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kybercrystals94 · 3 months

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Hide and Seek and Training

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Febuwhump 2024 | Day 9 | Prompt 9: Bees

Rated: T | Words: 2496 | Summary: Training with Omega goes awry when bees become involved. [Character Focus: Tech, Omega, Hunter, Wrecker, Echo]

“I love this game,” Wrecker whispers loudly to Omega, interrupting Hunter for the third time.

Tech adjusts his goggles irritably. “This isn’t a game, Wrecker. This is training.”

“If it’s training, then why is it fun?”

“I think all training is fun!” Omega pipes up happily.

Hunter sighs. “Can we just get through the instructions before we decide what’s fun and what’s not? Please?”

Echo chuckles from his perch on the Marauder’s ramp. “Kids, listen to your dad!” he calls out.

“Maker help me,” Hunter mutters. He takes a breath and starts again. “Alright. Omega, Wrecker, and Tech…you three, separately, are going to find places in the woods to lay low. Make sure to cover your tracks. After ten minutes, we’re going to see how long it takes me to find you.”

“And the last one found, wins!” Wrecker practically shouts.

Another sigh. “Sure,” Hunter agrees reluctantly.

“This sounds a lot like hide and seek,” Omega comments, smiling brightly up at Wrecker.

“The strategies are similar,” Tech admits, “however, this is a survival simulation.”

Wrecker laughs. “Can we start, Sarge?”

“Get out of here,” Hunter says, waving them off with a grin.

Wrecker and Omega are off like blaster shots, tearing into the forest like their very lives depend on it. Hunter can hear them crashing through the undergrowth even after they’ve disappeared from sight. At this rate, he won’t have to use his enhancements at all to pick up their trail.

Tech takes a much more tactical approach, starting the timer on his chrono and heading out in the opposite direction of his far more enthusiastic siblings. He is absolutely going to give Hunter a run for his credits.

Hunter ambles over to Echo and sits down next to his cyborg brother, glancing at his own chrono to keep track of the time.

“Who are you going after first?” Echo asks.

Hunter chuckles. “How upset do you think Tech would be if I made him lose to Wrecker?”

“You’d better start sleeping with one eye open if you go that route,” Echo muses.

“Well, then, I guess I’ll just play it by ear and see what happens,” Hunter decides, leaning back on his elbows, ready to enjoy the peace and quiet these ten minutes will indulge him.

<<>><<>><<>><<>><<>><<>>

Omega stops suddenly, turning to look back at where she came from. She can’t see the Marauder through the trees anymore. Perfect. Glancing around, she kneels and touches the cool, damp earth with her fingertips. Hunter will be able to track her to this point easily. Just as she planned. It will make it much more fun when she disappears like a ghost.

With little effort, Omega clambers up the nearest tree, the toes of her boots finding quick purchase in the gnarled bark, and her fingers easily curling around protruding knots. She makes it to the first branch in seconds, and straddles it for a moment to plan her next move. The neighboring tree has a branch nearly touching hers, so she stands and edges her way toward it. A small jump later, and she claims the adjacent tree.

A few minutes lates, Omega is more than half a dozen trees away from where she started. Hunter will begin his search soon. She might have the advantage of him going after her more experienced brothers first; however, she can also imagine him coming after her first, if only to make sure she is safe. Therefore, she needs to get herself out of sight as quickly as possible, just in case.

Omega begins to climb higher, where the leaves and branches become denser. She smiles to herself, wondering if Hunter will be surprised at how well she has done. Her training is finally paying off.

She is so distracted by her joyous thoughts that she doesn’t notice the humm of agitated buzzing just to her left as she settles comfortably onto a thick branch, peering down through the soft leaves.

After a few minutes of quiet, Omega feels the sensation of legs on the back of her neck. She stiffens, resisting the urgent impulse to reach up and slap away the unknown creature. If she threatens it, whatever it is might sting or bite. She prays it has wings and will just fly away on its own. Then the sensation tickles down to the collar of her shirt.

No, no, no, Omega thinks desperately, not down my shirt!

She catches movement on her arm out the corner of her eye. Turning her head, she sees an insect, brightly colored, winged, and armed with a stinger. Omega releases a shuddering breath when she sees another join its friend on her sleeved arm, and another flying lazily past her face.

She notices the buzzing now.

Slowly, Omega looks back at where the branch she sits on meets the tree. Tucked into the crook, a muddy looking structure is swarming with the colorful insects. Bees, Omega’s memory supplies frantically.

She needs to get down from here.

<<>><<>><<>><<>><<>><<>>

Tech has found the perfect hiding place when his comm pings. Internalizing a sigh of frustration, he glances down at the source code. Crosshair’s old source code…Omega’s current source code. He answers immediately. “Omega?”

“Tech,” Omega’s voice is strained and hushed. She sounds terrified. “I need help. I don’t know what to do!”

“Alright. First, we must remain calm. Tell me exactly what is wrong and where you are,” Tech says, keeping his own voice temperate. He pulls out his data pad and begins the trace on Omega’s beacon.

Omega’s voice quakes, and Tech thinks she might be crying. “I’m–in a tree…and there’s bees? A lot of bees, and they are everywhere! They have stingers, and I’m afraid they’ll sting me if I move.”

Not an unreasonable fear to have under the circumstances. Tech climbs down from his hiding place and begins to follow the beacon at a brisk pace. He plans to briefly research the type of insects Omega has encountered during his trek. It might be vital to her safe extraction from the situation. “Can you describe what these ‘bees’ look like? Do you see their domicile?”

“Uhm,” Omega’s voice wobbles through distractedly, “Yeah. They’re colorful…red and blue and orange and yellow with black stripes. And they have a hive that looks like it’s made out of mud…maybe?”

Tech types in the brief description and pulls up an article on the species. Polychromatic Wasps. His eyes drift over the information briefly. “Alright, Miss Omega, I am enroute to your location now. It seems that this particular species of wasp - or bee - will not attack unless they feel threatened. My recommendation is that you remain perfectly stationary until I arrive.”

“I’m scared,” Omega admits weakly.

Tech hesitates. “I understand. We will have you out of this situation in short order, and you will be fine. I promise.”

“Okay,” Omega says. A slight strengthening in her tone suggests that she believes him.

<<>><<>><<>><<>><<>><<>>

Hunter is surprised when he hears Tech’s familiar tread coming toward him, and is even more surprised at the speed at which his brother is moving. He comes into view a moment later, not even glancing up from his data pad as he approaches Hunter. “Omega is in distress. We must get to her location immediately.”

Tact and gentle verbal blows are not among Tech’s enhancements. Hunter’s heart rate accelerates to what feels like an inhuman speed. “What? Where is she?” he demands, falling into hurried step next to Tech.

“I’ve got her location locked,” Tech tells him. “She says that she came across a wasp nest when she climbed a tree. She is unharmed at present, just frightened.”

Hunter at first questions why Omega would comm Tech before any of her other brothers, especially brothers that might be closer to her aid. It dawns on him that Omega – always resourceful – would have called Tech first in order for him to provide her the information she would need until rescue came. She knows how to utilize her brothers’ strengths, and for that, he is incredibly proud of her.

“Here,” Tech says, stopping at the base of a tree. He looks up. “Omega?” he calls out.

A small voice calls back from the depths of the leaves and branches. “I’m here, Tech. They haven’t stung me.”

“Excellent!” Tech calls back. He starts to remove his pack.

“I can go,” Hunter says, already putting his hands to the trunk to find his first grips.

Tech shakes his head, dropping his pack to the ground and nudging Hunter aside. “I am far better suited to the task…and I’ll need you down here to catch her when I drop her down.”

“Wait, what?” Hunter asks in alarm, but Tech is already climbing.

<<>><<>><<>><<>><<>><<>>

Omega almost bursts into tears of relief when Tech appears through the leaves and branches. But she holds them back with a painful swallow, keenly aware that she now has at least a dozen bees crawling over her person, with dozens more flying about, perturbed about their motionless intruder.

Tech climbs the rest of the way up onto the branch, bracing himself so that he is facing Omega. “I have a plan,” he says immediately.

Omega gives the tiniest nod. “Okay.”

“It seems that the wasps are becoming agitated, probably due to the presence of your scent in their territory,” Tech continues. “That is why we are going to remove you from the situation rather abruptly.”

“How?”

“I am going to drop you down from the tree, and Hunter is going to catch you. That is the fastest way.”

“Am I going to get stung?” Omega asks. “They’re all over me!”

Tech moves closer, slowly. “I can see that. Unfortunately, there is the possibility that any or all of us will be stung. While it is painful and not ideal, it is not deadly. Clones are not allergic to bee or wasp stings.”

Omega knows Tech means to be encouraging; however, just the idea of being stung renews her impulse to cry. She sniffs, willing herself to be brave. After all, she got herself into this mess, and her brothers are bravely getting her out, at the risk of being stung themselves.

Taking a deep, fortifying breath, Omega says, “Okay, tell me what I need to do.”

<<>><<>><<>><<>><<>><<>>

Hunter hates that the canopy of leaves is shielding his siblings from view, although he can hear Omega and Tech talking in hushed tones — which means, he supposes, that they are okay for the moment. If she hadn’t happened to come across a wasp nest doing it, Hunter would be very impressed with Omega’s hiding place. Obviously, though, they still needed to work on her spatial awareness…

His comm crackles to life. “Hunter, I am going to be lowering Omega through the branches, and on the count of three, I will release her. Are you ready to catch her?”

Instead of speaking through his comm, Hunter calls up, “I’m ready!”

“I should note,” Tech adds, as an obvious afterthought, “there is a high likelihood that you and Omega will be stung. I was not able to get many off of her without angering the hive.”

Hunter grits his teeth. He would rather none of them got stung, especially Omega; however, a sting or two is better than the alternative. “Got it,” he calls up.

There is rustling, and then Omega’s boots appear, immediately followed by her legs, torso and head. She is dangling by her arms, both hands clinging tightly to Tech’s forearm. Hunter can see the multicolored wasps crawling against the muted fabric of her clothes. There must be about a dozen of the things. He hopes most of them fly away the moment she drops.

As if they’d be so lucky.

Hunter shifts his stance, readying himself.

Omega’s eyes meet his for a moment, and he sees the tears glistening on her eyelashes.

“We got this, Omega,” he says encouragingly, hoping his expression doesn’t appear as frantic as the blood pounding in his ears.

She nods and looks up again at Tech, who is still invisible to Hunter. “I’m ready.”

Tech says over comms, “One…two…three!”

Omega drops then. It is only a split second between watching her fall and catching her, but it stretches for hours, especially when Omega lets out a squeak of terror at the brief free fall. Hunter catches Omega under her arms and places her on the ground. Using his gloved hands, he swats away the wasps that cling to her. Most of them fly away, but a couple decide to fight back against the assault.

Hunter feels a couple of stings immediately on his exposed wrists, and one just under his right ear. He is more focused on Omega, who seems to have been stung on the back of her neck and hands.

Tech drops down from the tree a moment later. “I suggest we run,” he says as the sound of enraged wasps buzz louder.

Hunter scoops Omega up and runs.

<<>><<>><<>><<>><<>><<>>

Tech hates being fussed over but Echo is relentless. So he tries to hold as still as possible as Echo analyzes each sting to be sure they are healing properly, and dabbing bacta ointment over the wounds.

“Are you about finished?” he asks with a hiss after Echo accidentally prods a wound a little too hard.

“You are making this harder than it needs to be,” Echo says without a hint of remorse as he pokes at the next sting.

Tech rolls his eyes, but allows Echo to finish his checks without further complaint. At long last, Echo leaves Tech alone to do as he pleases, which is to sit in his rack with his data pad and try not to irritate his minor injuries.

He isn’t left alone for long.

“Tech?”

Tech looks up to see Omega standing at the foot of his bunk.

“Are you doing alright, Omega?” he asks her, noticing the swollen welts on her hands and neck from her own stings. They don’t look red or irritated, which is excellent.

Omega nods, wincing slightly at the movement. “I’m okay. I just wanted to thank you…for helping me…and I’m sorry you got stung more than any of us.”

Tech smiles. “No thanks are necessary. I was more than happy to assist.”

Omega smiles back, but it doesn’t reach her usually bright eyes.

“Also, I meant to tell you,” Tech continues offhandedly, “that had the wasps not been involved, I am quite confident you would have won the training exercise.”

This catches Omega’s attention. She stands a little straighter. “Really?”

“Absolutely,” Tech says. “I was hoping you might share with me your strategy. It could prove to be a valuable resource in the future.”

Omega looks absolutely delighted. “Sure! Are you going to write a report about it?”

“I’ve already started.”

At that, the little girl in their care practically radiates light as she rushes to his side to give him all the details.

END

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#febuwhump 2024 #febuwhumpday9 #prompt 9: Bees #star wars #fanfiction #the bad batch #ao3 fanfic #ao3 writer #echo tbb #tbb omega #tbb wrecker #tbb tech #tbb hunter #some whump with a dollop of fluff #this was a monster to write. But worth it!#stories by kyber

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l3ominor · 3 months

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Febuwhump day 9: (Alt) Human Weapon

TW blood

There was both an upside, and a downside to spending several years as a mercenary for hire. They were the same thing.

You get very good at killing.

#l3ominor art #recalled #recalled Twilight #TW blood #febuwhump #febuwhumpday9

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whumpinthepot · 3 months

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@febuwhump 2024, Day 9. Bees

Oc Saunix (The fairy)

#febuwhump2024 #febuwhumpday9 #gore art #whump art #febuwhump #fairy whump #tiny whump #blood tw #animal gore tw #bees tw #breezys post #bugs tw #breezys art #breezys ocs #saunix #stab wound tw

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blackrosesandwhump · 2 months

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Febuwhump Day 9: Human Weapon

Based on this writing challenge.

CW: sick whumpee, fever, forced transformation

Ren felt weak.

He stood swaying a little in front of the bathroom mirror. His reflection stared back, disheveled, flushed, eyes dark-circled and exhausted. His last fight had been two weeks ago. So why did he feel like crap now? Even the scar on his cheek hurt. Everything hurt. Everything felt like—

“Ren? We’re waiting for you. Need to debrief on the next job…” The voice—Cassidy’s voice—trailed off and morphed into concern. “Are you okay?”

No, no, I’m not. But Ren’s voice wouldn’t work, and he grunted a vague reply instead. I think I—I think I have a fever.

The world tilted, and the floor tiles rushed up to meet him, cool against his hot forehead. Something inside him was yelling, screaming at him to listen, to get the damn words out of his mouth and tell someone, anyone, what was happening to him.

It was just the like the man had predicted: his body was rebelling, because it was—

Because it was turning into a weapon.

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what-the-whump · 3 months

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Febuwhump 2024 | Day 9 | Bees

Power Rangers Megaforce | 1x05 | United We Stand

#Power Rangers #Power Rangers Megaforce #Jake Holling #Noah Carver #Troy Burrows #1x05 #hurt #collapse #poison #febuwhump #febuwhump2024 #febuwhumpday9 #can't believe I found something for bees from power rangers???

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simpforchuchu · 3 months

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She’s gone.

Prompts: DAY 9 - cpr @febuwhump Characters: Noe x reader x platonic!Vanitas Fandom: Vanitas no carte Summary: Noe’s hardest day.

A/n for prompts: Hello guys! This is my first time trying a prompt challenge. I hope you like the short fics I wrote. I will finish them by writing some of the requests I have. I love you 💜

Sorry for the grammer or spelling mistakes.English is not my main language so...

Thank you and love you 🥰

Warnings: character death

“Noe! That’s enough! Stop!"

The silver-haired man looked at Vanitas as his friend grabbed his arm roughly. When he looked at the woman lying on the ground and under him, he came face to face with the truth he did not want to accept.

“She’s gone Noe, you must set her soul free.”

The young man had been performing CPR on his injured girlfriend for minutes. He didn't want to accept it. That she couldn't die.

But it was too late. Y/n, she wasn't breathing. Her heart was not beating.

“I'm sorry Noe.”

Noe slowly stood up when Vanitas called out once more. There was a strange feeling in his eyes. Vanitas couldn't understand what he was feeling.

The young man took his lover on the ground in his arms and started walking slowly. Vanitas didn't know where he was going, but he didn't want to stop him. He knew he wanted to say goodbye to Y/n for last time.

He looked behind him silently and wiped his watery eyes. Noe would never smile the same again.

#febuwhump 2024 #febuwhumpday9 #febuwhump #noe archiviste x reader #noe archiviste #noé vanitas no carte #vanitas no carte #noe x reader #noe and vanitas

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needfantasticstories · 3 months

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Battle of the Sugar Water Bowl

It was a busy day at Lon Lon Ranch.

“Hyrule, honey, Time tells me you’re good with fairies.” Malon approached as Hyrule passed a bale of hay to Warrior.

“What?” Hyrule dropped the next hay bale before Warrior could grab it. Did Time tell Malon about my fairy form?

“Sorry if I startled you, dearie! I just want to ask a favor, If you’re alright with it.”

Hyrule smiled to hide his surprise. “Oh! Sure, Miss Malon.”

“The fairies haven’t come around to the sugar water all week. I like that we have so many pollinators around, but they only drink from the bowl, and I know Time is worried about the missing fairies. He says you might be a good person to ask.”

“Sure! I can check things out.”

“Thank you, sweetheart. Oh, and be careful. I got some nasty stings when I went out there last time. Best not tell Wild or Warrior. I don’t want them to find a reason to use their fire rods, and burn down the barn or something.” She laughed as she walked away.

Hyrule smiled to himself. Those two would never be allowed to live down the flaming log incident.

He found the sugar water easily enough, and the bees. To his dismay, as Malon said, no fairies flitted over the water. No glittering reflections. Only a sprawling swarm of bees gathered all around the bowl, and on every surface around it. Hyrule stood what he thought was a safe distance away, but the bees lifted from the water’s edge like a fog, their wings beating with the sound of static and their shadows fell dark on the water’s surface. The sound of their buzzing grew louder, faster, and as if on a signal they careened towards him.

“What?!” Hyrule shouted, and he ran, covering his head as the black fog gave chase.

…

“Hyrule, what’s going on?” Four called as Traveler slammed the barn door shut. Four had modified a corner of the barn into a forge, and at Hyrule’s sudden appearance he set down his hammer and quenched the glowing iron, steam rising in a pale cloud, and he came running to check Hyrule.

Hyrule gasped, “It’s… it’s the bees! They’re…” Sweat dripped down his temples, and he panted like Wolfie after a hunt. “They… they chased…”

“Bees?” Four raised one eyebrow, incredulous.

Hyrule only nodded.

“Bees?” Four asked again, both eyebrows arched, but looking slightly less skeptical.

“I think…might be...infected!”

“What? Hyrulle, they’re not monsters. How could they be infected?”

Hyrule panted as he explained, “Don’t know! …bees have…never…chased me! Why didn’t…anyone…tell me… about…the stingers!”

Hyrule showed his bracers to Four. The bodies have been smeared and scraped beyond recognition, but he could see at least eight thick stingers embedded in the leather. Thicker than any bee should have.

“Huh.” Four stripped off his blacksmith gear and pulled Hyrule by the hand to an upturned pot in another corner. “Okay, I think I have an idea. Take your fairy form, and wait for me here.” He pointed to the pot.

Hyrule did, though he realized only then how low his magic was after jumping up and down from the roof for repairs that morning. He changed, then watched in shock as Four shrank down into a crack in the ceramic. He looked for him to walk out, flat, like Legend had once shown him. How strange that two heroes can– his thought cut off as he saw a tiny, insect-sized Four climb out from the pot.

“Alright, I have an idea,” Said Four, cutting off Hyrule’s surprised stuttering. “I’ll explain later. I don’t like the idea of infected bees, so let’s hurry and see what’s going on.”

Hyrule laughed. He couldn’t help it. Four was already so tiny, so this almost made sense, somehow.

Four shoved him, and Hyrule bent over double, leaning on his knees as he laughed harder. “Sorry! But! HAHA! Four! Hehehe! Why didn’t you ever say anything?”

Four crossed his arms and glared. “Hmmm. Maybe to avoid having people laugh at me?”

“Oh come on! You know I’m not laughing at you. It’s just so surprising! Finally, there’s someone else my size!”

“Alright, Fine.” He uncrossed his arms, but he still looked a bit cross. “Let’s get this over with.”

Four shared the plan.

…

Hyrule was used to flying. He was not used to riding.

“How do you control this thing?!” he shouted over the buzz of flapping wings. The bird jerked him from side to side. He’d seen hummingbirds for the first time in other eras, but not once had he wanted to ride one.

It was Four’s turn to laugh. “I thought you knew how to fly!”

“Oh come on!” Hyrule shouted back. He felt himself slipping backward as the bird zigged and zagged. Hyrule hoped it wasn’t trying to buck him off. Either way, it was having the same effect.

“Like I said! Just lean into the direction you want to go!” Four called, looking as if he did such mind-bending feats on any normal Tuesday.

Hyrule’s wings made this difficult, using them as he always did to keep his balance, but at last he let them drop and held onto the silky feathers for dear life, and leaned forward into the thrumming, rainbow colored neck. He barely held on as his hummingbird shot forward.

Four followed, and in no time at all they arrived at the sugar water bowl.

As fierce as they had seemed to Hyrule when he was large, the insects at this size looked terrifying. A writhing dark mass of bodies covered the edge of the bowl, nearly drowning one another in their attempts to get close enough to the sugar water. The mass crawled on the wooden fence all around it too, and the branches of the trees and bushes nearby were painted in black, yellow, and red. They had stopped lapping at the precious liquid and all their multifaceted eyes turned to them. Their abdomens thrummed so loudly Four and Hyrule could hear it over the sound of their birds.

“These don’t look like normal bees,” Four said, pulling his bird to a stop when he noticed them watching. His bird chittered nervously at the scene as well, and drifted backwards as it hovered.

“What do they normally look like?” Hyrule wasn’t very familiar. Bees were a rare sight. He’d only ever seen the hives they kept in the castle gardens in passing, and a few from a distance in the other eras. They usually flew away when he came near enough to watch them.

“They’re not supposed to have a third eye, especially not a red one!”

Oh. It was smaller than their black eyes, but now Hyruel could see a third eye, disturbingly human-like but with a red pupil and yellow iris. This black-lidded eye opened sideways, like two doors closing and opening. Hyrule shivered at the eerie sight.

“So are they mimics?” Four asked, watching them.

“They’re just staring at us. What are they after?”

We can’t know unless they make a move, but we can’t take too many chances until we know what we’re up against. Change of plan. I’ll go find—” A percussive sound nearby made them freeze.

Legend’s voice carried around the corner of the barn. “Hey, Hyrule! Twilight? Four? You over here?”

“Legend, wait! Stop!” Four cried out, but the Veteran could not hear them. He was coming closer, though luckily not in view of the sugar bowl yet.

“Four! Twilight! Rulie! Wild says lunch is ready! Where are you?”

At the sound, the bees rose and made for Legend, just as they had to Hyrule. But Hyrule had been warned by Malon about the bees–or rather, the monsters that looked like bees. Legend had not.

“Stop!” Hyrule shouted. He leaned hard to intercept them. His bird hesitated a moment, but Hyrule leaned harder into it, and it shot toward the swarm with a speed he’d never imagined. It was worse than Legend’s pegasus boots! But he white-knuckled the iridescent feathers until the bird flew between the swarm and Legend.

“Hyrule! No!” Four’s tiny voice barely registered in his thoughts. The entire swarm buzzed before him, red eyes glowing.

“Oh f-” He didn’t have time to react before they zipped forward. The hummingbird squeaked, bucked him off, and darted away.

Four had planned ahead, luckily. Hyrule drew out a borrowed needle-sized sword and a thimble-like shield. The bees, or tiny monsters that looked like bees, swooped in for the attack. The first curled a gleaming black stinger under its abdomen, and flew low overhead to strike him. Hyrule dropped and dodged, and then gave chase as it continued on toward his friend. Hyrule barely managed to keep up, but as they neared the barn he landed on the bristle-covered back and sliced off both wings with the blade. Despite being so small, it felt perfectly balanced and natural in his hand. Four was full of wonders!

Hyrule flew up as it dropped down, and readied his blade for the next. He sliced easily through its wings too, flying up from behind, and the next met the same fate as he sped through them. He wished he could use Thunder, but he’d need his full form and was already low on magic. He wouldn’t have enough to change back for a few hours, even though the fight invigorated him.

Behindhim in the swarm, he could hear Four’s bird thrumming as it darted to and fro, harrying them from behind.

The next beast dropped on him from above, and the stinger lunged at him. Hyrule was caught in the it’s legs, his wings pinned, but he lodged both feet on either side of the stinger. He slammed his head into the creature’s eye, and it released him as it stopped to pad at the damage. He did not hesitate, and lifted his blade into the head as he flew up from below.

Black ooze gathered in a drop on his needle blade.

Not just mimic monsters, but infected! Anger and panic swirled in his thoughts. Twilight’s death-defying recovery, hard earned, drove Hyrule to reach Legend with more urgency.

Many, many more buzzing monsters had flown past as he fought.

“Legend!” he shrieked as loud and deep as his tiny voice could manage as he flew between the bees, overtaking one after another. They had slowed as they came around the corner of the barn, apparently calm and confident in their approach, while Hyrule used every ounce of strength he had and forged ahead of the swarm once more. He had to get there first, to tell him to run, to get the others, to stay away.

“I’ll tell him!” Four cried from overhead, “You find a way to distract them!”

Hyrule nodded. He drew deep to pull up more magic, and glowed as bright as he could.

The bees turned their red, eerie third eyes to him, and a few broke off to investigate. He swooped across the path of the swarm, cutting this way and that in their path. More and more looked to him.

“Legend!” He heard Four’s faint voice. “Get everyone inside!”

Hyrule could have smiled, then, if he wasn't so tired.

The bee-monsters sped up, and circled ahead of Hyrule.

“No! Over here!” he screamed, but he didn’t need to. The circle closed in front of him, and the bees flew over, below, and all around, cutting him off.

They began to dive.

He dodged left, avoiding one from above. He dropped, letting one sail overhead. One came from below, and he twisted to the right, and then felt the air leave his lungs.

Six spidery legs gripped his head and arms. It shifted, leaning forward, and something slammed low on his back. The pressure made it hard to breathe. Hyrule realized he could not scream, and gasped. No air came. They were falling. The pressure in his back throbbed, and grew warm. The monster clung to him as they fell, and as the bee monsters rose up and away the tree trunks slipped closer and closer into his periphery, he knew he was falling, dragged down, and he knew with a calm surety that he was going to die.

A shadow passed over him, and time seemed to stop. A hummingbird dove near sword-sharp beak almost in reach, the iridescent feathers gleaming.

Delicate claws reached and locked around his chest, and he jerked to a stop, and it felt like fire roared in his back. The weight on his back dropped away, scraping Hyrule’s arms and wings, but the pressure on his back was suddenly gone, leaving only coldness in its place. A stinging, prickling sensation radiated out of his back, and then a heat like fire followed. Then nothing.

The sky was a beautiful shade of blue. The smell of horses and hay were rich in the air. One bug net, then another, arced on either side of him, but Hyrule didn’t feel afraid. He knew them. Sky and Twilight. A third. Wind’s, he thought as his head dropped back, too heavy to carry.

He was lying on hot, wet skin.The pressure on his back grew into a throbbing ache. His wings felt twisted and bruised.

“Rulie!”

Legend! Hyrule wanted to see him, to make sure he was safe. But Hyrule couldn’t move, couldn’t open his eyes. Cold creeped into his hands and chest, running down his arms.

“Rulie! You have to turn back!” Legend’s booming tenor voice pounded in Hyrule’s head like an army of drums.

He arched his back, but the pressure switched to pain, and he cried out. He could feel sharp agony like a blade in his back, and his muscles spasmed. He shivered, and though he tried to relax, the shivering and swelling pain didn’t stop.

“No! He can’t change back yet!” Four’s reasonably-loud voice said from nearby. “He won’t have enough magic for healing if he does. He needs a potion! Keep him warm for now.”

“Time!” the voice boomed again, but then the air was rushing over his body, threatening to roll him off those hot hands, “Time!” The hands closed, and he wondered if they might crush him. He didn’t like being held in this state.

But the world darkened. He felt so cold. Cold filled his dreams. Winter nights without fire. Rain and chill. Fever. Cold dungeons. Ganon taunting him in the dim castle. The shadow! It was reflecting him, beating him. He stabbed it and his own side bled. Visions of Hyrule under tyranny again, but it was Shadow. He was chasing a monster, almost had him, and then he was the monster, chasing down a villager. Ganon. Ganon was in his blood. He couldn't get him out! There was fear on Dawn’s face when he broke open the lock on her cell. There was fear on Aurora’s face when she woke up to find a stranger, and all he could do was stare. But he wasn’t…

“I should have…”

“Ha! He’s awake! What is it, Rulie?” Legend’s voice was excited.

“I should have said…”

“Don’t worry, you don’t need to say anything, Traveler. Just rest.”

Four. Spoilsport. Hyrule tried to think. He had to tell the princesses something. He was so comfortable, lying on something soft and cool, though his back ached feverishly.

He tried to remember. The princesses! “I should have said hello to them first.”

“What? To the bees?” Twilight’s deep voice rumbled.

“Haha!” Time’s deep, rich laugh made Hyrule smile, it was large but not too loud. Comfortable. He could hear the others sigh or laugh, a tension in the air all around breaking like a spell. “I think he’s going to be okay. Alright, let’s give him some space to rest.”

Feet thundered away. Hyrule struggled, but managed to open his eyes at last.

“Rulie, you idiot!” Legend’s face filled the space above him, a familiar giant. One fat tear hung from his friend’s giant-sized nose. It dropped, and splashed beside him.

“Hey, gross. Oh, Vet, don’t go near the bees, okay?”

Legend shook his head. “You know what? Fine.” Legend laughed and wiped his face. “But no more chasing bees, at least not without me. And especially not if they’re infected monsters. Deal?” Legend pulled his head away.

Hyrule struggled to track him, but found he’d laid down on a bed nearby. He looked around himself. He’d been placed on a small pillow set on the bedside table in the larger spare bedroom room at Lon Lon. “Mmm hmm. Deal. Did the fairies come back?"

"Yeah, they did, Rulie. They did."

"Huh. Good. Goodnight.” Hyrule couldn’t keep his eyes open any longer.

“‘Night, Rulie. Get better quickly.”

Someone even bigger than Legend moved on his other side.

“Is he going to be okay?”

Hyrule loved the deep rumble of Twilight's voice. Like a force of nature, like thunder in a storm, but safe. Wolfie.

“Din, I hope so. His whole back was just… it was spreading everywhere and just…”

“I know. But he’s fought shadows before. He’ll be okay.”

In the silence that followed, Hyrule drifted to sleep once more, and he dreamed of fairies.

#febuwhump #febuwhumpday9 #linked universe #lu hyrule #lu four #tw bees #tw injury #skipwrites

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thiawen · 3 months

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Febuwhump Day 9

Prompt: Bees

Fandom: Star Trek AOS

Warning: Allergic Reaction

@febuwhump

Jim is standing on the sidewalk, waiting for Spock, when three children careen around the corner at top speed. They slam into Jim, childish laughter giving way to startled shrieks.

He wraps his arms around them instinctively, protective .He twists his body as they fall, turning away from the unforgiving stone. They have a much softer landing on a flower bed where they land with a cloud of pollen and petals.

He feels a sharp momentary sting on his neck but ignores it.

They lay there for a moment, the children stunned silent, dread slowly crawling across their faces.

That won’t do.

He laughs and grins at them. “Are you guy okay? You came out of nowhere! I’ve never been taken down so fast! I think you girls could teach my security guys a thing or two!”

Reassured they aren’t in trouble, he soon has a lap full of giggling girls clamoring to introduce themselves. Sophie was human with red hair and green eyes. Xisa was Andorian, her snow white hair up in two adorable little buns. Baela was Orion, her green skin and hair made her look like a personification of spring.

“Captain, are you alright?”

Spock was standing above them, concern shining through his Vulcan mask.

“We’re fine, Spock,” he grinned at up at his first officer. “Just a small tumble.”

The words are barely out of his mouth before he is overcome with a coughing fit.

“I think,” he gasps between coughs, “I breathed in too much pollen.”

The children are patting his back, worried and trying to be helpful.

They really are too cute.

“Then I believe it would be beneficial to remove yourself from the source.” Spock hauls him to his feet just as a young woman runs round the corner.

“Oh my goodness! Captain Kirk! Are you alright?! I’m so sorry! They ran ahead and I couldn’t keep up! Girls! You apologize for running into Captain Kirk!”

Jim waves away the apologies, more concerned with his growing difficulty in catching his breath.

“No harm done. I’m just glad they’re alright.” He can barely get the words out.

“Jim.”

Spock grabs his hand from where he had been unconsciously scratching at his neck. Jim feels breathless for more than one reason.

Spock leans in close and touches his neck. “I believe you have been stung by an insect. Logically, a bee would be the most likely culprit.”

“A bee?” He gasps, feeling himself pale. “I’m allergic to bees.”

———

Spock met with his captain everyday for a meal. Some days they had every meal together. When the weather was fair, they would meet in the park and take a stroll to nearby cafe. The fresh air and exercise was beneficial to Jim’s continued recovery.

Spock had been running late, a circumstance he was not pleased with. He knew his captain would not mind, but more and more Spock loathed anything that took away his time with Jim.

He had just set eyes on his captain when he had seen three young children run into him. Jim’s training prevailed and he maneuvered them safely. The worry he felt was immediate and immense.

Jim was still recovering from his death and resurrection. A fall, even a controlled one, could be serious.

His worry seemed to be founded, though not for the reasons he at first assumed.

Allergic. He felt his heart begin to race in alarm.

“Elucidate on the severity of your allergies.” He demanded.

Spock knew the answer before Jim spoke. His lips were tinged blue as he wheezed. “Deathly.”

Spock did not hesitate.

He scooped Jim into his arms and began to sprint in the direction of the hospital.

“Call the hospital!” He yelled behind him to the children’s caretaker. “Tell them I’m on the way with Captain Kirk!”

Jim clutched at Spock’s shirt as he struggled to breathe.

“Spock.” He gasped.

It sounded just like before. In the warp core.

Spock ran, uncaring of the people or obstacles in his path. He was close.

When Spock felt Jim’s breathing cease, so did his own.

#febuwhumpday9 #star trek fic #Star Trek aos #k/s #Spirk #my writing #my fanfiction #febuwhump 2024 #febuwhump2024 #star trek #Spock #james t kirk #james kirk #jim kirk #kirk/spock #prompt fill

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lamaenthel · 3 months

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Human Shield

[read on ao3][masterlist]Febuwhump prompt: human shield

Darman could smell rain on the wind that gently blew their bedroom curtains. The sun was just beginning to rise, clouds filtering the pink light into cold gray. He buried his face in Etain's hair and took a deep breath.

Characters: RC-1136|Darman Skirata/Etain Tur-Mukan

Wordcount: 876

"Morning." She shifted uncomfortably. Her belly had officially reached massive status, though Darman would cut his leg off before saying it to her face. "Mm. Lemme just…" She flung a sleepy hand in the direction of the window, closing it with her Force powers.

Darman chuckled and kissed the back of her neck. "You could have just asked me to close it, you know."

"Why get up when I can…" She wiggled her fingers.

Darman took another deep breath of her dewberry blonde hair; she insisted it was brown, as though she'd never seen her own hair in the afternoon light. Her shampoo smelled like sunshine and had some sort of cactus he didn't recognize on the front of the bottle. "I like doing things for you."

"I know you do." She struggled to turn over in his arms. "You don't have to wait on me, Dar. You're not subservient to me."

"I absolutely am." He kissed her neck, and ignored the scowl that popped up in favor of gently biting the thin skin over her pulse point. "I'm your riduur. You're carrying my child. I am subservient to you in every way imaginable, and I wouldn't have it any other way."

"You're incorrigible," she grumbled.

He laughed. "And how are you feeling this morning, ner Et'ika?"

Etain looked dolefully down at her giant stomach and sighed. "Enormous."

Darman kept kissing her neck, considering it the smarter option over confirming her opinion. "Do you want a massage?" he mumbled into her skin.

"Maybe later." She caught his hand and guided it to her belly, smiling. "Do you feel your son?"

He nodded, his throat going tight. There was a fluttering pulse under his palm. "He's kicking," Darman said in awe.

"Yeah he is." Etain adjusted herself again and frowned at her big belly. Darman sympathized with her. He'd jumped out of more than one larty hauling more in equipment than what his runt of a wife weighed soaking wet and seven months pregnant.

"He's feisty. Like his mama." Darman kissed her cheek.

"He's a pain in my shebs like his daddy," Etain corrected him.

"Oh, you know I love it when you speak Mando'a, ner cyar'ika." Darman said, nuzzling her neck. He blew a snozzberry in her throat and made her laugh. "Ner jet'ika, ner mesh'lane cyar'ika, gar dinui ner runi mirjahaal. Ni kartay'li gar darasuum."

"I love you too," she sighed, lacing their hands together over her stomach. "I'm sorry, Dar."

"About what?"

"That we never got to do this." She blinked her big, sad green eyes at him. "We deserved this, but we never had it."

"What are you talking about, Et'ika?" Darman sat up, confused.

Etain just looked at him patiently. "You know what I'm talking about."

"I…" Darman couldn't draw a full breath.

"It's not your fault. You did nothing wrong, my love."

"I…" Not my girl! Not my girl!

"Hey." Etain pulled his face close, pressed their foreheads together. "It was my fault. I've been using a lightsaber since I was four years old. I knew better than to try and stop one with my body."

"Then why did you?" Darman whispered, shaking. "What were you thinking?"

"I wasn't." She laughed softly. "I wasn't thinking, Dar. I acted on instinct and made a stupid, stupid mistake that cost me my life. I'm sorry you had to watch."

"I miss you." Darman squeezed his eyes shut. "I miss you so much, Etain. I wish you could see Kad. He's… he's like you. He needs you, but he doesn't have you."

"Lucky for him, he has the best dad in the whole galaxy." She kissed his fingers. "I love you, Dar. I will always love you. Ni kartay'li gar darasuum, ner riduur."

"Etain," Darman said frantically, "Etain, wait—"

"Daddy?"

Darman shot up, instantly awake. He'd never lost that ability, even though it'd been four years since he'd seen active combat. The smell of Etain's shampoo lingered in the air. "Kad?" He held out his arms to the silhouette in the doorway. It was early; the sun had just barely risen, the gray rainclouds above Kyrimorut bleaching the pink dawn into cold gray.

His son dove into his arms eagerly. "You okay, Daddy?" he asked, getting situated.

"Of course, ad'ika. Just a sad dream." Darman fluffed his son's dewberry-blond hair, the same as his mother's. "Let's get some breakfast. Daddy's hungry."

"Was it a mama dream?" Kad didn't seem eager to leave his arms.

Darman sighed. "Yeah. It was a mama dream."

"Well, that's okay then." Kad smiled. "That just means she misses you. That's what she says when I have mama dreams. She comes and sees me 'cause she misses me so much."

Darman didn't want to cry in front of his son, but it was a damn close call. He forced himself to smile instead and threw off the covers. "Come on. Let's make some waffles." He reached up to close the window he'd left cracked the night before and paused.

It was already closed.

Mando'a Translations riduur: spouse ner Et'ika: my little Etain shebs: butt ner cyar'ika: my sweetheart ner jet'ika, ner mesh'lane cyar'ika, gar dinui ner runi mirjahaal. ni kartay'li gar darasuum: my little jedi, my most beautiful sweetheart, you give my soul peace. i hold you in my heart forever ad'ika: child

Taglist: @starwarsficnetwork, @febuwhump, @soliloquy-of-nemo Divider: @saradika-graphics

#darman skirata #etain tur mukan #febuwhump #febuwhumpday9 #my writing #etain deserves better #star wars #fanfiction #repcomm #darman x etain

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flowersfromwind · 3 months

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Febuwhump - Day 9

(at this point, I'm going to make any character from ww cry) Day 9: Found Footage (alternate prompt 3)

Grandma calmly searched through the small photo book, taking as much time as she thought necessary to comfort her fragile heart. After months of hopelessness and a worrying illness, that was her treasure, her anchor, since she found it among her grandson's remaining things. Early on, she looked at the same images several times a day, imagining those moments recorded on paper. Some photos portrayed different landscapes, from the most complex islands to the vast horizon of the Great Sea. Others portrayed several people, most from outside Outset Island. The imagens were in black and white or so full of color that they seemed alive! Unlike her two grandchildren, lost forever. Those would be beautiful sights that her grandchildren would never see again, she tought while reaching the end of the book. With so much care, she closed it and stored it in the safety of a nightstand, wishing she had taken more photos with Link or Aryll before they left to never return.

#my art #febuwhump2024 #febuwhumpday9 #the legend of zelda #wind waker #wind waker grandma #loz #tloz #loz ww

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comfort-questing · 3 months

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9. "bees"

"they helped you, you know."

she put her head a little to the side, squinting against the sunlight of the garden. it was warm today, a sudden outbreak of summer after the rains had gone; the honey bees were busy, purring softly between the late-spring flowers, the light catching on their wings. her thin hands, folded in her blanketed lap, were starting to have some color now in the warmth of the day.

"they... did? how?"

the older woman smiled, the wrinkles folding at the corners of her eyes. "when I first found you, and you were so ill, it was all I could get you to eat. honey in water, like a little bird."

she chewed on a lock of her shorn hair, now long enough to tousle around her ears and chin, and stared across the little clearing where the cottage sat. "I don't remember that."

"I didn't think you would. you were dead to the world then. but now - seeing you outside again - it makes me remember." she tucked a fold of skirt over her bare feet, and reached out to adjust the blanket a little over the girl's lap. "we don't have to talk about whatever you were running from when you ended up here, you know. after these months, even if anyone was looking for you, they must have lost their way in the woods."

the girl tightened her fists a moment, shoulders drawing together. her eyes sought the edge of the tree-line, where the summer afternoon deepened into shadows.

"I suppose they must have," she said. then, "if I thought there was any danger to you, I'd tell you..."

"well, that's always good to know. I'll listen, if you want to talk of it. but I'm here whether or no, and if you don't mind the spare mattress to sleep on, it's yours as long as you need it." a sharp glance at the girl, though she was still smiling. "which is for at least another few weeks, till you're stronger."

the girl smiled back, then, giving herself a little shake, as if to return herself to where she sat on the rickety cottage stoop. "thanks," she said. "I ... I think I've said that before, haven't I."

"oh, I'll take it again." the older woman reached out to pat her knee, under the blanket. "and now that you're up and about, you can thank the bees too if you want, by helping me keep up with the garden... my knees don't like the work as much as they used to."

softly, her gaze drifted across the little tangled expanse of garden, eyes now unflinching in the sunlight. "yes. I'd - I'd like that, I think."

#whump #hurt comfort #febuwhumpday9 #febuwhump2024 #okay all right I did have something to say about bees

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how-much-for-a-whump · 1 year

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FEBUWHUMP day 9:

Altprompt: "Rope burns"

Mehmetçik Kutlu Zafer 21. Bölüm

@febuwhump

#febuwhump2023 #febuwhump #febuwhumpday9 #rope burns #Mehmetçik Kutlu Zafer #turkish #turkish series #whump #male whump #weak #captured #hit #passing out #tied up #carried #bruises #restrained #İsmail Ege Şaşmaz

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chaotic-orphan · 3 months

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Febuwhump: day nine

Prompt: bees - @febuwhump

TW: self-sacrifice, mentions of suicide, suicidal ideation implied, suicide mention, trauma, lots of trauma, trauma of losing people, trauma of war and loss,

I have been binge watching AOT again, and now you all have to suffer my machinations >:) prepare to cry, perhaps…

*~*~*~*~*

The heroes settled down for the night, the small team gathered around the campfire in the vine disguised cave curtesy of Blossom. Bees sat sadly on her own, off to the side, gazing forlornly into the flames.

Youngest and Leader both decided to accompany her, Leader brought a bottle of wine while Youngest brought the leftover marshmallows to roast.

“Alright Bees?” Leader asked in his confident way. Bees nodded glumly, twitching the corners of her lip up forcefully. “See I told you, Youngest,” said Leader, handing Bees the bottle of wine.

Bees glanced up finally, and frowned at the bottle. “Is the whiskey gone?”

“Uh…” Leader said, then glanced to see Blossom with it. “Blossom, trade bottles.”

Blossom rolled her eyes but trudged over anyways and switched bottles with Bees. Bees took it gratefully.

Youngest smiled. “There see,” they said as Bees started drinking. “You feel better already!”

Bees was still drinking, gulp after gulp after gulp after gulp. Youngest glanced at Leader, who shrugged in reply, but Youngest could sense something tense between the pair. Bees was Leader’s right hand, his second in command, his secret weapon.

“Uh… Bees,” Youngest began, trying to engage her in conversation and stop her dying from alcohol poisoning before tomorrow. “You… you never told me why your name is Bees,” said Youngest.

Bees stopped drinking thankfully. She exchanged a glance with Leader, something unspoken passing between them. Bees wiped her mouth with her sleeve, her eyes glistening in the flames reflecting some grief that Youngest wasn’t privy to.

“Maybe it is time I told you, Youngest,” said Bees, her voice thick with emotion. “After all, it will become all too apparent tomorrow.”

“Bees,” Leader chastised. Bees let out a humourless chuckle.

“Don’t admonish me now, Leader, of all days.”

Youngest’s frown deepened as they observed the back and forth between the pair. Bees turned her glistening eyes to Youngest and began to recount the tale.

“When Leader and I were in our academy days….”

*~*~*~*~*

The next day Youngest stepped onto the battlefield with trepidation. Their limbs wired tight with anticipation and a sudden willingness to risk everything to defeat supervillain right here, right now. To put everything on the line to secure the world’s future.

Supervillain rose like a beacon into the air, ghastly yellow energy wrapped around them and under their feet propelling them into the sky. Their eyes had the same unsettling yellow glow to them, and their mouth as they grinned oozed with it like a lighthouse.

“Finally, Leader,” Supervillain said, their voice booming over the battleground that was, Youngest realised with a sudden horrible terror, littered with the bodies of fallen warriors that had tried to take Supervillain on.

It was one person against their team, Youngest reminded themselves. They would be successful, they would win.

Blossom glided on the wind to Supervillain with Reckless hanging from her arms with a loud hoot and whoop. Youngest and Leader and Bees all had to trek the uneven terrain with caution until Blossom could grab them too.

*~*~*~*~*

Youngest rolled to a stop with a shocking gasp at the pain stabbing their ribs and they cried out as they tried to push themselves up. Supervillain was just behind them, ready to finish them off. Another body crushed into Youngest and splatted them to the ground with the dead weight of it. Youngest gasped out in a silent scream as the weight pinned them but they couldn’t give up. Not now.

They had to give their all. They had to! Or else… or else…

Youngest turned under the body, and got their hands free, pushing down on the body trying to either wiggle free under it or push it off them. Youngest realised with a sickening start that the body on top of them was Blossom.

Oh god, Youngest thought with a heart wrenching sob. Oh god. They were going to die… they were all going to die.

“Youngest!” Reckless called, and came barrelling across the terrain with urgency. He stopped at Blossom’s body and froze, his eyes widening with a hopeless kind of anger. He set his jaw and pulled Blossom off Youngest with his great strength and picked Youngest off the ground and onto their feet.

“Can you walk?”

“I— I think so,” Youngest said with a tentative step and then screamed in pain. Their ankle must have shattered in their blow with Supervillain because they couldn’t support their weight at all. “No,” Youngest cried desperately, clinging to Reckless’s arm, “no. I can’t.”

Leader whipped past them in a flurry of movement. “Bees is ready, we got to go!”

Youngest’s eyes widened in horror, glancing over to where Bees was approaching Supervillain unarmed. “No!” Youngest screamed. “No! No! No! We can still! We can still fight! We are not there yet! We don’t—”

“Youngest!” Leader bellowed. “This is not the time for your two cents on the matter. Bees has made her choice.”

Youngest yelled and screamed and cried and kicked when Reckless picked them and started running with them away from the battlefield just behind Leader’s path. Youngest extended their arm for Bees, crying her name while they were dragged away.

“We had this test of what our abilities were,” said Bees the night before, the fire glinting in her eyes. “Leader as you know had some crazy telekinesis shit which was just unfair.”

“When you’re good, you’re good. When you’re great, you’re me,” said Leader with a smirk. Bees elbowed him in the gut for good measure. “Ow okay.”

“What was your power?” Youngest asked, greedy to drink in the story that they were never told.

Tears formed in the corner of Bees eyes, but she didn’t answer immediately. Instead she took another two quick gulps of whiskey.

“Bees won the power rating,” said Leader, his voice tinged in sadness. “She broke the measure scale of it.”

“Bees is more powerful than you?” Youngest asked skeptically.

Youngest watched as Bees stepped up to Supervillain with a smile on her face, screaming and fighting Reckless to put them down. To let them go. To go back and save Bees from herself. When they got a far enough distance away, Leader grabbed Youngest and cradled them in his arms.

“It’s the only way, Youngest. It’s the only way.”

Youngest punched Leader anywhere they could find: in the chest, the shoulder, the arms. “She’s your best friend and you’re letting her die!” Youngest wailed.

Leader grabbed Youngest’s face between his hands and shook it with a devastating urgency. “She’s my best friend, Youngest. It’s her decision. It’s her decision, don’t you think I tried to convince her not to do it! Don’t you think I tried?!” Leader screamed.

Youngest shrunk back, tears desperate as they glanced over to see Bees jump up and grab Supervillain’s leg. Then a bright white light erupted from where the pair were not a moment ago.

Youngest wrestled themselves free and went running, screaming their throat raw. They ran into Leader’s invisible barrier and pounded on it with everything in them.

“At great cost,” Bees grumbled as Leader wrestled the bottle from her hands. “I’m basically useless except for one time in my life.”

Youngest frowned at the pair, the fire cackling peacefully beside them. “What do you mean?” Youngest asked, something like foreboding settling deep in their gut.

Tears streamed freely down Bees cheeks now, Leader’s too. Even Blossom and Reckless had stopped flirting away from them and come to sit around the fire to hear Bees as she spoke.

She laughed, though it felt hollow. “You know how Honey Bees only have one stinger that they can use in their life? In defence?”

Youngest nodded. “Yeah but if they use it they die, right?”

Bees glanced at Youngest with a solemn look. “All that power. All that potential, and I can only use it once.”

Youngest frowned. “But you’re not going to use it right?”

No one spoke. The only sounded that permeated the silence was the crackling of the fire. Youngest looked to Leader and back at Bees, a disbelieving smile on their face.

“Right?!” They asked, not intending for their voice to come out as high pitched as it did. Youngest looked to Blossom, then Reckless, gesturing at Bees and Leader as if they were ridiculous. As if this was all some joke because it had to be a joke.

“We can’t defeat Supervillain,” said Bees. “Too many people have died.”

Leader took a long slow swig of the whiskey. Youngest bristled. “You can’t seriously be going through with this Leader?”

Leader didn’t reply. Youngest sprung to their feet throwing their hand wide. “Tell me I didn’t sign up to accompany Bees on some suicide mission! Tell me! Bees! Tell me!”

Bees didn’t look up at Youngest, she kept her gaze on the fire. “You didn’t sign up for some suicide mission, Youngest,” said Bees, her voice devoid of any emotion. So unlike her, so un-Bees. “You signed up to be apart of the mission that takes Supervillain down. Once and for all. The final chapter against Supervillain.”

Youngest glanced at everyone in turn again. “Why is no one laughing?! This is a joke right?! This is a joke! Hey! Leader! Why won’t anyone answer me! Bees this is suicide!”

Bees finally looked at Youngest, her gaze heavy and Youngest wished she didn’t. “Oi, Youngest. Do you know how many people have died because of Supervillain?”

“That is—” not relevant died on Youngest’s tongue when Bees shot up to standing. Towering over Youngest.

“Why did you become a Hero, youngest? Hmm? You wanna tell me that story again?”

Youngest backed up a step. Bees matched it forward with her forlorn gaze completely focused on Youngest’s. Youngest went to take another step but Bees hand shot out and she grabbed a fistful of Youngest’s shirt. Within a breath Youngest was yanked forward and shove against a wall, Bees staring down at them like a vengeful god.

“What was it again? Your brother died fighting Supervillain right? What was it. You wanted to avenge him, huh? Huh! ANSWER ME!”

“Bees,” Reckless said, getting to his feet but Bees didn’t relent.

“You know Reckless’s story, don’t you? His entire family were killed when Supervillain dropped a building on them. How many of your friends are dead from going up against Supervillain?”

Bees yanked Youngest forward and shoved them back against the wall, eliciting a sharp oof from Youngest with the force of it.

“Bees!” Leader said with his authoritative voice. “Enough.”

Bees let go of Youngest, fixing their shirt that they crumpled. “Don’t you ever fucking say that my sacrifice is nothing. That it is somehow worth more than all of our sacrifice trying to take Supervillain down. When I die tomorrow, Supervillain dies with me. Supervillain is my victim, Youngest. Not the other way around… if you want to pity someone, pity them.”

Bees turned her back to Youngest and made a beeline to Leader, grabbing the whiskey bottle from his hands. She paused before she sat down again, then said: “hey, Youngest.”

Bees looked over her shoulder at Youngest, the ghost of her usual happy-go-lucky smile on her face now looked so strange. So wrong, knowing what Youngest knew now. Bees… Leader… Blossom, Reckless… they all knew this entire time.

“When you’re old and have children, you can tell them about me. I’d like if you did.”

Bees and Leader their entire lives. They had a lifetime to get used to the idea that Bees would go out in a blaze of glory, she only gave Youngest five seconds to adapt to it. Youngest swallowed the lump in their throat and nodded.

“I will,” they said.

“Good,” said Bees with a nod as she slumped down to the ground again in front of their fire, sitting with her legs crossed. “Now where are the marshmallows?”

Youngest fell to their knees, staring at the impact of where Supervillain once loomed large. Where Bees had made the ultimate sacrifice to take them down. Youngest reached forward again, and found the barrier was gone. They glanced over their shoulder and saw Leader wailing.

The cry was like a mother’s at her child’s funeral, like having to identify that your loved one was in fact dead. A mourner’s cry, full of loss and heartache.

His scream tore through Youngest like a tornado, making every hair on their body stand on end. A lover’s cry, Youngest realised too late. Leader loved Bees, and now the weight of her sacrifice weighed heavy on them all… Youngest pushed themself to their feet and trudged over to Leader, before dropping like a stone and taking all of Leader’s weight.

They wrapped their arms tightly around Leader as he wailed and raged against the sky, against fate, Bees last words ringing in their mind.

“Hey, Youngest,” Bees said in the middle of the night, nudging Youngest with the toe of her boot. Youngest opened their eyes, the fire on its final, dying embers.

“Bees?” Youngest asked, rubbing their eyes. “Is it time?”

Bees smiled showing her dimples and shook her head. Instead she crouched down so she could whisper to Youngest. “I need you to do something for me when I’m gone,” she said.

Youngest nodded. “Anything.”

Bees smiled and placed a hand in Youngest’s hair, ruffling it. “You’re such a sweetheart. I need you to look after Leader when I’m gone… can you do that for me? He’ll need you. He’ll need you all.”

Bees looked over her shoulder at Leader who was still sound asleep across the cave. “He acts big and strong, like he’s tough, but between you and me, he’s a huge softy. He can’t be alone… so I need you to pro— hah,” Bees said, her voice cracking. She cleared her throat slightly as tears trailed down her cheeks. “I need you to promise me that you won’t leave him alone.”

Youngest grabbed Bees hand. “I promise,” they said. “I promise.”

“Good kid,” said Bees, ruffling his hair again. “I’ll miss annoying you.”

“I’ll miss you annoying me.”

“Don’t worry, Youngest. If it’s possible I’ll come back as a ghost and haunt you.”

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writersmorgue · 3 months

Text

Febuwhump Day 9 - alt. Lightning Strike

I legit couldn't think of anything to do for bees that wasn't too similar to something I've already written, so here's this instead.

TWs in tags || read on Ao3 || wc: 1,063

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“What kind of ugly ass scars are those?”

Denki hides his body for a reason.

“It looks like you were struck by lightning, is it from your quirk, Kaminari?”

They’re ugly, he knows they are.

“Kaminari, can you move? Your skin is freaking me out.”

People with mutant quirks are treated well at UA, especially the powerful ones like Shouji and Tokoyami. Physical differences mean little to nothing when you can kick anyone’s ass who gives you crap.

But Denki’s scars are different. They’re completely his fault.

Every time he goes stupid with overexertion, his quirk fires off at random intervals. Since he’s not conscious to prepare for it, it creates these lines in his skin. Lichtenberg figures, they’re called.

They’re raised, dusty pink lines on his skin, wrinkled and perpetually tingling. They stretch out all over him, centered on his inner forearms and chest, where his quirk focuses on output. They follow a senseless pattern, weaving across his skin. He used to have a lot of freckles on his body, but many of them have been overtaken.

When new electricity pulses through them, they get hot and irritated for days after. Denki has to sleep sitting up, leaning over his giant Pikachu plush. It’s tear-stained, looking just about as miserable as he feels on those nights.

He changes in the showers in the locker room, hiding away from his closest friends. People he trusts with his life.

Bakugo always looks at him weirdly when he refuses to take off his long sleeves. The guy has some pretty gnarly scars himself; All won in hard-fought battles. Each one tells a story of badassery that Denki could never dream of reaching.

Just yesterday, during training, he’d overworked himself again. The figure going up his back took the beating and crawled up just past his costume collar. Good thing Todoroki has single-handedly made turtlenecks come back in fashion.

He’s angry at his weakness and frustrated at his lack of control.

Shoving his costume in its case, he tugs his long-sleeved sweater down self-consciously.

A gruff voice calls his name, and he curses when the sudden movement his neck makes sends an arrow of pain down his back.

“Hey man,” He smiles, “what’s up?”

Bakugo’s eye twitches, and before he can so much as breathe, Denki is dragged to the empty offices in the gym.

“Uhh,” He falters, tripping at the last step before he’s gently (for Bakugo) shoved into a wall.

“Roll up your sleeves.” His classmate sneers, crossing his arms and glancing to the door as if expecting someone to interrupt and ruin whatever intervention is happening.

Denki frowns, tucking his hands behind his back and trapping them against the wall. “Kind of a weird request, dude. Do you mind explaining before I strip for you?”

Bakugo flushes, eye-twitching, “You’re stalling, fuckface. I’m not- fuck,” He sighs, glancing to the door again, “I’m not letting you walk out of here if you’re gonna hurt yourself.”

“Oh,” Denki blinks slowly. He’s not wrong, but he’s only doing what they all do during training, “It’s just collateral. I’m fine, Bakugo.”

That was the wrong thing to say.

“What the fuck about cutting yourself is collateral, you fucking moron!”

“Cutting my-” Denki mumbles, looking down at his arms. Is that what Bakugo thought?

Huh.

He looks up at Bakugo suspiciously, “Are you the one who stole my exacto knife and my scissors? Bakugo, I’m not doing that. It’s just scarring from my quirk, like Kirishima’s eye.” He sits on that for a second, “Well, I guess Midoriya’s arms would be a better analogy.”

He brings his arms forward and tugs his sleeves up, exposing his wrists for Bakugo to inspect. “See? From the electricity.”

Bakugo squints, aggressively taking one of his wrists as he’s been given a time limit.

“How come you cover them then?” He grunts, letting go when satisfied.

Denki rolls his eyes, “They’re ugly, Bakugo. I’m not blind.”

“Well, as long as you fuckin’ know. Loser.” Imaginary Bakugo jeers, shoving Denki into the wall again and exiting swiftly… Probably giving him a middle finger.

In reality, he just kind of… stands there.

After a few moments of silence Denki is far too weirded out to stay quiet. “Uh… dude?”

Bakugo blinks, looking back down at Denki’s arms and grabbing at one to pull up to his face again. He investigates them, eyes darting over the skin, where the thickest of the figure is. “It’s not ugly.”

Um, what?

“Um, what?”

Bakugo tsks at him, waving his own arm in his face, “I said they’re not ugly. Where’d you even get that idea?”

Denki sweetie, Haru’s mom said your arms scared him, so you have to keep the jacket on for the whole play date, okay?

What are you, fifty? What’s with the gross wrinkles?!

Do you, like, wear a full surfer suit when you swim?! If I were you I wouldn’t let anyone see me without a shirt!

No, you sit by him! If he shocks me I’ll look like that!

Denki sighs, leaning back against the wall, “Everyone says that, dude. Since my quirk manifested and I went stupid for the first time.”

Bakugo’s nose scrunches like he smells something bad, “They’re fuckin’ stupid. You’re just like anyone else with scars. Everyone in our class has some, it’s part of the damn job.”

“Yeah, but mine are-”

“Normal, dipshit.” Bakugo interrupts, waving his hand at Denki, “If anyone in our class says shit, I’ll fuckin’ kill ‘em. Only thing ugly about you is your stupid face. Always smiling. It’s gross.”

Denki can’t help but blush in response. He thinks that’s the closest Bakugo’s ever come to complimenting him! Even if it was just followed by an insult.

“Aw, thanks Kacchan,” He grins when the tips of Bakugo’s ears pinken.

“You’re fucking stupid. Are you gonna quit moping now?”

Denki nods, grinning eagerly, “You bet, and I’ll show some skin just for you!”

Bakugo flushes bright red, “Wh- that’s not! Fuck you!!”

Denki giggles, skirting around his fuming classmate before he blows up the office they’ve borrowed. “See you, Kacchan.”

He pauses by the door, catching his hand on the frame, “And thanks, by the way, I appreciate it.”

Bakugo shakes his head, shoving his hands into his pockets, “Whatever dunce face, I better see you in the locker room tomorrow.”

“You know it!”

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