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writeforfandoms · 10 months

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Welcome to New York 2

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Eventual Miguel O’Hara x f!reader

You do some investigating, and you meet Spiderman for the second time. This time goes much less smoothly.

Warnings: Swearing, Miguel being very intimidating, Mayday is a cute mischief child, paranoia, some hyperfixating, a bit of manhandling, anxiety, rambling.

Word count: 2.7k

“This is a terrible idea,” you muttered to yourself, staring up (and up and up) at the building in front of you. Not much had been available on the web for you to find.

So you were going to do a little footwork.

Because this was a great use of one of your weekend days.

“I’m so going to jail.” But that didn’t stop you from taking a deep breath and walking the rest of the way up to the building. Getting inside was easy - the doors slid open for you, and then you just walked with purpose.

As if you had any idea where you were going.

The elevator seemed like a good place to start, and you went up as high as you could.

And from there… Frankly you had no idea. There was nobody up on this level, so you let yourself out onto the little patio. You were… a lot higher up than you’d anticipated, and wind tugged at your clothes. A shiver rippled down your spine and you swallowed.

You’d hesitate to say you were scared of heights, really, but… Cautious. Cautious of heights. Like any normal, sane person.

Especially heights at which you’d splatter if you fell and hit the ground.

Craning your neck to look up didn’t help you to see much except concrete and an odd curve of the building.

Nothing helpful there.

So you made your way back inside and began poking around. You could see the building went further up, so surely there must be a way to get up there?

A giggle behind you made you freeze, and you turned slowly to see a small child with an abundance of red curls sitting on the floor. The child blinked at you and started crawling towards you.

“Well hi.” You lowered yourself to sit cross-legged on the floor, letting her approach you. “Where did you come from, kiddo? Where’s your person?”

The kid, of course, didn’t answer you. But she did let herself straight into your lap, using your shirt to help steady herself. You rested a careful hand on her back, helping her balance.

“You are awful cute, but I’m not looking to adopt,” you told her with a wry grin. “So unless you can point me in the right direction, I’m gonna start searching for your person.”

The kid did not, in fact, give you any pointers. So you hefted her up a little higher, one arm securely under her bottom, and stood.

For lack of a better place to start, you headed the direction she had come from. Every conference room you checked was empty.

“Please tell me you didn’t somehow sneak into an elevator,” you muttered, growing more distressed with every empty room.

“Nah, she just snuck away from me.”

You gasped, clutching the kid closer, one hand shielding the top of her head, despite the fact that nothing was falling. And immediately felt silly - of course nothing was falling, nothing had happened. But the gut reaction had still been there, fueled by adrenaline and the museum incident.

But you did manage to turn and look at the person who’d spoken. A slightly unkempt looking man, stubble darkening his jaw, fuzzy pink bathrobe tied shut to cover most of his chest. A flash of red and blue under the robe drew your eye, but you didn’t have time to think about it because the kid giggled and made grabby hands at the man.

“You do like wandering off, don’t you?” he cooed at the little one, grinning, taking her from you as soon as you held her out.

“At least she’s cute?” You managed a little grin, though now that he was holding the baby you could see more of his outfit. Sweatpants under the bathrobe. Another flash of that blue and red, dizzyingly familiar, and yet so different.

All your attempts to quell your theories were coming to naught right before your eyes.

“You got that right.” He huffed a laugh, settling her in the crook of one arm. “Don’t think I’ve seen you around here before.”

“And are you often here on a Saturday in your bathrobe?” You kept your tone light, teasing.

“Sometimes.” He flashed a grin at you, clearly amused, though his gaze was calculating.

“Honestly?” You smiled a little. “I’m exploring.”

“Yeah?” He bounced the baby a little, his open expression encouraging you to keep talking.

“I just moved here a month or so ago, still learning my way around. I thought this building looked cool, and I didn’t see any “keep out” signs or anything, so…” You trailed off, shrugging.

“So you decided to come poke around.”

“More or less, yeah.”

He nodded slowly, looking back down at the baby.

“What’s her name?” you asked, unable to resist. She really was cute, with those big eyes and those curls.

“Mayday.”

“Cute.” You glanced around. “You wouldn’t happen to know how to get up to the rest of the building, would you?”

“Why?” Those sharp eyes focused on you again.

“Curiosity.” That was even the truth. “I’ve always been too curious for my own good.”

“Those levels are restricted.” He shrugged, his robe falling a little more open. The black baby carrier was in the way, but that red and blue was unmistakable. Your heart tripped over itself. “But I bet you can find some other buildings to explore.”

“I’m sure I can,” you agreed, a little off-kilter now. Because he was different from any of the three Spider-people you’d seen at the museum. But he also had no mask on. Made no attempt to hide his identity.

This was different from all the previous data you’d collected. This was something entirely new.

And you were sure if you just had a minute to sit down and think about why, you’d come up with something.

But Mayday burbled something and reached for you, chubby little hands making grabby motions at you.

The two of you stared at the baby for a moment before you chuckled. “Now, kiddo, you gotta ask your dad first. Erm, person. Sorry, didn’t mean to assume.”

His expression softened, free hand smoothing down some flyaway curls. “You’re fine. She’s my daughter.” He looked at you again finally with a lopsided, gentle smile. “You wanna hold her?”

“Just for a minute.” You held out your hands. “Don’t want anybody having a temper tantrum. Plus, you’re too cute to resist.” You laughed when she patted your cheek.

“She likes you.”

“I think she’s just a trusting baby.” You bounced her, grinning at the happy squeal. “That or my little cousins gave me enough practice.”

“She’s got good instincts about people.” His head tipped as he watched you with his daughter.

“Well, be that as it may.” You bounced her one more time. “I guess I should get going before I get in trouble. It was wonderful to meet the two of you.”

“You too,” he murmured thoughtfully, taking his daughter back.

You were already walking away, mind still reeling, trying hard to be as normal as possible while the possibilities of what you’d just learned tore at your concentration, when he called to you.

“Don’t suppose you’re ever available to babysit?”

You laughed, waving over your shoulder. But you didn’t respond one way or the other. Because you couldn’t.

Thankfully the elevator door opened right away, taking you back to the ground floor without interruption.

You spent hours wandering the city, getting briefly totally lost before finding your way back home. And you remembered very little of the journey.

Because you were busy thinking about Spider-people, and genetics, and how there were so many of them.

Now, you were not a genius. Far from it. You were pretty average, albeit more curious than most. And more persistent. But that was all, really. There was nothing else special about you.

Which is probably why your theories ranged from multiverse theory to cloning gone wrong to time travel. Unimaginative, perhaps, but theories all the same.

Theories you kept firmly to yourself. You never put them elsewhere, never even told anyone about your special interest research.

You never intended to do anything with this information. What even would you do? Sell it? Oh yeah sure, that would end well - with you dead or behind bars, undoubtedly. You weren’t gonna give the information away. And nobody could be suspicious of you because you were just… boring. Just boring. Boring ordinary person.

You flicked your research closed and yawned, half a week after meeting those two in the building. Nothing much had been happening, at least not here, so you decided to head up to the roof. It was the only place you could get a half-way decent view of Nueva York, which you adored.

Soft music floated up from an open window below you, an unfamiliar melody with a man crooning about his love. This high up, the wind occasionally whipped at your clothes, and you kept a respectful distance from the edge of the building.

It really was a beautiful night, the city lit up, vehicles passing every so often. Seeing the maglev tech in action around the city was incredible, and the passing lights were something of a comfort.

A figure landed in front of you, slowly rising to his full height even as you squeaked. In the dark, his suit looked almost black, the red hyper saturated and almost glowing.

Spiderman. Your Spiderman. Or, well, the one who actually belonged here.

You scrambled to your feet, only a little clumsy, curious and also mildly terrified. “Spiderman?”

“Why were you poking around?” he asked, low and angry. He took a step towards you and you had to resist the urge to scramble away.

“What?” You blinked at him, eyes wide, caught off guard. “I don’t…”

With impatient motions, he pulled up what looked like security footage of you wandering around the building. Before you’d run into Mayday.

“Oh, that.” You gulped. You had known that was a bad idea. Your heart pounded against your ribs, fast and hard. This could go so badly.

“Yes. That.” He advanced another step, looming over you, broad shoulders tensed. This time, you couldn’t stop yourself from backing up a step, fear making your hands shake. “Tell me why you were investigating. Who are you working for?”

“I was just curious,” you said, looking up at him. “Really! I thought it was a cool building and wanted to look around.”

“Don’t lie to me,” he hissed, low and angry and suddenly much closer than he had been. You scrambled back a step until your heel hit the ledge of the roof. You swayed, off balance, and his hand snapped out to fist in the front of your top, both steadying and threatening.

You squeezed your eyes shut for a moment, one hand grasping his wrist for an anchor. You’d always known objectively that he could be scary, but you’d never thought that would be turned on you. You hadn’t done anything wrong!

Well. Apart from your research. But even still!

“Tell me what you were doing.” He finally took a single step back, pulling you with him, so you were no longer so close to the edge of the building. That helped, a little, but you were still shaking.

“I was just… investigating. I was curious! I mean, there’s been at least a dozen different Spider-people here, and I was really just poking around a bit, I didn’t expect to meet any of them. I knew it was a bad idea but I’m too curious, I’ve always been too curious for my own good, but I wasn’t going to do anything with the information! I mean, jeeze, you run around saving Nueva York how often? And you saved my life once already.”

“Alright, slow down.” He hauled you another two steps further onto the roof, like your weight was nothing. Like you were no more than an errant kitten. The backs of your knees hit something, and you sort of fell onto the AC unit, steadied only by his fist until you were seated. “Explain it. Slowly.”

You swallowed. Twice. And then started from the beginning, from the museum incident. How your curiosity had been caught by the extra two Spider-people. How you’d done your research and compiled all the information you could find. How you’d spotted a Spider-person on the outside of the building once, and had a hunch.

“You… had a hunch.” He had released you sometime during your rambling and now stood with one hand on his hip, his other hand pinching (you assumed) the bridge of his nose over his mask.

“Yeah.” Flustered, you looked away from him. “I kinda figured it was a long shot, but then there was the guy in the pink bathrobe–”

“What?” That, apparently, was news to him, because he was suddenly looming again.

“Uh, yeah, him and Mayday?”

He sighed deeply, muttering something under his breath. Then he apparently decided to ignore that for now. “Show me your research.”

“It’s down in my apartment.” You stood slowly, to make sure he wasn’t going to object or throw you around or anything. He simply nodded once.

It was a bit surreal to step back inside with Spiderman on your heels, a silent slightly ominous shadow. Definitely intimidating shadow. Your hands were only shaking a little as you opened the door to your apartment, letting him in.

Fortunately your pad was still on the couch where you’d dropped it, and you grabbed it and swiped quickly over to your research.

He plucked the pad from your hand, and you presumed he was looking it over. The spots where his eyes would be narrowed, and then widened. “You did this on your own?”

“Uh huh.”

“For fun.”

“Pretty much.” You fidgeted nervously with the hem of your top, chewing on your lower lip. The better lighting of your apartment didn’t make him look any less small. If anything, he looked even bigger, the breadth of his shoulders obvious in the light.

He shifted his gaze to you and you froze, heart rabbiting in your chest. Even without him saying a word, you could tell he was… not happy. He stood a little taller, looking down at you.

“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t throw you in a cell right now.”

You swallowed hard at the cold tone, gaze darting around the room. Okay. This looked bad. Objectively, you knew that. He was trying to protect people, and you’d clearly stumbled into something that you shouldn’t have. (Not that you were surprised, not really.)

One good reason. That was all he’d asked for.

“I… can’t.” You couldn’t make yourself look at him, shoulders high and tight, heart pounding in your ears. “I mean, you don’t know me, so my word means nothing to you, and obviously you’re trying to protect people, and that’s good right? That’s what you do, you protect people. And I mean I know that I’m not going to give anyone this information, and it’s not like anyone knows I’m doing this. Nobody would come looking for this information from me. But you have literally zero reason to trust me and I get it and this was probably really stupid of me and I just–” You cut yourself off with a gasp, hands definitely shaking now.

He sighed, head dropping, hands on his hips. And the tension ratcheted back down to something almost bearable, letting you actually breathe instead of just rambling.

“Here’s what’s going to happen. You are going to stop investigating. If you breathe a word of this to anyone, I will know, and you will vanish.” He took one step, one single threatening step, closer to you. “Got it?”

“Got it,” you agreed, a little woozy, the relief hitting you hard.

Without another word, he dropped your pad back onto your couch. The front door shut behind him and he was gone.

You sank to the floor, knees weak, and did breathing exercises until you stopped shaking. It took a long time.

#welcome to new york #miguel o'hara x reader #f!reader

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yellowkitkieran · 1 year

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I have a Kieran request🙋🏼‍♀️ hello👋🏻 could I have a fem reader who is Kieran’s girlfriend who plays for arsenal women’s team and Kieran and some of the lads from the men’s team go to watch the CL semi at the Emirates, reader is playing and has a nasty tackle put on her and she tears her ACL and Kieran goes into protective bf mode and comforts her through going to the hospital getting the ACL diagnosis and then the rehab and getting back on the pitch please. Thank you so much 😘

Support System (Kieran Tierney)

Masterlist

Word Count: 2.1k

When Kieran arrived at the Emirates with Martin and Bukayo, he'd buzzed with excitement. Watching his girlfriend play in the semi finals of the Champion's League, in front of a packed house? Hell. Yes. He is the proudest man on earth when he takes his seat in the Arsenal box, surrounded by staff, players, family and friends that had come to see the women's team take on their opponents.

Everyone's fingers and toes are crossed for a win, of course wanting to see their counterparts through to the final. Kieran goes full fan boy when he sees you step out of the tunnel, standing up out of his seat and screaming at the top of his lungs like you could hear him on the pitch. Your hearing may be sharp, but it's definitely not sharp enough to pick out his voice from the tens of thousands of fans packing the stands.

When you kiss your wrist four times and pin your eyes on his box, Kieran grins. He knows you see him; you're drawn to him like a magnet, the same way he is when you're watching him play. Kieran is in awe when he sees the switch flip in you, going from cheeky girlfriend to stone cold footballer in a matter of seconds as the Champion's League theme plays over the speakers.

"She's gonna score, I can feel it," Kieran says to his mates with a goofy, excited grin.

Martin just nods, which Kieran accepts because he knows Martin is analyzing the players with a captain's eye in search of any potential weaknesses. Bukayo matches Kieran's grin, "I bet she will mate, especially with you here! She's got it all to play for. She's their leading goal scorer, isn't she?"

"Got that right! My missus has scored more than even you this season. Her left foot is incredible."

"We could use her on the men's team," Martin jokes, earning him a laugh from his teammates. The trio falls quiet as the captains trade flags and the teams fall loosely into their positions on the pitch.

The Arsenal women's squad is a force to be reckoned with. The eleven women on the pitch are menaces from kick off, nutmegging their opponents left and right. A general sense of frustration settles over the away fans corralled in their corner, their angry chants rising above those in favor of the hosts.

You play beautifully, just like always. Kieran shouts encouragements each time you touch the ball, heart swelling when some of your footwork puts his own to shame. God, he could learn so much from you if he had the time to sit in on some of your training sessions. Maybe that's something he'd need to bring up to Arteta-

A simultaneous gasp goes up from fans of both teams, a ripple of unease moving through the crowd as you go down hard from a rough tackle. Kieran swears he can hear your immediate shout of pain, like his senses are hyper aware of what's happened. You crumple to the pitch, fingers digging into the grass. Something tells Kieran you aren't acting, not based on the way your team rushes to surround you.

"That was bad," Martin murmurs beside him. "Like, season ending bad."

"She's still not up," Kieran notes, on his feet and craning his neck to see you on the near touchline. He's too high up, you're facing away from him; he can't judge your expression to get an accurate read on the severity of your injury. But from the way your shoulders shake, he's positive it isn't good. Not at all. You don't cry unless you can't walk it off- if you're sobbing on the pitch, something has gone terribly wrong. His stomach churns and he might be sick then and there.

Show me you're alright, love. Show me that this is just some showmanship to get you the advantage.

Focused as he is on you, Kieran doesn't notice the other defender being red carded until Bukayo mentions it. Truthfully Kieran doesn't care; he needs to get to you. That's all he knows. Because you still aren't up, they're bringing out a stretcher board, and that's his final straw.

"I'm heading down," Kieran says to no one in particular. He snags his jacket off the back of his seat, feet carrying him to the door while the image of you going limp when you hit the pitch replays in his head over and over.

You're hurt. Kieran has potentially just watched your season end. Your knee bent the wrong way when you went down… nothing about the situation gives him any sort of hope.

No one tries to stop him as he navigates down to the belly of the stadium, swiping the id card he keeps in his wallet to gain access to the player area. His heart stops as soon as he pulls open the heavy steel door- he can already hear your sobs.

He half runs to the medical suite, purposely averting his eyes from the changing area attached to it, focused only on you.

Your left knee is already wrapped in ice. One arm is thrown over your eyes, your pained breathing interrupted now and again with raspy sobs. It's so much worse than he thought. The medical staff doesn't even try fixing the issue, most of them mulling about whilst one woman gently props your knee up so the swelling doesn't constrict your blood flow.

The few staff members step back when Kieran approaches. He lays his hand on your shoulder, crouching at the head of your stretcher so he can murmur in your ear, "I'm so sorry sweetheart. I'm so sorry."

Kieran's voice only makes you sob harder. Your arms automatically reach back to find him, fingers curling in his hair to the point of pain. He lets you do it though, knowing it's nothing compared to what you're going through now.

"It fucking hurts Key," you grit out, tipping your head back to look at him with red rimmed eyes. "I'm fucked aren't I? I'm so fucked."

He kisses your forehead, pulling up a chair to sit next to you so you can see him properly. He smooths a hand over your hair, using the other to bring one of yours up to his mouth to kiss your knuckles.

"I'm not a doctor sweetheart… but I'm afraid I think your season is over." Panic flashes in your eyes. Kieran wants nothing more than to take away that feeling. He wishes he could tell you everything would be fine, that it was nothing more than a sprain. He knows better though, so he waits while you go through a myriad of emotions in the blink of an eye.

"But the world cup-"

"I know, baby. I know." The last thing you need to do is dwell on what could have been. Your call up had meant the world to you. Representing your country this summer in Australia was all you had been able to talk about for months. Scotland had finally qualified, you were set to be their captain- you were going to lead the women's team to glory, to their first major trophy.

"It's my ACL, isn't it?" Your eyes are pained when they meet Kieran's brown ones. "It's torn, I can feel it. No one will tell me what they think, Key." He knows you're asking for a lifeline. You want him to lie. He can't do it- he can't give you that hope when he isn't certain there is anything to give.

Kieran leans forward and kisses your cheek, lips lingering on your skin. "Whatever it is, you and I will get through it. Together."

Kieran becomes your rock. He's at your side when you're taken to the hospital and told you'll definitely require surgery to repair your ACL. He's the shoulder you cry on when you're given a timeline. The questions fall to him, and he asks all the right ones to get the answers you need. Minimum six months, likely more with rehab.

"Together," he reminds you as often as he can. "Together, together, together."

*********

"Alright my love, ready to head inside?"

"I think so."

"Let me come get your door for you."

You've not been back at the training grounds since your injury. Silence ruled the car ride, the dewy morning clinging to the atmosphere and further dampening what should have been an exciting day. Yes, you were on crutches and no, you definitely wouldn't be training three days after your surgery, but at least you could see your teammates.

Kieran had thought that being at one of the places you both feel at home might provide the push you need. Lately you've been plain depressed. He doesn't blame you for it, though he does want to make sure you're pulled out of it as quickly as possible.

You don't move when Kieran opens your car door. He waits patiently to give you time to process. You stare into space for a solid minute, then jump when Kieran lays a gentle hand on your arm.

"Sweetheart? Let's go inside and say hello to your girls."

"Oh, um- right." You take hold of Kieran's hand and swing your good leg out first, placing all your weight on it as you stand. Your braced leg comes next, and you rely heavily on Kieran to keep you steady until he can pass off your crutches. Only when you nod does he let go, allowing you to start the slow, long walk to the building.

Your movements are stiff and awkward. The crutches are an adjustment that you're still getting used to. Kieran is nervous with each step you take, his hand hovering inches from your back so he can grab your belt if you start to tip one way or the other. He is your protector now more than ever. His job is to ensure you make it through this injury stronger than you were before.

You pause halfway to the door, obviously exhausted. Kieran sets his hand on your lower back and gives you an encouraging kiss to your temple.

"Take your time," he says softly. He doesn't want you over exerting yourself and causing further injury.

"This is fucking embarrassing," you mutter, closing your eyes to stave off tears. "I can't even make it from the car park to the door- I'm a professional athlete! I should be able to run for miles and not feel a thing!"

Kieran steps in front of you, ducking his head so you're forced to meet his eyes. "Hey. Hey- you had a very tough injury only a week ago. It's affected you physically and mentally sweetheart, and I know it's a huge challenge. But I promise you, I know you'll bounce back. I'll be cheering for you every step of the way. Together, remember? I've got your back."

Kieran knows he's gotten through to you when you draw a deep, even breath. Your eyes become hardened chips of steel, determined to overcome this hurdle.

"Alright, let's move."

You make it all the way inside and down to the women's changing room in one fell swoop, Kieran beaming with pride the entire time. He doesn't follow you inside the women's room obviously, but he does hear the immediate cheers from your team as soon as you're through the door. He smiles to himself, leaning on the wall outside and catching snips of what your girls are asking.

"-how long? Shit-"

"-Is the pain alright? Surely they must-"

"How's Kieran been with all this?"

That's the question Kieran wants you to answer. He sidesteps closer to the door, praying he can hear you through the wood.

"Key? He's been perfect. I don't think I'd be standing right now if not for him." Your words lift a weight off Kieran's chest. "He says we're in this together and so far he's held his word. It's easier when there's someone in your corner, you know? He helps take away the stress by reminding me what I'm working towards… being out here with all of you again. The good thing is, Kieran won't let me stop until I get there."

#kieran tierney imagine #kieran tierney fic #kieran tierney fanfic #kieran tierney fanfiction #kieran tierney #arsenal fc #jac writes #lover boy 🫶🏻#forbidden fruit

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tokkias · 1 year

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Hey I wanted to ask, I know you are taking a break on writing fix’s but when you get back, do you think you could write a fic where Wendy walks in on natsu and Lucy making out and then high jinks ensue of Wendy trying to keep their secret and natsu and Lucy trying to keep her quiet? You don’t have to, just asking.

don't believe me any time i say im taking a break because i just love writing my silly little guys too much

title: indiscreet summary: Not one to want to hurt her friends, Wendy will do whatever it takes to keep Natsu and Lucy’s relationship a secret. It would all be smooth sailing if Wendy weren’t a terrible liar,and unfortunately for them, lying by omission is still lying. ao3

cw for implied sexual content

An over-night trip out of town, as always, called for a visit to a local restaurant for dinner. It was a Team Natsu tradition that Wendy had grown to enjoy over the years as it allowed her to enjoy foods from all over the country, along with letting her spend some quality time with her beloved teammates. Or at least, most of her teammates anyway.

Tonight it seemed as though it was just her, Erza, Gray, Carla and Happy, with Natsu and Lucy having disappeared the moment they arrived at the inn. It was not uncommon for some members to split off for the night or hit the hay early, but it was unusual for Natsu of all people to split off before getting a chance to eat.

She and her team, sans Natsu and Lucy, had been sitting in the small foyer of the inn they were staying at, discussing their dinner plans for the night when Erza spoke up to point out their absence.

"Do we know if Natsu and Lucy wanted to join us?" She asked, taking note of how the two had chosen not to join them yet.

Gray shrugged. "I don’t know; I haven’t seen them since they left for their rooms earlier. Never got a chance to ask."

"Don’t worry, I can go ask them!" Wendy enthusiastically volunteered.

"No, that’s okay, I can do it." Happy interrupted, perhaps a tad quicker than was necessary.

"It’s alright Happy, I don’t mind," she smiled as she headed off in the direction of Lucy’s room, with Happy following close behind her, rather quickly, as if there was something in there that he didn’t want her to see.

"I don’t think that’s a good idea," he warned. "I mean, Lucy can be a big meanie scary lady when she’s hungry, and I don’t want you to fall victim to that."

"You and Natsu are always too hard on her," Wendy replied, "I’m sure she’ll be okay with me coming and asking."

As she got closer to the door, Happy began to panic, not wanting to give himself away but also not wanting Wendy to see what was going on behind the door.

"I just don’t want you to be on the receiving end of her wrath," Happy said innocently, trying to coax poor Wendy away from the door.

"It’ll be okay. It’s just Lucy," she brushed off as she reached for the doorknob.

From the very moment the door clicked shut, Lucy’s hands were tangled in Natsu’s hair, and his lips were locked against hers. He was a little rougher than she had anticipated, but that was simply to be expected after having to keep his hands off of her all day (for the most part, anyway).

His hand rested on the small of her back, holding her body close to his as they moved from the door to the bed. Their footwork was a bit of a mess, but neither could be too concerned about it by the time Lucy’s knees hit the back of the mattress, pulling them both down onto the sheets. She hooked her foot around the back of his knee and roughly pulled him closer, eliciting a grunt as his crotch hit hers, which was quickly swallowed in their kiss.

The two of them were so enveloped in the taste of each other that they paid hardly any mind to the squeak of the hinges as the door opened.

"Erza, Gray, and I were just wondering if you guys wer- oh my gosh! I’m so sorry!"

Wendy had been so excited at the prospect of being helpful to the rest of her team that she hadn’t even considered that it might be polite to knock, and immediately her hands shot up to cover her eyes in a poor attempt to pretend that she hadn’t seen anything.

While the sound of the door opening may have gone under the radar, the terrified squeal of their young teammate caught the pair's attention quickly, and Lucy instinctively shoved Natsu off of her and covered her chest with her arms, despite being fully clothed.

It wasn’t like she had considered they would be doing anything inappropriate; at worst, she might have caught a glimpse of one of them undressing, but nothing she hadn’t seen before. To be fair, what they were doing wasn’t exactly inappropriate, just… shocking, more than anything.

Suddenly, Happy’s hesitance to have her check on them was making a lot more sense.

"I’m sorry! I’m so, so, so, so sorry!" She cried out, hands still hiding her face, whether in attempt to pretend she wasn’t there or to hide herself in shame and embarrassment, she wasn’t quite sure.

Her brain was telling her to run and hide, but her feet were planted firmly on the ground.

"Wendy, it’s okay," Lucy’s voice came, gentle and soothing. "You don’t… you don’t need to apologise okay?"

By the time she gained the courage to look at them, Wendy found the two of them sitting on the edge of the bed as if nothing out of the ordinary had just happened, only given away by the faint blush tainting Lucy’s cheeks.

"U-um, okay! Sorry…" She murmured before looking back down at her feet. "I’m sorry, I’ll just leave…"

"I think we should just tell her," Natsu said, flopping backwards onto the mattress, perhaps more casually than the situation called for.

"Obviously I was going to tell her!" Lucy replied as she gave him a firm whack to his shoulder. "We have something we want to talk to you about," she said, as calmly as she could muster.

"I-I know what sex is!" Wendy managed to stutter out, not wanting to put any of them through the perhaps traumatic experience of giving her The Talk.

"We weren’t-!" Panic began to set in Lucy’s bones once again, caught off guard by Wendy’s misinterpretation of just exactly what they wanted to talk to her about. "That’s not what we wanted to talk to you about."

She patted the spot on the mattress between her and Natsu, indicating that she join them on the bed. Making sure to shut the door behind her, Wendy tottered inside, with Happy following not far after her, and she pulled herself up to sit beside them. An awkward silence overcame the room as Wendy desperately tried to avoid anyone’s gaze and Lucy tried to figure out just what to say to her.

"Lucy and I are dating," Natsu said bluntly.

"O-oh, okay… I guess that makes sense," Wendy replied before immediately mentally chastising herself for the foolish answer. "So um… who else knows?"

"Happy," Natsu responded.

"Is that all?"

"Just Happy," Lucy followed up.

Wendy looked over at Happy, who in return shot her an apologetic look, before she looked over at Natsu and Lucy.

"So Erza and Gray don’t know?" Wendy asked, a little confused as to how something like this could have been kept a secret from over half of their team.

"We haven’t told anyone else," Lucy clarified. "So we would appreciate it if you just, kept it quiet for a while."

"Okay… That’s okay… I can keep a secret…" Wendy mumbled. "Um… I’m not very good at lying though," she admitted.

"You don’t have to lie," Happy suggested, "you just have to not mention it."

Happy’s loophole sounded reasonable enough, but there was an unease sitting in her chest that she just couldn’t shake. It seemed as though her nervous energy did not go unnoticed when she felt Natsu’s hand rest on her shoulder. She looked up at him to see his casual grin, looking like nothing had gone wrong. Her gaze flicked over to Happy and then to Lucy, and they were all looking at her like it really was no big deal.

A faint sigh of relief escaped her, feeling comforted by their certainty that she was capable of keeping their secret for now.

"Okay, I won’t tell anyone," Wendy assured, "I promise!"

In response, Natsu held out his pinkie for her, which she enthusiastically locked hers around.

"Pinkie promise," she reaffirmed. "Oh, and, um… maybe this isn’t the right time to ask, but… Gray and Erza wanted to know if you two were going to join us for dinner," she added, recalling why she had made it her mission to come here in the first place.

"Nah, Lucy and I are gonna hang out here for a while," Natsu rejected.

Wendy blushed at the implication of what hanging out meant, considering what she had originally walked in on.

"Your loss," Happy brushed off, seemingly unaffected by the idea of what the pair might be doing behind closed doors.

"Have some for us, okay?" Lucy smiled.

“R-right! I’ll let the others know,” Wendy replied as she hopped off the bed and headed towards the door.

“Have fuuuunnnnn~” Happy chimed on his way out, eliciting a deep blush from Lucy followed by a pillow thrown in his direction that he masterfully dodged before Wendy shut the door behind them. "I did warn you," he joked in a light-hearted attempt to lighten the mood on the way back to their teammates.

"You did," Wendy sheepishly admitted.

"So? Are they coming or not?" Gray asked as he saw Wendy and Happy approach.

"Um… no I don’t think so…" Wendy replied.

"You don’t think so?" Erza inquired.

Immediately realising her mistake, Wendy began to panic, scrambling to figure out the right words to ease Erza’s suspicions.

"No-! I mean-"

"They’re not hungry," Happy butted in, much to Wendy’s relief and the rest of the team's confusion.

"Is everything okay, Wendy? You look a bit flustered," Erza commented, raising an eyebrow.

She had truly thought that she was doing a good job of hiding it, but apparently it wasn’t good enough, and having Erza point it out only served to make her panic rise to the surface even more.

"Um, yeah!" She tried to reassure in a poor attempt to divert the conversation.

"I think she’s just disappointed that Natsu and Lucy aren’t coming with us, right Wendy?" Happy added casually.

"R-right!" She affirmed, relieved that at least she wasn’t the only one here in on the secret. "It’s just not the same without them."

"You say that like it’s a bad thing," Gray retorted. "Shame Lucy’s not coming, but Natsu can stay in his room for the rest of the job for all I care."

"Unusual for Natsu to pass on food, wouldn’t you agree, Happy?" Erza asked, turning her attention to the exceed.

"No, I wouldn’t," he blatantly lied in response, hoping to gaslight Erza into turning her attention somewhere else.

She shot him a confused look, but nevertheless moved on. "Alright then," she said, deciding it wasn’t worth the mental effort to jump through whatever hoops Happy was setting up for her. "Let’s go then."

Once Erza and Gray had gone on ahead, Wendy bought her hand up to her chest to settle her racing heart, pleased that she no longer had to think about it until Carla spoke up.

"You are acting awfully weird, child." She commented. "What on earth happened in there that’s got you all worked up?"

"It must be Lucy’s weirdness rubbing off on her," Happy suggested.

Wendy let out a nervous laugh as she realised just how hard it was going to be to hide this secret from her best friend and keep the promise she had made.

"Oh, it’s really nothing," she reassured. "Why don’t we catch up with Erza and Gray? Some food sounds really good right about now."

"If you say so…" Carla replied, still not totally convinced but not suspicious enough to press any further.

It didn’t come as a surprise to Wendy when Natsu and Lucy weren’t with the rest of the team when she and Carla arrived to set out on their job the next morning. Erza beckoned the two over to the spot where she, Gray, and Happy were sitting, waiting for the rest of them.

"Sorry we’re late," Wendy apologised.

"Well, it seems you’re not the last to arrive," Erza commented, gesturing to the space devoid of their last two teammates.

"Where are those two?" Gray questioned, glancing over to the clock to see that they were already a few minutes past their designated meeting time. "They’ve been late for every job we’ve taken for the past two months."

"I’ll go fetch them then," Erza offered.

"No!" Wendy cried out, earning her a surprised look from her teammates. "I- It’s just that…"

"Lucy’s cranky because Natsu was being a pain in her ass this morning," Happy chimed in.

"What did he do?" Erza inquired.

"Oh, well, you know how he is," Happy replied vaguely.

"Yes, I do," she said, nodding her head in agreement. "Well, I suppose Lucy has earned a late start for dealing with him all night. I’ll have to put Natsu in his place when they arrive."

As if on cue, the duo arrived, Natsu’s arm predictably slung over Lucy’s shoulder as it always was.

"Glad to see you two finally showed up," Gray snarked.

"Yes, I’m pleased that you both made it," Erza added. "But I’m not pleased to hear you’ve been making things difficult for Lucy."

"What? What did I do?" He asked, whipping his head over to his partner, who looked just as confused as he was before realising that this was just the cover that Wendy and Happy had set up for him.

"Yeah, what did you do, Natsu?" Lucy asked, deciding to play along.

"I don’t know!" He cried, still a little slow to catch on. "I guess I used your hand lotion?"

"You’ve been using my hand lotion?" Lucy asked, her face dropping, no longer happy to play along. "Natsu! That’s expensive!" She whined.

"Yeah, well, it smells nice and it makes my hands soft," he ardently defended.

What had begun as merely playing along had devolved into a full-on squabble, and Wendy couldn’t help but giggle slightly at how they were behaving exactly like an old married couple.

"Well, if I had known it was such a contentious topic, I wouldn’t have brought it up," Erza commented, scratching her head slightly in confusion at the absurdity of it all. "Regardless, it’s time you two stop squabbling: we have a job to do." She demanded. "Here’s the plan: Natsu, Gray, and I will split up to search on the ground, Carla and Happy will do overhead reconnaissance, and Wendy and Lucy will question the locals about any suspicious activity," Erza declared. "Does everyone understand their roles?"

A murmur of agreement echoed through the team before Erza spoke up once more.

"Now let’s get to it!"

Walking along the streets with Lucy, Wendy felt she could let out a sigh of relief. It had only been a day, but the pressure of keeping a secret so big was already beginning to weigh on her, so finally being around someone who was also in on it was a nice break.

"Hey Lucy? Is it okay if I ask you something?"

With her attention caught, Lucy’s gaze flicked over to Wendy before she replied. "Sure, anything."

"Why haven’t you told anyone else that you and Natsu are dating?" She asked.

Lucy was quiet for a moment as the gears turned in her head while she searched for the right words to explain their reasons.

"Because… things are kind of new with us, and we just want to figure things out on our own first before we tell anyone."

Wendy’s eyes fell to her feet, a pang of guilt running through her as she realised that she had gotten in the way of their plan.

"I’m sorry for ruining that…" she murmured.

"You haven’t ruined it at all," Lucy reassured, "we just didn’t want the group’s dynamic to change just because our relationship has."

Wendy looked back up at her to find Lucy smiling down at her, and suddenly all her fears and guilt melted away.

She understood why they had chosen to do that, but she also couldn’t help but feel a slight irony in it all. The group dynamic hadn’t changed in the slightest because their transition from friends to something more had been so subtle that she may not have noticed it if she hadn’t accidentally walked in on them swapping spit.

"Thank you for trusting me," Wendy said.

"Of course," Lucy assured, "I have no reason not to."

Wendy beamed up at her with a newfound resolve to keep their secret hidden tight away in the depths of her brain, and with her curiosities quelled, she was ready to get back to their job.

"Right! Well now it’s time for us to get to work!" She cheered, prepared to start their search for leads.

Wendy noted that as soon as their group gathered, Natsu was immediately back at Lucy’s side, his arm slung around one shoulder while his chin rested on the other. The move was done so casually as if it were nothing, and no one else seemed to react. For a moment, Wendy was almost convinced that the rest of them already knew.

"Alright," Erza began, "now that we’re here, has anyone gained any insight on who we’re after?"

"There’s talk that a delivery of various valuables will be making its way out of town tomorrow at noon, and we have reason to believe that the group we’re after will ambush in an unguarded area about thirty minutes out from the exit to the west," Lucy explained.

"That makes sense," Gray agreed. "I saw a group of suspicious-looking guys gather out in the south-west part of town. I think those could be our guys."

"Then I say we set up along the route and keep a watch out for when the carriage arrives," Lucy suggested. "If our intel is correct, then we can attack when they jump the vehicle and take them back to the local authorities."

"I like Lucy’s plan," Natsu affirmed followed by a murmur of agreement from the rest of the group.

"Alright, then if no one else has any objections, we will reconvene tomorrow at nine for setup," Erza explained. "And I expect everyone to be on time," she added, shooting Natsu and Lucy a look, to which they shrank under her gaze.

To their credit, Natsu and Lucy did show up on time the next morning, the only thing was, by the time they showed up, it was rather obvious to Wendy what they had been doing beforehand.

Lucy’s face was flushed and her hair tousled, thrown up in a messy ponytail rather than tied up neat and tidy like she was known for. On their approach, she quickly twisted her skirt around so it was facing the right way, clearly having just been thrown on before they made their way there.

The sight of it had Wendy’s face turning a matching shade of red as she tried to divert her thoughts somewhere else while also concealing her embarrassment.

"What’s up with you two?" Gray asked, immediately noticing the unusual blush crossing his two friends' faces. "You’re both all red."

"Oh, it must just be the weather, right, Wendy?" Lucy explained.

"R-right!" She agreed, relieved that Lucy was much quicker to think on her feet than she was.

Gray raised a brow at them but moved on nonetheless. "Guess I wouldn’t know," he shrugged.

The walk across town went by uneventfully, but there was something about knowing—about being in on the secret—that had resulted in Wendy seeing Natsu and Lucy’s relationship with new eyes. Nothing had changed about the way they interacted with each other, but now that she knew the context of their relationship, she couldn’t help but see the romance in everything they did together.

Suddenly she was hyperaware of how Natsu seemingly had to have his hands on Lucy at all times, and how all those touches that she had always thought were innocent, friendly gestures now held more meaning to them.

He always had to have an arm slung around her shoulder or a hand resting on her waist, keeping her close to him at all times. There were some moments where Wendy even thought she had caught a glance at them holding hands.

Oftentimes Lucy would rest her head gently on his shoulder, and his hand would come up to rest in her hair. It wasn’t uncommon for her to let her eyes flutter shut after a long day and drift away in the comfort of her best friend’s presence.

Nobody had ever questioned it because none of this was out of the norm for them. Natsu and Lucy had always been close, and they had always been affectionate; it just seemed that everyone had accepted the fact that it was simply all platonic.

Little did they know.

Wendy tried her best to keep her eyes to herself, but once she started noticing, she couldn’t stop herself. Whenever she got the chance, she would always sneak a glance at the two and was always met with the same sweet affections that had simply become all too familiar to anyone who had spent any time with them. What started as quick glances soon became long gazes as she realised that the two of them were more absorbed in each other than anything else, and suddenly Wendy was no longer hiding her stares from them but from everyone else. Gray had nearly caught her once already, but she had just awkwardly brushed it off as spacing out in their general direction.

It didn’t end at the touches either. What she had just become accustomed to as average Natsu and Lucy banter, she now realised was actually just their way of flirting. They could bicker and tease back and forth about almost anything, and while she had never thought it to be serious, she couldn’t realise how unserious it was until she noticed the way their faces were mere inches apart, breaths grazing against each other’s lips, attention nowhere else but each other even as they walked. The scene exuded so much sexual tension that Wendy almost felt embarrassed to watch, feeling as though she had once again walked in on something she shouldn’t have.

They went on like that the entire walk to their destination, touching, flirting, blatantly so, and she wondered how none of them had ever paid any mind to it before.

When they made it to their destination, Wendy got into position, hidden behind a rock near the area where she and Lucy had heard rumours that the ambush was supposed to take place. She and Natsu had been placed in charge of keeping an ear out for trouble and ensuring that they didn’t give their opponents the upper hand by catching them off guard.

As she heard the carriage approaching, immediately she became hyperaware of her surroundings, knowing that those they were after could appear at any moment. She took it upon herself to sniff the air to see if she could sense any changes, but it seemed that Natsu was already far ahead of her.

He appeared almost out of nowhere, holding a bandit by the collar before throwing him face-first into the ground, which prompted the rest of the lackeys to come out and attack. Going into this job, they were all aware that they would be outnumbered by the bandits they had been hired to arrest, but just when she thought all of them had shown themselves, more would appear from the shadows. It wasn’t anything they couldn’t handle, but it was becoming increasingly clear that they had come underprepared for the sheer number of opponents they were facing.

Suddenly recalling the carriage, Wendy whipped around to catch sight of it to ensure that it wasn’t getting looted while they were distracted. Thankfully she was met with Lucy, Gray, and Loke, all having taken initiative to protect it while she, Natsu, and Erza had been occupied holding off bandits further ahead.

What should have been an effortless fight had turned into something much longer than any of them had gone into expecting. Wendy could feel her muscles begin to ache from over-exertion, not having correctly prepared herself for a fight of this magnitude, but she felt herself lucky when she saw the state of some of her other teammates. Glancing over at Natsu, she saw blood dripping from his temple from a shallow wound, no doubt from one of the non-magic user’s weapons, and Gray and Lucy didn’t look much better.

There was no doubt they had the upper hand in the fight and would ultimately see their goal through, but more than anything, she wanted it to be over so she could make sure her friends were okay.

Once the final bandit had been cuffed and tied up, Wendy finally let out a sigh of relief. Not that she thought this job would end any other way, but she was just glad it was finally over.

After giving the carriage a once-over and ensuring all goods remained untouched, the driver gave them his thanks before seeing himself off, and Wendy could finally see herself to ensure her teammates were back in tip-top shape.

Before she could even think of approaching Natsu to treat his wound, Lucy threw herself at him, throwing her arms around his neck and holding onto him like her life depended on it, and Natsu responded with equal enthusiasm.

Her hand rested gently on his jaw, and for a second, Wendy thought she was going to lean in for a kiss. Instead, but just as tender, she nestled into his chest, arms holding him close as he tucked her under his chin and it looked like a perfect fit.

Wendy tried to turn her attention elsewhere and give the pair some privacy, but she couldn’t help eavesdropping now that her ears were tuned in to their conversation.

"I’m so glad you’re safe," Lucy murmured into his chest.

"Me too," Natsu replied as he rubbed soothing circles into her back.

The two of them sat in silence for a few moments, content to find comfort in each other’s presence, until Natsu spoke up again.

"I love you," he mumbled, his voice muffled in her hair but clear as day to Wendy.

"I love you too," Lucy responded, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Wendy immediately felt her face heat up at their declaration, feeling every bit of love and emotion in their words. Tears began to well up in the corners of her eyes as the emotions took hold of her body, and she felt herself begin to get weepy at the tender scene.

They were in love.

They were so deeply, truly in love, and the mere sight of it was enough to make her emotional.

She wiped away her tears and sucked in a long breath, not wanting to let herself give their secret away because she couldn’t keep her emotions in check.

"Is everything okay, Wendy?" Erza asked, "You’re not hurt, are you?"

"No, I’m okay," she clarified. "I’m just glad everyone else is okay."

"I was going to go heal up Natsu but…" The two of them glanced over at him and Lucy, finding them still wrapped in each other’s arms, Lucy buried in his chest while his hand and face were buried in her hair. "I think he’s occupied at the moment."

Wendy and Carla had made sure to arrive at the station for their ride home early, not wanting to be on the receiving end of Erza’s wrath if they arrived late, much like Natsu and Lucy had been doing lately. Erza and Gray were there already waiting for them, with Natsu, Lucy, and Happy, perhaps a little predictably at this point, nowhere to be seen.

"Natsu and Lucy aren’t here, are they?" Wendy asked.

"No," Erza confirmed, raising a brow slightly at that being her first question as she approached. "Why do you ask?"

"Oh um! N-no reason!" She stuttered out in reply, waving her hands out in front of her defensively.

In response to her weird behaviour, Carla placed her hands on her hips and let out a sigh. "What is going on with you, Wendy?" She demanded to know.

"Wh-what’s going on with me?" She replied, trying to act innocent and pretend she had no clue what she was referring to.

"You’ve been acting all skittish as of late, and you won’t even tell me why," Carla reprimanded.

"What are you talking about?" She nervously laughed, "I’m just nervous about the train ride is all."

"It’s not kind to lie, child," Carla replied, "and it’s even worse to keep secrets."

After seeing how the two of them had placed their utmost trust in her, Wendy was certain that she would be able to keep their secret for as long as they needed her to, but the way that her friend was looking at her made her resolve crack under the pressure.

"N-Natsu and Lucy are dating!" Wendy blurted out before slapping her hand over her mouth, immediately realising her mistake.

"Excuse me?" Erza said, clearly taken aback by the look on her face.

"N-no! Oh gosh, I shouldn’t have said that…" she murmured, "I was supposed to keep it a secret, but now I’ve just gone and ruined everything."

Just as she was about to beg them not to mention it, Natsu, Lucy, and Happy made their entrance, and immediately Erza stepped in to ruin her plan of getting them to keep quiet about it.

"You and Natsu are dating?" Erza asked, her tone more accusatory than questioning.

"What?" Lucy asked, taken aback by the sudden question.

"I’m so sorry! I’m so, so sorry!" Wendy apologised, bowing her head deeply in remorse.

The entire group had been shocked into silence, not knowing how to act in this unusual situation, until Lucy let out a sigh.

"Well, I suppose we had to tell them anyway," Lucy said. "Yes, Natsu and I are in a relationship."

"How long?" Gray asked.

"I dunno," Natsu shrugged, "four, five months maybe."

Wendy blinked, dumbfounded at the reveal. She had been wracked with so much guilt, thinking that she had ruined the surprise so early on in their relationship, when in fact they had already been together for nearly half a year.

"So you’ve been dating for four or five months, and you didn’t think to tell any of us?" Gray followed up.

"We thought about it, but it just never felt like the right time," Lucy admitted.

"Good grief," Carla sighed. "Do you two know how much pressure poor Wendy has been under to keep your secret all this time?"

"Well, she only found out two days ago," Happy revealed.

The rest of them glanced over at Wendy, who sheepishly shrunk under their gaze, a little embarrassed by the revelation of just how little it had taken for her to blow the secret.

"Um… yes that’s true…" she mumbled. "Sorry… I didn’t mean to tell anyone…"

"Erm… congratulations, I suppose," Erza offered, not exactly sure how to respond to the awkward situation they had gotten themselves into.

"You know you’ve cuffed yourself with a moron, right Lucy?" Gray asked, not giving up an opportunity to take a jab at Natsu.

"Hey! How ‘bout you say that to my face!" Natsu yelled at him, suddenly forgetting any of what had just occurred, much more occupied with defending his pride.

"I will! You’re a goddamned moron!" Gray retorted.

Wendy took the distraction to shoot Lucy an apologetic look, to which she was met with a gentle one of her own, harbouring no contempt or ill-will towards her even after spilling their secret.

"Idiots, the lot of them," Carla sighed, interrupting their moment and bringing their attention back to the two boys, who were currently rubbing their heads from where Erza had smashed them together.

Wendy had anticipated the walk back to the guild to be more tense than it was, considering what she had done before the train ride back, but it seemed everyone had moved past it rather quickly.

Well, everyone but her.

"Everything okay, Wendy?" Lucy asked, noticing the way her gaze seemed to be cast to the ground.

"I um… I thought you guys would be more upset," Wendy revealed, "you know… with me."

"Why would we be upset?" she replied.

"Because you said you trusted me, and I broke my promise…" Wendy murmured.

"Ya can’t always keep every promise you make," Natsu shrugged, "‘sides, it’s not the worst promise you could have broken."

"So you’re not mad?"

"Of course we’re not mad," Lucy assured. "I’m not even sure we would have mentioned it if you hadn’t brought it up."

"Are you… going to tell the rest of the guild?" Wendy asked, uncertain if she was going to be able to keep it from that many people.

"Maybe," Natsu shrugged.

"Do you think you’ll be okay to keep it within our team, just for a little longer?" Lucy asked.

"I will… I will do my best!" Wendy assured, trying to gain back their confidence and trust by overcompensating in her own self confidence.

"We’re back!" Natsu loudly declared as they made it back through the guild doors.

"How did it go?" Mira asked, pulling out glasses for the returning guild members. "Do we need to file for any damages this time?" She teased.

"Not this time, thankfully," Lucy replied, before Natsu took his chance to jump in and tell everyone the contents of their latest mission.

"We fought a group of like fifty bandits," he exaggerated, which was met with an eyeroll from Lucy as she sipped on the drink Mira had passed over to her. "The guys tried to catch us off guard, but I caught ‘em before they could get the jump on us, one of them tried to stab me in the head, Lucy and I are dating, and we got the full reward."

Wendy choked on her drink slightly, head whipping back around to where Natsu had been relaying the story of their job to see if she had heard him right, and based on the gobsmacked faces of everyone around them, she could only assume she had.

"I’m sorry, what was that middle part?" Mira asked, caught off guard by the sudden announcement.

"One of them tried to stab me in the head," he repeated, gesturing towards the superficial wound that Wendy had stitched up after the fight.

"Natsu and I are dating," Lucy clarified for him.

"See! I told you!" Cana cackled in delight. "I knew they were sleeping together! Now hand it over, bitches!" She declared, holding out an open palm to a sulking Macao and Wakaba.

"I just thought after the grand magic games that they’d never figure it out," Wakaba grumbled as he and Macao dropped a handful of jewel in her hand.

"Well, that’s great!" Mira declared, hands clasped in front of her in excitement. "I’m so happy for you two!"

It didn’t take much for the guild to burst into raucous celebration, whether for the happy couple or merely for the sake of partying, Wendy wasn’t quite sure, but what she was sure of was the weight that had been lifted off of her back.

It wasn’t long until Lucy had found a seat next to Wendy, offering her a kind smile amidst the chaos.

"You didn’t do this because of me, did you?" Wendy asked, feeling a little bad that she might have been the reason they had finally broken the news just days after she had told her why they were keeping it quiet.

"Yes and no," Lucy replied. "We didn’t want to have to keep that pressure on you, but you also made us realise that everyone else deserved to know."

"I understand," Wendy replied. "I… wasn’t sure how long I would have been able to keep it anyway…" she confessed.

"I know," Lucy admitted, "Happy told us you were struggling from the very start."

Wendy merely let out a nervous laugh, feeling a little bit awkward that Happy had revealed just how terrible she was at keeping secrets.

"That’s okay," Lucy hummed before letting them fall into a comfortable silence as they watched the celebration unfold into a classic Fairy Tail brawl right in front of their eyes. "I think your timing was just right," she said, turning her attention back to Wendy. "I was scared that things might change if everyone knew, but you showed me that maybe that doesn’t have to be a bad thing."

"I’m happy I could help then, even if I didn’t do a very good job of keeping my promise."

Perhaps she had fumbled the ball, but it seemed as though everything had worked out for the best in the end. She hardly had any more time to talk to her about it before Lucy was taken from her side and swept straight off of her feet by Natsu, who pulled her into the first of many kisses, to take place right in the middle of the guild hall.

#fairy tail #nalu #wendy marvell #lucy heartfilia #natsu dragneel #happy ft #fanfiction #fan fiction #mya writes things

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loloschive · 3 months

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╰┈➤ ❝ is she the girl from the video?❞

0.1 THE LIVE

wc: 2.03k

JUNE 13TH, 2020. 09:34PM

BENEATH THE SOFT GLOW OF AMBIENT LIGHTING, the dance studio floor becomes a canvas of motion— a sleek, polished hardwood masterpiece eagerly awaiting the poetry of footwork. it’s more than just wood; it’s the silent partner in a dance romance.

and in whitney joy’s case, it led to a breakup. A terrible breakup. for she was, so fucking tired of dancing for the day.

“you did well.”

her instructor approached her with a satisfied smile and a bottle of water, which in whitney’s eyes looked as if she was extending a lifeline to quench her thirst. the studio, now a sanctuary of tranquility, resonated with a sense of renewal as the refreshing ambiance envelops both the exhausted dancer and the departing echoes of her peers.

in the gentle aftermath of an electrifying performance, whitney catches her breath, each inhale a rhythmic echo of the steps she just executed. calming her heart, she gracefully retrieves her scattered belongings, the soft glow of the studio lighting casting a subtle radiance on the remnants of her artistry. the dance shoes, now in her hands, murmur the tale of the choreography.

with a determined gaze, she departs the studio, the click of the closing door harmonizing with the fading echoes of mats being rolled up—a seamless transition from the dance floor to the outside world, carrying the essence of her performance.

“ah” the girl looked ahead and there stood her head body guard jeremiah.

“sorry to keep you waiting jer”

the man only let out a small chuckle, opening the car’s side door for the girl “it’s alright hun, don’t worry bout me. everything alright in the studio tonight?”

the girl smiled fondly, recounting all she’s accomplished tonight. “yea,” pausing to take a sip of water , ”u remember that part in virgo’s groove? (yes, that virgo’s groove) i finally figured out the direction i wanted to take. god, when concerts are resumed, i’m gonna be so stoked to perform that”

jeremiah smiled proudly at the girl- no- young woman as she continued to give a play-by-play at how her practice went; whether it was describing the stage lights they chose, or the new dancers who joined, even down to the panelling in the floor being replaced.

they spoke in delicate murmurs as the car drove through the illuminated streets of los angeles, the city lights casting a vibrant glow on the bustling boulevards. the palm trees lining the roads sway gently in the warm night breeze, while the distant murmur of the city’s nightlife adds a rhythmic soundtrack to the journey.

about ten minutes later, they arrived at her complex. jeremiah exited the car first, doing a thorough sweep around the exterior, checking for any hidden cameras, misplaced items, or visitors. once deeming it safe to enter, he returned to her side of the car and opened it. leading her to the door, she gave the man a quick hug and a wave goodbye, and entered the condo.

the tired girl wearily locked the door, the weight of the day still lingering. in the soft glow of the hallway light, a pair of luminous eyes peer from a cozy corner.

the cat, sensing its owner’s arrival, gracefully stretches and pads over with an air of deliberate nonchalance.

the owner, feeling the gentle nudge against her leg, looks down with a faint smile. “hey there, cutie” she says, crouching down to greet the feline friend. the cat, tail held high in contentment, responds with a soft purr and s delicate head-butt against the owner’s hand.

as the owner sinks into the couch, the cat jumps up, claiming it’s favorite spot on their lap. “missed you too, hun.” suddenly, she felt vibrations on her stomach, that definitely weren’t coming from her feline. “andd i stink, and i’m hungry. so lets go take care of that first, alright?”

carrying the cat like a swaddled baby, the girl walked upstairs, carefully watching her step to ensure she didn’t fall. the girl collected her necessities for a shower, taking out her phone to queue up some music. 10:05pm.

hmm, still pretty early. she thought.

“hey, you think i should go live, bee?”

the feline—bee— only responded with a meow.

JUNE 13TH, 2020. 10:42PM

“hello my honeys! how are you all?”

the young star smiled gleefully as she watched the numbers rise and the abundance of hearts appear on her screen.

“as far as i go”-she grabs her phone, panning the camera to her waist to show her attire- “i got out of my dance practice about an hour ago, took a shower and decided i’d chat with you guys and answer some questions while i eat”

“oh! and before i forget,” the star cleared her throat, “today i’m eating an acaí bowl. you guys suggested that i try it the next time i came to L.A. my manager went out this morning and put it in my fridge, isn’t she the sweetest? also, the colors are so pretty” she put her container up to the camera, rotating it while making “ooh, ahh” noises. snorting, she put it back down on the table.

“alright, enough of that and time for your questions!”

“will we be getting a dance cover anytime soon?”

“ah, that’s a good one. as y’all know, my last dance cover was almost a year ago. honestly, it all had to do with me not being satisfied with the material out on the market. it just wasn’t what i was motivated to dance to.”

“but,” she paused ,” i will say, a song came out 4 months ago that spoke to me. and i just-so-happened to use it during my session today. completely enjoying it.”

tiny7forlife: OMG

winniestan23: IS SHE FR

not.thepooh: YALL WE MADE IT OUT THE TRENCHES A COVER IS COMING

lowkhater08: WHAT SONG?? WHO WAS IT??

“i can’t tell yall the song or the person, that would ruin it… buuuuttt i can give some hints”

whitneycoutoure: this bitch think we’re dora the explorer or sumn shit

hbicwhit: girl do we look like sherlock???

DDGisahoe: doing all of this extra shi when she could’ve just told us SMH

never.that: yall ungrateful as hell yk she gotta be extra!!

iluvwhit: here she goes w/ a damn speech

she rolled her eyes at her fans. they could be so sassy. “anywho. i’ll describe it.”

“first of all, i wanna start out by saying the entire album was amazing. seriously. i truly feel like this artist is constantly evolving. normally, when you’re in the game for as long as they are, you start to slack off. you’re not as experimental anymore. you get comfortable. and although there’s nothing wrong with that— it just gets boring as a listener.

ngl, when you guys find out what song it is, you’ll think I’m ridiculous for having this reaction to it. but honestly, when i first heard it i cried.

‘how did she cry to a song like this? it’s a sexy song thats perfect for grinding, she’s so sensitive’ well, it’s a simple reason— i empathized with the artist.”

“as y’all know, i was thrust into the entertainment industry at a young age. luckily, i had parents who were very involved and wanted to ensure both my well being and my safety. unfortunately though, i missed out on alot of things.

i feel excluded from my peers at home. even myung-hee & cleo. they experienced things that i didn’t get to. i’ve never been to an amusement park without cameras following me. i haven’t had late night ice cream with friends without the promise of collecting content. it becomes so unbearable that you can’t live life without it translating into money.

“in this particular song, the artist expresses satisfaction of their achievements, while listing the differences between them and their friends. a very guilty, almost shameful tone, takes over the first and second chorus.

i also view it as them showing just how valuable time is, and that they understand that the time in their youth was basically lost. because they spent that time working towards where they’re at now, instead of living how their peers would at that age. that last bit is just how i interpret it.

the second verse, is about how they still feel as though they’re a child. because they haven’t completed the full “simulation” if ya will. they question, that even through the success, if they’re doing things right. just general anxieties about life and their career.

the bridge, is basically where they make the decision that from here on out, they will change. and the third and final chorus, is where it truly struck me yall. because the tone, the overall mood changed to hopeful and determined. they changed the “ i can’t” to “i will”

as you guys know, i’ve been on this self discovery journey this past year. one of the goals i wrote down was to live for myself, and essentially take back my own life. so, you can understand why i broke down like an idiot in my bathroom after hearing this. it also didn’t help that i had the shower running, so the steam just worsened my headache, but alright”

“since you guys like to snitch on me” she playfully cocked an eyebrow, staring down at her phone “ i’ll just say this ahead of time so the artist can understand what i’m saying”

“thank you for capturing the confusion young stars have. we’re put in a situation where we’re forced to grow up with adults that we essentially, have to leave our peers behind. many say ‘oh you’re young and successful, it shouldn’t matter’ but it matters now that you’re unable to do those things in peace. i’m never not thankful for where i’m at in life— i don’t have to worry about bills, student debt, what i’m gonna eat and where i’m gonna stay. but damn, do i wish i my shot at childhood once again” [spoken in korean]

liarx3: WTF

beebeestan:SHE SPEAKS KOREAN??

number1honey: yall fake as hell if u didn’t alr know that ngl😭😭

looking at the chat, she smiled. “well, you guys have probably figured who i’m referring to, but if not you’ll find out either via twitter or whenever i post the cover!!”

“i’m gonna call it a night on live, i’ll see you guys when i do, alright?”

after bidding her fans a heartfelt farewell to the livestream, the young celebrity, bathed in the soft glow of her room, ends the broadcast with a genuine smile. as she tapped the screen to conclude the virtual interaction, a sense of contentment and exhaustion finally settles in.

as she makes her way to her bed, the phone in hand vibrates incessantly with notifications - a testament to the fervor of her dedicated fans.

upon reaching the bedside table, whitney places the phone down, its screen lighting up with a dazzling array of messages, likes, and emojis. the room is filled with a soft hum of admiration as the celebrity, now clad in comfortable sleepwear, slides under the covers.

as she lies her head on the pillow, the phone continues to buzz, a symphony of digital appreciation. with a fond smile, the celebrity glances on last time at the glowing device before succumbing to the quietude of the night, leaving her fans enthusiastic expressions to serenade the room.

A/N:

hope you all enjoyed it! this has been sitting on my mind ever since golden was released, and i’m glad i’ve finally just said f it and did it!!

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knickynoo · 8 months

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Back to the Future: The Animated Series, s02ep04 “Marty McFly PFC” Review and Commentary

Previous episodes linked here.

In this episode: Lots of jitterbugging, Marty accidentally joins the military, and using German words is strictly verboten.

Another green screen opening! Our good friend Doc is in the 1940s, where he's entered a jitterbug dance contest. He's having a blast watching the other competitors.

A few things here...

There was a missed opportunity to have Doc's contestant number be 88.

Also, you can't just drop information about Doc apparently being able to jitterbug well enough to enter a contest and then NOT show him dancing. This is Doc Lore that shouldn't just be glossed over! The man can jitterbug??! Show. Us.

Why did this form of dance ever go out of style? I LOVE swing dancing. We should still be doing this.

Doc leads us into the cartoon by reminiscing about the time that Verne, who was taking dance lessons, accidentally entered a jitterbug contest as well in 1944.

We begin at the Hill Valley Dance Academy, where we quickly learn that Verne is not a very good dancer. He's attempting to waltz with his partner, but keeps stepping on her feet and messing up the footwork. His teacher is quite displeased with his lack of progress over the previous three weeks.

Look at Vernie with his slicked back hair and fancy little outfit. Adorable.

After a terrible class, Verne goes home to beg Clara to let him quit. She tells him that it's important to finish what you start. Also! We've got a new and improved Clara this season! First of all, her character design is much better—her features aren't quite as wonky as they were at the start of season one—and she's got some new clothes! It seems that Clara has been adjusting well to living in the early 1990s.

I love that we never see Clara not wearing purple. The girl knows what she likes and sticks to it.

After realizing he isn't getting anywhere with trying to convince his mother, Verne goes to Doc to vent about his dance woes. Doc says that he, too, took dance lessons as a kid, and that it was, "a humiliating experience."

To help Verne out, Doc digs through a trunk for an old invention: a pair of boots that are programmed to help the wearer perform certain dances. Unfortunately, as with most of Cartoon Doc's inventions, they malfunction pretty much right away, making him dance too quickly before spinning him out of control and then exploding.

Doc searches for the blueprints to repair them, but he can't find it anywhere in his files. Using a different invention to help jog his memory, Doc has a "flashback" to where he had stored the original blueprints.

We learn that Doc lived in a small apartment above a gas station in 1944, and he tells Verne a bit about World War II and all the fear and uncertainty of the time. He recalls hiding the blueprints under some clothes in a drawer just before the siren announcing a blackout sounded. This is 1944 Doc, by the way.

Not sure why he has such dark hair. There was that episode last season where we met him as a four-year-old, and he had very light blond hair. By 1955, his hair is still a light blond, heading toward white. Did he dye his hair at some point? Hmm.

Anyway, Doc goes on to tell Verne that the dresser holding the blueprints was lost the next year in a fire. Verne suggests they just take a quick trip back to 1944 to nab the blueprints, but Doc doesn't want to take the risk of running into his past self. Verne is not pleased.

We cut scene to Marty, who is rummaging through the Browns' fridge like a starving man since he apparently doesn't have a family of his own to feed him. Verne promises to buy Marty a big, greasy burger if he'll go on an "errand" with him. This is enough to get Marty to agree, and he and Verne set off for 1944. And this right here is another major difference between Movie Marty and Cartoon Marty. Movie Marty wouldn't be swayed by the promise of food. That kid doesn't even need food. He'll go through all sorts of exciting and nightmarish adventures on a completely empty tank—no food, no water, no sleep. He's just built different.

After arriving, our little Chaos Duo partake in some breaking and entering and find the blueprints.

Just when it looks like their errand is already done and they're in the clear, Marty and Verne are stopped by a Blackout Warden, who questions them on why they had lights on in the apartment during a scheduled blackout. Were they trying to signal enemy planes?

The warden then finds the DeLorean, which he assumes is some type of advanced weapon. He goes to inform the military while Marty and Verne take off running. The two hide out in some bushes overnight in a victory garden, and are found in the morning by a girl named Rosie and her little sister, Dorothy.

We then meet Sergeant Frank Tannen, who obviously has a thing for Rosie and, in typical Tannen fashion, starts being much too forward and handsy with her. Marty intervenes, and Frank chases them for a while before they manage to get the upper hand.

But if you think that this is the end of the trouble for Marty and Vernie, you're wrong. The warden shows up then, announcing that he's placing the both of them under citizen's arrest. They take off running again, with both Frank and the warden in pursuit.

Verne, who is smart, takes cover in a movie theater. Marty, who is a doofus on a good day, runs straight into a recruiting center. For some reason, he thinks it's a restaurant?? And when he asks if people are on line for food, the guy in front of him says they'll get three square meals a day. Marty, who is still very hungry, is thrilled and asks what he has to do to get some food. He's told to sign a form, which he immediately does.

Marty has accidentally joined the Army.

This all could have been avoided if he'd been able to find some food in the fridge earlier. Or even if he'd had a granola bar stashed away in his pocket or in the car.

After learning of Marty's predicament, Verne starts trying to figure out how to rescue him. While he's out in town, he runs into Rosie and Dorothy, who ask him if he'd like to come to their house for a Salisbury steak. "Nah, but a hamburger would be great!" Verne replies, promptly getting a hand clamped over his mouth by Rosie. He's informed that he shouldn't say "The H-word," or people might think he's a Nazi spy.

At their house, Dorothy asks Verne to stick around and be her partner for the jitterbug contest (if you hadn't guessed, Dorothy is Verne's dance teacher as a little girl). Verne says he can't possibly hang around; he's got to save Marty.

"You kidding?" Rosie replies. "The Army will make a man out of him."

Immediate cut to this scene:

Poor guy.

Returning to the "H-word" scene for a moment, I'd like to point out that in the initial scene with Frank Tannen, he keeps using German phrases and catching himself. He calls Marty and Verne "wisenheimers" (great word that isn't used nearly enough, by the way. It means a smart-aleck/wise-guy), as well as "dummkopfs."

If people aren't supposed to be using German words, Sergeant Tannen isn't doing a very good job. Maybe...he's a spy!!

(side-note: I don't know for sure, but I'd assume Frank is Biff's uncle? Maybe he's Irving "Kid" Tannen's brother?)

Okay, back to Marty. He's—

Wait, wrong piece of media.

After eating some very questionable food in the mess hall, Marty is rescued by Verne, who is dressed as a medic.

They run off to the town square, where the dance contest is being held. Frank and the warden from earlier are both there searching for Marty and Verne. Marty dons a wig and poses as one of the "Anderson sisters" up on the stage, while Verne goes with Dorothy to dance. Using the power of swing-dancing, Verne and Dorothy basically beat up Frank and the warden. Verne also discovers that he really likes to dance!

The pair win first place in the contest, and Marty and Verne then steal the DeLorean back from the men who were guarding it and return home.

After seeing the blueprints, Doc says he doesn't approve of the trip to the past, but it's okay as long as they didn't interact with anyone or interfere with anything. Verne and Marty trade mischievous smiles, then Verne runs off to his dance class.

We return to Real Doc, who leads us into a fascinating lesson about center of mass, and shows us a very interesting experiment demonstrating how men and women have different centers of mass (due to the way a woman's hips are positioned), thus allowing women to easily perform a maneuver that involves taking a certain number of steps back, leaning forward with the top of your head against a wall, picking up a chair, and standing straight up—something the majority of men apparently can't do. Here are gifs of a woman (in a spectacularly 90s outfit) and Bill Nye demonstrating.

I actually was so interested in this that I searched up several videos of people doing it on youtube. All the women could do it easily, but only one guy could, lol.

Looks like a fun game to play at a party or family get-together!

This was an enjoyable episode. Lots of silly Marty and Verne shenanigans. I would like to start seeing more of Clara and Jules, though. They're not utilized nearly enough in this cartoon. I think that's because they both have too much common sense, so it's easier to leave them out of the picture and let Doc, Verne, and Marty run wild.

Join me next time to see Marty and Verne throw caution to the wind and let Verne's friend in on the secret of time travel.

#back to the future #bttf: the animated series

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a-ladyman-in-waiting · 5 days

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Randos on the street

A little prompt.

In a time that Madeline’s image has started to circulate around the web, people started looking for answers.

Although, the Dragonkin to be is certainly unhappy with the amount of eyes prying outside their windows and on top of rooftops.

Especially after the ruckus two days ago…

—

Brendon (daytime form) was in a rush to catch the train to get home quickly for personal reasons.

Running through the crowds, he accidentally bumped into a woman carrying groceries.

“Sorry!” He exclaimed while looking back, doing his best to avoid anyone else.

As he ran up the stairs, he overheard curse words and perhaps a slur in his direction. As much as it frightened him, he continued to run through the turn-tables with the swift train card access.

And then he scampered to the platform, ready to board the train.

But it didn’t arrive yet.

In fact, he walked around the platform to look for the next scheduled train, only to find that it would be 5 more minutes.

He looked around again, anxious to see if anyone had followed him.

Just then, he caught the glimpse of the same woman that he bumped into earlier, accompanied by a large man.

Thanks to his enhanced vision, he could see the scowl on his face.

Brendon began to hide behind the stairs.

Fearing the worst, he used an ability to pinpoint the soul of the angry man to avoid a confrontation.

But as he thought the worst, he accidentally bumped into another person.

As he turned to apologize, they immediately shouted, “WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING?”

“FUCKING [BEEP] ALWAYS FUCKING BUMPING INTO ME.”

An angry woman started berating Brendon, terrifying him inside.

All that Brendon wanted to do is just slowly back away, so they took slow subtle steps as the woman continued berating him.

Suddenly, Brendon felt the aura of the angry man.

He was close behind him.

With only a few seconds to react, he did what he could only do:

He made an illusion of himself while disappearing simultaneously.

He quickly sneaked around the staircase using his quiet footwork.

He went up the stairs to ran across the station the other staircase, where he entered the train from there.

After that, he tried listening to music to calm himself down, all the while shaking.

—

Brendon, now as Madeline, was still shaken up from the whole thing.

So they stayed in their room for an hour before deciding to fly out for the night.

Once the clock struck 1 AM, they leapt out of the window and flew around the city to joyride around the skyscrapers.

Madeline took a long dive to gain speed, where they loop-de-looped, they barrel rolled, and they flew upside down for a brief moment.

Until it was time to take a small cruise towards a rooftop to have lunch, they packed a sandwich, a bag of chips and a bottle of soda in a pocket dimension earlier.

After some time had passed, they slowed down and perched on a ledge, placing Light Discs under their feet once they sat down.

Now it was time to prepare their lunch experience;

They pulled their meal from the pocket dimension, gave their prayers, then dug in to the California Chicken sandwich. Then they took a swig of their soda and opened their small bag of Dorito chips, just before they begin enjoying the view.

It didn’t take long for Madeline to disassociate from her surroundings, their legs bouncing around, their tail wagging around, and her mind drifting around the clouds.

It was a good time.

—

Several minutes had gone by when they started eating and they were in the middle of an imaginary scenario.

However, a familiar looking figure had begun to walk up the staircase, angrily muttering to themselves.

“Dumbass internet, breaking every goddamn time.”

Then as they stormed to the top of the staircase and opened the door, she spotted Madeline, who jolted and looked back.

Madeline’s heart sank, it was the woman from 2 days ago. The angry one that she bumped into, when she locked eyes with him.

They both locked eyes again, the terrible habit that often got Brendon into a trouble.

“Oh my god, there’s a crazy ass bitch sitting on the rooftop. They have a fuckin costume and everything.”

Madeline began to shove the sandwich into her mouth, placing the trash into the plastic bag with the bag of chips and the soda.

“Hey, HEY! Who said you could leave?”

The woman pulled out her smartphone to record Madeline and started running.

Madeline shoved the bag into the pocked dimension and prepared to jump.

”Oh no you don’t!!”

The woman had ran halfway into the rooftop when Madeline leapt from the ledge and spread her wings.

She managed to capture Madeline gliding around the streets before flying back up a few stories.

“Holy fuck, I just found the crazy ass girl flying around the city.”

She stopped recording and went to fix their internet.

—

Madeline, shaken up even more, took solace in the Lake of Tears, where they cried.

to be continued.

#story stuff #short story #story fiction #madeline rivera oc #dragon girl

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muses-of-ideen · 11 months

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@aresite Continued from here

Kayla nearly fell over backward trying to avoid the person who almost barrelled into her. She blinked several times before recognizing it was Erya, but the sounds of an angry pursuer took a bit longer to process. Long enough, in fact, that by the time she understood what was going on, she’d already been dragged halfway down the street.

“Huh?! What?! Huh?!?!” Kayla stared at the bouncing purse for several moments before her brain finally pieced together what was going on. She gave a wry chuckle as the pieces fell into place. “Yeah, sure,” she replied with a grin. “I’ve got a bit of a headstart today anyways. I should be good for a drink.” Kayla was terribly clumsy footwork-wise though. Running was not her strong suit, let alone dancing. Part of being part-fish. “In return, I’ll see what I can do about your tail.” As they walked, Kayla lightly sang a song- a song to hide, a song to conceal, a song to make the stones, brick, and wood think of them as their own, and her necklace pulsated to the beat, forcing the world around them to resonate with her tune. It probably wasn’t perfect, but it’d buy them a couple minutes at the very least.

#aresite #Kayla Psirena #{Erya}#Time Waits 004 || Not All is Resolved {The Happy Days}

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highfunctioningflailgirl · 2 years

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Worth The Wound

Robin’s hands shake as she rips Strike`s shirt open. The wound in his chest is deep and making slurping noises with each inhale and exhale. It almost makes Robin’s stomach turn, but she swallows the bile and her fear and uses her bare hands to cover and seal the wound.

“Bloody f-... that hurts,” Strike gasps, his voice a stuttering wheeze now.

“I’m sorry,” she tells him, grimacing at his pain.

Where is the bloody ambulance?!

She can tell that his lung’s been punctured. After all, this isn’t the first time they’ve ended up like this - Strike in a blood-soaked shirt, struggling for air, and Robin trying to keep him from suffocating. They really should stop ending up like this: one of these days they will run out of luck and Strike truly out of breath, or Robin won’t be there to shout at him to “stay awake, they’re almost here!”

But they seem to have a knack for this: after a plethora of boring surveillance cases, of footwork and endless interviews, whenever detective work seems to grind towards a standstill or at least a never-ending groundhog day routine, drama has a way of shaking them loose - with a life-threatening grin on its face.

It’s frightening. It’s thrilling. Today, it is more than she signed up for, and a fresh adrenaline rush is flooding her, making her hands tremble as she keeps pressure on Cormoran’s wound.

He groans wretchedly.

“I’m so sorry,” she repeats, her eyes still dry, although she knows the tears will come, later, when Strike is safe and recovering in a hospital bed, when the adrenaline has ebbed and left her with a bottom-deep let-down.

Is it worth it?

Robin looks at her partner. At her best friend. At the man she tries so hard not to love but cannot help it. Nothing makes her feel more alive than solving cases with him. Nothing makes her more confident. Nothing is better than those late nights at the office, his not-so-secret admiring looks on her, their whiskey glasses clinking, that feeling of congruence and contentedness when closing a file together for good.

Strike looks back at her now, eyes gleaming with pain, his chest heaving, but beside the shock and the fear she sees trust and bravery and a lifeline he holds onto; something that doesn’t tear between them even on the most terrible days. And she sees pride.

“You did… good, Robin,” he manages, gulping for air.

And she did. They solved this case together, but Robin had figured it out this time, saved a young woman and - she chooses to believe so while she hears the wail of an ambulance approach - her partner’s life.

It’s worth it.

“You can tell me again later,” she reprimands him, gently. “In hospital. When you complain about me not smuggling burgers into your room.”

Strike weakly lifts his eyebrows.

“I’m not…getting.. burgers?” he rasps.

“Not until you promise not to get stabbed anymore,” Robin replies, buoyed by the sound of firm footsteps entering the house. The ambulance crew has arrived.

“Too bad,” Strike wheezes, the blood on his teeth belying his bravado. “Since it’s… so much fun.”

Robin doesn’t know whether to laugh or cry when a paramedic kneels down beside her and gently pushes her out of the way.

Also on AO3, if you prefer:

#whumptober2022 #no.7 #the way you shake and shiver #shaking hands #cormoran strike #fanfic #robin ellacott #blood tw

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auroracalisto · 2 years

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don't let them see you cry chapter seven, no right to love you | previous chapter — the handler—the very reason for your personal slice of hell. haunting your every move… in your sleep, during the slow hours of the day. the swedish brothers—should have been strangers who show up and show you that you are more than what she told you. you are more than your mind allows you to believe. and you—the very person who will end the misery that plagues your mind. word count: 3k words tw: handler being a shit person, mentions of alcohol/alcohol use, mentions of abuse, inner turmoil, fear of death/being killed but only momentarily a/n: it's been a rough couple of days. so i wrote this instead of sleeping and questioned a lot of life choices. here’s the link to the story on ao3. toodles.

Quiet and guilt-ridden days passed by—something you were all too familiar with. Careful glances and nervous footwork became the norm, once again, as you tried your hardest to keep the calm in your crowded household.

The Swedes left you on your own for a few days.

Axel ordered them to stay away, at least until you chose to come forth with some kind of proof that you weren’t working with your mother. Regret festered within him, and yet, he didn't back off on his order—if he did, his brothers would never let him hear the end of it. Oscar, annoyed as he was, did as he was told. He didn’t want to give his brother another reason to be mad at the world, even if he was itching to talk to you. He found himself waiting for you to say something, anything—but you stuck by what Axel had said. He admired your dedication. Otto, on the other hand, didn’t let anyone know how he was feeling—his brothers were used to his perpetual silence, so it came as no surprise that he said nothing to you. He often said little, to begin with, unless of course, his brothers were driving him crazy with their flinty jabs and bickering.

The air was tense—it seeped into your daily lives, keeping each one of you on edge.

You couldn’t help but fear that one wrong comment, one wrong move would send Axel reeling, prepared to end you where you stood. But you let your care for this man overpower that. You knew he would come around, eventually. All you had to do was prove it.

But could you?

How would you even go about doing that?

Your memories still haunt your dreams, but less so as you tried to figure out how to prove it to them. You stayed up at night, far longer than you were used to. You always woke restless, wishing sleep would keep you under for more than a couple of hours.

However, having those dreams—those memories that showed themselves to you in the late hours of the night—it might have been the very thing that could potentially point you in the right direction. You hoped that in those restless hours of sleep, something would come to you. Anything, no matter how small.

You were grateful for the time they gave you. You knew that it had to be difficult for them just to accept your truth, especially something so… well, alarming.

And then finally, three days later, the time came when Axel wanted an answer. He was tired of waiting, and the Handler, if she truly was your mother, must have been planning something terrible. It wouldn’t have surprised him. Axel wouldn't put it past the Handler to have something nefarious up her tacky designer sleeves.

Axel’s eyes were trained on you, and you were sure the other two were watching you just as intently. Who could blame them? You had dropped a live bomb like that on them, and they’d been living in the same house as you for a while now. For days, you had been silent, letting that fuse slowly burn up until the point it threatened to blow. They had every right to be angry—on edge.

An ultimate betrayal is perhaps a better way to describe the bomb you left resting in their laps, the match that lit it long since dwindling in the palm of your hands.

They deserved an answer.

You cleared your throat and averted your gaze from the brothers, sitting on the couch nervously. A worn box sat on the coffee table, waiting to be opened by its owner.

A truth—some kind of truth was hidden inside. Maybe not what they were looking for, but one you were prepared to give.

“I have pictures,” you said, rubbing the back of your neck as you spoke, fingers gently brushing against scars of old.

“You have pictures?” Axel questioned, quirking an eyebrow. He sat across from you on the loveseat, looking as enigmatic as ever. He would never admit it, but anxiety burned through him like a rich vodka; it wouldn't be leaving him any time soon, regardless of how much time he gave it.

“What is a picture going to do?” Oscar groaned, letting his head fall back on the sofa. He knew exactly how his brother was. It would never be enough.

“Lila… Lila snuck some in my things when mother wasn’t looking,” you replied, opening the box and pulling out a photo. “Before she left me here.”

You were hesitant. If you showed this to them, would it be enough? Would you be out of the woods, allowed back into the walls they set up at the very mention of your horrid mother?

It was an old one of you, Lila, and your mother. But it was most definitely you. Smiles all around, and while they didn't quite meet your eyes, you looked happy. You were far from it, but on the outside, you learned to fake it.

Your hands trembled as you handed Axel the picture.

He took it between two fingers, eyes flashing to yours. He looked over it, pursing his lips.

“I want to see little y/n,” Oscar chirped from beside you on the sofa.

“Shut up,” Otto scolded, knowing his brother wasn’t taking this nearly as seriously as he needed to. But Otto couldn’t get past the fact that he was completely blindsided by your confession. He had always been pretty good at reading people, language barriers be damned. He never saw it coming, but maybe that was just a testament to how he felt about you. How they each felt about you.

He leaned back in the armchair, feeling much smaller in that very moment than he had in some time. Axel was truly making him nervous. It wasn’t always like Axel to not be definitive in his decisions—giving you this much time to stew over your answer was astounding.

Had you captured his brother’s barricaded heart?

Axel’s voice drew his attention back to the problem at hand, his thoughts coming to an abrupt stop.

“It’s her,” Axel said, peering over the photo to look at his brothers. “But how do we know she’s not here as a pawn?”

“A pawn?” Oscar scoffed. “Right. Very likely, Axel.”

“Oscar, for fucks sake, ” Axel growled. He didn’t want it to be true—but there was a possibility, and he wasn’t prepared to risk their lives for anyone. “The Handler has been sending us on a wild goose chase for weeks, and now her daughter, who we’ve been living with, who had a convenient ad in the damn newspaper, tells us this? Why wouldn’t this be another scheme the Handler has up her sleeve?”

“She hid it from us for so long,” Oscar bit back. “Why? If she didn’t want us to know, why tell us now?”

“How am I supposed to know?” Axel clenched his jaw.

“You seem to have all of the bright ideas,” Oscar said, crossing his arms over his chest, eyes focused on nothing other than his irksome brother. “What has she ever done to make you think this way? Y/n has done nothing.”

Axel glared, going to speak when Otto scowled at them to be quiet.

While they argued, you couldn’t help your tears from forming. You didn’t know what they were saying, but the way they were talking—you knew it couldn’t be anything good.

Axel was angry, and Oscar shot back nearly as soon as he spoke. Arguments never went well, and not knowing made it all the worse.

Everything inside of you was screaming that you were being ridiculous. It wouldn’t be the first time. But a small sliver said the opposite. The small sliver created enough doubt that your mouth moved far faster than your mind.

“Are you going to kill me?” you whispered, bottom lip trembling as you spoke.

Oscar fell silent, eyes wide as he looked in your direction. Shit.

“Kill you?” Otto admonished, heart lurching to his throat as he watched you. “No. No, we will not kill you.” He spoke quickly, afraid that if he didn’t, you’d believe the lie your mind created.

“Look at what you did,” Oscar said, eyes darting to his brother. Anger boiled within him. “You made her cry. What happened to wanting to look out for her?”

“Shut the fuck up. You are not helping anything, Oscar.”

“Oh, so we’re being that way, now, are we? How about you tell her what we’ve been sent here to do? I’m sure she’d love to know about our missions.”

“She has nothing to do with our missions!” Axel exclaimed, dropping the picture he still held on the coffee table in front of him.

Otto groaned. “Would both of you stop it? Neither of you are helping!”

You watched them, eyes flicking between each one as they spoke. Every single word pierced your heart like a sharp knife, but you weren’t quite sure what they were saying. You only assumed—and that right there might have been your downfall.

“I am sorry. They are stupid,” Otto said. “They do not speak of killing. Skithuvud.”

You tilted your head, confusion evident in your features.

Oscar snickered, knowing his brother wouldn’t say anything. “Bastard,” he said, before throwing a glare at Otto. “You’re the asshole, brother. You’re not helping at all, sitting there while Axel acts this way.”

Otto glared, falling silent once more, his jaw set and his teeth grinding.

“We will not kill you,” Axel said, drawing your attention to him. “But picture is not enough proof. You need to show us you do not work with her.”

“Why would I work with her? She’s the one who abandoned me here.”

“Not enough.”

Axel inwardly flinched, taking in a deep breath through his nose. Was he being too hard on you? Did he truly need to protect his siblings from the one person who made him feel like he was worth more than the Commission?

Otto shot a glare back at his brother (it seemed like the only thing that got through to him, recently), but Axel continued to look at you and only you. His eyes bore through you, peering into your very soul.

Thoughts ran a mile a minute in your head. How could you prove to Axel that you truly didn’t talk to your mother? There was obviously a sense of distrust between Axel and the Handler. Why else would he be so adamant about it?

You went to speak but stopped yourself, eyebrows furrowing.

The scars on your neck. Would they be enough? It had been some time. Hell, the only reason you didn’t end up with more was because of Lila stopping your mother’s fit of drunken rage.

You couldn’t have been more than seventeen. It was a moment when you realized your mother truly was evil—you might not have ever been able to leave her, but you knew it. She had hit you with a glass bottle with enough force that it broke, glass cutting into your skin on the back of your neck.

You couldn’t even remember what she was angry about. You knew that you had done something wrong—you always did. You stayed in trouble. But you never would have imagined your mother to do something so outrageous.

Even to this day, you didn’t understand why you continued to listen to the witch of the woman. You didn’t understand why the memories still haunted you.

But you did. And the memories still plagued your every move.

Axel watched you, becoming increasingly more fed up.

“Well?” he questioned. His jaw was as tight as ever.

You slowly blinked, hesitantly turning on the sofa so your body was more facing the cushions and Oscar.

“What are you doing?” Oscar sputtered, sitting up straight as he followed your every move.

You said nothing, flashing him a faint smile, languidly pulling your hair away from your neck.

Otto was the first to see the jagged scars—he cursed under his breath.

Oscar moved closer to you, heart plummeting to his stomach. Did she do that to you? How dare Axel make you show them something like this?

“How dare you,” he said, malice lacing his words. He couldn’t hate his brother—he wasn't capable of something like that. But this woman never did anything more than raise her voice at them if she needed them. She had done so much for them, more than anyone had ever done. And he goes and does this?

Axel was frozen, regret settling deep within his bones. Hesitation followed soon after. What would he say? To you? To the one person who made him question his life? It was far too soon for him to feel anything like this, and he truly never expected it to happen in a million years. And yet, here he was, tarnishing your honor as he drove question after question down your throat. You had him in a chokehold—had the man under lock and key, and you didn’t even know it. And here he was, dragging you back through every unwanted memory you ever had.

As you dropped your hair and turned to face him, he realized that his doubts were just that—doubts. Nothing more. You were exactly who you said you were.

“I would never work with my mother,” you said. “I would never work with the Handler.”

“I’m sorry,” Axel blurted.

You simply shrugged. It was your proof. He needed it. Your eyes fell upon his, nothing but compassion and understanding hiding behind your rough exterior. You knew your mother. You knew the effect she had on others.

“It’s not like you could have known. I… I get it,” you said, sitting on the edge of the sofa. “I promise.”

“No, I—” Axel stopped himself, his features hardening. He shook his head, abruptly standing and leaving the room right after.

Otto glanced between you and Oscar before he went to follow his brother, saying something in Swedish as he went.

Oscar was the brother who stayed with you, blue eyes tracing yours as he sighed.

“Axel is an ass.”

You shook your head. “He’s only looking out for you. I… was afraid for a second he was going to kill me, but… but I would have understood.”

Oscar tilted his head curiously, hanging onto your every word (even if it took him a moment to process it, at times).

“I tell you my mother’s the Handler and you’re not concerned? I would have been more surprised at that,” you admitted. “I… I don’t tell anyone. I’ve never told anyone. I wasn’t allowed.”

“Not allowed?”

And at that moment, you remembered. You knew exactly why she was angry.

You were right back there, with your seventeen-year-old self. Lila was pacing back at forth, looking at you every now and then. You had snuck out. You just wanted to see the stars—to feel the breeze. Perhaps you would contemplate your life as you looked up at the constellations, a hope that one of the shooting stars would grant your wish of getting you the hell out of there.

Your drunken mother had found you.

You wouldn’t try that again, for quite a few years. Not until the cafeteria. And then, not until the moment the Swedes nearly saw you.

You gained confidence every couple of years—a brazenness reserved for your mother, and your mother alone. But not the kind of confidence that would get you the hell out of dodge. Only the kind of confidence that would get you in trouble—a kind that would find a way to hurt you, no matter what.

Oscar sighed softly, gaining your attention once more. He didn't want to see that gloomy look on your face, any longer. He was allowed to talk to you once more without disgruntled and angry looks from his brother. He would most definitely be taking advantage of that.

“Come. Let’s bake. You have a new recipe, yes?” he said, unable to keep a grin from forming.

Your eyes widened a bit, a faint smile forming on your lips. “It’s another cookie recipe I found. Is that okay?”

Oscar shrugged, holding his hand out to you. "I don't mind."

“You can’t touch anything, okay?” you began, stressing each syllable as you spoke. “You added too much salt, last time.”

Oscar scoffed. “Mistake,” he said, shaking his head. “Won’t happen again.”

Without much hesitation, you reached out, taking his hand. You relished at the touch—his hands were soft and yet calloused from years of work. They were much larger than yours (and you couldn't help but wonder if it would be the same with his brothers).

Oscar led you to the kitchen, Otto and Axel nowhere to be seen. But for now, you were focused, with a new recipe to make (and a need to keep Oscar from touching anything he didn’t need to).

With the other two, Otto wasn't quite sure what to do.

He looked at his brother, who paced back and forth across the hardwood floor. Otto sat on the edge of the bed, frowning.

"You didn't know," Otto said. "None of us did."

"And yet I made her. I should have believed her. I had no reason to think she was lying." His voice was hushed and hurried, not wanting his worries to be carried through the hall.

"She said it was okay."

"But is it? Is it, Otto?"

Otto looked away, clearing his throat. "We know she isn't working with the Handler, now."

Axel squeezed his eyes shut, listening to the clanging sounds coming from the kitchen. Surely, you'd be more upset. You had thought he was prepared to kill you—as much as it pained him to say. Were you hiding how you truly felt?

There were many things he would never say out loud.

He would never tell the Handler off, even though his mind screamed at him to do so.

He would never tell his brothers when they wore something that looked absolutely ridiculous.

And he would never say that he knew he was falling in love with the very same person who continued to trust him, even when he couldn't trust you.

He wouldn't. Even if he was facing the barrel of a gun, and you were the one pulling the trigger.

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