministry allowed Regulus to be placed on house arrest, confiscating his wand whilst he awaited trial. Dumbledore assured the group that because of Regulus’ defection, his support of the Order, and the memories that Dumbledore, you, and those who were present on October 31st provided the Ministry, Regulus would likely be acquitted of his charges, or at the very least receive a lighter sentence. 
Tom Riddle was quickly charged with treason, tyranny, countless charges of the use of unforgiveables, countless charges of leading or causing the death of wizards, witches, and muggles, countless charges of torture and brutality, eliciting fear and chaos, and illegal use of Dark Magic. He was sentenced to the Dementor’s Kiss and the act was carried out on the 5th of November. 
Peter Pettigrew did indeed receive a fair trial for his role in the Wizarding War. He was questioned under Veritaserum, and it was found that he was guilty of treason, using unforgiveables, contributing to the fear and chaos of a treasonous leader, the use of Dark Magic, and sexual assault and brutality. He was sentenced to life in Azkaban.
Lucius Malfoy came looking for his son and was thus arrested by the Department of Magical Law Enforcement on the charge of being a marked Death Eater. He was questioned under Veritaserum which proved Lucius was guilty of harboring dangerous criminals, using unforgiveables, contributing to the fear and chaos of a treasonous leader, and the use of Dark Magic. He was sentenced to life in Azkaban. His property and vault at Gringott’s were seized by the Ministry and, after taking what was owed for reparations, was placed into his son’s name. 
The Ministry respected Narcissa Malfoy’s dying wish and placed Draco Malfoy in the care of Sirius Black and Y/N L/N. The Ministry offered the couple access to the Malfoy vault to support Draco’s upbringing, but they opted to leave it aside for the child to choose what to do with the fortune when he was of age.
Narcissa Malfoy’s funeral took place on the 7th of November. The blustery November air accosted the patrons which mostly consisted of Order members and a few of Narcissa’s friends who were able to dodge persecution for their roles or complacency in the war. She was awarded an Order of Merlin posthumously for her role - a title she now shared with you, Sirius, James, Lily, Remus, and later Regulus along with the rest of the Order of the Phoenix. Draco left his mother a beautiful bouquet of narcissus, baby’s breath, lavender, and pink camelia’s. You and Sirius gave her a bouquet of edelweiss, fern, and gladioli. Blue hydrangeas and hyssops came from Regulus who was unable to attend due to the nature of his house arrest but were placed at Narcissa’s headstone by Lily and Harry in the family plot of Malfoy Manor. Andromeda, Ted and Nymphadora Tonks stood by you, Sirius, and Draco at the headstone during the funeral service as Dumbledore spoke of the bravery, loyalty, and dedication Narcissa showed not only to her son and her family, but to the greater wizarding world on the 31st of October. 
“There is not one witch or wizard amongst us today that does not owe Narcissa Black Malfoy a considerable debt. Without her bravery and cunningness, evil could very well have prospered, dooming us all to life of immense pain and suffering. She dreamed of a legacy - of a better future - for her own son as well as for every child of wizard kind. Narcissa was a beyond bright student during her time at Hogwarts, a strong leader in her social circle, a skilled healer during the war, and an incredibly brave soldier. Though, possibly her favourite and certainly her greatest role was that of a loving mother; for she died to ensure that her son would live to see a better tomorrow. Narcissa Black Malfoy is the type of person, friend, partner, and parent that each of us should aspire to be. May her legacy of love and loyalty live eternally.” He said as he raised his wand.
One by one, every person present raised their wand to the heavens in honour of Narcissa Malfoy and her sacrifice to the wizarding world. Draco, Harry and Nymphadora, along with the Weasley children and Neville Longbottom who did not yet have their own wands raised a narcissus flower in solidarity.
The remaining marauders, you, Lily, and Regulus did indeed stay at 12 Grimmauld place for some time. The house was unrecognizable from the time Regulus and Sirius spent growing up there; it was bright, it was colourful, it was full of children’s laughter and squealing, it was a place people liked to come to visit, and it was chock full of love. 
The problem with the new and improved Grimmauld Place? 
Your tribe quickly outgrew it. 
As time went on, your memories seemed to return to you basically in full, and the full extent of your trauma reared its ugly head. For years you became hyper-focused on knowing where each member of your family was at any given moment, and a panic attack threatened any moment you didn’t have everyone important to you within your periphery. The Third Worst Day™ of Sirius’ life (in chronological order, the first being the day he almost ruined things between you two, the next being the day you ‘died’) was the day Lily and James suggested to you, him, Remus, and Regulus that they should perhaps fix up Potter Manor and move their ever-growing family there. It was partly the worst day because of how the idea of James and Lily moving away made him feel, but it was mostly because of the mental breakdown you had at the news. 
“You can’t! You can’t do this! I just got you back, we just got each other back. You can’t do this!” You shouted as everyone tried to get you to breathe. The numerous hands approaching you placatingly was in fact not what you needed at the moment, and you fell into a manic state.
Needless to say, the suggestion was not met well by you, and ended with you being admitted to the psychiatric ward at St. Mungo’s. Sirius sat at your bedside with your hand in his, Lily and James in chairs across from him whilst Regulus and Remus stayed home and watched the children. 
“I cannot live without any of you anymore. I’m sorry, but I refuse. I can’t do it.” Sirius admitted quietly to his friends as he rubbed the back of your hand with his thumb.
You had been dosed heavily with calming draught and dreamless sleep in order to prevent any seizure activity, which you became plagued with due to the trauma of the brain from memory retention and prevention throughout the war. 
“I can’t either.” James admitted, causing Lily to turn and face him.
“I’m sorry Lil’s, I know-” he cut himself off to take a steadying breath. “I know when we got married, you probably imagined us living at the Manor or maybe in another place as independent adults. After we lost mum and dad, I’m sure you imagined us taking that over in their place, and I think I wanted that too, but now, knowing what we know, I would have done things differently. I wish we had moved in with mum and dad and been there to enjoy their last few years with them. We had our own flat at the time and Moony, Pads, and Vix had theirs and I was so lucky that I got to spend as much time with Vixen as I did, being her order partner and all, but then she was gone, and I regretted ever spending a single moment away from her. Now...now I’m afraid that every second I don’t spend with you – all of you, any of you, my family – is a second wasted and I don’t want to waste another precious second. Not anymore. Not ever again.” 
Lily looked imploringly at her husband.
“You really are a bell-end.” She muttered fondly.
“Pardon me?”
“Do you really think I imagined us living alone in that big ass manor just us and our kids? What part of that do you think appeals to me? I love you, James, but a girl needs backup to deal with the likes of you.” 
Sirius and James exchanged a bemused glance before Lily continued.
“I want to live the rest of my life with my family. That’s you, James, and our kids, but it’s also Sirius and Y/N, it’s Remus and Regulus and Draco. Hell, if Alice and Frank or Marlene and Dorcas told me they wanted to move in I’d happily help them pack the boxes.” She laughed as she looked at you and Sirius’ intertwined hands.
“I think we’re all going to be stuck with one another until the end of time.” James said as he pulled his wife into his side.
Sirius smiled greatly at them. “Until all the mischief is managed.”
After that, the friends all agreed that none of them were willing to part from the group, and if for whatever reason anyone felt the need for more privacy, they would opt to build an outbuilding on the property.
“Oi! You’ve gotta knock, Prongs! Fuckin’ wanker.” Sirius had shouted as he hastily pulled the sheets up around the two of you.
“Uhm, maybe you’ve gotta lock the door, Pads.” James muttered with a mouthful of muffin as he came in to sit on the edge of the bed, completely unperturbed by the fact that the two of you were still naked and very recently involved in unmentionable deeds. 
Nevertheless, no one ever felt the need to build their own place on the property.
And Sirius made sure James got a taste of his own medicine a time or two after that incident.
Lily Evans Potter did indeed contact Healer Grundke at the end of the war and was brought on to work under her as an intern whilst she worked toward getting her Healer license. She spent many years in general medicine before moving fulltime to labour and delivery. Sirius often teased her that between the number of days she has spent in labour & delivery as a patient and as a doctor, he was surprised any of their other friends ever saw her. 
His nose was charmed green for a week.
Regulus Black was eventually acquitted of his crimes. He was placed on a sort of life-long probation in the form of a tracking spell on his wand that would alert the Ministry of him ever practicing Dark Magic. He opted to stay with his brother and his friends though he pretended to hate every minute of it. In truth, Regulus found great joy in being an uncle to Sirius’ and James’ children and Godfather to his best friend’s daughter Luna Lovegood. He declined the opportunity to join the Wizengamot, stating that as the rightful heir to the Black name, Sirius should be the one to take the Black’s seat.
Sirius Black, in Sirius Black fashion, dramatically refuted this idea. He did not want to pick up the mantle that was laid for him by the generations of Black’s before him; he refused to sit in the nearly still warm seat that his father had left. It took Regulus, Remus, and Lily all to tell him how much good he could do by not only bringing in a younger generation’s perspective to the Wizengamot, but as a wealthy heir to a pureblood line, a war hero, and an advocate for werewolf and muggleborn rights, he could bridge the gap between the left and right-wing members of the court.
It also helped that you had told him he’d be the only one capable of making the robes look punk rock. 
James Potter opted to be a stay-at-home dad and uncle to care for the children living at Potter Manor. The Potter vaults had enough money in them to last his family multiple lifetimes without every making a dent, and with the money Lily was making as a healer, there was no need to be worried financially. Also, being a kid at heart made him the absolute best friend of any child who met him. As the children grew older, he and Mrs. Weasley worked together to homeschool the children of the Order until they were old enough to attend Hogwarts.
Remus Lupin, never one willing to ride on his friend’s coat tails, spent the first few months following the war applying to various jobs through out Wizarding London. He had hoped that between his stellar academic record, his time spent as a prefect and tutor, his Order of Merlin, and his dedication to the winning side of the Wizarding War, that he would be able to secure a job within wizarding society. Unfortunately, it seemed the wizarding world still had a long way to go with the prejudice it held for werewolves. Walking through Diagon Alley feeling sorry for himself, Remus spotted a “for lease” sign in the window of what used to be a pet store. He immediately sent an owl to the landlord and asked for a meeting. 
Though Remus tried to refuse, Sirius and James insisted on investing in Remus’ planned bookstore.
“I’m not borrowing money, Prongs.” Remus muttered defiantly.
“It’s not borrowing, Moons! It’s an investment! If anything, you’ll be making me more money.” He exclaimed excitedly.
“Moony, please,” Sirius added...well, seriously, “think of how pissed off my ancestors would be to know I’m investing their money in a half-blood werewolf’s business which happens to stock muggle literature?” 
With a mischievous smirk, the deal was settled, and the lease was signed. 
Remus wasted no time to get started at the bookstore. He walked into the small storefront and conjured a broom, deciding to start by sweeping up the hay and owl droppings.
No sooner had he started did he hear the door chime. 
“Oh! My apologies, we’re not quite open yet.” Remus offered as he made his way to the door. He stopped in his tracks when he saw you and Regulus standing in the entry.
“I should hope not. This place looks awful.” Regulus commented with a wrinkled nose.
You elbowed him hard in the ribs.
“Looks like you could use some help.” You said cheerily as you held out a stack of papers. Remus took them gently to find your CV and cover letter. Before Remus could even look up, Regulus dropped his on top of yours in Remus’ hand.
“All my references are either dead or in prison so.” He offered with a shrug.
“I’ll vouch for him.” You said.
You were smiling at him so kindly and so sweetly, Remus wanted to cry. You had always been his biggest supporter; championing him through every milestone in Remus’ life. He was certain he didn’t deserve even half of the love you gave him, but he was eternally grateful for every drop of it.
“Thank you, guys.” Remus said wetly as he pulled the two of you in for a hug. Regulus groaned the entire time but when Remus finally pulled away, he had a slight blush. 
“Yeah, yeah. Well, what is family for?” He muttered which elicited a sharp gasp from you and a bark of laugh from Remus.
“Don’t be going soft on us now, Black!” Remus said with a laugh and ruffled his hair. 
“Fuck you guys, clean this barn up on your own.” He grumbled as he turned to leave, but the two of you wouldn’t let him.
He was grateful that you didn’t. 
Sirius eventually proposed to you – though beg was likely a more appropriate definition.
“We should get married.” He had said to you late one night as he came back to the bedroom after putting Draco down. 
You lowered your book into your lap as you considered him. “I beg your pardon?”
“We should get married.” He repeated plainly.
Your lip threatened to quirk into a smirk, but you kept your face blank. “And why should we get married?”
Sirius guffawed at you. “Uhm, maybe because we’re in love? And I’m the best and would be the best husband?”
You continued to stare at him.
“Why shouldn’t we get married?” He asked, now beginning to panic.
“I never said we shouldn’t.”
“Then why won’t you marry me?” He shrilled as he moved to kneel at the end of the bed.
“You’re the first thought in my mind when I wake up in the morning and my last thought at night before I fall asleep. Fuck, you make up the majority of my dreams too. Did you know that? Did you know that I go to the Ministry and count down the minutes until I get to see you again? Did you know that when you’re at work, I spend my time thinking about what you’re doing, who you’re talking to, what they’re saying to you and you to them? And not in a stalkery way, I swear. But I just think you’re the coolest fucking person ever and I’m jealous of everyone who gets to listen to you speak when I’m stuck at home or at work. And I watch you with Draco -our sweet boy - and our Godson and the other children and I get fucking giddy thinking that I get to spend the rest of my days with a woman so lovely. So, marry me. Marry me, damnit!”
It was a battle to keep your face straight but by the absolute grace of God you did before saying “Siri, babe, you’re coming off a little desperate.”
There was a brief pause before you got a “you cheeky little minx” and 45 seconds of tickling which turned into kissing which turned into touching which turned into so much more.
You were sticky and satisfied as you both caught your breath, still intertwined with one another when you said, “I will.”
“Hm?”
“I will.” You repeated as you leaned onto your elbow so you could look him in the eyes. “I’ll marry you. Marry me.”
Sirius stared at you in awe before pulling you down into his embrace for a searing kiss which once again turned into so much more. 
And you guys did. Marry each other, that is. It was a beautiful spring day on the grounds of Potter Manor with only your closest family and friends. It was perhaps a touch smaller than what either you or Sirius grew up picturing your wedding to be, but it was so much better than either of you could have ever imagined.
“...I thank my lucky stars every day that I get to love such a wonderful woman. There’s not one person in this world who deserves to know the likes of you, me least of all, but will do everything I can to ensure I get to keep what little light you’re willing to share with me forever. I have already loved you in sickness and in health, for rich or for poor, and in life and in death. There is not one planet in any universe, nor a timeline that exists where my love for you does not. I vow to you that you will never spend a day in this life not being loved by me. Wherever you go, I go; in this life and the next.” Sirius said through his tears. 
With a smile you began your own vows. “Sirius, I have had the absolute pleasure of getting to witness you become the man you are today. It wasn’t always easy or pretty, but I have seen you through it all; the good, the bad, the really bad, and the ugly. And I have loved you through all of it. As I laid dying, I told James that I didn’t regret a single moment of this life with you, and that is still true today. Every moment, all the blood, sweat, and tears, brought us here today - and I would still do all of it again if it meant getting to stand here today by your side. I made a vow that I would find you in our next life and I would love you there too. Well, here I am. I found you. I will always find you.”
Lily, Marlene, and Alice stood by your side, and James, Remus, and Regulus stood by Sirius’ as your magic was bound together, and you were pronounced husband and wife.
Sirius hung the framed parchment that Remus had found in the wooded area where he first met Regulus in his office. The note symbolized your dedication to him, to your friends and family, and your unyielding perseverance. The parchment was later joined by your wedding pictures, drawings that he and Harry had painted back in Grimmauld place as well as pictures Harry and Draco had given him since, and the first ever check he received for his investment in A Marauder’s Map to Books. 
You loved working at Moony’s bookstore; everyday felt like getting to hang out with your best friends even though you pretty much lived with them as well. It was nice to see Remus and Regulus in a setting outside of the parental/guardian role you’d all taken on following the war. You were surprised at first (though you supposed you should have known better) that Remus and Regulus worked really well together – Regulus’ uptight and serious façade was well balanced with Remus’ laidback and jovial personality. Regulus would handle the more difficult customers whilst Remus made sure every customer who came in felt welcome. Things often fell by the wayside or got overlooked when Remus was away due to the moons, and Regulus was quick to pick up the slack. Regulus would often get too caught up in work and forget to stay fed or hydrated, which Remus counteracted by briskly walking past Regulus and placing biscuits and cups of tea brewed exactly to Regulus’ liking before he could refuse. If you noticed Regulus’ cheeks tinge peak and a shy smile grace his lips – you didn’t mention it. 
Draco grew to be a very happy child; you and Sirius couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride every time that boy giggled or laughed. You kept your word and left the Malfoy vaults untouched save twice a year when Narcissa would purchase a gift for Draco on June 5th and December 25th. 
He was such a good son and an even better big brother. 
Draco was the most jealous of Harry when Harry became a big brother to his sister Jasmine Potter. It was hard not to chuckle at how proud the four-and-a-half-year-old was as he bragged about being the ‘bestest big brother’ and watching Draco skulk around the house. 
“I could be a big brother! Really, I could. I’d be so nice and gentle, and I would share all my toys!” He told you and Sirius solemnly as you tucked him in to bed. You assured him he would indeed be a wonderful big brother, but not to worry about it too much as you were sure Lily and James could use two big brothers for their newest addition. 
You both gave him kisses goodnight and closed the door behind you. You’d hardly made it two steps from the door before your husband had you pushed up against the wall. 
“I could be a really good daddy too, you know?” He whispered into your neck before starting to suck on your pulse point.
You couldn’t stifle the moan that escaped your lips. “Are you trying to tell me something?” 
Sirius kissed his way back up your jaw before slotting his lips against yours. “Perhaps we should give the kid what he wants.” He managed between kisses.
You chuckled.
“He gets everything he wants already, Siri.” You whispered back as you pulled his body flush with yours.
“What about me, hm?”
You pulled your head back to search his face. “Do you want another baby, Sirius?”
Sirius’ pupils seemed to blow wide at the sentiment. “I don’t so much want a baby as I want your baby, my love.” He whispered reverently.
Your restraint snapped and you launched yourself at him. He caught you as your legs wrapped around his waist and your arms around his neck, carrying you down the hall to your bedroom.  
Approximately ten months later you gave birth to your daughter Aurora Black.
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September 1st, Kings Cross Station
“Merlin’s saggy balls, how do you – for fuck sa– oh, got it!” Sirius could be heard behind you as he fought with the pram. 
“Would you watch your mouth?” Lily muttered.
“Yeah Pads, watch your fuckin’ mouth!” James loudly announced causing other parents to look over at the absolute freak show that was the Potter & Black family’s stepping onto Platform 9 ¾.
“Sorry.” You offered with a quiet smile to a particularly perturbed looking couple as they grabbed their smarmy looking child and ushered him away from the likes of you. “Wankers.” You muttered as they hobbled off.
“Who’s a wanker, mum?” Draco asked as he slid up beside you. The rotten child knew he wasn’t supposed to use such language but couldn’t pass the chance at getting to repeat your nasty comment.
“Presently, it’s you.” You commented while teasingly narrowing your eyes at him. 
“Oi, leave your poor mum alone! You’re buggering off to Hogwarts and leaving her with the likes of me for the next ten months.” Sirius said as he (finally) made his way to you with the pram in tow. The three-year-old twins seemed none the wiser that they just nearly got folded into the damned thing and thrown onto the tracks in a fit of rage. 
“My deepest condolences during this trying time.” Draco offered you severely.
Sirius scoffed and you laughed as you pulled him into an embrace. You were waiting for the day he pushed you away because hugging your mom goodbye in front of your friends was embarrassing. But today, you relished in the feeling of your first child letting you hold him tight.
“I’m so proud of you, Draco.” You murmured into his platinum hair.
“Thank you, mum.” He responded quietly. 
“Draco! Harry! Over here!” The sound of Hermione Granger interrupted your hug as Draco turned to wave at his friends. 
“Be good kid, okay? Look out for your sister?” Sirius asked as he pulled Draco into his own embrace.
“’Course, dad. I’m not new here.” He teased as he ruffled Aurora’s hair.
“Draaaccoooo...” She whined in response.
“Go see ‘Mione.” You ordered Draco with one last side hug. Harry and Draco swapped parents and siblings to give their respective goodbyes before heading off to catch up with their friends. 
“Are you ready, Rory?” Jasmine Potter asked your daughter kindly. She was a year above Aurora and was very excited to get the chance to show her younger cousin around the castle. 
Your daughter looked between her cousin and her parents before Sirius spoke up. “Jazz, do you mind giving us a minute?” He asked his Goddaughter.  
Jasmine turned to talk to James and Lily who were busy entertaining Posie and Lyra as you and Sirius bent down to talk to Aurora.
“What’s on your mind, love?” You asked your daughter gently.
Your heart welled as Aurora’s eyes turned glassy.
“I’m not ready.”
Sirius made a cooing sound as he wiped the tears from under her lash line. “What are you most worried about, my little star?”
Aurora sniffled miserably. “What if I’m sorted into the wrong house?”
You and Sirius couldn’t help but rear your head at the comment. Out of all the things you thought would be worrying your daughter on her first day of boarding school, which house she got sorted into was not it.
“Rory, that’s the exciting part baby.” You tried as you rubbed her arm consolingly.
“I get it, Ro, I was worried about which house I was going to be sorted into as well.” Sirius commented.
Aurora rubbed a fist against her eye as she turned to consider her father. “Really?”
Sirius nodded solemnly. “Really. You see, I came from a long line of proud Slytherins. I was supposed to get sorted into that house too, because I was supposed to be just like them. But I couldn’t be like them, I could only be like me. So, I was sorted in Gryffindor, even though my family didn’t like it.” 
“Did you get in trouble?”
Sirius nodded sadly. “I did.”
“But Ro, you know that no matter what house you get sorted into, me and daddy are going to be so, so, so proud of you. And we’ll be proud of you because you’re you, not because you were sorted into Ravenclaw or Gryffindor or Hufflepuff or Slytherin.” You added with a soft smile.
Aurora seemed to consider this. “Well, Harry and Jazzy are in Gryffindor, and Draco is in Slytherin. I’d like to be in one of those I think.”
You nodded at her, but it was Sirius who answered.
“That’d be pretty cool, huh? But listen, I met the most fantastic people in my house even though I knew no one in it when I first got sorted. Uncle Prongs and Uncle Moony were my dormmates for seven years and look at us now! Completely co-dependent and still living together.”
“What is co-dependent?” Aurora asked with furrowed brows.
“Not important. What I’m trying to say is, Rory, you are going to give that hat a run for its money, you know why?” Sirius asked.
Aurora shook her head.
“Because you are your mother’s daughter. And she is the the most loyal, the most cunning, the bravest and the smartest person I know. You’ve been raised by the most spectacular person, and any one of those houses will be lucky to have you. Got it?”
You watched as Rory took a deep breath and squared her shoulders before offering her dad a solid nod.
“Atta girl!” He said as he enveloped her in a hug and kissed her head. “You show that sorting hat who’s boss.” 
Aurora chuckled as she moved to hug you.
“I’m so proud of you, my love.” You said into her hair. She tightened her hold on you before letting go and stepping back.
“I think we’re ready for you, Jazzy.” You called, and the older girl came and took Aurora’s hand as they headed towards Draco and Harry to board the train.
James and Sirius wolf whistled and hollered, waving frantically as they watched the kids walk away. Hermione, Harry and Draco chuckled while Neville and Ron turned beat red at the attention.
You propped Lyra on your hip and the two of you continued to wave as the train pulled away. None of you stopped waving until you couldn’t see your babies anymore.
A sob tore its way through James, and you looked over to see Lily making alarmed eye contact with you as she awkwardly patted his arm and he and Sirius leaned into each other.
“First time?” An older woman asked as she went to walk past you.
“No” was yours and Lily’s chorused response as you peeled your husband away from his best mate and moved him toward the pram where your youngest two sat forgotten. 
“Lord, is it going to be this bad every time we send one of the kids off the first time?”
“It’ll be worse!” Sirius cried emphatically as he fell into your arms, basically crushing poor Lyra who was still sat on your hip. You looked over to Lily hoping for help only to see her in a similar predicament. 
“Sirius Black, at this rate our youngest three won’t ever want to come back to Kings Cross Station.” You muttered as you moved Lyra to your other hip so you could support your husband’s weight.
“Good! Then they’ll never leave me!” 
Your heart twinged as you patted Sirius’ back.
“Siri, look at me.” 
For a moment you thought he might refuse, but he unfolded himself slowly and stood to look at you. 
“This is what we fought for, my love.” You said as you caressed his cheek. “So that our babies could go to Hogwarts and learn and be children and be free and be safe.”
“I still hate it.”
You laughed at his petulance. “Me too, actually. Do you think Hogwarts is hiring? What if we all just move there?”
“Great idea, Vix!” James cheered from beside you, eyes rimmed and cheeks glistening. “Lily flower could work in the infirmary, Padfoot could teach astronomy, you could teach muggle studies, I could teach flying, Moony could teach defence against the dark arts and Regulus could teach potions! It’s perfect!”
Though you had to admit this plan of James’ actually sounded pretty perfect, your attention turned to little Posie falling asleep in Lily’s arms. 
“Why don’t we discuss this more once we get these kiddos down for a nap, hm?”
Sirius found you later sitting in the sunroom with a book in hand. He thought you made the prettiest picture sitting in the soft sun filtering through the leaves of the trees outside, plants surrounding you with your nose buried in a book. So, he took a picture. 
“I wasn’t ready!” You whined with a smile on your face.
“You’re always ready.” He said as he pressed a kiss to your lips. “I’m sorry I was such a mess at the train station today.” He said as he lifted your legs off the loveseat to sit down and replace them atop his lap.
“You don’t have to apologize, Siri.” You said as you tapped him with your book. 
“I’m supposed to be the one taking care of you.” He commented, his gaze seemed far away as he watched the branches dance in the September breeze.
“You can do that tomorrow.” You whispered back.
A smile graced his face before he turned to look at you. “I love you; did you know? I don’t think I say it enough, but I do; I love you.”
He punctuated his sentence with three loving squeezes of the fat of your thigh.
“Sirius. Every breath I take means ‘I love you’.” You responded and sealed it with a kiss. 
You got an owl from Draco and Aurora later that night.
Aurora was a hat stall.
She was also sorted into the same house as her mum.
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Thank you so much for reading! Can't get enough? Check out these CBBH themed one shots, or, feel free to request a one-shot from your faves in this universe!
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guest-1-2-3 · 5 months
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stumbling into the joy that are zukka canon divergence tropes. zukka in ba sing se where sokka discovers the jasmine dragon and is like zuko tea server??? sokka having a crush on the blue spirit and all the subsequent identity shenanigans. my old favorite zukka boiling rock fics where they get together while breaking out of a high security prison. not to mention zuko dies in the north pole and then is bound to sokka as a ghost (cough cough boomerangs and rainbows by mindbending favorite zukka fic ever go read it)! zuko joining the order of the white lotus early on and all the fun stuff that come with that. zukka canon divergence fics my beloved
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lesservillain · 4 months
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—iii. the smoke, and who's still standing when it clears
cw: some slight implied sexual thoughts?
an: i had to cut a part from this or else it was going to be way too long. see ya in the next one, reefer rick.
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“So, how did it go?”
Tonya sits across from you looking perfect as always, such a beautiful light in your life. Even when she’s antagonizing you.
“It was…really nice actually.” A small, shy smile tugs at the corner of your lips as your mind recalls the night before.
Your date with Sam went way smoother than you had anticipated. He picked you up on time, even coming to the door to get you which you knew Tonya was going to bring up today. He did everything right; held open all of the doors, pulled your seat out for you, paid for your food, actually listened to what you had to say and didn’t interrupt you. He was extremely charming and funny, and the two of you had a lot more in common than you expected.
“Sam sounds pretty perfect, doesn’t he?” Tonya says with a teasing tone, eyebrows raising suggestively. 
“Yeah, I guess I’m making him sound that way, huh? It makes me wonder how bad his faults are going to be.” 
“Unless he’s got bodies in his basement I’d say keep him around.” Tonya raises her hand to count on her fingers, “He’s hot, he’s got a good job, good manners—I’d say baby trap his ass.”
“TONYA!” You lean in, whisper yelling at your friend’s suggestion, the two of you breaking out into a fit of giggles. “I am absolutely not doing that. But…I did agree to a second date.”
“I guess I can take that for now,” Tonya shrugs, taking a sip of her mimosa. “Oh, speaking of dates, I almost forgot. Charlie and I are going out of town for our anniversary. He’s taking me to Chicago!” Her giddiness warms you. Even if you aren’t a fan of him, you have to admit seeing your best friend happy brings you your own kind of happiness. 
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The sharp sound of the phone ringing makes you jump, almost dropping the plate you were cleaning into the soapy water. You look at the stove clock reading just a little past 8 pm. In the few weeks that you’ve been here not once has the phone ever rang. Walking over to it, your hand hovers over the plastic as you debate on if you should answer it. It’s not like it's your house, but who else is going to answer the phone? 
A sigh of relief comes from you as the phone ceases it’s ringing on its own. The quiet takes over again, and you think you’re in the clear until the ringing starts again. 
Grabbing the phone, you quickly bring it to your ear with a, “Hello?” 
There’s a pause, and you repeat your greeting into the receiver. Suddenly you can pick up some whispering, at least two voices talking to each other on the other line. 
“Sorry, wrong number.” Click. Dial tone.
You look down at the phone before shaking your head and placing it back in place. But only a single step is taken before the phone begins to ring again. Annoyed now, you pick up the phone once more.
“Hello?” You say again, tone reflecting your temperament.
“Ugh, not again,” you hear the voice from the other end groan. “Sorry, miss.” Click. Dial tone again.
‘What the fuck?’ you think, putting the phone back on the hook again. You hover around it for a moment, and sure enough it begins to ring again.
“Listen, kid,” your start, tone firm, “If you keep calling here to bother this family I will call Chief Hopper.”
“You know Hopper?” The younger boy's voice says from the other line. No, you don’t know him. But Wayne told you to say that in case this exact scenario was to arise.
“Yes, I actually have his personal number right here—”
“So do I,” the boy quips back, striking a nerve. You’re about to give this kid an earful before he continues on. “I just saw him earlier today, actually. But that’s not the point. I’m just trying to get a hold of my friend and this is the number his uncle gave me to call and—”
“Uncle?”
“Yes, uncle. I don’t see how out of all the information I gave you that him having an uncle is what caught your attention.”
“Oh, my god, you are so annoying. Has anyone ever told you that?”
“Maybe once or twice.”
You pinch the bridge of your nose. “Is your friend’s name Eddie?”
“YES! Yes! His name is Eddie—”
“Dude, don’t tell her his name—”
“Chill out, Mike, it’s fine—How do you know Eddie?”
“Well,” you draw out, returning some of the attitude back to the other end of the call, “I think me telling you that depends on who is asking?”
There’s a bit of muffled deliberation between the boy on the phone and whoever Mike. You wait patiently, foot tapping against the kitchen tile. After a moment you hear a sigh come from the other line, followed by a throat clearing.
“Okay, fine. My name is Dustin Henderson,” the boy starts. “I’m calling looking for Eddie Munson. He is my friend, and myself and some of his other friends are worried about him. I’m assuming you’re in his house for some reason, and I am asking you if we could talk to him. Please.”
“Dustin Henderson, huh?” You repeat, attempting to keep a bit of sass in your tone. In reality, the name instantly rings a bell. Wayne told you a little about Eddie’s friends, and along with the guys that Eddie was in a band with, the name Dustin came up a lot. Wayne said Eddie looked at Dustin like a little brother he never had. 
It takes everything in you to keep your composure right now. Eddie’s been feeling much better these last couple days, so you’re sure he’ll be delighted to talk to his friends. “Okay, Dustin Henderson. Let me go ask him if he’s up to taking a phone call. Hold on.”
You set the phone down on the kitchen table and jog down the hall to Eddie’s room. Knocking on his door, you push it open slightly before calling into the room.
“Eddie? Are you up?”
“Hmmm…I am now,” the groggy, sleepy voice from the other side of the door sends an unwanted chill down your back. Quickly shaking it off, you enter the room to Eddie sitting up in his bed, hair in every which direction and arms outstretched as he lets out the most unnecessarily loud yawn you’ve ever heard. You give him an unimpressed look to which he returns mockingly.
“Can I help you? Or did you just come in here to stare?”
You roll your eyes, “You have a phone call. From a Dustin Henderson, who seems like he very much would like to speak with you.”
Eddie’s eyebrows shoot up, an excited expression on his face. Though, it’s a fleeting one, as his features become downtrodden and he starts to sink down into himself.
“Tell him I’m asleep.”
“What? Why?”
He huffs. “I don’t want to talk to him…”
“Eddie, he’s called the house at least four times. Can you just—“
“No.”
You watch him sink under the covers again, back into the safety net of his comforter. You stand there for a moment, dumbstruck. Eddie’s can definitely be an ass, but Wayne told you before that Eddie’s friends mean a lot to him.
Leaving Eddie behind in his room, you make your way back to the kitchen. Bringing the phone to your ear, you can hear the boys on the other end having a conversation between them.
“—aybe it’s his girlfriend,” the other boy says teasingly.
“Eddie? With a girl? I’ll believe it when I see it,” Dustin scoffs.
“Hello?” You say into the receiver with a giggle.
“Yes, hi, we’re still here,” Dustin says with urgency.
“Hi, um, so I went to check on him and he says he’s not really feeling up to talking today.”
“Oh, okay…” Your heart aches hearing the disappointment in the boy’s voice.
“I’m sorry,” you say. “Try again tomorrow, okay? Maybe a little earlier. I think his medicine makes him sleepy.”
“Alright, will do,” Dustin perks up. “Thank you ma’am.” 
You give him your name before giving your goodbyes.
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Dustin and Mike call every day for the next 4 days. One time with their friend Will, who apparently has never met Eddie but wants to meet him so they can all talk about dungeons and dragons. 
You see, Eddie was their dungeon master in their high school club, which also includes the guys in Eddie’s band. All of them have been playing a new campaign, and they want to give Eddie all the details of their first get together without him.
All of this you have learned against your will, mostly because every time Eddie turns down their phone call, you can’ help but lend an ear when they get going. And, boy, do they get going.
“So we told Will to cast a fireball, but he wanted to save his spell slot and—”
“What's a spell slot?” You sit at the dining room table, flipping through a car magazine Wayne left sitting out.
“It’s, like, the amount of spells you’re allowed to use per day in the game.”
“Ooooh, so he only gets so many?”
“Correct.”
“Well, then yeah it would make sense that he would want to conserve them.”
“See,” Mike stresses from the other end of the line, “She doesn’t even play and she gets it! Quit picking on Will! It’s not like we lost anyway.”
“Yeah, but we would have gotten through the hoard a lot quicker if he had at least tried.”
The sound of Eddie’s bell pulls you from the boys’ banter. “Hey, I’ll be right back,” you say, placing the phone down on the table. 
Sprinting down the hall, you knock quickly before entering the room. Eddie still doesn’t call for you often, so when he does you can't help but worry a bit. “Everything okay—oh shit!” 
Instead of hiding under his covers, Eddie sits back against the headboard of the hospital bed. His covers have all been kicked to the floor and the middle of his bed sheet is drenched. Upon further inspection, you see that his shirt and boxers are soaked as well. 
“Eddie, what happened?”
“What does it look like?!” His tone is full of frustration. “I dropped my fucking cup and the lid popped off and spilled all over the place!”
“Okay, okay,” you say calmly, “I can fix this. Why don’t you get in your chair and I’ll strip the bed?”
“Fine,” Eddie grumbled, face wincing in pain as he slowly moved his body to sit on the edge of the bed. You moved to the side of the bed and offered a helping hand, which he ignored but at least you tried. Once he was properly sitting on the edge, you grabbed his chair and positioned it before raising the bed. 
“Okay, just put your hands on my shoulders…” you start, instructing him like you would one of your patients. “And I’ll just—“ 
Your hands hover for a moment as you fully process that he is only wearing boxers. Wet boxers that, when in close proximity, don’t leave much to the imagination when left wet and sticking to his body.
Not wanting to let your eyes wander, you preoccupy yourself by placing your hands on his hips and grabbing the hem of his undergarment. 
“On the count of three, we’ll pivot. Ready?”
Eddie gives you a nod, placing his hands on your shoulders and holding tightly. You keep your eyes on his foot as you count down, shifting him into his chair in one swift motion. He grunts as he gets adjusted in the chair, a little winded from all the movement. 
“You good?” You ask, taking a step back. 
“I’ll live,” he says with cynicism. 
“You better. Won't look good on me if you die on my watch.
It’s fleeting, but you swear that you see the corner of his lips curl up into a smile before he turns away from you. 
“Whatever,” he mumbles, “I’m gonna get in the shower.”
You perk up at his declaration. “Really? Okay! Let me go hang up with Dustin and the guys and I’ll get my stuff for you.”
Eddie’s hair flies everywhere with the way his head snaps in your direction. His head bows, eyes squinting as he speaks, “What do you mean hang up with Dustin and the guys…?”
“Oh, they called again so I was talking to them.”
“So, you’re saying you’ve been talking to my friends on my phone…?”
“Well you’re not doing it,” you shrug. “They were just telling me about the game you guys play, I guess Will didn’t cast a flameball because he wanted to save one of his slots or something—“
“Okay, first of all, it’s fireball, not flameball. And second, why the hell are they telling you about this stuff? Don’t they have anything better to do?”
“Sorry, fireball,” you apologize with sarcasm. “And, they would be telling you all of this if you would just talk to them.”
His face scrunches up, head shaking before he turns away from you completely. You notice for the first time that he pushes the wheels with the palms of his hands rather than using his fingers to grip them. Having helped set up his dinner for him a few times, you’ve seen that with the tissue damage to his right hand that he doesn’t have much mobility in it. 
The temptation to offer some physical therapy for it sits in your mind. But, you’re not sure how he would react to your offer, so you’ll hold off until you can chip away at him a little more. He pushes himself slowly into the bathroom and closes the door behind him. With a sigh you leave him be and go to hang up the call with the boys. 
After grabbing new bed sheets, you reenter Eddie’s room and begin to strip his bed, piling everything onto the floor. You're about to take off the pillow cases when a sudden clatter has you rushing to the bathroom door. 
Pushing it open, you peer inside to see Eddie sitting at the sink. From what you can see of his reflection, it looks like he’s trying to shave the scruffy, uneven hair that's grown on the non scarred parts of his face. 
“You’re quick, huh?” He comments as he reaches into the sink for his electric razor. 
“Well, can’t blame me after the other day, can you?” You tease, referring to his fall last week. He doesn’t respond and turns the razor back on to continue shaving. 
As you stand there and watch him, your words come out like word vomit. “You look good like that.”
His eyes flick to meet yours in the reflection in the mirror. “What's that supposed to mean?” He asks with a clipped tone.
“It means what I said.” 
And you could leave it at that. You often wonder if he had been bullied even before his scarring with how often he questions any praise you throw at him. But, instead you decide that doubling down and talking more is the proper thing to do. “You look very nice clean shaven. Very handsome.”
Big, brown eyes blink slowly at you. “Well, I’m sorry I didn’t clean up for you before now. I’ll do my best to make myself easier to look at from here on out.” He gives you that same tight lipped smile that you’ve begun to notice whenever he gets an attitude like this.
Your jaw drops and you scoff. “Eddie, that is not what I meant and you know—” He cuts you off by turning on the razor again, the loud buzz muffling your words as it echoes off the bathroom walls. 
Your shoulders slump in defeat. You want to just turn tail and take care of his bed, but decide to get the bathroom set up for him while you’re in there. You place towels on the floor and on his shower chair, leave a couple of washcloths on the built-in handrail, and set the shower head down so that everything is within reach for him. 
“Oh, I almost forgot—“ You were expecting Eddie to still be fidgeting at the sink, too preoccupied with setting things up for him to notice that he was watching you run around his bathroom with amusement. 
“I, um…” his unmoving glare was tense, making you feel like you were being evaluated. “I brought some stuff for your hair to, uh, help with the knots and stuff. Let me go grab them for you.”
The first step you take is slow, expecting some form of protest from him. But, when he remains silent you rush through the door and across the hall to grab the supplies you’ve stowed away in it. Detangler, a pick comb, and some shampoo and conditioner that should help with the curls. 
With full arms you reenter Eddie’s bathroom. He’s moved closer to the shower’s edge and looks to be in the process of removing his shirt on his own. The limited mobility along with the tightness of his scars make it difficult for him to move his arms up above his head, but his stubborn ass seems to be a glutton for punishment.
“Here,” you say, setting everything on the shower shelf. Tugging his shirt up for him, his head disappears inside of the shirt and his fluff of hair reappears as you pull it off completely. You still can't get over how his back is almost completely void of scars when compared to the rest of body. 
“Thanks,” he says without much thought. You hum in return, tossing the shirt on top of his bed.
“Anything else I can help you with?” 
No response. You look back at him and see that he’s completely still. “Everything okay?” You ask, noticing the troubled look on his face as you round his chair. 
“I…” he says quietly, eyes concentrated on the tiles on the floor, “I can’t stand up on my own and take my underwear off…”
Oh.
At this point in your schooling, seeing someone naked wouldn’t normally bother you after all of the saggy boobs and flat butts you’ve washed during your nursing assistant training. It’s a necessary skill to be able to detach the naked body from inherent sexuality in the medical field. 
And Eddie’s body shouldn’t be any different. Just because he’s close to you in age doesn’t make him any different from your previous patients. So why is your face heating up thinking about it?
“I-I see,” you say, trying to not sound as flustered as you are. “Let me think…Oh! Why don't we get you on the seat, we’ll lay a towel across your lap, and then you can shimmy your boxers off under them?”
Eddie mulls it over for a moment before reluctantly shaking his head. You move in front of him to get into position and make another quick transfer onto the shower chair. Eddie hisses in pain next to your ear, most likely due to the stiff plastic of the seat that he’s not used to pushing into his back and butt. 
Placing a towel over his lap, you stand by as he wordlessly slips his hands under it and begins rocking back and forth. You keep your eyes above chest level, not wanting to look away in case he were to start to fall. 
“Shit!” Eddie says, making you look down instinctively. The towel must have caught on his boxers as he was pulling them down, and you watched in slow motion as the towel slipped lower, getting dangerously close to exposing him. 
Thinking quickly, you grab for the towel and hold it up against his skin. Eddie’s hands flail as he tries to get them out from under it as fast as he can. His boxers fall unceremoniously off his thigh and pool around his single ankle. The two of you stare at them, then at your hand that is pressed firmly into his lower abdomen. You have a firm hold on the towel, your hand the only thing keeping it from joining the dark blue boxers on the shower tile as it’s fully fallen off of his lap, draped down to cover his…
…is that his…against the heel of your palm?
Pushing back the inappropriate thoughts starting to form in your mind, you grab the ends of the towel and lay them on Eddie’s lap again. He doesn’t say anything as his hands do their best to hold the fabric in place as you adjust it. You’re almost afraid to look up at him, not wanting to acknowledge that you may or may not have accidentally grabbed your patient by the dick.
“Okay,” you say with as steady of a voice as you can muster, “I think you should be good now. You grab his boxers from around his ankle and quickly make your exit from the shower, pulling the curtain behind you. “Just shout if you need me!”
The hard spray of the shower turning on is the only response you get.
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“Ow!”
“Eddie, if you want me to comb out these knots you’re going to have to complain less.”
“I can’t help I have a tender scalp now.”
“Now?”
You can see Eddie’s scrunched up expression in the mirror’s reflection as you spray detangler into his curls. The conditioner had done quite a bit of loosening of his tangles and mats, but there was still a fair bit that needed to be combed out.
“Yes, now. I used to be able to just take a brush through it at the end of the day and be fine. But no one really took care of it when I was in the hospital.”
“Wayne never tried to do anything with it?”
Eddie gives you an annoyed look in the mirror. “You’ve seen my uncle, right? He’s not exactly the person I would go to for my hair care advice.” The shine that comes from the head of the older Munson is definitely prominent. 
“What about the nurses?” You ask as you comb through another successfully detangled section of his hair. He doesn’t respond right away, a distant look in his eyes as he stares at his own reflection.
“No, they couldn’t help me either.”
“Hmm. Well, I don’t mind doing your hair for you. My best friend is a hair stylist and can give me some tips to help you keep it manageable after my time with you is done, too.”
“What do you mean after your time is done?” He asks after a moment.
You tilt your head at him. “Like when my volunteering program is done? I think it goes until the end of the semester. So like the first or second week of December.”
“You’re a volunteer?” There was an angry lit to his tone.
“Y-yeah? I’m sorry I thought you knew—”
“No, I thought…I thought my uncle was paying you to be here.”
You shake your head, “No, no, I’m doing this as part of my schooling. My class is working with the VisitingAngels to get more help in Hawkins. It’s totally free and I don’t make any money, just some extra credit for school.”
Eddie’s face changes as he processes your words, before visibility softening as he looks at you. “Well, I guess you must have pulled the short straw to get stuck with me then.”
There was a complete change in his attitude all of the sudden. The normal agitation in his voice was gone, making his statement sound lighter than anything he’s ever said to you before.
“I picked you.”
His eyes meet yours, dumbfounded. 
“Well, kind of,” you start. “Sa—I mean, they told me that you were a…special case. A lot of information was redacted in your sheet, and, well, you know, with everything else…”
“I’m sure I wasn’t anyone else’s first choice.”
“But, I didn’t think that was fair, so I said I would take care of you. Glad I did, even if you give me more trouble than you’re worth sometimes.”
He rolls his eyes at your teasing and you laugh as you continue to work through his hair. 
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Your lower back ached as you climbed out of your car. School was out for teacher’s meetings so you switched with a coworker to have all of Saturday off. Sam asked to take you to the movies for your second date and you both decided to do ice cream after so you wanted to be able to sleep in and lessen the chance of falling asleep during the movie. But you paid the price today, forgetting that your coworker is normally the one who puts inventory away. 
“Hey there, little lady,” Wayne says as he walks out from the backyard. It’s not as hot as it had been, colder weather on the horizon as September was coming to a close, but the older man had a dark gray ring of sweat around the collar of his shirt.
“Hey, Wayne,” you waved to him with a smile. “Getting some last minute yard work done before the rain comes in?”
“Yeah, wanna get this grass seed down so come spring it’ll start to grow. Tired of havin’ta clean mud off m’truck all the damn time.”
“Do you need any help? I used to work all summer in the garden with my grandma as a kid. I’m sure I still have a little bit of green left in these thumbs.”
Wayne’s eyes crinkle when he laughs, the lines looking deep with age. “That’s alright darlin’, I’m done for the day. Preciate ya askin’. Better get inside and get ready fer work.”
You follow him into the house where you’re met with the sound of heavy metal all throughout. You look at Wayne confused, but he just shakes his head and starts heading down the hallway. He pushes Eddie’s door open and your hands fly to your ears with how much louder the music gets before it abruptly stops. 
“What the hell, Wayne!” You hear Eddie whine. 
“Look, I get you’re excited kid but I don’t think your Uncle Ben would appreciate you using his gift to make yourself go deaf.”
“Uncle Ben?” 
Both pairs of Munson eyes land on where you stand in the doorway. They look as if they’ve been caught and you wonder if you should have stayed in the living room. 
“Sorry, I—“
“No, it’s fine,” Wayne says, giving Eddie a look. “Ben is a friend of mine. S’known Eddie since I got custody of em and Eddie’s just always called em Uncle ever since.”
“Oh okay,” is all you said. It seemed like such a normal thing, but the sketchy way they were acting made you not want to press further. “I guess you must have gotten a new toy then, huh?”
Sitting where Eddie’s nightstand was is a cabinet stereo system, decked out with a record player on top and shelves to put cassettes and records underneath. You couldn’t say for sure but it looked brand new, either way it would have cost Uncle Ben a pretty penny to buy it. 
“Yeah,” he says with an airy giggle, the empty cassette in his hands. It catches you off guard to hear him so excited, and when you look up at him, you have to do a double take. 
He’s smiling. 
For the first time in the two months that you’ve been taking care of him, he’s genuinely smiling. 
“Who are you listening to?” You ask, leaning in to get a better look at the case. 
“Megadeth,” he says with a grizzly voice, nodding his head to a song in his mind. 
“Ooohhh cool,” you say with genuine fascination. “I’ve heard of them but I’ve not actually sat and listened to them.”
Eddie’s hair flies as he looks up at you with a quirked brow. “You’ve heard of them?”
You nod, “Yeah, I think the record store where I live has been playing them though. They’re putting a new album out or something.”
“Yes! This!” He says, shaking the cassette in his hands. “It came out two weeks ago. I didn’t think I was going to get a chance to hear it.”
  “And you better give Uncle Ben a nice thank you card for it. I wondered what he’d been picking up so much over time for.”
Eddie is quiet for a moment, looking down at his hands. “Yeah, I’ll, uh, do my best to do that.”
“So, Eddie, what other music do you like?” You ask, wanting to give him a distraction before he slips into a bad place. His ears perk up at your question and the look he gives you makes you feel like you’re going to be standing there with him for a while. 
And you did. Long enough that Wayne was able to take a shower and get his lunch ready for work. By the time he came in to let you know he was leaving, he figured he’d find you looking bored to death and shuffling awkwardly as his nephew droned on about his music knowledge. 
But, what he found instead was you sitting in Eddie’s chair, leaning into him intently as he animatedly speaks about whatever band he’s gotten started on. Wayne knows how Eddie can get once he gets started. But you don’t look bored at all like he probably has at times. 
In fact, Wayne would dare to say you have a bit of a sparkle in your eyes as you gaze up at his nephew. 
“Hey, kids, I’m heading out,” he calls into the room, grabbing both of your attentions instantly.
“What?” You ask, turning to look back at the clock on the dresser. “Oh my god, it’s been an hour and a half already? Eddie, you still need to eat dinner.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Wayne waves a hand, “I have a pizza on its way.”
“Wait, what?” Eddie looks at Wayne with a pinched brow. “You gave someone our address?”
“Boy, just trust me, okay? You know I wouldn't let just anybody bring a pizza to this house.”
Your mind instantly goes to Hopper. You’ve heard Wayne and Eddie talk about him before a handful of times but you’ve never actually seen him. He’s brought things to the house for Eddie before when you’ve not been there, leaving you very curious about him.
“Okay, if you say so.” Eddie says with a roll of his eyes. 
Right on que, a knock raps against the door with a rapid urgency. It makes you jump, something the younger Munson notices but doesn’t comment on.
“That must be the delivery boys,” Wayne says with a sly smile before leaving the room. Eddie looks at you with a quirked brow, wording ‘boys?’ at you with confusion. 
As you go to inspect what Wayne is up to, you hear the loud voices of boys as they begin to file into the house. The entryway fills with 6 or 7 bodies of all different ages and sizes, all of them wearing the same baseball style tee shirt with a red devil face on the front. 
“Hellfire…” you say to yourself, reading the shirts before letting out a gasp. Your feet carry you down the hall where you look amongst the group.
“Bring the pizza in here boys,” hear Wayne say from the kitchen, “Jeff and Grant, come n’help me get this table setup for ya.”
You watch as two of the older boys go into the kitchen followed by the one still carrying the pizza, leaving the younger ones to finish kicking off their shoes. One of them finally notices you and straightens before turning to grab the shirt of a taller boy behind him. 
“Oh shit, it’s you!” You recognize his voice. Mike Wheeler shoves another boy with curly hair next to him, who curses and turns to face you as well. He says your name like it’s a question, sussing you out before getting excited.
“In the flesh,” you say, gesturing towards yourself. 
“Hell yeah,” he says in his giggly voice. “We didn’t know if you were gonna be here or not.”
“I didn’t know you guys were gonna be here at all!”
“What really?” Mike says with a scrunched nose.
“That would be cause’a me.” Wayne leans through the threshold, that sly smile still on his face. “I didn’t tell ya in case ya told Ed. Sorry, hope this is alright. Dustin told me he’d been callin’ and that Eddie wouldn’t talk to em, so I figured he couldn’t ignore em if they was already here.”
Eddie’s bell rings from his room, and Eddie and Mike visibly perk up.
“Is that him?” Dustin asks excitedly.
“Yeah, he’s back in his room. Come on,” you say as you turn on your heel. Giddy with excitement, you couldn’t wait to see Eddie’s face when he got to see his friends. Them being here on top of getting his stereo system? It’s almost like it’s…his…
“Is today Eddie’s birthday?” You quickly stop to face the boys that had followed you down the hall, causing them to almost run into you. 
“What, no?” Dustin says confused, “His birthday’s not til May.”
You let out a sigh of relief. “Okay good. Sorry, he’s right in here—”
“Hey, what’s going on?” Eddie’s slightly strained voice called from the other side of the door. You could hear a tinge of panic in his tone, and it hit you that all he could hear was loud noise with no context while he’s stuck in his bed.
“Wait right—”
“EDDIEEEEEEEE!” Dustin shouts, stepping past you and pushing the bedroom door open. Mike follows behind and the quiet boy with him gives a soft sorry as he files in behind him.
“Wait, where’s that bastard at?!” The older boys come running out of the kitchen, pushing each other until they stumble into Eddie’s room as well. 
Eddie’s bed has a living wall around it, bodies blocking your ability to see his face. Before you can go in to check on him, Wayne calls for you from down the hall, a pizza crust in his hand. 
“Hey, he didn’t get his pain meds for the night yet. Figured he would be too tired and end up being grumpy by the time they got here, so I held off on it. Obviously if he needs em he can have him, but he seemed pretty distracted with his cassette to notice any pain.”
“That’s good to hear,” you say with a nod. “I’ll probably have him take them after they eat with his other meds.” You pause for a moment, putting a hand on Wayne’s arm. “If I had to take a guess, he’s probably going to be grumpy anyway, but…he’ll thank you for it eventually.” 
He gives you a nod before gathering his lunch and heading out for the night. A chorus of guffaws from down the hall had your interest piqued. But, as you made it to the doorway, you felt like your stomach was in your throat as you watched the boys trying to get Eddie into his wheelchair, one arm around the shoulders of two of his friends while another was holding onto his ankle.
“Woah, woah, pump the brakes there guys,” you say running to them. The boys all look at you collectively, then look to Eddie. 
“It’s okay, I’m fine!” Eddie laughs. His eyes were creased from how hard he was smiling and his laugh filled you with a fluffy feeling. 
“I can tell you’re fine, but I don’t want you to get hurt and have to send these guys home.” Just as quickly as they had tried to lift him, they sat him gently back down so he was sitting up on the edge of the bed. “Sorry to be the party pooper, but once he’s in the chair he’s free game.”
“So, are you gonna introduce us or what, dude?” One of the boys finally asks as you get Eddie situated to put in his chair. He lets out a sigh, avoiding your eyes, saying your name to the group of boys. “She’s my…caretaker.” There was a bit of hesitation in that last word, but you ignored it. 
He said your name again as if speaking to you this time, “This is the Hellfire Club. I guess you know Dustin, Mike, and Will already,” he says gesturing to the three younger boys who all wave and smile in their own way. “And these boneheads double as my old band members; Jeff, Grant, and Gareth.” The older guys nod and give their hellos, still giving Eddie a knowing look.
“It’s nice to meet you all. Finally.” Eddie gives you a deadpanned look before you lift him to pivot in his chair, making you almost fall into him as you do. He plops in his chair and unlocks it, and you step aside so that he can back away from the bed. 
“Oh, let me push you!”
“No, I wanna push him!”
You roll your eyes, and watch as the boys file out of Eddie’s room and into the hallway.
“Man, we really need to get you some decorations for your room,” the last boy calls as he looks around. That gives you an idea, and you grab the one named Gareth by the arm. He looks at you with wild eyes, standing nervously in front of you. “W-whats up?” He attempts to ask with a slight shake in his voice.
“What kind of things does he like?” You ask the nervous boy, looking him straight in the eye.
“W-what?”
“For his room. I want to get him some things but don’t know what to be looking for when I’m out.”
“Oh, um…He likes metal music. And he used to have a bunch of band shirts. Mostly Black Sabbath, Dio, Metallica…But he also likes Dungeons and Dragons. But I guess that’s obvious. Oh, and The Hobbit series.”
“Like Lord of the Rings?” You ask. 
He nods, “Yeah. He carried a copy of The Hobbit with him everywhere. It was practically falling apart, b-but he loved it.”
You shake your head, biting your lip as you think. “Thank you, Gareth,” you say, and he takes that as the OK for him to go, sprinting out the bedroom door.
“Oh, man, dude,” Dustin says from the table, mouth full of pizza “Wait until you see what Jeff’s got planned.”
“Yeah,” Will chimes in, “Jeff has been keeping us on our toes. We’ll definitely need your help to get through this session.”
“I don’t know,” Jeff says, loading his plate with pizza and cheesy bread, “what I have on the agenda for tonight might be the end for this group of folly.”
“Yeah, yeah, whatever, Jeff. Just because I’ve been out of commission doesn’t mean that I don’t know all the tricks in the book.” Eddie says from his spot on the table. 
You maneuver around the boys as they get their plates and drinks. Someone had already gotten Eddie a plate and a cup full of a fizzy drink, which, thankfully, was way too dark to be one of the beers that you see sitting on the counter. It was in a regular solo cup though.
“Eddie,” you call from across the counter, and he looks up at you carefully. “Do you want a straw?” You ask, opening the counter above you. Looking out of the corner of your eyes, you see the boys have stopped talking, eyes looking everywhere except for Eddie as if trying to gauge his reaction but not make it obvious.
It takes him a moment to respond. “Um, yes, please.” He says quietly, hands in his lap as he leans in to look at the paper sitting in front of him. Grant sits on one side of him, leaning in and pointing out something about his character sheet which in turn breaks the silence among the table. 
When you round the table to bring his straw, you place it in his cup and he gives you a quiet thanks again. You nod, but can’t help to notice that he hasn’t eaten any of his pizza. 
Not wanting to draw too much attention to him again, you lean into his ear with a low voice. “Do you need me to cut up your pizza?” He doesn’t move at first, but subtly shakes his head enough for you to notice. You take your lip between your teeth and nod, backing away.
Once their game gets going, you grab your pizza and head into the living room, putting on your headphones and cracking open your textbook. You can’t help but look over at the table for every loud noise that they made, which was a lot, but you didn’t want to be too distracted in case Eddie needed you.
Things seemed like they were going well, until out of the corner of your eye you saw Grant jump up from his seat looking down between him and Eddie. The paper plate and Eddie’s pizza slice were both face down on the floor. You pulled your headphones off quickly, scrambling to your feet to clean the mess.
“Woah,” Grant says when you appear from behind him. “I can get it. It’s no biggie.”
Eddie’s face looked forlorn, still staring down at the place where Grant was wiping the red sauce with a paper towel. 
“Let me get you another slice,” Dustin said, rising from his seat.
“No,” Eddie said, voice almost panicked. “It’s fine, I don’t—I don’t need any.” 
“You barely even got to eat this piece,” Grant said with a questioning tone as he tossed the dirty piece away. 
“I’m getting you another piece.”
“Eddie.”
His panicked eyes met yours, and you could see the breakdown bubbling inside of him. His head was shaking, mouth opening and closing but the words weren’t coming out. Tears rolled down his cheeks. You’d never seen him get this upset before. 
You put a hand on either cheek and made him focus on you. “Eddie, it’s fine. No one here is upset with you. It’s just a slice of pizza. There’s, like, two more whole pizza’s over there. Dustin is going to get you another piece. Do you want me to cut it up for you? You should be able to pick up the smaller pieces.” He looks between your eyes before nodding finally. You give him a reassuring smile and take your hands from his face. 
“I’ll get you a refill, too,” you say, ignoring the tension in the room and continuing on like nothing happened. Dustin handed you the new plate when you walked by, trading it for the cup you had to refill. Grant took his place back next to Eddie and the table started to talk again. 
“Here you go,” Dustin says, reaching across the table to set Eddie’s drink back in front of him. “And here is an extra cup to roll your dice in.” You watch Eddie eye the cup before pinching it between his fingers. He gives a small thanks and the table moves on, becoming so engrossed in the game once again that no one even notices when you place the new plate on the table. Eddie mindlessly picks at the cut pieces as Jeff gives a speech about a cave having a hoard of something inside of it.
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A hand waves in front of your face, pulling your attention from the textbook. When you look up, you see Dustin, Mike and Will peering over you. And out of the corner of your eye you see Jeff, Grant, and Gareth pushing Eddie’s chair down the hall.
“Hey, what’s going on?” You ask, pulling your headphones down and around your neck. 
“Bathroom break!” Gareth shouts.
“Do you need my help?” You call back.
“Nope!”
These boys are going to kill you.
“What are you studying for?” Will turns his head to try and see the contents of your book.
“Oh, this is my medical terminology book. I’m in nursing school.” The three boys give a collective ‘ooooohh’ that makes you laugh. “It’s pretty interesting, but I don’t think you guys would like it all that much.”
“Hey, we like science stuff,” Dustin says.
“Yeah, he goes to a science camp every summer.”
“To see my girlfriend!”
“Yeah that’s totally the only reason,” Will chimes in with a roll of his eyes.
“Wow, Dustin has a science camp girlfriend, huh?” You say teasingly.
“She’s not just my science camp girlfriend. I talk to her on my ham radio, too. She lives in a different state.”
“And she’s Mormon.”
“Yeah, her dad doesn’t like us talking so we have to be sneaky. Mike has a girlfriend, too.”
“Does she also live in another state where she can only be accessed via radio?”
“No, she lives with Will just a little bit away from here,” Mike says, jutting his thumb back at Will. You tilt your head at the boys, confused as to what they mean.
“How far is a little bit?” You ask.
“Like, I don’t know, five—ten minutes by car?” Mike says looking at Will and Dustin who nod in agreement. “El—I mean Jane’s dad is Chief Hopper. And he’s dating Will’s mom. They live in a house that they built out here.”
Every sentence was like whiplash. That would explain why Wayne asks the chief to come out here. It would be easier if he’s so close by to come and check on Eddie. But, obviously he has a family so he can’t be here all the time. 
“Back from the bathroom! No one died!” Gareth shouts as Grant and Jeff push Eddie back into the dining room. The three younger boys rush back into the dinning room as well taking their places at the table once again.
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It was almost pitch black dark when you opened your eyes, the only light coming from the clock on the stove. You hadn’t meant to fall asleep. When did you fall asleep? And who put this blanket on you?
You could make out your textbook on the coffee table, and when you looked around, it seemed like the boys had cleaned up and put the table back against the wall. You jumped up from your seat suddenly, about to take off down the hall to check on Eddie when a voice from beside you made you scream.
“Jesus Christ!” Eddie shouted in reaction to your shriek. You pulled the lamp cord on the table next to you and the room was lit with a low light. Eddie’s form came into focus where he sat in the recliner, eyes squinting from the brightness.
“What the hell, Eddie!” You whisper shout. “Why are you out here and not in bed?”
“I…” he stuttered, “I didn’t know if you’d hear me if I needed you. So, I just had the guys put me here. That’s all.”
You blink at him, not awake enough to fully understand, but also not fully awake enough to argue. Rubbing the sleepies from your eyes, you look at him better. He looked like he had gotten a clean set of clothes on and even had his drinking cup next to him in the chair. 
“Guess they got you set up pretty good, huh?”
He nods, shimmying in the chair as he gets settled again.
“Eddie?” He looks over at you, puzzled. “Why were you so against seeing them? Or even just talking to them? They seemed really happy to see you.” Eddie turned away from you and was quiet for several moments. He took a deep breath in and sighed.
“I was…Some of them…Some of them haven’t…seen me since…since before…” His voice was shaky. You were about to tell him that he didn’t have to explain himself, but he kept going, voice leveling out a bit when he cleared it.
“Dustin, he was there. One of the ones who…found me. But the rest of them, they haven’t seen me since before break. Since before…everything happened. And none of them have seen me like this. I’ve changed so much that…I was worried they would see me and freak out. I don’t think I could have handled that.”
“Well, they certainly didn’t seem too bothered by any of your changes. They’re a good group of friends.” Eddie nods in agreement. “Did you guys have a good time?” A big, cheesy smile spreads across Eddie's face.
“Yeah, we did. Totally kicked Jeff’s monster hoard’s asses,” he said with a laugh.
“What time did everyone leave?” You ask, looking at the clock where it reads 3am. Thank god you switched shifts.
“Dustin, Mike, and Will all left around 10:30 or 11. Hopper came and picked them up. Guess they’re all staying at Mike’s.”
You let out an exasperated grunt, throwing your head back onto the couch.
“What was that?” Eddie laughs at your dramatics.
“I missed Hopper, again! I’ve been hearing about this guy but haven’t seen him yet!”
Eddie snorts, “You’re not really missing much. He’s just this really tall dude with a bunch of scars now from being imprisoned by the Russians.”
You look at him with shock. “He was what?”
Eddie shakes his head, “After they left, my other friends stayed until like one. We talked outside for a bit. They said they want to start coming here to do Hellfire meetings every other Friday, but I told them I’d have to ask you first.”
“Why do you have to ask me?” You look at him with a furrowed brow. “If you have to ask anyone it would be Wayne.”
“I know you like to study and stuff, and I don’t want them to be a distraction for you while they’re here. Or for you to have to worry about me or whatever.”
“Oh, well, that’s really thoughtful of you Eddie. But I’m okay. If I really need to study, I’ll just go sit in your room or something.”
He nods his head, a small smile tugging on his lips.
“Did you guys talk about anything else?”
Your words caught him off guard, you can tell by the blanched look on his face.
“Nope. Nothing. Nothing at all.”
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“I thought it was pretty boring,” Sam said, taking a bite from the sundae he’d ordered for the two of you to split. You couldn’t decide what you wanted, so he ordered it as a way to get a little bit of everything. It was huge, and you were thankful that you didn’t have to eat it alone.
“I wouldn’t know considering you had my attention most of the movie,” you said, referring to all the stolen kisses and brief make out sessions that kept you pulled from paying attention to what you were watching. The movie was kind of boring, though, so you really couldn’t complain.
“That was my way of saving your sanity,” he says with a smirk.
“My hero,” you say with a roll of your eyes. 
“Oh, hey you got something—”
“Oh, what—”
“It’s right there,” he says pointing at your lip, “like a little hot fudge or something.”
“Did I get it?” You ask, licking your lips where he pointed.
“No, no. Here let me—” His hand cradles your face and he plants another kiss on your lips, making you squeal and giggle at his antics.
“Ha, ha, you’re so funny,” you say when you pull away. He looks at you with a sparkle in his eyes for a moment, before looking down with a bashful smile.
“Sorry, I just really like doing that.”
“What, being a dork?”
“No, kissing you,” he says seriously, “It’s nice. You’re nice.”
Heat hits your cheeks at his words. Sam has been nothing but a gentleman to you since you met. Sometimes he comes out to your car and will walk with you to your class, carrying your books for you the whole way. Other days you’ll bring him a coffee to his office when you’ve had time to stop in the mornings. 
He’s always asking questions about you, and he genuinely seems interested when you talk about yourself, not tuning out like some guys do when a girl talks about themselves. 
And when you ask questions about him he always seems to have an interesting answer. Whether it’s about his well off parents who have a summer home in Scottsdale or how he played varsity football for his high school, there was always a story within a story for him to tell you all the details about. 
You did have to admit though, that, yes, he was really nice and interesting, but maybe he really wasn’t your type? Tonya told you that it’s just your brain’s way of telling you that you can’t have anything nice. But, you just…can’t quite put a finger on it.
Still, it wasn’t enough to turn down a third date.
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thank you for reading.
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feckyeswriting · 9 months
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Chapters: 2/? Fandom: Divergent Series - Veronica Roth, Divergent (Movies) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Eric/Tris Prior Characters: Tris Prior, Eric (Divergent), Minor Characters Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Allegiant (Divergent Series) Never Happened, Alternate Universe - Eric Survives Insurgent, Enemies to Lovers, Living Together, Bodyguard/Protectee, Hurt/Comfort, Slow To Update, POV First Person Summary:
The aftermath of the Insurgency is far from cleaned up. Tris, still adjusting to the new “normal”, doesn’t fit in well as a publicly known Divergent despite her part in helping take down the previous Erudite regime. She does however have some respect by the new Dauntless Leadership; she is asked to go to Amity to take care of an inter-faction situation by representing both Divergents and Dauntless. Little does she realize just how much this one simple request will challenge her.
Chapter two is up!
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asirensrage · 2 years
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Happy Birthday Vix!
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Title: Finding Her Rating: M Fandom: Divergent Pairing: Eric x OC Warnings: sex, possessive thoughts, ABO trope, little bit of violence Summary: Eric knows what he is. He also knows what he's missing.
Notes: Happy birthday @vixenofcourse! For your bday request: "Can I request an abo ficlet for Billy, or Eric, or Ransom for *my* birthday?" and the answer is "of course!" It got away from me a bit and isn't too detailed (I haven't written abo in...ages), but I hope you like it! (this is obviously unbetad lol)
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He knows what he is. 
It’s the reason Jeanine hunted him down to demand his cooperation. It’s the reason he’s already a leader in Dauntless, despite only passing the initiation a year ago. There hasn’t been a recorded Alpha designation in generations. Until him. 
They’re afraid of him. They should be. Eric has no patience for the betas that surround him. There’s an itch under his skin demanding more, wanting something that he can’t even begin to name. He feels empty. 
He takes it out on everyone. Part of him can’t help it but he also doesn’t want to. They don’t understand that he’s missing something and he thinks he might go insane if he doesn’t find it. Eric’s a simple man. If he’s not happy, no one is. 
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It stands to reason that if he exists as he is, there is a chance for others. Preferably those of other designations. He is surrounded by betas, history having buried the remembrance of the first ones until there were no left. It does not say whether his kind and their opposites were exterminated but he’s smart enough to read between the lines. He sits in his aggression and, despite his role as a leader, spends as much time outside of the faction as he can. 
He is on route to meet with Max and Jeanine, another arduous meeting about her demands where his presence is merely a reminder at her power, when he smells it. He jumps from the train at the first opportunity. He’s not certain what draws him, but he knows he needs to find it. Something deep within him requires that he follows and finds the source. 
It is not an easy thing to track it. 
He weaves around buildings until he finds himself near one of the fields that Amity uses. There is a small group of people near one of the trucks, but he focuses on one of the women walking down one of the paths between the rows of plants. He doesn’t know what draws him, but he’s certain that she’s the cause of the scent. He needs more. 
She looks up as he moves closer and freezes. 
He half hopes she runs. He doesn’t know what causes that thought, but he wants to chase her, wants to show her what he’s capable of.    
Someone steps in front of him, blocking his view of her. The sound that emerges from Eric’s throat comes automatically and the beta in front of him backs up without thinking. He knows what he’s found. Even if he hasn’t gotten close enough to confirm it, Eric knows. Nothing is going to stop him from claiming someone who rightfully should be his. 
The man in front of him swallows tightly but does not retreat. “Can we help you?” 
Eric does not belong in the fields. His black clothing makes him stand out among the greenery and warm tones of their own. “Get out of my way,” he says. 
“What’s Dauntless doing here?” the man asks again. 
Eric’s patience has run out though and he responds by grabbing the front of their shirt and throwing them to the side. He continues his pursuit. 
She does not run from him. Instead, she storms forward, intent on passing him by and checking on the man Eric’s thrown. That is unacceptable. He moves to stop in front of her, blocking her view of them. 
She looks up at him. “What do you want?”
“You,” he says. He leans down slightly, enough to fully smell her and only her. Something clicks in the back of his mind and he pulls back, satisfied that his suspicions were right. He hears her whimper slightly at his retreat. Eric looks down. Her pupils are blown and she looks utterly confused. “You don’t know.”
“Know what?” She breathes. “Why do you…” she leans forward and he can hear her scenting him. “Why do you smell so good?”
Inwardly he preens. Of course he does. They’re made for each other. Eric smirks at her. “The same reason you do.”
She frowns at him. “I don’t smell!” 
Eric leans down again, before reaching for her waist. He pulls her against him and buries his face in her neck. He breathes in deeply and memorizes the scent. He can tell that she wants him. Not just by the way her hands tighten in his shirt. 
“Come with me.”
“Hmm?” she pulls away slightly, as much as he’ll let her, to look at him. “What?”
“Come with me,” he repeats. She doesn’t seem to have a clue about what she is. What he is. 
“I can’t just come with you,” she says, seeming to regain her sense of self. “I have duties to fill. I have to go back to my–” 
He cuts her off by kissing her. She melts against him as he deepens the kiss and the sounds of the world surrounding them fade. All he can focus on is her, how good she tastes and how she fits against him as though she belongs there. He wants more. He wants everything. 
She grips him tighter, trying to get closer all the while she’s making those soft sounds. Her scent intensifies and it takes everything in him now to demand more right there. He knows there are people around them but he can’t help but kiss her harder. He’s going to memorize every bit of her. He’s going to learn what she likes. 
“Stop,” she pulls back. “We should–we should stop.” 
“Mmm,” he wordlessly agrees, only because they’re too open. He needs her somewhere safe. “Come.” He laces the word with a command. She grabs his hand and he pulls her after him. There’s a Dauntless outpost close by, one that he knows isn’t scheduled to be in use until next rotation. He looks back to see her wave off the others, the Amity betas watch as he leads her away but no one tries to stop them. 
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In the time it takes to reach the outpost, he learns that Amity has helped her hide. The characteristics that make her designation flourish in her faction. She was able to hide her heats with help from the peace serum. It makes him wonder how many other Omegas there have been in Amity. How many have been living half lives, waiting for one like him to find them? 
She counters that thought by pointing out that those like her have never truly needed him. He needs her. 
He nods. There’s no use arguing because she’s right. He’s been missing her before he ever found her. “Why are you following then?” 
“Because you feel right.” 
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He confirms that the outpost is empty before he allows her to enter. As soon as the door closes, he kisses her again. He steps forward, forcing her to follow until her back is pressed against the closed door and he can cover her completely. She kisses just as hard, pulling him closer. 
“You're mine,” he tells her. He unzips his jacket and throws it. He doesn’t care where it lands, he just needs her closer. He needs to feel her. 
She peels off the scrap of fabric that makes up her top and bra before she pulls him back to her. “You smell so good,” she says. “Please.”
“Tell me what you want.”
She whines, something high and needy. “You.” 
“You have me.” 
It takes short work before they’re stripped completely and he’s moved them to the cot. It’s not anything fancy, not what she deserves but it’s enough. Right now it’s enough. 
He traces paths on her skin with his lips. He pauses at the juncture where her neck meets her shoulder, where he knows he’s going to dig his teeth in and mark her as his and only his. He whispers her name as though it’s a prayer, as if he’s known it his entire life and has just been waiting for the chance to say it. She digs her nails into his back, arching against him as she begs for more. 
When he finally, finally, presses his cock into her, he revels in her gasp. His grip tightens as he tries to keep control. It’s never felt like this, not really. 
“Eric,” she calls his name. “More. Please. I want–” 
“I know what you want,” he says. He grips her hips tighter. “Let me show you.” He holds her in place as he increases his pace. She’s never going to want anyone except him. He’ll make sure of it. He focuses on how she reacts when he touches her, what draws out the most response and as he presses his finger against her clit, he grins against her skin. She cries out, begging him for more, for him. He’ll give her everything as long as she doesn’t stop. 
She breaks before him, shuddering against him as he does his best not to give into the urge to follow her over the edge. He doesn’t alst long, not when she’s still asking for more, not when she smells so fucking good. It’s incredible. It’s nearly impossible for him to even think when he’s finally hitting that spot. No one has taken him like she has. No one ever will. 
He bites her then. He digs his teeth into that spot that’s been calling to him since they met. She bites back. 
If he hadn’t already orgasmed, that would have done it. He’s never considered the thought that Amity might be bloodthirsty, but she dug her teeth in with purpose. It was a sharp reminder that if she was his, he was hers. 
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“What are we?” 
She sounds half asleep as she asks. He has her resting on his chest as he lies back on the cot. He trails his fingers up and down her back, relishing in the feeling of her relaxing against him. He could keep her like this. Forever, really, if she let him. He’ll give her whatever she wants. 
“We’re like everyone else, just…different. We’re better.” And they are. The two of them are perfect. She’s perfect in every way. Made just for him. She freezes though and he frowns, looking down at her. 
“We’re not,” she says. She props herself up and looks at him. “We can’t be. People who are different die, Eric.” She looks far more serious than he’s ever seen her. 
He opens his mouth to tell her differently, to relieve her fears. She means Divergents, the people Jeanine’s out to kill, and intends to tell her that she just doesn’t fully understand…but then he remembers the meeting that he’s missing. Jeanine will destroy anything she cannot use, anything that does not fit her norms…like them. 
“We won’t,” he tells her. “You're mine. Nothing is going to touch you.” And it won’t. Jeanine trusts Eric. She thinks he’s useful but that he’s as stupid as any Dauntless. Even with his designation. It will work in his favour. He found his mate. He won’t let anything hurt her and will destroy all that tries. That includes Jeanine and her project. 
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HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!
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lokisprettygirl · 1 year
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Series Masterlist
Under his influence (Post Avengers! Loki x female reader) (Series)
Summary : The year is 2012, Loki picks up the tesseract in an attempt to escape from the clutches of Avengers and his brother Thor only to end up in a tiny studio appartment in Minesotta, the occupant being none other than you. You reluctantly agree to hide and help the crazy god of mischief and terrorism wondering why you were even thinking about helping a fugitive?
Warning: 18+ This series will contain smut in the later chapters, Soft loki alert, Read the warning in every chapter
Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3
Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6
Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9
Chapter 10, Chapter 11 Chapter 12
Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15
Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18
Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21
Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24
Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27
Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30
Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33
Chapter 34 Chapter 35 Chapter 36
Chapter 37
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seance · 24 days
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THE MUSKETEERS 10TH ANNIVERSARY REWATCH / fave episodes [5/?] ↳ SEASON 2, EPISODE 5 / the return
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Andrew and Neil are two opposite ends of the same spectrum.
Andrew was subjected to every piece of institutional violence the system had to offer. Foster care abuse. Juvie. Misprescribed drugs. Abuse at a rehab institute meant to help him.
And Neil existed completely outside that system, but he wasn't free from abuse. The mafia, fake names and the worst parts and consequences of living off the radar.
It would not have been better in either situation. 'Normal' solutions were never kind to Andrew, and all of Neil's criminal off the books lifestyle was awful.
I imagine growing up both of them thought about if their lives were different, and they are proof to each other that it would not have been better.
It rules out the what ifs and helps them move forward in the aftermath.
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bad-tf-fic-ideas · 4 months
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(130) TFP canon divergence from the end of season one: in a shocking turn of events, Airachnid defeats Soundwave in combat during their confrontation in One Shall Rise Part 3, perhaps having predicted his resistance. She imprisons him, successfully takes over the Decepticons, and sets a course for Regulon 4, as per her canon plans.
Soundwave escapes his captivity due to his peerless knowledge of the Nemesis's security systems. He flees the ship and goes looking for help to get rid of Airachnid. Megatron may be unavailable, but there is still one mechanism haunting planet Earth who might loosely be called a Decepticon... and Starscream is enraged by the news of Airachnid successfully stealing the army out from under Megatron. That's his army! That's his ship! That's his coup! He, Starscream, was meant to stab Megatron in the back and—what's that, Soundwave? Erm. Oh. ...Yes. Of course.
Alternative summary: in which Starscream and Soundwave go on a high-velocity trigger happy space adventure to defeat Airachnid and steal the Nemesis back before Megatron returns from Unicron's spark chamber and discovers anyone lost it in the first place.
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