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hellfirenacht · 3 months

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Wing Man Part 7

Fic Summary: Steve 'the Hair' Harrington is your best friend, and is constantly striking out. Sick of this, you two make a deal; you'll wing man for each other. Hooking Steve up with dates is easy, but he finds himself struggling to find you a date. At least, until Dustin starts talking about his new cool friend Eddie.

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Chapter Summary: Dustin spills the beans, and Wayne gives some advice.

A/N: Happy New Year! I ran out of steam there for a while but I am bursting with new inspiration and have a billion ideas for new and old fics! Thank you for your patience and support 💜

The next night after dropping you off at home, there was a storm the likes of which Hawkins had never seen. Lightning lit up the sky through the night like a shitty rave, knocking out the power for Forest Hills Trailer Park for the better part of two days. It wasn’t until Saturday, when Eddie attempted to check in on Ronnie again, that he realized that their worn out phone had been completely fried. Shit.

Getting a new one was easier said than done, Eddie and Wayne had to pinch pennies this week after his uncle had been out of work a few days because of a cold, and having to replace a good chunk of groceries that had gone bad sitting in the dead fridge.

Sure, Bev had been nice enough to give Eddie a few extra shifts at the Hideout to help cover but that was a paycheck that wasn’t going to be in for another week. There was always his dealings, but he’d been keeping his head down after nearly having his stash blown by an over enthusiastic K-9 unit that, thankfully, was more interested in the jerky that Eddie had in his jacket.

For a week, he’d been without a phone now. Normally it wasn’t a huge loss, not many people actually bothered trying to call him anyway, and Wayne didn’t really socialize much working the night shift. But he missed Ronnie, and he really was stressing each day that went by that he didn’t call you. Eddie knew that whatever this was, he was probably already blowing it.

Tuesday rolled around again, and he hoped that you’d show back up to the Hideout. Jeff had even agreed to give most of the band a ride if Eddie agreed to haul their equipment and do all of the breakdown in case you needed another ride home. No such luck though, unbeknownst to him Keith had come down with the same cold that his Uncle Wayne had the week before, meaning you had to work a double.

It was now Friday, over a week since you’d written your name in the most stubborn permanent marker he’d ever come across. Your name still stained his skin in a faint and ugly shade of pea green. Eddie could now say your number by memory, despite never having punched in the digits once. If anyone at school had noticed that Eddie ‘the Freak’ Munson had a girl's name on his arm, they didn’t say anything.

“Whose number is that?” Mike asked in the middle of a time out while Zach and Gareth were pouring over the rule book over the legality of a move that Eddie was sure was bullshit. So much for that.

Eddie’s head snapped over to the freshman while those in Corroded Coffin snickered and suddenly lost interest in the rules for the moment. With the candles and stage lights on, it was always warm in the Hellfire room, and Eddie had stripped his jacket giving his arms a chance to breathe while he guided the party on their next adventure.

It had also meant that the faded remains of your number was still visible, which he hadn’t thought much of until Mike had pointed it out.

“Yeah, Eddie, whose number is it?” Jeff snickered, which earned a hard look from Eddie that under any other circumstances would have shut Jeff up but in this case only made him laugh harder.

For a moment he debated internally about putting his jacket on, and telling them all to shove it. It was tempting, very tempting, but Eddie wasn’t a teen anymore. Hell, he had a good two to three years on most of the members in this club. Why should he be embarrassed because a cute girl had some sort of interest in him?

Because you’re blowing it by not being able to call her. He told himself.

Eddie then told the table about how you’d given him your number right before he dropped you off. How you’d been a perfect gentleman and hadn’t taken advantage of him or made any untowards moves to him. (Even if he had thought you almost did, but he kept that part to himself).

To his surprise, the ribbing was kept to a minimal. Without Eddie fighting against it, the group became less interested. Eddie’s love life was only of interest when it meant that the sheep could finally have some fun with the shepard.

That was going to be the end of it. Jeff had conceded that the rule they were looking up had been an old house rule from his middle school group that he had never questioned as not actually being accurate, and they were ready to move on. Eddie opened his mouth to guide the party to the next encounter-

“I thought you said you weren’t interested in her.” Dustin suddenly said. Eddie had thought that the shrimp had been suspiciously quiet for the past few minutes.

“If that was him not interested then I’m quitting Hellfire to be a cheerleader.” laughed Gareth.

“No one wants to see you in a miniskirt, man.” said Mike.

“They have guy cheerleaders!” protested Gareth. “I’d wear the pants.”

“That’d be a first.” ribbed Zack.

“Don’t you have to be crazy strong to be a cheerleader? Gareth, your strength stat sucks.”

“I haul my own drumset every week!”

“Can we get back to the game?”

“Eddie,” Dustin spoke up again. His brows were furrowed and he was messing with his pencil, the same way he did when someone in the party was about to do something that didn’t make any sense. “You did say you weren’t interested.”

So much for Eddie’s love life being of no interest, he now had a herd of sheep looking at him expectantly, no longer talking about Gareth possibly changing after school activities. He should ignore it, get everyone back on track, and lead them back into the Forbidden Caves where he was not tempted to throw a mimic in for messing with the flow of the game.

He should... but Dustin’s comment bugged him for some reason.

“I never said that.” Eddie said, looking at the kid.

“What? Yeah you did!” Dustin looked as shocked as Eddie felt. When had he ever said he wasn’t interested in you?

“Oh yeah, when?” Eddie crossed his arms and leaned back in his throne, his eyes narrowing.

“At the arcade!” Dustin sounded frustrated. “You told me that you didn’t want me introducing you to anyone when we were doing Hellfire related shit, and that you weren’t interested anyway.”

The warmth from the candles and stage lights were nothing compared to the heat of everyone’s eyes on him. What the fuck was Henderson even talking about?

Oh. Oh what the fuck?!

“Excuse me?” Eddie said slowly as that thirty second conversation started to play in his mind.

“Yeah, I remember that.” Mike added, in an attempt to back up his friend. “We just assumed she wasn’t your type.”

Eddie hadn’t been looking to be anyone’s boyfriend. He was never looking to be dating anyone, the few times he’d found himself in the good graces of a girl who’d shown interest in him it had always blown up in his face.

That had never stopped him from trying though.

“Are- wait. Back up.” Eddie stood up and made his way over to the opposite end of the table where the freshmen were suddenly looking very nervous. He grabbed them by the shoulders, as he’d done so many times in the past and hauled them up while the rest of the table watched on in amusement. Normally, Eddie would never pause the game but, fuck it. This kid had something to do with you, and he was going to figure out what.

“Jesus, Eddie-” Mike said, wincing at the grip. “I don’t have anything to do with this, it was all Dustin and Steve!”

This was getting more and more confusing by the moment. Eddie shoved the two boys to face them, leaning over them. Even with Mike’s growth spurt over the past few months, somehow Eddie still seemed to tower over them.

“Steve?” Eddie’s voice was slow, trying to understand why that name was even being spoken in the private sanctuary away from jocks.

“Yes, Steve! They’re like, best friends or something! Ask Dustin!” Mike said, throwing his friend under the bus.

“What’s the big deal?!” Dustin asked, looking between Mike and Eddie with a look of bewilderment.

“Henderson, you have thirty seconds to explain what the actual Hell is going on before your character becomes Quasit food.” Eddie said, releasing his grip on both of the freshmen.

“Okay, okay!” Dustin held his hand up in surrender, looking nervous as everyone watched the scene unfold. “So, you know how her and Steve work together? Well, they had a deal going on where they’d help get each other dates.”

Eddie’s head tilted down slightly, but his eyes stayed firmly focused on Dustin. This was making less and less sense by the minute. Steve needed help getting dates? King Steve of Hawkins High who had the pick of any girl in school before he graduated? That Steve Harrington couldn’t get a date and so had recruited you into helping him?

And you, you with the everything about you couldn’t get a date either? Hadn’t you mentioned something about that before, at the Hideout?

“I help him and he uh... he helps me get out of the house.”

You’d said that, and he hadn’t thought much of it until now. All this time, Eddie had thought the arcade incident had been Dustin trying to have his two older male friends meet and be friends, but it had been you that he was supposed to meet?

“So you’re telling me that you, Dustin Henderson and Steve Harrington were trying to set me up on a date?” Eddie looked over at the rest of the table that looked just as bewildered as he did. This was a prank, right? He’d been tossed into some sort of alternate dimension where a freshman and a jock had any sort of interest in his love life, in any part of his life. He’d sooner believe that he’d run a drug deal with Chrissy Cunningham than this.

“Well, technically we were trying to set her up on a date and you seemed like a good fit?” Dustin’s answer came out as more of a question, leaving Eddie’s mind reeling. Behind him, he could hear the growing snickers of the party.

Eddie was ready for this to start making sense any time now.

“So she was helping Steve get dates and he wanted to set her up with me?” Nope, even after thinking it a half dozen times it still wasn’t clicking.

“That part was my idea actually!” Dustin said, showing off a smile filled with metal. “She’s pretty weird and Steve said she was picky-”

“Can’t be that picky if she was interested in Eddie.” muttered Gareth, earning another round of laughter at the table.

Eddie didn’t even have it in him to shoot another look at the table as he continued to try and piece together what was going on.

You and Steve had a deal to try and get each other dates. You were picky and so Dustin suggested Eddie. Steve then brought you to the arcade to force a meeting and-

“Wait, did she know that she was supposed to meet me?” Eddie asked suddenly.

“Oh yeah, she knew the whole time in the arcade.” Dustin nodded, hoping that Eddie wasn’t about to blow a fuse over this. “Well, she figured it out at least. See she was just supposed to be tagging along with Steve to find guys to flirt with but then uh... she realized she was supposed to meet you.”

“And she didn’t know who I was?” Eddie clarified, thinking back to the way you’d tried to talk to him about Hellfire, Chris Morrison, anything to try and start a conversation. How the hell was it that he could remember every time you two met so clearly, but you didn’t know who he actually was?

Because it wasn’t about you, Eddie. He had to remind himself.

Dustin shrugged. “I guess not? She’s never mentioned you before that night.”

Guess not everyone paid attention to the Freak. He hated that it bugged him that you didn’t remember him but could he blame you? He probably wouldn’t remember him either, just a Munson fuck up who everyone was waiting to end up dead in a ditch somewhere.

Eddie pushed Dustin back down into his seat, done interrogating the poor freshman. Everyone watched as he made his way back to his side of the table, behind the DM screen. He had a lot to think about, but he wasn’t about to start processing that in front of the rest of Hellfire.

“You all wander deeper into the cave, the only light coming from the torch carried by-”

“I have dark vision!”

Broke and bored, Eddie haunted the trailer for the rest of the weekend. He did have practice with Corroded Coffin for a generous two hours on Saturday, and then a long shift that night at the Hideout where one old drunk had slipped him a $10 tip for making sure he always had a cold beer in hand. But those few hours were just a minor reprieve from the information that Dustin had given him the previous day.

When he wasn’t distracted by work or practice he was practicing guitar, working on lyrics, prepping for the next Hellfire session.

He tried to think about you, but ended up feeling confused. When he was trying to think about anything else, all he could see was the way you had flirted with him at the Hideout.

Despite popular opinion, Eddie wasn’t stupid when it came to girls. He could tell when a girl was interested in him, and you had made it clear that you had at least some interest in him. You had told him point blank that you were not with Harrington, and had no interest as well. He’d seen the way you looked at him while watching them play, that excitement in your eyes. Your head had bobbed to the rhythm of their songs watching them with as much enthusiasm as if you’d been a fan for years.

Paige had watched with similar eyes, right? She’d seen something in them that no one else had before-

No. Not them. Not Corroded Coffin. Just Eddie.

It felt pathetic that he kept comparing you to Paige. He didn’t want to, he really didn’t want to. It wasn’t like he was still hung up on Paige, not really. She’d just been a turning point in who he was as a person. She’d been the first (and last) girl to really look at him as a person. If his dating prospects had been small before, they had completely dried up over the past two years.

Date the freak? Yeah, right. There had been the odd girl who’d hit on him as if daring themselves to get with him but he was done with that. A few mediocre dates that he’d agreed to out of boredom or loneliness had only added to the idea in Hawkins High that he was undesirable. Adding to that, the older he got, the younger his underclassmen became and the idea of dating someone younger was... well he didn’t need to add ‘creep’ to the long list of rumors about him. It didn’t matter to him most of the time, instead focusing on his friends, his band, his club, his business, himself. God knows he’d never be able to hold down a relationship unless he got his shit together and earned everyone’s trust again.

“Graduate and get laid, Munson.” Ronnie’s voice echoed in the back of his mind and he groaned as his face warmed. It was the middle of the week, just over two weeks since the night at the Hideout. Eddie was laying on the old couch face down, his homework on the counter half finished and the blue glow of the tv doing little to distract him.

The sound of the door opening didn’t even phase him enough to look up, even as Wayne grunted out a hello before setting something down on the counter next to his forgotten schoolbooks.

“Did you eat?” Wayne asked, which earned a shrug from Eddie. How could he think about eating when he was stuck thinking about everything else?

“Are you gonna tell me why you’ve been moping around for the past few weeks?” Wayne tried again in an attempt to be a good guardian. When that didn’t work either he sighed and said “Might as well step outside with me and have a smoke.”

It was better than doing whatever the hell else Eddie was doing now, and so he rolled off the couch less than gracefully and followed his uncle out onto the porch to sit on the outdoor couch. Wayne offered him the smoke and for a moment it was peaceful. Wayne wasn’t one to push Eddie to talk about anything, but he did have a way to make him think even if it did piss him off occasionally.

Eddie took a long drag of the cigarette and released it slowly as he stared up at the sky. It was a dark night, a million tiny dots illuminating the trailer park, even if the moon wasn’t out. He scanned the stars, looking for the three that he knew were Orion’s belt. That’s about where his astrology knowledge began and ended, but it was something to look for at least.

“I think a girl likes me.” He finally said as he spotted what he assumed was the constellation he was looking for.

“Yeah?” Wayne asked, his own eyes gazing upwards as well, giving Eddie the space to talk more.

“Yeah.”

It was silent again for a few minutes as they smoked, the only other sound for a while was that of Wayne cracking open a beer. That’s what Eddie appreciated about Wayne, he didn’t need to fill the silence like his dad did, and Eddie didn’t need to either. He could just... exist.

“I don’t know what to do about it.” Eddie finally said a while later. “She only has an interest because her and some jock are trying to get each other dates.”

“Is that right?” Coming from anyone else that question would have been dismissive, a filler phrase to show that they were paying minimal attention. Eddie knew better though, which caused a knot of frustration in his gut.

“I guess.” he shrugged.

“How many dates has she gone on?” Wayne passed the beer to Eddie, who took a grateful sip.

“Don’t know. It didn’t sound like she’d been on many. Henderson said she’s picky.”

“But she likes you.”

“Yeah.”

Another long stretch of silence as Eddie stewed over the question. He hated how Wayne could break down his problems into simple questions.

“Don’t see why you’re moping around if she likes you.” Wayne glanced over at Eddie. “Are you sweet on her?”

Eddie snorted at the term, taking another drag from the cigarette and flicking the ashes off the porch. “She’s cute.” he said, thinking about how you’d looked the last few times he’d seen you. He might have been distracted that first night at the arcade, but not so distracted that he didn’t notice that at least. “Smart too. She got the guys to listen to her last time we hung out.”

Wayne raised an eyebrow. “She got Gareth to pay attention? That’s a damn miracle.”

“They liked her too.”

“More than the California girl?”

The question caught Eddie off guard and he looked up at Wayne who was still looking off in the distance. Eddie had never explained exactly to Wayne what had happened that first senior year, most of the details going to what happened with Al when Officer Morris was shot. They never talked about how Eddie was so damn close to packing everything up and running away to California.

Thinking about everything that happened that year still stung. Eddie had tried hard not to think about what could have been if CJ and Toby had just shown up one or two days later. Would Eddie have made it to the audition? Would they have really liked him? Maybe in another life he’d be signed and he’d be working on an album or on tour and him and Paige...

It didn’t matter, that ship had long since sailed. Eddie was no rock hero, and never would be. He tried to tell himself it was better this way, if anything it meant that his relationship with Al was over and done with which was a hollow victory if he was being honest.

“Definitely more than her.” Eddie finally agreed. You weren’t asking him to ditch the band and run away with you, so that had to give you some points for them, and for him. Dustin vouched for you, and even Mike, but he wasn’t sure how much that counted for yet. After all Dustin still seemed to worship Steve, and you were friends with Steve-

But did that actually matter? If you and Steve were close enough friends to help each other like this, and Steve was willing to vouch for Eddie, despite never having any real conversation just because Dustin said something-

“She gonna ask you to run away?” Wayne was now looking at Eddie again.

Sometimes he wondered if his uncle could secretly read minds.

“Doubt it.” Eddie said, “She works at the video store. I don’t know much about her, honestly.”

“So ask her on a date.”

“What?”

“She likes you, you want to get to know her. Ask her on a date. It’s not that complicated, Eddie.” Wayne dropped the cigarette on the porch and crushed it under his boot. “You always did think too much, always sucked up in your own world. You’ll be happier in the long run if you open up a bit.”

Easier said than done for a 20 year old still in high school that the whole town considered a satanic cult leader. Then again, when was the last time he’d really opened up to anyone other than Ronnie or Wayne? Right, his dad in the weeks before the heist.

“I think I fucked this up before I could even start.” Eddie sighed, snuffing out his own half finished cigarette. “She gave me her number and I never called.”

“Could’a grabbed a quarter from the change jar and used a pay phone.”

Eddie pressed his hands against his face and dragged them down slowly. Why did good advice always come too late for him?

“Well, I guess it’s a good thing I brought back a new phone for the kitchen today.”

Eddie’s head snapped up so fast he should have snapped something, his eyes widening.

“Don’t get too excited. It’s a new used phone. Guy down the line from me offered it up and it’s better than nothing.”

Eddie didn’t care if it was a rotary phone, he’d take anything at this point if it meant that he could try to call you.

He wanted to call you.

He wanted to call you. Eddie didn’t care if you remembered that first time you met, did it even really matter? You had an interest in him, Eddie Munson, now.

“Thanks, Wayne.” Eddie stood up and hurried inside, seeing the new old phone that was sitting on the counter. It took a few minutes of making sure it wouldn’t fall off the wall before he plugged it in and heard that sweet dial tone sound.

Eddie grabbed his copy of Lord of the Rings from his bedside table and pulled out the paper flower, looking at the number scribbled in his own chicken scratch. He didn’t trust himself to punch in the number without checking, no matter how many times he read the ten digits over the past two weeks.

It rang once.

Twice.

Six times.

No response.

“It’s late, she might be asleep.” Wayne said, grabbing a box of pasta from the cabinet.

It wasn’t that late, not even 8:30 yet. Eddie sighed and hung up the phone, crossing his arms as he thought about his next move. He’d always had tunnel vision when he got an idea into his head, from Corroded Coffin, to his campaigns, to a book that he wanted to read, it was hard to shake the urge when he got one.

Grabbing the keys from the counter he called over to Wayne “I’ll be back later.” which was responded to with a confirmation that he’d save some pasta for Eddie in the fridge.

There weren’t many places he could think of where you could be tonight. You hadn’t shown back up at the Hideout, and the arcade was closed this late on a weeknight. You could be at home, but Eddie didn’t remember where you lived and showing up to your place after two weeks of radio silence would definitely get him in trouble.

So he drove to Family Video.

If you were there he’d do.. something. If you weren’t he’d call you after school tomorrow. Eddie winced internally at the thought. He’d been trudging through school and dragging his feet for the past six years to graduate, and now was the time he felt childish about it. You could legally buy him a beer, and he could illegally sneak you a drink in the Hideout.

At a stoplight he swapped out the Black Sabbath tape for W.A.S.P., remembering that you had mentioned liking them. How did he continue to remember these small details about you?

Because she’s treated you like a human each time you’ve talked. It was startling how something so basic was such a big deal to him.

The lights were still on at Family Video, and the open sign was still lit up. He could see movement inside the store, and he caught sight of someone wearing the signature green vest that the employees wore.

He’d walk in, and if you were there he’d- fuck what the hell was he supposed to do? Eddie stared at the door from inside his van for a few minutes. It was past nine now, and he could have sworn that they should be closed now but that stupid sign was still on. That had to be a good sign right? Eddie wasn’t one to believe in stuff like that but maybe he’d be stupid to ignore a literal neon sign hanging in the door.

Okay, now or never. Eddie had never really been one to hesitate before and he wasn’t about to start now.

He made his way to the entrance and opened the door before he could think about what he was actually wanting to do. Eddie could improvise, it was one of the more useful skills that came from years of running Hellfire.

“Who didn’t lock the door?!” Your voice was a welcome sound, sealing the determination inside of him. No going back now.

“It was Steve’s job to-” your co-worker said. She looked familiar, but he couldn’t place a name to the face.

“Oh, shit. Hi.” Steve was the first to actually notice Eddie as he walked in, looking as if he was expecting literally anyone else.

Turning on the Freak, Eddie smirked at Steve. “Cursing in front of customers, Harrington? Now that’s not very professional of you.”

“Well, we’re closed. You can’t be a customer if you can’t pay.” Steve said, putting his hands on his hips in a way that reminded Eddie of a mother hen. Steve did have a point, and so he decided to cut through any bullshit and looked over at you. You looked like you’d had a long shift, but the way you were looking at him... there was still the same shock that was on Steve’s face, but while his shock was laced with confusion yours was excited. As if you couldn’t believe that The Freak was here and that was a good thing.

“Do you want to get out of here?” Eddie blurted out the request before he could think. He had no idea where you two would go or what you would do but he had to do something.

Your coworker nudged you in the ribs, and your expression changed to a more professional one.

“I- uh. I have to finish closing.” you said, looking at Steve for a split second.

“Steve and I can handle the rest of closing!” Eddie made a mental note to learn this girls name and send her a fucking gift basket one day.

“Guys, I’m literally in charge of you both. I can’t leave before you.” You said, reaching down to grab something from below the counter- your bag. Eddie felt himself growing more excited, his heart pounding as you tossed your work vest and keys over to them. They were basically shoving you out the door to spend time with him.

“We can handle it!” Steve said.

“And I can handle Steve!” Robin added. “We close without you and Keith all the time, remember?”

You stepped out from behind the counter, looking up at him. The color of your eyes under the fluorescent lights reminded him of the stars he had been looking at earlier this evening. Eddie found himself smiling at you as you opened the door for him.

Someone was quick to lock the door and turn the OPEN sign off.

Eddie opens his van door for you, trying his best to make a good impression for whatever was about to happen. You hopped into the passenger seat and he thought that he might enjoy seeing you sitting next to him like this in his van more often.

---

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#Nacht fic #eddie munson x reader #wing man

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yandere-toons · 1 year

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OSWALD COBBLEPOT

Platonic & Romantic Headcanons – Yandere

WARNING: strong and bloody violence, guns, stalking, alcohol use, references to torture, death, undeath, desecration of corpses, abduction, psychological manipulation, toxic mindset.

PLATONIC:

From his days of spying and backstabbing as a human footstool for Fish Mooney, Oswald has understood that most relationships are transactional and devoid of real intimacy. Hence, he becomes so readily attached when someone goes out of their way to make his time on this earth a little easier.

In this person, whom he now wishes to have as a lifelong friend, Oswald sees a shining exception to human ugliness, for whose sake he is willing to break laws, spend vast sums of money, and take lives to keep with him.

The late Gertrud Kapelput taught him that one must give everything to those dearest to one's heart, a lesson Oswald will honour for the rest of his life.

In addition to assassinating people on his friend's behalf, this devotion translates to buying out entire inventories of jewellery and clothes for them. He offers free drinks at his nightclub, guarantees protection if they operate a business, and provides super-secret special access to all his mother's recipes.

Being sentenced to Arkham or Blackgate is no matter when Mayor Cobblepot is eager to finagle the early release of an old friend. He will blackmail, intimidate, and coerce all the appropriate offices until the person he wants is back with him.

Oswald becomes exceedingly irritable and anxious if separated from his friend for too long.

He relies on them to lend him an ear whenever he needs to castrate a rival verbally. Although he is not the most cooperative, Oswald is sensitive to any advice from his friend, a sensitivity that doubles if they tell him he is a good man.

As soon as they are more than a few hours late for a meeting and have not contacted him with an airtight explanation, Oswald is howling at his goons to find them and phoning the GCPD to babble about filing a missing persons report. He refuses to sleep or stop pursuing their alleged killer after his worried heart tells him they lie dead in an alley.

Oswald is drowning in grief and hysteria, attacking anyone who delivers bad news about the search when his friend returns to him alive. He collapses into their arms and rejoices that he can delay learning how it would feel to live without them a bit longer, at which point he begs them to clear their schedule in favour of accompanying him through his day.

If anyone dares make a laughingstock of this relationship and, by extension, him, Oswald paces up and down his home while guzzling wine and ranting about how he will roast these people's entrails like chestnuts over an open fire.

Practising emotional honesty for something other than anger takes every courage Oswald can summon. It is safer for him to live out his days half-satisfied and fantasizing than to put his hopes to the test and risk terrifying rejection, so while he is weighing the pros and cons of coming clean, Oswald awaits a sign that the attachment is reciprocal.

In his ideal world, he lives in his father's mansion and drinks tea with his mother and friend while everyone talks about how he proved the critics wrong and became a great man despite everything.

This dream will never come true for various reasons that keep Oswald awake at night, so he persuades his friend to take one of the guest bedrooms and dispatches those who might threaten his monopoly on their attention.

He does much to sweeten the deal, which, when broken down to its most basic elements, is a request for his friend to devote themselves to him, as Gertrud did and as he says he did for them.

A gourmet breakfast and dinner from Olga every day are a given, but the only item on which Oswald will not make concessions is permission to leave Gotham.

Suppose his friend chooses a life of crime. Oswald considers himself their proudest and most adamant supporter. If they are arrested, he will burst into the police station with an army of sycophants - if necessary, an angry mob of misguided citizens - and demand that all charges be dropped.

If the GCPD resists, he will send Victor Zsasz to raid the precinct in a hail of bullets or turn the case into a political issue for the cameras and journalists to shame the police into submission.

A constant sense of danger looms over the friendship, like wolves over a sick deer. Oswald sees it every day in the crowds wishing him to suffer, in the way his heartbeat jumps and pushes him to lash out each time someone approaches his friend with a suspicious look.

This hypervigilance may one day prove too stressful, and Oswald decides his best course of action is to fake his friend's death and sequester them in a safe house until he rules Gotham's underworld with absolute power.

If they do die, Oswald embraces their corpse and wails like a lost child until he has to retreat to survive or gets a chance to mangle the one he thinks is to blame. Afterwards, he is subject to fits of rage and melancholy when reminded of his departed friend and enlists Hugo Strange to revive them.

Operating under a fat paycheck and the threat of torture if he fails, Strange is cleared to sacrifice as many people and make as many monstrous modifications as necessary to succeed.

Driven mad by loss compounded, Oswald finds scarcely a price not worth paying if it allows him to have back one of the few bright spots in his life.

ROMANTIC:

In terms of relationship security, Oswald experiences some cognitive dissonance. He wants to believe that his partner will never abandon him, but at the same time, he fears losing them to anyone with a pulse.

Oswald, pathologically insecure, suspects his partner of finding a replacement for him after one ill-timed joke, one misunderstood smile, or one rejection of another's flirtation that he does not feel was direct enough. He flies into a tirade about how they lead him on and play with his emotions to leech off his wealth and influence.

This explosive tantrum sends his every minion scurrying far away, for whichever lackey is standing closest to him at that moment will be stabbed in the neck with a broken bottle or beaten senseless with a fire poker, depending on the setting.

Even though the physical aspects of his rage never touch his partner, the threat of what he could do to them is present evermore.

Throughout his life, the only people who have invariably been kind to him without ulterior motives are his parents, especially his mother. Therefore, a genuine compliment from his partner overwhelms him with the feeling of being wanted and makes him grossly overestimate his importance to them.

If someone claims that his partner has been disloyal to him, Oswald disregards any evidence as forged and maims the messenger for, in his eyes, being a filthy liar.

The only way he would believe such a thing is if he uncovers the evidence himself, in which Oswald would rather blame a third party for forcing his partner's hand than let go of the comforting delusion that this relationship is meant to be.

As his rise to power destabilizes him mentally and puts a glaring target on his back, Oswald fears leaving his partner alone, even for a minute.

His paranoia spirals out of control until he becomes obsessed with the possibility that enemies he knows too well and those he has yet to discover will come to murder or kidnap and torture the last good thing in his miserable existence.

Oswald assigns Victor Zsasz to keep vigil over his partner day and night for the foreseeable future, giving Victor—who in turn gives his henchwomen—strict shoot-on-sight orders for any visitors not on his list.

The list is shorter than a pig's tail and consists of Oswald himself, Victor and crew, and as an on-again, off-again member, Edward Nygma.

In his deranged mind, not even Jim Gordan has business speaking to his partner without him there to monitor the interaction.

Suppose Oswald gets the impression that someone is trying to wheedle information out of his partner or bully them into betraying his trust. In that case, this interloper is slain with extreme prejudice at the earliest opportunity.

Suppose a friend or family member decides to come over unannounced and receives a bullet to the brain, que será, será. Oswald has convinced himself that all the others in his partner's life are traitors waiting to happen, or, if not traitors, vulnerabilities that his enemies will use to lure his partner away from the safety of his watchful eye.

Acts of disrespect towards those he cares about make Oswald apoplectic, so if he hears anything about anyone accosting or assaulting his partner, someone is getting an umbrella crammed down their throat.

Whether he beats the culprit to death with a baseball bat, lets Victor have fun with them, or mounts their severed head on one of his end tables and calls it a decoration depends on the severity of his partner's distress.

If tears are shed, and blood is bled, whoever caused them this pain is hunted like an animal and reduced to meat paste.

Through mass execution and permanent disfigurement, Oswald makes it clear that his partner is off-limits to Gotham's underworld, even to those members who have been licensed to do wrong by the Pax Penguina.

Anyone still holding them at gunpoint loses an arm and then a life, and Oswald insists that he take that life himself because everything that threatens his partner threatens him, too.

If in Arkham together, Oswald deems himself far more honest than the rest of these ruffians and thus makes a promise. Any violence against his partner will be inflicted tenfold on the perpetrators, whom he adds to his big book of names to disappear once he regains his status as King of Gotham.

Locked alone in the asylum, Oswald worries that his partner will leave and forget about him. Once free, he tracks their current address by any means necessary and seeks confirmation that they have not forsaken him.

This absence has so reinforced his inability to separate that the appearance of a new person or a request to distance himself from them is perceived as a betrayal.

Although Oswald will always forgive his partner, he will not quit plotting revenge against those who gave them these terrible ideas. The day of reckoning for these pond scum will come when and how he pleases.

In the meantime, he would like to share a ribeye steak with his partner while everyone else in Gotham starves.

Do anything you want with my work, but never make me boring!

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shakespeareallanpoe · 2 months

Text

Talks With Father

Word count: Idk

Warnings: none, unless you're terrified of Bruce being a good dad 😕

Dedication: @purp1e-ph0enix & @bradshawsbaddie

_____________________

"You mention her often."

Damian turned to look at the vigilante beside him, his finely tuned senses and years of knowing his father filling in everything Batman didn't say. There was no prompt, no segway into this conversation. They were sitting in the Batmobile while the computer program inside was rebooting and nothing but comfortable silence between them only a few seconds previously. It was offered as conversation starter and Damian knew Batman wouldn't push. In his own bat-way he was telling his son he was aware- the greatest detective in Gotham City was always aware.

Damian didn't put much stock into his father's experience with relationships, and they both knew Batman wasn't offering advice. Damian could leave it there. Batman wouldn't tell anyone and his son knew he would likely never mention it again. Damian almost took it, and if it was a couple years ago he would've. But since he had joined and left the Titans, Damian had seen the effects of allowing relationships to deepen beyond the surface level his league training always taught him to maintain. Being back with the league as their leader, he saw just how inhuman they had expected him to be. Damian rarely got the genuine moments his younger self always scoffed at, and he knew his mental and emotional health wasn't benefitting from it.

It's how he found himself occasionally visiting Gotham. At it's worst it was a filthy city that reeked of crime, and never failed to have some crisis or another. Damian was a hero here. He knew he was violent and brash but that's what the city needed when the police failed. Gotham always needed him for who he was, and Damian remembered telling his father these things go both ways. He needed Gotham as well. To take a break from the league, when that world got so toxic it became hard for him to breathe. Hard to see the man in his mirror.

Only Alfred and his father knew. Of course they knew. But Batman put a great deal of effort for the sake of his son, and allowed Damian to come and go as he pleased. It was hard for the man with trust issues and severe paranoia, but a week before he passed Dick had spoken to Batman about letting Damian go. That he would fly true if he was given the chance to spread his wings. And everyone knew the bat was trying to live by his first son's final wishes.

It didn't weigh on Damian's mind for long. His relationship with his father had greatly improved, to the point that they now worked together during Damian's visits. His father already knew. And self growth could only make a person stronger for it, so why not?

"I want to know how she is. She has yet to leave my... heart."

Batman exhaled, a sign that he'd heard his son's even response. Damian never reached out to his old teammates, but he did occasionally inquire as to how they were after the spilt. Batman kept tabs on them for these moments, and while he knew little about Raven, what he did know he always shared. Despite it hardly ever being good news.

"Raven is strong. She is with Kent at the moment and doing all she can." Batman's dark voice offered.

Damian didn't hesitate. "Just because the burden is carried well does not mean it is deserved. She is innocent, suffering, and still trying to save those who are the same. Magic is the only difference between the people and their hero."

Batman knew he and his son's tendencies towards philosophical pessimism would only darken their conversation. This world was a mess and those who fought for justice rarely got justice of their own. His first son was dead. His biological son existed because someone he cared for took advantage of him without remorse. But Batman, in his heart, desperately wanted the best for the youth of his city. All the children who could have lives he never could if only he sacrificed himself in every way for his city.

Looking across the Batmobile which had 4.33 seconds left in it's update, seeing the face that looked so much like his own at the age when he was lost in his determination to become the hero his life never had, Batman smiled softly at his son. "That doesn't mean she isn't cared for."

Damian, halfway lost in his own mind, truly a mirror of his father, had no response. Raven deserved so much more. She worked so hard and never gave a sign of the pain and pressure she had to endure. This world was a mess and those who fought for justice rarely got justice of their own. Damian's oldest brother was dead. His father hated him in the beginning because he was the physical reminder of how cruel the world could be. But Damian, in his heart, desperately wanted the best for Raven. He wished he could rewrite her fate, which seemed to be carved with blood in the stars, and give her the peace she sacrificed herself for in every way for her world.

Damian eventually found his own voice breaking himself from his musings, spilling from his mouth as if it took no thought. "Please help them. Save her."

Batman nodded, his finely tuned observation filling in everything Damian didn't say. The older man silently handed his son the keys to the Batmobile and moved to get out of the driver's seat. "Damian. The things that mean the most to us are the things we sacrifice everything for. You both care for the world and one day, you have to believe that the world will give it back to you."

"Tt. That sounds like a Hallmark marathon in the Wayne Manor was finished recently." Damian shot back lightly, grabbing the keys with a grin.

"It might have been." Batman replied evenly, holding the driver's door open while his young superhero climbed in. "I expect the car in perfect shape when it inevitably returns past your curfew."

"High expectations. We'll see what the criminal underbelly of Gotham has to say about that. Could be a rough night."

Batman stood back from his car in anticipation for his youngest's depart. "Shouldn't be a problem then. But if you want your first date to be a seaside picnic on the Wayne Beach with Alfred's cookies, I look forward to seeing the Batmobile in good shape tomorrow morning."

Damian blushed- only faintly- as only a teenager talking to his father about his crush would. "Perhaps your Hallmark movies do provide a potential benefit, however miniscule and insignificant."

Batman smiled almost teasingly. "There's no need to suffer through the cinema you don't enjoy. I've already collected quite the list of romantic outing ideas I think the two of you would like."

"Father! Do not meddle with my life!" Came Damian's indignant and completely flustered response from the interior of the giant black vehicle. He didn't want to know how long his father had been collecting romantic ideas for a potential future he may have with his Raven.

Batman snorted. "Alfred's idea. Told me to put my time in the theater room to good use. Kate is the one who went out of her way to buy Raven a series of date night dresses. I believe she called them 'adorable' in her description to me. Do you think Raven would look suitable in them?"

Damian in that moment was busy thanking every god he didn't believe in that the blackout window was up to hide his scarlet face as he violently shifted the car into gear and raced out of the batcave.

Do NOT think about Raven in an adorable purple dress

#Follow up to a post that inspired me #Damian getting those fluffy moments under the embarrassment of dad #bruce is a good dad #Little embarrassing tho #But so are all dads #damian wayne #damian al ghul #damirae #damian x raven #demonbirds #dc raven #teen titans #rachel roth #apokolips war #dc comics #damian wayne al ghul

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tokyo-daaaamn-ji-gang · 2 months

Note

Hello! I came across your hc's the other day and I love how accurate they are

Can you drop your hc's for tr girls and fem reader who sort of acts like a big sister to them? since none of them have an older sister iirc, I thought it'd be cute! (+ bonus izana iyw? doesn't necessarily have to be romantic ^^)

Thank you, have a great day ∘⁠˚⁠˳⁠°

Thanks, glad you like them! This is such a cute idea too! I think they'd all love to have an older sister figure in their lives, it would probably lead to something like this...

Knowing Senju and Emma since you were all kids, you lived near the Sano's and would frequently babysit all the kids there while Shinichiro and Takeomi were busy. With Senju and Emma especially taking a shine to you and calling you big sis.

Years later Emma later introduces you to Hina, with the two of you instantly hitting it off.

Meeting Yuzuha while she's a kid, you were the only one to notice her injuries and ask if she was ok. After that you checked up on her often, usually helping to clean and bandage any injuries she had.

The girls constantly going to you for advice, they trust your word and want your opinions on so many things.

Emma trying to set you up with whichever one of her brothers she thinks is best so you can be her real sister.

You taking the girls for trips, driving them where they want to go.

All of the parents and grandpa Sano loving you, you're just such a good influence

Senju eagerly showing you any new moves she learnt at the gym, she knows you're always happy to see them and usually clap for her.

Trying to give Hina and Emma boy advice (and secretly just going to Takemichi and Draken to give them advice too)

Yuzuha having someone to vent to about her problems, you making her feel not so alone and better about her situation.

Matching outfits or accessories!

You being super overprotective of them, anyone who even dares to look weirdly at them is dead

So many of Kisaki's plans getting ruined by you

Shopping trips together! (You treat them to ice cream at the end after seeing Senju's face light up)

Spending Halloween together, helping Hina and Emma to throw the party they wanted.

Going to any of Yuzuha's archery performances to cheer her on

Being there to offer the girls hugs whenever they need them (Yuzuha and Senju desperately need them)

The girls being a bit protective of you too, especially if a guy tries to hit on you.

You getting heavily involved in the black dragons arc, refusing to let Yuzuha deal with her brother alone.

Going to festivals with Yuzuha and Senju (you guys definitely aren't spying on Hina and Emma with their dates)

And finally, you crying at Hina's wedding. You helped her plan so much of it and did your best to help her with Takemichi over the years. Seeing her finally get her happy ending just makes you so happy for her.

#i feel like izana needs his own separate post #tokyo revengers #tokrev #tokyo rev #tokyo revengers spoilers

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loversj0y · 10 months

Text

id meet you where the spirit meets the bones

inspired by @lillylvjy's ghost au! go give it a read and give lilly some love!!

wilbur soot x gn! reader

TWs: death, lots of talks about death, reader cries a few times, nightmares, reader nearly dies, stalking, body horror, slightly suggestive stuff (wilbur is flirty af)

word count: 13k. i am not sorry

note: this has not been edited/beta read at all. also i know jack shit about ghosts tbh aside from the light pagan/spirit work i used to do so. dont take any of the ghostly advice here seriously its all for spooky vibes and ambiance. also if anyone can notice the red flags i include at a Specific Section i will give u a smooch, title taken from ivy by taylor swift

taglist: @l0veb0mb1ng, @core-queen

You didn’t believe in ghosts. You weren't strong in this opinion, it was just a matter of not believing everything you saw on the internet. You never had any personal experiences with ghosts yourself, so you had no reason to actually believe in them.

While this didn’t mean a lot, it did mean that the house everyone avoided on the corner was about to be yours.

You knew the stories and the warnings:

Be careful! You know they say those boys haunt those walls!

It was brutal what happened here, are you sure it’s safe?

Good luck! They say those who move in there either leave dead or never leave!

Honestly, it didn’t deter you. A brutal murder of two brothers in the 90s should have scared you. However, you went in for a showing, and the place seemed perfectly fine. It was the cheapest place you could buy, and you couldn’t stand having a landlord anymore. Ghosts are miles better than landlords, at least they live in the place and don’t just act like they do.

You took the deal. The move in process was pretty easy, too. You borrowed a work friend’s truck, and you and her brought in some of your heavier furniture (your old mattress, the couch you bought on Facebook, the TV you got from a friend who couldn’t take it with him), and the rest of the boxes you and her just piled into the living room. You thanked her, paying her for her help as well, and then it was just you, standing in your new, box-filled living room.

You took a deep breath as you looked around, almost stunned by the stillness of the room. You’d never actually lived on your own before, always some family or roommate with you, so it was… almost uncomfortable to see an empty room with no sound.

The silence was broken after a moment, though, your phone ringing loudly from the kitchen counter. You walked over and answered, starting to unpack as you spoke on the phone.

“Hello?”

“Hi, sweetie, how’s the move going?” It was your mum, voice kind and welcoming.

“It’s good, mum,” you chuckled, opening up your first box of kitchenware, “Working on boxes now.”

“That’s good, I’m glad to hear it.” You could hear her smile through the phone. “The place is nice?”

“Yeah, the house is really nice,” you carefully shifted some pots into the back of the cabinet, “it’s an older house, but it’s lovely. The backyard is really pretty too, I think you’d love it. Really peaceful.”

“Oh, love, not to be rude, but I don’t imagine I’ll be coming there anytime soon.”

“I know, I know, you don’t like the drive.”

“Well, yes, but…” you could hear the apprehension in her voice, “sweetie, you’ve heard about this… place you’re living in, of course. I’m not sure how safe it is.”

You chuckled, standing up fully and leaning against the kitchen counter, “Never took you for a believer in ghosts, mum.”

The air felt a bit tense around you.

“Well, when you’re my age, sweetheart, you’d rather not test your luck.”

That brought a laugh out of you, “Mum, you don’t look a day over thirty.” You smiled, looking around the house a bit. “Besides, have you even heard the full story?”

“I’ve heard about the brutal murder part, but I suppose not much else.”

“It was two boys,” you sighed softly, “Eighteen and twenty-six. If ghosts are even real, I don’t imagine they’d want to cause much trouble. If anything, they’d probably be scared.”

A rattling sound came from your left, causing you to falter in your words. You walked to see the source of the noise, quickly noticing a few of the pots still in the box had shifted, presumably having fallen over.

You continued speaking easily, “I mean, god, mum, imagine dying and being forced to live in the place you were killed while seeing tens of people move into your home. I’d be confused and scared too.”

“I suppose,” you heard your mother reply, and it felt like some of the tension left the room. “Either way, just promise me, you’ll be safe? If anything seems amiss, I can call my sister-“

“Oh, god, mum, Aunt Cate couldn’t tell a ghost from a sock, I’d rather not have her in here spewing her Catholic bullshit.”

Your mother laughed, and it made some of the homesickness fade a bit, “Fair enough, dearie. Listen, I’ve got to run, but call me tomorrow, please?”

“I will, mum. I love you.”

“Love you too, dear.”

The line hung up, and you sighed softly, hanging your head for a moment. It felt too quiet already. You opened up Spotify, choosing some random playlist and continuing your work with unpacking. You played some soft indie music, gentle but upbeat guitar flowing from your phone's speaker as you finished unpacking your kitchen. You started working on the living room items, small knick knacks and photos being arranged carefully.

As you cleaned, the playlist took a bit of a wild turn. Instead of the soft plucking of a guitar, the next song starts, and you’re immediately stunned by the sound of some electronic-sounding music. You walked over to your phone which — you didn’t remember leaving it unlocked — was playing a song called “Able Sisters”. From Animal Crossing. Very odd choice. It wasn’t bad though, so you pretty much just shrugged it off, going back to unpacking.

Nothing else weird really occurred that night, and you wouldn’t even consider the music thing that weird. It just was technology being weird. You ordered food, sitting cross-legged on the couch and watching a movie while you ate. After you ate, you cleaned up after yourself and became acutely aware of how you felt far more Adult than you ever had before. You sat back down and relaxed for the first time all day. You were curled into the side of the couch, and to your surprise, you actually didn’t feel very alone. You figured by now you’d be going through your contacts, calling anyone just to feel like there was another person with you. It wasn’t long before you’d fallen asleep, and if you woke up with a blanket around you that certainly hadn’t been near you the night before, you didn’t notice.

You finished your move-in process with little hassle. By the end of the week, you were pretty much completely moved in, save for a few boxes that you had to bring up to the attic. You began to understand why people thought the house was creepy, especially with the amount of creaks and noises you’d hear throughout the day, but given the age of the house, it didn’t bother you.

You carried the boxes upstairs, opening the door to the attic and stacking them up in the corner. You looked around at the attic, smiling softly. There were signs that the attic was lived in, and it was actually kind of nice to see. There were a few things that had been left behind from past owners, and you walked around, taking a look at some of the items. There were a few boxes with things like old clothes, and from looking at them, it hit you that these weren’t any items that had been left behind, but rather the items left behind by the two dead boys’ family. It sent a shiver down your back, but it made you more sad than scared. You went back to one of your boxes, pulling out an old candle and a spare box of matches. There was a small table in the corner of the room, and you set the candle down, lighting it.

Even though you didn’t think there was anyone here, you still spoke outloud, “it’s not much, but I hope it’s something.”

You went back to looking through some of their items, trying to find anything that seemed important to add to the corner table. It relieved you to see that most of the items were non-sentimental items. There were no photos or family heirlooms that had been left behind, just normal items. You did find some smaller objects that you could add to the small table, though, like a red beanie and two CDs. You walked around the small attic a bit more, smiling at an acoustic guitar you found stashed behind some of the boxes. You were shocked by the lack of dust, but it was even more shocking that the guitar was in tune. You didn’t know how to play much except for a few simple chords, so it was at least nice to know there was one up here.

The next object you found was also hidden. It was stashed in the very corner, hidden in a small crevice between paneling in the wall. It was a small compass. You held it up to the light, gently trying to clean some debris off of it. The weird thing happened when you turned the compass over, noticing a small engraving on the back. Before you could read it, though, the compass flew out of your hand, hitting the wall before rolling back into the crevice that you’d found it.

Okay. Definitely weird. You felt your opinion of whether or not ghosts existed being swayed.

“Okay,” you said, backing up a bit, “Sorry. I won’t touch it again.”

You spoke simply. If ghosts were real, you still did believe that they’d probably be more scared than anything, especially if someone was touching their things. And there wasn’t a problem until you’d touched the compass, so you figured that must’ve been something important. If it was something important, you didn’t want to mess with it. It wasn’t yours, point-blank. So, instead, you went back to cleaning up the attic, sorting through boxes and neatly arranging them, and adding small things you’d find to the table in the corner. By the time you finished it was nearly dinner, so you carefully put out the candle (not wanting it to be burning unsupervised) and went downstairs to make dinner.

The few days past that went by with pretty much no weirdness. You truly weren’t sure what to believe now. You almost thought yourself crazy, but it was probably just a side effect of not having left the house since you’d moved in. You had work today, though. It was your first day back, and for whatever reason, you felt nervous. You definitely seemed it too. You nearly burnt your breakfast, cursing and fretting around the kitchen, a slight shake to your hands. You chose an outfit for the day, setting it on the bed. You rushed to take a shower, leaving the bathroom humid and steamy. You got dressed and finished making yourself look presentable before making some coffee to bring with you to work. You kept fretting with your hair and fidgeting. You walked back to the bathroom, trying to double check your hair. The mirror was still fogged up, causing you to groan.

Instead, though, you felt your brain short-circuit as you leaned back and words started slowly appearing on the foggy of the mirror.

‘Don’t worry. You look amazing.’

A blush rose to your cheeks as you took a moment to process.

Ghosts?

Yeah. Ghosts.

Nice one, though, at the very least. You weren’t exactly going to scream and run when the compliment did actually help relax you a bit.

“Thank you,” you smiled softly, focusing on the matter at hand a bit more.

“Can you write your name, if you don’t mind? I’d like to know who I’m living with.” The question felt a bit risky, especially since this was the first time you’d gotten proper confirmation that he existed.

‘Wilbur. And the other one is Tommy.’

You nodded, “Well, thank you, Wilbur.” You thought for a moment before your phone alarm went off, letting you know you had to leave for work. You cursed, sighing, “Okay, I have to go, but I’d like to talk more when I get back. Is that possible?”

You awaited a response, and you got one after a moment.

‘:)’

Okay. That’s good. At least you think it is.

You nodded, pulling your bag up on your shoulder before walking to the door. You paused at the door, turning back,

“Bye, Wilbur. Bye, Tommy. I’ll be home later!” you spoke out into the empty room, hoping they were there to hear it, before rushing out the door to work.

Work was uneventful for the most part. A few coworkers asked about your new place, asking if you’d heard any ghosts or creepy things. You decided to lie, telling them that you hadn’t experienced anything. The last thing you’d wanted was people somehow confirming the existence of ghosts and either considering you crazy or trying to make a spectacle of the boys. It was bad enough that they weren’t allowed to move on in the afterlife, you didn’t want to make things worse for them.

You did spend quite a bit of your freetime at work looking things up about ghosts, however. Most of the stuff you found was pretty fake from the looks of it, but honestly, up until you’d moved in, you never even thought about if ghosts were real or not. You found a lot of potentially good information too, though, about pendulums and spirit boards and how to make them at home.

When you got home, you opened the door slowly, humming as you walked in, “Hi, Tommy. Hi, Wilbur. I’m home.” There was a smile on your face. You didn’t get much of a response, not that you were really expecting one, but there was a knocking that let you know you were at least heard.

You went to your room, grabbing an old necklace. It was a simple necklace, a thin silver chain and a small guitar pendant. You also grabbed a pen and a sheet of paper. After a moment, you had an idea as well, printing out a morse code guide. You sat down in front of your coffee table, writing out a circle with ‘Yes’, ‘No’, and ‘Maybe’ written along opposite sides of the circle. You also put the morse code sheet next to you, sighing softly. Okay, communing with the dead. This is nothing. Sure. You can do this.

“So, if you’re ready, and want to communicate, can you move the pendant to yes?” You asked outloud, holding up your necklace over the circle. After a moment, the pendant started swinging to ‘yes’, and you took a slow breath.

“Okay, so for yes and no, we can use this. If you want to elaborate, you can knock with the morse code here, and I can work it out. Does that work?”

Once again, the pendant swung to yes.

You nodded, taking a deep breath.

“Who am I talking to right now? Is this Wilbur? Or Tommy?”

You got no response from the pendant. Instead, you heard knocking on the table, and you started scribing the knocking.

‘-... --- - ....’

You looked down at the sheet. ‘Both’.

You nodded, thinking for a moment, “Is it okay that I’m here?”

The pendant swung to ‘yes’, and you let out a soft breath of relief.

“Are you guys okay? I mean, it-it’s probably scary being stuck as ghosts and such, so…”

There was a long pause before you got any response.

‘.. / .- -- / -. --- - / ... -.-. .- .-. . -.. / .. / .- -- / .- / -... .. --. / -- .- -.’

‘I AM NOT SCARED I AM A BIG MAN’

Before you could even respond, there was more knocking.

‘... --- .-. .-. -.-- --..-- / - .... .- - / .-- .- ... / - --- -- -- -.-- .-.-.- / .-- . .----. .-. . / --- -.- .- -.-- / - .... --- ..- --. .... --..-- / ..-. --- .-. / - .... . / -- --- ... - / .--. .- .-. - .-.-.-’

‘sorry, that was Tommy. We're okay though, for the most part.’

You chuckled softly, “That’s good to hear. Sorry, Tommy, I didn’t mean any offense.”

‘.. - .----. ... / ..-. .. -. . .-.-.- / -.. --- -. .----. - / - --- ..- -.-. .... / -- -.-- / -.-. --- -- .--. .- ... ... / .- --. .- .. -. --..-- / - .... --- ..- --. .... .-.-.-’

‘IT'S FINE. DON'T TOUCH MY COMPASS AGAIN, THOUGH.’

“Oh, of course,” you hummed, “if you want, I can set up an area in the attic for you guys to keep more private things. Two areas, actually, so you guys have your own space. Does that work?”

The pendant swung to ‘Yes’ incredibly fast, and you chuckled.

“Alright, good to hear, then. Speaking of, is there anything you guys want me to do differently? Or maybe that you want me to stop doing?”

There was another long pause.

‘-. --- .. ... .’

‘Noise.’

“Noise?”

‘.-- . .----. .-. . / -- --- .-. . / ... . -. ... .. - .. ...- . / - --- / .-.. --- ..- -.. / -. --- .. ... . ... / -. --- .-- .-.-.-’

‘We’re more sensitive to loud noises now.’

You nodded, “Okay. When I put on the TV or music, just knock and I can turn it down. Or, if you’re able to, you can turn it down yourself. I’m not sure what I can do about my alarm, though… I need them loud to wake up.”

‘.-- . / -.-. --- ..- .-.. -.. / .-- .- -.- . / -.-- --- ..-’

‘WE COULD WAKE YOU’

“You could?”

‘.. / -.-. --- ..- .-.. -.. .-.-.- / -.. --- / -. --- - / .-.. . - / - --- -- -- -.-- / .-- .- -.- . / -.-- --- ..- .-.-.- / .... . / .-- .. .-.. .-.. / -... .-. . .- -.- / ... --- -- . - .... .. -. --. .-.-.-’

‘I could. Do not let Tommy wake you. He will break something.’

You giggled a bit, nodding, “Alright. Sure. I don’t have work tomorrow, so we can test it out, and if not, we can see what else we could do.”

The pendant swung to ‘Yes’, and you hummed happily.

“Alright, if that’s everything, then I’m going to make dinner. But, if you need to get my attention, just knock three times. Or if you have a better way, you can do that too, but still. This is your home before it was mine, and I want to make it be comfortable for you both. You guys are more just like… my ghost roommates. Okay?”

The pendant swung to ‘yes’ once again before you gently set it down.

You stood, going to the kitchen before speaking again, “Oh, and if you want to use anything that’s in the living room, feel free. I don’t mind. If it’s something in my room, just ask first.”

You turned on some music as you started cooking, keeping it low for their sake. You were in your element when you cooked, finding comfort in the motions as you thought about today. Ghosts were real. It was not something you could be indifferent to anymore. Ghosts are real, and not just that, you also lived with two of them. It was actually nice, though. You didn’t feel alone, at least.

You hummed to yourself as you cooked, leaning up on your tiptoes to try and grab a plate from one of the top shelves. You struggled, nearly dropping the plate before it carefully was lifted, seeming to float down from the shelf. Even if you couldn’t see the ghost, you could feel how close he was to you as he gently set the plate down on the counter.

“Thank you,” you spoke softly, cheeks tinted pink. You smiled, once again feeling relieved by the fact that you weren’t alone. In a house known for being scary, you’d never felt safer.

You finished the rest of dinner with ease, taking a plate and walking back to the living room. When you walked back in, you noticed something interesting. The seat on the far left of the couch, while still empty, had your Rubix cube floating, turning occasionally. You chuckled softly, sitting to the far right to eat your dinner. You looked back at the Rubix cube, trying to figure out which one was playing with it.

“Is there anyway for me to tell the difference between you both? Since I can’t see you?”

The Rubix cube paused in it’s movements, and for a moment, you almost wondered if you scared them off.

After a moment, the pendant you had been using earlier lifted, and you watched as the necklace floated to presumably be placed around a neck.

‘.-- .. .-.. -... ..- .-.’

You looked down at the paper. ‘Wilbur.’

You nodded, understanding quickly. “Hold on, I’ll get one for you, Tommy.” You set the plate down, hurrying back to your room and grabbing another old necklace. This one was simpler, a thin black chord with a small silver dog-tag on it.

You walked back in, moving towards the Rubix cube, “Here, Tommy.”

You felt a cold tingle on your hand as the necklace lifted, slowly being arranged around his neck as well. To you, it was just two floating necklaces. However, it gave you enough distinction that you could at least tell who was who.

You smiled, sitting back down to finish eating. You turned on a movie, though you didn’t pay too much attention. You were incredibly aware of the two ghosts sitting next to you. It was Wilbur sitting next to you and next to him was Tommy. It was almost weird how comfortable you felt with them here. Even if they’d been here the entire time, it was different now that there was actual confirmation that they were here. You didn’t know anything about ghosts. You felt completely out of your element. You knew that they could interact with the environment, since they could pick stuff up and put things on, but you didn’t know what else they could do. Could they make noises? Could they become full-blow apparitions? As little as you knew, you felt worried about asking. It took a few days just for them to actually let you know they existed. The last thing you wanted to do was scare them away in their own home.

Could they even leave if they wanted to? People only ever spoke about them being here in the place they were killed. They probably wouldn’t even want to stay here if they had a choice. It made you upset to think about, the fact that they may not have a choice in this whatsoever. You couldn’t tell if you wanted to yell or cry or hug them because of it.

You stood up and cleaned your plate, chewing on your lip while you did. You wished you could help them. If they wanted it. That was another thing you had to consider. Maybe they were happy here. You didn’t know, honestly, and you wanted to know. For now you wouldn’t ask, though. Maybe, hopefully, when you got closer with them.

You walked back over to the couch, sitting back where you had been before. The TV had changed to some ghost show, and it almost made you laugh. You went to grab the remote, but knocking stopped you.

‘- .... .- - / .. ... / -. --- - / .-- .... .- - / .. - / .. ... / .-.. .. -.- . --..-- / - .... . ... . / ..-. ..- -.-. -.- .. -. / .-- .-. --- -. --. ..- -. …’

‘THAT IS NOT WHAT IS IT LIKE, THESE FUCKIN WRONGUNS,’

You snorted, chuckling a bit, “Yeah. Most of these ghost hunting shows are completely made up.” You looked, noting that it was Tommy who had moved. “They fake everything, so they can keep making money, Tommy. It’s stupid. They’ve probably caused more harm than anything else.”

‘- .... .- - .----. ... / -.. ..- -- -... .-.-.- / - .... . -.-- / ... .... --- ..- .-.. -.. / .--- ..- ... - / .- ... -.- / ..-. .. .-. ... - --..-- / .- - / .-.. . .- ... - / - --- / -... . / .... --- -. . ... - / .- -... --- ..- - / .. - .-.-.-.’

‘THAT’S DUMB. THEY SHOULD JUST ASK FIRST, AT LEAST BE HONEST ABOUT IT.’

You sighed, nodding, “I agree. I mean, if there are ghosts there, they’re probably just annoying them. Or even worse, they’re probably scaring them.”

You got no response to that, deciding instead to change the channel to something more lighthearted.

You started getting tired, and you grabbed your blanket, pulling it over your legs. You spread it out as well, letting it cover both of the boys as well. You noticed and looked curiously as you could “see” their legs through the blanket. Obviously, it was just the outline of their – bodies? Ghost form? God, it was starting to confuse you a bit. You chuckled a bit when you noticed, though, smiling softly. At least you weren’t going completely crazy.

You leaned back a bit, leaning your legs on the coffee table as you watched the TV. You felt the cushion behind you shift slightly, a cold and tingly feeling coming across your shoulders. You looked to your right, seeing Wilbur’s necklace shift a bit. Huh. Did he- was his arm around your shoulder?

You felt yourself flush a bit, leaning into the sensation. The tingling feeling went away slowly, and you felt yourself relaxing more and more. It didn’t take much longer before you fell asleep.

When you woke up, you were in your bed. You didn’t remember how you got there. What you did wake up to, though, was a gentle shaking and a chill on your arm. Your eyes fluttered open, and you were met with the sight of a floating necklace. You almost laughed out of absurdity, blinking the sleep out of your eyes.

“Good morning to you too, Wilbur,” you chuckled, slowly sitting up. “Thanks for waking me.”

You stretched, and the only reply you got was a gentle knocking on your nightstand. There was no pattern or morse code used, just a few taps to let you know he was responding.

You stood and got started with your morning, and you noted the soft sound of the necklace Wilbur wore as he followed you out to the living room. It was harder to spot Tommy. What wasn’t hard to spot was the girl sitting in your living room.

“Uh… hello?” You asked, and the girl’s head whipped around to see you.

“Oh! Sorry! Tommy let me in.”

… What? “What? He did?”

She stood, walking over to you, outstretching her hand, “I’m Molly.”

You shook her hand, nodding, “Nice to meet you. Wait- I’m sorry- you know Tommy?”

She nodded quickly, and you noted a light blush on her face, “Yeah. I’ve been visiting this house for a long time, so I’ve known Wilbur and Tommy for a while. Tommy and I are really close.”

You nodded slowly, “Right. Okay. I didn’t realize they had friends.”

“Tom and I are a bit closer than that,” she blushed darker, rubbing the back of her neck, “Wait, you know about them, too. And you’re staying here?” “Yeah. It’s their house, I’m just living in it,” you shrugged. “You and Tommy are… dating?”

“Essentially. Sorry about just coming in, he said you wouldn’t mind.”

“It’s alright. I mean, bit of a scary way to wake up, to be honest, but if he trusts you, and you do this often, then I’m sure you mean no harm.”

She smiled, “I really don’t. I just liked giving them company at first, and then Tommy and I got closer, so…” the blush returned, and she leaned back into what you assumed were Tommy’s arms, now that you noticed his necklace behind her.

“Alright. Cool. As long as you don’t break shit, I don’t mind.”

Molly nodded quickly, “of course! I usually can’t stay long anyways. I just like stopping by on my way to work or when I have a day off from classes.”

“Alright,” you nodded, walking to the kitchen, “well, if you ever want, I can clean up the spare room for you to stay in if you need it. Do you want any coffee?”

“I’m good, thank you, though.” Molly smiled, moving to sit back on the couch. Wilbur was still behind you as you started brewing coffee, and you could faintly feel his hand on your back.

You grabbed a notepad, holding out a pen for Wilbur and whispering to him, “So, they’re dating?”

‘Yep. She’s really nice.’

You nodded, humming softly, “She seems so. Do you like her?”

‘Yeah. She’s good for Tommy. He would get pretty lonely when it was just me here and everyone else would leave due to us being here. Plus, it’s funny to watch him get flustered whenever she comes around.’

You chuckled, nodding. “Alright. I’m glad he has someone then. Are there others? Do you have anyone?”

‘There were others. We don’t know what happened to most of them since they all pretty much just stopped coming around. But if you’re asking if I’m single, darling, I’m very much available ;)’

You flushed, turning to grab your coffee, “I- I just meant if I should expect any other visitors or anything.” You took a sip as he replied.

‘Nope. Just her. And don’t get shy on me now, love. You’re too cute to hide your face from me.’

You choked on your coffee, face turning a beet red as you coughed.

Molly ran in, looking at you with concern, “Are you alright?”

You nodded, giving her a meek thumbs up as you calmed down, “‘m fine.” You coughed a bit more, slowly taking in a breath.

Molly looked down at the notepad, grinning after a moment, “Ohh, I see. You’ve caught Wilbur’s attention, then?”

“Guess so,” you rubbed the back of your neck, a blush still resting on your cheeks.

“No wonder he seemed so happy when he talked about you.” She giggled, turning.

“Wait- talked about me? You can hear them?”

She turned back, looking a bit confused, “Uh, yeah. I’m actually shocked they haven’t spoken to you yet. Though, it took them a long while before they started talking back to me too, so I guess it makes sense.”

“So, they can speak then?”

She snorted, “Yeah. Of course they can. Do you- you don’t know much about ghosts, do you?” You shook your head slowly, “I didn’t even know if they were real before this.”

“Oh,” she hummed, “Well, as I’m sure you know now, they are very real. Tom and Wilbur and most ghosts are really cool. They’re just kind of doing their own thing. Some can be less than friendly, but don’t worry about them too much.”

You nodded as you listened, “How do you know so much about this?”

She shrugged, “I’ve been talking with ghosts since I was a kid.”

“Huh. Alright, well, you clearly know more about it than I do. Anything you can tell me, I’d be glad to hear.”

She thought for a moment, “Tommy’s favorite color is red. And Wilbur’s is teal,” she perked up, “Oh! And Tommy’s birthday is April 9th, and Wilbur’s is September 14th,” she smiled. “It’s probably best if they tell you more about themselves, though.”

You nodded, “Right, well, thank you, though.”

She grinned, “Of course. Have fun with Wilbur,” she giggled, and it made your cheeks flush once again as she walked back out to the living room.

You took a deep breath, leaning against the counter. Wilbur was still by you, and you watched as the pen lifted once more.

‘Didn’t mean to make you choke. Sorry for taking your breath away ;)’

You snorted softly, “Oh, you very well meant it. But I don’t mind.”

‘Oh? Good to know then. I am glad you’re okay, though. Don’t need three ghosts in one place.’

For some reason, him wanting you to be okay made you flush more than any of his actual flirting.

A few weeks had gone by, and now, you had fallen into a comfortable routine. Wilbur was always ready to flirt, it seemed, whether it be through morse code, notes left around your house, or by using your phone to play romantic songs. It was really nice. Your week always followed a similar pace, you’d go to work on the weekdays, spend time with the boys when you got home, and Molly would come over on Saturday mornings and most of Sunday to hang out with you and Wilbur, but mostly Tommy. You learned more about her, learning that she was going to a University nearby, and that she’d moved to this town a few years back, where she quickly started visiting the boys after learning about the rumors of them in town. You learned more about Wilbur and Tommy too. Wilbur liked indie music and cats. Tommy liked songs that reminded him of being alive and video games, watching them and playing them if he could. You really enjoyed your routine, and you had grown to genuinely care about them.

The first time you hear Wilbur’s voice was an accident. It was late, about three A.M., and you couldn’t sleep. It was a weekend, thankfully, but you couldn’t stand just sitting there in the dark anymore. You got up, walking around the living room when you heard soft music playing. Curiously, you walked up towards the attic where the sound was coming from. You could make out the sounds of a guitar, and from outside the door, you could hear singing. And my god, it was beautiful. He had a soft voice, melodic but not too deep. After listening for a moment, you opened the door, searching for the sound.

While you didn’t see him, you saw the guitar perched up, so you knew it was Wilbur. You walked in slowly, as if treading on eggshells.

“Your voice is really lovely,” you spoke softly, standing in front of the chair Wilbur was on.

It was silent before you heard his actual speaking voice.

“Darling, what are you doing up? It’s late.”

You took a deep breath upon hearing his voice properly for the first time. “Couldn’t sleep, and I heard music, so I got curious, I guess,” You sat down in front of him, “You’re speaking. I’m sorry if I wasn’t meant to hear you, I just…” you couldn’t really think up more of an explanation, shrugging.

“it’s alright. I was mostly just trying to spare you from hearing Tommy talk your ear off,” he chuckled, and if his singing wasn’t melodic enough, his laugh alone definitely was.

You chuckled, smiling softly, “Well, I’ll make sure to be prepared for that in the morning.”

He chuckled once more, “Good. He’ll be wanting to say a lot now that he can.” He hummed softly, “do you want me to play for you? Since you can’t sleep?”

“That would be really nice,” you smiled, rubbing at your eyes a bit.

“Alright. Let’s go to your room then? It’s probably far more comfortable than sitting up here.”

“Are you sure? I mean, I don’t want to disturb you too much or anything.”

He nodded, “I only came up here so I wouldn’t wake you. Come on,” you watched as the necklace and guitar lifted, signifying that he’d stood up. You and him walked back to your room quietly, and you laid back down once you got there. You felt the bed dip next you, and you saw the guitar shift into a playing position. He started playing, and you heard him start singing once again. His gentle sounds quickly lulled you into sleep.

And if you woke up feeling a bit colder than usual, and more specifically a cold spot where an arm would have wrapped around your waist, neither of you mentioned it.

Tommy did talk your ear off that morning, excited to finally be able to talk to you, making comments about how “he’d wanted to talk to you weeks ago” and that “he’d only kept quiet because Wilbur said he had to.” Communication was a lot easier now that they felt comfortable speaking to you. There was a consequence to hearing them now, though. Wilbur’s flirting only got more bold. When you’d get ready for work, he’d always meet you outside your room with a smart comment about how “lucky those coworkers of yours are if they get to see you looking like that all day”. It was interesting, though, the little things you’d noticed about him. He was always more flirty during the daytime, but once it was night, he was more soft. You’d grown used to the chilled feeling that comes from his arms wrapping around you as he whispered about how glad he was that you’d stayed.

He didn’t really sleep. Neither of them needed it, but you found that Tommy liked to, so you always kept the bed in the spare room neat for him. While Wilbur didn’t like to sleep, he was protective of you. It was a bit odd at first that he wanted to be with you when you’d slept, but you found a great deal of comfort in feeling the chill from him pressed against you while you slept. Especially on some nights like tonight.

It wasn’t often you got nightmares anymore. They grew less frequent when Wilbur would hold you in your sleep, but he didn’t always do that every night. You didn’t know what he did when he wasn’t here with you, but you weren’t going to ask. He deserved his privacy, after all. Despite it, you did always miss the feeling of his arms around you. He wasn’t with you when you’d gone to bed.

You woke up screaming. Within seconds, you were pressed against your headboard, head pressed in your hands while you sobbed and gasped for breath, thumb placed on your pulse point. Tommy actually arrived first, your door flinging open and his necklace swinging wildly.

Before he had time to react, Wilbur was rushing in quickly behind him, going straight for you. You felt his arms wrap around you tightly, and the cold did a great deal to shock you out of the panic, leaving you just sobbing. You wrapped your arms around him, though it took you a second to process how he was positioned.

“Hey, it’s okay,” he whispered softly, “you’re right here, you’re with us, it’s okay.”

You leaned into his reassurance. Eventually, you felt more movement on the bed, and Tommy’s hand rested on your back gently as both boys helped you calm down. Your hands gripped onto the feeling of soft fabric that you couldn’t see.

Wilbur continued to whisper reassurances and reminders that you were okay and that he wouldn’t let anything hurt you. When you stopped crying, Wilbur slowly helped you lay back down, never letting go of you for a second. He didn’t want you to think you were alone, even for a second.

You were exhausted when he laid you down, still wrapped in his arms. Your eyes opened, and for a moment, you could’ve sworn you saw the slightest bit of a faded blue sweater through bleary, tear-stained eyes. You didn’t think about it too long, and instead you went to bed in Wilbur’s arms with Tommy next to you, falling asleep quickly from the exhaustion.

(When you woke up, you basically had to wrestle to get out of bed between Wilbur holding you close and Tommy’s limbs strewn out over the two of you. But with a bit of wrangling, you chose to stay in bed and wouldn’t have changed it for the world.)

While your routine was good, there were still some rougher days. Work could go so well before things went wrong. Like today, when you’d fucked up an assignment and proceeded to get yelled at by your boss for about thirty minutes before hiding to cry in the bathroom. You calmed yourself down enough to at least look like you hadn’t cried, using some cold water to calm the redness down your face. You walked home slowly, opening the door, and you were quickly met with Wilbur’s voice chiming out from the living room.

“Welcome home, darling! How was work?”

You dropped your bag at the door, shrugging, “Eh. It was honestly quite shit. For now, I just want to relax a bit.”

He chuckled, “Well, I’ve got some ideas to help you relax.”

Instead of getting flustered, or having any major reaction, you just smiled flatly, sighing a bit. You could feel his concern, sighing again, “I’ll be fine, Wilbur. Just a bad day.”

You walked to your room, grabbing a notebook and a pencil case in the hopes that some drawing would calm you down. You walked back out to the living room, sitting on the couch next to Tommy, who was playing with your Rubix cube again. Wilbur walked over and stood in front of you, and you could feel his eyes on you as you set down your pencil case.

One of the more endearing habits that Tommy had was how he only liked his things near him. He always wanted his space to be the exact way he put things, and he would complain, loudly, if you moved things whatsoever. The most often way he complained? He would just smack things. Just completely push them out of his space and across the room.

And he did that now. You watched as you went to grab a pencil, and before you could, he smacked the pencil case across the room so hard it slammed against the wall before hitting the floor.

“Tommy!” Wilbur chastised, but before he could actually get on his case, you burst out laughing.

Full, genuine laughing, your eyes closing . Your life was so bizarre already, what with the whole living with ghosts thing. And after an absolutely shitty day, one of them just smacked your entire pencil case against the wall just because it was slightly too close to him. It was bizarre and weird and absurd, but it was your life.

You laughed until your ribs were tired. When your eyes opened again, still crinkled at the sides, you were met with a sight, to say the least.

You saw Wilbur. You saw him. He was looking back at you, face flushed and staring at you in awe. Holy shit.

“...Wilbur?”

He looked startled by the fact you made eye contact with him, and he struggled to find words. But god, he was gorgeous. Thick curly brown hair with beautiful brown eyes to match. He was tall, too, and he wore a faded blue sweater and plain black pants.

He didn’t have a chance to respond before Tommy did, and you watched as, within seconds, he went from being completely invisible to… Tommy. He had blond hair and blue eyes, and he was wearing a white t-shirt with red sleeves, and a pair of cargo shorts.

“Thank god, we don’t have to be invisible anymore. I was getting so tired of it, but of course Wilbur said we had to, didn’t want to risk scaring you off, as if you would be!” He barked out a laugh, and you chuckled as well, blinking a bit.

“I’m sorry, what? You- I can see you? And you can control that sort of stuff?”

Tommy snorted, “Of course you can see us. That’s kinda how ghosts work, innit?”

You gave them a closer look, noting that, although you could see them, they were still slightly translucent. “How the hell should I know how ghosts work? I’m not the ghost here!”

You laughed, and Wilbur seemed to finally gain some sense of vocal ability, “We can control it, but our natural state is like this. Well, kind of. There’s a more… accurate form, but we don’t really show that to anyone. We’ve found that it usually scares people out, so we tend to wait.”

You nodded, “What is the more accurate form?”

Wilbur leaned forward, ruffling your hair, “Don’t worry about it.”

You pouted a bit but nodded regardless, “Okay. Well, as weird as it is, it’s also… really cool. I didn’t think I’d ever be able to see you guys.” You took Wilbur’s hand, inspecting it carefully. Other than the slight translucent nature of them, they just looked normal. A bit paler than they probably would have been alive, but still just completely normal.

You let go of his hand, looking up at him, “Sorry, it’s just interesting.” Wilbur chuckled, and it was so different to actually see him laugh rather than just hearing it, “It’s okay. You don’t have to apologize, darling.”

You flushed lightly, and Wilbur took immediate notice, leaning in close to your face.

“Are you going shy on me, darling?” His hand gently cupped your chin, “Do you just find me that attractive?” Your cheeks flamed up, and as you stuttered out a response, Tommy groaned, smacking Wilbur’s shoulder.

“Take your flirting shit out of here, dickhead.”

Wilbur scoffed, sitting next to you instead, “Hey, I put up with your shit attempts at flirting with Molly for months, I’m allowed to have my fun.”

“I am not shit at flirting! And even if I was, you’re the one who taught me, so that would mean you’re also shit!” Tommy exclaimed, putting the Rubix cube down.

“You never listened to my instructions!”

“Because they were stupid”

You rolled your eyes as they continued to bicker, standing and walking towards your room. You waved a hand nonchalantly, “I’m going to take a bath. You guys just keep… doing whatever is it you do.” “Want my help in there, darling?” You flushed, flipping him off behind your back, “Unless you’re bringing me wine and leaving right after, I do not need your help.”

You walked into the bathroom and got a warm bubble bath ready quickly, getting into the water and relaxing as the heat soothed your sore muscles. You played music from your phone softly, closing your eyes and letting the water alleviate your troubles from the day.

After a few minutes, there was a knock on the door. You fixed the curtain to maintain your modesty, before humming out a soft, “Come in.”

Wilbur opened the door with a smug grin, a glass of wine in his hand.

You laughed, “Jesus, I didn’t even think we had wine in the house.” “We do, it was just too high for you to reach.” He chuckled, walking over to hand you the glass.

“Oh? And who put it up there then?” You took the glass, taking a sip.

“Hm, I wonder.” He chuckled, crouching down to be eye-level with you, “You feeling any better?”

You nodded softly, smiling, “Yeah. Just had a rough day, I guess.”

He sat down, nodding, “I figured. It took you longer to get home than usual, and you just seemed a bit down. I’m glad Tommy was able to make you laugh, even if the whole reveal thing wasn’t planned.”

You hummed, “It definitely was a shock. I do like being able to see you, even if I’m still just processing it. It’s easier to tell where you are.”

“Oh, I bet,” he laughed, “But sneaking up on you is half the fun.”

“For you,” you rolled your eyes, “I quite like being able to see my housemates. I’m almost offended, actually, that you hid such a pretty face from me for so long.”

It was an incredibly satisfying feeling to actually watch him get flustered, his cheeks turning pink while he looked away.

He composed himself, clearing his throat, “Didn’t want to scare such a pretty person away is all. Especially such a kind one.”

You flushed, taking another sip of wine. “Well, I can definitely say I’m not scared.”

He smiled (a beautiful sight to see), reaching a hand up to gently play with your hair, “Good. For a moment there I thought you’d just bolt when you saw me.”

“Honestly,” you chuckled, leaning into his touch, “You guys having a form I can see is the least weird thing I’ve dealt with since I’ve moved in.”

He laughed, “Yeah, I guess that’s true. We’ve just… grown to be a bit wary of showing ourselves to people. Molly was the most recent one, actually, and that was because she snuck in without us noticing. The first time someone moved in, we didn’t think to hide ourselves, and that’s what led to all the rumors and everything.”

You nodded, “Shitty exploitative people or people running for the hills?”

“We’ve had both,” he sighed.

“How do you guys know about all the rumors and stuff though? Did Molly tell you?”

He shook his head, “We can’t leave the house most days, but there are a few exceptions. We can leave on Halloween, and the anniversary of our deaths. Or if we possess someone.”

“Wha- okay, you can not just say that like it’s a casual thing. You can possess people?”

He chuckled, looking coy, “Yeah. We don’t do it often, only if we really need to or if we’re given permission.”

You nodded, “That’s respectful, I guess. When would you need to?”

He shrugged, “We’ve done it to protect people. There was a kid living in here with the last family, and he nearly drowned, so I had to possess his father to save him. The only problem is that, usually when we do it, people move out right after. But if we can stop another person from dying here, we’ll jump at the opportunity.”

“That makes sense,” you hummed softly, “Must feel weird to get possessed.”

He hummed, “I’ve heard it is. Tommy’s possessed Molly before so they could go on like pseudo-dates. She said you’re still aware of everything, you just can’t move your body yourself. She and Tommy were able to talk in her head, though so it’s not as scary as you’d think, as long as you know it’s happening. There are some side effects for a short while afterwards though.”

“Like?”

“She said that she felt freezing cold for a while after. She had a few bruises as well, but that could’ve easily just been from Tommy remembering how to manuver an actual body. That’s another thing, if you do it for too long, you kind of forget how to move your own body, so she had to sit to keep herself from falling.”

You nodded, humming, “that’s not too bad.”

“Well, yeah. That’s with permission, though. Most of the people we’ve possessed without permission haven’t exactly stuck around long enough for us to ask how they feel afterwards.”

You leaned your head on the edge of the tub, going silent as you thought. “We could do that one day, if you want.”

“What?” He stopped his hand, eyebrows pinching together.

“Yeah, like Molly and Tommy do. That way you can go outside a bit more and do stuff that you can’t do anymore.”

He grinned softly, “Is this your way of asking me on a date?”

You groaned, and he immediately laughed at your reaction. “I’m trying to be nice, dumbass.”

“I know, I know. But man it is so much more fun to flirt with you when you can actually see me. You get flustered so much easier.” “Maybe I’m not used to seeing cute boys flirt with me.”

He frowned slightly, and it quickly dissolved into a grin, “Well, you’ll get used to it soon enough because I definitely don’t plan on stopping. Unless it makes you uncomfortable.”

You smiled gently, “It doesn’t. I would’ve asked you to stop a long time ago if it actually made me uncomfortable.”

“Good. Because I am going to be so much worse about it now that I can flirt physically with you.”

“Oh, god.”

“I’ll make it good for you. Don’t stress.”

You chuckled, taking another sip, “I’m not stressed, more concerned about how I’ll ever be able to deal with a cute guy flirting with me all the time.”

“Well, I’ll take good care of you, obviously.”

You smiled, biting your lip softly, “Thanks, Wilbur.”

He smiled, running his hand through your hair once more. “Of course, darling. What do you want for dinner? I can start making it while you finish up here.”

You sighed softly, “I have no clue honestly.”

“So surprise you?”

You grinned softly, “Yeah. Just please don’t burn down the house. I like living here with you guys.”

“Alright, so don’t let Tommy into the kitchen, got it.”

You laughed, and he gave you that look again, the same one he was giving you when you saw his face for the first time.

“I guess so.” You hummed softly.

“Alright, well, I’ll go get started,” He stood, and he leaned over, pressing a kiss to your forehead gently before walking out.

It took your brain a moment to catch up before you felt yourself blushing deeply once more. It was a new but definitely welcome sensation, the feeling of his lips on your forehead left a gentle chill. You bit down a smile, but even if you really tried, you wouldn’t have been able to hide the gentle grin. You took a final sip of your wine, setting the glass down and letting yourself sink into the water.

You got out of the bath and got dressed, taking your glass and walking out into the living room. You weren’t quite used to just being able to see them, almost feeling startled as you saw Tommy sitting on the couch playing on your old DS, and seeing Wilbur standing in the kitchen.

You shook it off, walking to the kitchen and looking for the wine.

Wilbur looked over at you, smiling softly, “Feeling better?”

“Yeah,” you nodded, “How’s dinner coming along?”

“Good,” he smiled, walking over and wrapping his lanky arms around you while you poured yourself some more wine. You leaned into his grasp, smiling softly.

“Yeah? House hasn’t burnt down, so that says something at least.”

He chuckled, wrapping you up tighter in his arms, “I still remember mostly what I’m doing. I used to cook for Tommy when our parents were working.”

“You haven’t spoken much about your parents.” You noted quietly.

He sighed, leaning his head on you, “No. I haven’t. I try not to think about them too much.”

You nodded softly and didn’t ask further. Instead, you relaxed in his arms and drank your wine. He swayed a bit, and you chuckled, closing your eyes.

“It’s still weird being able to see you.”

“Yeah? Like what you see.”

You chuckled, flushing, “Maybe. Is there a problem if I do?”

“The opposite, actually, darling. I think it’s absolutely lovely. But not as lovely as you.”

“Wilbur?”

“Yes, my darling?”

“Something is very much burning on the stove.”

He quickly pulled away, rushing to the pot on the stove and taking it off the heat.

“Oops,” he grinned at you sheepishly, “Sorry, love. You’re just so distracting.”

You flushed and rolled your eyes, “Maybe I shouldn’t have trusted you in the kitchen either.”

He scoffed, “I’ll have you know I’m a great cook. This was simply a method of cooking, I’m enfusing the food with smoky flavor.”

You laughed, rolling your eyes a bit, “You’re such a dork.”

When you looked back at him, he was giving you the biggest grin. He turned, grinning down at the counter as he worked on plating the food for you. He handed you the plate, gently kissing your head.

“I kept the burnt parts out of it.”

You blushed, smiling, “Thank you, Wilbur.”

“Of course, darling.”

You started eating, and he watched you as you did, waiting for your reaction.

“Holy shit, Wilbur, this is fantastic.”

He threw his arms up, cheering, “Yes! Oh, I’m so glad you like it. It’s been a long time since I cooked.”

“It’s amazing, seriously, thank you.”

He smiled, wrapping his arms around you again, “It’s actually our mom’s recipe. She was the best cook, taught me everything I know.”

“Well, she taught you well.” You ate more, and Wilbur was absolutely beaming behind you.

The rest of the night was quite calm, just sitting with Tommy and Wilbur, watching videos and stuff. You got tired quite quickly, so the three of you retired to bed, Wilbur following you. You both got comfortable quickly, your head resting on his chest. His hand gently trailed up and down your back, and the sensation used to make you shiver, but now it just felt comforting. In the silence, you began thinking.

“Wilbur?” You spoke softly.

“Hm?”

“You’re very touchy,” you stated plainly.

He chuckled, “That’s true.”

“Why?”

He was quiet for a moment before speaking up, “I like the feeling. Reminds me of being alive, I guess.”

“How so?” You asked quietly.

“Well,” he took one hand, gently placing it on your cheek, “it warms me slightly, same way it cools you. So it becomes grounding, after a while. Especially when I start to comprehend the reality of the fact that I am a ghost, I can’t leave, and I don’t know if I’ll be like this forever or if one day I’ll just suddenly stop existing. It’s scary sometimes to think about the fact that, at one point, I was living, and I got killed, and now I am undead, and I don’t know why. I don’t know if one day, just by saying something, I’ll fade. You weren’t wrong when you said ghosts are probably scared of their own situation because we are. There’s no rulebook to being a ghost, and I remember, the first few years, I was just so aware of my own… mortality, if you can even call it that. And it was terrifying. Tommy and I mostly stayed in the attic at all times because we didn’t know if we’d fully move on just by walking out the door. So, when I touch you, it helps pull me out of that fear. Because I remember that being alive was just as terrifying because there is no rulebook to living either. And it’s grounding. If I could do it once before, I can do it again. You remind me of being alive. Because you’re the first person to look at me, even when you couldn’t see me, and have empathy before anything else. So touching you and being around you, it makes me feel something other than the usual dread and sadness, and I will cling to that as much as I can while I still have time with you.”

You leaned into his touch, shifting a bit to wrap an arm around him. You didn’t really have a response. It was the most vulnerable he’d ever been.

You cuddled your head further into his chest, nodding softly, “If you ever need it, you know, i’m here for you. I don’t know much about ghosts or living, and I’d never given the things much thought before moving in here. But anything that can help you, I’m willing to help you with. Even if it means having you attached at my hip all day. You know better than anyone just how fragile life is. I could die tomorrow. So, we need to make the most out of what we have, I guess.”

He smiled, kissing the top of your head gently, “That’s all we can do. It’s what made life worth living, and it’s what makes being stuck like this worth it too. Just appreciating every moment, even if all we have is your living and my ghostly-ness.” He chuckled softly, and you did too.

You gently moved his hand from your cheek, solely so you could hold it. “Goodnight, Wilbur.”

“Goodnight, my love.”

You and Wilbur got closer seamlessly. You don’t know what made it so easy to talk with him or just be around him. Overtime, his flirting got bolder, but so did yours. You’d be lying to yourself if you were to say that you weren’t attracted to him. You absolutely were. You were just conflicted.

You didn’t know how human-ghost relationships worked. You knew they happened, obviously, Molly and Tommy were clear proof of it. But you didn’t really know how they worked. One person was dead, firstly, but there was also the concept that their spirit had a high chance of outliving you. You would grow older, but Wilbur would always be twenty-six. Unless you died, of course, but that would be a pretty major commitment to make, and it honestly made your head hurt to think about. Plus, that’s if Wilbur even would be okay with that which, based on the way he spoke about being dead, he wouldn’t be. The morals and mortality honestly gave you a headache. So you talked to the only other person who would possibly understand.

When Molly walked in that morning, you were quick to stop her from walking up to where Tommy would be.

“Molly! Can I talk to you for a moment?” “Uh, yeah, sure.”

You carefully pulled her into the backyard, sitting down on the concrete porch.

“I… have a few questions.” You spoke softly in case of any peeping ears.

“Oh?” She sat down next to you, “What about?”

You sighed, “You and Tommy’s relationship. How does it work?”

She chuckled, “What do you mean?”

“I just… I’ve been thinking a lot about like how a ghost-human relationship could work, and I just feel overwhelmed. I like Wilbur,” you admitted softly, blush rising to your cheeks, “But I keep thinking about how a relationship between me and him would work since it’s… unconventional.”

“Well, I’ve found your problem already,” she gave you a kind smile, “You think too much. With Tommy, we don’t think about it. We’re both aware of how weird it is, and how it probably won’t last forever, but we don’t mind. I mean, he and I have been dating for months, and I’ve never been able to tell anyone for obvious reasons. We just honestly don’t think about it. And maybe that’s not healthy, but it’s what’s right and what works for us right now. So that’s all that matters.”

You nodded, resting your head on your knee, “It doesn’t bother you? That you don’t know?”

“Honestly? No,” she shrugged, “It’s something about living in the moment, you know. Sometimes I think about it, but I know that there’s really nothing Tom and I can do anything about it. So, I just don’t think about it since I can’t find a solution.”

You nodded again, “Thanks, Molly.” She patted your shoulder, “Listen, if you want my advice, I say do it. Wilbur is absolutely head over heels for you. And even if he is blind to it, I can tell you are the same way about him. So, don’t think about it much, just do it. If it makes you both happy, then it’s worth it.”

You flushed, nodding, “I just have to figure out how. Thank you, Molly.”

“I have work off today, so I was probably going to let Tommy possess me so we can go for a walk, if you want some privacy,” she winked, standing and heading inside.

You sat there with nothing but the deep blush on your cheeks and the things she had told you.

You were thankful for the later privacy, though, solely because you didn’t want Tommy there when you confessed. It was nerve-wracking enough without Tommy there to potentially make fun of you.

After dinner, you and WIlbur were sitting on the couch like normal, but you couldn’t focus, too in your head about how to word everything perfectly and oh god, what if he says no.

“Darling, are you okay?” Wilbur asked, pulling you out of your thoughts.

You nodded, biting your lip. You turned, facing him now, and gently taking his hand, “I want to… talk about something.”

“Oh?” he turned, holding your hand tightly, “What’s up?”

Fuck, you really should’ve practiced this before hand. “It’s just…” here goes nothing, “I like you, Wilbur. I’ve known for a bit now, I just didn’t really know what to say or if it would be good to even bring it up until I talked to Molly today, but, yeah. I like you. And, if you’ll take me, I’d- I’d like to be your partner.”

For the first time in your little speech, you looked up to him. And he, god, he looked ecstatic. He had a soft smile on his face, but you could see in his eyes just how overjoyed he was.

“Darling, nothing would make me happier. I’d be a fool to not take you,” he squeezed your hand gently, “Can I kiss you?”

You nodded, and he brought a hand up, slowly guiding your lips together. The kiss was enchanting, and the sensation – a mix of cool and tingling – it reminded you of peppermint chapstick. You held onto his shoulder gently, kissing him back and putting just as much love into it as it gave you.

You both pulled away quickly, solely due to the sound of the door opening. Both of your heads whipped towards the sound, watching as Molly-Tommy walked in, and after a moment, you watched Tommy’s spirit separate, and he carefully held onto Molly, so she wouldn’t fall. Once he looked over, both of you red-faced and looking like you were clearly caught, he raised his free arm up, cheering, “Holy shit! Wilbur finally got bitches!”

Your relationship with Wilbur was surprisingly easy. Not much actually changed between the two of you, aside from kissing and making out more. He slept in your bed more often, though he still had those nights when he would disappear to the attic. He also tended to be more generally affectionate rather than flirty, now that he knew it was okay to kiss you when he felt like it.

There was something not-house related that popped up recently though. You didn’t notice it for the first few days, but by the fourth day it was glaringly obvious. Every day that you would leave your house for work, you noticed a man, around mid-fourties, sitting on a bench across the street. He would follow your path to work, but he would never interact. It made you feel uneasy, though. You told a few of your coworkers, and they all agreed that it was weird, but you refrained from telling Wilbur and Tommy. You didn’t want any problems, you just mostly wanted to figure out why this guy kept watching you.

Thankfully, it didn’t take too long to find out. On the second week of this occurring, he actually came up to you, holding a single flower out towards you.

When he spoke, it sounded as though he hadn’t spoken properly in about two years, and it sent a shiver down your spine, but none of his words were mean or harmful.

“Hello. I’m sorry to bother you,” he handed you the flower, a red chrysanthemum, before continuing, “it’s just, well, I used to be friends with the boys who lived in that house. Not a lot of people move in there, so when I heard you did, I got a bit curious.”

You accepted the flower, somewhat shocked by the plainness of his statement, “Oh. I understand the curiosity, the house has quite a reputation. It’s a lovely place, though.”

He nodded, “I loved being in there. I’ve heard the reputation it has as well, but I wanted to ask, as the current owner, do you believe in any of it? I’m not quite sure I believe in these ghost stories.”

You chuckled softly. You had gotten used to lying about your ghostly boyfriend and roommates, “No, I don’t believe in any of it. However, if it keeps my payments low, I don’t mind.”

That brought a laugh out of him, and it eased your nerves a bit. “I get that. Sorry if I weirded you out at all, It’s just- not exactly easy to come up to people and ask if they believe in ghosts.”

“People do it all the time now, actually,” you hummed. It wasn’t uncommon, these days, for anyone who knew you lived there to ask those types of questions. “But you said you were friends with the boys?”

He nodded, “Yes. We were good friends for a long time. It was tragic what happened to them, but I am glad to hear that you haven’t had any problems. I always worried that their souls may not have been able to move on.”

You gave a soft smile, “Yeah, I worried the same when I moved in. I imagine it’d be quite scary to exist like that. But, no issues, really.”

“That’s good, then. The boys were so kind, too. William and Thomas, their names were.”

“Oh, really?” You asked, as if you didn’t know.

For the next week, every day, that man would walk with you to work, telling stories about the boys, and every day, he would bring you a red chrysanthemum. It was nice to hear about the boys when they were alive, even if it was a bit chilling to think about how they lived before knowing what would become of them.

One day, the man brought a whole bouquet of the red chrysanthemums, and you accepted them with a soft smile. As he told stories, he spoke in a bit of a far-away tone.

“I’ve always wanted to go back in, actually. To see where we all used to goof off. I think it would be a nice way to get closure, after all that’s happened. The guy who killed them, he was smart, really smart, but he never got caught, so their story never got closure. I never got closure. I’m not sure, I’ve just always thought that, just walking around and seeing their rooms, it would help.”

That brought a thought to your brain. This guy used to be their friend, and Wilbur said that they always wondered what happened to all the people who they never saw anymore. It would be a really nice surprise for them!

“Well, if you’d like, once I get off of work, I can let you in, let you walk around a bit?”

He grinned, “Really? Oh, that would be lovely. You get home around six usually, yes?”

You nodded softly, “Yeah.”

“Perfect! Oh, thank you so much, it would truly be the best thing to be able to see in there again. You don’t know how much you’ve truly done for me.”

When you got home, he was waiting at your front porch. You smiled softly at him, waving as you went to unlock the door. You opened the door slowly, to give the boys time to go invisible when they realized there was someone in the house.

“You can just take a seat on the couch, alright? I’m going to put my stuff away and then I’ll walk the place with you.”

He nodded, taking a seat and looking around. You walked to your room to put your bag away, but the moment you closed the door, you were met with the two ghosts, startling you backwards.

“Jesus, you guys scared me,” you whispered.

“What the fuck is going on right now?” Tommy whispered harshly.

Wilbur just looked angry, the silent type of angry that honestly put fear in you as well.

“What are you talking about? Him?”

“Of fucking course, we’re talking about him! Why is he here?” It was weird to hear Tommy sounding so quiet and panicked.

“He said he used to be your friend. I wanted to surprise you guys,” you smiled a bit, not yet understanding why they both looked so upset and fearful and angry.

“That dickhead was not our friend.” “What? Tommy, what are you on about?”

“Love, that’s the man who murdered us.” Wilbur spoke for the first time, anger clear in his voice.

You felt a chill go down your spine, straightening, “What?”

“The bastard pretended to be our friend, talking to us, bringing us shit like gifts and flowers,” you felt your entire body go cold as Tommy continued, “All so he could fucking murder us.”

“He’s been giving me flowers every day.” You noted simply, and the two of them both lost all the fear in their expressions, now just looking purely angry and protective. They shared a look before looking back at you. Wilbur placed a hand on your shoulder, gently despite the ferocity in his expression.

“Go back out there before he gets suspicious, but if he wants to go to the attic, do not walk in first, let him go first. You hear me?”

You nodded quickly, and Wilbur pulled you forward, kissing you passionately, “I won’t let him fucking touch you,” he growled out softly.

You kissed him back, slowly pulling out from Wilbur’s grasp and heading back out into the living room, a bit more stiff than before.

“You ready to look around?” You asked, trying to sound as normal as possible. He nodded, standing up. You and him walked upstairs to the boys’s rooms, and the entire time you could feel Wilbur and Tommy’s presence behind you.

You went to both of the boy’s old rooms, and he seemed completely normal, talking about all the times he’d seen the boys in here. After Wilbur’s room, he spoke up properly.

“Can we see the attic? The boys and I used to hang out there at night.”

You gulped softly and nodded, “Do you remember where it is?”

He smiled and nodded, “of course! I remember sneaking up there with them all the time.”

“Alright, lead the way then.” You gestured for him to lead the way, but he shook his head.

“Oh, no, I couldn’t, it’s your house after all.”

“No, really, I insist.”

He tilted his head, smiling, and this time it brought you waves of unease, “Is there something wrong?”

Fuck. There were two ways this could go. You could say yes, and he could just kill you right here. Or you could say no and deal with Wilbur’s anger later.

You’d rather deal with Wilbur’s anger later.

“...No. Nothing’s wrong, um, follow me, I guess.” You started walking upstairs to the attic, and you practically hear Wilbur’s curses in your ear.

You opened the door and walked in, and the man walked in behind you. Before either of you had a chance to react, the door slammed shut and locked, and you were pulled into the chair on the otherside of the room.

You watched Wilbur reappear, standing over you protectively. Tommy reappeared after, standing by the door. The man looked around wildly at the two of the them, stuttering.

“You- you said they weren’t real!” He looked at you angrily, and he started advancing towards you.

Wilbur grabbed your hands, placing them on top of your eyes. “Do not open your eyes.” He ordered, and all you could do was hear for a few minutes as the sound of strange whispers filled the room. There was light coming from the center of the room that you could vaguely make out from behind your hands, and soon, there was the sound of the man screaming. The room felt heavy, as if every negative emotion you’d ever known was flowing into your body all at once.

You knew you shouldn’t, but you couldn’t help your curiosity as you peered between two fingers.

Tommy and Wilbur stood over the man as he sank into what appeared to be a portal into the floor. That wasn’t what really caught your attention, though.

What caught your attention was Tommy and Wilbur’s appearances. This must’ve been the true form they mentioned, you realized. They looked nearly decrepit, Tommy’s stomach covered in blood, and his neck showing a long open wound. Wilbur wasn’t much better, a clear stab wound going straight through his chest. If you looked hard enough, you could see through it. His face had a long scratch going down the side, hitting through his eye. There was another stab wound on him, a clear chunk taken out of his arm. Both of their eyes were glowing, Wilbur’s a haunting cold blue, and Tommy’s a deep red.

You gasped softly and quickly covered your eyes in full again. No wonder they didn’t want you to see it. It was entirely haunting to see.

A few minutes later, Wilbur walked over and pulled your hands off of your eyes. The light, the portal, and the man were all gone. You had started crying at some point after seeing them like that, and Wilbur quickly pulled you into his arms.

“It’s okay, he’s gone.” He whispered, kissing the top of your head and rubbing your back soothingly. You sobbed against him, gently moving a hand to the center of his chest to make sure the wound wasn’t there anymore even if you’d already seen him looking normal.

He seemed to realize what you were doing pretty quickly, but he never let go of you or seemed upset in the slightest, “You saw, didn’t you?”

You nodded, another wave of sobs wracking your body.

He sighed softly, just holding you closer, “I’m sorry, darling. I never wanted you to see that. I’m so so sorry,” he whispered.

You didn’t respond, just sobbing against him and clinging onto him desperately.

He helped you calm down, and after you got past the tears from processing their true forms, you had to come to terms with the stark reality that you would have absolutely been killed, the same way the boys had, if they weren’t there for you.

The house was mostly quiet the rest of the night, though Wilbur and Tommy were both clearly filled with a sense of relief.

You asked Wilbur about it later as you rested on his chest in bed. “Are you and Tommy happy he’s gone?”

He hummed, looking down at you, “He’s not gone, per se. Just in his own personal hell. It felt good, but, if you’re wondering why we’re both relieved, that’s not why.”

He got better at reading you as you two grew closer, and this was clear evidence of it, “Then why?”

“We didn’t know if that would be it for us,” he sighed softly, “There’s always been this idea that ghosts stick around due to unfinished business. We don’t know if that’s true or not, but we always assumed, if it was, it was because he was still here. So, there was a chance that when we got rid of him, we both would’ve just ceased to exist, or moved on to the afterlife, whatever. We’re relieved that didn’t happen. Neither of us could stand leaving you and Molly like that, with no clue what happened to us.”

You nodded softly, “But, wouldn’t it have been nice? To move on?”

“No,” he almost laughed, “Not without you.”

You held onto him tighter, nodding softly. “He would’ve killed me, if you two weren’t here.” You whispered.

He nodded, but he didn’t speak.

“If we let him, maybe I would’ve been here with you guys forever, like you are now.”

He looked at you, horrified, “Darling, don’t start with that. There’s absolutely no way we could’ve been certain of that, and I don’t want this for you. I want you to live a full life, and I don’t even want to know what would’ve happened if he killed you and your spirit didn’t stay. It would’ve been devastating for both of us, Tommy too. So, please, don’t start with that. I’m glad you are alive.”

You nodded softly, and his arms tightened around you, “I owe you both my life regardless.” He chuckled lightly, leaning down and kissing you gently, “Darling, the only thing you owe us is your happiness. All I want is for you to be happy. Nothing else matters to me anymore.”

You smiled, kissing him back lovingly.

“I love you, Wilbur.”

He smiled, eyes glowing the same blue, but lighter this time, as you exchanged your first ‘I love you’s. “I love you too, darling.”

#wilbur soot x reader #wilbur soot #mcyt x reader #dsmp x reader #mar writes #wilbur x reader #mcyt x you #wilbur soot x you #wilbur soot fanfiction #mcytumblr #mcyt wilbur #theres an alt ending :)#not written out but :)#i know what it is :)

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sl33py-day · 1 year

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All the things I could’ve done

So I had an idea, it’s kinda weird but confusing also.

Either Modern AU Genshin for Kazuha, Kaveh, or Anyone with a dead friend.

Warnings: Kidnaping, Implied stalking? I guess.

Imagine Y/n having some mental health issues, depression, anxiety and self esteem issues. They constantly feel like they are no good, a piece of complete potato peels, and also have the tendency to overthink. They had parents who would joke about how they are a failure and get upset when you started to cry. They went to therapy and the Therapist gave advice on how to deal with a load of problems.

The therapist said that maybe recording how you feel would help with the self esteem issues, the anxiety of talking, and help focus on the positive aspects of life.

Who knew that the videos you took would help solve your sudden disappearance.

Police would ask your parents about how you’ve been acting, any signs of wanting to run away or something along the lines of leaving. But when your parents said “No, they haven’t shown any signs of that. You could look through their daily check ins.” Which were the videos you took every day.

————————————

“Hey! I found the videos the parents were talking about!” A police officer said while pulling out a box of random things. In the white rectangle box was a black Camera.

“Let’s take it back to look at the videos.” Another police officer said while waving goodbye to your parents. The two officers met at the car to look at the last taken video.

“Is it charged?” He asked while starting the car to drive. The female police officer was looking through the camera. “Mhm.” Was what she responded with. Flicking through the photos as she kept seeing nature pictures. Flowers, Flowers, a house, Flowers and more trees.

“There’s nothing but nature and the last picture taken was about a month before Y/n was reported missing.” The woman said with a confused look. Your parents said you did it everyday. So why is the last thing recorded about a month before you went missing?

“Did you check the files? I’m sure there’s some files in that camera.” The brown haired officer asked while turning the corner. She did what her partner asked and found videos upon videos of just daily check in’s.

“Found a video a day before he went missing!” The woman said while playing the video. At the start of the video a young boy around the age of 18 was sitting on his messy bed looking pretty tired. His eyes had bags under them and he seemed pretty skittish also.

“Hello, My names Y/n L/n. The date today is August 3rd.” The boy started to talk in the video, his voice was a clear sign he was tired. “I-I’m scared, my friend had been acting weird for some time now. I didn’t pay attention to all the signs.” Y/n started to speed up his talking, he was freaking out and didn’t know what to do.

“I honestly don’t think he was sane to begin with. His friend died because of an illness so it would definitely affect anyone…” The h/c boy tried to reason with himself which wasn’t really working. He started to get more nervous. “But that doesn’t change the fact he-he said he wanted to me to be his!” Y/n semi yelled in slight fear. “I’m scared, he threatened me earlier today about how if I wasn’t gonna stop talking to Aether then he would kidnap me.”

The video shuts off, the screen goes black and a few screams could be heard in the background of the video before it ended. The two police officers looked at each other in horror.

#Yandere male #yandere genshin #yandere genshin impact #yandere #genshin impact #yandere genshin x reader #yandere venti #gn reader #gender neutral reader #Yandere Kazuha x reader #Yandere Kazuha #Yandere Kaveh x reader #Yandere Kaveh #yandere cyno #yandere tighnari #yandere kaveh #yandere alhaitham #yandere wanderer

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a-linearis · 1 year

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to my fellow humans struggling with bfrbs (body focused repetitive behaviours):

you are not a monster, you are not disgusting or shameful, you are a person worthy of love and care and respect :)

About a week ago, I had one of the worst episodes of skin biting in months, I'm doing better now but I wanted to put some tips and reminders here!

I didn't know that there was terms for my behaviours until like a few months ago (even though this has been a thing since I was really young), since shame and stigma got in the way of anyone in my family actually doing any research/getting me help (i.e. i had to deal with it on my own :<)

[note: a lot of these are for dermatophagia/onychophagia since I can talk from personal experience, feel free to add your own advice!]

Water is a big thing that can be triggering, since it can reveal flaps of skin (when your skin absorbs the water and your skin goes wrinkly), so a lot of these revolve around water.

If the skin around your fingers is affected, go wash your hands immediately after an episode of the repetitive behaviour! Rinsing my mouth also helps sometimes.

go get yourself some (cheap) hand cream from your local drugstore. I always keep moisturiser on me to use after I was my hands/do the dishes/have a shower/anytime my hands feel dry

Wash the dishes with gloves/use a dishmatic/if you have a dishwasher and it doesn't cost too much to use you can use that

Try turning off the water in your shower whilst applying soap to your body. If showers are completely too triggering, flannels and deodorant (but at least try to shower if you've exercised/once every few days). Equally, washing your hands should be fine, but if not, then hand sanitiser (be careful of cuts though!)

I exfoliate around my fingers with brown sugar like once every two days if my fingers don't hurt, I'm not sure of the proven efficacy of it removing dead skin from the surface but it makes me feel good (it's a good replacement activity)

nail oils! jojoba oil is known to be good, but i used to use virgin olive oil because it's also good (and it was something I had at home). Right now I just use shea butter! just moisturise in any way possible!

There are some things that people say such as bitter nail solutions and gum, but I used to just chew right through those, so remember that there is no one solution that works for everyone (some of these won't help you, and that's fine)

Plasters tend to stop air from getting to small cuts on your fingers so try not to use those (they weren't very helpful for me, at least)

When your hands start healing, gloves can help, but the fabric tends to catch onto skin/nails so be careful with that (and when you're putting on clothes in general)

Nail polish/rings if you like them! You shouldn't feel like you have to wait until your fingers are better before you can look nice :)

Knitting/fiddling with rings/making sure your doing something with your hands can be useful sometimes, but it's totally understandable if you just start with one little piece of skin and you end up like completely wrecking your fingers (when you start, you often can't stop)

Be aware of possible triggers. it's very hard to do this since sometimes episodes come out of nowhere, but I know i'm more likely to start biting my skin after stressful events or during task paralysis/when my brain is "stuck" (the logic is that my brain can be "stuck" on something else instead of all these impending things i have to do but can't get myself to start doing)

Remind yourself how much your hands help you to experience the world around you - You write, read, use technology, make and eat food, play your favourite games, hug your friends and create with your hands! You owe it to yourself to keep them safe and healthy where possible. Be compassionate with yourself (it will often be in spite of the way others treat you - but we are all here for you!)

talking about it can always help too with removing guilt/shame (I am always down to talk) and reading other posts on the tags here can feel v validating (@bfrb-culture-is has been so so helpful in making me feel less alone!)

I do hope this is helpful, this post is as much for me as it is for anyone else that comes across it <3

Have a good day~

#dermatophagia #onychophagia #tw bfrb #bfrb awareness #bfrb #body focused repetitive behavior #tw self injurious behaviour

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mrwinterr · 2 years

Text

Over & Over (Again) - Part 1

Pairing(s): Pornstar!Pietro Maximoff x Female Reader (mention of Pornstar!Bucky Barnes x Female Reader)

Summary: You and Bucky are set to work with each other again, but insecurities and shit. Read Part 1 here.

Warnings: Adult themes. | Smut 18+

Disclaimer: I still don’t know how the porn industry works. We’re here for a good time, not a long time.

A/N: Fuck it. I wrote this and never finished it, but why should I deprive anyone who happens to want read this AU? Also, feel free to visualize either portrayals of Pietro in this piece. Enjoy!

“Now, I want a full report on everything that happens on that set, okay?” Wanda requests as she follows you out from your walk-in closet, where you had grabbed a new pair of lingerie for the said film you’re currently packing for, and back into your bedroom to stuff it into your suitcase at the last minute.

She doesn’t see the humorous roll of your eyes, but she knows you made some sort of playful gesture because of Natasha, who was lounging on your bed, and the smirk adorning her face. As your mentor, she still checked with you each time you left to film and you were always grateful for her advice. Her support is exactly what you’d be needing too because you were booked to film a scene for another prominent director - Tony Stark. For that reason, Wanda was eager to seek out any kind of insight she could get from you on how to continue in outing her rival.

“Let the girl focus on her real job, Wan,” Natasha says trying to get her off your back. It wasn’t actually a bother, but rather amusing to you that she and Tony would go to such lengths to outdo the other. He paid a hefty price with Natasha for her to allow him to book you for his next film. More importantly, she wouldn’t have steered you in the wrong direction or thrown you out there if you weren’t ready.

Your shoot with Bucky struck gold within the porn community and the momentum you picked up didn’t slow its roll. Just as you were told, you were a hot commodity! Your ranking skyrocketed, you were getting booked left and right, started working with bigger names and companies, which all meant you were getting paid more. It’s been quite the journey and the break you’ve been looking for since you started a career in the adult film industry.

“You’re right,” Wanda agrees, letting out a big sigh to alleviate her worry. “What am I really worried about? No one can top that film I did with her and Bucky,” then flashes a small, complacent smile to the two of you.

“Yeah, except maybe a sequel of her and Bucky…” Natasha counters with another knowing smile of her own.

“What?!” Wanda asks, bewildered, eyes bugging, the worry starting to creep back in on her face.

“Oops, I guess we forgot to mention to Wanda who your co-star was, didn’t we?” Natasha directs the question to you, getting a kick out of Wanda’s reaction. You shake your head at your friends before zipping up your bag and setting it on the ground, ready for you to roll on out with.

“How could you forget such a huge detail like that?” She questions, and it doesn’t stop there. “I can overlook the fact that he’s paying your expense to a lavish city in Europe, but not her and Bucky again!”

“It’s really not that big of a deal, Wanda,” you say so casually with a shrug and you don’t miss the dead unamused look on her face because she knows what you said was complete bullshit to her. The now infamous video had been seen by millions and in counting, hell, you were already getting early nominations for it. Wanda feared that she wouldn’t be able to follow up to it and now her rival, who is just as acclaimed is getting a shot.

“Okay, what I’m trying to get at is that it doesn’t matter who I work with,” you explain with a different approach.

“Exactly. She was the star of that video not Bucky,” Natasha backs you up.

“Yes, but the chemistry between you two is unmatched!” Wanda insists. She’s not wrong. The connection and vibes both you and Bucky gave off was so authentic and believable that it made it a hit and for fans to beg for more in the comments.

“I don’t know…” you pipe up unexpectedly. Sex with Bucky was great and if you could you’d do it over and over again with him, but while you too were convinced you had great chemistry with him, you also didn’t want to feel type casted to work with one person your whole career.

The silence from your friends only indicated for you to continue. They were rather astonished because they knew there just had to be more of you and Bucky than you weren’t letting on.

“I mean...I work well with anyone,” you say, trying to make a point. Who were you trying to convince though? Unless you fess up and swallow your pride, you couldn’t take that back and had to just finish that thought process. “I had great reviews on the new video I did with Pietro!”

Well, you weren’t lying there. It was one of your “milestone” videos so to say. The kind that showed off where you were now, what kind of things have you learned now that you’re a “star” and people played into that, seeing the newbie become pro and only get better from then on.

“Yeah, about that…” Natasha speaks up, “...is having sex with him the slightest bit weird for you?”

“What do you mean by that?” You ask, puzzled with her genuine curiosity.

“In a way, it’s like you’re having sex with Wanda,” she clarifies.

“We may be twins, but that’s totally not the same thing!” Wanda interjects.

“We work in porn, there’s nothing weird about anything,” you answer hoping that settles it. The more you worked in this industry, the more comfortable you became with things that may seem strange to most. Wanda and Pietro were both in this line of business and no doubt know about each other's work, but that’s the kind of thing that grows on you in the porn industry.

“It’s totally not the same thing and as I was saying Pietro and I get good views, Steve and I get good views...need I go on?” continuing your spiel that who your co-star is makes no difference at all.

“To an extent, yes, you do,” Natasha compromises, but you know your friends aren’t all the way convinced yet, “...but you’re still not denying it.”

“Whatever happened between you and Bucky?” Wanda asks the million dollar question. You were able to avoid the topic for a few months now, but a part of you knew with their track record, they’d bring it back up, “...I thought things were working out for you two.”

“Yeah, well I thought so too until he started ghosting me,” you reply with a hint of bitterness and annoyance at the unpleasant feeling of how his actions left you resurfacing.

“Hold on! He what?!” Natasha asks. How dare he, right? The guy makes a show of how infatuated he was with you during a shoot of all places and some months later tosses you aside like the others? Natasha was seeing red only because she was protective of you. Had she known, she wouldn’t have given you off like that again to Bucky to boost his profile.

“He just stopped replying to me one day,” you finally reveal. You don’t know where or when it went wrong, but who were you kidding? Could you two really have made a relationship work while working in the porn industry?

“When?” She continues to dig for more, Wanda leaning over intrigued by this admission.

As far as all parties were considered, everything was looking good between you and Bucky. The pair of you did go out on a few dates, recorded some home videos to upload, some private and others exclusive paid content. During all that, you were absolutely happy with your life. Your career took off, you had the best support from your friends and colleagues, and on top of that a sweet and sexy guy by your side. It was becoming believable that you two could make it work...except apparently some feelings weren’t put aside well enough.

“I don’t know…” you sigh and plop down on the end of your bed exhausted of this topic and the thought of Bucky, “...probably around the time he flew out of the country for a shoot and I was filming that sequel with Pietro.”

You were starting to reconsider this whole shoot now. Did he meet someone else on that trip? Someone better than you? Still, he could’ve at least had the decency to let you down. You can tell your friends are absorbing this new information as Wanda gently pats and runs a hand down your arm, noticing the light distress that’s overcome you. You turn your head to look towards Natasha from behind after hearing her make a noise suggesting she has an idea.

“What is it, Nat?” Wanda asks for you.

“Wilson said Barnes has a hard time watching you perform with other guys...” she starts out.

“That’s ridiculous! We do this for a living,” you’re quick to respond, not even entertaining the mere possibility of what she’s presenting to the table.

“He’s jealous!” Wanda blurts out connecting the dots, “...of you and Pietro!” Both of them looked at each other, carrying a proud look on their faces at believing they had it all figured out.

There’s a befuddled look on your face and you’re wondering if that could be it. Bucky always played it so smooth and cool with you, never showed any signs of jealousy before, but if you look back hard enough, you start to make sense of the timeline.

The whole duration of your “fling” with Bucky was when you were doing solo videos and/or girl-on-girl scenes. It was an experimental turn of your career and when he flew off to work on his next big project, you accepted the scene with Pietro.

“So, welcome back! It’s been a year since you’ve been on this couch,” the director states the obvious and to which you smile at, reminiscing that very day.

You were so green and nervous, and in some aspect you still felt that way. The sole purpose of you being asked to come back here was to show off what you’ve learned from being an adult film performer. Newly found confidence was the point of this shoot and not so much of what you could take, but what you could offer.

The only sense of comfort you were given then and now is from the person sitting next to you. Pietro was your first co-star and you were put at ease because you always felt safe with him. He calmed your mind and nerves on day one and taught you to take only what you like from any other guy you’d work with later down the road. You loved being in Pietro’s company and you had loads of fun working with him, but that’s just what it was, work. The relationship with him was strictly professional.

“You look amazing!” The director boasts.

“Thank you,” you respond modestly and put on a show of bashfulness.

“You’ve really made a name for yourself since then haven't you?”

“I guess…” you shrug playfully and continue to downplay. You’re always being told to just take the damn compliment but everything you’ve managed to achieve in a short amount of time was still so surreal to you.

“You’re kidding, right?” Pietro butts in jokingly.

“It’s only been a year!” You argue, shaking your head at him. There’s a smile on your face that you fail to conceal from him because it’s hard to legit be mad around Pietro when you’ve only felt happiness in his presence. He was very dear to you.

“And? A lot can happen in a year!” He counters, poking a hole through your logic and literally your side, causing you to squirm into his arms.

He got you there, alright, and the subtle smirk on his striking face, blue eyes luring you into the deep end, only pushed your buttons.

Okay, if they’re all so adamant that you’re this new Pro…you’d show them.

“You didn’t see that coming, did you?” You jab at Pietro, during the scene, and using one of his most used lines against him, after you successfully overtake him out of nowhere.

With him against the backrest of the couch, your legs straddling his hips, effectively trapping him in place, hands braced on top of his pecs. Well into this scene, he’d let his guard down for a few seconds after some deep and good thrusts of his hips into yours. When his quick pace began to falter, that was just the opening you needed to shine.

“Fuck me,” he pleads breathlessly, his fingers squeezing at the flesh of your hips. You feel his cock twitch up against your wet folds and your body naturally reacting by grounding eagerly on him. A satisfied hum escapes both your mouths almost at the same time as you reach down to guide him back inside your heat.

Being on top used to make you feel self conscious, especially when you were being filmed, but it was a power move you learned to master. Everyone loved a good view of the action, the way your greedy cunt dripped for the lucky cock that would find its way snug inside you and not to mention your ass and how it bounced from each force.

You roll your hips deliciously, loving the way your clit drags against the base of his cock and how the tip scratches along your walls. Pietro’s head rests on the edge of the backrest, you brush away his matted hair from his forehead to look at him. You’re absolutely reeling on the blissed out expression on his face, eyes half-lidded, eyebrows slightly furrowed, sweat building up along his hairline, and his lips parted in want.

Of course, you weren’t super human and your stamina could only take you so far, the scene ends with your back flat on the couch again, one leg propped upright against Pietro’s chest and the other hanging off the edge of the couch.

“Look at you…” Pietro comments, admiring the white streaks of his warm cum strewn across your midsection, up as far as your breasts, while he slowly tugs at his sensitive cock of every drop he has right then for you. The last bit of it that dribbles from the tip and pooling onto your skin causes you to moan inwardly, almost setting you ablaze once more.

“You made me cum so fast!” You comment letting out little fits of giggles and covering your exhausted face, almost embarrassed. Your pussy was still tingling as your orgasm coursed and rocked right through you so suddenly. The fourth wall never existed in this shoot because your amusement is only heightened when the director joins in on the joke pretending that Pietro ruined everything by unintentionally making quick work of it.

You’ve had lots of great sex with others prior to today, but Pietro knew where to aim his cock just at the right spot better than most. At first, it made you feel a bit pathetic that you’d come almost instantly with him, but you made up for it in other aspects.

“No one has ever made me cum that quick,” you mention rather shyly.

He beams at the compliment, plants a few soft kisses on your calf before letting your leg down to carefully hover over you. He gently caresses your cheek, before reminding everyone who he was, “they don’t call me Quicksilver for nothing.”

“You’re such a dork!” You tease, another smile breaking through, then start running your fingers through the thick fluid that stained your hot skin before bringing them up and engulfing them in your mouth sucking on his essence. He lets out a low groan, entranced by your sexual allure, watching your throat contract as you swallow and the way your fingers slip all nice, wet and clean from your lips.

“Oh, you’re a star, alright,” he says when you’ve finished cleaning up his mess and smiling down proud of how much you’ve improved since your first scene. Thriving on the praise, you bring him back in closer by the nape of his neck, your fingers digging into his silver hair on the back of his head, as your lips press to his in a sweet kiss.

“How quick can you make me cum again?” You challenge, locking your legs around him for more.

The skin of his knuckles turned white from the death grip he doesn’t realize he has on the small screen of his phone, having watched your next best film to date. His blood curdled knowing that someone seemed to outperform him.

Fucking Pietro Maximoff, and his talent to get his co-stars off in an instant as if he had a magic touch or something. No, what bothered Bucky the most was how not only flawless you were, but your raw talent. Everything you did looked so effortless on your part, like you were born to be in front of the camera and adored by.

After watching the movie a few times, he couldn’t help but wonder if he’d let his feelings get the best of him and the undeniable connection he had with you on set that day was just you playing it up for the cameras. After all, you’re an actress and your job is to look good with almost anyone you were paired with.

He wasn’t sure why he was watching this more than once. At first, it was to support you but then seeing how comfortable you were with Pietro and how you fawned over him, made Bucky’s skin crawl. He wouldn’t be surprised if there was anything more to you and the Maximoff twin.

“I didn’t peg you as a sadist, but now I’m not so sure,” says Sam ribbing Bucky for torturing himself by watching one of your films...again. Sam knew Bucky got worked up seeing you with another male performer even if he wouldn’t admit it.

Bucky is quick to swipe the video away, but not before fumbling with the device and stuffing it back in his pocket.

“Get out of my face, Sam,” he grumbles in response.

“Is this what you call studying your co-star? I thought you two were more than acquainted with each other,” Sam quizzes him.

“Stop. We filmed one scene together-”

“Bullshit! We’ve all seen those homemade videos on both your profiles. You’re clearly into her, but you’re acting like a-”

“I’m not acting like anything!” Bucky is quick to try and defend himself. He had his own reasons to feel how he felt and he didn’t need Sam telling him what he thinks of it.

“Pussy,” Sam finishes his sentence nonetheless, “you’re acting like a pussy, alright.”

“Exactly how am I acting like a pussy about all this, bird brain?”

“Instead of using your profession as an excuse to sleep with her again, you could be doing it on your own time, but you let your insecurities get the best of you and stop you from having a real connection with someone again.”

“That is not true! Our relationship was strictly professional.”

“Try convincing that to the millions that got off to the videos…” Sam throws and Bucky opens his mouth to argue, but closes it when he can’t find anything to say. You both really outdid it on that video together.

“Whatever. I have a flight to catch,” Bucky says in an attempt to dismiss the conversation.

“In five hours...now, come on, man. What happened between you two?”

“It’s none of your business.”

“No, but you’ve been a real buzzkill lately and I can’t help but think it has something to do with her.”

“There was never a thing with us.”

“Are you kidding? Did you or did you two not have sex on that couch in your living room? Then not tell me about it because you know how much I love that couch! You brought her back to your home because you liked her.”

“We needed extra income,” Bucky disputes the home videos you both agreed to share online.

“What’s the real reason, Buck?”

“You don’t get to call me that.”

“Stop changing the subject. Now, what did she do?” Sam presses Bucky.

“Nothing, alright! It’s me!”

“I’m gonna need you to elaborate on that.”

“I’m head over heels for her.”

“What’s wrong with that? That’s perfectly normal when someone likes another person.”

“I’m not so sure she feels the same way.”

“What gave you that impression?” Sam presses while he knows he’s got Bucky right where he wants with the topic.

“I can’t believe I’m even telling you this. The first time I watched her video with Pietro, I saw... how natural she was in it...like they just looked so good together.”

“Okay, that’s her job...is to act like she’s enjoying it,” Sam explains and for a second it’s like he’s almost walking on eggshells because while he can’t help but want to smack Bucky for being childish about this, he needs to really understand why.

“Yeah, I know how to do our job…” Sam raises his hands in defense, “...it’s the fact that she looked so...good with him that if she looked so convincing in that video then what if...all that was happening in ours was for the cameras. Everything was fine between us for a while, but maybe she just has that factor of making anyone look good with her. What makes me different?”

“So, there’s a few things we got to address here: 1) Of course it was for the cameras. You're both performers. You act. 2) What you two were doing was not acting. 3) Do you not remember that she wanted to work with you?”

“Did you not see how much she was enjoying getting it from Maximoff?”

“She’s really good at her job! She’s not getting recognized for nothing.”

“Well, she had me convinced…”

“I forgot to point out one more thing.”

“What’s that?”

“You’re insecure,” Sam straight up tells him, “...you’ve always been insecure, but when you risked asking her out while the cameras were still rolling, you weren’t. She made you feel something and you liked it. You’re gonna have to talk to her anyways, so you might as well air it all out if you want her back.”

“How successful would that approach be for someone that ghosted the person in question?”

“Really? You ghosted her? Fucking idiot…” Sam says, shaking his head before walking away from his friend.

A/N: Annnnd...that’s it! There’s another piece with more of Bucky, but I’m not thinking about it enough to complete it. But plz, tell me what you thought or felt about this. Can you hype me enough? Bye, again!

#mrwinterr writes #bucky barnes smut #bucky barnes imagine #bucky barnes x reader #pietro maximoff smut #pietro maximoff x reader #bucky barnes #pietro maximoff #sebastian stan smut #bucky barnes x y/n #pietro maximoff x y/n #pornstar!bucky #pornstar!bucky barnes #pornstar!pietro maximoff #au #bucky barnes au

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captdolphlaserhawk · 8 days

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[ - Pinned - ]

welcome to dolph's blog! watch him stumble through doing normal people things like having social media :P

for a bit of explanation, the timeline is post captain laserhawk s1 <3 what we know so far about dolph is that he's dead and in some pixel world. since he has all the time in the world and inexplicable internet connection, why not try something new?

things to note:

this dolph is canon based with a bit of headcanon! headcanon in the sense of dolph's text habits and overall worldbuilding. canon in the sense that hes an emotionally constipated asshole still nursing his wounds after breaking up with his first love

i roleplay semi frequently, so dont be afraid to go all out! my main style is paragraphs and im literate! all i ask is to please keep interactions pg-13. i'd rather not erp with dolph, nor do i want to put that on anyones timeline. simping is okay, jus dont start cat calling (think things like 'tip colour is #fff382' or 'i know its brown')

shipping is fine, but dont expect a consistent pairing. this dolph isnt, and wont be in a good place to maintain a relationship lol

i am new to tumblr rping, so please feel free to give me feedback! im much more used to rping on discord and roblox, so please be patient if im not doing something right :3

theres a bit of plot in this rp blog ;] you just have to figure out how to progress it (and some of yall are doing it)

DO NOT SEND IN ASKS PERTAINING TO YOUR OWN PERSONAL MENTAL HEALTH (eg. asking how to deal with certain thoughts, how to cope with things, etc.). i am just a roleplay blog and i am NOT equipped to give you advice.

go follow the other CLH roleplay blogs! all of them are run by lovely lovely people :D

Fakeman (also the main inspo for this blog! thank you <3): @the-rayman-show

Ramon: @gunsblazingg

Bullfrog: @thefinalsight

Jade: @personalreporter

Red: @lazerl0zer

#everyone is doing this so im doing it too lol :P #captain laserhawk #dolph laserhawk #roleplay blog #roleplay #ooc #pinned intro

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seat-safety-switch · 2 years

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College radio is the spiritual and intellectual lifeblood of any town with a college in it. Moreso than the schools that birthed them, college radio is the true academy of life. You’ve got dead air, you’ve got firmly-held alternative political opinions, and you’ve got bizarre new forms of rock music you haven’t heard before, introduced by a guy who uses a pseudonym, and whose voice sounds like an angle grinder got teen pregnant from a brad nailer. And now, if you live in my town, you’ve got me.

Let me explain how all this happened. A few months ago, when I was looking for old shitboxes, I smelled the distinctive odour of Volvo interior fire. If you’re a normal person, you probably haven’t ingested this particular series of stenches before. On the other hand, if you’re like me, then you have been around more burning Volvos than a so-called career firefighter. On this day, the reek was coming from a few blocks over, so I followed the plume of smoke in the hopes of being able to score a low-mileage 240 wagon from a distressed owner who couldn’t deal with something as small as a rolling electrical fire, and would therefore sell it to me very, very cheaply.

As most Volvos are, this one was owned by a professor at the local college. Unfortunately for me, the fire had been quickly extinguished by the time I got there, thanks to the car’s leaking heater core. There would be no good deal today, but I decided to chat them up anyway. Maybe they had a couple old differentials or some other spares they could let go of, or a 302 swap that had been mouldering since the Clinton administration. We got to talking, and before I knew it, that wily old tenured asshole had pushed me into taking over the 8 p.m. car advice show on Saturdays.

It’s not so bad, honestly. Nobody who’s ever met me would say that they need to see my face more often. My abrasive personality and windshield-scraping voice is more of an asset on the radio, and it’s very difficult for my listeners to reflexively punch me without driving across town to do so. And, most importantly, I get the first dibs on anyone who calls in with a Volvo problem.

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fvck-the-rest · 2 years

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Hello! Only if you could, can i request some headcanons of the hashiras (if it's possible all of them, if not, you can choose whoever you want!) seeing reader (who's also a hashira) as an older sibling figure?? Please and thank you :D

My first ask, thank you so much! And I love this idea!

Hashria x Older Sib Figure Reader!

Warnings- None, enjoy the zero heartbreak, maybe some spelling mistakes here and there

Gyomei Himejima

He will be the most respectful to you, listening to everything that you could very say, even if you say something as a joke he will take it for a word. He will come to you to ask anything and everything that might come to his mind. And if you don't know he will help you find the answer to his question. As his older sib, you are now also his guide to life.

Tengen Uzui

Seeing as all his other siblings are dead, he would do everything in his power to make sure you get the life that you deserve. You would most likely live with him and his wives, or he would have a house built for you that is in sight of the windows in his house. He respected his other sibs, so you would also get the respect that he gave to them. Would also make sure that he listens to anything and everything that you have to say and any advice that you share with him or even his wives. You would care for him and all his wives.

Kyojuro Rengoku

He never has one, though he would treat you with the utmost respect. As you are older and not an asshole for no reason, he will listen to every word that you have to say. He will also make sure that you will always have a smile on your face. If you are even having a slightly bad day he will make sure that you are taken care of. You do eventing that you can to help him get through life, so the less he can do is make your life more bearable. Also would be an older sib to Senjuro, you would also help him become a slayer like his bother.

Sanemi Shinazugawa

You are the only person that he will listen to, other than Ubuyashiki. And he is fully aware that if he were to not listen to something that you said, he knows that his world is about to be flipped upside down. Though you would also naturally become an older sib to Genya as well. You would help both of them with their training, and also patching up any wounds they have, and of course, yell at them for the things that they say to people.

Giyu Tomioka

Having lost his older sister, like Tengen, he would make sure that you get the life that you deserve. Though you are older and have more knowledge than he does, does not matter to him. make sure that you are safe and that nothing gets to you. he has lost too many people in his life, and he does not want to lose anyone else that is close to him. Though he will take any advice that you send his way. Though most likely it will not be what you intended. But at least he did his best, he was not good at socializing.

Muchicio Tokito

He is young, so he needs someone to come to, whether it is to ask simple how some things work or questions about life, he needs that, and that is what you are here for. Though he might not always listen and do as you say when it counts, he does everything you say, word for word. And because of his age, you would be more protective over him than some of the others.

Obanai Iguro

He's a shithead at times, but he really does appreciate everything that you do for him. Though he does always listen, when it counts he will listen to everything that you have to say. You are now his caretaker and the one to deal with his problems. But, you wouldn't change it for the world.

Shinobu Kocho

She would question you, though at times she will, it's only natural. After how she treated her sister, she realized what it took to do what she did. She will always make sure that you are healthy and that you are doing well. Though will ask for your help with a cure if she is stuck. But overall she will you treat you very well and mostly listen to you.

Mitsuri Kanroji

So sweet and kind to you. She will listen to everything you ever tell her and will make sure that she does not ever upset you. Will bring you your favorite things and just random things that she finds and think that you will like. Will come to you for EVERYTHING, does NOT matter what it is, big or small, she will ask you anything. Also, be ready for over-sharing with her.

It took me way too long to make these names purple

#fvck-the-rest #demon slayer x reader #demon slayer fluff #giyuu tomioka x reader #demon slayer headcanons #muichiro x you #tengen x reader #shinobu x reader #mitsuri x reader #sanemi x reader #obanai x reader #demon slayer iguro #iguro x reader #gyomei x reader #rengoku x reader #shinobu kocho x reader #demon slayer #giyu tomioka #tomioka x reader

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seekers-who-are-lovers · 1 year

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The taunting: Undertaker

and Prince Soma

Some thoughts about Chapter 24: The Butler, Onstage and the “Book of Circus’”second episode because I am revisiting the arc due to the recent chapters.

If one is still baffled as to why Ciel Phantomhive decided to take on Undertaker’s challenge, one has to read the manga, too, in order to see the reasons Ciel did it. The “it” being the “payment” he bestowed on the mortician in order to gain more knowledge on the missing children and their connection to the travelling circus troupe. It lead to so many different speculations as to what exactly Ciel had really done. (Anyway, I have one that I incorporated to my head canon written on my fan fiction/interpretation later.)

The scenes and the manga caps reveal the sinister side of the mortician however. They are screaming at me for recognition how cruel Undertaker has been for rubbing this fact on Ciel’s face.

“In the underworld, you see dead children every day after all… You’re wellllll aware of that, aren’t you, Earl?”

We know how uncomfortable he is when dealing with Undertaker due to his odd manners.

It was a reminder that Ciel knew by heart. Ciel should have taken it as a hint, a red flag if you would, concerning Undertaker’s chosen words that somehow the mortician knew something about his abduction/incarceration. That should have planted the seeds of doubt on him. But thinking that the mortician was somehow a confidante of his father’s, he took it in stride.

Now, why was Ciel so desperate to accomplish the task? Look no further to Chapter 23. Ciel appointed Prince Soma as the caretaker of his townhouse in London after a chaos ensued. It happened at the end of the Indian Butler arc. Agni, was ready to turn himself in, atone for the sins he committed, prepared to do the right thing. But drastic measures hindered him to do what he wanted. It was a mix of comedic gags and violent measures from S admonishing the Indian butler would not only endanger Ciel’s standing in the society, but would also cause desperation to his own master, Prince Soma, if he was really imprisoned. It was also in the same chapter where Abberline found out the deal between the Phantomhives and the English royalty.

Ciel was impatient to return to the Manor. There was no good excuse to stay in London anymore when Prince Soma and Agni were staying there. He thought of the Indian prince’s petty insults of his height, his loneliness (no family members, no relatives and no friends to call), and his age. (Yes, Ciel had his aunt and cousins but he never bothered with them and the prince was not aware of it.) While Agni, who worshipped his master through and through, only looked on proudly at his ward thinking he was only giving advices as an older person imparting his knowledge to a much younger Ciel. Agni didn’t notice how uneasy this made the Earl. Agni is very much like a mother hen who spoils rotten their children, unaware of finding what is wrong.

There lies Ciel’s pride, who refuses to depend on any human being. He, who lost his family, must not rely on someone else’s assurance for support as they have their own personal aims. He was determined to do it on his own. That’s why it was understandable that the young aristocrat was eager to solve the missing children’s case in whatever form.

That, later, Undertaker also highlighted this dependence on his butler.

The anime version omitted these parts from the manga and left that tension courtesy of Undertaker alone.

This is the reason he decided on taking the challenge by himself. He had enough of the sarcastic remarks he received from the prince and the mortician. He wanted them to see him as a person, not a mere immature child, capable of making decisions and accomplishing tasks relegated to him by the Queen as her Watchdog. He wanted them to see him as their equal, despite his young age and diminutiveness, worthy of respect. Most of all, as an avid chess player, by not needing anyone he only regarded them as his pawns.

And boy, how wrong he was.

#kuroshitsuji #black butler #sebastian michaelis #ciel phantomhive #yana toboso #undertaker!#undertaker #prince soma #chapter 23 #chapter 24 #kuroshitsuji: book of circus #wall of t e x t #kuroshitsuji meta #kuroshitsuji analysis

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hyperfixatedfandomer · 7 months

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I said it before and I’ll say it again; we NEED Superboy Conner and Lois Lane found family content

HEAR ME OUT!!!

We all know that usually, Lois and Superboy would meet in a period of Clark’s "death". He’s one of several supermen who are trying to fill the gap Clark left and is a clone of his, lab-grown and about 14-15 years old at the time he and the famous journalist meet. Now let me explain my vision.

Lois, usually sassy and blunt in her approach, becomes even more cold and short-tempered after her lover dies. Conner has been briefed on her close friendship with Superman however, so he tries to get into her good graces as she was always Supe’s #1 supporter and gave him good media-coverage.

At first, the woman is obviously done with him. Conner is being his teenage, edgy self and she is grieving over Clark and can’t take much of his bullshit, so after brutally shutting down his half-hearted flirting and correcting him to not call himself "superman", she promptly leaves whatever event she’s even invited to.

However, as Lois is having her little investigation arc, getting to know other supermen and observing how they deal with villains and emergencies, Conner appears on her radar more and more and through forced proximity, she begins guiding him, although roughly.

“Being a hero is not about fame. If that’s what you’re looking for — give up. This is volunteer work, and you’re doing it for the sake of keeping the innocent people safe. You wanna be a hero? Drop the bravado.”

Conner dislikes it at first, but Lois’s tough love quickly grows on him. He likes her honesty and the legit advice she gives him in spite of the dark place she’s clearly in. At the same time, the boy comes to resent Luther more and more every day, with how dead-set he is on treating Superboy like a product, and investing zero of his time into actually raising the kid who very much needs a parent at this age.

So Con just kinda…starts showing up at the same spots Lois is, even outside the hero work. At the cafe, at her job, at the park. Wherever she goes, the kid will most likely appear, and after listening to him talk about Lex, she minds him less and less.

“I’m, like, an investment y’know. I need to keep Mr. Luther happy or..”

“Or…?…”

“…Nothing. Forget it.”

“…”

“…here.”

“What’s this?”

“My number. If something’s up, if you need someone to talk to, if you need…help, call me.”

Lois doesn’t miss the way Conner’s cheeks redden and eyes sparkle. Do grown-ups never offer him support? She wouldn’t be surprised.

Anyway, now Conner texts and calls her daily. Sends her memes, funny Tik toks, and Lois dryly responds to them, yet never ghosts him. In other words — they’re constantly in contact now.

At the same time, Conner, through Lois’s advice, really starts getting into the whole superhero thing, doing it for the civilians instead of media attention. He gets good publicity but rarely shows up at LexCorp anymore. Luther feels his leash slipping and knows why. He wouldn’t let the kid have a phone without putting trackers to track his investment, and he knows that Conner holds Lois close to his heart; that he really wants her approval.

“I think it’ll be best if you stay away from Lane, boy.”

“What?! Why!?! You were the one who said I needed to get good media coverage!”

“Getting too buddy-buddy with journalists and not knowing when to keep your mouth shut will bring your downfall.”

“Mine? Or yours? Who’s really gonna be in trouble if I "don’t keep my mouth shut"?”

Lois gets anxious when Conner stops texting and answering calls. Something’s wrong, and Lex must be the reason. Her heart lurches.

Conner is just a kid. She can’t let him get hurt. Can’t loose someone again.

So she goes to LexCorp and interrogates Luther right off the porch.

“Where is he? What did you do to him!?”

“Conner? Nothing that is of your business, miss Lane.”

“I swear to god if you touch a hair on his head—“

“He’s my legal property, Lane. I created him, and I know better than anyone how to take care of him and keep him in line.”

Luther’s words send a shudder down her spine. He really didn’t see Conner as his own person? Then what was he capable of doing with him? How far would he go to keep the boy in line?

Long story short: she comes back with her special reinforcement (take a pick of whichever superman, or Batman).

They find Conner kept in a cell, surrounded by strange red lights and there are dried tear-tracks on his face. The door is broken/hacked open, and the three run away. The kid hugs Lois and sobs into her shoulder, and she holds him just as tightly.

“Oh Con, kid, did they hurt you?”

“*sob* I-that asshole said I’d stay there until I learned how to behave…”

“Well you’re definitely not coming back to that shithole. Ever.”

“Where…where do I go then?”

That evening, Conner ends up sitting in front of a TV in Lois’s apartment, eating noodles with her and watching action movies. For the first time since first waking up, he feels like he has a safe space, somewhere to call home. The legal battle with Luthor is going to be tough, but Con can rest assured knowing that Lois won’t let him go. She can get real scary when she wants to.

For now though, those worries are far away as he falls asleep on her shoulder, wearing an oversized sweater that used to belong to someone Lois loved, and she smiles, feeling, for the first time in months, that things will be okay…

Because they’ll have each other.

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pearl-star · 2 years

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A Nudge in the Right Direction

Summary: What if Adrien's high road advice wasn't the only way he helped Marinette? Sure he could wait for Lila to expose herself, but that didn't mean that he couldn't help speed up the process.

(Cross Posted on Ao3)

“Just take the high road and ignore her, Marinette. Lila will lie herself into a corner soon enough.”

Marinette looked at him, like she wanted to speak out but held herself back. Instead curling in slightly before nodding. Adrien worked to keep his perfect model smile on his lips even as he wanted to frown.

“And if she does anything else to you, like with trying to frame you or anything at all, let me know okay?”

She nodded again, biting her lip this time. He nearly narrowed his eyes at her action but refrained. She waved goodbye before walking away. Once she was out of sight, Adrien dropped his smile and frowned.

“Something happened.”

“Really? I never would have guessed.”

Plagg’s sarcasm was not needed, so Adrien grabbed some cheese and held it out for the kwami to take. He held it in his nubs, but didn’t eat it. Instead Plagg looked at him expectantly.

“You’re not really gonna keep quiet about this, right? Lila only confronts people when no one else is around. She could easily save herself given how stupid the class has been so far.”

Adrien let out a dark chuckle, something the kwami only just started to get used to hearing as of late.

“Oh, she’ll expose herself eventually. But that doesn’t mean I can’t help along the way.”

Plagg gave him a look over, shrugged, swallowed the Camebert whole, before responding.

“Sometimes I worry that you and your cousin switched.”

Adrien sighed at the reminder of his family member. He and Felix had a strange relationship. With Felix’s dad dead, and Adrien’s own father not helping the already tense situation, he really couldn’t blame his cousin for acting out. Did he think what his cousin did was wrong? Yes. And Adrien will be keeping an eye out to ensure that his cousin had no chance of doing anything like that again in the future.

“Don’t compare me to him. At least I’m not taking my frustrations out on others.”

“The sculptor.” Plagg sing sung.

“I was being a hypocrite.”

“And you flirting with Ladybug?”

“To be fair I was both way too over excited and also didn’t know how normal crushes should be expressed. Plus I’ve toned it down. I can’t stop completely though or else she’ll think something is up. Remember when I actually listened to her and stopped calling her bugaboo? She brought baked goods and hot chocolate to patrol every day and continuously apologized to me. I tried to tell her that I was just listening to her but she still thought that I was mad at her.”

“Ladybugs,” Plagg sighed, “they’ll take on the weight of the world and refuse to let anyone else share the load if my black cats don’t stop them.”

Adrien heard his phone dinged, letting him know that his bodyguard was waiting to pick him up, so he began to leave the school.

“I’m trying to do it slowly with her. But I think dealing with Lila will help both her and Marinette. I would ask Alya to see what actually happened, but since she fully believes Lila I don’t want her blaming and attacking Marinette.”

Whenever Marinette first called out Lila, Alya had been switching between giving Marinette the cold shoulder or insisting that she needed to get over her jealousy. He didn’t understand why Alya would think that Marinette was jealous of Lila of all people, but he couldn’t exactly ask her when he was expected to be nice to Lila. And nice he would be.

He smiled as he thought about his plan. It could backfire, but he was smart enough to know when to be careful. And the only person who could ruin it for him was Lila, and she would have to expose herself first. And if she tries to drag him down with her? Well, she would already be established as a liar by then anyways.

He opened the limo door and sat down, looking out the window as his bodyguard began to drive off to his next photoshoot. Adrien smiled to himself. Yes. Who would think that he, sweet sunshine boy of Paris, could be capable of ruining someone’s life?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

First step of his plan: figure out how to use Lila’s newest modeling gig to his advantage. Adrien honestly had no idea why his father decided to take on Lila as a model, but it was clear that she wasn’t the best at it. Okay she was straight up awful at it. She was too focused on hanging on him to actually listen to Vincent, and his photographer was getting frustrated.

As easy as it would be to just continue down this path until he would eventually get akumatized, Adrien didn’t want that for the man. He was the one of the few photographers that Adrien enjoyed working with. And even if Vincent wasn’t his favorite, he shouldn’t just sit back and let someone get akumatized.

So Adrien did what most people would expect him to do: he mediated .

“I just think that if Lila got more training then shoots would be quicker. If father is planning on keeping Lila on as a model, it would be best to improve her modeling now rather than later. I’m sure Lila will be fine going to a couple lessons a week to help gain those skills.”

He kept a small smile on his face as he looked at Nathalie. He knew that she probably didn’t like Lila all that much, considering the stunt that the girl pulled that caused both her and his bodyguard to get in trouble, so if Nathalie decided to increase Lila’s workload a bit extra then so be it.

“I’ll bring the suggestion up to your father. I believe that there was already some consideration to prepare her for doing interviews for when the photos from her sessions get released.”

Adrien mentally made a note to check when the photos would get released. Lila gaining more public attention, especially in the beauty world, would only aid him.

“Thank you, Nathalie. I should go practice piano before my fencing practice. The last shoot ran into my usual practice time.”

Nathalie nodded as she tapped something into her tablet, and Adrien made his way to his room. Usually, unless he had a performance coming up, he just put on piano music on his phone and did something else, but he needed to stay in Nathalie's and his father’s good graces. No one could get suspicious of him, otherwise he would get locked down again.

So he played. Starting with warm ups, then transitioning into some classical pieces while occasionally shifting into music from Kitty Section. He never got to go to performances, but Luka had given him all of the piano sheet music just in case. Luckily he was working on more traditional music when Nathalie knocked on the door.

“I spoke to your father.” She said as she walked into the room. “And he agreed with your idea to give Lila extra lessons. And since some of the recent photo sessions have been running into your other activities, you will not be helping Miss Rossi in these lessons. Your current activities are taking top priority. I will be sending her the plans later today once they are made.”

“Thank you Nathalie. And I can always give Lila quick tips while on set when needed.”

Nathalie nodded before making her way out of the room. Once the door was shut, Adrien smirked. Depending on how much trouble Lila is during those lessons, and how much Nathalie wants to be spiteful, this could keep her plenty distracted. It would also give her something to brag about at school, which will hopefully keep her attention away from Marinette.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two weeks after the lessons got implemented, Adrien could tell that they were happening. To the untrained eye Lila looked perfectly normal. But on closer inspection, you could see the smudges where her concealer and setting powder were not applied properly to her eye bags. And the only lessons being done were on how to model, they haven’t even gotten to all the interview stuff yet.

Sure she had something to brag about, but it didn’t give her time to hang out after school. He didn’t know if Nathalie knew his friends’ schedules, but Lila’s lessons were all placed during the times when they would meet up. And the more Lila tried to get out of them or reschedule, the longer and more lessons there were.

She was improving slightly. Oh, not in skills. She was still mediocre at best, but she didn’t hang on him as much or try to prolong shoots. She still hung on him, but Adrien guessed that Lila got told that the longer shoots ran on for, the more lessons she would have to do. Either way it saved him more time. Having to catch up on his lessons and homework as Chat Noir was hard enough. He really didn’t need prolonged photoshoots too.

The only downside was that Lila was getting frustrated. Despite her fake smiles and cheerful persona she put on during school, Adrien could see the cracks in her facade. He wouldn’t really care, Lila getting frustrated and snapping out would be a good thing, except that with Adrien paying more attention to her he noticed exactly how Lila was deciding to channel her frustrations.

All it took was Marinette having a slight limp and claiming that she tripped, after Lila had left the classroom beforehand, and her reaction to Adrien asking if Lila did something to clue him in.

He frowned at the bluenette, not bothering to try and coax the truth out of her and instead being direct.

“Marinette, I can tell that she did something to you. I already know that she pushed you, but I would also like to know what she said to you.” Seeing how she seized up, he quickly added, “If you’re comfortable with telling me.”

The pigtailed girl looked out from under her lashes and gave a small shrug.

“I-I’m fine Adrien. Really, it’s… nothing.”

She lasted another ten seconds under the lie, as well as the stare he was giving her, before rubbing her arm and sighing.

“I’m not comfortable with saying it.”

Adrien wanted to push more but refrained. Instead he chose to gently touch her shoulder and try to massage out her tension.

“I’m sorry that she hurt you. I’ll keep a closer eye on her and make sure she doesn’t do anything else. But please do let me know if something else happens, okay?”

The look that Marinette gave him, like she was finally getting a breath of fresh air, made his stomach drop. The fact that a small promise like that made her look like he was gifting her the stars told him that whatever Lila said was bad. And Adrien, despite being a hero, was fully considering the petty way of handling things.

“Thank you, Adrien. I really appreciate it. I promised my parents that I would help out at the bakery, but I’ll see you tomorrow.”

The blonde waved cheerfully as the girl departed. Once out of sight, he put on a devilish look and glanced down at his kwami who had popped out of his bag.

“So, Plagg, you were talking about ways to mess with Lila. Can you run those by me again?”

The crackle the miniature god gave was heard throughout the school, and no one knew that it was the sound of a death sentence.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day, Adrien walked into school all smiles. To the untrained eye, he looked perfectly like his normal self. Except, if someone really paid attention, you could see the slight glint in his eyes, as well as how his smile held an edge to it that he was fighting back behind his perfect demeanor.

Marinette was already in the classroom as well, and she walked in with Alya which would be good for later. And later seemed to come sooner than expected. About five minutes after Marinette walked in, Lila walked in. It took all of Adrien’s acting gained over the years to keep a straight face.

Plagg’s little pranks, which he had green lit the day before, were already taking full effect. Lila looked like she went through a storm and just survived. Her hair was a frizzy mess, her makeup was barely hanging on, and her shoulders were tense with obvious stress. If Adrien had any sympathy left for her, he would wish her luck getting put together before someone posts a photo. However any cares he had left to give flew right out the window the moment she decided to go after Marinette.

Adrien had half a mind to take the photo himself. And if it wasn’t for Chloe who snorted a laugh and whispered at Sabrina to post a pic, then he might have too. Instead Adrien played the oblivious boy who was raised to be a gentleman.

“Lila, what happened?”

“It was…”

She drifted off, looking at Marinette and then him. He didn’t give her any glares or anything, merely blinking back. She would have to show her hand first. He wasn’t about to defend Marinette if Lila wasn’t accusing her, she could find an excuse for that. But it seemed like she had second thoughts.

“Nothing. Just a bad hair day.”

Adrien was shocked that she didn’t try to blame Marinette somehow, but didn’t put his guard down. After all, she had taken her frustrations out on the bluenette just the day before. He’d need to keep both girls in his sights, and preferably have Nino or someone else with him. That way Lila can’t twist any narrative.

Through the day, he kept his eye out, and he noticed a lot. He’d been only focused on keeping Lila away from Marinette, and thus usually kept his focus only on the liar. Looking at Marinette showed him things that he didn’t notice before. Like how Marinette no longer had lunch at school, or how she’d leave the group once Lila pops in and brings the attention onto her, or how she was always double checking her bag and where she was walking.

It was all tiny things that he never paid attention to before, but now with context painted a bigger picture. And that made him smile all the more when he checked his phone and noticed the photo that Chloe posted of Lila trending. The caption wasn’t too shabby either, and Adrien had to refrain from liking the post. He took that energy instead and used it to distract the class and make sure that none of them, especially Lila, checked their phones.

So it was only at the end of the day, and when Lila shirked, that the photo was discovered by the rest of the class.

“How dare you post that photo! I demand that you take it down immediately!”

Lila’s outburst surprised the rest of the class, but when Alya glanced at Lila’s phone she immediately defended her.

“Lila’s right Chloe. You can’t just post things like that.”

“Oh, like I haven’t done worse. Maybe don’t have such an awful appearance when showing up to a public place. Besides, me taking it down would do nothing. It’s the internet. Nothing ever goes away. Have fun with that.”

Before anyone else could try to protest, the blond and Sabrina left. It was after they left that the rest of the class started to see the actual post. Adrien, having to act like he cared, moved to “comfort” Lila before pausing at his phone going off. He checked it and felt relieved.

“Hey dude. What’s up?”

He tilted his phone so that Nino could see the message.

“Oh, that seems bad. Are you gonna be okay?”

“I’ll be fine. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

He waved goodbye, happy to see that Marinette had already slipped away from the classroom. Hopefully she was heading straight home. That didn’t mean that Lila couldn’t blame her for something even if she didn’t see Marinette, but at least it stopped her from being able to do something to Marinette directly.

He walked straight outside and to the car. Nathalie was waiting for him inside, a tablet with his dad’s face already cued up.

“Good afternoon father. Is everything alright?”

“Your friend, Chloe, seems to have posted a photo of Lila.”

“People were talking about it at the end of class, but you texted me before I could see it for myself. Is there something wrong with it?”

“Yes, but don’t worry. Don’t comment on the photo, both in person and online. I’ll have things taken care of by tomorrow. For today she won’t be attending the photoshoot. We have another female model coming instead. Do not disappoint me.”

“Of course, father.”

And thank you for the free out. Adrien highly doubted that everything would be taken care of by tomorrow, Chloe would definitely make sure that there’s talk about it for at least a week. But the biggest plus was that he wouldn’t have to deal with her for this shoot, meaning that maybe he could actually work on homework and get to bed on time.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As predicted, talk of the photo didn’t die down by the next day. In fact, more fuel was added to the fire, courtesy of the one and only Lila Rossi. At the same time that his father had been saying that things were under control, Lila had decided to take matters into her own hands by responding to Chloe’s post.

One thing that’s important to remember is that Lila had only been receiving lessons on how to model, not how to conduct oneself online. As such, she didn’t know when to recognize bad press, and how to respond to it.

Gossip sites, fan girls, and everyone else on the internet loved to tear famous people apart. They criticize them no matter what. As such, people would ignore many of the rumors and insults posted online. Responding would not only show people that you cared, but they could take what the original post said as being true.

Lila responded to Chloe’s post like that of a teenage girl, and as such her attempt to deal with the situation fueled more fires than it put out. It also didn’t help that Lila had used her official model account to respond, which only shared it with more people. The social media team caught what she did and deleted the comment within five minutes of her posting, but the damage was done the second she hit post.

Lila didn’t show up to school the next day, not that much of a surprise. What was a surprise was that Adrien himself still went to school. He had assumed that his father would have put him on lockdown while he figured out what to do with the fires that were burning, after all there were photos of him with Lila at multiple places. But perhaps he thought that if things continued as normal that it would go away. Either way it saved Adrien the trouble of trying to sneak out of the mansion and to school.

All the rest of his classmates, sans Marinette, were already in the classroom with the majority looking at Chloe. The blonde didn’t seem to mind, smugly smiling at her phone. Alya, by far, looked the most put out. She had her tablet out and was furious typing on both that and her phone. Nino was sitting by her, trying to comfort her.

“Alya, what’s wrong?”

“Lila’s lied about everything.” Nino answered. “Some people started sending hate to the Ladyblog for the interviews Lila did.”

“I should have fact checked. Now I’m trying to do damage control.”

Adrien did feel sorry for Alya. When he was planning to take down Lila, he didn’t think that anyone else would be negatively affected. Of course, he didn’t have regrets on Lila getting dragged socially but he should have thought about how that would have affected his classmates. So Adrien decided to try and help out.

“Apologizing and taking down the interviews would be good. And while I don’t know exactly what the comments are saying, I’m guessing they’re saying to fact check right? Next post you do, make sure to include sources. That would probably help fend off those comments, but from my experience some people still like to troll.”

Alya did smile a little at that. Hopefully she’ll be able to learn from this and prevent something worse in the future. Just as the bell rang, Marinette ran into the classroom.

“Sorry I’m late, Miss Bustier. I had to help my parents fill out-”

The excuse immediately got interrupted by the rest of the class springing up and practically tackling the girl in apologies. Marinette seemed confused before realization slowly crossed her face as she picked out her classmates' words as they overlapped one another. Bluebell eyes locked on to green ones, but Adrien didn’t try to approach her. He wanted to speak to her, but the things he wanted to say couldn’t get back to his father.

So it was only four classes later, when Adrien broke off from Nino to exchange books and Marinette managed to sneak away from Alya that he got to talk to her.

“I told you. Her lies would come out eventually.”

Marinette gave him a look that he wasn’t used to. Usually there would be a blush covering her face, her eyes wouldn’t be able to look at him for longer than a moment, and she would be jumpy. While there was a light blush on her cheeks, her posture was perfect and her expression was a bit playful.

“And this all happened on its own? No one did anything to speed this up?”

“No, I don’t think so. I mean, I guess Chloe did the work. After all, she did post that picture which caused things to roll down hill for the better.”

“Adrien, I know that you did more than you let on.” Her expression shifted a little more into what he was used to seeing. “I just wanted to say thank you. You trusted me the whole time, and you kept your promise. Let me know if there’s any way to thank you.”

Seeing as she already knew the truth, he decided to jump on her offer.

“Actually there is one thing. Do you think you could… keep me out of this?”

“What do you mean?”

“Please don’t tell anyone that I was involved in this, both about knowing about Lila’s lies beforehand and me helping to get her exposed. I don’t want to even imagine how mad my father would be if he found out about the latter.”

Marinette opened her mouth, concern clear in her eyes, but she held herself back. It was for the best, honestly. His homelife was no one’s concern.

“Of course. And if you ever need anything, let me know.”

He nodded, although he suspected that he wouldn’t take her up on the offer. Marinette was busy enough already, and her keeping this all a secret was the best thing she could do for him. She looked back one last time before dipping out of the locker room. Plagg emerged moments later.

“Well, looks like you did it kid. The liar’s gone and your princess will be fine.”

“Not yet.”

The kwmai’s smug smile was wiped off, surprised at the statement.

“What do you mean?”

Adrien exchanged his books before walking back to the classroom.

“Just because Lila got exposed doesn’t mean that she won’t hurt Marinette again. I need to make sure that she isn’t in Paris.” A notification on his phone had him pausing in place. Once he looked down at it, he smiled. “And I have a feeling I know exactly how to do that. Plagg, claws out.”

One fast Lila-akuma take down, and a sneaky little live stream from his staff, caused Lila to be outed in a much worse way. He watched as she got dragged off in handcuffs, screaming nonsense about diplomatic immunity. Ladybug stood by him, and although she looked put together on the outside he could tell she was shaken up.

It did make sense though. He didn’t expect Lila to just admit that she’s been working with Hawkmoth willingly to them.

“Don’t worry, Ladybug, the police can handle this.”

“I knew that she hated us… but working with Hawkmoth?”

“She admitted it herself. Besides, she’ll get escorted out of Paris and can’t work with him anymore.”

“That’s not what I’m worried about. What if Hawkmoth has other allies that we don’t even know about?”

Is that seriously what she was worrying over?

“He does. We know about Mayura, and there might be another person or two that’s helping him in the background. However it doesn’t really matter to us yet. We don’t tell people about magic or the miraculous since it could get back to Hawkmoth anyways, so we don’t have to change anything.”

“But what if people try to say that others are working for Hawkmoth?”

“There would have already been rumors about that. I think the real thing we should be worried about is if Lila’s mom really is an Italian diplomat. If so, then there’s gonna be political trouble.”

Not that it was really an issue, since Adrien did do his research. No one in Lila’s family was a part of the government. Her mother was just someone who worked in a company that opened up a branch in Paris, which was why they traveled. He would have approached things much differently otherwise.

“I didn’t think about that.” Ladybug muttered, flipping open her yoyo and typing something on it. After a minute she flipped it shut. “I don’t see anything on the official Italian embassy site but…”

“Then it should be fine. Lila probably made up what her mom’s job was to make her stories seem legit and get away with more things. The police will clear up any rumors about that later. For now we should get going.”

They had taken turns to recharged earlier, so that Lila wouldn’t be let out of their sight, but they did have to get back to their civilian lives. Not like it mattered much for him. School was over the moment the alert went out, and his father and Nathalie will be too busy with the mess Lila caused to worry about him.

“Yeah. I’ll see you at patrol tomorrow unless another akuma pops up.”

“Sounds good.”

Chat made his way over the rooftops before dropping down and hiding in the alleyway near the school. He detransformed and had a piece of camembert ready.

“Now Marinette’s safe.”

“Is that really the first thing you’re gonna say? There’s nothing else that you think you should be concerned about?”

“You mean with Lila being a willing accomplice of Hawkmoth? Yeah, I mean it’s messed up but it didn’t surprise me. I guess I feel a bit bad for her mom.”

“I’m talking about yourself, kid. Your father decided to take Lila on as a model. You don’t think Lila being outed as an accomplice of a supervillain will come back to bite you in the butt?”

Why was everyone worrying about the wrong things? Adrien’s seen the posts and comments. He’s seen as not just a hot model, but also a victim. Yes, he knew what Lila was doing to him was sexual harrashment and yes, some of his fans knew that as well. If any backlash falls onto the brand because of Lila, then it would fall directly onto his dad.

“I’ll be fine. I can handle anything that happens.”

He’s been doing it all his life, going through the motions and trying to make due while not letting others know what he’s actually thinking. It’s what gets him through the days spent in the mansion, it will get him through the final couple years that he’s trapped there until he turns eighteen.

But Plagg didn’t know all that. Adrien hadn’t found a time or a need to tell his kwami that, so Plagg didn’t know how capable he could truly be.

“You should try accepting help sometimes. I’m sure pigtails wasn’t just talking nonsense when she offered to help you earlier.”

But for as much as Plagg didn’t know about him, he did know a lot of other things. Things that Adrien didn’t like to focus on.

“If anything goes bad, then I’ll reach out to her.”

It was enough to appease the kwami, and Adrien walked out of the alley way and back through the school via the side entrance so that his bodyguard wouldn’t realize that he’d been anywhere else. Once he looped around and got inside the car, he checked his phone.

So far the rumors about Lila being a daughter of a diplomat got squashed, and his father had released a public statement about not knowing all of Lila’s dealings and taking extra precaution for all his employees. There’d probably be more issues to deal with in the future, but for now all was well. All Lila needed was a little helping hand to push her off the cliff that she climbed up herself.

#lila rossi #marinette dupain cheng #adrien agreste #protective adrien agreste #lila gets exposed #lila salt #the high road #miraculous fanfiction #miraculous ladybug fanfic #fanfic

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